October the 31st was the date fixed for the capture of Beersheba, which was to be the first phase of the operations. The plan of attack was as follows:—
The 60th and 74th Divisions were to attack the outer defences on the west and south-west, immediately after dawn, and, having captured them, were to hold the high ground west of the town. The 53rd Division and the Camel Corps Brigade were directed to protect the left flank of these operations.
Meanwhile the Anzac and the Australian Mounted Divisions, starting respectively from Asluj and Khalasa, were to march during the night, south of Beersheba, right round the enemy flank, and attack the town from the east, where the defences were known to be less formidable. These two divisions thus had night marches of twenty-five and thirty-five miles respectively before reaching their first objectives. The 7th Mounted Brigade, marching direct from Esani, had the task of masking the strongly entrenched hill of Ras Ghannam, which formed the southern end of the enemy's outer defences, and of linking up the Australian Mounted Division and the 20th Corps. To the cavalry thus fell the task of seizing the town of Beersheba itself.
It will be seen that, during the attack on Beersheba, there would be a gap of some seventeen miles between the 20th Corps on the right and the 21st Corps in the coastal sector. Our railway ran right[Pg 20] up into this gap, the railhead at Karm being actually in front of our line, and within eight miles of the main enemy positions about Hareira.
map
Diagram illustrating the position of troops on the 31st of Oct. 1917.
To cover this gap, and to deal with any attempted counter-attack against our railhead, the Yeomanry Division was to concentrate at, and east of, Karm, with the 10th Division in support about Shellal. The action of the Commander-in-Chief in thus trusting the guarding of this wide gap to so small a force is of particular interest as indicating his readiness to accept a considerable risk in order to achieve victory. It also demonstrates his complete confidence in the success of his efforts to deceive the enemy as to our real intentions.
The fortifications of Beersheba consisted of two lines of defensive positions. The outer line, heavily entrenched and wired, ran in a semicircle along the high ground north-west, west, and south-west of the town, from the Gaza-Beersheba road to Ras Ghannam, at an average distance of 7000 yards from the town. On the north-east, east, and south-east the outer defences were not continuous, but consisted of a series of strong posts, chief of which were Tel el Sakaty, Tel el Saba, and two stone block-houses on the north bank of the Wadi Saba. The inner line ran completely round the town itself, and on its outskirts, crossing the Wadi Saba just south of the railway bridge. It was believed, but not with any great degree of certainty, that the portion of this line on the east of the town was not protected by wire.
Beersheba is situated on the east bank of the wadi, at the north-western end of a flat, treeless plain, about four miles long and three miles wide, completely surrounded by ranges of tumbled, rocky hills. To the north-east these hills rise gradually to join the main Jud?an range, along the backbone of which[Pg 21] runs the road to Jerusalem, through El Dhahariyeh, Hebron, and Bethlehem.
water
Australian engineers developing the water supply at Esani.
country
Cavalry country! Near Beersheba.
On the evening of the 26th of October all preliminary arrangements for the attack were complete, and the 20th Corps was concentrating about Shellal. The Australian Mounted Division was in the line from Shellal to Gamli, and held a line of outposts covering the railway construction at Karm, from El Buggar, through points 720 and 630, nearly to the Wadi Sharia, a distance of about fourteen miles. This outpost line was manned by the 8th Mounted Brigade, which had been lent for the purpose by the Yeomanry Division, and which came under the orders of the 53rd Division at midnight on the 26th. The Yeomanry Division was concentrated in the neighbourhood of Hiseia and Shellal, the Anzac Division was at Abasan el Kebir, and the Camel Brigade at Shellal.
At dawn on the 27th, the centre of the thinly held cavalry outpost line was suddenly attacked by an enemy force of all arms, between 3000 and 4000 strong. The post on point 630 was driven in, but the squadron of the Middlesex Yeomanry that formed the garrison withdrew to a cruciform trench just below the top of the hill, which had been cleverly sited by the general staff of the Australian Mounted Division. In this trench, though surrounded by the enemy and repeatedly attacked, the little garrison held out all day with the greatest gallantry, till relieved by a brigade of the 53rd Division at half-past four in the afternoon.
