Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/112/1 - May 1918 - Part 7

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at a run. Finally he took to
keeping tins under / bank &
throwing them over when they were
finished with. No tins had bn thrown
out for some hours. Our sentries were
sure / German ws asleep.
The Colonel looked over / top, wh
ws usually very dangerous, & sat
there chest high looking thro his
 

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/ German ws asleep also. The German
had been at first for some days very active from his
bank of the Caterpillar. (He had a
trench mortar in some bushes behind
it, also). Our men had however
made things very lively for him of
late; & when he crossed / gully to his
latrine (he cd be seen from our
present positn going across from one
bank to / other) he had to do it
 

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up in / line also having a look round.
There were 4 from each Coy, a Corpl & a
Sergt ;  & 4 of them were reinfts who
had only bn in / battalion a few
days.
Murphy found / whole trench
drowsy in  / heat. All / men were
asleep except / sentries, & / 
sentries were "dopey" - He asked
 them what ws / matter & they sd tt
 

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went across from 18 Bn support line &
taped off; at night, from F to A with a 
tape. A sap ws then to be dug in
this corner - (I am not sure o /  directn
& / map is from memory of what Col.
Murphy told me.)  Murphy ws at
this time looking for places to raid
(which is of course of first importance in
/ front line nowadays). He was
visiting / trench with Lt Irvine, his
intelligence offr;  & the Bn scouts were
 

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Drawing -see original document

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Drawing - see original document

running  along / side o / hill. We were
in front of this 
in / old
German 
support
line posts
& on the left
of the 18th Bn
at A was the 22nd
or 21st. It could not
be placed from the the 18th Post
at B. A Sergt accordingly 
 

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18th Bn. May … 1918

18th Bn daylight raid near
Marlancourt.
17 Bn on relieving 9 Bde found
itself overlooked badly by a German post
near / top end top end o / Big Caterpillar.
There was As the Big Caterpillar
approached / top of  / hill it wound
behind a bank (clearly visible on
/ air photos of this date). Another bank
 

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were quiet during / night,
the bombing going on on / left.
They cd not have held on /
right wh ws held w abt 6
men on Each of the 3
blocks. Pickett came from Dandenong.
Pickett ws wd abt 8 a.m. but bombed all
day. He did grand
work on the right.
Pickett ws k on the Daisy
Wood fight - Oct 9, Paschendaele   Broodseinde.
 

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Rienct C.T. & left 2 men
there (Egerton ws one). When they got
the Bn pioneers up they went
on to the further original
block & found no Germans -
but 2 wd men of 28 Bn.
This block ws held till
they were reld by 3 Bn at
2.30 A.M on May 4. The Germs
 

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Mahony J A
without an E.

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made to force the post,
Abt 10 p.m. Lt Pickett reported
that 28 Bn had evacuated /
trench.  13 Coy 24 Bn had abt 25 men
left in x O.G. 2 left of the
rd - so they detailed 11 men to
watch  / block. Mahoney Egerton took
these up to a point past the
 

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of Rd in OG2 They moved
out past our rt block in OG2
& almost immed. came in
contact w / German strong post
They called for support of Stokes
mortar & tried to force /
post but failed & eventually
they had to fall back to our
block.  No further efforts were