Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/132/1 - August - September 1917 - Part 5

53
x Col. Reynolds in England 3
days later told me tt a
surprising defect had bn
found in the machines given
them, wh were supposed to
be the latest word.
(*This ws written up a few
days later & I cant remember
if it ws this day or the next tt
Haig reviewed them). 
 
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54                                                  
None of our 'planes are over
yet.  It is sd tt one fell
on / journey to the coast, in
flames.  Oth They say tt at /
last minute it ws decided to
substitute others. x
Haig reviewed the
2nd & 5th Divns*.  They were
both looking grand.  Hurley,
who came back specially,
photographed them.  He took
a number of Haig & not so
many o / men - to my
mind it ws / strong faces o /
men tt were everything, &
Haig might go to blazes.
However he is a splendid
capable photographer.  I ws
worrying lest he might miss
the staff best pictures, but he always got
there in time, without fuss.
 

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55                                               
Haig, who is very cold,
told White that our men
could not have marched better
if they had had years of peace
training; & indeed they cd not.
I have seen the Guards on
a birthday parade march less
well.
Haig told Carruthers &  / others
tt if we - the two Anzac Corps -
did our job, the Germans wd
have to leave the coast.
It is a very optimistic statement
& it seems to me very
like something he sd once before
before Pozieres ^& Bullecourt.  In fact it
seems rather as tho' Haig had
a very simple way of
telling you tt your job
ws ^the  all important _^one before you
begin it, whether he believes
it or no.  Haig says tt if
 

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we cd keep our efforts up
through September we shd
have / Germans beaten.
Carruthers told us what
he knew of Haig in India;
he ws a tremendously ambitious
man; & a most painstaking
student.  He had read anything tt
ws ever written abt soldiering
& had it all at his fingers
ends.  For a knowledge of
soldiering in detail none
cd beat equal him.  He
ws / worst speaker & lecturer
who ever addressed a
staff ride - quite almost inarticulate
when faced with a group of
officers to whom he wanted to
explain something.  He ws clear
& determined, & no man
whom Carruthers knew ever
 

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57                                                  
inspired regular soldiers
w as much fear as Haig -
not even Kitchener.  They
were panic stricken in his
presence.  He only twice
dealt w Carruthers - once when
C. had made a slip bad mistake
& mis-read his orders he
let him down w / mildest
criticism - told him to put in
his interpretation of his
task as he read understood
it, & marked it "good".  The
other time when / mistake slip
was due to Haigs own
vagueness & cd not be
avoided, Haig snubbed him
heavily in front of the
staff ride. He He ws most
heavy handed in his "telling off"
of officers whom he criticised
 

12 
58                                                     
but probably a man of
gentle feelings in private
life.
Aug 28. White told me today
where in the line we are
to go.  It is, like Pozieres,
a very tight job.
Murdoch is over.  He is
certainly extraordinarily influential
with Hughes. The position he
occupies is in fact tt wh Fisher
ought to occupy if Hughes trusted
him. Murdoch is de facto
High Commissioner.
He told me what had happened
about employing / divisions
together. Australia had intimated
3 things, as he requested:
(1) That they wished, & it ws /
wish of Australian soldiers, tt all
Aust. troops shd as far as possible
 

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59                                                      
be kept  & used together.
(11) That they wished that
the officers shd be as far as
possible Australian & tt only
Aust. offrs shd be employed on /
Aust. staffs.
(111) That some senior offr
shd be appointed in liaison at
the W.O.
I think it ws the war council (to wh I
believe the answering of these
of these requests ws left)
replied.
(1) That Australian troops
were organised in Aust. divisions
& it cd not see what else ws
wanted - (either a crude
misunderstanding or a deliberate
evasion).
(11 ) That it ws the agreed policy
of the Aust. & Imperial Govts
 

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60
to have the staff service a
single mixed service & not
hard & fast separate services;
& tt / high posts were to shd be
open to men of either service.
[This is the Old Imperial
Genl Staff agreement.  It ignores
the fact that (1) an Impl. Genl staff
does not exist; &
(2) that it wd involve
the equal & temporary exchange of high staff offrs;
not / mere service of British
offrs on Austln staffs - we wd
agree to / service of junior
Austln staff offrs on British
staffs, temporarily, & vice versa]
(111) They did not see / use of 
/ liaison offr. He wd add nothing
to the relatns already existing
& wd create extra needless
work.
[and yet, for the want
 

61 
X After I returned from
England Murdoch & I
agreed tt Dodds, in civil
clothes, wd make a v. good
color representative. This is
where Hughes ought to have been long
ago - but Cook wdnt let him go I fancy.

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62                                                             
for / want of some such liaison
to explain what / Aust. Govt
meant, they were at hopeless
cross purposes in this very
reply.]
The _^British Govt sd tt it wd welcome
any representative of Austlia
on the War Cabinet staff.  This
part o / reply seems to me
good - tt is the representation
needed, not military representation; 
soldiers of high rank
will listen to a plain civil
secretary far more attentively
than to a major general
or certainly a Colonel. X
Birdwood has got from
G.H.Q. the 4^th Divn, but
not the 3rd. That will have
to be got later.
 

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Murdoch tells me tt B asked
Haig & H sd tt (though it ws clear
he did not want it or see its
necessity) B cd have them if
Plumer had no objection.
B rang up Plumer who sd
he did object to it.  B It ws
not fair to Gen.  Godley he sd.
B sd tt if he sd that the Cth
Govt had expressed the desire
tt / Divns shd be together did
this make any objection
diffce.  P cdn't answer
this but sd he still objected
to 4^th Div going.  B asked
him if he wd say tt / objection
ws tactical.  P sd he
would not say there ws a 
tactical objectn & finally
consented.  B rang up
Godley.  Godley sd "If you
 

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take them away I won't
call my Corps the Anzac
Corps at all -" but he
ws very nice abt it later.
However I am afraid
tt it means tt the 4^th Divn
will be very overworked -
Robertson who ws in today
sd tt there had bn a big
proportion of desertions amongst
the reinfts newly arriving.  The
reinfts now come from the
youngsters who arrive of at military
age, & the older men who
were previously considered over
it & amongst the youngsters
there are some splendid boys -
who have been straining & chafing
to get away as soon as they passed
the age; but it is amongst
these youngsters also tt there is