I have seen men who were scared, sometimes whole regiments, but they still fought on; and that is the highest courage, for they were fighting both a real enemy and an imaginary one.
There is a story of a certain politician general of our army who, under a brisk fire, turned on one of his staff and cried: "Why, major, you are scared, sir; you are scared!" "I am," said the major, with his teeth chattering, "and if you were as scared as I am you'd be twenty miles in the rear." In this war the onslaughts have been so terrific and so unceasing, the artillery fire especially has been so entirely beyond human experience, that the men fight in a kind of daze.

Instead of arousing fear the tumult acts as an anaesthetic.

With forests uprooted, houses smashing about them, and unseen express-trains hurtling through space, they are too stunned to be afraid.

And in time they become fed up on battles and to the noise and danger grow callous.

On the Aisne I saw an artillery battle that stretched for fifteen miles.