Diary of George Booley, 5th Battalion, AIF, 1917, Part 6 of 19

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11, 1917.
15th Week.
(101-264) Oxford Easter Term begins.

Did a bit of line work & in the
afternoon rolled another reel
of good wire, after tea it snowed
heavily & soon a pretty brisk
night was in progress I played
the old Soldier & got behind a fallen
fruit tree & did a bit of sniping
getting several direct hits on
some who could not locate me,
just as well for me, the joke of it
was the ones I was hitting on
the sly were dwelling on me so
the laugh was on my side. In
The evening was told Bde line
was down so I did my part &
traced it through the Villiage
& when I got back found that
the line was off the terminal,
not the first time this has happened
 

THURSDAY, APRIL 12, 1917.
15th Week
(102. 263)

Had a bit of a clean up in the
morning, in the afternoon Bill
& I went out & got another reel of
wire, we are getting a fine lot on
hand now & if we have to run it
all out when we go forward it is
going to be some advance, this
Salvaging of wire must save the
Government a good deal & also
saves transport which at present
is the question of the hour as
between all our old Railheads & here
is the strip of shell torn Country
about 3 to 4 miles in width, in
that strip the roads are in a
bad state as special attention
is paid to Roads. Our heavy
guns pretty active & more numerous
snow again in the evening.

FRIDAY, APRIL 13, 1917.
15th Week.
(103-262)

A nice day did nothing in the
morning in the afternoon we
went out again & gathered up
some more wire. For some days
the trouble has been fluctuating
rations, today we received a
fine lot of Canteen stores & tonight
we had a regular Banquet & have
a decent amount on hand, Custard
powder, milk & biscuits. There was
a mine went up not far away
this evening throwing earth &
rubbish up in all directions.
One of our planes came down.
 

SATURDAY, APRIL 14, 1917.
15th Week.
(104-261)

A fairly quiet day did a little wire
gathering again, in the evening
went for a walk round a big Chateau
just on the edge of the Villiage, it has
been a lovely place but now has
hardly enough cover for a rat, it
has been blown up in all directions
the grounds have been broken up
fine old trees cut down for the
sake of doing damage after cutting
them down they left them, just
alongside the Chateau is or was
a fairly big Church it has suffered
the same fate blown up with mines
in the Chateau gardens there are
some fountains & even these have
been broken up.

SUNDAY, APRIL 15, 1917.
16th Week
(105-260) Low Sunday. LESSONS.
Matins—Numbers xvi. to v 36 ; 1 Corinthians xv. to v 29.
Evensong—Numbers xvi v 36 or xvii. to v 12 ;  John xx.
v 24 to v 30.

In the early morning a bombardment
opened up on our front so
we stood too, the Bosche was 
attacking part of our front, we were
not called on to go forward & at
about 10 AM it slackened off, it
appears to have been an attempt
to retake part of the ground
recently occupied by us & I think
in the push did get on to a little
of it but were immediately put
out again. Got word that Les
Hicks was prisoner. Rolled
up some more wire making
a nice lot & filling up all our
available reels.
 

MONDAY, APRIL 16, 1917.
16th Week.
(106-259)

Moved through Beungy to a
position behind Lagnicourt
six of us moved up early with
the Sig Officer, en route we
crossed the main Bapaume
Cambrai Road & I think of its
kind is the best I have ever
seen & is now in perfect 
condition, it was on this road that
the great Gordon Bennett road
race used to be run. We are
camped at the place where
the German attack was held
up, we now have the facts of the
attack yesterday, about 2000 Germans
suddenly attacked our outposts
under cover of heavy artillery fire & broke
through in one place they were
driven out again immediately
rained all night.

TUESDAY, APRIL 17, 1917.
16th Week.
(107-258) Easter Law Sittings begin.

A miserable cold day sleety showers
I put in a good part of the day
improving the lines & was able to see
the result of Sundays attack, there
are few graves of ours, our casualties
were in the outpost who were 
outnumbered by about 20 to 1, after
getting through there little opposition
was struck until they arrived here
where the 9^th took up the fight &
fairly slaughtered them, They left 
dead by hundreds between 
Lagnicourt & their own lines, they had
been new troops brought up for the
occasion being all newly equipped
& dressed & as fine a body of Germans
as I have seen mostly young men
some mere boys, they paid dearly
for their attack & gained nothing.
 

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18, 1917.
16th Week
(108-257) Cambridge Easter Term begins.

Another miserable day, our artillery
very busy all day we could
see the shells bursting in the
German wire out in front, the
Germans shelled Lagnicourt at
intervals throughout the day
& night. Started to move our
Headquarters up nearer the
line some of the chaps went
over in the evening & dug 
themselves in to the side of a road,
for the first time for ages I did
a phone shift to save some of
the others coming back again
I did from 12 to 3 in the morning
& it was fairly cold too, the
weather is much colder than
this time last year. 

THURSDAY, APRIL 19, 1917.
16th week.
(109-256)

In the morning were shelled
with heavy H.E. but no damage
done it was funny to hear the
chaps as the shells would pass
over us & burst beyond the danger
line they would all hurrah &
laugh, the first thing was as
soon as they could hear them
"here she comes" then a couple of
seconds suspense & as they missed
they would all yell. Moved
to our new Headquarters in the
evening, the position is not
quite as safe but much xxxx
cleaner & less mud, three of us
have a good dugout in a pretty
deep cutting with a tarpaulin 
over us so are right.
 

FRIDAY, APRIL 20, 1917.
16th Week
(110-255)

Settled ourselves in our new 
position & got a look over the Country
from our position we can see
the German Lines & some Villiages
close behind them, one of them
is undergoing the burning
process as there is a cloud of
smoke coming from it, no doubt
they know they must soon get
out of it now. Late in the night
we had just gone to sleep when
a big H.E. arrived very close to
us the next much closer throwing
a lot of dirt about followed
by xx 6 more in close order but
no damage done 

SATURDAY, APRIL 21, 1917.
16th Week
(111-254)

For the greater part of the day it looked
as if everything was to be quiet on
our front but in the afternoon it
came out fine & there was some
aerial activity first the Germans
had a bit of a fly then a couple
of ours appeared & fooled around for
awhile then went over the German
lines & drew out several Bosche
planes which appeared then
several of ours came as it were
from nowhere & there was a
regular mix up planes diving
& darting at each other & machine
guns rattling & whenever possible
the guns from the ground
would have a say. Sgt Grant 8^th Bn
called to see me, Lagnicourt
heavily shelled
 

SUNDAY, APRIL 22, 1917.
17th Week.
(112-253)    2nd after Easter. LESSONS.
Matins— Numbers xx. to v 14 : Luke xvii. to v 20.
Evensong— Numbers xx. v 14 to xxi. v 10 or xxi.
v 10 ; Ephesians v. v 22 to vi. v 10.

Today was one of the liveliest experienced
for some time, during the night the 8^th took
a strong post on the Hindenberg line, soon
after daylight they started throwing big
shells everywhere & about 11. AM. blew the 8^th
clean out of the post with guns & trench mortars
making it impossible to live in it, there
was much shelling all day, lines much
damaged. While working mending the
lines a terrific machine gun fire came
from the clouds & on looking up saw a
never to be forgotten sight, 4 of our heavy
big planes came from the clouds just
surrounded by small planes (a new type of
German) they were about 6 to 1 diving
and climbing all over the big ones, 3
of which came down, 2 behind our own
lines with the pilots or observers dead
or wounded, they drove one over the Hun lines. 

MONDAY, APRIL 23, 1917.
 17th Week
(113-252) S. George's Day.

Last night changed over with the 8^th
4 of us put a new line to within 
about 300 yds of the strong post of the 
Hindenberg Line that the 8^th were
blown out of. Today was rather a 
decent day there was a fair 
amount of shelling especially our 
Heavies in the evening, there were
a few little air fights but nothing 
much, he tried a few times to 
put shells into our road but 
nothing doing. At dusk we 
put in a new latteral line between
the forward Coys, we went 
out without the pass word & could
not give it when held up by the
Outpost, a good job we are well
known in the Battalion. Could 
see a lot of Bosches working on Hindenberg
line & turned Artillery on them 

TUESDAY, APRIL 24th, 1917.
17th Week
(114-251) 

Spring appears to have come
all at once today is a faultless day,
I began to think we were never going
to get the likes of it again, the skylarks
are singing & only for the stream
of shells going back & forward I
could almost forget there is a war
on, the clear day has brought out
a lot of planes right from day
break onwards. In the afternoon one
of our planes brought down a German
& then landed alongside to get something
out of the German plane & in landing his
plane stood on the its head in some
rough ground, then the Germans opened
up their Artillery on both of them &
set them alight after wasting some
hundreds of shells on them, the German
pilot was taken prisoner & the
observer killed.

