uld not do. For instance, the signallers were able to introduce
electric light into our abode by tapping a live wire which ran
outside, from one fosse to the next, for we were now in the Lens coal
district with mines dotted about here and there. On the other hand, we
soon learnt to refrain from sleeping or showing lights in the second
storey of our billet which was evidently under direct observation by
the enemy, who did not take long to acquaint us with the fact.

There was always a good deal of firing to be done each day, for,
although the battle may be said to have finished after four or five
days, there were several side-shows before the line was adjusted to
our liking, and the enemy's fire was almost continuous. This bothered
the F.O.O. parties considerably, and communication was difficult to
maintain for more than a short time between the front line and
Battery. The wire was frequently broken in numerous places, and this
kept signallers and linesmen working at high pressure to repair the
damage. The O.P.'s were moderately good, with the exception of one in
"Gun Trench," where our men held a portion, then came a sand bagged
wall occupied on the other side by our opponents which they were able
to enter by a *T*-shaped communication trench, then another sand-bagged
wall with our infantry beyond. Neither side could shell this trench
for fear of injury to their own party, but this did not prevent a
lively exchange of bombs, intermingled with various forms and sizes of
"Minnies," which were hurled at frequent intervals. Sniping was also
rampant, and periscopes, no matter how small, survived not longer than
a few minutes. It was from this delightful spot that one of the
subalterns arrived at the Battery one evening with his head swathed in
bandages like a Sultan's turban. He had been trying conclusions with a
"Minnie," and, as this was in the days before the introduction of the
steel helmet, the latter had easily come out on top. When the wound
was ascertained to be nothing like as serious as the size of the
bandage seemed to indicate, he was removed to the wagon line amid (p. 011)
jeers from his brother officers, and a few days' rest sufficed to
bring him back to duty again.

Now, in one portion of the zone which we were covering, "No Man's
Land" extended some 1500 yards in depth, and midway, lying in the
valley, were what appeared to be two derelict enemy guns partially
camouflaged This aroused the curiosity of the S