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SKETCHES OF A SOLDIER'S LIFE

I.O.N DON

PUINTIiJ) UY Sl'OTTItiVVOOUK AND CO.

NJiW-iSTIiEliT bt^UAHE

: > ; A « r V

i . 'i^^niao MPi

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^'-. ^'f ■j{:^t-lLr-^

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H.'>-HK:i ^Y. .i^y-. . ... v.

U /{..-i

CANADA AND TiiK CVx\m\

. .^Kia'ciiK.^ OF A SOU) liars iavk

FROM TIIL: JOUllNALS AND COURESPONDENCH OF THE LATE

MAJOR RANKEiX, R.E.

EDITED BY HIS EROTUER, W. RAY^'E RAXKEX

LOJ\DOx\
LONGMAN, GREEN, LONGMAN, AND ROBERTS

COXrK.XTS

~*o*-

ruAP.

II.

in.

VI.

VII.

VIII.

IX.

XI.

XII.
XIII.
XIV.

XV.
XVI.

In ruoDicTioN

Moi.m: III ntin(; - A Canadian l-'uii;

Ti<Avi',i.i,iN(; IN iiii; l,'.Nm:i) SiAir.s

J'iiii,.vi)r,i.i'inA - GiuAUi) Coi.i.wii; Stati; IIoisf,

STArNi'oN Lexinoton— An i ni'i.i-.asant Kidi; anm .

DisAouKEAHLE AnvR.NTL'ui; -Visit m [Iauit.h's Im.wuy

Axn RETruN TO Washinotox
iNAioiuArioN Day at Washinotox .Miokti.no wrn

Thackeray — Chahi.estom
Charleston -Slave Market Savannah Key \Ve>'i
Key Wesi- and the Havana
Havana — De Ramos, Palm-Sunday — A Dinner wrn

the English Consul — Return to Montreal
QuEUEC - Gavazzi Riots — Rumours ok War .
Bound for the Crimea Ahrivai. ai' Sehastoi>oi.
The Assault ok the Redan
Inside Seiiastopol
Winter in the Crimea .
The New Year ....
The Last Death in the Crimea

Appendix ...

PA (IE

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228
250
27;i
291

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

CHAPTER I.

INTRODUCTION.

MY object is to make this book, as far as possible,
autobiograpbical. I sliaU therefore content my-
self by giving a very sliglit introductory sketch of my
brother's life before he entered the army.

From that time, until his death in 1856, his letters
and journals record its principal events. I have selected
from these what I consider the most striking and
interesting passages ; purposely omitting everytldug
which it appeared a violation of confidence to make
public, or which would be unattractive to the general
reader.

A portion of the contents of this book has already
appeared in a small volume/- edited by myself and
published four years ago.*

I have added considerably to this portion of my
present subject, and availed myself of information I

* Six Months at Sobastopol,
B

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

have received, to render my brother's narrative of events
in the Crimea as correct as possible.

Should this labour of love prove successful, its
success must be attributed to him ; should it fail, it will
be owing to want of skill on my part, in the arrange-
ment of materials, in themselves interesting and
attractive.*

George Ranken was born in London, on the 4th of
January, 1 828. He was educated by the Rev. Dr. Smith,
at Rottingdean, near Brighton, and the Rev. William
Moore, at Ryde, Isle of Wight.

In 1843 he received from the Right Hon. Henry
Goulburn a nomination for a cadetship at the Royal
Military Academy, Woolwich.

In that year he left the Isle of Wight, to commence
at Woolwich his future course of studies. In 1844 he
became a cadet, anu in October 1847 was commissioned
as second lieutenant in the Royal Engineers, having
passed a most excellent examination, in which he held
the fourth place among forty competitors.

This was a successful debut into military life for one
who had had but little previous training for the Aca-
demy, and no intention, until 1843, of entering a
scientific corps.

* The publication of tins book has, from various causes, been
delayed ; but no time seems more fitted for its appearance tlian
the present, when so much interest is concentrated upon Canada,
and when the prospect of a winter campaig-n in the West recalls
the heroism and devotion displayed six or seven years ago by our
noble army in the East.

ten
to

INTRODUCTION

tive of events

iccessful, its
it fail, it will
the arrange-
resting and

1 the 4th of
7. Dr. Smith,
ev. William

Ion. Henry
b the Eoyal

) commence
[n 1844 he
mmissioned
ers, having
ch he held

life for one
r the Aca-
entering a

causes, been
•earance tlian
ipon Canada,
West recalls
s ago by our

In December 1849 my l)rother became a first lien-
tenant, and in April 1850 received orders to i)roceed
to Canada.

He arrived at ^Montreal early in ^lay, remained
there uliout a month, and was afterwards .stationed at
Quebec, until ]March 1852, wlien he returned to Mon-
treal. In Februarv and March 1853, he made a tour
throuL;h the United States and portions t)f South
America, where he commenced a journal, which he
continued till within a few days of his death.

In 3 lay 1853 he went a second time to Quebec,
remaining there luitil September in the following j^ear;
and then returning to England. From November 1854
until August 1855 he was stationed, first in Ediid)m"gh,
and afterwards at Fort George, Inverness; and in
August received orders to repair to the Crimea.

Tliese dates render more intelligible the narrative
which follows.

His first impressions of America I consider suffi-
ciently graphic to be given at some length.

Extract from a Letter.

* Eevere House Hotel, Boston. I'nitod States,
April 2i>nd, 1850.

' Thank God ! I am safely landed. I arrived at
Boston about twelve o'clock on Saturday. We had a
very pleasant termination to our voyage, though the day
after I wrote we got into a field of ice, which delayed
us four or five hours. The captain tried to get through

B 2

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

it, but found lie could not, and was forced to hack out
with considerable damage to his paddle-wheels, almost
all the floats of which were broken or injured. The
field was of vast extent, no blue water being- visible
beyond from the masthead.

' The cut-water of the steamer ran right into a large
block, which we carried away with us for a short dis-
tance, until the officer on watch perceived that, although
there was a dead calm, we were only moving along at
three knots per hour, and took measures to dislodge our
travelling companion. We approached Halifax harbour
on Thursday night, and reached our wharf at about
twelve o'clock. The night was lovely ; water ([uite calm,
and moon and stars shining. The light, however, was
scarcely sufficient to give us a clear view of the town.
The harbour is the most dangerous one imaginable to
enter in foggy weather, as there is a large reef of rocks at
its mouth. Ships have sometimes to lay-to sevei'al days
near the entrance, as misty weather frequent!}' prevails.

' I landed, however, with a party, and walked through
the town to the princijDal hotel, w^here we found the
accommodation wretched, and were disappointed of
the pleasure of drinking sherry coblers as tliere was
no ice.

* Nova Scotia is a wild, rugged country, covered w^ith
primeval forest, and dotted with small lakes. Halifax
is supplied with fresh water from a lake several hundred
feet above the city ; this elevated reservoir is most useful
in case of fires, as no pumping is required. Halifax
itself is a large town, Avith two harbours and some fine

liou
cap
I
havi

SiC,

I
I

INTRODUCTION

to back out
eels, almost
ured. The
L'iijg visible

into a laro-e
I short dis-
it, although
ig along at
islodge our
ax harbour
at about
{uite calm,
wever, was
the town,
igiiiable to
of rocks at
vei-al days
y prevails,
d through
found the
lointed of
there was

ered with
Halifax

I hundred

ost useful
Halifax

:iome fine

}eabl(

an a^rree
isliiufr and shooting'.

ilitary station, as there is

nousG!^.

capital _,

I think the Americans have been mucli maligned, or

have nuich improved since tlie works of INIrs. Trolloj^e,

&c., have been written.

'I was very much pleased at the extreme civility with

which tlie commonest people answer any question you
may ask, tliough the equality which is supposed to
exist out here amuses me vastly.

' I intended going round by Xew York, and therefore
wished most of mv luu-ufaoje to be forwarded to jNIon-
treal direct. I was introduced to the agent and car-
rier, who touched their hats, and shook hands ; and the
next morning one of them breakfasted at the same table
with me.

* On the morning of Saturday, April 20th, we came
in sight of the shores of America, and entered the
beautiful harbour of Boston. We had a lovely morning
for the termination of our troubles. The sun shone
brill iantl}^, sparkling on the water, which was scarcely
rippled by a light breeze, just sufficient to fill the white
sails of the beautiful and eleofant craft which was
cruising about around us and in the offing.

' Sails are made here of Russian canvas, which is
finer and whiter than ours, but not so suitable for rough
weather.

* The steamers are ugly enough to look at, having
large cabins on deck. They go ahead, however, most
gallantly, doing sometimes nearly twenty miles an
hour ; but are more liable, generally speaking, to ex-

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

plo(l(-' tlian ours are. \Mi('n tliey race (which they do
a great deal on the Mississippi), tliey put weiglits on
the safety valve.

*Thc approaclies to the harbour are strongly fortified,
and I had occasion to admire an extremely pretty, re-
gular, little pentagonal fort, built according to Vaidjau's
system, on a small island.

* The lower parts and narrow streets of l^>oston have
much the appearance of a French city, and are dirty
and disagreeiible.

' The best houses have most of them white doors
with the resident's name on a ])rass plate, and a glass
bell-handle on each side for servants and visitors, as in
England. They are kei)t beautifiuly clean and bright,
and have a pleasing and clieerful effect.

*Coloiu'ed panes of glass are introduced in the windows
in the most irregular manner, witli the view, I .should
imagine, of throwing a rich liglit on some particular
object or article of furniture.

' The hotel I am staving- at is a new and very fine
one, beautifully fitted up in the French st3de ; but
though very bright and pleasing in appearance, without
that air of comfort which pervades an English re-
sidence. A thing which I foimd almost unbearable is
the high temperature at which tliey keep the liotel by
means of steam pipes. The thermometer stands be-
tween 65" and 70°, and the difference between the
temperature in and out of doors is most trying.

' The great luxury out here is the Wenliam Lake
ice. Everything is iced. Ice on the butter, ice in the

INTRODUCTION

ieh they do
wei-^'lit.s on

^]y fortified,
prett}', re-

A'auljuii's

ostoii have

1 arc dirty

hito doors
lid a ghiss
iters, as in
ind l)right,

le Aviiidows
, I .'Iiould
particular

I very fine
;tyle; but
e, without
igiisli re-
earable is
3 Iiotel by
taiids be-
iveen the

am Lake
ce in the

beer, wine, and water ; ice creams always for dinner,
and all kinds of ice drinks, the principal of which are
lemonade, mint jnlep, sherry cobler, and san^L,^aree.
The names of some of the drinks which you get at the
bar of every hotel or oyster saloon are most amusing.
A man told me he could make up 400 different kinds.
The principal are different kinds of punch, brandy
cocktail, brandy and gin smash, brandy skin, thunder
and lightning, gin sling, sherry cobler, S:c. Honvj
of them are made with pepper, and have correspond-
ingly hot names.

'8([uash, an immense yellow vegetable something
like a pumpkin in appearance, and eaten mashed, is
used for tarts, and as a vegetable. It tastes much like
a sweet turnip.

' Sweet potato, a vegetable between a potato and
parsnip, is likewise eaten. It is yellow and dry.

'They roast their hams out here a great deal, and
eat them with champjjgne sauce.

' Halibut is the principal fish in the States. It is of
enormous size, and like cod, but not considered so good.

' The society at the ordinary is most mixed. Tliere
is very little conversation carried on during dinner ; the
Americans have no time for it. They generally dispatch
three courses in about twenty-five minutes, rarely take
wine, and rise abruptly, and the instant they have
finished w^alk off to their counting-houses, &c.

* The whole mode of life in an American hotel is
perfectly different to what it is in England. You take
all your meals in public, or pay extravagantly for the

CANADA AND THE CRIMKA

privilege of privacy. You get a very good dinner, l)ut
it is not Ji comfortable one to Knglislnnen. The whole
affair is so hurried that you have sciircely time to
swallow your food, and none for conversation.

' The gentlemen and ladies each have tlieir own
dining-room and parlour (as ladies travel all over the
States alone, and with the greatest comfort, meeting
wherever they go with the greatest attention and
politeness). Gentlemen, however, who may be travel-
ling with ladies, dine with the ladies; and ^NFrs. Fin-
layson's company procured for me that privilege on
•Sunday, when I had an opportunity of Ijeholding the
Boston belles. Most of the women are pale and in-
teresting-looking. They are generally small, and have
rather slight figures. Some of them look like French
women ; and this resemblance is increased by their
dressing in the Parisian fashion, and wearing very
bright colours.

' They dress very showily, and sometimes in shocking
taste. I saw a girl in a green dress, red shawl, and
yellow bonnet.

' As for the men, they have all a marked look of
intelligence, keen, restless eyes, generally sharp features,
often adorned with a scraggy beard, sallow complexion,
and long hair. They dress singularly, often wearing
blue trousers. The most fashionable colour is, how-
ever, greenish-yellow.

' Speculation and money seem the great objects of
life out here. Credit is great. Every little bank issues
more dollar and half-dollar notes than its capital.

prel

real

heij

tre

Th(

peai

INTRODUCTION

fl inner, but
TJio whole
y time to

tl J oir own
1 over the
J nieeting
it ion and
1)0 travel-
^Afrs. Pln-
vileg-e on
Ifling the
and in-
aud have
e French
hy their
ing very

shoekinir
^wl, and

look of
features,
plexion,
wearinir
s, how-

* On Sunday I accompanied Mr. and Airs. Finhiysou
to church, and heard an excellent serniou on bigotry,
preached b}' a very intelligent-looking man. The
American litui'gy differs slightly from ours. They
read the Lord's Praver thus: "Our Father ^vho art in
heaven," &c. ; the same as ours to "forgive us our
trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."
They pray ft)r tlu^ President and Congress, do not re-
peat the Lord's Prayer so frequently as we do, omit
the short prayers at the end of the Litany, and the
Nica>an Creed at the end of the Communion. There
are several rather pretty churches in Boston, but the
most elegant-looking spire is made oi ivood.

'The Italian Opera, I fancied, had a very ecclesiastical
appearance ; and, to my astonishment, I learnt that on
Sundays it is used as a Baptist chapel ! ! and that this
practi^^e of double usefulness is not uncommon. How
shockino- this seems to an Englishman !

' Everything here is done on a go-a-head principle ;
the roads are shocking, but good enough to go-a-head
over.

* Telegraph wires cross the principal streets, and tall
unpainted crooked poles run along opposite some of
the best houses with the wires attached to them most
roughly ; but they answer the purj^oses of communica-
tion, and are most extensively employed in the States,
running between places where there are no railways.

* New Yorh. — The American railways are exactly
described by Dickens, in his " American Notes." The

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

triivc'lliii<; is very clit'Up; I paid only five (loilar.s for
the jouiuey from Boston to New York, 224 miles. The
arnmij:oineiits for luu'<'ii<'e are excellent.

*Tliey give you a brass ticket with a uumher on it,
and attach a similar one to your luggage, which is con-
veyed to your hotel without any extra charge.

*The country between Boston and New York is very

otru(l(

wild and uncultivated. Lar;
all directions, only covered occasionally hy a tliin coat-
ing of turf. This rocky ground is portioned off by
rough stone walls into small divisions, as if it were
valuable property.

' We passed through many clean, bright-looking towns,
built of wooden houses painted white, with green out-
side blinds.

* Every little insignificant village boasts its three or
four places of worship, built principally of wood and
all small.

* The train barely stops at the small stations. It lets
off its steam as it approaches, and comes very nearly to
a halt; during which interval of slack speed, people
who wish to start or stop are supposed to get in and
out.

' The carriages hold more than fifty people. Every
carriage has its stove, and a kind of lane between the
seats, where restlessly disposed individuals may pro-
menade.

* Trains pass over turnpike roads without the smallest
ceremony, but a warning is posted up to " look out for
the engine while the bell rings."

n<>i|
of *i

.-5 ■

carl
we '
tlul

INTRODUCTION

lollars lor
Je.s. Tjie

't'l- on it,
'Ji is con-

^<- is very
•tnidu in
nil cout-
I off by

it were

p; towns,
t^ea oiit-

tJiree or
3od and

It lets

early to

people

in and

Every
*en tlie
y pro-

(lallest
)ut for

'The country tliron^di tlie wiiolo journey is nioiiofo-
nous. r missed tlii* siniliuj^' fields, tlie shci-p, tlic cattle
of old Eu'-liind. Till! houses, too, stand on the roughest
l^Tound, and few of them have uny (,'ardens.

'When we uot to New York the en<dne left us: the
cars were separated ; four horses jittached to each ; and
we were '^vawn, still kccpinjj^ on trams, throuj^di one of
the o-reat avenues of the city.

'The ]]roadway nt Xew York is certainly a very fnio
street; but the houses are very nneijnal in size, and
conseciuently extremely dissimilar in appearance.

'The American i)rivate carriages are of the most eccen-
tric forms; many of them exceedingly light, the better
to "go-a-head" in. They have all good horses, and
indeed the commonest vehicles are drawn by excellent
cattle, all of which are in first-rate condition, and
much superior to our poor battered cab horses. They,
most of them, come from the Western States. The
hackney-coaches in New York are like private car-
riages, and verv comfortable.

' The city has some exceedingly fine puhlic buildings ;
one, the Custom PEouse, built after the model of the
Parthenon at Athens.

*The City Hall is splendid, and built of white marble.
It has an immense bell on the top which tolls in case
of fire. These occur almost nightly ; and on the first
night of my arrival I had the opportunity of witness-
ing a very large one, which destroyed property to the
amount of nearly 80,000 dollars.

' The fire brigade is composed of young volunteers.

CANADA AND THE CIIIMEA

Tlir service; is most anluous and liazardous, .'md tlic
exposure to iill kinds of weather very injurious to
hcMltli; l)ut it is popular, jis it procures exemption
from serving in tlie militia or on a jury. One of the
fireiiK'ii was killed at the tire I saw, hy fallin;^' throuL,di
a tnip-door.

*T}ie engines are preceded Ity a vehicle with tlie
hose attached to it, and a lari^e bell which rin<'s as it
moves alonjx. The nnnd)er of the emrine, on a red
lantern, is carried in front, and the carriages are drawn
by th(! firemen and volunteers.

' I saw this morning, from the papers, that the crowd
and I liad an exceedingly narrow t^scape. Wt; liad all
been standing on the brink of a precipice, as the fire
was close to an immense spirit store, which escaped
ignition almost by a miracle, .and wduch, had tlu; flames
reached it, would have exploded with a force sufficient
to cause the destruction of all things animate and in-
animate in its vicinity.

' How secure we feel on the brink of the stream
which may engulph lis !

*New York is built with beautiful regularity, and
promises to be a gigantic place. Broad roads with
trees planted on each side (a common and beautiful
custom in the States) run along, at regular distances
from and parallel to each other, from north to south.
These are intersected by cross streets at right angles,
many of which extend right across Long Island from
shore to shore, and are almost as broad as the avenues.
Some of these latter are five or six miles long and

pell

l.ni

for'

are!

tiuf

looi

I !

IMP' AUCTION

, .'hkI the
urioiis tn
'xciiiptidii

IK' of thi^

; through

with the
ings as it
>u !i red
re drawn

be crowd
e liud all
the fire
escaped
(! flames
ufficient
and in-

stream

y, and
Is with
aiitiful
stances
south,
'ingles,
from
onues.
g and

perfectly straiglit; they are crossed by more than 130
hroad roail,««,

*TiineoidyiH re<[uire(l to fdl up this gigantic jtlan
for a vast cify. As yet the avenui.'s and cross streets
arc lined '^ith hctDscH merely in the ik ighl)i»urliood of
the city; eisewliere the li(»li?ies are scattered.

*Irisiinien arc; the tools with which ,Ionathan cirrics
on his vast works. Their huts are the oidy wretched-
looking aitodes 1 have seen.

' Everywhere there is chiauliness and comfort :d)out
the houses, and an air of prosperity, very different IVnm
the misery and strtiggling poverty of the nupthcr-
country.

' "W'stenhiy T visited the (inn-nwood Cemetery in
Hrookiyn, iivv or six miles from New ^'ork, a lovely
])lace, occupying nearly 2'>() acres of ground, and richly
wooded.

'Some of the monuments are in good ttistc, and
have touching and aj)propriate inscriptions. One of
them had simpl}" a group of forget-monot flcnvers
with the single word "Mother" underneath.

'This certainlv affected me, and carried niv thoULfhts
homo, which I shall he deligiited to see whenever my
wanderings cease. After all, there is no place like Old
EnLfland.

' Th(! morning I left Xew York was inauspicious and
gloomy, so that I saw the TFudson to disadvantage.
AVe had light enough, however, to see the Palisade, a
famous line of rocks on the left bank, perpendicular,
and 300 feet high. They extend for some distance, and

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

aro crowned with trees, presentiuf^ a very romantic
appearance. The scenery at West Point (fifty-two
miles from New York) deliglited me. In summer, and
f.t sunset, it must be ex([uisite. The shores of the river
are very bohl, and composed of richly wooded hills ; and
the river just here makes a fine sweep, which has a
very beautiful effect.

'The ^Military College is conducted on somewhat
similar principles to the Academy at Woolwich, though
in some respects on a stricter plan. The cadets are
admitted from the age of seventeen, and generally get
their commissions before twenty-three. They are all
kej^t at the college four years, during which they have
only two months vacation. At the end of four years, if
able to pass the examination (which not more tlian one
third are) they graduate, and receive commissions,
haviufT choice according to merit. The Enu'ineers is
the highest service out here. They have a fi.st-rate
education, and are instructed in several branches not
essentially necessary to a military man. They have no
study during the summer months, (when West Point is
crowded with company) but live in tents, and are con-
stantly at drill, going through all the duties of a private
soldier. Their uniform is quiet and useful — grey, with
black stripe down the trowsers, and round brass buttons
on the coats, which have short tails, like our cavalry.
There is a grand-nephew of Napoleon studying here,
the grandson of Jerome, whose wife, JNIadame Buona-
parte, lives at l^altimore. He has a family-likeness to
the great EmjDeror, and is a clever fellow, and w'll

INTRODUCTION

ly romantic
t (fifty-two
iimmer, and
of the river
d hills ; and
t'hich has a

I somewhat
ich, though

cadets are
^nerally get
hey are all
1 they have
)ur years, if
re than one
)mmissions,
iigineers is
a fi. st-rate
■anches not
ey have no
^\st Point is
d are con-
)f a private
-grey, with
^ss buttons
ir cavalry,
ying here,
le Buona-
likeness to

and w'll

prol)al)ly push his fortunes in France, when his educa-
tion is completed.

* There is a cemetery for the cadets, very beautifidly
situated on a high point near the river. It appears,
from the inscriptions, that it is customary when a cadet
dies, for his class to erect his monument. On another
part of the shore, amid a grove of trees, stands one to
the memory of Kosciusko, who I believe was of great
assistance to the American arm v.'

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

clui

CHAPTEE II.

g simi

MOOSE HUNTING

A CANADIAN FIRE.

•N

' Quoboc, April 1852.

^"{"OW for the moose hunting. I wished very much
to have gone out lust winter, as several officers
of the garrison did, and returned successful ; hut my
hopes were blighted by my commanding officer refusing
me leave.

' This year, when I got leave, I found some difficulty
in getting a companion. At last a Lieutenant O'Brien,
of the 54th Eegiment, offered himself, was accepted,
and the start arranged.

' ]\Ioose are found on both shores of the St. Law-
rence, but are more numerous on the south than on
the north. They are seldom met with much to the
south of Quebec. They return year after year to the
same neighbourhood. Though shot down without
mercy both by the settlers and the Indians, the hunters
say that their numbers appear rather to increase than
diminish. They are probably wanderers which roam
free and unmolested through the immense pine forests
of North America.

' The moose is identical with the elk. He is a large.

the}J

MOOSE HUxNTING

Lpril 1852.

veiy much
ral officers
1 ; ])iit my
ir refusing

3 difficulty

t O'Brien,

accepted,

St. Law-
tlian on
eh to the
ear to the
without
e hunters
ease than
ich roam
ne forests

s a Large,

chunsy-looking animal, with very long, powerfid k^gs,
a large head, with a remarkable nose or mouffle, hirge
ears, a hump on the neck, a mane, and a long tuft of
hair under the chin ; his eye rather small, and without
the eloquence of the gazelle's ; his tail remarkable, and
similar in shape to a hare's. He has a cloven foot,
like the deer tribe, and sinks at each stride nearly to
the fviU depth of the snow. His colour is generally
a greyish brown ; the hair of his fur long, his antlers
corresponding to his size, but only procurable in sum-
mer, or at the very commencement of winter. His
skin is converted into mocassins, snow shoes, &c. His
hair is dyed and worked on bark, or cloth. In the
summer time moose are shot from the water. ]MaRy
are lost in this sport, as, if not killed by the first bullet,
they run away into the bush and die there.

* In the summer time they frequent the banks of
rivers, whither they repair to cool their limbs, escape
the mosquitoes, and feed off the roots and stems of a
small water lily, of which they are passionately fond.

* They will drive their heads and shoulders three or
four feet under water to secure this " bonne bouche."

