Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/91/1 - October 1917 - Part 4

Conflict:
First World War, 1914–18
Subject:
  • Documents and letters
Status:
Awaiting approval
Accession number:
RCDIG1066659
Difficulty:

Page 1 / 10

t 30 34 at blockh outshits on b Motenaaretsthek t it 57 fanc by Farm but 2e taliation a et Touth o 1s too for that bed as tenety W tens h t lett best tt it id the Pol o the Re a t thought ao tack into run 4f pear fout the one Near
blockhous yellow dut shalledoccasioned ws bei wh inhabited for we ih a a there) across the turned South on our right black Suamp between Cornes in &I Polyson tnuckle ferman barked There this Stream o a wind in call it. 30 black shellfot filt th dificult were eit c Jerman were (54 muit hand betonged to the Stadin Foumebeke line was thick stuff with a bart every inch we dimbed th up
2 stope to an t She twarts that a Friae more 262 monn Coty 1 a truch away 4d than 500 sood righe ou was on tnot tolatly rusty in ware dia with batter Bet wett cut of it hon citl tis very shell i ii Welteing nddth togete close 4 orter th tr 3 ed 57
33 Aden can hood its ta On were puast th tw the on 7 firny I finished 6 bent ate Set were man Euen End made by our tow he kept of 106 Puse 6 with hows 64n the orters shd Bisids 70 5 conplit boxes of toots. t ti one edd. last deta ii the lany ard. little hammer the frest springs Ex. Oil can. the book che and Record like a cheef 6ooke Explanation man factures catalogue anmucd as d toe tok hammer S1shts ry 20
a3 5 34 Eonyard oil can te to 5laffe went on Lelmet Just Nc fy Buthe road 2.a cro madthe of black Lchowish 5oct a ther wa not such frey sand. at Broodint sa pure t4 D 1 side of the shallow a was Butte earth, very tray in which maddy had cle Bull been dug. 4 wo or tin 24 dige
8 East 1h on doson ax 5idl we ore standin 4 shells burst had foot t clond there white 7 t aik Butt team only smoke I anoter a before Lour atyng W tom staps 87 Port tin of some mud depres the n in spoken juxt Irave eresular was tommies string An + Dava up you the Colypor from Bt the 5 stuned low w0 d tem one You to
36 rourd first was Norturn Shouldero the well td Butle op foot twhiah Day track packed up Low Goot 1 Soil 5hou went behind we there found ao. men Butly Entra sittig dujont (one newly a t ll J. Safe from Atall Butish or us baraheate. oficer, ste them or know wh we canted eia were wilking was in ne Kodal vest pocket
what pocket We told were hetets himX thet wilk Diel 5dl Hon 30 th today o here been long 404 fave or mort afternoon all well sd we lss aet hot an daw was it Fal hour off t0 the stand abt wouldnt Dd 90n 4 £ from his place aw could as as Yence I wanted te te Southern corner the see To kin woodo 50 e 46
were on thoyht We B3 flencorse track were probab d but BA. cut air 2t st the lephand towards hell the dge S Butte ar san ta For strnck to our sad to th set cro had wh we tright shall 4 a before. there way part it down e interrpted it t Co 38
39 telehotes shallow few e ptory it Stor ints foot had br recent reaed it 4 tract Ther were few Tmies Lom these strig 14 an at 4 te Buthe secme of the Northumkarte 6 relief 2300 Didiscon. Tusbers The oficer there had bn their reimental meding officer from left ofas Tok tere we ad see down cxpressiona en t 5 Einde f the Folson 5E the to blue misty try

30
D41
blockhouses which
must be on / outskirts
of Molenaarelsthoek. I
have fancied since tt this
Farm must have bn
Retaliation Fm - but I
think it is too far South
for that.
We climbed up / knuckle
spur to / left, Wilkins
thought tt / best way to
the Polygon Ridge - I had
suggested the Anzac Ridge
further back as I thought
we shd run into a 
barrage up near /
front. Near one of the

