France came up to see the Show. It was the most magnificent
display of horseflesh I have ever seen. It was held in a large
open field. The programme included competitions for officers' and
troopers' horses (light and heavy), driving for the limbers of
the regiment, work by machine-gun sections, races, jumping,
turn-out of A.S.C. wagons, and what-not. A wonderful display was
that of the officers' chargers, in which the long line of
competitors rode, trotted and galloped past the General who was
judging. Some of the men's horses were also very good, and really
ran the officers' chargers close for merit. The first three
prize-winners would be worth a clear L450 apiece. To describe the
efficiency of the wagon-driving, the smartness of their turn-out,
the quickness and neatness of all their manoeuvres, is beyond me.
There was no lance or sword play. The whole business had been
arranged to see that everything was as efficient as possible, and
to promote a spirit of healthy rivalry among the different
regiments. It was an extraordinary spectacle, not fifteen miles
from the firing-line, with the big guns booming in one's ears the
whole time--very characteristic of the Englishman's love of sport
and its value to the nation. This is one of the things that the
Boches never can, or will be able to, understand. They cannot
realise how these "mad English" can forget the War when in the
middle of it, and when any minute their "sport" might be
interrupted by a "Jack Johnson." I was with our Brigade
Veterinary Officer, who, of course, is an equine expert. It was a
treat to hear him telling off the points of the magnificent
chargers passing in front of us, pawing the ground and snorting,
full of dash and fire. To me the whole affair had a profound
interest. I have never enjoyed myself more, and really its
psychological significance was immense.

On the morning of 25th September, 1915, the 1st and 4th Corps of the
British Army delivered an attack on the enemy line between La Bassee
Canal on the north and a point opposite the village of Grenay on the
south. There were subsidiary simultaneous attacks east of Ypres by the
5th Corps, and north of the La Bassee Canal by the 3rd and the Indian
Corps. Our main attack was made in co-operation with the French
offensive on our right. The British Cavalry Co