Fit as Fiddles and as Hard as Nails

The Hingston family presented five wartime journals to the Library. Two of them are included in this project: 22 January – 9 July 1916 (MS 10515) and 9 July – 12 October 1916 (MS 10516). There are three others; 16 September 1914- 22 Feb 1915 (MS 10514); 17 October 1916- 18 October 1917 (MS 10517); 16 November 1917-19 May 1918 (MS 10518). These volumes are uniform in size and mostly leather-bound with gold tooling. There is gap in the earliest volume where blank pages are left to be subsequently filled; while this might suggest these diaries are actually transcripts (as does the absence of excisions or corrections, and the inclusion of illustrations); it may have a different explanation. Hingston had an attractive literary style and much of his interest lay in the science and archaeology of the region in which he found himself. There is no journal extant for most of 1915.

Diary 22 January – 9 July 1916

Diary 9 July – 12 October 1916

• R.W.G Hingston: private journal
  from 22nd Jan to 9th July 1916.
• We are a unit in an infantry Brigade
  detailed to guard the North West Frontier.
• All are delighted at the fact that we leave on service
  that we are taking a more active place in the great drama.
• Whirling storms of sand make one regret
  that the greatest of wars did not lie in a more seasonable land.
• We swung along to the well worn war-tune of “Tipperary”.
  This was a short march of but twelve miles.
• Ambulances been despatched from Peshawar
  to collect the halt and the maimed.
• Owing to the danger of infection from cases of mumps
  we encamped near the polo ground.
• Snow fell on all the surrounding hills
  a bare wall of hills, with a white glistening fringe.
• Club in the evening is an attraction
  after the quiet life in camp at Nagoman.
• The weeks follow one another
  without noteworthy incident.
• It is difficult to spend ones time in serious thought
  when one knows that in a few weeks one may be facing Turkish bullets.
• To be gay and frivolous seems more in accordance with the time
  than to be thoughtful and serious.
• So many of its glens and pine woods are spots of happy recollection
  that I was glad of the opportunity to see it again.
• I succeeded in finding a few ancient volumes
  relating to Mesopotamia.
• The Colonel was a little sentimental
  at leaving his home of thirty years.
• A beautiful evening follows
  one of the freshest I have known.
• Then followed a cheery evening
  too cheery, I think for both H. and myself.
• None of that joyous shouting nor those ringing English cheers
  are to be heard amongst the people of the East.
• We have been in the train for the past four days
  slowly rumbling along to Karachi.
• The next day we were in the Sind desert
  a monotonous expanse of barren plains.
• A ship alongside is a German capture
  discharging 1200 mules for the Argentine.
• The Chief Engineer showed me the engine room
  and explained the principles of the machinery.
• Only one thing that the Sahibs had not yet succeeded in achieving
  and that was the manufacture of a human being.
• The Arabian coast of Oman hove in sight right ahead
  as bleak and unattractive as the cliffs of Mekran.
• The heavens in unison with the glistening sea
  appeared exceptionally clear.
• The areas were of a red rust colour
  some very dense and only a few yards in diameter.
• The blue ocean appears impregnated with millions of tiny specks
  all glistening like sparks.
• A bar of soft mud obstructs the entrance to the Shatt-al- Arab
  where the current of the Mesopotamia rivers meets the sea.
• Again we attempted to drive over the bar
  but again stuck fast.
• Locusts came on board on five different occasions
  at one time a small swarm appeared.
• It is as marvellous and inexplicable as the migration of birds
  that a solitary insect can fly in a true course over a distance of 110 miles.
• On entering the Shatt-al-Arab, the scenery became more interesting.
  Stately groves of date-palms fringed the shore.
• The groves formed no more than a narrow border
  to the river.
• The river is thronged with ships –
  some thirty in number.
• The pelican are very conspicous
  their brilliant plumage contrasting with the dark mud.
• The flight of the pelican is very stately
  especially when a flock is slowly soaring overhead.
• The Hooded Crow is very common on the Shatt al Arab.
  It differs from the corresponding species of the North Western Himalaya.
• As the sediment settles the delta is extending seaward
  it is actually silting up the Gulf.
• It is strange to witness cattle finding sustenance
  where it would appear that only water fowl could exist.
• We weighed anchor and moved two berths higher up
  but are still far down in the line of ships.
• The more lofty trees are growing along the very brink of the river
  from where they obtain a more liberal supply of moisture.
• There were transport supply ships, hospital ships, captured German vessels
  all engaged in supplying the force.
• The motley collection of Arabs, Armenians, Jews, Negroes
  formed a strange and ever-changing picture.
• The Base Hospitals are thronged with wounded
  and we learn that heavy fighting is now in progress.
• We seem to be forgotten
  nobody brings us any orders.
