o attack at 9.30. At noon they did so, and very pluckily. It
was, however, impossible to assist them, for they (the 6/295) ran
forward and attacked the Canal and footbridge obliquely, completely
masking any action possible by the Devons They lost heavily, I fear,
but it really was not our fault, though at one time they seemed to
think it was.

I went to talk to Lieut.-Col. Perron, who commanded the detachment
(6/295 and a few Chasseurs a Cheval), in the afternoon; but the
interview did not enlighten me very much. The commander of the 6/295,
however, one Baron d'Oullenbourg, was most intelligent, and a gallant
fellow with plenty of _nous_. He was badly wounded two days afterwards
in another attempt.

I was so much struck with the plucky way in which the 6/295 pushed on
under heavy fire that I sent a complimentary note both to the
battalion and to General Joubert, commanding the 58th Brigade on the
other side of the Canal--for the battalion belonged (to start with) to
his brigade. They published both my notes in the _Ordre du Jour_ of
the Division, and d'Oullenbourg received a Legion d'Honneur in
consequence (so St Andre told me). Anyway, he thoroughly deserved it.

Meanwhile we heard that the Cheshires, Manchesters, and K.O.S.B.'s
were all held up near Violaines by a beastly sugar factory which the
Germans occupied on the road north of La Bassee, and they could not
get on at all.

Generals Morland and Franklin turned up in the afternoon. We were
perpetually being urged to advance and attack, but how could we? There
was nothing to attack in front of us except La Bassee, a couple of
miles off, and we could not advance a yard in that direction without
exposing our right flank to a deadly enfilade fire from across the
Canal, for the Germans were still strongly holding that infernal
railway triangle, and nothing availed to get them out of it.[11]
General Morland wisely, therefore, ordered me not to advance in force.

[Footnote 11: They are still there (August 1917)!]

Later on we heard that the Cheshires had made a gain of 800 yards, but
had got so extended that they asked for a Bedford company to support
them, and this I sent.

In the evening I went to examine a French 75 mm. battery, and had the
whole thing explained to me. The gun is simply marvellous, slides
horizontally on its own axle, never budges however much it fires, and
has all sorts of patent dodges besides: but it is no use painting the
lily!