' The hunters who were to accompany us into the
bush lived at a settlement called East P>ampton, on
the River Etchman, about forty-two miles from Quebec.
They were Irishmen ; four brothers, fine-spirited, honest
fellows, perfectly at home in the woods, and accustomed
for years to the chase of the moose. They were su-
perior, in several points of view, to the Indians who
were in the habit of accompanying parties on these

\\:

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

liuntini*- expeditions, as they worked liarder and mon;
clieerfiilly, and were much more desirable as com-
panions. Their farms beintj^ covered witli snow, and a
dead letter, as it were, for so many montljs in the
year, they take to hunting every winter as an occupa-
tion, realising a very snug little sum by the sale of
moose skins, mouffles, &c., and from the liberality of
the gentlemen who may chance to re([uire their services
as hunters.

' On the two days preceding our start Quebec was
visited by one of the heaviest snow storms that had
been witnessed even in that favoured city ; but on the
day we left all nature was at rest. The sun shone
brightly, and not a breath disturbed the surface of the
stately river as we crossed it in our canoe.

' Accidents occasionally occur to canoes in crossing
the St. Lawrence in the winter, from their getting
jammed between the stationary ice on the borders of
the river and that which is being carried down with
immense force by the stream. A canoe, or boat,
getting between these opposing masses, is literally
tossed up in the air like a shuttlecock, and its living
contents scattered. We were entertained with an
agreeable description of an accident of this kind
while crossing.

' We got a couple of sleighs at the landing-place
(Point Levi), and proceeded on our journey, over roads
rendered execrable by the recent fall of snow.

' After travelling about eleven hours, we found our-
selves, at ten o'clock at night, in a small house, thirty-

six 1
and
M

ing 1
wear
^tum
sett'u
next
of t
miles

.■1

.«-^

MOOSE HUNTING

r and more
le as com-
snow, and a
iths in the
an occiipa-
the sale of
iiberality of
leir services

Quebec was

s that had

hut on the

sun slione

'face of the

in crossinix
eir wttin<2-

borders of
down with
or boat,
is literal! j^
1 its living
[ with an

this kind

iding'-place
over roads

ound our-
ise, tliirty-

six miles from our starting point, very mucli shaken
and very tired.

'Our road lav throuijh several neat, clean, and flourish-
ing French Canadhm villages; the country about them
wearing the appearance of cultivati(m, and cleared of
stumps (an indication of the length of time it had i)eeu
settled). We reached the shanty of our frishmen on the
next day. We were in a new country ; in the place
(if the comfort and cleanliness we had left but a few
miles behind us, were Irish dirt, Irish architecture, and
Irish p(jvertv. Our hunters' dwellin<»: was a rude, mi-
finished cottage, with three small windows, and a door
in front, kept shut during the winter; a deticient pane
supplied by some paper stuck to tlu; sash 1y a fork,
which, being called in recpiisition at dinner-time, as
])art of the family plate, the fresh air of heaven was
permitted to enter, and chill the apartment unob-
structed.

' <,)ne end of the principal apartment (and there were
but two, besides a kind of attic) was occupied, on our
arrivril, by five or six sheep with their interesting pro-
geny, who were too delicate to be exposed, at that cold
season, to the chilly atmosphere of a barn.

' The place was dirty ; but the inhabitants formed to-
gether a group which pleased me.

' Two of our hunters, fine, intelligent young fellows,
lived there with their mother — a mother of fourteen
children. The elder of the two was married, and his
family had evidently a prospect of being transformed,
;it no distant period, from the singular to the plural

c 2

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

: f

number. The wife was a young, and rather plain girl,
but her features were stamped with honest good feeling
and cheerfulness, so indispensable in the companion of
a poor man. Their only child, however, was spoiled.

'Our hunters made their preparations, during the
afternoon, for our start on the day following. At night
I slept on the floor ; O'Brien in a bed in the same room.
We breakfasted at daybreak, and made trac^ on our
snow-shoes about an hour afterwards. Snow-shoeing is
hard work when the snow is loose, as it was when we
started, and as it continued during the whole of the
time we were in the bush. When the surface of the
snow has been partially thawed by rain, or the heat of
the sun, and frozen again, a crust is formed, which is
scarcely broken by a snow-shoe, and over which you can
walk with ease and comfort.

' Each of our four hunters drew a small Indian sleigh
(or " tarboggin ") after him, laden with provisions,
buffalo robes, &c. We took with us hard biscuit, flour,
split-peas, rice, onions, tea, sugar, anu brandy, with a
few pounds of pork. We speculated on soon obtaining
moose meat.

* The snow-shoeing was very heavy ; and we were
glad enough, after a fatiguing tramp of nine or ten
hours, to arrive at a spot suitable for the formation of
a camp. It was on the borders of the river Etchman.

The camp was formed thus : — a hole, about ten feet
by seven, was dug out with snow-shoes; two trees,
selected as supporters for the ridge-po^e of our roof,
were felled to within about seven f:ct of the ground;

the
of I
the
the

-I

MOOSE HUNTING

' i)l.-iin girl,
ood feelinfif
mpjinion of
? spoiled,
diirinof the
At night
same room.
Clip on our
'^-shoeing is
is when we
lole of the
face of the
;he heat of
d, which is
icli you can

iian sleigh
provisions,
cuit, flour,
dy, with a
obtaining

we were
tie or ten
mation of
tchman.
t ten feet
wo trees,
our roof,

ground ;

the rid^e-pole rested on these, and the roof was formed
of boughs, covered with green fir branches, the ends of
the boughs resting on the ridge-pole, and sticking into
the snow.

' A fire, extending right across the hole, was lighted
at one end of it, and at first smoked horribly, almost
blinding us. Of course, with such rude implements as
snow-shoes, we coidd only partially clear the ground of
snow ; all discrepancies, however, were hidden by fir
branches, over which we spread our buffalo robes. We
slept, of course, with our clothes on. I wore a habi-
tan's " bonnet rouge," a thick red woollen night-cap, and
over this I drew the head of my blanket-coat.

* Thus, with a hard carpet-bag for a pillow, and a
blanket rolled round me, I lay down to repose, with the
clear sky as a canopy above my head, and the bright
moon shining full in front of me, with my head within
a few inches of the snow-wall of our cabane, and my
feet close to a blazing fire, and sometimes almost burnt
by it. I slept badly the first night ; the cold was intense,
and perhaps the strangeness of my position drove away
the drowsy god. Next morning, after a hurried meal,
we started again, shortly after seven o'clock, intending
to form our hunting camp two or three miles further on.
We crossed some moose tracks during our journey. Our
hunters left their packs and diverged: we followed,
hoping for sport ; but, after walking some miles, we
crossed the snow-shoe track of some Indians, who had
evidently anticipated us. In the woods, if a man dis-
covers, what is called, a moose-yard, or, in other words.

