Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/210/1 - 1915 - 1918 - Part 4

On Aug 8 there ws one
offr slightly wd - Capt.
Ferguson; He ws wd at
Caroline wood, by a shell.
He got a tetanus injection &
came back next day.
Vincent M.C., D.C.M. did splendid work
this day - He got a bar to
his M.C. He is a Sydney boy.

Bn got to Red line
w 35 casualties, shell & m.g.

Total for whole tour, abt
60. It was a wonderfully
successful fight.

They got receipts for 370
prisoners (& really over 400)
& 6.6 in guns, 5 8.in Hows, Bty of
5.9, 4  2. 4.2s & other 77s, 27
guns in all; 48 TMs (many in a
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workshop in / Harbonnieres
valley, 10 Russian ponies -
& some waggons, a canteen.
Abt 40 m.gs. (see War Diary).
A Bn pioneer folld after 45 Bn
w a paint pot painting its name
on / guns captd by it.
The last phase.
Dec. 3rd.
1918 
Today in 15 & 16 Bns there
ws some trouble, the men coming
to some of their Coy Commdrs &
saying tt they wd not parade,
or tt they thought they ought not
to parade, owing to / shortage
of rations. 15 Bn only had ¾ of
its biscuit ration, I believe.
Anyway it shows how
difficult our task ws have bn
if / Germs had simply retired
more quickly & further inst. of
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fighting & then collapsing. (The
French people say tt there ws
no actual mutiny amongst /
Germans. Their discipline had
bn noticeably slacker / last
few months).
We cannot even now
keep up w them owing to /
blow up o / rlys. Our lorries
have to go back to Le Cateau
to fetch / rations up here -
& they cannot feed our xxx
men properly, or provide
even enough candles(a lot of this
diary has to be written up in
a half light. I have seen no
newspaper since tt of Nov 28 nor
has anyone at 12 Bde H Q.)
We cd never have kept up w /
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Germs. if they had adopted
this policy.
52 Bn, Dernancourt.
Capt. Fraser, 52 Bn who ws reported
wd & missing at Dernancourt
ws captured ws by / Germans.
& survives.
Lieut L.C. Boase, who ws
also wd. after / great fight
under / Archway, was
also captured:
Fraser in this fight (writing aftwds
from Germany) hung on to his positn
abt 100 yds down from / rly
crossing until he saw / Germs.
crawling across / line, when
5 diggers came back from /
subway. He then dashed across
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w 2 others abt 200 yds coming
under very heavy m.g. fire
all at once & ws hit slightly.
He lay in a shell hole for
a while until / m.g.
quietened & then started.
He managed another 100
yds & had to take cover
agn. This time the m.g.
kept playing over him. The
Germ. infy were advancing
in extended order & /
next thing he knew ws
a bayonet through his overcoat
& a clout on / head from
a rifle. He ws later (when
regaining consciousness) taken
back prisoner.
Boase ws early knocked
quite unconscious wd in 10 places. He
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& some others had made
several little attacks under /
bridge, using bombs & revolvers.
he ws seen to fall & ws believed
to be dead (in one of these rushes).
Several men spoke of Boase's
work as magnificent.
Fraser, from Germany, thinking
him dead, wrote as a
prisoner:"I desire to recommend
the late Lieut. Boase for a [[V.C?]].".
 

45 Bn. Aug Sept 18.
(Maj Loutit)
45 Bn ws in the Rly
line from ^before Vendelles to the
Tommies on / Right; 48 Bn
ahead in / present then front
line. As soon as 48 Bn
moved the 45^th folld them
at 400 yds distance.

        D |      
C |   B |      →
        A |
Artillery formation of plns.
Hqrs in rear of C.
It ws difficult to find your
way owing to the drizzle &
fog. You cd see a man at abt
20 yds - not more.
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They guided checked themselves
largely by the Sunken Rd
running abt the centre of the
Bn frontage E & W, &
the Cambresicesières ? Wood.
The worst part o / whole
business for 45 Bn really
ws coming up in rear of
48 Bn to their objve.
The German barrage missed
48 Bn but it followed fell on 45
Bn, shortening the whole way.
While 48 ws consolidating 45
Bn waited for 1¼ hours on a
previously chosen decided
positn abt 200 yds in
rear of 48 Bn in shell holes,
behind banks & in Sunken
Rd. It ws getting lighter then
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The ridge top is practically
flat - the Germs cdnt see
them - the cover & the fog
wd prevent Germs from
seeing them, but they were in
/ German barrage.
Lieut. Hinds ws k. there
while reorganising his pln,
by a German sniper who ws
on / near side o / barrage.
The Adjt. Capt Adams ws
wd here for / second time by
a shell. During the advance
Maj Loutit had bn wd just
after the adjt. - L^t Hill the
signalling offr ws k at abt
/ same time, Lt Hughes, Int. Offr,
badly wd. (died of wds)., Adjt wd,
& Maj Loutit. The barrage ws
heavy - L^t Horne O.C. D D ^"C" Coy
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ws wd at / same time, &
Lt Fifield, of D Coy wd.
The wire wh ws uncut (tho
/ barrage ws very good) ws
a nuisance. In places you
had to walk 50 yds to find
a gap. There ws both old
British wire & German wire.
After waiting 1¼ hrs the
barrage increased & moved
forwd. The Bn just before
moved to withing 50 to 80 yds
of it, & folld it when it
moved.
As soon as 45 got
thro 48 they met /
Germs coming to counter
attack 48 Bn. They were
actually advancing in waves.
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