CHAPTER XV.

VALOROUS DEEDS AND VICTORIA CROSSES.

A story of heroism which ought not to be forgotten is told by a drummer of the 1st Battalion Royal Berks Regiment. The British were attacking a canal bridge held by the Germans near Cambrai, and during the attack several men slipped down the steep river embankment and fell into the water, where they were in danger of drowning. Corporal Brindall of the Royal Berks, who was an expert swimmer, immediately plunged in and rescued four of them who could not swim. He left the water, and was climbing the embankment, when a German shell exploded close to him and killed him instantly. "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends."

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Here is the story of a 1st East Lancashire private, who was considered by his comrades the luckiest man in the war. "I got hit," he writes, "by three bullets in about a minute. One went through my cap, one smashed the magazine of my rifle, and one flattened five rounds of ammunition in my belt. Nearly all my company wanted to shake hands with me, telling me that I am the luckiest man in the war. I think it was a record myself. They wanted to keep the cap, ammunition, and magazine; but I am keeping them myself to show you when I come home. So you see I have not to be shot with rifle bullets--at least, that is what they say here, and I think so myself."

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We have to piece together from various sources the story of a modest hero, named Jack W. Pape, of the Signal Company, Royal Engineers. In a letter to his relatives in Leeds he wrote: "You can say to ---- that on 26th August, in the big fight on that day, I kept my end up, and have since been personally congratulated by General Smith-Dorrien, commander of the Second Army Corps." That is all we hear of the business from Pape himself. A sapper thus tells us why he received the congratulations of his general: "Men were dropping all round, whether shot or for cover I know not. I remember seeing one poor fellow shot through the eye. He was gallantly carried off the field under fire by Pape of Leeds, but has since died." Another comrade describes the parade at which our hero was honoured by his general: "This morning a general parade was ordered at nine o'clock ('as clean as possible'). This was a tall order, owing to the very wet weather we have been having lately--up to the eyes in mud. Anyhow, we were marched up to headquarters, and paraded before the whole of the staff. When formed up, General Smith-Dorrien read from a paper some particulars. Then he congratulated the Signal Company on the splendid work they had done for his command. After this he said that for gallantry in the field J. W. Pape was promoted. He then brought him out in front of all the troops, shook hands with him, and congratulated him. Then followed congratulations from the sergeant-major down to the boys, who were proud that the Signal Company should be so honoured." Writing home a little later, Pape said that General Smith-Dorrien had promoted him "King's Corporal."[60]

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A London doctor who was with the R.A.M.C.[61] tells us how gloriously brave and splendidly uncomplaining our men are. "If," he says, "the people of the United Kingdom could see the conditions under which our fellows fight, how they fight, and how they die, I swear every head would uncover to the colours[62] of any regiment bearing the name of a battle, because the name has been won through the blood of real heroes. Believe me, the Victoria Cross is won over and over again in a single day. They _are_ brave!

"What if you were to see how the wounded act after the excitement of battle! They suffer their wounds, great and small, without a murmur; they get their wounds dressed, take chloroform, give consent to have their limbs amputated, just as if they were going to have their hair cut. They are gloriously brave.

"Men who have been in the thick of the fight all day, seen their chums wounded and killed, their own lives not worth a second's insurance--still, these men cook their food and go off to sleep, and, most wonderful of all, go back to the thick of it next day."

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We must not imagine that all German soldiers are brutal and treacherous. Let us always remember that they are very brave, and that many of them are worthy foes. There is a little story which illustrates the chivalry of a German lancer and the gratitude of the man whom he spared. "At Le Cateau," said a wounded corporal of the Coldstream Guards, "I made a bayonet thrust at a German lancer, and fell. He scorned to take advantage of my accident, and we parted. I made up my mind to repay the debt if ever I met the man again. Some time later I came upon him. He had been wounded by a splinter of shell, and was in urgent need of assistance. I managed to get him to the hospital, and he told me he was well repaid for sparing my life on the first day we met."

Now let me tell you how a British soldier returned good for evil. During the retreat a British artilleryman, slightly wounded, asked a German for water and was refused. Some weeks later the artilleryman recognized the same German amongst a party of wounded who were crying for water. He went up to the man, who knew him at once, took off his water-bottle and handed it to him without a word. The corporal of the Highland Light Infantry who told the story adds, "You never saw anybody look so shamefaced as that German."

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It was during the retreat from Landrecies that the Munster Fusiliers added to their fame by making a most gallant stand against an overwhelming German attack, but at a great loss of killed, wounded, and missing. Some weeks afterwards the War Office published a list of 688 Munsters whose whereabouts were unknown. Later on it was learned that many of them were prisoners in Germany. The Munsters formed part of the 1st Army Corps, which retreated southwards along the left bank of the Oise. They reached Guise without being much molested by the Germans.

Guise is a very old town, with an ancient castle, which figures in British history. In 1338 Edward III. laid claim to the French crown in right of his mother, and the Hundred Years' War began. In the next year John of Hainault, with a body of English troops, assaulted the castle. Strange to say, the wife of the lord of this castle was John of Hainault's daughter. As the husband was away from home, the defence of the castle was entrusted to the wife, and John expected that she would readily give it up to him. Imagine his surprise when his daughter refused to surrender it. She made such a stubborn defence that her father, though he burned the town, was unable to capture the castle, and was forced to depart. Guise gives its name to the noble French family from which the ill-fated Mary Queen of Scots was descended.

The Munsters halted at Guise on the night of the 26th, and formed the extreme right rear of their corps. A dispatch rider had been sent by the general with the order that they were to march early the next day. This dispatch rider, unfortunately, lost his way, and was taken prisoner, so the order to retire never reached the Munsters. They remained at Guise while their comrades were miles away on their southward journey. They had been left behind, without supports or the hope of reinforcement.

The advancing Germans rolled down upon them, and they soon discovered that they were surrounded. "They came at us," says one of the gallant fellows, "from all points--horse, foot, and artillery and all--and the air was filled with screaming, shouting men, waving swords, and blazing away at us like blue murder." The brave Irish lads fixed bayonets, and prepared to sell their lives dearly. "We were," wrote an officer, "about three-quarters of a battalion fighting six German battalions, and without any chance of relief. I think we really did our best. We had one section of artillery and two machine guns with us, which helped a lot; but they were very soon knocked out. Our colonel was a wonder to see--he had absolutely no fear; and I followed him, and helped him all I could in every charge, but he was killed in the end by a shell. We had, I think, ten officers killed, five wounded, and the remainder prisoners. I was wounded in two places. . . . Well, although we were well beaten, I believe we gave as good as we got. We killed and wounded a great many Germans, and they say themselves that we made a gallant fight of it." The Munsters did not surrender until they had lost most of their officers and a large number of the rank and file, and had shot away all their cartridges. They only yielded when they no longer possessed the means of defending themselves. Let us honour the brave but unfortunate Irishmen who strove so nobly at Guise.

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The valour of the British troops during the retreat extended to every arm of the service. You have already heard of the Army Service Corps, whose duty it is to supply food, stores, and ammunition to the troops. During the present war the Army Service Corps has done its work splendidly. Except during the retirement, not a single day passed upon which food did not reach our men. Even during the retirement food was brought to the line of retreat, and left on the ground to be picked up.

For the purpose of bringing up supplies, large numbers of motor lorries and horsed wagons are used. When the Germans were following hard on the heels of the retiring British, they were very anxious to capture our food and ammunition train, for by so doing they would be able to hamper us very much. Near a village close to St. Quentin the colonel in charge of the British lorries and wagons learned that Uhlans were only a mile away. His horses were almost dead beat, and he could only proceed at a snail's pace. Night was drawing on, and there were no fighting troops to assist him. He had to depend upon his own men to beat off the threatened attack.

The wagons and lorries were drawn up in the village street in the form of a laager, and the wearied men took cover behind them, and prepared to make a stubborn resistance. The people of the village were in a great state of terror, and the colonel advised them to go to church. They did so, and the curé[63] held a service. While our men were strengthening their defences and looking to their rifles and cartridges, they were greatly cheered by the hymns which the villagers sang.

Dark night set in, and the sound of guns was heard. The horses grew restless, and it was feared that they would stampede. Had they done so, all would have been lost. The drivers, however, quietened them down, and held their heads till the break of day. In the morning they discovered that the Uhlans had missed them. The Germans imagined that the convoy was far ahead, and had advanced to the right and left of the village, quite unaware that it was drawn up in the streets.

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On several other occasions British convoys managed to escape capture. Frequently horsed supply wagons on their way to the troops have to pass along roads under artillery fire. Often shells burst among them and destroy the wagons, while the drivers fall with bullet wounds. There is an old story of an Army Service Corps man who raised a howl of derision amongst a group of "Tommies" by declaring that he was always to be found where the bullets were thickest. The laugh was on his side when it was discovered that he drove an ammunition wagon. During the present war men of the Army Service Corps driving their wagons towards the firing line have actually been where the bullets fell thickest.

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Very early one morning during the retreat a convoy drove up to a brigade of artillery with rations. In a few moments the officer in command learned that he was being quietly surrounded by German cavalry. Rather than let the enemy capture his wagons, the officer was prepared to burn them, but before doing so he determined to try to make a dash for safety.

Off went lorries and wagons at top speed until they reached a bridge over a railway. There was some delay in getting them across; but all passed over except thirty motor lorries, and these the officer thought he would be obliged to abandon, as the enemy was hard on his rear. A determined effort, however, was made, and twenty-eight of the thirty were got across. Then the bridge was blown up, and almost before the roar of the explosion had ended the two remaining lorries were in the hands of the Germans. It was a very near thing. The German pursuit was checked by the wrecked bridge, and the convoy, almost intact, drove on into safety.

