to help the 14th Brigade in Missy.

On our left we joined hands with the 4th Division, most of whom were
on the other bank, running from St Marguerite westwards; on their left
were, I believe, the French, in and round Soissons.

It was a nice time for the Artillery; for guns were there in large
numbers, and they had some good targets to shoot at, over Vregny and
Chivres way, in the shape of the enemy's batteries and lines, when
they could be seen.

The weather was mostly fine during that week, but there were two
horridly cold days on which the rain came down in torrents, and did
not help us in our entrenching tasks.

At last came the day which I had been expecting for some time; and I
was ordered to send the Dorsets across, to begin relieving the 14th
Brigade near Missy.

_Sept. 24th._

They left on the 23rd, and on the 24th the Bedfords went over,
preceded by the Brigade Staff at 2.30 P.M. The Norfolks had been sent
off three days before to strengthen the 3rd Division, so I had only
three battalions, and of these the Cheshires were very weak. However,
the K.O.Y.L.I., and West Kents (of the 13th Brigade), already holding
the eastern edge of Missy, were put under my orders, besides the 15th
Brigade R.F.A. under Charles Ballard (a cousin of Colin's[9]), and a
Howitzer Battery (61st) of Duffus's 8th Brigade.

[Footnote 9: Commanding the Norfolk's.]

Weatherby and I walked across to Rolt's farm, across a series of big
fields, with only an occasional bullet or shell pitching in the
distance. Lord, what a poor place it was; Rolt and his staff had lived
there for the last week, all lying together on straw in one or two
rooms: it must have been most uncomfortable. The windows towards the
north-east had been plugged up with sandbags, so that the rooms were
very dark, and the floors were deep in caked mud and dirt of all
sorts. The only attraction in the main room was a big open fireplace
with a huge sort of witches' cauldron standing over the hot ashes, and
this was most useful in providing us with hot baths later on.

_Sept. 25th._

Rolt explained his position and the places which the different
battalions were occupying; but beyond an occasional bombardment of
Missy and losses from German snipers in trees and elsewhere, he had
not suffered overmuch. However, he and his Brigade were not sorry to
leave, and leave they did at 4 A.M. next morning. The awkward part of
it was that one could never go out in