At Arras.
The next fortnight was spent under most happy conditions, and all ranks
had an enjoyable time. As Christmas approached, active preparations
were made to excel anything we had ever had before in the way of
festivities, and this was possible now that we were out of action.
Quarter-Master-Sergeants, puffed out with importance, were to be seen
strutting hither and thither, returning with mysterious sacks and
parcels, presumably filled with good cheer.
Plucked geese and turkeys appeared in large numbers, suspended from the
ceilings of billets, and several large barrels arrived on the scene,
and were duly placed under lock and key in the canteen, awaiting the
auspicious day. Much competition took place between batteries for the
possession of the only two live pigs in the village, which eventually
went to the highest bidders, while the remainder procured their joints
in the form of pork from Doullens. One of the batteries meanwhile grew
so attached to its prospective Christmas fare that it was almost
decided to spare his life and adopt him as a mascot. His fate was
sealed, however, when one day it was discovered that he had disposed of
several parcels of food which had, inadvertently, been placed within
his reach by some of the men.
Concerts were arranged, and the village school-room was kindly lent and
artistically decorated for these occasions. The weather was all that
could be desired now that we were safely lodged in billets, and it was
a typical old-fashioned yule-tide, with a plentiful fall of snow
followed by hard frost. The little village was in a sheltered hollow,
and a small rivulet passed through it on its way down the valley, while
the scenery might have been that surrounding any hamlet in the south of
England.
An open air service was conducted by the Padre, for the Brigade, on
’Xmas morning, and the rest of the day was given over to sports and
concerts, and the climax of enjoyment was reached at night when the men
partook of their dinner. Gramaphones were well to the fore, but all
kinds of musical instruments took part in the gaiety which followed.
A certain amount of latitude was given the men for a few days after, in
order that they might recover from the orgy, for indeed they had never
had such a gorge since their arrival in France. All were in excellent
spirits, and these were by no means diminished when it became known
that our next area was in front of Arras. It was recognised to be an
enviable part of the line to be situated in, especially during the
winter months. It was also a locality with which we had not as yet made
acquaintance, and it was always interesting to visit a new portion of
the front, as we disliked being too long in the same surroundings
without a change of scene.
The day following New Year, the Division entered on its period of duty
in the sector north of Monchy to the vicinity of Gavrelle, with the
heights of Vimy, which had fallen into our hands in the previous spring
on its left.
The battery position was reached by following the Arras-Plouvain road
along the valley of the river Scarpe, and we took over from a Scottish
Division. The enemy lines were everywhere overlooked, consequently he
wisely refrained from showing much activity.
A magnificent view was obtained from the rear O.P. on the heights
facing Vitry, and, on a clear day, Douai was plainly visible and even
the country far beyond it.
Our front line ran along at the bottom of the slope, having the ruined
piles of Roeux, which was the scene of such furious fighting in the
latter stages of Arras battle, immediately in its rear. Half right, to
the south of the river Scarpe, what remained of the village of Monchy
stood out like a sentinel on the top of the hill. This point afforded a
splendid view in all directions and was the veritable keystone of the
whole position. Four of our pieces were placed in a quarry, a few yards
off the road leading through Fampoux, on its western extremity, while
the other two guns were moved forward, east of the same village, behind
a bank, and carefully camouflaged. As this sector was extraordinarily
quiet and there was not sufficient work to keep everyone occupied, the
Battery Commander decided to commence construction and endeavour to
make our position a model one. Two pits, which were already in
existence, were pulled down and rebuilt, and two others were
constructed alongside, and all of them were placed just as near the
front bank of the quarry as would permit of the guns clearing the
crest. The whole position was completely camouflaged, as, it will be
readily understood, a quarry made a conspicuous target for the enemy at
any time, and if he suspected the presence of a battery therein, there
would have been little peace or quiet for us. However, as things turned
out, we had evidently made a good job of our work, and to our surprise,
not a single shell dropped in the quarry during our period of
occupation.
Walls were white-washed and ammunition and charge shelves elaborately
painted, the platforms were neatly tiled or bricked with material taken
from the surrounding ruins, and all manner of “eye wash” was employed
in making the pits look well. A communication trench was dug from one
extremity to the other, rivetted and duck-boarded throughout, and led
to the men’s quarters. These when completed were palatial, and put in
the shade any headquarter unit in the line.
The near side of the quarry, which consisted of chalk, was easily and
rapidly mined, and, in the course of three weeks, the men had
comfortable quarters. Beds made of wire netting stretched on wooden
frames, a spacious dining hall, telephone pit, cook house, and they
even possessed a moderate sized bath room, which was highly valued and
put to great use. The officers’ quarters were no less sumptuously
fitted out. Each had sleeping accommodation, in cellars of the ruined
houses, running along the main street close to the quarry, nicely lined
with wood and canvas to keep the damp out, while the Mess itself was a
work of art.
