The Sun.
London, England, 1855-01-18 00:00:00

LETTERS FROM THE CRIMEA.

(PROM A CAVALRY OFFICZB.)
Camp Heights of Balaklava, Dec. 29.
I am sorry to tell you there is an immense amount
of dissatisfaction and discontent among the troops en-
gaged at the Balaklava battle that there is no " Bala-
Mava clasp" named,illma and lekerman being the only
two mentioned in General Orders. We had an army in
our front big enough to eat us up, all in order to ad-
'mice, and which was advancing upon us, skirmishers
in front, until they witnessed the result of their cavalry
charge. It was a most important action, for, if the
enemy had succeeded in their attack, our army would
have been hashed altogether, its base being cut off. But
because some Turks ran away, and blunders were made
subsequent to the repulse, surely it is hard that those
who shared in causing that repulse, and who participated
in the unparalleled gallantry which, unhappily, resulted
from those blunders, should be debarred from what all
join in decreeing as justly their due. I see, too, in a
speech made by Mr. Sidney Herbert, Secretary at War,
the following :—" During the present campaign, three
most important battles have been fought,"—why then
give a bar but for two ? It is also suggested, with
some grumbling at the omission, that we Balaklavians
are also entitled to the Inkerraan clasp, inasmuch as
we had a strong body (three tines oar number) of that
same Russian army which attacked at Inkernan,
in our front—all under arms, with cavalry
and skirmishers in front—allasion to which you will
have eeen both in English and Russian despatches ; in the
latter its purpose being declared "to keep the detach-
ments at Balaklava in check, so that we could not
move to the front, or detach any of our troops
bare." Our batteries opened fire upon them, causing
their cavalry to recede, and we were under arms during
the whole period of the batttle,the whole of which, it
is considered, most strictly entitles us to the clasp. Other-
wise, why did the reserve at Waterloo get the medal for?
why will the cavalry have the Alma clasp ? or the Third
Division that of Alma either ? Surely, when it is known
in England that so much dissatisfaction is caused among
those who daily look upon the enemy, and may at any
hour be again engaged with them, these things will be
rectified.

