Up at 5 o’clock. Got on our overalls and waited until 9 before the first batch of wounded were down. I worked most of the day with the new American officer, Lieutenant Gutteridge. Went off about 8 or 9 o’clock. Between 4-500 cases.
Day of big push1.
Mr Aitken died2.
Battle of Ridges commenced3.
“Big push”: Presumably the “Battle of Ridges” mentioned below. ↩
Mr Aitken had been ALL’s boss at the Hendon Paper Mill. ALL’s longhand note recording Aitken’s death on this date was added later; the news had not yet reached him. ↩
“Battle of Ridges”: Probably the Battle of the Menin Road Ridge. Sometimes called “Battle of the Menin Road”, this was the third British general attack of the Third Battle of Ypres. The battle took place from 20–25 September 1917. Like the above longhand note about Mr Aitken, this was probably added later – ALL clearly knew of a “big push” on this day but probably only later came to know it as “Battle of Ridges”. ↩