Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/222/1 - August - September 1918 - Part 5

Tommies objve. (This C.T.
wh ws our & their Bdg.
is Castelman Avenue- 
it ws inclusive to us.)
M/C. realised as soon
as he got there tt / Tommies
had not come up. The German
had blocked the little Circle
of trench here to stop movement
up Castelman Ave.  This
block ws between M/C's
two parties & stopped him
joining. S
M/C was in Courtine
trench with his party. (The reserve
pty had joined in before this)
M/C. got Sergt Robbins to
bring him a shovel &
started to tunnel thro the
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block wh consisted of earth
& limestone thrown in – abt
3ft high & 4ft thick.
M/C ws digging on his knees.
He got thro the block
& round the back of the
loop - (M/C had before this
seen / German w a m.g.
firing in / directn of his own
men in their front trench  (^ i.e. the other
party ( coming round the loop).
He worked into this back
part o / circle & from within
abt 2 yds shot / German
gunner clean thro' / neck.
As soon as he shot this gunner
a German Captain beside /
machine gunner fired at him
& he fired at / German officer
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& wd him (he died later).
There at this stage were abt
40 Germans rushed up. M/C
shouted "Come on Australia"

Robbins dashed up w a German
bugle wh he had captured,
& blew the bugle & the diggers.
rushed up. M/C thought tt
/ Germs wd probly capture
him - but instead they
put up their hands. He got
40 prisoners there including
a lieutenant- & on / later
cleaning up o / dugouts there
were another 20 Germs incl.
a medical offr &his staff;
& there were anything up to
15 Germs dead in  / trenches.
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This may have occupied
½ hr. not more. M/C got 3
m.gs.
At this stage there were still
no Tommies in sight. So M/C
w / help his squads worked /
way up / Tommies objve &
cleaned up & consolidated
600 yds of trench.
At 7 D 9. 1 instead of
working to / rt he worked
left up the second system
(he hadnt studied these
trenches naturally] as far as
the C.T. at 7 D 8.3 -
& held this. At this time
abt 1 ½ hrs after the start 
British troops coming down
/ trenches  from further N. met him.
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M/C hung onto / trench &
sent back & got / support
Coy to garrison it. He &
his men then went out &
Support Coy held tt trench
till noon.
The Tommies were
new to fighting & were
very windy - whenever
/ Germans threw a bomb
from / hospital huts they
looked like getting out.
So Capt Aarons kept his
NCOs there w them &
finally set fire w a
phosphorous bomb to /
huts after / Germs had
made an attempt to
frighten / Tommies by coming
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down / trench.
M/C led / whole show
& set / example. Robbins
backed him very well getting
bombs etc. The two worked
absolutely alone - the troops
were not there to help them.
That night the 16^th
Lancs. relieved. They were
advised ^by us not to fire flares,
but the moment they
got there everyman
seemed to put up a
flare. Our men had bn
expecting this & had got
out very quick. And they
missed / German barrage
wh came down almost
at once, as they expected.
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14 Bn.
When / Germs before had raided
the Tommies, they after they
got into / Germs British
front line, they got down
Faideherbe Alley & scuppered
a Coy Hqrs which was near
the end of it.
16 Bn
The 15 Lancs. Fusiliers
had never seen a 36 Rifle
grenade, nor a phosphorus
bomb, not a cup fixture
until 16Bn showed them how
to use them. They had a
game major but were
very new.
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16 Bn
8th Aug.
(from Cpt Aarons)
(who led one company)
16 Bn tanks came to /
Bn Bn closed up in /
fog, in Plns in file in line
(lines of Pln in file,) closed up
to 5 to 10 yds so tt they
cd see one another.
Bradley led them across
country w a compass.
There ws a very big
quarry in / way near
Hamel. In / mist Capt
Aaron's walked his Coy down
one side of it & up /
other - 10 or 11 feet deep -
The whole pln followed him
They got straight on to forming
up positn No 2. owing to /
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fog they wd just arrive
at / positn in time to go
on again.
On time the Bde got to /
J.O. Positns.
When 14 & 15 Bns were
doing their work, 16Bn
lay laid on / top of /
Central Spur S. of Cerisy
by Kate Wood etc.
Here they came under
direct m.g & field gun
fire from guns (wh they cd
see) on / N. side of /
river in / timber low
down on / riverbank.
Col Brockman ws w them.
He got onto Capt Smith of
? 39 Bty (10 Bde ?) He galloped
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into action w 2 guns -
unlimbered, brought
direct fire to bear on
these guns & blew guns
& m.g. out. (abt from S. of
Kate Wood). The diggers
were tremendously pleased.
16Bn moved on in
close support of 15, 14, & 13
& reached J.O. positn
along the top o / spur
thro Q. 17& 23, forming
up on / Sunken Rd running
due S.E.  13 & 14 Bns were
lying on top of / ridge just
ahead o / rd, dug in in
shallow trenches. As soon as
16 moved out to where 13
& 14 were heavy m.g. &
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