As soon as news of the enemy attack was received, General Hodgson, realising that it was impossible for the infantry to reach the outpost line in time to save the situation, despatched the 3rd A.L.H. Brigade and the Notts Battery R.H.A. to the aid of the[Pg 22] Yeomanry. Before they arrived on the scene, however, the small garrison on point 720 had been subjected to a concentrated shell fire, and overwhelmed by a combined mounted and dismounted attack. This was the first and last time that the Turkish cavalry screwed themselves up to the point of a charge. One of the only three survivors of the garrison estimated that about seventy saddles were emptied, but the Turks rode on like men, and galloped right over the post.
The reserve regiment of the 8th Brigade held the line till the arrival of the Australians, and frustrated the enemy's attempt to break through the gap between points 630 and 720. The enemy withdrew at dusk, and our troops reoccupied the position.
From the large force employed by the Turks in this operation, it appears probable that they had intended to hold the 630-720 ridge permanently, if they succeeded in capturing it. The ridge commanded a full view of all the country lying between it and the Wadi Ghuzze, and, at the same time, concealed this bit of country from direct observation from the Turkish positions farther east.
The Anzac Mounted Division moved out from Abasan el Kebir on the evening of the 27th, and reached Khalasa early next morning, where it remained during the day.
The bombardment of Gaza commenced on this day, and continued with gradually growing intensity till the morning of the 2nd of November, when the outer defences of the town were captured by the 21st Corps.
On the 28th of October the 53rd Division relieved the Australian Mounted Division on the El Buggar outpost line, the 8th Mounted Brigade rejoined the Yeomanry Division, and the Australian Mounted[Pg 23] Division moved out at dusk and marched to Khalasa, arriving early on the morning of the 29th. The Anzac Division marched the same night from Khalasa to Asluj. The two divisions rested at these places during the 29th and 30th, in preparation for the strenuous work ahead of them. During these two days the 60th Division marched from the Shellal area to Bir el Esani, the advanced brigade pushing on to a point near Ma el Mallaka. One brigade of the 74th Division moved forward to fill the gap between the 53rd and 60th Divisions, and the 10th Division concentrated near Shellal.
Soon after dark on the night of the 30th the troops left their bivouacs, and commenced to move silently on the unconscious enemy. The Anzac Mounted Division, in the lead, was to send one brigade, via Bir el Arara, against Bir el Hammam and Bir Salim Abu Irgeig, the first objectives, the remainder of the division marching via the Wadi el Shreikiye, Gebel el Shegeib, and Iswaiwin to attack Tel el Sakaty and Tel el Saba, and then close in on Beersheba.
The Australian Mounted Division, following the Anzac Division along the Wadi el Shreikiye, was to halt at a point a little north of Iswaiwin, and be prepared to act either northwards, in support of the Anzac Division, or westwards towards Beersheba, as might be required. The 7th Mounted Brigade was ordered to march from Esani, via Itweil el Semin, against Ras Ghannam.
The leading of the troops, never an easy matter at night, was rendered more troublesome by the fact that the country beyond Asluj was quite unknown to us, and was, besides, of a most difficult and intricate nature. Maps, though accurate in the main, were lacking in detail, and the employment of native guides was too risky an experiment to be contemplated.[Pg 24] However, favoured by a bright moon, which rose soon after dark, the marches were accomplished without mishap, and the Anzac Mounted Division secured its first objectives without serious opposition about eight o'clock. The 2nd A.L.H. Brigade was now directed on Tel el Sakaty, and the New Zealanders on Tel el Saba, the 1st A.L.H. Brigade following in reserve.
The Headquarters of the Australian Mounted Division reached the high hill of Khashim Zanna about ten o'clock, and looked down upon the plain of Beersheba and the picturesque little town, which had to be in our hands by nightfall at all costs. Shells from the guns of the 60th Division were bursting all along the ridge beyond the town, and, away to the right, the rattle of machine-gun fire told where the Anzac Mounted Division was engaged at Tel el Sakaty. Patrols from the Australian Mounted Division were pushed out to the west to reconnoitre the approaches to Beersheba, south of the Wadi Saba.
Meanwhile the 7th Mounted Brigade dismounted, and, scrambling up the rocky steeps of Ras Ghannam, was meeting with strong opposition from the well-entrenched Turks on the top of the hill.
The enemy resistance soon began to increase considerably, and the Anzac Division made but slow progress across the bare open plain. The entrenched hill of Tel el Sakaty was captured by the 2nd A.L.H. Brigade about one o'clock, after a stiff fight, and half an hour later this brigade got across the Jerusalem road.
Shortly before this, a patrol of the Australian Mounted Division had smartly rounded up and captured a Turkish officer with a small escort. He turned out to be the personal aide-de-camp of Ismet Bey, the commander of the Beersheba garrison.[Pg 25] It appeared that Ismet had been sitting in his battle headquarters, on a hill west of the town, since early morning, watching with complete equanimity the attack of our infantry, which he believed to consist of only one division. About eleven o'clock, happening to turn his head, he received a distinct shock on seeing the plain behind him covered with cavalry. He at once sent his staff officer off ventre à terre to find out if the cavalry intended to attack, or were only making a demonstration. The officer received full information on this point, but, as he was not in a position to take it back to his chief, the latter became uneasy, and shortly afterwards appears to have lost his head completely, for he proceeded to fling all his reserves into the fight on the west, before the battle was well begun.
By half-past one our infantry had captured all their objectives west of the town, and commenced to consolidate on the positions won. From the Cavalry Corps headquarters the enemy troops could be seen retiring in an orderly manner into Beersheba.
The headquarters of the two cavalry divisions were at this time with corps headquarters, on Khashim Zanna, which was the highest hill for miles around. After a light but satisfactory lunch, the three headquarters Staffs sat down in a long line on the very top of the hill, with maps and field-glasses, to watch the 'man?uvres' in the plain below. Observing the irresistible target thus presented to the enemy artillery, the gunnery staffs of the two divisions, moved by a common impulse, faded silently into the comparative safety of the open plain. Immediately afterwards a salvo of high-velocity shells landed right on top of the hill, scattering maps, field-glasses, and staff officers like chaff before the[Pg 26] wind! Fortunately, no one was hurt, but for the rest of the day the staff treated the enemy gunners, always good, with the respect due to them.
Meanwhile the advance of the cavalry across the plain dragged slowly on. The country was flat and open, and there were no trees or scrub to afford cover even to dismounted men. The whole plain was swept by the fire of numerous machine guns and field guns concealed in the town of Beersheba, along the banks of the Wadi Saba, in the two block-houses on the north bank of the wadi, and on the strongly entrenched hill of Tel el Saba. From the last-named position any advance across the plain was enfiladed, and it was clear that this hill would have to be taken before any further progress could be made.
The New Zealand Brigade had worked along the dry bed of the Wadi Saba for some distance, and then, leaving the horses under cover, advanced to attack the position on foot. The hill is steep and rugged, and overlooks the bed of the wadi for some 400 yards to the east, where it makes a sharp bend. The New Zealanders got as far as this bend, but could make no farther progress, as every part of the confined river bed in front of them was swept by rifle and machine-gun fire. One regiment got out of the wadi on the north side, and made a detour to try and take the hill in rear, but could make little headway over the exposed ground, in face of the heavy enemy fire. About the same time the 3rd A.L.H. Brigade and two batteries from the Australian Mounted Division were pushed in to assist the attack from the south.
The day was now far gone, and the advance seemed to be at a standstill. General Chaytor then put in his reserve brigade (the 1st), to co-operate[Pg 27] in the attack on Tel el Saba from the south. General Cox, commanding the brigade, directed the 2nd A.L.H. Regiment on the two block-houses, and the 3rd on Tel el Saba. From the shelter of a small wadi, some three miles south of the hill, the two regimental commanders scrutinised the open plain in front of them in an effort to find some covered way of approach. None could be found, so the two commanders determined to make a dash for it mounted, and get as near as possible before dismounting to continue the attack on foot.
Deploying from the wadi, the two regiments swung out into line of troop columns at wide interval, and galloped forward over the open plain in full view of the enemy. Several Turkish batteries at once opened fire on them, but they were advancing so fast that the enemy gunners seemed to be unable to get the range, and but little damage was caused by their fire. It was not, indeed, till the regiments came under machine-gun fire that casualties began to occur, and, even then, our loss was slight, probably owing to the comparatively steep angle of descent of machine-gun bullets at long ranges, and to the difficulty of finding and keeping the range. At 1500 yards from the position, they rode into a convenient depression, and here they dismounted and continued the advance on foot.
There was no cover of any sort, and their approach from this point was necessarily slow, in face of the heavy fire which they encountered. Now that they were on foot, and moving slowly, they began to suffer severely, whereas they had advanced mounted for over two miles with scarcely any casualties. An intense fire fight developed, as the two brigades closed gradually in on the enemy. Our little thirteen-pounder Horse Artillery guns,[Pg 28] though pushed up boldly to close range, could make little impression on the well-built enemy trenches and machine-gun emplacements on Tel el Saba, and none at all on the thick stone walls of the block-houses. They did good service, however, in keeping down the hostile fire.
