THE WAR AUSTRALIAN EXPEDITIONARY FORCE. LETTER FROM AN ESSENDONIAN.

Mr. Tasman Inches, of North Street, Ascot Vale, who went  away with the First Australian Expeditionary Force (No. 2 Field Ambulance) writes under date 6th December, to his mother, as follows:

"I am writing this week on the chance of getting it posted ashore.   We are anchored out of Port Said. We are are bound for --, and are expecting to sail any time now. On the other hand we may disembark here on account of the  Turks. The weather is fine, and I am in the best of health. I had a slight   attack of tonsilitis on the voyage, but  it was nothing serious and only lasted three days. I think I felt the innoculation for typhoid worse than anything. We had two doses, and you can't use your hand or arm for about 36 hours, but they were very considerate with us. We had no drill while our arms were sore.

Our quarters are in the forward part of the ship, between decks, down one of the hatches. The holds are all covered in, but every day they have to be opened to get chaff up, and it falls all over the place and makes such a mess. The hammocks are issued every evening at six o'clock, and when you go to bed you sling them on the hooks about 6 feet 6 inches above the floor. They are very comfortable to sleep in, and in a swell they swing to the roll  of the boat, so you cannot feel the boat move. All through the tropics we were allowed to  sleep up on deck,  where it was lovely and cool. The meals are very fair. Two mess orderlies are appointed every week from each table, and they go and draw the food from the cookhouse and serve it out. They wash up and wash the troop deck every morning, clean the knives, etc. The officers inspect the deck every morning at 11 o'clock. Breakfast at 7.45, which consists of  porridge, and meat or fish, with tea; dinner at 12, includes soup and hot joint, and every other day light pudding; tea at 5, cold meat or stewed fruit (dried) and tea. At 6 o'clock  a.m. and 8 p.m. coffee is provided;   so you see we are not treated so badly.  Sometimes the meat is a bit off because it is kept in the cool stores. We have 12 at our table and 180 in our deck. Every day the orderlies draw a ration of bread, sugar, butter and cheese. At 6.30 a.m. physical drill, 9.30 morning parade, and that is all the drill we do for the day. We had some excitement the day the "Emden" was sunk.

[Here follow   some particulars which have already been published.]

The trip from Colombo to Aden was uneventful. We did not stay long at Aden, and we stood too far out to see the  town. The sunsets and sunrises here were glorious; and one cannot imagine it unless they see it. At Suez the natives sail out in small boats with goods they have to sell. The city is built right away from the industrial part, and consists of square sandstone buildings, with flat roofs and no ornamentation.  At Suez we took a searchlight on board, in fact all boats do. It consists of an arc lamp and a dynamo, and is connected to the steam pipes. It shows up the whole of the canal for about two miles. We entered the canal at dusk, and by morning - - was in sight. This is considered a fast trip, as most boats take about 16 hours. Port Said, as far as the buildings are concerned, is not up to my expectations, but is altogether different to what I have heard. The canal widens out and is a perfect waterway for shipping. Boats anchor on both sides and leave a passage down the centre, as you will see by the post cards I am going to send later on. The canal here is crowded with little "bumboats," as they are called. They come alongside and throw up ropes with baskets, and you send dawn your money and they send up the goods. When they ask a price, cut it in half and you will get a fair value. Turks run a lot of these boats. Little pilot boats are steaming up and down the canal and keep things busy. The town has no streets or pavements defined like Melbourne. Road and street are one, and pedestrians walk anywhere. There are no motor cars, but carriages drawn by two horses and mules are ridden about. The buildings are little better than at Suez. There are no residences, and people live in flats. Another noticeable thing is the absence of telegraph wires. These  go over the roofs of the buildings and cannot be seen from the street. The city is lit by gas, and the whole place is advertisements from top to bottom.

THE WAR. (1915, January 21). The Essendon Gazette and Keilor, Bulla and Broadmeadows Reporter (Moonee Ponds, Vic. : 1914 - 1918), p. 1. Retrieved March 16, 2014, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article74587419

Courtesy of M Kenny

The friends of Mr. T. C. Inches, of Ascot Vale, have received information to the effect that the gentleman mentioned, who left Victoria with the first Australian contingent, has been promoted to the rank of corporal at Gallipoli.

WITH THE COLOURS. (1915, December 23). The Essendon Gazette and Keilor, Bulla and Broadmeadows Reporter (Moonee Ponds, Vic. : 1914 - 1918), p. 5 Edition: Morning.. Retrieved January 21, 2012, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article74591315

FROM THE FRONT.

Sergeant Tasman Inches, of Moonee Ponds, who has been promoted and is now attached to the Australian Light Horse, writes from the front, stating that the weather is frightfully hot, the thermometer registering 114 in the shade for three days. There were numerous cases of sunstroke amongst the regiments, and the horses felt it very much, too. He did not know how Charlie M- or "Mac" were getting on, as they were a few thousand miles away. The sand blowing about was a great nuisance, and troubled the eyes very much, rendering the wearing of dark glasses necessary. One of the men got a tin of salmon and a tin of asparagus sent him, and so they made some rissoles and asparagus soup, which was grand, and it was a great change from bully beef. One of his men had gone to Kantara, and was to bring back some tinned goods.

FROM THE FRONT. (1916, July 13). The Essendon Gazette and Keilor, Bulla and Broadmeadows Reporter (Moonee Ponds, Vic. : 1914 - 1918), p. 5 Edition: Morning. Retrieved February 2, 2012, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article74593430

We have received a postcard from Tas. C. Inches, sending seasonable greetings from France.

OUR SOLDIERS. (1916, December 29). The Essendon Gazette and Keilor, Bulla and Broadmeadows Reporter (Moonee Ponds, Vic. : 1914 - 1918), p. 3 Edition: Morning..  http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article74601208

Among those Australians mentioned in dispatches by Sir E. H. H. Allenby for distinguished and gallant conduct during recent operations in Egypt are No. 1676, Spr. (T.-Corp.) S. H. Treyvaud son of Mr. H. H. Treyvaud of Grice street, Esendon; and No. 133, Sergt. T. C. Inches, son of Mr. A. J. Inches, of Filson street, Ascot Vale.

ROLL OF HONOUR. (1918, August 22). The Essendon Gazette and Keilor, Bulla and Broadmeadows Reporter (Moonee Ponds, Vic. : 1914 - 1918), p. 2 Edition: Morning. Retrieved August 10, 2012, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article74606932