■ .1

CANADA AND THE CIJIMEA

finds traces of moose, he has a riglit to hunt the moose
tliiis discovered, Jis long as tlie print of his snow-slioes is
visihle. This is a <j;eneral hxw in lnintin<x, and is gene-
rally respected. Occasionally, however, a dispute arises
as to the right of privity ; and onr hunters told us an
anecdote of an encounter they liad had with four
Indians bound for the vsame yard as they, and who, at
first, ass(n"ted their rights to the huntintr of it. Onr
men explained that they were the first discoverers; the
red men appearcnl satisfied. Jioth parties professed
feelings of mutual friendship, and loaded their guns.
At night they rested in a eabane, with a fire between
them, and each man's gun at his head, watching one
another, the Indians continually coming to the fire to
light tlieir pipes, and neitlier party sleeping a wink.
Each expected an attack from the other. Incidents of
this kind rarely occur, and the Irish and Indians are,
generally speaking, on good terms. After our first dis-
appointment, we continued our march three or four
miles further, and leaving two men in camp, O'Brien
and myself started off, in different directions, with the
other two. We all returned unsuccessful in the even-
ing ; trucks of moose had, indeed, been discovered, but
near them, likewise, had been found the foot-prints of
our rivals the Indians. Our hunters were annoyed.
"We had lost," they said, " through those infernal rascals,
six or seven moose. The Indians had never hunted on
those grounds before : they had anticipated them merely
to spite them, and to prevent a repetition of the preced-
ing year's success." They did not, however, at all de-

bt
wit

cai

MOOSE HUNTING

the moose
)W-shoes is
1(1 is gene-
)iite arises
old lis ail
with four
1(1 who, at
■ it. Our
'rers; the

professed
leir guns,
e between
?}iing one
he tire to
j; a wink,
cidents of
dians are,
• first dis-
t or four
', O'Brien

with the
the even-
ered, })nt
■prints of
annoyed,
il rascals,
unted on
n merely
s preced-
it all de-

spair, liiit only regretted the additional time and trouble
necessary for the accomplishment of tJieir object.

' Xext morning, directly after our rude r('[)ast had
been completed, I started with my man, and ( )'lb-ien
with liis; the other two were left behind to tend tho
cainp, prepare pea-soup for dinner, and look out for
moose-yards.

'We had a hard day's walk. Our want of success
made our hunters energetic; they were dciermined to
find moose. We came continually on frosh tracks, only
to ])e as continually disappointed by finding close beside
them the tracks of tlie Indians, who seemed to haunt
us like a shadow.

'We started from the clearings on Wednesday. This
was Friday, our third night in the bush. Just })efore
our return to camp we found a moose-yard about Hve
or six miles from our w^oody mansion. Our hunters
were full of conjectures as to whether it had shared
the fate of the other discoveries, and had been already
hunted ; it was too late then to ascertain this. AVe
resolved to return there the next day. We did so, and
were successful. We killed between us three moose,
a cow and two calves. They gave us a pretty sharp
run.

' The one I shot was a young bull. When I got up
to him he was standing, panting and exhausted, with the
snow up to his chest ; he was a small moose, not more
than five feet six inches at the shoulder, but still a fine
animal.

' After he was despatched we heard shots close to

CANADA AM) THE CRIMF-A

-, t

US, hurried on, and found another moose at l)ay, and
wounded, with the dogH })arkin<jf at him. I fired, and
hit liim in tlie shoulder; but my charj^e of powder
was not lar^e enough, and still he lived. O'Brien
(who was not so active on snow shoes as myself) came
up and shot him through the head. He dropped
•without a groan. The slioulder, and behind the ear,
are the two most vital points.

M)'Er;en killed a large cow with one bullet just
behind the ear. He was a very good shot, and had
had a great deal of practice, wild-boar hunting, in the
West Indies.

' The cow was a huge beast, upwards of seven feet
at the shoulder.

' Immediately after the moose were shot the hunters
proceeded to skin them, and cut off their mouffles,
tongues, and mocassins. They likewise cut out the
kidneys, and a few steaks, leaving the mangled car-
cases in the snow.

' The poor settlers dravv uway a great deal of moose
meat thus abandoned, for their use during the winter.
The Indians, after they have killed a moose, allow
the settlers to have all the rest of the carcase for their
trouble in drawing out the hind quarters, which are
sold at the rate of fourpence a pound at Quebec ; and,
if kept long enough, are very good eating. We got
back late, and tired. However, our supper of moose
kidneys fried with onions was excellent.

* Next day being Sunday I resolved to stay in camp ;
and my toes were so very sore from the snow-shoe

have
The

MOOSE HUNTING

lUet just
and had
g, in the

vcn feet

hunters
Tiouffles,

out the
led car-

f moose

winter.

allow

"or tlieir

ich are

c ; and,

We got

moose

camp;
)w-shoe

straps, that whatever the day had ])een J ^Urmld sc. <!e1y
liave been able to walk. O'Brien remained with 'uc.
The men went out to look for a yard, and found one.

' We started after it the next morning, wlien I
found that, in addition to my sore toes, I was sufft-ring
acutely from luml)ago.

* I sliall not readily forget the pain and fatigues of
this day. We were six hours in getting up to our
moose. I was mentally wishing them at the bottom
of the sea, during this interval. When we got up
to them I forgot my troubles.

* I killed a moose to-day by a shot just above tlie
eye. A dog was holding on by his nose all the time,
and the moose striking fiercely at him with his fore
feet. It is very dangerous to get within ten or fifteen
yards of one, however severely wounded he may be.
He collects all his strength and runs at you, and if he
gets up to you he will soon put an end to your life
with a few strokes of his fore feet.

* One of our hunters, who was carrying my gun in
front, shot a large cow, which, being the case, she was
considered my property, and I had her two fore feet
taken off, and am now getting them worked by the
Indians.

* We reached our camp sometime after sunset, nearly
dead ])eat. My lumbago, however, was gone. We
were satisfied with our success, and resolved to make
tracks for the clearings. On the next day (Tuesday),
when we awoke at sunrise, we found snow falling, and
we made a journey in this one day of nearly eighteen

LT.