The latter was built entirely by the officers and their batmen, under
the personal supervision of our energetic B.C.
The floors, walls and roof of the cellar were lined with three inch
timber, and one day a subaltern, who had been out exploring, came back
triumphant, bearing in his arms a huge roll of wall paper found buried
under some rubbish, at a spot which probably denoted the one time
existence of a decorator’s shop. The Mess was therefore duly papered,
with frieze complete, and with the addition of easy chairs, book
shelves, a stove and gramaphone, there was nothing left to wish for,
and the place was most cosy and snug. The entrance, too, was the
admiration of everybody, nicely tiled and decorated with fancy carvings
from the utterly destroyed church. Iron girders, beams, and countless
bricks to the height of several feet rested on top of our home. It is
not to be wondered at, then, that this model position was frequently
visited by high personages, brought hither by our Brigade-Commander or
C.R.A., who appeared almost as proud of the place as we were ourselves.
Moreover, as we were in such close proximity to the road leading up to
the front line, it was only natural that officers should drop in to
this half way house and rest and regale themselves before resuming
their journey, so before long our Mess was known as “The Pub”
throughout the Division.
The forward position was treated in the same fashion, and never before
had both officers and men had such comfortable quarters. Thus we
settled down to a life of ease, such as we had not known since the
Laventie days of two winters ago, and proceeded to thoroughly enjoy
ourselves.
Frequent trips were made into Arras, either on horseback or by river,
for there was a steamboat service, running daily on the Scarpe, which
landed one close to the Officers’ Club, a large wooden erection similar
to a Y.M.C.A. hut, run by the Expeditionary Force Canteen.
The town had not been irreparably destroyed, and in most parts the
inhabitants had returned, and were carrying on their usual routine,
while many shops were re-opened and doing good business. The Cathedral
was badly damaged, as well as other prominent buildings, but, on the
whole, the town had escaped wonderfully considering how close the enemy
had been to it for so long. Now, of course, the enemy was over six
miles away, and the city could not be reached by any other than his
high velocity guns, and they seldom troubled to shell the place, and
when they did so, from time to time, the fire was chiefly directed on
the railway station and sidings in the vicinity.
An equally peaceful time fell to the lot of those who were at the wagon
lines. They were situated just off the main Arras-Souchez road, within
easy reach of the former place. Accommodation for Officers and men was
provided by Nissen huts, containing stoves, while the horses had good
covered-in standings, with mud walls surrounding them for protection
against bombing raids.
The transport of ammunition to the guns was easily conducted, as
excellent roads ran the whole way, and every care was taken to keep the
horses up to condition. The frost did not continue and in the early
months of the year the weather was wonderfully bright and mild, and
many a good gallop could be had in the neighbourhood, as there was a
fine stretch of open ground close to the wagon line.
The horses undoubtedly had a better time than it is usually possible to
give them during the winter months. The war horse is an extraordinarily
intelligent animal and appreciates anything done for him in the way of
comfort. He also becomes very cute and cunning, and always knows the
routine of the day, and can tell his time of feeding almost to the
minute, and, if allowed, would go by himself automatically to the water
troughs and return to his own particular standing in the stable.
One horse familiarly known by the name of “Shrapnel,” owing to several
wounds of that kind which refused to close up, and completely heal,
knew at once when he was “warned” for the line. Now, he disliked going
out at nights, and consequently was in the habit of “scrimp-shanking,”
and proceeded forthwith to go lame. At first he managed to fool
everybody, but on close investigation it was discovered that nothing at
all was the matter with him.
Another fine beast, which at one time must have been ill-treated, when
he came to us had a bad rope gall on his near hind, and was extremely
nervous at being touched. After hours of coaxing he allowed his section
officer and driver to handle him, and, at length, showed great
affection to them both, but woe betide any other member of the battery,
who attempted to go near him, back went his ears and out went his feet
at once!
About the middle of February, a feeling of uneasiness evidently entered
the minds of those in authority. It was known that the enemy was
transferring large numbers of troops, which had been released by the
collapse of Russia, to the Western front. Consequently every unit got
busy at once, the Infantry dug new trench systems in rear of their
existing ones, constructed strong points, and mile upon mile of barbed
wire was laid down.
The gunners prepared new battle and reinforcing positions, in case a
retiral should be necessary, and filled them with ammunition against
all eventualities.
In a little more than a month everything was completed, and during the
third week of March, the troops were warned of an impending great enemy
offensive, and became fully on the alert.