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ut now we give them medicine’. He also noted that Field had told him that he‘must push on as quickly as possible’.111 The next day the CO confided in hisdiary: ‘MO [Regimental Medical Officer] reports diarrhoea in C Coy very bad, alsomen nearly dead on their feet and morale very low. I had given them the task ofcapturing the posn ahead but sent them back.’112 After his battalion headquarterswas shelled on the morning of 31 January, Matthews rang D Coy and instructedthem to ‘get the guns’ after first light.Coy Comd said his men were too fatigued. I ordered him to do it and rang off. 1/2 hrlater he rang to say he had told his Coy and no man would leave his posn, all refusingduty. I asked him why and they said they were too tired, they were cut off from theworld and could not get casualties back and weren’t prepared to get any anyway. I toldCoy Comd to order his officers fwd and he said he knew they wouldn’t but would giveit a go. His 2IC rang shortly after and said the Coy Comd cracked up, mental strain,crying. Put 2IC in command and relieved Coy Comd from duty. 113The CO went forward in the morning and, after sending the companycommander to the rear, noted: ‘I’ll have to charge each officer for disobeyingorders later when a complete investigation is made’.114 Brigadier Field noted inhis diary on the same day:BM [Brigade Major] forward to see Matthews this morning as the latter seems to havegot a bit low. Problems of morale with troops successively wet and cold each day, livingin weapon pits at night when the water is only 9 inches below ground level, and patrollingand movement has to be done through swamp.115Lieutenant Colonel Matthews had problems with a third company on 1February 1945 when a platoon commander failed to clear out a Japanese position.‘I sent Pl Comd back and told him to do his task, he said his men were frightenedbut they went off and completed a good job’. Later that day OC B Company,Captain D.P. Radford, told Matthews that:111 Matthews diary 13, 29 January 1945, AWM PR89/079, Item 5.112 Matthews diary 13, 30 January 1945, AWM PR89/079, Item 5.113 Matthews diary 13, 31 January 1945, AWM PR89/079, Item 5.114 Ibid. The author could find no official evidence that any formal disciplinary actionwas taken, despite searching the battalion, brigade, division and corps war diaries.115 Field’s diary, 31 January 1945, AWM 3DRL6937, Item 7.24 — A tale of three battalions