trench to occupy it. Some of the officers said it was
impossible to put the Turks out; but Somers returned to the position,
taking with him a supply of grenades, under rifle and Maxim-gun fire,
and eventually succeeded in bombing the Turks out of the sap trench.
He had one narrow escape on the morning of July 2nd--a splinter struck
him across the spine, but he rained in the bombs until he fell from
loss of blood and fatigue in the afternoon. By that time, however, the
trench had been recaptured. The Turks retreated crying, "Allah!
Allah!" and "We gave them La La," said Somers with great glee. Somers
tells all about it with great enthusiasm, and constantly recurring in
his stories is the phrase, "I did my duty," or "General Sir Ian
Hamilton told me when he made me King's Sergeant on the field that I
did my duty"; and again, "I want to get back to duty." That was the
main idea in this young Irishman's mind.

"For helping to bring the guns into action under heavy fire at
Nery, near Compiegne, on September 1st, 1914, and, while
severely wounded, remaining with them until all ammunition was
exhausted, although he had been ordered to retire to cover."

This is the brief and cold official account of the thrilling deed for
which the Victoria Cross was given to Sergeant David Nelson, L
Battery, Royal Horse Artillery, a native of Derraghlands, Stranooden,
county Monaghan. In all retreats the artillery is seriously
handicapped, and it was so with the British artillery in the retreat
from Mons. Still, they made many a gallant fight. One which stands out
most conspicuously is that of L Battery, which fought for hours with
one gun, and although outnumbered eight to one, succeeded in silencing
the German artillery.

The battery of six guns had camped for the night by a farmhouse. At
dawn, as they were watering their horses before continuing the
retirement, they were shelled by a German battery of eight guns posted
on a height overlooking the farm, not 700 yards away. This hill had
been evacuated during the night by French cavalry without having given
notice to the British. So fierce and destructive was the fire of the
Germans that four guns of the L Battery were disabled, and many of the
men and officers were stricken down within a few minutes. The
survivors rushed to the two other guns and brought them into action.
The fifth gun was quickly silenced by the killing of its entire
detachment. It was the sixth gun, se