The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1886-12-25
VICTORIA'S GODSONS.
Two Turkish Babes Brought
Home from the Crimea.

During the Crlmean war there oc-
Cured an incident which resulted,
strangely enough. in the adoption by
her Majesty Queen Victoria of two lit
tie boys.
The Russian army does not contain
any drawer soldiers than the Cossacks,
free, hght-mountei warriors; but, I'M
fortunately. their bravery is not tenn
pered with mercy. They are cruel.
fierce and predatory, and village
through which they have swept during
war time remains a blackened ruin
strewn with the dead bodies of old
and young-men, women and chill
dren. Like our red Indians, they
slaughter all and spare none.
During their victorious march
through the Crimea the allied troops
OF England. France, Sardinia and Tur-
key had ample proof of the cold-blood-
ed nature of the CoSsackS. Their mode
OF fighting consists of wild, sudden
sortie on the enemy. and Their retreat
is as sudden As their bold descent
which is often male on Some unoffend-
ing town, which they sack and pillage
without remorse. during the autumn
of 1854 storming party of English
men drove band of Cossacks from a
Turkish town they were plundering
and burning. The British force con-
sisted of the crew of II. NJ. S. Fire
brand. under Sir HYDE Parker, the
commander of that ship. During the
brief engagement he fell mortally
wounded near the ruins of the resi-
dence of the mukhtar, or mayor, of the
town. A few of his men gathered
around him, among them the chaplain
of his ship, and they were startled by .
strange sound--strange, indeed, amid
such a scene-the faint cry of a young
infant.
A search was made among the still
smoldering ruins, while the surgeon of
the Firebrand attended to the wants of
his dying commander, and a sad sight
met the eyes of the searchers yes,
brought tears to those eyes; for, rough
tars though the men were, they could
not fail to be touched by the terrible
sight of woman dead body stretched
upon the floor of the corridor of the
mansion, where she lay with child's
form clasped in either arm.
By her dress she was evidently the
wife of the mukhtar, who had persisted
with his men in the vain attempt to de-
fend his home. The devoted mother
had sought safety in fight, but the
cruel assassins had struck her down at
the very door. The children were both
living, though wounded and bleeding.
and the sailors drew them gently from
the clinging arms of their dead mother
and removed their blood-stained gar
ments. A fountain played near by,
and in its cooling flood the little weep
ing survivors of the massacre were
bathed right tenderly, and then the pit
iful discovery was made that through
each tiny right arm cruel bullet had
plowed its way. The naked infants
were borne to the side of the dying
man. who turned his eye on them, los
ing sight of his own suffering in theirs.
Wrap them in the flag" he whis-
pered, family.
This was done.
"Baptize them said Sir Hyde.
by what namesP' asked the chap
lain.
AFTER our good ship-John and
George Firebrand.
The solemn rite was soon over, and
the Captain, whose life blood was ebb-
ing, beckoned the chaplain to stoop
near. He did so to catch the parting
words: "If they live. take them home
to the Queen, God bless her, and tell
her died for my country, and left
them to her care: that the only cloth
ing they have is the British flag"
The brave commander passed away
a moment later. and then his men
sought for some means of carrying out
his last request.
TWAS no easy matter. The eldest
child was boy of some two years, but
the other was but six months. What
was to be done with him. The sur
geon came forward with a suggestion
which was at once adopted. A goat
was procured and taken on board the
ship along with the unexpected addi-
tons to her crew.
ANY mother whose eyes rested on
the wardrobes hastily improvised from
such materials as were at hand for the
two infants thus strangely thrown on
Vic VI VIC WoulO
have smiled through tears, but in spite
of the incongruous surroundings the
little Turks throve at sea John, the
eldest, was an easy-tempered, winning
little fellow, who laughed readily ON
all occasions and bore with the cour-
age of man the surgeons necessary
though painful attentions. His face
was completely filled with CRIME and
powder burns, and remained deeply
Scared for life. and the bullet wound
in his right arm had severed the mus
cles and rendered it well-nigh useless
George. on the contrary, was of diff
ferent nature, and the wooden walls"
of the Firebrand often echoed the shrill
cries of an angry infant while some
stout tar paced the deck with him and
endeayored to sing lullaby to such
odd words as: my name is Tom
Tough, I've seen little sarvioe where
the ragin' pillows roll and the tenn
pests roar"
At length the chalk cliffs of old En-
gland came in sight. and the children
were taken to London to be delivered
up to the Queen. They were received
at Buckingham palace, and John dim
ly remembered the scene when some
months later the legal adoption papers
were signed.
He SAID: 1T was a very large room,
and George and l were placed at
table on high chairs with plates of
cake. George cried all the time, and
his nurse could not get him to keep
quiet, but saw a lot of gentlemen in
red coats come in, and lady in blue
dress She kissed us and cried little
and wrote on some papers"
At this time to the name of " Fire
brand was added Hyde, Is her
Majesty said, in remembrance of the
gallant man who had bequeathed the
waits of war and rapine to her mother
ly care. Besides" she remarked,
laughingly, "Firebrand seems so ridic-
ulous. ! could never mention it with
out laughing. "
After years of careful training the
two boys, as seemed fitting, entered
the roval navy, but not as executives,
for neither right arm had ever devel-
oped, on account of the injury sus-
tanned in childhood. To each Fire
brand aposition was assigned as sec
Rotary to the commander of ship. and
John, when the writer became &C
qualnted with him, was acting in that
capacity to Rear Admiral Campbell,
on the flag ship Narcissus of the flying
squadron. He was then gay young
man. some twenty-six years of age, and
unlike an Englishman in appearance,
but singularly like one in heart
He never wearied of telling stories
of the Queen and royal family, to whom
he was warmly attached; his home had