Tuesday An inspection was held this morning by the C.R.A. of horse, harness & vehicles This afternoon went for short ride Played chess this evening
Brigadier-General Ralston wastes no time in addressing the issue of the condition of the horses. He “will make an inspection of all horses in the Divisional Artillery during the week, in order to satisfy himself personally as to their condition, as apparently the poor state of the horses in the shipment, part of which was refused, has been greatly exaggerated.” (1) Yesterday the 13th Brigade had its own inspection: finding “things satisfactory,” but noting that “too much attention could not be paid to the grooming of the horses.” (2)
Today Ralston inspects Headquarters and the 13th Brigade. On the whole he is satisfied, although some horses are “badly run down and in poor condition, … not having yet recovered from the long march into Germany under trying conditions.” The “poor quality of forage and oats which we have received since our return from Germany” is also blamed. (3)
He seems to be pleased with the “men, horses, harness, guns and vehicles” of the 13th Brigade’s batteries. The 51st Battery comes in for special praise for its “smart turnout.” Though welcome, his positive comments are eclipsed by his assurance that the Division would be on its way to England in the first week of May. “This is the best piece of new [sic] received for some time,” remarks the Diarist. (4)
The reports of the inspection and shipment of horses are all very practical and unemotional, but the men who have been looking after and depending upon their horses for a long time through thick and thin must be feeling their departure deeply. The Historian of the 60th Battery dedicates a whole chapter to its horses, “the long-faced comrade of the docile eye and the lion heart, who shared to the full the strenuous, trying times; who suffered in silence; who swung it [the lead] not; whose only chance of L.D. [light duty] or E.D. [exemption from duty] lay with the eagle, sympathetic eye of his driver and the observation of the vet.” (5)
The same writer acknowledges the “real regret” with which the gunners “saw the last of their old friends which had done them such yeoman service, but some small satisfaction may be derived from the thought that they are at last out of danger, and their remaining days will be spent in greater comfort with better rations than when they were taking their part in the Great War. ” (6) 
“And so our long-faced partners,” wrote the historian of the 55th battery, ” veterans, like ourselves, will lead a peaceful and honest existence working in the fields which they have helped to free. (7)
***
Artillery in action is pictured on a recruiting poster © IWM (Art.IWM PST 5111).
William Redver Stark painted this scene of a Belgian farmer ploughing some time last year. It belongs to Library and Archives Canada, MIKAN 3029007.
(1) War Diary of the Fifth Canadian Divisional Artillery. Vol. [26]: 5. March 17, 1919. Library and Archives of Canada.
(2) War Diary of the 13th Brigade, Canadian Field Artillery. Vol. 26: 7. March 17, 1919. Library and Archives of Canada.
(3) War Diary of the Fifth CDA. Vol. [26]: 5. March 18, 1919.
(4) War Diary of the 13th Brigade, CFA. Vol. 26: 7. March 18, 1919.
(5) 60th C.F.A. Battery Book, 1916-1919. [1919]. 159.
(6) 60th C.F.A. Battery Book, 160-161.
(7) MacArthur, D.C. The History of the Fifty-Fifth Battery, CFA. 1919. 79.
Percy's War 