The following tour, in the Gorre right sector, was very successful until the last two days when Battalion Headquarters received the just punishment for tempting fortune too far.  Both 4th and 5th Battalions had their Headquarters in the cellar of Gorre Chateau—­cramped and stuffy at any time, and in the hot weather unendurable.  Our Headquarters, therefore, cleared out a room on the first floor for a mess—­it had a carpet and other luxuries, and its only blemish was a shell-hole in the corner of the window.  With great pride we invited Brigadiers and others to our new mess, until on the 17th of May the crash came.  The enemy had fired several salvoes towards the Chateau during the afternoon, and at 8-15 p.m. he started in earnest.  The wood, the Chateau and the corner by the Church were shelled unceasingly—­first with 77 and 105 m.m. shells—­later on with 5.9’s.  The mess was knocked in, the wood was filled with gas, the kitchen and signal office both had direct hits.  The Transport had a terrible time on the road, and it was only the devoted work of the Transport Officer, 2nd Lieut.  W.R.  Todd, with his drivers, particularly Hill and Randall and the Provost Serjeant Bennett, which enabled rations to be taken up.  An advance party of Stafford Officers got to the cellar and couldn’t leave it for two hours, until finally Colonel Wood took them up the line himself, returning alone through the wood.

The Companies were comparatively immune except near the “Tuning Fork.”  General Thwaites was visiting the line at the time and had a narrow escape himself, while his A.D.C. was badly wounded.  Towards morning the shelling somewhat subsided, but one very unlucky shot hit the cellar ventilator and filled it with gas.  Then came the sun and with it the mustard; not very many mustard shells had been fired, but, as the day advanced, the heat kept drawing the gas out of the ground and the Chateau became a death trap.  We all cleared out early and went into the fields, but even so it was too late; many men’s clothes were tainted, and by 6-0 p.m. all the servants and more than half the other Headquarter details were blind and had to go.  Serjeant Bent, of the Regimental Aid Post, and Allbright, the Orderly Room Clerk, were amongst those who went down.  Our Medical Officer (Captain W.B.  Jack), Intelligence Officer (2nd Lieut.  J.A.  Hewson) and Lieut.  K. Ashdowne all went to Hospital, while the 4th Battalion lost all their Headquarter Officers.  By night the Commanding Officer was unable to speak, the Adjutant half blind, and the Padre was doing everybody’s job with his wonderful energy.  It was a very sorrowful Battalion Headquarters that handed over to the Staffordshires and found its way slowly back to Vaudricourt.

Soon after that—­on the 29th of May—­“C” Company had another gas misfortune while in support in Gorre village.  Their house was heavily shelled with mustard, and though all men were taken out as soon as possible 40% of the Company, together with 2nd Lieuts.  H. Coxell and O. Darlington had to be evacuated.  There was so much gas at this time that special compartments were set apart for gassed men and gassed clothing on the Fouquieres-Le Quesnoy-Kantara Dump light railway.