Further reinforcements joined us at Béthune, mostly from entrenching Battalions, making our strength up to more normal figures, though for many months to come, we seldom exceeded 600 to 700 all told. Capt. Hill was appointed to command D Company, 2nd Lieut. Cox succeeding him as Signalling Officer. Mounteney rejoined and resumed his duties as Regimental Sergt.-Major.
Our next move was to the Richebourg sector—probably the most miserable trenches we ever met with, and then held by Indian troops. Leaving Béthune on November 4th, we proceeded via Epinette, where we spent one night, to Vieille Chapelle and relieved the 58th Rifles (Meerut Division) in front line trenches on November 6th, with Battalion Headquarters in "Edward Road," just behind Richebourg L'Avoué, and the front line a little in front of that village, and just South of Neuve Chapelle. This was a bad country for trenches, being flat and low lying, with the water level even at normal times very near the surface. The Boche as usual had such high ground as there was. This was mainly in the region of the Bois du Biez on our left, from which he got a fair view over much of our area. The Indians had done little trench work, and all that was taken over was a very poor front line, with a few scraps of support trenches, and one or two communication trenches, mostly full of water. It was during our first tour that a waggish Hun called out one night, after one of our Very lights had made rather a worse display than usual, "Better luck next time. I'll shew you how to send them "—which he promptly did, adding later, "I don't want to fight, I've had enough of the war." Towards the end of our stay in this area, we came across another talkative lot of Boches, who had a good deal to say one night, enquiring what regiment we were, and making various remarks about cigarettes and plum puddings.
It was towards the end of our first tour that we had the first of our happily few casualties in this area, Lieut. Houfton being killed early in the morning of November 11th. He was endeavouring to make his way with Lieut. Abrams along an absolutely water-logged trench to "Boar's Head," the extreme right of our Battalion sector, and they were evidently being carefully watched by a Boche sniper, who was doubtless able from time to time to catch a glimpse of their caps above the parapet. Eventually, when they got to a spot where the parapet was particularly low, he fired, the bullet killing Houfton, and passing through the peak of Abrams' cap. Sergt. T. Martin gallantly went to Houfton's aid, across 400 yards of very difficult and exposed ground.
The front we held was changed somewhat after a time, and we side-stepped to the left, with Battalion Headquarters in dug-outs, at the side of the Rue du Bois. The few odd houses left along this road were mostly used by the Gunners as observation posts, the principal being "Ritz," "Carlton," "Princes," and "Trocadero," and as the Boche gunners probably had a very shrewd suspicion of this, the neighbourhood of the road was often not a healthy spot, and on one or two occasions was shelled fairly heavily. It was on one of these, when we had some men wounded near "Factory Corner," that Pvte. Redfern, the old bandsman, coolly went to their aid in the midst of the shelling, and was dressing one of the men when he was himself mortally wounded. L.-Corpls. W. H. Lacey and S. Matthews also shewed great bravery in rescuing wounded men at the same time. In connection with this shelling of areas behind the front line, a somewhat unhappily worded order was received to the effect that daily reports frequently omitted to mention the activities of hostile artillery, and that as an example at a certain time on a certain day, "Guards Trench" was subjected to a sharp bombardment, and that had it not been for the fact that "a Staff Officer was accidentally in the front line at the time," nothing would have been known of this at Divisional Headquarters!
The Boche machine gunners gave us a certain amount of trouble too, particularly at night, when they regularly sprayed all the area from the Rue du Bois to "Windy Corner," doubtless hoping to catch transport and carrying parties. One particular artiste used to try to play tunes with his gun and we had no difficulty in recognising his favourite as an attempt at "Yip-y-addy." It was a very unlucky burst from one of these one night that killed that very brave soldier Sergt. Sheppard, who had previously been awarded the D.C.M. for gallantry at Hooge. Lieut. Adams, our machine gun Officer, did his best to get his own back against them, and used to stalk out nightly alone, contrary to all regulations, and fire off his guns at odd times in the hope of catching someone. He was rewarded one night, after patiently lying in wait for a search light that the enemy had used occasionally from their front line parapet, by knocking it out with a burst of fire almost the instant it shewed itself. But on the whole there was very little excitement; in fact, we hardly had time for much, as we only spent a total of 16 days in the trenches here altogether. Cold winter weather had set in, and there was little or no comfort possible for the men holding the front line. It was here that we first really found it necessary to use "gumboots thigh" when they could be got, and to dress legs and feet daily with whale oil to try and ward off that horrid complaint "trench feet," which might easily have caused many casualties in such trenches as these. A most complicated form had to be filled up with every case sent down to hospital suffering from trench foot, and no mercy was shewn to any Commanding Officer who did not take every precaution to prevent it. Fortunately we had a very good record. Every effort was made to relieve the men in the front line every 24 hours, and to take them back as often as possible to the billets near Windy Corner, where they were able to get their clothes dried, and a good night's rest before going back to the line.
