After this outburst the brigades settled themselves down to "artillery activity," searching for the opposing batteries and shelling all tracks and approaches to the enemy front line. The two brigades each fired some six hundred rounds every twenty-four hours on targets of this nature, and by so doing aroused the ire of the enemy to no small extent. Hostile counter-battery work increased rapidly in activity, but very few casualties were suffered. A/162 (Major Pringle) were much damaged by hostile bombardments on the 22nd and 24th, while Major Richards' guns (A/156) on July 2nd were so heavily shelled that they had to shift their position, having lost three sergeants killed and a number of men wounded. But if the batteries suffered in this manner, at least they gave as good as they took; nightly activity was more than ever directed upon the hostile back areas and gun positions rather than upon the infantry, and to this was added a chemical shell bombardment carried on throughout the night of the 28th/29th which must have worried the enemy to a considerable extent, if the weight of his retaliation on the 29th were to be taken as a guide!
When the batteries came out of action prior to moving down to this part of the front a rumour was circulated, as already mentioned, that their destination was to be the Coast, and surprise prevailed that their route should take them southwards. Battery commanders were told by their Group Commanders on arrival, however, that the Cherisy-Fontaine sector was nothing more than a sorting-area, and that they, like the batteries before them, would probably remain in action only some ten days or so before moving elsewhere. Therefore, when orders were received on July 9th to move out of action in a couple of days' time, the news was not altogether unexpected. The preceding period had been spent in the usual artillery activity with no infantry action of any sort, but unfortunately the enemy, by this continued harassing of his battery positions and roads, had been roused to an extreme pitch of retaliation. He had of late taken to subjecting the valley from Heninel through St. Martin-sur-Cojeul down to Henin to a miniature shell storm, and as certain of the batteries had to utilise this route for their move out it seemed as though his efforts, hitherto fruitless, might meet for once with some success.
As matters turned out, however, the nightly searching took place some thirty minutes before the batteries moved, and the actual march away was carried out undisturbed on the night of July 11th/12th. A/162, nevertheless, and one or two other batteries were very heavily shelled by 5·9 in. howitzers just as the teams and limbers arrived, and only by the greatest good fortune, coupled with some very marked gallantry amongst the men, did the guns get away without serious casualties.
On arrival at the wagon-lines it was found that no further destination had been determined, and that here for the present the batteries were to remain. There was no reason, indeed, for a move to any more distant area, for the horse-lines here were good and dry, tents had been pitched to shelter the men, harness "rooms" had been erected while the batteries were in action, and a very fair degree of comfort offered itself to all ranks. True, the horse-lines were in view of enemy territory at points, but they were a long way back—some five miles from the line—and no trouble from long-range fire was expected; on the other hand the uninhabited state of the area, due to the destructive march by the Germans early in the year, offered an excellent training ground for work of every description.
Refitting, overhauling and training began immediately after the arrival of the batteries at their horse-lines. From the 13th to the 15th a Divisional Artillery scheme with skeleton batteries was carried out around Adinfer Wood; this was followed by days of battery training, gun drill, driving and riding drill, battery staff work, training the detachments to cut gaps through wire entanglements and rush their guns over trenches, and every conceivable form of preparation for more open fighting.
All was not work, however; the weather was glorious and every opportunity was taken of giving the men a holiday, a rest from fighting and preparation for fighting, a chance of enjoying themselves. Five or six jumps were put up near each battery, and the respective wheelers knocked together gates for exhibition driving; the Divisional band came down and gave a concert one afternoon, while another half-day was spent in a cricket match between the two Brigades. Batteries arranged mule races for their own edification or ran off heats for the forthcoming sports, and altogether managed to make the time very pleasant.
As a final flourish, two days were allotted for a Horse Show and sports. On the 18th the Divisional Artillery Horse Show was held near Boiry St. Martin, and produced an excellent programme. Events were ushered in by the somewhat precipitous arrival on the course of a six-in-hand emanating from D/162; a six-in-hand which, although only hooked in to a G.S. wagon and consisting of horses quite unused to this form of equitation, was driven up the course by Major Colfox in true coaching style, the battery trumpeter rendering weird noises from the back, while General Stewart's A.D.C. took a prominent seat "to add tone to the picture!" Followed a series of jumping, driving and "turnout" competitions, mule races and the like, till at last a very cheerful day and one producing some fine horses and horsemanship came to an end. Major Studd won the officers' jumping event. A/156 gathered up many of the other prizes, and the remainder were scattered amongst all the batteries.
Four days later a day was given up to Divisional Artillery Sports, the programme consisting not only of the usual flat race, jumping and obstacle items but also of one or two mounted events, and then the batteries packed their wagons, hooked in the teams and turned their backs sadly on this pleasant spot. They were off to the war once more, and rumour had at last been verified—the Coast was their destination.
The knowledge of this destination had been obtained by the batteries some time back. As early as July 4th General Stewart and his Brigade-Major (Major Durie), who had been relieved in the line by the C.R.A. of the 21st Divisional Artillery three days previously, set out for XV. Corps Headquarters to attend a conference, and did not return until the 8th. On the 13th orders had been received for one officer and fourteen men per battery to move ahead of the main body and report at headquarters of the 1st Division at Coxyde Bains, to prepare the positions which the guns were to take up, and with the name of the destination now disclosed an immediate rush had been made for maps to discover its locality. "Bains" certainly suggested the Coast, and surely enough it was ultimately found there—a small village some four miles west of Nieuport and right on the sea front. It was therefore with the knowledge of great events impending that the batteries marched off on July 23rd, glistening in the new paint and added burnish which eleven days in the rest area had made possible. Authieule and Amplier, both in the neighbourhood of Doullens, were their destinations that night, and these they reached in the evening after a march through very fine country under a glorious sky.
From 6.0 P.M. and throughout the night of Tuesday, the 24th, the batteries entrained at Doullens North and South and at Authieule. Eight horses in each van, guns and wagons lashed to long trucks by French porters, men crowded into big cattle trucks, they journeyed throughout the night and early morning past Hazebrouck and Bergues, and finally arrived in the forenoon of the 25th, the 156th Brigade at Adinkerke, the 162nd Brigade at Dunkirk. A rapid detrainment, water and feed for the horses and a hasty meal for the men, and the batteries set out in long columns for their wagon-lines. The 156th Brigade went right up to Coxyde Bains and established wagon-lines in the dunes behind the village; the 162nd Brigade marched to Ghyvelde, a village two miles from the Belgian frontier and some distance behind the line, and sent up one section of horses from each battery to be attached to the 156th Brigade at Coxyde for use as a forward wagon-line.