For their services in connection with this raid, Sec.-Lieuts. B. H. Huggard and H. R. Newman were each awarded the Military Cross. Sergts. A. Loosemore, V.C., R. Wilson and F. J. Field received Distinguished Conduct Medals; and sixteen other ranks gained the Military Medal.
(d) Quiet Days in the Ypres Salient.
The night after the raid the Battalion was relieved in Brigade Reserve, and went to Siege Camp for rest. This camp lay on the east side of the Vlamertinghe-Elverdinghe Road. It consisted mainly of Nissen huts, but there were also a number of sandbag shelters and one or two pill-boxes. The surroundings were very pleasant. All the time the 49th Division remained in the Ypres Salient, the Battalion’s rest periods were spent at Siege Camp. One period was much like another. Of the seven complete days out of the line, the first was devoted to baths and interior economy, and then three days were occupied with training and three were spent at work on one or other of the defensive lines in the neighbourhood.
All the work, of whatever nature, was allotted by tasks. If the men could finish in two days, they had a day off. But the tasks were heavy. Some very good work indeed was done by the Battalion during these rest periods, and, looking back now, it seems a pity that all this work was unnecessary; for none of the lines, so carefully constructed and strongly fortified, ever had to be held against an enemy attack.
Training was carried out mainly under company arrangements, but, on one or two occasions, battalion schemes were worked out, particularly one in which the Vlamertinghe Line was used as an objective. The Battalion had its own miniature rifle range and its own football field. The latter was much used. Not many hundred yards away was a Belgian detention camp, with the officers and N.C.O’s of which the Battalion was on very good terms. Enemy shelling was not serious. There was a good deal of searching for the many gun positions which covered the area, but it was seldom that shells dropped dangerously near Siege Camp. One unlucky shot severely wounded Sec.-Lieut. A. Charlesworth during a tactical tour.
The main form of relaxation was dancing. For this the Battalion band was in nightly demand, and the absence of ladies did not interfere with the enjoyment. The first dance hall was an old ammunition store, the floor being covered with a large tarpaulin. When this store was pulled down, the band was ejected from a wooden platform which had been built for it near the orderly room, and had to perform on the bare earth while the dancers monopolised the floor. All ranks took part; the Regimental Sergeant-Major could usually be seen affectionately encircling the waist of a signaller, while the Medical Officer and others have been known to grace the floor.
Gradually the nightmare of the enemy offensive was passing away. At first the days were full of rumours and alarms. Most elaborate defence schemes had been worked out, and heavy artillery counter-preparations were common at night, and in the early morning. Reports came through of the attacks on the French down south, but it gradually became clear that the enemy’s power of attack was being worn out. From the first news of his attack on July 15th, it was obvious that little success had been gained. Then, three days later, came word of Marshal Foch’s great counter-stroke on the flank, which not only robbed the Germans of the little ground they had gained south of the Marne, but drove them headlong to the Vesle. Almost at once everyone realised that the danger was past, and that soon it would be the turn of the British to attack. But this is anticipating.
On June 29th the Battalion returned to the line, relieving the 1/7th Battalion West Yorkshire Regt. This time it was holding the right of the Left Brigade Sector. The front extended from near White Chateau to the vicinity of Dragoon Farm. It was held by three companies, each having its platoons distributed in depth in three lines. The fourth company was in battalion reserve, occupying a line in front of the civilian cemetery near the Menin Gate—the cemetery in which lie the remains of Prince Maurice of Battenberg. Battalion H.Q. occupied the old divisional H.Q. near the Menin Gate.
For sixteen continuous days the Battalion held this front. It was the longest unbroken trench tour that it had ever done, and most men were heartily sick of it by the time it came to an end. The tour was not particularly exciting. The enemy remained quiet, and, until the last few days, little but defensive patrolling was done. Almost nightly raids by the 148th Infantry Brigade had put the enemy so much on the alert that there was little hope of success for minor enterprises. During the last few days patrols became more active. Early one morning Sec.-Lieut. J. W. Entwhistle penetrated deeply into No Man’s Land and located some enemy posts, which he believed were held at night. The following evening he took out a fighting patrol, hoping to occupy these posts before the enemy arrived. But he was not early enough. The Germans were there first, were thoroughly alert, and received him with a hail of machine gun bullets. Fortunately he succeeded in withdrawing without casualties. It was afterwards thought that the enemy might have discovered the visit paid to his posts in the early morning, owing to the removal of “souvenirs” by members of the British patrol. On another occasion Sec.-Lieut. J. A. Steele occupied West Farm, a ruined building about 500 yards out in No Man’s Land, for a whole day, with no result, except that his party suffered torments from the bites of the horse flies which swarmed in the long grass. On the night of July 9/10th there was a terrific thunderstorm, with drenching rain. One platoon, which was carrying R.E. material up to the front line along F Track—the left boundary of the Battalion sub-sector—was struck by lightning. Two men were killed instantly, but the rest, though thrown violently to the ground, escaped with a severe shaking.
Messenger dogs were in use on this sector and some were even stationed at Company H.Q. This gave an opportunity to the sporting spirits among the officers, who backed their dogs to arrive with messages first. For some time the same dog always won, and by so big a margin that no one could understand the reason. At length the mystery was solved. A sentry had made friends with the losing dog, which was in the habit of stopping daily to see him when it passed his post.