Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales

Sherrie family letters and photographs, ca. 1880-1945
MLMSS 3720

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Mrs W.M. Sherrie
Wagga Wagga
New South Wales
Beachcourt
Ocean Road
Manly

Noel H Sherrie

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Letters from Noel Hunter Sherrie 6th L.H. Camel Corps
Wounded at Gaza taken by Turks & died in Damascus

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I left early as there was absolutely nothing to do. I have done a little reading lately – have read two or three of Lockes I hadn’t read before and have just finished "Flames" by Hicheus, a most weird and exciting yarn – have you read it? Have just started Bella Donna but cannot get very excited over it yet – I have joined the Y.M.C.A. library & by jove that Association does good work over here – I think it is more appreciated here than in Australia – it costs only 2 ½ pt to join and they have a very fair collection of books – I suppose four or five hundred all together – quite a variety too from Max Adeler and C. J. Dennis to Charles Garvice and Mr Shakespeare. By the way have you read Dennis’ new book – are they the poems as good as those in the Sentimental Bloke – according to the Egyptian Mail 25,000 copies have been ordered already and the book is not yet published. The weather here is perfect now – just like Australian spring. Just nicely warm in the day and nicely cool at night. I don’t think I told you that we have a beautiful swimming place here in the lake the water is very salt and of course
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morning – am now wearing winter clothing it is very cold in the morning & nearly as much so as Menangle – we the new-comers of the 1st T.R. have been doing a slight bayonet fighting school and it has given us a little much needed exercise – all days here are alike except when there is a route march or a swimming parade – either of these is a welcome change – the regiment went for a swimming parade this afternoon but we missed it as we were bayonet fighting – anyhow Nericky and I went down later – it was rather cold but still passably enjoyable. Its marvellous the load they put on donkeys here – you have never seen such small things either about as big as Eldershaw’s dog Tiger and they generally have one or two big hulking brutes of Arabs niggers on them and sometimes three. When loaded up they look something like this only the donkey is usually much thinner than I have shown him. Those things on the right are date palms – and there is a Gyppo under one of them. There ought to have been a gyppo driving the donk but there was not room for him on the side. The most substantial part of the donk is his ears which are anything from 12 to 18 inches long and about 6 inches across in the
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31/12/16
In the field
Dearest mamma, Its absolutely years since I have written to you and I suppose you will be wondering what on earth has become of me – tho’ the cable that I sent and that form should have had about Decr 8th should have been enough to satisfy you that I am still alive and kicking – as a matter of fact I would like to send a cable every month – and have decided to send one now every time that I am near a post office – its a terrible task sending a cable from the nearest telegraph office to where we are at present – its about 25 miles away – first of all you have to go to the office and get the form then bring it back write the cable have it censored by your officer then take it back purchase postal notes to cover the cable and then post the lot registered to the Eastern Telegraph Co. at Alexandria which it reaches after 2 ½ days per steamer – Its too involved to explain now but I couldn’t use the words for which you had prepaid – 3 words according to the telegram I had from you – and couldn’t get a refund for them either – but you will get that yourself so it will be a little present for you – on my reckoning it would be 54 P.T. that is about 11/3 – an enclosing a letter from the Eastern Telegraph Co. re the refund which explains itself – you might use it if you have any difficulty about the refund – I see you were in Melbourne

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when you cabled- jolly glad you went there and hope you had a good time – did you have Heather with you – did you go and see Mrs Lysden? – had a nice letter from Thel the other day. Dont know whether I told you that I had an awfully nice letter from Mrs L. while at Abbassia – We were moved from Moascar Light Horse Detail camp about the 14th November to Abbassia – left Moascar about 10 AM and went by train through Tel0el-Kebir and Zag-a-Zig and then almost South to Cairo – 1.30 P.M. – it was another interesting trip only for the fact that we were stuck in 3rd Carriages with stinking natives – anyhow I travelled on the platform most of the way and thus had a better view of the country – its all under crop the biggest part of which appears to be maize and cotton – 1st time I have seen the latter growing - it quite reminded me of level cultivated country in Australia with the difference that there are here instead of the Australian timber – palms – they make the place look quite different – also passed numerous native villages – they consist of a mass of what appear to be mud buildings all built together and inside a circular mud wall – fowls donkeys and humans? – all living together – When we arrived at Cairo discovered it was about 6 miles to Abbassia Camp so we decided to tram it at the low fare of 2 millemes each = 1/2d and it landed us within ½ mile of our destination – Abbassia is

