6. In order that the registration of the objective by the heavy artillery and Minenwerfer shall not be apparent, on the morning of the day before the raid—probably the 10th April—a feint bombardment of Target-sectors 76-79 will be carried out, combined with a mine explosion, with the object of misleading the enemy. The exact time will be fixed beforehand by the artillery commander, Officer Commanding Ersatz Abteilung, 76th Artillery Regiment.
7. The machine gun officer will arrange that, during the whole time of the raid, the enemy’s rear trenches in Target-sectors 76-81 are kept under a constant fire, with a view to causing him all possible loss, and, at the same time, to safeguarding our patrol against counter-attacks.
8. The Officer Commanding 1st Reserve Company, 13th Pioneer Battalion, will arrange for a gallery of the left-hand minefield to be ready charged by the morning of the day before the raid, and for a gallery of the right-hand minefield to be ready charged by the evening of the raid. The former will be sprung at the conclusion of the feint bombardment, the latter as an introduction to the feint attack.
From today, the “earth mortars” (Erdmörser) will systematically cut the enemy’s wire opposite the Blinddarm. On the day before the raid, they will coöperate with all other close-range weapons to assist in the feint bombardment of Target-sectors 76-78. On the evening of the raid, they will assist in the feint attack by bombarding Target-sectors 76 and 77 (see Appendices 3 and 4).
Throughout the raid, the “ Albrecht-Mörser,” in position on the Lehmgrubenhöhe, will heavily bombard the enemy’s trenches in the Nordrondell. Particular care will be taken that the enemy’s machine guns do not interfere with the raid from that quarter (see Appendix 1).
9. The Officer Commanding 228th Minenwerfer Company will register the enemy’s wire at the point of entry with one heavy and two medium Minenwerfer in the course of the feint bombardment on the day before the raid. He will also take part in this bombardment and fire 30 medium Minenwerfer shells at the Weisse Steinmauer (see Appendix 4). On the afternoon of the same day, with both medium Minenwerfer mounted in the Minenwerfer Weg, he will cut the enemy’s wire at 76y, and throughout the whole night and the following day will keep up a desultory fire.
On the evening of the raid, the wire in front of the point of entry of the raiding party will be cut on a width of 50 meters by the heavy and two medium Minenwerfer (see Appendix 1). Meanwhile, the two other medium Minenwerfer will take part in the feint attack against 76y (see Appendix 3). The light Minenwerfer at the disposal of the 228th Minenwerfer Company will take part in the feint bombardment and in the feint attack, in accordance with the orders (para. 8) issued for the close-range weapons of the 1st Reserve Company, 13th Pioneer Battalion (see Appendices 3 and 4). The Officer Commanding 228th Minenwerfer Company will receive further detailed instructions from Captain Wagener.
10. On the evening of the raid, battalions will hold themselves in a state of readiness for an alarm. Arrangements will be made that, in the event of the enemy opening a barrage on our trenches, as may well happen, the number of sentries will be reduced to a minimum. Gas masks and other gas equipment must be held ready for use.
11. I shall be at the regimental command post from the morning of the day before the raid. From 6 p. m. of the evening of the raid, I shall be in the advanced regimental command post in Dug-out No. 9 on the right wing of the left-hand battalion. Captain Wagener will maintain constant communication with me. The artillery liaison officer will also be with me.