Geoff - the return of AWOL men to France was the norm; normally escorted by the MP to the point of embarkation and then handed over to Draft Conducting Officers. As I understand it such men were escorted direct to their unit and not sent via Base Depots. Various clauses of King's Regulations 1912 are relevant, but particularly 503 (notification in Regimental Orders), 514 & 515 (reports to Civil Police), 536 (escorts / removal orders), 1504 (embarkation returns) ... etc. It was the Civil Police who normally made enquiries about an AWOL man and then carried out an arrest if he was found - then handing him over to the Military. I regularly see Police reports in AWOL men's service records - often making not entirely relevant comments about things like local gossip about his wife or the woman he had been living with ! - A common theme - but if they couldn't just report that they'd caught the man I suppose they felt obliged to say something. The vast majority of men who went AWOL did so in the UK, mainly (probably) because it seems to have been relatively difficult to get back here from France without the necessary paperwork ............... not impossible though - for example 4/9170 George Hunter of the 2nd DLI managed it, though subsequently caught and returned to his unit, he was executed 2/7/16. regards - Tom Tulloch-Marshall WW1 Military Research website > http://www.btinternet.com/~prosearch/index.html