I'm discounting the book for two reasons, first to promote this historical document during the upcoming centennial of WWI, and secondly to increase its distribution in hopes that readers will spread the word.
The book has received excellent ratings for the most part, thus making the book well worth the investment.
Here is an excerpt from the book.
April 26th
The guns were getting it pretty warm, but we started firing in good style. [i]
The wire broke three times, but by arrangements we raised the range, while out of communication.
Twice during the afternoon I went through ST JEAN and each time thought I should never get back. I felt quite alright and thought I was bound to meet it somewhere, so [I] took it easy, but at nightfall I thought I must have been very lucky.
The enemy kept up hard shelling everywhere; it was one continual roar, shell[s] frequently bursting over us and bullets and splinters knocking lumps off my dugout. I really thought it was the finishing touch, for of all the places I had been through [in] the campaign, this was by far the worst; it seemed impossible for one to live long in it.
I had a few hours sleep, awakening now and again when a large shell burst somewhere near. At daylight we were at it again; the first thing that met my gaze was a shell dropped just the other side of the hedge. [It fell] among what was left of a Canadian Battery Wagon Line, (most of the men had been killed when the Germans broke through the previous week). They bayoneted them whilst they slept and hung the Ferrier to a tree. [Then they] crucified a Sergeant of the Canadian Scottish to a barn door with bayonets. This wagon line had about a dozen horses left of 200 – the guns were captured by the enemy, but were afterwards regained by a magnificent charge by the Canadian infantry. (Figure 8)
These are fine fellows and splendid fighters and hated the cursed Germans like fury for their murderous ways of waging war.
A couple of days previous the Canadian Scottish were ordered to retire, but refused to do so. [They] charged the enemy on their own. It was a mad thing to do and they lost over 500 men, but captured some trenches and captured 100 prisoners or more; not one of these prisoners were brought down. [ii]
We were fighting as they – no quarter, and the Canadians gave none. Just in [the] rear of our guns, there was a Prussian Guardsman (a fine fellow, fully 6’ 3’ in height and big with it) pinned to a tree with a bayonet. [He had] a post card stuck on his forehead with the words, ‘ Canada does not forget.’
The byword of the Canadians were, ‘ we’ll give‘em crucify.’ The happenings around of this period would fill a book with horrors of this description.
[Word spread] of the splendid fighting of the Canadians and the Indian troops who were with us.
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