As the shades of night closed in, and the glare of the bursting shells became more lurid, the men lay extended upon the rocky ground, parched and exhausted.

They were hopelessly jumbled together, with the exception of the Dorsets, whose cohesion may have been due to superior discipline, less exposure, or to the fact that their khaki differed somewhat in colour from that of the others.

Twelve hours of so terrible an experience had had a strange effect upon many of the men.

Some were dazed and battle-struck, incapable of clear understanding.

Some were as incoherent as drunkards.
Some lay in an overpowering drowsiness.