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Janvamy 20, 1855.] THE LHABEB, 61
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Mfl & TMlUrrX' JLBIOKGST HEW AIOUVKRB . The Times canreepondeBt , ibe £ oxB Sebastepol , December -8 O , " saysa —• "Between November 1 and December ' 20 no less than 1-0 600 English , 5600 French , and 4800 Turkish troops * ave been conveyed hi -British ships to thcCrimea . It is e melancholy fact . that these reinforcements suffer more than the men of Hfce acclimated regiments , and that it must not be taken for granted tSiat the soldiers sent out fceretform permanent additions to-our army . Although iJie mortality among them is not very great , many of iSae draughts and of the newly-arrived -regiments are so ; enfeebled Jby illness after their arrival that they must be taken eff the effective strength of the regiments . In
order -to afford the public some idea of the extent to ¦ which sickness has prevailed , I may mention that the 9 th Regiment does not now muster 250 bayonets , and that the Brigade of Guards is not 1000 strong on parade . The draught of 150 men which went -out to > the Scots Fusiliers , under Lieutenant-Colonel de 'Bathe , the other . day , is . reduced to about 20 men at present . A short time ago . -when this brigade furnished the men for pickets in the Tchernaya valley , an order was Bent to the brigadier to strengthen the pickets which he had sent down . He was obliged to represent that when he had done so the force of his brigade would be reduced to 30 men . Such are the sacrifices we make on the altar of war . -May we trust that the victims were all required , and that none of them . could have been spared ?"
The general mortality is best seen by round numbers . The correspondent of the Morning Post sends the ^ following etatement of the strength of the [ British force—and also of its weakness : — " January 1 . " Perhaps I cannot commence my letter with a more interesting announcement than the present numerical condition of the British : anny opposed to the Russians . Here are the numbers , which I have on the best authority : — Sergeants 2 / 191 Drummers " 56 Rank and File 38 , 0 S 5 Total . ,..,. 40 , 932 Of this number , there are at the present time sick and wounded : —
Sergeants . ^ . S 0 j Drummers «« i i Rank and File 12 , 747 Total 13 , il ' " STATE OF THE ROADS . No great improvement appears to have taken place in the rends at present . - One of the avenues from Sebastopol to the coast is thus described : — " I passed several guns and mortars being , with the greatest difficulty , dragged to the front—although the roads arc certainly much improved since the French have worked at them , and , but for which , the conveyance of guns , ammunition , and supplies must have entirely who
ceased . It is dreadful work for the Artillery , are perpetually engaged on this work , and the escorts and fatigues with commissariat supplies . The former get throughwitH a littledegreeof certainty ; but a stranger would not recognise , without close inspection , that the 20 horses that are drawing each gun—a hair of cither being scarcely visible for mud—are ridden by Royal Horso Artillerymen , their handsome uniform being bespattered in the same manner , and probably wet through . However the infantry escorts have a much worse lot—wading up to their knees in solid mud , with pack animals laden with salt meat and rum kegs—a favourite divertissement being tho saddle turning ro \ md and leaving the load hanging between the horse ' s legs—or the animal , which is scarcel y , able to crawl , lying down , or , perhaps getting into a place where the mud is so licavy . it novor
gets out again . As these things constantly keep some of the men out the whole night , it seems wonderful how they stand it—or more so that tho army is fed at all under such circumstances . A party leaves each division every morning for this duty , and rarely returns before midnight ; the same men probably going on picket , or some other arduous duty , the following day . I havo told you the cavalry also take thoir share of this work , for a party carries biscuit to tho divisions each day . Thank God , there seems to be no lack of supplies at Balaklavft , and of a first-rato description , too ! Suit meat perpetually is neither agreeable nor wholesome ; but it is to be hoped this will soon bo remedied by tho commissariat receiving n supply of live cattle . Nearly every night we arc now disturbed by a sortie of somo kind by tho Russians . There is no doubt but their huttoriuH arc now much heavier than ours , and then thoy
have tho great advantage of being able to erect and strengthen them tuid change their guns with cane compnrod to ouraelvetv Tho noil is everywhere of such a fiofL nature that riding over the grass after tho hoavy ruins is heavier work than over a ploughed < l « ld . Tho mud in Balaklava , I have before stated , was beyond description , and I can only say that it now seems worse than over ; and what with mud and the crowds of horses , pack animals , arabas , limbers , gun-earriugos , and cavalry , besides crowds of men of every disoription , it is with the greatest , difliculty , either on horso or foot , you can get along . Thero is still a greater dearth of things that amroquireil , in tho ahapo of eatables and drinkables , in the whops or
stores * t Balaklava than we mare experienced einoeiftenv establishment , which as much . to be'wondered at , * sensidering -what a demand their is . I think it Kkely that the proprietors ha ^ e been frightened -at the accounts of what we are to-receive from England , -andthought they would not be « bfte to obtain their exorbitant demands any longer . I hare lately < got up ; a case of -sherry from Constantinople , « whioh cost there 11 . 16 b . ; whereas in BalakJava it is 3 / . " .
