In the Firing Line: Stories of the War by Land and SeaAdcock, Arthur St. John
History
In the Firing Line: Stories of the War by Land and Sea
Adcock, Arthur St. John
World War, 1914-1918
In the middle of the battle a driver got wounded and asked to see the
colours before he died, and he was told by an officer that the guns
were his colours. He replied, “Tell the drivers to keep their eyes on
their guns, because if we lose our guns we lose our colours.”
Just then the infantry had to retire, and the gunners had to leave
their guns, but the drivers were so proud of their guns that they went
and got them out, and we retired to St. Quentin. We had a roll-call,
and only ten were left out of my battery. This was the battle in which
poor Winchester (another old _Cornwall_ boy) lost his life in trying
to get the guns away.
* * * * *
_Letter 3.--From Private G. Moody, to his parents at Beckenham:_
I was at Mons in the trenches in the firing line for twenty-four hours,
and my regiment was ordered to help the French on the right. Poor old
A Company was left to occupy the trenches and to hold them: whatever
might happen, they were not to leave them. There were about 250 of us,
and the Germans came on, and as fast as we knocked them over more took
their places.
Well, out of 250 men only eighty were left, and we had to surrender.
They took away everything, and we were lined up to be shot, so as to
be no trouble to them. Then the cavalry of the French made a charge,
and the Germans were cut down like grass. We got away, and wandered
about all night, never knowing if we were walking into our chaps or
the Germans. After walking about some time we commenced falling down
through drinking water that had been poisoned, and then we were put
into some motor-wagons and taken to Amiens.
* * * * *
_Letter 4.--From a Lincolnshire Sergeant to his brother:_
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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