Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1854-10-28

lnquish the command of the army. / saw him on the
10TH when ne was suffering very much and he felt it his
duty to resign the next morning view his retirement
with deep concern having always found in him every dis
position to act in concert with He has become
much WORSE and is fear in very precarious state
Fortunately he is succeeded by officer of high repu-
tation, Gen. Canrobert with whom am satisfied shall
have great pleasure in acting and who is equally
Of maintaining the most friendly relations with me.
have, SO. RAGLAN
His Grace the DUKE OF NEWCASTLE, Sc.
THE BATTLE OF THE ALMA
The following more particular account Of the
battle of the Alma is condensed from the volumi-
nous and graphic correspondence Of the London
Times:
}tH CAMP THE ALMA, SEPT 20.
Pressed by me and excited by the of this most
memorable day, despair giving the fantest conception
Of the terrible conflict which has just been terminated
with the greatest honor to arms, and shall confne
myself for the present to simple narrative of the incl
dents Of which was an eyewitness.
On the morning of the 10th, ere daybreak the whole
Of the British force under They were mar
shallcd silently bugles drums broke the Stiffness
but the hum Of thousands Of voices loudly from the
ranks and the watchres lighted up the lines camp
as though it were great town. When dawn broke it
discovered that the Russians had retired from the
heights but had left their campfres burning The troops
lay their arms for about hour while the generals
were arranging the order of our advance.
Lord Raglan had made his dispositions the previous
evening" and the Generals of Division Sir George Brown
Sir De Lacy Evans, Sir r. England and Sir G. Cathcart
aided by their Brigadiers General went from colonel to
colonel of each regiment under their command giving
them instructions with respect the arrangement Of
their men in the coming struggle Early in the morning
the troops ordered to get in readiness and half
past six o'clock they in motion. 1t was lovely
day; the heat OF the tempered by breeze
The feet visible at distance of four miles, covering
the ocean as 1t between the hills and we could
make out the steamers right close to the shore
as possible.
The Generals ST. Arnaud Bosquet and Forey attended
by their staH rode along front of the lines with Lord
Raglan and his Generals at second halt and were received
with tremendous cheering
At LOO saw the steamers in shore (French) com
mence throwing shells up to height in 'front.' and the
enemy replied by heavy FIRE but the distance was too
great for any ectual result The action became gene
raj at 45 the part the French and Turks who
rled the heights on the right, which but weakly
protected AT $50 advanced down the slope toward
the valley of the Alma, above which the lines and
redoubts OF the enemy As advanced they fire to
village at the base Of the descent to the valley at our
side, and covered by the SMOKE opened tremendous FIRE
of and l2pounder guns from their earthwork bate
ries Our artillery replied with shot, SHE'LL and rockets
while the men advanced through storm of bullets and
rushed the streamthe light division on the right
the second division next the first division in the CENTRE
and the third supporting them.
Amid tremendous fire. the guards rushed up the hi II
and stormed tho heaviest battery Once they were driven
back, but the Duke rallied them and led them to the
charge in person. Sir George Brown had horse shot
the very thickest of the nstra The Russians threw
spherical shot marked with cross which inflicted terri
BILE wounds and their practice when they got the range
excellent
At the French had moved up solid columns Of in
fantry to the heights right and turned the guns
against the enemy Our struggled through the flames
of the village and through the river under continuous
roll Of artillery At o'clock they charged in three di
visions up the heights The light division suffered fear
fully, particularly the It'll and 23d regiments which Sir
George Brown led in person The 55th, 95h, and 80th
also suffered severely The rifles second battalion though
the first under fire. suffered least of ALL they got over
before the enemy caught the range.
At o'clock the Russians flying in every direc-
ton poughed up by the splendid fire Of guns leav
drums and ammunition The want of cavalry prevented
our getting prisoners capturing greater num-
Der of guns Our loss about 1900 killed and wound
ed including great number of officers Fuller partcu-
lars IN my next This is written the field amid sights
too terrible to mention,
HEIGHrs ABOVE ALMA, SEPT. 81.
The Alma is tortuous little stream which has worked
its way down through red clay SOIL deepening its course
it proceeds seward and which drains the steppeke
lands its right bank, making at times pools and eddies
too deep to be rded though it generally be crossed
by waders who do not fear to wet their knees need
not be said that the high banks formed by the action Of
the stream in cutting through the soil sometimes at
sde sometimes at another according the sweep
the stream. At the place where the bulk of the British
army CROSSED the banks generally at the right sde
and vary from two and three to six eight feet in depth
10 Wnore aItdcKeu Cne DanKS are
generally formed by the UNMARRIED Of the river
the left hand side.
remarkable ridge Of mountains, varying in height
from FIVE hundred to hundred feet runs along the
Of the Alma the left or south side with the
of the stream and assuming the form Of cliffs when
close to the This ridge is marked all along its
by deep gules, which toward the river at various
angles, and serve, doubt to carry off the floods pro-
duced by the rains and the melting of the winter
the hills and table lands above. At the top of the
ridges between the gulies the Russians had erected
earthwork batteries mounted with 32pound and 24lb
brass guns, supported by and how
tzers These guns enaded the tops Of the ravnes pa
rael to them swept them the base while the whole
Of the sides up which enemy unable to stand the di
FIRE Of the batteries would be forced ascend
twogroove rife throwing large solid conical ball with
force at hundred and eight hundred yards the
French learned to their cost.
The principal battery consisted Of earthwork Of the
form Of two sides of Triangle with the apex pointed to-
ward the bridge and the sides covering both sides Of the
stream corresponding with the bend in the river below it,
at the distance o. thousand yards while, with fair
elevation the 49, Founders threw we saw very often,
beyond the houses Of the village the distance Of 400
and 500 yards This constructed on the brow of
the hin about six hundred feet above the river but the
hill behind it for another fifty feet before it dipped
away toward the road The ascent of this hill en6ad
ed by the fire Of three batteries Of earthwo the right
and by another the left and these batteries equal
slopes which led up the hill to their position In the FIRST
battery thirteen 82pounder brass guns Of exquisite
workmanship which told only too we'll In the other bate
ries were some twenty five guns in all was said the
Russians had hundred guns the hills and 10000
40 battaons of infantry 900 strong EACH of the