Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/80/1 - May - June 1917 - Part 4

8    36
small section of
English salvagers. The
tunnel will I suppose
fall in.  We wandered to
[[Beer?]] village where one fraction of / church
still remains where the padres books were
to have valley, - xxx
scattered around the ruins of his
house.  The was is practuated by
the smell of dead horses
& the whole field- from
the maze to Fricourt
is covered haunted with
sickly smell of
dead - halfburied
men, I fancy - a huge
cemetery of them.
The graves Registration
people are ^gradually going over
it & hundreds of little
white crosses are all
over the valley of
La Boiselles. I dont
 

8    37
fancy they will find
many of our people.
Pozieres is

Iare to ovevast
Antration
but they
cemetery
have been shateered &
buries too often by shells
for much to remain,
to the mind of the iter
covered t of those
Thousands of wen can
0 f and very few
pave remain - there
are only a few dozen
crosses to work about
1000 dead new Zealand

 

38
May 31st.
came North with
Ross & Bazlly to 3rd
anst. Devt Hrs. the
papers spoke of 23
Terman alroplne
having bu downed &
Beavy artiller fire
wh made us think
boubt niight have
begien. But we found
te front fairly quiet
at least, we cohend
little from Steenwerch
The first sign was.
the daughter of famy
at Headgrs, who knew
 

6
39
Ross told him to
Mayor had notified
them to they must all
have strips of paper
asted across their
weadows by tomorrow.
AlSO, Baitlenl
has be shelled by a
by german gun-
a naval 9.4.
We have some monety
Bench on a train, &
2015 wch on ary
carriages wh took
Etractors to pulltium
up I hill todan
St. is cr
 

46
with troops - NE
n Australin Dion
t Austo Dion tomonces
Dine with
finerel Monant
& be told me that
our corps were atpring
10th Ards
AtLys
leae
25
m
VE
Tanque
bt
Later mones I cant write
hine
The fermans my
I have put teew guns in. Mey know
whates a Iair - kengure
expections as to attack - thy
poisaders say so.
2
 

4
 

After denner we saw
one of their places
put down a balloon.
very pretty work. They
feentes with another plane
firte
first & deceived our
guas wh did not notice
second plane
 

42
we are not at all
certain to they are
not return
We are laying down
a by steeper road near
Wrilverghim - for torries
&any sort of traffic.
But monash letts we
to Prtys are betien
hand - so much so to
it we they wh delayed
this show uptot present.
and they are still not
ready & he says, X
June 2, wrote all
day- exceptfor a
tony yarn to little
 

Maj.S.S. Bulti
 

43
Schaler after luch.
He is going to manry
little Resssion countes
a egypt after was.
Well then Peter
conslancy
to his
ote
good paint
C0s of 11tBde.
Board
C
42 Woollock
C
63 Buller 8A.
&4 Mansbridge wt
Juve 2. Went round the 3 Brigade
commanders in mornin
arburched with Mc Nicoll
& went on to the ling via Hyde
park corner & The oute
way.
It is trimendously
attere since it woa Butler oI
were vound here last Tuly
when the whiszbangs charce
 

6
 

us. They were making Hyde
Pask coner quite fairly nasty 24
with 42. And we saw them
Curning a Farn near the read
poary Sai after Pen wnto it.
we bappened to bit off a
straf ofour tops guus at 3
P.m. - there is a temendous
consentration - these hadges
give such a chance. The
ferman had bee making they
fairly lvely -o killed the burial
officer on his bicycle
y We called in at the
Calacombs - where Col. Doson
was - rather shallow deyouts
(considering they are on a hill
day by our tennellers lately
Then on to 38 BorHGos at
te advanced is tannel. Ne
went by the only way wh god
handby recognise itself as a E.
When Butler & Asey. I were here
it as scareely saf to move in
ber day time - we were toto we
cd take our Chance. Now it.BA
sood deep sandbagsed Es- Down
near the exd it began to be very
knocked abt - great breeele
in it as you gettem in these
Sanbagge liver; & by the
 

C6
45
time wre got to the
A
post live we s.
that it had clearl
been heavily straft
very tateh. There
we scarcely a mans
track over the verly
spoiikle dust. We went
along & found one
Lewis Gunner $414 Bn.
ready
moching
a paper novel in a
abt the
ver
a
tWit we
only de
hetol usweerd probe
find 1yoffices to
right. We went I suppose
13oyds of rajsedshattend
y found no one; then
we went the oterway
frequentl having to clent
over shattered parapit
wellen view of German
until wecame to
a bit of a stream between
seaforth Farm & Donneng ton
Hall - with a brokendown
bridge wh I did not allupt
to cross. h way back we.
found a second man to our
i-gunner - So that made 2 men in abt
300ydo. He will be him tile bomes pnces
we went upto the top of Hell 63 (Heath
 

2

 

T2
 

440.2

g
213
 

Of course the Germans know
all obt our opensive. The latist is
that Several Germans have talily
pocaped fom our miserable
carelase
guarded gangs in
the back area. Two of these
are known to have crossed our
port trech. They were in
German Grey uniforms. They
lay apby day & wade their way
by night. Altho the back ared is
thick to troops the pout is so
them
held io there is practinty
obta
no man there af I womest.
one of tese
permaed
two ws shot in
g
Womanslaid
accos
but other got
alross & back
opie
Stet
to Gernans
The Germa
have long
NMC
expented this
tent so thm
att ack &
have now (so prisoners say
depard I lrets of it.
have tatch shortened up this
army boundaries, the 6R
army taking up to the month
of the
Douve Riven.
 

on our way back. It
was a wonderful view. The
ferman as tnowing nothing
so we cd observe afour case.
we kept queet & low (Baghy &
I) I could have stayed all
night. There were 3 English
officers sitting up on the bank
behind - solly fools, showing
how brave they were, as Jackson
sdwhen I told him, & giving
trench away.
The Messies Ridge w
apac us- very diff fom
when I last sw it messines
town battered & the trenches turned
to areas of brow dust with
Ytelen squares & triangles
here & there (marked G. on my
sketch) where therews nothing
to combaid - and a green
Nomansland. Our Combt had
began & heavy shells were going
into Messines; at 6.15 there was
a hupe Eplosion there - just beyond
Messuies - I wondered of 1 gernan
had cleared & blown place up.