Twice during the night General Kemp visited the line, and went round the Redoubt before it was handed over to the Sherwood Foresters.  He wanted very much to do more for the wounded, but the Stretcher Bearers were worked out, and though volunteers worked hard and rescued many, there were still numbers who had to be left until the following night.  Rations were brought by the Company Q.M.  Serjeants under Capt.  Worley to the Quarry—­a few hundred yards behind the left of our old front line—­and waited there until parties could be sent for them, a matter of several hours.  However, they were distributed at dawn, when they were very welcome, for many had been nearly twenty-four hours without food. 2nd Lieut.  Tomson was one of these, remarking, as C.S.M.  Gorse gave him some rum, that he had had nothing since the attack but “two biscuits and over 300 cigarettes!”

Throughout the following day we remained in our old front line, listening to the continuous bombing attacks in the Redoubt, and giving what assistance we could with carrying parties.  The morning was very misty, and in expectation of a counter attack we were ordered to keep double sentries, so that the trench was more than usually full of men, when the enemy suddenly bombarded it with heavy shells.  There were several direct hits, and the trench was blown in in many places, while one shell fell into the middle of a machine gun team.  Serjt.  W. Hall, of “D” Company, L/Corpl.  A.F.  Brodribb, and Pte.  Bartlam were all killed, and the rest of the team were badly shaken, until C.S.M.  Gorse and Corpl.  B. Staniforth came along and helped to reorganize the post with a few new men.  The trench contained no real cover, and the bombardment lasted for about half an hour; a severe ordeal for men who had already had a stiff fight followed by a night of bombing.  Many of the telephone lines were broken, and L.-Corpl.  Fisher, who had done such gallant work the previous day, was killed entering our trench just after he had re-opened communication.  In the afternoon we were again bombarded, this time with lachrymatory as well as H.E. shells, but our casualties were not so heavy, though the trench was again demolished in several places.  Finally at 11-30 p.m. the Sherwood Foresters started to relieve us.  They arrived in small parties, and some did not appear until dawn the following day, so that relief was not complete until 8 a.m.  We then went back to Lancashire trench between the Railway and Vermelles, where we slept for several hours.

At 2 p.m., motor ’buses arrived to take the Brigade back to Hesdigneul, and made several journeys, but had not room for all the Battalion, so 70 set off to march under Major Toller, who had returned to us in Lancashire trench.  It proved to be a dark night, and the party lost their way slightly in Verquigneul, but finally arrived singing (led by C.S.M.  Gorse) at Hesdigneul, and reached their billets about midnight.