 

31
D41
dirty yellow blockhouses,
wh ws being shelled occasionally
(& wh ws inhabited for we
saw a man there) we
turned South across the
black swamp on our right
in / corner between /
knuckle & / Polygon.
There ws German barbed
wire across this stream
- if one can call it so -
the filthy black shellholes
were quite difficult to
cross. (The German wire
must have belonged to the
Stadin - Zonnebeke line ; it
was thick stuff with a barb
every inch xxxxx )
We climbed up the

 

32
D41
short remaining slope to
/ ridge & walked twards /
Polygon mound -  not more
than 500 yds away. A trench
was on our right, a good
deal ^but not totally battered with ^rusty wire in
front of it, well cut. Behind
it in 3 little shell holes, very
close together, Wilkins suddenly
spotted 3 trench mortars.
Illustration - see original 

 

33
D41
One had its green canvas hood
on, the other two were first
they had finished firing. The
shell holes were hardly large
enough to hide a man even
if he kept low - made by our
6in hows. with X 106 fuze
I shd say. Beside the mortars
were their boxes of tools, complete
to / last detail in one case,
the little hammer, the lanyard,
the oil can, fresh springs etc.
and even the Record book &
explanation book (like a cheap
manufacturers catalogue).
We took as much as we
cd carry - hammer, sights,

 

Illustration - see original

34
D41
oil can, lanyard -
stuffed them into /
helmets & went on to /
Butte. Just NE of it
we crossed a road
of black grey mud (the
soil up here was ^light yellowish
- grey sand - not such
pure sand as at Broodseinde.)
On the E side o this
Butte was a shallow
tray in / earth, very
muddy, from which
the Butte had clearly
originally been dug.
There were two or three
dugout entrances low

 

35
D41
down on the East 
side ; a Tommy ws
standing near one - we
had seen 4 shells burst
there & cloud tt foot o /
Butte with white-grey
smoke & steam only an
hour before - and another
Tommy was emptying a
tin of some sort of slops
out in the mud depression
I have just spoken of.
An∧irregular string of Tommies was
coming up towards
the Butte from the Polygon
wood (low stumps of
young trees) & one of them

 

36
D41
was just crossing round
the Northern shoulder o /
Butte on a well trodden
packed sand ∧foot track (which
showed how good / soil up
here was). We went behind
/ Butte & found 4 or 5 men
sitting round / entrance
to a dugout (one newly
made, from / safe side, by
us or / British).  A tall
officer, bare headed ,came
out to them. Seeing us, he
wanted to know who we
were, where / camera
was (Wilkins - my
vest pocket Kodak ws in my

 

37
D41
pocket) & what the
helmets were. We told
him. & he advised us no
Wilkins sd "Pretty quiet
today. The offi sd "How
long have you been here?"
"All / afternoon more or
less," we sd. "Well,
it was dammed hot an
hour ago" sd / offr. "I
wouldnt stand abt there
if I were you - I'd
get away from this place
as quickly as I could."
We left - I wanted
to see the Southern corner
o / wood & overlooking /
Reutelbeek - so we

 

I thought we were on
B C (Glencorse track)
but we were probably on
B A.

38
D41
planned to cut across
towards the left hand
edge of the hill
Diagram - see original
For the sake of easy going we
got struck onto the road to our
right, wh we had crossed
before. There ws an ∧old white
tape down it part o / way -
It ws continually interrupted

 

39
D41
w shellholes - shallow
ones in / sand ; a few 
foot prints along it showed
tt it had bn recently used as
a track. There were a
few Tommies coming up
it - these strings arriving
at the Butte seemed to be
a relief of the Northumberland
Fusiliers, 23rd Division.
The officer there had bn their
regimental medical officer.
To the left of us from
here we cd see down
over the depression in
the S E end of the Polygon
to blue misty country

 



 

Last edited by:
Loretta CorbettLoretta Corbett
Last edited on:

Last updated: