Item 01: Frank Hurley war diary, 21 August-28 October 1917 - Page 88
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[Page 88]
incessantly pumped out, but even then it left the passage ways deep in slime - anyhow it was shellproof & I was grateful to be inside for a brief lull from the frightful din without. At 7.30 a.m. a message came over the wire that the first objectives had been won with very slight casualty. A large number of prisoners were captured & sent in. This body of men which came into the crater a little later were in extremely poor condition, haggard, emaciated & dejected. Many were mere boys & shadows of men. One could not help feeling regret for these wretched prisoners, forced into the front line no doubt on account of their inferiority & intended merely as buffers: whilst the finer troops were held in reserve. It was one of the most pitiful sights to see the wounded coming in. Many of our men being carried on