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Leader (1850-1860), 6th January 1855, Edition 1 of 2, Page 4

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      leaving 8060 to relieve them . We are undertaking fSSSatftt town witha garrison of M ^ PJOV-jn . ° « reariiM flank menaced with a force of 40 , j ) 00 more . They are superior in guns , position , and everything else , are Kving irihouses , -flftdl * op - pUed wjth clothing , food , and everything necessary for the preservation of health , while we are obliged to keep our men , who were until the last week nearly naked , without a shirt on their backs , a shoe or sock on their feet , exposed to the wet and cold for twelve hours at a time m the trenches , ancle-deep in the slush , and , when , ra ^ the advanced works , unable to move or stand upright from the constant fire of the Russians . Can it be wondered that these men should say that they would rather die than tents all leakand

      go back to the miserable camp ? The , the men are lying fifteen together in a place where no English gentlemen would put their pigs . The only rations are salt meat , and of that for some time they have only had half quantities . The pitiful gill of rum even can be seldom issued regularly . The Commissariat do all they can , I believe ; but the wear and tear of animal power dragging up those dreadful arabas is so great , with the roads as they have been- ^ -two feet deep in the heaviest clay , T—that without a constant importation , we shall be brought to a stand-still ; forage , too , is very scarce , and the wretched animals are dying all over the country . The Turkish drivers are dying vfast . I see no end to matters till we send an army of 70 , 000 men to Perekop , for supplies of every description are continually

      coming m . " Now there are very few guns serviceable ; all the large ones are disabled . I would riot desire a better fortune than the money that their shot and shell would fetch as old iron . For acres the : ground is literally covered with it , which shows what immense preparations the Czar has made . They have a great advantage over us , for the diameter of our guns of the same nominal calibre is smaller than theirs , so that our shot will fit their guns , but theirs , with the exception of 241 b ., are too large for us .

      " I think I have given you a pretty long yarn about our Very exhilarating iprospects here . One thing is certain— -weiave put our foot into it , and can't go back . If it were not for the French , we ahoufcTbe all on our way to Moscow ; but they are magnifieerit soldiers , and show us an example in _ every arrangement /'

      ^ - ,:. ADMIRAL BRUAT IN SEBA 8 TOP 0 I-. _ , Xately , after a seyfere attack of gout , Admiral Bruat called some of his officers into his cabin , and said rJ ' -Gentleraen , a good idea has just occurred to me—it is , to go quietly in , and ourselves visit the channel of Sebastopol . We shall so be able to judge for ourselves what its situation really is . " "The proposition was joyfully accepted , and in the piddle of the night several of the boats of the Charlemagne put off and entered the channel . The boats went through every part of it , and the admiral touched with his own hand the chain which closes the entrance

      pOhe ^ JiiilJiary ^ ortf Everything . wjas _ managed _ so cleverly on the part of the admiral ' s ' party that not a single Russian sentinel was aware of their approach . But day began to break while the boats were still far down in the harbour , and the alarm was immediately given , A terrible fire was then opened all along the fortifications of the channel , and it was under a fearful shower of projectiles of every description that the boats made their way out . Fortunately , not a man was wounded , though the longboat of the Charlemagne was somewhat damaged by the enemy's shot .

      SHOOTING A GUN . An officer of the Royals Bays : — - " Our last 68-pounder on the left attack was disabled two days ago in a curious manner . It was a ship gun , and the sailors had loaded , and were standing by ready to fire , when a shell from one of the Russian guns entered the muzzle . The concussion sent our gun off , and at the same time the enemy ' s shell burst inside the gun , tearing two or three feet of the lip to pieces . I saw the gun yesterday in the trenches , all jagged and splintered . Not one of the eight sailors was touched . Our guns present a very melancholy spectacle ; some burst , others with trunnions broken off and placed hora de combat in ever } 'possible manner ; but if we have fine weather ^ and the beasts , of which 500 are coming from Constantinople , arrive , I hope we shall be able to open fire again with more effect than on the first days . "

      THE TOWN OF 8 EPA 8 TOPOL . The same officer says : — ¦ " The streets are , I believe , barricaded and trenohed In every possible way , and , with their apparently inexhaustible supply of powder , shot , and' shell , we shall have much trouble with them , even when once inside the place . They , are , working night and day , and we can see plainly lon&rtrihgs of arabas and dromedaries passing and repaaalngVand from the city . With a telescope you can see plainly Unpeople walking quietly along the streets , while the town , > fch the exception of a few barracks , or large houses on the outside , is perfectly uninjured ; and if it was not for the reports of the rifles and the occasional discharge of a gun from our batteries , no

      one could tell therewas a hostile army before the place ; all the magnificent arsenals and buildings near the docks are perfectly uninjured . " ¦ WHA T TROOPS WON INKEBMAN ? ,. .. Ah officer of the Guards Cbmplainsm of , misrepresentation at head-quarters : — " Our Brigade are all very much annoyed at Lord Raglan ' s despatch of Inkerman ; independently of his saying so little about the Guards , the despatch was not at all correct . He mentions that the 20 th and other regiments of the Second Division supported ; they ought to have done so , but never did . The fact was , General wrote

