olutely necessary,
side-show.

Then, thrusting itself into prominence about the same time as the
Shatt-el-Arab affair developed, came the question of Egypt. The Turks
would assuredly contrive a stroke at the Khedive's dominions from the
side of the Isthmus of Suez sooner or later, the attitude of the
tribes in the vast regions to the west of the Nile valley could not
but give grounds for some anxiety, and there was a fair chance of
effervescence within the Nile Delta itself. Maintaining the security
of Egypt was hardly more a side-show than was the provision of
garrisons for India; but the defence of Egypt at a later stage more or
less merged into offensive operations directed against Palestine. The
question of giving that defence a somewhat active form by undertaking
expeditionary enterprises in the direction of the Gulf of Alexandretta
came to be considered quite early in the war, as has already been
mentioned in Chapter III. But during the first six months or so Egypt
only in reality absorbed military resources which for various reasons
could not appropriately have been utilized elsewhere. The British
regulars were withdrawn from Cairo and Khartum and helped to form
divisions for the Western Front, considerable bodies of Native Indian
troops were transported to Suez from Bombay and Kurrachee, the East
Lancashire Territorial Division was sent out from home, and the newly
constituted contingents from the Antipodes secured a temporary
resting-place in a region which climatically was particularly well
suited for their purpose. Anxiety as to Egypt was as a matter of fact
in great measure allayed in January 1915, owing to the Osmanlis
pressing forward to the Suez Canal, sustaining a severe rebuff near
its banks at the hands of the defending force, and disappearing
eastwards as a beaten and disorganized rabble.

The Palestine operations will be touched upon later; but there is a
subject in connection with the contingents from the Antipodes,
referred to above, which, although it has nothing to do with the
principle of side-shows in the abstract, may perhaps not
inappropriately be discussed here. Was it right ever to have employed
those contingents on the Western Front, as they were employed from an
early date in 1916 onwards to the end of the struggle? The result of
their being so disposed of was that, covering a space of nearly three
years, troops from the United Kingdom were perpetually passing
eastwards through the Med