CHAPTER IV

ARMENTIÈRES UP TO GAS ATTACK

On April 19th we received orders to reconnoitre the Boutillerie sector, held by the 2/5th King's Own Royal Lancaster Regiment, with a view to early relief; and the Commanding Officer, Adjutant, and Company Commanders proceeded the same day to Foray House, the "King's Own" Headquarters. This sector was a combination of the old Boutillerie trenches, held by us in February, and the trenches on our immediate right. There had been several British and enemy raids since then, and the damage caused had been considerable. The difficulty of maintaining 2,800 yards of front in a decent state of repair throughout its whole length had further impaired the condition of the trenches, and we were not surprised to find serious signs of decay on every hand. Our first experience, moreover, of walking quite considerable distances--_i.e._, several hundred yards--without finding a trace of the defenders proved very instructive, and showed us what to expect for the future. The next day (April 20th, 1917) these orders were cancelled, and we were now informed that on the 26th we were to take over the Houplines sector in front of Armentières from the Australians. We set out once more on a tour of exploration. We rode to the Australian Brigade Headquarters in the Rue Jesuit, and thence on foot along the Houplines road to Tissage Dump, where the trenches began.

Those who now saw Armentières for the first time might well be impressed by the feeling of desolation which prevailed. The silent, shuttered houses, the empty streets, the ruins and the débris were familiar from the villages which had been already visited, but nowhere hitherto had the picture been on so large a scale as here. Armentières had been a bright and busy town before the war, with a population of some 30,000 people. Large spinning factories, fine houses and handsome shops abounded. Many of the streets, it is true, still contained quite a number of inhabitants; but as you made your way down the Rue Jesuit towards the line, fewer and fewer grew the signs of any civil population, and more and more battered became the houses. It is a long walk to Tissage Dump. On the left you soon passed Barbed-Wire Square, then quite a pleasant grass-grown square with young trees just beginning to bud. In the far corner a wonderful green and blue tiled house had apparently been the residence of a lady fortune-teller. The next landmark was the level-crossing, beside which a huge church bell was suspended on a wooden frame to give warning against gas. The road a little farther on swung round first to the right, past some very dilapidated workmen's cottages of a curious blue tint; and then to the left, where stood L'Octroi d'Houplines, the familiar little wooden erection to be found on the outskirts of every French town. This had been hit by a shell; it was a corner of ill repute, and the board bearing its title hung at an acute angle, being only supported by a fastening at one end. On the left of the road, next to the factory belonging to an English firm, stood Von Kluck's house, alleged to have been once the Headquarters of that famous General, and now used as the A.D.S., which for many months escaped a direct hit, while neighbouring houses were all but obliterated. A strip of open country followed; on the left, a wilderness of ruins and marshland, with a glimpse of 18-pounders cleverly concealed; on the right, loop-holed screening with a considerable view of the country beyond.

Nouvel Houplines (often thought to be Houplines itself, which was close to the river) consisted of two main streets forming an acute angle. At the junction stood Tissage Dump, where R.E. material for the line was stored. In the adjoining houses were a pioneer workshop, an observation post, the canteen, and the regimental aid post. The trench tram line (a continuation of the ordinary tram line from Armentières) divided here, one line running up alongside Gloucester Avenue to the trenches, the other following round to Durham Castle and other dumps. Several tall factory chimneys were grouped about this spot, all used as observation posts, and rejoicing in colonial names difficult to pronounce. Most of them bore signs of shell fire, one having been pierced right through close to its base, another having a large piece taken right out of its side.

The entrance to Gloucester Avenue--or "Gloster Ave," as the signboard called it--was really very picturesque, the trench descending gradually below ground level through what had once been a garden. On either side was abundant foliage, which later became prettily covered with flowers and presented a picture that might well have been the setting for the opening scene of "The Arcadians."

We began our walk up Gloucester Avenue, noting the trench running off to Spain Avenue, another fine communication trench. The way was up a gradual incline. At the top a network of narrow trenches appeared, and through these we made our way into the subsidiary line to Battalion Headquarters, a group of "bivvies" and short trenches entered under a small overhead traverse. On the immediate left stood a small elephant back, which combined the dual functions of mess and Adjutant's office, and opposite this was the cook-house. To the left was a double concrete dug-out, where "Signals" dwelt, and up a little short trench a minute concrete "bivvy" for the Commanding Officer.

In the mess we found the Commanding Officer of the 38th Battalion A.I.F. awaiting us, and he explained that our present place of rest was the old right Battalion Headquarters, while the left was in more commodious but less conveniently situated quarters in the spacious cellars of Cambridge House, some way along the subsidiary line. Half the Australians' Headquarters lived in one place and half in the other, and, though the two were connected by telephone, the disadvantages of the separation were obvious.

The Company Commanders now proceeded to their respective areas, while the Commanding Officer and Adjutant took a general survey of the line under the guidance of the Australian Colonel. The first impression was certainly most unfavourable. The principle of gaps and localities was maintained here, and constant shell fire, combined with lack of any means of repair, gave the sector a most dilapidated and depressing appearance, which was intensified by a great superfluity of water and a number of useless and derelict trenches running in all directions. Lateral communication, too, as so often happens in a combined sector, was extremely bad. After lunch at Cambridge House, the Commanding Officer and Adjutant proceeded on a tour of the left sector. This was notoriously the weak point, the left being bounded by the River Lys, which in winter rendered an area of several hundred yards along the bank quite impassable, though in summer this same area was perfectly passable, and to a large extent undefended. From the support line an excellent view could be obtained, the ground falling steeply away from there to a flat stretch called the Cricket Field, and then sloping upwards to a raised plateau on which Frelinghien stood, and on the hither side of which was built our front line. The sector, we found, was full of notices warning you that the spot you stood on was under direct observation from the Germans, which caused you to move round the traverses with alacrity. Most of these notices, we found, were obsolete, but on the left company's front, parts of the front line were certainly exposed, and till these spots were blinded casualties occurred from snipers. Generally speaking, the line appeared fairly quiet that afternoon, only intermittent shelling of a very desultory nature occurring. To our disgust, however, we learnt that gas cylinders were installed along practically the whole length of the front line, and the absence of heavy shelling was accordingly noted with some pleasure.

The relief took place on March 26th, the Lewis gunners entering the line the previous evening, and, in addition, one signaller per station, two battalion runners, all snipers, of whom one N.C.O. and three men were to take over the observation post, and one officer and one N.C.O. per platoon. On the morning of the 26th the Sniping Officer and Sergeant, the Medical Officer's orderly, the Bombing Officer and Corporal, all Company Sergeant-Majors, the Regimental Sergeant-Major, and two runners, together with the balance of the signallers under the Signalling Officer, made their way up to the trenches. This was the usual advance party for a new sector, and the arrangement undoubtedly quickened the relief, while in addition increased knowledge of a sector was acquired from the extra length of time spent with members of the outgoing unit.

Guides were to meet the companies at Houplines Level Crossing, commencing at 7 p.m. The following were the dispositions and routes: "D" Company, right front sector viâ Spain Avenue; "C" Company, right centre viâ Gloucester Avenue; "B" Company, up Durham and Edmeads Avenue to left centre; while "A" Company went up Durham and along the subsidiary line to Irish Avenue and thence to left sector. Each company was responsible for its own supports and reserves, the latter consisting usually of a few cooks and ration carriers. Headquarters were accommodated in "bivvies" in the subsidiary line round Battalion Headquarters, and a few details at Cambridge House. The relief was completed at 11.40 p.m., and the Australians moved off for a rest and training preliminary to the Battle of Messines. They were a very cheery crowd and extremely obliging, and rendered the relief a very agreeable task. The code word was dispatched by telephone to Brigade, and we commenced our first tour in a sector that we were destined to occupy, turn and turn about with the 2/7th K.L.R., for four and a half months.

As the period was such a long one, a more detailed description may be attempted than has been thought necessary in regard to other sectors held from time to time by the battalion. There were three main communication trenches leading into the line, all previously referred to. Spain and Gloucester Avenues, both starting from Tissage Dump, cut the subsidiary line on the right and right centre respectively. Durham Avenue started from Nouvel Houplines a few yards from Tissage Dump and to the north of it, and joined the subsidiary line close to Cambridge House. There was also the road from Nouvel Houplines to Frelinghien which ran past the north end of the subsidiary and support lines, but was under observation by day and unhealthy by night. On the extreme right, and just beyond our boundary, was Buterne Avenue, a deep traversed trench over which we had a right of way. It wandered about distressingly, and eventually ended in a small side street near Barbed Wire Square. Farther to the right and well on into the Epinette sector was Lunatic Lane, which eventually became an open track and led into the outskirts of Armentières by the Asylum.

The subsidiary line was marked on the right by a large civilian cemetery, through which the trench passed. It was full of graves with wooden crosses and artificial flowers such as are usually to be found in a French burial-ground. From there to the Battalion Headquarters the trench was traversed, but there was little parados. "Bivvies" of small breadth and height abounded, and there were one or two concrete dug-outs, usually full of water. A ditch, with a railing in front of it, marked the approach to Battalion Headquarters, after which the trench narrowed into two small alley-ways where Gloucester Avenue joined the subsidiary line, and thence ran down steeply to a road from Nouvel Houplines to Quesnoy. Here the tram line crossed the subsidiary line and ran across country to the right company front. The open road was masked by a big screen. At this point the subsidiary line was built on a somewhat higher level, and contained big bays and long traverses, protected in rear by a parados, behind which was a traffic trench, in which a number of "bivvies" had been constructed.

Continuing your course, you came to Wessex Avenue, the finest communication trench in the sector, though but little used. The line now became a long, straight trench with a high parapet, with duck-boards along the side of the bank and also at the bottom. Beside the lower track was a green ditch. At the end of this stretch was a bridge across the Panama Canal, which ran back in a south-easterly direction to the support line in the right company sector. In design it was merely a deep drain, but it was duck-boarded and a handy short-cut diagonally across the sector. It was seldom used in daylight, in the hope, which was probably justified, that the enemy would regard it merely as a drain. Durham, Edmeads, and Sussex Avenues all met at this point; and a few yards in the rear stood Cambridge House. The last part of the line was full of "bivvies," and just before the end, Irish Avenue, the left-hand communication trench of the sector, led off to the front line. At the end the ground fell away steeply to some marshland beside the banks of the Lys. The only other means of communication with the front line, except the communication trenches above mentioned and a few overland tracks, was the road which ran from the junction of Wessex Avenue and the subsidiary line to Edmeads Farm. This was only passable at night, but it was an excellent short-cut, though subject to bursts of machine-gun fire and "whizz-bangs."

The description of the trenches forward of the subsidiary line is a far more formidable undertaking. We will commence with the right, as being the simplest and also, generally speaking, the most healthy. The subsidiary line was followed to the right almost as far as the cemetery. Just before reaching it a communication trench was found leading off (if you were lucky and knew the way) to the left under an overhead traverse, and guarded by a sentry. The latter in the early days informed you, in a bored fashion, that the wind was dangerous or the reverse, and criticized your box-respirator if not in the alert position. Following the trench in its windings for a short distance, Vancouver Avenue branched off to the left. This was only half finished, though you could with much floundering get through it to Gloucester Avenue; in reality, however, it was quite useless. A hundred yards or so farther on you suddenly came on a corrugated iron sentry-box, with a small weather-cock and a shell case suspended from a stick beside it, where the gas sentry over the right company Headquarters was stationed. Here in an open space you found two or three log huts of small dimensions, with one or two orthodox "bivvies." You then passed over a bridge, and, ducking your head to avoid a sheet of corrugated iron, under which cooking operations were usually going on, you entered a low edifice, which was lighted, it may be mentioned, with two small windows of real glass. Here you might find O.C. "D" Company sitting at the table, endeavouring to compose one of the innumerable reports that the higher powers delighted to collect. Two or three bunks adorned the walls; and a form on either side of the table, a Véry pistol, a tin of cigarettes, some recent pamphlets, and odd pieces of officers' equipment, made up the furniture. You could stand up more or less erect, and the place was really quite comfortable, but hardly shell-proof.

