The Sun.
London, England, 1854-11-24 00:00:00

THE SUNS LONDON, FRIDAY EVENING, NOVEMBER 24, 1854.

the heavy loss of officers. They came into action in uni-
form, and among our grey coated soldiers were censpicuous
marks for the enemy's bullets.

A great deal of mischief was also done by the Russian
ships in the harbour, which threw a perfect shower of
and 10-inch shot and shell among our follows. They con-
tinued this all the night after the battle, though their own
troops were withdrawn, and the shell only fell among their
own killed and wounded. The correspondent of the Illus-
trated London Sews had a narrow escape. Two round
shot passed through his tent, and before he could leave it
they were followed by a large shell which burst the tent,
within two feet of where he was standing. The tent was
literally tern to ribbons by the explosion, yet strange to
say the representative of your pictorial contemporary was
unhurt.

On the evening of the battle I went over the field. All
our wounded hare been removed, and the wounded of our
enemy wero being gathered in. The kindness and attention
of our fellows to their helpless enemies was beyond all
praise. There is nothing so awful as the spectacle of the
bodies of those who have been struck down by round shot
or shell. One poor fellow of the 95th had been struck by
two 24-pounders in the head and body. A shell afterwards
burst on him and tore him to pieces, and it was only by
the fragments of sloth, with the regimental buttons ad-
hering, that you could tell that the bloody mass which
lay in the road had ever been a human being. Some had
their heads taken off at the neck, as with an axe ; others
their legs gone from the hips ; others their arms and others
again who were hit in the chest or stomach, wore literally
as smashed as if they had been crushed in a machine. Pas-
sing up to Sebastopol over heaps of Russian dead, you
eamo to the spot where the Guards had been compelled t•
retire from the defence of the wall above Inkerman
Hero our dead were nearly as numerous as the ene-
my's. Across the path, side by side, lay 5 Guardsmen,
who were all killed by one round shot as they advanced to
charge the enemy. They lay on their faces in the same
attitude, with their muskets tightly grasped in both hands,
and all had the same grim painful frown upon their features
like men who were struck down in the act of closing with

their foes. Beyond this the Russian Guardsmen and line

regiments lay as thick as leaves, intermixed with dead and
wounded horses. The path lay through thick brushwood,
brit the path was slippery witk blood, and the brushwood
was broken down and encirnbereci with the dead. The
scene from the battery was awful—awful beyond &scrip.
tion. I stood upon its parapet at about 9 at night, and
felt my heart sink as I gazed upon the scene of cat-sage
around. Tho moon was at its full, and showed every •b-
-ject as if by the light of day. Facing me was the valley
of Inkerman, with the Tchernaya like a band of silver flow-
ing gracefully between the hills, which, for varied and
picturesque beauty, might vie with any part of the world.
Yet I shall never recall the memory of Inkerinan Valley
with lay but feelings of loathing and horror; for round
the spot from which I surveyed the scene, lay upwards of
5,000 bodies. Many badly wounded also lay there ; and
their low, dull moans of mortal agony struck with terri-
ble distinctness upon the ear, or worse still, the hoarse
gurgling ery and vehement struggles of these who were
convulsed before they passed away. Round the hill small
groups of men with hospital stretchers were searching out
for those wise still survived ; aid others again, with lan-
terns, busily turning over the dead, looking fur the bodies
of officers who were known to be killed, but who had not
boon found. Here also were English women whose hus-
bands had not returned hurrying about with loud lamen- 1
tations, turning the faces of our dead to the moonlight,
and eagerly seeking for what they feared to find. These
latter were far mere to be pitied than the inanimate forms
of those who lay slaughtered around. The ambulances, as
fast as they came up, received their load of sufferers, and
even blankets were employed to convey the wounded to the
rear. Outside the battery the Russians lay two and three
deep. • Inside the place was literally full with bodies of
Russia r. Guardsmen, 55th and 20th.
Seine say as if prepared for burial, and as though hands
of relatives had arranged their mangled limbs, while others
again were in almost startling positions, half standing or
kneeling, ditching their weapons or drawing a cartridge.
Many lay with both their hands extelded towards the sky,
as if to avert a blow •r utter a prayer, while others had a
malignant scowl of mingled fear and hatred as if indeed
they died despairing. The moonlight imparted an aspect
of unnatural paleness to their forms, and as the cold damp
wind swept round the hills and waved the boughs above
their upturned faces the shadows gave a horrible appear-
ance of vitality ; and it seemed as if the dead were laugh-
ing, and about to rise. This was not the case oa one spot
but all over the bl•ody field.
There is no prospect of any fighting for the next month.

ANOTHER ACCOUNT,
(From a Correspondent of the Times.)
Camp before Sebastopol, Nov. 7.