About two o'clock, the 2nd A.L.H. Regiment reached and stormed the block-houses, and, from the captured positions, poured a heavy fire into the flank of Tel el Saba. This caused some slackening of the enemy's fire, of which the New Zealanders took prompt advantage. With a sudden, tremendous rush, they charged down the bed of the wadi, up the steep sides of the hill, and into the position, almost before the Turks were aware of the attack. A few minutes' sharp bayonet fighting completed the capture of the hill, with about 120 prisoners and a large number of machine guns. This success removed the last obstacle to our advance on Beersheba, but the town itself still held out, and there was a wide space of open ground still to be crossed before it could be assaulted.
Orders were issued at once for the whole of the two divisions, less the 5th Mounted Brigade, to advance mounted, and endeavour to get close enough to the town to make a dismounted attack before darkness fell. This order reached the 4th A.L.H. Brigade, which had not yet been in action, at half-past four. It was then waiting at the south-eastern edge of the plain, fully three miles from Beersheba, and, as sunset was due at five o'clock, there was no time to be lost.
Making up his mind instantly, General Grant, commanding the brigade, collected the two regiments he had with him, the third being engaged in reconnaissance work, and moved rapidly forward to the[Pg 29] shelter of some dead ground about 3000 yards from the enemy trenches south-east of the town. Having sent a message to the two nearest batteries of the division, 'A' Battery H.A.C. and the Notts Battery R.H.A., to be ready to support his attack, he ordered a charge. The two batteries at once limbered up, and, moving rapidly forward, galloped into action in the open, at a range of about 2500 yards, and opened a heavy fire on the Turkish trenches and field guns in front, and on a nest of machine guns to the left front.
As soon as the batteries were in action, General Grant's two regiments swept out into the open, in column of squadrons in line, and galloped straight at the Turkish trenches.
Seen from the rising ground on which our guns were in action, it was a most inspiriting sight. It was growing dark, and the enemy trenches were outlined in fire by the flashes of their rifles. Beyond, and a little above them, blazed the bigger, deeper flashes of their field guns, and our own shells burst like a row of red stars over the Turkish positions. In front the long lines of cavalry swept forward at racing speed, half obscured in clouds of reddish dust. Amid the deafening noise all around, they seemed to move silently, like some splendid, swift machine. Over the Turks they went, leaping the two lines of deep trenches, and, dismounting on the farther side, flung themselves into the trenches with the bayonet.[8] The whole position was in our hands in ten minutes, and was consolidated immediately.
It was now quite dark, so General Grant collected his squadrons together, attended to casualties, and rounded up his prisoners. Then, leaving a guard[Pg 30] with the prisoners, and remounting the remainder of his men, he sent them at a gallop into the town itself. Through the streets they raced in the darkness, riding down all opposition, and so hustling the Turks that they never had a chance to rally. Before six o'clock the town, with 1200 prisoners and 14 guns, was in our hands. Ismet Bey escaped in a motor-car ten minutes before the final charge.
In the interval between the capture of the trenches and the charge into the town, the enemy had begun to blow up the wells and ammunition depots. Huge, mushroom-shaped columns of violet flame and smoke shot up here and there, accompanied by sullen, heavy explosions. Shortly afterwards, the main store and some of the railway station buildings were set on fire, and the flames from these burning buildings lighted up the whole town, and, as it happened, materially assisted our troops in them task of handling the prisoners. These proved surly and rather truculent, and two incidents which occurred during the early part of the night warned us that it would be well to get them away as soon as possible. As a body of prisoners was being marched out of the town to a piece of open ground on the east side, where they were being collected and counted, some of them suddenly halted and fired several Verey lights into the air, evidently with the intention of signalling to their comrades in the north. Shortly afterwards another party of them made a sudden and determined rush for one of the captured guns, and several had to be shot down before the rush was stopped. The attitude of these prisoners was in marked contrast to that of most of the Turks whom we captured, who generally accepted their fate stoically, if not with satisfaction. They seemed to resent the charge extremely, and there is no doubt that they were[Pg 31] expecting to be able to retire quietly along the Gaza-Beersheba road during the night, when the sudden dash of the Australians surprised them.
Including those taken by our infantry, about 2000 prisoners were captured at Beersheba, and over 500 Turkish corpses were buried on the battle-field. The casualties in the two regiments of the 4th Brigade, 32 killed and 32 wounded, may be considered remarkably light, in view of the strength of the enemy.
