s only about seven thousand yards from our
trenches, well under our cannon fire.

The next day I had lunch with Colonel Levison-Gower of the Sherwood
Foresters. They were quartered in a magnificent chateau owned by a
French cavalry officer who was married to the heiress of the place.
She owned most of the factories. The town was shot full of holes,
about one house out of every ten having been peppered with shell fire.
The British had some big guns there. One half of my battalion was to
go into trenches one night, and the other half went the next night. I
warned the officers against any foolishness or bravado. I could hear
the rattle of rifle and machine-gun fire and I tried to sleep. The
billets we occupied were the finest we had lived in so far. I had a
good coal fire in my room. Some devilish battery commander kept
pounding away all night. Every ten seconds his blighting guns would go
off and rattle the windows. Major "Billy" Marshall slept in the next
room, and his snore told me he was dreaming of Paardeburg, Poplar
Plains and battles of South Africa. A few days before we left England
his horse had slipped and rolled over on him, lacerating some of the
ligaments of his hip and rendering him virtually unfit for duty. He
could hardly walk or ride, and should have been put in hospital, but
he pleaded so hard with MacKenzie and I to let him go, and forget that
he had been hurt, that he was passed as fit for duty. He was a brave,
keen soldier.

February 25th was my birthday and it was the first day that the
regiment I had helped to organize twenty-four years before went into
action. I hoped it would be a fortunate day and that none of my
officers or men would be hurt. Trench work is bad, and gun shot wounds
there are usually fatal as they are generally in the head. I spent an
excellent day and in the evening the Staff had a little dinner for me.
I telephoned Brigade Headquarters and found out that up till noon none
of my men had been hurt. They had been told off with the British
soldiers and mixed up so they would learn the work.

While we were at dinner the first of the officers that had been in the
trenches came in. This was Lieutenant Barwick and he reported no
casualties in his section. He was as cool as a cucumber. He was
followed by Captain McLaren and Lieutenant Bickle. Then Captain
McGregor came in and reported for his company. In a few moments I got
a note from Major Osborne saying his men were all right so th