handed in--helmets, shorts and drill tunics--and the battalion seemed to
have been exchanged for a new one dressed in khaki serge and caps. With
our helmets we lost our flashes, or at least the characteristic Fleur de
Lys, but they were replaced by a divisional flash to be worn on the
upper arm of the sleeve of the jacket. This was a diamond in shape, each
Brigade having its own colour, the Manchesters being orange yellow, with
the number of the battalion indicated on it by a red figure. Being close
to Lake Timsa, we frequently indulged in bathing parades under ideal
conditions, for after all Ismailia is really one of the beauty spots of
Egypt. Complimentary farewell parades were held, one on the occasion of
the visit of General Dobell, and the other a march past the C.-in-C, Sir
Archibald Murray, down the Quai Mehemet Ali in the town. Altogether the
7th enjoyed themselves during these days and made the most of the end of
their long sojourn in the East. We were seasoned troops and were well
conversant with the customs of the country. A few pangs of regret at
leaving these things behind can easily be understood, although an
important consideration, and one that weighed heavily with the men, was
the possibility of getting leave from France, a thing unknown in this
place. Hence it was with mixed feelings that the battalion boarded the
train at Ismailia on the evening of March 1st for a rapid journey to
Alexandria. No time was lost here for we detrained on the quay side and
embarked at once.




CHAPTER III.

For France.