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the headquarters of the Imperial Camel Corps – or rather the latter is at Abbassia – Abbassia being a suburb of Cairo besides huge barracks garrison gaols, hospitals, lunatic asylums etc – We were only in camp there for 6 days – but I managed to get two nights in Cairo – should have had a Sunday afternoon off when Jack [indecipherable] and I intended going out to Ghizeh to see the pyramids etc but something went wrong and we didn’t get it – anyhow we might see them if we ever get leave from here which is not likely anyhow I have hopes of doing a bit more sightseeing in Egypt before we leave here that is of course unless it is leaving for home when Egypt and its sights can go to the devil – by Jove I have such a lot to write that I don’t know where to start – that’s the worst of letting news accumulate too much altho’ if I didn’t do that there would never be anything to write about – never mind – I can’t tell you much about Cairo except that it is quite decent at night and quite filthy in the daylight – that’s the general impression of the chief business quarters – the trains are really beautiful exquisite woodwork in them – of course all the shops appear to remain open all night every night – there are some jolly fine shops too – I saw some large bookshops with books in French, English, Greek & Arabic for sale – I heard newsboys out selling Greek French Arabic and English daily papers

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and I got quite a shock when one yelled in my ear Argus Herald Australian Bulletin – all the hotels and restaraunt restaurants have their open air eating and drinking places – dozens of small tables out onto the footpath and into the middle of the road and crowds of men – no women – eating drinking and smoking – mostly the "nuts" dressed in rather loud European clothes but all of them wearing the red fez cap the majority of them being be very dark oily looking individuals quite like Jews – they all seem to be particularly fond of prawns- I saw a sergeant I was with sat down at one of these places for a drink and the pavement was covered with prawn shells – One seas very few women in the streets and the majority of them are the white veiled class – so – the majority of these have beautiful eyes – that’s all you can see of them – Abbassia was my first experience of camels – the noise they made was most appalling – something about a cross between the bray of an ass and the larf of a hyena – if a big man draws in his breath hard and makes a horrible gurgling sound right down at the bottom of his throat that’s what the noise is like – We were taught to put on the saddles there and had a few riding lessons – when you first start you reckon you are going to fall off every step the camel

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takes but after a few weeks practice at it its all right – The saddles are just like a chair to sit in but have no back – they have two pads over each side of the hump – for riding we put our three blankets on the saddle – and it is quite comfortable – of course there are no stirrups – the legs are crossed along the camels neck – while at Abbassia I had a letter from a Miss Violet Hughes of the American Mission Girls College Sharia Abbas Cairo – I had a yarn to her over the phone and she seemed some class tho’ I should say no chicken by the sound of her voice – anyhow I arranged to call on her at 7 oclock on Friday night and as luck would have it we were packed off from Abbassia the day after I made the arrangement – which was the Wednesday – so I didn’t see the lass or lady after all – I was rather disappointed because if one only knew anyone in any of these cities or towns it would make all the difference – I forget to say she is evidently a friend of Nellie Rivetts – that’s who she mentioned in her note – It was rather a pity on the whole as she might have had some nice girl boarders at the school – Well we got word to move to No 2 Company Imperial Camel Corps and to be ready at 8 oclock on the Wednesday morning – 44 of us altogether – only 6 including myself of the lot I brought over – the others were later reinforcements and some volunteers from the Light Horse – We were to be in charge of a Touring officer named Connor – I didn’t take any notice of the name and didn’t see the officer until we

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were ready to move off the parade ground when to my surprise I saw it was N.E. Connor late of Wagga Wagga in the State of New South Wales to wit – you might not know him in fact I don’t think you do – but Father will – he owned a dog called "Slipper" which used to chase the ball at cricket and make a general nuisance of itself – of course I didn’t embrace him on the spot as there were too many officers about but when we moved off I sidled up to him and asked him if he had ever been in Wagga – then it suddenly dawned on me that he knew me – of course I had a "mo" so that probably made him uncertain – when I told him I was a son of old Sherrie of Wagga he knew me – of course I used to play cricket against him – of course I didn’t know what he was like as an officer so I didn’t make things too willing – anyhow since then I have discovered that he is a bit of an old woman but not a bad old sort on the whole – well we went by train to Alexandria – I bought a fair amount of reading matter on the Cairo railway station – there is quite a decent bookstore there – a couple of magazines and "Love among the artists" by Shaw – have you read it? – a small thing about 500 tons – for Sollum – at 4.30 – if you get your map of Africa and look at the north coast and at the eastern boundary of the Italian territory of Tripoli you might see Sollum – but as far as I can make out

