72nd Seaforth Highlanders of Canada - waughfamily.ca

CAMBRALpatrick, D.S.O., and the Battalion moved off at 1:35 a.m.on September 27th, through the pitch-black night and poura marked contrast to the weather of the preceding raining day to its assembly positions in the already-capturedportion of the boasted Hindenburg line, overlooking Inchyon the Canal du Nord, and about 3,000 yards behind thefront line. The "B. W."operation, as the attack wasofficially known, in common with all those during the"Hundred Days" from August 8th to November llth, involved formations "leap-frogging" through other formations as each reached its objective. The 12th Brigade wasto follow the 10th across the Canal du Nord, and was topass through them some 1,000 yards before reaching BourlonWood. The 12th, therefore, was assembled some distance in the rear of the front line, and the 72nd foundtheir shelter (?) for the night in and about the gapingmuddiness of the before-mentioned Hindenburg line. One ofthe novel features of theattack as now arranged was theclose proximity of the supporting artillery to the frontline some of the eighteen-pounders being practically inthe village of Inchy itself. Guns? The forward area wasstiff with them. The notorious line in the vincity of thatvillage was full of eighteen-pounders, down in the trenchitself, and screened by nettings of camouflage. And theguns hidden in this trench were but a fraction of the hugenumber stationed up and down the front in readiness, onthe tick of "zero,"to burst into hideous noise.The strength of the rolling barrage will vary from onegun to seventeen yards of front; to one gun to 28 yardsof front." So ran the official report of the artillery concentration.This referred only to the eighteen-pounders and4.5 s, and did not include the large provision of heavyguns which were to hurl their terrific shells on to selectedpoints in the rear of the enemy s line.The Battalion completed its assembly by 4:10 a.m. One139