ing ammunition, Pte. Wegg
volunteered to start them. And start them he did and daringly drove them
away. Just before dusk, Lieut. Black, who had no men left, joined the armoured
cars and, taking one quick dash down the Villers-Brettoneaux road, poured
enfilade fire into enemy positions on both sides of the road and withdrew
without suffering a single casualty.
Six Borden crews were sent
in as reinforcements about 6.30 p.m. that day and as they took up positions
northeast of Villers-Brettoneaux an enemy barrage came down. Expecting
an enemy attack, these guns opened fire at 2,500 yards on selected enemy
positions and it was later reported that this fire had broken up a large
enemy concentration, apparently prepared for an attack.
The situation remained comparatively
calm and uneventful until on the night of the 8th-9th the Borden, Eaton
and Yukon Batteries were relieved and the next morning the armoured cars
were withdrawn. On the morning of the 10th the 1st C.M.G.C. Brigade received
orders to rejoin the Canadian Corps.
There was praise everywhere
for the gallant Motors and they had richly earned it. Thrown into the confusion
and chaos of a retreat and into a strange and unfamiliar front, over which
there hung at the time the atmosphere of almost a complete rout, the Canadian
machine gunners had shown remarkable steadiness and by their initiative
and daring and the ubiquity of their great mobility had produced an effect
upon the exultant enemy that was greatly out of proportion to their 40
guns.
The Motors paid a heavy price
in a display that will always stand out as perhaps the most all-round performance
of its power the machine gun was able to give on the Western Front.
In those days between March
24th and April 7th - days and nights of constant strain, with hardly a
respite - the casualty summary of the Motors was as follows:
|
Killed
|
Wounded
|
Missing
|
Totals
|
Officers
Other Ranks |
5
20
|
8
100
|
1
10
|
14
130
|
Totals |
25
|
108
|
11
|
144
|
The total of 144 does include
the casualties suffered by the British machine gunners attached to the
Canadian Motor Machine Gun Batteries during the same period. |