OBBCKEAT ENEMY—THE ELEMENTS . An officer of the Boyals says : — " I will describe my last four days' work : —Monday we were turned out by the sortie , . and had to remain out -on picket with the Eght ^ company and Grenadiers from 12 o ' clock till aiearly 4 , so did not . get xnuch sleep that night . Next .-afternoon , at a quarter to 5 , paraded ¦ covering pasty for the --trenches . I -was sent in command of a company -as advanced picket on the Simpheropol-Toad , at the place the Russians tried to force the night before . There was not the least cover for bur men . The road runs through a deep ravine , with rocks nearly 200 feet high , with caves at -the rtop , which seem to have been -worn by the . action of the water . It was in the
caves and among the rooks that the Russians were hid the night before , and our men fired 15 , 000 rounds of ammunition without , as far as can be ascertained , the loss of a single man . I captured a Turkish officer , "hiding among the rocks , < and seemingly trying to get past my pieket into Sebastopal . I sent Mm to headquarters , very much to Ms disgust . The Russians "were banging at us from the rthree-gnn battery in the street at the endof the road with round shot . and grape , but they were all * oo high . " The sound was far from pleasant , as they rebounded firom side to side of the gut , bringing down showers of stones , & c . We yrete ^ relieved at daylight , and reached camp about 7 . I was then learned to go on guard over the reserve ammunition at
9 . Not much sleep that night , as a guard here is very different from one in England , with a comfortable guardroom , good fire , & c . I came off at 10 next morning . At 4 had to parade in charge of a working party for the left siege train . We were employed in moving shot and shell till 12 , and the party reached camp at 1 this morning , the rain pouring in torrents . I was interrupted here by having to go and read the burial service over two unfortunate victims . When we got to the ground the graves -were not dug , and we had to remain in the rain nearly half an hour , by which time we were all well saturated . Last night was furiously wet . I never saw anything like it before—coming down in torrents
and flooding everything . A company of the 46 th , who were in my place on the road , were nearly drowned , and swept- into Sebastopol . There is , a trench across the ravine in the rear , and this for some time pent up the -water , till it gave way ; they all fortunately escaped . A Pole lost his way in the storm , and came across our sentries ; they wounded him in the head , and he was taken prisoner . Virgil's lines , ' dulee est propatria morif may be very true , but certainly the preparation to that ond that we are all now undergoing does not partake of its sweetness . I forgot to tell you that -the rain changed to snow this morning , and it was three or four inches deep , but it has . all become slushjn _ owj- _ we ^ hadjtaken advantage of the dry weather to dig a hole in the
ground , and put a roof over it , hoping that with a fire in it -we should be able to dry our things and cook . Our only material for the roof was mud , which , to our sorrow , we find lots in the water like a sieve ; so this plan will not do . We are looking anxiously forward to the arrival of the wooden housos , which are mentioned in the papers ; but wo hardly dare believe in them , as we have been so deceived about fuel , vegetables , materials for hutting , & c . We hove very little fuel , and aro dbliged to grub up roots . Thoy said we were to have coal , but not a thing have they given us yet . I 'hear Lord Raglan says , ' The armyihas endured unparalleled privations -without a murmur . ' But it shows what -lie knows about it , for , from the highest to the lowest , all complain of this state of inaction and misery . "
XURK . S AND TIUGIR . JDEAD HORSES . The Times correspondent cives us another curiosity from Constantinople . It is thoroughly Eastern in its simplicity : — " Since tho date of the last / mail about 900 ihorscs , ponies , . and mules have been landed here for tho < uso of the army , but they die off by dozens overy night . Tho mules left at Varna were sent down overland to Oonatantinoplo and embarked in the Jason for Balaklava , where thoy arrived a fow days ago . Tho Turks have a curious way of accounting for dead horsos . It is Oriental , but satisfactory . One of tho men left in charge of horses at Varna came down to Scutari to render up his accounts to
tho commissariat olHcer of tho depurtmont . The iirat tiling ho did was to produce a lnrgo sack , which was borno into tho apartment of the functionary by two men . ' Two hundred of your horses havo died , ' said tho Turk . ' Behold ! what I havo said is tho truth ; ' and , at tho wave of his hand , the men tumbled out the contents of the sack oii the iloor , and , lo ! 400 " horse-earn , long and short , ami of all sizes and shapes , wore piled in a hoap boforc tho eyes of tho astonished officer . Tho Simla , tho Cormorant , and two other steamers , freighted with horsos , also arrived within tho last fow days , but many of tho animal * thoy brought were scarcely worth tho cost , of
carnage , and-wiH not long eurvfv * their TiardsMps 'in the Crimea . The Firebrand came round'from-the -fleet -with ammunition , but the authorities at Balatklava mruld ¦ not receive it , though there were requisitions for ~ powfler and Bhot in the office at the very time . i She « went "back nearly as she came , bat the stores -were put on "board another man-of-war , and are now here -to be landed : "
WHY NOT A MEDAL TOE JJAL . AKLAVA ? This matter appear * to havse been ov-erloeked At head-quarters ; the Light Brigade and the TEbearry Dragoons , however , . scarcely share the classic Indifference of the " old Roman , " who -knew that Ms statue would be asked for . The ^ oneepondeat of a morning contemporary says : " The cavalry , -who survived the t 3 harge > at Balaklava —the Heavy Dragoons , who cleft the masses of Ruse & m horse like a levin brand , —the Hussars , and Laght Dragoons , and Lanoers , who rode through fire and blood 4 o ¦ the Russian battalions -which in vain sought "shelter <
toehmd their murderous artillery , —think that they too deserve a special mark of their Sovereign ' s favour , and that 'BalaMava' is not less worthy of reward , if the most daring courage and the most brilliant gallantry can earn it , than even ' Alma' or ' Inker-man . ' These are matters , however , in which , if wrong has been-done , the verdict of the country will do justice . It is but right , however , to state this—that'when the general orders were read to the various regiments they were received generally with great gravity , and without any external sign of satisfaction , in iShe majority of instances of which I have heard . "
THE u T 2 PAITEETTES TN VROSPECT . Napoleon used to say that with his manner . of promotion every IPrench soldier carried the materials of a marshal's baton in his knapsack . Our own soldiers have shown by their letters that they have in them the stuff of which our best officers are made , and grand language , of which their letters are seldom , made . We give below a letter from a colour-sergeant of the 28 th , which contains some of the best descriptions of the broken-up battle of Inkerman which we have seen . One piece ( we have marked it in italics ) is almost worthy of Tacitus , in its strength , brevity , and vividness ; and some other passages remind us of the great French friendships of the eighteenth century : —_
-" Camphefore Sebastopol , December 21 , 1854 . "My dear Friend—In the midst of pur hurried and dangerous way of living , my memory clings rtenaoiouery to our long and tried friendship , to our old and mutual associations , and to our old and mutual acquaintances , and I love to dwell upon all these ties even the faintest . You have asked me for news , but I cannot pretend to give you any ; for long : ere my letter ^ would reach you , anything I could relate as an eye-witness would have become ' fiat , stale , " and unprofitable . ' Again , the events which daily , ay hourly , occur around us , do not assume , in the eyes of our people , the importance attached to them at home , where we live
so much in heart and fancy . . I . * eally believe that the interest , or rather the enthusiasm created by the arrival of despatches and other accounts of our victories at-least rivals -the -fervour attendant-uponJthe immediate doing of the -work . TRIen go out from the camp , in the evening or morning , little knowing , and often little caring , that thoy may -win a great battle before -their hour of relief comes round , and that they may yield up their heart ' s blood in achieving it . This is our manner of life ; nor is it a very miserable one , though every succeeding day lessens our chanco of enjoying it , as every day reduces our numbers , and renders those who are left behind less able to bear tho
hardships of such a campaign . Wo have had no great affair since Inkerman , and our whole operations seem to consist in defending our position . The men are growing impatient and wearied , and are constantly ¦ wondering what is doing or what is going to bo done . Every man woxild willingly go to the breach to get rid of this wearying , , yet -monotonous life . Moreover , the « pectre -which hung over our devoted army at Varna is paying tis very frequent visits . 1 have buried six of our company , now Teduced to about sixty men , within these ten 'days ; and we aro far from being tho worst . The 9 th , a veteran regiment from India , joined lately , and buried € 0 men in one week , The Rev . Mr . Whcblo fell a victim to his devoted zeal , and tho gentleman who replaced him returned to Scutari after a fortnight's labour . Tot , in the midst of all this ruin and desolation , Tarn cheerful ,
trustful , healthful , and possess tho fond hope that I may one day grasp your hand , and tell you how much I owe you , as well as my other kind friends , for their earnest wishes , thoir anxiety , their sympathy , and above all , for their prayers , which havo carried mo through so many dangers . I know it is their prayer * which aro . tho ' flweet little cherubs which eit up aloft and keep watch ocr tho life Of pO 0 r Toll them this , my doar fnend , and tell them also that it is tho consciousness of thoir kind sympathies tliuft keeps mo light-hearted m tno midst of our hardships . In my name wish them all a merry Christmas ) and a happy now year . Should tl ™ y laugh at my simplify , and say that I am late with my compliments , tell them they arc wrong , that when I wished them a merry Christmas it wanted four days of that plonsantcst of all days , and that my wishes reached
Janvamy 20, 1855.] The Lhabeb, 61
Janvamy 20 , 1855 . ] THE LHABEB , 61
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 20, 1855, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_20011855/page/3/
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