General Grant's action forms a notable landmark in the history of cavalry, in that it initiated that spirit of dash which thereafter dominated the whole campaign. When he received the orders for the attack, he had to consider that the enemy was known to be in strength, well posted in trenches, and adequately supplied with guns and machine guns. In order to reach the town itself, it would be necessary to cross the Wadi Saba, of unknown depth, and, possibly, with precipitous banks. The character of the intervening country was known only in so far as it had been revealed by field-glasses. It was not even certain that there was no wire in front of the enemy's position. On the other hand, the town had to be in our hands before nightfall, or the whole plan failed.
He weighed the chances, and made up his mind instantly to risk all in a charge, and the success he achieved surprised even the most ardent votaries of the white arm.
The remainder of the Australian Mounted Division moved into Beersheba during the night, leaving the 3rd Brigade to assist the Anzac Division in holding an outpost line north and north-east of the town, from Bir el Hammam to the Gaza-Beersheba road. The 7th Mounted Brigade, which had had a day of desultory fighting, joined the division in the town early next morning.
[Pg 32]
With the capture of Beersheba, the first phase of the operations had ended satisfactorily, and, as the earlier reports from the town as to the water supply were favourable, it was decided to commence phase two, the attack on Gaza, on the night of the 1st of November. The attack was launched at 11 P.M., and stubborn fighting continued all night. By half-past six on the morning of the 2nd, the whole of the front line and support trenches, from 'Umbrella' Hill, about the middle of the system, to Sheikh Hassan on the sea coast, were in our hands. Sheikh Hassan was some distance behind the enemy's front line, and its capture therefore threatened his right flank. The positions won were consolidated, and no further advance was attempted, as it was considered that the object of the attack, which was to deceive the enemy and to retain his reserves in the coastal sector, had been fully secured.
Preparations were at once commenced for phase three, the main attack on the enemy's exposed left flank about Sharia and Hareira. For this purpose the 53rd Division made a long march on the 1st, and occupied a line from Toweil Abu Jerwal to Khurbet el Muweileh, with the Camel Brigade on its right. The Anzac Mounted Division, prolonging this line from Abu Jerwal to the Hebron road about Bir el Makruneh, met with more opposition than had been expected, the reason for which was to become apparent in the course of the next few days. The division captured about 200 prisoners and a number of machine guns during the day.
Reports sent back from this area indicated such a lack of water that it was clear that no more than one cavalry division could be maintained there. Accordingly the Australian Mounted Division was ordered to remain in Beersheba, in general reserve,[Pg 33] and was directed to endeavour to improve the water supply there. There were a few surface pools in the Wadi Saba, the result of a thunderstorm that had broken a few days previously, but these were already rapidly drying up. Of the seven good wells in the town, five had been blown up by the Turks on the night of the 31st, and the remaining two had been prepared for demolition, but the charges had not been fired. Our sappers were left in splendid isolation, as they gingerly probed the débris round these wells, and eventually located the charges and safely removed them.
The enemy had evidently intended, in the event of his having to abandon Beersheba, to leave nothing but ruins behind him, for the whole place was a nest of explosive charges, 'booby traps' and trip wires. By a fortunate chance the German engineer who was responsible for the destruction of the town was away on leave in Jerusalem at the time of its capture. Consequently most of these trip wires were not yet attached to their detonators. A few, however, had been connected up before the town was taken. The writer came across one such, while making a rapid artillery reconnaissance round the town at daybreak on the 1st of November. Luckily it was noticed before the party rode over it, and, on being cut and followed to its source, was found to be connected to a detonator concealed in twenty cases of gelignite in the railway station,—enough to have laid the whole town in ruins.
Large numbers of hand grenades had been concealed in stores of grain and food in different parts of the town, and there were one or two accidents at first among parties of too eager explorers. Sir Philip Chetwode, commander of the 20th Corps, moved his headquarters into Beersheba a day or[Pg 34] two later, and occupied the house of the enemy commander. On examining the building before he moved in, our sappers found it packed from cellar to garret with cases of explosives, all connected to trip wires.
