eebrugge were the prize
we hoped to gain. Be that as it may, the result of our attack was to
bring about a conflict of unparalleled intensity. The bulk of the
English heavy artillery seemed to be concentrated on the one side and
the bulk of the enemy's heavy artillery on the other. In a country
like Flanders the ground is bad enough in foul weather; but where it
is churned up for miles with the heaviest of shells, it becomes
impossible to use tanks and next to impossible to use infantry.

Moreover, the Germans had superiority in the air. They had
concentrated on aircraft the effort which we had expended on
perfecting the tank. The one can be used effectively in wet weather,
but the other cannot. The German had another defensive surprise for
us. Owing to the nature of the ground the deep dugout was practically
an impossibility. In the place, therefore, of this the German devised
the concrete blockhouse or 'pill-box' as it was called. For miles
behind their front line the country was dotted with pill-boxes, which
could defy the tank and all but the largest kinds of shells. As soon
as our operations started the rain streamed down, making conditions
ten times worse for the attacking force.

All honour to those that gallantly stormed the muddy slopes of
Passchendaele; to the wonderful engineers that conquered the squalid
quagmires of Langemarck and Zonnebeke; to the gunners that stuck to
their guns under a rain of bombs and shells, and to the transport
drivers that fed them. It is a tale of wonderful gallantry and heroic
endeavour. But when all is said and done, one is bound to look at the
result.

On reaching the area round Proven the 50th Division was allocated to
the Fifth Army (General Gough), and received orders to prepare to take
part in an attack on the enemy's line between the Houthulst Forest and
Passchendaele. On October 21, the day after our arrival at Proven, I
went to the Fifth Army H.Q. to get all the maps and information I
could relating to the new front. The Army H.Q. were in a large chateau
north of Poperinghe, and when I got there I was received by the
Colonel in charge of Intelligence with every kindness. He got me
several maps, gave me the files of intelligence to glance over, and
advised me to visit the Air Squadron at Proven for aeroplane
photographs. He also offered to turn out a Staff car to take me back,
but this kind offer I declined. My next visit was to the office of the
Air Squadron, where th