been bad, but though unfit for duty he had refused to leave the Battalion until he had seen the stores properly organized for battle.  Except for a short stay in England in 1917, he had been with us since the beginning.  His one thought was always for the welfare of the Battalion, and no one ever gave more devoted service than he did.  His place was taken in June by Captain and Quartermaster W.A.  Nicholson, of the Essex Regiment.  During the interval the duties were very ably carried out by R.Q.M.S.  Gorse.

On the 24th of April the Sherwood Foresters and Staffords had taken over the line from Route “A” Keep to the Canal just South of Locon.  Four days later we were ordered to relieve the Sherwood Foresters in the right half of the left sector.  Various reconnoitering parties went up beforehand, and at dusk we moved off by platoons through Bethune and Essars.  The former town had already suffered very badly.  All roads through the centre were completely blocked, and troops had to find their way round its Western edge and past the Prison.  Civilians had all been evacuated and the only permanent occupants were the Tunnelling Company assisted by some French colliers.  The route to trenches was the main road through Essars, and parts of this were constantly “harassed” by the enemy’s artillery.  The Battalion was particularly unfortunate on this first relief.  Headquarter Officers were riding, and, in passing the column, had just come level with the head of “C” Company, when the enemy suddenly opened fire on the road with a field battery.  Captain Banwell was thrown from his horse which was hit, and the remainder of the chargers immediately bolted across a field.  The plunging animals and the shells (about 50 of which were fired in two minutes) threw the leading platoon of “C” Company into confusion, and, as the ditch at the side of the road gave no cover, the casualties were high; but for the coolness of the Platoon Commander, 2nd Lieut.  H. Coxell, they would have been higher still.  The rear platoon of “B” Company also suffered heavily.  The shells were gas, and those men who were hit had small or no chance of putting on their masks.  Captain Jack, the Medical Officer, was as usual wonderfully calm, and quite regardless of his own personal safety, succeeded in getting several men under the wall of a house, where he was able to dress their wounds.  The remainder of the relief was carried out without molestation.

Our new sector was very different from anything we had previously seen.  The front line—­practically the outpost line—­marked the limit of the German offensive in April; on the right was Route “A” Keep, one of the old 1915 strong points with two concrete machine-gun emplacements.  It was now a mere heap of shattered trees, shattered trenches and the usual remains of many fights, for in 20 days it changed hands nine times.  The Staffords captured it for the last time on the 29th of April, and from then onwards it remained British.  The line then ran between