f the evacuation caused quite a stir at home.
From Suvla alone 44,000 men, 90 guns of all calibre, including one
anti-aircraft gun, 3000 mules, 400 horses, 30 donkeys, 1800 carts, and
4000 to 5000 cartloads of stores had to be embarked--and only by night
too, as of course the beaches and bay were visible by day from the
Turkish lines. To deceive the Turks, men were actually embarked by
night and disembarked by daylight to represent reinforcements, and the
Sikh muleteers drove furiously all day chiefly to make the dust fly.
On the last night about 12,000 men were embarked from A and C beaches,
and everything had been so well managed that there was never a hitch
of any kind. Needless to say each party arrived at the point where the
M.L.O. were to meet them well up to time and were conducted straight
on to the "beetles."

We were, of course, exceedingly lucky in the weather and in the lack
of initiative on the part of the Turks. The Higher Command counted on
50 per cent, casualties but actually, on the last night, only two men
were wounded on the way down to the beach--8 old guns, rendered
useless, were left behind at Anzac, 250 cases of Sunlight soap, a few
Indian carts minus their wheels, and one or two hospital tents were
left as a present for "Johnnie," and that was about all. The A.S.C.
set fire to everything they could not take away, and a fine bonfire it
made. The morning we left the wind rose, the sea became choppy, the
Turks attacked in great style, bombarding the beaches very heavily,
smashing the piers and nearly wiping Lala Baba off the map.

On 23rd December we left our camp and tried to board the _Prince
Abbas_, but the storm was too strong and we had to land again.
However, we got off next day, reached Mudros Harbour, and changed on
to the _Scotian_ on Christmas Day. None of us will forget the kindness
with which we were received on the _Scotian_, and the arrival of a
huge mail _and_ plum puddings completed our joy. We left on Boxing Day
and got to Alexandria on the 28th, where we at once disembarked and
went to camp at Sidi Bishr.

Of the 32 officers and 617 other ranks who sailed from Alexandria on
the 20th September, 8 officers and 107 other ranks returned on 28th
December--each squadron on 20th September was 6 officers and 136 other
ranks strong, the composite squadron on 28th December was 4 officers
and 61 other ranks. On 9th December the strength of the Highland
Mounted Brigade was 39 officers and 8