Beyond Company Headquarters the communication trench showed the strongest inclination to close in. It was extremely narrow, and but for the overhead struts would very soon have become impassable. Newburn Lane led off to the left, certainly more of a lane than a trench, through which you could reach the Orchard, a regular target for German gunners, and a place to be avoided at certain times of the day. Farther down the communication trench was a slit on the left where Light Trench Mortar Battery men lived. Just below here the trench suddenly came to an end, and you crossed a little stream running along a diminutive valley. The tram line also came in sight, wandering away along an old road through tangled bushes and weeds to the front line. It was badly smashed in places, and was never used as far forward as this. The trench began again up the far side of the tiny valley--London Road, as it was now called--and here stood two graves marking the resting-place of two unknown soldiers. The going was sticky and the trench much battered. Later on grass and green things generally were conspicuous on either side of the trench, but now everything looked bare and muddy--just yellow clay, shell-holes, mud banks, and trenches more or less derelict. Suddenly you heard voices, and without quite realizing it you found you were in the front line.

A broad breastwork formed the means of defence, occasional bays being held, but the majority being unoccupied and full of loose barbed wire. Everything betokened the effects of shell fire where men were too few to do more than just repair their own particular posts. Derelict "bivvies," odd broken duck-boards half covered with slime, sheets of corrugated iron riddled with holes, bits of old ground sheets, and fragments of equipment, lay about in all directions. Everything presented that damp, yellow aspect peculiar to clay soil. The traverses, sodden with water, were bursting down the hurdles or wire netting with which they were revetted, while the empty bays were falling in of their own accord, or presented a crushed and crumbling appearance, the result of the direct burst of a shell or "minnie."

As you rounded the traverse of an occupied bay the following picture met your eye. Imagine a narrow trench about 12 feet long by 4 feet wide, with a fire-step running along the entire length some 12 inches from the ground. Near the centre of the trench stands a rifleman in skeleton equipment, gazing into the bottom mirror of a box periscope which is fastened by a spike to the parapet, its top covered by dirty canvas to match the surrounding sand-bags. By the sentry's side is a rifle, and close at hand are the empty shell-case gong and strombos horn, in case of gas. Next to him sits his relief, similarly attired, all men invariably wearing equipment in the front line. The relief sentry is passing the time in cleaning some clips of ammunition from an open small-arms ammunition box. The corporal and two men are filling sand-bags, which will be required at dusk. Another rifleman sits at the far end, sleeping peacefully and dreaming of something (we hope) remote from the war. He was the last sentry. Two boxes let into the parados contain Véry lights and bombs; the Véry pistol hangs from a peg in the parapet. Five rifles with swords fixed stand in a row against the side of the trench; while a shelf holds some mess-tin lids, two water-bottles, some bread, and a tin of bully beef. Two sand-bags for salvage and rubbish hang at the end of the bay. Round the corner two "bivvies"--mere hovels about three foot high, wet and slimy--complete the "home comforts" of this cheerful abode. From one of the "bivvies" protrude two pairs of muddy boots and four legs covered with clay-stained puttees. Their owners are enjoying a well-earned rest, having spent most of the night prowling about in No Man's Land.

Taking the next communication trench, Gloucester Avenue, we could make our way up to the front line to a point not far distant from the top of London Road; or, better still, we could branch off along Pretoria to the right-centre company's support line. Gloucester Avenue was a good winding trench cut through what had once been cornfields. Pretoria was even better, and brought you out close to the point where the Panama Canal joined the support line. By the end of the canal were two deep concrete dug-outs, both small and damp, and in one of these the signallers and in the other the Company Commander were to be found. In the latter, as you carefully descended the steps, you would have been able at once to recognize, not only from the orderly appearance of the spot, but from the number of parcels from Fortnum and Mason, that Captain Eccles dwelt there; and, sure enough, there he was, looking as if he had just stepped out of a band-box, with Company Sergeant-Major Heyworth sitting by his side working at the company card index.

After making your way along the support line round interminable traverses, you squeezed your way up Timaru to the front line. Thence you went along past Wessex Avenue, which requires no further description, to the end of Locality 12. From here a path led up to the support line--Gap "M" being impassable--and from the support line by another path to the left centre company's front line--quite a decent stretch of bays and traverses with a wilderness of ruined trenches in their rear. Half-way along this sector you turned up a miserable ruin of a trench to Captain Steward's Headquarters, a concrete dug-out set like an oasis in a desert of derelict trenches. In spite of the neighbourhood, Captain Steward would appear perfectly groomed and with a cheerful smile, though denouncing the Germans for making him so uncomfortable. Another dug-out adjoining was used by his subalterns.

To visit the left sector it was now necessary to go right down Edmeads Avenue and then up Sussex Avenue, whence you could go to Hobbs Farm along Cambridge or along Fusilier Avenue to Captain Wyatt's Headquarters at Goodwood. The latter was another of these concrete dug-outs, and the owner, whether Captain Wyatt or any other Company Commander, generally had some severe remarks to make about the enemy, who gave the left sector but little rest. To reach "A" Company's front line you went along the support line to Irish Avenue, which from there back to the subsidiary line was good enough, but forward of the support line was hardly better than a track, and, except for some canvas, pretty well exposed to view from all points of the enemy front line. The whole of the left front line, in fact, from Edmeads Farm past Hobbs Farm, the ruins of which had almost been obliterated, was a maze of battered and derelict trenches, only entered by the inquisitive or by some luckless individual who had lost his way. The left company front was built into the side of a small ridge, and possessed no general parados, though most of the posts were self-contained. It ended some two or three hundred yards from the Lys, though from the enemy point of view it probably appeared to go much farther. It was very much knocked about, and it was hard work to maintain even a semblance of respectability.

Such is a brief outline of the Houplines sector. Its main features were its size, its maze of useless and ruined trenches, and its lack of lateral communication. There was not a single dug-out that would have stood the direct hit of a 5·9, and only a few that one would have cared to be in when hit by a "whizz-bang."

The day after relief (April 27th) was spent quietly enough. We had not yet got used to the presence of so many gas cylinders in the front line, and were not anxious to provoke unnecessary retaliation. The Germans were also very quiet. Some shrapnel, a few "whizz-bangs," six "pineapples," and two medium "minnies" made up his total expenditure for the hours of daylight. Sniping from the Chicken Run on to "A" Company's front line was, however, fairly persistent, but no casualties occurred that day. "A" Company of the 2/7th K.L.R. moved into the subsidiary line that evening as a more permanent garrison, and occupied the line between Battalion Headquarters and Cambridge House.

At midnight a gas attack from the whole front of our Brigade and that of the Brigade north of the Lys had been planned, but was cancelled at the last minute, as the wind proved unfavourable. However, the right battalion was not warned in time, and released their cylinders. We much regretted that ours could not be released too, as the clearing of the line had been arranged, and already several cylinders were leaking badly. But on the night of March 29th, after many "alarums and excursions," our two flank companies and the Brigade north of the Lys let off their gas, while projectors were flung into Frelinghien at the same time. It was a very bright night, and the whitish cloud could be seen rolling across No Man's Land. The wind was rather light, and the Germans must therefore have obtained sufficient warning. A number of coloured lights shot up into the air, bells rang, and rapid rifle and machine-gun fire commenced, which caused the inquisitive to expose as little of their heads above the parapet as was feasible. "Whizz-bangs" and "minnies" began to rain on the front line, where the special R.Es. working the cylinders and the garrison of infantry had a somewhat uneasy time. Our orders were to send an officers' patrol to inspect the damage in the enemy's front line. Fortunately, however, this futile and dangerous performance was countermanded, as No Man's Land was itself full of the gas, which the wind hardly carried beyond our trenches, and three of the R.Es. and four of our men were gassed, and a corporal was killed. Otherwise no one was hit during the retaliation. In due course the R.Es. withdrew in motor lorries and the rest of the men returned to the front line, where the sickly smell of gas was strongly in evidence.

Now that most of the cylinders were empty we paid less regard to the enemy, and determined to try to damp the ardour of the sniper, who had already shot two of our men through the head. Every effort from the front line to spot the fellow had failed, but the observation post in the support line had detected him, though the distance from there to the Germans made it futile to try a shot with a rifle. Major Brookes's assistance was accordingly invoked. A telephone line was run out to the observation post, and a trial round was fired with an 18-pounder. This was sufficiently near for the purpose, but unfortunately was too much for the sniper, who promptly retired. However, a few rounds of "battery fire" were delivered, and the area in the immediate neighbourhood of the sniper's lair was greatly disturbed. We knew he was not hit, but _he_ knew that we had spotted him, and from that moment his activities ceased.

The next day, April 30th, a great aeroplane fight took place high over our line. The day was perfect, and it was a wonderful sight to see the aeroplanes twisting and doubling and hear the thin rattle of their machine guns. Suddenly one of the enemy's machines commenced to fall, with a tell-tale streak of smoke trailing behind him. In a moment the grey smoke became a vivid red, and the burning machine came roaring down, crackling and spluttering as the ammunition went off in the flames. For a few minutes it seemed that it must come down right on the top of Battalion Headquarters, but eventually it crashed about two hundred yards away on the open stretch between Battalion Headquarters and Spain Avenue. Both the occupants must have been dead before the machine reached the ground; the pilot was burned beyond recognition in the machine; the observer, an artillery officer, fell out about fifty feet from the ground, and among his papers we found a secret correction card for artillery shooting with aeroplane observation. All attempts to salve anything from the machine proved fruitless. It burned and smouldered for more than twenty-four hours, and its proximity was rendered dangerous by the exploding ammunition.

The question of our billets now began to exercise our minds. The 2/7th K.L.R., in spite of remonstrances, had been located at first in a row of houses close to the Houplines Level Crossing. In that position they had been continually shelled, and the powers that be had finally decided to move them back to a more salubrious locality. This we were very glad to hear, because, other things being equal, billets that are not regular targets for enemy artillery are distinctly preferable. Casualties in billets are always more trying than elsewhere, as they generally seem so gratuitous.

In the Houplines sector more than in any other our snipers and observers had found plenty of scope for the exercise of their special talents. The battalion observation post was in an upper room of a small house in the Rue Solferino, a narrow street which ran off the main road close to Tissage Dump. The Germans had kindly put a "dud" 5·9 through the gable end, thereby providing an excellent view point. The official apparatus installed in this spot was a telescope working on a pivot which was fixed to a quadrant. The observer sat on a chair raised on a rough platform to the necessary height, while next to him sat another man to make the necessary written notes of observations. In addition to a blanket to screen the shell-hole, the observation post was supplied with maps and compass, and also a telephone to Battalion Headquarters and the battery immediately in rear. A fine view of the enemy trenches and the ground in rear was obtainable from this observation post. In addition, there were three sniping posts in the front line, from which subsequently P. G. Jones, Maddocks, Matchett, and Corkill all secured definite "hits"; while for additional observation purposes there was a natural observation post half-way up Irish Avenue, about level with the support line, from which much valuable information of a more local description was obtained.

On May 1st the activity of the hostile artillery began to give evidence of registration on the left half of the battalion front, and support lines, important trench junctions, and communication trenches received direct hits or bursts sufficiently near to be suggestive. That night, as had been anticipated, it being the German Labour Day, sounds of shouting were clearly heard from the enemy lines, while a regular "Brock's benefit" was kept up for a considerable time. Next day the registration was even more marked, so early on the morning of May 4th 2nd-Lieutenant Hodgkinson and a small party of stout-hearted men from "D" Company (Walmsley, Mann, Moore, Evans, Woods, and Bissell) crept out to try to kidnap a German sentry. They worked their way up to a post in Centaur Trench opposite the Pont Ballot salient, and got right under the parapet without being detected. Hodgkinson was, in fact, just climbing into the trench to effect the capture when, most unluckily, the relief arrived, and one of them spotted the blackened face of Rifleman Mann peering over the parapet. Dawn had broken and the game was up. Bombs were hurled in among the Germans, the fellow who had spotted Mann receiving a back-hander from a Mills grenade in the face, and the party raced for home under a hail of machine-gun bullets, rifle grenades, and "pineapples." No casualties were sustained, and, as the G.O.C. Division remarked, "it was a bold and useful bit of work," which only failed through sheer bad luck.

At 10 p.m. the 2/7th K.L.R. began to arrive, and at 12.40 a.m., relief being complete, the various companies and platoons were making for Tissage Dump, where transport awaited the Lewis guns and trench stores. "C" Company moved into the subsidiary line.

Two companies were billeted in large houses in the Rue Jesuit adjoining Brigade Headquarters. These must have been fine residences once, and even the ravages of war had not been able entirely to destroy their architectural pretensions. What was of more importance, they were very strongly built and had good cellar accommodation.

The other two companies were at 57, Rue de Lille, where the battalion had spent the evening _en route_ for the Rue du Bois. Battalion Headquarters were in a good house, No. 3, Rue Bayard, a turning off the Rue de Lille. You entered through a gateway into a paved courtyard, surrounded by various domestic offices, and thence up a few steps into a roomy building with a delightful garden behind. The dining-room contained a book-case full of beautifully bound volumes. The Quartermaster's Stores were situated in a large house in the Rue de Lille, opposite which the truck-lines for the trenches started. Mule-drawn trolleys as far as Tissage Dump, and from there smaller trucks man-handled, were the methods of transport employed. The transport lines remained at Bac St. Maur. For the men there were several good estaminets dotted about the town; while a good meal for officers could be obtained at the "Au Bœuf," an ordinary French provincial restaurant, while the more fastidious frequented "Lucienne's," opposite the church of Notre Dâme. There was also "Madame Burberry's" shop, where most items of clothing and field kit were on sale.

The period in reserve was not without incident. To begin with, General Headquarters' pamphlet S.S. 143, "The Training of Platoons for Offensive Action," had just been issued. It contained a scheme for the employment of a platoon as a small force of all arms--one section Lewis gunners, one rifle grenadiers, one bombers, and one riflemen, with a platoon headquarters consisting of the officer, platoon sergeant, runner, and signaller. Each battalion was now ordered to tell off one platoon for special instruction in this latest scheme. This was not particularly difficult, except that the average strength of a platoon and its four sections never approached the strength of the "War Establishment" platoon for whose instruction these illuminating pamphlets were always designed. The selection of ground proved far more difficult, but an open space in the vicinity of the Nieppe Bridge, where some old practice trenches stood, afforded reasonable facilities at a moderate distance from the billets. The Second-in-Command, Major H. K. Wilson, undertook to find a site, and ultimately decided upon what seemed suitable for the purpose. Unfortunately, the site selected had also been chosen as the position for certain silent batteries and defensive machine-gun companies, who watched Major Wilson making notes in his notebook and arrested him as a suspected person. Major Wilson persuaded the machine gunners to accompany him to Battalion Headquarters, whence, after he had been identified, they retired, feeling no doubt that they had at least done their duty. The incident caused considerable merriment, but to no one more than to the officer chiefly concerned.

The shelling of Armentières by the enemy had recently become a daily and nightly operation. Our gradual increase of guns of major calibre hidden among the houses--there were two 8-inch howitzers in a garden in the Rue Bayard--was quite sufficient to attract hostile notice. Apart from Armentières itself, the enemy had also been busy shelling many back areas, and in retaliation the Second Army decided on a general back area shoot, commencing at 7.30 p.m. on April 7th, and all ranks were warned to keep under cover.

The shoot duly commenced, but in spite of the din we heard what sounded uncommonly like a barrage on the 2/7th K.L.R. front. However, we imagined, as at first did they, that this was the anticipated retaliation. At 7.45 p.m. a false gas alarm occurred, but at 8 p.m. the order came for the battalion to stand-to. The raid for which we thought the Germans had been registering had actually come off, and, as ill-luck would have it, at the same moment as our area shoot. At 10.15 p.m. we were ordered to send up a company to reinforce the 2/7th K.L.R., and "D" Company duly moved off, returning at dawn the next morning without casualties. A further barrage at 10 p.m. caused a second stand-to, but the fire died away in a short time, and normal conditions were finally re-established.

On May 8th "A" Company relieved "C" Company in the subsidiary line, and full particulars of the raids were obtainable. The enemy had certainly put up a very fine barrage, but fortunately "C" Company had escaped casualties, though Captain Eccles, returning from Battalion Headquarters, had a narrow escape, and had been forced on one occasion to make a somewhat hasty descent into a muddy ditch.

Preparations now commenced for the relief, an operation which became easier every time the battalion returned to the old sector. On May 11th the Lewis gunners moved in, and the trollies were soon busy trundling up and down the Houplines road, which became more unhealthy every day. Shelling was, in fact, much more frequent and general by day, though our nights also were regularly disturbed by the scream and crash of the shells landing in the houses. The area round the Pont de Nieppe attracted special attention, and many civilians were killed or wounded. The gas-works, where a number of guns were concentrated, the churches of Notre Dâme and St. Vaast, the Rue Sadi Carnot, the railway station, and other places, also came in for their share of attention, till really one began to think that perhaps the trenches were preferable to the billets.

On May 10th a Padre was attached to us, the Rev. M. T. Eland, and it was arranged that he should share Captain McHugh's elegant quarters at Tissage Dump. This was a reasonably intact house, containing, amongst other choice bits of furniture collected from the neighbouring houses, some beautiful plush-covered chairs. The area just beyond Tissage Dump itself used to come in for a good deal of shelling, but McHugh slept unconcernedly on the first floor, and paid little attention to the noise of falling débris and the hum of flying splinters. It was a handy place of call for visitors, often rather breathless in consequence of having traversed the last part of the Houplines road in what the text-books call "a series of short rushes."

Just before the relief the enemy expended more than his usual quantity of ammunition on Armentières, and we were not sorry when he desisted shortly before the march to the trenches was scheduled to commence. The relief itself was carried out without any interference on the part of the foe. The companies had been moved round, and the order from right to left was "A," "B," "C," "D." To our disgust, we found that great quantities of gas were in process of being installed in our sector, projectors being located near the cemetery and on the extreme left. Every night large carrying parties of the Irish came struggling up the trenches; and for the benefit of those who have never had personal experience, it may be stated that gas cylinders are no light weight and are awkward things to handle, apart from the extremely unpleasant nature of their contents should a flying piece of shell happen to cause a leak. One very wet night, when the duck-boards, slippery with the rain, made the task more than usually distressing, Captain Eccles was passing down Wessex Avenue on his nightly tour of inspection. Suddenly the sounds of highly-coloured language from the direction of the Fry Pan attracted his attention. Now, it was quite easy to turn into the Fry Pan unwittingly, and even in daylight very far from easy to find your way out again. An unfortunate carrying party, loaded with cylinders, were found by Captain Eccles just completing their third tour round this circular redoubt--an occupation which, when the frequent low overhead traverses were concealed by the blackness of the night, would warrant the employment of any form of bad language. Great apprehension existed in the minds of the authorities, and not without reason, lest the enemy should detect what was going on. Cylinders and gas were never allowed to be alluded to as such either in the front line or on the telephone. They were called "eggs," and incidentally by the men many other names not fit for publication. In addition to this, companies had to send out covering parties into No Man's Land to prevent the approach of any inquisitive German. Lying flat on your stomach in wet mud and grass on a drenching night, and for two hours at a stretch, is most dispiriting work, especially if you have to live in your soaking garments for the next eight days, with the added joy of expecting that you may be in the front line when the gas is being released. Fortunately, during these operations the enemy remained exceedingly quiet. Artillery destructive shoots drew no response; and a rifle grenade and light trench mortar battery shoot on Cell Trench, and wire-cutting in front of Centaur Trench by medium trench mortar batteries, produced no effect on him whatever.

The damage done by the raid barrage was found to be considerable. A trench which had been laboriously constructed from the left-centre Company Headquarters to the detached post at Hobbs Farm, previously only accessible viâ Cambridge Avenue, had been completely obliterated. It appeared to have been in the 100 per cent. zone of the barrage line, and though to save time one did go along it, one risked constant exposure.

The observers now began to notice considerable movement in and behind the enemy's line. Men were seen wearing packs, others popped their heads over the parapet, and transport was heard at night. A relief was suspected, and on May 17th the suspicion was more than confirmed by the unusual activity of the Germans. Their attitude became suddenly aggressive. "Pineapples" became unpleasantly frequent on the left company sector, and a sniper reappeared in the old loophole in the Chicken Run, which had not been used for fifteen days. Fortunately, the larger "minnie," which commenced operations just before our last tour ended, showed no signs of activity; it was probably part of a "travelling circus" brought up for the raid. Anyhow, "pineapples," small though they may be, are noisy and destructive, and made the left company sector very unpopular. There was also a long-range light "minnie" which carried nearly to the subsidiary line. Artillery activity, though spasmodic, was considerable on some days. The left-hand communication trenches--Edmeads and, more particularly, Irish Avenues--were heavily shelled, direct hits being not infrequent, and parties were always being sent to clear away the fallen earth. On other days a few rounds on Houplines and two or three bursts of shrapnel over the cemetery were the only signs of activity.

On May 20th Colonel Fletcher went on leave, and Major H. K. Wilson assumed command of the battalion.

On the night of May 20th we made an attempt to get into Centaur Trench, but the party was detected, and had to retire hastily under a shower of grenades. At 2 a.m. the next morning the enemy returned the compliment by trying to cut off a bombing post situated between Edmeads and Hobbs Farms. The operation commenced with a sudden shower of stick grenades, and a couple of men were seen trying to get through the wire into the derelict trenches in "N" Gap. Bombs were thrown and rapid fire opened, and Rifleman "Gink" Bailey distinguished himself by standing on the parapet and slanging the Germans to the full extent of his very adequate Irish-American vocabulary. The Germans, disliking this, or at any rate not appreciating their general reception, withdrew, and a patrol was immediately dispatched, which located a dead German on the wire. He proved to belong to the 14th Bavarian I.R. Shrapnel was called for on the enemy's front line to welcome their return, after which the night settled down to its normal state once more.

As the spring advanced the trenches lost a great deal of their barren unloveliness. What had been mud or greyish-looking grass now became a deep and luxuriant carpet of bright fresh green, with many a wild flower peeping out here and there. The trees, which so far had been but gaunt skeletons, began to cover their nakedness with fresh foliage. The sides of Gloucester Avenue were gay with poppies and white daisies; Sussex Avenue became an ideal country footpath, dotted with may-trees; and even that forbidding-looking spot the Orchard assumed quite a cheerful aspect. Round Cambridge House the lilacs blossomed out, both purple and white. Roses bloomed in the old gardens near Tissage Dump, and later on a small crop of strawberries and currants was gathered there. A stroll round the line in the early morning was a real pleasure. Just as the dawn was breaking you could wander anywhere. Not a shot would be fired and the guns were silent. As the sun climbed higher in the heavens, the pleasant smell of fresh, moist earth filled the nostrils, instead of the stale stench of which one had grown so sick. Dew-spangled grasses and fern overhanging the trench brushed your face as you passed along. In the rapidly clearing mist that heralded the hot day even the ugliest features of the line seemed to take on a certain softening outline, a certain grace in harmony with the countryside. High over No Man's Land you could see the fluttering lark, and all the air was resonant with its trilling notes. The call of the cuckoo sounded from the trees, and the chatter of sparrows and finches in the overgrown hedges filled the air with a merry sound, while but a few hours previously the nightingale had been pouring out its full-throated melody. "Oh, to be in England now that April's here!" How we re-echoed Browning's wish, with the substitution for "April" of the month of June, at which we had now arrived! How true the words seemed, how deep their significance! Beautiful as Nature was around us, rejoiced as we were at this delightful contrast to the hideousness of strife, yet it increased the bitterness and made one feel more keenly than ever the loathsome misery of war. How one pictured to oneself the peaceful beauty of the English countryside, so like this in outward appearance, and yet so different in reality! How one longed for the war to be over, to wander once more in the fields on a summer's morn, with the black clouds of war cleared away for good, and not merely lifted for a few precious moments!

