This is an extract from Arthur Linfoot’s own transcription of his diary, written in 1976.
Seven as usual. Field service and good preacher. Commenced book by Clark Russell. Another beautiful summer day. Wrote up diary. Turned in at nine with orders to be up at 4 a.m.
Up at 7 o’clock. Field service at 11 o’clock and preaching good. Went up by the new little church in the afternoon and commenced reading “List, Ye Landsmen!” by Clark Russell1. Beautiful day and beautiful scenery. Had short walk at night with Duggins. Wrote up diary. Turned in about 9 o’clock. Orders to be up at 4 o’clock in the morning.
William Clark Russell (1844-1911); writer of sea and horror stories. List, Ye Landsmen! (subtitled “A Romance of Incident”) is a seafaring adventure set in the year 1815. See also List, Ye Landsmen! and Arthur Linfoot’s Library. ↩
List, Ye Landsmen! is a novel by William Clarke Russell, written in 1894.
William Fielding, first officer of the ‘Royal Brunswicker’, is returning to his ship after visiting his uncle in the Channel port town of Deal. Fate intervenes and Fielding never reaches his post, instead becoming entangled in a series of adventures aboard the ‘Black Watch’. These take him far across the oceans and test him both as a man and a sailor.
Arthur Linfoot wrote that he had started to read List, Ye Landsmen! on 6 August 1916.
This is an extract from Arthur Linfoot’s own transcription of his diary, written in 1976.
Up at seven. Had boots repaired. In the evening walked to Flixecourt with Cpl. Stanton and Duggins. Eggs and chips. Beautiful summer evening and enjoyed walk back through corn fields and woods. All lovely in the setting sun.
Up at 7 o’clock. Did nothing all day. Had boots repaired in the afternoon. Wrote some letters. Went to a little town called Flixecourt1 with Corporal Stanton and Duggins. Beautiful night. Had a feed of chips and eggs. Enjoyed walk back. Thought of home in the pleasant melancholy of the evening. Wonderful scenery and the woods and corn fields were lovely in the setting sun.
Flixecourt (A): 5km SE of Vauchelles-lès-Domart (B), on the D1001 between Abbeville and Amiens. ↩
This is an extract from Arthur Linfoot’s own transcription of his diary, written in 1976.
Up at seven after restless night. Wrote letters and walked to village at night.
Up at 7 o’clock. Had restless night owing to Duggins pulling the things off me. Did nothing all day but write a few letters. Walked round village at night. Stiff and tired from yesterday’s march. Very hot weather and fine.
This is an extract from Arthur Linfoot’s own transcription of his diary, written in 1976.
Up at 5.30 breakfast at 6. Sent on waggon duty. Put my kit on a motor ambulance and went with it to Mericourt station. Met the unit there and told to follow them. Hurried back to Laviéville, got my pack and hurried to Mericourt. Entrained in cattle trucks at about 10 o’clock. Passed through Longpre and Amiens at about 1.30. Got off train there and were led in wrong direction. Marched about three hours in hot sun. Terrible dusty roads. Blister under right heel. Billeted in bivouac in a field with Duggins. Walked to the village – Vauxchelle – after tea. Had two eggs at one house and a feed at another.
Up at 5.30. Breakfast at 6 o’clock. I was told off for a waggon. Put my kit up a motor ambulance and went with it to take some Worcesters† to Méricourt Station. Made our lot up and was told to follow them. Went back to Laviéville, got a pack and hurried to Mericourt Stn1 with the others. Entrained then in cattle truck at 10 o’clock. Passed through Amiens. Arrived Longpré about 1.30. Set off to march in the wrong direction. Marched for about 3 hours in the sun and was very much fagged out. Washed feet and legs. Terribly dusty and had a bruise under my right heel. Billeted in a field in a bivouac along with Duggins. Walked round village (Vauchelle2) at night. Had two eggs at one house and a feed at another.
Méricourt-l’Abbé (A) has a railway station where ALL could have boarded a train to pass through Amiens as he describes and travel on to Longpré-les-Corps-Saints (B). ↩
Assuming that Longpré is Longpré-les-Corps-Saints (where ALL had been on 8 June, a week or so after arriving in France), and taking the 3 hours’ march on 3 August into account, “Vauchelle” would seem to be Vauchelles-lès-Domart, 7km NE of Longpré (C); there is also a Vauchelles-lès-Quesnoy (D), on the outskirts of Abbeville (and a Vauchelles-lès-Authie, between Doullens and Albert, as well as a plain Vauchelles near Noyon.) ↩
This is an extract from Arthur Linfoot’s own transcription of his diary, written in 1976.
Slept pretty well. Again ordered to prepare for inspection by C.O. These cancelled and ordered to clean waggons and pack them. Inspected by C.O. in the afternoon. He read a letter from General Rowlandson (Commander of 19th Division) saying he appreciated the work of the division while in the Fourth Army and referred to the 19th as the captors of La Boisselle and as having given valuable help in the capture of Mametz and Bazentin-le-Petit. Transport waggons moved off.