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there was apparently nothing there before the military took it from the Cenussi – the formation of the coast is rather peculiar just about here – about a mile from the beach is what is called here the escarpment it is the edge of – apparently – the Libyan Desert which looking from the sea shore is just like a table land – if I could draw I could show you just what it was like – but I cant – have been trying for some time to draw something like it but cant – my attempts are enclosed – perhaps if I had the thing in front of me I could do it – of course its all a dirty brown color not a vestige of vegetation and all smothered in loose rocks – I have never seen anything like it before – well as I said before we left Alexandria at 4.30 P.M. – all travelling is done at night on account of the submarines – the Mediterranean appears to be lousey – excuse the expression but its fitting – with these at present – well we travelled all night – slept aft on the top deck – only two decks – amongst vegetables ducks eggs etc – evidently going up for officers’ Xmas dinners – and stopped in the morning at a place called Matruh – look at your map – and had all day there – had a beautiful swim – the water is as clear as crystal and the sand as white as snow – its glorious swimming in the Mediterranean – stayed there until 4.30 then left and arrived at our destination about 8 a.m. – it was not at all a inviting looking place but improved with acquaintance – I forgot to say that I left most of my clothes at Abbassia at the Base Stores – all I brought up here with me was four pairs of sox and

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two changes of underclothes – cardigan jacket balaclava cap all my handkerchiefs one pair of boots, breeches, shorts & tunic. You see we had to travel light as we had to get everything into our saddle bags over the saddle they are about 15" long a foot deep and about 5" through that’s the way they look when chock full – quite flat when empty – they hold a good bit – one side will just hold 7 dogs rations and the other side all my clothes etc – with all that on they weigh about 50 lbs – that’s all we carried besides our 3 blankets waterproof sheet and rifle – well the day we arrived at Sollum the first thing we did was get issued with all our camel kit – fantasie (water-tank) dhoura bag – dhoura is the camel feed I think in Australia it is called Kaffir corn – head collar saddle feed bag our apron – the dhoura bag is this shape and holds 6 days feed for the camel 60 lbs, fantasie is this shape and holds about 6 days water for one man – about 6 gallons – In marching order the saddle goes on first of course then the dhoura bag and fantasie the two loops made by leather straps with a patent knot – no buckles – they both weigh somewhere about 60 or 70 lbs tho’ the water is the heavier – they fit close to the camel and under the edge of the saddle – then the saddlebag goes over these – it is kept in position by a loop over each pommel – then you start packing the saddle for comfort overcoat camel run three blankets - waterproof sheet – then a strap right round under the edge of the saddle to keep those in position then the apron goes on the front pommel and over the camels withers to stop your heels from making holes in him – a sectional view of a camel in full marching order moves to something like this – this is a back view – you sit right down with the blankets and the black part there is all wood the rest of the saddle is leather – that’s just about how wide the whole rig out looks altho’ I have made the saddle pads look too big and it looks a most unstable affair altogether – but I have done 300 miles at a stretch on such a turn out and it is quite al right – the total weight of the load is from 400 to 500 lbs and they will carry that for weeks at a stretch averaging 4 to 5 miles per hour for 7 to 8 hours per day – they only require a drink every 5 or 6 days and all they eat is 5 lbs of dhoura at about sunrise in the morning and another 5 lbs at sunset – very economical eh what? There is a small sergeants mess at Sollum and of course I went into that as soon as I got there – its in quite a decent two roomed cottage – one the bedroom and the other the dining room – I had a decent bunk – we went out on mounted parade every morning and afternoon for about three weeks until we could ride properly - we then went out up on to the escarpment and about 8 miles out grazing the camels for three days – that was not bad – its quite hard ground and well covered with grass and a sort of shrub

