Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/167/1 - September - October 1917 - Part 6

4    64
white flag appeared with a
stick on either end of it -
our pty ws not 10 yds away
in / trench - (our pty had one
man it coming up). They
were captd.
The prisoners didnt
want to leave - they explained
by signs tt their mates in
/ pill boxes further down wd
shoot them as soon as 
they started.  Smith ws arguing
w them trying to get them
on their way when he ws
sniped from those P/Bs S. of
Daisy Wood. They were got
away at last, carrying
2 of their own wd, & Smith;
but and / Germs shot at
them all / way over & got
one German thro / leg.

65
x On dusk of 9^th / Germs.
were seen - 3 lines of them moving
down thro / far side o / rly
& at rt angles to it. It ws
very dark & 1000 yds away.
T. doesnt know what became
of them - they were opp - 66 Divsn' s
SOS went up on left but not from our sector.
4    66
Taylor then got abt 6 men
who came up & sent Sergt
O'Hara with 16 or 20 men
out into Daisy Wood &
estab 3 posts (marked. #)
T. came back to Daisy Wood.
He cd see / posts in front
round to Rhine (marked #)
He then started to put out
posts round to rt flank
of 17 Bn.
The Germs were shooting
after this from / right; but
all movement seen ws on
the left in front o / Tommies
where they were occasionally
walking abt near Vienna Way^x.
In the relief at midnight
of 9/10 the rest were relieved;
but the 3 posts of C coy on SW

 4     67
edge of Daisy Wood were
not. The 49 Bn sd they
had relieved all the posts
round to the right - but
when the coys got back
Blake ws not there.
The post dug on right of Oct 6 ws
at X O on map - by a remains of
a house.  It is possible tt / Germs.
got into this later & tt this ws /
post wh held up the 24 Bn.
The Pill Box S. of Daisy Wood ws
the one at Z.
?L.H. Bignell
Lt Bingle took C A Coy up the
cutting - wh ws full of wd Tommies
not being looked after by anyone.
It ws being v. heavily shelled by
howitzers (whose shells were falling
right into the cutting). B. took his
men up the cutting - there were
bursts of m.g. fire coming straight

4     68
down it in bursts - probly from
just N of Decline Copse. B. lost
no men coming thro the cutting.
At / end o / cutting he left /
men in shell shelters scraped
in the banks o / cutting & went
on with one Sergt to reconnoitre.
He saw the British post at P abt
20 yds N of rly. He spoke to
Tommy offr who sd this ws
as far as they had got. He knew
nothing at all abt / ground
forwd. The germs cd be
seen on the Hill NE. The
Diagram - see original document
Tommies
seemed to
occupy /
ridge to the
extreme left.
There ws no one on the rly
at all, ahead; Tommies
were very strongly entrenched
w m.gs. on left & occ hill -
(L - P)

4     69
B. sent the sergt back to the Coy
to send them up in little
groups of 6 - deciding to go E
along / embankt. He waited
abt 10 mins. No men came.
B went back to see what ws
/ matter. Sergt sd tt a party
of 17 Bn ws on rt o / rly & /
offr told him tt they were the
front post & tt it was impossible
to go further forwd. B went & saw
/ offr who sd he had / remnants
of / 17 Bn & as far as he knew
no one ws in front. He ws v.
weak, so B. decided to reinf
him on / right o / rly.
B. put his men onto this line at
M-N. There ws a broken down
Germ trench there wh they occupied.
Later out on right front, Rhine
way, they saw men walking in

4     70
2s & 3s - who later turned out to
Pe be Capt Taylors posts or
those of Bde. wh were mixed
w them.
At 6 p.m. a heavy
barrage ws put over in rear
of the posts M-N. Some o /
men reported tt Germs. had
come over on left. B. didnt
notice this but saw / Tommies
on left of rly retiring into
/ cutting - & he threw out a
listening post on left of rly -
as it obscured / view there.
He went back to Rly to see if
he cd get any stragglers
but none were there & well
over 100 Tommies must have
retired there - We were never
in touch w / Tommies after this.
B. ws reld at 3 am by
45 Bn. The bombt went over
Bs men - What seems to have set 

70
Diagram - see original document
4     71
the Tommies off ws / lines
of Germs coming over / hill.
Blake when he went over
from Daisy Wood to take charge
of the posts S. of Daisy Wood
met Capt Smyth on N. edge of
Daisy Wood. Smyth sd he
ws going to put some posts on
B's left as well. B went in
& found the 3 posts on the
W side o / tramway. S. may
had a post on left of
X Blake but probly not
bec. 24 Bn ws reld that
night & B's three posts were
not. 24 Bn had some posts
to rt.
The Germs. were seen
moving about to Pillbox Z
during day, & sniping onto

4     72
our 3 posts. Germ
During night of 9/10
Blakes 19 Bn ws to be reld -
6 Bde on rt were reld &
also 19 in Daisy Wood.
As far as B knew there
were no posts betw his
left near tram & Daisy -
this ws covered by L.Gs.
The nearest 6 Bde post ws
40 yds away & the relief
ws not seen by B's party.
They had to wait without
rations. They used German
rations out of the trench
NE of Daisy Wood wh ws
full of Germ dead. They
get waterbottles off wounded men
equipment also -
G. aeroplanes were over
low on Oct 10 but cd not

4     73
see / posts, nor cd our
own planes. They were on
edge of wood ^shellhole posts well
camouflaged w dead branches.
German shells often fell short
near them so they dug into
side of shell holes.
All the night / Germs had
bn putting up flares from
same pillbox - v. jumpy.
They kep up intermittent
rifle fire at random.
Abt 8 a.m. B sent 2 men
out for rations. They went up the
old Germ trench N of Daisy Wood,
& found some of 45 Bn lying
in shellholes on a line just
W. of Daisy Wood.
B. at once sent a man
back w a note addressed to
any offr of 45 Bn stating tt
he had no rations or water.

4     74
& / no. of men (abt 25 w him w 2 L.Gs)
& asking cd he be relieved.
They sent a verbal message
saying tt they knew nothing
abt him & cd not relieve him.
B. then sent 2 men to Daisy
Wood at great risk w a
similar message, & got a
similar reply from the 45 Bn
there, saying tt they had reld.
19 Bn, knew nothing abt him
& cdnt relieve him.
B. thought it over. The
men bought back news tt /
45 Bn men sd they were going
to do a stint next mg. So
he decided to withdraw. Abt
2 p.m. he withdrew. They were
heavily sniped from / same
positn but came out without
casualties. B. found a Coy HQrs
at / entrance of the C.T.