After landing in France the 42nd Division had to make a new reputation
by rising from the ruck, and it is very notable that the personnel of
the 7th Manchesters, as of the other units in the Division, although
almost completely changed from the personnel of the Battalion when in
Gallipoli and drawn from a later generation of recruits, achieved equal
distinction and much greater technical efficiency. This fact points to
the wonderful resourcefulness of the English people. Historically it
shows how thoroughly our Army of 1917-18 was professionalised.
The later chapters of Captain Wilson's book detail very brilliant
fighting by our men, which it would be idle and impertinent to praise.
Such "crowded hours" are not, however, and never have been the most
typical of a soldier's life. Infinitely more numerous were the hours of
endurance and privation, which the 7th spent among the broken ravines of
Gallipoli, among the dreary mud flats on either bank of the Yser, among
the desolate craters in front of Cuinchy and Le Plantin. In their
patience and fortitude amid these wastes lies their strongest title to
the gratitude of Christendom.
Peace is already dimming men's memories of the War as effectually as the
grass is covering the ruins of devastated France. The Manchester
Territorial is back at his job. The broken home no longer feels the same
first poignancy of grief. "Man goeth forth unto his work and unto his
labour until the evening," and it is a good thing for the world that he
does.
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