The Ypres Times.
The Commander of the 45th Division realised, from the moment that the attack
opened, that the crucial point was the right bank of the Yser, where it was necessary to
hold on at all costs on the British left, to cover Ypres and the flank of onr Allies. It
would always be possible to hold the enemy up on the Yser itself, at any rate for a time,
and indeed he did not show any great activity in that direction during the evening.
Orders were therefore given to Mordacq's brigade to whom fell this most difficult task,
since part of Aubert's brigade had already been engaged owing to its presence on the
battlefield in the course of reliefs. It was therefore ordered to hold the Yser and to sup
port such of the Territorials as were still in condition to fight. Furthermore, demands for
reinforcements had been made both on Army, and on the Nieuport detachment, which
had previously been under orders to send some batteries and a battalion of Zouaves'to
reinforce the French left. Lastly the Belgian artillery was supporting this same left by
its fire. The night 22/23 was passed in this waiting position. On the morning of the
23rd, as the German attack had weakened, the G.O.C. 45th Division ordered the Zouaves
of Mordacq's Brigade to counter-attack in the direction of Pilkem and to re-take
this commanding position. This the Zouaves were unable to do, but nevertheless they
threw the enemy back and took 300 prisoners. They even recaptured a batten- of
120 millimetre guns that the Germans had been unable to remove. On the right, the
Canadians also displayed the greatest courage and defeated every effort on the part of
the enemy.
The situation was more serious on the Yser at Het Sas and Steenstraate, where the
enemy was attempting to gain the left bank of the Yser under the cover of heavy
bombardments. He succeeded in crossing at Steenstraate in the evening, but was unable
to get clear of the town.
A division of the 20th Corps, brought up rapidly to the battlefield, was the first
reinforcement to arrive during the 24th. It put one of its brigades in to support General
Aubert, who was holding the west bank of the Yser the other brigade was put in on the
right to support Colonel Mordacq's Zouaves. On the 25th a division of the 9th Corps
was brought up to the west of Woersten in motor lorries in order to reinforce the French
left and throw the enemy back across the Yser. The fight was very hot round about
Lizerne, where one regiment lost three colonels killed in succession, but the enemy was
forced to re-cross the river and was from thenceforward held fast everywhere.
It was undoubtedly thanks to the stubborn valour of the 45th Division and the
Canadians that the Ypres Salient was saved. Both displayed the highest proofs of
comradeship in battleindeed some French officers were killed in the Canadian ranks
during the fight.
The 45th Division came out of the engagement in a very exhausted condition. It
lost 5,000 in killed, wounded, missing and prisoners but it emerged with the consciousness
of having stopped the enemy's attempt on Ypres, and on having thus played an important
part in the battle.
THE LONG AND SHORT OF IT.
In August, 1917, I saw an incident in the
Salient which rather amused me, and perhaps
some of your readers may also have been witnesses
too. A party of German prisoners were being
marched along the Potijze Road, coming from
Frezenberg into Ypres. Four of them were being
utilised as stretcher bearers, and of these four
carrying a stretcher, three were of normal size,
but the fourth was a very small fellow. The
party was escorted by an Irsh private with a rifle
and fixed bayonet. He observed how badly the
stretcher was down at the one corner, and after
a time could stand it no longer, so handing his
rifle to the small German he took his place at the
stretcher. The German then marched along with
fixed bayonet escorting the party, and so they
proceeded, presumably to their destination. The
spectacle presented was certainly remarkable.
Ex-Gunner.