      Pennefather , who commands the Second Division , the whole of the . despatch sent to England , and , of course , only mentioned his own division . Lord Raglan knew nothing about the fight at all , and , unfortunately , the three senior officers of the Brigade of Guards were wounded , arid consequently no despatch came in from us . The Duke of Cambridge quarrelled with Lord Raglan , so he said nothing to him about it ; but there is a great deal of talk about the whole thing here , and much displeasure . Lord Raglan is getting fast into bad odour with the whole army from his total carelessness of everything ; there will be a great outcry against him before long . "

      A PRISONER IN SEBASTOPOI .. The following is from the letter of an English prisoner ( 20 th Regiment ) in the hospital inside Sebastopol : — " I have got the opportunity of writing to let you know where I am . I was taken prisoner on the morning of the 5 th , I was close to that battery on the hill . When the Russians advanced up to the battery I was ^ it by a musket-ball on the right ear ; at the same time a stone or a piece of shell hit me on the body and knocked me down . Before I could get up again I had my firelock

      taken from me , and was hit on the head , which left me insensible for a time . After they drove bur men down the hill , seven or eight of them pricked me with their bayonets , and hit me with the butts of their firelocks ; one was going to fire at me , but the others would riot let him . They dragged my belt off and took me over the bridge , where their wounded were , while ( till ) night . -Then they took us close to " the harbour on the right of the town into an hospital . I am getting quite well jnow . The officers ^ are very kind to usT Wehave lib . jjf bread , some soupr with a little piece of meat in it , and a glass of tea per day . "

      RUSSIAN REINFORCEMENTS-AND ~ FOBCE IN THE _ ¦' : ¦ ¦ . : . ¦"¦ . ' . - "¦ CRIMEA . . ' ' . ¦• ¦¦ .. •" . . .-. ' .. The Morning Chronicle thus sums up the military power of Russia : — "If any faith can be placed in letters addressed to and intelligence received by German journals , from Odessa , considerable bodies of infantry are being pushed down to the Crimea from the Befesarabian army , and their places filled up by reserve brigades and by divisions from General Paniutin ' s ( 2 nd ) corps , hitherto stationed in Volhynia , whilst the latter are relieved by divMons , of , the . firat .. corpa . and ^ corpsjpfjGrenadiers .. ,

      " The 7 th , 8 th , and 9 th divisions , forming the third corps , now commanded by General Read , in the place of General Osten-Sacken , removed to the fourth corps , are said to have marched through Odessa on their way to Perekop , in . successive columns of brigades , whose movements are to be aided by waggons , principally furnished by the German colonists dotted over the intervening steppes , in the same manner that they aided with 2000 waggons in the transport of the fourth corps , immediately , previous to the battle of Inkerman . Taking the Russian returns at their value on paper , the three divisions , each of sixteen battalions , would give 48 , 600 bayonets , including the 3 rd battalion of Rifles . But the utmost average amount of effective combatants does not '

      and cannot exceed . 7000 men , half of them being recruits of the last eighteen months' levies . The actual force of the three divisions , when they reach Sebastopol , will therefore be about . 82 , 000 bayonets , with 140 fieldpieces ; that is , if the fourteen batteries of the corps can keep up with the infantry . To this corps is attached the third division of light cavalry , consisting of the 5 th and 6 th Lancers , and 5 th and 6 th Hussars , each of eight squadrons , or about 8200 effectives . It has also fourteen field-batteries of ten guns each , divided into three brigades , one of which is horse of two batteries . A position battery of 12 or 18-poundera is attached to each foot brigade . The corps has further a battalion of Sappers , and six battalions ( or rather strong companies ) of field-train : so that

      its total amount may bo set down , at 44 , 000 effectives . Supposing this corps to join the Crimean army , and allowing 25 , 000 men for the service of the place and forts , Prinoe Mensahikoff will have 65 , 000 bayonets disposable for outside work , with at least 12 , 000 horse , and 800 field pieces . Of the Danube army , originally under Prince Gortschakoff , only the second brigade of the fourteenth , and the whole of the fifteenth division , will remain in Bessarabia . ' ' Common reason Bh ' 6 ws , therefore , that the places of tho six divisions , moved or moving from thence , to the Crimea within the last two months , have been filled up by troops from Volhynia and Podolia , so as to give at least 60 , 000 effectives to Princo Gortschakoff ' s force . " Having a knowledge that Princo Menachikoff will

