A STRENUOUS NIGHT
Having once obtained Murley's consent I flew off and got officers and
men told off in reliefs, some to work on the loading up of the lighters,
others to go with the mules to the _Dundrennon_ and remain there to ship
and stow away each load as it came over during the night.
There were six lighters, and as soon as three were filled, Murley got
the little _Jessie_ hitched on and towed them off to the _Dundrennon_.
It was a joy to watch the masterly way in which he handled his tug and
manoeuvred the tow of lighters into the exact position where they were
required alongside the _Dundrennon_. Never did I see an error of
judgment made, and everything that Murley had to do went like clockwork.
He had a clear and pleasant word of command, which rang out like a bell,
and although he was "a hustler" his men never resented it; first of all,
because they knew he was top-hole at his job and, secondly, because he
was extraordinarily tactful. Tow after tow went back and forth
throughout the night--three full lighters to the _Dundrennon_ and three
empty ones back to the _Hymettus_--and didn't we just hustle those mules
into the boats, and didn't they kick and bite as they felt the slings go
round them to hoist them aloft! It would have taken us too long had we
only slung one mule at a time, so we hoisted them in couples! The
comical sight the brace of mules presented, as they were whipped off
their legs and swung up into the gloom, can well be imagined. They
kicked and plunged as they were passed over the side and lowered down
into the inky murkiness of the lighters, where they were caught and
secured at much risk by men waiting there for the purpose. Heaven only
knows how they escaped injury, for they had a very rough time of it
before they were comfortably stowed away in their new quarters on the
_Dundrennon_. I was quite prepared to hear of several casualties among
both men and mules, but the mule is a hardy beast, and the Zionist can
stand a lot of knocking about, and we had not a single man or animal
injured.
We were exceptionally fortunate in finding on board the _Dundrennon_
part of an Indian Mule Corps for service with the New Zealanders,
commanded by Captain Alexander, and I cannot be sufficiently grateful to
him for the way in which he set his men to work and helped us to put
away and tie up our equipment and mules.
I cannot say so much for the help given me by the Captain of the
_Dundrennon_, who was rather a rough customer, and curtly informed me
that he had orders to sail at five o'clock A. M. sharp, and that,
whether I was aboard or not, he meant to weigh anchor at that hour.
All night long we worked feverishly, slinging and unslinging with all
possible haste, and while I was using everybody up to breaking point in
my efforts to get through in time, Captain Edmunds, who was in charge of
the medical stores for the Australians and New Zealanders, came up to me
and told me of the hopeless plight in which he was placed. The Director
of Medical Services had ordered him to get himself, his men and his
stores as quickly as possible on board the _Anglo-Egyptian_, but here
again no means were supplied to enable the order to be carried out. "I
can hardly dare appeal to you," he continued, "to get me out of my
difficulties, for I can see that you will hardly get your own lot
transferred before five o'clock." I asked him if it was very necessary
that he should be put aboard, and he told me that, so far as he knew,
his were the only hospital stores available for the Australians and New
Zealanders.
This was a very grave matter, and although I was very loth to give up
all chance of completing the transfer of my own Corps within the time
limit, yet I felt that this was a case which, at all hazards to my own
fortunes, must be seen through, so that our gallant comrades from
Australia and New Zealand might not lack the medical necessities which I
knew would be required the moment they got into action.
I, therefore, turned my men on to loading up the hospital stores, and,
when all was ready, Murley towed us across to the _Anglo-Egyptian_,
where I eventually saw Captain Edmunds, his staff of R. A. M. C. men and
his stores safely on board.
Some months afterwards Gye received a letter from Captain Edmunds,
written from Anzac, in which he stated: "Remember me to Colonel
Patterson and tell him from me that being able to get those stores on to
the _Anglo-Egyptian_ averted what would have been an appalling calamity
from a medical point of view, as I do not know what this place would
have done without my stores the first two days."
So I think that Australia and New Zealand owe me one for the help I gave
them on that strenuous night of April 24th, when I was buried up to the
neck in work of my own. It was a great strain on my feelings of duty to
risk being left stuck on the mud, but I realised at the time that I was
doing not only what was right, but what was essential from a military
point of view; and when I read that letter from Edmunds, I felt very
glad that I had risen to the occasion and had put the needs of the
Australians and New Zealanders before my own.
By the time that the transfer was completed it was 3.30 A. M., and I
then knew that I could not possibly get the remainder of my Zionists,
mules, equipment and stores transferred to the _Dundrennon_ by the time
she was scheduled to sail. I, therefore, went to the Captain and laid my
case before him, pointing out that it was impossible to get everything
transferred in time and asking him would he delay sailing until we were
aboard. I have said that he was rather a rough type of man. Having been
for many years master of a tramp steamer, he had spent his life dealing
with rough men and doing rough work. I have, therefore, no doubt that he
thought he was answering me in quite a civil and polite way when he
told me he would see me damned before he delayed his ship five minutes.
I then asked my good friend the skipper of the _Jessie_ if he would run
me down to the staff ship, as I hoped to be able to get a written order
from somebody there, to the Captain of the _Dundrennon_, cancelling the
sailing at 5 A. M. until such time as I would have my unit complete on
board.
Off we sailed, threading our way in the dark through such of the few
warships and transport vessels as had not yet sailed, and just before
four o'clock I found myself knocking at the cabin door of a Naval
Officer. After rapping for some time, he called out "Come in," but the
door was locked, so he was obliged to get up to let me in, and I am not
surprised that his greeting to me was not exactly one of brotherly love.
When I told him of my position and asked him to give me an order
delaying the departure of the _Dundrennon_, he flatly refused to do it,
and said that the hours of departure of the ships were fixed and that he
was not the man to change the order: I would have to go to the Captain
of H. M. S. _Hussar_, who was the man actually responsible for the
sailings. I pointed out to him that by the time I reached the _Hussar_,
which was still further off, and got at the Captain, and then made my
way back to the _Dundrennon_, it would be long after five o'clock, and
there would be no _Dundrennon_ there, for the ship would have sailed! I
urged that in a special case of this kind I hoped he would over-rule the
Time-table. He was, however, most obdurate, and told me it was useless
for me to argue with him any longer. When I pointed out to him that I
had only received means of transferring my Corps late the previous
evening, and that we had been working all through the night, he snapped
at me and said, "Why do you make such a fuss about having worked all
through the night? That is nothing." I quietly told him that I had once
or twice in my life worked all night without making any fuss about it,
and that I had merely wished to impress upon him that it was not through
any fault or slackness on my part that the transfer could not be
completed in time. He was not mollified, however, and practically
marched me off to the gangway, where he turned about and made for his
cabin. But I was not to be so easily shaken off, so I promptly turned
about also and pursued him. I pointed out to him emphatically that,
unless he gave me this order, on him would rest the entire
responsibility of leaving the 29th Division in the lurch, as I remarked
that my Corps was the only one to take them up food and water, and that
if they died of thirst he would be entirely to blame. "What is the good
of sending off the _Dundrennon_" I asked, "unless she has on board the
Corps upon which so much depends? What will be said hereafter if you let
the 29th Division die of thirst?"
This last appeal moved the naval man's bowels of compassion; so without
more ado he had the office opened up, and wrote out an official order
delaying the sailing of the _Dundrennon_ until 8 o'clock. When I told
him also that the master of the _Dundrennon_ was not very helpful he at
once wrote a curt note to him as follows:
"I hear that you are not aiding Colonel Patterson in his embarkation as
much as you might. You had better do so."
I kept this note for emergency, in case the master of the _Dundrennon_
might prove obstreperous, but I had no occasion to use it.
I was delighted with my success, and so was Murley, who was with me all
the time I was endeavouring to persuade the naval man to order this very
necessary delay. It was of course no light thing to take upon himself
the responsibility of altering the Time-table. I can only say to him
"Well done." We got back to the _Dundrennon_ at a quarter to five and
were greeted by the wrathful skipper, who was up and preparing his ship
for a punctual start. I shouted up to him: "I have an order cancelling
your sailing until eight o'clock. Do you want to see it?" "I do," was
the gruff response. "Pass it up on this rope," throwing a line aboard
the _Jessie_. I stuck the order between the strands of the rope and the
skipper hauled it up, and as he read it he uttered highly flavoured
maledictions on all naval and army men, without showing any undue
partiality for either!
