Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/48/1 - June - July 1916 - Part 6

6     66
that The hospital was a
few long huts or tents laid
out in / flat of a pleasant
river valley close to /
rly. There were a couple
of hundred men standing
down / newly laid out
gravel drive. We waded
straight in without ceremony,
& each got ^ in / centre of a group of men
& began asking them what
they had seen.
"The shrapnel wasn't
much in Nomans land",
one of them told me - " & we
got to / enemys trench without
many being hit. There were 
not many men in the
first trench ...." one man
sd. (I think he was Middlesex)
"There were plenty in
the front trench where I was",

6     67
sd another.
"The machine guns
caused most o / trouble,"
sd / first. "They began to
get bad in the second line
& by the time we got to
the third they were all afttt
going strong. They began to get
shrapnel on us as we got
to the second trench too, " sd
another.
"They had one m.g. going
during the bombardment," sd 
another - "before the bombardment
had ended."
"The shrapnel was not
very bad" they seemed to
agree - "it ws the machine
guns more than the shrapnel
tho' we had both."
"To the right of us our
fellows used smoke, I think "one 

6     68
of / Middlesex said, "But
I dont" We hadn't the wind in
the right directn where we
were. But you cdnt see
the 2nd & 3rd lines of trenches
for smoke. We went about
a thousand yards. "
[By 2nd & 3rd lines
these men meant the support
trenches of the 1st line, & subsidiary
line]
They had left a fair
number of Germans dead,
they said.
That showed what nature
of attack it was.
We motored on hurriedly
to Beauquesne (∧ around G.H.O. [[?]].)
& there saw Charteris who
gave us the statement marked
(X) near the beginning of
this diary. 

6     69
went back to dinner & to bed
- pretty well fagged out.
July 2. Col Hutton Wilson told
Ross & myself tt he thought
we shd have to go back
the next day as he hadnt
Press officers enough for us.
He gave us [[?Corp]] for the
day. I sd we'd like to
get into some o / German
trenches before we went back & cd
we do so." One o / Press officers sd:
Certainly not! I dont think
he meant it. [[Corp?]] knew
this part o / country,
near Albert - & he sd
he thought he cd take us to
a hill overlooking Fricourt.
We went to Albert hill
again - & then down thro'
Albert & out to Becourt (where 

6     70
/ naval guns were pooping
off all over us). We had
to leave / car near there
& climbed a bank w some
signallers stokes mortar teams (who gave us
some bread & cheese, good chaps)
& then on along a trench on
/ hillside S. of the Fricourt
road. (continued after July 8^th)
July 8^th  Butler told me last night tt / corps ws ordered South.
He had only just heard it. Ross arranged to go

back to 2nd Anzac. I go on with 1st Anzac
N.Z. are awfully sick at being left out
of 1st Anz.

It was thought yesty. tt / 4th Divn. was going as well.

I saw White today & he is, I can
see, opposed to my getting a
Commission as he thinks it will
hamper my criticisms afterwds.

71
(It is to be left to Birdwood
to decide)
6     72
He agrees tt the best thing I
can do afterwards is to tell the
people the truth. At the same
time he thinks it important tt
I shd take photos.
I too, wd not like my
freedom hampered. I rather
like, also, feeling tt I get
nothing out of this war -
neither pay nor promotion
nor decorations nor even
fame (for the ∧Aust Govt won’t have
my letters pubd in England) until
they have appeared in
Australia - wh of course
means never).
White says they got the
first notice to be in readiness
to move on Sat. afternoon,
July 1. “It is curious - I
cant understand it, Bean,” he
sd. “I cant understand their

6     73
being one corps out in
their calculations. If it had
bn a division -  but a
whole corps.”
He thinks, as I do,
tt it’s a great pity they are
putting us in peacemeal - 
They will never understand
tt we fight twice as well
as a nation - all together w
Australians _∧or N.Z. round us.
It is not bec. they think
tt the later divns are
insufficiently trained, he says. 
There seems to have bn an idea of attacking
up here somewhere as well as down S. This move looks
like an abandonment of it. White thinks tt we
could very well push thro up
here where / Germs. are
weak   It looks like
this sort of mistake
Bean, he sd.   If you have 

6   74
a gap
Hand drawn diagram – see original document
 & a certain number of men. attacking
it you need a certain number
also to defend it. If you go &
Hand drawn diagram – see original document
put
big
reserves
behind 
tt part, you are not making
it any stronger. Whilst you
might very well use those reserves
in pushing thro at another point.
The line is in
“There’s one thing about
this situation tt I know
(in / midst of a great deal
tt he did not know) & tt
is tt Haig is a most
exceptionally determined
man. He’s not a man to

6     75

put his hand to / plough
& then to go back. He will
go pegging away - I know 
him a little & tt’s / sort
of man he is.”
The Corps ws warned
on Sat July 1. Three days
later they were told tt it ws
not thought there wd be any
imd. need for them - no
need to fash themselves
(From 2nd Army). They wd
get 3 days notice anyhow,
They changed over to Bailleul,
Then yesty (Frid) suddenly
notice to move on Monday.
They were told at first 1, 2 & 4
Aust. Divns. Then 1 & 2 & 4
divns but not 4 Divn Arty.
Birdwood was asked to go
along & see 2nd Army. White
went & brought back news for

76
I am wrong about Hughes.

X
I can hear them as I write
streaming clattering past
up the Rue de Lilley Bailleul & on
the cobblestones in the dark.
 6      77

Birdwood tt 4 Divn cd be
supplied w British arty
down there if he wished. He
sd that came he wd prefer
not to divide / corps.
They accordingly sd
1 & 2 Divns to come at
present. White thinks 4
Divn will come later — &, if
he can see Kiggell, he may
get him to bring both Corps.
Ross & I went over
to see 2nd Anzac today.
5th Divn are just moving
to / trenches.
All day long the Arty
of 2nd Divn has been streaming
past. X going to It is very difficult
to get the Corps away at this
short notice. The 28^th, 27^th
Bns were moving out of 
Neuve Eglise today all packs