Boom! The "morning hate" has begun. With a start we come back from our pleasant dreams. Another stifling day is before us, and the never-ending struggle with its monotony, its destruction, its every detestable feature, claims us once more for its own.

One of the special delights of the Commanding Officer was crawling about exposed parts of the sector by day. It was not only his anxiety to acquire an accurate knowledge of his sector, though that was certainly one reason; he wanted to find out where every derelict trench led to, what secrets lay hidden in those areas of abandoned chaos in which the sector abounded, and no one could ever have known his sector better than did Colonel Fletcher. But apart from all this, his old big-game hunting instincts were aroused. This time he was not tracking the shy koodoo or the skulking lion, but matching his brains and his woodcraft against the ever-watchful German. Major Geddes more than once accompanied him on these excursions, as he crawled and wriggled on his stomach from place to place, now lying up to use telescope and field-glasses, now tracing out all the intricacies of our own or the enemy trenches. Home the pair would come at last, with the perspiration streaming down their faces. "Well, that is the best afternoon I have had since the war started!" the Commanding Officer would exclaim, as he sat mopping his face and drinking large cups of tea.

The gas attack had originally been fixed for the night of May 20th-21st. The targets selected for the projectors were Census Support Line, Les 4 Hallots Farm, and Battalion Headquarters at Census Farm. The inclusion of the latter target caused some people certain misgivings, as they had a suspicion--afterwards confirmed from a captured German map--that our own Headquarters were not unknown to the enemy. The usual invasion of our sector by "N" and "L" Special Companies, R.E., took place on the night in question. Extra telephones had been rigged up, and in addition cryptic messages about "presentations of medals" and "indents for bicycles" came frequently over the 'phone. At the last moment the wind veered round, as it frequently did at night. It was too late to cancel the orders by message, so a special signal rocket was fired from Headquarters. It was a red, green and red rocket. The first one lighted refused to move at all; but the second, a parachute light, went up with a roar for about twenty feet, and then sailed off along the subsidiary line. Fortunately, it was successful in stopping the discharge of the gas. We took a more than usual interest in this discharge, as it appeared that we could not be relieved till it took place. However, in the end, when we had been in ten days, the attack was definitely postponed for twenty-four hours to allow the relief to be effected. On the early morning of May 22nd 2nd-Lieutenants Hodgkinson and Little with patrols attempted entries into the German line at Cell Trench, opposite Hobbs Farm and at Centaur Trench respectively. Both were spotted and heavily bombed, Little being slightly wounded, but not sufficiently for evacuation. Lieutenant Alcock two days previously had been hit in the eye by a splinter from a "pineapple," and had retired temporarily to a Base hospital.

In spite of rather depressing accounts from the 2/7th K.L.R. as to shelling in the vicinity of billets, we were glad to find, on May 22nd, that the relief, twice postponed, was really to take place. Dug-outs or "bivvies" are not particularly comfortable--some, indeed, very much the reverse. You get tired of stooping, of working by the light of one miserable candle, of eating at odd times and of sleeping at odd hours. The daily and nightly tours round the line become more than usually wearisome. Duck-boards seem to get more treacherous, angle irons and stray bits of barbed wire seem to project still farther from the sides of trenches; while for the man in the post--and everyone else's position is bliss compared with his--the time must have been trying indeed. Not that it was particularly dangerous, though even in quiet sectors most posts have their highly unpleasant periods; but it was infinitely uncomfortable and trying to the last degree. Besides, there was the pleasant hope that the wind would surely be favourable for one night at least out of the next eight, and then the 2/7th K.L.R., and not we, would experience the delights of a gas discharge, to the accompaniment of the applause of the enemy, which was usually of a vigorous nature. However, the relief took place at last without any hitch, and the early hours of May 23rd found us back in our old billets in Armentières. The routine was the same as last time--working parties, one platoon for special training, and the remainder general training. The new extension for the box-respirator was also fitted, and in addition we received twenty horse respirators, to which even the mules raised no violent objection. The opportunity was also taken to have all the swords sharpened. Two officers at a time were attached for instruction to A/286 Battery, R.F.A., and as the latter's quarters were situated in a comfortable orchard, the two days allowed passed pleasantly enough.

On May 26th "B" Company, who had remained in the subsidiary line, were relieved by "D" Company. Early the next morning sounds were heard suggestive of a gas attack. The great bell at Houplines Level Crossing was tolling. Runners flew off to rouse the companies. Officers appeared at doorways, clothed in pyjamas, gum-boots, and box-respirators; while Lieutenant James, the Gas Officer, sniffed the early morning air like a war-horse scenting battle. Each person in turn thought he smelt chlorine--or was it phosgene? In every case it turned out to be the smell of a stale cigar, the proximity of the refuse-bin, or something else equally harmless. Gas there was none, and at length, after conversation with the Brigade, it was discovered that a few gas shells had fallen near the sentry at the level-crossing, and thus produced an alarm. So back we all went, cursing, to bed, everyone feeling a bit resentful that after we had been thus disturbed no gas had come after all.

On May 29th the gas stored in Houplines was at length released. The only part that we took in the proceedings was the posting of six stretcher-bearers at the top of Irish Avenue, an unpleasant spot, though fortunately they sustained no casualties.

During these days in billets the presence of the Battalion Orchestra made itself felt, with excellent results. The instruments had been brought over for us by the Division. It was a considerable item for regimental baggage, consisting as it did of ten instruments. Sergeant Lawton, battalion sanitary N.C.O., was in charge of the orchestra, and played the trombone when his duties permitted. Rifleman Garrod, the first violin, was a player of exceptional merit from the Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. As a soloist he was particularly fine. The remaining members of the party, all well above the average, were--violins, Lewin, Hardacre, and Lance-Corporal Hume; viola, Edmondson; 'cellos, Kaye and Kennedy; bass, Lance-Corporal Buckley; trombone, Williams; drums, Burden; and librarian (self-styled and self-appointed), Rifleman King. Lance-Corporal Bell, from the Quartermaster's Stores, occasionally performed on the oboe. Rifleman Collins, an excellent violinist, had been left behind, unfortunately, in England suffering from influenza.

By arrangement with the other units of the Brigade, our contribution to the recently formed Brigade Pioneer Company was reduced by the strength of the orchestra. In return for this, the latter was always loaned to another battalion while we were in the line, and also for special occasions when we were out. In addition, it used to play for our own mess on guest nights, and very delightful it was; and also occasionally for the Divisional Concert Party's performances, and for the Brigade and Divisional Commanders. It was in great demand everywhere, and there can be no doubt that the results more than justified the employment of the personnel thus utilized. Another invaluable asset was Rifleman Kessen, a very prince of conjurers. He seemed to have an infinity of excellent tricks, and he fooled you under your very nose in the most baffling fashion.

On May 31st the battalion once more relieved the 2/7th K.L.R. The arrangement of companies--"A," "B," "D," "C" from the right--was due to the forthcoming raid, to be carried out by parties from "A" and "B" Companies on Centaur Trench, opposite the Pont Ballot salient. This necessitated "A" and "B" Companies being as near the proposed area as possible. Colonel Fletcher arrived in the line from leave at midnight, and with characteristic energy proceeded at once on a tour of inspection.

This spell in the line was one of exceptional activity. To begin with, there was the impending raid, which, being our first, occupied nine-tenths of our thoughts. There were innumerable special patrols to examine the wire and the approaches to the points of entry; the artillery wire-cutting operations had to be settled; the incessant visits to observation posts and the selection of forming-up places, raid headquarters, regimental aid posts, etc., to be arranged for. In addition to all this, the Battle of Messines took place during the tour. Immediately after that came orders for following up the enemy, if he voluntarily evacuated his trenches; and before we were half through that came schemes for the defence of Armentières in the event of an attack by the Germans. But we must take things in order.

The morning after relief (June 1st, 1917) the enemy dropped a "pineapple" into a Lewis-gun post of "C" Company, killing three men and wounding two. His activity in this direction was now so great that steps had to be taken to cope with it. Two light trench mortars were permanently established in the front line, and for every "pineapple" we returned a number of Stokes shells. The teams did not have a pleasant time of it, as the Germans made every endeavour to knock them out; but they stuck to it gallantly, and by the end of the time their efforts had become singularly effective, although the enemy later retaliated by producing a medium "minnie."

A slight scare was caused by the alleged appearance of a German near "C" Company's cook-house, at the left extremity of the subsidiary line, and patrols spent several nights down by the river trying to catch the supposed intruder. Whether there was anything in the rumour or not was never satisfactorily settled, but it would have been perfectly simple for him to get there. Between our left and the river there was a gap of a couple of hundred yards, which after weeks of fine weather had become dry and hard, and, as subsequent investigations after the Armistice proved, there was ample cover for a whole battalion to come up unseen. Moreover, the German raids on the left sector must have revealed to them the absence of any serious opposition in that part of the line. In fact, the liability of the battalion to be outflanked on the left was the subject of a strong memorandum from Colonel Fletcher, but nothing was done except that some wire was erected later, and a Lewis gun post located in the cellar of a ruined house close to the river and in line with our support line. The presence of fresh earth on a footbridge crossing a branch of the Lys, which was discovered by the patrol, certainly gave some colour to the story of "C" Company's cook.

June 4th, 5th, and 6th produced barrages on the Messines Ridge; they took place each afternoon, and lasted for about an hour. It was understood that barely half of the guns to be employed on the day were in action, but it was a wonderfully awe-inspiring sight to watch the effect of the mass of shells crashing down on the slopes of the ridge. The heavies in Armentières and our own 18-pounders took part in these preliminary barrages, with the result that the shelling of Armentières by the enemy became intense, and particularly in the vicinity of battery positions, which constant firing had now revealed to the enemy, and produced the most severe counter-battery work on his part. Our trenches, too, received marked attention. The enemy seems always to have been suspicious of an attack on Frelinghien, and he set to work on the left and left-centre company sectors with great determination. Shells of a calibre not usually employed in ordinary trench warfare began to plough up our communication trenches, Irish Avenue especially. Cambridge House was frequently shelled intensely, and, in fact, there was no part of our sector that did not receive considerable attention daily. The wire-cutting on the right provoked the enemy terribly, and each time it was carried out severe retaliation took place. Houplines road was now shelled regularly with great bursts of 5·9's and heavy shrapnel. One 4·2 battery kept up such an incessant fire into the vicinity of Tissage Dump that we used to call it the "rising tide," the noise of the stream of shells as they passed over sounding not unlike the steady onrush of the sea.

Quesnoy, nearly opposite to us, we used to bombard heavily, and some part of it was usually on fire. Frelinghien was frequently almost hidden in red dust, while Wytschaete Ridge for long periods at a stretch looked as if it were enveloped in a sandstorm. Every night north of the Lys one or both sides were raiding, and the rumble of barrages, the red bursts of shrapnel, and the stream of coloured rockets continued well on into the daylight.

