Why the Drought and Floods?
We make our own Desert

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Where have all the trees gone?

WHY

THOUGHTS ON WATER AND DROUGHTS IN AUSTRALIA.....RUNNING MATES

Thoughts on water and droughts ;they are running mates. One can bring fodder to the starving stock but God controls the water. It doesn’t have to rain; so we should make good use of it when it does. Just think of all the water that runs away after a storm. Surely in this day and age; the brains of this Country would have solved that problem. It seems we only live for today.

We down with the trees; create a desert. Forget removing the trees, encourage the rain! All the little napan bushes and bumble trees that the animals treasured are gone. Yes the napan bush was the home of the butterfly! If you have no water,all the fodder in the world won’t save your stock.When your mulga, bottle, and kurrajong trees have been lopped in a mad effort to feed the hungry animals

{never pull mulga trees out with a chain roots and all! 13% protien, leafy food for cattle,sheep &horses}

Lop and next drought it will be there when it’s needed.Young trees I hear you say; will grow. Not when their mothers who protected them have gone and they are eaten up the moment they pop their heads up. In all the heavily timbered parts of the world, eg The Amazon, New Guinea, rain falls heavily and everything is lush, perhaps the living trees in millions call out for rain?

In the last 30 years west of Dalby around St George and Dirranbandi millions of trees are gone and now we have a better desert for our very very dry land farming? Land improvement by the local farmer who looks to the sky and wonders why it doesn't rain? When all visible signs of grass have disappeared ;and all eatable vegetation gone; time to put out the licks. They contain salt, molasses, urea; makes them hungry and they eat food they normally show little interest in .

I’ve seen poor cattle eat dry wire grass that had never been eaten before while on lick. Even calve on it. Sheep eat every dry leaf ; then dig up the grass roots under the ground whils’t on lick. Time to put the stock all into one paddock to feed them. Enables the leaves off the available trees to be left close to the lick.This gives the empty paddocks a chance to revegitate when it does rain.

The constant walking over the soil by the cloven hoof does more damage than good. It is known that the constant loosing of the soil by the cloven hoof have been the cause of the small lagoons and gullies disappearing.These held precious water; but constant loose soil filled them in. In the past the grazier seemed to be more in tune wiith nature. He was aware when a drought was on the horizon ; he had seen and learnt from experience.The stock were culled and sold; better to sell now then to get nothing for them. Usually kept a few sturdy breeders.

Sold all the old ewes and lambs.. Didn’t put the rams in with the ewes at joining time. Kept the nucleus of the breed for the future. In those days the old sheep were driven to the soap factory ; their fat boiled down used in the making of bars of kerosene soap. The grazier would more than likely go droving ; take the stock on the Stock Routes. (Why not today?) Return home when rain fell on his property.

Those days a grazing lease was used to graze stock on only. In lots of cases these days the grazier has become a grazier farmer. He still runs his stock; but a fair proportion of his land is farmed. This means the stock have less acreage to feed on. If the rain doesn’t fall when it’s needed, the crops will fail. This means a drought situation because of over stocking on the depleted area. In the meantime trees were destroyed to make room for the farming. Gone was the shade for the cattle in the heat of the day. The trees give protection in winter when those cold winds blow.

Never again will the natural grass grow on the deserted farm land. Only the dreaded hop bush and other rubbish. One must learn that crops don’t grow each year in our parched land. We welcomed the dung beatle; we didn’t have to fight the flies for our lunch in the bush! Then the beatles deserted us; they didn’t like their homes being disturbed by the plough.

Gone was the long grass where we searched for emu eggs. Gone the quondong tree; the fruit was a emu delicacy. Shame on us ; we must all seek to make this country what it should be a living paradise for humans, animals, and birdlife. Make sure we thank God for his gift of rain! Having watched as a child the floods in the rivers.The fast flowing swirling water that came with a rush; bringing much joy to the town! At first there were no weirs to slow the progress.The dead trees and stock that had fallen in , swept past in a blink of a eye.

We knew when the water would reach our town. The property owners had time to shift their stock to the high ground . The butcher had seen he had a plentiful supply of meat on hand and shops prepared. Then came the weirs and control of the rivers. The water was being sold., irrigation farms , a step forward. The water no longer swept by with such freedom. Portions of the river would become low.

In days before if dead trees or stock were left in the bed of the river; the local council would employ a teamster with draft horses to hook on and remove the object. Sediment was building up in the river. Loose soil from the constant traffic of animals walking was coming into the water ; adding mud to the river.This caused the river to lose its depth, thus flooding out more often.Yes this suited some people; it grew grass for a few weeks where it flood irrigated the land. But it also flooded the town and people were evacuated out of their ruined homes.Cost the goverment and Councils lots of money each time it flooded

Now I reckon instead of spending that money why don’t they deal with the root of the problem. The cause is obvious; the rivers need desilting. (where the river beds get dry there are good sand deposits too, useful for road building etc.) If all the extra mud was removed from a portion of the river where the river broke its banks. It would make the river deeper and therefore hold the extra water! Yes you say ; but think of the cost ? No worry every town council on the river have permament Machinery they use through the year. They close down for so many weeks over XMAS holidays. I can’t see why the machinery couldn’t be used at this tme to desilt the portion of the river near these towns.

