Charles E.W. Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/55/1 August 1916 pt4
7 36when in the fight when they
were bombing up / trench; about
10 yards further was a
second barricade.
I had got over the firstwhen and ws looking for /
way to go & had decided
to try / other trench as this
seemed to disappear or go
down / valley - when a
second bullet whistled
past. That made me
think.
I went along to /
Southern branch and th also
seemed to peter out altogether.
There ws no sign of men movement
along it at all - not a
a footprint. I cdnt be sure
th it was a trench.
Just then a third bullet
- & I knew it must be a
sniper.
I waited for a bit
& then crept back, keeping
as low as I cd, along the
branch I had gone along
7 37
first- I waited for a bit
to give / sniper a chance to
forget me & then had to dive
over into a few more craters.
The beggar put a fourth shot
just over my head after
I had got into shelter at /
end of the dive.
I waited again for a
bit - but it was not too
nice because there was
a good deal of shell fire too
& these craters - the trench
here was nothing more -
made no good cover from
shrapnel. One gun was
throwing small high explosive shells
no great distance down /
hillside on / left. I really
began to think again th
I ws in a bit of a quandary
- but managed by keeping
very low to crawl about
20 yards along / trench
& then after waiting a minute
7 38
or two, decided to run for it.
It is not nice to think of
getting hit in those sort of
places when you are quite
alone because unless you
can crawl to safety / chances
are no-one will find you
at all - especially if a
shell half buries you. Fitzgerald
when I met him on / way up told me he & his friend had
just found a poor chap who
was buried by the arm
up to the shoulder & who had
been in th position for 4 days!
They had gone down on their
knees & scraped with their
fingers at the earth but it
was like cement. They had
gone to get a fatigue party
& this was going to dig him
out-
I was not shot at
as I ran & soon
got into a trench wh by
the dead in it I knew
7 39
must be my old friend "Kay"
trench. There was a deep passable
German dugout filled up in to the
mouth but not quite filled
up; I sat there for a moment
& got my breath - &
the adventure ws over.
I pres met two English
soldiers coming down /
trench & presently reached a
part wh had been quite
decently dug. There was
an occasional heavy shell
crashing in - but in decent trench
you don't worry about
them - besides there were
men passing this way I
knew by / trodden footmarks.
Presently I found some 4 Bn
men & then the H.Q. 4 Bn.
I went down. Mackay & Majr
Stacey were there & they
gave me / details of
yesty nights c-attack. Heavy
7 41
shell were thumping in up
above not far away.
I was directed on from
there to the 3rd Bn HQ, down
a lonely long trench (quite a good
one) amidst a wilderness of
craters **past a lonely dressing station in a dugout**- twice under the torn
& twisted tramway - then up
a well revetted German
communication trench to some
more dugouts. The great
Church bell was across the
trench here & one ducked
in under it
to a well
lighted
gun position.
Howell Price ws out, managing
the affairs for the sending up
of flares for / contact aeroplanes.But in the As I went up
/ trench I had heard the
aeroplane hooting up above
7 42
constantly hoo-hoo-hooting on
some horn or bellows. They were
to throw flares from their
front line to show where
they really were. Price ws
out seeing to this himself.
The adjt. gave me the position
on / map. It ws well in
front o / position given by
Gen. Smythe.
Presently Price came in
& he gave me a third position.
He had bn round himself,
he sd, & placed it as far
as he possibly cd by bearings. His
right ws at 99 & his left
on / cutting in / road.
Well tt seemed to me
to be / position of the well
marked trench in / air
photos. I told him th
divn had bn told he ws
back at a very diff. position.
7 43
Two artillery officers were
there. They sd there was a shoot
on at a certain German trench,
timed to begin at 6 p.m. (& it
ws then 5.30) The heavy howitzers
were to bombard this place &
news had arrived that H. Prices men
were to be withdrawn from
a certain advanced point 38 near to it.
"Why - th's 150 200 yards behind
my front line" he sd.
It ws too late to do it
anyway - but it ws urgent
to get / news back of
where his line was - It is
frightfully hard to say
exactly where you are in
a wilderness of craters.
One of the liaison officers
sd he wd hurry to / Cement
House & tell his battery &
I sd I wd tell division.
I came back & sent a
message thro an advanced
7 44
field artillery line & then
hurried back down Centreway
& the Bapaume Rd - it was
drenching w rain - to
Division. They had got my
wire abt ½ hr. before - not in
time to take do any steps & I dont
think Blamey thought any
needed taking. But During
dinner Gen Hobbs looked in
& said: "The heavies have
cleared / situation properly"
"What have they done?"
asked Gen. Walker.
"Col. of the 3rd Bn reports
th they have bn firing
into his men"-
He gave the point - it
was in / cutting & at /
other end.
So th ws / sequel.
The curious part is
th we dont know yet th
7 45
Gen Smythe ws not right &
/ heavies may have bn falling
short of where they shd have
bn falling. They were meant to be bombarding
/ well made trench in /
air photo.
I rather wish I had
gone on to see / front line
tho' I might have dropped
into this shelling. But I
heard that / Germans
were advancing from
Martinpuich & I didn't
want to be caught in their
barrage. An aeroplane had
seen them. They made
their attack abt 6 p.m.
A very stiff bomb I first
wh set the front line
on our right smoking
like a fence in a bush fire.
Then a few isolated rifle
46
The church
47
7
shots. Ill bet they never
got in agst the Cameronians.
Gen Smythe is going to
settle the matter of where the line is
tomorrow morning, himself.
I hear the Germans
sniped two men / other day
where they were shooting
at me.
A German aeroplane
ws brought down this mg,
in flames. It is curious
th when hit they often
vol plane of their own
action - but it fell / last
300 feet.
We came back past the
Church in Pozieres. There is
no longer a semblance of a
window - just one remaining
pinnacle of tumbled bricks.
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