project against the Straits -- Its fundamental
errors -- Would never have been carried into effect had there been a
conference between the Naval War Staff and the General Staff -- The
bad start -- The causes of the final failure on the 18th of March -- Lord
K.'s instructions to Sir I. Hamilton -- The question of the packing of the
transports -- Sir I. Hamilton's complaint as to there being no plan
prepared -- The 1906 memorandum -- Sir Ian's complaint about
insufficient information -- How the 1906 memorandum affected this
question -- Misunderstanding as to the difficulty of obtaining
information -- The information not in reality so defective -- My anxiety
at the time of the first landing -- The plan, a failure by early in May --
Impossibility of sending reinforcements then -- Question whether the
delay in sending out reinforcements greatly affected the result in
August 1915 -- The Dardanelles Committee -- Its anxiety -- Sir E.
Carson and Mr. Churchill, allies -- The question of clearing out -- My
disinclination to accept the principle before September -- Sir C. Monro
sent out -- The delay of the Government in deciding -- Lord K.
proceeds to the Aegean -- My own experiences -- A trip to Paris with a
special message to the French Government -- Sent on a fool's errand,
thanks to the Cabinet -- A notable State paper on the subject -- Mr.
Lloyd George and the "sanhedrin" -- Decision to evacuate only Anzac
and Suvla -- Sir W. Robertson arrives and orders sent to evacuate
Helles -- I give up the appointment of D.M.O.
CHAPTER VI
SOME EXPERIENCES IN THE WAR OFFICE...................... 107
A reversion to earlier dates -- The statisticians in the winter of 1914-15
-- The efforts to prove that German man-power would shortly give out
-- Lack of the necessary premises upon which to found such
calculations -- Views on the maritime blockade -- The projects for
operations against the Belgian coast district in the winter of 1914-15 --
Nature of my staff -- The "dug-outs" -- The services of one of them,
"Z" -- His care of me in foreign parts -- His activities in other
Departments of State -- An alarming discovery -- How "Z" grappled
with a threatening situation -- He hears about the Admiralty working on
the Tanks -- The cold-shouldering of Colonel Swinton when he raised
this question at the War Office in January 1915 -- Lord Fisher proposes
to construct large numbers of motor-lighters, and I am told off to go
into the matter with him -- The Baltic project -- The way it was
approached -- Meetings with Lord Fisher -- The "beetles" -- Visits from
the First Sea Lord -- The question of secrecy in connection with war
operations -- A parable -- The land service behind the sea service in this
matter -- Interviews with Mr. Asquith -- His ways on such occasions.
CHAPTER VII
FURTHER EXPERIENCES IN THE WAR OFFICE................... 127
Varied nature of my responsibilities -- Inconvenience caused by a
Heath-Caldwell being a brother-Director on the General Staff -- An
interview with Lord Methuen -- The Man of Business -- His methods
when in charge of a Government Department -- War Office branches
under Men of Business -- The art of advertisement -- This not
understood by War Office officials -- The paltry staff and
accommodation at the disposal of the Director of Supplies and
Transport, and what was accomplished -- Good work of the Committee
of Imperial Defence in providing certain organizations for special
purposes before the war -- The contre-espionage branch -- The
Government's singular conduct on the occasion of the first enemy spy
being executed at the Tower -- The cable censorship -- The post office
censorship -- A visit from Admiral Bacon -- His plan of landing troops
by night at Ostend -- Some observations on the subject -- Sir J.
Wolfe-Murray leaves the War Office -- An appreciation of his work --
The Dardanelles papers to be presented to Parliament referred to me --
My action in the matter and the appointment of the Dardanelles
Committee in consequence -- Mr. Lloyd George, Secretary of State for
War -- His activities -- I act as D.C.I.G.S. for a month -- Sound
organization introduced by Sir W. Robertson -- Normal trench-warfare
casualties and battle casualties -- I learn the facts about the strengths of
the different armies in the field -- Troubles with the Cabinet over
man-power -- Question of resignation of the Army Council -- The Tank
Corps and Tanks -- The War Office helps in the reorganization of the
Admiralty -- Some of the War Cabinet want to divert troops to the
Isonzo -- The folly of such a plan -- Objections to it indicated
![](qr/34511/3.png)
Continue reading on your phone by scaning this QR Code
Tip: The current page has been bookmarked automatically. If you wish to continue reading later, just open the
Dertz Homepage, and click on the 'continue reading' link at the bottom of the page.