"While here we are under direct orders from Brigade. The Brigade-Major has just been in with detail of working parties for this evening. I am to take Sergeant Clews and a party of thirty men to carry ammunition from one dump to another. "I must now close. It is nearly dinner-time. It is 7.20 now; dinner at 7.30. I start with my party at 9.25." My diary of July 10 states: "Working party in the evening with Sergeant Clews--carrying ammunition from a dump near White Chateau to a Brigade dump further on to the left, behind Congreve Walk. A very quiet night." On July 11 I wrote home as follows: "We had Major Brighten and Captain Blamey in for dinner yesterday evening. Major Brighten is delightfully optimistic; he is, like Captain Andrews, positive that the war will be all over by October. He thinks that the coming offensive will settle the dispute. We discussed the war, its duration, and the coming battle. The other day I remarked to Captain Blamey that a landing ought, during the heat of the action, to be effected at a certain place, and that a certain famous General would probably be chosen to do it, because he has already done it (but under easier conditions!) on a former occasion. A day or two later Captain Blamey was astonished to receive information from Major Brighten that the very thing I had proposed, and by the very General I had suggested, was going to be done! So he told him that I had said that this General would probably be the one, because he had done it before; but Major Brighten said that he did not think that he had done it before. Captain Blamey said that he did not argue the point because he was not sure himself, but he told me about it afterwards. I told him that this general certainly had done this thing, and referred him to a certain despatch of Lord French. So at dinner yesterday evening the subject was again brought up. Major Brighten said that he had forgotten that this general had done this thing before, but accepted my statement as correct.[5] "Major Brighten went on to say that the Colonel had been debating in Headquarters Mess the question as to who was the countess whose garter Edward III picked up, and nobody knew, could I enlighten them? I replied that I recollected having read of the incident, but had forgotten the name of the countess!..."[6] My diary proceeds--under date July 11: