re as the sentries endeavoured
to bring one down; several times a goose was brought down, and I well
remember the annoyance of an officer when a goose he had winged
managed to flutter across into the Turkish lines. The heat was at the
maximum between 2 and 3 when we could almost boil oil in the sun. At 4
o'clock things livened up somewhat and at 5-30 everyone stood ready in
the front line awaiting any possible attack but neither side showed
any intention of attacking. Night duties were arranged, parapets had
to be mended, new trenches dug, barbed wire put out and all the
necessary work in connection with trench warfare continued. Officers
patrols were regularly sent out into "No Man's Land" to examine the
enemy's wire and find out if he were sapping forward. As the summer
advanced the marsh receded on the left of the enemy's line, and this
gave our scouts an opportunity to patrol and harass the Turks by
penetrating in rear of their left flank. Much gallant work was done in
this direction and much credit gained by the Regiment, for the Colonel
considered that a good test of the fighting energy of a Company was
the vigour of its patrol duties, and a good number of the Turkish
sentries, I feel sure, agreed with him. The usual night "Hate" started
about six when both sides opened fire, rifle and machine gun, on the
opposite trenches, this was kept up all night, some nights would be
more lively than others, some nights would be comparatively quiet,
but now and again an artillery bombardment would take place, when we
always seemed to give more than we got. Both we and the Turk were very
free with rifle grenades, but what troubled us most was a special
pattern of trench mortar that threw a heavy bomb over quarter of a
mile. One night I remember one landed in and blew up the whole of the
regimental cookhouse; luckily the cooks were sleeping elsewhere and it
was only the dixies that suffered.

[Illustration: The Tree Of Knowledge, Kurnah. Supposed Site Of The
Garden Of Eden.]

[Illustration: Ashar Creek.]

I have always considered myself a very light sleeper, but one evening
I had cause to come to another conclusion. I had just come off duty
from the front line and was speaking to a brother officer outside my
dug-out about 9 o'clock when suddenly we opened artillery fire on the
Turkish position with considerable vigour, and they replied but in a
milder form. I retired and lay down in my dug-out listening to the
shells whistl