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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b4be951 --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #51523 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/51523) diff --git a/old/51523-8.txt b/old/51523-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index a966fac..0000000 --- a/old/51523-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3164 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook, With the Scottish Regiments at the Front, by -Evelyn Charles Vivian - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most -other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: With the Scottish Regiments at the Front - - -Author: Evelyn Charles Vivian - - - -Release Date: March 22, 2016 [eBook #51523] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE -FRONT*** - - -E-text prepared by Brian Coe, Martin Pettit, and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made -available by Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries -(https://archive.org/details/toronto) - - - -Note: Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries. See - https://archive.org/details/withscottishregi00viviuoft - - - - - -The Daily Telegraph War Books - -WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT - -At the Front Series - - - * * * * * - -Cloth 1/-net each - -The Daily Telegraph -WAR BOOKS - -Post free 1/3 each - - -HOW THE WAR BEGAN -By W. L. COURTNEY, LL.D., and J. M. KENNEDY - -THE FLEETS AT WAR -By ARCHIBALD HURD - -THE CAMPAIGN OF SEDAN -By GEORGE HOOPER - -THE CAMPAIGN ROUND LIÈGE -By J. M. KENNEDY - -IN THE FIRING LINE -Battle Stories told by British Soldiers at the Front -By A. ST. JOHN ADCOCK - -GREAT BATTLES OF THE WORLD -By STEPHEN CRANE -Author of "The Red Badge of Courage" - -BRITISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT -The glorious story of their Battle Honours - -THE RED CROSS IN WAR -By M. F. BILLINGTON - -FORTY YEARS AFTER -The Story of the Franco-German War. By H. C. BAILEY -With an introduction by W. L. COURTNEY, LL.D. - -A SCRAP OF PAPER -The Inner History of German Diplomacy -By E. J. DILLON - -HOW THE NATIONS WAGED WAR -A companion volume to "How the War Began," telling how the world faced -Armageddon and how the British Army answered the call to arms -By J. M. KENNEDY - -AIR-CRAFT IN WAR -By ERIC STUART BRUCE - -HACKING THROUGH BELGIUM -By EDMUND DANE - -FAMOUS FIGHTS OF INDIAN NATIVE REGIMENTS -By REGINALD HODDER - -THE RETREAT TO PARIS -By ROGER INGPEN - -THE RUSSIAN ADVANCE -By MARR MURRAY - -THE SUBMARINE IN WAR -By C. W. DOMVILLE-FIFE - -MOTOR TRANSPORTS IN WAR -By HORACE WYATT - -THE SLAV NATIONS - - * * * * * - - -WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT - -by - -E. CHARLES VIVIAN - -Author of "Passion Fruit," "Divided Ways," etc. - - - - - - - -Hodder and Stoughton -London New York Toronto -MCMXIV - -Printed in Great Britain by Hazell, Watson & Viney, Ld., -London and Aylesbury. - - - - -CONTENTS - - -CHAPTER I - PAGE -THE GUARDS AND THE GREYS 1 - - -CHAPTER II - -THE ROYAL SCOTS 17 - - -CHAPTER III - -THE ROYAL SCOTS FUSILIERS 36 - - -CHAPTER IV - -THE KING'S OWN SCOTTISH BORDERERS 48 - - -CHAPTER V - -THE BLACK WATCH 73 - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS 93 - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE SEAFORTH HIGHLANDERS 114 - - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE CAMERON HIGHLANDERS 138 - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE ARGYLL AND SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDERS 157 - - -CHAPTER X - -THE HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY AND THE CAMERONIANS 169 - - - - -CHAPTER I - -THE GUARDS AND THE GREYS - - -If one should ask any man, of any regiment of the British Army, what was -the quality of the regiment to which he belonged, the answer would be to -the effect that his was the best regiment in the service, without any -exception. If any other answer should be returned to such a query, it -might be assumed that there was something wrong with that particular -man; he ought not to be a soldier, for every soldier worthy of the name -firmly believes that his regiment is the best. - -The Scottish regiments are not exempt from this belief, and surely, -judging by their regimental histories, they have good cause. Certain -peculiar honours are theirs, too: they form the only kilted force of -regular troops in the world, for one thing; and for another thing the -oldest regiment of the British Army is Scottish--for the Royal Scots, -with definite history dating back to 1625, lay claim to direct descent -from the Scottish archers who were kept for centuries as guards for -French kings. Putting legend and tradition aside, it is certain and -beyond dispute that John Hepburn led the Royal Scots under Gustavus -Adolphus, the great Swedish champion of liberty, as early as 1625; and -in 1633, with eight years of hard work on Continental battlefields to -season their ranks, the Royal Scots were definitely and officially -included in the British Army, seeing service under Marlborough at -Blenheim, Ramillies, Malplaquet, and Oudenarde. There is a story of -Blenheim to the effect that the Commander-in-chief of the French Army, -taken prisoner by Marlborough, congratulated the latter on having -overcome "the best troops in the world." The Duke caustically requested -him to "Except those troops by whom you have been conquered." Prominent -among these were the Royal Scots. - -But, although senior in point of age, the Royal Scots is not "the right -of the line" in the British Army. This proud distinction is held by the -Royal Horse Artillery, which probably numbers as many Scotsmen in its -ranks as men of any other nationality. The Artillery, however, knows no -nationalities in its nomenclature. One is first a gunner, and then -either English, Scotch, Welsh, or Irish--the guns count before -territorial distinctions. Next to the R.H.A., if ever the line of the -whole Army were formed, would come the Brigade of Guards, and here the -Scots Guards find a place, very near the right of the line, when the -length of that line is considered. - -It is possible, to a certain extent, to trace the history of each unit -of the Army, as far as the present European war is concerned, by means -of the letters sent home by the men of each unit. Such histories are -necessarily brief and scrappy, but they afford some idea of what the -various regiments are doing on the field; and the object of this book -is, to some extent, to show how each Scottish regiment has contributed -to the glory of Scotland and the fame of the British Army since August -of 1914. Some reference to the earlier exploits of Scots on other fields -may perhaps be pardoned, for there are some stories--like that already -quoted regarding the Duke of Marlborough--that never grow old. - -Of the Scots Guards, few records have as yet come to hand, beyond those -that are common knowledge. The regiment has nearly three hundred years -of history, having been raised as the "Scots Fusilier Guards" in 1641. -Nineteen years later they became the "Scots Guards," and in the closing -years of the seventeenth century they fought in Flanders, subsequently -serving with distinction under the Duke of Marlborough. From "Dettingen" -through the Napoleonic and Crimean wars up to "Modder River" the battle -honours on their colours range, for like the great majority of British -regiments they had their share of South Africa in the last campaign -there. - -Personal records of their deeds in the early stages of this present war -are scarce, but certain it is that there were Scots Guards at the battle -of the Marne, although the official dispatches are chary of mentioning -the names of regiments engaged in definite actions or at definite -points. For, previously to the battle of the Marne, there was a -Guardsman of Kilmarnock of whom a story is told. He was on duty with a -comrade when two mounted men approached, and on challenging the riders -the Scots found that one of them was a Uhlan--who made off with all -speed. The Kilmarnock man advanced on the other rider, whom his comrade -had covered with his rifle, but the horseman made a motion with his left -hand toward his revolver. Thereupon the Kilmarnock man, being tall and -powerfully built, struck out with his fist and knocked the man from his -saddle, ascertaining subsequently that he was a German scout officer, -and that he carried a diary which gave particulars of the movements of -the brigade to which the Scots Guards were attached, from the time of -its leaving Havre almost up to the time of the officer's capture. There -were in the diary frequent allusions to "those hellish British"--which -comment speaks for itself. - -Later, along the position of the Aisne, the first battalion of the -Guards were busy. On a certain Sunday afternoon the Guards and the -Black Watch were in the thick of the fighting, and that night they were -ordered to the trenches--and the Germans had the position of the -trenches ranged to a nicety, so that they were able to drop shells with -wicked precision all night. Next morning the German infantry retreated -for a matter of a mile, uphill, and there waited for the inevitable -advance of the Guards and the Black Watch. The retreat was a trap, for -on the advance the two British battalions were subject to shell as well -as rifle fire, and out of one section of fourteen men only one was left. -This one, a corporal, was badly cut about the face, and had one knee -severely damaged, but with a field dressing tied round his leg he -remained in the firing line all day, going over to the Black Watch, -since he had drifted too far away from his own battalion to rejoin it at -once. "I had to stick it in the field all day," he says, "and the -fighting was awful. The Germans had all their big guns firing at us, and -we could not get our own guns up to fire back at them. I never expected -to get out of it alive. Well, after lying half the night wet in the -open, among the dead Germans and our own dead, I got strength enough to -crawl back, and managed to find a hospital about twelve o'clock at -night, nearly dead. I never got any sleep that night, but guess what the -Germans did in the morning! They blew the hospital up in the air. I -happened to be near the door, so I got away all right; but I got another -bit in the back that flattened me out for awhile. I missed all the -ambulances through this. The next carts that came along were the -ammunition ones. The driver helped me on to the back of one, but I had -hardly enough strength to hang on. The Germans shelled all these carts -for miles, and the horses of the one I was on got hit with a shell, and -I had not the strength to climb on to another one. The drivers were -hurrying away for their lives, so I had to scramble along for two miles -on my own to a big barn, which they called a field hospital." - -And there the record ends. It makes a scrap of history of the Guards, -though when the regimental histories of this war come to be written it -will be found that such stories as these are only scraps of the whole, -for the battles of the Aisne and of the coast do not mark the end. - -With regard to the Scots Greys, their work in the early days is well -known now, for from Mons down through the three weeks of the great -retreat they upheld the honour of Scotland so well that on the 8th of -September Sir John French addressed the regiment in words that officers -and men alike will remember. He came on them while they were resting, -and these were his words, as given by a man of the regiment: - -"I am very sorry to disturb you from your sleep, Greys, but I feel I -must say a few words to you. I have been watching your work very -closely, and it has been magnificent. Your country is proud of you, and -I thank you from the bottom of my heart. It is not the first time I have -had the pleasure of thanking you, and I hope it will not be the last. -There are no soldiers in the world that could have done what you have -done." - -This, it must be pointed out, is as it is told by a soldier of the -regiment; it is worth while to make the contrast between it and a letter -said to be from a man of the Greys to his wife, in which he says: - -"I was in the retreat from Mons. We were told to go out and draw the -enemy, and before going all our officers and generals said, 'Good-bye,' -so you can bet we felt all right." - -"A couple of chaps in my troop went through the South African war, but -after the Mons fighting said the medals they got in Africa were not -worth the keeping. They saw more shot and shell in one day here than -they saw in three years in South Africa. - -"The inhabitants go fairly mad when they see us, as they know they will -be cared for by us." - -The writer of that letter _may_ have heard a German shell in the -air--and he may not. Queries rise in one's mind as to whom the "officers -and generals" said good-bye to, and also a query rises as to how many -generals the Scots Greys have in their ranks--these points come up -automatically. It is not the custom in the British Army, after the order -for an advance has been given, to give time even for the "officers and -generals" of a regiment to wander round with last messages; and, if -ever the Greys played this game in the fighting in France, there can be -little doubt that the inhabitants of the country went "fairly mad" over -the regiment. The letter looks like a fraud, but it is typical of some -that are finding their way into print nearly every day. - -Circumstantial and bearing the impress of truth is the account of the -doings of the regiment given by one Private Ward, who came home wounded -from the Aisne. He tells, all too briefly, how from the second day after -landing in France the regiment was continually in action. The work for -the most part, however, was in the nature of a grand artillery duel, and -the Greys were mainly employed in scouting, with an occasional charge -"thrown in." In the battle of the Aisne the Greys supported the King's -Own Scottish Borderers and the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in the -crossing of the river; and, after the infantry had all crossed, the -Greys went in single file, with sixteen feet between man and man, over a -pontoon bridge that was under shell fire from the German guns, placed on -the heights in front. Many of the horses were killed, and Ward himself -was struck in the leg with a piece of shell, causing so severe a flesh -wound that he had to be taken to the field ambulance, and thence home. -And thus the story of the Greys ends, so far as this record is -concerned. - -It is a regiment of great traditions, as British cavalry regiments go. -Alone among the cavalry the Greys wear the bearskin in place of the -metal helmet in parade dress, and they are nearly as old as the Scots -Guards, having been raised as a regiment in 1678, and forming the oldest -regiment of Dragoons in the service. Originally they were known as the -"Royal Regiment of Scots Dragoons," a title that was subsequently -changed to "Grey Dragoons," from which their present title of "Scots -Greys" was evolved. Unto this day the sergeants of the regiment wear the -badge above their chevrons that commemorates the taking of the French -eagle of the famous Régiment du Roi; and at Waterloo they charged with -the Gordons clinging to their stirrup leathers, while cavalrymen and -Gordons alike yelled--"Scotland for ever!" To Napoleon they were known -as "_ces terribles chevaux gris_," and out of the charge of the Heavy -Brigade in the Crimea they brought back two Victoria Crosses. - -No record of the doings of Scottish regiments in this present war can be -compiled without mention of the Scots Guards and the Greys, but their -history properly belongs to that of the Guards Brigade and of the -cavalry respectively--and in these two counts they must be reckoned for -a full recital of their doings. The foregoing mere incidents will serve -as compromise, lest it should be thought that the two regiments had been -overlooked. As for the Royal Artillery, it knows no more of territorial -distinctions, as already mentioned, than it does of battle honours--for -every battle in which a British Army has fought might be inscribed on -the colours of the gunners, if they had colours. It is probable that, -when the relative populations of the four nationalities are taken into -account, Scotsmen will be found to preponderate in the R.A., for the -Scot is always a little mechanically inclined, and the working of the -guns needs most mechanical knowledge of any of the three arms. - -Of infantry of the line, there are ten definitely Scottish regiments, -and an effort will be made to trace their histories in the great -European campaign--or rather, in the first days of that campaign, as -far as personal narratives will admit. Blanks and gaps there must be, -but the stories that officers and men have to tell will, when collated -and set down in some sort of order, enable us to conceive of the nature -of the work in which Scots are well maintaining the honour of their -regiments. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE ROYAL SCOTS - - -One of the titles bestowed on the Royal Scots, that of "Pontius Pilate's -Bodyguard," marks the claim of the regiment to antiquity. Under -Marlborough, in the French war in America, at Corunna, through the -Peninsular war with Wellington, at Quatre Bras and Waterloo, in India, -the Crimea, and in China, have the battalions of the Royal Scots upheld -the honour of the British Army; and it stands to their credit that in -the South African campaign, in which they were engaged practically from -start to finish, there was not a single case of surrender of a party of -the Royal Scots. - -The history of the regiment in the present war begins at Landrecies and -Mons, and it is worthy of note that the first story of a man of the -regiment that comes to hand concerns the bravery of men of other units. -The man in question was twice wounded himself before being invalided -home; but, declining to talk about himself, he remarked that for real -British pluck he had never seen anything to equal that of the Middlesex -regiment. He saw them digging trenches near Mons when a mass of Germans, -who seemed to come from nowhere, came down on them. He conjectured that -the Germans had been apprised of the position of the Middlesex men by an -air scout, and he saw how the Germans came on the Middlesex, who were -totally unprepared in the matter of equipment, and had to face fixed -bayonets with no apparent means of reprisal. But the sergeant of a -company set the fashion by the use of his fists, and "downed" two of -the attacking Germans; the whole of the company followed suit, but they -were badly cut about by the Germans, and the sergeant was bayoneted. -Near by were the Connaughts, who, after six guns had been taken by the -Germans, charged down on the enemy and took back the guns, with the aid -of artillery fire. But, regarding the doings of the Royal Scots at the -time, the man of the regiment who tells this story has never a word to -say. - -A corporal of the 1st Royal Scots tells how Lieutenant Geoffrey Lambton, -nephew of the Earl of Durham, died. It happened in the third rearguard -action after Mons that the lieutenant was in charge of his men in a -wood, and was directing fire from a mound. Before and beneath the Scots -the Germans were in strong force, and were preparing to attack, when -Lambton gave the order to fire, and, picking up a rifle himself, set -the example to his men. Fatally wounded by a German bullet, he knew -that he had not long to live, so handed over to the corporal his -pocket-book, note-book and sketch-book, to take back to his people. - -Another corporal of the regiment testifies to the spirit of its men at -Landrecies, where in company with about fifty others he was cut off from -the main body, and engaged in desperate street fighting. The party -joined up with the Grenadier Guards, and in the streets of Landrecies -German officers called on them to surrender, but the officers answered -that "British never surrender--fix bayonets and charge!" So well did -they charge that the streets were piled with German dead. The Royal -Scots were heavily engaged at Landrecies, and accounted for a great -number of the enemy there. - -Graphically is the story of the retreat told by one Private Stewart, who -was invalided home after the battle of the Marne. "After Mons," he -says, "the hardships of fighting on the retreat began. We had little -time for sleep; both day and night we retreated, and as they marched the -men slept. If a man in front of you happened to stop, you found yourself -bumping into him. I didn't have my clothes off for six weeks, and my kit -and overcoat have been left on the field. At one place where we halted -for the day the lady of the farmhouse was washing, so some of us took -off our shirts to have them washed. While they were hanging up to dry -the order came that the troops had to move on, and the wet garments had -to be put on just as they were. Mine was dry next morning. Two of my -mates were killed in the trenches by one shell, which burst close to -them. We were not deeply entrenched, and the German artillery fire was -so heavy that we had to lie on our sides like pitmen and dig ourselves -in deeper. We had a chance to look up occasionally when our guns -replied. Another time the Royal Scots were having a meal by the -roadside, when we got orders that we must be finished in five minutes. -In less than that time the Germans opened fire, but fortunately the side -of the road was an embankment, and so formed a natural trench. We lay -there during the rest of the day and the greater part of the night, -keeping off the attack by constant fire. My company captured about forty -German cyclists, who offered no resistance--this was after the Marne, -when the Germans retired. The British had been blazing away for some -time at what appeared to be the helmets of the men in the trenches, when -an officer saw that the helmets were not moving. He gave the order to -advance, and when we got up we found that the Germans were retiring, and -had left their helmets as a blind. Many prisoners were taken that day." - -Brief as an official report is this story, and as pithy, giving as it -does an outline of the work in which the Royal Scots have been engaged -from the time of Landrecies onwards. For it is not what is actually -written that counts in such a sincere piece of writing as this, but the -facts that appear between the lines. The brief reference to the -hardships of the retreat, the queer washing day, and the interrupted -meal, are chapters of war in themselves, reported with a brevity and -conciseness which stamp the document as authentic. - -Another man of the regiment was in the first of the fighting at -Landrecies, and went on to the positions of the Marne and the Aisne, -returning wounded from the latter, with four splinters of shrapnel in -his back, one in his ribs, and a bullet wound in his head--surely -enough to send any man back from the firing line. At Landrecies he and -his fellows encountered a looting party of Germans, who carried large -quantities of jewellery, clothing, and other articles: practically every -account of the first of the fighting tells of German attention to -details of this kind. - -At the position of the Aisne, the Royal Scots had a stiff struggle in -the holding of a pontoon bridge, and the man who tells this story was -wounded there during a rain of shell fire to which his battalion was -subjected. After he was hit, he lay unconscious for seven hours, and in -order to escape after regaining his senses he had to propel himself, -feet first, along a sort of furrow or ditch. It was a weary business, -and, exposing himself momentarily, he was hit again on the head by a -bullet, though the lead failed to penetrate to any depth; and during his -journey he was for a time between the fire of Germans and British. He -came on a German trench full of dead men, and was struck by the -elaborate arrangement of the trench, for there were tables and chairs, -and a quantity of champagne bottles, both full and empty--the trench was -well stocked with wine. - -Previously to being wounded, this man made one of a party that captured -a number of Germans, one of whom spoke English well, and told his -captors that he had a wife and five children in Glasgow, and that the -only way to get back to them was to court capture. This German had been -in employment in Glasgow, and was called up _five months_ before the war -broke out--a significant fact when it is remembered how German statesmen -are still insisting that Britain made the war. - -A man of the Royal Scots has told how Captain Price of the regiment -died. While in the trenches, and under a hot fire, Captain Price ran -forward to help a corporal who had been shot in the arm, and in kindly -fashion the captain was preventing the corporal from seeing his -wound--shielding the injured arm while it was being dressed. While so -engaged Captain Price was struck in the head by a piece of shrapnel, and -he died while being carried to the field hospital. On the testimony of -the men of the regiment, a braver or kindlier officer than Captain C. L. -Price, D.S.O., has never worn uniform. - -With regard to the work of the regiment in the trenches of the Aisne, -and the enemy they have had to face, one man of the regiment speaks. -"The Germans are good range finders with their big guns," he says, "and -their fire is very effective--but you could get boys to give them points -with the rifle. One thing has made an impression on me, and that is that -the enemy has no respect whatever for the Red Cross. Our men were -proceeding along a road, when they came on a Red Cross waggon lying on -its side, with several Red Cross men lying dead beside it. There was one -brave incident I witnessed, and although I do not know the name of the -fellow who showed such pluck, I know he belonged to the Royal Scots. I -saw him carry one of his comrades across a field for about three hundred -yards, though the fire from the German ranks was simply awful at the -time." - -Here, again, is an instance of the way in which the men tell of each -other's deeds but make no mention of their own. The French soldier, as a -rule, knows when he has done a brave action, and talks about it--the -quality does not make him less brave, but it is one that is inconsistent -with British character. The average British soldier is usually quite -unconscious that he has done anything worthy of note, and, even if he -knows the value of what he has done, he is very shy of speaking about -it, and usually prefers to talk about the things somebody else has -accomplished. - -A certain Private Kemp, invalided home to Berwick, testifies to the way -in which tobacco and cigarettes have come to be regarded by the men in -the firing line. He tells how, when out scouting, he was captured by -three Uhlans, who took away his arms and equipment, and were just about -to take him away as a prisoner when a shot was fired, and the Uhlans -took to their heels. Kemp, wounded in the leg, fell, and after lying for -an hour and a half, he was picked up by advancing British troops. "One -great hardship," he says, "was the lack of tobacco all the time. I and -many of my comrades have been reduced to smoking dried tea-leaves -wrapped in old newspaper. A real smoke would have been a blessing." - -One officer of the regiment, wounded while out in front of the trenches -studying the position of the enemy with field-glasses, was carried back -into shelter, and laid in the trench until the field ambulance should -come to remove him to the rear. "He lay there smoking cigarettes," says -one of the men, "and shouting--'Good old Royal Scots--well done!' -whenever anything came off." And in this and incidents like it lies the -spirit that makes the Royal Scots what they are--it is the spirit of men -who do not know when they are beaten, who will never admit defeat. It is -the spirit that Findlater showed at Dargai. - -Yet another private of the regiment, writing with no address and no date -to his letter, says: "In the last scrap I was in we had a terrible time -one way and another. After marching from the Sunday to the Tuesday -night, we got anchored near a farm, and the next morning, just when -breakfast was ready, we had to leave it lying and get stuck into our -trenches, as the Germans had come on us. We could see them moving up on -our front, and our artillery were not long in getting their range and -sending them out of it. Our big guns were going finely until the -afternoon, when they seemed to stop all at once, compared with the guns -the Germans had brought up. They started to shell a village behind us -with their siege guns, and they just blew holes in it. We had a church -for a hospital, and that went up too--but that is their usual dirty -game. They have no respect for a Red Cross waggon, and, as far as I can -see, they seem to take them for targets. We had to retire after being -shelled for about eight hours, and we lost a good few men, but had the -consolation of knowing that, as usual, the enemy had lost a good many -more. We are having a rest now, and have not seen the battalion for two -weeks. It is a very sad sight to see the people here going about -homeless; most of them are of the poorer class, and it must be an awful -time for them." - -Writing later, the same man says: "We have come through four days' hard -fighting, and have been relieved--we drove the Germans out of all their -positions. At one place the French were trying to shift the enemy, so -our lot were brought up to assist; and although we lost a good few men -in the open fields, our chaps stuck it well. General Smith-Dorrien sent -along a message--'Good, Royal Scots!' and then when we took the other -side of the bridge he said 'Bravo, Royal Scots!' so we have not done so -badly." - -And there, for the present, the record of this oldest regiment of the -service must be broken off. It tells of work from Mons and Landrecies, -through the great retreat to the position of the Marne, and on to the -Aisne--and there it ends, for the present. We know that many of the -regiments along the line of the Aisne have been moved up to assist in -the great Flanders battles, and in all probability there have been Royal -Scots in that Flanders line as well as along the Aisne. - -There is one story of this first regiment of British infantry which, -though it is nearly fourteen years old, should always be told in any -account of the deeds of the regiment. It concerns a certain Sergeant G. -Robertson, placed in command of a party of about twenty men who were -acting as railway escort to a train from Pretoria. The train was bound -for the Eastern Transvaal, and, on reaching Pan, it was stopped by Boers -blowing up the line. The Boers attacked in force, being concealed in a -trench a few yards from the train, and the escort at once, under orders -from Sergeant Robertson, opened fire. The Boers, who greatly outnumbered -the escort, called on Robertson to surrender, but he answered--"No -surrender!" Almost immediately afterwards, he was shot through the head. - -A similar case concerns Major Twyford, an officer of the Royal Scots, -who in April of 1901 was attacked by a commando under Jan de Beers in -the Badfontein Valley. Twyford and his party numbered eight all told, -mounted men, and they took up a position among the ruins of a farmhouse -which afforded some shelter from the fire of the enemy. The commando of -Boers closed in on them, and, having in mind the enormous disparity of -the forces, called on them to surrender. Major Twyford declined to do -so, and went on firing on de Beers' commando until shot dead by the -enemy. - -Captain Price, of whom mention has already been made, was a lieutenant -at the time of the South African war, and was recommended at that time -for the Victoria Cross for especial gallantry in leading "E" company at -the action at Bermondsey. Three of the non-commissioned officers and men -were specially mentioned for their gallantry in this affair, a certain -Corporal Paul was promoted sergeant for his bravery, and Lieutenant -Price, recommended for his V.C., obtained the D.S.O. France saw him -brave as ever, and the regiment will keep his memory as that of one of -its most gallant officers. - -But, if one begins to tell the story of the deeds of the regiment of -Royal Scots in previous campaigns, the story is without end, and space -will not admit of it. It were unwise to say that the Royal Scots are -first in bravery in action, as they are first in seniority among line -regiments; but at least, in the matter of courage, they are equal with -any, as the present campaign in France has proved. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE ROYAL SCOTS FUSILIERS - - -The titles of regiments are apt to be confusing to the lay mind, and it -is difficult at first to distinguish between the Royal Scots and the -Royal Scots Fusiliers, on paper. In old time the Fusiliers were the -"twenty-first" regiment of infantry; they were raised in Scotland in -1678 for service under Charles II, and served under William III in -Holland and Flanders, as well as under the great Duke of Marlborough and -under George II when the latter commanded his troops in person at the -battle of Dettingen. - -Their history in previous campaigns to this of France and Belgium is a -long one. At Blenheim, Malplaquet, and Ramillies the Scots Fusiliers -won particular distinction--the brigadier who led the principal attack -at Blenheim was a colonel of the Scots Fusiliers. At Dettingen and -Fontenoy, again, the Fusiliers were well to the front, and in the -last-named engagement the regiment suffered so severely that it became -necessary to move it to Flanders. In 1761 the Scots Fusiliers took part -in the capture of Belle Isle, and later, in the American War of -Independence--bolstering up a bad cause--they underwent intense -privations, and, foodless and minus ammunition, capitulated with General -Burgoyne at Saratoga to a force five times the strength of that which -Burgoyne commanded. 1793 saw them engaged in capturing the islands of -the West Indies from the French, and in 1807 they formed part of the -second expedition to Egypt. Then at Messina the Fusiliers alone were -responsible for the capture of over a thousand officers and men out of -a force which attempted to land there, and up to the time of the -abdication of Napoleon the regiment was engaged in active service. In -St. Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh, are deposited the tattered colours -carried by the regiment in the Napoleonic campaigns. - -In the Crimea the Fusiliers again lost their colonel; at Inkermann, -where the colonel fell, the regiment was in the very front of the battle -throughout the day, fighting throughout the battle without food, and -calling for more ammunition. They were present throughout the great -siege and at the fall of Sevastopol, and the colours borne in that -campaign--presented to the regiment in 1827 by King William IV--cost the -life of one officer and led to two more being severely wounded at -Inkermann, while 17 N.C.O.'s and men who acted as escort were either -killed or severely wounded. These colours were subsequently deposited -in the parish church of Ayr, the depot headquarters of the regiment. - -In Africa against the Zulus and Basutos, as well as against the Boers in -the first war of the Transvaal, the Fusiliers fought next after the -Crimean campaign; and then they took part in the subjugation of King -Theebaw in Burmah. In 1899 the 2nd battalion embarked for South Africa, -and was set to form a part of the 6th Fusilier brigade. From Colenso -they brought away a Victoria Cross, awarded to Private Ravenhill for -conspicuous gallantry in saving guns from which the gunners had been -shot away. - -To the Fusiliers fell the honour of being the first British regiment to -enter the Transvaal during the war, and they took part in the hoisting -of the British flag at Christiana, the first Transvaal town to be -captured. A little later, the colonel of the regiment, with a force of -under 120 men, went on to Potchefstroom, and there hoisted a British -flag that had been buried there at the time of the peace of 1881, and, -after being disinterred, had been kept in the possession of the family -of a former commanding officer of the Scots Fusiliers. So distinguished -was the conduct of the regiment in the South African campaign that, on -the representation of Colonel Carr, C.B., the commanding officer, the -white plume that had not been worn since 1860 by the Fusiliers was given -back to them, as a recognition of their services. To a civilian this may -seem a very little thing, but the regiment regards it far otherwise. - -As for the campaign in France, there are very few authentic records of -the men of the regiment to hand at the time of writing, but from those -few one can reconstruct a good deal of the work of the Royal Scots -Fusiliers. One man tells that the Germans captured all the transport, -which contained all the kits of the men, who were thus left with only -the clothes they stood in for a matter of five weeks. Since this account -came through in the latter part of October, it may safely be assumed -that the regiment was concerned in the great retreat to the Marne, -though no letter of those received tells of doings at Mons, Landrecies, -or the very early battlefields. Still, it is not safe to assume that the -regiment--or some part of it--was _not_ engaged in the first actions. - -One may picture what the men looked like from the account sent by one of -them. "I got a bit of a shave a week ago," he says, "but I have not had -a wash for over a fortnight." Kipling's "I wish my mother could see me -now" fits the case admirably. - -Again, evidently concerning the retreat, the same soldier writes: "We -got an order to stop a motor car one day, and as the driver pulled up a -man tried to escape on the opposite side, and I collared him. He got -into an awful state, and started pulling photos and papers from his -pockets and talked in a very excited manner. He was taken away, and I -believe he was shot the next morning as a spy." - -This might possibly have been at the position of the Marne, or between -that time and the holding of the line of the Aisne, but it is far more -likely to have occurred at the time of the retreat, when motorists on -the roads were plentiful, and spies could do good work for their -employers. - -There are various stories which go to describe the work of the Fusiliers -at the Aisne, and the monotony of life in the trenches is well portrayed -in one letter. The writer says: "As we can't always be killing Germans -we are sometimes hard put to it to kill time in the trenches. _Next to -religion_, I think football is the thing that interests us most, and we -are always eager to hear news of our teams at home. The papers that -reach us have not got much news of that kind in, and it would be a -godsend to us if only somebody would take in hand to start a paper for -circulating among the troops giving nothing but the latest football -news." - -On the more serious side is a communication from a man of the regiment -who was wounded at the position of the Aisne. He stated that "the men -have come through an awful time," and added that he himself was stuck in -the trenches for seven days without a break, while he went for fourteen -days without being able to wash his face. The German way was to attack -in order to draw the British fire, and then to retire, after which would -come a terrific artillery bombardment--but the British stuck to their -ground always. Finally this man was hit in the head by shrapnel, while -his particular chum was shot in the stomach, and they both went into a -French hospital. - -By these simple records one may trace the regiment from the great -retreat to the Aisne; and then another letter takes the story on very -nearly to the great coast battle, where, by what the writer says, the -second battalion of the Scots Fusiliers have been from the beginning of -the German attempts on Calais. The writer, in describing how the German -spies adopt the very old trick of assisting artillery fire by the use of -the hands of a steeple clock, locates his story at Ypres, where some of -the fiercest fighting of the whole war has taken place. - -"It was at the town of Ypres--a name, by the way, that gets many quaint -pronunciations from our men--and the hands of the steeple clock stood at -10.40. When the men of the battalion had been in the place a quarter of -an hour, such shelling began as they had never known before--and then -somebody pointed out that the hands of the clock had been altered to -indicate 12.40. Thereupon a search was made of the clock tower, when -three Germans were found and taken prisoners, much to the disgust of the -men who had seen their comrades suffering from the shell fire. They -would willingly have given these spies shorter shrift than mere capture, -but of course the rules of war had to be observed, even in such a clear -case of espionage as this." - -There is one man of the second battalion who, wounded and sent home from -the battle in the north-west of France, speaks of the fighting there as -"past description." He had seen hard fighting in India, but reckoned the -work against the Germans as beyond words to express it. "Germans came on -in solid masses, urged on by the officers with the points of their -swords, and on over the bodies of their dead comrades. This," producing -a German forage cap, "belonged to one poor devil I sent to his long -home; and this," producing a rosary, "was given to me by a Frenchwoman -in return for helping her to get her daughter away to a place of safety, -out of the way of the Germans." - -Little things, these, but the contrast afforded by the two trophies goes -to prove that the men of the Fusiliers are fighting in the right way and -with the right spirit. There is little doubt, however, that the second -battalion of the regiment has lost very heavily in the Flanders -fighting. One report--an unofficial one, it is true--speaks of the -battalion as being reduced to less than 150 officers and men. This may -mean anything, for companies are sent away on detached duties, bodies of -men get cut off from their battalions and join up with others--all sorts -of things may happen in addition to real casualties to reduce the -strength of a battalion in such a series of actions as has been fought -between Lille and the coasts of France and Belgium. But, whatever may -have happened in this way, there can be no doubt that the Royal Scots -Fusiliers, of which the second battalion certainly took part in these -battles, has maintained the honour of the regiment to the full, and such -of its officers and men as have fallen have rendered good account of -themselves. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -THE KING'S OWN SCOTTISH BORDERERS - - -If legend may be believed, the Scottish Borderers came into existence -with a strength of a thousand men in four hours of the 19th of March, -1689, a recruiting record which stands unbeaten in subsequent history. -The regiment was raised by the followers of King William III, and within -four months of the time of its formation was facing "Bonnie Dundee" at -the pass of Killiecrankie. General Mackay, the officer commanding the -King's troops, testified that only two regiments of his force bore -themselves as they ought, and of these two one was the King's Own -Scottish Borderers. When it is remembered that the regiment had only -been formed four months, this fact will be seen in its true light; and -for over two centuries the Borderers have maintained the reputation -given them by Mackay. - -Having settled the authority of King William in Scotland, the Borderers -were sent over to Ireland, where they helped in driving out James and -his Irish and French adherents from the United Kingdom, and -consolidating the rule of the Orange king. Thence, in the service of -William, the regiment went to Flanders, where they took part in the -siege of Namur, and lost twenty officers and 500 men by the explosion of -one of the mines of the enemy. It was here that the Borderers were first -made acquainted with the practice of fixing the bayonet alongside the -muzzle of the musket instead of into it, for up to that time fixing -bayonets had involved thrusting the bayonet into the barrel, when the -weapon could not be fired. Seeing a French regiment advancing with fixed -bayonets, the Colonel of the Borderers ordered his men to fix theirs, -and calmly awaited the result, confident in the superiority of his men -over their opponents in this class of fighting. But at short range the -French amazed the Scots by pouring in a volley, for they had their -bayonets fixed round the muzzles of their muskets instead of in them. -Recovering themselves, the Borderers charged and routed the enemy, and -learned from one of the French muskets left on the field how this -apparent miracle had been accomplished. Thenceforth British troops fixed -their bayonets on instead of in their muskets. - -When, in 1697, the treaty of Ryswick put an end to the campaign which -included the taking of Namur, the Borderers returned home. Their next -notable exploit was at Vigo, in 1719, where they destroyed the stores -collected for an invasion of England. Thirteen years later the regiment -was among the defending force at Gibraltar, and withstood the attacks of -a force of 20,000 men, who were eventually obliged to retire, leaving -the Rock in British hands. Then came Fontenoy, where the Borderers lost -206 officers and men; and later Minden, where sixty squadrons of French -cavalry charged again and again, only to be broken against the defence -of six British regiments, of which the Borderers formed one. Having thus -accounted for the cavalry, the six regiments put to flight two French -brigades of infantry, and virtually annihilated a body of Saxon -infantry, being the whole time under heavy artillery fire. Returning in -1763 from the many Continental fields in which it had taken part, the -regiment buried with full military honours at Newcastle-on-Tyne the -fragments of the colours carried from victory to victory for twenty -years. - -There followed nineteen years of peace service, and then the Borderers -were sent to Gibraltar as reinforcements, arriving in time to assist in -the final discomfiture of the besieging force. In 1793 the Borderers -were transformed into Marines, in which capacity they came in for a -share of the prize money accruing from the capture of a ship valued at a -million sterling, and then took part in the victory won by Lord Howe -over the French fleet at Brest. There were Borderers, too, at the siege -of Toulon, where Napoleon I, at that time only an artillery lieutenant, -was wounded by a British soldier's bayonet. - -In the Napoleonic wars the Borderers were faced with more hard work than -chances of glory. They went to the campaign in Holland in 1799, and took -part in the expedition to Egypt in 1801, while eight years later they -were at the capture of Martinique, a name borne on their colours. But -for the rest of the time up to Waterloo they were engaged mainly in -inconspicuous garrison duty, with no chance of adding to their -reputation. Their luck held to a similar course through the nineteenth -century, up to the outbreak of the last South African war, for they were -set to deal with a Boer insurrection at the Cape in 1842, sent to Canada -at the time of the Fenian raid in 1866, and engaged in the Afghan -campaign of 1878-80. They fought in the Egyptian war in 1888, and then -went to work on the Indian frontier, where is much fighting and little -glory for most regiments that take part. In the Tirah campaign alone the -Borderers were in action twenty-three times--yet who remembers the Tirah -campaign to-day? - -As for the South African campaign, it has been placed on record that -the Borderers "put in as much hard work in marching and fighting as any -body of troops in the whole campaign." Paardeberg, Poplar Grove, and -Karee Spruit were three notable actions of this war in which the -Borderers took part, they having been allotted to the 7th Division of -the Army of South Africa. At the last-named action eighty-three officers -and men of the Borderers were killed or wounded. Later, at Vlakfontein, -the Borderers and the Derbyshires shared the honour of saving General -Dixon's column from utter disaster, and recapturing two British guns -which had been taken by the Boers. - -Now, as for the war in France, the record of the Borderers is fairly -complete. It begins with the account of the adventures of a maxim-gun -section during the first week of the war, as related by a man of the gun -section who was invalided home very early in the campaign. He states -that at Mons his gun section were located inside a house at Mons, firing -from one of the windows, while Germans in considerable numbers were -searching the surrounding houses. It took the Germans four hours to -locate the maxim gun, and then, as they riddled the house with bullets, -the plaster and laths began to come down on the heads of the Borderers' -men, whereupon the latter thought the time had come to clear out. Under -fire they dismounted their gun and scrambled out from the back of the -house, whence they got under cover from the German fire, and, when night -fell, they were able to make their way back to their own lines. - -"While we were in action on Tuesday," the record continues, "a shell -struck the limber of the gun and almost blew it to bits. I was struck on -the shoulder by a piece of shrapnel. On another occasion we were firing -from an isolated position when a company of Germans surprised us by -appearing about a hundred yards away. We were thirteen strong--one -officer and twelve men--so we put up the gun and made for cover. We had -about two hundred yards to run across a field, but every one of us -escaped without a scratch." - -On the 16th of September the War Office report of "Missing" included the -names of men belonging to the Borderers, and of these many went to -Doberitz camp of prisoners. One man, writing from Doberitz, stated that -he had been captured on August 26th, and was being fairly well treated. -Which recalls the fact that Colonel Stephenson, the commanding officer -of the Borderers, had the misfortune to be wounded and captured in the -very early stages of the war. It was at Le Cateau that the colonel was -wounded, and, although the wound was not exceptionally serious, it was -enough to put Colonel Stephenson out of action for the time. He was -assisted to an ambulance waggon and got inside, but afterwards he came -out of his own accord in order to make way for men more seriously -injured. Almost immediately afterwards the retreat was continued, and -according to one account the colonel was found lying wounded by the -Germans. Another account states that the four horses of one of the -ambulance waggons were lost during the retreat, and fifteen men of the -Borderers were ordered to replace the horses in drawing the ambulance -waggon, with the result that the whole party, including Colonel -Stephenson in the waggon with other wounded, were captured. Major Leigh, -D.S.O., another officer of the Borderers, was wounded at Mons and -captured by the Germans, according to all accounts, while three other -officers are reported to have been taken prisoners in the first weeks of -the war. - -It was at Mons, too, that young Lieutenant Amos, of the Borderers, who -had only received his commission five months before, went out to the -front and brought back a wounded man much bigger and heavier than -himself. A few days later Lieutenant Amos led out his platoon of men in -face of the enemy's fire, when he was shot down, and the men of the -platoon thought at the time that he was only wounded. "When night came -on," said one man of the platoon, "I went out to look for him, and just -as I had got to where he was lying and had lifted his head, the moon -shone out full from behind the clouds, and I saw he was quite dead. He -had been shot through the heart." - -Whatever dispatches may say with regard to individual officers and men, -it is usually safe to take the opinions of the men themselves with -regard to their officers. An instance of this is the case of Lieutenant -Hamilton-Dalrymple, of the Borderers, who was described by his men as "a -very daring man." He had excelled in patrol work and scouting, -especially at night, and on the retreat was placed in charge of four -platoons, which he led out for an attack. He had led out No. 16 platoon, -and went back for No. 15, and, when leading these men out, he was shot -in the leg by a German sniper and had to be carried to the rear. The man -who told this story of his officer was subsequently hit by a splinter -from a shell which accounted for five men. - -Near Le Cateau the Borderers buried Lieutenant Amos and twenty-one of -the men of the regiment. Throughout the day, while an artillery duel had -raged, the dead had lain out on the battlefield, and a long grave was -dug for them by their comrades. In this the bodies were laid, each -covered by a waterproof sheet, and an officer recited a brief funeral -service. While, during the next day, the artillery duel went on, the -Borderers cut out in the grass that covered the grave of their comrades -the letters "K.O.S.B.," and filled in the blank letter-spaces with small -stones, completing their work by fashioning and erecting a small cross -of wood to mark the place of burial. - -There was one youngster of the Borderers in these first days who, at -Mons, received a flesh wound while trying to cross two planks across a -canal that was being peppered with machine-gun fire. Colonel Stephenson -gripped him to save him from falling into the canal, and--"You had -better go back to the hospital, sonny," said the colonel. But the -youngster got little rest or respite in hospital, for the Germans -shelled the hospital building, after their fashion, and the patients had -to beat a quick retreat. Later, this same youngster came to the -engagement at Béthune, one of the fiercest of the campaign, and one -night he was on sentry duty at a wayside shrine. Just at the time the -reliefs were coming round he saw Germans in the distance, and fired at -them once or twice, "for luck," as he phrased it, considering that he -was entitled to a last shot before going off duty. But the glare of his -rifle fire must have betrayed his position, for almost immediately he -received another wound in the body, and this time it was a sufficiently -serious matter to cause him to be sent home. - -By means of such letters as these one may trace the regiment through the -first, and in some respects the worst, of the fighting. At the position -of the Aisne, the accounts of the Borderers grow numerous, and it -appears that the second battalion of the regiment was in the thick of -things. One account describes the crossing of the Aisne under shell fire -from the German guns. The second battalion got their orders to cross -very early one morning, and turned out in a cold, rainy dawn; "but we -got our pipes set going, and were all right then." On reaching the -river, it was found that there were no bridges, but some rafts had been -constructed by the Engineers, and these rafts were loaded each with six -men, and hauled across to the opposite bank of the river with ropes. -With the weight of men and equipment, the rafts were submerged so that -the men were up to their knees in water while they crossed, but such -incidents as that were regarded as trifling. - -On the far bank of the river, the German shell fire was hotter than -ever, and many men of the battalion were wounded, mostly in the arms and -legs. "You bet we took all the cover we could get," says the narrator. -"Some time after this three of us were lying in a field, and I was -smoking my pipe, while my chum was puffing at a cigarette. The man next -to my chum hadn't a match, and wanted a light badly, so he got up to get -a light from my chum. As soon as he rose the poor beggar was hit by a -fragment of shell and killed. My chum had got hold of a trench-making -tool. It's like a spade at the one end, and like a pick at the other, -and he stuck the pick end into the ground and lay down behind it, -covering his head with the spade end. Every two or three minutes you -could hear the bullets spattering against the iron of the tool." - -Later, they got into the trenches, where some of the men were standing -knee-deep in water, and others were submerged up to their waists. "It -was no picnic, but they were a bright lot, cracking jokes or making -remarks about the 'Black Marias,' or 'Jack Johnsons,' as they call the -big German shells." - -Although, in the first days on the Aisne, the first line of German -troops were opposed to the British, the latter had a very poor opinion -of their opponents. The general view was that the Germans were not very -keen on fighting, and a number of them when captured said that they were -forced by their officers to fight. In one case, when the men had refused -to fire, their officers had turned on them and shot them--as might have -been expected in any army. One wounded and captured German, placed in -the next bed in hospital to a wounded Borderer, spoke broken English, -and in the course of a chat was asked what he thought of the British. -"British artillery," he said, "no good--not enough. British -infantry--_mein Gott!_" His expression as he spoke completed the -comment. - -A Borderer wounded at the Aisne had fought beside the French, whom he -described as very plucky, but rather slow. Their artillery, however, won -his admiration, and he declared it the best he had ever seen. He was -emphatic in his appreciation of the way in which the French people -treated the British troops, supplying them with food and fruit, and in -many ways expressing their sympathy. - -"My chum and I came to a village one day," he said, "and wanted to get -some bread and tobacco. We met a peasant woman in the village, and I -said '_Du pain_.' She took me by the arm and pushed me into a dark room, -but I couldn't see where I was, and called for my chum, who came in as -well, though we were both afraid it might be a trap. Then we noticed -some food and wine on a table. It struck us, when we came to look round, -that nearly all the furniture in the house was smashed. 'The -Prussians,' the woman told us. And it's the same in every village you go -into--these Germans smash everything but us. They're trying hard to -smash us too, but they can't manage it." - -"It is a grand thing," says another man of the regiment, "to shoot at -Germans--they make such a lovely target. We can't miss them, and, poor -things, they are wishing it was over. Every prisoner we take says they -are starving, and they look it, too. Well, never mind, we are there to -kill, and kill we do. They are frightened of us, and say we shoot too -straight--the French and British are finishing them off in thousands." - -As regards the Flanders battle, the last sentence of this letter may be -taken literally, but the rest of it is open to question. The dogged -resistance on the Aisne, and the tremendous attacks up by Ypres and -along the coast, were not made by men starving and utterly -miserable--the work has been too fierce for that to be possible. The -reserve troops of the German Army have no liking for their work, and, -newly taken from comfort to the rigid discipline and severe conditions -of the firing line, are naturally inclined to complain at what the -first-line troops regard as mere everyday inconveniences; and doubtless -it was some of these that were referred to in this letter. - -But, to revert to the position on the Aisne, there is yet another -Borderer's story that is worthy of reproduction. The narrator states -that during the battle two German women, masquerading as nurses, went -about the British lines by motor, accompanied by a chauffeur. Among the -British soldiers on outpost duty they freely distributed cigarettes, -which were afterwards found to be inoculated by poison. Before any -fatal results had accrued, the nature of the cigarettes was discovered, -and the pseudo-nurses were rounded up and shot. The story may be true, -but it seems a little improbable that _no_ ill results should have -attended the distribution of these cigarettes before discovery of the -trick. The man who tells this story adds that two Scottish pipers held -up and captured eight Germans in a wood near Crecy. The pipers had -become detached from their division, and carried no arms, but on coming -on the Germans they assumed a firing position and pointed the long -drones of their pipes at the enemy, calling on them to surrender. The -Germans at once threw down their rifles, and were taken prisoners. - -Let it be remembered that both of these stories are told by the same -man, and that both are on the face of them improbable--and then the -reader must form his own conclusion. - -The next missive takes us on to the work in the trenches around -Béthune, after the opposing lines had crept up to the north-west of -France. "There were few breathing-spaces," says the writer. "Ground -would be gained, and our troops then had to resort to the expedient of -digging themselves in: at parts of the line about a hundred yards -divided our trenches from those of the enemy." The man who tells of this -fighting exposed himself to get a shot at precisely the same moment that -a German out in the opposite trenches took aim, and both pulled their -triggers almost simultaneously. The German bullet passed right across -the Borderer's scalp, but in the firing line it was impossible to get -immediate medical attention, and the wounded man had to be in the trench -for hours before nightfall gave him the chance to get back to the field -hospital under cover of darkness. - -It fell to the lot of the Borderers to witness the first charge of the -Indian troops, and evidently the dark men enjoyed themselves. "When they -got the order to advance, you never saw men more pleased in all your -life. They went forward with a rush like a football team charging their -opponents, or a party of revellers rushing to catch the last train. They -got to grips with their enemies in double-quick time, and the howl of -joy that went up told us that those chaps felt that they were paying the -Germans back in full for the peppering they had got while waiting for -orders. When they came back from that charge they looked very well -pleased with themselves, and they had every right to be. They are very -proud of being selected to fight with us, and are terribly anxious to -make a good impression. They have done it, too. - -"I watched them one day under shell fire, and was astonished at their -coolness. 