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Leader (1850-1860), 14th April 1855, Edition 1 of 2, Page 339

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      ments wlio were down towards the front . WMle civility 1 was going on wewere walking- -among over blood-stained ground , covered with evirecent fight- Broken muskets , bayonets , cartes , caps , fragments'of clothing , straps and ces of shell , little pools of clotted blood , shota grape—shattered gabioHS ^ and sandbags , were ound us on every side ; and through the midst rowd stalked a solemn procession of soldiers heir departed comrades to their long home . I seventy-seven litters borne past me in fifteen

      each filled with a dead enemy . The contorbe slain were horrible , and recalled the memoe fields of Alma and Inkerman . The Russians to treat their dead with great respect . The [ saw were white-faced and seemed ill-fed , aany of them had powerful frames , square , and broad chests . All their dead who fell id near our lines were stripped of boots and , The cleanliness of their feet , and , in most ; heir coarse linen shirts , was remarkable , e midst of all this stern evidence of war , a

      cerant of lively conversation began spring up , the Russian officers indulged m a little badi-> me of them asked our officers ' when we were 1 to take the place ; ' others , ' when we thought , way . ' Some congratulated us upon the excelrtunity we had of getting a good look at Sebasthe chance of a nearer view , except on similar was not in their opinion very probable . One ted a private confidentially , in English , how i we sent into the trenches ? ' Begorra , only ght , and a wake covering party of 10 , 000 , ' reply . The officer laughed , and turned away . He a Russian with a litter stopped by a dead I put it into the litter . He looked round

      cade to help him . A Zouave at once advanced 1 grace , and lifted it , to the infinite-amusement tanders ; but the joke was not long-lived , as a rusquely came upland helped to carry off bis ade . In the town we could see large bodies of i the streets , assembled at the corners and in 3 places . Probably they were ordered out to how of their strength . The Russians denied : e Menschikoff was dead ; but they admitted iral Isturmin was killed . 5 to some misunderstanding ; or other , a little began among the riflemen on the left during ice , and disturbed our attention for a moment , rsoon terminated . General Bosquet and several rank of the allied armv visited the trenches

      5 armistice , and staff officers were present on to see that-the men did not go out of bounds , stice was over about three o ' clock . Scarcely hite flag disappeared behind the parapet of the before a round shot from the Sailors' Battery through one of the embrasures of the Russian dashed up a great pillar of earth inside . The it once replied , and jf ^ e noise of cannon soon through the ravines . "—Times Correspondent .

      A GOOD SHOT . sndid shot was made by the Naval Brigade from ounder . The Russians had mounted a piece a the Mamelon , and on Sunday they directed shell from it—noW ' against Gordon ' s Battery , m the French . We generally shut them up , in a short time . On Monday morning they in , and the officer in charge of the battery sent aw what he was to do with the gun . The as , " Fight it . " Our 68 was laid ; and the shot went right through the embrasure , and he Russian gun to pieces , to our intense satisrhis balances our account for the damage done our 32-pounders , and to a heavier piece by in fire within the last few days . "—Idem .

      REPORT OF PROGRESS . re keeping up a steady fire on the town and its itinually , night and day , from the two sea > rtnra in front of the picket-house . The enemy vork to put the fires out caused by the shells s pieoes ; but us the town is built of stone so i is accomplished without any great difficulty , need works extend to within a few yards ) 0 ) of the White Tower ; so wo must soon do

      • with that place . , Our field 9-poundcr pieces vanced trench do good work , and very often 0 Russian riflemen to leave their pits ; they 1 found to answer extremely well . A good under the impression' that the garrison is not tis represented to lie ; their reasons for thinktho ninny marchings and reliovings of troops o town . The force inside , and kept there , we bo a kind of foreign legion—Albanians and even somo Irishmen .

      ablo to toll you thnt tho oloctnc wires are l homl-quartcrs and very closo to Sir Goorgo nniartors . Wu have now Ilulakluva hoadand our extreme right , all linked together uinuto ' s call . Tho communication will even bo tho trenches by means of a semaphore , which 3 ctcd in tho batteries ) , with ono oh t , ho top of i front of tho Light Division , and messages n thonco to tho electric—tho entire process not ; five minutes . Tho whole ia uudor tlio

      management of Lieut .. Stopford , R . E . "—Morning Post Correspondent . The same writer says that the English army now falls little short of 30 ,-eoO men ; but he admits that deaths from low feverarestill frequent . STATE OP THE FORTIFICATIONS AND TOWN OF SEBASTOPOL . " I was enabled ( during the truce ) to get within a very reasonable distance of the . Malakhoff Tower , and certainly was much struck by the number , strength , and solidity of the earthworks round it . All of them seemed in beautiful repair , and more like the permanent defences of a regular fortress than the mere efforts of a sudden emergency . In front was a deep ditch , with strong chevaux de frise of rough-pointed timber at the other side ; while above , from the edge of the fosse to the slope of the battery , were pointed stakes about three feet high , set so closely in the earth as to appear at a little distance like a dark band all round the work . But with such a commanding point as the Mamelon once in our possession , the whole of these stockades and the batteries behind them could be destroyed in a single day .

