MORE FIGHTING IN PALESTINE.

RAILWAY DESTRUCTION.

FROM W. T. MASSEY. BEFORE GAZA, MAY 24 (VIA CAIRO, SUNDAY). Once again the Turks have been made to feel the full force of the British cavalry stroke. The Commander-in-chief decided upon the destruction of the greater part of the line south-east of Beersheba, and mounted troops of the desert column, under Major-general Chauvel, by another of those dashing raids which have characterised all the operations of the column since the occupation of Larish at Christmas, attacked more than 20 miles of the length of the line simultaneously and destroyed it absolutely beyond repair, except under complete reconstruction. The operation is even more important than the wreckage of the line suggests, for the Turks, short of railway material, had begun to take up and carry away the part of the line nearest to Kossaima to build the line towards Gaza. They looked to this section of the line to furnish some badly needed material, but will not find a sound rail or sleeper. The night before last, two columns moved out on their destroying missions. The Camel Corps started on a 32 miles march to Auja, a police post on the Turco-egyptian frontier. They had previously destroyed a bridge and spent yesterday in smashing the whole of the railway eastwards to Wadi Elabiad, including many culverts over the wadis. Being well to the west of Beersheha, they had more time than the cavalry, whose operations were timed to cease at ten o’clock, and the explosions of the camel-men were heard like a heavy artillery battle till late in the afternoon. The task of smashing the railway between Asluj, 15 miles due south of Beersheba, and Hadaj was entrusted to field engineers and Anzac and Imperial mounted troops, who had been specially trained in the methods of rapidly destroying the line. They were covered by the remainder of the troops. These splendid forces moved south and east from dusk on Tuesday till dawn yesterday for more than 30 miles. One demolition party arrived at Asluj at six and the other at Hadaj at seven. Working towards each other by ten o’clock they had destroyed 10 miles of the line, including three bridges of 24 arches, with substantial stone and concrete pillars. So complete was the destruction of this section of the strategic military line that not one length of rail remained whole. Every bolt had its head knocked off. It was not a part of the scheme that the cavalry and camelry should join hands, and a short section between their spheres of operations remains untouched, but there is a break between the undamaged part of nearly 10 miles, and the undestroyed portion is isolated and useless. While the Engineers were blowing up the railway, the cavalry made a strong demonstration against Beersheba, got within five miles of the town, heavily shelled and destroyed the railway bridge to the north, and drove off two Turkish cavalry brigades which appeared south of Beersheba during the afternoon. Our troops returned to bivouacs in the afternoon. The Turks made a poor reply to this heavy loss inflicted on them. This morning an aeroplane with three men and explosives came down at Salmena, a few miles from Bir-el-abd, to attempt to cut our railway and pipe line. The men alighted and were about to place the dynamite in position when our patrol opened a heavy fire. The enemy airmen ran for their machine, leaving all the explosives and implements. Blood trails showed that one man was hit. Not the slightest damage was done to us.