The Sun.
London, England, 1855-10-22 00:00:00

[PRICE 4D. STAMPED SD•

TEE CAPTURE OF TAMAN.

The following spirited letter is from the pen of a
young officer engaged in the expedition to Taman:
" Taman Fort, Asia, Sept. 28.
" Here we are at Taman, pulling the place to
pieces as fast as we can ; but 1 must begin, and tell
you the whole of our proceedings.
" On Monday morning last we left Kertch in the
Minna, about 250 strong—viz., S—'s, L—'s,
and P—'s companies, each about 80 strong, the
officers being Major H-- (in command), Captains
L---- and P—, Lieutenants W— (in charge
of S—'s company, as S— was slightly unwell,
and I was thought too young a soldier), S—,
M—, and O'M-- ; we had also with us about
350 French, six English, and one dozen French
dragoons, voila tow.' The French came across
in their own gun-boats, and we in the Minna, a
Danube boat that is employed hero as a despatch
boat; she only draws four feet of water, with 1,000
men on board. I dare say you remember hearing
her spoken of when the troops were being landed
last year at Kalamita Bay; there are two of them,
sister boats (the Minna and the Brenda). All the
gun-boats, French and English, came with us—
altogether 15 boats. We came across rather slowly
in two long lines, the French on the left—the
English on the right. We first went to the ships
lying off Fort Paul, and there saw the Trent.
which had just come in with our draught from the
front ; our men cheered them as we passed ; we
then turned and went straight across, but, as we
went slowly, did not do the distance (about 12
miles) until near noon. As we came across we
saw the Cossacks looking at us from the hills, and
leaving the village, but the gun-boats did not fire
at first ; we turned when we came across, and
passed along in front of the village, a long strag-
gling one, on the top.of a cliff. Here some of the
French boats anchored, and just as we were pass-
ing them ' whiz' went the first shell, but a
regular Oh—oh—oh V from the men, like you
hear iu the theatre when the curtain won't draw
up or something goes wrong, told that it was a
bad shot. We saw it strike the top of the cliff.
The next time there was a buzz of approbation
as a large hole appeared in the middle of one of
the largest houses. The other English and
French boats then took it up from right to left,
and one might have imagined an action was going
on, except that it was all on one side. The in-
habitants were by this time all away, but several
Cossacks were to be seen in all directions. The
Minna and the English boats went on till they
came opposite the old fort, about half-a-mile
from the village, and there we got into large
flats to be landed, but though they draw hardly
any water, it was so shallow that we had to jump
out and wade ashore. We then formed up on the
top of the cliff, to wait for the cavalry, &c. Just
before landing, from the paddle-box of the Minna
we saw a large party of Cossacks, dismounted,
making their appearance out of a ravine. As soon
as they made their appearance the gun-boats began
shelling them, and the second shell burst right in
the middle of them, sending them in all directions,
but not, that we could see, wounding any of them;
one on horseback, apparently an officer, remained
very coolly between us and the main body till we
were going to land, when he cantered off. Some
few Cossacks came down from the hills (about three
miles off), and remained looking at us about a quar-
ter of a mile off, till the 6th Dragoons appeared,
which not liking, they went away. About half-
past 1 p.m. we marched in and took possession of
the old grass-grown fort, which appears to have once
been very strong towards the land, but has now
no guns. All the outworks have nearly crumbled
away, but the main ditch is tremendously deep, and
by getting up a couple of French and one English
small ship guns the place was as strong a position
as one could wish to have. We found the houses
inside nearly all Government buildings, containing
all sorts of things. We divided the place with the
French, they having the largest share, and pro-
ceeded to break open the different buildings. The
most valuable things found were four hay-pressing
machines of very great value ; we got two each,
and they are now being removed on board ship—
no easy operation, from their tremendous size ;
lots of old knapsacks, canteens, Russian clothing,
some medical books, &c. But everything that
could be of use and could be removed had evi-
dently been carefully taken away. We all took
up our quarters in the houses, where we are now,
and will be, I suppose, till it comes to their turn
to be pulled down, when we shall have to move
into tents.

