Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1889-07-07

gain was struck between the two cockneys.
IN accordance with the terms of which |
paid him a guinea a week, and he sup
piled myself and servant with hearts and
livers.
Our clothing was as insufficient as our
food, and not suited to the rigorous eli
mate of the Crimea. In the winter the
cold was excessive, and our trenches were
often for days mere bitches of mud and
water. All ranks suffered much, accord
ingly, from the want of long boots.
In returning to camp one afternoon |
overlook Northumberland, who had
come from Balaclava to have a glimpse of
Sebastopol. He stopped to inquire the
road, when my eyes soon fastened on the
good warm peajacket and long boots he
wore. felt they were Just what wanted
for trench work. A short bargain made
them mine. We parted thoroughly con-
tented, he with my sovereigns in his
pocket to get back to his ship as best he
could without the coat and boots which /
carried off in triumph.
L have often felt how much owed nv
good health to this chance meeting. and
to my servants contract for offal. | con-
TESS that | never pitied or felt the least
compassion for myself or my brother
ofhcers; all my sympathies were with the
rank and lille, who could not afford to buy
boots or food. Day by day l have seen
the half-feed, poorly-clad private soldier
struggle with feeble limbs to the trenches,
trying above all things for his own credit
as soldier and for the credit of his regi-
nent to keep out of the hospital, and,
what he termed, at his duty" MANY /
have seen return from the trenches to lie
down In their tents, and there die from
actual want of proper sustenance.
Surely their conduct should not remain
unrecorded, for in dying they taught man
lesson that every Notwithstanding bow
should know by heart, all honor be to
their memory, for they fought and en-
dured, knowing well how small were their
chances of any substantial reward. Mill
tary honor and the deepest sense of pride
in doing their duty, and dread lest it
should be thought they in any way shirked
or avoided it, is to the real soldier what
religious faith is to the martyr. For it,
and in its cause, our men died by hundreds
before Sebastopol.
1t is when badness and insufficiencv of
daily food are accompanied by all the mis-
cry, which is added by cold, poor clothing
and exposure to such rain, snow and bitter
wind as we there experienced that YOU find
men die from actual want.
Our doctors said that their most heart
rending duty then was, day by day, to re-
fuse admittance to hospital to those whom
they knew to be seriously i'll and so re-
duced in strength by diarrhea and dysen-
terry as to be really unfit for duty. They
did so because the necessities of our posi-
ton required the services of every man
capable of carrying rifle.
Our numbers were so weakened through
losses In action and the winter hardships
that companies often marched to the
trenches consisting of not more than ten
men each. Indeed, with all the informa-
ton supplied on these heads to the enemy
by our own newspapers, it was often a
wonder to us at the time that the Russians
did not make more frequent sorties.
The march to the trenches was effected
in the dark when possible, so that the ar
rival of the reliefs should not attract the
enemy's attention. During the winter
days our usual work was clearing the
drains and the batteries of mud and water,
filling sandbags for the next nights work,
relaying gun platforms and whatever
could be done without the enemy's knowl-
edge.
We did not dare to embark upon
any work that would entail throwing
earth over the parapet, for the
moment we attempted to do so shell
after she'll was poured upon us. to
which, with our very limited supply of
ammunition, We could not reply. We were
forced to husbsnd ammunition we had for
the much-talked-of and long-expected
event, "the next bombardment."
The condition of things under which
sieges should be, and almost ALWAYS are.
only undertaken, was entirely reversed.
We were content not only to carry the
siege on without having subdued the fire
of the place, but it was the attacking and
not the defending side whose supply of
shot and shell was limited.
When posted in the advanced works, an
occasional musketry duel was started with
the Russian rife pits.
| have seen men, while amusing them
selves at this game, jump up and expose
their bodies TO the sharpshooter' view,
trusting to being able to jump under cover
when they saw the puff of smoke from the
hostile loophole before the bullet could
reach them. To put your cap on the end
of ramrod, and show it over parapet to
attract the enemy's fire was very COM
mon pastime.
The men not on the lookout told stories,
talked of home and their sweethearts, read
any available scraps of books and news
papers, slept and played games.
l was eating my breakfast very early
one morning in rife-pit we had Just taken
some men near me who were playing pitch
and toss with halfpence.
A tine-looking young fellow of the party.
with his half-pence poised on piece Of
stick, was on the point of throwing them
up in the air, when l heard that horrid
thud" knew so well, the sound made
by bullet as it strikes man, and the
player and his half-pence fell at my feet.
He was stone dead, without sigh, ex-
clamation or movement of limbs or muscle.
A chance bullet, in coming through a
sandbag loophole, had struck some stone
that caused it to glance downwards.
| have always remembered this circum-
stance, because it is very rarely a rifle
bullet causes such actually instantaneous
death. But very many were the curious
circumstances under which death and
wounds presented themselves. | shall
mention one remarkable instance.
| was sitting some few yards in the
rear of our first parallel, alongside an Off
Ger who was giving me instructions for the
coming night. Two Sergeants stood to-
gether facing us, listening to the orders
which | wrote in my pocket-book.
Whilst so occupied, in what we con-
ceived to be very safe spot, down tum-
bled both the Sergeants in front of us,
as shell rushed past, so close that we
felt its wind. One mans head had dis
appeared, and the others face was horri-
bly, mangied, his jawbone, as we supposed
it to be, obtruding from a CHASTITY wound.
The next morning l inquired in camp
how the man was, and learned he had
not been touched by the shell, but that
his terrible wound was made by the Jaw
bone of the other Sergeant, which was
driven into his face. Indeed, a little re-
Election ought to have told us that no
man could be seriously wounded in the
head by the blow of shell and still
live. The day duty, especially during the
winter, was generally light, but it was
cold, wet and dreary occupation.
We were relieved about sunset, when
generally well.soaked throug Oh - we