By this means, the same company always worked at the same post, and soon men began to take a great pride in making their particular post better than anyone else’s. The work was very hard. Sixty men per company were sent up daily; the company commanders took turns in charge of the party; and either the Commanding Officer or the Second in Command went up daily. The men had to rise long before daybreak in order to get breakfast and catch the train at Brandhoek Station. At first they marched to the station, but, shortly before the Battalion left Devonshire Camp, the system of conveying them by motor bus was started. The train took them as far as Hellfire Corner, from which point they marched up to their work. Only haversack rations were taken, but tea was made on the spot. Hot dinners were ready on their return to camp, which was not until fairly late in the afternoon. The working parties were occasionally troubled by enemy shelling and on one occasion C Company suffered casualties. Most men were ready for bed very early in those days. The divisional arrangement was that one Infantry Brigade should remain up near Ypres for this work, while the other two were back for rest and training. The 147th Infantry Brigade had been the first for work. On January 26th the 148th Infantry Brigade came up to take over the work and the Battalion, which had already done its day’s work on the Corps Line, moved by train direct from Hellfire Corner to Caestre, whence it marched to the billets that awaited it at St. Sylvestre Cappel. Here it remained, except for a few days spent on the rifle ranges near Moulle, for nearly a month. Only the billets occupied by Battalion H.Q. and the officers of C Company were in the village itself. All the rest were in scattered houses and farm-buildings, some well over a mile away. But the billets were comfortable, and the troops found the French inhabitants well disposed towards them. Many still look back on the time spent there as one of their happiest times in France. Training was entirely by companies; the men were too scattered, and there was no ground available, for Battalion training. Much of the training was in connection with a divisional competition scheme, but the Battalion was very unlucky in its results. As companies were so scattered they kept mostly to themselves, and there was little opportunity to organise social functions. Towards the end of the stay, a highly successful “convivial” was held by the warrant officers and sergeants at the “Brown Cow” in the village. Most of the officers were present, and, among them, Capt. Allen, V.C., M.C., particularly distinguished himself.