“At night we rejoined the Regiment, who hadn’t a biscuit left, but heard they had captured a Turkish barge, with a cargo of grain, flour, candles, dates, and supplies of all descriptions, so they had grain for the horses and food for the men. The transport arrived in camp, but they only had enough for one day’s march; and although the paddle-steamers followed us up, we were now a day’s march ahead of the dumping-ground, and two days’ march in front of the Infantry.” _February 28._--“So next day, the 28th February, we retired back a day’s march, and came upon the food columns on the bend of the river.... On the 1st of March we remained in camp all day.... We got on board the captured barge that morning, bringing away whole-meal flour, dates, surgical bandages, and took off a lot of corn for the horses. M‘Nulty and Moss made chupattees of the flour, baking corned-beef and dates and making pies, and we all had a good feed.... _March 3._--“On the 3rd réveillé was at 5.30. After attending to our mounts we had breakfast, and then a big party of men, of which I was one, were ordered to stand-to for fatigue. We were marched down to the river, a distance of two or three hundred yards, and commenced to unload barges, which had arrived that morning with stores of all kinds, shells and bullets, and food for man and beast. We soon transformed the bleak ground on the bend of the river into a vast dumping-ground, and hundreds of tons of corn were soon stacked in heaps on shore.... At 8 P.M. that night we were again unloading a barge which we completely emptied of its cargo. We had no rest that day, but we knew we had done some good work.” _March 4._--“Next day, the 4th, we remained in camp all day. During the afternoon we heard that the General was holding a parade to decorate men who were recommended for bravery on the field. We were afterwards to get ready to move on the morrow, as a report brought in by airmen reported a body of Turks holding trenches a day’s march up the Tigris close to where they had a pontoon-bridge across.” _2nd Lieutenant Guy Pedder--March 2._--“What do you think of it all? No doubt the papers have been shouting about old Mespot lately. When I wrote my last letter I little thought we should be quite so far on the next time I wrote. I think the rout of the Turks must have been a complete surprise for even our authorities....