A little bit at a time while the river is low would make a difference. Especialy in a town like Charleville where the river causes such havoc. All the money spent restoring the town; if they could desilt the portion where it breaks its banks. I’m sure they would come out on top. It only takes a really committed person to get off his butt and have a go. Of course the millions of trees that held the soil in place, need replacing to stop soil erosion, which sends our topsoil to the sea by river flood after a 5 or 7 year drought. No, God supplies the rain; it’s up to us to think wisely and make good use of his precious gift.

 

 

Back to the war in 1941.....[Hit Counter]

 

 

CHAPTER 53

     In Syria in 1941 we fought the French Foreign Legion and beat

them in an eight week war. The force that entered Lebanon the

eighth of June 1941 included The Australian 25th brigade in the

center. The 21st Brigade, they were deployed on the coastal sector.

The 5th Indian Infantry Brigade was in the Damascus sector. Our

Brigades contained 3 Battalions each. Battalion numbers varied but

some were around the 800 soldiers per unit. The Indian Brigade had

one Battalion of Royal Fusileers, and two other Btns. of Indian

Infantry. On our side attached to the Indian Brigade were

 some free French forces. Our opposition was 35,000 French regular troops They had a Brigade of Tanks and Armored Cars, plus they used Militia horse Cavalary.

 We were invading Lebanon and were initially

outnumbered by two to one, bad odds for the invading force. The

Frogs had more Armoured vehicles and Artillery firepower than we

could round up to try to match. Disaster struck on the Damascus

front, the Royal Fusileers ran out of food and ammunition and had

to surrender to the Vichy French. The two Indian Battalions were

almost destroyed but kept on fighting. Now the 1st Australian Corp. took charge in the field of battle. Two British Brigades were sent to fill the gap at Damascus the British Brigades the Sixteenth and the Twenty third, did the job assigned them. The 17th Australian brigade reinforced the coastal sector just before the battle of Damour.

                                                           

We suffered about fifteen hundred casualties with less than 500

killed.            

    While on a search mission on the Mediterranean, I came to a

Boat yard in a place called Acre. It was a yard built with giant

Drift wood trees, standing upright in the sand like stumps. We were

searching out the enemy. I walked through the narrow gateway among

the old wooden boats of the fishermen, that were laying there

upside down. These boats I saw as I stepped in side. It had a

hinged gate made out of Driftwood trees,  I passed through it. As

I did so a giant arab lunged at my back with his dagger poised to

stab me. I saw his shadow with the knife upraised.  He said "Mes e

quais Anglaisa," he thought I was English, and he was trying to

kill me. I was to get the pointed blade between the shoulder

blades, what its meant for.  I swung and caught his wrist and

pulled him over my shoulder and broke his arm. George Gibson gave

him a butt slap with his rifle.  His dagger had ended up in the

middle of his chest. I still have the pointed dagger today, that

almost killed me.

 

CHAPTER 54

     We rounded up thousands of the French Foreign Legion, and

Vichy French. After we rounded them up, the British sent them home

to France as a goodwill gesture to France, they were all pro German and fighting for Germany. We didn't think they would fight the Australians, for the Aussies fought for France and Belgium for four years in the First World War.

 

Yes thousands of Aussies died for France in their cause. When we

first met them in battle we were told to wear our slouch hats, for

the French still  might have been our allies. Unfortunately they

shot at us so we had to clean them out.          

    A mate close by was shot through the head and slouch hat, a tin hat might have saved him. On that first day of battle, our baptism, cost me my two best mates. Don Foster and Doug Parker died fighting the Vichy French and the Foriegn Legion.  The French enemy had some German officers to keep them fighting. It wasn't easy and we had patrols and scouts out and fought from street to street. Our main objective was to take the Fortress of Merjayoun, it was a giant fortress high on a hill. We were lead by a Captain H who deserted the company there. Held in reserve was Captain Stringer, he took charge of us, and lead the company forward. We were getting the best of the French in the village. Then from the fortress Tanks appeared in the streets. Captain Stringer was severely wounded,

Corporal Henderson and Hal Love lay wounded in the street also.

Captain Stringer got to his feet and made it to a stone house, but

he was shot again. He was captured then by the French and died

while a prisoner of war. Corporal Henderson was dead and Hal Love

wounded, we had a lot more wounded and dead that day. After this

we crossed the Litani river. This river runs into the Mediterranean in a western direction. Here up on the rocks on a very solid high cliff of rock, was where battles had been fought in the days of the crusaders. Richard the Lionheart had built a castle there out of stone, and he was seven years in that castle near Acre.

