ATT. 1/4 HANTS,
I.E.F. "D,"
C/o INDIA OFFICE, S.W.

AMARAH, _September 4th_,1915.

To R.K.

Yours from Albemarle Street reached me just before we left Basra. It
gave me the first news of Charles Lister's second wound. We get almost
no news here. Potted _Reuter_ is circulated most days, but each unit
may only keep it half an hour, so its two to one against one's seeing
it. My only resource is the _Times_ which laboriously dogs my steps
from England: but it has already been pinched en route four times, so
I can't rely on seeing even that: therefore in the matter of
casualties, please be as informative as you can, regardless of
originality.

As I told you in my last letter that I was going to Nasiriyah, it
won't surprise you to find I've got here instead. We reached Basra (it
would be much nicer to spell it Bassorah, but I can't be bothered to)
on the feast of St. Bartholomew, which the Military call 24/8/15.
Considering what places are like out here, B. is wonderfully
attractive and picturesque. At least Ashar is, which is the port;
Beroea: Corinth:: Ashar: Basra. To begin with it stands between six
and eight feet above the river level, an almost unique eminence. Then
lots of major and minor creeks branch out from the river and from the
main streets. All round and in every unbuilt on space are endless
groves of date palms, with masses of yellow dates. The creeks are