Charles E W Bean, Diaries, AWM38 3DRL 606/210/1 - 1915 - 1918 - Part 7

found in 2 bodies in
diamond formation -
Vincent & 3 others to / left
to / main gully, &
Sergt Brown DCM MM &
2 others to Grace Wood.
The Germs were running
- throwing away kit & arms
& clearing out. A few were
trying to loot a canteen but
the scouts fired on them w
m.gs. ^& k a few & the rest ran. Our
barrage ws still on / gully
- abt 3 heavy guns & the
RHA (not much of
a barrage). After looking into the
stables & dugouts in / valley
they got up to 200 prisoners -
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 An Engineering shop, kit store,
canteen & Hqrs of some sort
(The germs set fire to an
orderly room here - a typewr.
was salved from it but /
papers cdnt be got. The
dugouts near Susan Wood
were burnt by / throwing in
of a phosphorus bomb wh
set fire to two of them.
Out of one of them came
38 prisoners).
There ws a canteen
next to / orderly room, w
grapes, wine, schnapps &
in a new parcel champagne. Wh we
broke, & liqueurs, cigs. etc.
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8 in hows, 5.9 guns
& mgs. were got there -
but most m.gs. were
along / bank W of Susan
Wood. The objve ws on
the rd on / next ridge.
In / small rd wood just
W of Morgan Wood a
m.g. ws holding out w
15 men. They were enfilading
46 Bn, not firing on 45 Bn.
Vincent & Cpt Sellick (DCM)
crept up within to the bank.
edge o / wood & threw
2 bombs to abt 30 yds
of them - & the Germs
surrendered. The man
ran out o / wood (/ post
ws on / edge). He shouted
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in Good English. "Don't shoot
me, dont shoot me -
I am an Alsatian -
Vive la France."
They were now on
the objve. Ahead there
ws a bit of ^low scrub w
dugouts in it - They went
straight on & got a n^o of
prisoners out of this.
Hope Wood ws on their rt
flank.
Fully 1000 Germs were
fleeing N. wds towards
Mericourt. There ws a
Sector of 77 guns wh shelled
round abt on / final objve
just N of / road & were firing
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at 45 Bn digging ing
Another Section ws
on / rd W of Proyart. And
one German m.g. for ½ hr
ws fighting from the Willow.
(The advance ws delayed
There At this stage a bit thro 48 Bn
tanks being knocked out.)
The sectns of guns ahead
were very well fought
retiring & opening again
- they were seen at this
stage & L.G. fire ws brought
onto them & they cleared
out. One big gun at /
back of Proyart? kept on firing at
intervals towds Corbie
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There ws enfilade fire
from N of / Somme.
On / objve the tanks
presently came from 46 Bn
direction. They cruised about
a bit. Then as they came
back round Mogan wood
a 5.9 gun bty from behind
Mericourt & Chipilly cliffs
banged at them.
In / aftn, 4 or 5 hrs
after / positn ws taken a
few 5.9s fell in / valley.
Up to then all / fire had
bn enfilade. The Germs had
direct obseratn up the
valley.
On / green line a few
German planes came over
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w m.gs. & a little m. gunned
them. Then ^droves of our planes
did good work & / Germans
cleared. On / objve
our planes were scarcer
(returned for petrol etc.) and
One German gun plane
put down 3 of them in 10
minutes. (48 pushed thro).
That night at dusk
45 Bn relieved rt half of
48 Bns front.
Next day (Aug. 9)
Lt Potts MC one man went out
by day & crossed the
Rd from Proyart to La Flacque
factory. He met no oppositn
- just simply walked out. He
had watched / place for an hour
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& reckoned there ws no one
there & went out to see.
The 2nd Divn came
thro ^5 Divn tt day & their left ws
at La Flaque. That 45 Bn
had not bn told to advance.
That night 45 Bn ws sent
ordered to swing up (as
marked on my map).
First a reconnaissance
patrol under Lt Vincent
ws sent out & went along
/ rly line to / Road to
Proyart. They were ^just going on
to / village when they heard
German being spoken in their
left rear - commands, &
shovels rattling on marching
men along / other rd from Proyart SW.
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V. withdrew his patrol as
these Germs got into the trenches
S.W. of Proyart. Abt an
hour later they began to
send up flares & tear
in w m.g. fire - &
this seems to have bn /
first garrisonning o / line
ahead at all. That night
also / Germs renewed /
77. fire along the Main road &
the Blue line. The La Flaque
dump ws full of wood -
Some o / stacks were burning.
Probly they had bn set fire to.
There ws a very big dump of
Mills grenades there.
(In the rear line of the
Bray trenches N o / rd were found two
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Pom Poms, 1¼ in. bore(abt
w a brass cartridge case &
hollow steel nose cap full
of magnesium powder (flare
powder-white flare -) probly
the flaming onions - not
strings of sausages but a
fast pale blue light - The
sausage strings were sd by
a Germ. prisoner to be fired
by Granaten werfers. The
onions were tracers for a pompom
From there 45 Bn went
to Sailly Laurette – & then to
Harbonnieres & Lihons where
they retd the 3rd Bn & had
some hot bombing. The Germs
were very game there - continualy
renewing bomb attacks - wdnt
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