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I will close this chapter by giving you some account of the heroes who won the Victoria Cross during the retreat from Mons to St. Quentin. You will notice that four of them belong to the Royal Field Artillery. This alone is sufficient to show you how splendidly the artillery fought during that critical time. It is not too much to say that the retreat would have become a rout had not every gunner played a hero's part.

Captain Francis Octavius Grenfell, 9th Lancers, was the hero of the stirring episode of which you read on page 88.

Private Sidney Frank Godley, 4th Battalion, Royal Fusiliers, City of London, won the highest award of valour for his coolness and gallantry in continuing to fight his machine gun, though hotly assailed for two hours, and suffering from a wound received at Mons.

Lieutenant-Colonel Ernest Wright Alexander, 119th Battery, Royal Field Artillery, greatly distinguished himself on August 24, 1914. When the 5th Division was retiring to the Bavay-Maubeuge position, Major Alexander, as he was then, handled his guns so skilfully that they did great execution on the Germans; and when they were threatened with capture by overwhelming numbers of the enemy, he and three men moved them into safety by hand. The splendid stand which he made enabled the 5th Division to retire without serious loss. On a later date he rescued a wounded man under heavy fire, and on every occasion when he was engaged showed the greatest gallantry and devotion to duty. For these noble services he was awarded the Victoria Cross and received promotion.

Captain Douglas Reynolds, Driver Job Henry Charles Drain, and Driver Frederick Luke, all of the 37th Battery, Royal Field Artillery, showed magnificent courage during "the most critical day of all," 26th August. When it became clear that the corps holding the Le Cateau position would be utterly wiped out if a retirement were not attempted, the Royal Field Artillery covered the retreat with almost superhuman courage and devotion. At one stage in the retirement all the men working some of our guns were shot down, and the pieces were on the point of being captured by German infantry, then only a hundred yards away. Captain Reynolds called for volunteers to save the guns, and drivers Drain and Luke were amongst those who answered the call. Two teams dashed forward amidst a terrible rifle and shrapnel fire, and limbered up two of the guns. Thanks to the devoted courage of Captain Reynolds and the two drivers, one gun was got safely away. In a later engagement a German battery was holding up a British advance. Captain Reynolds crept forward under a heavy fire, and got so near the German guns that he was able to discover their position, and bring his own guns to bear on them until the battery was silenced. Eight days later he was severely wounded.

Major Charles Allix Lavington Yate, 2nd Battalion the King's Own (Yorkshire Light Infantry), did superb deeds of heroism at Le Cateau. His battalion formed part of the 5th Division, which was the last to retire. Major Yate commanded one of two companies that remained to the end. All the other officers had been killed or wounded, and there was no more ammunition left. Rather than surrender, Major Yate called upon the nineteen survivors of his company--every man of whom deserved the Victoria Cross--to fix bayonets and charge. They did so with furious gallantry; but, unhappily, Major Yate was shot down. As he lay on the ground, severely wounded, he was picked up by the Germans and made a prisoner of war. He did not live to receive the coveted honour awarded him, but died in the hands of the enemy.

Lance-Corporal Frederick William Holmes, of the same regiment and battalion, also proved himself supremely brave at Le Cateau. He carried a wounded man out of the trenches under fire, and later on, when he saw a gun in danger of capture, sprang into the saddle of a driver who had been wounded and helped to drive the gun out of action into a place of safety.

"Men May bear the blazon wrought of centuries, hold Their armouries higher than arms imperial; yet Know that the least their countryman, whose hand Hath done his country service, lives their peer, And peer of all their fathers."

[Footnote 60: Privates are only promoted to this rank for gallantry on the field.]

[Footnote 61: Royal Army Medical Corps.]

[Footnote 62: Every regiment of every army has a flag which we call the "regimental colours." British colours are usually of silk, with tassels of mixed crimson and gold, and are carried on a staff eight feet seven inches long, surmounted by a golden crown on which stands a lion. The colours are carried on parade by two junior lieutenants, and are guarded by two sergeants and two privates. The flag itself is of the colour of the facings of the regiment, except when these are white, in which case the body of the flag is not plain white all over, but bears upon it the Cross of St. George. Whatever the colour, the flag carries in its upper corner the Union Jack, and in the centre the crown and title of the regiment, around which are the devices or badges or distinctions of the regiment, and the names of the battles in which it has played a gallant part. The flag of a regiment is the outward and visible sign of its honour and renown, and to lose it in battle is considered a great disgrace. It is always held in great reverence, and when too old for further service it is set up on the walls of a cathedral or church. Probably in your own town there are one or more of these tattered and perhaps bullet-torn colours, along with flags captured from an enemy. In the old days every regiment marched into battle with its colours proudly flying, and there were many stirring fights for the flag. Nowadays our soldiers do not take their colours into battle. The Russians and Germans, however, do so.]

[Footnote 63: _Kū-ray´_, French parish priest.]