Sunday 12th
August 1917
Today there
has been little fighting around here. It has rained every day now since 8th, a
good deal of rain having fallen between the beginning of the month and 6th.
Everything is sodden and the mud is very deep. This not only hampers the
infantry going forward but makes it very difficult to move the artillery or,
indeed, to fire it, as the recoil ploughs the gun further into the glutinous
substance.
The adjutant
of the 7th Bedfords tells me that they have been attached temporarily to 53rd
Brigade, the rest of the Brigade having been moved back to rest billets. The
Battalion has been reorganised into four companies of two platoons each, instead
of the normal four. Each platoon has one rifle section, one rifle grenadier
section, one bombing section and one Lewis gun section. The total Battalion
strength is only about 300, so large were the casualties in the attack two days
ago.
At 2 o’clock
this afternoon, after their dinners, the Battalion moved to a field mentioned
where the Divisional commander, Lieutenant-General R P Lee addressed a few
words to the men and thanked them for their gallant behaviour in the action of
August 10th. He also said that he had given instructions that the Battalion is
not to be used in action unless absolutely necessary.
Source: X550/8/1
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