Territorials. In the
midst of many graves, identified only by numbers, a black cross recalls
the memory of Mundy, one of our gallant Company Sergeant-Majors.

On the 30th December 1915 I left Alexandria for the Dardanelles on the
_Arcadian_, Sir Ian Hamilton's old ship, once most luxurious of steam
yachts but destined to be torpedoed on the 15th April 1917 in these same
waters. It carried some details for the various Divisions still believed
to be holding Cape Helles. We sailed in long zigzags through a rough sea
to within a few hours' distance from Lemnos. We were then ordered back
by wireless to Alexandria, landing there, much to our chagrin, on the
6th January 1916. Two days later Cape Helles was evacuated. It was never
known whether our departure from Egypt had been a piece of bluff
designed to cloak the impending move from Gallipoli, or a sheer
accident arising from ignorance at Alexandria of the true intentions of
the Mediterranean Expeditionary Force Headquarters.

From the date of the _Arcadian's_ return down to the end of January, the
large waiting drafts at Alexandria remained in tantalising inactivity,
in spite of the passage of the Gallipoli survivors southward through
Alexandria. The East Lancashire details forgathered at Mustapha on the
site of the famous victory of 1801, and near the pretty white obelisk
that commemorates Sir Ralph Abercromby. The time was filled as best
could be by route marches, history lectures and various competitions,
until at last we had orders to rejoin the Division. We moved from Sidi
Gaber station to Cairo, and thence by trams to Mena, where, with "forty
centuries" looking down upon us, we found what was left of the
Manchester Territorial Brigade, then under General Elliott's command.
The Battalion numbered close on 300 men.

Our stay at Mena was short, for infinite labour was now urgently needed
on the Sinai Peninsula. In the early stages of the War, the Suez Canal
had been treated as itself the main obstacle to an attack on Egypt.
Outlying posts like El Arish had been abandoned, and Sinai left almost
bare of defences. This policy accounts for the ease with which the Turks
had actually gained the Canal bank in February, 1915. It was now
recognised that defensive lines should run on the Asiatic side of the
Canal in order to make it impossible for any invader to come within
gunshot of the waterway. Three possible routes were open to the enemy.
The northerly coast road by El Aris