began to howl. Then the mother went
and sat down in a chair by the fire and stopped crying, but every now
and then moaned and clasped her baby strongly to her breast, murmuring,
"My poor baby, my poor baby, what shall we do?"

We lounged about the place until a cavalry brigade came through. The
General commandeered me to find his transport. This I did, and on the
way back waited for the brigade to pass. Then for the first time I saw
that many riderless horses were being led, that some of the horses and
many of the men were wounded, and that one regiment of lancers was
pathetically small. It was the 2nd Cavalry Brigade, that had charged the
enemy's guns, to find them protected by barbed wire.

Sick at heart I rode back into Villers-Pol, and found the Signal Company
hastily harnessing up. Headquarters had been compelled to go farther
back still--to St Waast, and there was nobody, so far as we knew,
between us and the Germans. The order caught George with his gear down.
We made a marvellously rapid repair, then went off at the trot. A mile
out, and I was sent back to pick up our quartermaster and three others
who were supposed to have been left behind. It was now quite dark. In
the village I could not find our men, but discovered a field ambulance
that did not know what to do. Their horses were dead tired, but I
advised them strongly to get on. They took my advice, and I heard at
Serches that they left Villers-Pol as the Germans[7] entered it. They
were pursued, but somehow got away in the darkness.

I went on, and at some cross-roads in a black forest came across a
regiment of hussars. I told them where their B.H.Q. was, and their
Colonel muttered resignedly,

"It's a long way, but we shall never get our wounded horses there
to-morrow." I put two more companies right, then came across a little
body of men who were vainly trying to get a horse attached to a S.A.A.
limber out of the ditch. It was a pitch-black night, and they were
bravely endeavouring to do it without catching a glimpse of the horse. I
gave them the benefit of my lamp until they had got the brute out. Two
more bodies of stragglers I directed, and then pushed on rapidly to St
Waast, where I found all the other motor-cyclists safe except Johnson.
Two had come on carts, having been compelled to abandon their
motor-cycles.

George had been attached to the 14th. He had gone with them to the
canal, and had been left there with the Cornwalls when the 14th ha