as a
mascot. His fate was sealed, however, when one day it was discovered
that he had disposed of several parcels of food which had,
inadvertently, been placed within his reach by some of the men.

Concerts were arranged, and the village school-room was kindly lent
and artistically decorated for these occasions. The weather was all
that could be desired now that we were safely lodged in billets, and
it was a typical old-fashioned yule-tide, with a plentiful fall of
snow followed by hard frost. The little village was in a sheltered
hollow, and a small rivulet passed through it on its way down the
valley, while the scenery might have been that surrounding any hamlet
in the south of England.

An open air service was conducted by the Padre, for the Brigade, on
'Xmas morning, and the rest of the day was given over to sports and
concerts, and the climax of enjoyment was reached at night when (p. 069)
the men partook of their dinner. Gramaphones were well to the fore,
but all kinds of musical instruments took part in the gaiety which
followed.

A certain amount of latitude was given the men for a few days after,
in order that they might recover from the orgy, for indeed they had
never had such a gorge since their arrival in France. All were in
excellent spirits, and these were by no means diminished when it
became known that our next area was in front of Arras. It was
recognised to be an enviable part of the line to be situated in,
especially during the winter months. It was also a locality with which
we had not as yet made acquaintance, and it was always interesting to
visit a new portion of the front, as we disliked being too long in the
same surroundings without a change of scene.

The day following New Year, the Division entered on its period of duty
in the sector north of Monchy to the vicinity of Gavrelle, with the
heights of Vimy, which had fallen into our hands in the previous
spring on its left.

The battery position was reached by following the Arras-Plouvain road
along the valley of the river Scarpe, and we took over from a Scottish
Division. The enemy lines were everywhere overlooked, consequently he
wisely refrained from showing much activity.

A magnificent view was obtained from the rear O.P. on the heights
facing Vitry, and, on a clear day, Douai was plainly visible and even
the country far beyond it.

Our front line ran along at the bottom of the slope, having the ruined
piles of Roeux, which was