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[Page 103]
with two men in the limber came round the back of village & and pulled up along side a hedge within a hundred yards of the next platoon to mine on the other side of the road. This limber it was afterwards learned contained a large trench mortar which was evidently being brought up to use against us. Things turned out very successful for us for the Huns advance had been checked & the whole brunt of the attack fell to the infantry for our artillery had not yet arrived back from the Somme for it had to come by road. The Huns made no attempt to attack our position during the night but at the same time we kept on the alert for we knew that he would come again as soon as he could reorganise. The next morning about Eleven o'clock the Huns started to come again but after a considerable amount of fighting he was driven back with very heavy losses & this time we had the assistance of our Artillery which had pulled into position during the night & they play havoc among the massed bodies of the enemy just prior to the attack. Only in one place did the enemy secure a foot hold this being due to a Lewis Gun breaking down but he only held the post for about half an hour when he was driven out, most of the Huns in the post being killed. From this out things began to settle down except for our artillery which, kept worrying the Huns, also increasing in strength for every day more guns were brought forward to assist in holding the enemy. Both sides set to work in consolidation for the Huns had had all the fight knocked out of them while we were satisfied to leave things as they were until our defences had been made secure for our troops had had a very rough time during the past week. Early one morning under cover of a heavy fog two officers a Corporal & myself set out to explore some houses in no-mans land about eighty yards away from my platoon post.
[Image includes a hand drawn sketch showing the Australian and German positions around the village of Veaux Berquin. The sketch is titled "Position occupied by A. Coy 3rd Battalion when they checked the advance of the Huns in Flanders on 12.4.1918"]