      " On the leTt of Malakhoff , but projecting one hundred yards in advance of it , was the Redan . This is now one of the most tremendous of all the Russian works . Its three sides have double tiers of guns ; there being in this battery alone , it is calculated , not less than 250 pieces of ordnance , some of them of the very heaviest calibre used in warfare . TMs work , like Malakhoff , is also defended by a broad deep ditch , with chevatnc de Jriee , but without stakes , on the slope of the parapet . " From between these batteries a most admirable view could be had right down into the town "behind them . Even -with the naked eye everything could be seen quite distinctly ; but , with a good-glass , a minute examination of every house could be made . The most minute examination which I could make failed to show me that we had inflicted any injury worth speaking of in the town . The little huts of the Turkish and Tartar

      population outside the walls are destroyed . -The handsome town inside the walls is , as a town , uninjured . A barrack and a few warehouses nearest to the walls are much perforated , and the roofs nearly gone ; but this is all . The large public buildings , the barracks , churches , and rows of splendid houses show no mark of injury of any kind . As I looked at some of the best streets , I could hardly persuade myself that I was not gazing at some of the better parts of Bath or Brighton , so white , regular , and handsome was their appearance . Very few

      persons were in the streets ; probably I did not see more than thirty or forty in all , and , of this small number , at least two-thirds were soldiers . I saw no women of any class . A good many boats were busy about the harbour , and many people seemed at work on shore , a little above the water ' s edge on the north , where numbers of carts and arabas were passing to and fro ; but beyond these signs of life there seemed nothing doing . The town itself appeared almost entirely deserted . "—Morn ing Herald Correspondent .

      Under the date of March the 26 th , this writer says he believes we shall open fire in another week at the latest . He adds : " It is a matter of positive certainty that , if the allied commanders wish it , the whole town could bo utterly destroyed in twenty-four hours , " It may . be so ; but . we -must . be . careful how ; we talk of * ' positive certainties" before the fact . GENERAL CANROBERT ' s ACCOUNT OF THE SOBTIE ON THE 22 ND . General Ganrobert , in his despatch dated March 23 , says : —

      " About 11 o ' clock at night , the enemy attempted a general sortie on this side , in which he appears to haye employed no less than fifteen battalions , stated by tho Russian prisoners to be each one thousand strong . These troops , divided into two columns , advanced in a body , and with savage howlings attacked the head of tho roadway we have formed in front of our parallel for reaching tho ambuscades previously occupied by the enemy , ambuscades which it is our intention to connect strongly ono with another , so as to make of them a place d'amnes . Repulsed thrco times , and three times led back by their officers , tho Russians wero compelled to abandon their plan of occupying this point , which was defended by some companies of tho 3 rd regiment of Zouaves , under the command of Liout .-Colonel Banon . The combat there was obstinate , and has cost us dear , but has inflicted on tho enemy losses far greater than ours , and proportioned to tho masses ho brought up .

      " Tho efforts of tho enemy , who could only pnll-down tho still empty gabionH , at thin spot , being without effect , wore next directed ngainnt tho left of our parallel , towards tho ravine of Karabolnin , whore ho was wnnnly received by a lire of musketry , and was unable to penetrate . 116 then suddenly threw himself upon tho right of the English parallel , contrived to cross the works , and found himself in tho rear of our left , which for an instant was exposed to a . murderous Urn in reverse . General Automnrro , who commanded in tho trench , made tho ncccs ' snry dispositions with his accustomed vigour and composure . Tho 4 th battalion of Infantry Chasseurs , coming up to assist , was sent into tho ravine , where it threw itself valiantly , upon tho enemy , who , being liimself exposed , Buffered considerable Io « fl , and was ropulaed to xotnrn . no more

      " This operation of the besieged has differed completely from all those which he has hitherto attempted against our works . In order to insure its-success , atfd notwithstanding the strength of the -garrison , considerable as that is , he brought up from without two > regiments ( eight battalions ) of fresh troops ( those of Dnieper and Ouglitch ) . It was a species of general assault against our lines of communication , and' the combination appeared uncommonly well devised for obtaining [ a great result . The importance of this failure -on the part of the besiege ' d ought to be estimated by the greatness of the object he had in view . ' "

      DESPATCH FROM LORD RAGLAN . Before Sebastopol , Mareh . " 27 . My Lord , —Adverting to my despatch of the 24 th inst ., I do myself the honour to state that the following officers -have been brought to my notice as having . distinguished'themselves on tke night of the 22 nd , and morning of the 23 rd , in addition to those-wheee names ! I have-already submitted to your Lordship : —^ -Major : th e Son . James Lyon Browne , of the 21 st Regiment , brother of the Hon . Captain Browne of the Royal Fusiliers , who , it has already been my painful duty to report , fell upon this occasion ; Captain Butler of the 20 th , ^ and Captain . Eickman of the 77 th .

      I am happy to say that Captain Montagu , of the Royal Engineers , wlio was taken prisoner , * was < not wounded , and -nfcbat Lieutenant - Coloael Kelly , of the 34 th - Regiment , who also fell into the enemy ' s hands , is not severely wounded , though he received some injury both in his head and hand . Major-General Eyre , the General Officer of the trenches , highly eulogises the dispositions of Lieutenant-Colonel Kelly , and laments the-loss of Ms -services . The M-ajor-General also speaks in the warmest ' terms © f 'the conduct of Lieutenant-Colonel Tylden , Royal Engineers , who received a contusion , which , however , I am glad to be able to assure your Lordship does not incapacitate him from continuing those exertions and displaying those qualities which , render him so . valuable an officer . There was a

      suspension of hostilities for about three hours on Saturday for the purpose of burying those who had fallen in the late encounters , and it was evident from the numbers of bodies of the enemy , and of the French , to whom the last sad offices had to be paid , that the loss sustained both by the French and the Russians had been very severe , particularly that of the latter . Some French , too , were found lying close to the Mamelon , —a proof that their gallant spirit had carried them up to the enemy ' s intrenchments . Nothing of importance has since occurred . The siege operations continue to progress , and during the last two nights the interruption from the fire of the enemy has been inconsiderable . The enemy are very assiduous in the improvement - of their defences and in the establishment of a trench in the front of the Mamelon , towards which our ally is advancing by serpentine sap .

      The weather continues very fine , and the appearance and health of the troops are manifestly improving . Dr . Gavin , of the Sanitary Commission , and Mr . Rawlinson , Civil Engineer , have arrived , and are earnestly applying themselves to the discharge of the duties they have undertaken to perform ; and I will take care that they receive every assistance it may be in my power to afford them . The Himalaya has arrived , and has been disembarking her horses yesterday and this day in Gasatch-• bay . Since writing the " above , T " T 'haveFeceived the official report that Captain A . E . Hill , of the 89 th Regiment , was severely wounded and taken prisoner last night while posting his sentries in front of tho advanced trench on our extreme left . I have , &c , Raglan . The Lord Panmure , &c .

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      WAR MISCELLANEA . ThjbSba of Azof and the Russian "Reinforcements . — " A Hertfordshire Incumbent" -writes to the Times as follows : — " The natural highway from Central Russia is the Volga , down as low as Dubovka , where tho river approaches very near to the Don . From this point , oven the heaviest articles , such as ¦ fir-trees for shipa ' masts , are conveyed by land carriage to Katschalinkaia on the Don , and thence by-water to Taganrog . By this route , troops , stores , and all the appliances of war , can be moved at almost every season of the year . Tho enormous amount of traffic on tho Volga , even in tho winter , may bo estimated from tho fact mentioned by Pallas , that , in tho year he passed through Sorcpta on . his way to Astrakhan ( 1793 ) he found that no less than

      , 16 , 900 one-horse sledges had arrived there in tho previous autumn , before tho river was frozen firmly enough to Allow them at onco to proceed onwardw without risk . I entertain little doubt that during tho past -winter this moans of transit linn boon mndo use of for military purposes , and that , as noon as the winter ice in tho Lower Don Iiuh disappeared , men and material will bo floated down that rivor , transhipped at Taganrog into vessels of a more substantial character , and landed on . fiomo part of tho eastern coast of tho peninwula , unless means can bo adopted by tho Allies for ofotuining the command of the Sea of Aziof by tho first or Bccond week in M « y . The writer , however , rfdmits that , owing to ' tho Bhfcllowneas of tho straits , it would bo a vory difficult matter to send aiflotilla into tho sea in quoBtfon .

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      bh , 14 , 1855 . ] THE I / EAPEE . 38 B

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), April 14, 1855, page 339, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2086/page/3/