. His work will comprise the whole of
the transhipment of stores from the ships to small craft; their dispatch
over 60 miles of sea to the Peninsula, and the maintenance of all the
necessary machinery in good running order. The task is tremendous, and
here is a simple soldier, without any experience of naval men or
matters, or the British soldier, or of Administration on a large scale,
or even of superior Staff duties, sent me for the purpose. We want a
competent business man at Mudros, ready to grapple with millions of
public money; ready to cable on his own for goods or gear by the ten
thousand pounds worth. We want a man of tried business courage; a man
who can tackle contractors. We are sent an Indian Brigadier who has
never, so far as I can make out, in his longish life had undivided
responsibility for one hundred pounds of public belongings. I cabled to
K. my objection as strongly as seemed suitable, but he tells me to carry
on. He tells me to carry on and, in doing so, throws an amusing
sidelight upon himself. Into his cable he sticks the words, "Ellison
cannot be spared." K. believes that my protest _re_ Wallace has, at the
back of it, a wish to put in the Staff Officer he took from me when I
started. He doesn't believe in my zeal for efficiency at Mudros; he
thinks my little plan is to work General Ellison into the billet.
Certainly, I'd like an organizer of Ellison's calibre, but he had not,
it so happens, entered my mind till K. put him there!

Landing at "W" Beach, I walked over to the 9th Division and met Generals
Hunter-Weston, de Lisle and Doran. As we were having our confab, the
Turkish guns from Asia were steadily pounding the ridge just South of
Headquarters. One or two big fellows fell within 100 yards of the Mess.
After an A.1 lunch (for which much glory to Carter, A.D.C.) visited
Gouraud at French Headquarters. Going along the coast we were treated
to an exciting spectacle. The Turkish guns in Asia stopped firing at
Headquarters and turned on to a solitary French transport containing
forage, which had braved the submarines and instead of transhipping (as
is now the order) at Mudros, had anchored close to "V" Beach. After
several overs and unders they hit her three times running and set her on
fire. Destroyers and trawlers rushed to her help. Bluejackets boarded
her; got her fire under control; got her under steam and moved out. The
amazing part of the affair lay in the conduct of the Turks. Having ma