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little tufty sort of stuff – anything from a foot to 2’ high – Nothing exciting happened while we were out there – when we got back I was warned for my first bit of decent work to go in charge of four men and escort 34 transport camels down to Matruh – of course we had to walk all the way down I mean walk the camels – we took nearly 6 days to go down – we would camp at sunset every day boil our billy feed our camels – we had 11 natives with the transport camels they looked after them – then to bed – up at sunrise off again between 7 & 8 – an hour for dinner from 12 to 1 and then on again – it was quite a dreary trip tho’ there was not much to see – sand hills at the back of the beach on our left and just undulating country on our right all the way – One day especially I noticed how beautiful the sea looked – I went off the road a bit on to the sandhills which are dead white – very crook on your eyes – without exaggeration it’s the same color as snow and very fine it looks like one of those pictures of Harry Rowntrees in "Little Folks" – I think that is the book anyhow it’s the illustrations are to a story called "The Wonderful Adventures of ---" about some kids being wrecked on a desert island in the tropics – the sea was the bluest blue I have ever seen in my life – and the sand the whitest – at night when it is moonlight the sandhills look just like long strips of shining silver and even

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when it is dark you can see them looking like a very white cloud – Well we got to Matruh all right had a two days spell there and then left again – trotter all the way back spent Xmas at a place called Berrainie where were held up for three days owing to rain – you cant travel in wet weather on camels they cant stand up – most awkward brutes you have ever seen on slippery ground they slide all over the place and if they happen to fall spread eagle fashion so [Transcriber’s note: small sketch shows spreadeagled camel] it breaks all their legs and thats the end – on Boxing Day no by jove it was Xmas Day they had sports at Berranie – camel races foot races etc – by jove its funny to see a camel galloping – the best times were 1.13 for the ½ mile and 2.30 for the mile – not bad for camels – Well it started raining on Xmas night and continued all Boxing day so we had two days spell and were rather glad of it – while away our section or rather the majority of it moved out here to Bag-bog escorting a road making party – Mr Conner came out in charge – thank goodness the O.C. Company let me stop here but the others had to go back to Sollum – it is a great life here – Jack Nieriker and I have a tent to ourselves and there is practically nothing to do at all – so don’t think I am in any danger at present I think we will be here for some months here yet in fact I don’t think they will ever take us away as they are not too sure of the Senussi – all we do here is get up about 7 to feed the camels cook our tea – that’s the daily programme – then every third day we go about four miles to a well – water the camels and let them graze all day and come home about sunset – Oh there is a grooming parade from 8 ‘til 8.30 every morn – its great fun pulling the ticks off the camels there are I don’t think but am quite used to it now – nearly made us all sick at first – there are two kinds of ticks – bloodsuckers which are the shape of a sodawater bottle and anything from ¾" to 1" long – they have about 6 legs but when they get big are too fat to walk – jove they are hard to pull off – the little ones are like this – that’s about the size of a very small one – they are quite flat and also very hard to pull off – we make little fires near the camels and burn them – Its terribly cold here at present cold winds all day and plenty of rain – tho’ the days have been beautiful the last few days p- hard frosts in the early morning. We get pretty decent food out here – no fresh meat or vegetables of course but we get what is called in the army Maconochies Ration – that’s a tin containing meat and vegetables and is one mans ration for 24 hours – well we stew that an curry it and fry it and have it in all sorts of ways – I am chief cook – we have onions, mashed potatoes or boiler rice and porridge occasionally raisins flour, cheese bread pepper

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and mustard. I think oh! and bacon at present Jack and I have about 5 lbs of bonzer bacon on hand we don’t cook much of that it’s a bit too fatty – if we could get some eggs I guess we would – I tell you what we do get occasionally from some Bedouins – fresh tomatoes there is a Bedouin camp about 5 miles from here and there is quite a decent tomato patch there – another Bedouin has a good herd of goats we are thinking of getting him to bring round milk in the morning – I think that’s about all the news I have at present of any interest – I got a bonzer lot of parcels and letters about Xmas – I hadnt had a letter for nearly 6 weeks couldn’t make out what had become of them when I got down to Matruh found 15 there for me the fools at Sollum had sent them down there in error and the johnnie down there was just going to send them back to the base when I arrived on the scene. Well when I get back here I discover a good lot of letters for me several papers and two or three parcels – I have letters from Belle Heather, Eileen, Beryl, Agnes pretty well every mail and from Mina, Alma, Mabel, Stuart, Mrs Crowther, Jean, Una occasionally. I have had all yours up to and including No 19 which was a short not from Melbourne written 27/11/16 – with it your No. 18. I nearly always get two or three from you together the American one when you send one via America arriving with the Aust others – I had a bonzer parcel from Agnes from the Mutual Stores – one from Mabel with a bonzer pair of sox and mittens and a few other little things one from Heather with a purple pair of sox in it – I wanted the sox and the mittens badly – Agnes’ parcel was all eatables – short bread, a bonzer plum pudding – the best I have ever tasted Xmas cake tinned cheese meat etc – oh and Stuart sent me "Far Away Stories" I like them as much as any of Lockes I have read – Your Bulletin came too and a couple of papers from Erris – I think it was Heathers parcel had some bonzer toffee in it and your parcel which arrived a couple of days later had some Callard & Bowsers toffee in it – it’s a treat – contrary to your advise I eat nearly all those phospho-lime affairs in a couple of goes I liked them also the pruney paste too – heather sent me two books I think you sent three – anyhow I have read them all now and know that Bulletin backwards – am right out of reading matter at present – its the limit. I forgot to say that I had a letter from Vi one from Kath Fosbery a card and one from Thel Lugden also two from Miss Butler – I suppose I had better answer your last letters now – this letter appears to be assuming

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alarming proportions and Im doubtful if I will be able to get it all into the envelope – Oh I forgot to say that I had a letter from Aunt Dorcay saying she would like to hear from me – what it is to be popular!! This is in answer to your 14th per S.S. Sonoma – yes we had some good games of bridge but with indifferent players – I never play for money – its against my principles – thanks for Aunt Lilys letter I may be in London some day – Now 15 – Yes Im still a Sergeant tho’ havent had any pay for it since Novr 15 – but may get it later on if my rank is confirmed. Am still quite fit and losing the money didn’t worry me – it was not your fault mine entirely so there – Eric and I parted ways on about the middle of October – have not seen or heard from him since think he is somewhere up Palestine way – Mrs Adams will be in Sydney by the time you get this – her address is York Chambers 56 Market St – Yes I sent your letter 0 Yes I got Ellies handkerchiefs all right but they werent silk as you said not nearly. I suppose you know by now that the soldiers over here voted "No" solidly – "What is the diff between temptation & eternity" – I never was any good at conundrums. Thanks for Mrs Ws letter – her letter made me smile re Keith – Now 16 Thanks for cutting re Ramsay and clipping from Windsor – Oh I think the thing I am most in need of is reading matter well sprinkled with Sydney & u>Wagga papers – Thanks for the photos of Heather and Keith they are jolly good but rotten work looking at it from a professional standpoint. Its about midwinter now – I think I have spoken about the weather before – also I had a Leader from you too I forgot to mention that No I didn’t get a cap from Mrs Ruthven – No Im not wearing the tussore thing wish you would send over a couple of knitted singlets that would be more to the point – in the morning now I wear sweater balaclava cap and mittens also I got the kit bag all right. I think the writing pad walked on the boat - No. 19 - the one you wrote for my birthday – I got it on 28/12/16 – you tell me to burn all my letters – how about you doing ditto you wouldnt have to read them to ½ the town then – its impossible to write to all the girls every mail – all I can do is to write once every 6 weeks or so at the most. By jove Harold Smith is on a good wicket £ 720 a year not hard to take eh! - No 18 recd a couple of days ago – written 19/11/16 – Have not yet received the parcel with the sox & peaches but ought to be getting it shortly now – Yes I saw that Harpers with an article about the Canal in it and was nearly going to send it but I knew you would

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be sure to see it – No Im not a man afraid I never will be – thats the "dinkum oil" – a new expression. Yes I got the silk shirt – it’s a bonzer – will be very handy in a few months time – the last two letters I had from Miss B she acknowledged the cash – I was beginning to fear it had gone down in the Arabia – Yes my eyes are all right – those goggles have been very handy during the last month especially on the sandhills when the fine sand blows – of course we were all issued with goggles but nothing like mine – Am surprised at you telling me not to play two-up! You say I could write every week – but as one week is the same as the next here – exactly – I dont see much that there is to write about – Did I say I enjoyed a Church parade? – it must have been the novelty – all I remember going to have been most boring affairs – we have been having winter weather for about three months and will have it for another three – Do you know that I think this climate must be very like the south of France. Oh well I really think I had better stop or I’ll never have any more news for any more letters – I suppose you will nearly faint when you see the length of this – it is quite a decently long letter isn’t it but Im not too sure of the reading matter am afraid its not too interesting – am sending another short note by same mail as this just to say this is coming – this will be rather fat Im afraid – Well goodbye mother dear tons of love Yours ever Noel

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[Hand drawn sketch labelled Sollum Dec. 1916. It is a rough sketch showing the layout of the camp at Sollum for Headquarters No. 2 Coy, I.C.C.]

