A working party from ‘C’ Company were assisting 173rd
Tunnelling Company, Royal Engineers, in an area known as the ‘Duck’s Bill’ when
they came under heavy shelling. The incident was described in a letter written
by 2Lt. Christopher Snell (see below)
outlining the circumstances under which Pte. Sydney Wakefield (see
below) would be awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal; “I am the officer
in command of his platoon and, as he will be too shy to tell you why he has
been thus honoured, it has occurred to me that I ought to let you know how well
he behaved on the occasion he won it. The platoon was working on a mine for the
Royal Engineers and his particular job at the time was working a pump which
pumped air into the mine shaft and let the men down below the ground work with
freedom and in decent air. The Germans started shelling the vicinity of the shaft
head and the Royal Engineer officer in charge of the party told the men that
they could stop work and seek safety. The men refused and Wakefield was largely
instrumental in working the pump all the time the Germans were putting 200
shells near to the shaft head. All the time he was in danger. The whole platoon
behaved magnificently but your brother was chosen as the recipient of the DCM.
Personally, I am awfully pleased he got the medal for he is a jolly good
soldier in every way and ever since he joined the Army he has done his best. I
know you will be pleased to hear how well he has done. I only hope he will
bring greater honour to my platoon by getting a VC and a few other things. I
might add, perhaps, that had he not volunteered to go on pumping at the time
the work down below would have had to stop. He was remarkably cool the whole
time”. The official record of the incident stated, “when the enemy opened a
heavy fire on a shaft head, though ordered to move back under cover, he
continued to work the pumps which supplied air to the men in the mine and kept
the mine free of water even after the shaft head had been struck by a shell”.
Two men from the platoon were killed during the shelling.
Both Ptes. Isaac Beardsley and Ellis Gill had been original members of
the Battalion. Pte. Beardsley was a 23 year-old weaver from Golcar and Gill was
a 19 year-old brass moulder from Bradford. The circumstances of Beardsley’s
death were described in a letter to his sister, written by Lt. George Reginald Charles Heale (see 27th August): "You will
have been informed by the War Office of the sad loss you have sustained in the
death of your brother. He died in action
and was killed during an exceptionally heavy shellfire raid, two hundred high
explosive shells having being sent within fifty yards from where he and others
were working. The Royal Engineers
Officer who was there spoke in the highest terms of the conduct of the men
during that terrible ordeal and your brother was killed when on his way to
stand to arms to repel an expected attack.
I have always considered him the best man in the platoon and it was
always a matter of regret that he would not accept promotion. He was an exemplary soldier and by his good
conduct and constant cheerfulness he earned the goodwill and respect of all the
Officers, N.C.O's and men of the Company.
His loss is a great blow to me, his death must have been absolutely
instantaneous and it must be a comfort to you to know that he suffered no pain. Please accept my sincere sympathy and
consolation in your terrible loss”. Isaac Beardsley now has no known grave and
is commemorated on the Ploegsteert Memorial. Lt. Heale also wrote to the
parents of Pte. Ellis Gill; “I very much regret to inform you that your son,
Ellis, was killed in action yesterday.
He was with a party that came under very heavy shell fire, 200 high explosive
shells being fired within 50 yards of where they were working. He was killed
instantaneously and his face was perfectly calm and had a happy expression when
we found him. He had been in my platoon ever since he joined us, and I always
found him cheerful and willing. I never had occasion to find fault with him and
I liked him very much. He also earned the good opinion of all the men in the
platoon and the NCOs of the Company. His personal effects, including a parcel
that has just come, will be sent through the official channels. I enclose a
letter he had written to his aunt. They have had rather a rough time lately, or
rather they did two weeks ago, but it has been made as easy for them as conditions
would permit. Through it all, whether rough or easy, I have never seen him with
a gloomy expression. He was always cheerful and I shall miss him very much. In
conclusion, allow me to express my sincerest sympathy for you and all his
family, as I can understand how fond you all must have been of him”. Pte. Gill would be buried at Rue-du-Bacquerot
No.1 Military Cemetery, near Laventie.
2Lt. Christopher
Snell was born 1st February 1895, the second son of Rev. Bernard
Joseph Snell and his wife Kate. Rev. Snell was a prominent Methodist minister
and author of several books on religion; in August 1914 he had preached a
sermon at Brixton Congregational Church, outlining the origins of the war and
the text of the sermon had subsequently been published as, ‘Plain Words about
the War’. Christopher himself had been educated at Mill Hill School from 1906
to 1912 and had been an undergraduate at Wadham College, Oxford on the outbreak
of war. He had enlisted in 13th Battalion, London Regiment on 2nd
September 1914 and had been discharged to his commission with 10DWR on 2nd
December 1914.
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| 2Lt. Christopher Snell |
Pte. (Frank) Sydney Wakefield had been an original member of the Battalion. He was originally from Wiltshire but had moved, with his family, to Haworth and had latterly been living in Keighley with his aunt and her husband. He was 20 years old and had worked as a worsted spinner.
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| Pte. Sydney Wakefield Image by kind permission of Andy Wade and MenofWorth |
J.B. Priestley again wrote to his family, reassuring them that his discontent expressed in a previous letter (see 18th October) was not, for him at least, a permanent state of mind: “You have taken my last letter too seriously; I was out of sorts and indulging in the ‘luxury of a grouse’. You must remember that this is supposed to the privilege of the British soldier. This endless trench fighting and trench making is very wearisome – we should very much prefer to jump over the parapet and drive the cowards out with the bayonet. … What I was grumbling about last letter was the extra-super-officiousness of most of the officers. I’m not grumbling about the ordinary work of the soldier out here. I take that as it comes, naturally. But when it comes to flagrant acts of injustice, my blood boils!”.
Pte. William Knox (see 23rd October) wrote to his wife, Ethel. (I am most grateful to Rachael Broadhead and family for allowing me access to William’s letters). He told her a little about conditions in Estaires and also expressed his preferences for future parcels from home.
“... I am very pleased to say that my toothache is quite better. It must have been the cold weather we had while we were in the trenches as I have not had it since we came out. I have received all your letters alright so far but have never received the Green Un (this was the nickname for the local Sheffield Saturday evening sports newspaper) or the Weekly Telegraph so I don’t expect you could have put the right address on them. ... I forgot to tell you before, when you send a parcel to put it in a good strong box as they get smashed so. When you send the next parcel will you send a few candles as they are so dear out here. They charge us 2d. each. They are not half making a good living out of the troops. They charge us double to what they ought to do. Yes Dear I bought two singlets before I came away from Lichfield with that money Grace sent me. I need no muffler or mits out here as I have got my cap comforter, also that pair of gloves that I had given me at Halifax. You ask me how I am getting on with my French. Not very well. It is a job to make them understand. Tatty wishes to be remembered to you. He is quite well. I have heard today that we are having another draft from Lichfield so I should think that Sugden and Terry will be amongst them. They are still under canvas as yet. It has been raining here all day today and it is over boot tops in dirt. We get plenty of tobacco and cigarettes given us here. I divide my lot out between the other chaps. I did not get drunk while I was in the pub and I take good care I never do so. …
PS Do not send any more Oxo Cubes as we get plenty here and some every day with our rations”.
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