e that
trench that's formed like a square, to prepare the way for a frontal
attack on Combles by the French. You'll take the upper portion of that
perpendicular trench, passing the wood on your left."

"Then, I shall have to cross over the lower trench; isn't that
occupied, sir?"

"The battalion bombers will clear that out for you during the night."

"When is zero hour, sir?"

"Don't know; I've told you all I know at present. Take ten flares, and
send up two when you arrive at your objective, and send up another two
at 6 o'clock the following morning."

"What about ammunition and water, sir?"

"The water you've already got is supposed to last forty-eight hours. I
don't know about ammunition; I think there's an ammunition dump in the
wood, but I will find that out and let you know. All right; it's dark
enough now."

Sch!--Crash!--Zug! A 5.9 burst on the parapet a few yards away. The
thud of an awky bit was felt in our midst, and the sergeant-major
jumped up, holding his foot. The C.O. looked up without turning a
hair:

"Any one hurt?" he asked.

"Only my boots, sir," replied the sergeant-major, suspiciously feeling
his heel.

I took my departure and began to grope around in the dark in search of
the narrow track which would guide me back to my company. I searched
for about ten minutes, but in vain, and I became for a while
hopelessly lost in a mass of shell-holes. I knew the direction
roughly, but direction was of little use in that wild confusion of
broken ground and debris.

What if I should be lost all night? What would they think? It would be
put down to funk. A cold perspiration came over me. I felt an
overwhelming sense of loneliness amidst that gruesome scene of
destruction; and to crown it all, a feeling of responsibility and
anxiety which made the craters seem deeper as I frantically scrambled
out of one and into another. At last, to my intense relief, I found
the little footpath and reached my trench safely.

Time was getting on. I gave orders for the men to dress and lie flat
on the parados, ready for the word to move. When all preparations were
completed, and bombs, picks, and shovels issued to each man, I
signalled the advance, and with a few scouts in front and on the
flanks, we slowly moved in single file into the unknown.

It was a pitch-black night, intensified by a slight fog, and I took my
direction by compass bearing, wondering all the while if it would lead
me right.

The men mar