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Tuesday
30/1/17
7 P.M.
Dearest Mother, This is going to be just a short letter as I have not time for a long one – T think not anyhow – Heard today that a boat is leaving Sollum tomorrow and the boss told me an hour or so ago to send a couple of men in tonight with some niggers working on the road whose time has expired and who have to catch the boat tomorrow – it leaves at 4 oclock and as we are 31 miles out and they have to walk they have to leave tonight. All the labor under the military in Egypt is done by the E.L.C. – Egyptian Labor Corps - the men are the laboring class Egyptians – and bigger loafers, rogues and thieves & liars you wouldnt find anywhere in the world – of course they are paid only 6 piastres a day about 1/3 so you couldnt xpect much – I reckon 5 white men could do as much work as at least 25 niggers and do it quicker and better – Well I think I anticipated moving camp in my last letter – we did so last Wednesday = Niereker and I – the others moved on Tuesday we had to stay behind and watch the niggers pull down the camp etc – we moved only 6 ½ miles along the same road – Jack & I reserved two camels to move our outfit – its really marvellous what one can put on them with a bit of ingenious tying roping – On one

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we had 6 cases about twice the size of a kerosene case over two bunks all our food and cooking utensils our tent pole on which we had our 3 billies hanging a lot of firewood and our table crowning the lot – on the other we had our tent and dhoura and water and 6 or so spades and a couple of picks – and other sundries which I forget for the time being – They really look like a walking rubbish depot when so loaded – I escorted that little lot myself – had one nigger – my heart was in my boots several times when he let the camel do a bit of a bolt and all our things were in danger of striking the earth – you ought to hear me curse in Arabic – some class I can tell you – By jove the niggers have a hide – you will curse at them for about 5 minutes and they will turn around and say "Gibbit waher (one) cigarette bucksheesh (free) Sargent (hard "g")" – of course you say "mafeesh bucksheesh" – literally "finish bucksheesh" – or "Mish-arif" – I dont understand you" or in common Australian "Dont get you" – if one happens to be rather wild one may say "Inishi inter kelp – get out you dog" or Yallah and threaten him with whip – but that’s very mild – all the Bedouin bints (girls) both soir pronounced Swah and Kabier (both big and little) go for their lives when they see any strange ascaries (soldiers) coming

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and even when they know you the little ones will go like the wind if you say "dinner-bosom" "Give me a kiss" – to them – but Im waxing rather a la Bradshaw Guide – well there is now news with the exception of the fact that I had a pair of sox from Vi a couple of days ago – it was a straggler or there has been no mail in for a couple of weeks – am looking forward to some mail on Friday next 3/2/17 – but I have given up expecting mail until it comes now – Oh! before I forget – I will tell you something I do really want. Tons of reading matter – as many 6d novels as you can spare time to tee up – am perpetually out of reading matter now. I know I get a couple of books and a paper from you and Heather every mail but I devour reading matter now and it all goes in about 2 days and I am left until next mail with nothing – all my books etc go the round of the camp – the rest of the chaps seem to get even less than I do – tho’ they get more daily papers – I sent a field postcard in yesterday – someone stopped here for a while on the way into Sollum and I just scribbled it in case there might have been a boat going down – Have to stop chaps are just going – Tons of love – quite well Yrs always Noel

[Transcriber’s notes:
Page 11 – Cenussi is most likely the Zanussi, a tribe located on the Libyan coast around Tripoli
Page 11 – Matruh is Mersa Matruh
Page 14 – Berranie is actually Sidi Barrani located on the Egyptian coast close to the border with Libya
Page 14 - Bag-bog is actually Buq Buq located on the coast of Egypt close to the border with Libya]

[Transcribed by Colin Smith for the State Library of New South Wales]