In the Field (1914-1915): The Impressions of an Officer of Light Cavalry

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modest contents scattered to the four corners of the house; add to this windows without glass, doors broken in, rubbish of every kind lying about, brought no one can tell whence or how; and yet note that one or two chromo-lithographs, a few photographs of friends and

misty night of Flanders following on a dreary autumn day. Outside

the time being. We are short of infantry here, and the Germans are trying to rush Dunkirk and Calais. Your country relies upon you to stop them." Our good Chasseurs left their horses at Elverdinghe, 10 kilometres from here. They came on foot, hampered by their heavy cavalry cloaks, dragging their riding boots t

among them "The Charge"-which bring tears to the eyes of every cavalryman. He died facing the enemy, leading his regiment to the attack under terrific fire, and when his men carried him away they ranged themselves round him to make a rampart of their bodies for the chief they adored. I was not able to share the danger of my young comrade, Second-Lieutenant J.,

n and placed in reserve. They found billets in little forsaken farms some 600 yards from the firing line. Our men rested as well as they could all day, making beds of the scanty supplies of straw they found, washin

ge. Here, by the way, is a thing passing the understanding of the profane, I mean the non-bridge player. This is the extraordinary, I might almost say the immoderate, attraction which the initiated find in this game, even at

od upon Bixschoote; overhead we heard the unpleasant roar of the big German shells; and in the midst of the racket I saw my bridge players dragging their table over to the broken window. Day was dying, and we had not seen a gleam of sunshine since morning. The sky was grey-a t

he three others looked at him, in motionless silence, as if they were expecting some momentous utterance. Then suddenly, accompanied by the muffled roar of the battle music, the

spa

hea

no tr

dou

turn,

crackle made by bullets fired at close range as they tear through the air just above one. No doubt was possible; something extraordinary was happening near the trenches, for the crackling i

attack was not directed against us, for between the trenches and the houses where we were there was a thick wood which entirely concealed us from the sight of the enemy. But on the other hand the shots could not have been

it sharply, this silent mass of trees and bushes on which autumn had already laid the most splendid colours of its palette. In spite of the dull light, what an admirable background it made to the melancholy picture of the devastated landscape! First, quite close to the ground, was a tangle of bushes and brambles, its russet foliage forming a kind of impenetrable screen, which, in bright sunsh

the German mortars redoubled in intensity, and their great "coal-boxes" (big shells) burst with a deafening di

to implore some one to answer us, to tell us what had been taking place b

that it made us dumb and incapable of exchanging our thoughts, or, rather, the one thought that haunted us all. "What has become of the second squadron? What has become of our Colonel, who had stayed

he fields the anxious and inquiring faces of our men. They, too, were tortured by uncertai

doubts were

ice that echoed above the crackling of the

men waited in absolute silence, their eyes fixed upon me, kneeling on one knee, and leaning on their rifle

e of from 300 to 400 yards, capable of holding the enemy in check for some time, if they had succeeded in taking our trenches and were already pushing through the thicket. Kneeling on the road behind them,

hey are no longer merely the diligent and conscientious cavalrymen we took pleasure in commanding, and whose smartness we admired in peace time. The stern experience of the battlefield has hardene

f the dep?t and envying their juniors in the field, asked and obtained leave to rejoin the regiment at the Front. They fascinated me at once by thei

istic of him. Yes, I saw his head lifted above the grass on the slope, his bristling moustache, his brilliant eyes, and sarcastic mouth. I could not hear what he was saying, for the firing was still furious, but I saw from the smiling faces of his neighbours that he had, as usual, found the right word for the occasion, th

hen more. Was it the enemy? Without waiting for the word of command some of the me

ire! Don

quences when we saw those in whom we had trusted, those who occupied the trenches nearest to Bixschoote, beating a retreat. The first of the fugitives came up to us. They seemed completely demoralised. H

ing, ... the

were going along less rapidly, supporting a wounded c

hrough the village and enfiladed us. We had a great many killed

for a moment we thought he was about to fall, an exhausted mass, at our feet. His face was covered with blood. The red mask in which the white of the eyes formed two brilliant spots wa

e Major seized

must rally your men. We can

and went off with hasty strides, ca

n't hold a line here.... I am go

ir knapsacks. They crossed the ditches by the roadside with difficulty, an

noiselessly. I fancied I could see them, gliding from tree to tree, holding their rifles high, trying to deaden the sound of their footsteps among the dead leaves. Presently they would reach the dark line that stretched before us, mute and mysterious; they would mass their dense reserves in the rear, and sud

his calm and placid bearing was in marked contrast to that of the infantry Chasseurs. He must have recognised th

