o make his salaams. We served together at Malta and both broke
sinews in our calves playing lawn tennis--a bond of union.

Have cabled to Lord K. telling him I am just off to Alexandria. Have
said that the ruling factor of my date of landing must be the arrival of
the 29th Division "(see para. 2 of your formal instructions to me the
foresight of which appeals to me with double force now we are at close
quarters with the problem[7])." I have pointed out that Birdwood's
Australians are very weak in artillery; that the Naval Division has none
at all and that the guns of the 29th Division make that body even more
indispensable than he had probably realised. I would very much like to
add that these are no times for infantry divisions minus artillery
seeing that they ought to have three times the pre-war complement of
guns, but Braithwaite's good advice has prevailed. As promised at the
Conference I express a hope that I may be allowed "to complete
Birdwood's New Zealand Division with a Brigade of Gurkhas who would work
admirably in the terrain" of the Peninsula. In view of what we have
gathered from Keyes, I wind up by saying, "The Admiral, whose confidence
in the Navy seems to have been raised even higher by recent events, and
who is a thruster if ever there was one, is in agreement with this
telegram."

Actually Keyes will show him a copy; we will wait one hour before
sending it off and, if we don't hear then, we may take it de Robeck will
have endorsed the purport. Of course, if he does not agree the last
sentence must come out, and he will have to put his own points to the
Admiralty.

_Later_.--Have sent Doughty Wylie to Athens to do "Intelligence": the
cable was approved by Navy; duly despatched; and now--up anchor!

CHAPTER III

EGYPT

_25th March, 1915. H.M.S. "Franconia." At Sea._ A fine smooth sea and a
flowing tide. Have written to K. and Mr. Asquith. Number two has caused
me _fikr_.[8] The P.M. lives in another plane from us soldiers. So it
came quite easily to his lips to ask _me_ to write to him,--a high
honour, likewise an order. But K. is my soldier chief. As C.-in-C. in
India he refused point blank to write letters to autocratic John Morley
behind the back of the Viceroy, and Morley never forgave him. K. told me
this himself and he told me also that he resented the correspondence
which was, he knew, being carried on, behind his (K.'s) back, between
the army in France and his (K.'s) own politica