• How easy are these criticisms
  we know naught of facts and difficulties.
• The recent fighting must have been severe
  but we know not with what result.
• A frontal attack has been made on the Turkish position
  but no ground has been gained.
• Owing to the insufficiency of transport
  the lorries had to repeat their journeys.
• As we advance, comforts gradually diminish
  at each stage something is relinquished.
• The night broke with thunder, lightening
  a storm of wind and torrents of rain.
• He showed me his preparations of the skull and vertebral columns
  and vertebral columns of snakes.
• The days are warming apace
  the sun is now uncomfortably warm.
• It appears that our stay in Basra may be prolonged.
  We are likely to be employed at the railway work for some time.
• From knowing them I have grown accustomed to them
  and can recognize them all as seperate and distinct.
• I can discern the various races that go to compose this motley population.
  By far the most numerous are the Arabs.
• Governing them are British soldiers and British sailors
  working with dignity, yet with determination.
• Troops have faith in him
  and think he ought to see things through.
• War certainly makes a clean sweep of false reputations
  built up by influence and good-fellowship.
• I went in a bellum to visit a shady creek
  amidst the date palms to the South of the town.
• Almost all were swallowing lettuce in enormous mouthfuls
  and smoking innumerable cigarettes.
• The days grow monotonous
  we long to be on the move.
• Their camp was in harmony with the bleak wilderness.
  Most of the habitiations were constructed of woven matting.
• A friendly Arab assisted me to wash the horse
  and scrub the mud from the harness.
• I spent some time watching the development
  and growth of a mirage.
• At 2am I was up out of bed clinging to my tent-pole
  which creaked so loudly at every gust.
• Officers enjoy an overcoat at dinner
  and I am about to seek warmth in a sleeping bag.
• The bazaar is an Oriental Burlington Arcade
  it is roofed over with beams covered with matting.
• I trust I shall be in the entrance of the victorious army
  but rumour has it that we are destined for the Euphrates force.
• More rain; more quagmire.
  No news from the Tigris force.
• We fished from a floating cylinder ridge
  but our tackle was very unsuitable.
• The nights ring with incessant croaking
  of the thousands of frogs that people the streams.
• A river gunboat, has appeared on the river.
  She is called the “Gadfly”
• A concert was held on Saturday evening at the barracks.
  Talent was noticeably absent.
• The Euphrates was a roaring flood
  swollen to a great volume with silt-laden waters.
• Pessismism prevails
  the relief of Kut seems almost beyond hope.
• We are preparing for our ten days march
  we will be cut down to the minimum of kit.
• Far out in the open desert there should be new objects, new scenes
  new thoughts, new experiences.
• The expanded heads of the lofty trees cast a dark shade
  over the reflecting waterways.
• Occasionally is heard the soft notes of the Bulbul
  or the shrill cry of a Kingfisher.
• The soil all over this barren area is impregnated
  with saline deposit.
• The Arabs employ artificial fertilization
  for the improvement of the yield of fruit.
• The male flower soon withers
  so it sheds a cloud of fertilizing pollen.
• Such an horizon limiting a broad desert
  recalls the boundless ocean.
• Even in the palm groves few species are seen
  and these bear a remarkable resemblance to the animal life of the Punjab.
• Here I observe the same birds, bees, butterflies
  that frequent the hills and valleys of Hazara.
• It is remarkable how the refuse of a camp attracts living creatures
  and soon teems with animal life.
• Would that through the darkness of our ignorance
  we might perceive how every being is linked.
• One of the most common animals is the Edible Frog.
  This is the same species that extends through Europe.
• These frogs enjoy themselves basking in the mud
  or resting amidst the water weeds.
• Insects, their customary food, were not abundant,
  and the frogs, in their absence, largely fed on fish.
• I also found shell-fish in the stomachs of these frogs
  so that the creatures had not only effected a complete change in the nature of their diet.
• Every frog became covered with a layer of tiny green leaves
  These adhered all over the frogs body.
• The frogs may be carried on the ebbing stream
  for long distances.
• Numbers of Tern were common on the river
  their rapid turns in keeping with their graceful forms.
• The Pied Kingfisher always faces head to the wind when hovering
  stationary over the water watching for fish.
• One of the most important functions of a bird’s tail
  is to check the birds onward motion.
• In those birds that perform swift evolutions in the air
  a forked tail has been evolved.
• A large swarm of locusts passed over the desert.
  I had never seen the Eastern Locust in India.
• A green grove of date-palms seemed to attract locusts
  for the dense cloud turned its course to congregate over the stately trees.
• Locusts in the upper and lower strata were more liable to go astray
  than those in the centre of the swarm.
• It was a strange sight to witness innumerable insects all facing to the West
  yet moving Northward.
• I tried to estimate the rate of movement of the swarm.