Our rest billets and Transport were at Vieille Chapelle. The field where the latter had their lines was nothing but a mass of mud, in most places knee-deep. The Transport at this time shewed remarkable activity, limbers going backwards and forwards all day to Lacouture on some mysterious duty, which was by no means unconnected with the excitement which arose in "A" Branch of Divisional Headquarters towards the end of our stay, about some houses missing from that village! They had been removed piecemeal to the transport lines, where they were used to form standings.
During one tour spent in Brigade support, Battalion Headquarters and two Companies were in that village, and two Companies in billets in Richebourg St. Vaast, or finding garrisons for "St. Vaast," "Grotto" and "Angle" posts. An interesting discovery in the rafters of a ruined house at Richebourg St. Vaast was a pepper box found to contain several gold louis. Capt. E. M. Hacking was the means of their being handed over to the French authorities and, we hope, eventually restored to their owner. The billets at Lacouture were not very good, but we had a great find there in the shape of what had once been a billiard table in the remains of the Village Institute. At the same time curiously enough, and for some time afterwards, the Quarter-Master reported that the demand for green cloth for putting behind cap badges was extraordinarily small!
The main drawback to our periods of rest was those wretched working parties, which seemed to pursue us everywhere. Here the work in hand was the building of a solid breastwork in continuation of Guards Trench, just East of the Rue du Bois. Two nights out of each four we were at rest, we had to send large parties to Richebourg to carry on this work, which was being done "by the piece." A certain number of sandbags were issued to each man about half-a-mile before he got to his work, and he was told that when these had been filled and laid he could return. It is perhaps needless to say that many of the sandbags found a resting place in the nearest ditch, not far from the Royal Engineers' dump, where they were issued, and that the building of the breastwork did not proceed very rapidly.
During our stay here several new Officers joined, including 2nd Lieuts. H. K. Simonet, G. A. P. Rawlings, and A. H. Michie from the 2/8th Battalion, and 2nd Lieuts. A. Bedford, G. G. Elliott, and W. W. Pitt. We were also given as Second-in-Command, Major E. H. Heathcote, from the 6th Battalion, whilst his brother Capt. G. S. Heathcote, rejoined at the end of November and resumed command of C Company. At the same time Capt. E. M. Hacking went to Brigade Headquarters to learn Staff duties, leaving A Company under Lieut. Andrews, until taken over a little later by Capt. A. Hacking, who rejoined from Brigade. We also lost 2nd Lieut. Pickerell, who was invalided home. Our losses in other ranks during our stay amounted to three killed and 15 wounded.
On December 2nd—we retain most pleasant memories of that night—we were relieved by the 7th Battalion in the left sector, and on one of the darkest nights known, made our way back in the usual way to Vieille Chapelle. About 9.30 p.m. a message was received from Brigade that the Commanding Officer or Adjutant was wanted at once. The Adjutant was sent and came back with the news that we were to be "prepared to move at short notice to an unknown destination." At 5.0 a.m. the next morning further orders were received and we left Vieille Chapelle at noon the same day, marching via Merville to Haverskerque, where we got very good if scattered billets. There we proceeded to clean off some of the mud of the Richebourg trenches. During our march we met units of the 19th Division, moving up to relieve the troops in the trenches, and could not help feeling a touch of sympathy for them having been suddenly fetched away from comfortable billets, to take over such water-logged trenches, and we felt that for once fortune had favoured us.