a riderless animal and came through unhurt. When the men got up
close to the German guns they found themselves riding full tilt into
hidden wire entanglements--seven strands of barbed wire. Horses and men
came down in a heap, and few of the brave fellows who reached this
barrier ever returned.
The 9th Lancers covered themselves with glory, and this desperate but
successful exploit will live as perhaps the most stirring and dramatic
battle story of the war. The Germans were struck with amazement at the
fearlessness of these horsemen. Yet the 9th Lancers themselves took
their honors very modestly. "We only fooled around and saved some guns,"
said one of the Four Hundred, after it was over. He had his horse shot
under him and his saddle blanket drilled through.
Captain F.O. Grenfell, of the 9th Lancers, was the hero of an incident
in the saving of the guns. All the gunners had been shot down and the
guns looked likely to fall into the enemy's hands. "Look here, boys,"
said Grenfell, "we've got to get them back. Who'll help?" A score of men
instantly volunteered--"our chaps would go anywhere with Grenfell," says
the corporal who tells the story--and "with bullets and shrapnel flying
around us, off we went. It was a hot time, but our captain was as cool
as on parade, and kept on saying, 'It's all right; they can't hit us.'
Well, they did manage to hit three of us before we saved the guns, and
God knows how any of us ever escaped." Later on Captain Grenfell was
himself wounded, but before the ambulance had been brought up to carry
him off he sprang into a passing motor-car and dashed into the thick of
the fighting again.
The 18th Hussars and the 4th Dragoon Guards were also in these brilliant
cavalry engagements, but did not suffer anything like so badly as the
9th Lancers. Corporal Clarke, of the Remount Depot, which was attached
to the 18th Hussars, thus described their "little scrap" with the German
horsemen near Landrecies: "We received orders to form line (two ranks),
and the charge was sounded. We then charged, and were under the fire of
two batteries, one on each side of the cavalry. We charged straight
through them, and on reforming we drove the Germans back towards the
1st Lincoln Regiment, who captured those who had not been shot down. We
had about 103 men missing, and we were about 1,900 strong. The order
then came to retreat, and we returned in the direction of Cambrai, but
we did not take any part in the act
|