  I calculated that a locust covered 20 yards in 5 seconds.
• The desert was littered with thousands of their bodies
  all of which appeared to be males.
• The sand of the desert is so hot that it is burning to the touch
  on a summer’s day.
• We now observe a dim indistinctness
  with a fine, almost imperceptible tremor.
• It is but an elusive veil
  that dimly cloaks the reality of things.
• The unrealities of the wilderness are now displayed
  before our vision.
• The distant tents of an Arab camp are as a fleet of moving sails
  scudding before the breeze,
• Wonderful as is the desert by day with all its strange illusions
  as though the grains of sand were vivified into organic life.
• Destruction followed in the wake of the deluge.
  The encampments of the Arabs had been engulfed.
• The fauna had become that of the swamp and shore.
  Geese and duck rested on the waters.
• The rays of the setting sun bursting through the dark cumuli of cloud
  painted the evening sky.
• The Eastern sky was fulfilling its promise of the coming day
  the west was still gilded with the glories of approaching night.
• The spectacle was a wonderful one
  It was an inspiring sight.
• The snakes from these great altitudes inhabit hot springs.
  This appears to me of special interest.
• I look forward with interest to the hot and weary trek
  over the pathless wilderness.
• We calculated our march as about four miles
  when in reality it was at least three times the distance.
• He is a good Sunni and holds the Arabs in contempt
  whom he condemns as all Shiahs.
• But the merciless sun soon crushed philosophy
  and I turned to observe the striping of our mules.
• The men fell from the ranks, first in little groups
  then in dozens, then in hundreds.
• After a battle of an amphibious nature
  we drove them from their stronghold.
• The stubborn vice of the mule was replaced
  by the noisy obstinacy of the camel.
• The ground was firmer and boasted a carpet of sparce grass
  which gave a refreshing tinge of faded yellow.
• Skeletons and debris lay scattered about
  in one place I found the bones of two men still clothed in their khaki uniform.
• Clouds of sand grouse whirled through the air
  occasional bee-eaters alighted on the sand.
• As reports of hostile Arab cavalry had been received
  we entrenched ourselves strongly in a perimeter camp.
• Here man may wander uncontrolled by aught but his desires
  and the yearnings of his own soul.
• Bones of animals and men, fragments of uniforms and equipment
  testimony to their discomfort and confusion.
• Later in the morning we sighted the great river Euphrates.
  Here it displayed a broad but shallow stretch of water.
• First news this morning is that Kut has fallen.
  The news reached us through our portable wireless station.
• Is it not more probable that they will withdraw
  rather than advance their spare troops.
• We dreaded these late starts
  they meant so much the longer march in the hot sun.
• Our carts stuck amongst the bullocks.
  We had a number of bullock hospital tongas which found themselves in difficulties at every mound.
• A few of the filthiest of deserted water holes lay not far off
  where some dared to quench their thirst.
• It has been the most distressing march yet.
  with the exception of the first day, from Basra to Shaiba.
• Loading camels in the dark with the help of lanterns is not expeditious
  but nevertheless we gained an early start.
• Four mules have today died in their traces.
  Yesterday’s heavy going exhausted them.
• Half the officers ponies are now asleep
  lying on the ground in their fatigue.
• He became almost hysterical at the sight of the venomous companies
  that might interrupt his slumbers.
• In India we are accustomed to despise the camel transport
  as being unable to move at more than 2 1/2 miles an hour.
• We are getting on but transport is diminishing.
  Another camel was shot yesterday.
• When the storm burst, it came with a vengeance.
  Many tents were carried bodily away.
• The march was gloriously cool
  The storm, in spite of all its discomforts, has proved a blessing in disguise.
• Nothing but an occasional mound of sand breaks the flat monotonous landscape
  of dreary wilderness and placid river.
• The sky was cloudless and the sun was oppressively warm.
  Later a gentle wind sprang up.
• In addition to our ignorance, the powers of nature were against us.
  This mighty river, had overflowed the enclosing banks.
• No land is visible as we stand upon its brink;
  nothing but water extends into the far horizon.
• The Arabs had given names to these indefinite areas
  but it was all the same, a line of unbroken desert.
• The 112th Infantry are encamped at Khamsieh.
  They were on their way up the Tigris to assist in the attempt to relieve Kut.
• Locusts still innumerable
  Locusts still innumerable.
• The animals enjoy the change even more than ourselves
  they are now all eagerly devouring the succulent pasture.
• In the distance we could see the ruins of Ur of the Chaldees
  surmounted by a high tower and rising high above the mirage.
• Every moment spent amongst the ruins whence Abraham fled
  was of fascinating interest.
• I chased ice, soda water and whisky for the mess
  with some success.
• Arrangements for pumping the water is difficult
  and incomplete.
• The limitless immensity, the silent solitude
  the merciless display of light overwhelm him.
• The scale is so great that it seems immeasurable
  an encampment is so minute a speck.
• Lifeless vague mysterious shapes glimmer
  in the inconstant sands.
• We are face to face with the unfathomable
  the unknowable infinitude of things.
• During the march I observed only two mammals
  a jerboa and a Hedgehog.
• It scampers about in aimless circles
  and proves an easy capture.
• Clouds of sand-grouse of different species whirled about
  overhead.
• We met that most ubiquitous of birds The House Sparrow
  (Passer domesticus).
• Truly the animals that follow man in his wanderings
  are adaptable.
• From its cloak of deceit it peered out
  with watchful eye.
• No creature in the desert makes its presence so obvious
  as the migrating locust.
• Every seeming blade of grass was a living locust.
  Such are their millions.
• The locusts are in continual motion;
  all progress in in the same direction.
• These insect streams look impressively
  like the flow of moving water.
• How immense is this living flow;
  how powerful is the generative force.
• Onward into the river crept the swarm
  and out over its broad waters.
• There is no succour for the sick and wounded
  of a locust army.
• They collected themselves into dense clusters
  and sought protection from the wind.
• Locusts singly or in small groups make a direct course
  across the Red Sea.
• The locust undoubtedly possesses
  an acute sense of smell.
• They can distinguish the newly dead of their own species
  from the teeming living that surround them.
• Another common insect is a large
  species of Dung Rolling Beetle.
• They shared the trenches with colonies of harvesting ants
  and little sand-coloured lizards.
• It clings with its hind tarsi to its precious pellet
  & stretches out its body.
• When assaulted, the owner takes up a strong position
  on the summit.
• It would at first sight seem that there was no cooperation
  between the two owners.
• The other beetle quietly clinging to the pellet
  acts as a check at each revolution.
• The beetle, losing its grasp, must hurry
  off in search of it.
• First it drives its shovel head into the soft sand
  and kicks the granules backwards.
• The beetle seems to be very easily dissatisfied
  with the progress of its work.
• The beetle will soon find its lost treasure
  by following along the track of the pellet.
• This sense of smell must be extremely acute
  it must be exerted over long distances.
• When irritated, this species discharges a very fine acid fluid
  from the tip of its abdomen.
• The beetle is very conspicuous
  with prominent white markings.
• Mosquitoes often became a nuisance
  collecting about a camp in large numbers.
• If they swerve from the eye of the wind
  they lose control.
• When night wraps these solitudes in a deeper silence
  another fauna creeps out.
• It was a loathsome and repulsive fauna
  which swarmed about our tents.
• Each creature is in arms against its fellow.
  How intricate the struggle is.
• We see scorpions and solpugid spiders
  working destruction by night.
• Dragonflies dart through swarms of mosquitoes
  seizing them on the wing.
• Many of our mules showed zebra markings
  unmistakeable signs of their ancestry.
• One persisted in jogging
  or literally dancing about on its forelegs.
• Again and again our mules dragged on
  till they died in their traces.
• This camel could not have travelled less than 150 miles
  in 44 hours.
• The desert is increasing its bounds
  as the delta of the river advances into the sea.
• The silt is of an extremely fine tenacious nature
  with subsidiary layers.
• Annual additions are now made to it
  within the area affected by the floods.
• Shells from the river are carried
  with the inundating waters.
• To effect a dispersal of their species
  they are not dependent on a foreign body
• Its burden towered upward into the clear skies
  its limbs sank down.
• Fear of hostile Arab resulted in strict orders
  that we should be back in camp by sunset.
• The first object to claim attention
  was the remains of an irrigation canal.
• What interested me more than the tower
  was the presence on the mound of water-worn boulders.
• One of these boulders was five feet in circumference
  much too heavy to lift.
• Amongst them I found two species of sea shells.
  .
• Knowing the date of Ur as a prosperous city
  a calculation might be made.
• The noble tower once looked down over the bustle of life
  is now engulfed in the waterless desert.
• Behind a veil of sand-cloud the setting sun sank
  into the west.
• It sees the hot summers, the cold winters
  the burning suns.
• It is a town of ten thousand inhabitants
  with a modern aspect.
• The camp is enclosed by an embankment for protection
  both from Arabs and from water.
• Hostile Arabs occupied the villages
  on every side.
• It eroded the banks and swept away every load of earth
  as fast as we deposited it.
• Euphrates River.
  Levels at Nasiriyah.
• Still our position is ominous
  it would be so anywhere in the desert.
• Each site has its advantages
  each its disadvantages.
• So the desertphiles contend with the palmophiles
  and each is satisfied.
• The climate is much cooler than I would have imagined
  at this season of the year.
• He is a man for the office stool
  not for the army in the field.
• Of the little group I saw, three were women
  four were men.