On the sth, about 4 a.m., I heard all the bells in Sebas-
topol ringing, as if for alarm, and at the same time the
discharge of guns from tho town at that hoar was greater
than usual. About 5 a.m. the relieving piokots marched
off, and about 6 30 the pickets which had been relieved
arrived in their tents. They had no sooner deno so (I
speak of those of th4,Second Division, where I was located,
which division occupies the ground close to the field of
battle) when musketry was heard, the pickets of that
division were attacked, and the whole camp got
under arms. The Russians had attackod our position
in great force, as they did on the 2kli. They drove
in the pickets, and get their guns on the same ridge
where they were before ; so before we well knew
that the enemy were so near, the shot and shell dropped
into the tents of the Second Division so fast that, although
the tents were immediately struck, at the end of the action
there was hardly ono that was not more or less damaged,
while some were almost cut into shreds. The Second Divi-
sion marched up to repel the attack, then the Guards, and
finally part of every regiment—except the Third Division,
who were in reserve, and the Highland Brigade, who wore
at Balaklava—were included iu the battle. The French
u
also were extensively engaged, both infantry and artillery.
The Turks did not fire a shot. The battle began before 7,
and was not over until after 3 p.m. Sometimes for a few
minutes cease on both sides,
and
dark and foggy, and the sun could hardly be said to rise
at one titres the fog was so dense that what with that and
the smoke little could be seen except the flashes of the
the
begin firing
againT o withuld
f,
guns. Later in the day the fog cleared off and the day
became bright and fine ; before that the Russians had,
from their immense numbers and numerous and excollen
artillery, nearly won our ridge, but then the aspect of af-
fairs changed, and they were forced to rotire. They ad-
vaneed up to the breastwork and muzzles of our guns ;
those that I saw were almost blow' te pieces. Their artil-
lery practice was excellent. As soon as the battle was
ended I went over the field. Ott our ridge, where were
our batteries, the ground was covered with dead, princi-
pally Russians, their bodies fearfully shattered. They
fought desperately, and at one time were nearly outflank-
ing us and carrying the ridge. One Russian, or rather his
remains, lay on the parapet of the breastwork ; had
it not been for his clothes, he would have dropped to
pieces. He had literally been blown from the muzzle of a
gun while in the act of climbing ever the breastwork. I
then went to the ridge and knoll where our advanced
pickets had been, and whichr were occupied for a time by
the Russian artillery. There there were not so many
bodies, for the Russians had doubtless tarried them off;
but there were gun carriages smashed (the guns had been
carried hack by the Russians), and numbers
of horses
killed and wounded by cannon balls, many disembowelled,
and others horribly mutilated and still alive—some with
one leg shattered, and still standing. I then crossed the
road which runs across the field of action, whore our right
had been. A little in advance is a battery for two guns,
which had been erected for the purpose of silencing a Rus-
sian battery on the other side of the Inkerman Valley.
This having been done, the guns lad been long since re-
moved. Here the fight had keen fiercest, and the sight
exceeds all description. For a great distance the
ground was absolutely covered with dead ; Rua-
sions, Zell/TOR, Frenchmen of the line, English guards.
men and linesmen lay heaped together. Here was the
greatest slaughter, but everywhere where any fighting had
been there was no want of bodies, and I am certain, judg-
ing from three visits to the greund, that for every English-
man or Frenchman there were eight or ten Russians. Tho
wounds were frightful—some wore ripped open with shot
or shell, some had their legs blown off, others were head-
less, and the brains of many had actually dripped out of
the immense holesmade by the Mimic) bullets, leaving the
skull empty,

Forty-eight thousand fresh Russians were engaged.
They had come from Perekop, and wore conveyed in carte
aid accompanied by the Grand Dukes Michael and Nicho-
las. They had marched mit of the town overnight, together
with all the available force there, and lay at the foot of
the hills near our position. The night was dark and rainy
and the morning also, se that they were enabled to ascend
the hills unperceived by our sentries, and by that means
got their guns (about 30) into position before wo could
bring anything to boar upon them. These guns were fol-
lowed infantry so numerous that for some time we had
n
with them. 60,000 Russians were engaged
ochance by
altogether, and their columns swarmed up the hills so that
there appeared to be no end to thorn.

One thing that made both their artillery and oars still
more effective, and the battle more bloody, was that the
experience of the action of the 26th had given the accu-
rate range to both. It was a battle of position, not of
msnscuvre, fur none was required. From first to last it
was hand-to-hand bosh-fighting—regular butchery. The
Russian force encamped in the Valley of Balsklava at one
time threatened to advance, and did make a feint or false
attack on our rear, but, except that, remained nearly sta-
tionary the whole day. In the evening, iu all directionl,
the reports of firelocks wore heard, where tho wounded
horses were beiag shot and put cut of their misery. In
going over the field I found many bottl es which had contained
spirits, and I was informed by the escort in charge of pri-
soners that they all smelt strongly of raki. There is no
doubt that the Russian army was primed with drink for
the attack ; most of our men went into battle without their
breakfasts. Our 10..5s in Generals and other officers has
been great. I do not attempt to name them, as their
naves will appear in the official returns far more aeon.