An advanced party was sent forward to reconnoitre routes to the assembly positions. Tea was served out and the Battalion waited only for rations to arrive. Time passed, there was no sign of the convoy, and the Commanding Officer became very anxious. It was imperative for the men to reach their assembly positions and dig in before dawn. The Battalion was on the point of moving off rationless when the limbers were announced. The delay had been no fault of the transport. Throughout the operations they always served the Battalion well. But the roads were crowded with vehicles of all kinds, and they had had to fetch the rations from a great distance. It was simply one of the difficulties which had to be faced in the new warfare of movement. Shortly after midnight the Battalion moved off. It passed through Naves, which was thick with mustard gas, and was met about a thousand yards beyond by Battalion scouts, who had gone forward to reconnoitre the routes. Leaving the roads, companies crossed the Erclin River at points where the bed was dry, and moved independently to their positions of assembly. These were not reached without difficulty. The night was very dark and the ground strange. Troops of the 146th Infantry Brigade were using the same route, and there was some confusion. To make matters worse, the enemy put down a fairly heavy counter-preparation on the field which the companies were crossing, and about ten men were wounded. But, by 4-0 a.m., all were up and digging in. Everything was quiet when daylight came, and the hours dragged slowly on. From the road on which the Battalion was assembled, the ground sloped gently upwards to the ridge, already mentioned. The land between was mostly under cultivation and afforded no cover to attacking troops. Near the top of the ridge was a stack of bean straw which formed a very useful landmark, as it was almost on the boundary between the two companies. The night attack of the Canadians had been unsuccessful and the enemy still held the all-important position. It was therefore decided that the first hour of the attack should be supported by a thick barrage. For half-an-hour this was to fall on the crest of the ridge; after that, it would move forward at the rate of 100 yards in three minutes for a further half hour. This information did not arrive at Battalion H.Q. until about 8-20 a.m., and there was barely time to inform the attacking troops before zero hour. At 9-0 a.m., prompt to the second, the British artillery opened fire and the Battalion went “over the top.” The advance was magnificent. Never, either in action or at training, had it been done better. In artillery formation, with sections in file and keeping perfect intervals, the men went quietly and steadily forward. If there were a fault, it was that of over-eagerness. The leading troops advanced rather faster than had been expected, and they were on the top of the ridge before their barrage had lifted.