• They seemed of a bright and cheery disposition
  and reminded me of Kiroglu.
• I remain in the open air, if possible till midday
  sleep and read after lunch.
• It was evident on the 21st that a storm was brewing
  there was an uncanny stillness.
• Clouds of sand with whirling pebbles came rushing through the air
  borne on a terrific wind.
• The heat of the wind was intense
  it was like the blast of heat from a great furnace.
• The days are monotonous.
  The novelty of a new place gradually passes away.
• I watch the Arab “bellums” struggling
  with the floods.
• With the evening calm come the myriads of insects
  a pest in Mesopotamia.
• Probably they feel the pressure of the Russians
  in their rear.
• Spent the afternoon of Saturday in the Bazaar
  searching for curios.
• We visited a shop where coffee-pots were exposed for sale.
  Hidden away were two Chinese bowls.
• Unfortunately for his schemes he was unable to read
  English.
• A narrow street thronged with Arabs
  leering and repulsive in countenance.
• The seller of carpets possessed a greater fund of humour
  than the majority of his brother muslims.
• There was a Jew with unmistakeable Hebrew features
  wearing a red Fez cap.
• A black Somali slave torn from his home
  and carried into bondage.
• We enjoyed the delicious, fragrant coffee
  unequalled, nay unknown in the West.
• I found the bridge open
  this was not an unusual discovery.
• The whole structure bent before the impact
  anchors were dragged, timbers were rent.
• The floods are gradually lessening
  and this involves a diminished labour.
• The daily breeze is a blessing
  we are not allowed to forget how refreshing it is.
• These gunboats are handy craft
  they carry 4 inch guns.
• I can just summon up sufficient enthusiasm to wander in the evenings
  to the bank of the river.
• From the river I see the sun
  setting into the floods.
• The General has been a patient of mine
  for weeks past.
• We were armed with different weapons of offence
  an iron spike, a spear.
• I took it to be but one of the many explosions
  that are occurring daily.
• Capt Poynder of the 6th Gurkhas was obviously dying
  with a wound in the neck.
• I spent the afternoon, half naked
  wrapped in wet towels.
• Very little energy for work
  and much too hot to enjoy it.
• We pin our faith to the Shimál
  that dry wind from the North.
• The clouds rapidly dissipated and the day grew hot
  if not hotter, than ever.
• The Arabs foretell the commencement of the Shimal
  at the appearance of the new moon.
• Our mess fisherman is very successful
  with net and line.
• A small expedition was in the course of organisation
  to be sent against an Arab village.
• This Arab had been implicated in stealing of government bellums.
  Three times he had been ordered to account for his actions.
• We had to take him alive, not kill him
  and it seemed most impossible.
• Our intention is to leave Nasiriyah
  in two stern wheeler boats.
• Disembarking places
  for river steamers.
• The main object is to hastily surround the village
  so as to prevent the escape of the occupants.
• It was to consist of one double company of the regiment
  supported by ½ Sec. of Machine guns.
• The object of No. 2 party was to seize that open ground
  by occupying a position between the two villages.
• It seemed unlikely that the Arabs would wait in their trap
  until the noose encircled them.
• The Gunboat will not come into action
  unless the attacking party is held up.
• The village must be enclosed on every side
  before the Arabs attempt to escape.
• The battalion fell in on parade north of the camp
  and we marched to the two paddle-steamers.
• Men, ready stripped, sprang ashore to make her fast.
  Planks were pushed to the bank.
• The remainder of the troops in this boat disembarked
  at greater leisure.
• It was evident that the villagers were alarmed;
  rifle shots rang clear.
• Orders had been issued that no Arabs were to be fired on
  unless they first fired on us.
• Those who had fled were males
  they had deserted their women, children.
• The first work was to blow up the towers
  that exist in every Arab village.
• Every habitation was explored
  and everything either looted or destroyed.
• Lower Mesopotamia
  1 inch = 40 miles
• R.W.G.Hingston
  Private Journal
• The city of Nasiriyah
  on the Euphrates River.
• Thus we destroyed the village
  but the real offender escaped.
• A sacred fragment from the holy city of Kerbela
  where Shias worship at the Shrine of Hussein.
• To the clay man looks for his origin
  in the clay he seeks his last resting-place.
• The heat is almost unbearable
  it crushes every mental and physical effort.
• The camp is studded with palm trees
  amongst which our tents are scattered.
• Most days the maximum temperature has exceeded 120°.
  During a lull one simply gasps for breath.
• Orders arrived for me to embark on a river stern-wheeler
  to take charge of a sick convoy to Basra.
• Started with the sick convoy at early dawn, 4.45 am.
  We move rapidly down the stream
• Fierce sun struck us alternately on port and star board
  as we steered about in our sinuous course.
• By 4.30 pm. we had passed through the lake.
