“He withdrew his undefeated troops from the fragments of his field fortifications and the hearts of his men were as completely unbroken as the parapets of his trenches were completely broken.

“The Ninetieth Winnipeg Rifles, which held the extreme left of the brigade position at the most critical moment, was expelled from the trenches early Friday morning by an emission of poisonous gas, but recovering in three-quarters of an hour it counter-attacked, retook the trenches it had abandoned and bayoneted the enemy.

“General Alderson, commanding the reinforcements, directed an advance by a British brigade which had been brought up in support.

“As the troops making it swept through the Canadian left and center, many of them going to certain death, they paused for an instant with deep-throated cheers for Canada, indicating the warm admiration which the Canadians’ exertions had excited in the British army.

“On Monday morning General Curry was again called upon to lead his shrunken Second Brigade, reduced to a quarter of its original strength, into action at the apex of the line, which position the brigade held all that day.  On Wednesday it was relieved and retired to the rear.  ’Not a Canadian gun was lost in the long battle of retreat.’”

Concluding his account, Sir Max wrote:  “The empire is engaged in a struggle without quarter and without compromise against an enemy still superbly organized, still immensely powerful, still confident that its strength is the mate of its necessity.  To arms then, and still to arms!  The graveyard of Canada in Flanders is very large.”

GERMAN DRIVE TO THE COAST

Before the beginning of the spring campaign, it was realized by the Allies that the German general staff was preparing for a determined drive to the coast through the British and Belgian lines that protected the approach to Calais.  It was for this reason that the British took the offensive at Neuve Chapelle and at the important strategic point known as Hill 60.  The purpose of Field Marshal French was to strike the first blow, and the attacks were seemingly successful; but later news from the front showed that “something went wrong” at Neuve Chapelle, which in a large measure upset the British plans.

At Hill No. 60, though the British captured that important position, they were held back from further advance.  Then came the long-expected German attack in the direction of Ypres, which was considered as one of the keys to the French seaport of Calais.  By this attack the Allies were forced back from the Ypres canal, and the positions gained by the Germans brought them within twenty-five miles of the coast at Dunkirk.

The fighting at Neuve Chapelle, Hill 60 and Ypres was probably the most sanguinary of the entire war up to that time.  The losses on both sides were enormous.  Germans, British, Belgians and French were killed literally by the thousand, the British losses at Neuve Chapelle alone being estimated at 20,000, while the German casualties in forcing the passage of the Ypres canal a few days later exceeded 9,000 men.