CANArtA AM* Tin; ( UIMKA

' f

nil

Ics 111

rouL:ii vcrv li« mvv (

Irift:

( hir liuntrrs were

hiinrrd t(» leave tlieir t.'irl)(i^'<:fiiis, witli most of tho
traps, alxMil four miles from the (•learilli,^ us they were

!ifra,i(l of (larkiM

le t(

ess eomiiiL^ on, and <tiir heiiiL;' iinaiue to
fhid the hlazed line. In the hush we were in the haliit

of liiuliiiiT the tinu

hv <.l

)servinir

the 1

(11 rill'' of the

sun with ii [)ocket compass. On a clear day, witli u
compass, a man uccnstomed to the W(m)(1s is never
afraid (»f losing liiinself. We reached (^uehec on
Thursday.''

A CiUKuliait Fur.

'Mnntrcal, .Inly lltli, lsr)L>,

'More than 1200 houses have been eonsumed by tire
in this city, during Thursday and Friday last. My
house escaped by a miracle, bnt my sleighs were both
])urnt, and I have lost several tilings in moving my
furniture, tte., to the wharf.

'The fire broke out about nine crdock on Thursday
morning, in one of the suburbs of the town. The
water-pipes are being changed for larger ones, and
during the cliange it was found necessary almost to
empty the reservoir which supplies Montreal with
water. Consecpiently, scarcely any means were avail-
able for stopping the flames. ]Most of the houses in
the suburbs, and nearly all the outbuildings attached
to large houses in the hea."^- of the city, are of wood,
with wooden roofs. Tlie weather had been very hot for
several days previous to the tire, and the thermometer
during Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, stood at 96° in

til
I"

ill'

U ()

■

III

iii\

'jak

A CANAr)IAN I NIK

fcrs were

st of till!

tlicy were
iitinltic to

the lialiit
i^ of the
iv, with a

is iH'V(!r
U('l)ec on

1(1 l)y fin,'
ast. Mv
fcvG both
)viiiLr mv

Tliursday
vn. The
nes, and
linost to
L'al with
re avail-
louses in
attached
of wood,
y hot for
mometer
at 06° in

til ^liadf. It may he imii^^iiicd how dreadfully over-
pi >\Vfrin;; this must have heeu, i-ombiiicd with the
iiif*^iise hejif of a ra|;in^' lire, and liow readily the dry
wooden roofs eau;,dit tht* flames.

* The tir( sjjrcad with tearful rji[)idity, and soon
iii» . need one of the lust stn-ets, eomposi'd priiu'ipally
of liandsomc private residences. Here lived several of
my friends, and my commandinj^ officer, Colonel Dixon,
R.K., who w;is ahsent at (Quebec on duty.

' WIk'U I arrived at the scene of action, \ took a
oetiend survey of the fire, .md reported to tlu^ fomman-
d.int of the (iarrison what 1 thou^dit ought to be done
to arrest its progress. Owing, however, to the universal
confusion, and the wiint of water, nothing 1 suggested
Wrus (lone. Finding that my professional services were
useless, J applied myself to rescue property belonging
to my friends; and, after cutting down and securing a
large number of paintings in one house, I rushed to
my coloners, and, assisted by soldiers of the Artillery
and 2()th Kegiment, sncceeded in saving greater part of
his furniture before the flames reached them.

*■ By this time my eyes were almost closed with dust,
and I was nearly exhausted with heat and fatigue; so 1
left the tire for a few nunutes, to procure some ))randy
and soda-water. On my return I found the Hames
had considerably increased, and I was sent for by the
officer commanding the troops, introduced to the chief
engineer of the city, and directed to blow up any
houses he might indicate. It is perfectly useless to
blow up wooden houses, as they offer scarcely any

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

'i !

resistance to the gnnpowder, and the scattered frag-
ments, instead of deadening, only serve to increase the
fury of the flames. I, however, made an effort to
arrest the fire ])y blowing up a large brick house with
ninety pounds of gunpowder. I was assisted by tlie
artillery in placing the charge, wliich, on account ()f
the near proximity to the flames, and a quantity of
straw which was lying scattered about, was a service of
some danger.

' The bugles sounded the alarm, and the majority of
the spectators withdrew ; however, notwithstanding all
the bugles, and the loud shouts of the b3'standers, one
man (whom, I conjecture, must have been half-drunk),
persevered in maintaining his position on a log of
wood close to the doomed house. Nothing woidd in-
duce him to move; and I was at last compelled, at my
o^vn risk, to run foj'ward, and carry him off in my arms,
amidst the cheers of the mob.

' The explosion brought the house completely to the
ground, but, owing to the number of wooden buildings
on all sides, was not sufficient to arrest the fire. I rode
four different horses during the day, and was galloping
about for several hours, with my clothes torn, in all
directions.

' The soldiers, both of the Artillery and 20th Regiment,
exerted themselves in the most praiseworthy manner,
and afforded a most striking contrast to the apathy
and brutality of the mob. The Roman Catholic arch-
bishop's palace was involved in the general destruction,
amid the despairing prayers of the pri'^sts ; one of whom,

A CANADIAN FIRE

ered frajr-
crease the
effort to
louse with
:■(! hy tlie
iccoimt of
lantity of
service of

majority of
iiding all
iders, one
f-drunk),
a log of
voidd in-
id, at my
my arms,

'ly to the
buildinjxs
. I rode
galloping
ii, in all

egiment,
manner,
J apathy
lie areh-
("ruction,
f whom,

it is said, threw himself across the road, with a crucifix in
liis liand, and prayed God to permit the fire to proceed
no further. At last about haif-past-five, or six o'clock,
the flames appeared completel}' subdued. I returned
home and changed my clothes, and was issuing from
my house, at about half-past-seven, when I met the
wife and daughter of my colonel, whom I accompanied
to the Artillery stores, to assist them in recovering some
of their property which had been placed there during
the nun-ning. We had just loaded a cart with some of
their effects, when we observed a dense column of
smoke issuing up behind Dalhousie Stjuare (near which
I reside), and where were situated our mess and offices.
Mrs. Dixon (who is an old huly), was exceedingly
nervous, and much alarmed when she perceived this
second fire breaking out. I used all my effoits to
soothe her, and accompanied her and her daughter to
their hotel. Just before w^e arrived, several horses
running wnldly, without bridles, came down the street.
I knew in a moment, that the stables belomjinir to the
officers of the 20th Regiment were on fire, and was
very anxious to get to my own house. The old lady,
however, was so frightened, that I did not like to leave
her, and remained mitil the cab with her things
arrived, and then returned to get a fresh load. Leaving
the cab at the store with her servant, I ran to my <iwn
house, where I found my servant had packed \\\) most
of my things, and my groom had removed my carriage
and horses into the street. All the out-buildings at the
back of my house are of wood, and as dry as tinder ; the

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

' 1 1

MM!

