May 8th 1915:

A couple of things to note. Louis finally catches up with the correct day/date, having annotated the 7th as a Saturday he also marks the 8th as a Saturday ( correctly).

Secondly he manages to write another letter , this time to his friend Beath ( not known).

One questions whether he would have known they were planning for an attack, or whether this is another indication that he was writing up his entries a few days in arrears. It is likely that it was known, because the Battalion diary notes that on May 6th there was a meeting of officers and platoon commanders to discuss the attack which was originally scheduled for Saturday 8th and then on the 7th was delayed for 24 hours. The diary states the men were stationed at Rue du Bois.

This put the Scots Guards behind a number of other regiments in the British trenches, in the Northern Sector. When the attack came on 9th May the Scots Guards would be much luckier than many.

Louis may, or may not, have been aware that his brother Norman, with the 4th Battalion Black Watch
was also preparing to attack in the Southern Sector of Aubers Ridge . The Black watch were closer to the front line, and they would suffer much more.