It Can't Last Forever by David Campbell

Author:David Campbell
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Wilfrid Laurier University Press
Published: 2017-12-29T05:00:00+00:00

Major Armour A. Miller (48th Highlanders Museum)

Miller had been found, but there was still more work to be done, for there was no sign of Pike and Dear; nor was Tucker, who had been left to care for Miller, anywhere to be found. So Lt. Duncan once more went out into no man’s land, this time with Sgts. Clifford Windsor and Robert Hollidge, to look for the missing men. They moved quickly down the sunken road on the battalion’s southern boundary and hunted northward along one of the hedges situated some distance in front of the German trench. Reaching a spot close to where Pike and Dear were last seen, the party called out their names but received no answer. Then they moved eastward, towards the area where Miller had been found, shouting Pike’s name. The only response they received was some sniping fire from the Germans. Undaunted, Duncan and the two sergeants continued scouring no man’s land, first in the area inside the hedge and then along the ground between the hedge and the Canadian wire, but to no avail. All they found were the bodies of a number of Germans who appeared to have been killed three or four days earlier. The three disappointed men returned to Canadian lines.57

Meanwhile, Miller’s injuries were tended to by Capt. Herbert Allison, the battalion medical officer. Also in attendance was Lt. James McLaren, the officer commanding D Company and the overall commander of the morning raid. Miller was still able to talk and reported to both Allison and McLaren that he had either seen or heard Pike and another man (who would have been Dear) approach the shell hole in which he and Tucker were sheltered. Miller had then ordered Tucker to go out and meet Pike. But just as Tucker left the shell hole, Miller observed with dismay a party of ten Germans on the move in the same vicinity. Nobody came back to the shell hole, and Miller assumed that Tucker, Pike, and Dear had been captured. Given his extremely weakened condition, Miller was unable to give any further details. He died later that day at No. 3 Canadian Stationary Hospital at Doullens.58

The 19th Battalion had every reason to be frustrated with the results of its latest raiding effort: one officer dead from wounds (Maj. Miller), one other rank wounded (Sgt. Curbishley), and one officer and six other ranks missing and presumed dead or captured (Lt. Pike and Ptes. McPhail, Cane, White, Partridge, Dear, and Tucker). Of the seven missing men, it was determined later that that only White was killed in action, although his body was never recovered. The other six were taken prisoner. One of them, Tucker, died in captivity on 10 November 1918, the day before the armistice was declared.59

Pinpointing exactly what went wrong is difficult. The fact that the German trench was largely unoccupied when the raiders struck could indicate that the Canadians had misjudged the strength at which the position was held or that the

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