e cigarettes and other dainties into their pockets, lest they
should get wet. On another occasion, the Paymaster's tent blew (p. 031)
away as he was paying off the battalion. Five shilling notes flew
over the plain like white birds over the sea. The men quickly chased
them and gathered them up, and on finding them stained with mud
thought it unnecessary to return them. On another night the huge
marquee where Harrod's ran the mess for a large number of officers,
blew down just as we were going to dinner, and we had to forage in the
various canteens for tinned salmon and packages of biscuits.

Still, in spite of all, the spirits of our men never failed. One night
when a heavy rain had turned every hollow into a lake, and every gully
into a rushing cataract, I went down to some tents on a lower level
than my own. I waded through water nearly a foot deep and came to a
tent from which I saw a faint light emerging. I looked inside and
there with their backs to the pole stood some stalwart young
Canadians. On an island in the tent, was a pile of blankets, on which
burnt a solitary candle. "Hello, boys, how are you getting on?" "Fine,
Sir, fine," was their ready response. "Well, boys, keep that spirit
up," I said, "and we'll win the war."

At first we had no "wet" canteen where beer could be procured. The
inns in the villages around became sources of great attraction to the
men, and the publicans did their best to make what they could out of
the well-paid Canadian troops. The maintenance of discipline under
such circumstances was difficult. We were a civilian army, and our men
had come over to do a gigantic task. Everyone knew that, when the hour
for performance came, they would be ready, but till that hour came
they were intolerant of restraint.

The English people did not understand us, and many of our men
certainly gave them good reason to be doubtful. Rumour had it at one
time that we were going to be taken out of the mud and quartered in
Exeter. Then the rumour was that the Exeter people said, "If the
Canadians are sent here, we'll all leave the town." I did not mind, I
told the men I would make my billet in the Bishop's Palace.

The C.O. of one of the battalions was tempted to do what David did
with such disastrous results, namely number the people. He called the
roll of his battalion and found that four hundred and fifty men were
absent without leave. But as I have said, we all knew that when the
moment for big t