Bridgehead duties were not onerous. The troops certainly enjoyed the power of being able to subject the Germans to restrictions which they themselves had for more than four years imposed on Belgian and French people. The inhabitants were forbidden to be out of doors between 9 P.M. and 6 A.M. without a pass. In the small hours of the 1st January, a Royal Scot officer was proceeding to his billet after the Hogmanay celebrations when he met a civilian in the streets of Haan. This open disregard of our regulations was not to be tolerated, and the officer curtly asked the German for his pass; he was completely nonplussed by the bland query—“Is it not that we are permitted to circulate after 6 A.M.?”
Certain specified goods were not allowed to be taken across our frontier, and our most exacting task was the repression of smuggling. All sorts of ingenious devices were resorted to, but they were quickly detected as our men gained experience. The craft of Teutonic and Jewish traders in exploiting the innate chivalry of the British soldier by using their womenfolk to convey prohibited goods, the British authorities countered by sending up officers of the W.A.A.C. and soon it became as difficult to smuggle goods past our posts as it is to deceive the Customs officials at Dover. Periodic raids were made upon trains, and while W.A.A.C. officers searched the German women the troops searched the men and explored the engine and compartments; usually a surprising amount of contraband was brought to light, on one occasion several cases of whisky being found under the coals in an engine tender.
The defect of the Teuton is that as a rule he has no sense of humour, but he had one good score against us. A report from a German source reached our authorities to the effect that a certain citizen of Wald was manufacturing air bombs. The secret manufacture of munitions within our area was of course forbidden, and a party of soldiers of the 27th Brigade raided the offender’s house. He was found to be a paralytic old gentleman, unable to move about, and a thorough search of his premises failed to disclose any sign of the bombs. Ultimately the officer in charge asked him where he stored his weapons. At first the old man looked puzzled, then light seemed to dawn on him and he directed the party to a small cabinet in a drawer of which lay the air bombs. The feelings of the officer on picking one up can be better imagined than described; it consisted of a tiny pole with a paper flag attached to a small leaden contrivance which, when fitted with a cap of the sort used to discharge toy pistols and dropped on the ground, caused the flag to rise gently into the air to a height of over ten feet.
Those who infringed our regulations were tried by a summary court presided over by an officer of field rank. The maximum fine which such a court could impose was 7000 marks, and the maximum period of imprisonment was six months. All accused had the right of appeal to the Military Governor, and the more serious cases were tried by a special court equivalent to a court-martial. The fines and penalties depended upon the gravity which the officer ascribed to a particular offence, and naturally throughout the area of occupation there was for a time considerable discrepancy between the penalties imposed for the same kind of offence. Gradually only officers with legal training were placed over these courts, and a regulated scale for each particular type of offence was laid down.
Demobilisation was the question of greatest moment for one and all. Having viewed the enemy’s country, officers and men were eager to return as soon as possible to their civilian occupations. There would have been practically no trouble if a definite scheme had been issued, and a date assigned for the commencement of demobilisation. But demobilisation was begun at once, with the result that many soldiers who had seen little or no active service were demobilised either because they happened to be at home on leave at the time, or because they were classified as “pivotal.” The “pivotal” clause was grossly abused, and under this pretext mere youths of eighteen years of age, who had never heard a gun fired in anger, were allowed to go home. Such anomalies created much restiveness and irritation among the older men, and not until they were removed and a smooth-working system devised was the general discontent allayed.
The military authorities acted with tact and sympathy. Training was mostly recreational with a view to keeping the men interested and in good health. After a time those waiting for demobilisation were collected in special camps and separated from those who were to form part of the Army of Occupation. Education was a useful safety-valve during the period of irritation; it kept the men employed and was probably more congenial to them than ceremonial drill. Owing to lack of trained teachers and constant changes of personnel it could scarcely be said that the standard of instruction within units was very high, but all who were really anxious to study were taken from the various units and concentrated in the Ninth Divisional College, where the best teaching ability at the disposal of the Division was available. This College was opened at Ohligs before the end of December 1918, and there much excellent work was carried out.
In the month of February Colours were presented to the various Service Battalions; to those of the 26th Brigade at Solingen by General Plumer, to the 27th at Wald, and to the 28th at Benrath by General Jacob. The Division preserved its identity till the 15th March 1919, but long before that date the vast majority of the officers and men who had fought with it had been demobilised. After the 15th, divisions were reformed under different designations. When the well-tried and trusted leaders of the Ninth were transferred to other posts and new and unfamiliar officers took command it was clear that a new era had begun. The units of the Highland Brigade were transferred to another division and battalions who had not shared in the Ninth’s brotherhood of arms took their place.
The history of the Ninth Division ends with the formal disappearance of its title on the 15th March. In the chronicle of its achievements attention is inevitably focussed mainly on the doings of the infantry and the gunners. But just as a good Quartermaster is a blessing to his battalion, though his name rarely occurs in the story of its battles, a division cannot expect to be successful without efficient “Q” and administrative work. The Ninth had good reason to be proud of its special branches, the Sappers, Pioneers, R.A.M.C., A.S.C., and Ordnance; their skilled help, generously given, was a factor of first-rate importance in giving the Division its prominent name among the British forces in France. Their work was assiduous and unremitting and was often carried on under conditions of great strain and extreme peril, particularly in the case of the Sappers, Pioneers, and R.A.M.C. A more trying ordeal can scarcely be imagined than that of digging under a heavy bombardment. The preparations for every battle involved an enormous amount of toil on the part of the Pioneers and the Sappers, and a slight idea of it may be gathered from the summary of their preparations prior to the 9th April 1917 given in [Appendix VI.]
The Ninth was exceptionally fortunate in its “Q” Branch; no division could have had more efficient or painstaking officers than Lieut.-Colonel McHardy and Lieut.-Colonel Jeffcoat. Details were worked out with a precision and care that ensured success, and a promise of “Q” was equivalent to a fulfilment. Even when the Division was encamped in the most desolate regions “Q” was able in a surprisingly short space of time to furnish baths, laundries, changes of clothing, and all the other comforts that helped to make the war endurable, and its arrangements for the transference of the troops from one spot to another were such as to cause the minimum of discomfort and inconvenience to the men. Ever since the time of Lieut.-Colonel McHardy, “Q” showed the same concern for the welfare of units attached to the Ninth as for its own troops. This system was carried on and expanded by Lieut.-Colonel Jeffcoat, and the most convincing testimony of its value was that A.F.A. Brigades liked to be attached to the Division.
The unit that had perhaps most reason to complain that the worth of its labours was never fully appreciated by the infantry was the Ordnance Department, which, consisting of an officer and 13 men, had to satisfy the needs of 16,000 men, 3750 horses and mules, and numerous vehicles and bicycles, in everything except food, light, and fuel. The excellence of the work performed by this Branch was largely the explanation why it was so much taken for granted; if it had proved less competent in furnishing and repairing munitions it would have been better though less favourably known to the infantry. The Ordnance people averred that they toiled harder than any other section in the Division; when units were in the line they were busy meeting their fighting needs and when they were out they were busier still re-equipping them. Undoubtedly a vast amount of very useful work was done by the Ordnance and some idea of it may be gleaned from the list quoted in [Appendix VII.]