72nd Seaforth Highlanders of Canada - waughfamily.ca

LA COULOTTE.delle spur. Among the latter the point of the greatest importance was the famous Triangle. So far as the 72ndwas concerned the two months and a half were spent inholding a position immediately in front of the village ofLa Coulotte sometimes immediately to the left and againastride the Lens-Arras road, that once perfect nationalhighway which stretches straight as a string between thetwo towns. Almost nightly, while in the trenches, the Battalion furnished working parties to dig a new front line.Daylight would find them occupying a position a fewyards closer to the enemy than yesterday. It always wasan unvarying rule of the Battalion s to get as close to theenemy as possible, thus bringing into play Lord Nelson sfamous message at the battle of Trafalgar. Firstly,because it kept the Boche nervous; secondly, because ittended to eliminate the chance of the enemy making asurprise atack under the advantage of a wide No Man sLand to concentrate troops in, and, lastly, because thecloser one is to the enemy trenches the less will his artillery endanger one s front line, his shooting being modified by the fear of hitting his own men. The last days before the attack found the 72nd within approximately 100yards of the Hun in short within deadly striking range.The La Coulotte attack might have brought to mind insome of its dramatic antecedent circumstances, the famousball at Brussels before the battle of Waterloo. The FirstArmy Horse Show had gone with a swing at the Chateaude la Haie. With easy confidence had the 72nd tug of warteam walked away with its competitors. Suddenly therumour flashed from man to man, "the Boche is withdrawing!" The rumour grew as itproceeded, until it wasstated quite definitely that the Hun had positively decamped. Even the coldly cautious official report stated, inpart, that, "the slight withdrawal of the enemy in the vicinity of La Coulotte and the Hirondelle spur will be followed up with the most ruthless severity," or words to61