Now I was very glad that things had turned out so happily, but even if I
had not obtained the order for the delay of the _Dundrennon_, I still
had a trump card up my sleeve, which I had only intended to play in the
last resort, namely, to have seized the anchor winch and, at all costs,
have prevented any sailor from approaching it until I gave orders that
they might do so. I had put fifty armed men on board ship, whom I was
prepared to use for this purpose in case of necessity, as I was
determined that I should go to Gallipoli complete, even at the risk of
seizing the ship and being, later on, tried for piracy on the high
seas!
This reminds me of an incident which happened in the South African War
when I had to resort to almost similar methods. I was given orders to
entrain my squadron instantly at Bloemfontein, but instead of being sent
north we were merely shunted into the Station siding, where we had to
remain for the best part of twenty-four hours without any chance of
watering our horses. We started some time in the night, and at daybreak
the train was halted at a siding where there was a stream running close
by. I looked at my horses and found many of them down, owing to fatigue
and want of water, so I ordered the men to unbox them and take them to
water at the stream. When the guard saw this he strongly objected,
saying that the train that was coming down might pass through at any
moment, and that, as soon as it had passed, he would proceed on his way
to Johannesburg, whether the horses were back in the boxes or not. I
said: "Will you?" and he replied: "Yes, I will. I am in charge of this
train and I am going to push on."
I thereupon called up the Sergeant-Major, whispered an order to him, and
in two seconds that guard found himself a prisoner on the platform with
a soldier on each side of him, with orders to hold him fast in case he
made any attempt to get away. The watering was quietly and expeditiously
proceeded with, and meanwhile the down train passed through.
Our engine driver came along the platform to see what was the matter and
I overheard the guard telling him to proceed at once, even if he, the
guard, were left behind. I asked the driver if he meant to carry out the
guard's instructions and he replied: "Yes." I then said:
"Sergeant-Major, two more men! make this driver a prisoner."
When the watering of the horses was over I released my prisoners and
told them they could now go on. The driver refused. I said: "All right,
then. I will drive myself." The look of astonishment that came over the
driver's face when he saw me mount the footplate, confidently put my
hand on the lever and start the train, was something to be remembered.
He immediately caved in, jumped up and resumed his duties, without more
ado. Some time afterwards I heard that the guard made a bitter complaint
of my high-handedness, which eventually came before General Tucker, then
commanding at Bloemfontein, and it was a satisfaction to me to learn
that the General emphasised his approval of what I had done in one of
his choicest expressions.
Even with the extension of the time limit, I felt that it would be a
close thing if we were to get everything on board the _Dundrennon_ by
eight o'clock, so we all worked with feverish energy, and it was only by
a great spurt on the part of the _Jessie_ that we finally got our last
three lighters, loaded to their utmost capacity, made fast to the
_Dundrennon_ just before eight o'clock. I knew that it would still take
a good hour to get everything aboard, so, drawing Murley aside, I
suggested to him that he must be in need of a little refreshment after
his strenuous night, and that if he were to go to the skipper's cabin he
could, I felt sure, count on him to produce a bottle--and I added: "Make
sure that he does not come out until I give you the signal."
Murley laughingly undertook this congenial task, and when, after
everything had been stowed away, I eventually joined them at 9:10 A. M.,
I found the skipper thoroughly enjoying himself and laughing heartily at
one of Murley's impromptu yarns. Bravo, Murley! If I am ever ruler of
the "King's Navee"--and stranger things have happened--you may be sure
that you will be appointed an Admiral of the Fleet!
I don't know how to find you, but if these lines ever come under your
eye, remember that dinner that you are to have with me in London, and it
shall be of the best, Murley, of the very best.
I found, after all, that the old skipper's bark was worse than his bite.
He thawed towards me to such an extent that, when I parted from him at
Gallipoli, he sped me on my way with a present of two precious bottles
of his best whisky!--sign manual of his having taken me to his rugged
but withal kindly old heart.