While Headquarters were at Nieppe the British attack upon Loos was to
take place, and it was arranged that the Canadians, in order to keep
the Germans busy in the North, were to make an attack. I happened to
be visiting "the Piggeries" in the afternoon previous. The 1st
Battalion was in the line. I heard the Colonel read out to the
officers the orders for the attack. We were not told that the whole
thing was what our soldiers call "a fake". As he read the orders for
the next morning, they sounded serious, and I was invited to be
present, which of course I gladly consented to. The guns were to open
fire at 4 a.m. I had been away from Headquarters for some time so (p. 110)
I determined to ride back and return later. At three o'clock a.m. my
servant woke me up and I had a cup of coffee, and started off on Dandy
to go up to "the Piggeries". I took a tin of bully-beef with me, and
so was prepared for any eventuality. It was just before dawn and the
morning air was fresh and delightful. Dandy had had a good feed of
oats and was full of life. He seemed to enjoy the sport as much as I
did. We rode up the well known roads, and round their curious curves
past the small white farm houses, till we came into the neighbourhood
of our batteries. All of a sudden these opened fire. It was a splendid
sound. Of all the music I have ever heard in my life, none comes near
the glorious organ sound of a barrage. I look back with the greatest
pleasure to that early morning ride through the twilight lit up by gun
flashes from batteries scattered along our whole front. One great
dread I always had, and that was the dread of being killed by our own
artillery. On this occasion, I had to ride down roads that looked
perilously near batteries in action. When I got to a corner near "the
Piggeries", I was just stopped in time from what might have been my
finish. There was a concealed battery among the trees by the wayside,
and I, not knowing it was there, was about to ride by unconcernedly,
when a gunner came out from the bushes and stopped me just in time,
telling me that in half a minute the battery was going to open up.
Dandy and I waited till the guns had fired and then went on. Along our
front line there was much stir and commotion. Bundles of lighted straw
making a hideous smoke were poked over the trenches, and the whole
night previous, all the limbers available had been driven up and down
the roads, making as much noise as possible. The German