I quote our Captain Marson, of his report on the experiences of

  QX 3478 Pte J.J. " Joe " O'Brien of A Company, during the

Merdjayoun operation: -  

" 19th June, 1941 - Entered the town with seven platoon, detailed

by Captain Marson to move with Corporal Henderson round the left

flank to attack a Machine Gun post. The attack failed and Corporal

Henderson and another man were killed. ( Captain Stringer?) The

remainder of the section they were pinned down approximately

seventy yards from the enemy. O'Brien was furtherest forward on the enemy side of the stone wall. He feigned to be dead for five (5)hours. He saw a patrol from the 2/2 Pioneer Battalion enter the

town but did not join them, couldn't because of the crossfire from

the Barracks. He moved his position and did some sniping.       

 However, he was seen and was fired on by the French  and received

a bullet through the front of his shirt and a Bren Magazine.

Fortunately for him he was not hurt and camped for the night in a

haystack. At daylight the following day he came under shellfire

from our own Batteries. 20th June - He eluded the French throughout

the day and did some sniping in the meantime. That night he took

refuge in the grapevines.

 Again he was fired on by the French, and heard one say in English

after a particularly heavy burst " How did you like that Mister?"

21st June - He hid in a house on the edge of the town all day. He

observed much movement of the French troops to and from the forward defences. They were evidently preparing to evacuate. He then moved into town after dark and found a few French about. He then returned to the copse from which B Company had attacked and spent the night in a weapon pit. He obtained food from abandoned haversacks. He saw much material scattered about, both enemy and ours. 22nd June – He was discovered by Lt Cutler 2/5 Field Regiment,who entered the town with the 2/2 Pioneers this morning. The enemy had evacuated on this day. Pte O'Brien returned to the Battalion with all his arms and equipment.

    Captain Marson has further to add " That the very bold action

taken by Lt Cutler F.O.O. 2/5 Battalion, on establishing

Observation Posts was a great credit to him for his fearlessness

and singleness of purpose." End of quote.

Of Joe O'Brien : -                                    

     Joe O`Brien had enlisted early in the 2/25th Battalion.

He returned with the Battalion to Australia and went into New

Guinea with the 2/25th. In action there he was wounded on the

16-9-42,and was evacuated, he returned to the front in 1943.

Joe got wounded again on the 12-12-43 but remained on duty and got

more seriously wounded the next day in the Ramu Valley.

He got a Military Medal on the spot for his conduct, courage and

stamania in the fierce battle. He returned medically unfit to the

Childers area.

Of Lt.Cutler : -

     Lt Roden Cutler was guided to a forward observation post among the enemy at Murjayoun by scout Joe Williams of Toowoomba. Cutler was  eventually to replace Captain Clark who had established the O.P. Then Captain Clark was mortally wounded by his own guns as he called artillery shells in around his cut off O.P. position. He died while writing a letter home to his wife.

Lt Cutler in his turn kept the shells falling all around the O.P.

on the hundreds of French troops that surrounded him. Lt Cutler was awarded the Victoria Cross in recognition of his bravery. He lost a leg at this time in action. Lt Cutler later became a State

Governor.

 

    I had been given charge of thirteen pack mules that we'd

captured from the Foreign legion. The mules were pretty wild we had to tie them down to put the packsaddles on them.

One Black mule there had two sores on his back where the pack had

rubbed raw on both sides of his wither. He had big scabs over the

rubbed patches as big as a hand. He didn't like packsaddles at all.

This Black Mule would wriggle, kick, strike and bite.

I ended up tying both legs up over his back and tied his front legs up to his neck. Did this just to get a pack on him to carry mortar shells and supplies to the front. It wasn't much of a job. I was an easy target leading mules across the desert, fair game for the numerous French Artillery and the Machine Gunners. 

 

CHAPTER 55

                                                           

     George Gibson my offsider and I, we were trying to get a

stubborn roan mule up onto another terrace. We were near the coast

on the side of a mountain, and we were amongst the olive groves

that were planted on these terraces.             

 These terraces looked like steps for a giant to walk up this

mountain side. We would pull a few stones from the terrace bank to

climb up onto the next terrace. A German cruiser offshore started

shelling our position, and a giant shell came tumbling end over end towards us and landed between George and me on its side, but it didn't explode. So George stepped down and I stepped up and we then each put a foot on it. I said "If that don't kill us nothing will!" We then both agreed that we would be there when the war ended, and we were! We were bringing supplies to our troops in the front line with the thirteen mules. Away offshore there were some ships of the German navy. They soon commenced firing broadsides at our front positions. The turf was doing a bit of rock and rolling at the time. All the mules were eventually killed, some by Artillery shells others by machine gun fire they died around me daily. The last mule was killed by a 75mm artillery shell fired by the French. It was an armour piercing type, it hit him between the shoulders and went right on through him without exploding. I was leading this mule down to get him a drink, when he was hit and killed instantly. We were cut off at this time and surrounded by the French Foreign Legion. I scraped out a hole to bury this last one of my mules in the rocky ground.

We were trapped on top of a hill, on about half an acre and were

standing the French troops off our position. To bury my mule I used my bayonet and my steel hat to dig a three foot deep grave to put him under ground. After me I had eventually covered him by trimming him to fit the hole, he was under cover.

