Herbert Bailey's War Diary
This is the fifth November edition in which we have published an edited extract from the diary kept by former Lysterfield resident, Herbert Bailey, while he served with the Australian Army in France in the closing months of World War 1.
Herbert was one of the survivors of the great breakthrough in northern France during which the Australian divisions under General John Monash finally sent the German army into retreat after years of stalemated trench warfare.
Herbert was gassed and the doctors gave him only months to live. However, on his return to Australia he made a home for himself and his family in Lysterfield whose pure air Herbert always credited for his survival until his nineties.
As we remember all of those old diggers on Armistice Day we should also reflect on Herbert’s words: "Honour and Glory of War may be all right to read about in history, but to witness it is a far different matter".
“Around here too there are an immense number of graves, principally of those that recently fell in the defence of Peronne and the surroundings one might say, that practically for the whole distance Fritz has retreated since we commenced the push on August 8. He had scarce any prepared defences to make anything like a permanent stand, so he has no possible hope against the weight that is being continually brought to bear on him. Practically speaking, and for the colossal size of the stunt, it was more or less a walkover until we reached the Somme. Now he's even out of that, and being rapidly pushed further back I suppose to make an effort for a great stand on his famous Hindenburg line. Our men are, of course, exhilarated and delighted with the continual success, day by day, of the lads pushing on in front.
The drive is going forward quickly and there's a great contrast in the general surroundings of a place in a very short time. Where guns etc belch forth and roar today, tomorrow they are gone forward and the distant booms only are heard, they having been removed and taken up new positions further forward under cover of darkness. Fritz these days is at a great disadvantage in locating our guns, and has to put out feelers at places he thinks most probably to be used as gun positions etc for it's precious few of his aeroplanes get over our lines in the daytime. His Observation Balloons may perchance spot a position by noting the flashes of them when they are fired. Even with them, although they are well back, they are continually being worried and frequently being brought down in flames by our hosts of planes.
In most instances, when Fritz has to evacuate any place, it appears to be always done in a great hurry, for there is always so much clothing, kit, arms etc left behind. The Army is always being followed up by salvage parties who collect all things available and it's amazing the colossal heaps of stuff of all descriptions that is gotten together.
That he's terribly short of some things is very evident. His equipment, straps, harnesses, storage bags etc for the most part are made of a prepared paper. His motor transport has iron wheels and bicycle wheels are steel bands, springs and leather, no rubber being available.
Things are going well up in the front and rumour has it that we are shortly to make a move forward and so relieve some of the boys, thus giving them a spell. We've had a fair good time here anyway. We pack up our gear and put it all in store. Blankets are loaded on wagons. We get our iron rations that are served out and carried for emergency in case the transport cannot get up, or one is likely to be cut off for any time. We don battle order, motors arrive and we are taken some distance forward by these. When the danger zone is reached we have to walk the rest of the journey.
It's remarkable with what rapidity the railhead is brought forward. Where Fritz was contesting ground but a few days ago, trains are now running both light and heavy railways and quite a number of our great guns are now fixed up and firing from the railhead.
We take up quarters in a large quarry. Here, there are a number of very large and deep dugouts, quite sufficient in themselves to hold an army. One in particular which I was in could easily accommodate anything up to 600 men. Bunks etc are fixed up three and four tiers high. Our men caught about 400 Germans in this tunnel alone, for the most part asleep!
All is so still in the bowels of the earth, that no sound of the great conflict that is raging around the neighbourhood outside can be heard. Around here (Templeaux), is part of the so called impregnable Hindenburg Line. And when one looks around, it appears that our army had an impossible task in front of them when attempting to storm it. Yet they've done it and still pushing onwards. He'd everything around here that modern man ingeniously could devise. Shelters, protection from shell fire, gas etc still, out he went!
Our men are detailed off in small parties to join various other detachments. Infantry, tanks etc, principally to go in advance and search for booby traps etc for the following morning's stunt. These traps are various and of many kinds and descriptions, placed sometimes so that the weight of a tank or body of men passing over a certain spot would immediately ignite a fuse and up the lot would go. Fritz also knows that our boys are great ones on collecting souvenirs. Perhaps entering a dugout, one may start a fuse going by their own weight on the steps and up would go the whole lot; yourself included. Other attractive things are laid about for the same purpose. A watch or other knick knacks may have some devilish detonator attached to it. All troops are warned of these many cunning devices. But there are times when men ignore them and come to grief even when all precautions are taken."
First published in the November 2004 edition of the Rowville-Lysterfield Community News