Resistance was growing more stubborn with the advent of each successive line, but they cleaned up and started for the fourth, and it fell.  It was on that day that I understood the expression “Seeing red”; there was only one thought in my mind, kill! kill! kill! kill!  The wave forged ahead for the fifth German line, taking it and smashing down all resistance in their way.  They were in the middle of the cleaning-up process of the fifth line when the welcome sight of friend tank again hove in view, arousing cheers.  They were needed just then.

CHAPTER XIII

THE FAMILY LUCK

At the fifth line the men stayed awhile, waiting for the word to take the sixth line, and our barrage was directed on this trench line so heavily, the Germans could not hold it.  They left and our wave crossed over, but could not reach the much sought-for ditch, as a massed counter-attack drove them back.  Our barrage again drove Fritz back, thus converting the sixth-line trench into a No Man’s Land.

The Boche made a determined effort to retain it and counter-attacked time and time again, but each try met our machine guns, rifles and grenades, together with the barrage, and a distorted heap of dead Kaiserites was added to those already in this ditch of death.

Their ranks were getting woefully thin and pale; wave after wave came up in a bull-headed effort to keep the line, and, finally, to assist the fainting Prussians, a regiment of Brandenburgers jumped to their help, and again they came.  By this time the trench was literally filled with dead, dying and wounded men.  Over the Brandenburgers came, one thousand strong, right in the teeth of our barrage; in mass formation they charged, and it was impossible for a bullet to miss its billet in that line.  They fell like flies on a tanglefoot sheet, and back they wavered into the trench.  But there was no shelter for them there, as it had ceased to be an abiding place, because their dead and wounded comrades were piled in it clear up to the brink, and there was no place for them to stoop or crouch to escape the rain of death.

Our O.C. paused awhile to see what Fritz would do further, but—­nothing stirring!  So, over our fellows went.  The corpse-filled trench offering no attraction for shelter, the wave rolled on to the seventh line, taking it and putting up there for the night.

A few hours later Fritz made a most determined attack on the seventh line, and sorry am I to tell that they made a little headway, taking some prisoners, among them being my cousin Jim; roll call the following morning also disclosed Archie as missing.  For my dear Auntie’s sake it is my sincere prayer that he may yet be alive and well.