  We were glad to think that its difficulties were behind.
• On to Kurna early this morning.
  The river continued through the endless marshes.
• The brown muddy waters of the Tigris join the clear blue Euphrates;
  Soon the waters are mingled.
• Evacuated sick to General Hospitals.
  Was sent to medical reinforcement camp.
• I leave tomorrow, at midday, for Kurna.
  I am not sorry to be returning.
• The death rate at Basra amongst British troops alone is 16 per day
  and that at Amara 12 per day.
• It is pleasantly cool on board.
  A gentle but steady breeze blows.
• These boats should remedy our transport difficulties on the Tigris.
  Unable to reach Kurna tonight.
• Hamar lake was no longer navigable for steam-craft.
  We will be fortunate if we get through in a week.
• Still at Kurna and eager to be off.
  Spent the afternoon sweating in the rest-house.
• Left Kurna with Newland at 5.30 p.m.
  in the stern wheeler, Mozafari.
• Entered the Hamar lake in the teeth of a strong wind.
  The lake was very shallow.
• We manhauled the launch off the bank
  and made her fast to our own steamer.
• Later our own difficulties commenced.
  We grounded.
• Seven relief-bellums came alongside by 10.30 a.m.
  We filled five of them.
• All was now plain sailing;
  we were close to the exit of the lake.
• We proceeded rapidly up the stream
  now beautified by the green fertile plains.
• They occasionally kill or wound a sentry;
  they cause more annoyance than hurt.
• Snipers have not put in an appearance for many days.
  The full moon is now so bright that they must remain inactive.
• The Dorsets destroyed every living thing
  with the exception of the women and children.
• All the animals were destroyed
  sheep, cattle, camels were all shot down.
• I was surprised at the snipers daring to appear
  for moving objects were visible at a considerable distance.
• Entries in my journal are scattered.
  The days are very quiet.
• Two pencil sketches of Locustidae
  (short-horned grasshoppers)
• Three pencil sketches of Locustidae
  (short-horned grasshoppers)
• A bomb explosion
  occurred at dawn this morning
• A very large number of bombs were tested
  after the previous explosion
• An unfortunate sequence of misadventures
  from which he died
• Communications with the base are almost completely severed.
  What a blessing the railway will be!
• Impassability of the lake has isolated a little fleet
  of vessels at Nasiriyah.
• A short parade this morning
  but an agreeable change.
• Times are not very exciting.
  The garrison sent one small expedition up the river.
• Our force was insufficient to capture the village
  without suffering undesirable loss.
• It seemed rather an undignified display of weakness
  our inability to place the Sheik in power by force of arms.
• The hostile Arabs emerged from the village
  when they saw the ships slipping away
• One of those unfortunate incidents
  which one wishes had not occurred.
• Major Harrington produced secret orders
  that a Brigade Route march was to take place.
• The real object was an attack by the 12th and 42nd Brigades
  on a powerful body of hostile Arab tribes.
• Men had begun to grow suspicious of the supposed route march.
  They now understood that it was to be war.
• Our orders were to be at the boat bridge at 4.30 a.m.
  but we were there a little before our time.
• The plan of campaign may be understood
  from the accompanying map.
• Campaign map representing the lines of advance
  from the rendezvous at Nasiriyah.
• During a retirement the Arab is a dangerous enemy
  he then presses with his full strength.
• We moved off in the face of the rising sun
  then just peeping brightly over the desert.
• We marched on in close formation
  with flanks well protected
• But the crafty Arab was not to be caught napping.
  He had apparently observed the advance of our Brigade.
• I soon had my stretchers unloaded from their mules
  and distributed amongst the bearers.
• The position of the Arabs was strong
  they had the advantage of a network of channels.
• Only one casualty came under my notice during this advance
  it was a Ghurka in the machine-gun section.
• We kept up a heavy sniping at every head that appeared
  they returned to us the same kindly compliment.
• I said goodbye to the friendly shelter of thorny mound
  and took to the exposed plain.
• I found one of our subedars with a bullet through his shoulder.
  He treated it as a huge joke.
• We covered the hundred yards in as nippy a manner as possible
  the bullets here were unpleasantly thick
• Map showing the position of the 42nd Brigade troops
  and the opposing Arab force.
• He had been shot through the shoulder and chest
  was in a serious state, almost unconscious.
• He uttered a faint, broken gasp, and fell dead
  with the wounded man and myself in the same heap
• None of us were specially desirous of carrying him
  boldly through the open.
• A helpless human being is a most unwieldly burden.
  Each of us took a corner of the stretcher.
• They came waving their rifles wildly over their heads
  shrieking aloud in their enthusiasm.
• We ought to have walked in careless of fire
  but the preserving instinct of human nature was too strong.
• We were fatigued with the labour of dragging this casualty
  over the ground.
