Through Palestine with the Twentieth Machine Gun SquadronUnknown
History
Through Palestine with the Twentieth Machine Gun Squadron
Unknown
Great Britain. Army. Machine Gun Squadron, 20th -- History; World War, 1914-1918 -- Regimental histories -- Great Britain
He was buried in the Aleppo Protestant Cemetery on November 11th 1918, in
the presence of the Divisional Commander, the Brigade Commander, the C.O.'s
of all the units in the Brigades, and many members of his Squadron, all of
whom felt how regrettable it was that he had not been spared to hear THE
GREAT NEWS which we all then felt was so close at hand, and towards the
obtaining of which he had, ever since the outbreak of the War, contributed
so much energy and ability. The "H.A.C." kindly provided us with a
gun-carriage upon which to convey him to his resting place, and Capt.
Powell, C.F., the Brigade Chaplain, officiated.
NEARING THE END.
As those who had been present at the ceremony were waiting for the motor
lorries to take them back to Muslimie the momentous news was received that
_an armistice had been signed with Germany!_
It was universally felt to be a sad coincidence that he who had come
through the war from start to finish should thus have been laid low at the
very end of his labours. That Major St. John Davies, M.C., was undoubtedly
a great leader and very considerate of his men's welfare, was universally
known. There can be no doubt that he would have had a successful career,
had he been spared, in any profession he might have chosen.
Malaria was taking its toll, and a few days later Signaller Boak, who had
been the Squadron's Brigade Orderly throughout the last operations, fell
another victim to its clutches. He was buried in the Military Cemetery,
Aleppo, a number of his comrades being present at the graveside.
AFTER THE ARMISTICE.
Capt. R.H. Fairbairns, M.C., now took command, with Lieut. A.O.W. Kindell
as Second-in-Command. The strength of the Squadron was now four officers,
145 O.R.'s, 116 riding horses, 77 draught mules, 36 pack animals, and, as
no reinforcements had reached the Squadron since the start of operations on
September 19th, these figures represented a loss of two officers, 67
O.R.'s, 65 riding horses, three draught mules and seven pack animals.
Considering that the Squadron had covered 450 miles in 43 days, in addition
to the fighting, the loss in animals (especially draught) was extremely
small, and results show that the Squadron has every reason to be proud of
its horsemastership.
The Sections were now withdrawn from "outpost" and the Squadron moved into
Muslimie station, where a certain number of buildings appeared to be
available, and capable of affording protection from the wet weather, which
showed signs of coming on.
Unfortunately, after clearing out several buildings, these had to be
relinquished to a regiment of the 15th Brigade, which came up to take over
the station. The Squadron, however, was allowed to use, as billets, some
old railway trucks which could not be moved, owing to the points being
blown up. It was expected, at one time, that the Division would proceed to
Alexandretta, on the coast, for the winter, but this did not eventuate.
[Illustration: Muslimie Junction Station.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account