'Coal boxes' were being emptied all round them, but they -seemed to pay not the slightest heed, and if one of them did go under, -his chums simply went on as though nothing had happened. They make light -of wounds, and I have known cases where men have fought for days with -wounds that might have excused any man for dropping out. When the wounds -are very bad, I have seen the men themselves dressing them in the firing -line. One day I questioned one of them about this, and he said, 'We must -be as brave as the British.' It's amusing to hear them trying to pick up -our camp songs. They have a poor opinion of the Germans as fighting men, -and are greatly interested when we tell them of the horrors perpetrated -on the Belgians and French." - -Thus writes a wounded sergeant of the Borderers. Now the official -account states that the first charge of the Indians was made to recover -ground and trenches that had been taken by the Germans by sheer weight -of numbers from British troops--so we may safely conclude that the -Borderers, probably the second battalion, were among the men holding -those trenches, and probably were in the section of the line that was -forced back. And there, beside the Indian contingent, we may leave them, -certain that in all the fighting in Flanders and for the recovery of -Belgium they will acquit themselves like men. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -THE BLACK WATCH - - -Though the Royal Scots can claim to be the oldest regiment of the -British Army, the Black Watch can claim--and do claim--to be the oldest -corps of Highlanders. The regiment, known in old time as the -"Forty-second," was originally formed out of the independent companies -raised in 1729 to keep the peace in the hills of the Scottish Highlands, -and the first parade as a regiment took place near Aberfeldy in 1740, -when the regiment was numbered "43." This was subsequently changed to -"42." - -Five years later the regiment saw its first active service abroad at -Fontenoy, when its men charged with such spirit that they were -described by a French writer as "Highland furies." In 1756 the Black -Watch went to America, and at Ticonderaga the loss in killed and wounded -amounted to 647 officers and men. So conspicuous was the bravery of the -regiment on this occasion that the King conferred on it the title of -"Royal," and unto this day the Black Watch are "The Royal Highlanders." -The regiment was in at the capture of Montreal, and later took part in -the American War of Independence, when, in spite of the offers of heavy -bribes, not a single man could be induced to desert from the ranks, bad -as was the cause in which the British troops were fighting then. - -In 1780 the second battalion of the Black Watch was raised, to begin its -active service in India. It was constituted a separate regiment in 1786, -and named the "Perthshire Regiment," numbered "73." (Two officers and -fifty-three men of this battalion were among the heroes who went down -with the _Birkenhead_.) It was nearly a century later that the -Perthshire Regiment was again joined to the Black Watch as its second -battalion, and thenceforth the battle honours of both battalions have -been borne on the colours of the regiment. - -The campaign in Flanders in 1794 and the following year gave to the -regiment the "red hackle" that is still worn in the full-dress feather -bonnet. Again the Black Watch went to the front for the Egyptian -campaign of 1800, and at Alexandria Sir Ralph Abercromby called on the -Highlanders for the effort that won the battle. The next great event in -the history of the regiment was Corunna, where Sir John Moore bade the -Highlanders "Remember Egypt!" On to the siege of Toulouse the Black -Watch took their part in all fighting that was to be had, and at -Toulouse itself they lost over 300 officers and men in driving back the -French Army into the city. - -Just on 300 more officers and men fell in the three days' fighting of -Quatre Bras and Waterloo, and the Royal Highlanders were mentioned -specially in dispatches by the Duke of Wellington--an honour accorded to -only four of the regiments that took part in the final overthrow of -Napoleon. From then on to the middle of the nineteenth century the life -of the regiment was uneventful, for Europe slept, and it did not fall to -the Black Watch to engage in the little frontier and colonial wars of -the Empire. - -But 1854 brought the Crimean War, and the Royal Highlanders took the -field again as the senior regiment of Sir Colin Campbell's famous -Highland Brigade. The brigade took part in the charge on the heights of -the Alma, and was also in at the taking of Sevastopol on the 8th of -September, 1855. The end of this war brought but little respite, for -under their old chief, Sir Colin Campbell, the regiment took part in the -suppression of the Indian Mutiny. The battle of Cawnpur, the siege and -capture of Lucknow, and the battle of Bareilly, found the Royal -Highlanders well to the front, and the name "Lucknow" is borne on the -colours of the regiment. A sculptured tablet in Dunkeld Cathedral -commemorates the names of those of the Black Watch who fell in the -Mutiny. - -In the Ashanti War the Black Watch took the leading and most conspicuous -part, and shared in the capture and burning of Kumasi. Then, in 1882, -the regiment went to Egypt to take part in the storming of the -entrenchments at Tel-el-Kebir. At Suakim, El Teb, and Tamai, such was -the conduct of the regiment that Lord Wolseley sent them a telegram of -congratulation, and in 1884 the first battalion went up the Nile to the -battle of Kirbekan. - -Then, in 1899, the second battalion went out to South Africa as part of -the ill-fated Highland Brigade under General Wauchope. On the night of -Sunday, the 10th of December, in that first year of the Boer war, the -Black Watch led the brigade in the memorable attack at Magersfontein. -When the inferno of fire and barbed wire stopped the advance of the -brigade, no less than 600 Highlanders fell, killed and wounded, -including Wauchope himself. Throughout the Monday the survivors of three -companies of the Black Watch held to their places in front of the Boer -trenches and entanglements, while the remainder of the men of the -battalion were engaged in attempting to turn the flank of the Boer -position; but at nightfall it was found that the position was too -strong, and the troops were drawn back. As already remarked, the -brigade lost 600 in killed and wounded, and of these more than half were -men of the Black Watch. In a little more than two months the survivors -of the battalion had their revenge at Paardeberg, when Cronje was forced -to surrender with 4,000 men. Here, again, the losses of the Black Watch -amounted to 90 casualties among officers and men. - -The first battalion did not come in for the earlier fighting in South -Africa, but arrived in the country in time to take part in the "drives" -with which Lord Kitchener put an end to the campaign. Poplar Grove and -Driefontein, Retief's Nek and the surrender of Prinsloo at Wittebergen, -were mere incidents to the Black Watch after the terrible work of -Magersfontein and Paardeberg, and the conduct of the regiment as a whole -during the war may be judged from the fact that no less than thirteen -medals for distinguished conduct were awarded to its non-commissioned -officers and men. - -As usual, the Black Watch were among the first regiments to take the -field in the fighting in France, and they went up to Mons with the rest -of the British troops who took part in the great retreat. Never during -the whole of the South African campaign, said one man who had been -through it, was anything experienced like the three engagements in which -the Black Watch took part round Mons. The shell firing of the Germans -was terrific, and the hastily constructed trenches of the British -afforded very little protection against the German shell fire. Yet, -though on the retreat the British troops had to undergo forced marches, -some of them with very little food except such fruit as they could get -by the way, they displayed splendid stamina and pluck, and the -discipline maintained in this trying time, so far as the Royal -Highlanders were concerned, was admirable. Even when the loss of -officers was heaviest, movements were still carried through with -parade-like precision and coolness. - -When nearing Soissons in the course of the retreat, the Black Watch were -the object of an encircling movement by the enemy, and while the -regiment was cutting its way through to rejoin the rest of the brigade, -Colonel Grant Duff gave his orders with bullets humming round him, and -went up and down the line of his battalion looking after wounded men. -With the aid of the 117th Battery of R.F.A. the Black Watch succeeded in -rejoining their brigade with a loss of only four men. - -The work of the early days is epitomised by a man of the first battalion -of the regiment. "We went straight from Boulogne to Mons," he said, "and -were one of the first British regiments to reach Mons. Neither of the -opposing armies seemed to have a very good position there, but the -number of the Germans was so great that we had no chance of holding on -from the first. We were in hard fighting all day on the Monday, and as -the French reinforcements which we were expecting had not arrived by the -Tuesday, we were given the order to retire. - -"I should judge that, altogether, we retreated quite eighty miles. We -passed through Cambrai, and halted at St. Quentin; the Germans, -straining every nerve in the effort to get to Paris, had never been far -behind us, and when we came to St. Quentin we got the word that we were -to go into action again--and the men of the battalion were quite joyous -at the prospect, for they had been none too well pleased at the -continued retirement from the enemy. They started to get things ready -with a will, and the engagement opened in lively fashion, both our -artillery and the German going at it for all they were worth. We were in -good skirmishing order, and under cover of our guns we kept on getting -nearer and nearer to the enemy, till, when we were about a hundred yards -of the German lines, orders were issued for a charge, and the Black -Watch charged at the same time that the Scots Greys did. Not far from us -the 9th Lancers and the Cameronians joined in the attack, and it was the -finest sight I ever saw." - -The writer continues with a description of the charge, in which, he -says, the men of the Black Watch hung on to the stirrup-leathers of the -Greys and went through machine-gun fire on to the German lines, and -thence through to the guns of the enemy. "There were about 1,900 of us -in that charge against 20,000 Germans, and the charge itself lasted -about four hours. We took close upon 4,000 prisoners, and captured a -lot of their guns. In the course of the fighting I got a cut from a -German sword--they are very much like saws--and fell into a pool of -water, where I lay unconscious for nearly a day and night. I was picked -up by one of the 9th Lancers." - -There the story ends. It is circumstantial and well borne out by other -accounts of the doings of the Black Watch up to the time of St. Quentin, -but one fears to accept the story of that charge in its entirety. If the -men of the Black Watch advanced to within a hundred yards of the enemy -under cover of their own artillery, then where did the Greys come from? -For surely no artillery ever kept on firing at the enemy until _cavalry_ -were within a hundred yards of their objective in a charge. It is -curious, too, but this is the only account that has come to hand--the -only personal account of a participator--with regard to that charge of -the Greys with Black Watch men hanging on to their stirrup-leathers. The -story is given as told, for what it is worth. - -Several accounts concur in the assistance rendered to the regiment by -the 117th Battery of R.F.A., and one especially details how, when the -Black Watch were subjected to overwhelming rifle fire, the guns were -turned on the German riflemen with terrible effect. But there are some -newspaper errors in connection with this event which are almost amusing. -One of them states that, with regard to a driver of the 117th -Battery--"the Highlanders were being subjected to a terrific rifle fire, -when the artilleryman heroically advanced, and, getting his gun in -position, put the German riflemen to flight." This was more than -heroism, for a gun weighs the better part of a ton, altogether, and a -driver has but a very elementary knowledge of the firing mechanism of -the weapon--his business is with the horses. That one driver should get -the gun into position and then proceed to load and fire it, a business -which occupies about a dozen men, as a rule, is well worthy of comment. - -These discrepancies with known fact are unfortunately rather plentiful -where the Black Watch are concerned. Another of them, though it does not -credit artillerymen with the strength of elephants, tells of things that -happened "on the 14th of August, at the battle of the Aisne,"--whereas -on the 14th of August the great retreat was still in progress, and the -battle of the Marne had not been fought, let alone that of the Aisne. "I -only know," says the author of this account, "that we lost close on 400 -of the regiment, killed and wounded, the same day that I was wounded. -That was on the 14th of August, at the battle of the Aisne. It was -terrible, men falling on either side. The Germans were very -treacherous, firing on our ambulance men as well. I was in two hospitals -which we were shelled out of. All the men who could walk were told to go -off as soon as possible. There were four of us left in the place all the -forenoon, and the shells landing round about. I managed to crawl away -when there was no firing, and I had to go about five miles to the next -place. I don't know what I would have done had not an officer passing in -his motor seen me and taken me to the hospital." - -Another of the same kind: "On one occasion I had become detached from -the main body, and met four Germans. I disposed of three of my -adversaries with three successive shots, and was about to deal with the -fourth, when the bolt of my rifle became jammed. The German fired, but -only slightly wounded me, and I adjusted my rifle, charged my magazine, -and put the man out of action." - -More heroism, almost equal to that of the gunner just quoted--and -newspapers are publishing such "letters from the front" as these every -day. - -To come back to the real work of the regiment, a further account deals -with the battle of the Aisne, where, on the 14th of September, the men -occupied some high ground, and were discovered by the enemy, who set to -work to render the position untenable by means of artillery fire. A -patrol, sent out to get into communication with the Northamptons, had to -take cover from the German artillery fire, which was so fierce that it -was only in darkness they were able to return. In taking German trenches -later, the Black Watch and the Camerons, who advanced together, came -across numbers of dead Germans, proving that their own fire had been -quite as deadly as that of their enemies. Apparently the timing of the -fuses of German shells was none too good. "The artillery fire of the -Germans was good, but their shells did not do nearly the same damage as -those fired from the British guns. The British shells when they exploded -covered a radius of something like a hundred yards, but the German -shells on bursting seemed to send all their contents in a forward -direction." - -"But the Aisne has been a cause of heavy loss to the Black Watch," said -another member of the regiment. "We lost heavily in taking up position, -and the men were saddened by the loss of so many officers. One day we -lost three--a captain killed, a senior captain very severely wounded, -and a lieutenant killed. Then, later, the men had to deplore the loss of -their commanding officer, Colonel Grant Duff--one of the bravest and -best officers the regiment ever had. He died bravely. He was hard -pressed and doing execution with one of his men's rifles when he fell -with a mortal wound." - -Another officer eulogised by his men was Captain Green, who was wounded -at the Aisne. Hot fighting was kept up in the trenches from five in the -morning until night had fallen, and throughout the night the men waited -in their trenches. Shortly after four o'clock of the following morning -firing was heard in front, and with the remark, "I am going forward, -anyway," Captain Green went out to the front, his object being to get -the range for the men, if possible. He got the range, but was hit in the -head, and bandaged the wound himself, keeping his place in the trenches -and declining to go into hospital. - -The German fear of cold steel is emphasised in many accounts given by -men of the Black Watch. "They wouldn't look at the bayonet, and we ruled -the roost with very slight losses," says one; and another--"The Germans -are awfully frightened of the cold steel, and when they get a stab it is -almost invariably in the back, for they run away from our boys when the -bayonet appears." - -Once in a while there comes an account of humanity on the part of the -Germans; and one man of the Black Watch tells how he lay out in the open -at the position of the Aisne for hours, wounded, and at last a German -came along and bound up his wound under heavy fire. The German made the -wounded man quite comfortable, and was about to retire from the danger -area, when a stray bullet caught him, and he fell dead beside the man he -had befriended. - -Such stories as this last are welcome, and form a relief from the -numberless stories of German barbarity that have appeared. Not that they -disprove the stories of brutality, but they go to show that the policy -of ruthlessness is a calculated one, and that the individual German -might be a kind-hearted man at times if his officers would let him. The -instances of cruelty and wanton destruction that have been related all -point to organised cruelty, organised destruction--it is more a matter -of policy than of the conduct of individuals. - -The stories quoted here form a fairly connected record of the work of -the Black Watch up to the time of the battle on the Aisne; of what came -after, there is as yet no definite record. We know, from the casualty -lists, that the Royal Highlanders are still making history in France, -but in this first week of November we know no more than that, and a -great story must still wait telling until the oft-quoted "fog of war" -has lifted from the actions in Flanders and the north-west of France. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS - - -Formerly known as the 75th and 92nd line battalions, the Gordon -Highlanders form a comparatively young regiment. The first battalion was -formed at Stirling in 1788 under Colonel Robert Abercromby, and was sent -to India for fourteen years of active service in Mysore and Southern -India. The "Royal Tiger," worn on the badges of the regiment, -commemorates the part they played at the taking of Seringapatam in 1799. - -The great Scottish house of Gordon raised the second battalion of the -regiment near the end of the eighteenth century, and this battalion was -first named "Gordon Highlanders" in 1794, when it was embodied at -Aberdeen, with the Marquis of Huntly as its first colonel. In the -Egyptian campaign of 1801, the Gordons played a conspicuous part in -driving Napoleon out of Egypt, and won the "Sphinx," inscribed "Egypt," -as a badge, which is now worn on all the officers' buttons. In 1807 the -regiment took part in the expedition to Copenhagen, and a year later -they were with Sir John Moore on the retreat to Corunna. Later, in the -Peninsular campaign under Wellington, the Gordons won the admiration of -their enemies and the approbation of their chief. In one action alone, -that of the Maya Pass, the regiment lost over 320 officers and men -killed and wounded. - -On to the end of the campaign the Gordons were in the thick of things, -and then, in 1815, they sailed for Belgium in May, arriving in Brussels -at the end of that month. At Quatre Bras, where they were under the eye -of the Duke of Wellington, the 92nd (now the 2nd battalion of the -Gordons) lost heavily, and then at Waterloo itself the battalion was -reduced to 300 men before the memorable charge took place. The official -account of that charge, as given in the history of the regiment, is -worth quoting in its entirety. - -"About two o'clock in the afternoon of that memorable day, the enemy -advanced a solid column of 3,000 infantry towards the position of the -regiment. The column continuing to press forward, General Sir D. Pack -galloped up to the regiment and called out--"Ninety-second, you must -charge, for all the troops to your right and left have given way." Three -cheers from the corps expressed the devoted readiness of every -individual in its ranks, though its numbers were reduced at this time to -less than 300 men. - -"The French column did not show a large front. The regiment formed -four-deep, and, in that compact order, advanced till within twenty -paces, when it fired a volley and instantly darted into the heart of the -French column, in which it almost became invisible in the midst of the -mass opposed to it. While the regiment was in the act of charging, and -the instant before it came in contact with the enemy, the Scots Greys -came trotting up in rear of its flanks, when both corps shouted -"Scotland for ever!" The column was instantaneously broken, and in its -flight the cavalry rode over it. The result of this dash, which only -occupied a few minutes, was a loss to the enemy of two eagles and two -thousand prisoners." - -The total losses of the Gordons at Waterloo were 119 officers and men -killed and wounded, and what remained of the regiment went on to occupy -Paris, returning to Edinburgh in 1816. In the Crimean campaign the -Gordons had bad luck, as they did not land till after Sevastopol had -fallen. They had their turn in the Mutiny, however, for they fought -their way from Ambala to Delhi, and sat on the "Ridge" under great John -Nicholson from June to September, taking part in the final assault and -storming the Kashmir gate. Later, they marched to the relief of Lucknow, -and then saw general service in the many engagements that took place in -the North-west Provinces before the Mutiny was finally quelled. - -Then came twenty years of peace for the regiment, after which it was -again called to action in Afghanistan, and took part in the -ever-memorable march from Kabul to Kandahar. In the Egyptian campaign of -1882, the regiment was included in the Highland Brigade that fought at -Tel-el-Kebir, and then went up with the expeditionary force to the -relief of Khartoum and General Gordon--a fruitless errand. From that -time onward to the end of the century, the Gordons saw frontier fighting -in India. "Chitral" is one of the names emblazoned on the regimental -colours, and in the Tirah campaign the Gordons won undying fame at the -storming of the Dargai heights--which, however, was but one incident in -seven months of strenuous fighting. - -In the South African war, the Gordons shared in the privations of the -siege of Ladysmith, and in the fierce attack made by the Boers on the -Ladysmith defences, on the 6th of January, 1900, the Gordons sustained -some of the fiercest of the fighting. Thus one battalion upheld the -credit of the regiment, while the other, in Smith-Dorrien's nineteenth -brigade, placed the name "Paardeberg" on the regimental colours. "During -the four months and a half of its existence the nineteenth brigade had -marched 620 miles, often on half rations, seldom on full. It had taken -part in the capture of ten towns, had fought in ten general engagements, -and on twenty-seven other times, and was never beaten." Up to the end of -the war the Gordons were doing brilliant work. By the end of 1902 the -regiment had thirteen Victoria Crosses to its credit. - -With regard to their work in France in the very early days, the men of -the Gordons have shown some reticence--that is, as regards the alleged -cutting off and cutting up of the regiment. It may be, so curious is the -information that reached this country in September, that the men of the -regiment had not heard of this cutting off and cutting up. Certain it is -that they were in several tight corners in the first actions of the -great retreat--but then, so were other units, and there is plenty of -evidence to prove that Gordons came through to the Marne and the Aisne, -though, unfortunately, they came without their colonel and some of their -officers. Round about Mons the Gordons were heavily engaged, and found -the German infantry firing weak, but their artillery work not to be -despised. The greatest damage was done by the shrapnel, and not by rifle -fire--a statement which concurs with practically all accounts of -engagements on the great retreat. "The losses of the Allies," said a -wounded corporal of the Gordons, "were nothing to those of the Germans, -who came on in a solid mass and were mowed down like sheep--close -formation was their method of attack all along. The men themselves said -they were driven to it by their officers at the point of the revolver, -and they simply tried to be taken prisoners by the British. We passed -through plundered villages, and saw windows smashed, furniture thrown -out on the streets, and churches and other buildings destroyed." - -Another wounded non-commissioned officer speaks of "what was left of the -battalion after Mons" being in the firing-line, when an order was given -for a general retreat. A dispatch rider gave the message to a part of -the division to which the Gordons belonged, but on his way to them he -was killed by a shell, and the Gordons, not having received the order, -stuck to their position. "The Germans advanced in such force that we -were at last compelled to retire, and lost a lot of jolly good fellows. -I doubt if any of us would have been left if it had not been for the -135th Battery of Field Artillery. They covered our retreat, sending out -such a terrible fire that the enemy were afraid to approach any nearer." - -This stands as the most circumstantial account of the cutting-off of -the Gordons that has come to hand among personal letters and accounts of -the men who were there, and, unlike so many letters purporting to be -from "the front," it bears the stamp of authenticity. A piper of the -regiment corroborates it by saying that "the Germans came on in great -masses, driving us back all the time." He tells of being left only with -a revolver, his sword having snapped, after which he crossed a river, -and made a stand in a church. "Eight hundred of us entered that church, -the majority never to come out again, for the Germans' big 'Jack -Johnsons' shelled us out." There was, apparently, an officer in charge, -and when he saw how the shells were causing fatalities he gave the order -for all men who could to bolt for the road and save themselves. "The -people at home will not think any the worse of you, lads, for it," he -is alleged to have said. According to the piper's account, some sixty -or more got away to safety in one rush, in which he himself was wounded -in the arm. - -The work of signallers has not come into much prominence in the fighting -in France, but one of the signallers of the Gordons, at least, has had -occasion to use his flags. It happened that his battalion had been in a -tight corner for some time, and was running short of ammunition, in -consequence of which the signaller was ordered by his company officer to -signal to the Army Service Corps for a further supply. He stood up -facing to the rear, and, raising his flags, signalled--"From -Captain----" when the message was cut short by his arm being wounded in -two places. As he was trying to bind up the wounds, another piece of -shrapnel came along and lodged in the same arm. - -A good general account of the fighting is given by one non-commissioned -officer who went out at the end of August, and was first engaged in the -fighting which took place immediately before the advance from the Marne -to the Aisne. Here the Gordons were engaged near a village held by the -enemy, and under very hot fire. The British troops had a hard job in -getting the Germans to leave their trenches, but eventually the -artillery fire from the British guns proved too much for the Germans, -who got up and ran. The Gordons reached the village after the enemy had -fled, and were billeted there for the night--and in this connection the -non-commissioned officer responsible for this account remarks that the -German rifle fire is almost useless, though their machine-gun fire is -good. "Besides, when once they think they are beaten they are off, and -one can scarcely get at close quarters with them. Our party never got -within half a mile of them." - -In this last sentence, it must be remembered, the writer refers to the -German troops who had come down on the tremendous advance which ended at -the position of the Marne. Official reports leave it beyond doubt that -these German troops had undergone three weeks of the severest strain -that has ever been imposed on fighting men, and that their _moral_ was -so far impaired that, after the wheel made by von Kluck's army away from -Paris, the whole of them had to be drawn back and replaced by other -troops. Since they had been reduced to this state by their exertions, it -is hardly to be wondered at that they would not face their enemies at -close quarters. - -The narrative, proceeding, states that on the advance of the British to -the trenches the enemy had occupied, it was difficult to estimate the -number of German dead, for the trenches, filled with bodies, had been -covered in with earth. One German was found by the Gordons still -standing in his trench, with his rifle to his shoulder, quite dead. He -had evidently been shot while in the act of taking aim, and had been -left by his retreating comrades. On the advance, it was noted that the -work of the British artillery had been particularly deadly, especially -among the woods through which the men advanced. The part of the regiment -to which the narrator of these events was attached was sent back to -headquarters in charge of several hundreds of prisoners, their places in -the firing line being taken by others for the time being; and, after a -turn at headquarters duty, the Gordons were sent on to Lille and La -Bassée, opposite to a part of von Kluck's force, which had in the -meantime moved out to the north-west to keep pace with the extension of -the Allied line. While the Gordons were lying in an open field, taking -part in an attack, the order was given to retire; but it was unheard by -the men of some sections, and the enemy advanced so near that the -position of some of the men became very critical. But the wretched fire -of the German infantry proved their salvation, for sixteen of the -Gordons made their way across perfectly level, boggy ground, with the -Germans less than 1,000 yards away, and only two were wounded. - -The first days on the Aisne, according to another of the Gordons, must -be counted as one of the fiercest examples of warfare under modern -conditions. For days the Gordons were subjected to such a hurricane of -shrapnel fire that they were compelled to lie in their trenches, merely -awaiting developments; and many of the men who were wounded by shrapnel -never fired their rifles, for the enemy was too far off for rifle fire -to have any effect. One man was struck fourteen times by the shrapnel -fire, and still came out from the trenches to recover. It was not until -the British artillery was reinforced that the infantry were able to -advance. - -"We were kept so busy," says one man of the Gordons concerning this -time, "that for three days and nights we had no time to issue the mail. -The men felt the want of a smoke more than of food, and I have seen more -than one man trade away his last biscuit for a cigarette or a fill of -tobacco. When the heaviest of the shelling was going on, our men were -puffing away at 'fag-ends.'" - -From such accounts as these one may glean some idea of what the Gordons -underwent up to the time of the transference of the main battle to the -Flanders area. As for this last, one non-commissioned officer states -that the men were hardly ever out of canals and wet ditches. One day a -section of men lay waist deep in water from nine in the morning till -three in the afternoon, patiently waiting for dusk to come, that they -might get a chance to dry their clothes. "The Germans generally cease -operations at dusk, and on these occasions the same old order comes -along the line--"Dig yourselves in, men." And, on the day that they lay -in water so long, no sooner had they dug themselves in than the order to -advance was given!" - -Apparently authentic is the account of the death of Captain Ker of the -Gordons, who, it is stated by eyewitnesses, was in command of men whom -he led up in face of the enemy's fire at Béthune. The men gained the -shelter of a natural rise in the ground, but before they reached this -point Captain Ker was struck in the head by shrapnel, and was killed -instantly. The men lay for some time in the position they had won, but -eventually found that it was too dangerous to retain, and risked the -enemy's fire in place of capture. They doubled back across a couple of -fields to their old position, and eighteen of the twenty-one in the -party got safely back--but only seven of them escaped being hit. Captain -Ker was later picked up and buried on the field. - -With regard to Colonel Gordon, V.C., it appears from one account that he -was taken into a barn after having been wounded, but almost immediately -afterwards the barn caught fire, and it was thought that he had been -trapped in the flames. It seems, however, that the wound was only a body -one, and the colonel was able to get clear, though he was afterwards -taken prisoner. - -"Keep your heads up, men!" one of the officers of the Gordons shouted to -his men on one occasion. "They can't hit you"--pointing to the snipers -up a tree; and with that remark he showed his own head above the trench. -"None of us cared to follow his example, but his cheery way bucked us -up," says one of the men present at the time. Yet again the same officer -inquired--"Any man wanting to earn a glass of claret?" and received -several enthusiastic affirmatives. "Well," he said, "catch me that hen -running across the road." The offer was not accepted, for the German -fire was hot at the time. - -Another account refers to a battle which took place about the middle of -October, the 2nd battalion being the one referred to. "I left the -trenches on Saturday night for hospital," says the writer. "On Friday -afternoon we had a terrible battle with the Germans, who turned all -their artillery and machine guns on our trenches in an attempt to break -through them. It was hell while it lasted, but we gave them more than -they wanted. About three hundred yards in front of our trenches was a -ridge running parallel with them, and every time the Germans mounted -this ridge in mass they were blown into the air. Ten times they were -blown away, losing battalions each time--it was sickening to see them. -Towards night they retired; and my company lost pretty heavily, five men -being killed and thirteen wounded. Our captain and lieutenant were also -wounded. Throughout all that battle I never got so much as a scratch--I -have been very lucky on two or three occasions." - -This man went into hospital at the finish with a poisoned hand and head, -caused by a graze sustained three weeks before the fight of which he -writes. In his letter, as in all the accounts quoted here, is noticeable -an absolute lack of doubt as to the final result of the titanic -struggle. Not that any one of the men actually voices confidence, but -from the way in which they tell of the doings of their regiments one may -gauge their spirit, and understand that they see only the one end to -this war of world-forces; that there is no fear of defeat, no thought of -other than a steady driving on to a fixed end--the overthrow of German -militarism. Many of them--many Gordons, without doubt--have never given -the matter a thought, for they fight, as the Gordons and as the whole -British Army always fights, with a belief in themselves and their -leaders that amounts to such conviction as needs no words for its -expression--a settled knowledge that in good time their task will be -accomplished. For behind all these men are the traditions of those who -cried "Scotland for ever!" men who knew not the meaning of defeat. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE SEAFORTH HIGHLANDERS - - -The 1st battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders originally bore the number -subsequently allotted to the 2nd battalion, for in 1778 the 1st -battalion was raised as the 78th infantry of the line by the Earl of -Seaforth, and with that as its official number it went to Jersey to -defend the island against a French attack, and subsequently to India. -The voyage to India occupied ten months, and cost the life of the Earl -of Seaforth and 200 men of the regiment; the remainder landed safely, -and underwent the campaign which ended in the overthrow of Tippoo Sahib: -the Seaforths led the attack on the fortifications of Bangalore, and -assisted in the taking of Seringapatam. Then the Seaforths took Ceylon -from the Dutch. - -In 1786 the 1st battalion (as it is at present known) was renumbered -"72nd," and in 1793 the present 2nd battalion of the regiment was formed -as the "78th Foot." After work in Holland and at the Cape, the 78th went -to India to fight under the future Duke of Wellington in the Mahratta -War. For valour at Assaye the 78th was granted the Elephant, inscribed -"Assaye," as a special badge, and also a third colour to bear. These -distinctions were well earned, for the 78th defeated a force ten times -as strong as itself in the course of the battle. - -The warlike quality of the material from which the Seaforths were -obtained may be estimated from the fact that two "second battalions" -were formed in succession and sent out to join the original 78th raised -in 1793. In the second expedition to Egypt in 1807, and in the -disastrous Walcheren expedition, the battalion took part, losing heavily -in officers and men in both cases--three companies were practically -annihilated at El Hamet in the Egyptian campaign. After Walcheren, the -Seaforths had little chance of winning distinction in the Napoleonic -wars, but in 1819 and 1835 the regiment was engaged at the Cape in -Kaffir wars, and the next incident of note in the history of the -Seaforths was their work in the Mutiny, when they served under Havelock, -marching from Allahabad to the relief of Cawnpur and Lucknow. Four -battles were fought and won before the force reached Cawnpur--too late; -and they went on to Lucknow. Tennyson has told how the sound of Highland -music gave intimation of relief to the sorely pressed Lucknow garrison, -and, regarding the work of the regiment at that time, their commander -told them--"I have been forty years in the service, I have been engaged -in actions seven-and-twenty times, but in the whole of my career I have -never seen any regiment behave so well as the 78th Highlanders. I am -proud of you." - -The 72nd, the present 1st battalion of the Seaforths, was also engaged -in the suppression of the Mutiny, though not with Havelock, and they -helped largely in suppressing the final flames of rebellion throughout -India. Then followed nearly twenty years of peace service for the -regiment, after which it took part in the campaign in Afghanistan, and -shared in the memorable march from Kabul to Kandahar. The bravery of the -regiment in this campaign is attested by the fact that no less than five -names connected with the two years of fighting are emblazoned on the -regimental colours. - -The Seaforths were in the charge at Tel-el-Kebir, and in the second -Egyptian campaign of 1898 the first battalion was engaged both at -Atbara and Khartoum. In between these two wars the regiment saw much -service in the two Hazara wars and the campaign of Chitral. In South -Africa the Seaforths formed part of the Highland Brigade at -Magersfontein, and lost no less than 212 officers and men killed and -wounded in that disastrous action. Magersfontein was avenged at -Paardeberg, where the Seaforths took part in the rounding up and capture -of Cronje, following up this with the action at Poplar Grove and that of -Driefontein. In the next great capture of the war, that of Prinsloo in -the Wittebergen, the Seaforths played an active part, and from then on -to the end of hostilities the regiment was actively engaged, both in -blockhouse work and in the rounding up of the Boer forces. Up to 1902, -the regiment had won no less than eleven Victoria Crosses, while its -distinguished-conduct medals are too numerous to count. - -For the campaign in France and Belgium, the Seaforths were brigaded with -the Irish Fusiliers, the Dublin Fusiliers, and the Warwickshire -Regiment, under command of Brigadier-General J. A. L. Haldane, D.S.O., -who made a memorable escape from Pretoria during the last Boer war. That -the regiment is keeping up its traditions is instanced by the case of -one man who was found retiring to the rear, wounded in nine different -places. He wanted no sympathy, and asked for no help; all he wanted to -know was--who had won the St. Leger! One of his comrades, wounded also, -remarked that the Seaforths had "fairly made the Germans hop out of -their trenches when they charged with the bayonet." The enemy had no -idea that the British were so close on them till the Seaforths marched -out of a farmyard right into the firing line, and then the Germans did -not wait, but ran like cattle chased by dogs. "After marching for four -days, during which time we did not know where we were, we got into motor -cars and were taken to a position right under the very noses of the -Germans, who got the surprise of their lives when they saw the 'ladies -from hell,' as they called us on account of our kilts, advancing on -them." - -Further, a man of the Dublin Fusiliers bears testimony to the fighting -qualities of the Seaforths. "It keeps up your spirit to be fighting with -such fellows," he says, "and they have fairly put fear into the Germans -with their bayonet charges. When there was any close fighting, and it -came to using the cold steel, the Germans ran from them like hares. Most -of the 'Jocks' now have beards, and with their kilts flying when they -charge they are a wild-looking lot." The writer of this adds his -evidence to the testimony that the Germans have no liking for bayonet -work. "They are big chaps, most of them, but have not got the heart for -it," he observes. - -The actual route taken by the regiment, in the moves made by the British -forces since the war began, can be traced pretty accurately by means of -various personal accounts. The first of these accounts states that the -Seaforths were first engaged at Agincourt, where an advance party of -Germans took the regiment by surprise, and they were hotly engaged. The -Germans lost heavily, but were in very strong force, and at night the -Seaforths drew back to get a rest. Two days later, at Guise, the German -cavalry tried to break through the column which included the Seaforths, -but they were met with fixed bayonets and driven back, though the -British suffered heavy casualties. - -Then "at La-Musa we had a stiff engagement with the German Crown -Prince's army on the right wing, and by the aid of their aeroplanes the -German gunners found our trenches, on which they kept up a heavy -cannonading for almost three hours. An attack was made by the German -cavalry, but our artillery mowed them down like hay--the slaughter was -something awful. We had to retire, however, and for twenty-eight miles -we marched without food before we got out of range of the enemy's guns. -After three hours' rest we advanced in an opposite direction to our line -of retreat, and proceeded to La Ferte, with the German cavalry in -pursuit. Crossing the river there we had a thrilling time, and just -crossed the bridge in time for the Royal Engineers to blow it up and -prevent the Germans crossing--a number of the Engineers were killed in -the explosion. - -"We afterwards marched to Mons, having several skirmishes on the way, -and managed to capture a number of Germans and a field hospital. We saw -many signs of German barbarism on our march, and one sight I shall never -forget was that of a father and mother with a baby about two months old, -lying stabbed to death by bayonets on their doorstep. Frequently we took -women and children into the trenches for safety, and always they had a -terrible dread of the Uhlans. We Seaforths were on the right flank at -Mons, and one morning the Germans suddenly opened fire on us at three -o'clock. We fixed bayonets, and followed the Guards in skirmishing -order, passing over heaps of dead, and capturing German guns. But we -could not keep our positions, for the Germans were entrenched in masses -farther on, and we had to retire." - -This account is rather muddled, for the writer speaks of days of -fighting and marching with skirmishes before the action at Mons. One -must sort out the various engagements mentioned and compare them with -the official account of the first engagements in order to arrive at an -estimate of the position in which the Seaforths began their fighting. On -the whole, however, the writer conveys a very good idea of the work of -those first few days--he was wounded in the retirement from Mons, and -thus his narrative ceases there. - -The story is taken on by a man of the regiment who was captured during -the fighting on the Oise, and was sentenced by the enemy to be shot, but -managed to escape. Having lost his regiment, he attached himself to a -French unit, and kept with them for three weeks, in which time he saw -only three Englishmen, all lost like himself, and they commiserated -each other on not knowing the French language, and consequently being -unable to converse with their comrades in the firing line. In the town -from which the writer posted his letter, the Germans had looted all the -shops previous to the French reoccupation, while the British had blown -up a bridge, and the Germans in turn had sunk a number of French boats -in the canal to form a temporary bridge. The writer adds his evidence on -the subject of German cruelty. - -Concerning an engagement on the Aisne, on the 13th of September, one of -the Seaforths who participated tells how his company had been resting -for the night in a farmhouse after having been on the move for seven or -eight days, and in the morning they went forward a march of three or -four miles, which brought them into range of the enemy's position, a -mile to the front. The regiment was ordered to take the German -position, and advanced in extended order across a clear field of fire, -when, fortunately for the attackers, the enemy's fire was so bad that -the losses were very slight. The advance was steadily maintained, until -at 300 yards' distance from the position the order was given to fix -bayonets. At that, "the Germans did not wait to say 'Good night,' but -simply ran, as they won't face the cold steel at any price." Still, a -number of the Seaforths were put out of action in the business, in which -the regiment gained all that they had been ordered to take. "It was a -great charge," says the man who tells of it. "No wonder so much is -thought of the Highland regiments, for it would have done your heart -good to hear the cheer that went up when the order was given to charge, -and the Germans did run. All I can say is that if we had been in their -position we should have waited for them to come upon us, and none of -them would ever have reached us, as I think our rifle fire is good -enough to stop any charge that might be made." - -The same man tells of "a low, dirty trick" that the Germans played in -the course of this fight. Some of them put up a white flag, and when -about fifty of the Warwickshires went out to take the surrendered men -they opened fire with a machine gun and slaughtered the Warwicks. "That -is the kind of warfare the Germans like to carry on." - -Thus runs the account of the 13th of September, and on the following -day, according to several accounts received, the colonel of the -regiment, Colonel Sir Evelyn Bradford, was killed--he has since been -mentioned in dispatches. The most circumstantial account is as follows: - -"It was in the battle of the Aisne, when the Seaforths had taken up a -position near a wood, that the Germans began a heavy fire. The colonel -was standing with two other officers surveying the field of operations, -when he was struck by a shell and killed instantly. A lieutenant of the -Gordons, who was attached to the battalion, was killed, and a number of -the men were struck and wounded--in all, there were about thirty wounded -by the one explosion. They attempted to bury the colonel the same night, -but were prevented from their task by the heavy and continuous -shell-fire from the enemy." At about nine in the evening, however, a -burial party set out to lay the dead commander to rest up on the face of -a hill, near a large farmhouse which was the headquarters of the force -for the time. "Poor Colonel Bradford!" comments a member of the party; -"I cannot tell you how great our loss is. He was a brave commander, and -was killed while trying to safeguard his regiment. We could not fetch -his body in while daylight lasted, but at midnight we laid him, with two -other officers, to rest on their field of honour, on a hill-side -overlooking a valley of the river. It was a sad but glorious moment for -us to stand and hear the padre tell us that they had not shrunk from -their duty, and had fallen for the sake of their comrades. The next day -I found some Scotch thistle growing close by, and I plucked the blooms -to form a cross over the dead chieftain's grave." - -Concerning this action of the 14th of September, another participant -tells that the British troops were steadily driving the Germans back, -and the company of the Seaforths to which he belonged had crossed the -river two days before, and were holding a ridge, though the enemy had a -great advantage in point of numbers. This man sent home a transcript of -a German officer's diary, which makes very interesting reading. - -"_July 20._--At last the day! To have lived to see it! We are ready, let -come who may. The world race is destined to be German. - -"_August 5._--Our losses to-day [before Liége] have been frightful. -Never mind, it is all allowed for. Besides, the fallen are only Polish -beginners, the spilling of whose blood will spread the war lust at -home--a necessary factor. - -"_August 11._--And now for the English, used to fighting farmers. [A -reference to the Boer War.] To-night Wilhelm the Greater has given us -beautiful advice. You think each day of your Emperor, and do not forget -God. [Note the order in which the two are mentioned.] His Majesty should -remember that in thinking of him we think of God, for is not he the -Almighty's instrument in this glorious fight for right? - -"_August 12._--This is clearly to be an artillery war, as we foresaw. -Infantry counts for nothing. - -"_August 20._--The conceited English have ranged themselves up against -us at absurd odds, our airmen say. [This, it must be remembered, was -written concerning the time of the great retreat, when the German forces -were in overwhelming numerical superiority.] - -"_August 25._--An English shell burst on a Red Cross wagon to-day--full -of English. Ha-ha! Serve the swine right. Still, they fight well. I -salute the officer who kept on swearing at Germany and her Emperor in -his agony--and then to ask calmly for a bath! These English! We have -scarcely time enough to bury our dead, so they are being weighted in the -river." - -The writer of this diary was captured, so his entries extend no farther. -The way in which his views of "the conceited English" altered as time -went on is worthy of note. - -A R.A.M.C. officer attached to the Seaforths gives an idea of the way in -which the regiment conducted its daily business. Each morning the -regiment would "stand to arms" at about three o'clock, and at four or -five o'clock the men would move on, either with or without -breakfast--which consisted of tea and biscuits, and bacon if there were -time to cook it. Sleeping accommodation varied in quality and extent -from night to night, ranging from a ploughed field or an orchard to the -floor of a deserted house. Often the men were so sleepy that they lay in -the road--quite contentedly, since they were allowed to lie. - -"I am doing less than the men," adds the writer. "Just think of them: -march, march, march, and then when we sleep it falls to the lot of many -to guard the outposts with no chance of shelter, and then go on -marching through the next day, wet, and hoping to dry as they go. Only -the highest praise can be given to these men. - -"At present [on the Aisne] we are entrenched. Our first day in this -place, where we have been for five days, was awful, for we were under -fire the whole of the day, with practically no protection, and our total -of killed and wounded amounted to seventy. The men never wavered, and -gaps were always filled. Grand are the Highland men, and grander still -will be the account they will render; I am lucky to be with such men." - -These various accounts of the work of the regiment form a fairly -detailed description of the work at the Aisne. Of how the regiment was -moved up to the Flanders front there is no account to hand, but the work -done on the new front has been fairly fully described. First of all -comes the account of Captain Methven's death, which took place in the -fighting round Lille, where Captain Methven and his company were set to -drive the Germans from their trenches with the bayonet. The German -trenches were at the top of a steep little hill, and up this hill -Captain Methven rushed, with his men following. He paused at the edge of -the enemy's trenches and turned to wave the men on--they saw him -silhouetted against the skyline for a second, and then he fell, shot -through the heart at what must have been point-blank range. But the -trenches were won, the small force of Germans who had been holding them -surrendered--Captain Methven had not died in vain. "I had read about -this single-handed taking of a position," writes a spectator, "but until -I saw Captain Methven's action I thought these things only happened in -story-books." - -A little later the brigade of which the 2nd Seaforths formed a part was -engaged in the storming of a position, an action in which they drove -back the enemy for several miles. For the greater part of the day the -British position had been commanded by the fire of the enemy, who held a -position on a hill in the neighbourhood and maintained a steady fire on -the British brigade. The brigade commander saw that if the enemy were -given time to bring up heavy artillery they would render their own -position impregnable and that of the British force untenable--the height -had to be taken that day, if at all. So the "Charge!" was sounded, and -the brigade advanced across the intervening ground, with the men -cheering and shouting as they rushed forward--and above all the rest of -the cries rose the "Caber-feidh," the rallying-cry of the Seaforths. The -German position was taken in about a quarter of an hour--and in rear -were a fleet of motor vehicles, in which the retreating Germans -decamped. Pursuit was out of the question, and there was only -snap-shooting at the flying enemy by way of consolation. - -Beyond this the records of the regiment do not take us at present. There -remains, however, one record of "B" Company of the 2nd Battalion and its -work on the night of the 13th of October, a statement that may well be -included in this record of the doings of the Seaforths. It tells how the -company had to charge the enemy out of his trenches at the bayonet -point, which was done with some considerable loss of killed and wounded, -and the writer comments--"There was not a coward among us." - -"But that was nothing to what we had last Tuesday [Oct. 20]. We were -digging trenches when we heard a volley of rifle fire come right over -us, and we got the order to stand to arms and advance. Their trenches -were situated in a row on a rise in a field, and we could not get our -range on them. In a minute the signal to charge went, and we all -scrambled up the hill to get at them. The first to get up was our -company officer, and he was hit. We all dived into their trenches at the -point of their rifles, shooting and stabbing, and then came the -onslaught. Some of them were too terrified to get out, while others -rushed out and were shot down, and the remainder sought refuge in a -house. They showed the white flag in a doorway, but we got the order not -to take any notice of it until some of their officers came out, and we -waved them in. About fifty surrendered. I am proud to say that we were -only one company. I shall never forget that charge as long as I live. -The General said--'Bravo, Seaforths! it was a grand charge.'" - -Which forms a fitting final word as far as the Seaforths are concerned. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE CAMERON HIGHLANDERS - - -Mr. Alan Cameron, a gentleman of Scotland in the eighteenth century, -fought a duel over which he was obliged to leave the British Isles, -whereupon he found employment in an irregular cavalry corps which -assisted the British in the American War of Independence. When the war -ended he returned to England, judging that the storm had blown over, and -at the time of the French Revolution he offered to raise a corps of -Highlanders for the British Army. The offer was accepted, and Cameron -raised 700 of his clansmen in Inverness-shire, a body which became the -79th Foot, and had its title altered in 1881 to the Cameron Highlanders. - -The first active service undergone by the men of the regiment was in -Holland, where in 1794 under the Duke of York they fought against an -enemy greatly superior in numbers. Five years later the regiment again -went to Holland, to distinguish itself at the action of Egmont-op-Zee, a -name borne since that time on the regimental colours. This was followed -up by the expedition under Sir Ralph Abercromby to Egypt, whence -Napoleon and his army were driven out by the British. The Sphinx, with -"Egypt" inscribed on it, is borne by the Camerons, in common with some -other Highland regiments. - -Copenhagen, at the capture of which the Camerons assisted in 1807, was -overshadowed as an exploit by the work of the "light company" of the -Camerons at Corunna in the following year. Talavera was a field in which -the Camerons had a share, as was Busaco, and the regiment helped in -holding the "lines" of Torres Vedras through the winter in which -Wellington lay at bay against Napoleon's marshals, to emerge in the -spring and force the French to retreat. At Fuentes d'Onor, after holding -the village in company with two other regiments against attack after -attack by the French, the Camerons were forced out by the flower of the -French Army, the Imperial Guard. When the fight was at its fiercest a -French soldier shot dead the colonel of the regiment, and at that the -Highlanders raised a cry of vengeance and swept away the famous Guard of -France. - -From Salamanca to Toulouse the Camerons fought on through the rest of -the Peninsular campaign; they fought through Quatre Bras, and were among -the four regiments specially mentioned in dispatches by Wellington after -Waterloo. From that time, until 1854 called them to the Crimean -campaign, the men of the regiment had only peace service; but, in the -Highland Brigade under Sir Colin Campbell, the successors of the -Highlanders who had distinguished themselves at Waterloo proved that the -valour of the regiment was as great as ever, and at the battle of the -Alma the Camerons did gallant service. - -Almost immediately after the Crimea came the Mutiny, and the Camerons -were among the first regiments to oppose the mutineers. At Mahomdie over -a hundred men of the regiment went down with sunstroke, and then at -Lucknow the mutineers had to be driven from house to house by bayonet -work--in which Scottish regiments have always excelled. - -For the nine months that followed the work in Lucknow, the regiment was -almost constantly engaged with the enemy, especially at the battle of -Bareilly and the crossing of the Gogra and Rapti rivers. The Mohmund -and Kumasi campaigns came next, and in 1873 Queen Victoria presented the -regiment with new colours and conferred on it the title of the "Queen's -Own." Then in 1882 came the Egyptian campaign, and at Tel-el-Kebir a man -of the Camerons was first to fall in the dawn hour at which that action -began. The charge of the Camerons on the enemy's lines is a feat that -has been often described, and Lieutenant-Colonel Leith's cry of "Come -on, 79th!" has become historic. - -In the attempt to rescue Gordon, and again in 1885, the Cameron -Highlanders continued their work in Egypt, and in 1893 Lochiel of -Cameron unveiled at Inverness a monument to the brave men of the -regiment who had fallen in Egypt. Four years later a second battalion -was raised, and in 1898 the 1st battalion again went up the Nile to -assist in the final Dervish overthrow. With "Remember General Gordon" -as their watchword, the Camerons shared in the battle of the Atbara, at -which Mahmoud's army was annihilated and Mahmoud himself taken prisoner. -Sharing in the onward march, the Camerons were present at Omdurman, -where the power of the Khalifa was finally broken, and the battalion -attended the memorial service held in Khartoum on September 4th of that -year in memory of General Gordon. Thence one company of the regiment -went up to Fashoda, and had the unique honour of representing the -British Army there at the time of the incident, now nearly forgotten, -which so nearly led to war with France. - -It was not until March of 1900 that the Camerons landed at East London -to take part in the South African campaign, and they were then -incorporated in the 21st Brigade under General Bruce Hamilton. They -shared in the general advance to Pretoria, in the crossing of the Zand -River, the battle of Doorn Kop, and the engagement at Diamond Hill. -Later, they shared in the capture of Prinsloo in the Wittebergen, and in -the reliefs of Winburg and Ladybrand. Up to the end of the war the -Camerons were in the thick of things, and the men received the personal -thanks of General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien for the work they had -performed while serving under him, and, what was more, for the fine -spirit in which that work had been done. - -The most that can be done with regard to locating the Camerons in France -is to state that they formed a part of the First Division, and that when -the Allies took the offensive the Camerons took the place of the -Munsters; also that they have acted in very close conjunction with the -Black Watch, with whom, it is highly probable, they were brigaded. At -Mons the Black Watch formed the first line, and, as they lost a -considerable number of men, the Camerons were moved up by way of -support, when thirteen men of the battalion were killed and wounded. In -the course of the great retreat there were as many as 300 men missing at -one time, but parties of ten and twelve came in later and reduced the -apparent losses. When nearing Soissons in the course of the retreat, the -Black Watch were made the object of an encircling movement by the enemy, -but they escaped with the aid of the 117th Battery R.F.A. and that of -some of the Camerons. One man of the Black Watch had crossed the Aisne -in the retreat, and was wounded while lying out in the open to fire, and -a Cameron man stood by him and assisted him to the rear at the cost of -three wounds to himself. - -These slight incidents are all that can be gleaned with regard to the -actual movements of the Camerons at the time of the retreat. Several -minor incidents, however, have come to light, and of these many bear on -the German abuse of the white flag and of all the recognised rules of -war. On one occasion Germans were seen walking between the -trenches--their own and the British--carrying stretchers; and, under the -assumption that they were carrying wounded, firing was stopped for the -time. It was discovered, however, that instead of wounded the supposed -ambulance men were carrying machine guns on their stretchers, and at the -same time they showed the Red Cross flag. On the other hand, such of the -enemy as have been taken prisoners by the Camerons on the retreat told -their captors that they expected to be shot at once, having been told by -their officers that that would be their fate if they fell into the -enemy's hands. - -It appears that there is plenty of humour among the Cameron men on the -battlefield. "It's very funny," says one of them, "to hear a Frenchman -try to sing 'Tipperary.' It fairly stumps them, but they do their best. -The two favourite songs with our boys are 'Tipperary' and the -Marseillaise. You should see a Frenchman when he hears that--he goes -fairly daft. These Frenchmen seem terribly loungy to look at, but they -are good fighters, for all that. They go smashing into it, and their -artillery is the best out there. But our officers are a fine lot, the -best set of men I ever came across. They do their share." - -Thus, discursively, a wounded Cameron man told of the incidentals of the -fighting in France--the earlier days. Then comes a fairly detailed -account of the battle of the Marne, in which the first three days, -Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, are described as "pretty much -preliminary," but on Tuesday the brigade of which the Camerons formed a -part went out to meet the enemy, and drove them back, capturing about -six hundred prisoners and eight guns. The ground was sodden with rain, -and the Camerons lay out in the harvest fields taking cover behind the -standing sheaves of corn, while the German artillery rained out shells -on them, not even stopping when their own infantry advanced on the -British troops. "We got it very rough, and a man beside me--one of our -battalion--went out to help an officer who was badly wounded, but just -as he got up to the officer he dropped. Our fellows were falling all -round, and at about ten in the morning I got my dose. During the day the -fighting round where I was lying fell off a bit, but I had to lay on the -ground until dark, when another chap, who saw I couldn't move, came over -to make me a bed of straw and get me comfortable. But before he could -get my bed made a bullet got him through the spine, and he tumbled over -in a heap--stone dead. I was lucky to get out of it, for the Germans -were firing on our ambulance men. They had snipers lying among our -wounded, and that night, when stretcher bearers came out to carry in the -wounded officer, three of the bearers were shot. It was Wednesday -morning before I was picked up by a picket of the Coldstream Guards." - -At the beginning of the battle of the Aisne, the Camerons were brought -up to advance in skirmishing order under shell fire, when one man was -wounded by shell fire, and fell back behind a haystack. Some other -wounded also sought the shelter of the haystack, whereupon the Germans -immediately began to shell it, and the wounded men sought other shelter, -to fall in with a convoy of thirty German prisoners. Finally they found -the transport column, and were taken back to a hospital established in a -village in rear of the firing line--but this hospital was already full -up. No less than thirty-two shells were aimed directly at this hospital, -though it had a Red Cross flag flying over it all the time. This -hospital was cleared, and two hours after the patients had been removed -it was utterly destroyed by shell fire. - -Another account relates that the enemy occupied the positions on the -Aisne that they had taken up in 1870, and their guns were all placed in -concrete positions, carefully prepared against the event. After the -Camerons took up their position, the distance between the opposing -forces was about a thousand yards, with fairly open ground between, and -the regiment was ordered to attack the trenches held by the enemy. The -whole brigade advanced under heavy shell fire until within 250 yards of -the enemy's position--and then the man who tells of this incident was -struck down by shell fire and rendered unconscious, so that he did not -see the result of the advance. He knew, however, that it must have been -successful, since he was still behind the British line when he recovered -consciousness. - -It was later on, when the battle of the Aisne had taken on the nature of -a siege action, that the cave disaster occurred which caused the deaths -of over thirty officers and men of the regiment. Near the firing line -was a large, spacious cave, which was used partly as a collecting base -for the wounded, and partly as the regimental headquarters; and on the -25th of September, while the German artillery was shelling the British -positions, the roof of the cave was struck by one of the big German -shells, with the result that it fell in, burying thirty-five officers -and men. The cave was some 300 yards behind the firing line, so that the -incident went unobserved for some time--though it is doubtful if -anything could have been done even had prompt action been taken, since -the fall of rock and earth was so heavy that most of the men in the cave -must have been killed instantaneously. Four of the occupants, however, -were able to shout for help, being pinned down by masses of rock at the -back of the cave when the roof fell in; and, nearly two hours after the -accident, other men of the regiment heard the shouts of those -imprisoned, and set to the work of rescue. Three men had been liberated, -and while the rescuers were at work getting out the fourth man another -shell landed in the same spot, covered in the pinned man, and blew his -would-be rescuer to pieces. But this wounded man, though buried anew, -was still alive, though he lost consciousness after two hours. An -officer and three men of the Scots Guards finally dug him out, after he -had been buried for about six hours, and he was sent away to hospital -and recovery. - -The Camerons came, with the greater part of the British force in France, -to the fighting in the north-west which foiled the German attack on -Calais, and from this part of the battle line one account has come -through. "We were fairly giving it to the Germans," says a wounded man -from this quarter. "In the morning we started advancing in single line -by sections at three paces interval across open fields at the double, -and the shells were landing all round us as fast as the enemy could fire -them, but we managed to get into our positions. We had a bad time of it -there, but we managed to put a stop to the German advance, and then we -took up another position, and held it. When the enemy were within about -eighty yards of us the officer in charge of the company gave the order -to fix bayonets, and we charged, at which the Germans ran away. We -opened fire on them, and at about two o'clock on that day I was wounded. -I was lying in a hollow of the ground which we had just cleared, and I -had to lie there for hours until the enemy were driven back by a British -regiment. Shortly after I was wounded the Germans gained the crest of a -hill, and one of the Scots Guards lying there wounded put up his hands -for them not to shoot, but one of them came to within two yards of him -and shot him through the stomach, and he rolled over again and died -about two hours afterwards." - -Against this cold-blooded savagery must be set the account given by an -officer of the 1st battalion of the Camerons, who states that he was -shot through the leg just before the enemy charged in great numbers and -drove the British out of their trenches. One of the men tried to get the -officer along in the retirement, but could not do so, and he was made a -prisoner. "They banged me about a bit at first, and tied my hands behind -my back, and tried to get me to walk, but of course I could not. At last -one splendid German came forward and took me off to their own wounded in -a farmhouse. He stayed by me the whole time, and was most wonderfully -good to me. They dressed my wound and got me some water, and did what -they could for me. Next day, at two in the afternoon, my company charged -back at the house and drove the enemy back, rescuing me and the one or -two other wounded prisoners in the house." - -Another officer writes, concerning the time on the Aisne: "The way the -Germans treat property is disgusting. While passing through a village -not long ago the greater part of the furniture of all the houses had -been dragged out and broken up, all the crockery smashed, all the -bedding dragged out into the open street, and there left to be soaked by -the rain. It is awful to see the poor peasants wandering about, homeless -and starving. - -"Everywhere is the fearful smell of dead horses. It seems to saturate -the atmosphere, and one marches through miles of it." - -Carrion and ruin! And "one splendid German," who stands out from among -his fellows because he exercised the simple instincts of humanity! -Surely in this one incident is as great accusation against the German -race as in the other and worse accounts. - -Meanwhile the Camerons fight on, with the courage that their regiment -has shown from the time of Abercrombie's campaign in Egypt unto this -day. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE ARGYLL AND SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDERS - - -The threat against Britain by the French Republic in 1794 led to the -raising of the 1st battalion of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, -the battalion having been formed in that year by the then Duke of -Argyll, under the title of the 91st Regiment of Foot. The present 2nd -battalion was raised by the Earl of Sutherland six years later, and -numbered the "93rd Foot." These two battalions were united under their -present title in 1881. - -Active service was first seen by the 2nd battalion at the Cape, where -its men played a prominent part in the defeat of the Dutch army of -5,000 men engaged in the defence of Capetown. The turn of the 1st -battalion came during the Peninsular campaign, when the Argylls formed -the rearguard at Corunna and were seven times engaged with the enemy. -Later, they joined Wellington in Spain, and were conspicuously engaged -at the Nivelle, at the crossing of the Nive, and on to the siege of -Toulouse. The 2nd battalion formed part of the force that courted -disaster at New Orleans in 1814, and no less than 520 officers and men -fell in that fatal attack--futile as fatal. - -Missing Waterloo, the regiment next won distinction in the Kaffir wars -at the Cape, where it underwent five years of active service. There were -"91st" men on the _Birkenhead_ in 1852, and though the name of the -ill-fated vessel is not borne on the colours of any regiment it might -well be inscribed on those of the Argylls. Their next active service -was in the Crimean campaign, where the 2nd battalion formed part of Sir -Colin Campbell's Highland Brigade, and took the heights beyond the Alma -under as destructive fire as a British regiment has ever faced. At -Balaclava the Highlanders were in deadly peril, but their coolness saved -them for work in the trenches before Sevastopol, and for a share in the -final assault. - -Still under Sir Colin Campbell, their chief in the Crimea, the -Highlanders took part in the suppression of the Mutiny, and marched to -the relief of Lucknow, avenging the tragedy of Cawnpur at the action of -Secundra Bagh, where with the loyal Sikhs they piled up a heap of 2,000 -dead sepoys. On the same day the regiment took a hand in the capture of -the Shah Nujjif, a strong building that was taken by desperate -hand-to-hand fighting. From the top of the building the regimental -colour of the Highlanders, waving, announced to the sorely pressed -Lucknow garrison that relief was approaching--and the rest of the story -of the relief is an oft-told one. - -Zululand and frontier work in India next claimed the attention of the -regiment, and then in 1899 the 1st battalion sailed for South Africa, to -join Lord Methuen's force and take part in the battle of the Modder -River, at which the Argyll and Sutherland men lost heavily. Joining -General Wauchope's Highland Brigade, the battalion marched on to -Magersfontein, where the commanding officer was among the killed. With -the rest of the brigade the Argylls moved on to Paardeberg and the -capture of Cronje and his force; and from that time onward to the end of -the war the record of the battalion is one continuous story of marching, -fighting, and the general work of the campaign, up to the time of the -signing of peace at Vereeniging. The total of marching accomplished by -the battalion during the course of the war was not less than 3,500 -miles. Seven Victoria Crosses had been won by members of the regiment up -to 1902. - -The deeds of the regiment are rather scantily told by its men in France. -The personal accounts begin with an appreciation of the bravery of the -Hon. R. Bruce, Master of Burleigh, in the retreat from Mons. "He was too -brave for anything," says a private who saw him at that time. "He simply -wanted to be at 'em, and at 'em he went. I don't know where his sword -was, but he hadn't it when I saw him--he had a rifle with the bayonet -fixed, just like the rest of us. I saw him at the time he was wounded, -and he just fought on gamely till he and his party of brave fellows were -cut off and surrounded." - -The next account concerns the battle of Soissons, on the Aisne--a place -variously pronounced by the troops, many of whom gave it the name of -"Scissors," as being a near thing to the real method of pronunciation. -"For about a week," says the narrator, "it rained night and day. You may -imagine us marching all day, from daylight in the morning till dark at -night, and then having to lie down in a field on the wet ground--nothing -to cover ourselves with and nothing underneath us--and living on -biscuits and corned beef. I feel sorry for the poor French people, and -you may be thankful you are living in England. We passed through village -after village on the march, and there was not a living soul in the -houses; doors and windows were smashed open, and everything was broken -in the way of furniture and fittings. We passed one house where the two -women who lived in it had just returned after the Germans had passed. As -we went by they gave us a drink of water--it was the only thing the -Germans had left them." - -Another man of the regiment, speaking of the earlier engagements, -remarks--"You would think you were in hell." He tells of the adventures -of Lieutenant Campbell of the Argyll and Sutherlands, who went out with -eleven men to reconnoitre in the early days of the campaign. As none of -the dozen returned, and careful searches failed to reveal any traces of -the party, they were given up as captured. To the surprise of their -comrades, however, they all turned up safe and sound some eleven days -later. It seemed that the party had unwittingly penetrated through the -German lines, and, managing to escape notice, had eventually found their -way out again. This story is supplemented by one which tells of a trick -played by the French during the German retreat from Paris. The Argylls -were located about thirty miles away from Paris, and in rear of them a -large body of the enemy were encamped in a wood. During the night, -according to this account, the French crept up to the wood without being -observed by the German sentries, and placed bundles of straw among the -trees, setting fire to the straw before they retired. The timber in the -wood was very dry, and the trees caught fire, causing a fierce blaze in -the course of a few minutes. The enemy were thrown into confusion, which -was completed by the artillery fire searching the wood and making rout -of the German retreat. - -There is one letter concerning the doings of the Argyll and Sutherland -men which is worthy of quotation, and calls for some question. The -writer says: "We have distinguished ourselves a good many times since we -commenced operations here, and we have lost heavily, an occurrence much -to our sorrow. It is not my place to speak of the honour that has been -conferred upon us as a Scottish regiment for our bravery, and at one -time we saved the British Army from defeat. We are fortunate to have any -one left to relate the experience. The kindly eye of Providence has -overlooked me, and I am thankful. I don't know yet how I escaped. Once I -was lying in a line of sixteen men, eight of whom were killed or -severely wounded by the shell fire of the enemy." - -This letter comes undated, with the place of origin suppressed. It is -curious, if the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders--either or both -battalions--"saved the British Army from defeat," that there should be -only this one account of the affair--which must have been tremendous. -British soldiers, as a rule, are very quick to acknowledge the bravery -of their comrades, and it is strange that no man of any other regiment -has yet recognised that the whole of the British Army has been saved -from defeat by this one regiment--or possibly by one battalion of this -regiment. On the whole, one is tempted to regard the letter as a hoax, -though its solemn tone would go far to dispel that idea. - -One other letter there is, worthy in a different sense of full -quotation, for it tells of individual bravery and resourcefulness on the -part of a member of the regiment. "We had worked our way up to within -eighty yards of the German trenches," says the writer, "and then got the -order to charge, which we did with effect. One fellow belonging to the -Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders made a lunge with his bayonet at an -opponent, and his intended victim promptly warded off the blow, but, -much to the German's astonishment, the canny Scot brought the butt end -of the rifle to the jaw like a flash, and, felling him like a bullock, -finished the job with the bayonet. It was the work of a moment, done -without hesitation, and is typical of the bravery and resource of the -Highlanders generally." - -These few records of the men of the regiment go to prove that the Argyll -and Sutherland men went down from Mons to the Aisne, fought at -Soissons--and that is all. Of their presence in Flanders there is no -evidence so far, and at the time of writing they may still be living the -life of cave-dwellers down where the old German front is still -maintained against the thinned Franco-British line, or they may be round -Arras, in those fierce struggles whence the wounded come back by the -hundred and many men come back no more. Not till the "fog of war" has -cleared utterly away will all their story be told, but we may rest -assured that the story will not be one of which the Argyll and -Sutherland Highlanders need be ashamed. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -THE HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY AND THE CAMERONIANS - - -The Highland Light Infantry--a title shortened in the Army to a -colloquial "H.L.I.," were originally known as "Macleod's Highlanders," -and were raised as the 73rd Foot in 1777, being embodied at Elgin in -April of 1778. Lord Macleod, after whom the regiment was named, was its -first commanding officer, and under his command the original members of -the 73rd went to Madras in 1780, their voyage lasting no less than -twelve months. The valour of the regiment in those early days of its -history may be judged from the fact that between the time of landing in -India and 1806, a matter of only twenty-six years, there were -emblazoned on the regimental colours no less than six names--those of -Carnatic, Sholingur, Mysore, Hindustan, Seringapatam, and Cape of Good -Hope. To these might well be added that of Perambaukum, for in that -first action in which the H.L.I. took part the flank companies were cut -to pieces in a truly heroic stand against irresistible odds. After the -formation of new flank companies came the principal battles of the -Carnatic, and in the attack on Cuddalore the H.L.I. lost half their -strength of officers and men, and won the grateful thanks of their -commander-in-chief. - -In 1786 the regiment became the "71st," and their next spell of active -service was in the Mysore campaign, where they took part in all the -principal engagements, including the storming of Bangalore and -Seringapatam. They went from India to the Cape, and thence formed part -of General Whitelock's expedition to Buenos Ayres, in which, through no -fault of the Highlanders, who captured the city, Britain definitely lost -a footing in South America--the result of the expedition led to -Whitelocke being court-martialled and dismissed from the service. For -their gallantry in the capture of Buenos Ayres the H.L.I. were specially -commended by Lieutenant-General Floyd on the occasion of the -presentation of new colours to the regiment. - -Their next exploits were in the first Peninsular campaign, through which -they came to Corunna. They were at Torres Vedras, at the fierce -encounter of Fuentes d'Onor, and they took a prominent part in the -battle of Vittoria, where they routed the enemy and lost their -commanding officer, who fell dying while leading his men in the attack. -Like Wolfe, the commanding officer of the H.L.I. had a last thought for -the defeat of the enemy, and died happy in the knowledge that the battle -was practically won. Near on four hundred of his men fell with him on -this field. - -No less than sixteen special medals were presented to men of the -Highland Light Infantry in the Peninsular campaigns for special personal -bravery, and then at Waterloo they shared in the last attack on -Napoleon's Imperial Guard, with which the day ended. Earlier in the day -the Highland Light Infantry formed the square in which the Duke of -Wellington had his place at the time the French cavalry charged. - -The regiment took part in the Crimean campaign, serving in the trenches -before Sevastopol, and in the expedition to Yenikale. In the Central -Indian Campaign of 1858 the H.L.I. were heavily engaged, and at the -Morar Cantonments engagement the first Victoria Cross of the regiment -was won. - -The history of the 2nd battalion of the regiment--the old 74th, is very -similar to that of the 1st battalion, including as it does the storming -of Seringapatam, the principal engagements of the Peninsular campaign, -and--here the history diverges--the sinking of the _Birkenhead_ off the -Cape. The two battalions were first definitely named "Highland Light -Infantry" in place of their old-time numbers in 1881, when the -Territorial system came into being as regards the Regular Army. - -The 2nd battalion of the regiment took part in the Egyptian campaign of -1882, and won a Victoria Cross at Tel-el-Kebir. In the Malakand Campaign -of 1897 and again in Crete in 1898, the regiment saw active service, and -in the South African War the 1st battalion went through the action of -Modder River and on to Magersfontein, where another Victoria Cross was -won by Corporal Shaul of the regiment. Together with the rest of the -Highland Brigade, the H.L.I. were "in" at the capture of Cronje at -Paardeberg, and at the capture of Prinsloo they played an important -part. No less than eighty-one officers and men were left behind by the -regiment at the close of the South African campaign. - -Four Victoria Crosses are reckoned to the credit of the regiment, but to -these must be added the sixteen special medals for gallantry won by the -H.L.I. in the Peninsular War, before ever such a thing as a Victoria -Cross was instituted. Of medals for distinguished conduct, there are -many in the H.L.I. - -Personal accounts of the fighting in which the regiment has been engaged -in France are few, up to the present time. A definite account has been -received of the death of Lieutenant Sir Archibald Gibson Craig. It is -stated that the lieutenant had told his servant some time previously -that, in case of his death on the field, the servant was to take charge -of all his personal belongings; and at a place not named--or a place of -which the name has been excised--he was in charge of a party of sixteen -men, who were proceeding to a rather steep hill, when they came in -contact with a large number of the enemy, estimated by the Highlanders -at between 300 and 400. The men had not been aware that they were so -near the Germans, but when the lieutenant saw the position in which they -were placed he drew his sword and shouted, "Charge, men! At them!" His -men fired at the German force, and then charged with fixed bayonets, at -which the enemy thought the British party was far stronger than it was -in reality, for they began to retreat. The Highlanders, however, had to -retire, since two of their number were killed and three wounded, which -left a dangerously small force of effectives. They retired in good -order, carrying their dead and wounded, but Sir Archibald Craig was shot -through the mouth, and killed instantaneously. - -This is the most circumstantial account that has come to hand regarding -the work of the regiment, so far. Another story of a wounded man states -that during the fighting on the Aisne, in the village of Vera Neuil, he -received two pieces of shrapnel in the chest. "We were not safe -anywhere, not even in the hospital, as the Germans shelled that too. I -was wounded on Tuesday, September 15, when I was eating a biscuit at the -time I was shot." - -An officer of the H.L.I. gives an account of the way in which the -Germans are conducting their fighting. - -"An officer dressed as a French officer went up to some Coldstream -Guards and asked if Bulkley, the machine-gun officer, was in that -battalion. He then shot the officer he was talking to. Others dress up -as British staff officers, and drive about in motor cars, and when they -meet transports of convoys shout at them--'The Germans are advancing on -you from just ahead,' which causes a stampede. That happened to us, for -a long column of transport was ahead of us as we were retiring, and all -of a sudden a supposed French officer came galloping down the road the -reverse way, shouting 'Les Allemands, les Uhlans!' All the transport was -thrown into confusion, and some of the waggons came back at a gallop. We -were just behind, but mercifully the road was broad. There was a little -confusion at first, but they rallied splendidly when I shouted to them, -and we all advanced up the road with fixed bayonets, to find absolutely -nothing. - -"The Germans actually dress themselves up in our men's great-coats to -disguise themselves, get close, and then shoot." - -These accounts demonstrate the presence of the Highland Light Infantry -on the great retreat, and also at the battle of the Aisne. From the -latter position they may have gone on to Flanders--the more likely -alternative--or they may have remained as part of the thin defensive -line left along the Aisne positions. - - * * * * * - -The present "Cameronians" were formed from the old-time "26th -Cameronians," from whom the regiment takes its title, and from the "90th -Perthshire Light Infantry," the first of which regiments fought for -religious liberty against the King's troops at Bothwell Bridge in old -days. Until the revolution which placed William of Orange on the throne -they stuck to their principles, and then in one day there was enrolled -from among them a regiment to support the cause of "Dutch William," a -regiment which, under the Earl of Angus, held Dunkeld against a force -four times their own strength. They fought at Landen, and lost their -colonel, the Earl of Angus, at Steinkerk; they shared in the capture of -Namur, and then in Marlborough's battles they so fought as to be able to -emblazon the names of Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, and Malplaquet on -the regimental colours. They shared in the defence of Gibraltar in 1727, -fought and endured through the American War of Independence, and served -under Sir John Moore at Corunna. Meanwhile the 2nd battalion, formed by -Thomas Graham (subsequently Lord Lynedoch), served under Sir Ralph -Abercrombie in driving out Napoleon's "Invincible Army" from Egypt, and -captured a French eagle at Guadeloupe. - -In the Chinese campaign of 1840 the Cameronians 1st battalion took a -share, being first to scale the walls of Amoy. The 2nd battalion saw -service against the Kaffirs of South Africa in 1846 and the following -year, and went on to the Crimean campaign, having among its officers a -certain Lieutenant Wolseley, who was destined for great things. - -In the Mutiny the 2nd battalion formed a part of Havelock's force at -Lucknow, and subsequently assisted in stamping out the last traces of -the great rebellion. The 1st battalion took the field in Abyssinia in -1868, and went on with Napier to Magdala. Another famous British officer -shared in the exploits of the 1st battalion in the person of Sir Evelyn -Wood, during the strenuous work of the Zulu campaign of 1878, when the -battalion fought from Inhlobane to Ulundi, where Cetewayo was -overthrown. - -The Cameronians shared in Buller's advance through Natal in the South -African War of 1899-1902, forming part of General Lyttleton's brigade at -Colenso, reinforcing the Lancashire Brigade in the action of Spion Kop, -sweeping the Boers off Vaalkrantz, and sharing in the furious charges at -Pieter's Hill--until the way to Ladysmith lay open. Through the fighting -for Laing's Nek, and in the guerilla warfare that lasted out the rest of -the campaign, the Cameronians played their part nobly. No less than -three South African campaigns are commemorated on the colours of the -regiment. - -Of their work in France, less personal accounts are to hand than -concerning the work of any other Scottish regiment. There is one -statement by a wounded man with regard to a German ruse of driving on -sheep in night attacks on the trenches. The sheep were heard moving in -the darkness in front of the trenches, and while the Cameronians opened -fire on them, the Germans tried to get round their flank--but two Maxim -guns drove them back with a loss of over 200 dead. The incident is -related with no reference to place or date. - -A non-commissioned officer of the regiment speaks of the secrecy of -movement that has to be maintained. None are made aware of probable -movements, destinations, or reasons for any plans, and commanding -officers are not informed of what is about to be done until it is -absolutely imperative that they should know. The reason for this lies in -the great number of German spies who are arrested in all kinds of -disguises, British and French uniforms, civilian clothes, chauffeurs' -uniforms, and all possible forms of dress. "The leakage of information -is astounding," says the writer, "and we quite appreciate the necessity -for secrecy in all our doings, and fully understand its wisdom, as we -have been saved from complete destruction more than once through this -secrecy." - -Even of things that took place months ago, however, there is no record -yet. Of how the Gordons were cut off, and of what the Cameronians have -done and where they did it, we know little or nothing--concerning all -things that individual units have accomplished there is scarcely more -record than the stories collected here, which make no pretence at giving -a full history of the doings of the Scottish regiments at the front, but -simply stand as detached records of the deeds of brave men. - -And as for the London Scottish and their bravery, that story belongs to -the record of Territorial regiments at the front, in which it will in -due course be told. - - -_Printed in Great Britain by Hazell, Watson & Viney, Ld., London and -Aylesbury._ - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE -FRONT*** - - -******* This file should be named 51523-8.txt or 51523-8.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/5/1/5/2/51523 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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If you are not -located in the United States, you'll have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this ebook.</p> -<p>Title: With the Scottish Regiments at the Front</p> -<p>Author: Evelyn Charles Vivian</p> -<p>Release Date: March 22, 2016 [eBook #51523]</p> -<p>Language: English</p> -<p>Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1</p> -<p>***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT***</p> -<p> </p> -<h4>E-text prepared by Brian Coe, Martin Pettit,<br /> - and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team<br /> - (<a href="http://www.pgdp.net">http://www.pgdp.net</a>)<br /> - from page images generously made available by<br /> - Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries<br /> - (<a href="https://archive.org/details/toronto">https://archive.org/details/toronto</a>)</h4> -<p> </p> -<table border="0" style="background-color: #ccccff;margin: 0 auto;" cellpadding="10"> - <tr> - <td valign="top"> - Note: - </td> - <td> - Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries. See - <a href="https://archive.org/details/withscottishregi00viviuoft"> - https://archive.org/details/withscottishregi00viviuoft</a> - </td> - </tr> -</table> -<p> </p> -<hr class="full" /> -<p> </p> -<p> </p> -<p> </p> - -<div class="center"><a name="cover.jpg" id="cover.jpg"></a><img src="images/cover.jpg" alt="cover" /></div> - -<hr /> - -<div class="center"><img src="images/i001.jpg" alt="front" /></div> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_i" id="Page_i">[Pg i]</a></span></p> - -<p class="bold2">The Daily Telegraph</p> - -<p class="bold2">WAR BOOKS</p> - -<p class="bold2 space-above">WITH THE<br /> -SCOTTISH REGIMENTS<br />AT THE FRONT</p> - -<p class="bold2 space-above">AT THE FRONT SERIES</p> - -<hr /> - -<div class="center"><img src="images/i002.jpg" alt="War Books" /></div> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_ii" id="Page_ii">[Pg ii]</a></span></p> - -<p class="bold2">The Daily Telegraph</p> - -<p class="bold2">WAR BOOKS</p> - - -<p class="center">Cloth 1/- net each</p> - -<p class="center">Post free 1/3 each</p> - -<p class="center"><b>HOW THE WAR BEGAN</b><br />By W. L. COURTNEY, LL.D., and J. M. KENNEDY</p> - -<p class="center"><b>THE FLEETS AT WAR</b><br />By ARCHIBALD HURD</p> - -<p class="center"><b>THE CAMPAIGN OF SEDAN</b><br />By GEORGE HOOPER</p> - -<p class="center"><b>THE CAMPAIGN ROUND LIÈGE</b><br />By J. M. KENNEDY</p> - -<p class="center"><b>IN THE FIRING LINE</b><br /> -Battle Stories told by British Soldiers at the Front<br />By A. ST. JOHN ADCOCK</p> - -<p class="center"><b>GREAT BATTLES OF THE WORLD</b><br /> -By STEPHEN CRANE<br />Author of "The Red Badge of Courage"</p> - -<p class="center"><b>BRITISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT</b><br /> -The glorious story of their Battle Honours</p> - -<p class="center"><b>THE RED CROSS IN WAR</b><br />By M. F. BILLINGTON</p> - -<p class="center"><b>FORTY YEARS AFTER</b><br /> -The Story of the Franco-German War. By H. C. BAILEY<br /> -With an introduction by W. L. COURTNEY, LL.D.</p> - -<p class="center"><b>A SCRAP OF PAPER</b><br /> -The Inner History of German Diplomacy<br />By E. J. DILLON</p> - -<p class="center"><b>HOW THE NATIONS WAGED WAR</b><br /> -A companion volume to "How the War Began," telling how the world faced<br /> -Armageddon and how the British Army answered the call to arms<br />By J. M. KENNEDY</p> - -<p class="center"><b>AIR-CRAFT IN WAR</b><br />By ERIC STUART BRUCE</p> - -<p class="center"><b>HACKING THROUGH BELGIUM</b><br />By EDMUND DANE</p> - -<p class="center"><b>FAMOUS FIGHTS OF INDIAN NATIVE REGIMENTS</b><br />By REGINALD HODDER</p> - -<p class="center"><b>THE RETREAT TO PARIS</b><br />By ROGER INGPEN</p> - -<p class="center"><b>THE RUSSIAN ADVANCE</b><br />By MARR MURRAY</p> - -<p class="center"><b>THE SUBMARINE IN WAR</b><br />By C. W. DOMVILLE-FIFE</p> - -<p class="center"><b>MOTOR TRANSPORTS IN WAR</b><br />By HORACE WYATT</p> - -<p class="center"><b>THE SLAV NATIONS</b></p> - -<hr /> - -<div class="center"><img src="images/titlepage.jpg" alt="title page" /></div> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_iii" id="Page_iii">[Pg iii]</a></span></p> - -<h1>WITH THE<br />SCOTTISH REGIMENTS<br />AT THE FRONT</h1> - -<p class="bold space-above"><i>By</i></p> - -<p class="bold2">E. CHARLES VIVIAN</p> - -<p class="bold">AUTHOR OF "PASSION FRUIT," "DIVIDED WAYS," ETC.</p> - -<p class="bold space-above">HODDER AND STOUGHTON<br /> -LONDON NEW YORK TORONTO<br />MCMXIV</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_iv" id="Page_iv">[Pg iv]</a></span></p> - -<p class="center"><i>Printed in Great Britain by Hazell, Watson & Viney, Ld.,<br /> -London and Aylesbury.</i></p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_v" id="Page_v">[Pg v]</a></span></p> - -<h2>CONTENTS</h2> - -<table summary="CONTENTS"> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER I</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td></td> - <td><span class="smaller">PAGE</span></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE GUARDS AND THE GREYS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_1">1</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER II</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE ROYAL SCOTS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_17">17</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER III</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE ROYAL SCOTS FUSILIERS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_36">36</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER IV</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE KING'S OWN SCOTTISH BORDERERS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_48">48</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER V</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE BLACK WATCH</td> - <td><a href="#Page_73">73</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER VI</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_93">93</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center"><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_vi" id="Page_vi">[Pg vi]</a></span>CHAPTER VII</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE SEAFORTH HIGHLANDERS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_114">114</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER VIII</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE CAMERON HIGHLANDERS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_138">138</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER IX</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE ARGYLL AND SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDERS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_157">157</a></td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2"> </td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td colspan="2" class="center">CHAPTER X</td> - </tr> - <tr> - <td class="left">THE HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY AND THE CAMERONIANS</td> - <td><a href="#Page_169">169</a></td> - </tr> -</table> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_1" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER I</span> <span class="smaller">THE GUARDS AND THE GREYS</span></h2> - -<p>If one should ask any man, of any regiment of the British Army, what was -the quality of the regiment to which he belonged, the answer would be to -the effect that his was the best regiment in the service, without any -exception. If any other answer should be returned to such a query, it -might be assumed that there was something wrong with that particular -man; he ought not to be a soldier, for every soldier worthy of the name -firmly believes that his regiment is the best.</p> - -<p>The Scottish regiments are not exempt from this belief, and surely, -judging by their regimental histories, they have good cause. Certain -peculiar honours are theirs,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_2" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</a></span> too: they form the only kilted force of -regular troops in the world, for one thing; and for another thing the -oldest regiment of the British Army is Scottish—for the Royal Scots, -with definite history dating back to 1625, lay claim to direct descent -from the Scottish archers who were kept for centuries as guards for -French kings. Putting legend and tradition aside, it is certain and -beyond dispute that John Hepburn led the Royal Scots under Gustavus -Adolphus, the great Swedish champion of liberty, as early as 1625; and -in 1633, with eight years of hard work on Continental battlefields to -season their ranks, the Royal Scots were definitely and officially -included in the British Army, seeing service under Marlborough at -Blenheim, Ramillies, Malplaquet, and Oudenarde. There is a story of -Blenheim to the effect that the Commander-in-chief of the French Army, -taken prisoner by Marlborough, congratulated<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_3" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</a></span> the latter on having -overcome "the best troops in the world." The Duke caustically requested -him to "Except those troops by whom you have been conquered." Prominent -among these were the Royal Scots.</p> - -<p>But, although senior in point of age, the Royal Scots is not "the right -of the line" in the British Army. This proud distinction is held by the -Royal Horse Artillery, which probably numbers as many Scotsmen in its -ranks as men of any other nationality. The Artillery, however, knows no -nationalities in its nomenclature. One is first a gunner, and then -either English, Scotch, Welsh, or Irish—the guns count before -territorial distinctions. Next to the R.H.A., if ever the line of the -whole Army were formed, would come the Brigade of Guards, and here the -Scots Guards find a place, very near the right of the line, when the -length of that line is considered.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_4" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</a></span></p><p>It is possible, to a certain extent, to trace the history of each unit -of the Army, as far as the present European war is concerned, by means -of the letters sent home by the men of each unit. Such histories are -necessarily brief and scrappy, but they afford some idea of what the -various regiments are doing on the field; and the object of this book -is, to some extent, to show how each Scottish regiment has contributed -to the glory of Scotland and the fame of the British Army since August -of 1914. Some reference to the earlier exploits of Scots on other fields -may perhaps be pardoned, for there are some stories—like that already -quoted regarding the Duke of Marlborough—that never grow old.</p> - -<p>Of the Scots Guards, few records have as yet come to hand, beyond those -that are common knowledge. The regiment has nearly three hundred years -of history, having been raised as the "Scots <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_5" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</a></span>Fusilier Guards" in 1641. -Nineteen years later they became the "Scots Guards," and in the closing -years of the seventeenth century they fought in Flanders, subsequently -serving with distinction under the Duke of Marlborough. From "Dettingen" -through the Napoleonic and Crimean wars up to "Modder River" the battle -honours on their colours range, for like the great majority of British -regiments they had their share of South Africa in the last campaign -there.</p> - -<p>Personal records of their deeds in the early stages of this present war -are scarce, but certain it is that there were Scots Guards at the battle -of the Marne, although the official dispatches are chary of mentioning -the names of regiments engaged in definite actions or at definite -points. For, previously to the battle of the Marne, there was a -Guardsman of Kilmarnock of whom a story is told. He was on duty with a -comrade when<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_6" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</a></span> two mounted men approached, and on challenging the riders -the Scots found that one of them was a Uhlan—who made off with all -speed. The Kilmarnock man advanced on the other rider, whom his comrade -had covered with his rifle, but the horseman made a motion with his left -hand toward his revolver. Thereupon the Kilmarnock man, being tall and -powerfully built, struck out with his fist and knocked the man from his -saddle, ascertaining subsequently that he was a German scout officer, -and that he carried a diary which gave particulars of the movements of -the brigade to which the Scots Guards were attached, from the time of -its leaving Havre almost up to the time of the officer's capture. There -were in the diary frequent allusions to "those hellish British"—which -comment speaks for itself.</p> - -<p>Later, along the position of the Aisne, the first battalion of the -Guards were<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_7" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</a></span> busy. On a certain Sunday afternoon the Guards and the -Black Watch were in the thick of the fighting, and that night they were -ordered to the trenches—and the Germans had the position of the -trenches ranged to a nicety, so that they were able to drop shells with -wicked precision all night. Next morning the German infantry retreated -for a matter of a mile, uphill, and there waited for the inevitable -advance of the Guards and the Black Watch. The retreat was a trap, for -on the advance the two British battalions were subject to shell as well -as rifle fire, and out of one section of fourteen men only one was left. -This one, a corporal, was badly cut about the face, and had one knee -severely damaged, but with a field dressing tied round his leg he -remained in the firing line all day, going over to the Black Watch, -since he had drifted too far away from his own battalion to rejoin it at -once. "I had<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_8" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</a></span> to stick it in the field all day," he says, "and the -fighting was awful. The Germans had all their big guns firing at us, and -we could not get our own guns up to fire back at them. I never expected -to get out of it alive. Well, after lying half the night wet in the -open, among the dead Germans and our own dead, I got strength enough to -crawl back, and managed to find a hospital about twelve o'clock at -night, nearly dead. I never got any sleep that night, but guess what the -Germans did in the morning! They blew the hospital up in the air. I -happened to be near the door, so I got away all right; but I got another -bit in the back that flattened me out for awhile. I missed all the -ambulances through this. The next carts that came along were the -ammunition ones. The driver helped me on to the back of one, but I had -hardly enough strength to hang on. The Germans shelled all these carts -for miles, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_9" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</a></span> the horses of the one I was on got hit with a shell, and -I had not the strength to climb on to another one. The drivers were -hurrying away for their lives, so I had to scramble along for two miles -on my own to a big barn, which they called a field hospital."</p> - -<p>And there the record ends. It makes a scrap of history of the Guards, -though when the regimental histories of this war come to be written it -will be found that such stories as these are only scraps of the whole, -for the battles of the Aisne and of the coast do not mark the end.</p> - -<p>With regard to the Scots Greys, their work in the early days is well -known now, for from Mons down through the three weeks of the great -retreat they upheld the honour of Scotland so well that on the 8th of -September Sir John French addressed the regiment in words that officers -and men alike will remember. He came on them while they were resting,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_10" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</a></span> -and these were his words, as given by a man of the regiment:</p> - -<p>"I am very sorry to disturb you from your sleep, Greys, but I feel I -must say a few words to you. I have been watching your work very -closely, and it has been magnificent. Your country is proud of you, and -I thank you from the bottom of my heart. It is not the first time I have -had the pleasure of thanking you, and I hope it will not be the last. -There are no soldiers in the world that could have done what you have -done."</p> - -<p>This, it must be pointed out, is as it is told by a soldier of the -regiment; it is worth while to make the contrast between it and a letter -said to be from a man of the Greys to his wife, in which he says:</p> - -<p>"I was in the retreat from Mons. We were told to go out and draw the -enemy, and before going all our officers and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_11" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</a></span> generals said, 'Good-bye,' -so you can bet we felt all right."</p> - -<p>"A couple of chaps in my troop went through the South African war, but -after the Mons fighting said the medals they got in Africa were not -worth the keeping. They saw more shot and shell in one day here than -they saw in three years in South Africa.</p> - -<p>"The inhabitants go fairly mad when they see us, as they know they will -be cared for by us."</p> - -<p>The writer of that letter <i>may</i> have heard a German shell in the -air—and he may not. Queries rise in one's mind as to whom the "officers -and generals" said good-bye to, and also a query rises as to how many -generals the Scots Greys have in their ranks—these points come up -automatically. It is not the custom in the British Army, after the order -for an advance has been given, to give time even for the "officers and -generals" of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_12" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</a></span> a regiment to wander round with last messages; and, if -ever the Greys played this game in the fighting in France, there can be -little doubt that the inhabitants of the country went "fairly mad" over -the regiment. The letter looks like a fraud, but it is typical of some -that are finding their way into print nearly every day.</p> - -<p>Circumstantial and bearing the impress of truth is the account of the -doings of the regiment given by one Private Ward, who came home wounded -from the Aisne. He tells, all too briefly, how from the second day after -landing in France the regiment was continually in action. The work for -the most part, however, was in the nature of a grand artillery duel, and -the Greys were mainly employed in scouting, with an occasional charge -"thrown in." In the battle of the Aisne the Greys supported the King's -Own Scottish Borderers and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_13" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</a></span> the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in the -crossing of the river; and, after the infantry had all crossed, the -Greys went in single file, with sixteen feet between man and man, over a -pontoon bridge that was under shell fire from the German guns, placed on -the heights in front. Many of the horses were killed, and Ward himself -was struck in the leg with a piece of shell, causing so severe a flesh -wound that he had to be taken to the field ambulance, and thence home. -And thus the story of the Greys ends, so far as this record is -concerned.</p> - -<p>It is a regiment of great traditions, as British cavalry regiments go. -Alone among the cavalry the Greys wear the bearskin in place of the -metal helmet in parade dress, and they are nearly as old as the Scots -Guards, having been raised as a regiment in 1678, and forming the oldest -regiment of Dragoons in the service. Originally they were known as<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_14" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</a></span> the -"Royal Regiment of Scots Dragoons," a title that was subsequently -changed to "Grey Dragoons," from which their present title of "Scots -Greys" was evolved. Unto this day the sergeants of the regiment wear the -badge above their chevrons that commemorates the taking of the French -eagle of the famous Régiment du Roi; and at Waterloo they charged with -the Gordons clinging to their stirrup leathers, while cavalrymen and -Gordons alike yelled—"Scotland for ever!" To Napoleon they were known -as "<i>ces terribles chevaux gris</i>," and out of the charge of the Heavy -Brigade in the Crimea they brought back two Victoria Crosses.</p> - -<p>No record of the doings of Scottish regiments in this present war can be -compiled without mention of the Scots Guards and the Greys, but their -history properly belongs to that of the Guards Brigade and of the -cavalry respectively<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_15" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</a></span>—and in these two counts they must be reckoned for -a full recital of their doings. The foregoing mere incidents will serve -as compromise, lest it should be thought that the two regiments had been -overlooked. As for the Royal Artillery, it knows no more of territorial -distinctions, as already mentioned, than it does of battle honours—for -every battle in which a British Army has fought might be inscribed on -the colours of the gunners, if they had colours. It is probable that, -when the relative populations of the four nationalities are taken into -account, Scotsmen will be found to preponderate in the R.A., for the -Scot is always a little mechanically inclined, and the working of the -guns needs most mechanical knowledge of any of the three arms.</p> - -<p>Of infantry of the line, there are ten definitely Scottish regiments, -and an effort will be made to trace their histories in the great -European campaign<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_16" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</a></span>—or rather, in the first days of that campaign, as -far as personal narratives will admit. Blanks and gaps there must be, -but the stories that officers and men have to tell will, when collated -and set down in some sort of order, enable us to conceive of the nature -of the work in which Scots are well maintaining the honour of their regiments.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_17" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER II</span> <span class="smaller">THE ROYAL SCOTS</span></h2> - -<p>One of the titles bestowed on the Royal Scots, that of "Pontius Pilate's -Bodyguard," marks the claim of the regiment to antiquity. Under -Marlborough, in the French war in America, at Corunna, through the -Peninsular war with Wellington, at Quatre Bras and Waterloo, in India, -the Crimea, and in China, have the battalions of the Royal Scots upheld -the honour of the British Army; and it stands to their credit that in -the South African campaign, in which they were engaged practically from -start to finish, there was not a single case of surrender of a party of -the Royal Scots.</p> - -<p>The history of the regiment in the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_18" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</a></span> present war begins at Landrecies and -Mons, and it is worthy of note that the first story of a man of the -regiment that comes to hand concerns the bravery of men of other units. -The man in question was twice wounded himself before being invalided -home; but, declining to talk about himself, he remarked that for real -British pluck he had never seen anything to equal that of the Middlesex -regiment. He saw them digging trenches near Mons when a mass of Germans, -who seemed to come from nowhere, came down on them. He conjectured that -the Germans had been apprised of the position of the Middlesex men by an -air scout, and he saw how the Germans came on the Middlesex, who were -totally unprepared in the matter of equipment, and had to face fixed -bayonets with no apparent means of reprisal. But the sergeant of a -company set the fashion by the use of his fists, and "downed"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_19" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</a></span> two of -the attacking Germans; the whole of the company followed suit, but they -were badly cut about by the Germans, and the sergeant was bayoneted. -Near by were the Connaughts, who, after six guns had been taken by the -Germans, charged down on the enemy and took back the guns, with the aid -of artillery fire. But, regarding the doings of the Royal Scots at the -time, the man of the regiment who tells this story has never a word to -say.</p> - -<p>A corporal of the 1st Royal Scots tells how Lieutenant Geoffrey Lambton, -nephew of the Earl of Durham, died. It happened in the third rearguard -action after Mons that the lieutenant was in charge of his men in a -wood, and was directing fire from a mound. Before and beneath the Scots -the Germans were in strong force, and were preparing to attack, when -Lambton gave the order to fire, and, picking up a rifle himself, set -the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_20" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</a></span> example to his men. Fatally wounded by a German bullet, he knew -that he had not long to live, so handed over to the corporal his -pocket-book, note-book and sketch-book, to take back to his people.</p> - -<p>Another corporal of the regiment testifies to the spirit of its men at -Landrecies, where in company with about fifty others he was cut off from -the main body, and engaged in desperate street fighting. The party -joined up with the Grenadier Guards, and in the streets of Landrecies -German officers called on them to surrender, but the officers answered -that "British never surrender—fix bayonets and charge!" So well did -they charge that the streets were piled with German dead. The Royal -Scots were heavily engaged at Landrecies, and accounted for a great -number of the enemy there.</p> - -<p>Graphically is the story of the retreat told by one Private Stewart, who -was invalided home after the battle of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_21" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</a></span> Marne. "After Mons," he -says, "the hardships of fighting on the retreat began. We had little -time for sleep; both day and night we retreated, and as they marched the -men slept. If a man in front of you happened to stop, you found yourself -bumping into him. I didn't have my clothes off for six weeks, and my kit -and overcoat have been left on the field. At one place where we halted -for the day the lady of the farmhouse was washing, so some of us took -off our shirts to have them washed. While they were hanging up to dry -the order came that the troops had to move on, and the wet garments had -to be put on just as they were. Mine was dry next morning. Two of my -mates were killed in the trenches by one shell, which burst close to -them. We were not deeply entrenched, and the German artillery fire was -so heavy that we had to lie on our sides like pitmen and dig<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_22" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</a></span> ourselves -in deeper. We had a chance to look up occasionally when our guns -replied. Another time the Royal Scots were having a meal by the -roadside, when we got orders that we must be finished in five minutes. -In less than that time the Germans opened fire, but fortunately the side -of the road was an embankment, and so formed a natural trench. We lay -there during the rest of the day and the greater part of the night, -keeping off the attack by constant fire. My company captured about forty -German cyclists, who offered no resistance—this was after the Marne, -when the Germans retired. The British had been blazing away for some -time at what appeared to be the helmets of the men in the trenches, when -an officer saw that the helmets were not moving. He gave the order to -advance, and when we got up we found that the Germans were retiring, and -had left their helmets as<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_23" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</a></span> a blind. Many prisoners were taken that day."</p> - -<p>Brief as an official report is this story, and as pithy, giving as it -does an outline of the work in which the Royal Scots have been engaged -from the time of Landrecies onwards. For it is not what is actually -written that counts in such a sincere piece of writing as this, but the -facts that appear between the lines. The brief reference to the -hardships of the retreat, the queer washing day, and the interrupted -meal, are chapters of war in themselves, reported with a brevity and -conciseness which stamp the document as authentic.</p> - -<p>Another man of the regiment was in the first of the fighting at -Landrecies, and went on to the positions of the Marne and the Aisne, -returning wounded from the latter, with four splinters of shrapnel in -his back, one in his ribs, and a bullet wound in his head—surely<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_24" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</a></span> -enough to send any man back from the firing line. At Landrecies he and -his fellows encountered a looting party of Germans, who carried large -quantities of jewellery, clothing, and other articles: practically every -account of the first of the fighting tells of German attention to -details of this kind.