      shortly be enabled to dispose of the above-meritioi force of 90 , 000 bayonets , of course the British t French Governments must be fully aware that it is them to take such precautions as shall place the all commanders in a ,, ppsition to attack dt defend u ] tolerably equal grounds . " " " " ¦ " . ' ¦ ¦ ' ¦ ¦ THE WOBKINCt CLASSES AND THE WAS * . - The following resolution was passed at a meeti of the working classes and seamen of South Shiel held last veek : — " That this meeting , believing the present war w Russia to be a just arid necessary war , urge upon Majesty ' s ministers to conduct it with vigour and del mination , and without compromise , believing such

      line of policy to be the most effective to produce a st and satisfactory peace ; and we resolve to the best our ability to assist in the support of the widows i orphans of the brave fellows who have fallen and n fall ; in the battle , or who may die in the execution of tl duty , by subscribing to the Royal Patriotic Fu But at the same time this meeting cannot but expr its surprise that , whilst full and adequate governmen provision exists" for the widows and orphans of offic who may fall in their country ' s service , that no simi fund is provided for the widows and orphans of soldi

      and sailors , and trusts that speedy steps . will be tal to reiriedy so palpable an injustice ; and that this me ing is of opinion that the only safe and effectual guart tee for the peace of Europe and the establishment civil and religious liberty on the Continent , are 1 restoration of Polish independence and the extension the oppressed and dowri-trodden peoples of the Con rient of those great rights of humanity , liberty of spee and liberty of conscience ; and does' protest against o Government binding the English people to mainte either Austrian or any other : military despotism in th present oppressive form . "

      COURTESIES IN THE CAMP . The Paris correspondent ' . of the Daily iVeuw says : " A Freneh officer who came from Constantinople 1 the last mail told me a story from Sebastopol whit though at first - suggestive of a smile , leaves ; a deej arid better impression behind . In the beginning of . t campaign _ some _ j ) fficers -of the Guards invited sevei officers of General Bosquet ' s division to dine atr th < mess . The French officers sent a deputation to decli the invitation in the ~ most delicate and friendly ten possible . Most of them , they said had little or nothi beyond their pay to live upon ; they could not retu hospitality in the same style-that they knew it would offered to them , and they felt - certain that English pi

      cers would understand their scruples , and not press the to accept civilities which some at least among thi number might feel as laying them under the weight an obligation . They would eagerly seize every occ sion to grasp the hand of an English officer , would delighted to join in a promenade and a cigar , but upi the whole thought it best to abstain from entering upi a course of dinner giving . Against such an excuse course no remonstrance could be made , and the . Engli officers merely expressed theirregretthat theycouldn see so much of their comrades in arms as they hi hoped to do . But after the battle of Inkerman t English mess in question had lost their plate and chin

      their cellar , their potted meats , hams , preserves , ai other luxuries , and , owing to commissariat difficult ] but too notorious , found it difficult to procure the me ordinary rations . When these misfortunes became knov in the camp the French deputation of officers renew their visit , and said , with comic good humour" that sin the fortune of war had removed the inequalities whit originally constituted their only objection to an inte change of feeding , they hoped the English officers wou condescend to take pot luck with them . This spirit * invitation was naturally accepted , and the delightf fraternity which prevails between the two services wi thus cemented by another link . "

      A HERO OF THE 49 TH . " I remained uninjured for four or five hours an fired about one hundred shots , almost every one < which told mortally on tho enemy . At some tira they were within fifty yards of us . At last , musket ball passed through the fleshy part of m thigh ; the blood ran profusely . I could not retiri for their artillery was shelling the ground in m rear , and masses of infantry were advancing ; so sat down and tied a lmnkerchicf round my woum during which time our artillery ran out of ammun : tion , and the enemy quickened their advance , loaded my riflo and picked up a patent revolvei

      dropped by a wounded officer , when , just about te yards from me , there were four Russian soldiers an an officer creeping through the brushwood an massacreing all tho wounded that they came acrosi Fortunately there was only one of them loaded , as soon found out by his placing his thumb on the loc of his firelock . Crack went my rifle , and down h fell . One of the others noticing this came runnin up with his bayonet fixed , followed by the other tw < I saw plainly that I would , havo no chance with th whole , so I threw my firelock at the foremost like i lance , and stuck the bayonet through his heart , had three still to contend with , one of which wa loading , which I had no chance to do . I took thii

      Untitled Article

      THE LEAPER . [ Sajuk 3 d > at , ¦ ' ^ ' ¦ ¦ , - ¦" . .. ¦ ¦ ¦ ' ' ¦ - ¦ —— - ^^ B ^^ Mi ^ M ^^^^^^^^—— .- : ¦ , , e -

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Jan. 6, 1855, page 4, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/vm2-ncseproduct2072/page/4/