Brewster 'A Glimpse of War through a Private's Eyes', a retrospective account of experiences in World War I, 1915-1917 / John James Brewster - Page 129
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[Page 129]
Oclock every afternoon it was hardly necessary to pass the order along for every man no matter where he was in the earlier part of the day would be in the neighbourhood of his billet, "close to", four oclock. In the first place Waggons had to be loaded at the Depot Yard & the "stuff" carted to the "head" of the light railway which was being constructed to the front line trench. After a large enough heap of "stuff" called a "dump" had accummulated, the fatigue work would then be to carry this "stuff" through the communicating "Sap" to the front line dump & also to send it along the railway by means of truck pushed by hand (when completed).
The first time the men were put on the loading & unloading fatigue work, it was thought that they would only be worked for three or four hours & those first so employed, volunteered, but although the 3 & 4 hours passed & then midnight but there was not a murmur. A little excitement was caused to the loaders by information reaching them that the unloaders at the Rail head" dump, had been fired on by a machine gun & one of the horses had been killed; this was confirmed by the waggon being pulled into the yard by the remaining horse about two oclock in the morning
All the waggons by this time had returned, & intended stopping work, but an order was issued that another journey would have to be made, we were surprised, but without the least sign of murmuring or anything expressive of discontent or of having already done enough, the men set to work with a will. They turned in at five thirty that morning pretty tired but without the least complaint only good humoured boasting of the "Stacks of Stuff" that had been shifted in record time.
Next morning every man was up at 7 oclock. At four (pm) same day the whole of the Company had to march to the rail head, some to