</p> - -<p>At the position of the Aisne, the Royal Scots had a stiff struggle in -the holding of a pontoon bridge, and the man who tells this story was -wounded there during a rain of shell fire to which his battalion was -subjected. After he was hit, he lay unconscious for seven hours, and in -order to escape after regaining his senses he had to propel himself, -feet first, along a sort of furrow or ditch. It was a weary business, -and, exposing himself momentarily, he was hit again on the head by a -bullet, though the lead failed to penetrate to any depth; and during his -journey he was for a time between the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_25" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</a></span> fire of Germans and British. He -came on a German trench full of dead men, and was struck by the -elaborate arrangement of the trench, for there were tables and chairs, -and a quantity of champagne bottles, both full and empty—the trench was -well stocked with wine.</p> - -<p>Previously to being wounded, this man made one of a party that captured -a number of Germans, one of whom spoke English well, and told his -captors that he had a wife and five children in Glasgow, and that the -only way to get back to them was to court capture. This German had been -in employment in Glasgow, and was called up <i>five months</i> before the war -broke out—a significant fact when it is remembered how German statesmen -are still insisting that Britain made the war.</p> - -<p>A man of the Royal Scots has told how Captain Price of the regiment -died. While in the trenches, and under a hot<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_26" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</a></span> fire, Captain Price ran -forward to help a corporal who had been shot in the arm, and in kindly -fashion the captain was preventing the corporal from seeing his -wound—shielding the injured arm while it was being dressed. While so -engaged Captain Price was struck in the head by a piece of shrapnel, and -he died while being carried to the field hospital. On the testimony of -the men of the regiment, a braver or kindlier officer than Captain C. L. -Price, D.S.O., has never worn uniform.</p> - -<p>With regard to the work of the regiment in the trenches of the Aisne, -and the enemy they have had to face, one man of the regiment speaks. -"The Germans are good range finders with their big guns," he says, "and -their fire is very effective—but you could get boys to give them points -with the rifle. One thing has made an impression on me, and that is that -the enemy has no respect<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_27" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</a></span> whatever for the Red Cross. Our men were -proceeding along a road, when they came on a Red Cross waggon lying on -its side, with several Red Cross men lying dead beside it. There was one -brave incident I witnessed, and although I do not know the name of the -fellow who showed such pluck, I know he belonged to the Royal Scots. I -saw him carry one of his comrades across a field for about three hundred -yards, though the fire from the German ranks was simply awful at the -time."</p> - -<p>Here, again, is an instance of the way in which the men tell of each -other's deeds but make no mention of their own. The French soldier, as a -rule, knows when he has done a brave action, and talks about it—the -quality does not make him less brave, but it is one that is inconsistent -with British character. The average British soldier is usually quite -unconscious that he has done anything worthy<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_28" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</a></span> of note, and, even if he -knows the value of what he has done, he is very shy of speaking about -it, and usually prefers to talk about the things somebody else has -accomplished.</p> - -<p>A certain Private Kemp, invalided home to Berwick, testifies to the way -in which tobacco and cigarettes have come to be regarded by the men in -the firing line. He tells how, when out scouting, he was captured by -three Uhlans, who took away his arms and equipment, and were just about -to take him away as a prisoner when a shot was fired, and the Uhlans -took to their heels. Kemp, wounded in the leg, fell, and after lying for -an hour and a half, he was picked up by advancing British troops. "One -great hardship," he says, "was the lack of tobacco all the time. I and -many of my comrades have been reduced to smoking dried tea-leaves -wrapped in old newspaper.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_29" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</a></span> A real smoke would have been a blessing."</p> - -<p>One officer of the regiment, wounded while out in front of the trenches -studying the position of the enemy with field-glasses, was carried back -into shelter, and laid in the trench until the field ambulance should -come to remove him to the rear. "He lay there smoking cigarettes," says -one of the men, "and shouting—'Good old Royal Scots—well done!' -whenever anything came off." And in this and incidents like it lies the -spirit that makes the Royal Scots what they are—it is the spirit of men -who do not know when they are beaten, who will never admit defeat. It is -the spirit that Findlater showed at Dargai.</p> - -<p>Yet another private of the regiment, writing with no address and no date -to his letter, says: "In the last scrap I was in we had a terrible time -one way and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_30" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</a></span> another. After marching from the Sunday to the Tuesday -night, we got anchored near a farm, and the next morning, just when -breakfast was ready, we had to leave it lying and get stuck into our -trenches, as the Germans had come on us. We could see them moving up on -our front, and our artillery were not long in getting their range and -sending them out of it. Our big guns were going finely until the -afternoon, when they seemed to stop all at once, compared with the guns -the Germans had brought up. They started to shell a village behind us -with their siege guns, and they just blew holes in it. We had a church -for a hospital, and that went up too—but that is their usual dirty -game. They have no respect for a Red Cross waggon, and, as far as I can -see, they seem to take them for targets. We had to retire after being -shelled for about eight hours, and we lost a good few men, but had the -consolation of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_31" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</a></span> knowing that, as usual, the enemy had lost a good many -more. We are having a rest now, and have not seen the battalion for two -weeks. It is a very sad sight to see the people here going about -homeless; most of them are of the poorer class, and it must be an awful -time for them."</p> - -<p>Writing later, the same man says: "We have come through four days' hard -fighting, and have been relieved—we drove the Germans out of all their -positions. At one place the French were trying to shift the enemy, so -our lot were brought up to assist; and although we lost a good few men -in the open fields, our chaps stuck it well. General Smith-Dorrien sent -along a message—'Good, Royal Scots!' and then when we took the other -side of the bridge he said 'Bravo, Royal Scots!' so we have not done so -badly."</p> - -<p>And there, for the present, the record<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_32" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</a></span> of this oldest regiment of the -service must be broken off. It tells of work from Mons and Landrecies, -through the great retreat to the position of the Marne, and on to the -Aisne—and there it ends, for the present. We know that many of the -regiments along the line of the Aisne have been moved up to assist in -the great Flanders battles, and in all probability there have been Royal -Scots in that Flanders line as well as along the Aisne.</p> - -<p>There is one story of this first regiment of British infantry which, -though it is nearly fourteen years old, should always be told in any -account of the deeds of the regiment. It concerns a certain Sergeant G. -Robertson, placed in command of a party of about twenty men who were -acting as railway escort to a train from Pretoria. The train was bound -for the Eastern Transvaal, and, on reaching Pan, it was stopped by Boers -blowing up the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_33" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</a></span> line. The Boers attacked in force, being concealed in a -trench a few yards from the train, and the escort at once, under orders -from Sergeant Robertson, opened fire. The Boers, who greatly outnumbered -the escort, called on Robertson to surrender, but he answered—"No -surrender!" Almost immediately afterwards, he was shot through the head.</p> - -<p>A similar case concerns Major Twyford, an officer of the Royal Scots, -who in April of 1901 was attacked by a commando under Jan de Beers in -the Badfontein Valley. Twyford and his party numbered eight all told, -mounted men, and they took up a position among the ruins of a farmhouse -which afforded some shelter from the fire of the enemy. The commando of -Boers closed in on them, and, having in mind the enormous disparity of -the forces, called on them to surrender. Major Twyford declined to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_34" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</a></span> do -so, and went on firing on de Beers' commando until shot dead by the -enemy.</p> - -<p>Captain Price, of whom mention has already been made, was a lieutenant -at the time of the South African war, and was recommended at that time -for the Victoria Cross for especial gallantry in leading "E" company at -the action at Bermondsey. Three of the non-commissioned officers and men -were specially mentioned for their gallantry in this affair, a certain -Corporal Paul was promoted sergeant for his bravery, and Lieutenant -Price, recommended for his V.C., obtained the D.S.O. France saw him -brave as ever, and the regiment will keep his memory as that of one of -its most gallant officers.</p> - -<p>But, if one begins to tell the story of the deeds of the regiment of -Royal Scots in previous campaigns, the story is without end, and space -will not admit of it. It were unwise to say that the Royal<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_35" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</a></span> Scots are -first in bravery in action, as they are first in seniority among line -regiments; but at least, in the matter of courage, they are equal with -any, as the present campaign in France has proved.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_36" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER III</span> <span class="smaller">THE ROYAL SCOTS FUSILIERS</span></h2> - -<p>The titles of regiments are apt to be confusing to the lay mind, and it -is difficult at first to distinguish between the Royal Scots and the -Royal Scots Fusiliers, on paper. In old time the Fusiliers were the -"twenty-first" regiment of infantry; they were raised in Scotland in -1678 for service under Charles II, and served under William III in -Holland and Flanders, as well as under the great Duke of Marlborough and -under George II when the latter commanded his troops in person at the -battle of Dettingen.</p> - -<p>Their history in previous campaigns to this of France and Belgium is a -long one. At Blenheim, Malplaquet, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_37" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</a></span> Ramillies the Scots Fusiliers -won particular distinction—the brigadier who led the principal attack -at Blenheim was a colonel of the Scots Fusiliers. At Dettingen and -Fontenoy, again, the Fusiliers were well to the front, and in the -last-named engagement the regiment suffered so severely that it became -necessary to move it to Flanders. In 1761 the Scots Fusiliers took part -in the capture of Belle Isle, and later, in the American War of -Independence—bolstering up a bad cause—they underwent intense -privations, and, foodless and minus ammunition, capitulated with General -Burgoyne at Saratoga to a force five times the strength of that which -Burgoyne commanded. 1793 saw them engaged in capturing the islands of -the West Indies from the French, and in 1807 they formed part of the -second expedition to Egypt. Then at Messina the Fusiliers alone were -responsible<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_38" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</a></span> for the capture of over a thousand officers and men out of -a force which attempted to land there, and up to the time of the -abdication of Napoleon the regiment was engaged in active service. In -St. Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh, are deposited the tattered colours -carried by the regiment in the Napoleonic campaigns.</p> - -<p>In the Crimea the Fusiliers again lost their colonel; at Inkermann, -where the colonel fell, the regiment was in the very front of the battle -throughout the day, fighting throughout the battle without food, and -calling for more ammunition. They were present throughout the great -siege and at the fall of Sevastopol, and the colours borne in that -campaign—presented to the regiment in 1827 by King William IV—cost the -life of one officer and led to two more being severely wounded at -Inkermann, while 17 N.C.O.'s and men who acted as escort were either -killed or severely wounded. These<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_39" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</a></span> colours were subsequently deposited -in the parish church of Ayr, the depot headquarters of the regiment.</p> - -<p>In Africa against the Zulus and Basutos, as well as against the Boers in -the first war of the Transvaal, the Fusiliers fought next after the -Crimean campaign; and then they took part in the subjugation of King -Theebaw in Burmah. In 1899 the 2nd battalion embarked for South Africa, -and was set to form a part of the 6th Fusilier brigade. From Colenso -they brought away a Victoria Cross, awarded to Private Ravenhill for -conspicuous gallantry in saving guns from which the gunners had been -shot away.</p> - -<p>To the Fusiliers fell the honour of being the first British regiment to -enter the Transvaal during the war, and they took part in the hoisting -of the British flag at Christiana, the first Transvaal town to be -captured. A little later, the colonel of the regiment, with a force of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_40" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</a></span> -under 120 men, went on to Potchefstroom, and there hoisted a British -flag that had been buried there at the time of the peace of 1881, and, -after being disinterred, had been kept in the possession of the family -of a former commanding officer of the Scots Fusiliers. So distinguished -was the conduct of the regiment in the South African campaign that, on -the representation of Colonel Carr, C.B., the commanding officer, the -white plume that had not been worn since 1860 by the Fusiliers was given -back to them, as a recognition of their services. To a civilian this may -seem a very little thing, but the regiment regards it far otherwise.</p> - -<p>As for the campaign in France, there are very few authentic records of -the men of the regiment to hand at the time of writing, but from those -few one can reconstruct a good deal of the work of the Royal Scots -Fusiliers. One man tells that the Germans captured all the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_41" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</a></span>transport, -which contained all the kits of the men, who were thus left with only -the clothes they stood in for a matter of five weeks. Since this account -came through in the latter part of October, it may safely be assumed -that the regiment was concerned in the great retreat to the Marne, -though no letter of those received tells of doings at Mons, Landrecies, -or the very early battlefields. Still, it is not safe to assume that the -regiment—or some part of it—was <i>not</i> engaged in the first actions.</p> - -<p>One may picture what the men looked like from the account sent by one of -them. "I got a bit of a shave a week ago," he says, "but I have not had -a wash for over a fortnight." Kipling's "I wish my mother could see me -now" fits the case admirably.</p> - -<p>Again, evidently concerning the retreat, the same soldier writes: "We -got an order to stop a motor car one day, and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_42" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</a></span> as the driver pulled up a -man tried to escape on the opposite side, and I collared him. He got -into an awful state, and started pulling photos and papers from his -pockets and talked in a very excited manner. He was taken away, and I -believe he was shot the next morning as a spy."</p> - -<p>This might possibly have been at the position of the Marne, or between -that time and the holding of the line of the Aisne, but it is far more -likely to have occurred at the time of the retreat, when motorists on -the roads were plentiful, and spies could do good work for their -employers.</p> - -<p>There are various stories which go to describe the work of the Fusiliers -at the Aisne, and the monotony of life in the trenches is well portrayed -in one letter. The writer says: "As we can't always be killing Germans -we are sometimes hard put to it to kill time in the trenches.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_43" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</a></span> <i>Next to -religion</i>, I think football is the thing that interests us most, and we -are always eager to hear news of our teams at home. The papers that -reach us have not got much news of that kind in, and it would be a -godsend to us if only somebody would take in hand to start a paper for -circulating among the troops giving nothing but the latest football -news."</p> - -<p>On the more serious side is a communication from a man of the regiment -who was wounded at the position of the Aisne. He stated that "the men -have come through an awful time," and added that he himself was stuck in -the trenches for seven days without a break, while he went for fourteen -days without being able to wash his face. The German way was to attack -in order to draw the British fire, and then to retire, after which would -come a terrific artillery bombardment—but the British stuck to their -ground always. Finally this man was hit<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_44" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</a></span> in the head by shrapnel, while -his particular chum was shot in the stomach, and they both went into a -French hospital.</p> - -<p>By these simple records one may trace the regiment from the great -retreat to the Aisne; and then another letter takes the story on very -nearly to the great coast battle, where, by what the writer says, the -second battalion of the Scots Fusiliers have been from the beginning of -the German attempts on Calais. The writer, in describing how the German -spies adopt the very old trick of assisting artillery fire by the use of -the hands of a steeple clock, locates his story at Ypres, where some of -the fiercest fighting of the whole war has taken place.</p> - -<p>"It was at the town of Ypres—a name, by the way, that gets many quaint -pronunciations from our men—and the hands of the steeple clock stood at -10.40. When the men of the battalion had been in the place a quarter of -an hour, such<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_45" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</a></span> shelling began as they had never known before—and then -somebody pointed out that the hands of the clock had been altered to -indicate 12.40. Thereupon a search was made of the clock tower, when -three Germans were found and taken prisoners, much to the disgust of the -men who had seen their comrades suffering from the shell fire. They -would willingly have given these spies shorter shrift than mere capture, -but of course the rules of war had to be observed, even in such a clear -case of espionage as this."</p> - -<p>There is one man of the second battalion who, wounded and sent home from -the battle in the north-west of France, speaks of the fighting there as -"past description." He had seen hard fighting in India, but reckoned the -work against the Germans as beyond words to express it. "Germans came on -in solid masses, urged on by the officers with the points of their -swords, and on over the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_46" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</a></span> bodies of their dead comrades. This," producing -a German forage cap, "belonged to one poor devil I sent to his long -home; and this," producing a rosary, "was given to me by a Frenchwoman -in return for helping her to get her daughter away to a place of safety, -out of the way of the Germans."</p> - -<p>Little things, these, but the contrast afforded by the two trophies goes -to prove that the men of the Fusiliers are fighting in the right way and -with the right spirit. There is little doubt, however, that the second -battalion of the regiment has lost very heavily in the Flanders -fighting. One report—an unofficial one, it is true—speaks of the -battalion as being reduced to less than 150 officers and men. This may -mean anything, for companies are sent away on detached duties, bodies of -men get cut off from their battalions and join up with others—all sorts -of things may<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_47" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</a></span> happen in addition to real casualties to reduce the -strength of a battalion in such a series of actions as has been fought -between Lille and the coasts of France and Belgium. But, whatever may -have happened in this way, there can be no doubt that the Royal Scots -Fusiliers, of which the second battalion certainly took part in these -battles, has maintained the honour of the regiment to the full, and such -of its officers and men as have fallen have rendered good account of themselves.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_48" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER IV</span> <span class="smaller">THE KING'S OWN SCOTTISH BORDERERS</span></h2> - -<p>If legend may be believed, the Scottish Borderers came into existence -with a strength of a thousand men in four hours of the 19th of March, -1689, a recruiting record which stands unbeaten in subsequent history. -The regiment was raised by the followers of King William III, and within -four months of the time of its formation was facing "Bonnie Dundee" at -the pass of Killiecrankie. General Mackay, the officer commanding the -King's troops, testified that only two regiments of his force bore -themselves as they ought, and of these two one was the King's Own -Scottish Borderers. When it is remembered that the regiment<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_49" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</a></span> had only -been formed four months, this fact will be seen in its true light; and -for over two centuries the Borderers have maintained the reputation -given them by Mackay.</p> - -<p>Having settled the authority of King William in Scotland, the Borderers -were sent over to Ireland, where they helped in driving out James and -his Irish and French adherents from the United Kingdom, and -consolidating the rule of the Orange king. Thence, in the service of -William, the regiment went to Flanders, where they took part in the -siege of Namur, and lost twenty officers and 500 men by the explosion of -one of the mines of the enemy. It was here that the Borderers were first -made acquainted with the practice of fixing the bayonet alongside the -muzzle of the musket instead of into it, for up to that time fixing -bayonets had involved thrusting the bayonet into the barrel, when the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_50" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</a></span> -weapon could not be fired. Seeing a French regiment advancing with fixed -bayonets, the Colonel of the Borderers ordered his men to fix theirs, -and calmly awaited the result, confident in the superiority of his men -over their opponents in this class of fighting. But at short range the -French amazed the Scots by pouring in a volley, for they had their -bayonets fixed round the muzzles of their muskets instead of in them. -Recovering themselves, the Borderers charged and routed the enemy, and -learned from one of the French muskets left on the field how this -apparent miracle had been accomplished. Thenceforth British troops fixed -their bayonets on instead of in their muskets.</p> - -<p>When, in 1697, the treaty of Ryswick put an end to the campaign which -included the taking of Namur, the Borderers returned home. Their next -notable exploit was at Vigo, in 1719,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_51" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</a></span> where they destroyed the stores -collected for an invasion of England. Thirteen years later the regiment -was among the defending force at Gibraltar, and withstood the attacks of -a force of 20,000 men, who were eventually obliged to retire, leaving -the Rock in British hands. Then came Fontenoy, where the Borderers lost -206 officers and men; and later Minden, where sixty squadrons of French -cavalry charged again and again, only to be broken against the defence -of six British regiments, of which the Borderers formed one. Having thus -accounted for the cavalry, the six regiments put to flight two French -brigades of infantry, and virtually annihilated a body of Saxon -infantry, being the whole time under heavy artillery fire. Returning in -1763 from the many Continental fields in which it had taken part, the -regiment buried with full military honours at Newcastle-on-Tyne the -<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_52" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</a></span>fragments of the colours carried from victory to victory for twenty -years.</p> - -<p>There followed nineteen years of peace service, and then the Borderers -were sent to Gibraltar as reinforcements, arriving in time to assist in -the final discomfiture of the besieging force. In 1793 the Borderers -were transformed into Marines, in which capacity they came in for a -share of the prize money accruing from the capture of a ship valued at a -million sterling, and then took part in the victory won by Lord Howe -over the French fleet at Brest. There were Borderers, too, at the siege -of Toulon, where Napoleon I, at that time only an artillery lieutenant, -was wounded by a British soldier's bayonet.</p> - -<p>In the Napoleonic wars the Borderers were faced with more hard work than -chances of glory. They went to the campaign in Holland in 1799, and took -part in the expedition to Egypt in 1801,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_53" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</a></span> while eight years later they -were at the capture of Martinique, a name borne on their colours. But -for the rest of the time up to Waterloo they were engaged mainly in -inconspicuous garrison duty, with no chance of adding to their -reputation. Their luck held to a similar course through the nineteenth -century, up to the outbreak of the last South African war, for they were -set to deal with a Boer insurrection at the Cape in 1842, sent to Canada -at the time of the Fenian raid in 1866, and engaged in the Afghan -campaign of 1878-80. They fought in the Egyptian war in 1888, and then -went to work on the Indian frontier, where is much fighting and little -glory for most regiments that take part. In the Tirah campaign alone the -Borderers were in action twenty-three times—yet who remembers the Tirah -campaign to-day?</p> - -<p>As for the South African campaign, it has been placed on record that -the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_54" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</a></span> Borderers "put in as much hard work in marching and fighting as any -body of troops in the whole campaign." Paardeberg, Poplar Grove, and -Karee Spruit were three notable actions of this war in which the -Borderers took part, they having been allotted to the 7th Division of -the Army of South Africa. At the last-named action eighty-three officers -and men of the Borderers were killed or wounded. Later, at Vlakfontein, -the Borderers and the Derbyshires shared the honour of saving General -Dixon's column from utter disaster, and recapturing two British guns -which had been taken by the Boers.</p> - -<p>Now, as for the war in France, the record of the Borderers is fairly -complete. It begins with the account of the adventures of a maxim-gun -section during the first week of the war, as related by a man of the gun -section who was invalided home very early in the campaign. He<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_55" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</a></span> states -that at Mons his gun section were located inside a house at Mons, firing -from one of the windows, while Germans in considerable numbers were -searching the surrounding houses. It took the Germans four hours to -locate the maxim gun, and then, as they riddled the house with bullets, -the plaster and laths began to come down on the heads of the Borderers' -men, whereupon the latter thought the time had come to clear out. Under -fire they dismounted their gun and scrambled out from the back of the -house, whence they got under cover from the German fire, and, when night -fell, they were able to make their way back to their own lines.</p> - -<p>"While we were in action on Tuesday," the record continues, "a shell -struck the limber of the gun and almost blew it to bits. I was struck on -the shoulder by a piece of shrapnel. On another occasion we were firing -from an isolated position<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_56" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</a></span> when a company of Germans surprised us by -appearing about a hundred yards away. We were thirteen strong—one -officer and twelve men—so we put up the gun and made for cover. We had -about two hundred yards to run across a field, but every one of us -escaped without a scratch."</p> - -<p>On the 16th of September the War Office report of "Missing" included the -names of men belonging to the Borderers, and of these many went to -Doberitz camp of prisoners. One man, writing from Doberitz, stated that -he had been captured on August 26th, and was being fairly well treated. -Which recalls the fact that Colonel Stephenson, the commanding officer -of the Borderers, had the misfortune to be wounded and captured in the -very early stages of the war. It was at Le Cateau that the colonel was -wounded, and, although the wound was not exceptionally serious, it was -enough<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_57" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</a></span> to put Colonel Stephenson out of action for the time. He was -assisted to an ambulance waggon and got inside, but afterwards he came -out of his own accord in order to make way for men more seriously -injured. Almost immediately afterwards the retreat was continued, and -according to one account the colonel was found lying wounded by the -Germans. Another account states that the four horses of one of the -ambulance waggons were lost during the retreat, and fifteen men of the -Borderers were ordered to replace the horses in drawing the ambulance -waggon, with the result that the whole party, including Colonel -Stephenson in the waggon with other wounded, were captured. Major Leigh, -D.S.O., another officer of the Borderers, was wounded at Mons and -captured by the Germans, according to all accounts, while three other -officers are reported to have been taken prisoners in the first weeks of -the war.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_58" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</a></span></p><p>It was at Mons, too, that young Lieutenant Amos, of the Borderers, who -had only received his commission five months before, went out to the -front and brought back a wounded man much bigger and heavier than -himself. A few days later Lieutenant Amos led out his platoon of men in -face of the enemy's fire, when he was shot down, and the men of the -platoon thought at the time that he was only wounded. "When night came -on," said one man of the platoon, "I went out to look for him, and just -as I had got to where he was lying and had lifted his head, the moon -shone out full from behind the clouds, and I saw he was quite dead. He -had been shot through the heart."</p> - -<p>Whatever dispatches may say with regard to individual officers and men, -it is usually safe to take the opinions of the men themselves with -regard to their officers. An instance of this is the case<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_59" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</a></span> of Lieutenant -Hamilton-Dalrymple, of the Borderers, who was described by his men as "a -very daring man." He had excelled in patrol work and scouting, -especially at night, and on the retreat was placed in charge of four -platoons, which he led out for an attack. He had led out No. 16 platoon, -and went back for No. 15, and, when leading these men out, he was shot -in the leg by a German sniper and had to be carried to the rear. The man -who told this story of his officer was subsequently hit by a splinter -from a shell which accounted for five men.</p> - -<p>Near Le Cateau the Borderers buried Lieutenant Amos and twenty-one of -the men of the regiment. Throughout the day, while an artillery duel had -raged, the dead had lain out on the battlefield, and a long grave was -dug for them by their comrades. In this the bodies were laid, each -covered by a waterproof sheet,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_60" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</a></span> and an officer recited a brief funeral -service. While, during the next day, the artillery duel went on, the -Borderers cut out in the grass that covered the grave of their comrades -the letters "K.O.S.B.," and filled in the blank letter-spaces with small -stones, completing their work by fashioning and erecting a small cross -of wood to mark the place of burial.</p> - -<p>There was one youngster of the Borderers in these first days who, at -Mons, received a flesh wound while trying to cross two planks across a -canal that was being peppered with machine-gun fire. Colonel Stephenson -gripped him to save him from falling into the canal, and—"You had -better go back to the hospital, sonny," said the colonel. But the -youngster got little rest or respite in hospital, for the Germans -shelled the hospital building, after their fashion, and the patients had -to beat a quick retreat.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_61" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</a></span> Later, this same youngster came to the -engagement at Béthune, one of the fiercest of the campaign, and one -night he was on sentry duty at a wayside shrine. Just at the time the -reliefs were coming round he saw Germans in the distance, and fired at -them once or twice, "for luck," as he phrased it, considering that he -was entitled to a last shot before going off duty. But the glare of his -rifle fire must have betrayed his position, for almost immediately he -received another wound in the body, and this time it was a sufficiently -serious matter to cause him to be sent home.</p> - -<p>By means of such letters as these one may trace the regiment through the -first, and in some respects the worst, of the fighting. At the position -of the Aisne, the accounts of the Borderers grow numerous, and it -appears that the second battalion of the regiment was in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_62" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</a></span> the thick of -things. One account describes the crossing of the Aisne under shell fire -from the German guns. The second battalion got their orders to cross -very early one morning, and turned out in a cold, rainy dawn; "but we -got our pipes set going, and were all right then." On reaching the -river, it was found that there were no bridges, but some rafts had been -constructed by the Engineers, and these rafts were loaded each with six -men, and hauled across to the opposite bank of the river with ropes. -With the weight of men and equipment, the rafts were submerged so that -the men were up to their knees in water while they crossed, but such -incidents as that were regarded as trifling.</p> - -<p>On the far bank of the river, the German shell fire was hotter than -ever, and many men of the battalion were wounded, mostly in the arms and -legs. "You bet we took all the cover we could get," says<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_63" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</a></span> the narrator. -"Some time after this three of us were lying in a field, and I was -smoking my pipe, while my chum was puffing at a cigarette. The man next -to my chum hadn't a match, and wanted a light badly, so he got up to get -a light from my chum. As soon as he rose the poor beggar was hit by a -fragment of shell and killed. My chum had got hold of a trench-making -tool. It's like a spade at the one end, and like a pick at the other, -and he stuck the pick end into the ground and lay down behind it, -covering his head with the spade end. Every two or three minutes you -could hear the bullets spattering against the iron of the tool."</p> - -<p>Later, they got into the trenches, where some of the men were standing -knee-deep in water, and others were submerged up to their waists. "It -was no picnic, but they were a bright lot, cracking jokes or making -remarks about<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_64" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</a></span> the 'Black Marias,' or 'Jack Johnsons,' as they call the -big German shells."</p> - -<p>Although, in the first days on the Aisne, the first line of German -troops were opposed to the British, the latter had a very poor opinion -of their opponents. The general view was that the Germans were not very -keen on fighting, and a number of them when captured said that they were -forced by their officers to fight. In one case, when the men had refused -to fire, their officers had turned on them and shot them—as might have -been expected in any army. One wounded and captured German, placed in -the next bed in hospital to a wounded Borderer, spoke broken English, -and in the course of a chat was asked what he thought of the British. -"British artillery," he said, "no good—not enough. British -infantry—<i>mein Gott!</i>" His expression as he spoke completed the -comment.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_65" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</a></span></p><p>A Borderer wounded at the Aisne had fought beside the French, whom he -described as very plucky, but rather slow. Their artillery, however, won -his admiration, and he declared it the best he had ever seen. He was -emphatic in his appreciation of the way in which the French people -treated the British troops, supplying them with food and fruit, and in -many ways expressing their sympathy.</p> - -<p>"My chum and I came to a village one day," he said, "and wanted to get -some bread and tobacco. We met a peasant woman in the village, and I -said '<i>Du pain</i>.' She took me by the arm and pushed me into a dark room, -but I couldn't see where I was, and called for my chum, who came in as -well, though we were both afraid it might be a trap. Then we noticed -some food and wine on a table. It struck us, when we came to look round, -that nearly all the furniture in the house was smashed.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_66" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</a></span> 'The -Prussians,' the woman told us. And it's the same in every village you go -into—these Germans smash everything but us. They're trying hard to -smash us too, but they can't manage it."</p> - -<p>"It is a grand thing," says another man of the regiment, "to shoot at -Germans—they make such a lovely target. We can't miss them, and, poor -things, they are wishing it was over. Every prisoner we take says they -are starving, and they look it, too. Well, never mind, we are there to -kill, and kill we do. They are frightened of us, and say we shoot too -straight—the French and British are finishing them off in thousands."</p> - -<p>As regards the Flanders battle, the last sentence of this letter may be -taken literally, but the rest of it is open to question. The dogged -resistance on the Aisne, and the tremendous attacks up by Ypres and -along the coast, were not<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_67" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</a></span> made by men starving and utterly -miserable—the work has been too fierce for that to be possible. The -reserve troops of the German Army have no liking for their work, and, -newly taken from comfort to the rigid discipline and severe conditions -of the firing line, are naturally inclined to complain at what the -first-line troops regard as mere everyday inconveniences; and doubtless -it was some of these that were referred to in this letter.</p> - -<p>But, to revert to the position on the Aisne, there is yet another -Borderer's story that is worthy of reproduction. The narrator states -that during the battle two German women, masquerading as nurses, went -about the British lines by motor, accompanied by a chauffeur. Among the -British soldiers on outpost duty they freely distributed cigarettes, -which were afterwards found to be inoculated by poison. Before any -fatal<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_68" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</a></span> results had accrued, the nature of the cigarettes was discovered, -and the pseudo-nurses were rounded up and shot. The story may be true, -but it seems a little improbable that <i>no</i> ill results should have -attended the distribution of these cigarettes before discovery of the -trick. The man who tells this story adds that two Scottish pipers held -up and captured eight Germans in a wood near Crecy. The pipers had -become detached from their division, and carried no arms, but on coming -on the Germans they assumed a firing position and pointed the long -drones of their pipes at the enemy, calling on them to surrender. The -Germans at once threw down their rifles, and were taken prisoners.</p> - -<p>Let it be remembered that both of these stories are told by the same -man, and that both are on the face of them improbable—and then the -reader must form his own conclusion.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_69" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</a></span></p><p>The next missive takes us on to the work in the trenches around -Béthune, after the opposing lines had crept up to the north-west of -France. "There were few breathing-spaces," says the writer. "Ground -would be gained, and our troops then had to resort to the expedient of -digging themselves in: at parts of the line about a hundred yards -divided our trenches from those of the enemy." The man who tells of this -fighting exposed himself to get a shot at precisely the same moment that -a German out in the opposite trenches took aim, and both pulled their -triggers almost simultaneously. The German bullet passed right across -the Borderer's scalp, but in the firing line it was impossible to get -immediate medical attention, and the wounded man had to be in the trench -for hours before nightfall gave him the chance to get back to the field -hospital under cover of darkness.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_70" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</a></span></p><p>It fell to the lot of the Borderers to witness the first charge of the -Indian troops, and evidently the dark men enjoyed themselves. "When they -got the order to advance, you never saw men more pleased in all your -life. They went forward with a rush like a football team charging their -opponents, or a party of revellers rushing to catch the last train. They -got to grips with their enemies in double-quick time, and the howl of -joy that went up told us that those chaps felt that they were paying the -Germans back in full for the peppering they had got while waiting for -orders. When they came back from that charge they looked very well -pleased with themselves, and they had every right to be. They are very -proud of being selected to fight with us, and are terribly anxious to -make a good impression. They have done it, too.</p> - -<p>"I watched them one day under shell<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_71" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</a></span> fire, and was astonished at their -coolness. 'Coal boxes' were being emptied all round them, but they -seemed to pay not the slightest heed, and if one of them did go under, -his chums simply went on as though nothing had happened. They make light -of wounds, and I have known cases where men have fought for days with -wounds that might have excused any man for dropping out. When the wounds -are very bad, I have seen the men themselves dressing them in the firing -line. One day I questioned one of them about this, and he said, 'We must -be as brave as the British.' It's amusing to hear them trying to pick up -our camp songs. They have a poor opinion of the Germans as fighting men, -and are greatly interested when we tell them of the horrors perpetrated -on the Belgians and French."</p> - -<p>Thus writes a wounded sergeant of the Borderers. Now the official -account<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_72" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</a></span> states that the first charge of the Indians was made to recover -ground and trenches that had been taken by the Germans by sheer weight -of numbers from British troops—so we may safely conclude that the -Borderers, probably the second battalion, were among the men holding -those trenches, and probably were in the section of the line that was -forced back. And there, beside the Indian contingent, we may leave them, -certain that in all the fighting in Flanders and for the recovery of -Belgium they will acquit themselves like men.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_73" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER V</span> <span class="smaller">THE BLACK WATCH</span></h2> - -<p>Though the Royal Scots can claim to be the oldest regiment of the -British Army, the Black Watch can claim—and do claim—to be the oldest -corps of Highlanders. The regiment, known in old time as the -"Forty-second," was originally formed out of the independent companies -raised in 1729 to keep the peace in the hills of the Scottish Highlands, -and the first parade as a regiment took place near Aberfeldy in 1740, -when the regiment was numbered "43." This was subsequently changed to "42."</p> - -<p>Five years later the regiment saw its first active service abroad at -Fontenoy, when its men charged with such spirit<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_74" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</a></span> that they were -described by a French writer as "Highland furies." In 1756 the Black -Watch went to America, and at Ticonderaga the loss in killed and wounded -amounted to 647 officers and men. So conspicuous was the bravery of the -regiment on this occasion that the King conferred on it the title of -"Royal," and unto this day the Black Watch are "The Royal Highlanders." -The regiment was in at the capture of Montreal, and later took part in -the American War of Independence, when, in spite of the offers of heavy -bribes, not a single man could be induced to desert from the ranks, bad -as was the cause in which the British troops were fighting then.</p> - -<p>In 1780 the second battalion of the Black Watch was raised, to begin its -active service in India. It was constituted a separate regiment in 1786, -and named the "Perthshire Regiment," numbered "73." (Two officers and -<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_75" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</a></span>fifty-three men of this battalion were among the heroes who went down -with the <i>Birkenhead</i>.) It was nearly a century later that the -Perthshire Regiment was again joined to the Black Watch as its second -battalion, and thenceforth the battle honours of both battalions have -been borne on the colours of the regiment.</p> - -<p>The campaign in Flanders in 1794 and the following year gave to the -regiment the "red hackle" that is still worn in the full-dress feather -bonnet. Again the Black Watch went to the front for the Egyptian -campaign of 1800, and at Alexandria Sir Ralph Abercromby called on the -Highlanders for the effort that won the battle. The next great event in -the history of the regiment was Corunna, where Sir John Moore bade the -Highlanders "Remember Egypt!" On to the siege of Toulouse the Black -Watch took their part in all fighting that was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_76" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</a></span> to be had, and at -Toulouse itself they lost over 300 officers and men in driving back the -French Army into the city.</p> - -<p>Just on 300 more officers and men fell in the three days' fighting of -Quatre Bras and Waterloo, and the Royal Highlanders were mentioned -specially in dispatches by the Duke of Wellington—an honour accorded to -only four of the regiments that took part in the final overthrow of -Napoleon. From then on to the middle of the nineteenth century the life -of the regiment was uneventful, for Europe slept, and it did not fall to -the Black Watch to engage in the little frontier and colonial wars of -the Empire.</p> - -<p>But 1854 brought the Crimean War, and the Royal Highlanders took the -field again as the senior regiment of Sir Colin Campbell's famous -Highland Brigade. The brigade took part in the charge on the heights of -the Alma, and was also in at the taking of Sevastopol<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_77" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</a></span> on the 8th of -September, 1855. The end of this war brought but little respite, for -under their old chief, Sir Colin Campbell, the regiment took part in the -suppression of the Indian Mutiny. The battle of Cawnpur, the siege and -capture of Lucknow, and the battle of Bareilly, found the Royal -Highlanders well to the front, and the name "Lucknow" is borne on the -colours of the regiment. A sculptured tablet in Dunkeld Cathedral -commemorates the names of those of the Black Watch who fell in the -Mutiny.</p> - -<p>In the Ashanti War the Black Watch took the leading and most conspicuous -part, and shared in the capture and burning of Kumasi. Then, in 1882, -the regiment went to Egypt to take part in the storming of the -entrenchments at Tel-el-Kebir. At Suakim, El Teb, and Tamai, such was -the conduct of the regiment that Lord Wolseley sent them a telegram of -congratulation, and in 1884<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_78" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</a></span> the first battalion went up the Nile to the -battle of Kirbekan.</p> - -<p>Then, in 1899, the second battalion went out to South Africa as part of -the ill-fated Highland Brigade under General Wauchope. On the night of -Sunday, the 10th of December, in that first year of the Boer war, the -Black Watch led the brigade in the memorable attack at Magersfontein. -When the inferno of fire and barbed wire stopped the advance of the -brigade, no less than 600 Highlanders fell, killed and wounded, -including Wauchope himself. Throughout the Monday the survivors of three -companies of the Black Watch held to their places in front of the Boer -trenches and entanglements, while the remainder of the men of the -battalion were engaged in attempting to turn the flank of the Boer -position; but at nightfall it was found that the position was too -strong, and the troops were drawn back. As<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_79" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</a></span> already remarked, the -brigade lost 600 in killed and wounded, and of these more than half were -men of the Black Watch. In a little more than two months the survivors -of the battalion had their revenge at Paardeberg, when Cronje was forced -to surrender with 4,000 men. Here, again, the losses of the Black Watch -amounted to 90 casualties among officers and men.</p> - -<p>The first battalion did not come in for the earlier fighting in South -Africa, but arrived in the country in time to take part in the "drives" -with which Lord Kitchener put an end to the campaign. Poplar Grove and -Driefontein, Retief's Nek and the surrender of Prinsloo at Wittebergen, -were mere incidents to the Black Watch after the terrible work of -Magersfontein and Paardeberg, and the conduct of the regiment as a whole -during the war may be judged from the fact that no less than thirteen -medals for <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_80" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</a></span>distinguished conduct were awarded to its non-commissioned -officers and men.</p> - -<p>As usual, the Black Watch were among the first regiments to take the -field in the fighting in France, and they went up to Mons with the rest -of the British troops who took part in the great retreat. Never during -the whole of the South African campaign, said one man who had been -through it, was anything experienced like the three engagements in which -the Black Watch took part round Mons. The shell firing of the Germans -was terrific, and the hastily constructed trenches of the British -afforded very little protection against the German shell fire. Yet, -though on the retreat the British troops had to undergo forced marches, -some of them with very little food except such fruit as they could get -by the way, they displayed splendid stamina and pluck, and the -discipline maintained in this trying time, so far as the Royal -<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_81" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</a></span>Highlanders were concerned, was admirable. Even when the loss of -officers was heaviest, movements were still carried through with -parade-like precision and coolness.</p> - -<p>When nearing Soissons in the course of the retreat, the Black Watch were -the object of an encircling movement by the enemy, and while the -regiment was cutting its way through to rejoin the rest of the brigade, -Colonel Grant Duff gave his orders with bullets humming round him, and -went up and down the line of his battalion looking after wounded men. -With the aid of the 117th Battery of R.F.A. the Black Watch succeeded in -rejoining their brigade with a loss of only four men.</p> - -<p>The work of the early days is epitomised by a man of the first battalion -of the regiment. "We went straight from Boulogne to Mons," he said, "and -were one of the first British regiments to reach Mons. Neither of the -opposing armies<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_82" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</a></span> seemed to have a very good position there, but the -number of the Germans was so great that we had no chance of holding on -from the first. We were in hard fighting all day on the Monday, and as -the French reinforcements which we were expecting had not arrived by the -Tuesday, we were given the order to retire.</p> - -<p>"I should judge that, altogether, we retreated quite eighty miles. We -passed through Cambrai, and halted at St. Quentin; the Germans, -straining every nerve in the effort to get to Paris, had never been far -behind us, and when we came to St. Quentin we got the word that we were -to go into action again—and the men of the battalion were quite joyous -at the prospect, for they had been none too well pleased at the -continued retirement from the enemy. They started to get things ready -with a will, and the engagement opened in lively fashion,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_83" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</a></span> both our -artillery and the German going at it for all they were worth. We were in -good skirmishing order, and under cover of our guns we kept on getting -nearer and nearer to the enemy, till, when we were about a hundred yards -of the German lines, orders were issued for a charge, and the Black -Watch charged at the same time that the Scots Greys did. Not far from us -the 9th Lancers and the Cameronians joined in the attack, and it was the -finest sight I ever saw."</p> - -<p>The writer continues with a description of the charge, in which, he -says, the men of the Black Watch hung on to the stirrup-leathers of the -Greys and went through machine-gun fire on to the German lines, and -thence through to the guns of the enemy. "There were about 1,900 of us -in that charge against 20,000 Germans, and the charge itself lasted -about four hours. We took close upon<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_84" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</a></span> 4,000 prisoners, and captured a -lot of their guns. In the course of the fighting I got a cut from a -German sword—they are very much like saws—and fell into a pool of -water, where I lay unconscious for nearly a day and night. I was picked -up by one of the 9th Lancers."</p> - -<p>There the story ends. It is circumstantial and well borne out by other -accounts of the doings of the Black Watch up to the time of St. Quentin, -but one fears to accept the story of that charge in its entirety. If the -men of the Black Watch advanced to within a hundred yards of the enemy -under cover of their own artillery, then where did the Greys come from? -For surely no artillery ever kept on firing at the enemy until <i>cavalry</i> -were within a hundred yards of their objective in a charge. It is -curious, too, but this is the only account that has come to hand—the -only personal account of a participator—with regard to that<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_85" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</a></span> charge of -the Greys with Black Watch men hanging on to their stirrup-leathers. The -story is given as told, for what it is worth.</p> - -<p>Several accounts concur in the assistance rendered to the regiment by -the 117th Battery of R.F.A., and one especially details how, when the -Black Watch were subjected to overwhelming rifle fire, the guns were -turned on the German riflemen with terrible effect. But there are some -newspaper errors in connection with this event which are almost amusing. -One of them states that, with regard to a driver of the 117th -Battery—"the Highlanders were being subjected to a terrific rifle fire, -when the artilleryman heroically advanced, and, getting his gun in -position, put the German riflemen to flight." This was more than -heroism, for a gun weighs the better part of a ton, altogether, and a -driver has but a very elementary <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_86" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</a></span>knowledge of the firing mechanism of -the weapon—his business is with the horses. That one driver should get -the gun into position and then proceed to load and fire it, a business -which occupies about a dozen men, as a rule, is well worthy of comment.</p> - -<p>These discrepancies with known fact are unfortunately rather plentiful -where the Black Watch are concerned. Another of them, though it does not -credit artillerymen with the strength of elephants, tells of things that -happened "on the 14th of August, at the battle of the Aisne,"—whereas -on the 14th of August the great retreat was still in progress, and the -battle of the Marne had not been fought, let alone that of the Aisne. "I -only know," says the author of this account, "that we lost close on 400 -of the regiment, killed and wounded, the same day that I was wounded. -That was on the 14th of August, at the battle of the Aisne. It was -terrible, men falling<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_87" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</a></span> on either side. The Germans were very -treacherous, firing on our ambulance men as well. I was in two hospitals -which we were shelled out of. All the men who could walk were told to go -off as soon as possible. There were four of us left in the place all the -forenoon, and the shells landing round about. I managed to crawl away -when there was no firing, and I had to go about five miles to the next -place. I don't know what I would have done had not an officer passing in -his motor seen me and taken me to the hospital."</p> - -<p>Another of the same kind: "On one occasion I had become detached from -the main body, and met four Germans. I disposed of three of my -adversaries with three successive shots, and was about to deal with the -fourth, when the bolt of my rifle became jammed. The German fired, but -only slightly wounded me, and I adjusted my rifle, charged my magazine, -and put the man out of action."</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_88" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</a></span></p><p>More heroism, almost equal to that of the gunner just quoted—and -newspapers are publishing such "letters from the front" as these every day.</p> - -<p>To come back to the real work of the regiment, a further account deals -with the battle of the Aisne, where, on the 14th of September, the men -occupied some high ground, and were discovered by the enemy, who set to -work to render the position untenable by means of artillery fire. A -patrol, sent out to get into communication with the Northamptons, had to -take cover from the German artillery fire, which was so fierce that it -was only in darkness they were able to return. In taking German trenches -later, the Black Watch and the Camerons, who advanced together, came -across numbers of dead Germans, proving that their own fire had been -quite as deadly as that of their enemies. Apparently the timing of the -fuses of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_89" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</a></span> German shells was none too good. "The artillery fire of the -Germans was good, but their shells did not do nearly the same damage as -those fired from the British guns. The British shells when they exploded -covered a radius of something like a hundred yards, but the German -shells on bursting seemed to send all their contents in a forward direction."