Captain H.S. Sharp) made a detour down
half-way to the Wadi Selman in our rear, and then advanced straight up
the cliff at these two peaks. They got to the top unopposed, but the
moment they showed over the skyline they were met with a hail of
machine-gun bullets and shrapnel, the position being completely
dominated by the Turks at medium range. How it was no one could
understand, but the attackers only had one casualty on the top, and he
was very gallantly brought back by the officer in charge of the
company. We stuck to one twin peak but evacuated the other, and it was
now clear that 1750 was still farther on, and that the Turk was
occupying it, so that, in order to have a dash at it, the first thing
to do was to extend our line farther to the right and get in touch
with some of our own troops. Distances and contours were almost
impossible to appreciate from the map, and it was not realised what a
great extent of line we were being asked to hold with a battalion, and
really, faulty map reading was excusable, considering the maps we had
to work with.

To begin with, the map was two miles to the inch, and was not
contoured--merely hachured--which is no earthly use where the peaks
are crowded up within a few hundred yards of each other, so that three
peaks in line appear on the map as one ridge, though there may be dips
of 500 feet between them, and looking at it the other way, it is very
hard to believe that a place which it takes you one and a half hours
to reach walking is less than a mile on the map. We were all deceived,
but by good luck on this occasion no harm was done.

Brigade at once sent up three companies and some machine-gunners to
support us, so we were all right in the line; but they proved to be
too many for the signal communications, which all had to come through
Battalion H.Q., and the signallers were worked to death. All these odd
companies and the machine-gunners had to arrange for their own supply
of ammunition, water, and rations with their own units, as they were
the only people who could supply the necessary pack animals to bring
the stuff as far as Battalion H.Q. From here the stores had to be
carried by hand by fatigue parties, and these parties had to be
advised by signals whenever their stores arrived. This meant
continuous work for the signallers, who had to keep their stations
going with insufficient reliefs, a thing that can only be done for a
very limited time.

We had hardly got this