• Their frontal attack was being pressed boldly.
  But our men were very steady.
• When a hissing bullet rushes past
  down goes every head
• The noise is that of a small explosion like the firing of a min[i]ature rifle
  or the loud crack of a whip
• With a wound through the thigh, lame, but quite unperturbed.
  He refused to return to hospital.
• The enemy was pressing on
  well punished at every step.
• If they fall into the hands of the Arabs, the wounded are tortured
  the dead are mutilated.
• The Arabs were punished at every step
  they never occupied “grassy mound”
• Gradually the advanced troops fell back
  on the hospital.
• The battle was over; the regiment reformed, less eleven killed
  twenty five wounded and one missing.
• It is said that because we retired, we were beaten.
  That is utter nonsense.
• Every individual from Brigadier to Araby played his part well
  and the result was most satisfactory.
• Our losses were comparatively few
  while the chastisement we inflicted was very severe.
• A Turkish communique was published giving their version of this battle.
  It was as amusing as it was false.
• A huge fire was visible away to the east
  black columns of smoke ascended high into the sky.
• I imagine every Arab bellum that was ever built leaks
  from the day of its birth to the day of its death.
• Section of map: “Turkey in Asia”
  (Rough Provisional issue)
• We were off two hours after sunrise.
  Difficulties soon again ensued.
• By dusk we were through the lake
  and we lay to for the night.
• My instructions were to go on board the dredger
  to inquire for any sick.
• Everything now favoured us
  we had escaped the annoyances of the lake.
• Every boat, with its white sheet of limp and empty sail
  was reflected in the mirrored stream.
• The day was very calm
  the flies a torment.
• A pleasant and peaceful mode of travelling
  as arduous for the Arabs as it is luxurious for us.
• I have always wondered at the untutored mind
  of the majority of British Officers.
• He had never heard of Siva or Brahma or Vishnu;
  the Rig-vedas or the Puranas were words to him.
• He persisted that his men worshipped one God, one Creator
  when every schoolboy knows of the hundreds of Hindu idols.
• Low over the water was a leaden belt of dust
  above which peeped a yellow sunset gleam.
• He was as bigoted as he was eloquent
  causing the greatest amusement.
• How shocked the poor old simple man became when teased
  with his possible neglect of the doctrines of his faith!
• We had been three complete days in the shallow lake
  covering a distance of 15 miles.
• Harrington had been awarded the D.S.O. and myself the Military Cross
  for our work during the operations of the 11th September.
• To experience fear is, I think, a universal attribute
  the problem is that of how to overcome and conceal it
• On board the steamer were two Hotchkiss guns;
  one defending either side.
• Quiet times again in camp
  less excitement even than before.
• I notice the effect of being awarded the Military Cross
  in different ways.
• News from Europe is brilliant.
  The capture of Combles must be an acrid pill for the enemy.
• Practised the attack and burning of an Arab village
  and the retirement before an advancing foe.
• I was awakened by firing from our embankment
  and the neighbouring “corner post”
• The patrol detected a boat creeping down
  the opposite bank of the river.
• The official order awarding me the Military Cross arrived
  last evening.
• We are strong enough to resist a powerful attack.
  we could easily repel ten times our numbers.
• All the available troops are sleeping on the ramparts
  and our perimeter is similarly manned.
• We hear rumours of Turkish troops under the direction of German Officers
  under the direction of German Officers encamped at the village of El Ain.
• During a sharp contest with a horde of Arab tribesmen
  eight of our regimental mules were wounded.
• Creatures of the stoutest heart
  and the most unbending resolution.
• Rams with four horns were not uncommon
  in these flocks.
• The still and breathless evenings
  would draw us to the river bank.
• The river was never clear and blue.
  It was always thick with the finest sediment.
• Bird life on the river was of special interest.
  In June the Terns used to congregate.
• The Indian Common Kingfisher awaits its prey from a fixed perch
  while the Pied Kingfisher hovers stationary in the air.
• Methods by which the various birds dealt with their captures
  was always a source of entertainment.
• I have watched the tern dealing with a large locust
  that it seemed to find some difficulty in swallowing.
• A pretty little robin with a charming note
  used to frequent the date palms along the river banks.
• The most numerous, conspicuous and amusing creatures
  were the river tortoises.
• Such clumsy animals
  yet always so sly and vigilant.
• The head of this large tortoise peeping above the surface of the water
  gave it a formidable appearance.
• I do not think the tortoise can be denied the gift of intelligence
  which man would often withhold from the humbler members of creation.
• Both these tortoises used to lay their eggs on the banks of the river.
  In the two species the eggs differ in shape.
• The Gurkhas exposed a nest of the Caspian Water Tortoise.
  All the eggs, save one, were smashed.
