Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/72/1 - February - March 1917 - Part 3

17   22
for having the shells so

close up." Anyway it

isn't xxx us that did it

we ws told we had to".

"I'm in charge of this

party," said the talkative

man - who was not

working but walking standing

behind the gun at the

moment.

If I had been the 

officer I would have put

that chap to the right about

in half a second - x

squashed him flat; but

some of our officers are

very bad weak; that is the

weakness of our force, I'm 

afraid. I daresay it is

of all forces at this stage.
 

 

17   23

We went on towards

Hexham road, & there

Baldwin sat down to

get some photos of

barrage while Dyson &

I pushed on. We

looke went across to

the 12 Bn H.Q. in our

old support line; the

shelling was negligible 

- a few some hundred

yards away to our

right, that was all. 
They had a message
there tt the 18 Bn were

to attack again, if
 

 

17   24

xxxxx at 3.30 &

the 12^th & 9^th were to

push on & put outposts 

into Le Barque.

[Diagram-see original]

I went on

to find

support 

trench to see

this attack if possible.

The way over was 

simply strewn with

dead soldiers - Scotsmen,

Tommies, &, I believe,

Australians - right

across Gird trench & nearly

up to the wire of

Gird support. I 

never saw the dead
 

 

17   25

lying so thickly anywhere, 

even I think at Helles.

A signal wire gave 

me the way to follow, &

a half trodden track

in the mud - it ws

of course one great

puddle of shell holes,

men laying on the 

ridges between them,

men lying face downwards

& head down wards

into them, men on

their backs, men on
their sides, men half

buried, some many

quite in the open -
 

 

26
 

[Diagram-see original]

 

17   27

Presently we I came

to the German wire &

Gird ^support trench.

It was a wide

trench with duckboards

sunk under the mud

(Gird front trench had been

just a mud ditch)

There were two decent

dugouts in it in one

of which was Johnson

the medical officer of 12 Bn

who got a military cross

for coming to ^the Mouquet trench

to attend to Leo. A few

2nd field ambulance s. bs
 

 

28
 

[Diagram- see original]

 

17   29
were sitting in the 

trench. We cd get a 

splend view of "The

River Thames" ( a ditch

in the valley bottom)

from there - & over

a depression in the 

mud ran down

about 500 yds to a 

line of German wire

firmly fastened on wooden

stakes - In it I saw a

man running along - it

was part of our front
trench xxx at this

moment (Wheat trench)

- [The scene was as I 

have tried to draw it

on opp. page.]
 

 

17   30

I heard tt Col. Elliot of 12 Bn

was over there having a

look at things - Presently

he came back & I told

him of the attack & he waited

for it. It clearly did

not come off at 3.30

but at 3.45 our guns

broke out into a barrage

for a few minutes. It

was not a heavy barrage 

at all. Some o / shells

went into Malt trench, wh

we cd see- but

many were high. After 

a few mins. it stopped.

There ws no rifle or m.g

fire - no one moved

at all - so we knew

tt the attack cd not have
 

 

 

→ very slowly indeed; on / other

hand those who saw the 9 Bn

go say they were magnificent

to watch - in perfect line & order.

They have bn out for a fortnight

training for the attack on the [[?]].

Wh never came off.

I took Dyson up to see / British

dead in Nomansland, & then went

back to 1st Divn.

That night I had a talk to Gellibrand

at present commding 2nd Divn.  He 

sd tt he found / greatest difficulty in

inducing his Brigadiers to report to him

frankly at / time when they sd they

wd. He had told Forbes tt he must 

report today at 5 p.m, tt Malt trench had

been occupied at a certain part.

Forbes sd certainly he wd do so. He

did not - & had not reported at 7.

The Bdes were inclined only to send

patrols - they shd advance agst / wire,

Gelly sd, (if m.gs had bn silenced) &

/ man who found himself opp. / break

in it shd hold up his hands & / others

shd file in at that point. Gelly wd do
[*this himself - But I dont think most wd. *]

 

17   31

bn made. The Enemy

part in a barrage for seemed to

grow for a few minutes - also

an ineffectual one. 

We went back

to 12 Bn H.Q. & found

tt Germans seemed to be

evacuating the part of Malt trench

N of Bapaume Road. They

had bn seen leaving it. The

18 Bn had been ordered to attack

if it were clear tt / wire had

bn cut. Evidently it was

not clear.

[Col Elliot called my attention

to some Germans coming down /

hill near a long of telegraph posts

- & I myself saw a German walking 

quietly along the railway line, 

over the sleepers, beside the Bap. Rd

in / valley, w his rifle over his 

shoulder.

The 10 Bn has lost 8 officers - 

Col. Elliot says that they went over ↑
 

 

32
The 3rd Bde are very
bucked w themselves.
Tonight they are
putting a series of
posts around
Le Barque
[diagram-see original]
on the
rt of the
18^th Bn.
They have bombed
up Malt trench to
Battery Copse.
 

trenches opp.
View from Maze
27/2/17
 

17  33
[diagram-see original]
 

 

34
 

[diagram-see original]
 

17  35
The German method of retirement is explained
in my article of March 1. Butler tells me
that Long East . . .  Villers au Flos. used to be vacant.
Till - Le Transloy line ws always held.
—————
 5th Foot [[?]] may be taken as an example: -
After the first move.
the 3 Bn ^ws in Till trench (having xxxx retired to Till from 1 & 2 lines)
1 Bn ^ws in Bap. Vill Flos. (having come up from
from Cambrai.
where it had bn resting)

2 Bn ^ws in Rest. (From Till where it had resting
been in support)
Now: 

1st Bn now in Till
3rd Vill. Flos.
2nd in Rest.

( Behind these are men chosen from
( front Bn Die Hards. are
( 120 men (from Bn
( holding front line) - [[?]]