The Worthington advance., 1879-02-13


tachments made every once in while.
"Our camp was little town called
Kitekoi, net very far from Balaklava.
On the morning Of the 25th of October,
1854, happened to be in the Light Br1-
gade. It had been reported that the
Russians were coming down from the
north in considerable force, and the Light
Brigade, at about 2 A. NJ, started out to
reconnoitre. After securing the country
in different directions for many hours we
finally turned toward Balaklava, which
was hell by our forces under the Earl Of
Lucan.
''There were Notifications near Bala-
klava, which had before been held by the
Turks, who were our allies, you remem-
Der. We had got within two miles of
these redoubts when we halted. We
had as vet seen no Turks. nor q sign of
any of our troops stationed at Balak!ava.
We had dismounted, and were chatting
very socially together, not dreaming that
there was any fighting ahead"
"What was your first intimation that
there was fighting ahead9'
'Well, as say, we were standing be-
side our horses, joking and laughing
among ourselves. when we saw a horse.
man coming down iiom the direction of
Balaklava. We paid NO particular atten-
tion, suppos,ng that it didn't concern us,
but vas some messenger going to camp;
and lie did appear going that way, when
he saw our bri eade and bore down upon
us. Old Earl Cardigan, or Jim Crow as
he was called by the soldiers, was at the
front, and the rider, who was Capt. Nolan.
went up and handed Cardigan u slip of
paper. Old JIM gave queer look when
he read it, as if he doubted his eyes.
The Russians, some $4,000 strong, it ap-
peared, had driven the Turks from the
rcdoubts near Balaklava, and were now
in possession. The orders were to retake
them. The old earl turned around to
us after we had jumped into our saddles
and said, pointing towards the redoubts,
Men, we've got to have those guns over
there!' and ordered an advance. W
were then about two miles off. First we
went at walk, then the trot was sounded,
later Il e trumpeter called the canter, and
in this way we moved up the plain to
within about 1880 yards of what was
known as the Turkish redoubt, or French
hill. The charge was now sounded,
and our $40 men moved for
ward at full gallop. The first
few rounds from the Turkish redoubt
showed that the Russians were firing at
random. One discharge would plow up
the ground in front of us-and tell you
it made my hair stand right up--and the
next would 90 over our heads. The
Turkish rcdoubt was on our lett. A We
drew nearer the artillery on Sugar Loaf
hill, to our right, opened on Us, but didn't
do much damage. When We got up to
within about one thousand yards the
twelve-eun battery in the centre OF the
Russian position opened fire, and the first
round dismounted two guns OF orr G
! troops OF horse artillery. Wenow began
to catch it. It literally was cannon to
the right, cannon to the left, and cannon
in 'front.' and the slaughter was frightful
| Whole lines OF men and horses would
be moved down like swaths Of grass by
the fire of those batteries. We kept
ahead just as ever for the centre, end
sabred the gunners that stuck to their
guns. as many Of them did. Some Of the
Russian gunners crawled under their guns,
where we couldn't reach them with our
sabres, but the Seventeenth lancers, who,
of course, could reach them. made it hot
for 'em. The Russians fell back and we
held the guns.
"Just then the heavy brigade came up
! from the right on the other side OF Su-
gar Loaf hill, and, coming around in the
rear of the batteries, they charged the
enemy with success. The other batteries
both ceased firing when We took the II
gun battery in the centre. The heavy
brigade followed up the Russians, and
| we formed ranks again in front Of the
centre battery. There were only 40 of
us left. Earl Cardigan afterwards cried
like child over the loss of his men. Our
engagement lasted, perhaps, twenty-five
minutes, between nine and ten in the
morning, and in that time we lost above
five hundred men,"
"Were you wounded in the famous
! charged"
"Yes; I was hit in nine different places
in my right leg by grape and fragments
of shells, but in the excitement of the
thing didn't know it till tried to get
off my horse after tho fight was over
I found 1 couldn't bulge my right leg
We went back to camp and was taken
to Sculari, where l was in the hospital
one hundred and five days. If the at
tack on those batteries had been delayed
a few hours longer We could have got
them without the horrible slaug hte1
they cost"
';rhe soldiers we'll knew the move was
a blunder, then2"
"Certainlv, but they had nothing to dc
but obey orders. The earl Of Lucan and
the earl OF Cardigan were enemies; they
had quatreled about some women, it was
said. Still, Lucan was in the fight, too
The earl OF Cardigan was good general
and understood what he was about. The
first rounds went over our heads, and he
would order US, after each discharge, tt
move forward all the faster before they
could change the range of their guns
Ofcourse, when we got close they couldn
help but hit u.s.
''You were at Sculari; did ;ou SCI
Florence Nightingale2"
Eyes, l remember seeing her. and Z
attractive face she had, too. The sol
diers thought the world of her and the
other ladies', many OF them OF noble
birth, who did everything they could fol
U.S.,
'>Have you met any survivors of the
charge here IN America2''
"Yes, Judge Hilton's coachman, John
Daily, was in it; he was IN the Eighth
hussars; and Roundsman Mckenzie, Of
the twentv-eighth precinct, New York
city, was in detachment from the Sew
enteenth lancere, but believe there are
only seventeen altogether now living who
were in the Light Brigade that day.
Mr.. Aldridge also served in India, and
was at the relief of Lucknow, at Delhi
Oawnporc and in other engagements.
A Quaint English Custom.
Once in every year the treasury of Lon