A "Temporary Gentleman" in FranceDawson, A. J. (Alec John)
History
A "Temporary Gentleman" in France
Dawson, A. J. (Alec John)
World War, 1914-1918 -- Personal narratives, British
Then, when we were getting near Whizz-bang Corner, we were met by the
four platoon N.C.O.'s who had gone on in advance with the Coy. S.M.,
and they guided the platoons to their respective sections of our line.
Meantime, you understand, not a man of the Company we were relieving
had left the line. The first step was for us to get our platoon
Sergeants to post sentries to relieve each one of those of the other
Company, on the fire-step, and we ourselves were on hand with each
group, to see that the reliefs thoroughly understood the information
and instructions they got from the men they relieved. Then our advance
N.C.O.'s showed the other men of their platoons such dug-outs as were
available for them--a pretty thin lot in this section, but we shall
tackle the job of increasing and improving 'em as soon as we can, while
we Platoon Commanders had a buck with the Platoon Commanders of the
other Company.
Finally, "the Peacemaker" shook hands with the O.C. of the Company
we relieved outside Company Headquarters--that's this dug-out--the
other fellow wished him luck, both of them, separately, telephoned
down to Battalion Headquarters (in the support trenches) reporting
the completion of the relief, and the last of the other Company filed
away out down Sauchiehall Street to Manchester Avenue, billets and
"alleged rest." As a matter of fact, they are to get some real rest, I
believe, another Company of our Brigade being billeted in the village
just behind the lines this week, to do all the carrying fatigues at
night--bringing up trench-repair material and all that.
It was a quiet night, with no particular strafing, and that's all to
the good, because, in the first place, it gives us a better chance to
study the line again by daylight, and, again, it enables us to get on
quickly with certain very necessary trench repairs. We had half the
Company working all night at the parapet, which had some very bad gaps,
representing a serious multiplication of unhealthy spots, which have
to be passed many times day and night, and must always be dangerous
to pass. The Boche is pretty nippy in locating gaps of this sort and
getting his snipers and machine-gunners to range on them, so that
unless they are repaired casualties are certain. One repairs them by
building up the gaps with sand-bags, and for these it is necessary to
find approximately dry earth: a pretty difficult job in this section.
No strafing and a quiet night! I wonder how you, and people generally
at home, interpret that? "The rest of the Front was quiet"; "Nothing of
interest to report"; "Tactical situation unchanged," and so on. They
are the most familiar report phrases, of course.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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