The most remarkable success of the day was obtained by the 15th Division. Let me remind you that this division consisted of Scottish soldiers, and that they lay in front of the Loos Redoubt. The 44th Brigade of this division was to make its thrust direct at the village; the 46th Brigade, on the left, was to sweep round and enter it on the north side; while the 45th Brigade was held in reserve. We will now follow the fortunes of the 9th Black Watch and the 8th Seaforths of the 44th Brigade. They were now about to assault the village; the 7th Camerons were in support, and the 10th Gordons were to follow on. Do you remember the great gas attack of the Germans at the Second Battle of Ypres? You will remember what a shock of horror went through the civilized world when the Germans resorted to this foul weapon. We had never dreamed of sending clouds of poisoned gas against our enemies, but now we were forced to pay them back in their own coin. Many people at home thought that we ought to refrain from using gas, but our generals thought otherwise, and in times of warfare their word is law. But the gas which we were now about to use was not poisoned. It was far less hurtful than that of the Germans. Men who breathed it were rendered insensible for a time; they were neither killed nor subjected to horrible tortures. We also used, for the first time in this battle, clouds of smoke to screen our advance. At ten minutes to six on the morning of 25th September the nozzles of the gas cylinders in front of our trenches were opened, and the men watched anxiously as the whitish cloud moved slowly upwards towards the German lines near the crown of the slope. A very light wind blew from the south-west, and in the hollow where Loos stands formed an eddy which blew back the gas on to the 46th Brigade. Our men were wearing their gas helmets, but for a moment the choking cloud caused them to hesitate, whereupon Piper Daniel Laidlaw climbed the parapet and played a march that put new heart into his comrades. You will learn on a later page that he received the Victoria Cross for this fine deed. The Highlanders saw before them the line of green-gray sand-bags which they had watched through their periscopes day by day for months past. The parapets of the enemy, which had so long barred their way, were soon to be the starting-point for their advance. Now the great guns got to work, and in less than half an hour the barrier was crushed and pounded into ruin. The wire was blown into a million fragments, and the parapets were utterly destroyed. The strong redoubt of Loos was raked fore and aft, and the German trenches were full of dead.