Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/113/1 - May - June 1918 - Part 9

104       90
on left to push up & take over / left o /
trench. Lt Small went back & made
arrangements w Lt Watts, trench mortar
officer. [Reserve Coy ws ordered forwd to
the Sunken Rd J 23 D & B] The TM x (one) was
to put down a barrage - as soon as it ceased
the pln on left ws to advance from / Bray
Corbie Rd while Lt Ridleys pln kept Germ,
heads down w rifle grenade & fire.

104        89
On / way back Murphy met
Lt Small & told him / arrangements
to see if he agreed. He did. He knew
however tt there wd not be time by 9.
He went forwd w Lt Mackenzie Dark to
Ronald. They arranged / attack for
10 so tt Mackenzie Lt Dark cd go to /
Rt Coy & tell them / situation; & also for 18 Bn

104         88
Lt Small sent C.S.M. Murphy forward
to B Coy (Ronald) partly thro open
partly thro C.T. North of Rd (it ws
possible to get there by day).
Mar Ronald told him tt he
ws going to bomb down / trench.
Murphy arranged w Capt Ronald
tt C. Coy shd attack (originally at 9)

104       87
Lt Small took out a small pty first to see
what ws in front. Later Mr Ridley took
out a platoon to / abandoned post
in front o / quarry ^40yds from / post.- (4 posts,
lightly held). This wd be abt 4.30 to 5.
Another pln ws then put along / Bray
Corbie Rd.
Diagram- see original document 

104       86
had bn disorganised by / barrage (3.45.)
They drifted back. The Officers going up to see
what / matter was saw / Germs. & took
up a positn in / Quarry with most o /
Coy. (The Germs had bn seen digging in in
front o / Quarry in a series of shellholes &
some old posts. The Quarry ws in /
timber (2 quarries together - a Stokes
mortar ws in the S. Quarry).

104      85
burst as they lay out there. M. put
his men next to K, lying along / Corbie
Rd. He handed over to K & went
back to Ronald. It ws daylight -
5 am or later. Things were quiet
then till / counter attack.
A ^Ration party from C. Coy - Lt Small's Coy -
moved up from wh had bn going up w rations

104         84
He shouted Is that you Kel? from abt
20 yds away. No reply. He shouted louder.
Someone sd No Kom on Tommi! &
beckoned him in to give himself
up. He pulled his revolver, shot at them
& cleared, hearing Kelsall shout “Get
down you fool Theyre Fritzes."
K. seems to have been k. by a m.g.

104       83
& were walking round. Kelsall lay
down in / crop.
Abt 10 mins later Lt Mackenzie N.C. ws
sent out w another L.G. team 12 men
to form a defensive flank along the
Bray Corbie Rd.
Diagram- see original document
He saw a number
of men walking round
& shouting (prob N C Os) & others digging in.

104       82
best back to our people. On / way he
picked up 2 prisoners. Another man
ws being escorted by 2 Germs when
they were shot & he got back.
Lt Kelsall (of Ronalds Coy) & 12 o.r.
(L.G. team) were sent out into / crop in
rear to form a defence agst / Germs
in rear. He got within abt 40 yds
of them - They had lost both their offrs

104       81
He sd they had come specially from Bray -
they were storm troops & had come lately from
Alsace.
Pte Ralphs, who had bn in the trench
to the right, ws cut off & captd among others.
The Germs had not eno' men to escort
R. They tossed him over / trench & told
him to go back. He picked up a G.
rifle, shot / German & ran for his