Organisations > Roll of honour of Caxton House Printing Office, Dundee

Colin D. Smith
Every day the lads were paraded and were marched
across the sand to Tineh Bay for bathing. Some poor boys
were so frantic w T ith thirst that they used to jump into
the salt water and swallow it. "We would do any-
thing," says Colin ; " we were so thirsty. Some boys
when they received their ration of a half-cupful
became silly and — threw it on the sand ! '
A sandstorm too, was added to the torments of this
awful place. One day the order was passed round
to take refuge in the tents, to lace up the doorways,
to sandbag down all the flaps, and to hold up the pole.
The blast came and in spite of all precautions it was
strong enough to lay a few of the tents flat upon the
ground. Colin mentions that all the men, while in
this part of the country, were required to wear sand-
glasses. He tells us also that although Mohammedeah
is only associated in his mind with the tortures of
thirst, he has the satisfaction of knowing that before
he left Egypt the camp had been made one of the best
in the country, and had been provided with a canteen
where the soldiers could buy tinned fruit or anything
they might wish.
The enemy made no appearance at Mohammedeah,
but he had been approaching. He was seen by our
aeroplanes while he Avas yet in the desert at El Katie.
The English regiments were therefore well prepared
for him when he made his great attack on them at
Romania. The Scottish Horsemen were in readiness
also, at Hill 40, and they listened with excited eager-
ness to the sound of the guns in the distance, although
they were not called to help in the battle. The Turks
were defeated, and over a thousand of them were
made prisoners. When Colin saw these men being
brought in, he felt heartily sorry for them, they looked
so miserably poor and wretched. Thirty miles they
had tramped over the desert, toiling all the way with
their heavy howitzers. Colin thinks they used short
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