THE YPRES TIMES
J Twenty Years Ago.
83
A wire obstacle had been constructed here and sentries posted. The troop, under
cover, were playing House."
One learns many things big game shooting. A moving target is not easy to hit, and
many hits may not stop or kill. The excitement by the thrill of firing at a living target
is not conducive to a steady hand.
The men of this troop learn something of these lessons now.
Their positions are swiftly and silently manned. Some hundreds of their comrades
lie and watch the arena from the hill behind.
No one breathes. The two Germans ride on down half-a-mile of straight pave.
They come right up to the wire obstacle within a few yards of the ambushed troop.
Then half-a-dozen men fire. One German falls dead, the other disappears in a clatter up
the road hanging round his horse's neck.
Both horses seem to escapebut who can say
An enterprising man goes out to take the shoulder tab of the fallen warrior, for
identification is all important. There is a crack and a ricochet passes unpleasantly close.
In his dive back to cover his glasses get caught up in the wire and he struggles ludicrously
like a rabbit in a snare. For a minute or two there is quiet. Then for all the world like
peace manoeuvres, a party of German Staff Officers ride up on to the sky line. Laboriously
they dismount, hand over their horses, and start to take out maps and glasses.
Still no sound from the watchers. As they group themselves conveniently against
their led horses, one machine gun opens fire.
Too far to hear their oaths, but men on the ground and horses loose, men running,
and a scene of chaos, are plainly visible through glasses.
Again an interval of quiet and no sound. One battery comes into action and a few
shells burst high in air and harmlessly.
Lines of skirmishers appear on the far hillside, and move slowly down the slope at
over two thousand yards range. They bunch in the gaps of the wire fences, and more
machine guns start to take toll.
Meanwhile, two miles away to the left front and not far from the machine gunners
first target, a detached post of a troop are lying up in the village of Manage.
They are watching the battle and the villagers are cooking them a stew, for it is
now 1 p.m.
A strong company of German infantry march up to the edge of Manage, pile arms
and prepare their dinners.
The Troop Leader's plan is to crawl up to a garden wall, fire fifteen rounds rapid,
and then beat a hasty retreat.
The Regimental Sergeant Major arrives with a messageYou are to retire at once."
The Regiment is already on the move. The Brigade has to move to the west and replace
another Brigade of the Division.
So the action is broken off. The players in the first act of the drama, hardly yet
realising that they are not on manoeuvres, get back to their horses and trek.
One officer had his thigh broken, his ammunition was removed and he was placed in
an ambulance cab to be taken prisoner the following day.
When his leg was healed he escaped and returned to England.
A man was wounded in the hand and made nothing of his wound which afterwards
proved serious.
There was a gap of nine miles between the British right and the French on this day.
The incident occurred in covering this gap.
In history a little more than a Squadron had bumped against the advanced guard of
the 7th German Army Corps, and caused the 13th Division to deploy, thereby delaying
it by four hours. x.
