We were interrupted by laughter and cheers.  We rushed out to see the quaintest procession coming from the west into Charnesseuil.  Seventy odd immense Prussian Guards were humbly pushing in the bicycles of forty of our Divisional Cyclists, who were dancing round them in delight.  They had captured a hundred and fifty of them, but our guns had shelled them, luckily without doing much damage to the Cyclists, so loading up the prisoners with all their kit and equipment, and making them lead their captors’ bicycles, the Cyclists brought them in triumph for the inspection of the Staff.  It was a great moment.

I was very tired, and, careless of who passed, stretched myself at the side of the road for a sleep.  I was wakened an hour later, and we all went along together to the chateau.  There we slept in the hall before the contented faces of some fine French pictures—­or the majority of them,—­the rest were bestially slashed.

At the break of dawn (Sept. 9th) I was sent off to the 14th Brigade, which composed the advance-guard.  Scouts had reported that Saacy had been evacuated by the enemy.  So we pushed on cautiously and took possession of the bridge.

I came up with the Brigade Staff on a common at the top of the succeeding hill, having been delayed by a puncture.  Nixon, the S.O., told me that a battery of ours in position on the common to the south of the farm would open fire in a few minutes.  The German guns would reply, but would be quickly silenced.  In the meantime I was to take shelter in the farm.

I had barely put my bicycle under cover in the courtyard when the Germans opened fire, not at our guns but at a couple of companies of the Manchesters who were endeavouring to take cover just north of the farm.

In the farm I found King and his platoon of Cyclists.  Shrapnel bullets simply rattled against the old house, and an occasional common shell dropped near by way of variety.  The Cyclists were restive, and I was too, so to relieve the situation I proposed breakfast.  King and I had half a loaf of Saacy bread and half a pot of jam I always carried about with me.  The rest went to the men.  Our breakfast was nearly spoilt by the Manchesters, who, after they had lost a few men, rushed through the farm into the wood, where, naturally enough, they lost a few more.  They besought the Cyclists to cover their retreat, but as it was from shrapnel we mildly suggested it was impossible.

The courtyard was by this time covered with tiles and pitted with bullets.  We, close up against the wall, had been quite moderately safe.  The shelling slackened off, so we thought we had better do a bunk.  With pride of race the motor-cyclist left last.

The 14th Brigade had disappeared.  I went back down the track and found the General and his staff, fuming, half-way up the hill.  The German guns could not be found, and the German guns were holding up the whole Division.

I slept by the roadside for an hour.  I was woken up to take a message to 2nd Corps at Saacy.  On my return I was lucky enough to see a very spectacular performance.