 We were there for ten days under constant artillery fire and he

started to swell up and to lift out of the hole. So I was hard

pressed to keep him covered on this granite hill. I was everlasting burying that mule. It got to a stage that there were seven of us left alive, four out of the seven were wounded. We were having a party there! Then at last 'A' company broke through and brought us a bit of tucker and a few cartridges. George Gibson he went down to H.Q. and he returned with a letter for me. It was my twenty second birthday. I opened the letter, it was a bill from a store in Dirranbandi in Australia for two pounds twelve and sixpence. George brought also a bottle of wog beer in a brown beer bottle, the top had rusted off it. This was a stale tasting brew. The bill came from Rod Graham, and I vowed straight away never to pay it, a bad birthday present.

    One man among the survivors on the hill had used a dugout, he was sitting in it, he had been sitting there earlier with his head close against a tree. The Frog artillery blew the tree out of the ground and never parted his hair.

 A white faced calf had got a bit shrapnel in his ear, it was going round and round in circles. Then three of our boys got killed trying to catch the calf to remove the shrapnel. We had this nice little gun pit with a mortar in it. The hole was the size of a hundred gallon tank or so. We were on the point of a ridge, the French had fired some thousand shells at the pit and missed. They had to drop one right in it to knock it out. We were all severely shell shocked at this time.

 

Abby Myatt our Officer said "Pull that gun out of there, move!"  We were dead crooked on him, but we had to do what we were told.    We shifted back fifty yards. Then the French landed a big shell right in the hole where we had been sitting. Abby had saved our bacon! Abby and I we got up onto the roof of a house, it was built among the rocks it was half underground. We were being shelled heavily, and were trying to spot the enemy battery from the roof with a spyglass. So we might lob some mortar bombs among them. The roof was built with a slope on it and it was made of mud. A shell skidded between Abby and I across the roof with a zip sound but no explosion. (Abby Myatt was an officer and was one of the very few officer's left after the New Guinea campaign. They made him the C.O. there, he deserves recognition, he was still there to see the finish in New Guinea. Abby survived the war and is still living today.)

 

      

                         PERCY WATT.              

               Percy he was as thin as wire,

               there was none as game as he.

               In Syria where hot lead did fly,

               bullets zipping round him like a Bee.                  

                 Percy walked across the open ground,

               as we watched him from the trench.

               I'd call 'Jesus, Perc get down',

               as he'd dodge the bullets, French.

 

               For he never was a moment still,

               always shifting changing place.

               He'd taunt the Vichy French to kill,

               they just couldn`t hit this Ace.

               He was a great morale booster,

               this lean boy we did admire.

               Game as a young red bantam rooster,

               drew the Foreign Legions fire.

               And then in New Guinea green,

               when sudden death was all around.

               Bullets bounced where Perc. was seen,

               while the others hugged the ground.

               I'd yell 'Get down young Percy mate,

               those Japs will surely kill you!' '

               He`d laugh and say 'They can`t shoot straight,

               their so bung eyed that it`s true! '

               No they couldn`t hit young Percy Watt,

               yet he lived where others died.

               Came home alive it was his lot,

               though the bung eyed bastards tried.

 

 

 

                                      by D H Johnson       

 

 

CHAPTER 56

    I went on leave in Beirut to the King Solomon hotel. I got a

bit drunk that night, there were a mob of our troops there.

I was in a big room with many beds in it, made of solid stone, made to last.  I woke up next morning, and there was a barber giving me a shave. He said "Barber, haircut, shave, please?" He was at me before I was awake. Down the street the little shoe shine boys they'd say  "Shoe shine George?" Then I'd say 'La,' or 'no.' They'd say "Come on buckshee shoe shine?" So you`d put one boot up and they'd shine it squeaky clean. If you put the other one up they'd say "10 mils George 10 mils?" You paid for the other boot. We'd say "Jiggy jig donkey George?" Sure they'd do the donkey ok, for a fee, 20 mils or two shillings. A friend and I came out of Kilo 89 hospital, we were in a cutting where a road went through. During this occasion  we wore blue trousers white shirts and red neckties while in hospital clothes. While the boy and the donkey were demonstrating, a bus load of Aussie nurses came past, which wasn't so good.

   

     Harry Bassinger the cook he said,"Hey Johnno, we'll have a

Melbourne cup sweep!" He said "You sell the tickets and I'll hold

the money,"  we weren't going to make anything out of it. Of course there was  a hundred pound first prize, fifty pound for second and twenty five for third. Old harry he got the money in the porridge bag. Finally on Melbourne cup race day, after the race results were heard over the air by radio. Harry was gone, gone out of sight.  Left me holding the empty bag! So I had to draw the money out of my pay book to pay the cup winners.

I was getting very down and short in the pocket.  So I sold my

boots. I sold my boots to a 'Wog' for ten bob. I got over in the

two up school and was winning nine and a half quid. Harry reappeared and said "How are you going mate?" I said "I'm alright

Harry, did you have a nice time?" He said "I'm having a real good

time, I bought a brothel, there's four shielas in it. You blokes

can go in there any time you like, but don't touch that blonde one

she's mine." He said to me "Have you got any money?" I said "Yes

I've got nine quid," He said "Give it here, I'm going back, I'm

running out of dough." So he shot through with my money again

leaving me dead broke?

