Pte. E. Baker, of 41 Pratt-road, Rushden, who has had some thrilling experiences with the East Anglian Field Ambulance, is now at home. He has been ill with enteric fever, and has now fully recovered.

In giving an account of some of his experiences to the “Rushden Echo” he says: “My life in the Army has indeed been an eventful one and crowded with many wonderful experiences. I joined at Ipswich on my 19th birthday, May 3rd, and had been stationed there six weeks, when I was one out of 36 chosen from 100 to proceed to Watford as a draft, to complete the 2/1st East Anglian Field Ambulance. We stayed in Watford nearly a fortnight, getting drill suits and our full equipment preparatory to our departure. We left Devonport towards the end of July on the transport ‘Maniton,’ our clearing station going on the Royal Edward.

“On our boat were 400 tons of ammunition, 400 mules and horses and 1200 men, so I leave you to guess of the amount of room we had for sleeping accommodation and exercise. While passing I might mention the food was anything but of the best; and, with sea sickness, not desirable.

“We were eight days in reaching Malta, and put into harbour one morning about 10.30, and our boat was immediately surrounded by Maltese, who were in small rowing boats, from which they offered grapes and fruit of every description. These were eagerly purchased by us, and after living on bully beef, fruit tasted very luscious, I can assure you. Small boys and men dived and swam into the water for coppers, but after they had done a good business became very independent, and refused to display their aquatic abilities for less than sixpence.

“We left Malta the same evening, the Royal Edward and George putting into harbour as we left. After six more days on the water we arrived at Alexandria, by which time, I might mention, the stench from the horses was awful and unhealthy.

“We were not allowed to leave the boat, but permission was given for our officers to take us to the European quarter, which was a march of something like three miles. That march I shall never forget. We passed through places which I am sure must by worse than the slums of London. One could notice houses made of tin lids, mud, and straw, and the goats and hens seemed to have the run of the whole show. With the terrific heat I must leave you to guess what the smell of the place was like. To us English Tommies it seemed very funny to see the women in their native dress, and greater part of their faces covered. The men looked a lazy and licentious lot of individuals, doing nothing but sit about and smoke their huge bowl pipes.

“We left Alexandria the same evening for Lemnos, which we reached in four days. We had no sooner put into harbour there than we heard of the sinking of the Royal Edward, which I might mention, came into Alexandria the same time as we left. This news damped the spirits of our men very much, as 80 of our comrades were on board, and fine chaps they were, too. We saw in the harbour, just the same as we had seen at Malta and Alexandria, hundreds of transport boats, French, Russian and English battleships of every description, and it struck me very forcibly that although we must have a huge fleet in the Mediterranean, we saw no battleships only those in the various harbours. We left Lemnos the same evening and steamed up to Suvla Bay, where a landing had just been made. I don’t think there is any need for me to reiterate and enlarge upon the complete force and failure of the operation. One out of every two of our boys went under and hundreds of our poor chaps never even reached the shore. By what I have heard and seen our generals thought they had a walk over. The division which was making the landing was addressed to the effect that the landing would take place during the night, that they would meet with no opposition, and that not a shot was to be fired. The landing was only six hours behind time, and, lo and behold, the Turks were not such fools as we had anticipated. Some of the Australians who were at Anzac were even given written instructions as to how to behave themselves when they reached a certain town. They are not there yet, anyhow!

“When we reached the harbour we began to unload our ammunition, and had a barge half full by the side of our boat when the Turks began to shell us like ----------.

“I expected any minute to see the whole lot of us blown to pieces. One of the shells dropped between the barge and boat, another struck our leeward and went straight through the bath room, in so doing splintering the ship’s rails to smithereens. Luckily no one was hurt.

“To make matters worse the ship’s captain was ashore and the chief engineer was unable to move the boat without orders. After about half an hour of this (by this time we had nearly gone mad rushing about for life belts), we moved off and back to the small isle of Imbros, and to be quite candid, we were not sorry. From there we were transferred to a French cruiser and taken back to Suvla Bay. We landed at 5 a.m. and, like a lot of sheep, stood about in crowds on the beach. The Turks, seeing we were a fresh landing party, gave us a warm reception with shrapnel, and we scattered for dug-outs like marathon racers.

“One of our chaps caught a nasty bruise by shrapnel, but nothing worse. It is really wonderful how quick one gets used to this sort of thing, and with a little experience can do very well guess where the blighters are going to drop. It is not the shells which have been such a disadvantage to our chaps but the terrible hardships, such as the terrific heat, the flies, the lack of decent food (which, by the way, I hear has greatly improved), and the lack of water. The heat and flies combined are enough to send one mad. The flies, coming from the latrines and dead bodies, settling on one’s jam is enough to give anyone dysentery or enteric. As you have read, the water is very scarce, and if one gets sufficient to drink he is lucky. Many a time I have poured water from my water bottle into a tin and undressed and endeavoured to make myself feel fresh. It is indeed terrible to see the chaps who have dysentery. They go to a mere shadow and I have heard it said that some chaps have died who have weighed but a few stone. Any Tommy will tell you he would sooner have a bullet wound in his leg than dysentery.

“The Turks, of course, have every advantage on the peninsula, as they are acclimatised and know every nook and corner of the place snipers seem to be able to hide between two pebbles.

“Our work as a field ambulance consisted in stretcher work soon after 5 a.m. pick and shovel work during the day in the boiling sun, and stretcher work again at night. There is no such thing as rest, and one is at it from morning until night. It is true there are some reserve trenches, but any chap will tell you he is better off in the front line than at the rest camp.

“Considering the nature of the country and the task that is set before them, I consider the number of troops insufficient to carry out the work. Also, the morale of the Turkish Army does not degenerate, but gets much better; and it is well known they have fortified the place hill and dale, and yet it seems an almost impossibility to fight a rear-guard action, as it would be just as difficult getting the troops off as it was making the landing.

“I might mention that 20 were left out of my section of 80 when I was taken with enteric – 60 of them either killed, wounded, or gone sick. I will not dwell on the horror of the sights one sees – it is enough to tear a man’s heart in two.

“I came across several of the Welsh boys you had billeted in Rushden, and it made me very proud when they spoke so well of the way they were treated here. I am afraid there are not a great number left now of them. The 7th Battalion was cut up the first day, leaving 300 men to carry on. I can honestly say that what are left of them would be glad to have their feet under some of your tables.”