WEDNESDAY, April 25th, 1917
17th Week
(115-250) S. Mark, Evan. LESSONS
Matins—Isaiah Ixii. v 6 ; Luke xviii. v 31 to xix v 11.
Evensong—Ezekiel i. to v 15 : Philippians ii.

Today being cloudy not much aerial
work doing, the Germans have been
shelling us on & off all day as soon
as anyone put their head over the
bank but he has hit no one so
far, the shelling put both Coys
lines out of action, both Coys were
heavily shelled & we had a big
job mending the lines up being
very much broken, our Artillery
shelled the German lines & batteries
heavily especially the heavies
one of the Coy Sigs killed with
a shell.
 

THURSDAY, APRIL 26, 1917.
17th week
(116-249)

Plenty of shelling all over the
front Coys shelled a good deal
so were we but very little damage
done one Coy Sig killed & one
wounded again this makes
the fourth out of action in the one
Coy in two days, so I can see some
more Sigs being trained when we
get out again. At present there
is a bombardment every few
hours of the day on a front of about
18 miles from Arras to Queant
the last named appears to be the
turning point & is on our Sector.
Numbers to hand show that in
the attack of the 15^th inst the Germans
left 1500 dead on our front most of
them being Prussian Guard
Wires again badly broken. Aeroplanes
Active 

FRIDAY, APRIL 27, 1917.
17th Week.
(117-248)

Shelling again fairly solid mostly
ours today although there are
a few coming over, a dull day
& very little doing with the
aircraft ours being the only
planes visible, our planes
have been handling the Germans
pretty roughly in one day they
drove down 22 planes, with
only two of ours missing. The
lines in fairly good order but just
as we were finishing insulating a
break a shell landed within about
10 feet of us, of course we thought
it time to go & then shells started
to come in all directions however
alls well that ends well we found
a bit of a hole to get into & waited
for the storm to go over
 

SATURDAY, APRIL 28, 1917.
17th Week.
(118-247)

Last night in the vicinity of
our sector some gas cylinders were
thrown at the Germans, & strange
to say they did not retaliate on us.
A shell got into the road but did
not hit anyone. For the first
time since coming in our lines
held up all day saving us from
going round the lines in the night.
An unfortunate accident happened
in the night a patrol was sent
out & some of the post not notified
& the patrol was fired on killing
two or three & severely wounding
others. Artillery active all
day.

SUNDAY, APRIL 29, 1917.
18th Week.
(119-246) 3rd after Easter. LESSONS.
Matins—Numbers xxii. ; Luke xx. v 27 to xxi. v 5
Evensong—Numbers xxiii. or xxiv. ; Colossians i. v21 to ii. v 8

One of the quietest days since
we came in the Artillery was
just ordinary, in the morning
a German plane knocked down
in the afternoon 3 of our old
heavy planes got badly handled
two of them driven down by
the latest German planes
coloured red & green, they look
odd after the white with Black
cross. Bde Headquarters where
our cookers are was heavily shelled
completely burying some of the
Cookers & unfortunately the Coys
in the line lost their hot meal
in the night, they can only
get hot meals during darkness.
 

MONDAY, APRIL 30, 1917.
18th Week
(120-245)

Just an ordinary day shelling
& aerial work normal, Morchies
rather heavily shelled in the
evening, also some trenches
with no one living in. A lovely
day in fact warm in the Sun
a great contrast to a fortnight
ago. The lines again held up
all day, it is remarkable the
number of shells that fall at times
& miss the lines other times if only
one comes near it breaks them
An attempt made to blow up
some of the barbed were in front
of the Hindenberg  line with
partial success.