MAP 4.
The troops we were fighting there were on the whole very young, and they had new clothing and equipment, and told us that they had left Germany for what they thought would be manoeuvres in Belgium, and did not expect seeing the firing line for some months. I myself really thought the war was over that day, as Germans surrendered from all directions and we overran their trenches everywhere.
I went on with the first line, right into the village of Langemarck. We got to a windmill, where we took up position—two Officers and thirty-four men, the Officers being Captain Craig and Lieutenant Gardiner (afterwards taken prisoner). As it began to get dark, we set about trying to find the other part of the Regiment, and another man and myself were sent out to locate them. Creeping along quietly for about three hundred yards, we came to a trench. Thinking it was occupied by our own men, we walked up, and found it full of Germans! We were off with a volley behind us, but got safely back, reporting the incident to the Captain. After studying the map for some time, he came to the conclusion that we were cut off, and had better wait until it was quite dark. This we did, and successfully found the remainder of the Regiment.
We had done well that day and set to work with a will during the night on a new line of trenches. These we held the next day, being relieved again at night by a French Division, with the exception of about thirty of us, who were unfortunately left behind.
It had happened this wise: there was a sharp bend in the trench, and my platoon was round the other side of that bend. The French, on coming up the communication trench in the dark, had gone straight on, relieved the remainder of the Battalion, and had left us there. The Battalion, on forming up in the rear to march off, had found that we were missing; they had waited for us in a field, naturally thinking we should join up as soon as we had been relieved. After waiting for an hour, daybreak came, and the Germans had commenced to shell them; so they had made off, leaving us behind.
We in the trenches were rather worried by a party firing over our heads, apparently from behind, and the Germans were in front. Towards daybreak the men on our left commenced firing heavily, and the Officer in charge of us (Lieutenant Gardiner) shouted out to know the reason of it. After shouting several times and getting no answer, he sent an N.C.O. down to inquire. When that N.C.O. came back and reported that the trench was full of French troops, we knew then the Regiment had gone and had left us—anyhow, Lieutenant Gardiner went behind and found the men who had been firing over our heads to be French troops also. They were in a ditch, evidently in the dark taking this ditch to be the line of trenches. Of course, on being told their mistake, they cheerfully came up and let us fall to the rear.
On the way back we inquired of every one if they knew the whereabouts of our Regiment, but, as no one knew, we were stranded. We then marched back to our old billets in Boesinghe, which we had left a couple of days before. We found no Regiment there, so the Officer took us all into an estaminet (beer-shop), and ordered us coffee and food. We then heard from a Staff Officer that the Regiment had gone on to Ypres. It was Sunday morning, October 25th, 1914, when we arrived at Ypres. The town was then practically in its normal state, being full of civilians just returning from Mass, and no German shell had yet visited the town. There we found our Corps Headquarters, and the Officer in charge of us, having reported the episode of how we got left behind in the trenches and learnt the whereabouts of the Regiment, was told that the G.O.C. was highly pleased with our work of the last two days, and that when he reported to the C.O. (Major Carter), who had joined us recently and had led us in the last attack, he was to tell him that the men who had been left behind were to be struck off all guards, fatigues, etc., for the next twenty-four hours and to be given a thorough rest.
Thus ended the Langemarck engagement so far as we were concerned. On October 26th, 1914, General Headquarters issued the report, a copy of which appeared in the current account of The Times of November 17th, 1914, as follows: