the Canadians and
the British line of trenches with the result that it was almost
suicide for a man to attempt to return for bombs. Nevertheless many
braved the ordeal. Only one was successful. He, Private Smith of
Southampton, Ontario, seemed to bear a charmed life, for he made the
trip five times. The Third Canadian Battalion was sent forward to
reenforce the Ontario Regiment which had lost most of its officers,
but such a pressure of German forces were brought to bear on the
Canadians that the reenforcements were unavailing, and the Canadians
were forced to relinquish all they had gained, and return to their own
trenches that night.
The retreat was a desperate undertaking; the Germans then had the
Canadians in the open and added heavily to the Canadian's death roll.
On the other side of Stony Mountain the British had met with no better
success than the Canadians. Having started their enemies back, the
Germans massed for a counterattack and drove them back a mile, but not
without a terrific struggle. The battle field was lighted by the
peculiar fireworks used for such purposes and bursting of shells. Jets
of flame shot forth from machine guns and rifles. In many places the
intermittent light disclosed deadly hand-to-hand conflicts. Suddenly
the Germans concentrated their fire on a portion of their lost first
line of trenches, and the trenches of their enemies who held them were
no more. Having the British and Canadians defeated, as they believed,
the Germans proceeded to add to their victory by storming the British
and Canadian trenches. They met with resistance, however, that drove
them back.
At daybreak on June 16, 1915, the artillery on both sides resumed
firing on a large scale. Suddenly, in the afternoon, the British fire
increased preparatory to another charge. This time the British
commander had selected a smaller section for his attack. This was at
Rue d'Ouvert, and the men who had been selected to make the charge
were the Territorials and the Liverpool Irish. They got into the first
line of German trenches which the Teutons shelled to such an extent
that the remnant of the attacking force had to retreat. Then the
Second Gordon Highlanders and other Scotch soldiers made a gallant
charge at the same place, Rue d'Ouvert, on June 18, 1915, but were
forced to retire to their own trenches.
These attacks on this part of the German front resulted in repulses
for those who made them; but, at the same time, the
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