(PROBE A DRAGOON.)
Scutari Hospital, Deo. 11.
Ny dear Brother,--You can't think what delight I
felt in this miserable place to receive your most kind
letter. lam glad you did not see at first whether I was
wounded slightly or severely. I dare say by this time
you have seen that I have been wounded severely. I
must now tell you the nature of my wound. It was a
canister shot through between the two bones of the lower
part of the left leg, about six inches above the ankle ;
one of the bones was quite was quite shattered, and am-
putation found to be necessary. It was taken off on
the field, or at least in a temporary hospital we had in
Balaklava. I was sent aboard ship that evening, and
steamed down here in a couple of days. It would have
been a good job for me if I could have been disembarked
next day, but the weather came on rough, and only the
slightly wounded could Move. I lay between decks in
that steamer for 10 days. You could not get any attend-
ance, and the rain came through the deck above, and re-
gularly maturated you ; the consequence of which was that
by the time I got ashore my leg had taken an unfavour-
able turn, and I have since had a very bad bout with it,
but now the doctors say it has taken a favourable turn
again. I think so myself, and thank God for it. My
leg is cut off very long, about a foot below the knee, so
that if I can get on all right I can have a cork leg ; and
having both my arms I can earn a good livelihood yet.
The battle of Balaklava was certainly a disastrous af-
fair for the poor Light Cavalry. The cowardly conduct
of the Turks, in the first instance, made a great odds to
us all through the day, the Russians have such play at
us from our own redoubts and using our own shot and
shell. However, our Marine Artillery, with a tremen-
dous range, with some ships' guns which they had planted
on the heights close above Balaklava harbour, soon re-
gularly shelled them out of the redoubts. They now
made a bold stroke for it, in their way, and came over
the hill with most of their army, including a great many
cavalry. The first thing they did (a large cloud of Cos-
sacks) was to charge about three companies of the 93d
Highlanders, who, however, gave them such a warm re-
ception that they turned to the right about pretty sharp.
Our heavy dragoons, first the Scots Greys and Ennis-
killens, charged slap at the whole front of the cavalry,
with the infantry in rear. They went down at first like
reeds before our Heavies, but as there was only about one
bonnie Grey or bold Enniskillen to so many Russians they
began to outflank them, when the rest of the Heavy Bri-
gade charged and drove them back like a flock of sheep.
The Light Brigade was ordered to the pursuit , we and
the 4th Light were on the extreme left flank, covering
a troop of Horse Artillery, to keep back a division of
them who were trying to outflank us in that direction-
After their artillery and ours had battered away at each
other for sone time, the balls coming hat and strong
through the coverers, a French battery of heavy metal
opened on them from the rear of the Sebastopol heights,
drove them back, and we could see the Chasseurs
d'Afrique coming down at a gallop. It wasjust about
this time that we got the order to pursue, so off we went
to the rear afterthe retiringparty • we had to get through
a vineyard over a mud wall and ditch, and there were a
good many " downers" and some fun. When we got
through we went tearing up the hill after them. The
Heavies were close on their rear. The Lancers and
others of the Lights were closing on them, and we were
coming up at a good pace and nearly into them, when
they got over the hills beyond the redoubts, into their
stronghold in the valley, when they brcught their guns
to bear upon us. We retired out of range, and sat
fronting them, when they formed as nice a trap as could
possibly have been, and which nobody but a blind man
could have missed seeing. They planted guns on the
hills right and left of the valley, and all their field pieces
at the end right facing us. I believe Captain Nolan was
sent to reconnoitre the hills on each side. Whatever re-
port he took to Lord Raglan we know not, but I expect
he reported they were all clear, as he came back with an
order to Lord Lucan for the Light Brigade to charge
and take the field guns, and the ammunition and guns
taken from the Turks. Lord Lucan asked if Lord Rag-
lan was aware of the enemy's position ? "There is the
order, and there is the enemy," Nolan is reported to
have said. Lord Cardigan then got the order as given,
and gave the order for the brigade to advance in two
lines—first the 17th, 18th, and 13th, second the 11th
and 4th. Off we went tearing towards destruction. The
round shot came first, killing many a poor fellow. One
most wonderfully came past my shoulder, striking my
rear-rank man right in the chest. Onward we went. I
could see the shells bunting over our heads and hear the
grape and canister hissing through us. The cross fire
was murderous—a square of infantry and guns with
grape and canister pelting through us and shelling from
the opposite heights. But I felt or feared nothing—a
sort of wildness came over me, and I seemed to care not
where I went or what I did. Onward still. The first
line had retired, the guns were silenced, and, retiring
behind a large hord of Cossacks, they formed a front,
but would not stand our charge, but galloped through
guns and everything. We cut down the guimers and
literally took the whole lot. The Cossacks came out
by twos and threes, and kept firing away at us from
their long pieces, annoying us dreadfully. We looked
anxiously round for a support, when we perceived
what we considered the 17th Lancers a good distance in
the rear of us "Hurra, my boys," sung out our
brave Colonel Douglas, "let's give them anothercharge;
the 17th will be up then, aid we'll take guns home with
us." " Come on, lads," said Lord George Paget, his
gallant brother-in-law, Colonel ofihe 4th Lights. I found
myself as excited as possible, singing out, " Come on
boys;" anything is preferable to sitting quietly aid
being shot at. At last some one gave the alarm that it
was a large body of Russian Lancers, formed up to cut
off our retreat. "There's no help for it," said Lord
George Paget, "we must retire, and cut our way
through them as well as we can." We went threes
about, and went calmly to the rear. They did not at-
tempt to cross our front, but attacked our right flank
and rear. I was pretty near the right flank, and of course
retiring in the rear rank ; I had allowed my horse to
flag a little, when one of the gentlemen came on to at-
tack me with his lance at a slanting positien, and was
making a poke for my back ' • I wheeled round in the
saddle, parried his lance, and gave him a second rear
point to the left of his right shoulder, which I expect
will spoil his lancing for some time. I was quite chuck-
ling to myself over this affair, when we came to the
horrid cross fire again. I had not gone far through till
I got a rap in the leg as if from a sledge hammer. I
looked down and saw the blood gushing from a good-
sized hole. " Now then, old horse"—he had carried me
well through the campaign—"save my life now !" (I
had seen all over the field four or five Cossacks spiking
any poor fellow who was down.) I kept the right spur at
work, and galloped a mile er more, when I began to get
quite blind and faint ; I saw dimly a ten tchum, I hailed
to lend a hand, he heard m eandcame gllpi
stopped me the first thing, and aopng, he
out of his water-bottle ; that avrevivede me
a good drink
me, and I just got
to where the regiment was forming and old Cardigan
was sitting, with the tears almost inouhrisf=awlen he
saw his smart brigade so cat up ;
him, when he said, " You must not think, men, thisosFed
one of my mad-brained a3tions ; I would have givei al is
anything rather than it had happened." I movednat
ward and asked to be taken to the rear ; I was hurried"
off to the doctor (the assistant), who had a lot of our
officers and men in the nice green ditch of a vineyard,
where we could lie up the slope ; I had lest a tremend-
ous deal of blood, and one of the officers gave me a good
swig of brandrout of his flask. The doctor stopped the
bleeding, and we had to wait some time for the ambul-
ance, which came at last and took us off to the hospital,
and you know the rest. Give my love to all cur family ;
break this affair very gently to my mother, and tell her
I shall write in a day or two, but it is a great exertion;
and now, dear —, hoping and trusting that God
will allow me to see you all again, believe me your most
affectionate brother.

