"Working party in the evening with Sergeant Clews. We drew tools at Potijze dump, proceeded up Strand, which has been badly knocked about by shells, and repaired the parapet and parados of the front line to left and right of Strand. The Germans sent over trench-mortars on our left (about ten yards to the right of Giffin's party) while we were at it. Nobody was hurt. Dickinson had a party further to my right. It is quite high ground up there, and the front line trench slopes down to the right; over the parados the open ground is much lower, dotted with trees; it looks quite quaint when a flare goes up. We left about 1 a.m. and returned via Strand, Oxford Road, Pagoda Wood and Potijze. Then along Track 4. A thick mist came on, and we very nearly lost our way; I was with my party just behind Dickinson's party. We managed to find our way in time. To bed, 3 a.m." "July 12th. "One shell during the morning so shook the place that my head bumped up and down on my pillow. Before we were up the Brigade-Major (Thompson) came to see Captain Andrews about working parties. Brigade are very pleased with our work, especially as the ---- left their work unfinished, owing to wind up about trench-mortars! "Up 2 p.m. Platoon inspections. Then lunch. From the sound I should imagine that our preliminary bombardment for the forthcoming offensive is beginning. Our artillery here is sending a good deal of stuff over. At 6 p.m. I commenced a period of twenty-four hours as Orderly Officer. My main duty consists of seeing that the road outside is cleared after heavy shelling: for this object, Baldwin has a party permanently on the job." FOOTNOTES: [5] See Appendix III. [6] See Appendix IV. CHAPTER XI MUSTARD OIL "On the night of July 12th we were treated to a new form of gas, 'mustard oil.' The two Companies billeted in Ypres suffered heavily, the casualties numbering 3 officers and 114 other ranks." Thus the _Lancashire Fusiliers' Annual_. The following letter, which I wrote in the Ramparts, on July 13, after alluding to the working party recorded at the end of the last chapter, describes that great bombardment of Ypres: