Palestine
28/2/18
My Dear People.
Here I am again it is a fair time since I wrote to you but as you will have heard before this we have been out stunting & I thought it would all keep till that was over so that I might have a story to tell. Before moving out I wrote Jessie & Jean & had it posted the morning we left camp. Now that there is so much to tell the trouble is where to start but to give a complete account of doings, places seen, their history etc would require reams of paper & a much better scribe than I to do it justice. Never-the-less I will do my best if it takes two days and I must also keep out of the censors clutch otherwise it might mean that this would not get through & there would be no satisfaction to any of us. Moving out from camp before noon on a bright clear day our course having something of an easterly bearing the first day’s trek through the open country saw us bivouac early in the afternoon. Next morning we were moving again, having refilled water-bottles haversacks nosebags early in the day the foot hills were being crossed & passed through by none too good a track but our camp was reach about an hour after mid-day not far from the
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historic Jaharieh. The next day was more severe being longer & the commencement of trials, rough climbing on a rocky roadway, as climbing steadily our way lay through what in places was merely a gorge at times being on the bottom then again winding round the hill sides some hundreds of feet above the level. But after walking a good deal and riding some more we eventually arrived at & camped not a great distance from Bethlehem a part of which we could see from the road. Here a days spell did us all good, getting some bread having been the previous few days on, the good old standby Billy & Biscuit, and by climbing amongst the rocks had a look at Bethlehem with Jerusalem just in view in the distance. At this camp water for everything was drawn from the famous Soloman’s Wells”, magnificent they are three in number being strongly built walls of rock covering almost, if not more, than, an acre each & going to some depth. There being three of these you can imagine the volume of water that is bottled up there where one wonders where water comes from because every where one turns is an endless stretch of rocky slopes. Round about Bethlehem the hills have, as it were, been reclaimed the rocks having been removed & built up and the whole hill side terraced, it looks well and is evidentally the work of years as from here on all about Jerusalem is the same, I think the people have a mania for building walls.
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Leaving a further portion of our belongings we moved on again next day & I might say that from here on ours was the rough & stony road. After passing through Bethlehem by narrow streets where the people stared open mouthed at us the track was narrow & progress naturally slow as for the greater part of the day we were winding round up and down hills by a mere goat track in many places doubling back & making zig-zags in order to get either to the bottom or top. Towards night we had the last boil for a few days and after drawing another days supply pushed on by a perilous track for some two or three hours in the dark. Coming to a halt preparations were made for routing of the Turks whose position by this time was within striking distance. Leaving the horses the different parties set out early in the night with only fighting equipment. The rest of us with the horses did not have much more sleep than the others but did not shift until just on day break which showed us the dead sea some little distance on our right front. Following up where the others had gone with four horses each to look after was no light task and where horses went that day would put goats to shame climbing over rocks & round hill sides where there was no track at all one does not say where will horses go now but where will they not go it was simply a case of mountaineering & it is remarkable that there was never an accident.
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Before mid-day we rounded a hill & came into view of more open country also Jacko’s and a few shells were then thrown about but little material damage was done. Soon after the horses were brought up to the firing line & all hands mounting up galloped to the position. Jacko had just previously left having thought better of hanging on & making a fight of it. During the day no severe fighting had taken place & there were few casualties. However no sooner had the position been occupied than Jacko saw fit to do some more shelling but he could not get his shells to drop just in the right place & he might as well have kept them for all the damage they did. About the middle of the afternoon all had a snack and a well earned spell for an hour or two. Just towards night the horses were taken to water that proving a long ride taking just on eight hours so that by the time we returned there was an hour for sleep & rest before standing too in readiness for any emergency. Early the firing line were again out the horses following an hour or so later again by a narrow treacherous track until at about eleven the open plain of the valley of the Jordan was reached just at the head of the Dead Sea. Without much opposition the plain with Jericks & the river Jordan was in our hands and soon after mid-day we settled down & had a few hours rest & a couple of meals on billy & biscuit while Jacko
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was throwing some shells at us from the hills on the farther side the valley. We were not however permitted the pleasure of a good nights rest but moved out about dusk and took up a post some little distance behind the front line but having to hold horses again it was not a particularly good nights rest. Next day was a good one not much doing & the horses had the benefit of some good green feed. The Jordan I only saw in the distance but the valley appears to be of little worth probably on account of its being some thousands of feet below the Mediterranean level and I believe fever stricken at any rate there is little signs of habitation anywhere about Jericho which is itself a small place. At about dusk our return journey commenced by the main Jericho Jerusalem road a beautiful old road it is too being practically up hill most of he way but it has a fine even grade in several places Jacko had destroyed it but that had been remedied so we passed easily. Of all the rides this was one that any of those who were in it are never likely to forget being sleepy, cold, & tired, stopping frequently for the first half of the night headway was slow. About mid-night we were at the Good Samaritans Inn where a halt of an hour enabled us to have a snack, not at the Inn, then moved in again. From this on till camp was reached was a wretched ride it was bitterly cold and the pace was hot over a dirty road some rain
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having fallen during the day. As our next halt was about the middle of Jerusalem all were awake but it being dull not much could be seen but one could observe the ancient city wall on the one hand while on the other was the more modern city. Passing through the journey into camp was completed just after daybreak and it was a welcome bed all turned into after horse lines etc had been fixed up. It was cold & miserable for the next twenty four hours so little was done with the exception of caring for the horses & ourselves. Next day however some leave was granted us & Jerusalem being the objective a large party set out but only having about a couple of hours not a great deal could be done. It is a great city being built of stone the material being in any quantity & not out of reach. In many places the buildings are hewn out of solid rock & as one passes though the narrow archways with flagged pavements the life of the people in these quarters seems awful, that is of course in the worst of it, the new city being quite decent. The only place of interest that I saw & was not permitted to enter was The Tomb of Calvary & The Holy Sepulchre time being so short by the time one turned round & got a few souvenirs it was a case of returning to camp. The ride home being the funniest thing I have witnessed for a long while.
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It was a pleasure to arrive back in camp & get some mail even as far out as Bethlehem your letter of Dec 2nd arrived also one from Mrs Hamilton. Of course there was no use doing an writing out there so leaving it all until returning there it is going to be some job for a few days getting up to it again. On the ninth day we left Bethlehem for here and did the trip by the same route as going out in a couple of days but the amount of traffic had improved the road & passage was much easier for all concerned. In your letter you spoke of just having started shearing that will be over long ago & I suppose harvest creeping on by this time. I am glad to hear George Menzies is keeping well. It is blowing a hurricane today and the sand is awful in everything eatable & otherwise. There is not much doing the last day or two but will be with drill again soon. Have heard that a mail for us has been lost again I hope it’s not correct and I am relieved to hear also that some of mine have got through again you may perhaps get them a little more regularly now. I met Les Jurd in Jerusalem & he is just the same as ever has had a great spin. Now I think this will suffice for the present too much bulk is no good. Will get the souvenirs posted in a day or two & I hope they arrive safely. Hoping this finds all as well as it leaves me.
Your Affect Brother
Charlie.
