William Scurry

William Charles Scurry was born in Melbourne in 1895. He attended Ascot Vale State School and later joined the family business making architectural models.

On 19 July 1915 Scurry enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force, joining the 7th Battalion on Gallipoli in November 1915. By this time the Anzacs had been on the peninsula for more than seven months and had been unable to break through the Turkish lines. To make matters worse, the winter was setting in with storms and cold winds, and a decision was made to evacuate the troops. The challenge was how to withdraw from Gallipoli without alerting the Turks. Military commanders thought thousands of Anzacs would be killed in the evacuation as the trenches were so close to the Turks. Retreating from a battle situation could place the troops in a dangerous position.

Scurry had an idea to make an ordinary rifle fire automatically without human assistance, using a system of tins, string, and water. The dripping water from one tin would fill a lower tin, eventually pulling on the trigger of the rifle, and firing it without a soldier being there.

The biggest drawback in this idea for William was the availability of water. He later wrote:

Very early in the experiments, I came to a stop for want of water. The only supply I had was my own ration which in those thirsty times was one pint a day.” Thankfully, Anzac “mateship” came to the fore. William recalled, “Permission to go to the beach for salt water was refused … an old school mate, Private A.H. Lawrence, also of the 7th, gave me a whole quart. He had drawn a double ration, which happened to be available on condition that he drew none the next day. Just think of a thirsty man cheerfully going without for another day …
AWM 2 DRL 47

Despite the setbacks, the project proceeded, and on 19 and 20 December the self-firing drip rifles were set in the trenches. The remaining soldiers filled the tins with water as they were leaving. William recalled hearing the “pop, pop” sound of firing rifles as they departed.

Scurry was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal in recognition for his invention and was promoted to sergeant in January 1916. Following his service on Gallipoli he served on the Western Front and suffered wounds resulting in the blinding of his right eye. On return to Australia, his disabilities prevented him from working in his original occupation of architectural modeller and he struggled to provide for his family.

Activities

1. Prior to enlisting, William Scurry’s job was making small models of buildings for architects. What skills may he have gained from this type of work? How do you think these skills could have helped him to design and build the drip rifle?

2. Why was mateship so important to the Anzacs? How do you think it helped them to get through this campaign?

3. Investigate the controversy surrounding the role of the drip rifle. Some people claim it played no role in the safe evacuation of the Anzacs. What do you think? Find out more about the drip rifle.

4. Many inventions have been developed during wartime. What other wartime inventions can you find? Why do you think inventions are developed quickly during times of conflict?

5. Research the Gallipoli withdrawal further. What else did the Anzacs do to try and deceive the Turks as they were leaving the peninsula? Hint: what are they doing in this photograph?

Back to case studies