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July 1st 1916. Trench digging, 10 pm to 7 am. Digging trenches in front of gun pits . The advance on the Somme starts.

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2nd July 1916. Went sick, and sent to Arras hospital by ambulance. Stayed there 2 hours, and then went to Habaray hospital ,and stayed the night.

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3rd July 1916. Moved as stretcher case to Avaines-la-Conte hospital clearing station

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4 th July 1916. In bed on milk diet, quite rotten.

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5th July 1916. Milk diet is awful, I'm as hungry as a hunter. Moved by train in cattle trucks on stretchers to Frevent clearing station. This is a clean hospital, nice to be in sheets again.

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6th July 1916. Having better gruel now, moved by G.W.R hospital train to Baol taking 23 hours at Rouen.

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7th July 1916. I'm No 5 General hospital nice place and sisters put me on milk diet again.. Temp= 100

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8th July 1916. Lots going to Blighty, only three of us left, but it is filled again at night. Temp. 99.4.

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9th July 1916. Should have gone to blighty, had temp, been normal. Temp=100

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10th July 1916. Marked for Blighty ,And left hospital at 5 pm. and loaded red cross ship "St. George". Left Rouen at 12 midnight, passed Le Havre at 6 am. Grub fine.

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11th July 1916. Very good passage arrived in BLIGHTY at Southampton at 12 am . Left by train at 1.15 pm. Arrived at York at midnight Via Banbury and Nottingham. Had plenty of Grub at these places. Met by motor at York.

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12th July 1916. In Hasely rd, hospital, fine place. Strawberries for tea. Bon. In bed again.

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13th July 1916. Having the time of our lives, getting up in afternoons.

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14th to 19 th July 1916. I slept about 8 days in York, and had a very good time . Had plenty on invitations out to tea, including Mrs. Rowntrees party. Also visited Rowntrees factory, and had tea there.

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20th July to September 18 1916. Went into convalescent home at Bedale for a month, had a very good time, only quiet.

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18th to 29th Sept. 1916. Started on 10 days sick leave ,and went to Sutton Coldfield after

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9th to 30th October 1916. Left Sutton for Ireland at Ballevonare,County Cork. Rotten place. All ---- at this place about fed up with the c---- in general

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October to January 1917. At Ballyvonare camp-left for Parkhurst Depot. Sent to France. L---des Roulu went to base, and left for Battalion . Join them --- billets, just below St Etou. Guns ,bombardments every ridge-Battle of Vimy.

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Over the top at Vimy attached to Canadians. Canadians took first and second lines, then we took over taking third, and fourth lines.

Canadian dead in no-mans land from German machine guns. Huge shell craters on ridge from 12" Naval guns.------ dead in 3rd line. Standing with rifle to shoulders, but all dead. We bury them 7 in a shell hole.

Cleaning dug outs. Bring up all the dead, and bury them. Advance to gun emplacements. Capture German guns. Advance to Main road. Put out, out posts for the night. Germans said to have evacuated ,and gone back some miles.

Morning, company formed up in column of fours, and start to march on. Germans open fire, and we take to ground. Our losses 8 killed 40 wounded.

We dig in on road side. A+B comps in front digging in. Can see German lines from here, am behind tree-but it is unsafe to try to. Night we move up to A+B Coys, and extend line, And link up with other troops on . Dig in our gun. On outpost duty.

Tents(?) set afire by our guns. German relief taking place, and offers good targets as they pass forming a silhouette. Fire several drums of ammunition, can see them as plain as if it was daylight!

Very little shelling from German lines, but our guns have now moved up ,and strafe German lines all day

---- trenches raided at dawn, but Germans driven back

Next day moved back to new position. Germans are now shelling us. Raining, and no water. Ground in filthy state.

Germans use mustard gas shells. Our Coy Headquarters blown in. Sarg Major Edwards, and staff killed in dug out.

In front line again. Several casualties. Our gun team sent to hold tunnel. 40 Bedfords under tunnel, all wounded. We hold tunnel after a very exciting run along mule track.

Shells very heavy, many dead in trench. Ordered to stay with Bedfords until the wounded can be got away.

Relieved at night, and trench evacuated. Retreated to Cle--- for the night, and relieved the next morning, go back to the ridge.

Move camp further back to avoid shelling. Working parties on blue line rudout. Gun on aeroplane duty.

Move up to Farbus post in support to 2nd Battalion attack. Move up at night. Attack fails, and we hold second line . Move up to front line at night . In front of Farbus Wood. Germans shelling wood. barrage terrible for 3 hours .I get buried by shell, but am dug out by gun team.

Expecting German attack. A company flattened out, many dead thrown out on "parades"(?). Relieved at night ,and march back to Farbus village. In large dug out. Onto Farbus corner. March back to Roulemount.

Move up to front line. Heavy shelling on Farbus corner by 5" A's. No one hit

Move up to Oppy wood . In front of wood, thunderstorm. Wet through, and trenches full of water. Hundreds of dead here. The stench is awful.

Very quiet today, relived at night.. Wounded coming out. Germans shell cross roads, hit in hand.

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It is here, shot through the hand, that the war ends for my Grandfather, and so to ends the diary, with this undated battle for "Vimy Ridge".

The following was written by Percys Son, Peter Fox ,who himself died in January 1999.

"Percival Fox, was one of three brothers. Will the elder, was always ill, thin and gaunt, never going into the forces due to his health... After dad was shot through the wrist (The bullet passed straight through) he was invaded to Ireland where he became a P.T instructor for new recruits. Jessie dads brother was nice, and had a scar above his lip from the war. I remember him telling me how he was tied to a cartwheel in "No mans land" for doing something wrong, with bullets flying past him all the time. He ran the shop with my grandfather and Will the elder brother."

Percy Fox kept a promise to a dead comrade H. Arculus, and while on leave arranged to meet with Arculuss' fiancee, Dorothy Davis. They meet under the clock at Snowhill, Birminghams' main station . By 1917 they were married in Acoks Green church. For the rest of there lives they lived in and around the Acoks Green, Olton area. After the war the two of them decided to open a knitwear factory. "Arden Knitwear Ltd" was born around 1920 ,Originally called "Hygrade Knitware Ltd" . The factory started out as a room above the fathers ironmonger shop in Langly. In 1927 the factory moved to 8-1, Loveday street. Employing some 60 people, it supplied stores all over the world,and through the name "Hygrade" the wholesale market. Sadly the business was not to survive the second world war. Shut down during the war ,its workers were sent to work in munitions, and weapons factories. "Arden Knitware " never regained its pre-war dominance, and was eventually sold to a wholesale knitwear company in Derbyshire, called "Belper". In 1959 Dorothy Fox died in Soihull hospital aged 69, she had been suffering the effects of a stroke ,and died of kidney failure. Percy moved out of the family home in Kienton Green rd to a flat in St Bernards road, where he he lived quietly until his death in 1976 aged 79 of pneumonia.