For the second week of our fortnight we slightly relaxed the vigour of our practices, and devoted more time to musketry, bombing, and training the demolition parties for their work.  The officers to take part in the raid were also chosen, and various tasks allotted to the others.  Capt.  Shields with 2nd Lieut.  Cole and “D” Company would make the right attack; Capt.  Petch with 2nd Lieut.  Gibson and “A” Company, the left.  “B” Company (Capt.  Marriott and 2nd Lieut.  C.S.  Allen) would be the supports, and the two demolition parties would be found by “C” Company under 2nd Lieuts.  Lowe and Edge. 2nd Lieut.  Plumer was detailed to take a party of “D” Company to destroy the “Goose.”  Lieut.  G.E.  Russell was “O.C.  Searchlight,” and various other officers were chosen to count the raiding party when they returned.

Meanwhile, up in trenches the most wonderful work was being done by 2nd Lieut.  Brooke and six other ranks of “D” Company—­L/Cpl.  Clapham, Ptes.  Haines, Hanford, Johnson, Mason, and Rolls.  This was the party left in the line with the Staffordshires to observe the wire cutting and patrol the gaps.  At first, 2nd Lieut.  Brooke spent his days with the F.O.O. and confined his patrolling to the hours of darkness, but later he was out in front both day and night.  On two occasions he came into contact with the enemy.  First, on his very first patrol, he had just reached the enemy’s wire, and was trying to find a way through, when the enemy opened a heavy fire at close range.  L/Cpl.  Clapham was killed, shot through the head, and it was only with the utmost difficulty that the rest of the party escaped with their lives.  The second encounter was in daylight.  The Staffordshires had reported that they believed the German front line to be unoccupied, so on the 13th August, in the middle of the afternoon, 2nd Lieut.  Brooke crossed No Man’s Land, passed through the wire and entered the Boche front line.  He was just exploring it when a very surprised German came round a corner and saw him. 2nd Lieut.  Brooke at once left the trench and took shelter as quickly as possible in a shell hole outside.  A perfect shower of bombs and rifle grenades were thrown after him, but he was untouched, and regained our lines without a scratch.

On the 14th August, after a very happy fortnight at Fouquieres, we moved to the huts at Noyelles, where the special stores for the coming raid were issued.  At the same time all pay books, badges, identity discs and personal kits were handed in, and to each man was issued a small round cardboard disc with a number on it.  The following morning we paraded at 10 a.m., and marched through Vermelles to Lone Trench and Tenth Avenue, where we were to wait until it was time to assemble.  On the way, “B” Company had a serious disaster.  A shell, intended for one of our batteries West of Vermelles, fell on the Company as they were passing the Mansion House Dump.  They were marching in fours and had practically a whole platoon wiped out, for eleven were killed and fourteen wounded.  Amongst the killed was Freddie Chambers, self-appointed Company humorist, and one of the best known and most cheerful soldiers in the Battalion.