Colonel and the machine-gun section. I cannot describe the relief we felt at the sight of him. Though we could not tell what he was going to say, his attitude dispelled our fears at once.

arth is th

much!" exclaimed the Major; "that'

re all right. But the Colonel has sent me to say that there are signs of a German counter-at

, he had even been mentioned in orders for his valour, but we had never seen him so placidly good-humoured under fire as on this occasion.

rwa

skirmishers. All the men sprang up in an instant,

hells were bursting at a considerable height above us, some in front, some behind. They made a horrible kind of music. There must have been at least two batteries at work upon us, for we could no longer distinguish even the three characteristic shots of the German batteries in rafale fi

on the line of the third squadron. This time the flash of the explosion had no

eirdly illuminated, in the attitudes induced by the terror of certain death, and you will get a faint impression of what I saw. Then, suddenly, everything fell back i

ard the voice of the Maj

m up! Ge

, were shattered. No matter! Forward! Forward! We rushed on towards the wood, where we hop

ed! Sergeant Flosse

ng for us ambushed in the wood. We might have had a splendid fight! But would there have been a fight at all? Would the Prussians have ventured to measure themse

losses to deplore. The joys and sorrows of war had forged a bond between us that nothing could break. I had soon learnt to know each one of them, with his virtues and his faults, and I felt them to be, wi

g to our Colonel's summons, and we were to remember that our comrades of

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brambles; men fell, picked themselves up again, and went on with an oath. There was no more chaff; all minds were strung up to fever pitch, and strength was giving

help, rising above the turmoil of battle. I saw my men stop for a momen

rwa

d now hear the familiar sound of our cavalry carbines quite close to us. We wer

rd! Fo

e one who was trotting behind me. It was my non-commissioned officer. Without a moment's loss of time he ha

rd troop, Sergea

el

... and Corpor

A

e are man

nking for a few minutes of the two shattered, quivering bodies lying among the grasses of the forest. But I thrust away the gruesome vision

te of the mad beating of my heart and the buzzing in my ears, I was conscious that the cannonade had ceased, at least in our direction, and that the bullets were no longer coming so thickly.

rest we all had! The little passage in the earth, so uninviting as a rule, seemed to us as desirable as the

ding a diaphanous veil before our eyes. In the foreground to the right I could barely guess the dim outline of the battered mill and the burnt farm flanking the trench occupied by the foot Chasseurs. Further off, however, I could v

To the left, on the other hand, the gun fire and rifle fire were incessant in the direction of the bridge of Steenstraate, defended by the -- Brigade of mounted Chasseurs. It seemed evident that the Germans, having failed in their attempt to cross th

range forms and the shapes of things were modified or exaggerated. Our dazzled eyes were mocked by depressing hallucinations; the smallest objects took on

supplies had not been replenished since the day before, and we had used a great many in the fighting round Bixschoote. A like prudence was not, however, observed all along the line, fo

in hand, towards the smoking saucepan where the cook awaited them wielding his ladle with an important air. But on this particular evening no one thought of eating. We seemed all to feel that our work was not yet over, and that we

ning by my attitude or gestures any new effort I might be about to ask of them. The pale light of the moonbeams struck full on their faces, leaving their

f war, I need only do what I did that evening. I need only turn to my Chasseurs and look into their eyes with

ce, spend all their time looking after their horses, fetching rations and forage, often from a considerable distance, cleaning harness and arms, and every night contriving some sort of quarters for themselves and their beasts in the squalor of h

vibrating in unison with

nowledge. Down behind the line of willows we could now barely distinguish, we were aware of mysterious sounds, making a kind of distant murmur. They must come from the rattle of arms, orders given in whispers, footsteps slipping on the fat soil of plough-lands. Listening heads crane

t ardour and unanimity, and also, I am bound to admit, with what art, these men proclaimed their faith before rushing on death! One could imagine no more magnificent temple for the prayers of soldiers about to offer up their lives than the spacious firmament above and the luminous night around. We listened, touc

y in a formidable uproar, above whi

rrah! Caval

their trumpets sounding the short, m

ack into t

endent

ruction. I saw them take aim rapidly, press the trigger, and reload in feverish haste. I was deafened and bewildered by the terrible no

Then not a single dark figure was visible on the pale background of the tragic scene. How many of the bodies we could no longer mak

ed so with all our hearts, for we felt that if we could keep our men in hand, and prevent them from firing at random, the enemy could never get at us. But, above all, it w

attack. Nothing was moving in the bare plain that stretched before us. During thi

iring without the

the ground, we saw a slim shadow rise and stand. The man had got up quietly, as if no danger threatened him. And, in spite of everything, it was impossible not

!" [

answered by renewed "hurrahs!" Then the heavy line

e! F

with joy that my men remained perfectly steady; they were aiming and firing deliberately, whereas at other points the fusillade was so violent that it cannot have been efficacious. I was very glad not to have to reprove my brave Chasseurs, for the uproar was so terrific that my voice would not have carr

worked fearful havoc among our assailants, for suddenly, without a cry and wit

len

n to discuss their impressions in tones of glee that might have become dangerous. Ladoucette's

te, if you could

e. The German attack had been c

o the courage and ten

and were digging new trenches. They no longer uttered their contemptuous guttural cries of "Cavalry! Cavalry!" They had learnt to their cost that these French cavalrymen, at the sight of whom their own are so r

l duty, I went to look for the Major to make my report to him. My men had seated themselves on the rough ledges cut in the slope of the trench, their carbines between their knees

e direction of the wood, formed an abrupt angle, I hea

Tierce major.

pit

the ledge, quietly playing cards by the brilliant moonlight. As their tiny retreat co

will be able to bear the sufferings of this war to the bitter end; you fear that they may be losing their good humour and their dashing spirits; you imagine them brooding with careworn faces and anxious souls when, the excitement of the encounter dyi

who had fallen in the wood. We retired into a corner of the trench, and there he told me of the grief he felt at this loss, a grief he was doing his best to hide, so as not to injure the moral of his troop. Lagaraldi had just got his promotion, and was a soldier of

Boesinghe bridge, by which we had crossed the Yser. His great shells flew over our heads with a sinister roar, and a few seconds later we heard the ex

nant, it's

in temporary command, our strange, sad procession of mourners left the trenches and slipped through the thicket in single file. There were four officer

oung brothers-in-arms. It was unhappily by no means the first time we had held such a ceremony, but never had I been present at one in such tragic circumstances, nor in such impressive surroundings. We hurried alon

the spot where our gallant fellows had fallen, we could distinguish newly-dug earth, and four si

ees which would guard these graves, they had dug two hol

can be no fitter shroud for him who has fallen on that field than his soldier's cloak. A little earth that will be grass-grown and flower-spangled again in the spring, a simple cross of rough wood, a name, a regimental number, a date-all this is better than the most splendid obsequies. And what can be more touching tha

hrouded their heads, and we bared our own in silence. Each of us, consciously or un

as about to express our sorrow and pronounce the last farewell the enemy's mortars, suddenly chan

e by us. A great tree, cut through the middle, bent over for an instant and then rolled gently to the ground with a great crackling of broken boughs. At the same time the German bullets began to whistle

ur-we all leaped into the only available shelter-crouchi

, all too spacious for the poor bodies we were about to commit to them, were too small to shelter us. We pressed one against the other in the strangest positions, hiding our heads between the shoulders of those

here would be no pain. We should be only a little heap of bloody clay, and to-morrow at daybreak our comrades would but have to throw a few spadefuls of earth upon it. They

! Lis

e noise of the German bullets, we dist

n are f

it that none of us were killed? How did we manage to escape the shells and bullets which were cropp

able race, the tumult had died down again and only occasional shots broke the noctu

have retaken the infa

of regret at the loss of this little piece of ground. It

ll. Our task w

rious 20th Corps, which has covered itself with glory ever since the beginning of the war, and fought all along the front from Lorraine to Flanders,

y laden infantrymen defiled into the na

place presented himself smart

tenan

e my

as just told us how your Chasseurs have behaved. Accept my congratulations. We could not have done better ourselves. The cavalry is cert

you! Go

ion in reserve. Our men were beginning to feel the fatigu

roops. Above all, they were proud of having been appreciated and congratulated by t

, his aching head, his weary legs,

s to be mentione