“Tissage Dump,” at Houplines, and “Fochaber,” near Chapelle d’Armentières, and night after night, for nearly three months, every available vehicle of the Company transport made at least one journey, without incurring a single casualty to man or beast.
The first member of the unit to lose his life in action was Sapper Dahl, of No. 3 section, killed by a shell in the support line on Christmas Eve.
Christmas Day was spent the same as any other day of the period, hard at work in the line. Shortly afterwards the frosty weather commenced, which was to make this winter the coldest known for many years. The Lys river froze over so completely that it could be crossed by troops in fours and by horses and wagons; the soil was frozen as hard as iron to such a depth as to almost preclude any digging; and the very breath congealed upon the faces of those who wore moustaches. Still the work went on, albeit more slowly, and the weather at least gave No. 2, the drainage section, some respite from their labours.
The clothing issued by Ordnance helped all ranks to withstand the unaccustomed rigours of such a climate. Warm underclothing, extra socks, worsted gloves, and fingerless gloves of sheepskin were all appreciated, but the most useful “issue” was a sleeveless jerkin of leather, lined with flannel or something of the sort and worn over the tunic. This garment was extremely popular, as it kept the body warm, shed rain or snow, and did not interfere with the use of the arms.
The active service rations, too, were much better than the unit had been accustomed to in England. The only serious shortage was that of fuel, but of course in a shell-torn country-side there were ways and means of improving the supply.
At this time Armentières sheltered quite a large civilian population; Estaminets, cafés, and shops were numerous; and it was very strange to see the business of the town carried on so calmly within easy range of the enemy’s guns. It was quite the usual thing to have a cup of afternoon tea or a glass of beer in a café on return from the line, or to buy the daily papers (including an occasional “La Vie Parisienne”) at the little shop at the Five Corners.
The proceedings in the trenches themselves were characterised by a certain amount of regularity. The hour of our daily artillery and trench mortar “strafe” was advertised beforehand to all concerned, except (we hoped) the Boche, and the garrison and working parties were largely cleared in time from the front line and tucked away in some spot sheltered from the enemy retaliation. The numerous raids by both sides were the chief cause of casualties, and the occasional intense Minenwerfer barrages put down by the enemy did a lot of damage to our trenches, besides causing loss of life. The “trenches” were really in most places breastworks built up above the level of
the flat and ill-drained country, and were very susceptible to damage from shell fire, and required much labour to repair.
The whole system of defence works in the Brigade area was carefully surveyed by the Company Surveyors, and a remarkable map produced, to a scale of 1 to 2,500. While engaged on this work one of the surveyors was arrested by some suspicious infantrymen and his section sergeant had some trouble in persuading them that they had not caught a spy at last.
Spy hunting was very popular, as it was firmly believed that whoever caught a real one would receive a sum of money and be granted a fortnight’s leave!