Holy mass, celebrated by Father McBrearty, was a frequent occurence for those of the Catholic faith, and where possible the French Church was used, but often a makeshift altar was set up in a barn. Ted Colpitts recorded going to Mass and many other incidents. One such entry was headed ' 6th of April ' " I carried Peter Docherty out-hit in the head-he died in the Dressing Station later, God rest his soul "
Several of the men took the time to write home to the local paper, and let them know how the men from that particular area were getting on. One such letter was from Private John Carroll to the Durham Advertiser:
Several of the men took the time to write home to the local paper, and let them know how the men from that particular area were getting on. One such letter was from Private John Carroll to the Durham Advertiser:
Thomas Hardy " The Man He Killed "
" I write to let you know that my comrades and myself are still in the land of the living, although i have been somewhat poorly. It is very wet and cold out here and we are up to our boot tops in water. Recently we had a very narrow escape, the Hun sent over a 'coalbox' and caught eight out of ten of us, but only one was killed, that was good luck on our part. We could do with a few gamekeepers out here to thin out, not rabbits, but rats. There are millions of rats, some of which we have tamed. We cannot get a razer out here as the place has been ruined by shellfire. Every night at stand to, the Huns shout over to us that the war will be finished in two months. Then the fun starts, it is rat tat tat all night long. I will close now wishing you and all the boys of the city the best of good luck "
Corporal George Kean serving in B Company of the 24th Battalion wrote home to his mother describing a period of German shelling:
" We were in a farmhouse in the reserve position just sitting down to tea and toast. We were congratulating ourselves, for we had been told it was impossible to get toast in the line, when all of a sudden " Crash " the roof caved in as the Boshe let fly. We all got out, but there was only one casualty, the toast, so we did not get toast in the line after all "
The Tyneside Irish Brigade was to be withdrawn from the line to begin preparing for the coming summer offensive and, on the 10th of April the Tyneside Irish began handing over the line to battalions from the 2nd Australian Division arriving in France from Gallipoli via Egypt. Home leave to England had now started and a few lucky officers and men managed to get home for a few days, Lieutenant Shackleton was thinking of marrying Molly and wrote to tell her he would ask for special permission from the Commanding Officer but before he could do so he was back in the front line when during a very heavy bombardment he was badly shellshocked and evacuated home to recover. Another tragic incident desribed in a letter to Bob Falkous was the death of Private Jones and Jack Fleming described it thus: " One of the Corporals left one in the breach after stand-to. Another chap's equipment caught on it, and it went off, killing one, " Jones ". Shack ( Lieutenant Shackleton ) was Platoon Officer who examined the rifles-He got under close arrest but got off with being put at the bottom of the leave roster. Well i was acting Officer Commanding that's all. I got strafed and put at the bottom of the leave roster too "
A later letter in the month described further casualties in the Battalion:
" Russell got a lovely Blighty, he's gone to a hospital at xxxx, Lady Peepee's or some other big shot. The Doc tells me he was almost off his rocker with pain when he dealt with him - Hutchinson the young Sergeant with him died, poor young chap ".
Reinforcements started to come out from the reserve battalions in England and after landing they went up to the 31st Infantry Base Depot at Etaples, where they received further training prior to joining the battalions up the line Writing to his mother at Low Fell on the 25th May, Captain Bob Falkous described the Infantry Base Depot as a
" Jolly fine place with heaps of Cafes etc " and later the same day he wrote
A later letter in the month described further casualties in the Battalion:
" Russell got a lovely Blighty, he's gone to a hospital at xxxx, Lady Peepee's or some other big shot. The Doc tells me he was almost off his rocker with pain when he dealt with him - Hutchinson the young Sergeant with him died, poor young chap ".
Reinforcements started to come out from the reserve battalions in England and after landing they went up to the 31st Infantry Base Depot at Etaples, where they received further training prior to joining the battalions up the line Writing to his mother at Low Fell on the 25th May, Captain Bob Falkous described the Infantry Base Depot as a
" Jolly fine place with heaps of Cafes etc " and later the same day he wrote
" In continuation, the night operations turned out to be a gathering of about 600 men and officers under a mob of yellow backed instructors. We were treated to quite a good lecture and then set off on what sounded like a fearfully exacting stunt. I found myself allocated to a group of New Zealanders. However the whole business was, as usual a wash out and we got back to camp at midnight, feeling not much moved by the experience "
Unlike Captain Falkous, Captain Arnold spent a period of time with his draft at the ' Bull Ring ' a place never to be forgotten and a place to leave as quickly as possible. He wrote down some of his experiences.
" The most abhorred instrument of training was the " Bull Ring " or training area
in which the men were marched out in squads both on Saturdays and Sundays. At the Bull Ring they put through PT, trench assaults and other strenuous exercises under the command of instructors who harried them unmercifully. If you were an Officer, you were detailed to take charge of a squad or company and treated in the same way as the men as far as the instructors dared to. I shall never forget the assault course. It consisted of jumping into trenches with fixed bayonets, climbing over walls, doubling across the open then disembowling straw filled sandbags, clambering across marshes, bombing imaginary strongpoints and contending with any obstructions that the cruel hearted instructors could devise.
But all was not yet over. Usually we had to give the salute to the camp Commandant who lay in wait at some suitable point on the route, just when everyone was hoping that the day's torture was past. Woe beside the man or officer who was not marching to attention - " Take his name Sergeant, - put him down for extra drill " It was not surprising after a week at the " Bull Ring " every man prayed to be sent up the line "
in which the men were marched out in squads both on Saturdays and Sundays. At the Bull Ring they put through PT, trench assaults and other strenuous exercises under the command of instructors who harried them unmercifully. If you were an Officer, you were detailed to take charge of a squad or company and treated in the same way as the men as far as the instructors dared to. I shall never forget the assault course. It consisted of jumping into trenches with fixed bayonets, climbing over walls, doubling across the open then disembowling straw filled sandbags, clambering across marshes, bombing imaginary strongpoints and contending with any obstructions that the cruel hearted instructors could devise.
But all was not yet over. Usually we had to give the salute to the camp Commandant who lay in wait at some suitable point on the route, just when everyone was hoping that the day's torture was past. Woe beside the man or officer who was not marching to attention - " Take his name Sergeant, - put him down for extra drill " It was not surprising after a week at the " Bull Ring " every man prayed to be sent up the line "
Bayonet practice at the " Bull Ring " Etaples
From the Infantry Base Depot both Captain Falkous and Captain Arnold were eventually sent up the line to rejoin 103 Brigade, but neither of these officers went to their original battalion. Captain Bob Falkous was posted to the 27th Battalion and Captain Jack Arnold to the 26th Battalion. He wrote about his journey to the front.
" It was a relief to board the train, once in the train you rumbled along at about ten miles an hour with no indication of direction. I finally decanted at a place Watten near St Omer, and was told that the division was at rest billets in the neighborhood. I spent a long day trying to track down the division and it was not until about evening, that we struck oil. To my great joy i saw on the roadside a man of my old battalion wearing a shamrock on his shoulder which was the identity mark of the Tyneside Irish Brigade. From then on i was among friends and i soon reported to the CO of the 26th Battalion to whom i had been posted.
