Just before dawn, Corporal Williams led his men out of the post into No
Man’s Land. All told, they numbered nine souls.
No. 7946 Corporal John Williams, leading, was a sallow-faced man, with
a long, thin neck and a wide, low forehead. He was six feet one inch
in height. His limbs were loose and nervous in their movements. His
hands were flabby and hot to the touch. His eyes were pale and watery.
They varied in expression, at one time furtive and terror-stricken, at
another cunning and determined. He moved like an eel. He was servile
to his superiors, arrogant and cruel to his subordinates. Although he
was extremely diligent in his duties and a severe disciplinarian, his
company commander disapproved of him. His failure to attain promotion
had made him very bitter. In civilian life he had been a grocer’s
assistant. He was twenty-nine years old. He had served two years and
twenty-four days.
No. 8740 Private George Appleby followed the Corporal. He had been
a labourer in a chocolate factory as a civilian. He was a fanatical
believer in the doctrines of an obscure Christian sect, whose members
encourage hysteria in their religious observances. His former work and
his creed injured his constitution and made it impossible for him to
become a really efficient soldier, although he was powerfully built,
with a dogged courage that made him worthy of serving in the ranks
of that famous regiment. He was too fat about the face and body. His
complexion was yellowish. His cheeks were puffy. He moved stiffly,
like an old dray-horse. All his organs were functioning inefficiently.
He was of a morbid disposition and never laughed. He always muttered
prayers, even on parade. He was thirty years old. He was commonly
called “The Preacher,” or “The Holy Roller.” He had served two years
and ten days.
No. 9087 Private Michael Friel followed Appleby. He was a lean, slim
man, with red hair, a freckled face and blue eyes. He had been a
policeman in civilian life. He stammered slightly when excited and he
constantly wore an expression of great worry, as if his mind were
engaged in unravelling very intricate problems. Although an excellent
soldier behind the line, he was unreliable in action, as he had utterly
no initiative and really had a streak of cowardice in him. He was a
very silent fellow. He never mixed with his section comrades behind the
line, always consorting with a man in No. 4 Platoon who had also been a
policeman. He corresponded with three women and was very proud of his
person. He had once been a sergeant but had been reduced to the ranks
for breaking camp one night and lying with a French whore until after
réveillé. He had served one year and 287 days. He was twenty-seven
years old. His height was five feet eleven inches.
No. 11145 Private Simon Jennings followed Friel. This soldier was
serving under an assumed name. He had formerly been an officer in the
Army Service Corps but had been cashiered for forging a cheque. He
was the younger son of a bishop and had led a very dissipated life,
principally on the score of drunkenness, gambling and lechery. Although
he was a poor soldier and unable to keep his uniform or equipment in
proper condition, his intelligence was often of assistance in moments
of stress. His manner and personal habits endeared him to his comrades,
who respected him because he had once been an officer; but more
especially because he received an allowance, about which he was very
generous. His mottled face and bleary eyes bore witness to the life
he had led. He was getting bald and he had legs like an old man. When
under the influence of drink, he preached a new form of Christianity,
which was mainly based on pacificism and “Universal, scientific,
ethical co-operation,” as he quaintly described it. The officers all
disliked him. He had served in this regiment for one year 110 days. He
was five feet ten inches in height. He was nicknamed “The Gent.”
No. 8637 Private Jeremiah McDonald followed Jennings. He had been a
farm labourer in civilian life. He was a bony, uncouth fellow, with
an ape-like face, outstanding ears, a short thick nose and stupid
grey eyes. His knuckles were very large. There was hardly any flesh
on his bones. He was the butt of the company owing to his stupidity,
his gluttony and his incapacity for performing correctly the simplest
movement of military drill. Because he was always picked for sanitary
fatigue, they nicknamed him “Crap.” He had served for two years and
twenty-seven days. He was exactly six feet in height and thirty-four
years old.
No. 4048 Private Daniel Reilly followed McDonald. This man was an
excellent soldier, but owing to his taste for drink and his peculiar
temperament, he had never risen from the ranks. He had never done
any useful labour in civilian life, having served as a tout for a
street bookmaker at one time, and at another time as chucker-out in
an illicit drinking shop which was also a brothel. He had been seven
years and sixty-four days in the service. He was a dark fellow, with
very shrewd, dark eyes and a countenance that seemed to express
innocence, simplicity and candour. He wore drooping, black moustaches.
He was never without money, as he had a regular organisation for the
collection and disposal of loot. He respected nothing in search for
loot and was known to have dug up and robbed an airman, who crashed
head first into muddy ground, sinking to the heels of his boots. He
was five feet ten inches in height. He had been at the front since the
outbreak of war, but had never been wounded. He found great pleasure
in foretelling disaster.
No. 8365 Private William Gunn followed Reilly. He was officially
described at headquarters as a general labourer, thirty-three years of
age, six feet two inches in height, marked by a crushed right ear and a
scar on the left cheekbone, with service of two years and thirty-four
days.
No. 12468 Private Louis Lamont followed Gunn. He was officially
described as a student, nineteen years of age, five feet nine inches in
height, with service of 310 days.
No. 3920 Private James Shaw brought up the rear. He had served for
nine years and eighty-one days, and was the most reliable and cunning
soldier, not only in the section, but in the battalion. His whole
body was covered with wounds. He had three bayonet scars on his face.
His head was completely bald. He was stoutly built and was immensely
strong. His face and neck were exactly the colour of an old penny.
He had risen twice to the rank of sergeant but had lost his stripes
each time through drink. He was prone to fits of melancholy and could
never sleep more than two hours at a stretch. He often spent whole
nights sitting on his blankets, smoking his pipe and thinking. He
was a champion billiard player. He had very long, black eyelashes and
a beautiful tenor voice. He was the most respected soldier in the
company. The company officer always chose him for dangerous work. He
had been decorated for valour three times. He was five feet ten inches
in height. His civilian occupation was officially described as that of
an excise officer.
These nine men, under the command of Corporal John Williams, went over
the top a little before dawn on the morning of March 20th, 1917.