(FROM A STA 77 OFFICIIR.)
December
I have just been looking over the papers from Eng-
land, and am glad to see the kindly feeling expressed
by all classes towards tire
rmy,
pride our countrymen take ina our and particularly the
conduct at the fierce
fight of Inkerman. Great and just praise is given to
the brigade of Guards, the Second and Light divisions,
but the Fourth appears to have no trumpeter, though
surely no divNion more fairly earned it. Their number
kil
led
and the action amounted to only 2,225, their loss in
and wounded to 750 ; of these two generals, four lieu-
tenant-colonels, three majors, and ten officers of inferior
raik were killed, and 30 officers wounded. Inkerman
vas " the soldiers' victory ;" to them and the regimental
officers all the praise was dm>. The superior officers
c' ttld do no more than they did—fight and fall with
3/4 hem.

The nature of the attack and of the grQUAd presented

manoeuvring, and luckily compelled us to fight a la cle-
bandade, and as the enemy adhered to the column sys-
tem of attack, throwing out about an eighth of his men
as skirmishers, we were enabled, notwithstanding our
small force, to have as many muskets at work as he, and
ultimately, with the aid of our good allies, he was, in
spite of rum and superstition, driven down the hill.
It is most delightful to see the way in which the peo-
ple in England subscribe to alleviate the hardships and
sufferings of this army, but it is more heartrending to
know that, until the means for and the management of
the transports from Balaklava are improved, all their
money and good-will will be unavailing. I know not
where the blame rests (at any rate, I do not choose to
express my opinion), but I must say that matters con-
nected with this department are not only badly, but
wickedly managed, and, what is worse, no suggestions
are ever listened to. No time seems to improve them.
With the commonest method and forethought, this
army might be happy, healthy, and comfortable—for,
hitherto at any rate, the climate has not been so bad,
considering it is winter—but the men are over-worked,
wet, ill-fed, and without sufficient time to get fuel. This
arises from our having undertaken to do too much as
to the siege, and too little as to the commissariat trans-
port. At Balaklava there is everything, in the camp
nothing, or but little, and that little has constantly to
be fetched by sending men, just out of the trenches,
twelve miles through nine inches deep of mud and
mire, and keeping them standing or sitting in it for
hours until they can get what is to be given to them.
It would be well not to publish the fine statements of
arrangements for the sick as to comforts and conveyance,
until the plans are not only proposed but executed.
After the fine article I saw in the Times some months
ago, what would they think if I told them, that the only
bed for weeks in the hospitals in camp was an inch and
a half in mud, the only transport a springless artillery
waggon, or a worse araba f After the French have lent
us aid we are now employing the cavalry horses to con-
vey the men on hoard ship, poor fellows, who can't stand,
and possibly have never ridden, are hoisted on half-
starved horses, and thus conveyed. The French, on the
contrary, do well, they are organised for war—we for
nothing ; the result is that out of an army employed in
the East of 44,000 men, we cannot produce above 22,000
under arms, and those not half fit to fight, and the whole
in such a state of dirt and apparent disorder that no one
would take them to be English soldiers. Still there is
no gruMbling, no real discontent ; and new clothing,
good food, and 10 days' rest, with warmth, would, I am
convinced, make them a match (as to fighting) for the
like number of any troops in the world. The manage-
ment here, I repeat, has been wretched, disgraceful ;
and I hope if Sebastopol be ever taken, some sound head
and strong hand will be sent here to put matters to
rights, if we are to continue the war. It will not be a
very easy matter, but it must be done, and there are
men that could do it if they would but look about them
at home, and not adhere to all their old trumpery notions.
I was always against coming here, and in favour of
Odessa. As we did come, however, I believe with more
activity we should most gloriously have succeeded. We
took the bull by the horns at Alma, flung him, and then
would not keep him down ; but after all we mighi have
taken the town by assault on the 28th September, as was
proposed by Cathcart ; but, instead of doing so, we
idled away nearly three weeks in smoking pipes, and
then, when we opened our batteries, we found the long
range a perfect failure. Sir J. Burgoyne, I think, has
conducted the siege very badly, but I shall be told, of
course, that lam wrong. They are, I believe, getting
up immense quantities of ammunition now, and intend
opening at the same range ; this, you will see, will be
another failure. The town can only be taken by vast
labour, time, sickness, and expense, or by assault. I
am for the last, or, if not that, an attack upon the
enemy outside, and then to entirely invest it. The only
difficulty to overcome in this is that cursed " transport."
I suppose the commissaries would expire if they were
told that they were to convey provisions 15 miles in-
stead of six.

