Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/151/1 - 1915 - 1917 - Part 3

31       25
old Gallipoli hand -
but ws probably cut
out from rear - or
quickly rushed in /
mist. The posts on
rt & left heard nothing.
The news came of 6 Bn
posts at Knotty Pt going;
but 3 Bn ws not in
commn w this post
by day.
H Enemies
April 9.

3rd Bn line ws
along Beaumetz Rd
thro 28c & 34
a & b from Rly to
canal. 2 Coys,
C & D were in it

31       26
They had to clear

area betw Hermies -
rly & Canal
& link w 2 Bn
E of Hermies xx
at K 25 A00 to Canal
at 36 A00.
They were to leave
their rd at 03.45.
(Hand drawn diagrams - see original document)
2 waves of
2 lines each,
more or less
in practised

formation.
As soon as they
moved / Germns opened
w mgs but they
got to abt line
close in front of

27
Our men were
extended from 6 to 8 yds,
& kept their intervals
well - & this kept
/ casualties down.
But even so if /
Germans had used
their m.gs well /
attack ought never
to have succeeded.
31      28

[Hand drawn diagram - see original document]

rly.
-They were
held upon
left by
wire &
a strong pt (A) but the
rt coy, & rt half of
left coy pushed on
& got onto rly at
29d before the post
at A had given.
By this time the Germs
began to feel 2nd Bn
entering the town, &
cleared. The left
Coy pushed on & got
the mg. near Stn.

31      29
They took anor. m.g.
on road in 35B.
Killed 20 of the crew -
one man, corpl. He
Ewart, got this gun.
He got to / flank of it,
bombed & shot.
Another m.g. ws
seized in the Cemetery.
(2 graves of 2 15Bn men
there in Hermies ws a
C.C.S. - the little
chapel there had

not bn touched).
They left a postn in
/ cemetery & fell
back onto the sunken
rd hJ 36A o I -
to 30C.2.4. &

31      30

had 2 posts in J.30
C.  5.6, & 7.6 -
wh tho' not connecting
with 2Bn covered
the area between.
The cemetery post
ws maintained -
& / follg night a
line of posts ws
estab. as originally
laid down well

in front o / cemetery.
The German mgs
were firing high &
their bursts ragged.
They ought to have
got the 2nd Bn
going into Hermies
x↑  by firing in this direction.

31
He had lately returned after Gallipoli-
X He has now gone back
to England - he had bn too
long at / base & will never
be any good again - I thought not
 

Strength Engaged:
{C.Coy 6 offrs 193 o.r.
{D Coy 5 -        194 o.r.
Carrying pties}
Sigs etc.}  30.
3 Vickers guns of 1st
m.g. coy were with
them & followed Bn.
 

31    32
Butler commanded

the rt. D Coy X
& Tyson C Coy.
2 Lt. MacMaster.
I offr. 25 o.r. k.
I offr 45 o.r. w.
MacMaster ws k near the
wire of the strong post near
the Stn - prob. nearer
than anyone.
MacDougall ws
commanding the 2nd
pln. of the left half
of the same coy. Both
hit by m.g. McMaster
had abt 20 bullets thro
him.

33
Landing:
April 26.

4th Bn's charge.
Men in
Turk trench
till after
dark
Came back in
morning & aftn also.
It ws 2nd attack tt ws
ordered by
Bridges

34
[Hand drawn diagram - see original document]
2 attacks to A B - one in
morning, one in afternoon.
In the afternoon
Hearne went on to J.J. where
he saw some men &
Onslow Thompson. These
were quite isolated &
order ws gn to retire.
They many of them retired
across N of J.Jolly & got

35
The men on the
J.Jolly were beckoning
to Hearne to go across.
Hearne had had a message
from McN. to go ahead.
a written message finally.
He didnt know where
to go or what to do. A
corpl ws telling / men
tt they must not get down
-must go on. Hearne
went up to him & made him
be quiet (as men didnt know
where to go & were only
getting k. by standing up)
& then took, all he cd
get, over under v.
heavy shrapnel.
There is no doubt
that right of 4Bn was by
the [[?]] [[?]], past it,
facing J. Jolly.
 

31     36
terribly cut abt.
Hearne hung on till
dark & retired up
Owens fully under
orders of Col.
McNicholl.

After dark there were
2 pickets connecting
with 4 Bn in Lone Pine
(where some still were
in T. trenches) & 2 pickets
out in front of J.Jolly
Col. McNicoll sent an
order across to them to
withdraw abt 9 p.m.
McN. ws acting for the Bde.

37
up to do so, but they wdnt
fire. All of a sudden crack!
& a bullet hit his helmet
& travelled all up / back
of his scalp & over his head.
All went black for
a time. Then he pulled
himself together - in
a flash he thought, "I
mustnt lose grip now
or I'm done for" -
jumped up & bolted
in from within 50 yds
o / German line. He cdnt
talk when he got in, & for 3
wks cdnt speak except a little.
 

Winter on Somme During the winter on Dec 23
Gen Hearne took over 2nd Bde. On Dec. 7 he went down, as
he always has 
done, to look round whole line once before going in. Gen.
Brand from whom he
took over told him tt they had dug a jumping off trench. He
went down at dawn
& went w Walstab (C.0 5th Bn) to front line. Standing there
he saw a
trench ahead & asked what it was. Wallstab thought it ws the
J.O. trench so
Hearne sd: Well we'll go out to it. He walked over, armed only
with
a stick, Walstab abt 20 yds behind. As he came close to it he
heard
W. say something - he himself suddenly noticed heads in the
trench ahead
with caps on. He thought this curious as ournever our men
never
wear caps. Someone called out "Kamerad" & Hearne saw tt they
were Germans & took him for a deserter. He dived at once into
a shell hole. After a bit he thought: "this is no good-staying here all
day or being killed" so he up & bolted back ^under G. fire - one or two shots in / directn where Walstab was
& found W. in a shellhole far less deep. Our men (5Bn) were not shooting as
they shd have done, to cover / retreat - wh wd had made it quite easy. Hearne
saw them looking over. He shouted at them sev. times - had to put his head
31      38
In 4th Bn - at the
time of Lone Pine there
were on sick parade
abt 70 men a day.
On / morning of
Lone Pine not one turned
up - they were afraid

they wd be evacuated. 

31           39

Lt Ba Pozieres. had abt
half their casualties going
across.
The other half in the village
thro' shellfire.
Bn lost 550 out of
about 900 men - came
out with less than 350.
In the second Pozieres the
1st Bn lost 120 men holding
the right for 3rd Bde.
The dugout by the big bell
ws hit while Hearne ws there.
 

79