out half a dozen men like fish, gasping for air, but they
will recover."

"The Boches want us to hurry!" exclaimed L------.

They were giving the communication trench a turn at "strafing," now,
and shells were urgently dropping behind us. There was no use trying
to respond to one's natural inclination to run away from the pursuing
shower when you had to squeeze past soldiers as you went.

"But look at what we are going into! This is like beating up grouse to
the guns, and we are the birds! I am wondering if I like it."

We could tell what had happened in our absence in the support
trench by the litter of branches and leaves and by the excavations
made by shells. It was still happening, too. Another nine-inch, with
your only view of surroundings the wall of earth which you hugged.
Crash--and safe again!

"Pretty!" L------ said, smiling. He was referring to the cloud of black
smoke from the burst. Pretty is a favourite word of his. I find that men
use habitual exclamations on such occasions. R------, also smiling,
had said, "A black business, this!" a favourite expression with him.

"Yes--pretty!" R------and I exclaimed together.

L------took a sliver off his coat and offered it to us as a souvenir. He
did not know that he had said "Pretty!" or R------ that he had said "A
black business!" several times that afternoon; nor did I know that I
had exclaimed, "For the love of Mike!" Psychologists take notice; and
golfers are reminded that their favourite expletives when they foozle
will come perfectly natural to them when the Germans are "strafing."
Then another nine-inch, when we were out of the gallery in front of
the warrens. My companions happened to be near a dug-out. They
did not go in tandem, but abreast. It was a "dead heat." All that I could
see in the way of cover was a wall of sandbags, which looked about
as comforting as tissue paper in such a crisis.

At least, one faintly realized what it meant to be in the support
trenches, where the men were still huddled in their caves. They never
get a shot at the enemy or a chance to throw a bomb, unless they are
sent forward to assist the front trenches in resisting an attack. It is for
this purpose that they are kept within easy reach of the front
trenches. They are like the prisoner tied to a chair-back, facing a gun.

"Yes, this was pretty heavy shell-fire," said an officer who ought to
know. "Not so bad as on the trenches which the infantry are to attack
--th