Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/215/1 - August - September 1918 - Part 3

Bn got into the scratchy trenches 
in M 2 A. & the posts (better
dug) N of it.
They started their show there.
The night before the C.O.
sent for Coy Commdrs & told them
(Col. Corrigan) & told them that
owing to ab altered decision
o / division ^ or Corps on / right the
plans had bn altered; & instead
of making a definite attack
on the Hindbg Outpost line
they were to exploit as far
as they cd get.
At / same time the 4^th
Bde had sd tt they intended
to go on w their original plan; &
therefore 46 Bn had to make
sure of protecting their flank.
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Right on time the 4^th Bde
moved out on / left (10.10 -
after ½ hrs wait).
As 46 Bn had bn waiting
they cd see pits & small pozzies
ahead; & Germans were
there wandering about or
waving to us. The men
were not allowed to go
out & settle these as there
ws still a lot of arty fire
from a way back & fairly
heavy m.g. fire. Lt James M.M.
ws wd there by m.g.
The pack mules were up
here w their noses practically
in / barrage - standing quite
quietly, standing right in / open.
These bombs & ammn were for
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46 Bn.
It had bn a very
exhausting march. Everyone
seemed done. The sun came
out & w / rest seemed to 
put new heart into everyone.
Right on time the 4 Bde 
moved out on the 46 Bns
left & left Coy moved out
w them.
The instrns were tt 46
Bn were to keep their left
with 14 Bn, & the other Coys
were to send out patrols
to form posts echeloned
back, & keep / right in 
touch w / Tommies.
2 plns of the rt Coy

folld in close succession.
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The other 2 plns ^on rt were told to
hold on to / Tommies & not
move till they got orders.
Going down into / valley
a number of Germ. guns
were passed, & also many
Germs, incl. 2 Offrs. Most
of them were willing to surrender
but they were not taken
prisoner. They went straight
through them & on. There were
m.g.s firing from the right on / 
advancing troops all this time.
They got down / valley
& up the ridge in 26 B & D.
The Germs had m.gs. sited to
sweep down the gullies
& Maj. Couchman's Coy had
abt 30 wd out of the Coy
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going across. While they were
there the contact plane came
over. (They wd be abt on
the central grid line.) At
this time the Tommies
were seen by Maj. Couchman
distinctly moving up
S of Portruet moving in 
lines E-wards. He thought
that it wd be best to work
up the sunken road in 
G 32 D 90. 10 to get touch.
There ws a bty of German
guns there & a lot of ammn.
Some prisoners (3 men & an
officer, later wd & died) were here.
He sd there were 100 or 200
Germans waiting up in / 
trench on / hill top & they were
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quite willing to surrender. He
ws a decent sort of fellow, &
ws speaking in disgust w his
own troops. Probly w a
barrage these Germs wd have
surrendered, but / fire ws
v. hot from these trenches as
there ws nothing to keep it
down.
46 Bn still had the line
along the road with a special
patrol on / flank to
keep touch w / English.
They were in touch w / 
English who were at tt
time just E of the Tumulus. They
had not exploited from
there at all.
Couchman sent word back
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for / 2 remaining plns of
his (right) Coy & for / patrol
to come up. They came along
across the valley. Close on
on them were 2 English officers,
two game men of the Royal
West Sussex(?). They had a
v. hard day. They Tommies
did not leap frog. The Bn wh
starts & wh ws in / trenches
/ night before took  had to go
for all / objves & did not
leapfrog. C. met these two Offrs.
Our plns were coming down
at this time. An offr of ours
ws putting them into positn.
Couchman, the two Offrs, & a runner
went up to a terrace ahead
to reconnoitre. A shell burst
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close on their right. It k. the 
English Capt. & badly wd the
Subaltern.
(Our patrol had clearly
got in touch w these 2 officers
& they had come on to see
what ws doing. The Captain
sd to Couchman tt he wd
bring his Company up. The
Captain sd tt the British
were not up on / rt - 
as Pontruet village was
knocking them to bits & tt they
had not got beyond the trenches
SW o / village. But they
had certainly bn seen by
our people at abt M. I0 C. 
& been knocked back.
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When they were killed hit they were 
brought back behind a bank.
Our men were then along /
Sunken rd & thence in
posts across / slope
into 26 D. The left coy
were in touch w /
4^th Bde. They were meeting
w fire over open ground
- they had no sunken roads
up there on / bare ridge.
Lt Wallace ws in/c of D Coy
there (M.C. for this work) &
ws continually going round
his posts over / open ground
there. Lt Byrne ( B. Coy. pln
wh had comeup to reinforce)
ws shot there leading over the
open ground. He had his pln well
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in hand, it was doing exactly
as ordered & had practically
finished when he ws shot.
(He ws a 1914 Offr just due to go
to Australia ). They were
dribbling out posts to
near the S.E. sunken
Rd ( it is only a small
bank - no Sunken Rd
really as on / map).
The orders o / night
before were to get onto
this same Sunken Rd at
any cost. The rt Coy also
ws then dribbled up by
Sections on to this road. On
their way up this very steep
bank they passed some
dugouts w Germans up the
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