Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/164/1 - September - October 1917 - Part 6

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wandering in rear of our line.

The English did not go out until

Zero & he may have got thro /

gap.  He wdnt or cdnt say anything &

looked very dirty, looked like an old

tradesman of 40.
A 1st Bde post had bn

attacked by / Germs.  There ws some 

m.g. fire from / right -
When 6 Bn went forwd.

there were a no. of stiff fights

in the wood.  A Coy got on well

& helped D Coy w some

strong points - a ww of 

cement dugouts on the right

of the Copse - rather Sunken.

On the outer edge of the Copse

is a cement dugout wh held

them a while. There ws a 

m.g. firing from it.  Lt Birks &

66
Got a M. M.

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cpl. ^ W Johnston rushed at it.

Bombs were thrown at

them.  Johnston ^x ws ahead &

ws badly wd.  Birks rushed

on ^ to the side of it & the place surrendered -

They put up their hands seeing /

rest of the line coming on -

The 6 Bn objve came from

NE edge of Inverness Copse

to in front of Glencorse Wood.

Abt 75 yds from Inverness

Copse & just short of objve

ws another Strong point.

The Germans here resisted. There

was a little scuffle ^ during wh

Lt Green ws wd. by a shell

(probly one of ours) & we got the

place.

There ws also a series of

68
Diagram - see original document

 

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dugouts E. of Glencorse

Wood; (x) first rifles were fired

from here but it ws soon

surrounded.

[Abt 160 prisoners were taken

altogether altho a receipt ws

only obtained for an odd one.

In one case out of 9 prisoners sent 

down 5 were k, 3 wd, Escort

wd & one got to the Cage.]

There were not many

casualties going forward,

but Carrying pties got a lot.

They had to go to 5^th & often to

7 & 8 Bns.

The first waves had to

push on, & leave mopping

up to B & C Coys (2 plns of each).

The moppers up were fired

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on from two little dugouts at

Z.  They were carrying MSK

(lacrymatory) bombs.  They

tried to throw mills bombs

into / dugout entrance but

cdnt.  They eventually got an

MSK bomb in.  The firing

ceased & abt 6 Germs.

rushed out w their hands

up wearg gas helmets.

During consolidatn

Capt Adams did excellent

work.  The German barrage

fell in rear rather - the 

main barrage ws in rear

o / ridge.  During / later

part of 20 Sept & 21 Sept

they sniped heavily w

77s & 5.9s - they cd see from

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the ridge before Becelaere

towds Polygon.  A good

many casualties occurred

in this way - the other

barrages were spasmodic.

That night a number of

phosphorous shells were

burst near the rt of the

6 Bn objve. probly to observe

movement there or ahead of 

it.

On Sept 21/22 6 Bn

ws reld by 1st Bde 4 Bn.

After consolidn on Sept 20

Lt Birks ws k.  He ws at his

post directing work - the Germs

cd see them v. clearly.

Lt MacMillan k. Sept 21 by

one of the irregular German shells

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Binns M.C. of Pozieres & Anzac ws

in a decline in England due partly to

his dysentry at Anzac - He ws in

France till abt March February - ws

finally shipped to England, thence

getting worse & thinner to Australia

& finally died just as / ship ws

reaching Australian water. He

is sd to have bn buried at Fremantle.

 

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Lt Kelly during / advance, by a shell.

Lt Forbes - ^ a Scotsman k. just before reaching

Glencorse Wood.  K by a shell,

probly by the Concussion.

Offrs wd.

Lt Samuels, bullet in both legs

in D Coy early in advance in Glenc. Wd.

Capt Adams as mentioned

Lt ^ R.F.H. Green. as mentd (has lost a leg).

Lt W.E.M. Thompson wd by a 

shell after Consolidn.

Lt Martin wd during Carrying

for engineers

Lt Simpson. wd early in adv. 

in Glenc. Wood.

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5 Bn.

After seeing

Reninghelst model

which ws of great use & set /

men thinking intelligently came

to Dickebusch - It ws many o /

men's first experience - & all

were impressed w / Second army's

organisatn - guns transpt

shells etc.  Bn left ^ 5 offrs & abt 140 o.r. at

Caestre & sent in 25 offrs

& 677 o.r. to Zillebeke. 14 Sept.

spent day there lying low, sleeping, reading. 

Great anxiety & impatience at rain.

Sept 20. at 2.30 Bn moved.

Tape line in Nomansland

from Jap Ave on rt towds. Glencorse Wood

on left - 600 yds abt 150 yds into Wood -

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Objve: abt 1000 yds away

past Lone House & B.W. Corner.

Lt. Cuzens put out / tape. 

Order of March.
HQ.
D
B
C
A
2ALTM
2MG Coy
Hotchkiss guns

Three tanks were passed

on / slippery road up, all

going in / same directn.

They had mistaken our

Centre line tape for

their own.  D Coy folld

another tape wh led to Stirling Castle.

H.Q. & Sigs had lost touch.  Cuzens

guided D Coy back alright from

Stirling Castle.  Shelling ws not heavy,

but normal & intermittent.

20 Sept. By 3.30 am all were in positn.

March had bn 1¼ m.p.h. G. Verey

lights were fired on rt but no

shots followed.

Coys were formed in 2 lines,

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Diagram - see original document 

2 Coys in Support also.

4 Rear plus carried

 

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in shell holes, sections together

where possible.  Then a long misty

wait.  Desultory shelling from

4am to 5.40.  Some anxiety - 

Hotchkiss guns had bn

lost. Mgs turned up all right.

At 5.40 down came barrage - like

some huge churning up machine.

Entrance to Glenc. Wood ws

swampy.  Boys lit cigarettes & 

sections formed up as if mustering

for parade.

All fighting ws around

P/Bs.  Germans genly came out

waving white handkerchiefs, bandages,

etc. very upset by our barrage.

The rear bns had pressed forwd

& got mixed with the forward

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Diagram - see original document
Luxton says

It was known that B.W. Corner wd possibly

give trouble & Col. Luxton had warned Moore tt they

might have to go for it. While / barrage ws stationary

the Germs fired thro it at our men consolidating -

so 5 Bn went for it. They had to cease it owing to

our barrage coming onto it when thickening for fresh advance

but kept Gs.
out w
rifle
grenades.

※ Ws thought to have lifted 

(really it only thinned & became 

lighter) probably when the heavies moved

on.

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ones - partly to escape barrage.

On rt there ws oppositn.

This ws dealt w By the Support Coy

under Capt Burke, enabling

leading Coy under Major Caughey

to move forward.

At Lone House were some

blockhouses where Germs fought.

Sergt C.J. Farrington here, by

himself took a m.g & 9 prisoners

& ws badly wounded (DCM)

D Coy ^ Capt Moore on left flank met

little oppositn before its objve.

Verbeek Fm had bn expected to

give trouble but had bn settled

& men ^ there had bn so shaken tt their fire ws

wild.

On left near B.W. Corner

however mg fire ws heavier.

Our barrage seemed to lift^※ from

it & German m.g. fire at once