At 3.10 a.m. on June 7th the Battle of Messines opened with the most tremendous mine explosions and the most magnificent barrage that can be imagined. It was a lovely morning, and there was not a cloud in the sky. With a stupendous roar and upheaval that baffles description the mines exploded. Simultaneously the whole weight of the artillery gathered together for the occasion, and hidden away in every conceivable place, opened on the enemy. From their trenches lights of many colours shot into the air, mutely appealing for assistance from their gunners. These were not long in replying, but our counter-battery work, which had left them in false security during the preliminary barrages, was dealing faithfully with them now. For a few moments the ridge stood out clear and distinct. Then clouds of smoke and dust shut out the view, and it was only by the alteration in the sound that we knew that the barrage was creeping forward, and we waited anxiously for the telegrams announcing the result.

During the first few hours we were unmolested. A 4·2 battery opened on Houplines ten minutes before zero, but switched as soon as the barrage opened. About 7 a.m., however, "whizz-bangs" came down in a regular barrage on the front line, and then high explosives up and down the subsidiary line for about a couple of hours. Between two and six in the afternoon the enemy concentrated on Tissage Dump, putting over 300 high explosive shells into that locality during the four hours. Aeroplanes were very busy, and a German machine dropped two bombs about fifty yards from Battalion Headquarters. The enemy balloons were in a state of great excitement, being hauled down whenever a plane appeared, till at last one of them apparently got tired of this, broke away, and sailed off out of sight. One thing that greatly interested us was that both this day and the next the enemy shelled his own front line opposite the Brewery. Up to the end of this tour the Germans continued intensely active, the left sector and Irish Avenue receiving the lion's share of the shelling.

One very necessary piece of work was completed before we quitted the trenches--the cutting of the grass in front of the parapet. It was now so high and so close to the parapet that it entirely obstructed the view through the periscope, and made it quite possible for a man to work his way unseen right up to the trenches. Sickles had to be obtained and parties went out nightly to "cut the hay crop." To do this just in front of the posts alone would, of course, have revealed their exact position to any inquisitive airman, and a strip had therefore to be cut along the whole length of the front line.

At 9.30 p.m. on June 9th the leading company of the 2/7th K.L.R. began to arrive. At the last moment, owing to the continued harassing fire of the Germans on to the Houplines road, we decided to proceed out by Lunatic Lane in the right battalion sector. This was a long and winding communication trench which so far had sustained little damage. It brought you out by the Lunatic Asylum, and from there you went up the Rue Gambetta and so on to the Rue de Lille. "C" Company remained in the subsidiary line.

On arrival in billets we were somewhat astonished to learn that we were under orders to move at one hour's notice, and that guides to bring up reinforcing troops were always to be kept in readiness at Battalion Headquarters. The retirement of the enemy, after the Battle of Messines, from his remaining trenches north of the River Lys had caused the Higher Command to think that a partial retirement might be effected opposite our front also. Consequently some most elaborate schemes to meet this emergency had been issued, and we were now in the throes of trying to draw up, in conjunction with the 2/7th K.L.R., a scheme of movement in the event of the enemy's voluntary withdrawal. We were therefore not a little surprised to find signs that an attack by the Germans might now be expected. The mental effort required to concentrate your attention simultaneously on an advance and a defence--and both had to be fully provided for--and at the same time to attend to the all-absorbing orders and arrangements for the raid, proved somewhat exhausting. For clearness' sake we will take them one by one, but it should be remembered that three sets of orders, and in addition a salvage scheme (a kind of corollary to the advance orders), were all drawn up at the same time, and the difficulty of remembering which you were working on at any particular moment was by no means imaginary.

Operation Order No. 22, dated June 15th, 1917, began with the words: "In the event of the enemy voluntarily evacuating his present front line system opposite the battalion frontage, companies will be ready to move forward and occupy the sectors of the enemy line with minimum of delay." The orders ran into fifteen headings with seven appendices and, it need hardly be added, three pages of subsequent amendments, dated July 1st. As the orders, fortunately, were never put into operation, it will be sufficient to deal with them quite briefly. Each company was allotted an area in the enemy front line, and on the word "floreat" fighting patrols, consisting of one officer and twenty-four men, were expected to dash across No Man's Land "at ten minutes' notice." The difficulty of this initial part of the proceedings did not at first occur to the higher authorities, but some weeks later the time allowed was suddenly increased to six hours!

A consolidating platoon, armed with picks, shovels, sand-bags, etc., followed as a carrying party; and, finally, Company Headquarters moved into the German front line, and Battalion Headquarters moved up to Edmeads Farm. The Brigade Pioneer Company, assisted by working parties from the reserve battalion, were responsible for digging communication trenches from Fiji Road on the right and Hobbs Farm on the left, to the enemy's front line. The Reserve Battalion Headquarters and two remaining companies moved up to the subsidiary line.

To assist in these operations advanced dumps, containing vast quantities of R.E. stores and bombs and small-arms ammunition, were gradually accumulated in the vicinity of the front line, to the great delight of the Germans, who shelled them cheerfully. An elaborate system of flags and identification marks was also evolved. In addition to this, it being now presumed that we had to all intents and purposes occupied the German trenches, the collection of salvage from our old trenches became a matter of considerable moment, and comprehensive orders were issued for that work also; but these we may pass over.

To change for a moment from the offensive to the defensive, it was also considered possible that the enemy was likely to make an attack on Armentières, in the hope of obtaining a good headline, "Capture of Armentières," for his newspapers, which might divert attention from the rumour that Messines had fallen. Moreover, his possession of Armentières would have made our tenure of Messines Ridge extremely uncomfortable, if not impossible. Consequently, an extensive system of routes for reinforcing troops was worked out, and guides instructed for this purpose. Men not required to carry bombs and R.E. material to the front line dumps were now collecting similar material in Armentières itself. Others were busily engaged wiring up the streets, building machine-gun emplacements, and generally trying to make up in a few weeks for the total neglect of the old defences, which during the last two years had decayed to a degree almost beyond repair. A Major was appointed O.C. Armentières Defences, and the place began to hum with life and movement. Throughout the proceedings the foe kept up continual shelling with every description of gun, and made life in the town anything but comfortable. The swimming-baths, which had been so acceptable, had to be abandoned owing to the fact that they only had a glass roof, and shells came perilously near it. Training was confined to the vicinity of billets, or more often to the cellars. The destruction of the big brewery near Pont de Nieppe, whence came our beer supply, so needed in those scorching hot days, helped to complete our unhappiness. The baths near Erquinghem were also destroyed, thanks to the action of the Heavy Artillery Commander, who had placed some 60-pounders just in front of them. The sight of the soldier bathers, in every kind of dress or undress, running wildly across the fields in the company of the French laundry-maids certainly produced considerable merriment; but the price paid for this piece of humour, the entire demolition of the only bathing-place reasonably handy, was thought to be excessive.

The only people who really appreciated the spell out of the line were the raiding party. Captain Steward, Captain Parker, Lieutenant Clarke, 2nd-Lieutenant Moseley, and 100 men were comfortably installed close to Croix du Bac in the quarters of the old Divisional Reinforcement Camp, which had recently been moved to Steenwerck, the present railhead. Division Headquarters had removed from the White Chateau at Sailly, and were now in Croix du Bac; and a field close to their offices was secured for the training-ground. Here a replica of the enemy trenches was made with tapes and turned sods, care being taken to add sufficient "duds" to mislead the aerial photographer should he chance to wander over. Aeroplane photos were studied till the head nearly swam to ensure that the reproduced line corresponded as exactly as possible with the original. Throughout these proceedings Captain Glyn, G.S.O.3, was most helpful in procuring photographs and maps. The choice of the sector to be raided was limited by the necessity of having reasonable approaches to our own front line, and these the right sector alone provided. Moreover, the old road passing through the Pont Ballot salient made a fine natural guide, and was selected as such for the right flank. Centaur Trench and support, with their two communication trenches, Centaur Lane and Centaur Row, formed roughly speaking the area of operations. There were three parties--Captain Parker and twenty men of "D" Company, who were to enter on the right; Lieutenant Clarke and sixteen men of "A" Company in the centre, though Clarke himself was to remain on the parapet with a 'phone to our own front line to Captain Steward, O.C. Raid; and 2nd-Lieutenant Moseley and thirty-one men of "B" Company, who were to enter on the left. The route up to the gap in the wire was to be indicated by tapes. Bridges were to be laid and the parties formed up in No Man's Land between sign-boards by zero minus three minutes. The barrage was to lift and the raid commence at zero plus two minutes. The duty of the blocking parties, etc., was worked out to the smallest detail and rehearsed again and again.

The co-operation of medium trench mortar batteries, light trench mortar batteries, and machine guns was on a large scale both for barrage and neutralizing purposes. The artillery consisted of 18-pounders and 4·5 howitzers, fourteen pieces in all. All this time the Quartermaster was busy collecting revolvers, knobkerries, torches, and all the other minor but necessary articles of equipment, and many were the alarums and excursions.

During this period in billets the reorganized seniority of the Territorial Force was published, all temporary rank being cancelled. We suddenly found ourselves with no Majors and only four Captains, while several of our Company Commanders fell to 2nd-Lieutenants. The system of promotion to acting ranks was, however, at once instituted, and we resumed most of our original ranks, though Major Charles Wilson lost his majority, only one Major being allowed instead of two. About this time Captain Bowring took over command of "A" Company.

On June 12th "A" Company relieved "C" Company in the subsidiary line, and on the 15th the battalion relieved the 2/7th K.L.R. The route chosen was Buterne Avenue, the common communication trench between ourselves and the right battalion. Owing to the destructive shooting of the enemy, Irish Avenue had more or less ceased to exist; and "C" Company, who once more found themselves in this unhealthy sector, had to use Cambridge Avenue and Regent Street, which made their relief a slow and tedious process. "B" Company was on the right, and then came "A" and "D" Companies. Owing to the raiding detachment being left out of the line, "D" Company had to be assisted by a loan of men from "C" Company; while "A" and "B" Companies were supplemented by various employed men--buglers, grooms, etc.--normally left out of the line.

The sector was again full of gas, and the persistent efforts of the R.Es. to discharge it seriously hampered the patrolling that had to be carried out nightly in the vicinity of the area to be raided, and which was of vital importance. The real nature of the bridge over the ditches, which eventually proved to be a brick culvert, had long been in dispute, and Lieutenant Royle, the Intelligence Officer, spent every night while we were in Armentières with the Battalion scouts in No Man's Land up to and including the night of the raid. In spite of his multifarious duties as Intelligence Officer and his two daily summaries, he never spared himself in his efforts to make certain that the gaps were open and the routes beyond dispute. The enemy activity had meanwhile still further increased. Irish Avenue was reduced to a mere chain of shell-holes and débris, while every communication trench, and in fact every part of the sector, was well hammered. We were surprised and pleased to find how well the gas cylinders stood being knocked about.

On June 20th a practice disconnection of all telephones was ordered by the Division. The result as far as we were concerned was highly satisfactory, Battalion Headquarters getting a brief respite from those in authority. As regards the internal routine work it made no difference, as telephone messages had been reduced, at any rate during the daytime, to the lowest possible figure. The repeated warnings that the enemy could pick up messages, and later the presence of a Police Listening Set in the subsidiary line, had greatly cooled our enthusiasm for this form of communication. The daily report of conversations picked up by the Listening Set was, in fact, a source of much merriment, the angry remarks of Major Brookes one day to someone at his battery causing special amusement. We also received a rather futile complaint from the authorities, so to prevent a repetition of similar rebukes we made a suitable arrangement with the Listening Set personnel, who were located in a dug-out they had long coveted; and after that our conversations, when picked up, were treated with more discretion.