This house was one of the fine stone buildings, of which there were a number, surrounding a large public garden, and which had been built by the Germans during the war. The whole of this modern portion of the town appeared to have been built for propaganda purposes, or like the cities of lath and plaster which are run up in a few days for cinematograph productions. From time to time articles on the war in the East appeared in the German papers, generally synchronising with some reverse on the Western Front. In these articles, which were lavishly illustrated, Beersheba figured under headings such as 'the Queen City of the Prairies.' Apparently, in order to supply the necessary pictures, the Germans had laid out a large public garden, and built around it a series of imposing public buildings, including a Governor's house, Government offices, hospital, barracks, mosque, and even an hotel. The surrounding country abounds in a species of hard white limestone admirably suited for building, and all the houses were built of this and roofed with red tiles. They were ranged round the square, like four rows of stiff white soldiers with red helmets, and were so sited that any number of photographs could be taken from various positions, each showing a different view, and each hiding the real town behind the brand new German architecture. But once behind these houses, a shocking contrast met the eye. Here was the real Beersheba, a miserable collection of filthy mud hovels, huddled shrinkingly together as though trying to hide their shabbiness[Pg 35] from their gorgeous neighbours. The place in the centre was conspicuously labelled 'Bier Garten,' and was laid out with a number of little paths in an exact, geometrical pattern. The flower-beds supported a few dusty shrubs and a quantity of those hideous 'everlastings' so dear to the Teuton heart. All the buildings were laid out exactly facing the four points of the compass, except the mosque, which, in deference to Moslem prejudices, had been built with its mihrab turned towards Mecca, and consequently was lamentably askew. The Huns had taken their revenge, however, by garnishing the windows with German stained glass of an ugliness so startling that the Australians vowed their horses shied at it!
The railway, built by the German engineer, Meissner Pasha, of Baghdad Railway fame, was an admirable piece of work, metalled throughout, and carried over the numerous wadis on fine, arched bridges of dressed stone. The bridge over the Wadi Saba was upwards of 400 yards long. One wonders who paid for all the work.
While we were in occupation of Beersheba, some one in the Intelligence Branch of the staff conceived the brilliant idea of trying to impress the local Arabs, some of whom were hostile to us, with the majesty and power of the British Empire. Accordingly, after a good deal of trouble, a few of the neighbouring sheikhs were induced to come into the town, and were escorted round by an officer who spoke Arabic. They were shown first a regiment of cavalry, which left them cold, as the horses appeared clumsy to them in comparison with their own little Arabs. Then lines of marching infantry were pointed out to them, and field guns, and more cavalry, and motor lorries. All to no purpose.[Pg 36] An occasional grunt and a half concealed yawn were all the response the perspiring officer received. When a sixty-pounder gun, drawn by a 'caterpillar' motor tractor, hove in sight, they showed some signs of uneasiness, and eyed this new form of devil carriage with profound distrust. But when they found that it could only move at a walking pace, they became reassured and lost all interest in it. The hard-working staff officer was in despair, when, towards evening, the first ration convoy of camels arrived. We had at that time about 30,000 camels in the force, and they were in magnificent condition—big, strong beasts, covered with muscle, and free from the blemishes which so disfigure the desert Arabs' animals.
Here was something the sheikhs could understand. They watched the camels winding into the town, line after line, hundred after hundred, and their eyes grew round with wonder. The first eager talk died away to an astonished silence. When all the convoy, about 1000 strong, was in, and barracked in an open space, the natives turned to the officer with a volley of questions. Seeing the impression made, he told them, in an off-hand manner, that the British had more than twenty times that number with their army. The sheikhs' looks politely conveyed the message that they considered him a liar. Determined to strike while the iron was hot, he bundled them all into a couple of motor cars, after some signs of panic on their part, and ran them across to Shellal, where in truth they saw more camels than they had ever dreamed of. They spent all the afternoon visiting the camps of the Camel Transport Corps, and watching the departure of laden convoys and the return of empty ones. In the evening they mounted their horses[Pg 37] again, and rode off into the darkness to rejoin their own people. But before they left, the chief among them, acting as spokesman for all, told our staff officer that they were now quite convinced that the Ingilizi were certainly the greatest tribe in the world, and that they would advise their young men to keep on friendly terms with us and help us in every way. They were as good as their word, and we had no more trouble from hostile Arabs.
beersheba
Beersheba. From an enemy photograph taken before the completion of the new German buildings.
train
Arrival of the first enemy train in Beersheba. Meissner Pasha in white helmet and gaiters. The inscription on the coach means "Stamboul to Cairo." (From an enemy photograph)
FOOTNOTES:
[8] They had charged with bayonets drawn and extended in front of them like swords.