Beyond all, the Queen Elizabeth, with her eight huge, monstrous 15-inch
guns, all pointed shoreward, seemed to threaten immediate annihilation
to any enemy who dared even to aim at the squadron under her charge.
On shore the rifle and machine-gun fire was incessant, and at times rose
into a perfect storm as the Turks pressed forward their attack. The
hills were ablaze with shells from the ships and the enemy's shrapnel,
while on the beach masses of troops were waiting to take their places in
the trenches, and the beach parties worked incessantly at landing
stores, material, and ammunition.
This great attack lasted some two hours, and during this time we
received encouraging messages from the beach. "Thanks for your
assistance. Your guns are inflicting awful losses on the enemy." The
Turks must, in fact, have suffered terribly from this concentrated fire
from so many guns and from the infantry in the trenches.
The end came amid a flash of bayonets and a sudden charge of the
colonials, before which the Turks broke and fled amid a perfect tornado
of shells from the ships. They fell back sullen and checked, but not yet
defeated, but for the remainder of the day no big attack was pressed
home, and the colonials gained some ground by local counter-attacks,
which enlarged and consolidated the position they were holding.
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