Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/272/1 - 1917 - 1932 - Part 10

67
They looked very suspicious & we manned the parodos,
In the gathering darkness it was almost impossible to
perceive their .... uniforms. It seemed a ridiculous thing
to offer any defence against such numbers. It was not long
before we were undeceived, however, when they advanced
overthe brow of the hill + had the dark background behind
them we could discern Australian troops now & were
overjoyed over the prospect of reinforcement. -------
Hun’s Walk, that main road along which we
hoped to get our supplies was now rapidly being
 broken up. The avenue of trees that up to a few
hours ago had remained intact, was now almost
completely destroyed. We could hear the large trees
crashing to the ground.
A man crawled out with a message now that
the battalion was reorganising & asked companies which
had been much scattered to get together. Being a connecting
file here we had to pass this message along & any sole
companion crawled along the other end to deliver it.
The battalion was very much mixed up.. The
whole numerical strength was now not much more
than that of a single company as D Company was
forming up between here & the main road. We did
not have to move but other men belonging to the
various companies had to come past us to get
together. It was rather a difficult task under fire
but we now laid down flat on the ground & they
crawled over the top of us...... This accomplished,
each one of us prepared to move at short notice. I put on
my equipment now & waited. I was on the flank
of D Company. An officer in charge of this company
if such there was, or an NCO..., sent a message to us
that he was going to move up at once & to pass this
onto the other companies. It was quite dark & I could 
 

68.
only see a yard in front of me, I crawled out towards the
flank of C. Company, keeping close to the ground & moving as
quickly as possible...... came to a hole which contained
two men. I gave the message & waited while one of their crawled
along a few yards to the next link........ Some minutes
elapsed before he returned, & the reply was "What position
was D Company taking" up. This meant my return to my
old position.........
On reaching my old position this time I could  see no
sign of my comrade.. After going some distance &
finding no one I begun to get the "wind up"....... Could hardly
recognize this as the trench we had  been lying in all day
yet from the number of bodies lying about it seems fairly
certain that it must be the same. Got back to my
old shellhole eventually. Realised this by the man lying
in the bottom. I was crawling on my hands & knees all
the way 

It was the only means of keeping to the trench....
the thought crossed my mind that the time I had lost looking
for the others of any company, the remainder of the Battalion
would have got away also. I redoubled my efforts
& had travelled far before I awoke to the realisation
that I had gone beyond the place where they formerly
existed..................
In desperation went on my knees & prayed aloud
to God who never seemed so close as now. Drew my
rosary beads from my pocket . & prayed & prayed for
God to save my life. It was the greatest crises of my life.
I spoke aloud & was alarmed at the sound of my own
voice.................. I thought I could discern the figure
of a man in front of me. He was on his knees and had
his hands clasped in prayer..............I moved towards
.......him............. I knew him well. He was one of our
youngest soldiers about the same age as myself.........He
had been lost in similar circumstance to myself, being the
 

69
connecting file between two Coys, while  he was passing
messages between, the main body of troops moved forward
having him stranded...................
We.......were undecided as to whether we should go forward or 
back....... To go forward might mean we may walk into German
lines. Although believing our bn had gone up to reinforce
troops holding the line ahead of us, we had no idea where
this was & it was just as easy to pass right into the hands of the
enemy as to meet our own troops. Ultimately decided that
the only thing to do was to attach ourselves to some unit in
rear until we would pick up our bearings.
We have an idea that the NZ trench is only a few
hundred yds to the rear but on the other side of Hun's Walk......
We now made for the road.............On the hard metal
road ran along at a trot holding hands to keep together
in the dark. It was rather difficult progress because the
road was filled with S/holes............For nearly
.half a kilometer we must have travelled the road.
Caught up to a mule train returning from the front
line. The muleteers were having a dreadful time trying
to get those stubborn beasts along. One of them spoke to us
said they had been taking supplies to the Oxygen Trench
to the 47th Infantry & could not find them when they got
there, so were returning after dumping the supplies
on the road.............
We passed on..............there appeared on our left
a trench... 4?... We immediately jumped into it like
rabbits into a burrow. For the first few yards saw not
a living soul & now  came to a deep hole, It looked as
though a shell had landed in the trench..............
proceeded some few yards more when we met NZ troops
They gave us a cordial reception............It was just
0100........Their relief was an hour overdue.
& they were beginning to get very anxious...........
 

70
The problem for us was what to do with ourselves..........It was a
good opportunity to get back with them, find out the
whereabouts of our battalion, & advance to the front line
at daybreak. This was eventually decided............
We had just despaired of the relief & were
preparing to remain the night when there was suddenly
a noise of tramping feet & almost as soon a line
of men were standing on the parados. They were
Australians & enquired of a certain battalion. This
proved to be the relief................A brief pow wow was
held between officers & then orders were issued to
evacuate. The relief men were quite fresh & in good
spirits & took up their positions at once.............Greetings
were exchanged & we took our farewell.
Stepped up from the trench & now walked over
open ground. As it happened the enemy had just
began to shell that area behind this line............ Seeing
an Australian officer appear close at hand, I at
once spoke to him, & he asked if we were attached
to the NZ's. When I explained how we had become
detached from our battalion, he told us to go after the
NZ's as fast as possible & find out the disposition of
the battalion as soon as we got to the rear. I asked
him if it would be any use remaining with them
until morning, & he told me he did not want us
& fairly ordered us off.
We had to run to catch up the NZ's......... Many
of the men fell on the way out. It meant continually
falling to the ground every few yards to dodge.
splinters............. Passed many s/bearers going to
& fro, some carrying their burdens in an everlasting
stream. Come by a shellhole of a large
 

71
dimension.Was astounded when we saw doctors
& orderlies attending to wounded men by the aid of a
powerful shaded light........................ Passed over
the crest of a hill & someone said it was Hill 60.
Came on to the main road now & at once
recognised this as the road leading out of Messines
to Steenwerch. There did not seem to be any
formation left of the NZ troops. They straggled
all over the country & were still coming in in
groups.......................... Stopped here to consider our
plan of action. Leaving a road, came across
a dressing station in a dugout. On making
enquiries we were told we were well out of the
firing line & were shown a sap by which we would
return without experiencing any difficulty. For three
days & nights we had not any sleep & were just like
men in a trance now.  Eyes were bulging out &
bloodshot. Our eyelids seemed to be weighted with
lead….I was in a dreadful state from
shellshock......
In another hour it would be daylight & the
only thing to do was to get back along this sap until we
reached the front line again…….Wanted to get
up there before daylight this time on account of the risk
in moving over the ground after. As directed, took
this sap & proceeded some distance.  [After getting
hopelessly lost, they sought shelter in a dugout & went to
sleep]
The next I remember was awakening & discovering
the light of day in the dugout. Came outside & looked
at the sun. From its possible position it seemed to be
about noon................. This trench had been our
original front line....... A few men were still in  the
 

72
position they had taken up that morning......
Made our way along the trench here to that
main road leading from front to rear. A large
number of troops was on the move. Were about to follow
this road up to Hill 60, then to our front line in our
endeavour to locate the battalion. Had a feeling that they
might have been relieved this morning & enquired
of some men passing along the road. Received the
surprise of our lives now when they pointed to a number
of men stalking about in the vicinity of our old trenches
& at  3000 yds from where we were................We
immediately went after them . The first body
of troops we came in contact with.... proved to be the
52nd Infantry....Lieutenant Wilson... I met.
[After speaking to Wilson, who had commanded the
reinforcement of the 52nd to which Gallwey had 
originally belonged, Gallwey wanders over various
details of the battle - already recorded. He mentions
that Shang, the "fullblooded" Chinese who had successfully signalled
with flags to the artillery on the first afternoon of their
advance, was a solicitor & accountant to his
countrymen in Cairns, Q'land. "He was a well
educated & smart individual", writes Gallwey].
Passed over now to the little group known as the
47th Infantry............ Comrades stared in amazement.
...........After coming out of the firing line, the roll
had been called & we had been posted as missing.
............ It appeared that the battalion had come
out of the line yesterday morning . .......We were now
told that the battalion was in Oxygen Trench on
Saturday the 9th June, had evacuated that
position at sundown & advanced to the front line
 

73
trench, been there all day Tuesday ? Sunday the 10th
evacuating that position on Monday the 11th.
at daybreak, when it took up its present
position. Today was Tuesday the 12th June.
We had been asleep in the dugout
from Sunday morning at day break until Tuesday
at noon. Such it must have been, although it
seemed incredible.

