Читать книгу The War History of the 1st/ 4th Battalion, 1914-1918. The Loyal North Lancashire Regiment онлайн

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FRIDAY, June 11th, 1915.

Second Lieutenant Lindsay rejoined the Battalion.

The morning was finer, but the trenches were still very muddy. Three working parties were sent out in the morning to work in the open between the reserve and the support lines in the making of bridges across the ditches and of tracks through the long grass, of ramps in the trenches to facilitate climbing the parapet, and in clearing up the old German trench which lay in that area. The Germans shelled this old trench of theirs regularly, though it was not occupied.

The Battalion was relieved unexpectedly by the 1/7th Black Watch. Relief was completed by 10 45 p.m., and the Battalion marched back along the Canal to billets near LE CORNET MALO, in the wood to the south of that place. The march was a tiring one, but the men lasted out well, and billets were reached about 5 a.m.

SATURDAY, June 12th, 1915.

The day was passed in resting and cleaning up.

SUNDAY, June 13th, 1915.

Orders were received to return to the trenches we had left on Friday night, and relieve the Battalions which had relieved the 1/8th K.L. Irish and ourselves then. Though no order had been issued, we all knew that the Battalion was going up for an attack, and in anticipation of this the Officers, or as many as cared to do so, drew men’s uniforms from the Quartermaster’s Stores. Lieutenant Moore, hearing in hospital word of this impending attack, rejoined us. The Battalion marched off at 6 p.m., and relief was completed in the trenches about 1 a.m. This time we took over the fire and support trenches from the 1/6th Black Watch. We found the trenches very much drier than when we left them. There was some shelling at the time of relief. The dispositions of the Battalion (646 strong) were: B and C Companies in fire trenches, D Company in support, A Company in reserve.