The enemy evinced considerable nervousness at night, possibly owing to our active patrolling. On more than one occasion he bombed his own wire. His apparent unpreparedness when our raid took place was therefore the more surprising.

On the morning of June 20th a serious loss was sustained by the Division. Lieutenant-Colonel Short, C.M.G., the artillery Group Commander, had arranged to visit our Headquarters to discuss certain details in connection with the barrage for the raid. His departure from our Brigade Headquarters happened to synchronize with the arrival of General Broadwood, who decided to walk up with him. They stopped for a few minutes on a rather exposed bridge in Houplines to examine the lie of the land. Whether they were observed or whether it was simply bad luck will never be known, but the bridge at this moment received a direct hit from a 5·9, and both officers were badly wounded. Their orderlies at once carried the General to a place of comparative safety, but while this was being done a second shell arrived, killing the Group Commander on the spot. General Broadwood was taken straight to Estaires, but his wounds proved mortal, and he only lingered for a few hours. He was buried in the cemetery at Sailly. The whole affair was a most unhappy tragedy, and the loss of the General was keenly felt throughout the Division. Colonel Short had been indefatigable in his efforts to ensure adequate support to our raid, and his cheerful disposition and amusing stories had made him very popular at Battalion Headquarters.

June 21st was a busy day for all. The final preparations for the raid, which was to commence early in the morning of June 22nd, were now in full swing. The bridges had been brought up overnight, and were duly concealed in the front line. Raid Headquarters, the advanced regimental aid post, and all the other details, were now being finally completed. The raiding party were brought up in lorries to the Houplines Level Crossing after dark, each man with his face blackened and his label, bearing number and name, tied to the top button of his jacket. All other traces of identification had been removed. About 11 p.m. the party was moving down from the subsidiary line with many a handshake and a "Good luck, boys!" The men were all as keen as could be. The official report has been reproduced as it stands. It gives a faithful account of what happened. That the raid was not so successful as we had hoped--that is to say, that no identification was obtained--was due to several causes. First, Captain Parker himself and several of his party were knocked out at the very start by pressing too close on the barrage and being caught in a short burst of shrapnel. Next, Lieutenant Clarke's party ought to have had an officer actually in the trench with them; the men were willing enough in all conscience, but lacked the controlling influence of the officer's presence. Then Lieutenant Moseley's party missed their way, owing to fresh guides having to be substituted at the last moment. Although we did not claim it as a successful raid, yet there is no doubt that the effect on the battalion was good, and the men who had taken part in it were keen to make another attempt. Colonel Fletcher's disappointment was great, as he had slaved from morning till night to make the raid a success. Captain Parker's wounds were more serious than had at first been realized, and at one time nearly proved fatal. His reception at the Casualty Clearing Station was typical of his luck. He was, of course, wearing a "Tommy's" jacket, and so by mistake was put into a "Tommies'" ward, and was welcomed on his arrival by the words: "Gawd, Bill, here comes a b---- nigger!"

P. G. Jones, a Battalion Scout, who fell on this occasion, was one of our best and keenest young soldiers, and very popular with everyone. His death was a real personal loss to all who knew him.

* * * * *

REPORT ON MINOR OPERATION CARRIED OUT IN HOUPLINES SUB-SECTOR ON THE NIGHT OF JUNE 21ST-22ND, 1917.

"_Strength of Party._--Three officers and 97 other ranks.

"_Point of Exit._--C.29.a.35.80--C.23.b.96.34.

"_Points of Entry._--C.29.a.48.17--C.29.a.62.41.

"_Time._--1.6 a.m. Entry reported by telephone.

"_Object._--(_a_) To continue a harassing policy and prevent the enemy from withdrawing troops.

"(_b_) Killing and capturing as many of the enemy as possible.

"(_c_) Obtaining identification and gaining information regarding the enemy's system of defence.

"_Narrative._--Minus five minutes zero: Bridges laid across ditch.

"Minus three minutes zero: All parties formed up across ditch.

"Zero: Barrage commenced exactly on time. All parties commenced moving on objective.

"_Right (Parker's) Party._--This party was so keen to get into enemy's trenches that they followed the barrage too closely, and in consequence suffered the following casualties:--

"The leading scout was killed, and the officer who was close behind him was wounded in the leg and neck and could not go on. The N.C.O. in charge of the leading party was fatally wounded, and two of his men were incapacitated. The N.C.O. in charge of the second party was hit, and one of his men was killed and another wounded.

"The remainder of the party carried on and entered the enemy trench as arranged. The party who were detailed to work along the trench to the right found a concrete dug-out, fitted with iron doors, in the front-line trench as anticipated, at about C.28.a.48.10. There was a light in the dug-out, and three men were seen inside wearing blue uniform with Red Cross brassards. They were summoned to come out, but refused, and a bomb was therefore thrown into the dug-out just before the men inside had time to slam the iron door. The bomb exploded, and groans and cries were heard, and also a noise which sounded like a trapdoor being shut. Our men tried to force the door open, but were unable to do so. The muzzle of a revolver was then put through a loophole in the iron door and six shots were fired.

"Efforts were again made to open the door, but proved unsuccessful. Whilst trying to force this door, fire was opened on our party from the traverse next beyond; this was replied to, and the Huns ran away. Much valuable time was spent trying to get into the dug-out for the purpose of obtaining identification, and owing to this, and also the casualties already suffered, this party were unable to get on to their farthest objective.

"In the meantime the party working along the trench to the left were bombed by the enemy, and when they retaliated the enemy climbed out of the trench and disappeared to the rear.

"Progress was then continued along the trench, and a dug-out was found, but on examination it proved to be empty. Shortly after this some of the Centre Party were met and connection established.

"Just after the withdrawal signal had gone up--zero plus 22 minutes--two Germans were seen approaching the front line over the top from the direction of their support line. Shots were fired at them and they withdrew. It is not known whether either of them were shot.

"Parker's party then left the enemy trench, bringing with them a rifle and bayonet which were found in the trench.

"On the way back those men who had been hit on crossing No Man's Land were all brought in except one man, who could not be found. It is believed that this man was killed. On reaching our trenches it was found that another man was missing. He was last seen soon after leaving the enemy's trench.

"At zero plus 33 minutes the N.C.O. i/c Right Party observed one green light and one golden rain rocket fired apparently from the enemy's subsidiary line in C.23 or C.24.

"The trench is very deep and narrow, and no duck-boards were found.

"_Centre (Clarke's) Party_.--This party crossed No Man's Land in the order practised. They found the ground much torn up by shell-holes, over which it was impossible to proceed quickly. They found the gaps in the wire, but had to zig-zag a good deal to get through. There was a considerable quantity of cut wire lying about, which further delayed their progress. They entered the enemy's trench at about C.20.a.44.21 (_i.e._, about 30 yards farther to the right than had been intended).

"2nd-Lieutenant C. W. Clarke established telephone communication with O.C. Raid at zero plus 7½ minutes, and sent a message to the effect that his party 'had entered enemy's trench.'

"The trench was deep, and in getting in the leading man stumbled and lost his rifle, which he was unable to find in the darkness. Thereupon another bayonet man was brought up to take his place. The first party then proceeded along the trench to the right, and immediately found a dug-out, into which a bomb was thrown. After the bomb had exploded the dug-out was entered and two dead Germans found. An effort was made to tear a button off the tunic of one of those men, but it was on too tight. At this moment a scuffle was going on outside the dug-out with a Hun who had come running down the trench, shouting 'Surrender,' and our man inside the dug-out hurried out to see what was happening, and picked up a German rifle on his way. The Hun was placed in charge of two men, to be passed out of the trench as soon as the two men waiting on the parapet had been called to the spot. Whilst the two men were holding the prisoner, one of them was wounded and let go. The prisoner thereupon wrenched himself free from the other man and escaped to the left. One of our men chased him along the trench, but, going over strange ground, was unable to catch him; he came to a communication trench (Centaur Lane), and, hearing footsteps, threw a bomb into this trench. As by this time the withdrawal signal had gone up, he withdrew and joined his own party.

"In the meantime the rest of this party had started working along the trench to join up with the right party, which they did. This party was followed by a small party which had been detailed to proceed along Centaur Lane and block it. They expected to find this communication trench to the right of where they entered the front line, but owing to the fact that they had unconsciously entered the trench farther to the right than had been intended, this trench was not found until too late.

"A bomb store was found and blown up as the party were leaving the trench.

"This party had one casualty (referred to above), and he was brought back to our trenches.

"No S.O.S. signal was seen and no artillery fire was opened until this party were half-way back across No Man's Land.

"_Left (Moseley's) Party_.--Moseley's party failed to enter enemy's trench. The two scouts who had reconnoitred the gaps and knew the ground well were sick four days before the raid took place. The new scouts did not know the ground as well, possibly, as some of the other members of the raiding party; also their reconnaissance was made difficult by enemy working at their gaps, and having covering parties out; also they had not the same opportunity of rehearsal as they should have had in laying tapes, etc. In consequence, after passing through the first gap, a doubt arose as to direction owing to other members of the raiding party thinking that they knew best, with the result that several parties tried to get through impassable wire. The main party moved to the left eventually, followed by other parties, and lost direction. While this was going on one of the scouts found the proper gaps, dashed after the party, who reorganized, and the leading men reached enemy's trench when return signal went up. In this Rifleman Bamber was wounded; he was found by Rifleman F. Taylor, who bound up his wounds, and as he was not certain of his direction, he waited for daylight, and brought the wounded man in the same morning at 10 a.m. This party had three rows of wire to negotiate, the second and third rows consisting of heavy knife rests, etc., and, the grass being very long, gaps were not easy to find.

"_Casualties._--Two killed; Lieutenant Parker and six other ranks wounded; one missing believed killed.

"_Action of the Enemy._--There is no doubt the enemy had no idea he was going to be raided. His action was extremely weak and slow in beginning.

"It is very doubtful if he inflicted any casualties on us.

"His barrage did not start until about zero plus 10 minutes, and then increased in intensity by degrees. His fire was directed chiefly on our front line (the shells falling just short of and just over our trench) and partly on our support line and subsidiary lines.

"The enemy's resistance in his trenches was very weak. Several men were seen running away.

"_Summing up._--The raid, unfortunately, failed in its chief objects, for no prisoners or identifications were obtained, though there is little doubt that four, and probably several more, Germans were killed or wounded. Had the left party succeeded in entering the enemy's trench, there is every probability that more damage would have been done, and identifications, if not prisoners, obtained.

"The support of the artillery was excellent, the wire had been well cut, and the barrage started precisely at the time arranged.

"The medium and light trench mortar batteries were also most effective, and completely stopped all enemy machine-gun fire.

"The machine-gun barrages were all that could be desired.

"The reconnaissance had been well done. Enemy posts were found where they had been expected. Suspected machine-gun emplacements were adequately dealt with either by artillery beforehand or by my trench mortars during operations.

"Signal communication worked well. Three special lines had been laid to Raid Headquarters. The raiding party established telephone communication from near the enemy's trench with commendable speed.

(Sgd.) "W. A. L. FLETCHER, _Lieutenant-Colonel_, "_Comdg. 2/6th (Rifle) Bn. Liverpool Regiment_.

"_June 24th, 1917._"

* * * * *

At 9.15 a.m. two men missing from the raid suddenly appeared in our line, one of them wounded. This showed how easy it was to get into our trenches unobserved. Artillery was very active against us all that day. In the course of two hours and a half Hobbs Farm and the detached post received over 120 rounds from a 4·2 battery, while at times it seemed as if our wire in that vicinity was the real target. Spain Avenue, the Orchard, Panama, Pretoria, were all singled out in turn; but probably this was merely a cloak for the German activities on the left.