" The men of the different companies were put
into houses near the places they were meant to de-
fend, and the officers went into three small houses
in rear—perhaps Russian officers' quarters. I went
into the house with P-----, W--, and ;
we got one big room (in which W— and S—
sleep) to mess in, and P— has a room off
at one side, and I a small one at the other, with a
stove, in which yesterday and the day before we
had a fire ; but it is not so cold to-day. I got out
of one of the stores two tables for our messroom,
and one for my own room, also a chair and a small
green bedstead, like one I used to have at school (of
these there were a large quantity), and with a hay
mattress and my blankets, &c., on top, the room is
as comfortable as possible. (All the kit 1 brought
was a change in a little portmanteau.) After some
difficulty we got our dinner (Turkey and ham),
which some one had brought with him, and I went
to bed about 9 p.m., rather expecting to be turned
out. Our sentries were posted all round on the
ramparts, but a picket was not thought necessary.
The men of course lay down loaded and with ac-
coutrements on. About 4 a.m. I was awoke by
loud ' pop-popping' unpleasantly near, so I jumped
up and got my clothes on, and on going out found
the men all out, lining the top of the ramparts,
and those all about the field gun keeping up a
sharp fire ; but I could see nothing of the enemy.
However, it seems the Cossacks crept down a
ravine and fired a volley of six or eight
rifles at the sentry near our guu, a
sailor, and hit him in the foot (not a bad
wound) ; the other sentries fired, the men turned
out and fired too, and so on, though most of them,
I fear, were only firing because the others fired
The Cossacks, however, did not show themselves
again ; so, after leaving a party at ono point where
we thought a rush might be made, we all turned in
again.
" Nothing more happened that night, and in the
morning at it we went tooth and nail, tearing down
the roofs, up the flooring, and heaping up anything
in the shape of wood near the cliff ready to be car-
ried away. I went with a party to make a jetty to
put the wood into the boats, which I was trying to
make a neat job of. It was made with bedsteads
principally, but afterwards, much to my disgust, a
breeze coming on in the afternoon, the end part of
it was carried away. The working parties went on
all day nearly, and, among other things, barricaded
the opening in the rampart.
" The Cossacks kept about the village of Taman as
near as they could without being seen, for the
moment they appeared whizz went a shell from a
gunboat. The French, however, were all through
the place (taking their firelocks with them, as they
always do). I went intc the village in the evening
to try and get some grub, as the French were
shooting pigs and catching fowls right and left. I
found everything gone—not as if taken by the
French, but removed by the people ; indeed, a
letter found here from a Russian to his wife, said,
You had better move and take everything with
you, as I soon expect the gunboats over here.
Soon after getting into the village I saw a most
ludicrous pig hunt. I heard a shot fired, fol-
lowed by the furious squealing of a pig, 5° I
rushed on with my servant (whom I had taken
_
with me, with his musket) ; before I caie p
the French, I heard pop, popping, in all
ed life,
direc-
tions, but the pig seemed to have a charmstanding
and was only wounded. I came up to hi
imand took
at bay in the middle of a pool of
a deliberate shot with my revolv7seraitereut missed
revolver,
him. I
him. My servant then fired and
but
fell flat on nay
but
into the mid--
rushed on to get another shot,
pig then
face in the mud. The
who all fired one after the
dle of the French again,
and firing. .a.s usual without
other, missing him,
what 40rection, so that one
caring the least in
`ping'
hoard the not very pleasant.of the Minie
directions (I
balls going in all think one servant
who went in, of ours, got scratch on the
hand from a slug out,
of a slight
one of their pieces.) Well,
the undaunted pig rushed on, followed by the
French, stabbing at him with their bayonets and
cutlasses,
and
falling over on their faces afterwards.
You never saw such a scene ; at last, in doubling
back, some one again wounded him, and imme-
diately about 20 sailors' 'cutlasses and soldiers'
bayonets were dashed into him. As they carried
him past in. triumph, he looked more like a pin-
cushion than any thing else. On Tuesday night
we had another alarm, but I do not think there
were more than one or two Cossacks, and wo saw
nothing more of them; by the way, the first day
after they had gone about two miles, as I suppose
they thought out of the range of our guns, they
collected on the hills about three miles off, to watch
our Noceeding*, when, after a little time takezi iu