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136 afforded by the trees and thick undergrowth of the wood, the obstacle was one which promised to be very difficult indeed to overcome. At the same time also, the 126th French Division on our right, though not confronted by closely wooded country, had experienced much difficulty in making progress against well-organized defences based on a series of strongly built farm-houses, all of which had been converted by the enemy's engineering genius into miniature forts.

On the 12th October, therefore, a joint attack by the French and ourselves was arranged, with the object of storming these defences and once more starting the enemy on the run. The ultimate objective of the French Division was the village of Mennevret, while that of the 137th Brigade was a line running approximately along the eastern edge of the Bois de Riquerval and the western edge of the Forêt Dominale d'Andigny.

The attack was arranged to commence at noon, but, through some miscalculation, the French barrage descended quite rive minutes before our own. The enemy on our front, warned by the thunder of the guns on their left, were ready and waiting for our men. The 6th South Staffords, advancing behind our barrage, were met by heavy machine-gun fire, while the enemy barrage fell right upon them and caused them to become much disorganized before the wood was reached. In spite of this harassing fire, however, the battalion pressed forward and, on the left, one company managed to penetrate into the trench system in the clearing which had been the object of the previous day's attack. At the same time, "D" Company, under Captain G. H. Ball, forced its way into the south-west outskirts of the wood, but the enemy artillery, trench-mortar and machine-gun barrage was so heavy and caused so many casualties that