 

CHAPTER 57

     A friend and I were driving through a village in a Blitz

wagon, the corners of the truck were scraping against the mud walls here and there. Curly and I, we were bowling along and we came to an intersection. A Fat Wog (Arab) suddenly came out of a lane way on a donkey, he had a red fez and a big gut. We knocked the donkey down, but he was straight up and cantered off. We were left with a big fat arab that weighed about a ton. He had been riding on the loins of the donkey. When we hit them, the Arab with a big gut rolled away. I said to Curly " We killed him!"   Curly said " We're lucky we didn't kill the donkey, it

would have cost us nine pounds if we killed the donkey!"

 It would only cost seventeen and six to bury the Arab. So he said

" We had better go and bury him?" So we chucked him up on the back

of the Blitz wagon. I said "Before we bury him Curly we've got to

get a death certificate." So we went to see Alec Mayes our doctor.

We pulled the Arab out of the Blitz and laid him on the verandah at De Gaulle barracks at Tripoli. I went in and saw Alec. He was a

Major, but I called him Alec. I said to him, "I've got a dead Wog

out here, come out and certify him, will you?" So he came out and

he just flicked one eyelid back and that was enough. He said "Stand by Johno stand by I'll attend to him!" He went back inside

and he came back with a hypodermic syringe that was used for

treating internal piles. This big needle was like an ice pick. He

loaded it up with something, possibly turps, and he drove it into

his ass, and dropped the plunger. This twenty stone Arab leapt ten

feet into the air. He went out of the main gate of the barracks

yelling for 'Allah' screaming and fanning his rear with his fez.

  These Arabs sometimes put a foot under a tank tread to get

injured,just to get a pension from the government, the difference

between starvation and eating. I then cooked Christmas dinner for B company there at the barracks. By now Harry Bassinger and the rest of the cooks were in the clink for being drunk so they put me on cooking. I belonged to Head Quarters Company, and they called for volunteers to cook Christmas Dinner for the troops of B company.

 Afterwards B Company, they were very appreciative of my efforts,

and invited me down town. So I had to hire a carriage, one of our

Aussie boys took a photo of it. While travelling in it we came to

a blind woman naked with a baby, in the snow.

 She said to me " 'Anna maskey ma fish falouse' I'm very poor I

have no money, 'Bucksheesh bucksheesh' give me money." I put my

great coat around her. I put my hand in my pocket and gave her all

the money I had in my pocket. I said 'Imshe Allah' God go with

you. A bit further we bumped into old Slim Fraser and Slim was

stoned out of his brain wandering  among the Arab's. So I took him

with me. A bit further along, here we met a blind boy. He was

saying in Arabic 'I'm very poor I have no money' also naked and

shivering, and he had no eyes. I got out and took him with me as

well. I had a driver and was doing it in style as we reached the

pub. They took us inside and the men of B company took up a

tarpaulin muster for the boy and got him some clothes. Then we were put back in the carriage and a man called Frank Holman took the photo that I have today. While posing for the photo, I said to old Slim 'Sit up straight Slim,' he was a school teacher in civilian life. I said 'Face the camera Slim' but he didn't know where the camera was. The blind boy didn't know where the camera was so I got the driver to hold his face for the photo.  

 

CHAPTER 58

    We were drinking together at Acre in a big canteen, built there for the Allied troops.

The canteen it would have been a hundred yards long by fifty yards

wide. There were all nations there,and troops from them in there

having a drink. It had a bar up one side of it and chairs and

tables down the middle of it. We would fill the table with beer

bottles and as many as us we could pack underneath, and we would

have a party.  An English Spitfire Ace was at our table drinking

with us, a young baby faced lad, but very popular with our troops.

Suddenly a bottle whizzed across our table and it hit my friend in

the head, the bottle had scalped him almost. I grabbed his scalp

and pulled it back into place on his forehead. I called out "Who

did that?"  A Greek Airforce Captain,a Pilot, ran towards me, with

a knife drawn, he was going to let my guts out. To make matters

worse, my friends pinned me by the arms to stop me fighting this

Officer. So when he came into range I kicked him in the cods and he went down in agony. The next thing I saw was a Pommy Provost

Marshall, he had arrived with his men. The big red cap Provo came

up, he stood about six foot four, and he said to me, "Who won the

last round?" The Greek was still on the floor, and I said "I did."

He said "Who will win the next one?" I felt the mob coming up

behind me, pushing, so I said "I will, I'll win the next one, and forever and aye!" Sternly he looked us over and said "I jolly well think you will."

He was a Major with a bullock horn moustache and brass all over

him. So he turned and said to the M.P's very abruptly, "Come on

chaps. Follow me!"

