Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/203/1 - August - October 1918 - Part 2

bldgs. In one of these These
turned out to be the bldgs. covering
the big dugouts of a Bde Divl Hqrs
- 18 officers were taken from
one dugout alone.  300
prisoners in all must have
bn taken there & 21 m.gs.
(The m.gs. were in
potholes & positns around.  The
potholes were full of Germs.
As we got within 30 yds they
stood up, threw off their kit,
& began to hold out revolvers
or any thing we had.
Abt then the 60 Bn came
along on the rt.  C Coy 58
had come round / N side o /
Copse.  Some Germs were k in
the Copse.
58 Bn had bn moving S.E.
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The 58 Bn had attacked
without arty & tanks.  When
/ Tanks did come up w 1st
Divn they were knocked out
at once.
Brig Gen Elliott moved up
his Bde Hqrs to this D.H.Q.
[While 59 Bn ws in /
front line / first evg. a horseman
rode up to the post of ours.
As he got up to / post
the men there were astonished
to see tt he ws a German.
He made a swipe at one
w his sword - wounded him
in / arm, & got away.  Several
o / men spoke of this later]
There ws a xx xx lot of
rifle & m.g. fire from the
left at Vauvillers after the
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58 arrived on its objve.
At this time Lt Robinson
L.O. acting as Liaison Offr
w 59 Bn brought word
tt they were not to go further
As the 1st Divn were going
their hardest to catch up
& go thro.  The Germs had
first put down a heavy
barrage 800 yds ahead
& it looked an ugly place
to go into.  The Germs were
firing thro fixed sights
at 58 Bn during / advance
also.
After 1st Divn had
passed thro they waited
½ hr, then returned to /
dugouts.  58 Bn considered
tt it ws on / Vauvillers Rosieres Rd
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Aug 9 {Garvett } when advancing from Stn in
^rushes on m.g. barrage on mg of Aug 9
{Truscott  Also others
Aug 8 {Crockford - hit at Harbonnieres in
evening by shell (Aug 8.) d. of w.
{Stevenson  wd. - in B/V. Aug 8.
8 L. Gunners in one Coy alone
were k.  On mg. of Aug 9 by
this m.g. barrage.
5 or 6 were wd also in /
reconnaissance. 
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Peronne.  Aug 29.
58 Bn ws warned for
the show on Aug 29 (thro 8 Bde)
but and ws lying out above /
river (in J.O. positn wh it had reached evg before) when it was declared
off at 7.30 p.m.  (This ws all from Divn).
Aug 29.  At 10 p.m.  Bdier ws
called to a confce.  From there he
came back at 2 pm a.m. w plans
for a crossing further N.
Aug 30.  During / night of Aug 29/30
the B.M. & Bde 1.O. were
collecting Bns & giving them
instrns to move up N. &
attack thro 2nd Divn.
who were to make / crossings.
This ws to be at dawn.
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At abt 6 a.m. Lt Moon
went down to find / dispositns
ahead of Bn. - down Attila
Alley.  He found a pty
of 28 Bn?  just returning
after having failed to cross /
Somme.  When Bn found this
they took over from 2nd Divnl
Bn inst. of passing thro, &
spent / day in N6. or 12.
Abt 5 pm Aug 30.  They
moved up & took a line
from 2nd Divn.
15 Bde H.Q. came up ^to O2 B 8.9. here
from O 1 D 5.4 abt. - where they
had gone from Varna trench -
& had a dress circle view
of / fighting till Sept 5.  The
Bde H.Q. dugout had a
sort of verandah w a black
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background where the
heavy arty offrs & others sat
out on chairs w telephones
& watched everything.  Brig
Gen Elliott used to stand
out in front in his socks
& move abt w a map in
his hand, & he drew the
m.g. bullets.]
He got up in x
Patrols tt night tried to
find river Xing.  2 offrs
were badly wd.  (Lt L. Davis &
Lt Eric Beech) on / one patrol
- whole patrol were casualties
going down / La Chapellette
Rd.  They had to find if /
rly bridge cd be crossed.
Another patrol ws
further S - also failed.
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X  One morning at Bde Elliott hearing
tt 14 Bde or 2nd Divn had made
a great advance into Peronne
ran up from his dugout & found
Col Scanlon (59) & Maj Doyle (58)
w their boots off.  xx^Doyle one boot off &
Scanlon 2.  He sd: Have you heard
what 2nd Divn have done.  Are
your men across / river?
Scanlon sd: Yes - weve taken
all steps, Genl.  They are to send out a patrol
from - Coy, & hold / Coy ready to - .
But aren't they across there?
sd Pompey.
They are taking all / possible steps..
... sd Scanlon.
Damn it I'll take them over
myself sd Pompey & dashed of straight down
/ hill over / open in full view o / Germans
- got to a patrol post of 59 Bn W o / Canal &
took it across & left it W of / Canal.  Then
came started back.  Meanwhile the two
[*C.O.s started sd: We ought to go down & follow him.  They put on their boots
& started down / same dangerous slope & immediately / German
mgs had them flat on their paces, running from shell hole to shell
cover - At / foot o / slope they met a wet figure coming
back.  Pompey, striding back over / duckboard
bridge full
of pleasure satisfaction
had trodden
on a loose
plank &
fallen in /
Canal - 5
feet of
water.
"I cd take
a battalion
down there
in perfect safety
any day"
he sd,
referring to
/ slope down
wh he
had come.'*]
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From Bde X
Aug 31.  The Germs cd be seen
reinforcing agst 2 Divn
along the trenches this side
of Mt St Q - (Koros trench etc).
Report came from 2 Divn
tt they had Mt St Q.  15 Bde
ws advising them tt they had
not taken Mt St Q.  The
Germs wd start work down the
trenches E of the St Denis
Aziecourt Rd - into / 
Quarry, thence thro
Koros trench into / Quarry &
from there into / Wood.
Diagram - see original document
They cd also be seen coming
down the trenches to E of Peronne in
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parallel trenches Columns thro
all trenches & thence across the
open into Anvil Wood.
The arty cd nt get on
to these targets till late in /
evg. when a heavy shoot ws
done on Anvil Wood, &
/ wood on / hill from
wh they were stealing down.
Lots of Germs cd also be
seen on the rly SW of Flamicourt.
It is absolutely certain
2 Divn ws not in Gott Mit
uns trenchx
Sept 1.  Maj. Ferris & Lt Moon at
6 a.m. & met a pty of
54 Bn on / rly bridge.
They had worked down thro /
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W side of Peronne.  They sent
back.  58 Bn ws then moved
down to the Biaches the
slope past left of la Chapellette.
Crossed / Canal by the
Bristol Bridge - x xx xx
One Coy ^(D Coy under Lt Deane) ws sent down
to / right to try & cross
w 57 Bn in 9 A & B.
It ws found impossible to
get across the marshes
E of La Chapellette.
C. Coy therefore took up a
positn where they had a
good positn for keeping
covering fire on the quarries
South of Little Flamicourt, while
2 other Coys went up thro
Peronne, thro / E o / town
& swung S. to meet D Coy &
19