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Gallipoli Diary

Monday May 24/15

Monday May 24/15

An armistice asked for by
the Turks in front of our positions
here at KABA TEPE for purpose of
burying the dead, was granted and
was on from 7.30 am to 4.30 pm.

page 71

It was arranged that only burial
parties & medical officers would be allowed
in front of trenches & then each party
would not go further than half way
to the others lines red + flags being
planted on the dividing line. It
was a strange sight to see the enemy
lined along their trenches & I suppose
the same occurred to them. The bearer
parties worked together at times and
in any case the trenches were only some
10 yards away in places. The Turkish
dead were very numerous, in one
small area over 500 being counted by
one of our medical officers. The work
went on all day & at a very
few minutes past 4-30 pm a few
rifle shots notified everyone in the
vicinity that hostilities had re-commenced.
At 8 pm the fire became hotter and
then settled down again to the same
old thing. We are really for the
present just a containing force
so we are not yet making any
desperate efforts to get forward tho'
progress is quietly being made by
sapping & entrenching. Three of the
largest & fastest ships afloat, the page 72 cunard liners Mauritania, Acquitania
& Olympic have arrived from England
with reinforcements but I don't know
yet their composition & strength.