                                                      

CHAPTER 59

    I used to run out of money but I had a friend Dick Ravenscroft. I was always out of money and us two, we always ended up at the same pub together. We stayed in the same dormitory together. I'd wake up sick and broke. Dick always had money he never drank alcohol. So I'd say " Come on Crow lend me a quid " he was a bit tight with his money and he'd say, "You're a bludging bastard Johnno, always humming money." I said " Don't worry about it Crow  I'll save your life sometime."  We used to have a competition shoot in the early days with our .303 rifles inside the Battalion. A shilling a head to enter and a five quid prize if you won. Of three competition shoots Crow won one, Bill Moyes an old bloke who came from Barcaldine, won another and I won the other competition. It always came down to just us three in the final shoot. So, at a much later time,when we were coming out of Fort Merd Jayoun. The French, they had driven us out. Crow, he had tried to fly over some barbed wire fence and had got his fetlocks twisted between the top and the second wire. He was hanging by the hocks in the barbed wire and

Crow he was calling out, "Help, help for Christ sake help me!" He

Couldn't get back up to cut the wire. So upon the scene I staggered leading a donkey. I had six Bren guns and a couple of cases of ammunition and a few cartons of cigarettes aboard. I had a wounded bloke on the donkey also, called Happy Mahaffey. The bullets were flying all about as I walked up to where Crow was.                I asked him " What are you doing there Crow?"   He yelled urgently,

" Get me out of here!" I said " I'll save your life Crow?" He said

"Go ahead and save it!"

 So I went and got Crow out of the fence. I cut the barb wire with

a bayonet. I said smugly "There you are Crow you bastard, I told

you I'd always save your life!" We had crossed the Litani and went

forward. We had been through the fort, Fort MerdJayoun it was

vacated, so we left it. The cunning French went to one side out of

sight. After our troops had passed the fort, the French returned

from the east and occupied it again. We were cut off and we had to

fight our way out of it. They cut the shit out of us. We got to the Litani river and there was Crow and George Gibson and a few more with me plus Happy on the donkey.

The river was five foot deep and running strong, it had big

boulders in it and it was cold, very cold. I thought "How are we

going to get this wounded bloke over the river?" I looked across

the river and there was an Arab sitting on a white horse. So I

thought "Yes I know about horses." So I go over the river very

cold and wet after crossing it. I called out to the Arab,

"Talla heen George, talla heen." So he came trotting up on this

white horse. I said 'Sieda' gooday.

I grabbed him by the boot and twisted him out of his saddle. I

screwed him off the horse. I hit the pommel of this high backed

spey saddle, high backed and high fronted these saddles.

I raced the white horse down and crossed the river.

I got Happy up on this grey horse and we crossed the river. I had

tied the donkey onto the tail of the horse. I said to George Gibson "The donkey will have to swim." George put his shoulder up against the donkey's hip, and I put my shoulder against the horse's shoulder. So we got Happy across the river this way.

The Arab was there yelling his head off "Clefte clefte" thief.

So I walked over to him and handed him the reins and said, 

"Mabsuit" thank you. Then we led the donkey with Happy up to

where the Ambulance was. Happy had been shot through the leg and

had a broken leg. George and I were taking up positions on this

ridge. After our party had crossed over the river, we found we had

nothing left to eat. I said to George " There's a house over there, might be something to eat there?" I got to the house and a woman opened the door and there were five or six little kids around the place. They were pretty poor looking. This woman she was about six months pregnant, as she opened the door, she started to take her clothes off. I said  " La, la, mungaree " no, no, tucker. The other troops, the French, had been going there and raping her. She went over to the corner and came back with two fowl eggs. I looked at these eggs, I looked also at the hungry kids. I gave back the eggs kissed her and put her clothes back on. I went back to George and said " I done no good over there, its "mafish", no good."

 

CHAPTER 60

     Eventually some trucks came through and we got some tucker.

As we tried to escape the trap we were fired on by the French up in the fortress Fort Merjayoun. While we were fighting with them,  we had a kangaroo shooter with us Tommy Bergum. We were trying to get back to our troops through the French lines.  Tommy stood behind a wall, a deadly shot was Tommy Bergum at a few hundred yards, or more. While we were trying to get back through the French lines to our own Aussie troops. Tanks appeared from the fort, when a head looked from any turret, Tommy Bergum put a bullet in it. 

Frenchmen blocking us used to stand up or just show their forehead

over the fortress wall, or from behind a rock. Just about every

time, soon as one would appear Tommy shot the top off his head. He

must have killed twenty or thirty of the Frenchmen, that were ahead of us. We had to get through them. Bergum was working from the rear of us, and he never missed a shot this man. He returned to Australia after his war service to North Queensland. Bergum played a big part in our escape from behind the French lines. He used to shoot Roo's through the head before the war, so the skins were a better class, he was an asset.

 

CHAPTER 61

   During one of our battles with the Vichy French, I took a

gauntlet off a soldier of the Foreign Legion dead he was a

Moroccan. This gauntlet, was solid gold and fitted from elbow to

the wrist of your arm. It was studded with diamonds rubies and

sapphires some of them an inch across. It hinged at the outside and it had a steel pin to hold it together. I used to wear it on my arm. After our survivors came out of Fort Murjayoun we formed

groups again and got the cooks going.                

