Friday 23rd April 1915

Tunstill’s Company, along with the whole Division, left Folkestone by train for Maidstone. From here they were to be employed in the construction of defensive trench systems for London. The Divisional Pioneer Battalion, 9^th South Staffs., had already been employed on these defences for some days; working on trenches between Westerham and Knockholt, whilst quartered at Bromley. The anonymous author of the 10^th Battalion memoir commented, “Our duty here was to take our turn at improving the outer defences of London. Here we learnt a good deal about the revetting and wiring of trenches. We also made new friends in the district”. According to Priestley’s later recollection, “on the first night (in Maidstone) we all got drunk on the uncommonly strong local ale”. He also described at some length, in Margin Released, his own involvement in the process of billeting troops in the area.

Pte. Benjamin Fawcett (see 14^th November 1914) was reported by Sgt. Mark Flockhart (see 27th September 1914) and Cpl. Brian McAvan (see below) as having been ‘Drunk on the line of march’; on the orders of Maj. Mayor he would be deprived of 14 days’ pay. Cpl. McAvan was 25 years old and from Bradford and had previously served four years (1908-12) as a regular soldier with the Connaught Rangers. He was a married man with two children.