No. 16 was first held up at GALLIPOLI, but continued the advance, and 150 yards further on found another strong point, consisting of a trench and a few dugouts. The garrison of the post—about 25 in all—gave themselves up immediately. They then moved on to the GREEN LINE, and commenced to dig in. They had been digging for over an hour when the enemy counter-attacked on the right. “Twenty minutes previous we had seen the smoke of a train. For a time he was disorganised by our machine guns and Lewis gun fire; then he advanced on the front of the Battalion on our right, which withdrew immediately, and the enemy followed. Second Lieutenant Fullerton ordered us to line the hedge on our right, and we held on there for half an hour. Meanwhile the enemy tried to get round behind us, and to a certain extent succeeded.
“Our position was then so bad and our ammunition supply so small that we had to withdraw, moving back step by step in small parties. Gradually we worked back to the BLACK LINE, though some of our men—including Lieutenant Holden—were captured.”
EXTRACT FROM WAR DIARY—Continued.
At 12 midnight, July 31st/August 1st, the Battalion held a line of resistance just in front of the Black Line. At 1 15 a.m. completion of relief by the 165th Infantry Brigade was reported, and the remnant of the Battalion were ordered to concentrate in our original front line between Warwick Farm and Lone Street. This was done, and Battalion Headquarters was established at the mined dugouts in Oxford Trench. At 10 a.m. Headquarters was transferred to the mined dugout at WIELTJE.
Meanwhile an effort was being made to collect our stragglers. During the withdrawal a great many men had become separated from their Platoons, and by 2 p.m. on the 1st of August only 90 of our men had assembled in the old front line. In ones and twos they were eventually brought in, though some remained behind with the 165th and 166th Brigades in the Black Line till 24 hours or more after the Battalion had been relieved.
The weather was desperate; rain was pouring down all day, and the trenches were in a terrible state. Four or five derelict tanks could be counted, stuck deep in the mud, either in our old front line or in the German original front line. The day was fairly quiet, and there was only a little shelling in the vicinity of WIELTJE.
About mid-day the enemy counter-attacked on the front of the Division on our right, and succeeded in making a small breach in the Black Line. In the evening of this day a cooker was brought up with hot tea, etc., for the men.
Lieutenant G. J. Fismer, R.A.M.C., reported for duty vice Captain R. W. Shegog, R.A.M.C., died of wounds.
Casualties:—Officers: Lieutenant C. L. Hore, M.C., to Field Ambulance sick; Other Ranks: Nil.