Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/44/1 - May - June 1916 - Part 3

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hole at ypres in order 

to get a snap of next shell.
The beagrapt chap 

is wanted to  is going up

in a plane & wanted to go
over / German lines.} 

i thought in my heart 

of hearts the Canadians 

wd win the tree felling. They
do more of it than we

 - or are supposed to.
But Their first team 

seemed to let Well & 
[?] but took about 

45-mins to fell it's 3
trees ( w service axes, 

thickness of trees just under

2ft ). The 2nd Australians
were next , & cut theirs 
in fine style in 31
mins. Far more vigour

& fire than ? Canadians  they

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began to have hopes 
then. The N.Zs - all.
three Maoris ( one of them 1/2 caste 
came next: & they got 

their 3 trees down in
22 mins - the 1st Aust .

Divn made not a 

bad start but  slowed owing

to getting a tree cut on the 

dead centre - & was 

46 mins or more. The 

other two Canadian Divns
were / same or longer.
so we one easily - I mean 
the Maoris, then Anzacs

The Maoris sd before . "We
dont  care whether we win 

or lose so long as we
so long as we beat / Canadians.
The Australians won

 / log chapping & / Canadians

/ crosscut sawing .   

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The French wood men-

Youngsters & old men-

gave an exhibition on some 

tiny little trees w then
antiquated axes. 

" I could do as wel l

with a knife & fork"  sd
an Australian looking

on , But to my mand it 

ws fine to see them-poor
feeble chaps tho the 

were. For they are all
that is left .
May 22 . Monday
we smashed up 

Radingham & Maisnel 

church spires & villages
& ruined the Chateau 

D' Hispel yesty - all

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Geman observation Stns or 

batter artillery positions

wh have bn lft alone so
far . They in turn at
once (9pm)shelled

 Erguinghem & Hearbaix
church- & a  shell 

exploding in Erguinghem

hit Gellibrant in / foot 

& smashed a tendon
70yds away . He ws

hit on the tendon Achilles 
in Gallipoli: & also thro'
the chest - He will 

be away 2 weeks, i believe
He wants to take his 
leave in this way & get 
back.
This morning an
18pd gun on that 10th
Battery insisted on going
on firing ( agst / advice.   

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the brigade Commander, tho'
not agt his orders) . it ws
in a cellar . A sausage

balloon ws up & naturally
saw it- for / Germans

this afternoon began to
shell / house. First

single shells- until they hit 
it: then salvo after

salvo of 5.9s - 4 at a
time. They hit the gun

3 times & smashed it 

up. 
How can our poor 

amateur gunnery compare
w tt sort of thing ?

Our anzac Corps is

not - well served as far as 

gunnery staff goes - & never

was.  ( unlike Owen, the Brig .
General commandan the

artillery , was in the retreat 

   

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from Mous & the battle of the

Chisne - & his nerve was more

or less broken by the constant

exposure to howitzer fore without

any protection. This made him

not really suitable for Anzac -

but he  wdn't do badly if only

he had the organising capacity &

energy for the to work the artillery

of the Corps. He utterly lacks it.

And he has chosen for his

staff officer the good humoured sleepy

& lazy old Says; The won't

artillery headquarters here is

abt as unlike that of a good

corps staff as the gardening of

a business mans house after the

day at the stock exchange resembles

the work of a nursery gardener.

They don't digest the wind &

aeroplane reports etc & send the

results out to their batteries: they

 

*He may have had good brains

CEWB

1925

 

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do next to no intelligence work.
The divns cousl staffs are keen enough;

but, poor old hard triers , they are 
amateurs, & instead of having
a keen lively staff to help

them, they have these slack inert 

limp ineffectives .
The engineers are in the

same position . The Commander

of the Royal Engineers in any

Corps has it really in his power
here, Where they specialise
everything, & make or 
unmake a Corps defences.
We have as our C.R.S the

talkative , vain, elderly
washer - Joby de Lotbiniere
a quite inefficient commander.
He has gained  no ones respect 
Hy talks a lot & effects very
little. Newcome of the 2nd
Divn is worth 6 of him. His 

*His gentleness & considerations were

however, of some value in dealing with

Australians.

C.EW.B

 

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Staff Major - Beauvais - is

a man who confesses he is

quite ignorant o / work in

France.

It is a puzzle to me why

Birdwood keeps these people. 

Dear old Carruthers, the D.A.

& G  m.g. is as bad in

point of inefficiency* - but he

is such a dear old daddy

that I think his able staff-

Taylor & GIbbs- manage 

to rub along pretty well.

Griffiths of course, is a precious

possession - all the Army Coys

papers & A.I.F orders are in 

flawless form, thro' his work

& little Colemans; & White is

the brains of the General staff & 

is making the Army also -

Butler is a delightful man & a

keen intelligence officer & has a

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keen helper w a good brain in

Herberton. Smythe who helps 

White, is a little man in every

way, but fairly strong; &

Kennedy, very much of an

amateur (an English Territorial)

with a spirit like a perky little

sparrow, is at least keen &

dutiful. Anzac G.S is good

especially at the top ; A & C

are mediocre but get along

thanks to ability lower down;

R.E & R.A are worthless-

the xxxx by their sheer hard work

and ingenuity, will probably

make a name for Lotbiniere's

engineering, he'll leave the

line better than he found it.

But their R.A will let them

down, someday, frightfully!

 

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May 23rd. Went round

arranging for delivery

of Anzac books at

the fwd divisional H.Q.

etc.

Tonight there was a

tremendous bombardment

down south of us where /

Germans have taken 1500

yds of British trenches

on the Viny Ridge, x 3

trench mortars.

May 24th. The German

communique says tt it

ws our men who were

attacking last night. That 

they " came to know'"  o /

attack & stopped it w

their curtain of fire.

1800 copies of Anzac 

book delivers to units