The War Service of the 1/4 Royal Berkshire Regiment (T. F.) | Page 3

unknown from Pont des
Briques station, where we found our train already contained the
transport from Havre, two of whose number had been deposited on the
line en route by the activities of a restive horse. The men were crowded
into those forbidding trucks labelled "Hommes, 40, chevaux, 8," and
suffered much discomfort as the train crept through a frozen night,
whose full moon illuminated a succession of dykes and water meadows
stiff with hoarfrost, and bearded French Territorials with flaming
braziers guarding the line. As dawn was breaking we detrained on the
long platform of Cassel, and after the transport was unloaded moved up
that steep hill which is so well known a landmark in Flanders. When
we reached the summit, leaving the town on our left, we looked over
the great Flemish plain, and heard for the first time the faint pulsing of
the guns. The sun had now fully risen, and dissipated the thin morning
mist; the level country parcelled out into innumerable farms and
clumps of trees stretched endlessly to the east. Only to the northward
the steep outline of the Mont des Cats with the long ridge of the Mont
Noir behind broke the plain. We descended, and made our way wearily
to Winnezeele, a straggling village of outlying farms, close to the
Belgian frontier. Here we remained three days, and with the zeal of
new troops obeyed every letter of the law. Orderly sergeants descended
into the village in marching order with full packs, no officer was ever
seen without his revolver, while every billet was guarded as if at any
moment it might be taken by assault.
On April 2nd we marched to Steenvoorde, where Lieut.-General Sir H.
Smith-Dorrien, commanding 2nd Army, inspected the 145th Brigade.
He congratulated them on their smart appearance, and spoke most
warmly of the work already done by Territorials in the war. He also
cheered us greatly by his anticipation of the fall of Budapest and of the
forcing of the Dardanelles within the next few weeks.

On Easter Sunday, April 9th, we marched to Flêtre, a village on the
great paved road to Lille, 3 miles short of Bailleul. Here long lines of
lorries attested the importance of this main artery of the Army; while
the effects of war were plainly seen in the bullet-riddled houses, the
random little trenches and crosses dotted around, which recalled the
successful fighting of the 4th Division on October 14th. The château
which Headquarters occupied was said to have been similarly used for
eight days by General von Kluck. Here for three days we enjoyed the
rain of Flanders, and a foretaste of its eternal mud, before moving a
stage nearer to the battle line, the flares of which had been an object of
much interest at nights. Our next journey, on the 7th, led through
Bailleul, where the band of the Artists' Rifles played in the great square,
and the Warwicks of the 143rd Brigade viewed us with the superior air
of men who had already been in the trenches with the 6th Division;
then between the poplars along the Armentières road, until we turned to
the left at Rabot, and soon arrived at our destination, a small village
called Romarin. It lies just within the Belgian frontier, a bare 3 miles
behind the firing line, whence the crackle of rifle fire was plainly
audible, whilst from the coppiced slopes of Neuve Église, which
bounded the northward view, intermittent flashes denoted the presence
of the field batteries. The battalion was now attached to the 10th
Brigade of the 4th Division, who were still holding the same ground
where their victorious advance had come to a standstill in October in
front of Ploegsteert Wood and northward round the base of Messines
Hill. The four Companies were divided for their period of 48 hours in
the line between 1st Warwicks, 2nd Seaforths, Royal Irish, Dublin
Fusiliers, and 7th Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders (T.F.). The time
passed without casualties or special incident, except for the shelling of
a night working party under Lieut. Challoner, which escaped disaster
only by good fortune. All will remember with gratitude the good
comradeship and helpfulness of this Regular brigade, from whom we
learnt much during our short period of attachment. On its conclusion
we marched back to billets at Steenwerck, a station on the Lille line
midway between Bailleul and Armentières. Here we endeavoured
unsuccessfully, with the aid of a French officer, to locate a chain of
signalling lamps impudently displayed from Bailleul right away
towards the German lines.

On April 13th a Rugger match was played at Pont de Nieppe between
teams representing the 4th and 48th Divisions, and resulted in a victory
for the latter. Here Lieut. Ronald Poulton-Palmer, who captained the
side, played his last game.