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[Page 55]
Firing Line France "45"
30/4/16
Awakened at 1am with urgent messages of gas attack on our left and took precautions to see that all could be turned out at once. Another message at 2am told of deserters saying gas attack probable at dawn so turned out at 3.15 when lemon colour flush of day break first showed up. It turned out a lovely morning beautiful warm sun, not a breath of air and the songs of larks and other birds sounding all round.
A Taube over our line about breakfast time so made all keep still. This attempt to reconnoitre further back was frustrated by our shells. Made of some transparent material the planes are hard to see.
An extremely quiet day with practically nothing doing. Let the men rest all day as they have to march about 8 miles tonight. In fact relief will not be here until midnight I think and we shall be lucky if we get to bunk before dawn. The enemy made a gas attack near Armientiers last night and tonight after tea a very heavy cannonade commenced which continued some time.
The rats are a pest here with their filthy beady eyes and gnaw through the men's haversacks and eat the biscuits of the emergency ration. After an action they grow fat on ghastly banquets of the mouldering flesh of the corpses.
Stand to arms is a solemn business, everyman stands up at his post silently with full fighting kit on and with bayonet fixed. I walk round with strict look and pounce here on the unfortunate whose gas helmet is missing and here on another who only has 4 instead of 5 cartridges in his magazine. They stand like rocks till an hour or half perhaps & then the "carry on" relieves the tension and those not on sentry turn in and sleep with full kit on at the feet of the others ready in an instant to spring up on the alarm.
The other night the enemy put over an aerial torpedo and it brushed past the upturned side of a gunners hat tearing it but not hurting the man then plunging into deep mud and bursting . Sounds incredible but actually happened.
A very quiet evening in the trenches. We were relieved by the 6th Battalion about 11pm and then moved out through the communication trenches for Rue Dormoire. The evening was very close and the march with full packs and blanket up was most fatiguing. Reaching the road near our old billets a message arrived to have respirators out for gas which was being used at Armientiers. Comment noted that in the last stages of fatigue consequent upon long marches the action of the brain becomes dull & a detached feeling ensues.
Large drops of sweat drop from the head and splashing on the hand one instinctively thinks it to be blood and hurriedly examines the hands. Reaching Fleurbaix No. 10 under me took the wrong turning and went about 3 miles down the wrong road which brought us very close to the trenches again. Sgt. Watkins guided us back. A wretched misfortune this 6 miles extra for tired men with full packs. Dies irae! Dies irae: & also unfortunately mea culpa, mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.