from the children tending babies while squatting in the entrance portico,
was generally given over to the distaff side and its friends. The one
which we patronized, while not so grand a building, had an old Persian who
understood the art of massage thoroughly, and there was nothing more
restful after a number of days' hard work with the cars.

In the end of February there passed through Kizil Robat the last
contingent of our former Russian Allies. They were Cossacks--a
fine-looking lot as they rode along perched on their small chunky saddles
atop of their unkempt but hardy ponies. When Russia went out of the war
they asked permission to keep on fighting with us. They were a good deal
of a problem, for they had no idea whatever of discipline, and it was most
difficult to keep them in hand and stop them from pillaging the natives
indiscriminately. They had been completely cut off from Russia for a long
time but were now on their way back. A very intelligent woman doctor and a
number of nurses who had been with them were sick with smallpox in one of
our hospitals in Baghdad. When they recovered they were sent to India, for
it was not feasible to repatriate them by way of Persia. When the Russians
first established connection with us, some armored cars were sent to bring
in the Cossack general, whose name we were told was Leslie. We were
unprepared to find that he spoke no English! It turned out that his
ancestors had gone over from Scotland to the court of Peter the Great.




V

THE ADVANCE ON THE EUPHRATES