The 4th Division front line held well, in spite of the gas. The only 4th Division trenches lost were along a front of 800 yards from the Canadian Farm to the Ypres-Passchendaele Road. The East Lancashires south of that road hung on with a bull-dog grip until help came and counter-attacks could be formed and launched to retake the ground that had been lost. My friend in the 11th Hussars, from whose diary I quoted a few paragraphs with reference to the part the gallant 11th played in the battle of May 13th, kept a most vivid series of notes as to what happened in front of the 1st Cavalry Brigade on that memorable 24th of May. While the 11th Hussars were on the right of the 9th Lancers, and therefore on the fringe of the attack, a perusal of the following will give an idea of what it meant to be in the front line of the Ypres Salient on a bank holiday in 1915:-- "3 a.m.--Heavy firing, guns, rifles, Maxims, on our left; faint smell of gas; just as dawn breaks. 3.15.--All quiet on our immediate front, heavy shelling going on all round. Every wire cut between Brigade headquarters and ourselves, and with the artillery. 3.45.--Still no touch with Brigade headquarters, so messenger despatched. The headquarters of the 11th, Bays, and 5th D.G.'s are all close together in a wood behind the trench line. The Bays and 5th Dragoon Guards each have one squadron in hand; there are also three companies of the 4th East Yorks Territorials in brigade reserve in the same wood. 4.--The Bays send an officers' patrol to the left. 4.20.--Heavy firing still continues on our left. Telephone message sent to O.C. A Squadron: "Try and get information of situation on your left." 4.35.--Answer received: "Adjutant 9th Lancers just passed here. Reports their centre and left gassed. No attack so far." 4.45.--Lieutenant Milne's patrol of the Bays returned. Report 9th Lancers have been badly gassed, and retired from their trenches in places, leaving big gaps. Reinforcements have gone up, and line has, he thinks, been re-established. 5.--Captain Osborne, Brigade-Major, arrives from Brigade headquarters. They have all suffered severely from gas; the regiments in G.H.Q. line have caught it very badly. The shelling has been very heavy, great number of casualties, men streaming back from all parts of the line. When he left Brigade headquarters they were in ignorance of the situation in any part of the line. The only thing which kept their hopes up was that not a single man of the 1st Brigade had returned.