Sunday 15th April 1917

Trenches in the Hill 60 sub-sector, opposite the Caterpillar

A miserable, cold day, with rain falling almost throughout. Conditions were generally quiet although much repair work was still needed as, “The line had been badly knocked about and there was practically no shelter. The left of our line was not continuous and was held only by posts”. Brig. Genl. Lambert (see 5^th April) visited the front line.

Pte. George Bernard Hardy (see 16^th January) reported sick and was admitted to 70^th Field Ambulance, suffering from influenza.

Pte. Charles Edward Lund (see 11^th March) who had spent the previous month at 34^th Infantry Base Depot at Etaples was posted to no.5 Convalescent Depot at Bayeux; he was to be ‘attached temporarily for instruction’.

The troopship SS Cameronia, en route from Marseille to Alexandria, was torpedoed by a German submarine, U-33, about 150 miles east of Malta. The ship had been carrying approximately 2,650 soldiers and, although the ship sank in just 40 minutes, remarkably only 210 men died; most of the crew and embarked soldiers were picked up by the escorting destroyers HMS Nemesis and HMS Rifleman. Among those rescued was Pte. Johnny Smith (see 14^th July 1916). He had been wounded in the actions around Contalmaison in July 1916 and, having been treated in England, had not been posted back to his Battalion but was now en route to Egypt, from where he was to go on to join 1^st Battalion West Ridings in India. Johnny was soon able to write home to reassure his family of his safety:

 “You will be glad to know I was one of the lucky ones amongst the saved from the big boat torpedoed on Sunday night, April 15th, at half past five. There were over 3,000 (sic.) on board and I cannot tell you how many were saved, but thank God I am. I have been in bayonet charges, but they were nothing compared with the sight I saw when the boat was going down and I don’t want to see another. I am now safe and sound at Malta. We were 18 hours sailing after we were torpedoed and I’ve never had such a long 18 hours in all my life”.

In a further letter he added some thoughts about his arrival in Egypt:

“They did not give us long at Malta to get over our shock, but never mind, we are now safe in Egypt. It only took us about 70 hours, but I can tell you they seemed like 70 days to me. There is nothing to grumble at here; it is very hot and dusty, but I think I can stand that all right. We are here for equipment, then I expect we shall go forward to Mesopotamia”. 

Pte. Johnny Smith

L.Cpl. Rennie Hirst (see 19^th December 1916), who had been in England since December 1916 having suffered from trench foot while serving in France with 8DWR, was posted to 3DWR at North Shields.