</p> - -<p>"But the Aisne has been a cause of heavy loss to the Black Watch," said -another member of the regiment. "We lost heavily in taking up position, -and the men were saddened by the loss of so many officers. One day we -lost three—a captain killed, a senior captain very severely wounded, -and a lieutenant killed. Then, later, the men had to deplore the loss of -their commanding officer, Colonel Grant Duff—one of the bravest and -best officers the regiment ever had. He died bravely. He was hard -pressed and doing<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_90" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</a></span> execution with one of his men's rifles when he fell -with a mortal wound."</p> - -<p>Another officer eulogised by his men was Captain Green, who was wounded -at the Aisne. Hot fighting was kept up in the trenches from five in the -morning until night had fallen, and throughout the night the men waited -in their trenches. Shortly after four o'clock of the following morning -firing was heard in front, and with the remark, "I am going forward, -anyway," Captain Green went out to the front, his object being to get -the range for the men, if possible. He got the range, but was hit in the -head, and bandaged the wound himself, keeping his place in the trenches -and declining to go into hospital.</p> - -<p>The German fear of cold steel is emphasised in many accounts given by -men of the Black Watch. "They wouldn't look at the bayonet, and we ruled -the roost with very slight losses,"<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_91" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</a></span> says one; and another—"The Germans -are awfully frightened of the cold steel, and when they get a stab it is -almost invariably in the back, for they run away from our boys when the -bayonet appears."</p> - -<p>Once in a while there comes an account of humanity on the part of the -Germans; and one man of the Black Watch tells how he lay out in the open -at the position of the Aisne for hours, wounded, and at last a German -came along and bound up his wound under heavy fire. The German made the -wounded man quite comfortable, and was about to retire from the danger -area, when a stray bullet caught him, and he fell dead beside the man he -had befriended.</p> - -<p>Such stories as this last are welcome, and form a relief from the -numberless stories of German barbarity that have appeared. Not that they -disprove the stories of brutality, but they go to show that the policy -of ruthlessness is a <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_92" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</a></span>calculated one, and that the individual German -might be a kind-hearted man at times if his officers would let him. The -instances of cruelty and wanton destruction that have been related all -point to organised cruelty, organised destruction—it is more a matter -of policy than of the conduct of individuals.</p> - -<p>The stories quoted here form a fairly connected record of the work of -the Black Watch up to the time of the battle on the Aisne; of what came -after, there is as yet no definite record. We know, from the casualty -lists, that the Royal Highlanders are still making history in France, -but in this first week of November we know no more than that, and a -great story must still wait telling until the oft-quoted "fog of war" -has lifted from the actions in Flanders and the north-west of France.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_93" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER VI</span> <span class="smaller">THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS</span></h2> - -<p>Formerly known as the 75th and 92nd line battalions, the Gordon -Highlanders form a comparatively young regiment. The first battalion was -formed at Stirling in 1788 under Colonel Robert Abercromby, and was sent -to India for fourteen years of active service in Mysore and Southern -India. The "Royal Tiger," worn on the badges of the regiment, -commemorates the part they played at the taking of Seringapatam in 1799.</p> - -<p>The great Scottish house of Gordon raised the second battalion of the -regiment near the end of the eighteenth century, and this battalion was -first named "Gordon Highlanders" in 1794, when<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_94" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</a></span> it was embodied at -Aberdeen, with the Marquis of Huntly as its first colonel. In the -Egyptian campaign of 1801, the Gordons played a conspicuous part in -driving Napoleon out of Egypt, and won the "Sphinx," inscribed "Egypt," -as a badge, which is now worn on all the officers' buttons. In 1807 the -regiment took part in the expedition to Copenhagen, and a year later -they were with Sir John Moore on the retreat to Corunna. Later, in the -Peninsular campaign under Wellington, the Gordons won the admiration of -their enemies and the approbation of their chief. In one action alone, -that of the Maya Pass, the regiment lost over 320 officers and men -killed and wounded.</p> - -<p>On to the end of the campaign the Gordons were in the thick of things, -and then, in 1815, they sailed for Belgium in May, arriving in Brussels -at the end of that month. At Quatre Bras, where<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_95" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</a></span> they were under the eye -of the Duke of Wellington, the 92nd (now the 2nd battalion of the -Gordons) lost heavily, and then at Waterloo itself the battalion was -reduced to 300 men before the memorable charge took place. The official -account of that charge, as given in the history of the regiment, is -worth quoting in its entirety.</p> - -<p>"About two o'clock in the afternoon of that memorable day, the enemy -advanced a solid column of 3,000 infantry towards the position of the -regiment. The column continuing to press forward, General Sir D. Pack -galloped up to the regiment and called out—"Ninety-second, you must -charge, for all the troops to your right and left have given way." Three -cheers from the corps expressed the devoted readiness of every -individual in its ranks, though its numbers were reduced at this time to -less than 300 men.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_96" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</a></span></p><p>"The French column did not show a large front. The regiment formed -four-deep, and, in that compact order, advanced till within twenty -paces, when it fired a volley and instantly darted into the heart of the -French column, in which it almost became invisible in the midst of the -mass opposed to it. While the regiment was in the act of charging, and -the instant before it came in contact with the enemy, the Scots Greys -came trotting up in rear of its flanks, when both corps shouted -"Scotland for ever!" The column was instantaneously broken, and in its -flight the cavalry rode over it. The result of this dash, which only -occupied a few minutes, was a loss to the enemy of two eagles and two -thousand prisoners."</p> - -<p>The total losses of the Gordons at Waterloo were 119 officers and men -killed and wounded, and what remained of the regiment went on to occupy -Paris,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_97" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</a></span> returning to Edinburgh in 1816. In the Crimean campaign the -Gordons had bad luck, as they did not land till after Sevastopol had -fallen. They had their turn in the Mutiny, however, for they fought -their way from Ambala to Delhi, and sat on the "Ridge" under great John -Nicholson from June to September, taking part in the final assault and -storming the Kashmir gate. Later, they marched to the relief of Lucknow, -and then saw general service in the many engagements that took place in -the North-west Provinces before the Mutiny was finally quelled.</p> - -<p>Then came twenty years of peace for the regiment, after which it was -again called to action in Afghanistan, and took part in the -ever-memorable march from Kabul to Kandahar. In the Egyptian campaign of -1882, the regiment was included in the Highland Brigade that fought at -Tel-el-Kebir, and then went up<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_98" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</a></span> with the expeditionary force to the -relief of Khartoum and General Gordon—a fruitless errand. From that -time onward to the end of the century, the Gordons saw frontier fighting -in India. "Chitral" is one of the names emblazoned on the regimental -colours, and in the Tirah campaign the Gordons won undying fame at the -storming of the Dargai heights—which, however, was but one incident in -seven months of strenuous fighting.</p> - -<p>In the South African war, the Gordons shared in the privations of the -siege of Ladysmith, and in the fierce attack made by the Boers on the -Ladysmith defences, on the 6th of January, 1900, the Gordons sustained -some of the fiercest of the fighting. Thus one battalion upheld the -credit of the regiment, while the other, in Smith-Dorrien's nineteenth -brigade, placed the name "Paardeberg" on the regimental colours. "During -the four<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_99" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</a></span> months and a half of its existence the nineteenth brigade had -marched 620 miles, often on half rations, seldom on full. It had taken -part in the capture of ten towns, had fought in ten general engagements, -and on twenty-seven other times, and was never beaten." Up to the end of -the war the Gordons were doing brilliant work. By the end of 1902 the -regiment had thirteen Victoria Crosses to its credit.</p> - -<p>With regard to their work in France in the very early days, the men of -the Gordons have shown some reticence—that is, as regards the alleged -cutting off and cutting up of the regiment. It may be, so curious is the -information that reached this country in September, that the men of the -regiment had not heard of this cutting off and cutting up. Certain it is -that they were in several tight corners in the first actions of the -great retreat—but then, so were other units,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_100" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</a></span> and there is plenty of -evidence to prove that Gordons came through to the Marne and the Aisne, -though, unfortunately, they came without their colonel and some of their -officers. Round about Mons the Gordons were heavily engaged, and found -the German infantry firing weak, but their artillery work not to be -despised. The greatest damage was done by the shrapnel, and not by rifle -fire—a statement which concurs with practically all accounts of -engagements on the great retreat. "The losses of the Allies," said a -wounded corporal of the Gordons, "were nothing to those of the Germans, -who came on in a solid mass and were mowed down like sheep—close -formation was their method of attack all along. The men themselves said -they were driven to it by their officers at the point of the revolver, -and they simply tried to be taken prisoners by the British. We passed -through plundered villages,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_101" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</a></span> and saw windows smashed, furniture thrown -out on the streets, and churches and other buildings destroyed."</p> - -<p>Another wounded non-commissioned officer speaks of "what was left of the -battalion after Mons" being in the firing-line, when an order was given -for a general retreat. A dispatch rider gave the message to a part of -the division to which the Gordons belonged, but on his way to them he -was killed by a shell, and the Gordons, not having received the order, -stuck to their position. "The Germans advanced in such force that we -were at last compelled to retire, and lost a lot of jolly good fellows. -I doubt if any of us would have been left if it had not been for the -135th Battery of Field Artillery. They covered our retreat, sending out -such a terrible fire that the enemy were afraid to approach any nearer."</p> - -<p>This stands as the most circumstantial<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_102" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</a></span> account of the cutting-off of -the Gordons that has come to hand among personal letters and accounts of -the men who were there, and, unlike so many letters purporting to be -from "the front," it bears the stamp of authenticity. A piper of the -regiment corroborates it by saying that "the Germans came on in great -masses, driving us back all the time." He tells of being left only with -a revolver, his sword having snapped, after which he crossed a river, -and made a stand in a church. "Eight hundred of us entered that church, -the majority never to come out again, for the Germans' big 'Jack -Johnsons' shelled us out." There was, apparently, an officer in charge, -and when he saw how the shells were causing fatalities he gave the order -for all men who could to bolt for the road and save themselves. "The -people at home will not think any the worse of you, lads, for it," he -is<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_103" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</a></span> alleged to have said. According to the piper's account, some sixty -or more got away to safety in one rush, in which he himself was wounded -in the arm.</p> - -<p>The work of signallers has not come into much prominence in the fighting -in France, but one of the signallers of the Gordons, at least, has had -occasion to use his flags. It happened that his battalion had been in a -tight corner for some time, and was running short of ammunition, in -consequence of which the signaller was ordered by his company officer to -signal to the Army Service Corps for a further supply. He stood up -facing to the rear, and, raising his flags, signalled—"From -Captain——" when the message was cut short by his arm being wounded in -two places. As he was trying to bind up the wounds, another piece of -shrapnel came along and lodged in the same arm.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_104" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</a></span></p><p>A good general account of the fighting is given by one non-commissioned -officer who went out at the end of August, and was first engaged in the -fighting which took place immediately before the advance from the Marne -to the Aisne. Here the Gordons were engaged near a village held by the -enemy, and under very hot fire. The British troops had a hard job in -getting the Germans to leave their trenches, but eventually the -artillery fire from the British guns proved too much for the Germans, -who got up and ran. The Gordons reached the village after the enemy had -fled, and were billeted there for the night—and in this connection the -non-commissioned officer responsible for this account remarks that the -German rifle fire is almost useless, though their machine-gun fire is -good. "Besides, when once they think they are beaten they are off, and -one can scarcely get at close quarters<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_105" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</a></span> with them. Our party never got -within half a mile of them."</p> - -<p>In this last sentence, it must be remembered, the writer refers to the -German troops who had come down on the tremendous advance which ended at -the position of the Marne. Official reports leave it beyond doubt that -these German troops had undergone three weeks of the severest strain -that has ever been imposed on fighting men, and that their <i>moral</i> was -so far impaired that, after the wheel made by von Kluck's army away from -Paris, the whole of them had to be drawn back and replaced by other -troops. Since they had been reduced to this state by their exertions, it -is hardly to be wondered at that they would not face their enemies at -close quarters.</p> - -<p>The narrative, proceeding, states that on the advance of the British to -the trenches the enemy had occupied, it<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_106" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</a></span> was difficult to estimate the -number of German dead, for the trenches, filled with bodies, had been -covered in with earth. One German was found by the Gordons still -standing in his trench, with his rifle to his shoulder, quite dead. He -had evidently been shot while in the act of taking aim, and had been -left by his retreating comrades. On the advance, it was noted that the -work of the British artillery had been particularly deadly, especially -among the woods through which the men advanced. The part of the regiment -to which the narrator of these events was attached was sent back to -headquarters in charge of several hundreds of prisoners, their places in -the firing line being taken by others for the time being; and, after a -turn at headquarters duty, the Gordons were sent on to Lille and La -Bassée, opposite to a part of von Kluck's force, which had in the -meantime moved out<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_107" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</a></span> to the north-west to keep pace with the extension of -the Allied line. While the Gordons were lying in an open field, taking -part in an attack, the order was given to retire; but it was unheard by -the men of some sections, and the enemy advanced so near that the -position of some of the men became very critical. But the wretched fire -of the German infantry proved their salvation, for sixteen of the -Gordons made their way across perfectly level, boggy ground, with the -Germans less than 1,000 yards away, and only two were wounded.</p> - -<p>The first days on the Aisne, according to another of the Gordons, must -be counted as one of the fiercest examples of warfare under modern -conditions. For days the Gordons were subjected to such a hurricane of -shrapnel fire that they were compelled to lie in their trenches, merely -awaiting developments; and many of the men who were wounded<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_108" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</a></span> by shrapnel -never fired their rifles, for the enemy was too far off for rifle fire -to have any effect. One man was struck fourteen times by the shrapnel -fire, and still came out from the trenches to recover. It was not until -the British artillery was reinforced that the infantry were able to -advance.</p> - -<p>"We were kept so busy," says one man of the Gordons concerning this -time, "that for three days and nights we had no time to issue the mail. -The men felt the want of a smoke more than of food, and I have seen more -than one man trade away his last biscuit for a cigarette or a fill of -tobacco. When the heaviest of the shelling was going on, our men were -puffing away at 'fag-ends.'"</p> - -<p>From such accounts as these one may glean some idea of what the Gordons -underwent up to the time of the transference of the main battle to the -Flanders area. As for this last, one <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_109" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</a></span>non-commissioned officer states -that the men were hardly ever out of canals and wet ditches. One day a -section of men lay waist deep in water from nine in the morning till -three in the afternoon, patiently waiting for dusk to come, that they -might get a chance to dry their clothes. "The Germans generally cease -operations at dusk, and on these occasions the same old order comes -along the line—"Dig yourselves in, men." And, on the day that they lay -in water so long, no sooner had they dug themselves in than the order to -advance was given!"</p> - -<p>Apparently authentic is the account of the death of Captain Ker of the -Gordons, who, it is stated by eyewitnesses, was in command of men whom -he led up in face of the enemy's fire at Béthune. The men gained the -shelter of a natural rise in the ground, but before they reached this -point Captain Ker was struck in the head by shrapnel, and was killed -instantly.<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_110" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</a></span> The men lay for some time in the position they had won, but -eventually found that it was too dangerous to retain, and risked the -enemy's fire in place of capture. They doubled back across a couple of -fields to their old position, and eighteen of the twenty-one in the -party got safely back—but only seven of them escaped being hit. Captain -Ker was later picked up and buried on the field.</p> - -<p>With regard to Colonel Gordon, V.C., it appears from one account that he -was taken into a barn after having been wounded, but almost immediately -afterwards the barn caught fire, and it was thought that he had been -trapped in the flames. It seems, however, that the wound was only a body -one, and the colonel was able to get clear, though he was afterwards -taken prisoner.</p> - -<p>"Keep your heads up, men!" one of the officers of the Gordons shouted to -his men on one occasion. "They can't<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_111" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</a></span> hit you"—pointing to the snipers -up a tree; and with that remark he showed his own head above the trench. -"None of us cared to follow his example, but his cheery way bucked us -up," says one of the men present at the time. Yet again the same officer -inquired—"Any man wanting to earn a glass of claret?" and received -several enthusiastic affirmatives. "Well," he said, "catch me that hen -running across the road." The offer was not accepted, for the German -fire was hot at the time.</p> - -<p>Another account refers to a battle which took place about the middle of -October, the 2nd battalion being the one referred to. "I left the -trenches on Saturday night for hospital," says the writer. "On Friday -afternoon we had a terrible battle with the Germans, who turned all -their artillery and machine guns on our trenches in an attempt to break -through them. It was hell while<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_112" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</a></span> it lasted, but we gave them more than -they wanted. About three hundred yards in front of our trenches was a -ridge running parallel with them, and every time the Germans mounted -this ridge in mass they were blown into the air. Ten times they were -blown away, losing battalions each time—it was sickening to see them. -Towards night they retired; and my company lost pretty heavily, five men -being killed and thirteen wounded. Our captain and lieutenant were also -wounded. Throughout all that battle I never got so much as a scratch—I -have been very lucky on two or three occasions."</p> - -<p>This man went into hospital at the finish with a poisoned hand and head, -caused by a graze sustained three weeks before the fight of which he -writes. In his letter, as in all the accounts quoted here, is noticeable -an absolute lack of doubt as to the final result of the titanic -struggle. Not that any one of the men<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_113" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</a></span> actually voices confidence, but -from the way in which they tell of the doings of their regiments one may -gauge their spirit, and understand that they see only the one end to -this war of world-forces; that there is no fear of defeat, no thought of -other than a steady driving on to a fixed end—the overthrow of German -militarism. Many of them—many Gordons, without doubt—have never given -the matter a thought, for they fight, as the Gordons and as the whole -British Army always fights, with a belief in themselves and their -leaders that amounts to such conviction as needs no words for its -expression—a settled knowledge that in good time their task will be -accomplished. For behind all these men are the traditions of those who -cried "Scotland for ever!" men who knew not the meaning of defeat.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_114" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER VII</span> <span class="smaller">THE SEAFORTH HIGHLANDERS</span></h2> - -<p>The 1st battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders originally bore the number -subsequently allotted to the 2nd battalion, for in 1778 the 1st -battalion was raised as the 78th infantry of the line by the Earl of -Seaforth, and with that as its official number it went to Jersey to -defend the island against a French attack, and subsequently to India. -The voyage to India occupied ten months, and cost the life of the Earl -of Seaforth and 200 men of the regiment; the remainder landed safely, -and underwent the campaign which ended in the overthrow of Tippoo Sahib: -the Seaforths led the attack on the fortifications of Bangalore, and -assisted in the taking of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_115" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</a></span> Seringapatam. Then the Seaforths took Ceylon -from the Dutch.</p> - -<p>In 1786 the 1st battalion (as it is at present known) was renumbered -"72nd," and in 1793 the present 2nd battalion of the regiment was formed -as the "78th Foot." After work in Holland and at the Cape, the 78th went -to India to fight under the future Duke of Wellington in the Mahratta -War. For valour at Assaye the 78th was granted the Elephant, inscribed -"Assaye," as a special badge, and also a third colour to bear. These -distinctions were well earned, for the 78th defeated a force ten times -as strong as itself in the course of the battle.</p> - -<p>The warlike quality of the material from which the Seaforths were -obtained may be estimated from the fact that two "second battalions" -were formed in succession and sent out to join the original 78th raised -in 1793. In the second<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_116" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</a></span> expedition to Egypt in 1807, and in the -disastrous Walcheren expedition, the battalion took part, losing heavily -in officers and men in both cases—three companies were practically -annihilated at El Hamet in the Egyptian campaign. After Walcheren, the -Seaforths had little chance of winning distinction in the Napoleonic -wars, but in 1819 and 1835 the regiment was engaged at the Cape in -Kaffir wars, and the next incident of note in the history of the -Seaforths was their work in the Mutiny, when they served under Havelock, -marching from Allahabad to the relief of Cawnpur and Lucknow. Four -battles were fought and won before the force reached Cawnpur—too late; -and they went on to Lucknow. Tennyson has told how the sound of Highland -music gave intimation of relief to the sorely pressed Lucknow garrison, -and, regarding the work of the regiment at that time, their commander -told them<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_117" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</a></span>—"I have been forty years in the service, I have been engaged -in actions seven-and-twenty times, but in the whole of my career I have -never seen any regiment behave so well as the 78th Highlanders. I am -proud of you."</p> - -<p>The 72nd, the present 1st battalion of the Seaforths, was also engaged -in the suppression of the Mutiny, though not with Havelock, and they -helped largely in suppressing the final flames of rebellion throughout -India. Then followed nearly twenty years of peace service for the -regiment, after which it took part in the campaign in Afghanistan, and -shared in the memorable march from Kabul to Kandahar. The bravery of the -regiment in this campaign is attested by the fact that no less than five -names connected with the two years of fighting are emblazoned on the -regimental colours.</p> - -<p>The Seaforths were in the charge at Tel-el-Kebir, and in the second -Egyptian<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_118" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</a></span> campaign of 1898 the first battalion was engaged both at -Atbara and Khartoum. In between these two wars the regiment saw much -service in the two Hazara wars and the campaign of Chitral. In South -Africa the Seaforths formed part of the Highland Brigade at -Magersfontein, and lost no less than 212 officers and men killed and -wounded in that disastrous action. Magersfontein was avenged at -Paardeberg, where the Seaforths took part in the rounding up and capture -of Cronje, following up this with the action at Poplar Grove and that of -Driefontein. In the next great capture of the war, that of Prinsloo in -the Wittebergen, the Seaforths played an active part, and from then on -to the end of hostilities the regiment was actively engaged, both in -blockhouse work and in the rounding up of the Boer forces. Up to 1902, -the regiment had won no less than eleven Victoria Crosses, while its -<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_119" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</a></span>distinguished-conduct medals are too numerous to count.</p> - -<p>For the campaign in France and Belgium, the Seaforths were brigaded with -the Irish Fusiliers, the Dublin Fusiliers, and the Warwickshire -Regiment, under command of Brigadier-General J. A. L. Haldane, D.S.O., -who made a memorable escape from Pretoria during the last Boer war. That -the regiment is keeping up its traditions is instanced by the case of -one man who was found retiring to the rear, wounded in nine different -places. He wanted no sympathy, and asked for no help; all he wanted to -know was—who had won the St. Leger! One of his comrades, wounded also, -remarked that the Seaforths had "fairly made the Germans hop out of -their trenches when they charged with the bayonet." The enemy had no -idea that the British were so close on them till the Seaforths marched -out of a farmyard right into the firing line,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_120" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</a></span> and then the Germans did -not wait, but ran like cattle chased by dogs. "After marching for four -days, during which time we did not know where we were, we got into motor -cars and were taken to a position right under the very noses of the -Germans, who got the surprise of their lives when they saw the 'ladies -from hell,' as they called us on account of our kilts, advancing on -them."</p> - -<p>Further, a man of the Dublin Fusiliers bears testimony to the fighting -qualities of the Seaforths. "It keeps up your spirit to be fighting with -such fellows," he says, "and they have fairly put fear into the Germans -with their bayonet charges. When there was any close fighting, and it -came to using the cold steel, the Germans ran from them like hares. Most -of the 'Jocks' now have beards, and with their kilts flying when they -charge they are a wild-looking lot." The writer of this adds his -evidence to<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_121" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</a></span> the testimony that the Germans have no liking for bayonet -work. "They are big chaps, most of them, but have not got the heart for -it," he observes.</p> - -<p>The actual route taken by the regiment, in the moves made by the British -forces since the war began, can be traced pretty accurately by means of -various personal accounts. The first of these accounts states that the -Seaforths were first engaged at Agincourt, where an advance party of -Germans took the regiment by surprise, and they were hotly engaged. The -Germans lost heavily, but were in very strong force, and at night the -Seaforths drew back to get a rest. Two days later, at Guise, the German -cavalry tried to break through the column which included the Seaforths, -but they were met with fixed bayonets and driven back, though the -British suffered heavy casualties.</p> - -<p>Then "at La-Musa we had a stiff<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_122" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</a></span> engagement with the German Crown -Prince's army on the right wing, and by the aid of their aeroplanes the -German gunners found our trenches, on which they kept up a heavy -cannonading for almost three hours. An attack was made by the German -cavalry, but our artillery mowed them down like hay—the slaughter was -something awful. We had to retire, however, and for twenty-eight miles -we marched without food before we got out of range of the enemy's guns. -After three hours' rest we advanced in an opposite direction to our line -of retreat, and proceeded to La Ferte, with the German cavalry in -pursuit. Crossing the river there we had a thrilling time, and just -crossed the bridge in time for the Royal Engineers to blow it up and -prevent the Germans crossing—a number of the Engineers were killed in -the explosion.</p> - -<p>"We afterwards marched to Mons,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_123" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</a></span> having several skirmishes on the way, -and managed to capture a number of Germans and a field hospital. We saw -many signs of German barbarism on our march, and one sight I shall never -forget was that of a father and mother with a baby about two months old, -lying stabbed to death by bayonets on their doorstep. Frequently we took -women and children into the trenches for safety, and always they had a -terrible dread of the Uhlans. We Seaforths were on the right flank at -Mons, and one morning the Germans suddenly opened fire on us at three -o'clock. We fixed bayonets, and followed the Guards in skirmishing -order, passing over heaps of dead, and capturing German guns. But we -could not keep our positions, for the Germans were entrenched in masses -farther on, and we had to retire."</p> - -<p>This account is rather muddled, for the writer speaks of days of -fighting and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_124" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</a></span> marching with skirmishes before the action at Mons. One -must sort out the various engagements mentioned and compare them with -the official account of the first engagements in order to arrive at an -estimate of the position in which the Seaforths began their fighting. On -the whole, however, the writer conveys a very good idea of the work of -those first few days—he was wounded in the retirement from Mons, and -thus his narrative ceases there.</p> - -<p>The story is taken on by a man of the regiment who was captured during -the fighting on the Oise, and was sentenced by the enemy to be shot, but -managed to escape. Having lost his regiment, he attached himself to a -French unit, and kept with them for three weeks, in which time he saw -only three Englishmen, all lost like himself, and they commiserated -each<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_125" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</a></span> other on not knowing the French language, and consequently being -unable to converse with their comrades in the firing line. In the town -from which the writer posted his letter, the Germans had looted all the -shops previous to the French reoccupation, while the British had blown -up a bridge, and the Germans in turn had sunk a number of French boats -in the canal to form a temporary bridge. The writer adds his evidence on -the subject of German cruelty.</p> - -<p>Concerning an engagement on the Aisne, on the 13th of September, one of -the Seaforths who participated tells how his company had been resting -for the night in a farmhouse after having been on the move for seven or -eight days, and in the morning they went forward a march of three or -four miles, which brought them into range of the enemy's position, a -mile to the front. The regiment was ordered to take the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_126" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</a></span> German -position, and advanced in extended order across a clear field of fire, -when, fortunately for the attackers, the enemy's fire was so bad that -the losses were very slight. The advance was steadily maintained, until -at 300 yards' distance from the position the order was given to fix -bayonets. At that, "the Germans did not wait to say 'Good night,' but -simply ran, as they won't face the cold steel at any price." Still, a -number of the Seaforths were put out of action in the business, in which -the regiment gained all that they had been ordered to take. "It was a -great charge," says the man who tells of it. "No wonder so much is -thought of the Highland regiments, for it would have done your heart -good to hear the cheer that went up when the order was given to charge, -and the Germans did run. All I can say is that if we had been in their -position we should have<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_127" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</a></span> waited for them to come upon us, and none of -them would ever have reached us, as I think our rifle fire is good -enough to stop any charge that might be made."</p> - -<p>The same man tells of "a low, dirty trick" that the Germans played in -the course of this fight. Some of them put up a white flag, and when -about fifty of the Warwickshires went out to take the surrendered men -they opened fire with a machine gun and slaughtered the Warwicks. "That -is the kind of warfare the Germans like to carry on."</p> - -<p>Thus runs the account of the 13th of September, and on the following -day, according to several accounts received, the colonel of the -regiment, Colonel Sir Evelyn Bradford, was killed—he has since been -mentioned in dispatches. The most circumstantial account is as follows:</p> - -<p>"It was in the battle of the Aisne, when the Seaforths had taken up a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_128" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</a></span> -position near a wood, that the Germans began a heavy fire. The colonel -was standing with two other officers surveying the field of operations, -when he was struck by a shell and killed instantly. A lieutenant of the -Gordons, who was attached to the battalion, was killed, and a number of -the men were struck and wounded—in all, there were about thirty wounded -by the one explosion. They attempted to bury the colonel the same night, -but were prevented from their task by the heavy and continuous -shell-fire from the enemy." At about nine in the evening, however, a -burial party set out to lay the dead commander to rest up on the face of -a hill, near a large farmhouse which was the headquarters of the force -for the time. "Poor Colonel Bradford!" comments a member of the party; -"I cannot tell you how great our loss is. He was a brave commander, and -was killed while<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_129" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</a></span> trying to safeguard his regiment. We could not fetch -his body in while daylight lasted, but at midnight we laid him, with two -other officers, to rest on their field of honour, on a hill-side -overlooking a valley of the river. It was a sad but glorious moment for -us to stand and hear the padre tell us that they had not shrunk from -their duty, and had fallen for the sake of their comrades. The next day -I found some Scotch thistle growing close by, and I plucked the blooms -to form a cross over the dead chieftain's grave."</p> - -<p>Concerning this action of the 14th of September, another participant -tells that the British troops were steadily driving the Germans back, -and the company of the Seaforths to which he belonged had crossed the -river two days before, and were holding a ridge, though the enemy had a -great advantage in point of numbers. This man sent home a<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_130" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</a></span> transcript of -a German officer's diary, which makes very interesting reading.</p> - -<p>"<i>July 20.</i>—At last the day! To have lived to see it! We are ready, let -come who may. The world race is destined to be German.</p> - -<p>"<i>August 5.</i>—Our losses to-day [before Liége] have been frightful. -Never mind, it is all allowed for. Besides, the fallen are only Polish -beginners, the spilling of whose blood will spread the war lust at -home—a necessary factor.</p> - -<p>"<i>August 11.</i>—And now for the English, used to fighting farmers. [A -reference to the Boer War.] To-night Wilhelm the Greater has given us -beautiful advice. You think each day of your Emperor, and do not forget -God. [Note the order in which the two are mentioned.] His Majesty should -remember that in thinking of him we think of God, for is not he the -Almighty's instrument in this glorious fight for right?</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_131" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</a></span></p><p>"<i>August 12.</i>—This is clearly to be an artillery war, as we foresaw. -Infantry counts for nothing.</p> - -<p>"<i>August 20.</i>—The conceited English have ranged themselves up against -us at absurd odds, our airmen say. [This, it must be remembered, was -written concerning the time of the great retreat, when the German forces -were in overwhelming numerical superiority.]</p> - -<p>"<i>August 25.</i>—An English shell burst on a Red Cross wagon to-day—full -of English. Ha-ha! Serve the swine right. Still, they fight well. I -salute the officer who kept on swearing at Germany and her Emperor in -his agony—and then to ask calmly for a bath! These English! We have -scarcely time enough to bury our dead, so they are being weighted in the -river."</p> - -<p>The writer of this diary was captured, so his entries extend no farther. -The way in which his views of "the <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_132" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</a></span>conceited English" altered as time -went on is worthy of note.</p> - -<p>A R.A.M.C. officer attached to the Seaforths gives an idea of the way in -which the regiment conducted its daily business. Each morning the -regiment would "stand to arms" at about three o'clock, and at four or -five o'clock the men would move on, either with or without -breakfast—which consisted of tea and biscuits, and bacon if there were -time to cook it. Sleeping accommodation varied in quality and extent -from night to night, ranging from a ploughed field or an orchard to the -floor of a deserted house. Often the men were so sleepy that they lay in -the road—quite contentedly, since they were allowed to lie.</p> - -<p>"I am doing less than the men," adds the writer. "Just think of them: -march, march, march, and then when we sleep it falls to the lot of many -to guard the outposts with no chance of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_133" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</a></span> shelter, and then go on -marching through the next day, wet, and hoping to dry as they go. Only -the highest praise can be given to these men.</p> - -<p>"At present [on the Aisne] we are entrenched. Our first day in this -place, where we have been for five days, was awful, for we were under -fire the whole of the day, with practically no protection, and our total -of killed and wounded amounted to seventy. The men never wavered, and -gaps were always filled. Grand are the Highland men, and grander still -will be the account they will render; I am lucky to be with such men."</p> - -<p>These various accounts of the work of the regiment form a fairly -detailed description of the work at the Aisne. Of how the regiment was -moved up to the Flanders front there is no account to hand, but the work -done on the new front has been fairly fully described. First of all -comes the account of Captain <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_134" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</a></span>Methven's death, which took place in the -fighting round Lille, where Captain Methven and his company were set to -drive the Germans from their trenches with the bayonet. The German -trenches were at the top of a steep little hill, and up this hill -Captain Methven rushed, with his men following. He paused at the edge of -the enemy's trenches and turned to wave the men on—they saw him -silhouetted against the skyline for a second, and then he fell, shot -through the heart at what must have been point-blank range. But the -trenches were won, the small force of Germans who had been holding them -surrendered—Captain Methven had not died in vain. "I had read about -this single-handed taking of a position," writes a spectator, "but until -I saw Captain Methven's action I thought these things only happened in -story-books."</p> - -<p>A little later the brigade of which the 2nd Seaforths formed a part was -engaged<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_135" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</a></span> in the storming of a position, an action in which they drove -back the enemy for several miles. For the greater part of the day the -British position had been commanded by the fire of the enemy, who held a -position on a hill in the neighbourhood and maintained a steady fire on -the British brigade. The brigade commander saw that if the enemy were -given time to bring up heavy artillery they would render their own -position impregnable and that of the British force untenable—the height -had to be taken that day, if at all. So the "Charge!" was sounded, and -the brigade advanced across the intervening ground, with the men -cheering and shouting as they rushed forward—and above all the rest of -the cries rose the "Caber-feidh," the rallying-cry of the Seaforths. The -German position was taken in about a quarter of an hour—and in rear -were a fleet of motor vehicles, in which the retreating Germans<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_136" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</a></span> -decamped. Pursuit was out of the question, and there was only -snap-shooting at the flying enemy by way of consolation.</p> - -<p>Beyond this the records of the regiment do not take us at present. There -remains, however, one record of "B" Company of the 2nd Battalion and its -work on the night of the 13th of October, a statement that may well be -included in this record of the doings of the Seaforths. It tells how the -company had to charge the enemy out of his trenches at the bayonet -point, which was done with some considerable loss of killed and wounded, -and the writer comments—"There was not a coward among us."</p> - -<p>"But that was nothing to what we had last Tuesday [Oct. 20]. We were -digging trenches when we heard a volley of rifle fire come right over -us, and we got the order to stand to arms and advance. Their trenches -were situated in a row on a rise in a field, and we could not<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_137" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</a></span> get our -range on them. In a minute the signal to charge went, and we all -scrambled up the hill to get at them. The first to get up was our -company officer, and he was hit. We all dived into their trenches at the -point of their rifles, shooting and stabbing, and then came the -onslaught. Some of them were too terrified to get out, while others -rushed out and were shot down, and the remainder sought refuge in a -house. They showed the white flag in a doorway, but we got the order not -to take any notice of it until some of their officers came out, and we -waved them in. About fifty surrendered. I am proud to say that we were -only one company. I shall never forget that charge as long as I live. -The General said—'Bravo, Seaforths! it was a grand charge.'"</p> - -<p>Which forms a fitting final word as far as the Seaforths are concerned.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_138" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER VIII</span> <span class="smaller">THE CAMERON HIGHLANDERS</span></h2> - -<p>Mr. Alan Cameron, a gentleman of Scotland in the eighteenth century, -fought a duel over which he was obliged to leave the British Isles, -whereupon he found employment in an irregular cavalry corps which -assisted the British in the American War of Independence. When the war -ended he returned to England, judging that the storm had blown over, and -at the time of the French Revolution he offered to raise a corps of -Highlanders for the British Army. The offer was accepted, and Cameron -raised 700 of his clansmen in Inverness-shire, a body which became the -79th Foot, and had its title altered in 1881 to the Cameron Highlanders.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_139" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</a></span></p><p>The first active service undergone by the men of the regiment was in -Holland, where in 1794 under the Duke of York they fought against an -enemy greatly superior in numbers. Five years later the regiment again -went to Holland, to distinguish itself at the action of Egmont-op-Zee, a -name borne since that time on the regimental colours. This was followed -up by the expedition under Sir Ralph Abercromby to Egypt, whence -Napoleon and his army were driven out by the British. The Sphinx, with -"Egypt" inscribed on it, is borne by the Camerons, in common with some -other Highland regiments.</p> - -<p>Copenhagen, at the capture of which the Camerons assisted in 1807, was -overshadowed as an exploit by the work of the "light company" of the -Camerons at Corunna in the following year. Talavera was a field in which -the Camerons had a share, as was Busaco, and the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_140" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</a></span> regiment helped in -holding the "lines" of Torres Vedras through the winter in which -Wellington lay at bay against Napoleon's marshals, to emerge in the -spring and force the French to retreat. At Fuentes d'Onor, after holding -the village in company with two other regiments against attack after -attack by the French, the Camerons were forced out by the flower of the -French Army, the Imperial Guard. When the fight was at its fiercest a -French soldier shot dead the colonel of the regiment, and at that the -Highlanders raised a cry of vengeance and swept away the famous Guard of -France.</p> - -<p>From Salamanca to Toulouse the Camerons fought on through the rest of -the Peninsular campaign; they fought through Quatre Bras, and were among -the four regiments specially mentioned in dispatches by Wellington after -Waterloo. From that time, until 1854 called<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_141" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</a></span> them to the Crimean -campaign, the men of the regiment had only peace service; but, in the -Highland Brigade under Sir Colin Campbell, the successors of the -Highlanders who had distinguished themselves at Waterloo proved that the -valour of the regiment was as great as ever, and at the battle of the -Alma the Camerons did gallant service.</p> - -<p>Almost immediately after the Crimea came the Mutiny, and the Camerons -were among the first regiments to oppose the mutineers. At Mahomdie over -a hundred men of the regiment went down with sunstroke, and then at -Lucknow the mutineers had to be driven from house to house by bayonet -work—in which Scottish regiments have always excelled.</p> - -<p>For the nine months that followed the work in Lucknow, the regiment was -almost constantly engaged with the enemy, especially at the battle of -Bareilly<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_142" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</a></span> and the crossing of the Gogra and Rapti rivers. The Mohmund -and Kumasi campaigns came next, and in 1873 Queen Victoria presented the -regiment with new colours and conferred on it the title of the "Queen's -Own." Then in 1882 came the Egyptian campaign, and at Tel-el-Kebir a man -of the Camerons was first to fall in the dawn hour at which that action -began. The charge of the Camerons on the enemy's lines is a feat that -has been often described, and Lieutenant-Colonel Leith's cry of "Come -on, 79th!" has become historic.</p> - -<p>In the attempt to rescue Gordon, and again in 1885, the Cameron -Highlanders continued their work in Egypt, and in 1893 Lochiel of -Cameron unveiled at Inverness a monument to the brave men of the -regiment who had fallen in Egypt. Four years later a second battalion -was raised, and in 1898 the 1st battalion again went up the Nile to -assist in the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_143" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</a></span> final Dervish overthrow. With "Remember General Gordon" -as their watchword, the Camerons shared in the battle of the Atbara, at -which Mahmoud's army was annihilated and Mahmoud himself taken prisoner. -Sharing in the onward march, the Camerons were present at Omdurman, -where the power of the Khalifa was finally broken, and the battalion -attended the memorial service held in Khartoum on September 4th of that -year in memory of General Gordon. Thence one company of the regiment -went up to Fashoda, and had the unique honour of representing the -British Army there at the time of the incident, now nearly forgotten, -which so nearly led to war with France.</p> - -<p>It was not until March of 1900 that the Camerons landed at East London -to take part in the South African campaign, and they were then -incorporated in the 21st Brigade under General Bruce<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_144" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</a></span> Hamilton. They -shared in the general advance to Pretoria, in the crossing of the Zand -River, the battle of Doorn Kop, and the engagement at Diamond Hill. -Later, they shared in the capture of Prinsloo in the Wittebergen, and in -the reliefs of Winburg and Ladybrand. Up to the end of the war the -Camerons were in the thick of things, and the men received the personal -thanks of General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien for the work they had -performed while serving under him, and, what was more, for the fine -spirit in which that work had been done.</p> - -<p>The most that can be done with regard to locating the Camerons in France -is to state that they formed a part of the First Division, and that when -the Allies took the offensive the Camerons took the place of the -Munsters; also that they have acted in very close conjunction with the -Black Watch, with whom, it is highly<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_145" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</a></span> probable, they were brigaded. At -Mons the Black Watch formed the first line, and, as they lost a -considerable number of men, the Camerons were moved up by way of -support, when thirteen men of the battalion were killed and wounded. In -the course of the great retreat there were as many as 300 men missing at -one time, but parties of ten and twelve came in later and reduced the -apparent losses. When nearing Soissons in the course of the retreat, the -Black Watch were made the object of an encircling movement by the enemy, -but they escaped with the aid of the 117th Battery R.F.A. and that of -some of the Camerons. One man of the Black Watch had crossed the Aisne -in the retreat, and was wounded while lying out in the open to fire, and -a Cameron man stood by him and assisted him to the rear at the cost of -three wounds to himself.</p> - -<p>These slight incidents are all that can<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_146" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</a></span> be gleaned with regard to the -actual movements of the Camerons at the time of the retreat. Several -minor incidents, however, have come to light, and of these many bear on -the German abuse of the white flag and of all the recognised rules of -war. On one occasion Germans were seen walking between the -trenches—their own and the British—carrying stretchers; and, under the -assumption that they were carrying wounded, firing was stopped for the -time. It was discovered, however, that instead of wounded the supposed -ambulance men were carrying machine guns on their stretchers, and at the -same time they showed the Red Cross flag. On the other hand, such of the -enemy as have been taken prisoners by the Camerons on the retreat told -their captors that they expected to be shot at once, having been told by -their officers that that would be their fate if they fell into the -enemy's hands.</p> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_147" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</a></span></p><p>It appears that there is plenty of humour among the Cameron men on the -battlefield. "It's very funny," says one of them, "to hear a Frenchman -try to sing 'Tipperary.' It fairly stumps them, but they do their best. -The two favourite songs with our boys are 'Tipperary' and the -Marseillaise. You should see a Frenchman when he hears that—he goes -fairly daft. These Frenchmen seem terribly loungy to look at, but they -are good fighters, for all that. They go smashing into it, and their -artillery is the best out there. But our officers are a fine lot, the -best set of men I ever came across. They do their share."</p> - -<p>Thus, discursively, a wounded Cameron man told of the incidentals of the -fighting in France—the earlier days. Then comes a fairly detailed -account of the battle of the Marne, in which the first three days, -Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, are described as "pretty much<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_148" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</a></span> -preliminary," but on Tuesday the brigade of which the Camerons formed a -part went out to meet the enemy, and drove them back, capturing about -six hundred prisoners and eight guns. The ground was sodden with rain, -and the Camerons lay out in the harvest fields taking cover behind the -standing sheaves of corn, while the German artillery rained out shells -on them, not even stopping when their own infantry advanced on the -British troops. "We got it very rough, and a man beside me—one of our -battalion—went out to help an officer who was badly wounded, but just -as he got up to the officer he dropped. Our fellows were falling all -round, and at about ten in the morning I got my dose. During the day the -fighting round where I was lying fell off a bit, but I had to lay on the -ground until dark, when another chap, who saw I couldn't move, came over -to make me a bed of straw and get me<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_149" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</a></span> comfortable. But before he could -get my bed made a bullet got him through the spine, and he tumbled over -in a heap—stone dead. I was lucky to get out of it, for the Germans -were firing on our ambulance men. They had snipers lying among our -wounded, and that night, when stretcher bearers came out to carry in the -wounded officer, three of the bearers were shot. It was Wednesday -morning before I was picked up by a picket of the Coldstream Guards."</p> - -<p>At the beginning of the battle of the Aisne, the Camerons were brought -up to advance in skirmishing order under shell fire, when one man was -wounded by shell fire, and fell back behind a haystack. Some other -wounded also sought the shelter of the haystack, whereupon the Germans -immediately began to shell it, and the wounded men sought other shelter, -to fall in with a convoy of thirty German prisoners. Finally they found<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_150" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</a></span> -the transport column, and were taken back to a hospital established in a -village in rear of the firing line—but this hospital was already full -up. No less than thirty-two shells were aimed directly at this hospital, -though it had a Red Cross flag flying over it all the time. This -hospital was cleared, and two hours after the patients had been removed -it was utterly destroyed by shell fire.</p> - -<p>Another account relates that the enemy occupied the positions on the -Aisne that they had taken up in 1870, and their guns were all placed in -concrete positions, carefully prepared against the event. After the -Camerons took up their position, the distance between the opposing -forces was about a thousand yards, with fairly open ground between, and -the regiment was ordered to attack the trenches held by the enemy. The -whole brigade advanced under heavy shell fire until within 250 yards of -the enemy's position—and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_151" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</a></span> then the man who tells of this incident was -struck down by shell fire and rendered unconscious, so that he did not -see the result of the advance. He knew, however, that it must have been -successful, since he was still behind the British line when he recovered -consciousness.</p> - -<p>It was later on, when the battle of the Aisne had taken on the nature of -a siege action, that the cave disaster occurred which caused the deaths -of over thirty officers and men of the regiment. Near the firing line -was a large, spacious cave, which was used partly as a collecting base -for the wounded, and partly as the regimental headquarters; and on the -25th of September, while the German artillery was shelling the British -positions, the roof of the cave was struck by one of the big German -shells, with the result that it fell in, burying thirty-five officers -and men. The cave was some 300 yards behind the firing line, so that the -incident<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_152" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</a></span> went unobserved for some time—though it is doubtful if -anything could have been done even had prompt action been taken, since -the fall of rock and earth was so heavy that most of the men in the cave -must have been killed instantaneously. Four of the occupants, however, -were able to shout for help, being pinned down by masses of rock at the -back of the cave when the roof fell in; and, nearly two hours after the -accident, other men of the regiment heard the shouts of those -imprisoned, and set to the work of rescue. Three men had been liberated, -and while the rescuers were at work getting out the fourth man another -shell landed in the same spot, covered in the pinned man, and blew his -would-be rescuer to pieces. But this wounded man, though buried anew, -was still alive, though he lost consciousness after two hours. An -officer and three men of the Scots Guards finally dug him out, after he -had been buried for<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_153" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</a></span> about six hours, and he was sent away to hospital -and recovery.</p> - -<p>The Camerons came, with the greater part of the British force in France, -to the fighting in the north-west which foiled the German attack on -Calais, and from this part of the battle line one account has come -through. "We were fairly giving it to the Germans," says a wounded man -from this quarter. "In the morning we started advancing in single line -by sections at three paces interval across open fields at the double, -and the shells were landing all round us as fast as the enemy could fire -them, but we managed to get into our positions. We had a bad time of it -there, but we managed to put a stop to the German advance, and then we -took up another position, and held it. When the enemy were within about -eighty yards of us the officer in charge of the company gave the order -to fix bayonets, and we charged,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_154" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</a></span> at which the Germans ran away. We -opened fire on them, and at about two o'clock on that day I was wounded. -I was lying in a hollow of the ground which we had just cleared, and I -had to lie there for hours until the enemy were driven back by a British -regiment. Shortly after I was wounded the Germans gained the crest of a -hill, and one of the Scots Guards lying there wounded put up his hands -for them not to shoot, but one of them came to within two yards of him -and shot him through the stomach, and he rolled over again and died -about two hours afterwards."</p> - -<p>Against this cold-blooded savagery must be set the account given by an -officer of the 1st battalion of the Camerons, who states that he was -shot through the leg just before the enemy charged in great numbers and -drove the British out of their trenches. One of the men tried to get the -officer along in<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_155" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</a></span> the retirement, but could not do so, and he was made a -prisoner. "They banged me about a bit at first, and tied my hands behind -my back, and tried to get me to walk, but of course I could not. At last -one splendid German came forward and took me off to their own wounded in -a farmhouse. He stayed by me the whole time, and was most wonderfully -good to me. They dressed my wound and got me some water, and did what -they could for me. Next day, at two in the afternoon, my company charged -back at the house and drove the enemy back, rescuing me and the one or -two other wounded prisoners in the house."</p> - -<p>Another officer writes, concerning the time on the Aisne: "The way the -Germans treat property is disgusting. While passing through a village -not long ago the greater part of the furniture of all the houses had -been dragged out and broken up, all the crockery smashed, all the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_156" id="Page_156">[Pg 156]</a></span> -bedding dragged out into the open street, and there left to be soaked by -the rain. It is awful to see the poor peasants wandering about, homeless -and starving.</p> - -<p>"Everywhere is the fearful smell of dead horses. It seems to saturate -the atmosphere, and one marches through miles of it."</p> - -<p>Carrion and ruin! And "one splendid German," who stands out from among -his fellows because he exercised the simple instincts of humanity! -Surely in this one incident is as great accusation against the German -race as in the other and worse accounts.</p> - -<p>Meanwhile the Camerons fight on, with the courage that their regiment -has shown from the time of Abercrombie's campaign in Egypt unto this day.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_157" id="Page_157">[Pg 157]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER IX</span> <span class="smaller">THE ARGYLL AND SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDERS</span></h2> - -<p>The threat against Britain by the French Republic in 1794 led to the -raising of the 1st battalion of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, -the battalion having been formed in that year by the then Duke of -Argyll, under the title of the 91st Regiment of Foot. The present 2nd -battalion was raised by the Earl of Sutherland six years later, and -numbered the "93rd Foot." These two battalions were united under their -present title in 1881.</p> - -<p>Active service was first seen by the 2nd battalion at the Cape, where -its men played a prominent part in the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_158" id="Page_158">[Pg 158]</a></span> defeat of the Dutch army of -5,000 men engaged in the defence of Capetown. The turn of the 1st -battalion came during the Peninsular campaign, when the Argylls formed -the rearguard at Corunna and were seven times engaged with the enemy. -Later, they joined Wellington in Spain, and were conspicuously engaged -at the Nivelle, at the crossing of the Nive, and on to the siege of -Toulouse. The 2nd battalion formed part of the force that courted -disaster at New Orleans in 1814, and no less than 520 officers and men -fell in that fatal attack—futile as fatal.</p> - -<p>Missing Waterloo, the regiment next won distinction in the Kaffir wars -at the Cape, where it underwent five years of active service. There were -"91st" men on the <i>Birkenhead</i> in 1852, and though the name of the -ill-fated vessel is not borne on the colours of any regiment it might -well be inscribed on those of the Argylls. Their next active service -was<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_159" id="Page_159">[Pg 159]</a></span> in the Crimean campaign, where the 2nd battalion formed part of Sir -Colin Campbell's Highland Brigade, and took the heights beyond the Alma -under as destructive fire as a British regiment has ever faced. At -Balaclava the Highlanders were in deadly peril, but their coolness saved -them for work in the trenches before Sevastopol, and for a share in the -final assault.</p> - -<p>Still under Sir Colin Campbell, their chief in the Crimea, the -Highlanders took part in the suppression of the Mutiny, and marched to -the relief of Lucknow, avenging the tragedy of Cawnpur at the action of -Secundra Bagh, where with the loyal Sikhs they piled up a heap of 2,000 -dead sepoys. On the same day the regiment took a hand in the capture of -the Shah Nujjif, a strong building that was taken by desperate -hand-to-hand fighting. From the top of the building the regimental -colour of the Highlanders,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_160" id="Page_160">[Pg 160]</a></span> waving, announced to the sorely pressed -Lucknow garrison that relief was approaching—and the rest of the story -of the relief is an oft-told one.</p> - -<p>Zululand and frontier work in India next claimed the attention of the -regiment, and then in 1899 the 1st battalion sailed for South Africa, to -join Lord Methuen's force and take part in the battle of the Modder -River, at which the Argyll and Sutherland men lost heavily. Joining -General Wauchope's Highland Brigade, the battalion marched on to -Magersfontein, where the commanding officer was among the killed. With -the rest of the brigade the Argylls moved on to Paardeberg and the -capture of Cronje and his force; and from that time onward to the end of -the war the record of the battalion is one continuous story of marching, -fighting, and the general work of the campaign, up to the time of the -signing of peace at Vereeniging. The<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_161" id="Page_161">[Pg 161]</a></span> total of marching accomplished by -the battalion during the course of the war was not less than 3,500 -miles. Seven Victoria Crosses had been won by members of the regiment up -to 1902.</p> - -<p>The deeds of the regiment are rather scantily told by its men in France. -The personal accounts begin with an appreciation of the bravery of the -Hon. R. Bruce, Master of Burleigh, in the retreat from Mons. "He was too -brave for anything," says a private who saw him at that time. "He simply -wanted to be at 'em, and at 'em he went. I don't know where his sword -was, but he hadn't it when I saw him—he had a rifle with the bayonet -fixed, just like the rest of us. I saw him at the time he was wounded, -and he just fought on gamely till he and his party of brave fellows were -cut off and surrounded."</p> - -<p>The next account concerns the battle of Soissons, on the Aisne—a place -<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_162" id="Page_162">[Pg 162]</a></span>variously pronounced by the troops, many of whom gave it the name of -"Scissors," as being a near thing to the real method of pronunciation. -"For about a week," says the narrator, "it rained night and day. You may -imagine us marching all day, from daylight in the morning till dark at -night, and then having to lie down in a field on the wet ground—nothing -to cover ourselves with and nothing underneath us—and living on -biscuits and corned beef. I feel sorry for the poor French people, and -you may be thankful you are living in England. We passed through village -after village on the march, and there was not a living soul in the -houses; doors and windows were smashed open, and everything was broken -in the way of furniture and fittings. We passed one house where the two -women who lived in it had just returned after the Germans had passed. As -we went by they gave<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_163" id="Page_163">[Pg 163]</a></span> us a drink of water—it was the only thing the -Germans had left them."</p> - -<p>Another man of the regiment, speaking of the earlier engagements, -remarks—"You would think you were in hell." He tells of the adventures -of Lieutenant Campbell of the Argyll and Sutherlands, who went out with -eleven men to reconnoitre in the early days of the campaign. As none of -the dozen returned, and careful searches failed to reveal any traces of -the party, they were given up as captured. To the surprise of their -comrades, however, they all turned up safe and sound some eleven days -later. It seemed that the party had unwittingly penetrated through the -German lines, and, managing to escape notice, had eventually found their -way out again. This story is supplemented by one which tells of a trick -played by the French during the German retreat from Paris. The Argylls -were located<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_164" id="Page_164">[Pg 164]</a></span> about thirty miles away from Paris, and in rear of them a -large body of the enemy were encamped in a wood. During the night, -according to this account, the French crept up to the wood without being -observed by the German sentries, and placed bundles of straw among the -trees, setting fire to the straw before they retired. The timber in the -wood was very dry, and the trees caught fire, causing a fierce blaze in -the course of a few minutes. The enemy were thrown into confusion, which -was completed by the artillery fire searching the wood and making rout -of the German retreat.</p> - -<p>There is one letter concerning the doings of the Argyll and Sutherland -men which is worthy of quotation, and calls for some question. The -writer says: "We have distinguished ourselves a good many times since we -commenced operations here, and we have lost heavily,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_165" id="Page_165">[Pg 165]</a></span> an occurrence much -to our sorrow. It is not my place to speak of the honour that has been -conferred upon us as a Scottish regiment for our bravery, and at one -time we saved the British Army from defeat. We are fortunate to have any -one left to relate the experience. The kindly eye of Providence has -overlooked me, and I am thankful. I don't know yet how I escaped. Once I -was lying in a line of sixteen men, eight of whom were killed or -severely wounded by the shell fire of the enemy."</p> - -<p>This letter comes undated, with the place of origin suppressed. It is -curious, if the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders—either or both -battalions—"saved the British Army from defeat," that there should be -only this one account of the affair—which must have been tremendous. -British soldiers, as a rule, are very quick to acknowledge<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_166" id="Page_166">[Pg 166]</a></span> the bravery -of their comrades, and it is strange that no man of any other regiment -has yet recognised that the whole of the British Army has been saved -from defeat by this one regiment—or possibly by one battalion of this -regiment. On the whole, one is tempted to regard the letter as a hoax, -though its solemn tone would go far to dispel that idea.</p> - -<p>One other letter there is, worthy in a different sense of full -quotation, for it tells of individual bravery and resourcefulness on the -part of a member of the regiment. "We had worked our way up to within -eighty yards of the German trenches," says the writer, "and then got the -order to charge, which we did with effect. One fellow belonging to the -Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders made a lunge with his bayonet at an -opponent, and his intended victim promptly warded off the blow, but,<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_167" id="Page_167">[Pg 167]</a></span> -much to the German's astonishment, the canny Scot brought the butt end -of the rifle to the jaw like a flash, and, felling him like a bullock, -finished the job with the bayonet. It was the work of a moment, done -without hesitation, and is typical of the bravery and resource of the -Highlanders generally."</p> - -<p>These few records of the men of the regiment go to prove that the Argyll -and Sutherland men went down from Mons to the Aisne, fought at -Soissons—and that is all. Of their presence in Flanders there is no -evidence so far, and at the time of writing they may still be living the -life of cave-dwellers down where the old German front is still -maintained against the thinned Franco-British line, or they may be round -Arras, in those fierce struggles whence the wounded come back by the -hundred and many men come back no more. Not till the "fog of war" has<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_168" id="Page_168">[Pg 168]</a></span> -cleared utterly away will all their story be told, but we may rest -assured that the story will not be one of which the Argyll and -Sutherland Highlanders need be ashamed.</p> - -<hr /> - -<p><span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_169" id="Page_169">[Pg 169]</a></span></p> - -<h2><span>CHAPTER X</span> <span class="smaller">THE HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY AND THE CAMERONIANS</span></h2> - -<p>The Highland Light Infantry—a title shortened in the Army to a -colloquial "H.L.I.," were originally known as "Macleod's Highlanders," -and were raised as the 73rd Foot in 1777, being embodied at Elgin in -April of 1778. Lord Macleod, after whom the regiment was named, was its -first commanding officer, and under his command the original members of -the 73rd went to Madras in 1780, their voyage lasting no less than -twelve months. The valour of the regiment in those early days of its -history may be judged from the fact that between the time of landing in -India and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_170" id="Page_170">[Pg 170]</a></span> 1806, a matter of only twenty-six years, there were -emblazoned on the regimental colours no less than six names—those of -Carnatic, Sholingur, Mysore, Hindustan, Seringapatam, and Cape of Good -Hope. To these might well be added that of Perambaukum, for in that -first action in which the H.L.I. took part the flank companies were cut -to pieces in a truly heroic stand against irresistible odds. After the -formation of new flank companies came the principal battles of the -Carnatic, and in the attack on Cuddalore the H.L.I. lost half their -strength of officers and men, and won the grateful thanks of their -commander-in-chief.</p> - -<p>In 1786 the regiment became the "71st," and their next spell of active -service was in the Mysore campaign, where they took part in all the -principal engagements, including the storming of Bangalore and -Seringapatam. They went from India to the Cape, and thence<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_171" id="Page_171">[Pg 171]</a></span> formed part -of General Whitelock's expedition to Buenos Ayres, in which, through no -fault of the Highlanders, who captured the city, Britain definitely lost -a footing in South America—the result of the expedition led to -Whitelocke being court-martialled and dismissed from the service. For -their gallantry in the capture of Buenos Ayres the H.L.I. were specially -commended by Lieutenant-General Floyd on the occasion of the -presentation of new colours to the regiment.</p> - -<p>Their next exploits were in the first Peninsular campaign, through which -they came to Corunna. They were at Torres Vedras, at the fierce -encounter of Fuentes d'Onor, and they took a prominent part in the -battle of Vittoria, where they routed the enemy and lost their -commanding officer, who fell dying while leading his men in the attack. -Like Wolfe, the commanding officer of<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_172" id="Page_172">[Pg 172]</a></span> the H.L.I. had a last thought for -the defeat of the enemy, and died happy in the knowledge that the battle -was practically won. Near on four hundred of his men fell with him on -this field.</p> - -<p>No less than sixteen special medals were presented to men of the -Highland Light Infantry in the Peninsular campaigns for special personal -bravery, and then at Waterloo they shared in the last attack on -Napoleon's Imperial Guard, with which the day ended. Earlier in the day -the Highland Light Infantry formed the square in which the Duke of -Wellington had his place at the time the French cavalry charged.</p> - -<p>The regiment took part in the Crimean campaign, serving in the trenches -before Sevastopol, and in the expedition to Yenikale. In the Central -Indian Campaign of 1858 the H.L.I. were heavily engaged, and at the -Morar Cantonments<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_173" id="Page_173">[Pg 173]</a></span> engagement the first Victoria Cross of the regiment -was won.</p> - -<p>The history of the 2nd battalion of the regiment—the old 74th, is very -similar to that of the 1st battalion, including as it does the storming -of Seringapatam, the principal engagements of the Peninsular campaign, -and—here the history diverges—the sinking of the <i>Birkenhead</i> off the -Cape. The two battalions were first definitely named "Highland Light -Infantry" in place of their old-time numbers in 1881, when the -Territorial system came into being as regards the Regular Army.</p> - -<p>The 2nd battalion of the regiment took part in the Egyptian campaign of -1882, and won a Victoria Cross at Tel-el-Kebir. In the Malakand Campaign -of 1897 and again in Crete in 1898, the regiment saw active service, and -in the South African War the 1st battalion went through the action of -Modder River and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_174" id="Page_174">[Pg 174]</a></span> on to Magersfontein, where another Victoria Cross was -won by Corporal Shaul of the regiment. Together with the rest of the -Highland Brigade, the H.L.I. were "in" at the capture of Cronje at -Paardeberg, and at the capture of Prinsloo they played an important -part. No less than eighty-one officers and men were left behind by the -regiment at the close of the South African campaign.</p> - -<p>Four Victoria Crosses are reckoned to the credit of the regiment, but to -these must be added the sixteen special medals for gallantry won by the -H.L.I. in the Peninsular War, before ever such a thing as a Victoria -Cross was instituted. Of medals for distinguished conduct, there are -many in the H.L.I.</p> - -<p>Personal accounts of the fighting in which the regiment has been engaged -in France are few, up to the present time. A definite account has been -received of the death of Lieutenant Sir Archibald<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_175" id="Page_175">[Pg 175]</a></span> Gibson Craig. It is -stated that the lieutenant had told his servant some time previously -that, in case of his death on the field, the servant was to take charge -of all his personal belongings; and at a place not named—or a place of -which the name has been excised—he was in charge of a party of sixteen -men, who were proceeding to a rather steep hill, when they came in -contact with a large number of the enemy, estimated by the Highlanders -at between 300 and 400. The men had not been aware that they were so -near the Germans, but when the lieutenant saw the position in which they -were placed he drew his sword and shouted, "Charge, men! At them!" His -men fired at the German force, and then charged with fixed bayonets, at -which the enemy thought the British party was far stronger than it was -in reality, for they began to retreat. The Highlanders, however, had to -retire, since two of their<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_176" id="Page_176">[Pg 176]</a></span> number were killed and three wounded, which -left a dangerously small force of effectives. They retired in good -order, carrying their dead and wounded, but Sir Archibald Craig was shot -through the mouth, and killed instantaneously.</p> - -<p>This is the most circumstantial account that has come to hand regarding -the work of the regiment, so far. Another story of a wounded man states -that during the fighting on the Aisne, in the village of Vera Neuil, he -received two pieces of shrapnel in the chest. "We were not safe -anywhere, not even in the hospital, as the Germans shelled that too. I -was wounded on Tuesday, September 15, when I was eating a biscuit at the -time I was shot."</p> - -<p>An officer of the H.L.I. gives an account of the way in which the -Germans are conducting their fighting.</p> - -<p>"An officer dressed as a French officer went up to some Coldstream -Guards and<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_177" id="Page_177">[Pg 177]</a></span> asked if Bulkley, the machine-gun officer, was in that -battalion. He then shot the officer he was talking to. Others dress up -as British staff officers, and drive about in motor cars, and when they -meet transports of convoys shout at them—'The Germans are advancing on -you from just ahead,' which causes a stampede. That happened to us, for -a long column of transport was ahead of us as we were retiring, and all -of a sudden a supposed French officer came galloping down the road the -reverse way, shouting 'Les Allemands, les Uhlans!' All the transport was -thrown into confusion, and some of the waggons came back at a gallop. We -were just behind, but mercifully the road was broad. There was a little -confusion at first, but they rallied splendidly when I shouted to them, -and we all advanced up the road with fixed bayonets, to find absolutely -nothing.</p> - -<p>"The Germans actually dress <span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_178" id="Page_178">[Pg 178]</a></span>themselves up in our men's great-coats to -disguise themselves, get close, and then shoot."</p> - -<p>These accounts demonstrate the presence of the Highland Light Infantry -on the great retreat, and also at the battle of the Aisne. From the -latter position they may have gone on to Flanders—the more likely -alternative—or they may have remained as part of the thin defensive -line left along the Aisne positions.</p> - -<p class="center">* * * * *</p> - -<p>The present "Cameronians" were formed from the old-time "26th -Cameronians," from whom the regiment takes its title, and from the "90th -Perthshire Light Infantry," the first of which regiments fought for -religious liberty against the King's troops at Bothwell Bridge in old -days. Until the revolution which placed William of Orange on the throne -they stuck to their principles, and then in one day there was enrolled -from<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_179" id="Page_179">[Pg 179]</a></span> among them a regiment to support the cause of "Dutch William," a -regiment which, under the Earl of Angus, held Dunkeld against a force -four times their own strength. They fought at Landen, and lost their -colonel, the Earl of Angus, at Steinkerk; they shared in the capture of -Namur, and then in Marlborough's battles they so fought as to be able to -emblazon the names of Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, and Malplaquet on -the regimental colours. They shared in the defence of Gibraltar in 1727, -fought and endured through the American War of Independence, and served -under Sir John Moore at Corunna. Meanwhile the 2nd battalion, formed by -Thomas Graham (subsequently Lord Lynedoch), served under Sir Ralph -Abercrombie in driving out Napoleon's "Invincible Army" from Egypt, and -captured a French eagle at Guadeloupe.</p> - -<p>In the Chinese campaign of 1840 the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_180" id="Page_180">[Pg 180]</a></span> Cameronians 1st battalion took a -share, being first to scale the walls of Amoy. The 2nd battalion saw -service against the Kaffirs of South Africa in 1846 and the following -year, and went on to the Crimean campaign, having among its officers a -certain Lieutenant Wolseley, who was destined for great things.</p> - -<p>In the Mutiny the 2nd battalion formed a part of Havelock's force at -Lucknow, and subsequently assisted in stamping out the last traces of -the great rebellion. The 1st battalion took the field in Abyssinia in -1868, and went on with Napier to Magdala. Another famous British officer -shared in the exploits of the 1st battalion in the person of Sir Evelyn -Wood, during the strenuous work of the Zulu campaign of 1878, when the -battalion fought from Inhlobane to Ulundi, where Cetewayo was -overthrown.</p> - -<p>The Cameronians shared in Buller's<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_181" id="Page_181">[Pg 181]</a></span> advance through Natal in the South -African War of 1899-1902, forming part of General Lyttleton's brigade at -Colenso, reinforcing the Lancashire Brigade in the action of Spion Kop, -sweeping the Boers off Vaalkrantz, and sharing in the furious charges at -Pieter's Hill—until the way to Ladysmith lay open. Through the fighting -for Laing's Nek, and in the guerilla warfare that lasted out the rest of -the campaign, the Cameronians played their part nobly. No less than -three South African campaigns are commemorated on the colours of the -regiment.</p> - -<p>Of their work in France, less personal accounts are to hand than -concerning the work of any other Scottish regiment. There is one -statement by a wounded man with regard to a German ruse of driving on -sheep in night attacks on the trenches. The sheep were heard moving in -the darkness in front of the<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_182" id="Page_182">[Pg 182]</a></span> trenches, and while the Cameronians opened -fire on them, the Germans tried to get round their flank—but two Maxim -guns drove them back with a loss of over 200 dead. The incident is -related with no reference to place or date.</p> - -<p>A non-commissioned officer of the regiment speaks of the secrecy of -movement that has to be maintained. None are made aware of probable -movements, destinations, or reasons for any plans, and commanding -officers are not informed of what is about to be done until it is -absolutely imperative that they should know. The reason for this lies in -the great number of German spies who are arrested in all kinds of -disguises, British and French uniforms, civilian clothes, chauffeurs' -uniforms, and all possible forms of dress. "The leakage of information -is astounding," says the writer, "and we quite appreciate the necessity -for secrecy in all our doings, and fully<span class='pagenum'><a name="Page_183" id="Page_183">[Pg 183]</a></span> understand its wisdom, as we -have been saved from complete destruction more than once through this -secrecy."</p> - -<p>Even of things that took place months ago, however, there is no record -yet. Of how the Gordons were cut off, and of what the Cameronians have -done and where they did it, we know little or nothing—concerning all -things that individual units have accomplished there is scarcely more -record than the stories collected here, which make no pretence at giving -a full history of the doings of the Scottish regiments at the front, but -simply stand as detached records of the deeds of brave men.</p> - -<p>And as for the London Scottish and their bravery, that story belongs to -the record of Territorial regiments at the front, in which it will in -due course be told.</p> - -<p class="center space-above"><i>Printed in Great Britain by Hazell, Watson & Viney, Ld.,<br />London and -Aylesbury.</i></p> - -<p> </p> -<p> </p> -<hr class="full" /> -<p>***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT***</p> -<p>******* This file should be named 51523-h.htm or 51523-h.zip *******</p> -<p>This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:<br /> -<a href="http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/5/1/5/2/51523">http://www.gutenberg.org/5/1/5/2/51523</a></p> -<p> -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed.</p> - -<p>Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of -the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll have -to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this ebook. - - - - -Title: With the Scottish Regiments at the Front - - -Author: Evelyn Charles Vivian - - - -Release Date: March 22, 2016 [eBook #51523] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) - - -***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE -FRONT*** - - -E-text prepared by Brian Coe, Martin Pettit, and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team (http://www.pgdp.net) from page images generously made -available by Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries -(https://archive.org/details/toronto) - - - -Note: Images of the original pages are available through - Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries. See - https://archive.org/details/withscottishregi00viviuoft - - - - - -The Daily Telegraph War Books - -WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT - -At the Front Series - - - * * * * * - -Cloth 1/-net each - -The Daily Telegraph -WAR BOOKS - -Post free 1/3 each - - -HOW THE WAR BEGAN -By W. L. COURTNEY, LL.D., and J. M. KENNEDY - -THE FLEETS AT WAR -By ARCHIBALD HURD - -THE CAMPAIGN OF SEDAN -By GEORGE HOOPER - -THE CAMPAIGN ROUND LIEGE -By J. M. KENNEDY - -IN THE FIRING LINE -Battle Stories told by British Soldiers at the Front -By A. ST. JOHN ADCOCK - -GREAT BATTLES OF THE WORLD -By STEPHEN CRANE -Author of "The Red Badge of Courage" - -BRITISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT -The glorious story of their Battle Honours - -THE RED CROSS IN WAR -By M. F. BILLINGTON - -FORTY YEARS AFTER -The Story of the Franco-German War. By H. C. BAILEY -With an introduction by W. L. COURTNEY, LL.D. - -A SCRAP OF PAPER -The Inner History of German Diplomacy -By E. J. DILLON - -HOW THE NATIONS WAGED WAR -A companion volume to "How the War Began," telling how the world faced -Armageddon and how the British Army answered the call to arms -By J. M. KENNEDY - -AIR-CRAFT IN WAR -By ERIC STUART BRUCE - -HACKING THROUGH BELGIUM -By EDMUND DANE - -FAMOUS FIGHTS OF INDIAN NATIVE REGIMENTS -By REGINALD HODDER - -THE RETREAT TO PARIS -By ROGER INGPEN - -THE RUSSIAN ADVANCE -By MARR MURRAY - -THE SUBMARINE IN WAR -By C. W. DOMVILLE-FIFE - -MOTOR TRANSPORTS IN WAR -By HORACE WYATT - -THE SLAV NATIONS - - * * * * * - - -WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE FRONT - -by - -E. CHARLES VIVIAN - -Author of "Passion Fruit," "Divided Ways," etc. - - - - - - - -Hodder and Stoughton -London New York Toronto -MCMXIV - -Printed in Great Britain by Hazell, Watson & Viney, Ld., -London and Aylesbury. - - - - -CONTENTS - - -CHAPTER I - PAGE -THE GUARDS AND THE GREYS 1 - - -CHAPTER II - -THE ROYAL SCOTS 17 - - -CHAPTER III - -THE ROYAL SCOTS FUSILIERS 36 - - -CHAPTER IV - -THE KING'S OWN SCOTTISH BORDERERS 48 - - -CHAPTER V - -THE BLACK WATCH 73 - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS 93 - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE SEAFORTH HIGHLANDERS 114 - - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE CAMERON HIGHLANDERS 138 - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE ARGYLL AND SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDERS 157 - - -CHAPTER X - -THE HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY AND THE CAMERONIANS 169 - - - - -CHAPTER I - -THE GUARDS AND THE GREYS - - -If one should ask any man, of any regiment of the British Army, what was -the quality of the regiment to which he belonged, the answer would be to -the effect that his was the best regiment in the service, without any -exception. If any other answer should be returned to such a query, it -might be assumed that there was something wrong with that particular -man; he ought not to be a soldier, for every soldier worthy of the name -firmly believes that his regiment is the best. - -The Scottish regiments are not exempt from this belief, and surely, -judging by their regimental histories, they have good cause. Certain -peculiar honours are theirs, too: they form the only kilted force of -regular troops in the world, for one thing; and for another thing the -oldest regiment of the British Army is Scottish--for the Royal Scots, -with definite history dating back to 1625, lay claim to direct descent -from the Scottish archers who were kept for centuries as guards for -French kings. Putting legend and tradition aside, it is certain and -beyond dispute that John Hepburn led the Royal Scots under Gustavus -Adolphus, the great Swedish champion of liberty, as early as 1625; and -in 1633, with eight years of hard work on Continental battlefields to -season their ranks, the Royal Scots were definitely and officially -included in the British Army, seeing service under Marlborough at -Blenheim, Ramillies, Malplaquet, and Oudenarde. There is a story of -Blenheim to the effect that the Commander-in-chief of the French Army, -taken prisoner by Marlborough, congratulated the latter on having -overcome "the best troops in the world." The Duke caustically requested -him to "Except those troops by whom you have been conquered." Prominent -among these were the Royal Scots. - -But, although senior in point of age, the Royal Scots is not "the right -of the line" in the British Army. This proud distinction is held by the -Royal Horse Artillery, which probably numbers as many Scotsmen in its -ranks as men of any other nationality. The Artillery, however, knows no -nationalities in its nomenclature. One is first a gunner, and then -either English, Scotch, Welsh, or Irish--the guns count before -territorial distinctions. Next to the R.H.A., if ever the line of the -whole Army were formed, would come the Brigade of Guards, and here the -Scots Guards find a place, very near the right of the line, when the -length of that line is considered. - -It is possible, to a certain extent, to trace the history of each unit -of the Army, as far as the present European war is concerned, by means -of the letters sent home by the men of each unit. Such histories are -necessarily brief and scrappy, but they afford some idea of what the -various regiments are doing on the field; and the object of this book -is, to some extent, to show how each Scottish regiment has contributed -to the glory of Scotland and the fame of the British Army since August -of 1914. Some reference to the earlier exploits of Scots on other fields -may perhaps be pardoned, for there are some stories--like that already -quoted regarding the Duke of Marlborough--that never grow old. - -Of the Scots Guards, few records have as yet come to hand, beyond those -that are common knowledge. The regiment has nearly three hundred years -of history, having been raised as the "Scots Fusilier Guards" in 1641. -Nineteen years later they became the "Scots Guards," and in the closing -years of the seventeenth century they fought in Flanders, subsequently -serving with distinction under the Duke of Marlborough. From "Dettingen" -through the Napoleonic and Crimean wars up to "Modder River" the battle -honours on their colours range, for like the great majority of British -regiments they had their share of South Africa in the last campaign -there. - -Personal records of their deeds in the early stages of this present war -are scarce, but certain it is that there were Scots Guards at the battle -of the Marne, although the official dispatches are chary of mentioning -the names of regiments engaged in definite actions or at definite -points. For, previously to the battle of the Marne, there was a -Guardsman of Kilmarnock of whom a story is told. He was on duty with a -comrade when two mounted men approached, and on challenging the riders -the Scots found that one of them was a Uhlan--who made off with all -speed. The Kilmarnock man advanced on the other rider, whom his comrade -had covered with his rifle, but the horseman made a motion with his left -hand toward his revolver. Thereupon the Kilmarnock man, being tall and -powerfully built, struck out with his fist and knocked the man from his -saddle, ascertaining subsequently that he was a German scout officer, -and that he carried a diary which gave particulars of the movements of -the brigade to which the Scots Guards were attached, from the time of -its leaving Havre almost up to the time of the officer's capture. There -were in the diary frequent allusions to "those hellish British"--which -comment speaks for itself. - -Later, along the position of the Aisne, the first battalion of the -Guards were busy. On a certain Sunday afternoon the Guards and the -Black Watch were in the thick of the fighting, and that night they were -ordered to the trenches--and the Germans had the position of the -trenches ranged to a nicety, so that they were able to drop shells with -wicked precision all night. Next morning the German infantry retreated -for a matter of a mile, uphill, and there waited for the inevitable -advance of the Guards and the Black Watch. The retreat was a trap, for -on the advance the two British battalions were subject to shell as well -as rifle fire, and out of one section of fourteen men only one was left. -This one, a corporal, was badly cut about the face, and had one knee -severely damaged, but with a field dressing tied round his leg he -remained in the firing line all day, going over to the Black Watch, -since he had drifted too far away from his own battalion to rejoin it at -once. "I had to stick it in the field all day," he says, "and the -fighting was awful. The Germans had all their big guns firing at us, and -we could not get our own guns up to fire back at them. I never expected -to get out of it alive. Well, after lying half the night wet in the -open, among the dead Germans and our own dead, I got strength enough to -crawl back, and managed to find a hospital about twelve o'clock at -night, nearly dead. I never got any sleep that night, but guess what the -Germans did in the morning! They blew the hospital up in the air. I -happened to be near the door, so I got away all right; but I got another -bit in the back that flattened me out for awhile. I missed all the -ambulances through this. The next carts that came along were the -ammunition ones. The driver helped me on to the back of one, but I had -hardly enough strength to hang on. The Germans shelled all these carts -for miles, and the horses of the one I was on got hit with a shell, and -I had not the strength to climb on to another one. The drivers were -hurrying away for their lives, so I had to scramble along for two miles -on my own to a big barn, which they called a field hospital." - -And there the record ends. It makes a scrap of history of the Guards, -though when the regimental histories of this war come to be written it -will be found that such stories as these are only scraps of the whole, -for the battles of the Aisne and of the coast do not mark the end. - -With regard to the Scots Greys, their work in the early days is well -known now, for from Mons down through the three weeks of the great -retreat they upheld the honour of Scotland so well that on the 8th of -September Sir John French addressed the regiment in words that officers -and men alike will remember. He came on them while they were resting, -and these were his words, as given by a man of the regiment: - -"I am very sorry to disturb you from your sleep, Greys, but I feel I -must say a few words to you. I have been watching your work very -closely, and it has been magnificent. Your country is proud of you, and -I thank you from the bottom of my heart. It is not the first time I have -had the pleasure of thanking you, and I hope it will not be the last. -There are no soldiers in the world that could have done what you have -done." - -This, it must be pointed out, is as it is told by a soldier of the -regiment; it is worth while to make the contrast between it and a letter -said to be from a man of the Greys to his wife, in which he says: - -"I was in the retreat from Mons. We were told to go out and draw the -enemy, and before going all our officers and generals said, 'Good-bye,' -so you can bet we felt all right." - -"A couple of chaps in my troop went through the South African war, but -after the Mons fighting said the medals they got in Africa were not -worth the keeping. They saw more shot and shell in one day here than -they saw in three years in South Africa. - -"The inhabitants go fairly mad when they see us, as they know they will -be cared for by us." - -The writer of that letter _may_ have heard a German shell in the -air--and he may not. Queries rise in one's mind as to whom the "officers -and generals" said good-bye to, and also a query rises as to how many -generals the Scots Greys have in their ranks--these points come up -automatically. It is not the custom in the British Army, after the order -for an advance has been given, to give time even for the "officers and -generals" of a regiment to wander round with last messages; and, if -ever the Greys played this game in the fighting in France, there can be -little doubt that the inhabitants of the country went "fairly mad" over -the regiment. The letter looks like a fraud, but it is typical of some -that are finding their way into print nearly every day. - -Circumstantial and bearing the impress of truth is the account of the -doings of the regiment given by one Private Ward, who came home wounded -from the Aisne. He tells, all too briefly, how from the second day after -landing in France the regiment was continually in action. The work for -the most part, however, was in the nature of a grand artillery duel, and -the Greys were mainly employed in scouting, with an occasional charge -"thrown in." In the battle of the Aisne the Greys supported the King's -Own Scottish Borderers and the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders in the -crossing of the river; and, after the infantry had all crossed, the -Greys went in single file, with sixteen feet between man and man, over a -pontoon bridge that was under shell fire from the German guns, placed on -the heights in front. Many of the horses were killed, and Ward himself -was struck in the leg with a piece of shell, causing so severe a flesh -wound that he had to be taken to the field ambulance, and thence home. -And thus the story of the Greys ends, so far as this record is -concerned. - -It is a regiment of great traditions, as British cavalry regiments go. -Alone among the cavalry the Greys wear the bearskin in place of the -metal helmet in parade dress, and they are nearly as old as the Scots -Guards, having been raised as a regiment in 1678, and forming the oldest -regiment of Dragoons in the service. Originally they were known as the -"Royal Regiment of Scots Dragoons," a title that was subsequently -changed to "Grey Dragoons," from which their present title of "Scots -Greys" was evolved. Unto this day the sergeants of the regiment wear the -badge above their chevrons that commemorates the taking of the French -eagle of the famous Regiment du Roi; and at Waterloo they charged with -the Gordons clinging to their stirrup leathers, while cavalrymen and -Gordons alike yelled--"Scotland for ever!" To Napoleon they were known -as "_ces terribles chevaux gris_," and out of the charge of the Heavy -Brigade in the Crimea they brought back two Victoria Crosses. - -No record of the doings of Scottish regiments in this present war can be -compiled without mention of the Scots Guards and the Greys, but their -history properly belongs to that of the Guards Brigade and of the -cavalry respectively--and in these two counts they must be reckoned for -a full recital of their doings. The foregoing mere incidents will serve -as compromise, lest it should be thought that the two regiments had been -overlooked. As for the Royal Artillery, it knows no more of territorial -distinctions, as already mentioned, than it does of battle honours--for -every battle in which a British Army has fought might be inscribed on -the colours of the gunners, if they had colours. It is probable that, -when the relative populations of the four nationalities are taken into -account, Scotsmen will be found to preponderate in the R.A., for the -Scot is always a little mechanically inclined, and the working of the -guns needs most mechanical knowledge of any of the three arms. - -Of infantry of the line, there are ten definitely Scottish regiments, -and an effort will be made to trace their histories in the great -European campaign--or rather, in the first days of that campaign, as -far as personal narratives will admit. Blanks and gaps there must be, -but the stories that officers and men have to tell will, when collated -and set down in some sort of order, enable us to conceive of the nature -of the work in which Scots are well maintaining the honour of their -regiments. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE ROYAL SCOTS - - -One of the titles bestowed on the Royal Scots, that of "Pontius Pilate's -Bodyguard," marks the claim of the regiment to antiquity. Under -Marlborough, in the French war in America, at Corunna, through the -Peninsular war with Wellington, at Quatre Bras and Waterloo, in India, -the Crimea, and in China, have the battalions of the Royal Scots upheld -the honour of the British Army; and it stands to their credit that in -the South African campaign, in which they were engaged practically from -start to finish, there was not a single case of surrender of a party of -the Royal Scots. - -The history of the regiment in the present war begins at Landrecies and -Mons, and it is worthy of note that the first story of a man of the -regiment that comes to hand concerns the bravery of men of other units. -The man in question was twice wounded himself before being invalided -home; but, declining to talk about himself, he remarked that for real -British pluck he had never seen anything to equal that of the Middlesex -regiment. He saw them digging trenches near Mons when a mass of Germans, -who seemed to come from nowhere, came down on them. He conjectured that -the Germans had been apprised of the position of the Middlesex men by an -air scout, and he saw how the Germans came on the Middlesex, who were -totally unprepared in the matter of equipment, and had to face fixed -bayonets with no apparent means of reprisal. But the sergeant of a -company set the fashion by the use of his fists, and "downed" two of -the attacking Germans; the whole of the company followed suit, but they -were badly cut about by the Germans, and the sergeant was bayoneted. -Near by were the Connaughts, who, after six guns had been taken by the -Germans, charged down on the enemy and took back the guns, with the aid -of artillery fire. But, regarding the doings of the Royal Scots at the -time, the man of the regiment who tells this story has never a word to -say. - -A corporal of the 1st Royal Scots tells how Lieutenant Geoffrey Lambton, -nephew of the Earl of Durham, died. It happened in the third rearguard -action after Mons that the lieutenant was in charge of his men in a -wood, and was directing fire from a mound. Before and beneath the Scots -the Germans were in strong force, and were preparing to attack, when -Lambton gave the order to fire, and, picking up a rifle himself, set -the example to his men. Fatally wounded by a German bullet, he knew -that he had not long to live, so handed over to the corporal his -pocket-book, note-book and sketch-book, to take back to his people. - -Another corporal of the regiment testifies to the spirit of its men at -Landrecies, where in company with about fifty others he was cut off from -the main body, and engaged in desperate street fighting. The party -joined up with the Grenadier Guards, and in the streets of Landrecies -German officers called on them to surrender, but the officers answered -that "British never surrender--fix bayonets and charge!" So well did -they charge that the streets were piled with German dead. The Royal -Scots were heavily engaged at Landrecies, and accounted for a great -number of the enemy there. - -Graphically is the story of the retreat told by one Private Stewart, who -was invalided home after the battle of the Marne. "After Mons," he -says, "the hardships of fighting on the retreat began. We had little -time for sleep; both day and night we retreated, and as they marched the -men slept. If a man in front of you happened to stop, you found yourself -bumping into him. I didn't have my clothes off for six weeks, and my kit -and overcoat have been left on the field. At one place where we halted -for the day the lady of the farmhouse was washing, so some of us took -off our shirts to have them washed. While they were hanging up to dry -the order came that the troops had to move on, and the wet garments had -to be put on just as they were. Mine was dry next morning. Two of my -mates were killed in the trenches by one shell, which burst close to -them. We were not deeply entrenched, and the German artillery fire was -so heavy that we had to lie on our sides like pitmen and dig ourselves -in deeper. We had a chance to look up occasionally when our guns -replied. Another time the Royal Scots were having a meal by the -roadside, when we got orders that we must be finished in five minutes. -In less than that time the Germans opened fire, but fortunately the side -of the road was an embankment, and so formed a natural trench. We lay -there during the rest of the day and the greater part of the night, -keeping off the attack by constant fire. My company captured about forty -German cyclists, who offered no resistance--this was after the Marne, -when the Germans retired. The British had been blazing away for some -time at what appeared to be the helmets of the men in the trenches, when -an officer saw that the helmets were not moving. He gave the order to -advance, and when we got up we found that the Germans were retiring, and -had left their helmets as a blind. Many prisoners were taken that day." - -Brief as an official report is this story, and as pithy, giving as it -does an outline of the work in which the Royal Scots have been engaged -from the time of Landrecies onwards. For it is not what is actually -written that counts in such a sincere piece of writing as this, but the -facts that appear between the lines. The brief reference to the -hardships of the retreat, the queer washing day, and the interrupted -meal, are chapters of war in themselves, reported with a brevity and -conciseness which stamp the document as authentic. - -Another man of the regiment was in the first of the fighting at -Landrecies, and went on to the positions of the Marne and the Aisne, -returning wounded from the latter, with four splinters of shrapnel in -his back, one in his ribs, and a bullet wound in his head--surely -enough to send any man back from the firing line. At Landrecies he and -his fellows encountered a looting party of Germans, who carried large -quantities of jewellery, clothing, and other articles: practically every -account of the first of the fighting tells of German attention to -details of this kind. - -At the position of the Aisne, the Royal Scots had a stiff struggle in -the holding of a pontoon bridge, and the man who tells this story was -wounded there during a rain of shell fire to which his battalion was -subjected. After he was hit, he lay unconscious for seven hours, and in -order to escape after regaining his senses he had to propel himself, -feet first, along a sort of furrow or ditch. It was a weary business, -and, exposing himself momentarily, he was hit again on the head by a -bullet, though the lead failed to penetrate to any depth; and during his -journey he was for a time between the fire of Germans and British. He -came on a German trench full of dead men, and was struck by the -elaborate arrangement of the trench, for there were tables and chairs, -and a quantity of champagne bottles, both full and empty--the trench was -well stocked with wine. - -Previously to being wounded, this man made one of a party that captured -a number of Germans, one of whom spoke English well, and told his -captors that he had a wife and five children in Glasgow, and that the -only way to get back to them was to court capture. This German had been -in employment in Glasgow, and was called up _five months_ before the war -broke out--a significant fact when it is remembered how German statesmen -are still insisting that Britain made the war. - -A man of the Royal Scots has told how Captain Price of the regiment -died. While in the trenches, and under a hot fire, Captain Price ran -forward to help a corporal who had been shot in the arm, and in kindly -fashion the captain was preventing the corporal from seeing his -wound--shielding the injured arm while it was being dressed. While so -engaged Captain Price was struck in the head by a piece of shrapnel, and -he died while being carried to the field hospital. On the testimony of -the men of the regiment, a braver or kindlier officer than Captain C. L. -Price, D.S.O., has never worn uniform. - -With regard to the work of the regiment in the trenches of the Aisne, -and the enemy they have had to face, one man of the regiment speaks. -"The Germans are good range finders with their big guns," he says, "and -their fire is very effective--but you could get boys to give them points -with the rifle. One thing has made an impression on me, and that is that -the enemy has no respect whatever for the Red Cross. Our men were -proceeding along a road, when they came on a Red Cross waggon lying on -its side, with several Red Cross men lying dead beside it. There was one -brave incident I witnessed, and although I do not know the name of the -fellow who showed such pluck, I know he belonged to the Royal Scots. I -saw him carry one of his comrades across a field for about three hundred -yards, though the fire from the German ranks was simply awful at the -time." - -Here, again, is an instance of the way in which the men tell of each -other's deeds but make no mention of their own. The French soldier, as a -rule, knows when he has done a brave action, and talks about it--the -quality does not make him less brave, but it is one that is inconsistent -with British character. The average British soldier is usually quite -unconscious that he has done anything worthy of note, and, even if he -knows the value of what he has done, he is very shy of speaking about -it, and usually prefers to talk about the things somebody else has -accomplished. - -A certain Private Kemp, invalided home to Berwick, testifies to the way -in which tobacco and cigarettes have come to be regarded by the men in -the firing line. He tells how, when out scouting, he was captured by -three Uhlans, who took away his arms and equipment, and were just about -to take him away as a prisoner when a shot was fired, and the Uhlans -took to their heels. Kemp, wounded in the leg, fell, and after lying for -an hour and a half, he was picked up by advancing British troops. "One -great hardship," he says, "was the lack of tobacco all the time. I and -many of my comrades have been reduced to smoking dried tea-leaves -wrapped in old newspaper. A real smoke would have been a blessing." - -One officer of the regiment, wounded while out in front of the trenches -studying the position of the enemy with field-glasses, was carried back -into shelter, and laid in the trench until the field ambulance should -come to remove him to the rear. "He lay there smoking cigarettes," says -one of the men, "and shouting--'Good old Royal Scots--well done!' -whenever anything came off." And in this and incidents like it lies the -spirit that makes the Royal Scots what they are--it is the spirit of men -who do not know when they are beaten, who will never admit defeat. It is -the spirit that Findlater showed at Dargai. - -Yet another private of the regiment, writing with no address and no date -to his letter, says: "In the last scrap I was in we had a terrible time -one way and another. After marching from the Sunday to the Tuesday -night, we got anchored near a farm, and the next morning, just when -breakfast was ready, we had to leave it lying and get stuck into our -trenches, as the Germans had come on us. We could see them moving up on -our front, and our artillery were not long in getting their range and -sending them out of it. Our big guns were going finely until the -afternoon, when they seemed to stop all at once, compared with the guns -the Germans had brought up. They started to shell a village behind us -with their siege guns, and they just blew holes in it. We had a church -for a hospital, and that went up too--but that is their usual dirty -game. They have no respect for a Red Cross waggon, and, as far as I can -see, they seem to take them for targets. We had to retire after being -shelled for about eight hours, and we lost a good few men, but had the -consolation of knowing that, as usual, the enemy had lost a good many -more. We are having a rest now, and have not seen the battalion for two -weeks. It is a very sad sight to see the people here going about -homeless; most of them are of the poorer class, and it must be an awful -time for them." - -Writing later, the same man says: "We have come through four days' hard -fighting, and have been relieved--we drove the Germans out of all their -positions. At one place the French were trying to shift the enemy, so -our lot were brought up to assist; and although we lost a good few men -in the open fields, our chaps stuck it well. General Smith-Dorrien sent -along a message--'Good, Royal Scots!' and then when we took the other -side of the bridge he said 'Bravo, Royal Scots!' so we have not done so -badly." - -And there, for the present, the record of this oldest regiment of the -service must be broken off. It tells of work from Mons and Landrecies, -through the great retreat to the position of the Marne, and on to the -Aisne--and there it ends, for the present. We know that many of the -regiments along the line of the Aisne have been moved up to assist in -the great Flanders battles, and in all probability there have been Royal -Scots in that Flanders line as well as along the Aisne. - -There is one story of this first regiment of British infantry which, -though it is nearly fourteen years old, should always be told in any -account of the deeds of the regiment. It concerns a certain Sergeant G. -Robertson, placed in command of a party of about twenty men who were -acting as railway escort to a train from Pretoria. The train was bound -for the Eastern Transvaal, and, on reaching Pan, it was stopped by Boers -blowing up the line. The Boers attacked in force, being concealed in a -trench a few yards from the train, and the escort at once, under orders -from Sergeant Robertson, opened fire. The Boers, who greatly outnumbered -the escort, called on Robertson to surrender, but he answered--"No -surrender!" Almost immediately afterwards, he was shot through the head. - -A similar case concerns Major Twyford, an officer of the Royal Scots, -who in April of 1901 was attacked by a commando under Jan de Beers in -the Badfontein Valley. Twyford and his party numbered eight all told, -mounted men, and they took up a position among the ruins of a farmhouse -which afforded some shelter from the fire of the enemy. The commando of -Boers closed in on them, and, having in mind the enormous disparity of -the forces, called on them to surrender. Major Twyford declined to do -so, and went on firing on de Beers' commando until shot dead by the -enemy. - -Captain Price, of whom mention has already been made, was a lieutenant -at the time of the South African war, and was recommended at that time -for the Victoria Cross for especial gallantry in leading "E" company at -the action at Bermondsey. Three of the non-commissioned officers and men -were specially mentioned for their gallantry in this affair, a certain -Corporal Paul was promoted sergeant for his bravery, and Lieutenant -Price, recommended for his V.C., obtained the D.S.O. France saw him -brave as ever, and the regiment will keep his memory as that of one of -its most gallant officers. - -But, if one begins to tell the story of the deeds of the regiment of -Royal Scots in previous campaigns, the story is without end, and space -will not admit of it. It were unwise to say that the Royal Scots are -first in bravery in action, as they are first in seniority among line -regiments; but at least, in the matter of courage, they are equal with -any, as the present campaign in France has proved. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE ROYAL SCOTS FUSILIERS - - -The titles of regiments are apt to be confusing to the lay mind, and it -is difficult at first to distinguish between the Royal Scots and the -Royal Scots Fusiliers, on paper. In old time the Fusiliers were the -"twenty-first" regiment of infantry; they were raised in Scotland in -1678 for service under Charles II, and served under William III in -Holland and Flanders, as well as under the great Duke of Marlborough and -under George II when the latter commanded his troops in person at the -battle of Dettingen. - -Their history in previous campaigns to this of France and Belgium is a -long one. At Blenheim, Malplaquet, and Ramillies the Scots Fusiliers -won particular distinction--the brigadier who led the principal attack -at Blenheim was a colonel of the Scots Fusiliers. At Dettingen and -Fontenoy, again, the Fusiliers were well to the front, and in the -last-named engagement the regiment suffered so severely that it became -necessary to move it to Flanders. In 1761 the Scots Fusiliers took part -in the capture of Belle Isle, and later, in the American War of -Independence--bolstering up a bad cause--they underwent intense -privations, and, foodless and minus ammunition, capitulated with General -Burgoyne at Saratoga to a force five times the strength of that which -Burgoyne commanded. 1793 saw them engaged in capturing the islands of -the West Indies from the French, and in 1807 they formed part of the -second expedition to Egypt. Then at Messina the Fusiliers alone were -responsible for the capture of over a thousand officers and men out of -a force which attempted to land there, and up to the time of the -abdication of Napoleon the regiment was engaged in active service. In -St. Giles' Cathedral, Edinburgh, are deposited the tattered colours -carried by the regiment in the Napoleonic campaigns. - -In the Crimea the Fusiliers again lost their colonel; at Inkermann, -where the colonel fell, the regiment was in the very front of the battle -throughout the day, fighting throughout the battle without food, and -calling for more ammunition. They were present throughout the great -siege and at the fall of Sevastopol, and the colours borne in that -campaign--presented to the regiment in 1827 by King William IV--cost the -life of one officer and led to two more being severely wounded at -Inkermann, while 17 N.C.O.'s and men who acted as escort were either -killed or severely wounded. These colours were subsequently deposited -in the parish church of Ayr, the depot headquarters of the regiment. - -In Africa against the Zulus and Basutos, as well as against the Boers in -the first war of the Transvaal, the Fusiliers fought next after the -Crimean campaign; and then they took part in the subjugation of King -Theebaw in Burmah. In 1899 the 2nd battalion embarked for South Africa, -and was set to form a part of the 6th Fusilier brigade. From Colenso -they brought away a Victoria Cross, awarded to Private Ravenhill for -conspicuous gallantry in saving guns from which the gunners had been -shot away. - -To the Fusiliers fell the honour of being the first British regiment to -enter the Transvaal during the war, and they took part in the hoisting -of the British flag at Christiana, the first Transvaal town to be -captured. A little later, the colonel of the regiment, with a force of -under 120 men, went on to Potchefstroom, and there hoisted a British -flag that had been buried there at the time of the peace of 1881, and, -after being disinterred, had been kept in the possession of the family -of a former commanding officer of the Scots Fusiliers. So distinguished -was the conduct of the regiment in the South African campaign that, on -the representation of Colonel Carr, C.B., the commanding officer, the -white plume that had not been worn since 1860 by the Fusiliers was given -back to them, as a recognition of their services. To a civilian this may -seem a very little thing, but the regiment regards it far otherwise. - -As for the campaign in France, there are very few authentic records of -the men of the regiment to hand at the time of writing, but from those -few one can reconstruct a good deal of the work of the Royal Scots -Fusiliers. One man tells that the Germans captured all the transport, -which contained all the kits of the men, who were thus left with only -the clothes they stood in for a matter of five weeks. Since this account -came through in the latter part of October, it may safely be assumed -that the regiment was concerned in the great retreat to the Marne, -though no letter of those received tells of doings at Mons, Landrecies, -or the very early battlefields. Still, it is not safe to assume that the -regiment--or some part of it--was _not_ engaged in the first actions. - -One may picture what the men looked like from the account sent by one of -them. "I got a bit of a shave a week ago," he says, "but I have not had -a wash for over a fortnight." Kipling's "I wish my mother could see me -now" fits the case admirably. - -Again, evidently concerning the retreat, the same soldier writes: "We -got an order to stop a motor car one day, and as the driver pulled up a -man tried to escape on the opposite side, and I collared him. He got -into an awful state, and started pulling photos and papers from his -pockets and talked in a very excited manner. He was taken away, and I -believe he was shot the next morning as a spy." - -This might possibly have been at the position of the Marne, or between -that time and the holding of the line of the Aisne, but it is far more -likely to have occurred at the time of the retreat, when motorists on -the roads were plentiful, and spies could do good work for their -employers. - -There are various stories which go to describe the work of the Fusiliers -at the Aisne, and the monotony of life in the trenches is well portrayed -in one letter. The writer says: "As we can't always be killing Germans -we are sometimes hard put to it to kill time in the trenches. _Next to -religion_, I think football is the thing that interests us most, and we -are always eager to hear news of our teams at home. The papers that -reach us have not got much news of that kind in, and it would be a -godsend to us if only somebody would take in hand to start a paper for -circulating among the troops giving nothing but the latest football -news." - -On the more serious side is a communication from a man of the regiment -who was wounded at the position of the Aisne. He stated that "the men -have come through an awful time," and added that he himself was stuck in -the trenches for seven days without a break, while he went for fourteen -days without being able to wash his face. The German way was to attack -in order to draw the British fire, and then to retire, after which would -come a terrific artillery bombardment--but the British stuck to their -ground always. Finally this man was hit in the head by shrapnel, while -his particular chum was shot in the stomach, and they both went into a -French hospital. - -By these simple records one may trace the regiment from the great -retreat to the Aisne; and then another letter takes the story on very -nearly to the great coast battle, where, by what the writer says, the -second battalion of the Scots Fusiliers have been from the beginning of -the German attempts on Calais. The writer, in describing how the German -spies adopt the very old trick of assisting artillery fire by the use of -the hands of a steeple clock, locates his story at Ypres, where some of -the fiercest fighting of the whole war has taken place. - -"It was at the town of Ypres--a name, by the way, that gets many quaint -pronunciations from our men--and the hands of the steeple clock stood at -10.40. When the men of the battalion had been in the place a quarter of -an hour, such shelling began as they had never known before--and then -somebody pointed out that the hands of the clock had been altered to -indicate 12.40. Thereupon a search was made of the clock tower, when -three Germans were found and taken prisoners, much to the disgust of the -men who had seen their comrades suffering from the shell fire. They -would willingly have given these spies shorter shrift than mere capture, -but of course the rules of war had to be observed, even in such a clear -case of espionage as this." - -There is one man of the second battalion who, wounded and sent home from -the battle in the north-west of France, speaks of the fighting there as -"past description." He had seen hard fighting in India, but reckoned the -work against the Germans as beyond words to express it. "Germans came on -in solid masses, urged on by the officers with the points of their -swords, and on over the bodies of their dead comrades. This," producing -a German forage cap, "belonged to one poor devil I sent to his long -home; and this," producing a rosary, "was given to me by a Frenchwoman -in return for helping her to get her daughter away to a place of safety, -out of the way of the Germans." - -Little things, these, but the contrast afforded by the two trophies goes -to prove that the men of the Fusiliers are fighting in the right way and -with the right spirit. There is little doubt, however, that the second -battalion of the regiment has lost very heavily in the Flanders -fighting. One report--an unofficial one, it is true--speaks of the -battalion as being reduced to less than 150 officers and men. This may -mean anything, for companies are sent away on detached duties, bodies of -men get cut off from their battalions and join up with others--all sorts -of things may happen in addition to real casualties to reduce the -strength of a battalion in such a series of actions as has been fought -between Lille and the coasts of France and Belgium. But, whatever may -have happened in this way, there can be no doubt that the Royal Scots -Fusiliers, of which the second battalion certainly took part in these -battles, has maintained the honour of the regiment to the full, and such -of its officers and men as have fallen have rendered good account of -themselves. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -THE KING'S OWN SCOTTISH BORDERERS - - -If legend may be believed, the Scottish Borderers came into existence -with a strength of a thousand men in four hours of the 19th of March, -1689, a recruiting record which stands unbeaten in subsequent history. -The regiment was raised by the followers of King William III, and within -four months of the time of its formation was facing "Bonnie Dundee" at -the pass of Killiecrankie. General Mackay, the officer commanding the -King's troops, testified that only two regiments of his force bore -themselves as they ought, and of these two one was the King's Own -Scottish Borderers. When it is remembered that the regiment had only -been formed four months, this fact will be seen in its true light; and -for over two centuries the Borderers have maintained the reputation -given them by Mackay. - -Having settled the authority of King William in Scotland, the Borderers -were sent over to Ireland, where they helped in driving out James and -his Irish and French adherents from the United Kingdom, and -consolidating the rule of the Orange king. Thence, in the service of -William, the regiment went to Flanders, where they took part in the -siege of Namur, and lost twenty officers and 500 men by the explosion of -one of the mines of the enemy. It was here that the Borderers were first -made acquainted with the practice of fixing the bayonet alongside the -muzzle of the musket instead of into it, for up to that time fixing -bayonets had involved thrusting the bayonet into the barrel, when the -weapon could not be fired. Seeing a French regiment advancing with fixed -bayonets, the Colonel of the Borderers ordered his men to fix theirs, -and calmly awaited the result, confident in the superiority of his men -over their opponents in this class of fighting. But at short range the -French amazed the Scots by pouring in a volley, for they had their -bayonets fixed round the muzzles of their muskets instead of in them. -Recovering themselves, the Borderers charged and routed the enemy, and -learned from one of the French muskets left on the field how this -apparent miracle had been accomplished. Thenceforth British troops fixed -their bayonets on instead of in their muskets. - -When, in 1697, the treaty of Ryswick put an end to the campaign which -included the taking of Namur, the Borderers returned home. Their next -notable exploit was at Vigo, in 1719, where they destroyed the stores -collected for an invasion of England. Thirteen years later the regiment -was among the defending force at Gibraltar, and withstood the attacks of -a force of 20,000 men, who were eventually obliged to retire, leaving -the Rock in British hands. Then came Fontenoy, where the Borderers lost -206 officers and men; and later Minden, where sixty squadrons of French -cavalry charged again and again, only to be broken against the defence -of six British regiments, of which the Borderers formed one. Having thus -accounted for the cavalry, the six regiments put to flight two French -brigades of infantry, and virtually annihilated a body of Saxon -infantry, being the whole time under heavy artillery fire. Returning in -1763 from the many Continental fields in which it had taken part, the -regiment buried with full military honours at Newcastle-on-Tyne the -fragments of the colours carried from victory to victory for twenty -years. - -There followed nineteen years of peace service, and then the Borderers -were sent to Gibraltar as reinforcements, arriving in time to assist in -the final discomfiture of the besieging force. In 1793 the Borderers -were transformed into Marines, in which capacity they came in for a -share of the prize money accruing from the capture of a ship valued at a -million sterling, and then took part in the victory won by Lord Howe -over the French fleet at Brest. There were Borderers, too, at the siege -of Toulon, where Napoleon I, at that time only an artillery lieutenant, -was wounded by a British soldier's bayonet. - -In the Napoleonic wars the Borderers were faced with more hard work than -chances of glory. They went to the campaign in Holland in 1799, and took -part in the expedition to Egypt in 1801, while eight years later they -were at the capture of Martinique, a name borne on their colours. But -for the rest of the time up to Waterloo they were engaged mainly in -inconspicuous garrison duty, with no chance of adding to their -reputation. Their luck held to a similar course through the nineteenth -century, up to the outbreak of the last South African war, for they were -set to deal with a Boer insurrection at the Cape in 1842, sent to Canada -at the time of the Fenian raid in 1866, and engaged in the Afghan -campaign of 1878-80. They fought in the Egyptian war in 1888, and then -went to work on the Indian frontier, where is much fighting and little -glory for most regiments that take part. In the Tirah campaign alone the -Borderers were in action twenty-three times--yet who remembers the Tirah -campaign to-day? - -As for the South African campaign, it has been placed on record that -the Borderers "put in as much hard work in marching and fighting as any -body of troops in the whole campaign." Paardeberg, Poplar Grove, and -Karee Spruit were three notable actions of this war in which the -Borderers took part, they having been allotted to the 7th Division of -the Army of South Africa. At the last-named action eighty-three officers -and men of the Borderers were killed or wounded. Later, at Vlakfontein, -the Borderers and the Derbyshires shared the honour of saving General -Dixon's column from utter disaster, and recapturing two British guns -which had been taken by the Boers. - -Now, as for the war in France, the record of the Borderers is fairly -complete. It begins with the account of the adventures of a maxim-gun -section during the first week of the war, as related by a man of the gun -section who was invalided home very early in the campaign. He states -that at Mons his gun section were located inside a house at Mons, firing -from one of the windows, while Germans in considerable numbers were -searching the surrounding houses. It took the Germans four hours to -locate the maxim gun, and then, as they riddled the house with bullets, -the plaster and laths began to come down on the heads of the Borderers' -men, whereupon the latter thought the time had come to clear out. Under -fire they dismounted their gun and scrambled out from the back of the -house, whence they got under cover from the German fire, and, when night -fell, they were able to make their way back to their own lines. - -"While we were in action on Tuesday," the record continues, "a shell -struck the limber of the gun and almost blew it to bits. I was struck on -the shoulder by a piece of shrapnel. On another occasion we were firing -from an isolated position when a company of Germans surprised us by -appearing about a hundred yards away. We were thirteen strong--one -officer and twelve men--so we put up the gun and made for cover. We had -about two hundred yards to run across a field, but every one of us -escaped without a scratch." - -On the 16th of September the War Office report of "Missing" included the -names of men belonging to the Borderers, and of these many went to -Doberitz camp of prisoners. One man, writing from Doberitz, stated that -he had been captured on August 26th, and was being fairly well treated. -Which recalls the fact that Colonel Stephenson, the commanding officer -of the Borderers, had the misfortune to be wounded and captured in the -very early stages of the war. It was at Le Cateau that the colonel was -wounded, and, although the wound was not exceptionally serious, it was -enough to put Colonel Stephenson out of action for the time. He was -assisted to an ambulance waggon and got inside, but afterwards he came -out of his own accord in order to make way for men more seriously -injured. Almost immediately afterwards the retreat was continued, and -according to one account the colonel was found lying wounded by the -Germans. Another account states that the four horses of one of the -ambulance waggons were lost during the retreat, and fifteen men of the -Borderers were ordered to replace the horses in drawing the ambulance -waggon, with the result that the whole party, including Colonel -Stephenson in the waggon with other wounded, were captured. Major Leigh, -D.S.O., another officer of the Borderers, was wounded at Mons and -captured by the Germans, according to all accounts, while three other -officers are reported to have been taken prisoners in the first weeks of -the war. - -It was at Mons, too, that young Lieutenant Amos, of the Borderers, who -had only received his commission five months before, went out to the -front and brought back a wounded man much bigger and heavier than -himself. A few days later Lieutenant Amos led out his platoon of men in -face of the enemy's fire, when he was shot down, and the men of the -platoon thought at the time that he was only wounded. "When night came -on," said one man of the platoon, "I went out to look for him, and just -as I had got to where he was lying and had lifted his head, the moon -shone out full from behind the clouds, and I saw he was quite dead. He -had been shot through the heart." - -Whatever dispatches may say with regard to individual officers and men, -it is usually safe to take the opinions of the men themselves with -regard to their officers. An instance of this is the case of Lieutenant -Hamilton-Dalrymple, of the Borderers, who was described by his men as "a -very daring man." He had excelled in patrol work and scouting, -especially at night, and on the retreat was placed in charge of four -platoons, which he led out for an attack. He had led out No. 16 platoon, -and went back for No. 15, and, when leading these men out, he was shot -in the leg by a German sniper and had to be carried to the rear. The man -who told this story of his officer was subsequently hit by a splinter -from a shell which accounted for five men. - -Near Le Cateau the Borderers buried Lieutenant Amos and twenty-one of -the men of the regiment. Throughout the day, while an artillery duel had -raged, the dead had lain out on the battlefield, and a long grave was -dug for them by their comrades. In this the bodies were laid, each -covered by a waterproof sheet, and an officer recited a brief funeral -service. While, during the next day, the artillery duel went on, the -Borderers cut out in the grass that covered the grave of their comrades -the letters "K.O.S.B.," and filled in the blank letter-spaces with small -stones, completing their work by fashioning and erecting a small cross -of wood to mark the place of burial. - -There was one youngster of the Borderers in these first days who, at -Mons, received a flesh wound while trying to cross two planks across a -canal that was being peppered with machine-gun fire. Colonel Stephenson -gripped him to save him from falling into the canal, and--"You had -better go back to the hospital, sonny," said the colonel. But the -youngster got little rest or respite in hospital, for the Germans -shelled the hospital building, after their fashion, and the patients had -to beat a quick retreat. Later, this same youngster came to the -engagement at Bethune, one of the fiercest of the campaign, and one -night he was on sentry duty at a wayside shrine. Just at the time the -reliefs were coming round he saw Germans in the distance, and fired at -them once or twice, "for luck," as he phrased it, considering that he -was entitled to a last shot before going off duty. But the glare of his -rifle fire must have betrayed his position, for almost immediately he -received another wound in the body, and this time it was a sufficiently -serious matter to cause him to be sent home. - -By means of such letters as these one may trace the regiment through the -first, and in some respects the worst, of the fighting. At the position -of the Aisne, the accounts of the Borderers grow numerous, and it -appears that the second battalion of the regiment was in the thick of -things. One account describes the crossing of the Aisne under shell fire -from the German guns. The second battalion got their orders to cross -very early one morning, and turned out in a cold, rainy dawn; "but we -got our pipes set going, and were all right then." On reaching the -river, it was found that there were no bridges, but some rafts had been -constructed by the Engineers, and these rafts were loaded each with six -men, and hauled across to the opposite bank of the river with ropes. -With the weight of men and equipment, the rafts were submerged so that -the men were up to their knees in water while they crossed, but such -incidents as that were regarded as trifling. - -On the far bank of the river, the German shell fire was hotter than -ever, and many men of the battalion were wounded, mostly in the arms and -legs. "You bet we took all the cover we could get," says the narrator. -"Some time after this three of us were lying in a field, and I was -smoking my pipe, while my chum was puffing at a cigarette. The man next -to my chum hadn't a match, and wanted a light badly, so he got up to get -a light from my chum. As soon as he rose the poor beggar was hit by a -fragment of shell and killed. My chum had got hold of a trench-making -tool. It's like a spade at the one end, and like a pick at the other, -and he stuck the pick end into the ground and lay down behind it, -covering his head with the spade end. Every two or three minutes you -could hear the bullets spattering against the iron of the tool." - -Later, they got into the trenches, where some of the men were standing -knee-deep in water, and others were submerged up to their waists. "It -was no picnic, but they were a bright lot, cracking jokes or making -remarks about the 'Black Marias,' or 'Jack Johnsons,' as they call the -big German shells." - -Although, in the first days on the Aisne, the first line of German -troops were opposed to the British, the latter had a very poor opinion -of their opponents. The general view was that the Germans were not very -keen on fighting, and a number of them when captured said that they were -forced by their officers to fight. In one case, when the men had refused -to fire, their officers had turned on them and shot them--as might have -been expected in any army. One wounded and captured German, placed in -the next bed in hospital to a wounded Borderer, spoke broken English, -and in the course of a chat was asked what he thought of the British. -"British artillery," he said, "no good--not enough. British -infantry--_mein Gott!_" His expression as he spoke completed the -comment. - -A Borderer wounded at the Aisne had fought beside the French, whom he -described as very plucky, but rather slow. Their artillery, however, won -his admiration, and he declared it the best he had ever seen. He was -emphatic in his appreciation of the way in which the French people -treated the British troops, supplying them with food and fruit, and in -many ways expressing their sympathy. - -"My chum and I came to a village one day," he said, "and wanted to get -some bread and tobacco. We met a peasant woman in the village, and I -said '_Du pain_.' She took me by the arm and pushed me into a dark room, -but I couldn't see where I was, and called for my chum, who came in as -well, though we were both afraid it might be a trap. Then we noticed -some food and wine on a table. It struck us, when we came to look round, -that nearly all the furniture in the house was smashed. 'The -Prussians,' the woman told us. And it's the same in every village you go -into--these Germans smash everything but us. They're trying hard to -smash us too, but they can't manage it." - -"It is a grand thing," says another man of the regiment, "to shoot at -Germans--they make such a lovely target. We can't miss them, and, poor -things, they are wishing it was over. Every prisoner we take says they -are starving, and they look it, too. Well, never mind, we are there to -kill, and kill we do. They are frightened of us, and say we shoot too -straight--the French and British are finishing them off in thousands." - -As regards the Flanders battle, the last sentence of this letter may be -taken literally, but the rest of it is open to question. The dogged -resistance on the Aisne, and the tremendous attacks up by Ypres and -along the coast, were not made by men starving and utterly -miserable--the work has been too fierce for that to be possible. The -reserve troops of the German Army have no liking for their work, and, -newly taken from comfort to the rigid discipline and severe conditions -of the firing line, are naturally inclined to complain at what the -first-line troops regard as mere everyday inconveniences; and doubtless -it was some of these that were referred to in this letter. - -But, to revert to the position on the Aisne, there is yet another -Borderer's story that is worthy of reproduction. The narrator states -that during the battle two German women, masquerading as nurses, went -about the British lines by motor, accompanied by a chauffeur. Among the -British soldiers on outpost duty they freely distributed cigarettes, -which were afterwards found to be inoculated by poison. Before any -fatal results had accrued, the nature of the cigarettes was discovered, -and the pseudo-nurses were rounded up and shot. The story may be true, -but it seems a little improbable that _no_ ill results should have -attended the distribution of these cigarettes before discovery of the -trick. The man who tells this story adds that two Scottish pipers held -up and captured eight Germans in a wood near Crecy. The pipers had -become detached from their division, and carried no arms, but on coming -on the Germans they assumed a firing position and pointed the long -drones of their pipes at the enemy, calling on them to surrender. The -Germans at once threw down their rifles, and were taken prisoners. - -Let it be remembered that both of these stories are told by the same -man, and that both are on the face of them improbable--and then the -reader must form his own conclusion. - -The next missive takes us on to the work in the trenches around -Bethune, after the opposing lines had crept up to the north-west of -France. "There were few breathing-spaces," says the writer. "Ground -would be gained, and our troops then had to resort to the expedient of -digging themselves in: at parts of the line about a hundred yards -divided our trenches from those of the enemy." The man who tells of this -fighting exposed himself to get a shot at precisely the same moment that -a German out in the opposite trenches took aim, and both pulled their -triggers almost simultaneously. The German bullet passed right across -the Borderer's scalp, but in the firing line it was impossible to get -immediate medical attention, and the wounded man had to be in the trench -for hours before nightfall gave him the chance to get back to the field -hospital under cover of darkness. - -It fell to the lot of the Borderers to witness the first charge of the -Indian troops, and evidently the dark men enjoyed themselves. "When they -got the order to advance, you never saw men more pleased in all your -life. They went forward with a rush like a football team charging their -opponents, or a party of revellers rushing to catch the last train. They -got to grips with their enemies in double-quick time, and the howl of -joy that went up told us that those chaps felt that they were paying the -Germans back in full for the peppering they had got while waiting for -orders. When they came back from that charge they looked very well -pleased with themselves, and they had every right to be. They are very -proud of being selected to fight with us, and are terribly anxious to -make a good impression. They have done it, too. - -"I watched them one day under shell fire, and was astonished at their -coolness. 'Coal boxes' were being emptied all round them, but they -seemed to pay not the slightest heed, and if one of them did go under, -his chums simply went on as though nothing had happened. They make light -of wounds, and I have known cases where men have fought for days with -wounds that might have excused any man for dropping out. When the wounds -are very bad, I have seen the men themselves dressing them in the firing -line. One day I questioned one of them about this, and he said, 'We must -be as brave as the British.' It's amusing to hear them trying to pick up -our camp songs. They have a poor opinion of the Germans as fighting men, -and are greatly interested when we tell them of the horrors perpetrated -on the Belgians and French." - -Thus writes a wounded sergeant of the Borderers. Now the official -account states that the first charge of the Indians was made to recover -ground and trenches that had been taken by the Germans by sheer weight -of numbers from British troops--so we may safely conclude that the -Borderers, probably the second battalion, were among the men holding -those trenches, and probably were in the section of the line that was -forced back. And there, beside the Indian contingent, we may leave them, -certain that in all the fighting in Flanders and for the recovery of -Belgium they will acquit themselves like men. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -THE BLACK WATCH - - -Though the Royal Scots can claim to be the oldest regiment of the -British Army, the Black Watch can claim--and do claim--to be the oldest -corps of Highlanders. The regiment, known in old time as the -"Forty-second," was originally formed out of the independent companies -raised in 1729 to keep the peace in the hills of the Scottish Highlands, -and the first parade as a regiment took place near Aberfeldy in 1740, -when the regiment was numbered "43." This was subsequently changed to -"42." - -Five years later the regiment saw its first active service abroad at -Fontenoy, when its men charged with such spirit that they were -described by a French writer as "Highland furies." In 1756 the Black -Watch went to America, and at Ticonderaga the loss in killed and wounded -amounted to 647 officers and men. So conspicuous was the bravery of the -regiment on this occasion that the King conferred on it the title of -"Royal," and unto this day the Black Watch are "The Royal Highlanders." -The regiment was in at the capture of Montreal, and later took part in -the American War of Independence, when, in spite of the offers of heavy -bribes, not a single man could be induced to desert from the ranks, bad -as was the cause in which the British troops were fighting then. - -In 1780 the second battalion of the Black Watch was raised, to begin its -active service in India. It was constituted a separate regiment in 1786, -and named the "Perthshire Regiment," numbered "73." (Two officers and -fifty-three men of this battalion were among the heroes who went down -with the _Birkenhead_.) It was nearly a century later that the -Perthshire Regiment was again joined to the Black Watch as its second -battalion, and thenceforth the battle honours of both battalions have -been borne on the colours of the regiment. - -The campaign in Flanders in 1794 and the following year gave to the -regiment the "red hackle" that is still worn in the full-dress feather -bonnet. Again the Black Watch went to the front for the Egyptian -campaign of 1800, and at Alexandria Sir Ralph Abercromby called on the -Highlanders for the effort that won the battle. The next great event in -the history of the regiment was Corunna, where Sir John Moore bade the -Highlanders "Remember Egypt!" On to the siege of Toulouse the Black -Watch took their part in all fighting that was to be had, and at -Toulouse itself they lost over 300 officers and men in driving back the -French Army into the city. - -Just on 300 more officers and men fell in the three days' fighting of -Quatre Bras and Waterloo, and the Royal Highlanders were mentioned -specially in dispatches by the Duke of Wellington--an honour accorded to -only four of the regiments that took part in the final overthrow of -Napoleon. From then on to the middle of the nineteenth century the life -of the regiment was uneventful, for Europe slept, and it did not fall to -the Black Watch to engage in the little frontier and colonial wars of -the Empire. - -But 1854 brought the Crimean War, and the Royal Highlanders took the -field again as the senior regiment of Sir Colin Campbell's famous -Highland Brigade. The brigade took part in the charge on the heights of -the Alma, and was also in at the taking of Sevastopol on the 8th of -September, 1855. The end of this war brought but little respite, for -under their old chief, Sir Colin Campbell, the regiment took part in the -suppression of the Indian Mutiny. The battle of Cawnpur, the siege and -capture of Lucknow, and the battle of Bareilly, found the Royal -Highlanders well to the front, and the name "Lucknow" is borne on the -colours of the regiment. A sculptured tablet in Dunkeld Cathedral -commemorates the names of those of the Black Watch who fell in the -Mutiny. - -In the Ashanti War the Black Watch took the leading and most conspicuous -part, and shared in the capture and burning of Kumasi. Then, in 1882, -the regiment went to Egypt to take part in the storming of the -entrenchments at Tel-el-Kebir. At Suakim, El Teb, and Tamai, such was -the conduct of the regiment that Lord Wolseley sent them a telegram of -congratulation, and in 1884 the first battalion went up the Nile to the -battle of Kirbekan. - -Then, in 1899, the second battalion went out to South Africa as part of -the ill-fated Highland Brigade under General Wauchope. On the night of -Sunday, the 10th of December, in that first year of the Boer war, the -Black Watch led the brigade in the memorable attack at Magersfontein. -When the inferno of fire and barbed wire stopped the advance of the -brigade, no less than 600 Highlanders fell, killed and wounded, -including Wauchope himself. Throughout the Monday the survivors of three -companies of the Black Watch held to their places in front of the Boer -trenches and entanglements, while the remainder of the men of the -battalion were engaged in attempting to turn the flank of the Boer -position; but at nightfall it was found that the position was too -strong, and the troops were drawn back. As already remarked, the -brigade lost 600 in killed and wounded, and of these more than half were -men of the Black Watch. In a little more than two months the survivors -of the battalion had their revenge at Paardeberg, when Cronje was forced -to surrender with 4,000 men. Here, again, the losses of the Black Watch -amounted to 90 casualties among officers and men. - -The first battalion did not come in for the earlier fighting in South -Africa, but arrived in the country in time to take part in the "drives" -with which Lord Kitchener put an end to the campaign. Poplar Grove and -Driefontein, Retief's Nek and the surrender of Prinsloo at Wittebergen, -were mere incidents to the Black Watch after the terrible work of -Magersfontein and Paardeberg, and the conduct of the regiment as a whole -during the war may be judged from the fact that no less than thirteen -medals for distinguished conduct were awarded to its non-commissioned -officers and men. - -As usual, the Black Watch were among the first regiments to take the -field in the fighting in France, and they went up to Mons with the rest -of the British troops who took part in the great retreat. Never during -the whole of the South African campaign, said one man who had been -through it, was anything experienced like the three engagements in which -the Black Watch took part round Mons. The shell firing of the Germans -was terrific, and the hastily constructed trenches of the British -afforded very little protection against the German shell fire. Yet, -though on the retreat the British troops had to undergo forced marches, -some of them with very little food except such fruit as they could get -by the way, they displayed splendid stamina and pluck, and the -discipline maintained in this trying time, so far as the Royal -Highlanders were concerned, was admirable. Even when the loss of -officers was heaviest, movements were still carried through with -parade-like precision and coolness. - -When nearing Soissons in the course of the retreat, the Black Watch were -the object of an encircling movement by the enemy, and while the -regiment was cutting its way through to rejoin the rest of the brigade, -Colonel Grant Duff gave his orders with bullets humming round him, and -went up and down the line of his battalion looking after wounded men. -With the aid of the 117th Battery of R.F.A. the Black Watch succeeded in -rejoining their brigade with a loss of only four men. - -The work of the early days is epitomised by a man of the first battalion -of the regiment. "We went straight from Boulogne to Mons," he said, "and -were one of the first British regiments to reach Mons. Neither of the -opposing armies seemed to have a very good position there, but the -number of the Germans was so great that we had no chance of holding on -from the first. We were in hard fighting all day on the Monday, and as -the French reinforcements which we were expecting had not arrived by the -Tuesday, we were given the order to retire. - -"I should judge that, altogether, we retreated quite eighty miles. We -passed through Cambrai, and halted at St. Quentin; the Germans, -straining every nerve in the effort to get to Paris, had never been far -behind us, and when we came to St. Quentin we got the word that we were -to go into action again--and the men of the battalion were quite joyous -at the prospect, for they had been none too well pleased at the -continued retirement from the enemy. They started to get things ready -with a will, and the engagement opened in lively fashion, both our -artillery and the German going at it for all they were worth. We were in -good skirmishing order, and under cover of our guns we kept on getting -nearer and nearer to the enemy, till, when we were about a hundred yards -of the German lines, orders were issued for a charge, and the Black -Watch charged at the same time that the Scots Greys did. Not far from us -the 9th Lancers and the Cameronians joined in the attack, and it was the -finest sight I ever saw." - -The writer continues with a description of the charge, in which, he -says, the men of the Black Watch hung on to the stirrup-leathers of the -Greys and went through machine-gun fire on to the German lines, and -thence through to the guns of the enemy. "There were about 1,900 of us -in that charge against 20,000 Germans, and the charge itself lasted -about four hours. We took close upon 4,000 prisoners, and captured a -lot of their guns. In the course of the fighting I got a cut from a -German sword--they are very much like saws--and fell into a pool of -water, where I lay unconscious for nearly a day and night. I was picked -up by one of the 9th Lancers." - -There the story ends. It is circumstantial and well borne out by other -accounts of the doings of the Black Watch up to the time of St. Quentin, -but one fears to accept the story of that charge in its entirety. If the -men of the Black Watch advanced to within a hundred yards of the enemy -under cover of their own artillery, then where did the Greys come from? -For surely no artillery ever kept on firing at the enemy until _cavalry_ -were within a hundred yards of their objective in a charge. It is -curious, too, but this is the only account that has come to hand--the -only personal account of a participator--with regard to that charge of -the Greys with Black Watch men hanging on to their stirrup-leathers. The -story is given as told, for what it is worth. - -Several accounts concur in the assistance rendered to the regiment by -the 117th Battery of R.F.A., and one especially details how, when the -Black Watch were subjected to overwhelming rifle fire, the guns were -turned on the German riflemen with terrible effect. But there are some -newspaper errors in connection with this event which are almost amusing. -One of them states that, with regard to a driver of the 117th -Battery--"the Highlanders were being subjected to a terrific rifle fire, -when the artilleryman heroically advanced, and, getting his gun in -position, put the German riflemen to flight." This was more than -heroism, for a gun weighs the better part of a ton, altogether, and a -driver has but a very elementary knowledge of the firing mechanism of -the weapon--his business is with the horses. That one driver should get -the gun into position and then proceed to load and fire it, a business -which occupies about a dozen men, as a rule, is well worthy of comment. - -These discrepancies with known fact are unfortunately rather plentiful -where the Black Watch are concerned. Another of them, though it does not -credit artillerymen with the strength of elephants, tells of things that -happened "on the 14th of August, at the battle of the Aisne,"--whereas -on the 14th of August the great retreat was still in progress, and the -battle of the Marne had not been fought, let alone that of the Aisne. "I -only know," says the author of this account, "that we lost close on 400 -of the regiment, killed and wounded, the same day that I was wounded. -That was on the 14th of August, at the battle of the Aisne. It was -terrible, men falling on either side. The Germans were very -treacherous, firing on our ambulance men as well. I was in two hospitals -which we were shelled out of. All the men who could walk were told to go -off as soon as possible. There were four of us left in the place all the -forenoon, and the shells landing round about. I managed to crawl away -when there was no firing, and I had to go about five miles to the next -place. I don't know what I would have done had not an officer passing in -his motor seen me and taken me to the hospital." - -Another of the same kind: "On one occasion I had become detached from -the main body, and met four Germans. I disposed of three of my -adversaries with three successive shots, and was about to deal with the -fourth, when the bolt of my rifle became jammed. The German fired, but -only slightly wounded me, and I adjusted my rifle, charged my magazine, -and put the man out of action." - -More heroism, almost equal to that of the gunner just quoted--and -newspapers are publishing such "letters from the front" as these every -day. - -To come back to the real work of the regiment, a further account deals -with the battle of the Aisne, where, on the 14th of September, the men -occupied some high ground, and were discovered by the enemy, who set to -work to render the position untenable by means of artillery fire. A -patrol, sent out to get into communication with the Northamptons, had to -take cover from the German artillery fire, which was so fierce that it -was only in darkness they were able to return. In taking German trenches -later, the Black Watch and the Camerons, who advanced together, came -across numbers of dead Germans, proving that their own fire had been -quite as deadly as that of their enemies. Apparently the timing of the -fuses of German shells was none too good. "The artillery fire of the -Germans was good, but their shells did not do nearly the same damage as -those fired from the British guns. The British shells when they exploded -covered a radius of something like a hundred yards, but the German -shells on bursting seemed to send all their contents in a forward -direction." - -"But the Aisne has been a cause of heavy loss to the Black Watch," said -another member of the regiment. "We lost heavily in taking up position, -and the men were saddened by the loss of so many officers. One day we -lost three--a captain killed, a senior captain very severely wounded, -and a lieutenant killed. Then, later, the men had to deplore the loss of -their commanding officer, Colonel Grant Duff--one of the bravest and -best officers the regiment ever had. He died bravely. He was hard -pressed and doing execution with one of his men's rifles when he fell -with a mortal wound." - -Another officer eulogised by his men was Captain Green, who was wounded -at the Aisne. Hot fighting was kept up in the trenches from five in the -morning until night had fallen, and throughout the night the men waited -in their trenches. Shortly after four o'clock of the following morning -firing was heard in front, and with the remark, "I am going forward, -anyway," Captain Green went out to the front, his object being to get -the range for the men, if possible. He got the range, but was hit in the -head, and bandaged the wound himself, keeping his place in the trenches -and declining to go into hospital. - -The German fear of cold steel is emphasised in many accounts given by -men of the Black Watch. "They wouldn't look at the bayonet, and we ruled -the roost with very slight losses," says one; and another--"The Germans -are awfully frightened of the cold steel, and when they get a stab it is -almost invariably in the back, for they run away from our boys when the -bayonet appears." - -Once in a while there comes an account of humanity on the part of the -Germans; and one man of the Black Watch tells how he lay out in the open -at the position of the Aisne for hours, wounded, and at last a German -came along and bound up his wound under heavy fire. The German made the -wounded man quite comfortable, and was about to retire from the danger -area, when a stray bullet caught him, and he fell dead beside the man he -had befriended. - -Such stories as this last are welcome, and form a relief from the -numberless stories of German barbarity that have appeared. Not that they -disprove the stories of brutality, but they go to show that the policy -of ruthlessness is a calculated one, and that the individual German -might be a kind-hearted man at times if his officers would let him. The -instances of cruelty and wanton destruction that have been related all -point to organised cruelty, organised destruction--it is more a matter -of policy than of the conduct of individuals. - -The stories quoted here form a fairly connected record of the work of -the Black Watch up to the time of the battle on the Aisne; of what came -after, there is as yet no definite record. We know, from the casualty -lists, that the Royal Highlanders are still making history in France, -but in this first week of November we know no more than that, and a -great story must still wait telling until the oft-quoted "fog of war" -has lifted from the actions in Flanders and the north-west of France. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE GORDON HIGHLANDERS - - -Formerly known as the 75th and 92nd line battalions, the Gordon -Highlanders form a comparatively young regiment. The first battalion was -formed at Stirling in 1788 under Colonel Robert Abercromby, and was sent -to India for fourteen years of active service in Mysore and Southern -India. The "Royal Tiger," worn on the badges of the regiment, -commemorates the part they played at the taking of Seringapatam in 1799. - -The great Scottish house of Gordon raised the second battalion of the -regiment near the end of the eighteenth century, and this battalion was -first named "Gordon Highlanders" in 1794, when it was embodied at -Aberdeen, with the Marquis of Huntly as its first colonel. In the -Egyptian campaign of 1801, the Gordons played a conspicuous part in -driving Napoleon out of Egypt, and won the "Sphinx," inscribed "Egypt," -as a badge, which is now worn on all the officers' buttons. In 1807 the -regiment took part in the expedition to Copenhagen, and a year later -they were with Sir John Moore on the retreat to Corunna. Later, in the -Peninsular campaign under Wellington, the Gordons won the admiration of -their enemies and the approbation of their chief. In one action alone, -that of the Maya Pass, the regiment lost over 320 officers and men -killed and wounded. - -On to the end of the campaign the Gordons were in the thick of things, -and then, in 1815, they sailed for Belgium in May, arriving in Brussels -at the end of that month. At Quatre Bras, where they were under the eye -of the Duke of Wellington, the 92nd (now the 2nd battalion of the -Gordons) lost heavily, and then at Waterloo itself the battalion was -reduced to 300 men before the memorable charge took place. The official -account of that charge, as given in the history of the regiment, is -worth quoting in its entirety. - -"About two o'clock in the afternoon of that memorable day, the enemy -advanced a solid column of 3,000 infantry towards the position of the -regiment. The column continuing to press forward, General Sir D. Pack -galloped up to the regiment and called out--"Ninety-second, you must -charge, for all the troops to your right and left have given way." Three -cheers from the corps expressed the devoted readiness of every -individual in its ranks, though its numbers were reduced at this time to -less than 300 men. - -"The French column did not show a large front. The regiment formed -four-deep, and, in that compact order, advanced till within twenty -paces, when it fired a volley and instantly darted into the heart of the -French column, in which it almost became invisible in the midst of the -mass opposed to it. While the regiment was in the act of charging, and -the instant before it came in contact with the enemy, the Scots Greys -came trotting up in rear of its flanks, when both corps shouted -"Scotland for ever!" The column was instantaneously broken, and in its -flight the cavalry rode over it. The result of this dash, which only -occupied a few minutes, was a loss to the enemy of two eagles and two -thousand prisoners." - -The total losses of the Gordons at Waterloo were 119 officers and men -killed and wounded, and what remained of the regiment went on to occupy -Paris, returning to Edinburgh in 1816. In the Crimean campaign the -Gordons had bad luck, as they did not land till after Sevastopol had -fallen. They had their turn in the Mutiny, however, for they fought -their way from Ambala to Delhi, and sat on the "Ridge" under great John -Nicholson from June to September, taking part in the final assault and -storming the Kashmir gate. Later, they marched to the relief of Lucknow, -and then saw general service in the many engagements that took place in -the North-west Provinces before the Mutiny was finally quelled. - -Then came twenty years of peace for the regiment, after which it was -again called to action in Afghanistan, and took part in the -ever-memorable march from Kabul to Kandahar. In the Egyptian campaign of -1882, the regiment was included in the Highland Brigade that fought at -Tel-el-Kebir, and then went up with the expeditionary force to the -relief of Khartoum and General Gordon--a fruitless errand. From that -time onward to the end of the century, the Gordons saw frontier fighting -in India. "Chitral" is one of the names emblazoned on the regimental -colours, and in the Tirah campaign the Gordons won undying fame at the -storming of the Dargai heights--which, however, was but one incident in -seven months of strenuous fighting. - -In the South African war, the Gordons shared in the privations of the -siege of Ladysmith, and in the fierce attack made by the Boers on the -Ladysmith defences, on the 6th of January, 1900, the Gordons sustained -some of the fiercest of the fighting. Thus one battalion upheld the -credit of the regiment, while the other, in Smith-Dorrien's nineteenth -brigade, placed the name "Paardeberg" on the regimental colours. "During -the four months and a half of its existence the nineteenth brigade had -marched 620 miles, often on half rations, seldom on full. It had taken -part in the capture of ten towns, had fought in ten general engagements, -and on twenty-seven other times, and was never beaten." Up to the end of -the war the Gordons were doing brilliant work. By the end of 1902 the -regiment had thirteen Victoria Crosses to its credit. - -With regard to their work in France in the very early days, the men of -the Gordons have shown some reticence--that is, as regards the alleged -cutting off and cutting up of the regiment. It may be, so curious is the -information that reached this country in September, that the men of the -regiment had not heard of this cutting off and cutting up. Certain it is -that they were in several tight corners in the first actions of the -great retreat--but then, so were other units, and there is plenty of -evidence to prove that Gordons came through to the Marne and the Aisne, -though, unfortunately, they came without their colonel and some of their -officers. Round about Mons the Gordons were heavily engaged, and found -the German infantry firing weak, but their artillery work not to be -despised. The greatest damage was done by the shrapnel, and not by rifle -fire--a statement which concurs with practically all accounts of -engagements on the great retreat. "The losses of the Allies," said a -wounded corporal of the Gordons, "were nothing to those of the Germans, -who came on in a solid mass and were mowed down like sheep--close -formation was their method of attack all along. The men themselves said -they were driven to it by their officers at the point of the revolver, -and they simply tried to be taken prisoners by the British. We passed -through plundered villages, and saw windows smashed, furniture thrown -out on the streets, and churches and other buildings destroyed." - -Another wounded non-commissioned officer speaks of "what was left of the -battalion after Mons" being in the firing-line, when an order was given -for a general retreat. A dispatch rider gave the message to a part of -the division to which the Gordons belonged, but on his way to them he -was killed by a shell, and the Gordons, not having received the order, -stuck to their position. "The Germans advanced in such force that we -were at last compelled to retire, and lost a lot of jolly good fellows. -I doubt if any of us would have been left if it had not been for the -135th Battery of Field Artillery. They covered our retreat, sending out -such a terrible fire that the enemy were afraid to approach any nearer." - -This stands as the most circumstantial account of the cutting-off of -the Gordons that has come to hand among personal letters and accounts of -the men who were there, and, unlike so many letters purporting to be -from "the front," it bears the stamp of authenticity. A piper of the -regiment corroborates it by saying that "the Germans came on in great -masses, driving us back all the time." He tells of being left only with -a revolver, his sword having snapped, after which he crossed a river, -and made a stand in a church. "Eight hundred of us entered that church, -the majority never to come out again, for the Germans' big 'Jack -Johnsons' shelled us out." There was, apparently, an officer in charge, -and when he saw how the shells were causing fatalities he gave the order -for all men who could to bolt for the road and save themselves. "The -people at home will not think any the worse of you, lads, for it," he -is alleged to have said. According to the piper's account, some sixty -or more got away to safety in one rush, in which he himself was wounded -in the arm. - -The work of signallers has not come into much prominence in the fighting -in France, but one of the signallers of the Gordons, at least, has had -occasion to use his flags. It happened that his battalion had been in a -tight corner for some time, and was running short of ammunition, in -consequence of which the signaller was ordered by his company officer to -signal to the Army Service Corps for a further supply. He stood up -facing to the rear, and, raising his flags, signalled--"From -Captain----" when the message was cut short by his arm being wounded in -two places. As he was trying to bind up the wounds, another piece of -shrapnel came along and lodged in the same arm. - -A good general account of the fighting is given by one non-commissioned -officer who went out at the end of August, and was first engaged in the -fighting which took place immediately before the advance from the Marne -to the Aisne. Here the Gordons were engaged near a village held by the -enemy, and under very hot fire. The British troops had a hard job in -getting the Germans to leave their trenches, but eventually the -artillery fire from the British guns proved too much for the Germans, -who got up and ran. The Gordons reached the village after the enemy had -fled, and were billeted there for the night--and in this connection the -non-commissioned officer responsible for this account remarks that the -German rifle fire is almost useless, though their machine-gun fire is -good. "Besides, when once they think they are beaten they are off, and -one can scarcely get at close quarters with them. Our party never got -within half a mile of them." - -In this last sentence, it must be remembered, the writer refers to the -German troops who had come down on the tremendous advance which ended at -the position of the Marne. Official reports leave it beyond doubt that -these German troops had undergone three weeks of the severest strain -that has ever been imposed on fighting men, and that their _moral_ was -so far impaired that, after the wheel made by von Kluck's army away from -Paris, the whole of them had to be drawn back and replaced by other -troops. Since they had been reduced to this state by their exertions, it -is hardly to be wondered at that they would not face their enemies at -close quarters. - -The narrative, proceeding, states that on the advance of the British to -the trenches the enemy had occupied, it was difficult to estimate the -number of German dead, for the trenches, filled with bodies, had been -covered in with earth. One German was found by the Gordons still -standing in his trench, with his rifle to his shoulder, quite dead. He -had evidently been shot while in the act of taking aim, and had been -left by his retreating comrades. On the advance, it was noted that the -work of the British artillery had been particularly deadly, especially -among the woods through which the men advanced. The part of the regiment -to which the narrator of these events was attached was sent back to -headquarters in charge of several hundreds of prisoners, their places in -the firing line being taken by others for the time being; and, after a -turn at headquarters duty, the Gordons were sent on to Lille and La -Bassee, opposite to a part of von Kluck's force, which had in the -meantime moved out to the north-west to keep pace with the extension of -the Allied line. While the Gordons were lying in an open field, taking -part in an attack, the order was given to retire; but it was unheard by -the men of some sections, and the enemy advanced so near that the -position of some of the men became very critical. But the wretched fire -of the German infantry proved their salvation, for sixteen of the -Gordons made their way across perfectly level, boggy ground, with the -Germans less than 1,000 yards away, and only two were wounded. - -The first days on the Aisne, according to another of the Gordons, must -be counted as one of the fiercest examples of warfare under modern -conditions. For days the Gordons were subjected to such a hurricane of -shrapnel fire that they were compelled to lie in their trenches, merely -awaiting developments; and many of the men who were wounded by shrapnel -never fired their rifles, for the enemy was too far off for rifle fire -to have any effect. One man was struck fourteen times by the shrapnel -fire, and still came out from the trenches to recover. It was not until -the British artillery was reinforced that the infantry were able to -advance. - -"We were kept so busy," says one man of the Gordons concerning this -time, "that for three days and nights we had no time to issue the mail. -The men felt the want of a smoke more than of food, and I have seen more -than one man trade away his last biscuit for a cigarette or a fill of -tobacco. When the heaviest of the shelling was going on, our men were -puffing away at 'fag-ends.'" - -From such accounts as these one may glean some idea of what the Gordons -underwent up to the time of the transference of the main battle to the -Flanders area. As for this last, one non-commissioned officer states -that the men were hardly ever out of canals and wet ditches. One day a -section of men lay waist deep in water from nine in the morning till -three in the afternoon, patiently waiting for dusk to come, that they -might get a chance to dry their clothes. "The Germans generally cease -operations at dusk, and on these occasions the same old order comes -along the line--"Dig yourselves in, men." And, on the day that they lay -in water so long, no sooner had they dug themselves in than the order to -advance was given!" - -Apparently authentic is the account of the death of Captain Ker of the -Gordons, who, it is stated by eyewitnesses, was in command of men whom -he led up in face of the enemy's fire at Bethune. The men gained the -shelter of a natural rise in the ground, but before they reached this -point Captain Ker was struck in the head by shrapnel, and was killed -instantly. The men lay for some time in the position they had won, but -eventually found that it was too dangerous to retain, and risked the -enemy's fire in place of capture. They doubled back across a couple of -fields to their old position, and eighteen of the twenty-one in the -party got safely back--but only seven of them escaped being hit. Captain -Ker was later picked up and buried on the field. - -With regard to Colonel Gordon, V.C., it appears from one account that he -was taken into a barn after having been wounded, but almost immediately -afterwards the barn caught fire, and it was thought that he had been -trapped in the flames. It seems, however, that the wound was only a body -one, and the colonel was able to get clear, though he was afterwards -taken prisoner. - -"Keep your heads up, men!" one of the officers of the Gordons shouted to -his men on one occasion. "They can't hit you"--pointing to the snipers -up a tree; and with that remark he showed his own head above the trench. -"None of us cared to follow his example, but his cheery way bucked us -up," says one of the men present at the time. Yet again the same officer -inquired--"Any man wanting to earn a glass of claret?" and received -several enthusiastic affirmatives. "Well," he said, "catch me that hen -running across the road." The offer was not accepted, for the German -fire was hot at the time. - -Another account refers to a battle which took place about the middle of -October, the 2nd battalion being the one referred to. "I left the -trenches on Saturday night for hospital," says the writer. "On Friday -afternoon we had a terrible battle with the Germans, who turned all -their artillery and machine guns on our trenches in an attempt to break -through them. It was hell while it lasted, but we gave them more than -they wanted. About three hundred yards in front of our trenches was a -ridge running parallel with them, and every time the Germans mounted -this ridge in mass they were blown into the air. Ten times they were -blown away, losing battalions each time--it was sickening to see them. -Towards night they retired; and my company lost pretty heavily, five men -being killed and thirteen wounded. Our captain and lieutenant were also -wounded. Throughout all that battle I never got so much as a scratch--I -have been very lucky on two or three occasions." - -This man went into hospital at the finish with a poisoned hand and head, -caused by a graze sustained three weeks before the fight of which he -writes. In his letter, as in all the accounts quoted here, is noticeable -an absolute lack of doubt as to the final result of the titanic -struggle. Not that any one of the men actually voices confidence, but -from the way in which they tell of the doings of their regiments one may -gauge their spirit, and understand that they see only the one end to -this war of world-forces; that there is no fear of defeat, no thought of -other than a steady driving on to a fixed end--the overthrow of German -militarism. Many of them--many Gordons, without doubt--have never given -the matter a thought, for they fight, as the Gordons and as the whole -British Army always fights, with a belief in themselves and their -leaders that amounts to such conviction as needs no words for its -expression--a settled knowledge that in good time their task will be -accomplished. For behind all these men are the traditions of those who -cried "Scotland for ever!" men who knew not the meaning of defeat. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -THE SEAFORTH HIGHLANDERS - - -The 1st battalion of the Seaforth Highlanders originally bore the number -subsequently allotted to the 2nd battalion, for in 1778 the 1st -battalion was raised as the 78th infantry of the line by the Earl of -Seaforth, and with that as its official number it went to Jersey to -defend the island against a French attack, and subsequently to India. -The voyage to India occupied ten months, and cost the life of the Earl -of Seaforth and 200 men of the regiment; the remainder landed safely, -and underwent the campaign which ended in the overthrow of Tippoo Sahib: -the Seaforths led the attack on the fortifications of Bangalore, and -assisted in the taking of Seringapatam. Then the Seaforths took Ceylon -from the Dutch. - -In 1786 the 1st battalion (as it is at present known) was renumbered -"72nd," and in 1793 the present 2nd battalion of the regiment was formed -as the "78th Foot." After work in Holland and at the Cape, the 78th went -to India to fight under the future Duke of Wellington in the Mahratta -War. For valour at Assaye the 78th was granted the Elephant, inscribed -"Assaye," as a special badge, and also a third colour to bear. These -distinctions were well earned, for the 78th defeated a force ten times -as strong as itself in the course of the battle. - -The warlike quality of the material from which the Seaforths were -obtained may be estimated from the fact that two "second battalions" -were formed in succession and sent out to join the original 78th raised -in 1793. In the second expedition to Egypt in 1807, and in the -disastrous Walcheren expedition, the battalion took part, losing heavily -in officers and men in both cases--three companies were practically -annihilated at El Hamet in the Egyptian campaign. After Walcheren, the -Seaforths had little chance of winning distinction in the Napoleonic -wars, but in 1819 and 1835 the regiment was engaged at the Cape in -Kaffir wars, and the next incident of note in the history of the -Seaforths was their work in the Mutiny, when they served under Havelock, -marching from Allahabad to the relief of Cawnpur and Lucknow. Four -battles were fought and won before the force reached Cawnpur--too late; -and they went on to Lucknow. Tennyson has told how the sound of Highland -music gave intimation of relief to the sorely pressed Lucknow garrison, -and, regarding the work of the regiment at that time, their commander -told them--"I have been forty years in the service, I have been engaged -in actions seven-and-twenty times, but in the whole of my career I have -never seen any regiment behave so well as the 78th Highlanders. I am -proud of you." - -The 72nd, the present 1st battalion of the Seaforths, was also engaged -in the suppression of the Mutiny, though not with Havelock, and they -helped largely in suppressing the final flames of rebellion throughout -India. Then followed nearly twenty years of peace service for the -regiment, after which it took part in the campaign in Afghanistan, and -shared in the memorable march from Kabul to Kandahar. The bravery of the -regiment in this campaign is attested by the fact that no less than five -names connected with the two years of fighting are emblazoned on the -regimental colours. - -The Seaforths were in the charge at Tel-el-Kebir, and in the second -Egyptian campaign of 1898 the first battalion was engaged both at -Atbara and Khartoum. In between these two wars the regiment saw much -service in the two Hazara wars and the campaign of Chitral. In South -Africa the Seaforths formed part of the Highland Brigade at -Magersfontein, and lost no less than 212 officers and men killed and -wounded in that disastrous action. Magersfontein was avenged at -Paardeberg, where the Seaforths took part in the rounding up and capture -of Cronje, following up this with the action at Poplar Grove and that of -Driefontein. In the next great capture of the war, that of Prinsloo in -the Wittebergen, the Seaforths played an active part, and from then on -to the end of hostilities the regiment was actively engaged, both in -blockhouse work and in the rounding up of the Boer forces. Up to 1902, -the regiment had won no less than eleven Victoria Crosses, while its -distinguished-conduct medals are too numerous to count. - -For the campaign in France and Belgium, the Seaforths were brigaded with -the Irish Fusiliers, the Dublin Fusiliers, and the Warwickshire -Regiment, under command of Brigadier-General J. A. L. Haldane, D.S.O., -who made a memorable escape from Pretoria during the last Boer war. That -the regiment is keeping up its traditions is instanced by the case of -one man who was found retiring to the rear, wounded in nine different -places. He wanted no sympathy, and asked for no help; all he wanted to -know was--who had won the St. Leger! One of his comrades, wounded also, -remarked that the Seaforths had "fairly made the Germans hop out of -their trenches when they charged with the bayonet." The enemy had no -idea that the British were so close on them till the Seaforths marched -out of a farmyard right into the firing line, and then the Germans did -not wait, but ran like cattle chased by dogs. "After marching for four -days, during which time we did not know where we were, we got into motor -cars and were taken to a position right under the very noses of the -Germans, who got the surprise of their lives when they saw the 'ladies -from hell,' as they called us on account of our kilts, advancing on -them." - -Further, a man of the Dublin Fusiliers bears testimony to the fighting -qualities of the Seaforths. "It keeps up your spirit to be fighting with -such fellows," he says, "and they have fairly put fear into the Germans -with their bayonet charges. When there was any close fighting, and it -came to using the cold steel, the Germans ran from them like hares. Most -of the 'Jocks' now have beards, and with their kilts flying when they -charge they are a wild-looking lot." The writer of this adds his -evidence to the testimony that the Germans have no liking for bayonet -work. "They are big chaps, most of them, but have not got the heart for -it," he observes. - -The actual route taken by the regiment, in the moves made by the British -forces since the war began, can be traced pretty accurately by means of -various personal accounts. The first of these accounts states that the -Seaforths were first engaged at Agincourt, where an advance party of -Germans took the regiment by surprise, and they were hotly engaged. The -Germans lost heavily, but were in very strong force, and at night the -Seaforths drew back to get a rest. Two days later, at Guise, the German -cavalry tried to break through the column which included the Seaforths, -but they were met with fixed bayonets and driven back, though the -British suffered heavy casualties. - -Then "at La-Musa we had a stiff engagement with the German Crown -Prince's army on the right wing, and by the aid of their aeroplanes the -German gunners found our trenches, on which they kept up a heavy -cannonading for almost three hours. An attack was made by the German -cavalry, but our artillery mowed them down like hay--the slaughter was -something awful. We had to retire, however, and for twenty-eight miles -we marched without food before we got out of range of the enemy's guns. -After three hours' rest we advanced in an opposite direction to our line -of retreat, and proceeded to La Ferte, with the German cavalry in -pursuit. Crossing the river there we had a thrilling time, and just -crossed the bridge in time for the Royal Engineers to blow it up and -prevent the Germans crossing--a number of the Engineers were killed in -the explosion. - -"We afterwards marched to Mons, having several skirmishes on the way, -and managed to capture a number of Germans and a field hospital. We saw -many signs of German barbarism on our march, and one sight I shall never -forget was that of a father and mother with a baby about two months old, -lying stabbed to death by bayonets on their doorstep. Frequently we took -women and children into the trenches for safety, and always they had a -terrible dread of the Uhlans. We Seaforths were on the right flank at -Mons, and one morning the Germans suddenly opened fire on us at three -o'clock. We fixed bayonets, and followed the Guards in skirmishing -order, passing over heaps of dead, and capturing German guns. But we -could not keep our positions, for the Germans were entrenched in masses -farther on, and we had to retire." - -This account is rather muddled, for the writer speaks of days of -fighting and marching with skirmishes before the action at Mons. One -must sort out the various engagements mentioned and compare them with -the official account of the first engagements in order to arrive at an -estimate of the position in which the Seaforths began their fighting. On -the whole, however, the writer conveys a very good idea of the work of -those first few days--he was wounded in the retirement from Mons, and -thus his narrative ceases there. - -The story is taken on by a man of the regiment who was captured during -the fighting on the Oise, and was sentenced by the enemy to be shot, but -managed to escape. Having lost his regiment, he attached himself to a -French unit, and kept with them for three weeks, in which time he saw -only three Englishmen, all lost like himself, and they commiserated -each other on not knowing the French language, and consequently being -unable to converse with their comrades in the firing line. In the town -from which the writer posted his letter, the Germans had looted all the -shops previous to the French reoccupation, while the British had blown -up a bridge, and the Germans in turn had sunk a number of French boats -in the canal to form a temporary bridge. The writer adds his evidence on -the subject of German cruelty. - -Concerning an engagement on the Aisne, on the 13th of September, one of -the Seaforths who participated tells how his company had been resting -for the night in a farmhouse after having been on the move for seven or -eight days, and in the morning they went forward a march of three or -four miles, which brought them into range of the enemy's position, a -mile to the front. The regiment was ordered to take the German -position, and advanced in extended order across a clear field of fire, -when, fortunately for the attackers, the enemy's fire was so bad that -the losses were very slight. The advance was steadily maintained, until -at 300 yards' distance from the position the order was given to fix -bayonets. At that, "the Germans did not wait to say 'Good night,' but -simply ran, as they won't face the cold steel at any price." Still, a -number of the Seaforths were put out of action in the business, in which -the regiment gained all that they had been ordered to take. "It was a -great charge," says the man who tells of it. "No wonder so much is -thought of the Highland regiments, for it would have done your heart -good to hear the cheer that went up when the order was given to charge, -and the Germans did run. All I can say is that if we had been in their -position we should have waited for them to come upon us, and none of -them would ever have reached us, as I think our rifle fire is good -enough to stop any charge that might be made." - -The same man tells of "a low, dirty trick" that the Germans played in -the course of this fight. Some of them put up a white flag, and when -about fifty of the Warwickshires went out to take the surrendered men -they opened fire with a machine gun and slaughtered the Warwicks. "That -is the kind of warfare the Germans like to carry on." - -Thus runs the account of the 13th of September, and on the following -day, according to several accounts received, the colonel of the -regiment, Colonel Sir Evelyn Bradford, was killed--he has since been -mentioned in dispatches. The most circumstantial account is as follows: - -"It was in the battle of the Aisne, when the Seaforths had taken up a -position near a wood, that the Germans began a heavy fire. The colonel -was standing with two other officers surveying the field of operations, -when he was struck by a shell and killed instantly. A lieutenant of the -Gordons, who was attached to the battalion, was killed, and a number of -the men were struck and wounded--in all, there were about thirty wounded -by the one explosion. They attempted to bury the colonel the same night, -but were prevented from their task by the heavy and continuous -shell-fire from the enemy." At about nine in the evening, however, a -burial party set out to lay the dead commander to rest up on the face of -a hill, near a large farmhouse which was the headquarters of the force -for the time. "Poor Colonel Bradford!" comments a member of the party; -"I cannot tell you how great our loss is. He was a brave commander, and -was killed while trying to safeguard his regiment. We could not fetch -his body in while daylight lasted, but at midnight we laid him, with two -other officers, to rest on their field of honour, on a hill-side -overlooking a valley of the river. It was a sad but glorious moment for -us to stand and hear the padre tell us that they had not shrunk from -their duty, and had fallen for the sake of their comrades. The next day -I found some Scotch thistle growing close by, and I plucked the blooms -to form a cross over the dead chieftain's grave." - -Concerning this action of the 14th of September, another participant -tells that the British troops were steadily driving the Germans back, -and the company of the Seaforths to which he belonged had crossed the -river two days before, and were holding a ridge, though the enemy had a -great advantage in point of numbers. This man sent home a transcript of -a German officer's diary, which makes very interesting reading. - -"_July 20._--At last the day! To have lived to see it! We are ready, let -come who may. The world race is destined to be German. - -"_August 5._--Our losses to-day [before Liege] have been frightful. -Never mind, it is all allowed for. Besides, the fallen are only Polish -beginners, the spilling of whose blood will spread the war lust at -home--a necessary factor. - -"_August 11._--And now for the English, used to fighting farmers. [A -reference to the Boer War.] To-night Wilhelm the Greater has given us -beautiful advice. You think each day of your Emperor, and do not forget -God. [Note the order in which the two are mentioned.] His Majesty should -remember that in thinking of him we think of God, for is not he the -Almighty's instrument in this glorious fight for right? - -"_August 12._--This is clearly to be an artillery war, as we foresaw. -Infantry counts for nothing. - -"_August 20._--The conceited English have ranged themselves up against -us at absurd odds, our airmen say. [This, it must be remembered, was -written concerning the time of the great retreat, when the German forces -were in overwhelming numerical superiority.] - -"_August 25._--An English shell burst on a Red Cross wagon to-day--full -of English. Ha-ha! Serve the swine right. Still, they fight well. I -salute the officer who kept on swearing at Germany and her Emperor in -his agony--and then to ask calmly for a bath! These English! We have -scarcely time enough to bury our dead, so they are being weighted in the -river." - -The writer of this diary was captured, so his entries extend no farther. -The way in which his views of "the conceited English" altered as time -went on is worthy of note. - -A R.A.M.C. officer attached to the Seaforths gives an idea of the way in -which the regiment conducted its daily business. Each morning the -regiment would "stand to arms" at about three o'clock, and at four or -five o'clock the men would move on, either with or without -breakfast--which consisted of tea and biscuits, and bacon if there were -time to cook it. Sleeping accommodation varied in quality and extent -from night to night, ranging from a ploughed field or an orchard to the -floor of a deserted house. Often the men were so sleepy that they lay in -the road--quite contentedly, since they were allowed to lie. - -"I am doing less than the men," adds the writer. "Just think of them: -march, march, march, and then when we sleep it falls to the lot of many -to guard the outposts with no chance of shelter, and then go on -marching through the next day, wet, and hoping to dry as they go. Only -the highest praise can be given to these men. - -"At present [on the Aisne] we are entrenched. Our first day in this -place, where we have been for five days, was awful, for we were under -fire the whole of the day, with practically no protection, and our total -of killed and wounded amounted to seventy. The men never wavered, and -gaps were always filled. Grand are the Highland men, and grander still -will be the account they will render; I am lucky to be with such men." - -These various accounts of the work of the regiment form a fairly -detailed description of the work at the Aisne. Of how the regiment was -moved up to the Flanders front there is no account to hand, but the work -done on the new front has been fairly fully described. First of all -comes the account of Captain Methven's death, which took place in the -fighting round Lille, where Captain Methven and his company were set to -drive the Germans from their trenches with the bayonet. The German -trenches were at the top of a steep little hill, and up this hill -Captain Methven rushed, with his men following. He paused at the edge of -the enemy's trenches and turned to wave the men on--they saw him -silhouetted against the skyline for a second, and then he fell, shot -through the heart at what must have been point-blank range. But the -trenches were won, the small force of Germans who had been holding them -surrendered--Captain Methven had not died in vain. "I had read about -this single-handed taking of a position," writes a spectator, "but until -I saw Captain Methven's action I thought these things only happened in -story-books." - -A little later the brigade of which the 2nd Seaforths formed a part was -engaged in the storming of a position, an action in which they drove -back the enemy for several miles. For the greater part of the day the -British position had been commanded by the fire of the enemy, who held a -position on a hill in the neighbourhood and maintained a steady fire on -the British brigade. The brigade commander saw that if the enemy were -given time to bring up heavy artillery they would render their own -position impregnable and that of the British force untenable--the height -had to be taken that day, if at all. So the "Charge!" was sounded, and -the brigade advanced across the intervening ground, with the men -cheering and shouting as they rushed forward--and above all the rest of -the cries rose the "Caber-feidh," the rallying-cry of the Seaforths. The -German position was taken in about a quarter of an hour--and in rear -were a fleet of motor vehicles, in which the retreating Germans -decamped. Pursuit was out of the question, and there was only -snap-shooting at the flying enemy by way of consolation. - -Beyond this the records of the regiment do not take us at present. There -remains, however, one record of "B" Company of the 2nd Battalion and its -work on the night of the 13th of October, a statement that may well be -included in this record of the doings of the Seaforths. It tells how the -company had to charge the enemy out of his trenches at the bayonet -point, which was done with some considerable loss of killed and wounded, -and the writer comments--"There was not a coward among us." - -"But that was nothing to what we had last Tuesday [Oct. 20]. We were -digging trenches when we heard a volley of rifle fire come right over -us, and we got the order to stand to arms and advance. Their trenches -were situated in a row on a rise in a field, and we could not get our -range on them. In a minute the signal to charge went, and we all -scrambled up the hill to get at them. The first to get up was our -company officer, and he was hit. We all dived into their trenches at the -point of their rifles, shooting and stabbing, and then came the -onslaught. Some of them were too terrified to get out, while others -rushed out and were shot down, and the remainder sought refuge in a -house. They showed the white flag in a doorway, but we got the order not -to take any notice of it until some of their officers came out, and we -waved them in. About fifty surrendered. I am proud to say that we were -only one company. I shall never forget that charge as long as I live. -The General said--'Bravo, Seaforths! it was a grand charge.'" - -Which forms a fitting final word as far as the Seaforths are concerned. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE CAMERON HIGHLANDERS - - -Mr. Alan Cameron, a gentleman of Scotland in the eighteenth century, -fought a duel over which he was obliged to leave the British Isles, -whereupon he found employment in an irregular cavalry corps which -assisted the British in the American War of Independence. When the war -ended he returned to England, judging that the storm had blown over, and -at the time of the French Revolution he offered to raise a corps of -Highlanders for the British Army. The offer was accepted, and Cameron -raised 700 of his clansmen in Inverness-shire, a body which became the -79th Foot, and had its title altered in 1881 to the Cameron Highlanders. - -The first active service undergone by the men of the regiment was in -Holland, where in 1794 under the Duke of York they fought against an -enemy greatly superior in numbers. Five years later the regiment again -went to Holland, to distinguish itself at the action of Egmont-op-Zee, a -name borne since that time on the regimental colours. This was followed -up by the expedition under Sir Ralph Abercromby to Egypt, whence -Napoleon and his army were driven out by the British. The Sphinx, with -"Egypt" inscribed on it, is borne by the Camerons, in common with some -other Highland regiments. - -Copenhagen, at the capture of which the Camerons assisted in 1807, was -overshadowed as an exploit by the work of the "light company" of the -Camerons at Corunna in the following year. Talavera was a field in which -the Camerons had a share, as was Busaco, and the regiment helped in -holding the "lines" of Torres Vedras through the winter in which -Wellington lay at bay against Napoleon's marshals, to emerge in the -spring and force the French to retreat. At Fuentes d'Onor, after holding -the village in company with two other regiments against attack after -attack by the French, the Camerons were forced out by the flower of the -French Army, the Imperial Guard. When the fight was at its fiercest a -French soldier shot dead the colonel of the regiment, and at that the -Highlanders raised a cry of vengeance and swept away the famous Guard of -France. - -From Salamanca to Toulouse the Camerons fought on through the rest of -the Peninsular campaign; they fought through Quatre Bras, and were among -the four regiments specially mentioned in dispatches by Wellington after -Waterloo. From that time, until 1854 called them to the Crimean -campaign, the men of the regiment had only peace service; but, in the -Highland Brigade under Sir Colin Campbell, the successors of the -Highlanders who had distinguished themselves at Waterloo proved that the -valour of the regiment was as great as ever, and at the battle of the -Alma the Camerons did gallant service. - -Almost immediately after the Crimea came the Mutiny, and the Camerons -were among the first regiments to oppose the mutineers. At Mahomdie over -a hundred men of the regiment went down with sunstroke, and then at -Lucknow the mutineers had to be driven from house to house by bayonet -work--in which Scottish regiments have always excelled. - -For the nine months that followed the work in Lucknow, the regiment was -almost constantly engaged with the enemy, especially at the battle of -Bareilly and the crossing of the Gogra and Rapti rivers. The Mohmund -and Kumasi campaigns came next, and in 1873 Queen Victoria presented the -regiment with new colours and conferred on it the title of the "Queen's -Own." Then in 1882 came the Egyptian campaign, and at Tel-el-Kebir a man -of the Camerons was first to fall in the dawn hour at which that action -began. The charge of the Camerons on the enemy's lines is a feat that -has been often described, and Lieutenant-Colonel Leith's cry of "Come -on, 79th!" has become historic. - -In the attempt to rescue Gordon, and again in 1885, the Cameron -Highlanders continued their work in Egypt, and in 1893 Lochiel of -Cameron unveiled at Inverness a monument to the brave men of the -regiment who had fallen in Egypt. Four years later a second battalion -was raised, and in 1898 the 1st battalion again went up the Nile to -assist in the final Dervish overthrow. With "Remember General Gordon" -as their watchword, the Camerons shared in the battle of the Atbara, at -which Mahmoud's army was annihilated and Mahmoud himself taken prisoner. -Sharing in the onward march, the Camerons were present at Omdurman, -where the power of the Khalifa was finally broken, and the battalion -attended the memorial service held in Khartoum on September 4th of that -year in memory of General Gordon. Thence one company of the regiment -went up to Fashoda, and had the unique honour of representing the -British Army there at the time of the incident, now nearly forgotten, -which so nearly led to war with France. - -It was not until March of 1900 that the Camerons landed at East London -to take part in the South African campaign, and they were then -incorporated in the 21st Brigade under General Bruce Hamilton. They -shared in the general advance to Pretoria, in the crossing of the Zand -River, the battle of Doorn Kop, and the engagement at Diamond Hill. -Later, they shared in the capture of Prinsloo in the Wittebergen, and in -the reliefs of Winburg and Ladybrand. Up to the end of the war the -Camerons were in the thick of things, and the men received the personal -thanks of General Sir Horace Smith-Dorrien for the work they had -performed while serving under him, and, what was more, for the fine -spirit in which that work had been done. - -The most that can be done with regard to locating the Camerons in France -is to state that they formed a part of the First Division, and that when -the Allies took the offensive the Camerons took the place of the -Munsters; also that they have acted in very close conjunction with the -Black Watch, with whom, it is highly probable, they were brigaded. At -Mons the Black Watch formed the first line, and, as they lost a -considerable number of men, the Camerons were moved up by way of -support, when thirteen men of the battalion were killed and wounded. In -the course of the great retreat there were as many as 300 men missing at -one time, but parties of ten and twelve came in later and reduced the -apparent losses. When nearing Soissons in the course of the retreat, the -Black Watch were made the object of an encircling movement by the enemy, -but they escaped with the aid of the 117th Battery R.F.A. and that of -some of the Camerons. One man of the Black Watch had crossed the Aisne -in the retreat, and was wounded while lying out in the open to fire, and -a Cameron man stood by him and assisted him to the rear at the cost of -three wounds to himself. - -These slight incidents are all that can be gleaned with regard to the -actual movements of the Camerons at the time of the retreat. Several -minor incidents, however, have come to light, and of these many bear on -the German abuse of the white flag and of all the recognised rules of -war. On one occasion Germans were seen walking between the -trenches--their own and the British--carrying stretchers; and, under the -assumption that they were carrying wounded, firing was stopped for the -time. It was discovered, however, that instead of wounded the supposed -ambulance men were carrying machine guns on their stretchers, and at the -same time they showed the Red Cross flag. On the other hand, such of the -enemy as have been taken prisoners by the Camerons on the retreat told -their captors that they expected to be shot at once, having been told by -their officers that that would be their fate if they fell into the -enemy's hands. - -It appears that there is plenty of humour among the Cameron men on the -battlefield. "It's very funny," says one of them, "to hear a Frenchman -try to sing 'Tipperary.' It fairly stumps them, but they do their best. -The two favourite songs with our boys are 'Tipperary' and the -Marseillaise. You should see a Frenchman when he hears that--he goes -fairly daft. These Frenchmen seem terribly loungy to look at, but they -are good fighters, for all that. They go smashing into it, and their -artillery is the best out there. But our officers are a fine lot, the -best set of men I ever came across. They do their share." - -Thus, discursively, a wounded Cameron man told of the incidentals of the -fighting in France--the earlier days. Then comes a fairly detailed -account of the battle of the Marne, in which the first three days, -Saturday, Sunday, and Monday, are described as "pretty much -preliminary," but on Tuesday the brigade of which the Camerons formed a -part went out to meet the enemy, and drove them back, capturing about -six hundred prisoners and eight guns. The ground was sodden with rain, -and the Camerons lay out in the harvest fields taking cover behind the -standing sheaves of corn, while the German artillery rained out shells -on them, not even stopping when their own infantry advanced on the -British troops. "We got it very rough, and a man beside me--one of our -battalion--went out to help an officer who was badly wounded, but just -as he got up to the officer he dropped. Our fellows were falling all -round, and at about ten in the morning I got my dose. During the day the -fighting round where I was lying fell off a bit, but I had to lay on the -ground until dark, when another chap, who saw I couldn't move, came over -to make me a bed of straw and get me comfortable. But before he could -get my bed made a bullet got him through the spine, and he tumbled over -in a heap--stone dead. I was lucky to get out of it, for the Germans -were firing on our ambulance men. They had snipers lying among our -wounded, and that night, when stretcher bearers came out to carry in the -wounded officer, three of the bearers were shot. It was Wednesday -morning before I was picked up by a picket of the Coldstream Guards." - -At the beginning of the battle of the Aisne, the Camerons were brought -up to advance in skirmishing order under shell fire, when one man was -wounded by shell fire, and fell back behind a haystack. Some other -wounded also sought the shelter of the haystack, whereupon the Germans -immediately began to shell it, and the wounded men sought other shelter, -to fall in with a convoy of thirty German prisoners. Finally they found -the transport column, and were taken back to a hospital established in a -village in rear of the firing line--but this hospital was already full -up. No less than thirty-two shells were aimed directly at this hospital, -though it had a Red Cross flag flying over it all the time. This -hospital was cleared, and two hours after the patients had been removed -it was utterly destroyed by shell fire. - -Another account relates that the enemy occupied the positions on the -Aisne that they had taken up in 1870, and their guns were all placed in -concrete positions, carefully prepared against the event. After the -Camerons took up their position, the distance between the opposing -forces was about a thousand yards, with fairly open ground between, and -the regiment was ordered to attack the trenches held by the enemy. The -whole brigade advanced under heavy shell fire until within 250 yards of -the enemy's position--and then the man who tells of this incident was -struck down by shell fire and rendered unconscious, so that he did not -see the result of the advance. He knew, however, that it must have been -successful, since he was still behind the British line when he recovered -consciousness. - -It was later on, when the battle of the Aisne had taken on the nature of -a siege action, that the cave disaster occurred which caused the deaths -of over thirty officers and men of the regiment. Near the firing line -was a large, spacious cave, which was used partly as a collecting base -for the wounded, and partly as the regimental headquarters; and on the -25th of September, while the German artillery was shelling the British -positions, the roof of the cave was struck by one of the big German -shells, with the result that it fell in, burying thirty-five officers -and men. The cave was some 300 yards behind the firing line, so that the -incident went unobserved for some time--though it is doubtful if -anything could have been done even had prompt action been taken, since -the fall of rock and earth was so heavy that most of the men in the cave -must have been killed instantaneously. Four of the occupants, however, -were able to shout for help, being pinned down by masses of rock at the -back of the cave when the roof fell in; and, nearly two hours after the -accident, other men of the regiment heard the shouts of those -imprisoned, and set to the work of rescue. Three men had been liberated, -and while the rescuers were at work getting out the fourth man another -shell landed in the same spot, covered in the pinned man, and blew his -would-be rescuer to pieces. But this wounded man, though buried anew, -was still alive, though he lost consciousness after two hours. An -officer and three men of the Scots Guards finally dug him out, after he -had been buried for about six hours, and he was sent away to hospital -and recovery. - -The Camerons came, with the greater part of the British force in France, -to the fighting in the north-west which foiled the German attack on -Calais, and from this part of the battle line one account has come -through. "We were fairly giving it to the Germans," says a wounded man -from this quarter. "In the morning we started advancing in single line -by sections at three paces interval across open fields at the double, -and the shells were landing all round us as fast as the enemy could fire -them, but we managed to get into our positions. We had a bad time of it -there, but we managed to put a stop to the German advance, and then we -took up another position, and held it. When the enemy were within about -eighty yards of us the officer in charge of the company gave the order -to fix bayonets, and we charged, at which the Germans ran away. We -opened fire on them, and at about two o'clock on that day I was wounded. -I was lying in a hollow of the ground which we had just cleared, and I -had to lie there for hours until the enemy were driven back by a British -regiment. Shortly after I was wounded the Germans gained the crest of a -hill, and one of the Scots Guards lying there wounded put up his hands -for them not to shoot, but one of them came to within two yards of him -and shot him through the stomach, and he rolled over again and died -about two hours afterwards." - -Against this cold-blooded savagery must be set the account given by an -officer of the 1st battalion of the Camerons, who states that he was -shot through the leg just before the enemy charged in great numbers and -drove the British out of their trenches. One of the men tried to get the -officer along in the retirement, but could not do so, and he was made a -prisoner. "They banged me about a bit at first, and tied my hands behind -my back, and tried to get me to walk, but of course I could not. At last -one splendid German came forward and took me off to their own wounded in -a farmhouse. He stayed by me the whole time, and was most wonderfully -good to me. They dressed my wound and got me some water, and did what -they could for me. Next day, at two in the afternoon, my company charged -back at the house and drove the enemy back, rescuing me and the one or -two other wounded prisoners in the house." - -Another officer writes, concerning the time on the Aisne: "The way the -Germans treat property is disgusting. While passing through a village -not long ago the greater part of the furniture of all the houses had -been dragged out and broken up, all the crockery smashed, all the -bedding dragged out into the open street, and there left to be soaked by -the rain. It is awful to see the poor peasants wandering about, homeless -and starving. - -"Everywhere is the fearful smell of dead horses. It seems to saturate -the atmosphere, and one marches through miles of it." - -Carrion and ruin! And "one splendid German," who stands out from among -his fellows because he exercised the simple instincts of humanity! -Surely in this one incident is as great accusation against the German -race as in the other and worse accounts. - -Meanwhile the Camerons fight on, with the courage that their regiment -has shown from the time of Abercrombie's campaign in Egypt unto this -day. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -THE ARGYLL AND SUTHERLAND HIGHLANDERS - - -The threat against Britain by the French Republic in 1794 led to the -raising of the 1st battalion of the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders, -the battalion having been formed in that year by the then Duke of -Argyll, under the title of the 91st Regiment of Foot. The present 2nd -battalion was raised by the Earl of Sutherland six years later, and -numbered the "93rd Foot." These two battalions were united under their -present title in 1881. - -Active service was first seen by the 2nd battalion at the Cape, where -its men played a prominent part in the defeat of the Dutch army of -5,000 men engaged in the defence of Capetown. The turn of the 1st -battalion came during the Peninsular campaign, when the Argylls formed -the rearguard at Corunna and were seven times engaged with the enemy. -Later, they joined Wellington in Spain, and were conspicuously engaged -at the Nivelle, at the crossing of the Nive, and on to the siege of -Toulouse. The 2nd battalion formed part of the force that courted -disaster at New Orleans in 1814, and no less than 520 officers and men -fell in that fatal attack--futile as fatal. - -Missing Waterloo, the regiment next won distinction in the Kaffir wars -at the Cape, where it underwent five years of active service. There were -"91st" men on the _Birkenhead_ in 1852, and though the name of the -ill-fated vessel is not borne on the colours of any regiment it might -well be inscribed on those of the Argylls. Their next active service -was in the Crimean campaign, where the 2nd battalion formed part of Sir -Colin Campbell's Highland Brigade, and took the heights beyond the Alma -under as destructive fire as a British regiment has ever faced. At -Balaclava the Highlanders were in deadly peril, but their coolness saved -them for work in the trenches before Sevastopol, and for a share in the -final assault. - -Still under Sir Colin Campbell, their chief in the Crimea, the -Highlanders took part in the suppression of the Mutiny, and marched to -the relief of Lucknow, avenging the tragedy of Cawnpur at the action of -Secundra Bagh, where with the loyal Sikhs they piled up a heap of 2,000 -dead sepoys. On the same day the regiment took a hand in the capture of -the Shah Nujjif, a strong building that was taken by desperate -hand-to-hand fighting. From the top of the building the regimental -colour of the Highlanders, waving, announced to the sorely pressed -Lucknow garrison that relief was approaching--and the rest of the story -of the relief is an oft-told one. - -Zululand and frontier work in India next claimed the attention of the -regiment, and then in 1899 the 1st battalion sailed for South Africa, to -join Lord Methuen's force and take part in the battle of the Modder -River, at which the Argyll and Sutherland men lost heavily. Joining -General Wauchope's Highland Brigade, the battalion marched on to -Magersfontein, where the commanding officer was among the killed. With -the rest of the brigade the Argylls moved on to Paardeberg and the -capture of Cronje and his force; and from that time onward to the end of -the war the record of the battalion is one continuous story of marching, -fighting, and the general work of the campaign, up to the time of the -signing of peace at Vereeniging. The total of marching accomplished by -the battalion during the course of the war was not less than 3,500 -miles. Seven Victoria Crosses had been won by members of the regiment up -to 1902. - -The deeds of the regiment are rather scantily told by its men in France. -The personal accounts begin with an appreciation of the bravery of the -Hon. R. Bruce, Master of Burleigh, in the retreat from Mons. "He was too -brave for anything," says a private who saw him at that time. "He simply -wanted to be at 'em, and at 'em he went. I don't know where his sword -was, but he hadn't it when I saw him--he had a rifle with the bayonet -fixed, just like the rest of us. I saw him at the time he was wounded, -and he just fought on gamely till he and his party of brave fellows were -cut off and surrounded." - -The next account concerns the battle of Soissons, on the Aisne--a place -variously pronounced by the troops, many of whom gave it the name of -"Scissors," as being a near thing to the real method of pronunciation. -"For about a week," says the narrator, "it rained night and day. You may -imagine us marching all day, from daylight in the morning till dark at -night, and then having to lie down in a field on the wet ground--nothing -to cover ourselves with and nothing underneath us--and living on -biscuits and corned beef. I feel sorry for the poor French people, and -you may be thankful you are living in England. We passed through village -after village on the march, and there was not a living soul in the -houses; doors and windows were smashed open, and everything was broken -in the way of furniture and fittings. We passed one house where the two -women who lived in it had just returned after the Germans had passed. As -we went by they gave us a drink of water--it was the only thing the -Germans had left them." - -Another man of the regiment, speaking of the earlier engagements, -remarks--"You would think you were in hell." He tells of the adventures -of Lieutenant Campbell of the Argyll and Sutherlands, who went out with -eleven men to reconnoitre in the early days of the campaign. As none of -the dozen returned, and careful searches failed to reveal any traces of -the party, they were given up as captured. To the surprise of their -comrades, however, they all turned up safe and sound some eleven days -later. It seemed that the party had unwittingly penetrated through the -German lines, and, managing to escape notice, had eventually found their -way out again. This story is supplemented by one which tells of a trick -played by the French during the German retreat from Paris. The Argylls -were located about thirty miles away from Paris, and in rear of them a -large body of the enemy were encamped in a wood. During the night, -according to this account, the French crept up to the wood without being -observed by the German sentries, and placed bundles of straw among the -trees, setting fire to the straw before they retired. The timber in the -wood was very dry, and the trees caught fire, causing a fierce blaze in -the course of a few minutes. The enemy were thrown into confusion, which -was completed by the artillery fire searching the wood and making rout -of the German retreat. - -There is one letter concerning the doings of the Argyll and Sutherland -men which is worthy of quotation, and calls for some question. The -writer says: "We have distinguished ourselves a good many times since we -commenced operations here, and we have lost heavily, an occurrence much -to our sorrow. It is not my place to speak of the honour that has been -conferred upon us as a Scottish regiment for our bravery, and at one -time we saved the British Army from defeat. We are fortunate to have any -one left to relate the experience. The kindly eye of Providence has -overlooked me, and I am thankful. I don't know yet how I escaped. Once I -was lying in a line of sixteen men, eight of whom were killed or -severely wounded by the shell fire of the enemy." - -This letter comes undated, with the place of origin suppressed. It is -curious, if the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders--either or both -battalions--"saved the British Army from defeat," that there should be -only this one account of the affair--which must have been tremendous. -British soldiers, as a rule, are very quick to acknowledge the bravery -of their comrades, and it is strange that no man of any other regiment -has yet recognised that the whole of the British Army has been saved -from defeat by this one regiment--or possibly by one battalion of this -regiment. On the whole, one is tempted to regard the letter as a hoax, -though its solemn tone would go far to dispel that idea. - -One other letter there is, worthy in a different sense of full -quotation, for it tells of individual bravery and resourcefulness on the -part of a member of the regiment. "We had worked our way up to within -eighty yards of the German trenches," says the writer, "and then got the -order to charge, which we did with effect. One fellow belonging to the -Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders made a lunge with his bayonet at an -opponent, and his intended victim promptly warded off the blow, but, -much to the German's astonishment, the canny Scot brought the butt end -of the rifle to the jaw like a flash, and, felling him like a bullock, -finished the job with the bayonet. It was the work of a moment, done -without hesitation, and is typical of the bravery and resource of the -Highlanders generally." - -These few records of the men of the regiment go to prove that the Argyll -and Sutherland men went down from Mons to the Aisne, fought at -Soissons--and that is all. Of their presence in Flanders there is no -evidence so far, and at the time of writing they may still be living the -life of cave-dwellers down where the old German front is still -maintained against the thinned Franco-British line, or they may be round -Arras, in those fierce struggles whence the wounded come back by the -hundred and many men come back no more. Not till the "fog of war" has -cleared utterly away will all their story be told, but we may rest -assured that the story will not be one of which the Argyll and -Sutherland Highlanders need be ashamed. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -THE HIGHLAND LIGHT INFANTRY AND THE CAMERONIANS - - -The Highland Light Infantry--a title shortened in the Army to a -colloquial "H.L.I.," were originally known as "Macleod's Highlanders," -and were raised as the 73rd Foot in 1777, being embodied at Elgin in -April of 1778. Lord Macleod, after whom the regiment was named, was its -first commanding officer, and under his command the original members of -the 73rd went to Madras in 1780, their voyage lasting no less than -twelve months. The valour of the regiment in those early days of its -history may be judged from the fact that between the time of landing in -India and 1806, a matter of only twenty-six years, there were -emblazoned on the regimental colours no less than six names--those of -Carnatic, Sholingur, Mysore, Hindustan, Seringapatam, and Cape of Good -Hope. To these might well be added that of Perambaukum, for in that -first action in which the H.L.I. took part the flank companies were cut -to pieces in a truly heroic stand against irresistible odds. After the -formation of new flank companies came the principal battles of the -Carnatic, and in the attack on Cuddalore the H.L.I. lost half their -strength of officers and men, and won the grateful thanks of their -commander-in-chief. - -In 1786 the regiment became the "71st," and their next spell of active -service was in the Mysore campaign, where they took part in all the -principal engagements, including the storming of Bangalore and -Seringapatam. They went from India to the Cape, and thence formed part -of General Whitelock's expedition to Buenos Ayres, in which, through no -fault of the Highlanders, who captured the city, Britain definitely lost -a footing in South America--the result of the expedition led to -Whitelocke being court-martialled and dismissed from the service. For -their gallantry in the capture of Buenos Ayres the H.L.I. were specially -commended by Lieutenant-General Floyd on the occasion of the -presentation of new colours to the regiment. - -Their next exploits were in the first Peninsular campaign, through which -they came to Corunna. They were at Torres Vedras, at the fierce -encounter of Fuentes d'Onor, and they took a prominent part in the -battle of Vittoria, where they routed the enemy and lost their -commanding officer, who fell dying while leading his men in the attack. -Like Wolfe, the commanding officer of the H.L.I. had a last thought for -the defeat of the enemy, and died happy in the knowledge that the battle -was practically won. Near on four hundred of his men fell with him on -this field. - -No less than sixteen special medals were presented to men of the -Highland Light Infantry in the Peninsular campaigns for special personal -bravery, and then at Waterloo they shared in the last attack on -Napoleon's Imperial Guard, with which the day ended. Earlier in the day -the Highland Light Infantry formed the square in which the Duke of -Wellington had his place at the time the French cavalry charged. - -The regiment took part in the Crimean campaign, serving in the trenches -before Sevastopol, and in the expedition to Yenikale. In the Central -Indian Campaign of 1858 the H.L.I. were heavily engaged, and at the -Morar Cantonments engagement the first Victoria Cross of the regiment -was won. - -The history of the 2nd battalion of the regiment--the old 74th, is very -similar to that of the 1st battalion, including as it does the storming -of Seringapatam, the principal engagements of the Peninsular campaign, -and--here the history diverges--the sinking of the _Birkenhead_ off the -Cape. The two battalions were first definitely named "Highland Light -Infantry" in place of their old-time numbers in 1881, when the -Territorial system came into being as regards the Regular Army. - -The 2nd battalion of the regiment took part in the Egyptian campaign of -1882, and won a Victoria Cross at Tel-el-Kebir. In the Malakand Campaign -of 1897 and again in Crete in 1898, the regiment saw active service, and -in the South African War the 1st battalion went through the action of -Modder River and on to Magersfontein, where another Victoria Cross was -won by Corporal Shaul of the regiment. Together with the rest of the -Highland Brigade, the H.L.I. were "in" at the capture of Cronje at -Paardeberg, and at the capture of Prinsloo they played an important -part. No less than eighty-one officers and men were left behind by the -regiment at the close of the South African campaign. - -Four Victoria Crosses are reckoned to the credit of the regiment, but to -these must be added the sixteen special medals for gallantry won by the -H.L.I. in the Peninsular War, before ever such a thing as a Victoria -Cross was instituted. Of medals for distinguished conduct, there are -many in the H.L.I. - -Personal accounts of the fighting in which the regiment has been engaged -in France are few, up to the present time. A definite account has been -received of the death of Lieutenant Sir Archibald Gibson Craig. It is -stated that the lieutenant had told his servant some time previously -that, in case of his death on the field, the servant was to take charge -of all his personal belongings; and at a place not named--or a place of -which the name has been excised--he was in charge of a party of sixteen -men, who were proceeding to a rather steep hill, when they came in -contact with a large number of the enemy, estimated by the Highlanders -at between 300 and 400. The men had not been aware that they were so -near the Germans, but when the lieutenant saw the position in which they -were placed he drew his sword and shouted, "Charge, men! At them!" His -men fired at the German force, and then charged with fixed bayonets, at -which the enemy thought the British party was far stronger than it was -in reality, for they began to retreat. The Highlanders, however, had to -retire, since two of their number were killed and three wounded, which -left a dangerously small force of effectives. They retired in good -order, carrying their dead and wounded, but Sir Archibald Craig was shot -through the mouth, and killed instantaneously. - -This is the most circumstantial account that has come to hand regarding -the work of the regiment, so far. Another story of a wounded man states -that during the fighting on the Aisne, in the village of Vera Neuil, he -received two pieces of shrapnel in the chest. "We were not safe -anywhere, not even in the hospital, as the Germans shelled that too. I -was wounded on Tuesday, September 15, when I was eating a biscuit at the -time I was shot." - -An officer of the H.L.I. gives an account of the way in which the -Germans are conducting their fighting. - -"An officer dressed as a French officer went up to some Coldstream -Guards and asked if Bulkley, the machine-gun officer, was in that -battalion. He then shot the officer he was talking to. Others dress up -as British staff officers, and drive about in motor cars, and when they -meet transports of convoys shout at them--'The Germans are advancing on -you from just ahead,' which causes a stampede. That happened to us, for -a long column of transport was ahead of us as we were retiring, and all -of a sudden a supposed French officer came galloping down the road the -reverse way, shouting 'Les Allemands, les Uhlans!' All the transport was -thrown into confusion, and some of the waggons came back at a gallop. We -were just behind, but mercifully the road was broad. There was a little -confusion at first, but they rallied splendidly when I shouted to them, -and we all advanced up the road with fixed bayonets, to find absolutely -nothing. - -"The Germans actually dress themselves up in our men's great-coats to -disguise themselves, get close, and then shoot." - -These accounts demonstrate the presence of the Highland Light Infantry -on the great retreat, and also at the battle of the Aisne. From the -latter position they may have gone on to Flanders--the more likely -alternative--or they may have remained as part of the thin defensive -line left along the Aisne positions. - - * * * * * - -The present "Cameronians" were formed from the old-time "26th -Cameronians," from whom the regiment takes its title, and from the "90th -Perthshire Light Infantry," the first of which regiments fought for -religious liberty against the King's troops at Bothwell Bridge in old -days. Until the revolution which placed William of Orange on the throne -they stuck to their principles, and then in one day there was enrolled -from among them a regiment to support the cause of "Dutch William," a -regiment which, under the Earl of Angus, held Dunkeld against a force -four times their own strength. They fought at Landen, and lost their -colonel, the Earl of Angus, at Steinkerk; they shared in the capture of -Namur, and then in Marlborough's battles they so fought as to be able to -emblazon the names of Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde, and Malplaquet on -the regimental colours. They shared in the defence of Gibraltar in 1727, -fought and endured through the American War of Independence, and served -under Sir John Moore at Corunna. Meanwhile the 2nd battalion, formed by -Thomas Graham (subsequently Lord Lynedoch), served under Sir Ralph -Abercrombie in driving out Napoleon's "Invincible Army" from Egypt, and -captured a French eagle at Guadeloupe. - -In the Chinese campaign of 1840 the Cameronians 1st battalion took a -share, being first to scale the walls of Amoy. The 2nd battalion saw -service against the Kaffirs of South Africa in 1846 and the following -year, and went on to the Crimean campaign, having among its officers a -certain Lieutenant Wolseley, who was destined for great things. - -In the Mutiny the 2nd battalion formed a part of Havelock's force at -Lucknow, and subsequently assisted in stamping out the last traces of -the great rebellion. The 1st battalion took the field in Abyssinia in -1868, and went on with Napier to Magdala. Another famous British officer -shared in the exploits of the 1st battalion in the person of Sir Evelyn -Wood, during the strenuous work of the Zulu campaign of 1878, when the -battalion fought from Inhlobane to Ulundi, where Cetewayo was -overthrown. - -The Cameronians shared in Buller's advance through Natal in the South -African War of 1899-1902, forming part of General Lyttleton's brigade at -Colenso, reinforcing the Lancashire Brigade in the action of Spion Kop, -sweeping the Boers off Vaalkrantz, and sharing in the furious charges at -Pieter's Hill--until the way to Ladysmith lay open. Through the fighting -for Laing's Nek, and in the guerilla warfare that lasted out the rest of -the campaign, the Cameronians played their part nobly. No less than -three South African campaigns are commemorated on the colours of the -regiment. - -Of their work in France, less personal accounts are to hand than -concerning the work of any other Scottish regiment. There is one -statement by a wounded man with regard to a German ruse of driving on -sheep in night attacks on the trenches. The sheep were heard moving in -the darkness in front of the trenches, and while the Cameronians opened -fire on them, the Germans tried to get round their flank--but two Maxim -guns drove them back with a loss of over 200 dead. The incident is -related with no reference to place or date. - -A non-commissioned officer of the regiment speaks of the secrecy of -movement that has to be maintained. None are made aware of probable -movements, destinations, or reasons for any plans, and commanding -officers are not informed of what is about to be done until it is -absolutely imperative that they should know. The reason for this lies in -the great number of German spies who are arrested in all kinds of -disguises, British and French uniforms, civilian clothes, chauffeurs' -uniforms, and all possible forms of dress. "The leakage of information -is astounding," says the writer, "and we quite appreciate the necessity -for secrecy in all our doings, and fully understand its wisdom, as we -have been saved from complete destruction more than once through this -secrecy." - -Even of things that took place months ago, however, there is no record -yet. Of how the Gordons were cut off, and of what the Cameronians have -done and where they did it, we know little or nothing--concerning all -things that individual units have accomplished there is scarcely more -record than the stories collected here, which make no pretence at giving -a full history of the doings of the Scottish regiments at the front, but -simply stand as detached records of the deeds of brave men. - -And as for the London Scottish and their bravery, that story belongs to -the record of Territorial regiments at the front, in which it will in -due course be told. - - -_Printed in Great Britain by Hazell, Watson & Viney, Ld., London and -Aylesbury._ - - - -***END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WITH THE SCOTTISH REGIMENTS AT THE -FRONT*** - - -******* This file should be named 51523.txt or 51523.zip ******* - - -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: -http://www.gutenberg.org/dirs/5/1/5/2/51523 - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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