For the 3rd Brigade, however, there was no wood conveniently near, and the Tanks lay out in a village with camouflage clothes thrown over them, painted to represent bricks and tiles.
For the forward dumps splendid work was done by the 3rd Army’s light railways, who handled astonishing masses of stores; for example, 165,000 gallons of petrol, 541,000 rounds of 6-pounder ammunition, and 5,000,000 rounds of S.A.A.
Beyond the light railways the Tank fills were transported by supply Tanks.
All these preparations had to be carried out as secretly as possible. Moves were made after dark.
No new wheel tracks must be made. There must be no reference to the battle over the telephone. There must be no extra horse or mechanical transport seen about in daylight.
The concentration of Tanks in the background was explained by the establishment of an alleged new training area. Tank Corps Headquarters established with the army at Albert was disguised under the plausible alias of “The Tank Corps Training Office.”
There must be no increase in aeroplane activity for reconnaissance purposes.
The same troops were to continue to hold the line, the attacking forces passing through them, and those in the line were as far as possible to be kept in the dark as to the new operations. There was always a danger of men in the trenches being taken prisoner in some raid, and the less they knew the better. Oosthoek Wood had not been forgotten.
All the Reconnaissance Officers and the Tank Staff who had to frequent the line wore non-committal burberries and discreet tin hats; one well-known Staff Officer even went to the length of affecting blue glasses; in fact, in the matter of disguise the line was only drawn at ginger whiskers. The cars they came in had their distinguishing badges taken off, and their drivers were carefully primed with cock-and-bull stories with which to explain their presence. Staff and Reconnaissance Officers slunk about, above all avoiding Headquarters and those other social centres which etiquette enjoins must be first called upon by all who visit other people’s trenches. Friends were stealthily avoided, and a curious jumble of assorted and obvious lies was gradually put into circulation.
At the Lyceum the villain conducts his affairs in this sort of way without arousing the least suspicion in any one, but in real life, and particularly in the line where a look-out must constantly be kept for spies, such conduct is apt to cause remark.