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Western Mail, Thursday, 10 October 1929, p. 2.
An Artillery Epic.
The latest recruit to the Merredin sub-branch of the R.S.L. is Mr. S.G. Taylor, late-sergeant in L Battery, Royal Horse Artillery, and mention of this famous unit calls to mind one of the epics of the earlier days of the war well worth recounting.
On September 3, 1914, at the end of the retreat from Mons, the British 1st Cavalry Brigade with L Battery, R.H.A. billeted at Néry during the night. Early, next morning a patrol of 11th Hussars ran into a column of German cavalry. Galloping back the patrol had barely warned the brigade when shells began falling thickly into the village. The German force turned out to be six cavalry regiments with a brigade of guns, and when sunlight came the lifting of the morning mist revealed these six regiments, with their guns, on the heights above the little town, a bare 600 yards away. Down below in a little orchard on the western side of the village were the Bays and L Battery. The position of the battery had not been chosen with a view to action but having been caught there it had to accept the situation. It became a target for a perfect tornado of shot and shell from a range of about 400 yards. All the guns except one were speedily knocked out and the fire of the opposing batteries, machine guns and rifles became concentrated on the one that remained. Men and officers combined to serve this one gun. Captain Bradbury, in command, had one leg taken off by a shell but propped himself up and continued to direct fire until he died. Lieut. Campbell fell beside him as also did Brigade Major Crawley. Sergeant Major Dorrell then took command and, assisted by Sergeant Nelson, Gunner Darbyshire and Driver Osborne, cheerfully continued the heroic though absurd duel.
Meanwhile the 5th Dragoons had succeeded in working around the Germans' flank. Shortly they were joined by the 4th Cavalry Brigade, who unexpectedly arrived on the scene. The British force was further augmented by the 1st Middlesex and the Germans were quickly driven off. Out of the gallant L Battery only three men emerged unwounded, and to them belonged the gratification of firing the last shot in the fight with the bloodstained and battered thirteen-pounder down in the apple orchard, and it was fired at the backs of the retreating enemy.