• The tail of the young tortoise is long
  flexible and lacertine in appearance.
• I found a nest of the Soft Shelled Tortoise.
  I disturbed the animal .
• Fish in the Euphrates congregate in vast multitudes
  like the insects of the desert.
• Fish of all sizes lash the water into foam
  their fins and tails writhing.
• The little fish endeavour to escape their pursuers
  skipping over the water in a succession of leaps.
• I saw the skin of an enormous monster that surpassed anything I had ever imagined.
  Its head was huge and massive
• There is no place for sympathy in the rough struggle of the desert
  they dash upon their wounded companions.
• The biting-fly, Stomoxys calcitrans
  was an incessant nuisance by day.
• At sundown the Stomoxys was replaced by the sandfly, Phlebotomus.
  This tiny little creature is a still greater annoyance.
• The bees post a sentinel at the nest aperture.
  The sentry is most earnest in its duty.
• I used to sit on the bank of the great river and watch the water insects
  moving in its shoals and eddies.
• These same insects will remain unperturbed on the rippling waves
  of water driven inland.
• These beetles possess a certain power of communication.
  By repeated contact, each is recognising its fellow.
• A very large water-bug frequents the river.
  It is of great strength.
• On a still day the ant-lion patiently waits in the bottom of its funnel
  till the unwary ant tumbles in
• Ant-lions are almost always seen waiting in the bottom of their pits
  yet they sometimes wander about.
• Their formidable appearance and carnivorous habits
  soon attract attention.
• It crushes its prey to the finest pulp in its massive jaws
  but, unlike many other spiders, it injects no poison.
• The panting spiders heave and sway
  locked with the tenacity of bull-dogs.
• The scorpion’s subtle poison is on trial
  against the spider’s nimble strength.
• The scorpion, if victorious, does not instantly slay its opponent.
  The spider seems first paralysed with the sudden shock
• The spider does not allow the filament to trail away
  from the spinnerets.
• At this stage its movements become more laboured
  it cannot circle with rapidity.
• Its sensitive limbs diverge so as to rest on radii
  coming from all parts of the circumference.
• It is interesting to see the spider testing the radii
  at every thrill and carefully feeling their tension.
• The dispersal of spiders through the agency of the wind
  takes place here on a most profuse scale.
• In May the current of the Euphrates daily slackens
  the level of the stream steadily sinks
• A destructive deluge sweeping over the surface of the earth;
  mankind overwhelmed in the rush of waters.
• Here the ancient Jews could witness a destructive deluge
  a flood creeping insidiously over hundreds of thousands of square miles.
• Dust-storms of terrific violence burst over these deserts.
  It is natural to contrast the dust-storm with the blizzard.
• Asia is the true home of the dust-storm
  it rages with great intensity over the vast deserts.
• A fresh and vivifying breeze blowing
  sometimes with great intensity.
• The sun gleaming through the dust
  like a metallic silver disc.
• The setting sun sinks below its bank of dust
  the surface of the desert rapidly cools.
• Dusts of all kinds spread abroad through the sky
  & burnish the sun with a metallic sheen.
• The sun sank behind this pall of smoke, presenting an unreal face
  deprived of its piercing rays and glittering lustre.
• Human comfort in the hot season depends largely on whether the wind blows
  from the North or from the South
• The heat becomes insufferable in this stagnant air;
  not even the nights give relief.
• We observed a remarkable outburst of sunspots; of these one was very large
  it must have been an enormous area of disturbance.
• It is this junction of the rivers that is one of the supposed sites of the Garden of Eden
  a supposition which, I think, geology can fully disprove
• Above the confluence the Tigris flows almost due north and south
  the Euphrates almost due west and east.
• Pencil sketch of the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates
  The Tigris is the greater.
• The Euphrates is obliged to conform the thrust of partner.
  It is divided into two smaller channels.
• Shallow graves were exposed, “dish-cover coffins” broken
  human bones scattered about.
• The tower or temple stood in three stages
  superimposed on one another
• There was something solemn in standing on this temple of the moon-God
  where Chaldean priests fell down in worship.
• This desert is a graveyard of mighty nations.
  it carries our mind back to the royal pride of Babylon.
• Crumbling ruins choked with the desert sand.
  Arabs raise their villages on the most inviting of them
• Lying on the ruin-dust is geological evidence
  that Ur was a seaport town.
• Basrah now thrives, owing its prosperity to ocean trade.
  But year by year it is passing further from the sea.
• Basrah is already stranded beyond the reach of the greatest ships
  its facilities for trade must proportionately diminish.
• If this project materialized, then would Kuwait rise in greatness
  and the town of Basrah hasten to oblivion.
• It surprised me that the delta of this river should have advanced
  to so great a distance.
• We might reckon the time when the Persian Gulf will be silted up
  and converted into dry land.