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NATHANIEL JOHN RUTHERFORD : 1914 - 1916 SUPERB, ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT REGIMENTAL [RAMC] DIARY AND SIGNIFICANT RECORD OF THE 6 DIVISION BRITISH ARMY MEDICAL CORPS' 17 MONTH DAY TO DAY GRIND AT THE FRONT HANDWRITTEN BY AN ENGLISH MAJOR WHO WOULD GO ON THE AUTHOR BOOKS ON HIS SERVICE

Folio - over 12" - 15" tall. On offer is a simply outstanding first hand record of life on the front lines of WWI. All units in the British Army were required after 1907 to keep a Unit war diary. This is not a personal record but rather a unit record of information such as orders, movements, location, activities, casualties, etc which can be used later for training purposes and as a starting point for a review of tactics - successful and otherwise. It also serves to to create a detailed historical record of each Unit for archival purposes. British Army Units have kept these from 1907 right up to the present day. The physical format is standardized. Inside a heavy card stock cover, the loose leaf pages are secured with a metal clip. The faded letters of his name, Unit (RAMC) and 6 Div can be read. Each page has a duplicate page that records a carbon copy. When turned in, the original 'top' page of each page goes, in the case of the British Army, to the National Archives. The carbon copy usually stays with the Unit and goes into the Unit's archives. This War Diary was kept by Major Nathaniel John Rutherford, a Major with the Royal Army Medical Corps attached to 6 Division, British Army. Apparently, instead of turning it in, he retained it. It measures approximately 14 inches by 8 1/2 inches and its layout is landscape. There are approximately 260 pages - 200 detailing Unit activities and 60 blank. The Diary is in surprisingly good condition considering it was hauled through some of the most ferocious battles in WWI. It covers the time period from October 2nd, 1914 when the Division took up positions at Serches, France until March 7, 1916 when Major Rutherford was transferred out. The Division was mobilized in Cork, Ireland August 4th 1914 and within 11 days was embarked to England. After three weeks training, they arrived in France. Almost immediately, they were moved to the front and in the Battle of Aisne, suffered 1,482 casualties. Day by day, line by line, in some 3,000 lines of detailed entries, Rutherford records what is happening: "Arrived ADMS 3 rd Corps to arrange for encampment of medical officers" [Oct 4, 1914]; " Sick and wounded evacuated to base" [Oct 4, 1914]. Between Oct 13th and 19th, the Division fought in the First Battle of Ypres, suffering 4,696 casualties. In his notes, Rutherford records no new cases of Scarlet fever [Oct 15th, 1914]. On the 6th of June, 1915, the Division was back at Ypres, where they suffered 10, 938 casualties including victims of gas attacks. Rutherford refers directly to this: "Visited Fld Amb. 2 nd Army has reported through 6 Div that complete motor ambulance outfit arrives ABBEVILLE this evening. Informed Hd qtrs I want convoy at L' EBE FME and will distribute from there. Small party of chemical experts arrive at 18 Fld Amb tomorrow and will be attached to Infantry Bas for information of men in use of respirators ..." [June 6, 1915]. In the 'Remarks' column, he records day by day, the casualties: "Aug 12, 1915 Casualties: Officers 7 (4 wounded); OR {Other Ranks} 149 (116 wounded) Aug 13, 1915 Casualties: Officers 5 (2 wounded) OR - 89 (wounded 35) Aug 14, 1915 Casualties: Officers 4 OR 124 (wounded 69) Aug 21, 1915 Casualties: Officers 1 (wounded) OR 66 (64 sick) 3365 Broughton 2/London Rgt TYPHOID FEVER". In the 17 months that Major Rutherford serves on the Western Front, he is continually visiting frontline trenches, field aid stations and field ambulance units. He is routinely under fire. As can be seen from the Aug 21 entry above, in addition to the horrible wounds caused by combat, he has to deal with outbreaks of very serious diseases. Untold hours of his time is taken with dealing with the logistics of a medical unit in the field - continual supply of dressing, medicines, water and chemicals to deal with the deadly gas attacks. His last entry is Mar 7th, 1916: ".... asked XIV Corp to request if army to delay my departure a few days 2/Army replies that I must proceed quickly". The War Diary does not record where he was transferred but informal research suggests it was to the Greek theatre of war. Nathanel John Crawford Rutherford (1874-1960) was a grandfather of Mike Rutherford, a founding member and bass guitarist of Genesis band. He served as a doctor at the RAMS for over three decades and published two books about his war experiences - Soldiering With A Stethoscope, an account about of work in a field hospital during Boer War and the First World War, and Memories of an Army Surgeon. This is a rare and very valuable find. It is an unfiltered, first-hand account of fighting at the front day in and day out for 17 months. Clear and very concisely written, within its terse phrases, one can hear the fighting and the dying in the 'war to end all wars.. Illustr.: /. Manuscript. Book Condition: Good

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