The following night the Brigade north of the Lys carried out a raid, and the enemy seemed very uneasy opposite our left company front, sending up innumerable Véry lights, letting off bursts of rifle fire, and industriously bombing his own wire.

The early morning of June 23rd found the German 'planes extremely active. There was a flight of scarlet machines, which performed various evolutions for our benefit, and at intervals swooped down and fired into our trenches. Rifle grenades were fired at one very low-flying 'plane, and at another a light trench mortar shell with a shortened fuse and a full charge. The latter must certainly have surprised the pilot when it exploded in the air.

Every part of the left sector, front line, support, subsidiary, and communication trenches was heavily shelled for long periods throughout the day, while a regular box barrage was put round the detached post. Even the new drain between Irish and Cambridge was regularly bombarded. The wire in front of our trenches, never very good, was now reduced to a mass of shattered fragments, and the impression that a raid must be expected in the near future grew apace. Down to the day of the relief this extreme activity continued, and it was difficult to keep Edmeads, Wessex, and Cambridge clear of blocks. Irish was still being heavily hammered, but, except for occasional repairs to keep up appearances, we had long since ceased to use Irish as an avenue. 2nd-Lieutenants E. E. Paul and J. N. Blake were slightly wounded in Fry Pan. On the evening of June 26th the relief took place. We were fully expecting the raid, and precautions were taken accordingly to prevent any sort of congestion in communication trenches, all of which had now been accurately registered. However, it turned out a wet night and as black as pitch, and the relief was completed viâ Buterne Avenue at 12.37 a.m. without molestation. "B" Company remained in the subsidiary line.

We found Armentières, as indeed we had expected, hardly less noisy than the trenches. The Rue de Lille had become more of a storm centre than previously, and the Quartermaster's staff were frequently compelled to make a hasty descent to the cellar. The battalion mess, which had been held in a magnificent house opposite, its ceilings decorated with fat cherubs flying in a bright blue sky, was abandoned, as it seemed too risky to have all the officers congregated together in such a shelled area. The usual working and wiring parties, made none the pleasanter by the double journey up the Houplines road, and the same efforts to carry out training under difficulties were resumed. On the 29th "D" Company replaced "B" in the subsidiary line.

June had seen an increase in our monthly total of casualties. Four officers, of whom one was the Padre (at duty), had been wounded; fourteen men had been killed and sixty-three wounded. In addition, 2nd-Lieutenants Dugdale and Rule were at the Base marked "T.B." (_i.e._, Temporary Base). Captain Gilling, who had for several months been attached to the R.E., had now been invalided to England. Our "effective strength" was reduced from 33 Officers and 744 other ranks to 28 officers and 656 other ranks; and from the latter numbers had to be deducted Lieutenant Parkinson and a number of men with the Brigade Pioneer Company, Lieutenant Huntley at Brigade, and several parties of men otherwise employed, but whom we were not permitted to strike off our effective strength. Our total strength in France on June 30th was 36 officers and 800 other ranks, a disparity in totals which is eloquent of the number of "employed" on extra-regimental duties or on courses. Leave had not yet begun seriously to affect our numbers.

July 3rd found us back in the trenches in order "A," "D," "C" and "B" from the right. Relief was complete at 2.25 a.m. on July 12th. We found that the enemy was systematically destroying the left company sector, especially the communication trenches and the support line. The latter, standing as it did on the forward slope of a ridge, presented a splendid target, and it was impossible to keep pace with the damage being done. The constant bombardment of communication trenches threatened to isolate the left company altogether, and work was accordingly commenced on a new cut from Cambridge Avenue to the front line, called "Peter's Cat." The Heavy Artillery were also persuaded to do some serious shooting on the enemy main communication trenches, Celia Row and Celt Drive; but though this may have annoyed him, it did not damp his enthusiasm in the least.

At 1.30 a.m. on July 11th the gas cylinders were opened and the projectors discharged simultaneously. The noise of the latter was tremendous, just like a mine explosion, while a huge black cloud of great density drifted away from the scene of discharge. Unfortunately, these projectors had been so long in the ground that a large number fell in No Man's Land; two fell almost on the top of a post in "A" Company's front line, while one landed practically on the top of "A" Company's Headquarters. In spite of precautions, a number of gas casualties occurred, and the usual kind of correspondence followed between ourselves and the Higher Command. Only a case of "trench foot" could exceed a gas casualty in the excitement it caused.

The patrols which had again been ordered to follow the discharge were once more countermanded. It was most unlikely that they would have achieved anything but casualties, though it would have been interesting to know something of the results. Certainly an inspection of the enemy line after the Armistice revealed frequent remains of projectors. These, and detonated but unexploded medium trench mortar bombs, were to be found everywhere. The same day the enemy vented his wrath on us in no small measure, so we hoped we had done him some harm.

To give an idea of what patrolling was like in this sector, the following account may be quoted as an example. The narrative was written by a member of the patrol who took part in it:--"The patrol, which left our trenches shortly after midnight, was composed of Riflemen Bolshaw, Matchett, and Corkill, with the section sleuth, Rifleman Dixon, in charge. The front line to the left of the head of Irish Avenue was only held to within about two hundred yards of the River Lys, the remainder of the trench from that point up to the river being rendered untenable by the marshy condition of the ground and the enemy command. Judging the Boche lines opposite to be similarly governed, it was obvious that this deserted area formed an excellent approach to Frelinghien. About this time a Boche withdrawal was expected opposite. The object of our patrol was to advance as far, and learn as much, as possible. The music encountered _en route_ for the front line speedily dispelled any idea as to a Boche retirement. A relief was in progress at the time, and Fritz must have spotted it, for we ran into a veritable nightmare inferno. Rifle and machine-gun bullets whined and snipped, 'pineapples' cracked, shells crashed, and 'minnies' crumped! Added attractions were a dense fog and the choking fumes of the explosions. Through it all the fitful glare of the Véry lights grew and waned, and the _tout ensemble_ created in me a stronger desire to enter No Man's Land than I had ever experienced before. There, at any rate, we would miss some of the 'hate' floating around. With due caution we made our way along the deserted trenches to the bank of the Lys. We then struck out sharply to the right some distance and lay down to listen. Barely distinguishable amid the din, we could hear a knocking, rattling, and clanking to our immediate front. A surmise that a Boche wiring party was at work was confirmed a few minutes later by the location of its covering party at no great distance from us. Our batteries about then commenced to retaliate for the "strafe," and a breeze, till then absent, commenced to carry the fumes from the Boche shells back home. Fritz's nerves were evidently not at their best that night, for almost immediately the musical tinkle of his gas alarms rippled south down the sector, incidentally causing us no little amusement. Having discovered that, far from being absent from Frelinghien, the Boche was busy improving his position there, and further progress on our part being impossible, we emptied our rifles into the darkness in the direction of the wiring party and withdrew."

During this tour Captain Charles Wilson left us for the three months' Senior Officers' Course at Aldershot. There were not a few who imagined the war would be over before his return. Lieutenant Burton took over command of "D" Company.

On July 11th the battalion was relieved, and proceeded once more (less "B" Company) to Armentières. One company was now required nightly to press on with the new Peter's Cat Trench; and as this meant a long journey and a night in the trenches, it may be doubted whether the men welcomed the change from the line to the billets. If anything, the Germans were still more active with their artillery, and movement within the town was limited to what was absolutely necessary. The one pleasure of mounted officers was a gallop along the banks of the Lys from Armentières to Bac St. Maur. If you were energetic you could follow the towpath as far as Estaires. Between Armentières and Bac St. Maur there were some fine shell-holes, and the farm at the wooden bridge by the Jute Factory had been gutted. Bac St. Maur bridgehead was not infrequently shelled, and our old Battalion Headquarters was found to have received a direct hit. Shrapnel used to be put over the Bac St. Maur road even beyond Erquinghem, and the latter place itself used to be shelled intermittently. For the battalion as a whole there was little recreation, except that afforded by the estaminets and an occasional concert.

The morning after relief (July 12, 1917) a 12-inch shell landed in the Rue Gambetta next to the school where "C" Company were billeted; and before there was time to do anything another one, most unluckily, crashed right in and down as far as the cellar, where it exploded with a terrific detonation. It was followed by a third, which fortunately missed the building, but produced a crater which filled the whole width of the street. The shell which entered "C" Company's billet unfortunately killed five men and wounded six. It was a pleasant greeting for Lieutenant Penrice and a draft of thirty men who had arrived the previous evening. "C" and "D" Companies were now moved more to the back of the town to a less exposed position. This move had been under consideration for some time, as the vicinity of the Rue de Lille was far from ideal. It was also decided to bring "A" Company from the Rue Jesuit into a more "salubrious" neighbourhood. Brigade Headquarters had already moved to the Rue Sadi Carnot by order of the Corps Commander, who visited them one day during a period of enemy activity; and certainly their former situation was far from pleasant--a feature, however, in which it resembled most other parts of the town.

The Quartermaster, going down to make some arrangements, was unfortunately badly wounded by a 5·9 which burst just in front of the entrance to "A" Company's billet. His left thigh was damaged, and two pieces of shell entered his stomach, one lodging in the muscles of the back near his spine. He was hurriedly taken to the regimental aid post, where Captain McHugh did his best for him, and thence to the Advanced Surgical Centre, Estaires. No one thought he could possibly live, but, with his usual determination, he won through; and though his health was badly impaired,[1] he became in due course an S.O.3 in the Air Force after the Army had finally thrown him out. For his services with the battalion he was Mentioned in Dispatches. His place was taken by Regimental Quartermaster-Sergeant Wallas, for whom we tried in vain to obtain a Quartermaster's commission.

[1] He died in June 1920, to the great regret of all who knew him.

At 11 p.m. on July 14th the sound of a heavy barrage disturbed us, and shortly after one company was ordered to stand-to. We thought the German raid had come off, but except for the heavy barrage nothing further happened. The next night "C" Company relieved "B" Company in the subsidiary line, and were probably not sorry to leave the "peace" of reserve billets for a while. The post of extra company in the subsidiary line was undoubtedly very popular. The area they occupied was seldom shelled, and work could only be done by them at night and in the vicinity of their posts. In the early hours of the morning, just as "B" Company had got clear of the line, the barrage fell once more, and after rolling the length of the front line from right to left formed a box barrage on the left company front. It was a really heavy barrage, and two working parties from our "A" Company, who were just stopping work in Peter's Cat and had begun to arrive in Cambridge Avenue, suddenly found themselves in the centre of a tornado of exploding high explosives. 2nd-Lieutenant McWilliam, who was in command of one of the parties, was, however, equal to the occasion, and with great gallantry got the parties under cover, and then proceeded to reinforce the front line. A number of Germans were seen coming across towards Cambridge Avenue, and were called on to surrender. This they seemed quite prepared to do, but an N.C.O. suddenly appeared, and they all fled back together. One prisoner, however, was captured by Rifleman Mills.

The 2/7th were not sorry to see the arrival of our men in the front line. They had suffered heavy casualties, and their position had become none too pleasant, as the Germans had come round the left flank and they were being bombed from behind as well as in front. Colonel Slater and Captain Drakeford, his Adjutant, were in the left post of all when the raid commenced, and had a pretty lively experience. Our men and the men in the posts got in some useful shooting at the enemy as he fled back to Frelinghien by the river road, and a dozen dead Germans were found, in addition to the live prisoner. It proved on the examination of the latter to have been a big raid; and had the enemy shown a little more enterprise, they might have made the position of that left company extremely dangerous. There is no doubt that the accidental presence of our working party, with McWilliam to make full use of it, proved of great service to the 2/7th K.L.R. In connection with the operations Rifleman Mills and Rifleman J. Bailey were awarded the M.M.

