WITH THE GUNS IN THE WEST

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2930, 16 November 1916, Page 5

WITH THE GUNS IN THE WEST

A BATTERY SIGNALLER'S LETTER Gunner L. B. Foster, writing to his Relatives in Wellington from the Somme, under date September 18, on a German "Feldpostbrief" says:— "This is one of the German field cards, a souvenir of jthe advance made here a few days ago, in which we had a hand. I 'found it out in. a, trenoli which used to be 'Fritz's* main plaoe, and is now nothing more than a "huge grave."

The writer, who is a: signaller in the 7th Battery, N.Z.F.A., in another letter says:—"Since I "WTot© my last hurried letter we hare moved on olioe again, and are now jnto what will probably be our most -interesting experiences in this lan#., - Nothing very startling happened till just after noon, when we got into some of the thickest traffic IVo seen. You have no idea ' soldiers (traffio police, as thoy are?called) at all important'. corners, directing and ruling, -the* traffic, just as the .civil police do. Then wo started to come past the bigger guns and into the beginning of the biggest camp on record. . . "We had a chance of viewing 'FritzV dug-outs- and trenches. They are great affairs, very' deep, and the dug-outs regular tunnelsi. l'ou would wonder how they were ever pushed out of them, but they were, and are still going, if only very slowly. . . . This morning I had a very interesting little'trip—out with the observing officer: -W© were • just picking out a new point, as our chaps had ad- , vanoed a. bit, and we had t-o go up too, of course. Our way there led us over the ground that had just recently .been fought over, and we' saw: some. great sights—much German ammunition, rifles, equipment, etc., which includes many gruesome sights. . There was hardly one of 'Fritz's', helmets to ; be seen, though. The infantry prize them greatly, and don't leave many behind. If you -see one of our chaps with one of them he is quite happy. ' "1 am "P' or rather down, in one of Fritz's' old dug-outs, just behind our front -line, and jnst' at prefrjnt he is shelling pretty heavily, but oiir.guns are retaliating in 1 good slvle now, so perhaps he'll knock off. We must be 20 feet underground here. Just a steep flight of steps and a cave at the bottom big enough to sleep .three men. We have our telephones down here,, and the lines leading into it. Not much room, and we wish 'Fritz' had had time to furnish it; but anyhow it s pretty safe as lone as the lines hold out and don't need mending We are out here, two of- us 7 for 12 hours, and then back at the guns for 24 hours. One of,, us is •on the phone for six hours, and the other looks after the lines; then we change over, and finish to the tewlve hours. ■• • "We iire up to our necks in mud here. The last day or two it has' rained pretty consistently, and the whole show literally ploughed up by shell, as it is one big quagmire; the trenches are young rivers just about and not much use. It is really 'humorous to see what cuts we are, and we've had many a laugh over it. I wonder if yon can picture us. Mud' 11 We're just smothered, in it. W© tie empty_ sandbags round our legs to keep it off our socks and pants, and look something like the real old cowboys—unshaven most of us for at least three days, and wet . through. Oh I it's no use trying to describe things. •* "You'll know far better than I do regarding onr casualties here. They have been heavy, and we haven't finished yet, but our infantry did what was expected o fthem, and also held it, too. Thoy are 'over' again, just as I write, in ' another bayonet assault. j More of a raid than anything else. Fritz got on to our batteries only too well Inst night, and this morning ono of our batteries just by us lost a sergeant and two men wounded as a result. Gas-shells have been very prominent. Yesterday, one of Fritz's shells, a 5.9, I think, landed and exploded within three yards of one of our guns. The chaps were all standing about, and not one was hurt! •Tust covered in' mud that was shot up by the explosion; but there was a great scatter and some record sprints done. All these things are humorous (after they're over) until some poor beggar "goes west," and then it is all the other way. It is the real thing here, and there's more that's sad than ■funny about it. I have lost one of my mates, I'm afraid; he came out in the Sevenths with me. We were out together mending tho wires to the observation post when he got bit by a shell pretty badly, and had to be carried away. I think he's dona for, poor beggar; but there's just a chance."