The 30th May opened with a heavy bombardment of our lines at 12.15 a.m., which was repeated half an hour later. About 2.50 a.m., following further bombardment, the S.O.S. signal was received from the Queen Victoria's Rifles in Y subsector, who reported the enemy advancing. A very quick response to the call was made by our artillery, which laid down a barrage on S.O.S. lines; but no infantry movement developed on our front. At about 5 p.m. the enemy turned his attention to Battalion Headquarters in Hébuterne, which were heavily shelled and severely damaged. The sentry on duty was badly wounded, as were also four other men of the Headquarters staff and four of D Company billeted in an adjoining dugout. The total casualties for the day amounted to 31, of whom 16 in B Company were cases of severe shell shock following the previous day's bombardment.
This unpleasant degree of Bosche activity continued during the night, when our working parties were harassed and seriously delayed; and the 31st May saw no abatement of the shelling. Battalion Headquarters again received a "hate" at about 5 p.m., and the casualties for the day were Lieut. H. B. A. Balls, wounded at duty, and in N.C.O.'s and men, 1 killed and 3 wounded.
Throughout this tour of duty the promptness with which the Divisional artillery responded to calls for retaliatory fire against the enemy's activity was excellent and did a great deal to inspire all ranks with confidence in the gunners.
Further heavy bombardments occurred on the 1st June, which caused a very great deal of damage to the new trenches. On the afternoon of the next day the 1/4th Londons were relieved by the London Scottish, withdrawing on relief to Bayencourt, where tea was served and valises picked up from the stores. In the evening the Battalion was concentrated in huts at Souastre. The Kensingtons had also been relieved by the Rangers, who with the Scottish now came under the orders of the 169th Brigade.
A day was spent in Souastre by the Battalion in cleaning trench mud from uniforms and equipment, and in the evening it moved by march route via Hénu to Halloy, where it came once more under the orders of the 168th Brigade in Divisional reserve.
During this period of preparations for the battle the strength of the Battalion had been steadily creeping up with reinforcements from home and from the disbanded 2/4th Battalion. The drafts from the 2/4th Battalion were particularly valuable; they had all seen active service and, moreover, they were rich in potential N.C.O.'s. Throughout the hard fighting which followed the Battalion was fortunate in having so great an internal reserve of strength in this respect. As already recorded the 2/4th Battalion had been on overseas service for nearly eighteen months without the grant of any home leave. Through the special intervention of Lieut.-Col. Wheatley several large allotments of leave were made to the 1/4th Londons, and these were used chiefly for the benefit of the 2/4th Battalion reinforcements, but it was of course inevitable that large numbers of men should be unable to obtain leave before the 1st July.
The drafts received were:
7th May—2/Lieuts. F. R. C. Bradford, C. S. G. Blows, J. W. Price and S. Davis, and 214 other ranks from the 2/4th Battalion.
14th May—44 other ranks from the Reserve Battalion.
24th May—130 other ranks from the 2/4th Battalion.