I can't help thinking that ere many days we shall
make a move of some kind, and the sooner the better.
This division, which this day week had only 3,500
men under arms (out of 6,000), has now 372 less, that
being the loss in seven days front death and sick ab-
sence. Why won't the Times try and touch up a system
that produces such results? Its remarks about staff offi-
cers are excellent, and, although a staff-officer myself, I
quite agree with them. They have often really difficult
things to do and hard duty to perform ; if they do both
well, let them have their reward, but for merely convey-
ing an order with propriety why should they be men-
tioned I The Duke of Newcastle's letter is excellent ;
praise deserved and handsomely bestowed must be gra-
tifying to all men, and good hearts must feel satisfaction
at mention being made of their comrades now in the
grave. But men fight not for praise alone, and surely
it is rather hard, after going through the miseries of
wet, cold, and cholera, without any "sweet or dry" to
help one—after having had a fair allowance of shot and
shell, to say nothing of sword and bayonet—to be re-
quired to have a good constitution for years to come,
that one may reach "the lean and slippered pantaloon"
period of existence before getting a reward. I under-
stand that officers are coming out from England to take
all the plums out of the pudding, and that we are not to
have any of the prizes of that lottery in which we took
a ticket. There is, however, no use in grumbling, so I
shall roll myself up in my blanket, congratulate myself
upon the many cheerful fires that are blazing in the cot-
tages of Old England, wish you and all my 'countrymen
a merry Christmas, and then fall asleep as comfortably
as these constant cannon shots will allow me upon these
Heights above Sebastopol.

The following is an extract from a letter from an
officer of Light Dragoons who survived the sanguinary
Balaklava char ge

" We are sending in our claims for the Crimea medal.
Mine appears with Alma and Inkerman. I wish I could
add Balaklava. We all consider it a great grievance
that we are to get nothing for our charge on the 25th
of October, I confess I think it is too bad.' Oar Allies
are astonished. They said to an officer of the Bth, a
day or two ago—` fwe had made such a charge as
that, every officer and man who came out would have
been decorated.' Lord Raglan said that it was made
under a misconception. What have the officers and
men to do with that I They were ordered to charge
the Russian guns, and most gallantly did they obey the
order."

BALMoaAL.—Balmoral is in Aberdeenshire, and on
the Dee : it is near Abergeldie and Braemar, and was
formerly the seat of the Earl of Fife. It is in the heart
of a most romantic and mountainous country :
" The circling hills all black and wild
Are o'er its slumbers darkly piled."

It is baeked to the south by the hills whereon the father
of young Norval fed his flocks,--the granite Grampians,
with their frightful precipices, yawning chasms, and
rushing torrents ; while to the west tower up some of
the loftiest and most picturesque mountains in the king-
dom,—Ben Muick Dhui, Cairntoul, and Cairngorm,—
the mountain of crystals. Amongst these are to be
found scenery of the grandest description, views varying
in character, from the wild sublimity of utter barrenness
to the mild beauty of smiling streams and richly-wooded
heights,. including—

"A stately progeny of pines,
With all their floating foliage richly robed."

Abergeldie has an old castle; at Braemar a cairn points
out the spot where clansmen were summoned to attend
by "fell cross of blood and brand ;" and in Lumphanan
a mound marks where fell Macbeth, notwithstanding
Holinshed and Shakspere (because of Holinshed) give
the "honour" to Dunsinane. Aberdeen, the city of
"Bon accord," the birth-place of Scottish learning, and
of Gibbs, the architect, by the way, is about forty-five
miles off to the north-east. The estate'• itself includes a
ruin and a loch,—loch Muick,—and stretches as far as
"dark Loch-na-Garr," made famous by Byron, who
spent some of the early part of his life near it, and after-
wards sang—
" Years have roll'd on, Loch-na-Garr, since I left you :
Years must elapse ere I tread you again :
Nature of verdare and flowers has bereft you;
Yet still are you dearer than Albion's plain.
England ! thy beauties are tame and domestic
To one who has roved on the mountains afar :
Oh ! for the crags that are wild and majestic,
The steep frowning glories of dark Loch-na-Garr."
The Builder.

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