Return of the brute

Gunn got to his feet and looked over the parapet. He peered into the darkness. Then he turned his head to one side and listened. There was no sound but the droning of the rain,...

Another crash followed, a belching sound, preceded by a fountain of fire that rose, widening into an arch, with great swiftness and vanished in an instant. There was a series of...

No. 7946 Corporal John Williams, leading, was a sallow-faced man, with a long, thin neck and a wide, low forehead. He was six feet one inch in height. His limbs were loose and n...

It still rained. As soon as they stepped out into No Man’s Land, they sank into the mud to their ankles. They advanced in file, their rifles at the high port, their bayonets fix...

He was standing stiffly erect, in his torn, muddy great-coat, laden with accoutrements, motionless, with his bayoneted rifle in his hands, looking out across the parados of the...

The rain ceased about ten o’clock. The sky grew clear. The battle-front was still silent. The men caught sight of a green slope, afar off on the left, beyond a hollow.

Exactly at eleven o’clock, when the thunder of the guns had reached its climax, two thousand, four hundred and forty-five men of all ranks stepped out of their holes and walked...

While they were sitting idle in this fashion in the hole, the Sergeant appeared. He was walking casually, with his rifle at the trail. He seemed to be in a great humour.

At three o’clock an order came that they were to advance and dig a hole on the far side of the hill. Corporal Williams again set forth with his men. Now there’s only seven souls...

They crouched against the bank, listening. The voices were a mumble. The Corporal peered over the top. Although the night was quite bright, he could distinguish nothing moving o...

The Corporal came back. As soon as he entered the hole, he called out, “Reilly, you stay here. McDonald, Gunn and Lamont are coming with me. We’re going out on a raid. Get ready...

After their first run they began to crawl, the Corporal in front, Gunn behind him on the right, McDonald on the left. Gunn’s eyes were fixed on the Corporal’s back.