got some breakfast well before
dawn. The air outside had a regular autumn chill. At first only an
occasional gun fired in the distance. But about twenty minutes before
dawn, our heavy guns opened their bombardment. To one standing in the
quarry, below the level of the ground, they had the most weird of
sounds. A dull rumbling in the rear and a continual whizz and hiss
high overhead. Hardly a sound of the guns firing and no sound of the
shells bursting. Only that terrible grinding swish in the air above.
Twenty minutes of that, and then, with a terrific roar, all our field
guns opened, and we knew that our comrades in front, the 4th N.F. on
the right and the 7th N.F. on the left, had 'gone over the top.' The
noise in front of the field batteries was pandemonium, excruciating to
the nerves. The air shook and quivered with the sound, the quarry
seemed to shake. You could only hear when the speaker shouted in your
ear. And so it went on hour by hour all day. The rate of fire
subsided, but the guns went on all day. I was standing with the
Staff-Captain in the Quarry, when I got what felt like a stone in
the face. It proved to be a piece of a shell, but happily for me it
struck the ground first and caught me on the rebound. A small cut
about the nose and chin, but I had to go and have it dressed. I got
well chaffed afterwards on my rather comical appearance. It was an
anxious time before the first news got back, but when it did it was
good. Our men had taken the first German trench, and were waiting to
go ahead again. Unfortunately High Wood was not taken by the 47th
Division on our right till midday, and meanwhile we lost numerous
casualties from having our right flank exposed to machine-gun fire. A
report came in that a large party of Germans were starting a bombing
attack on our right, so it was decided to send up a supply of
grenades. I went, therefore, and found Lieut. Mackenzie, who was in
charge of 100 men acting as carriers, and handed over 2400 grenades.
This party went up to the front line and back without mishap. But
shortly afterwards Lieut. Mackenzie was badly wounded by one of our
own shells bursting prematurely. We had fifty casualties at the Quarry
from premature bursts. It was not the fault of the gunners, but either
the guns were worn or the shells were defective.

[Illustration: Scene of Attacks by 50th Division. Sept. 15-Nov.
14, 1916.]

I lost two sergeant-instructors in the Quarry. Sergt. Moffat