Year: 1877

At 3 in the afternoon, after leaving
Sistova, I was resting near one of these
natural fountains, when long line of
ambulance wagons, enshrouded in dense
clouds of dust, appeared over hill in
the distance. AS the head of the line
reached us and halted by the fountain,
I learned of the heavy battle fought the
day before in front of tie Turkish forti-
fications around Plevna. The ambulance
wagons gradually gathered, until the
large space around the spring of cool
water was covered with these conveyances,
filled with human beings mangled in
every conceivable form, who gasped for
drop of water. Some could not drink,
as the attempts to swallow brought gush-
es of blood from gaping wounds in the
throat and chest, which prevented them
from cooling their parched tongues COW
cred with the horrible dust which rose at
the slightest movement upon the roads,
Weary with this sorrowful scene, mount
ed my horse and pushed on. A short
distance from the fountain I encoun-
tered second ambulance train loaded
like its predecessor. For two hours they
continued to pass me, and then came still !
longer trains Of country passport CARTS


loaded with the less severe cases, inter
mixed with an apparently endless stream
of ammunition wagons, surplus baggage
carts, and camp equipages, until finally
the road became completely blocked by
the indiscriminate mass of horses, carts,
wagons and mangled humanity, stream
ing toward Sistova. was compelled to
lead my horse to hillock by the road
side and wait for an opportunity to pass
on, as we'll as to allow my wagon to come
up. For more than an hour stood there
watching the passage of this motley
caravan, and beheld hundreds of gallant
fellows roll by in open, springless carts,
with blazing sun pouring down upon
their bloodstained forms, with choking
clouds of dust parching their burning
throats and settling in masses upon their
agonizing countenances,u until they ceased
to look like human faces. While waiting
for the road to be cleared, we were often
asked if there were no troops coming to
the rescue, and many were the bitter COM
ments made on the folly of dashing those
brave fellows against the vastly superior
Moslem force, strongly intrenched on the
height before Plevna. One officer who
was badly wounded had led the extreme
advance in the assault on the Turkish in
trenchment. He had penetrated far into
the Moslem lines, and said if he had been
properly supported they could have car
ried the positions; but the column was
not strong enough, from want of troops
or generalship, and the Turks, finding
this out, turned upon them and drove
them back with fearful loss. "Not more
than half of that column came back, y
was the mournful close of the wounded
officers statement. I learned here that
the battle of the previous day had lasted
from morning until night, the Russianat-
tack being made on both wings Of the
Turkish lines under the command of Gen.
Krudener, who led the right in person,
while the Russian left was commanded
by Gen. Prince Schakoffski. "We could
not do anything with them; they were
too strong for u.s." was the universal re-


mark of officers and soldiers, and their
cruel wounds told how wrathfully they
had endeavored to carry out the senseless
orders to carry Plevna by storm.


The above quotation really tells the
| story of the battle. The immense mum.