A few of our boys were shot by a sniper up in a village a few

hundred yards away. We didn't get orders we just went in, we got

the sniper they shot him.  He was now laying in the middle of the

street. While the troops were marching the village people down to

head quarters. There was still a Priest up in a bell tower calling

the faithful to prayer.  So I thought I'd better go back and get

him.  I had to go up this steeple and I had to knock down a few

doors to get up there.  He wouldn't come so I got a double hand

hold on his whiskers, and dragged him resisting downstairs. I led

him down the street like a billygoat. I got back to where the

sniper was laying dead in the street, his chest was all blood.

There was a girl there about seventeen she was laying on top of him sucking the blood off. When I walked up dragging the bloke with the black gown on. She had looked up. Then frowning at me she said "Mes e quais anglaisa!" no good English. So I pulled the pin out of the Gauntlet and dropped it at her feet. I had been warned earlier that some blokes in the Battalion would have killed me to get it. I'd seen our boys cutting fingers off to get gold rings and such and knew I was an endangered species. You would see some getting around with a pocket full of gold teeth, they weren't Dentists! We got to one place and there were dead everywhere mostly Arabs. So I rounded up some Wogs to bury them. Held a Bren gun on them to do it. There was a bloke selling meat in amongst the flyblown dead,

the flies were there in millions. The meat was sitting on a rail on two forks in the ground.

 People were buying meat off him and the flies were flying off the

dead onto the meat. I was all day there, just dragging and burying

the dead. I had to hold a Bren gun on these live Wogs, to get the

dead Wogs buried. Here I came across a dead woman, she was holding

a baby, she had a big silver cross around her neck. She would have

been eighteen or twenty, quite fair haired and good looking.  She

was sitting up against a wall and the one bayonet thrust had killed both of them. I thought that's Christianity for you? I called George over and said " Take a look at that?" He was getting case hardened too, like me, by this time. So he said, "The little ju ju didn't work Johnno, did it?"

 

CHAPTER  62

    We were momentarily pleased to see a Squadron of Hurricanes

flying above our lines. We jumped out of our trenches and waved.

Some few seconds later they fell upon us strafing us fiercely as

they did so. They wern't Pommys they were Vichy French with red

white blue roundrels very like the British version. We shot one

down before they left us be.           

 

CHAPTER 63

    Our Artillery fire was so rapid in their bombardment of the

French positions, that many Vichy French prisoners were convinced

that the twenty five pounders were belt fed like a machinegun.

They would not believe it was only man power.

     Once when two Vichy Destroyers were standing offshore to shell our troop positions, they were engaged by an Aussie 25 pounder battery and forced to withdraw hurriedly.

     The Batterys took on Tanks at long range and destroyed many.

     Months earlier during the defence of Tobruk by our Ninth

division, when surrounded there by the Afrika Corps on fourteenth

of April 1941. The lethal 25 pounders took on 39 Panzerkampwagen

tanks. These 22 ton heavily armored tanks bearing their 75mm guns

broke through our outer defences past our infantry line, but our

Infantry troops wouldn't surrender. Suddenly the German Tanks  were under fire from a variety of anti tank guns some being captured Italian weapons manned by cooks and various staff troops. The fire from our 25 pounders was devastating at near point blank range.

Whole turrets were blown off the advancing Panzers, 75mm gun and

all. 17 Panzers were blown to pieces and the others retired

hurriedly back through our infantry lines. Though they returned in

May with sixty tanks and flame throwers they could not evict the

determined Aussie defenders, "The Rats of Tobruk."

 

     The following quotation is taken from a statutory declaration

from Mr Reg Ward who was our Colonels Body guard in the Middle

East.                                                      

I Quote from it:

" Every original member of the second Twenty Fifth Battalion,

recognizes and knows the famous "Muleteer" Donald Hambleton -

Johnson. I know him better than anyone else.

 I being the personal body guard of the Colonel C. B. Withey D.S.O.

Our Battalion was undefeated in battle anywhere.

D H Johnson saw to it that he was trained in unarmed combat,

Infantry,Artillery, Explosive training as well and gas.

 On embarkation on the Queen Mary from Sydney he took control of

the gun on the stern. Then about fourteen days later he was

seriously ill with a chest infection, two doctors told him he

wasn't going to make it. Two padre's gave him the last rites, and

prayed for him. Then he recovered. During the Syrian campaign he

was given charge of thirteen mules to pack mortars, they were all

shot dead around him, in battle.  His mortar platoon was surrounded by the French Foreign Legion and they stood them off for days, until A company broke through to rescue them.

     On embarking on the "Felix Rouselle" at "Port Tuvic"

Private Johnson and myself took command of a machine gun post on

top of the bridge. Below decks were jailed Army Criminals,

Murderers, and Deserters. With the help of some Vichy French

personnel the prisoners mutineered on at least five occasions. We

held the main deck, and bridge companionway and steerage.

Eventually we reached Port Adeliade.