The Light Trench Mortar Battery suffered severely, their S.O.S. positions having apparently been well registered by the enemy, with the result that in more than one case the team was buried, together with their gun. "C" Company dug them out, and spent over six hours cleaning up this part of the line, so great was the damage done.

During this period in billets our new Divisional Commander, Major-General R. W. R. Barnes, C.B., D.S.O., called at Headquarters, and was introduced to the Commanding Officer and others present.

On July 19th the battalion once more relieved the 2/7th K.L.R., "C," "B," "D," "A" being now the order in the line. The repair of the damage done by the raid, the erection of a complicated wire entanglement on the left (which was carried out, under Major H. K. Wilson's supervision, with some difficulty, owing to the heavy shelling and machine-gun fire), and the preparations for a two-company raid to be carried out under Captain Eccles, were quite sufficient to occupy our attention. In addition, one company of Portuguese was attached to us for instruction, forty men being handed over to each company. The relief of these men by another company on the night of the 20th produced rather an amusing scene. It had been arranged that the old company should not leave till the new company had arrived; but some time before the latter were due, the junction of Gloucester Avenue and the subsidiary line was packed with Portuguese, about half of whom went out on their own initiative. Suddenly the Germans opened a regular barrage of gas shells on Houplines Level Crossing, and the wind blew the gas back to our subsidiary line. The commencement of the barrage divided the relieving company into two halves, and likewise the old company, one half of whom, going back without orders, had just passed the Level Crossing. All those on the far side, relieving and relieved troops alike, hurried back to their billets in Armentières. The relieving troops, and a few others who had been stopped by the barrage, rushed into the trenches and mingled with those waiting to go out, thus producing the most complete confusion, to which the necessity of wearing small box-respirators added the finishing touch. It was a matter of no small difficulty to get them sorted out, especially as our only means of communication with the Portuguese was in bad French, and they all talked at once. However, eventually we got things straightened out somehow, and order was once more established.

On July 22nd, 1917, to keep up a pretence that we were going to attack Frelinghien, a practice barrage was put down on that place at 5 p.m. At 5.30 p.m. the enemy replied with a far heavier bombardment of our left company sector, which in a few moments was entirely concealed from view by smoke and dust. A Portuguese Commanding Officer and Adjutant arrived that day for instruction, and Battalion Headquarters was the centre of quite a heavy gas shell bombardment. Fortunately, the next day all the Portuguese were removed. It was not a sector calculated to give new troops a very favourable impression of the line. During that night the battalion north of the Lys dug dummy assembly trenches opposite Frelinghien, and the following day another bombardment was carried out. A second company of 2/7th K.L.R. was now brought into the subsidiary line, partly to enable more work to be done, partly in view of the continued threatening attitude of the Germans.

At 1.55 a.m. on the 26th we discharged two torpedoes in the enemy's wire on the left, and a dummy barrage was put down to divert attention from a 2/8th K.L.R. raid about to take place on our right. We ourselves were scheduled to do a two-company raid, under the command of Captain Eccles, in a short while, and took considerable interest in the reception accorded to the "Irish" raiding party. Our barrage was thin, and the enemy paid little attention to it, but his retaliation fell heavily on the 2/8th K.L.R.

The next two days brought intense artillery fire all over the sector, and on the 27th heavy "minnies" appeared and blew in Captain Burton's Headquarters with two direct hits, though, fortunately, he was not there at the time and no one was killed. The night of the 28th, the original night for relief, produced continuous shrapnel from about 9 p.m. to 3 a.m. all over the subsidiary line and communication trenches. About 3 a.m. an aeroplane bombed Houplines Level Crossing, and a deluge of heavy "minnies" descended on the left-centre company's line; but on the whole we congratulated ourselves on our luck, little dreaming of what was to happen on the real relief night, July 29th. The 2/7th K.L.R. came into the sector without a shell being fired. Colonel Slater and his Headquarters had just arrived, and the relief was progressing well, when, with a sudden rush and roar, a terrific bombardment of Armentières commenced. A regular semicircle of flashes could be seen running continuously round the rear of the enemy line. This was clearly no ordinary shoot, but a specially arranged show with artillery in proportion. The relief was promptly stopped, and all troops stood-to. Suddenly the S.O.S. went up from the right battalion, and our guns opened up. This, however, shortly afterwards proved to be a mistake, and as the German infantry made no move the relief continued. The din was terrific. Apart from the actual noise of the batteries firing and the unbroken rush and scream of shells overhead, the uproar in Armentières was tremendous as buildings were smashed and battered and the broken débris hurled about in all directions by this unceasing rain of shells. Lieutenant Evans rang up on the telephone from Rue Bayard, where he had gone to take over billets, and told us that the town was soaked with gas, and warned us not to come out at present. Fires now began to appear all over the town, but still the barrage did not slacken. At 12.15 a.m. it stopped, but began again with renewed firing at 12.45 a.m., though about 1.15 a.m. this was reduced to one or two areas and some general miscellaneous shooting, lasting until about 4 a.m., when it was further reduced to action by one or two heavy guns alone.

About 3 a.m. "B" Company began to thread its way down Buterne Avenue towards the town. They were caught by a heavy bombardment in the Houplines road, and had to take temporary shelter in odd cellars. "C" Company and Battalion Headquarters followed, but escaped with nothing worse than casual shelling. "A" and "D" Companies remained in the subsidiary line, and very glad they were to do so.

Our arrival in the area of our billets was anything but cheerful. A large part of the Rue de Lille, including the Quartermaster's Stores, was in flames. The house next to Battalion Headquarters was practically gutted, and both the company billets were blazing merrily. The streets were littered with gas shells and the grey powder which they had scattered. The houses also were full of gas, nor were any of the gas-proof cellars better off. The first casualties were being loaded up into the ambulances, the men gasping, vomiting, choking, and with bloodshot, streaming eyes. Lieutenant Wyatt, who gallantly carried a wounded man across Armentières through the bombardment, was especially bad; and Quartermaster-Sergeant Jackson, who had been found wounded and unconscious in the street, was little better. Most of our advance party were in various stages of collapse, and the road to the advanced dressing station was already marked by a small stream of casualties. The civilians were in a terrible state. Gas protection for them consisted merely of one or two "P.H." helmets per family, and many of the poor creatures were now in agony from the gas poisoning. Efforts to rouse the Town Major proved of little use, and a search was instituted to try and discover some part of the town where the gas was less pronounced. It need hardly be said that the Commanding Officer was tireless in his efforts to relieve the situation, and in company with Major H. K. Wilson searched the town from one end to the other. It was on occasions such as these that the ordinary man got a glimpse of what the Commanding Officer really was. After a prolonged search, the schools between St. Vaast Church and the Convent were found to be clear, and thither the remains of the battalion were removed. The men, utterly tired out, fell fast asleep, but only to wake up and find that they were blind. This was "mustard gas," till then unheard of by us; and processions of blind men, led by one who could still see, became more and more frequent. We did contrive to make some tea, but the rest of the food was splashed with gas and was unusable; otherwise there was little to be done. The shelling of the Place de la Republique now began from a heavy battery, and the shells came perilously near the open courtyard where we sat under the cloisters that surround it. A thunderstorm broke suddenly, and probably did more to clear away the gas than anything else could have done. That night and the whole of the next day the Germans shelled the town fiercely. Splendid work was done by Lieutenant Penrice, who had just gone to the Transport in place of Hutchinson; by Lieutenant Clarke, who had gone to join a Brigade Training School in course of formation; and by the transport drivers, who worked with unceasing energy and courage.

By July 31st the following had been evacuated: Colonel Fletcher, Major H. K. Wilson, Captains Eccles and Steward, Lieutenants Alcock, Collinge, Evans, Royle, Rothwell, J. R. Paul, 2nd-Lieutenants E. E. Paul, Pegge, Little, and Wyatt, the new Padre, Weaver, and the new Medical Officer, Robinson. The Adjutant, who went on leave on the 29th, before the far-reaching effects of the gas had fully revealed themselves, went into hospital on his arrival in England. Company Sergeant-Major Heyworth had started with him but had been compelled to remain behind at the M.D.S., Fort Rompu, being quite blind and delirious. The stream of ambulances, lorries, general service waggons, and farm carts pouring into and out of Armentières, was a sight that will long be remembered. The whole of "B" Company and the whole of "C" Company, except 2nd-Lieutenant Fell and one man, became casualties. Of Battalion Headquarters there remained only one policeman and one store-keeper. The rest, including the Regimental Sergeant-Major, Regimental Quartermaster-Sergeant, orderly-room, medical, sanitary, and Quartermaster's staff, the cooks, the tailors, the bootmakers, and all the other details, were evacuated. The Battalion Orchestra, who were playing when the barrage opened, were badly gassed to a man, and their instruments destroyed. Captain Bowring suddenly found himself Commanding Officer, and his command consisted simply of "A" and "D" Companies and the transport. The total casualties, including the gassed, for July were: 17 officers wounded, of whom Lieutenant Collinge died from the effects of the gas, 12 men killed, and approximately 428 wounded. Of these a few died later, and more were invalided from the service, but a good many rejoined us in due course.

Before proceeding any further it will be as well to discuss briefly the cause of this disaster. In the first place, this was only the second concentrated bombardment with mustard gas that had occurred. The first had taken place at Ypres a month before, and caused extensive casualties, but the report of these did not reach us till the night of relief, when it came with the usual correspondence, which, owing to pressure of work, was not opened till after the disaster had happened. The significance of the new form of gas should certainly have been circulated earlier. With the dangers of ordinary gas we were familiar, and in any case no one could have lived for five minutes in the area most strongly affected without a respirator. The slightest breath of this new gas was like inhaling red-hot air and choked you immediately. After the first density of the gas had dispersed, the area became comparatively clear, and the insidious and silent evaporation, practically free from smell, caused no one inconvenience, and in some places was so slight as to be barely perceptible. It was this that affected the eyes, an entirely new phenomenon to us; and the comparatively small number that suffered from serious internal gassing proves that the ordinary precautions were taken. Moreover, most of those badly gassed were actually caught in Armentières itself by the original barrage, which began at the rate of hundreds of shells in a minute. When it is remembered that as late as the spring of 1918, after mustard gas had long been recognized and widely advertised, and every possible precaution taken against it, a concentrated bombardment still produced casualties running into hundreds, it is not so very surprising that on the second occasion when it was used, and the first as far as we were concerned, only about fifty escaped out of the total troops in Armentières, consisting of two half battalions, some field and heavy batteries, and some Royal Engineer, Machine Gun Corps, and Trench Mortar sections. Of the civilian population, it is probable that scarcely one single person got off unscathed.

This bombardment was the climax of our long period in Houplines. We had been instructed to be as offensive as possible, in order to divert the attention of the enemy by our aggressive tactics from the operations scheduled to commence on July 31st, and now known as the Third Battle of Ypres. Little glory attaches to a "feint" attack, whether it be stationary or by movement; but if successful it brings down upon you severe hostile attention, which has to be endured without any compensating chance of sharing in the glory of a great victory. That we succeeded in our allotted task, and that the 171st Infantry Brigade bore the brunt of it, we know not only from what our Army Commander said, but because the Intelligence showed that the Division kept two German Divisions pinned down opposite to it right till the end, and this notwithstanding the fact that the hostile artillery was about ten times as great as our own. The steady increase of destructive shooting on the area immediately north and south of the Lys, the regular "crashing" of all lines of communication, the intense shelling of Armentières, culminating in the great gas bombardment, prove conclusively that the enemy was daily expecting an attack on Frelinghien, for which he imagined a force was concentrating in Armentières. That our casualties were not greater was due to the scattered position of the posts holding such a large sector, and to our constant efforts to provide such protection as could best be constructed under the circumstances.