LETTERS FROM EGYPT – Fri 26 Feb 1915
Private E. H. Ely says : —
December 13th. It is Sunday afternoon, so am taking the opportunity of writing some letters. I have only received one letter since coming here, and that was from England. I am writing this in the Y.M.C.A. tent. It is built of wood framework, with matting on the sides and roof. We got this paper and envelopes in Cairo. The manager of the hotel gave us a couple each. We have got our tents up now, so it is not too bad, although we have 15 in each, it is better than sleeping out in the open. It is warm enough to sleep out in the open now. We must have brought the rains to Egypt. The second night, we were here it rained, the first they have had for eight months.
Our daily routine is as follows:—Up at quarter past 6, breakfast at 8, (breakfast as follows: Bread, 1 lb butter between seven men, 1 tin of salmon, do.. 1 dixie lid of tea each).
9 o’clock parade, with lunch in haver-sack, consisting of six biscuits, harder than we had at Broad-meadows; when we get back at half-past two we get a drink of tea; and at five o’clock we get stew and boiled meat. We only get meat once a day here. The first few days we were short, but it is getting better now. We are getting our washing done by a couple of natives. They take it into Cairo to do. It will cost us six piastres a month for a complete change of underclothing and handkerchiefs. It has been costing us a 1/ a day to live so far, so we won’t save much at this game. We were down the Cairo road the other day for a march. There is some fine soil on the mud flats. The highest maize I have ever seen, and good Lucerne, cabbages, carrots, etc. I would like to know the truth of this place. It is very evident that the sea has once been over it; at one time there may have been a volcanic upheaval. We went past the Top of Form
Sphinx and Tombs this morning. The carving and stone masonry are marvellous. We heard this morning that the second contingent had been discharged in Australia on account of enteric fever breaking out amongst them. Is there any truth in it? We were out over the ridge on Saturday. In the gullies is nice fine sand and we sink to our boot-tops in it. On the ridges are rough lime and pumice stones, while on some of the others is a sort of red gravel and stones. It is bonzer weather here, neither too hot nor too cold. What is the fruit crop like? I could do a good feed of cherries or peaches. We get plenty of tomatoes about Id lb, oranges Id each. I think we have Boxing Day off for sports here. We were out yesterday all day on the desert; it’s as bad as following the harrows all day. We had a night off the other night, and went into Cairo to the Metropole for tea, which cost us 12 piastres (2/6). We then got a guide to take us around for the night. We went through some of the dirtiest holes on earth; you would never imagine what they were like. There is not room for a cart to pass down the street. Some of the Egyptian women go about with a veil over the lower part of the face. These are the well to-do class. To speak to them is to chance a knife in the ribs. We came out by motor the other night from Cairo. It is nine miles, and the driver cut it out in 20 minutes. I have never seen a driver handle a car like he did, and he was a darkie too. We are about three-quarters of a mile from the tram terminus. There is a bonzer avenue of acacia trees right -from Cairo to Mena, and the tram track runs alongside.
I have had no chance to explore the Sphinx and Tombs yet. Tomorrow (Sunday) I expect .we will have a chance of going through, as we will have no parade. We are getting paid to-night in Egyptian money, and we have just about got used to it now.
Some things are dearer here than they are in Australia, and some cheaper.
We get lemonade here in the store and half a (piastre (lid) a bottle and we can get plenty of oranges and water melons. They are only letting us draw 2/ a day. Sir George Held is coming to visit us.
December 15th. You would think we were on active service, if you could see how we enjoy ourselves when on leave. We have given the Cairo people a good impression of the Australians. They consider us well-behaved, and think we are the sons of millionaires the way we spend money. This was what was in the “Egyptian Mail” a few days ago. We get leave here every five nights, but it is too expensive to go in every time. It cost us about
10/ the other night when in. We are off duty again Friday, so if we get away in good time we are going up to explore the Tombs. We were out on the desert today just before coming home the Colonel told us that the 7th Battalion had been chosen to represent the 2nd Brigade in Cairo on Saturday at the proclamation of the annexing of Egypt as a British Protectorate, so you see we will have a say in the war after all. I don’t suppose there will be a shot fired. I think this was Lord Kitchener’s idea in bringing us here, to be ready in case there was any trouble with the Turks. We are over 300 miles from Tripoli, and the Turks would have to cross that and all desert, to come here to Egypt.
We have had no trouble to draw pay so far, we were only allowed to draw £2 on the boat, but have drawn £4 14/ since coming here. Colonel McCay very pleased with the way we disembarked. He said we were the best after the sea-voyage.