ore against
machine guns in redoubts; to do it on the cheap; to do it without asking
for the shell that gives the attack a sporting chance. I don't say they
are wrong in so saying; there may be no other way out of it; but I do
say the War Office stand convicted of having gone hopelessly wrong in
their estimates and preparations. For we must have been held up
somewhere, surely; we must have fought _somewhere_. I suppose, even if
we had forced the Straits--even if we had taken Constantinople without
firing a shot, we must have fought somewhere! Otherwise, a child's box
of tin soldiers sent by post would have been just the thing for the
Dardanelles landing! No; it's not the advice that riles me: it's the
fact that people who have made a mistake, and should be sorry, slur over
my appeal for the stuff advances are made of and yet continue to urge us
on as if we were hanging back.

A strong wind blows and Helles is smothered in dust. Hunter-Weston spent
an hour with me this morning and an hour with the G.S. putting the final
touches to the plan of attack discussed by us yesterday. The Lancashire
Brigade of the 42nd Division has landed.

Hunter-Bunter stayed to lunch.

_Later_. In the afternoon went ashore and inspected the Lancashire
Brigade of the East Lancs. Division just landed; and a very fine lot of
Officers and men they are. They are keen and ready for to-morrow. Yes,
to-morrow we attack again: I have men enough now but very, very little
shell. The Turks have given us three bad nights and they ought to be
worn out. With our sea power we can shift a couple of Brigades from Gaba
Tepe to Helles or vice versa quicker than the Turks can march from the
one theatre to the other. So the first question has been whether to
reinforce Gaba Tepe from Helles or vice versa. For reasons too long to
write here I have decided to attack in the South especially as I had a
cable from K. himself yesterday in which he makes the suggestion:--

"I hope," he says, "the 5th" (that's to-day) "will see you strong enough
to press on to Achi Baba anyway, as delay will allow the Turks to bring
up more reinforcements and to make unpleasant preparations for your
reception. The Australians and New Zealanders will have had
reinforcements from Egypt by then, and, if they hold on to their
trenches with the help of the Naval Division, could spare you a good
many men for the advance."

Old K. is as right as rain here but a little bit after the shower. Ha