Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/203/1 - August - October 1918 - Part 4

They heard a cat mewing.

Elliott had them rowing 

across to rescue it.]

Lt Morey ws k. on

reconnaissance on / causeway 

to Flamicourt tt day. (Possibly 

testing the causeway. He had 

bn sent back to report - had 

reported - & ws on his way

back.)

There were pretty heavy 

casualties also in NCOs & 

men by Bullet & mg. fire. 

Lt Bowler.

One German m.g. ws doing a lot of 

damage from a 2 storey bldg near / 

E end of the main st. One of our L.Gunners 

got his gun onto him & he toppled 

w his gun out o / top window onto 

/ rd.

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The first of Slaughters patrols 

struck a German m.g. firing 

from / S. of / rd across onto /

N. Ramparts: Cpl Macleod 

got to within 50 yds. He 

k 3 instantly w his L.Gun; 

Sergt Moss & Cpl Gladstone 

then rushed out expecting / 

rest o / crew to kamerad - 

wh they didnt do. Seeing 

only 2 attacking they in 

their turn called on them to 

surrender. Moss & G. fired 

shots at close quarters ^so did / Germs but

they missed; M & G. got their 

men & / rest were accounted 

for by / rest o / patrol. 

Gladstone ws later k. by another 

m.g. same day 10 mins later.

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58 Bn. Bellicourt.

Started near Templeux 

abt 7.30 Came up N of Hargicourt

in arty formation of plns.

As they reached american

JOT they began to get shelled.

They went on till hit 

the Hindbg outpost line abt 

1200 yds S of Quennemont 

Farm. No idea tt anything 

ws wrong - saw large pties 

of 7 or 8 )of Americans escorting 

few Germs to rear. Cd get 

no information at all 

of how anything ws going. 

They were in touch w 57 Bn 

on rt. At / top o / 

hill / fog of smoke ws 

v. heavy. 57 Bn had an 

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offrs patrol out ^for same reason. Bn halted in fog. After  

tt 58 Bn moved on 

again in same formation.

As they came down / slopes 

/ fog ws getting lighter.

A certain amt of m.g. 

fire began to come from 

left & left rear. They 

came to / conclusion tt 

either / Americans had 

not mopped up or tt 

our people were not through 

on / left.

They came to / tunnel 

bank & found 57 ^there on rt; no 

sign of 59 on left. Some 

fair number of Americans 

were there but they didnt 

know what they were 

doing - quite disorganised.

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They knew their own people 

were ahead - but didnt; know 

where. Capt Loughnan ^(senior officer of 58) went

down to Col. Denehys H Qrs 

& conferred w him. It 

ws then decided tt, instead 

of waiting till they got to 

/ Nauroy Line (their JOT) 

they wd jump off from / 

Canal bank. Col. Denehy's 

Hqrs may have bn in touch 

w bde. This decision ws 

come to ^by Col Denehy & Capt Loughnan on / strength of 

/ reports of our patrols. 

They Officers patrols had 

bn out in front (Offr sergt / 

man etc) ^abt 2.20am. & cd see scattered 

parties of Americans being 

walked off by / Germans.

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It wd now be abt 2.45.

The attack ws made 

at 3p.m. w a barrage wh 

ws very light.

At 3pm. The 58 hopped over 

on left of 57. Going direct 

E towds the signal stn they 

had abt 60 per cent casualties.

They did not get further than

/ trench wh bends S. through

28 C & D. They had v heavy 

m.g. fire from front (Nauroy

Line) left & left rear. 

Here they found tt / Nauroy 

Line ws strongly held & tt / 

Germs were enfilading from 

left & left rear.

Except for a number 

of disorganised Americans

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on the Tunnel Bank, & in 

shellholes S. of the C.T. 

thro 27B & 28C; Capt Loughnan 

got the C.O. of these & got 

the C.T. occupied by them 

together with a lost Coy of 

B 44 Bn. The line ws 

continued from there by 

59 Bn & then 3rd Divn again.

up the Hindbg main line towds 

Bony. [^Just on dark Loughnan found This American C.O. 

of 119th Regt had bn standing in / road behind

/ bank, getting shelled, w no idea  

of where his troops were or

what ws happening. There 

ws an American aid post 

in / air shaft just by the

corner bend of the C.T. He Loughnan took him 

along to his Headqrs. That night 

118th Regt came in to relieve 

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119th Regt - Loughnan wdnt 

let 119 men go but put 118th 

in the CT & in the Hindbg 

main line in 27C.

30 Sept. At 2 a.m. L. ws sent for 

to 58 Bn Hqrs & got an operatn

order for / next mg. They 

were to hop over (w as many 

Americans as they cd)

swing the bend of the 

left flank up onto into line thro 28^centl. -

22 central Tunnel bank & then 

jump forwd into Le Catelet 

Line.  This ws done at zero.

No tanks. ?Barrage. The left 

wd be abt 22 C 9.5.

Right was 28 D 4.0.

Lieut Green & an NCO were w / 

Americans. The American

officer knew what ws wanted &

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the men did it very readily.

They got in along the 

whole front. They found tt from 

the left N.wds the line ws 

occupied by / Germans. A 

Bombing block ws put in at 

abt 22 B 0.5. The losses 

were light - only abt 10 

for 58th Bn. The rt ws 

on / road just by / lamp 

signal stn, in Nauroy line.

The Nauroy line ws now 

held continuously by us 

up to / bombing block.

Cabaret Wood Fm ws 

v. active w m.gs. 

In the Nauroy line ws 

found a 77 gun wh ws 

probably / one wh hit all 

/ tanks / previous aftn. [The 58 

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had had abt 4 whippet tanks w 

it & they had all bn hit on 

/ ridge in front of Cabaret Wd 

Fm].

They decided to raid 

Cabt Wood Fm at 3am 

on Oct 1.

At 2a.m. Capt L. ws 

again sent for to Bn Hqrs 

& gn some more operatn

orders wh cut this out. 

They were to / jump forwd 

& occupy an outpost 

line on / forward slope 

& make Le Cat - Nauroy 

line / main line of resistance.

This ws done without 

oppositn at dawn. The 

53 Bn ws to work its way 

N. behind this advance & bomb

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