solidate the ground
won, and so rendering it an easier matter to take a battered trench than
to hold it.

[Sidenote: French take Sailly-Saillisel.]

On September 12 and 18, 1916, further gains were made to the east of the
Les Boeufs-Gueudecourt line and east of Le Sars, and some hundreds of
prisoners were taken. On these dates, despite all the difficulties of
ground, the French first reached and then captured the villages of
Sailly-Saillisel, but the moment for decisive action was rapidly passing
away, while the weather showed no signs of improvement. By this time,
too, the ground had already become so bad that nothing less than a
prolonged period of drying weather, which at that season of the year was
most unlikely to occur, would suit our purpose.

[Sidenote: New line established.]

In these circumstances, while continuing to do all that was possible to
improve my position on my right flank, I determined to press on with
preparations for the exploitation of the favorable local situation on my
left flank. At midday on October 21, 1916, during a short spell of fine,
cold weather, the line of Regina Trench and Stuff Trench, from the west
Courcelette-Pys road westward to Schwaben Redoubt, was attacked with
complete success. Assisted by an excellent artillery preparation and
barrage, our infantry carried the whole of their objectives very quickly
and with remarkably little loss, and our new line was firmly established
in spite of the enemy's shell fire. Over one thousand prisoners were
taken in the course of the day's fighting, a figure only slightly
exceeded by our casualties.

[Sidenote: Part of Regina trench carried.]

On October 23, 1916, and again on November 5, 1916, while awaiting
better weather for further operations on the Ancre, our attacks on the
enemy's positions to the east of Les Boeufs and Gueudecourt were
renewed, in conjunction with French operations against the
Sailly-Saillisel heights and St. Pierre Vaast Wood. Considerable further
progress was achieved. Our footing at the crest of Le Transloy Spur was
extended and secured, and the much-contested tangle of trenches at our
junction with the French left at last passed definitely into our
possession. Many smaller gains were made in this neighborhood by local
assaults during these days, in spite of the difficult conditions of the
ground. In particular, on November 10, 1916, after a day of improved
weather, the portion of Regina Trench lying to the eas