r near the roads. The difficulty of all this work
was not diminished by the darkness, and it was with some astonishment
that we found the 125th brigade coming through our lines diagonally. One
or two stragglers from other divisions came in and told stories of heavy
enemy attacks, but a gunner major rode back from the front on a white
horse, and said the situation was not so bad as these men's reports had
intimated. Still, there seemed to be a good deal of confusion, and the
7th were somewhat bewildered, not knowing quite what to expect next.
Meanwhile they longed hard for daylight in order to get their
whereabouts and some idea of the lie of the land.

As daylight approached on the 25th it was obvious, from the increasing
proximity of rifle fire on our left, that Mory had fallen and the line
was falling back steadily. Quiet seemed to reign now, however, in the
direction of Behagnies. We later discovered that the L.F's. had received
orders to push on and cover the Behagnies-Sapignies Road, and this they
had successfully achieved in the night. At the same time the 126th
brigade was in touch with the enemy in front of Ervillers, so that on
the morning of the 25th all three brigades were in the front line and
were rigging up an impromptu battle with the Hun. The enemy soon made
his intentions clear and he commenced a vigorous assault. What troops
still remained of the 40th and other divisions, when they found that the
42nd were in position, gradually dribbled through in search of a
long-delayed and well-earned rest. They had been fighting without
respite since the morning of the 21st. The 6th Manchesters were now on
the right of the division in the vicinity of Bihucourt, but they were
uncertain as to the state of affairs on their right. As a matter of
fact, although we were not aware of it at the time, Bapaume had been
taken and a large gap had been left in the line south of our right
flank, through which the Huns were pouring in victorious mass. The New
Zealand division and one brigade of Australians, with the 62nd division
on their left were hurried forward, and after very severe fighting
stopped the enemy rush about Hebuterne, some miles westward of the
position we held on March 25th.

Meanwhile we were in blissful ignorance of our hazardous position and
the Manchesters were preserving strict guard over an exposed right
flank. The 6th came in for a good deal of heavy fighting in the vicinity
of Bihucourt, but they held