Au nom de tous mes officiers et soldats je vous prie d'agréer mes vifs remerciements. Tous ont gardé au 116th le meilleurs souvenirs de cette marche dont le rhythme et l'harmonie melancolique evoquaient les mélodies du pays natal. Je l'ai confiée à mon chef de musique qui s'occupe de vous composer une marche appropriée à notre musique sur la thème de la vôtre. Cette harmonie de nos deux marches militaires sera un souvenir et un gage de plus de la bonne amitié qui unit nos deux regiments et nos deux armées dans la même ardeur vers la victoire commune. Veuillez agréer, mon cher Camarade, l'expression de mes souvenirs les meilleurs et les plus devoués. V. ARNOUX. General Baumgarten, commanding the XIth French Corps d'Armée, remained in command until 5th August, when General Bannatine-Allason took over from him, with his headquarters at Senlis. General Baumgarten subsequently called on General Bannatine-Allason to express his delight with the manner in which the taking over had been carried out without any hitch in spite of the difficulties which arose from the difference of language. The new sector proved to be both interesting and instructive. Many problems arose while the Division held this portion of the line which required solution, and which, as it turned out, were all solved satisfactorily. The front was looked upon by the French as a quiet one, with the exception of a section of the line adjacent to the Albert-Bapaume road known as the Ilot. This ground had been captured by the French in a brilliant advance, and on this account, though of little tactical importance, continued to be held. Subsequently, after the Division had been relieved in this portion of the line, the troops were withdrawn from it. There can have been few places on the Western front where the distance separating the Allied and the German lines was less, as in the Ilot the breadth of the No Man's Land was in some places no more than ten yards. The opposing trenches were thus well within bombing range, and the locality was a running sore to both sides. The sector did not remain a quiet one for long, and throughout the Division's occupation of it every effort was required to prevent the enemy from gaining the upper hand. The most acute problem was the enemy's activity in mining. When the sector was taken over from the French, the situation in this respect was anything but good. No British tunnelling companies being available, French engineers remained in charge of mining operations. This was an unsatisfactory arrangement, and the work of countermining made little progress, while the efforts of the enemy were fully maintained.