Monday 31st December 1917

Front line trenches on the Montello.

A message was issued by 69^th Brigade HQ, “After visiting various parts of the Brigade Front today the Commander-in-Chief expressed to the Brigade Commander his high appreciation of all the work done and of the system of defence and desired him to give to all ranks his good wishes for a very happy New Year”.

Ptes. Harold Dale (see 19^th December), John Henry Evison (see 19^th December) and William Hewitt (25172) (see 19^th December) re-joined the Battalion, ten days after being posted from the Infantry Base Depot at Le Havre.

Pte. Joseph Hartley (see 17^th September) was reprimanded for having been “unshaven on 9am parade”.

L.Cpl. Fred Wilson Fawcett (see 7^th December) was discharged from 62^nd General Hospital at Marseilles, following treatment for boils, and posted back to 10DWR. However, it would be a further 16 days before he actually re-joined the Battalion.

Sgt. Ronald Jeckell (see 18^th December) and Pte. Herbert Ridley (see 2nd November) were posted from Northern Command Depot at Ripon to 3DWR at North Shields. 

A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. Frederick Charles Davies (see 7^th June 1917), who had died of wounds in June; his grandmother, Martha, was awarded 3s. per week, later increased (from 1^st May 1918) to 5s. 6d. per week.

A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. Thomas Henry Hanson (see 14^th September), who had been killed in action on 7^th June; his widow, Sarah, was awarded 18s. 9d. per week for herself and her daughter, Edna.


A pension award was made in the case of the late Pte. Donald Stewart (see 15^th October), who had been killed in action on 7^th June while serving with 69^th Machine Gun Company, Machine Gun Corps, was killed in action; his mother, Sarah Jane, was awarded 12s. 6d. per week.

No casualties had been suffered during the month.

The official cumulative casualty figures for the Battalion since arriving in France remained as:

Killed                                   275

Accidentally killed                5

Died of wounds                  20

Wounded                       1,280

Accidentally wounded      53

Missing                              178