A very hazy day. Vosper
and I arrange to go to battalion with Major Claudet at eleven a.m.
Battalion was reached without incident and we found them very crowded
there. At their directions we set out for the front line, down the
main road, but, just as we were topping the crest, Claudet and I
jibbed at going down the road for about a quarter mile in full view
of the Hun, so we turned back and up towards a trench running over the
crest of the 47th Div's front. We found, as is usually the
case, the men very ignorant about their front, so we blundered on till
we reached an old Hun 5.9 gun position, now occupied by our Stokes
guns and they directed us to Company HQ. While inspecting the Hun gun
and shells, Claudet and I lost Vosper, taking the wrong turn in a
trench, and eventually reached Company just after Vosper left. We
were directed to our division from there and had to proceed over the
top, as the trenches were not joined up. Neither of us liked this but
we wasted no time over it. We eventually found our own division and
spoke through from Company HQ, telling our people to fire on SOS
lines, three or four bursts battery fire. When we sallied forth to
observe our rounds, the Hun started bombing our post just about 20
yards down the trench and, amidst the bombing on one side and one of
our guns – No. 2 - dropping short, life was not extra pleasant. It
was almost dusk when this was over and we walked along the front line
to the canal and came home along through No. 7 lock. I found on
reaching home No. 2 gun had the wrong range on, having put on 3,800
instead of 4,800 s,o as the No. 1 was a young NCO, we let him off with a
strafe. On reaching the Mess found Vosper had only just got back, he
having seen the shoot from the OP and nearly received the shorts on
his own head.
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