 

6664.
5 May 1931

J. Schulz, Esq. M.C.,
Marie Downs.

Aramac Q’land
Dear Mr. Schulz,

In writing the narrative of the Battle of Messines
for our Official History, I have found it difficult to arrive at a
connected story of the fighting in the neighbourhood of Huns’ Walk
in the afternoon attack on June 7.  We have one very detailed
narrative, by Private Gallwey of Captain Davy's company, which I
believe you commanded after Davy's death.

According to Gallwey's account, 1t was possible before
the attack started to see some of the large pillboxes in front. The
New Zealanders cheered as the company passed through. A pillbox was
met with early in the advance; machine guns concentrated on the
loop-hole of this, and it was then rushed and found to be empty
except for a power plant and a small gun. Germans were now firing
from trees 500 yards ahead, and fire from several pillboxes forced
the attack into shell-holes. Two machine-guns concentrating on the
loop-hole of one pillbox (or trying to bore a hole in the concrete)
silenced it, and it was captured and the inmates all killed. The
first German trench was a little farther, and heavy fire coming from
it. Germans began to bolt, and 47th charged and took the trench.
Ahead were many hedges behind which the Germans took cover. The
tanks had been up this far. A second trench near by with a few
Germans in it was rushed. The enemy could still be seen ducking
behind the trees ahead, and this was too much for the men, who
presently charged forward again, whereupon a number of Germans ran
out with a white shirt on a stick, shouting "Mercy Kamerad". They
were very unnerved. The company pushed on through the hedges, still
under pretty heavy fire from a large wood 400 yards in front. Men
found themselves in a shrubbery, and there was a melee in which they
shot into every bush. They seized another hedge and a 

machine-gun,
whose crew continued to fire until they were shot at a yard's range.
In the shrubbery was an old farmhouse with a Red Cross flag above it.
The troops surrounded this, and an officer going to take the German
surrender was suddenly wounded, but he prevented the men from shooting the prisoners as they came out. The farmhouse was taken, and
the company pushed on to a further hedge where it settled down. It
was unsupported on either flank, and the Germans could be seen in a
wood a quarter to half a mile ahead. It was here that you or some
other officer called for a signaller, and Private Shang, standing
with his back to a tree, sent a flagged message which was picked up
at headquarters. Shortly after this the Germans were seen emerging
From the wood and began to advance. The company lined the hedge and
beat them down, but shortly afterwards a barrage was seen to fall
behind the company's position. About this stage (Gallwey says), you
were sniped through the neck by a sniper in the wood, while you were
getting a machine-gun to direct its fire on a tree there. The
barrage behind proved to be that of our own guns and soon afterwards
lengthened on to the position. A surviving officer then gave
orders to retire on the New Zealand Line.

If Gallwey’s account, which is very detailed (running
to over 100 pages of close typescript), is true, your company must
have reached the small fortified farm afterwards known by the 47th
as "Hun Farm", and the Germans would have been massing in the trees
 

2.
about Steignast Farm or Ferme de la Croix. I should be grateful
if you could give me an opinion as to whether this is accurate;
and if you could identify any of the persons or incidents, or
could give me the benefit of your own recollection. I am attaching
a rough sketch map of the locality and would be greatly helped
If you could mark down upon it any of the positions which you
think were reached by your company.

Yours faithfully,

C.E.W. Bean
Official Historian.
 

"Marie Downs"
Aramac
Q'land

13th May 1913

Dr. C.E.W. Bean
Official Historian.
Victoria Barrack.
Sydney.

Dear Sir             Re 6664

I am in
receipt of your letter of 5th May.
I believe that Lieut. B. Bird; B. Company
and Captain Williams. O.B. C. Company. 47th
Battalion, could give you a reliable
account of the fighting: as they went
right through the stunt. So that from
you their account you may be able
to arrive at a connected and
faithful story of the fighting in the
neighbourhood of Huns Walk in the
afternoon of attack on June 7th
However I will do my best to give
you my account of the fighting, which
is written from memory, 14 years after
the event, due allowance must therefore
be made for any misstatement of facts.

yours sincerely
John Schulz