The Press Bureau states that a bombardment of the forts at Cape Helles and Kum Kaleh commenced at eight o'clock on Friday morning.
A British fleet of battleships and battle-cruisers, accompanied by flotillas and aided by a strong French squadron, the whole under the command of Vice-admiral Carden, began a deliberate long-range fire and produced considerable effect on two of the forts.
Two of the other forts were frequently hit.
The forts being open earthworks, it was difficult to estimate the damage effected.
The forts were outranged, and could not reply.
Portion of the battleship force at three o'clock in the afternoon was ordered to close in and engage the forts at closer range with their secondary armaments.
The forts on both sides of the entrance then opened fire and were engaged at moderate ranges by the British battleships Vengeance, Cornwallis, and Triumph, and the French capital-ships Suffren, Gaulois, and Bouvet, supported by the British battle-cruiser Inflexible and the battleship Agamemnon at long range.
The forts on the European side were apparently silenced.
One on the Asiatic side was still firing when the operations were suspended owing to failing light.
The firing was renewed next morning after an aerial reconnaissance.
Athens reports that 12 battleships and 20 torpedo-boats took part in the bombardment. The forts El Hamidteh and Kum Kaleh were destroyed. A powder magazine was exploded and many guns were put out of action.
• As evidence of the affection for the Otago Boys' High School that is held by ex-pupils it may be mentioned that steps are being taken to form branches of the Old Boys' Association in Wellington and Auckland.
The following circular has been issued to old boys in the Auckland district: ''A meeting of Otago High School old boys will be held on Friday, February 19. As there is such a large number of old boys resident in the Auckland province, it has been considered desirable to form a branch of the Otago High School Old Boys' Society in Auckland. The old school being one of the leading schools in the dominion, and a large number of its old boys being resident in this province, it is only fitting that it should have an organisation by which members can keep in touch with each other, and with newcomers to the province. Your attendance and co-operation in this desirable movement is requested. - (Signed) A. L. Denniston, Whampoa Fraser (convenors).''
The following telegram was sent from the Dunedin old boys: - ''Old Boys' Society here wish you every success formation strong branch in your city. - (Signed) Fulton, Martin, Ritchie, Campbell, Finch, Calvert, Park, Calder, Ramsay, Morrell, White, Guthrie.''
• It is a popular superstition that the presence of a member of the cloth on shipboard is a sure and certain omen of a calamitous, or at least, a rough trip.
Imagine, therefore, the feelings of nervous passengers on board the Riverina, when it was found on leaving Sydney for Auckland that there were exactly 13 representatives of the clergy.
On this occasion apprehension was fully borne out by an unusually rough trip, which made the vessel over 20 hours late in arriving. While the clerics accepted the inevitable banter good-naturedly, it would perhaps be hardly correct (says the Auckland Star) to state that they enjoyed the joke. - ODT, 22.2.1915.
• COPIES OF PICTURE AVAILABLE FROM ODT FRONT OFFICE OR WWW.OTAGOIMAGES.CO.NZ
