The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1855-07-19
THE ARAGO's MAILS.
Great Battle Of the Eigthfeenta-Tmcidents

NLoFIesponutncc OF the London N6WB}
HEIGHTS BEFORE SEBAsToPoL, June g.
The original plan OF attack, contemplated a
joint English and French assault of the Malakoff
which. as commanding the Redsn and forming the
grand key to the whole network OF reduubts and
batteries In front OF the place would If TAKEN have
at once rendered the former untenable, and placed
the town and hsrbors al the mercy of the cspiors
For reasons, however, which no body can under
stand, this very sensible and apparently most
practical design WAS abandoned aud the plan was
changed into one of a simultaneous stack upon
tbs two great works-the Mslakof beiog uaderta-
ken by the French and the Redan by on rselves -
The nrst manifest disadv dvantage OF this arrange
moot was the spreading of our forces over a field
OF difficulties near double Ia tx:ept, and enabling
the &c emy to bring vast number of guns into play
against US, which, In the former csse could not
have iDj ured man To vastly enhance the chances
OF failure involved 10 this plan to ourselves, our
whole attacking force including supports and eve-
rybody else, was limited to some tour thoussnd
men; whilst the French, With q much juster sp-
probation of the difficulty, that fell to their share
told of twenty-five thousand.
THE BAD BLUNDER TO BEGIN WITH.
Or our hsndfu, again, large proportion con-
sisted of raw recruits, recently arrived to fill up
the gaps in the regiments selected for the service
regiments which, with two exceptions,
have borne the whole brunt Of our trench fighting
and suffered accordingly. This was done through
no want OF old soldiers, of whom the third and
fourth divisions could have furnished abundance
men who have been kept comparatively idle
whilst their comrades of the Light and Second Di-
visions have been worked like galley slaves. Sir
George Brown, believs, 10 to be thanked tor this
see ction ; anxious be was to gain fresh sures
for lis own command, though he we'll knew the
material OF which SO large a proportion of its
Strength is composed have already mentioned
tba. the 23i regiment had been chosen to lead the
attack, aud that through similar motive OF mista-
ken desire to bring glory to his favorite corps
General Airey was, at the eleventh hour, permit
ted to ssign this place of honor to the 34tha regi
ment which, whether justly or not, enjoys only
moderate reputation amongst the others now In
camp.
FURTHER MISTAKES
Later still in the evening preceding the assault
Sir George discovered that the major commanding
the 23i was still laid up with a wound received In
the attack on the Quarries, and that the senior cap
tain-an officer, by the way, of some 18 years ser
vice-woud have charge OF his corps during the
storming. "lnlposs ible; this will never do" said
the friend of spoplectic neck furniture, "another
regiment, with field officer In command must be
substituted"
A message to this effect was telegrsphed to head
quarters, but Lord Raglan with degree of COM
uon sense which was quite unmiitary, overruled
hisseconds objection, and replied that officer of
Captain IS length of service, be his rank W at
1t might should be quite as fl to lead his regiment
into action, as any field officer in the service and
accordingly J, that no substitution should be made
merely mention these trihes to show the state of
uncerta inty and confusion in which our prepara-
tOns were I'LL almost Win IN an nOuT before the
sauing force marched down towards the scene OF
It's struggle and defeat
REFLExIoN ON PELIssIER.
Then another deviation from the original plan OF
the attack was made, also at the eleventh hour by
General Pellisser, to which both military sense and
common sense agree in attrbutng no small share of
both the French and our owu failure. Though the
bomoardment had been kept up vigorously the
whole OF Sunday, night necessarily compelled
ssckenlng of the allied fire. and during this respite
there was reason to expect that the Russians would
employ themselves in making good the in juries
done to their batteries duriog the day Il was
therefore arranged that at dsybreak on Monday
terrific fire OF shot and shell should be poured into
the Redan and Mslakof, to render as many their
guns possible Incapable of mischief. An hour
or So however, before the combined forces marcia
ed from the camp, the French Commander in
Chief rode over to cur own head quarters and de-
cared that he could not wait tor this preliminary
assault of artillery, as he would have many men
his trenches before the Maiakof that there would
he no cover for them; and, cons tquenty they (and
we) must attack at daybresk at all hazards, and
take the chance of fnding the enemy's guns In the
most favorable condition in which our lombard
M mt and their owners subsequent idleness might
have left them.
DEFEAT PREDICTED.
OF course LORD Raglan complied, though forty-
nine out OF fifty of the subaiterns in his camp
would have toretold the consequences to be ex
pected aud accordingly, after the first streaks
OF sunlight broke over the horizon the doomed
thousands rushed TO defeat and death So little Is
even known OF the details of French operations
here, that can give you few particulars of the at
tack the MalakOff but their plan of assault
appears TO have consisted ia assauipg the work on
botn tiauhs and The front simultaneously, and with
overwhelming enthusiastically tive thousand are
said 10 have been engaged.
THE B9MBABDMENT BEGUN
In just reribution for the disregsrd of their gen
ersl 10 the good to be- expected from short morn
ing's 'sbonbardment, they found the redoubts swarm
Ing with defenders, anu guns bristling from every
embrasure On them, RS on our own men, sh0Uers
of grape and canister ioere poured out, RteralIy
mooing dotcn sohole battaliOns at a time; whilst
from along the whole semiscircuiar line of paape.
the crowd OF rihsmen sent voley after volley into
their digordered ranks, that passed throuah them
like sheet of mouton lead Three times they
gave way, and 6s often rallied but were finally
driven back aftar struggle of some three hours
and a halt, leaving the space between the Mamelon
acd Malakof literally covered with the dead and
dying.
ANAwFUL SCENE.
With our own men, the space 70 be passed over
from our most advanced trenches TO the Redan was
somewhere about seven hundred yards and from
the first moment of their rushing over the psrapet
towards The point of attack, they were met by the
same awful and annihilating storm of canister and
greps. Many fell within the trst dozen yards, aud
thence on 10 some broken grou0d about mdw way In
which the remainder sought cover, the field wac
strewed " ith the slain and wounded An officer
present ia the affair and who was one OF the Jew
who escaped uDpjured, described the fret me as
being perfectly swful-much more severe, he sasu
red me, than that which greeted our men at Alma
where he also fought, and received wound. Few
OF them ever rescued the abanis 10 front of the
work-none, | beisye, ever even saw the deep
dich which protects its approaches.
THE RRPULsE COMPLETE.
have already men ioned the confusion which
characterized the first commencement of our
movement; and coupling this with the murderous
preparations made by the enemy you will be at no
loss to understand that success was most improoa-
Bile. shall presently mention what the Russians
thought of our generalship, as repeated in my own
hearing by one of themselves. During the whole
affair Lord Raglan and Sir G. Brown were en-
sconced within our gun battery but though this
sfDrded good view OF the scene of the str uggie
and the disorder which marked It, for some rea.
scrs unknown to unitiated spectators, they ap.
peared unable to give any eficien, directions for
the correction of our multiplied bunders. When
the sad scene was ended, our men struggled back
by every cafe avenue to the camp, 10 a state OF
dispirited confusion we'll In keeping with the mob
like disorder In which they had been throughout
the assault.
INDIGNATfoN AGAINST THE GENERALS.
know not what may have been the feelings oil
your home public on reading the teleersphic news
OF our defeat-for | presume the scribes at head
quarters made no attempt TO conceal the naked
Tsct that our repulse was neither more nor less
than a defeat-bus here mingled shame and iodig-
nation were general throughout the camp. Off
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