Interview with Colonel Lawrence

Sidelights on the Joys of Desert Warfare

THE GLOBE, 12 DECEMBER 1918

The Globe representative was also favoured with a special interview with Colonel T. E. Lawrence, who, although only 25 years of age, has rightly been described as one of the most remarkable men produced by the war. Clean-shaven, fair-haired, and slight in stature, Colonel Lawrence, when in khaki uniform, is a typical specimen of the young British officer, but it is safe to assert that none of his brother officers have rendered more valuable services to their country by the fact that the Turks put a price of about £17,000 each both on Prince Feisul's and his own head if taken alive, and £7,000 if dead

Very Modest Man
Colonel Lawrence, like most men who 'do things' is a man of the most charming and unassuming manners, and his extreme modesty and dislike to talking about himself make the interviewer's task a somewhat difficult one. His first remarks, in fact, were directed to 'throwing down' the stories concerning himself which had appeared in the press, on the ground that he was having too large a share of limelight cast upon him. 'The stories told about me are very often untrue,' said the Colonel, 'and they are not quite fair, as I was not the senior British officer out there. There were four or five colonels senior to myself, and the fact that they happened to stay out there and I came home has rather spoilt the perspective of my seniors, who have remained in the East. I cannot state their names, on account of War Office Regulations.'

In Syria Since 1909
Replying to a question, Colonel Lawrence stated that he had been out in Syria since 1909, with the exception of brief visits to England. He went out to study the historical geography of the country, wandering about on foot, and in this way he got to know the country from a strategical point of view better than anybody. When the war broke out he was in England, and was sent out to Egypt as an observer in the Royal Flying Corps, as it was then called. After being in Cairo for some time he joined Sir Henry McMahon.

'The British Government,' the Colonel explained, 'sent a certain number of us down to help in organising the Arab armies, as they required some assistance, especially in the early days, when they had very few regular trained officers and men with them. They began almost entirely as Bedouins, and it was not until later that the Emir was able to build up an army of Syrians and Mesopotamians. With the Bedouins it was a question of supplies and technical materials, such as guns and machine-guns, which had to be provided, and instructors had to be sent to the army in Egypt.'

To Impress Bedouins
Colonel Lawrence was pressed for some reminiscences of the exciting times through which he passed at that period, but excused himself, and explained that what the Press might style as 'star' performances were not carried out merely as 'stunts,' but to impress the Bedouins, and in this they were entirely successful. Referring to the amazing camel charges, which have specially arrested the attention of English readers, Colonel Lawrence explained that the personal feeling still remains with the Arab warrior. Mounted on his camel, he starts the charge, and all the 'crowd' behind him try to pass him, and the best camel charges first into the enemy's ranks. 'The thing is done in too great a hurry and excitement to judge it very precisely. It's great fun, camel charging,' added the Colonel, smiling, and gazing into a corner of the room with the look of one recalling personal reminiscences.

The Turks objected to the Arabs' camel charges very greatly, as they could do nothing against them, and Colonel Lawrence never knew them fail. Nothing short of physical obstacles, such as barbed wire, could stop a camel, which could, however, be tripped very easily. The Turks took the campaign very seriously, and had a most elaborate system of blockhouses, from which they covered every inch of the railway by rifle fire, and they had day patrols as well.

Rolls-Royce Cars
An interesting tribute was paid to the valuable work done by the Rolls- Royce armoured cars, which covered over 90,000 miles across the desert, and not a single mile along a main road. For nearly a year and a half these cars were running over the country without having any mechanical overhaul, and kept going only by their drivers. They saw an immense amount of fighting and covered every movement of the Arab infantry, who had no cavalry. All the quick communication work was done by these armoured cars, which accounted probably for fifty times their strength of Turks. Colonel Lawrence mentioned that he had seen one of these cars drive right along the railway line and capture the station. The men, he said, were wonderful: for the strain of controlling the car and keeping it running was very great.

Colonel Lawrence gave a graphic description of the feelings of the four or five men inside the turret of an armoured car when it is in action on a hot day, with the thermometer registering perhaps 120 degrees in the shade. With the hot sun pouring down on the steel roof, and the Vikers' gun close to them firing three or four thousand rounds and filling the turret with a sickening stink from the back draught of the chloride fumes, life in an armoured car, explained the Colonel, 'is the very limit in the tropics.'

In Europe Colonel Lawrence has doffed his picturesque Arab outfit of flowing robe, headcloth, and golden dagger. The headcloth is a beautiful piece of Persian craftsmanship, embroidered in crimson and yellow silks, entwined with golden ropes. The soft silk, which falls down the back and protects the neck from the heat of the sun, like an Indian paggaree, folds up into small compass inside the turban-like headcloth. The golden ropes at one time formed part of a humble camel-rope, and the richly embroidered headgear was evolved from a piece of plain linen.

This interview with Lawrence was printed on the second day of the Emir Feisal's visit to England in December 1918.