We disembarked during the voyage at South Africa for

decontamination  purposes. Brigadier Ether applied for and was

refused money for our troops.  So we together as private soldiers,

approached  the South African Government and negotiated that every

soldier he would be paid five pounds. We were A.W.L. doing it.

    In New Guinea he worked independently in the battalion

searching out the Jap's. A skilled Bushman, he had to lead fighting patrols, but would rather go it alone. His reports were perfectly accurate to H.Q. At Templeton's crossing, ammunition, hand grenades, and Mortar bombs were dropped without parachutes. Grenade detonators were dropped separately. So each detonator had to be examined and inserted into the Mills Bomb. A very dangerous and highly explosive situation, a mistake could mean sudden death.

 He performed this duty alone, almost dead from Malaria and  Gastro Enteritis. He reported to H.Q. that Mortar bombs dropped from the air would be definitely primed to explode in the barrel of the mortar gun. This report was ignored and sixteen men being four gun crews, died as a result. He feeels responsible, and has sadl grieved ever since. At Myola 2/6 Field Ambulance, he personally supervised the evacuation of this place to Kokoda. Mostly stretcher cases and dying men. Don personally saw to it that every stretcher case was placed in a DC3. aircraft for evacuation to Port Moresby hospital.

Although seriously ill himself he was determined to catch up with

the Battalion. He found a Jap mule in the jungle and swum it across the Kumusi river, infested with Crocodiles. When he reached

Popondetta Air Strip no 1, he hitched a ride by DC3 to Battalion

H.Q. Port Moresby.   He gave of his best. On a dry ridge in New

Guinea two days without water, the Mortar Platoon was in a bad way

when he gathered up all the water bottles. He walked directly to

the creek swarming with Japanese,  under cover of darkness. Heard

a slight sound and trained his Thompson Submachine Gun right on the chest of a man he thought to be a Jap.A quiet voice spoke  "Don't shoot it's Bill Butler. If you're game to get them a drink, I'm game to see you do it! "Bill Butler M.C. was company commander B coy 2/25 Btn.

Private Johnson was offered promotion on many occasions, but flatly turned it down.

Signed 30/May/1986 by Reg Ward."

 

                                                 

CHAPTER 64

   One advantage we had in the Desert was our Artillery the boys

that manned the twenty five pounders were deadly.

These 'Nine Mile Snipers' fought Artillery duels with the French

Artillery. The French had plenty of Artillery and we suffered a lot from shell shock, we were continually pounded for days at a time in our trenches. The Signaller with the forward Observation Officer was sometimes in our lines. The Sig. was probably more often up in a high spot, using his A.W.A. 101 radio powered by two wet batterys to transmit morse code to the battery position. The wet cell batteries would last about eight hours before going flat and the radio's range was about six miles. If possible they would run a phone wire for the old Don 3 telephone set. Miles of wire were run across the desert battlefields, linking Command posts and Artillery observers. The 101 trancievers sometimes stuck on receive or transmit. If stuck on transmit the Signaller's confirmation came

when the shells started falling.

         

                         CROW.

          Dick Ravenscroft that was his name,

          but we all called him Crow.

          His shooting surely earned him fame,

          you have the right to know.

          As a Sniper in the Middle East,

          he used an extra long Threeo. '

          With high powered scope he got the beast,

          who shot Jack and George and Joe.

          The Froggy Sniper'd had a ball.

          He'd blazed a deadly trail.

          A Rangefinder had let me call,

          the distance to post his mail.

          Seventeen hundred yards, I called to Crow.

          Crow watched with patience rare,

          the Frog rose later on, to go.

          Crow fired, and Death was there.

          From one mile off he'd done the deed,

          cut short the deadly hail.

          No Frog sniper now to make us bleed,

          the wind gone from his sail.

                              by D H Johnson.

 

                                                      

    " Crow " Dick Ravenscroft was our Battalion sniper. On this

occasion we were losing men to another sniper, firing on us from

the distant hillside. He'd shot a couple of our Don R boys,

Motorcycle Messengers.  Crow was told to get him.

I went up on a hillside nearby,with Crow. I had a Range Finder and

he had a Snipers rifle.  I used the range finder on the Frogs

position, it was seventeen hundred yards away. Crow had a big eight power

 scope on this old Snipers rifle, it used a Mauser breech and its barrel

 was about nine inches longer than the normal .303.

 We waited a long while and finally the other Sniper stood up, he

was being relieved, and then Crow skittled him.

These Sniper rifles were pretty rare, I only saw a couple in the

Middle East and none in New Guinea.         

 Crow's rifle had a hair trigger and it blew his thumb off when he

bumped it gently on the ground. Perhaps he could have left the army then but he didn t.

 

Our Crow he was no Dingo,he was a stayer. Later over in New Guinea

Crow was a forward scout. He crawled out about a hundred yards and

the Japs got onto him. He was laying down. The Japs showered him

with lead. The Japs shot the pack off his back thought him dead.

Then they shot the heels off his boots to test him. He waited like

the dead and crawled back after dark without a scratch on him.