ellous secrecy with
which the Commander-in-Chief kept all his plans inspired the greatest
confidence in those under him. No one knew his plans; everything was a
dead secret; it was even rumoured that his immediate staff were often
kept in ignorance up to the last moment, but all ranks had confidence.
On January 21st at 4 p.m. we struck camp at Faliyeh, crossed the river
and for 10 days occupied a position along the Narrows from Chahela
Mounds to near Beit-a-Essa, a distance of about five miles,
establishing picquets along the line. This was a most welcome change.
We had been on one side of the river for practically a whole year and
new duties and new country broke the monotony. Each Company was
divided up. Three Companies holding the line along the Tigris bank and
the fourth in reserve. Casualties were very light and Captain Haldane
did excellent work sniping and kept the enemy well in hand. The
gunners were good enough to remark that a great change was noticeable
since the line had been taken over by us; this was probably a little
bit of flattery on the part of the Artillery men, but it was quite
welcome. During these days the Commanding Officer was an unknown
quantity as one never knew where he would next appear on the five-mile
line. I think that he must have known every inch of it. We were
relieved by another Highland Regiment and a very pleasant ten days
came to an end with a march back across the river to the forward area
and back to the now muddy trench at San-i-yat. It was now bitterly
cold and uncomfortable at night and the mud in the trench almost as
bad as the dust in the summer. Bombardments were of daily occurrence
and the Turk must have had a most uncomfortable January. About the
middle of February the Army Commander determined to make a combined
attack with one force at the Shumran bend, and with one of our
brigades at San-i-yat. The attack at San-i-yat was delivered by two
Indian Battalions of our Brigade under great disadvantages, and though
at first successful, the attackers were eventually compelled to
withdraw back to our lines. Every officer and every man regretted
that the Battalion had not been selected to take part in the attack in
the first instance, and were eager to lead the Brigade in another
assault. This indeed was the wish of the whole Brigade, and orders in
fact were issued to that effect, but two days later, when every
arrangement had been completed, it was decided to make the attack with