Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/108/1 - April - May 1918 - Part 7

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150 yds ahead of the Bn & shook / Bn out as it arrived on / tape.
52 Bn got there first. Suppt Coy had just deployed & / reserve
Coy ws just deploying when / line pushed off at 10.10pm.
Left went thro / edge o / wood. At / corner o / wood in
34c opposite ws first met with. One of these (m.g.s) ws firing due SW
up / road. Lt Sadlier led his pln agst this m.g. He ws wounded
- shot thro arm - but still carried on. Just as he got to it
again he ws hit in / leg. One Lewis gun
under Corpl Brown workd up into / edge o / wood; 2 Lewis guns

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got on / south side of him. Sergt Stokes found a heavy m.g.
between behind / corner o / wood abt 34 C 7.3.  He took a section of bombers at it
first. They were blown out so he carried on himself straight at it from the
front - threw his bomb & luckily hit the gun. Brown
coming out o / wood (after hitting ? his first gun) ran into a lot of
disorganised Germans, & ran back into / wood & shot them down. In this
corner o / wood 6 guns were picked up. In the Sunken
Rd in 34 D & the Xrd NW of it was another
nest. They were enfilading from there the wire in front of the Cachy
switch thro 4 centl (?) & also firing up the road.

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We tried to get round the right; then round / left. Only one
gun ws left. The men were tiring. The m.g. offficer _^ of 24 mg Coy left w his
m.g. to watch this gun. A big mortar was there also
He fired one shot near / corner of / road, wh went over / head of our
men who had just cleared / corner o / wood. He ws in a Xroad
about 34 D 6.4.
51 Bn went round the top o / hill
skirting the valley.
2 North Hants were supposed to go on from this
positn. The Hants when they got fire from these guns stopped

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turned round facing these guns. Earle's supporting coy ws dealing w these things.
Saddliers platoon of the leading coy
ws mixed with it. 
The left ws held here for some time. 
Harborne's acct.
Harborne's coy. in / meantime had swung to / rt, apparently on acct o /
wire they had to get thro & the opposite from / left. The men making for
for the gaps of the thick wire to the right & crowding round here they -
....About 35c 3.3.  There ws a post w 4 m.g.  There ws
a bit of a hollow. Smith & Bart - No 1 of the gun, walked
straight onto them before they knew where they were - when
they saw 40 Germs. They didnt know they were Germs. The 40 Germs surrendered to them

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& they made them take off their equipment & then sent them back w
their equipt dumped there just as if it were a pln piling arms, & the 4 guns
were left there. This ws after Capt Harborne had got up there.
Harborne grabbed every man he cd find
& organised small pties in arty formatn & pushed them up
to / left. The extreme left ws still held up on / left.
The men fell in - 10 men here, 10 there - blew
whistle & advanced as a party.
They finished left in 35C 3.4.  Right: 5A 2.3

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The Germ. ws dug in in front of monument wood & up to /
village. Harborne w abt 40 men got up the slope
twds the monument - you cd pick the wood up from there - & went
up / slope catching ?different ? seven _^ odd Germs, & m.g.s from here; & there ws an old
gun in some little dig dug-in positn wh / Germs had left.
Monument wd ws firing at / people on / right not
troubling about Harborne.  In front o / wood & to / left between
/ wood & / village ws a bty of 77s - looked like our 18 pdrs.
There were a few dead around, but not a man near.

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The village ws firing at Harbornes left rear & the monument wood at
the 52nd & Bedfs. who were swung back. Harborne told Lt Town
to try & get into / wood & he went to see what the 52 Bn
were doing. He left Town on / road in 36D [?35D or 36C]
& found them in the road in 5c. The 52nd offr.
met him there but sd he cdnt go forwd because the Bedfs were
not coming up & his rt ws in / air. They discussed the 
positn, & H. decided to withdraw his men from / monument.
There ws a m.g. firing into their back from / village,

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apptly in some high bldgs. At this time / left ws up beyond
the road fork in 35C.
At this point one o / men came in & sd there ws a dump of
Mills bombs captd by / Germs. during / day. The were near / rly
by / village. Sergt Glenroy & Earles went down to get these bombs.
They picked up 2 boxes & came back
when one of our m.gs. opened.
Harborne found his men _^ still on / rd & withdrew them.
All / time they cd hear firing on / NW of / village - the other
side o / village.

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It seemed to be there all / time.
Before daylight Sergt Francis went forwd & salved everything he cd,
off the cooker wh ws between the guns & / wood further south. In
/ morning a crowd of men cd be made out abt this
position. Harborne thought they were massing but they
were really getting away / guns.
Two of our planes lie in front of mont. wood
to the SW corner, & a tank abt 5B central. It ws on its side
- it may have bn an English tank.

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In / morning / German worked men in betw. Mon^t. Wd
& / village. The Germ had the village at this time & ws still in
/ wood. The Germs were firing from / wood all night.  Abt 7am
a tank offr came along & sd he had 3 tanks.
In / morng there were Germs coming forwd from / village
& moving into / wood, running from the 15 Bn (?Bde)
At daylight Tommies cd be seen along / rly line
SW of / town & aft tt there ws no more sniping from there but only from