The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1882-07-27
PEx PICTURES
OF, the Bombnrtiment5 OF Ale1andriI
Courage OF the Egyptians.

vi, tuc commandment OF Alexandria.
Courage Of the Egyptians. /.
n London Telegraph Twenty. -four hours
notice given by tue British !Atlrniralto the
Egyptian, mutineer commandant expired
ut o'clock on Tuesday morning, and by
that hour the dawn gave sufficient light TO
enable the men on, boar 4. the British ships
to see hel'Arnbs ashore grouped Jaround
their guns, and their batteries in full fight.
ing trim. The sight evidently pleased the
sailors, who had feared that at the last
moment the enemy would concede all that
had been demanded, and SO stop an eu.
counter which they were eager 10 begin,
owing to the contemptuous and insupport.
able persistence Of the Egyptians in com.
pleting their Notifications in defiance Of
the British Admiral'so objections. AS early as
4 o'clock in the morning the crews had
gone 'to'quarters,S and every vessel was in
war order, topsallantmas,s and yards in
those thai. carry them on. deck, topmasts
housed, stays and backstays snaked, and
in all readiness for the approaching con-
hicts As the sky frightened in the east
and the sunlight shone broad on the green
waters and on the cleaning sandy isbore,
studded with Arab: :hub and towers, round-
ing into the western, harbor, the scene was
extraordinarily imposing. - The fiat.coast-
line full OF guns, and here and there Gen.
eva or Consul's flag fattering its folds in
the soft, warm air;whilst seaward were the
British men.of-war, huge shapes OF iron
slowly advancing to take up their respect
i've stations, the silence 81 death prevailing
among the masses OF gmotionless men
grouped along the decks. x a q ( &
One thing and another DELAYED the open.
ing signal until chorus OF ships bells
told that it was o'clock; but then the
word was given, and spirit OF red flame
pushed from the Alexandra, the roar OF the
immense piece rolling across the town, and
far into the heart OF the sandy land. This
was but signal; the real thunder OF fight
followed in shotted gun after gun. Do the
Egyptian batteries reply? There. was u
trying interval OF suspense, while every
irouclad is roaring out ner challenge. Diff
cult as it is TO realize, yet in sober truth,
compared to such u cannonade as this,
Trafalgar and St. Vincent, and
the more recent I. Crimean lombard.
ments, were child's play. In Nelson's
time the biggest guns allost were the sixty
eight pound carrenades, and instead OF
Nordenieldts the tops bristled with mus.
kets little, ,betterfhan' 'blunderbussesy The
concussion Of ID single p!oEon y'of ann
eiBhtyI IoleS toni gun iaboardlth6 Inhexible
would have shaken down every bulkhead
in the three-deckers OF the British and
combined fleets off Cadiz. But here, stud.
ding the Ale1andrine waters, were huge
ships swiftly dischargins hard upon eighty
gigantic pieces, the least OF which was
twelve, while the greatest was eighty!one
TONS. * : : ~ :,
The persistence Of the Egyptians; the
determined courage with which they stood
their ground and piled their batteries, in q
very short time awakened the admiration
Of your seamen. 1t was Foon perceived
that had they possessed larger capacity as
altillerists and been better ammunitioned
with shells, then stub bborn, tllek would
favet rendered. them a Z dasserous foe,
They appeaeed to perish resignedlyE under
the terrific fire Of our ironclads. They
worked when they, could with all the cal.
culation their science would admit of, sin.
Cling out certain ships, such as the great
lntlexible, as it4I they hoped 81 their