ted to a renewal of the policy of action as soon as
circumstances permitted. Nor was this theory discounted by the obvious
departure of troops from Suvla, and guns and wagons from Anzac, "to
reinforce Salonika"--the allied force at that time being hard pressed.

The first suspicion that all was not going well was caused the day
before the 28th Battalion left Russell's Top, by the spectacle of men
hurling boxes of rifle ammunition into deep pits and the receipt of the
order that rations must be drawn from the reserve located on the
position.

Now when the truth was known, all ranks were exercised by feelings
partly of relief and partly of disappointment. Relief at the thought
that the apparently useless sacrifice of life was to cease, and
disappointment that in spite of the streams of blood that had been shed,
and notwithstanding the performance of feats of arms not previously
equalled in history, Australia had failed to achieve complete success in
her first undertaking as a nation.

In this state of mind the Battalion quietly completed its arrangements
for embarkation. It had been ordered that an officer and 17 other ranks
of the Machine Gun Section were to be left to man the guns on Russell's
Top. Lieut. Shaw, on calling for volunteers for a "stunt," received
responses from the whole of his men and had difficulty in choosing the
right number from so much excellent material.

After dark the Battalion, which had assembled in the main saps, moved
down to Williams' Pier. Through over-anxiety on the part of the
Divisional Staff to avoid delay, the arrival of the unit was premature.
The 27th Battalion, having been ordered to embark earlier, was only just
commencing the operation. About 1,200 to 1,500 men were now crowded at a
point that the Turk constantly shelled. By one of those coincidences
which had been witnessed when Lord Kitchener landed at the same spot,
and was frequently noticeable when General Birdwood visited the front
line trenches, not a shot was fired by the enemy.

By 10 p.m. the last man had been taken off by the "beetles" and
transferred to the Khedivial Mail Steamer "Osmanieh." This vessel was of
some 4,000 tons and was now packed with the 27th, 28th, and some of the
26th Battalions. The baggage had been left behind on the beach under
guard, and was to follow the unit. Ultimately it was placed on another
transport and never seen again by its owners. Some valuable regimental
records and very interestin