I '>■

ii M

wind, however, was carrying the fire steadily away from
them.

' Al.MUit eight or nine men came and volunteered their
services to remove my j^roperty; and a friend kept
guard over my things as tliey were moved to the rear
of my house. To him, indeed, I feel myself, in a great
degree, indebtf^l for their preservation.

' I found my groom with my carringe and horses, not
knowing what to do, and unable to manage tlie horses
by himself. I took them from him ; and he, assisted
by a 20th private, drew my carriage after me to an hotel
in the neighbourhood.

' The fire was, at this time, to the highest degree grand
and terrific. An enormous hotel, the largest in the city,
was burning. The flames consumed the vast building,
and no less than nine or ten stone houses, iu less than two
hours. The fire was communicated from these build •
ings to my side of the street ; and it was only from the
fact, that my house is situated at the back of the barracks
occupied by tlie 20th Regiment, and, consequently, that
every exertion was made by the troops to prevent the
fire spreading in that direction, that it was preserved.
While eno-aged in removing mv tliinLi's, I heard an ex-
plosion; and, leaving m}^ servants to look after my
property, I hastened to the fire, to ascertained whether
my services might not be required to blow up houses,
ttc. There were only three engineer officers present at
the fire, four being absent on leave or duty. I repaired
to the head of the fire, and remained there, being
ijraduallv driven backwards by the flames, for several

1 in th

2 great
I and

fouiul
and ii
I tion,

I 'y

are i

. i

A CANADIAN FIRE

way from

sred their
end kept
t the rear

11 a great

orses, not
:he horses
, assisted
J an hotel

ree grand

n the city,

huilding,

^ than two

se build •

from the

barracks
ntlv, that
3vent the
)reserved.
rd an ex-
after my

whether
p houses,
^resent at

repaired
•e, beinu'
►r several

>iours. I was the only officer present at this spot, all
the otliors being near tlie barracks, engaired in their
])r('servation. The corporation of the city begged me
to blow up ;uiy house whose destruction 1 thought
would retard tlie fire ; and they brought up a tpiantity
(if gunpowder, with some wet blankets (])y iny desire),
iu a canoe. I blew up two houses evidently doomed
for destruction; but, there being no water at hand, and
tlie wooden buildings souk; distance in advance of
the burning houses being in Hames, the attempt w;is
futile.

' I found, vfhen I approached my house at two o'clock
in the morning, tliat it was still in existence thouuh in
great danger. I obtained a fevered sleep of an liour
and a half, and then rose and went to the wharf. I
found my servants there, looking very paleimd fagged,
and all around furniture and baggage of every descrip-
tion, and groups of poor men and women.

' More than 1(),()()0 persons have been burnt out, and
are now livin^x in the tields, or under tents and sheds
supplied to t'lem by Government.

' What makes this terrible calamity the more appalling
is, that there can hardly be any doid)t that it was mainly
owiufj to incendiaries. Even the night after the fire,
people were arrested in the act of setting fire to
build in<)fs.

'The head-quarter Engineer Office, the District Office,
and the General Office, have been burnt. Almost all
our plans {some most valuable), papers, and records
destroyed. The flames spread with such rapidity, that

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

it was scarcely possible to save anything from these
buildings.

' I shall never forget this fire, or the fatigue, anxiety,
and exertion, I underwent. I may well thank God for
the safety of my own life and of most of my property.'

aiv\

it i =

i !

I ' i

)m these

anxiety,
: God for
opevty.'

CHAPTER III.

TRAVELLING IN THE UNITED STATES.

'Montreal, Feb. lOtli, 185,3.

LEFT Montreal to commence what Madame de
Stael calls " one of the saddest plousures in life " to-
day. My journey had a gloomy commencement, as I
was late for the train, and obliued to wait four hours
and a half in an unfurnished and melancholy waiting-
room till another started. I employed the time in
reading a couple of articles in the " Westminster Re-
view," and was commencing another on the eternal sub-
ject of " American Slavery," and " Uncle Tom's Cabin,"
when the " bus " from Montreal bro\ight over its party
of passengers going by the train, whicli I was certainly
not this time too late for. Among the travellers I
recognised Lect and Dewar in company with some
American ladies, whom they -were escorting to the
terminus. Lect introduced me to his fair friends.

'The party (with whom I travelled for the greater
part of this day and the next) consisted of an old lady
and gentleman and three girls. They were nativevS
of Boston, and thither bound. The old lady I found
afterwards in conversation to be a well-read, observant.

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

! ;'ii

t :

acute, and energetic woman, — a type of a large class in
the States. She talked to nie of her own country, and
of Canada ; of the energy and rapid development of the
one, and of the torpor and apparently self-satisfied stag-
nation of the other ; but was much pleased with both
Montreal and (Quebec: she was ac(|uainted with some
of the leading men in the States, and had heard and
admired some of its most eloquent orators. She spoke
of Mr. Ingersoll, the new American minister, and
here betrayed that feeling of reverence for wealth
which is so distinctive a trait in the Yankee character.
She thought Mr. Ingersoll woidd not be able to main-
tain his position with such eclat as his predecessor Mr.
Lawrence, as he was not nearly so rich a man. T
endeavoured to convince her to the contrary, by assur-
ing her that, though money had its due influence in
England, yet wealth and position were by no means
synonymous terms.

' We reached Rouses Point at a (|uarter-past six, at
half-past seven were entertained with a meagre and
unsatisfactory supper, and retired to rest (at least J
did) very soon after, having visions before me of a
journey of eighteen hours on the morrow.

^ Friday, Feb. llth. — Rose at a little after 5 a.m.,
after passing a restless night, principally owing to a
propensity for walking up and down the passage out-
side my room, developed by an individual in thick
boots. Ate some tough beefsteak and swallowed a cup
of weak tea, and then resumed my journey. My new
friends travelled with me as far as Windsor ; and by the

» ^J^'

AGREEABLE TRAVELLING COMPANIONS

.35

! class in
itry, and
it of the
ied stuy;-
ith both
ith some
3ard and
he spoke
iter, and
r wealth
iharacter.
to main-
essor Mr.
man. 1
by assur-
iience in
10 means

ist six, at

agre and

Lt least I

me of a

er 5 A.M.,
^in*)- to a
Bsage oiit-

in thick
A'ed a cup

My new
,nd by the

time we arrived there, I found mvself talkins? to tlie
vomitr ladies with the freedom of a friend, instead of
the reserve of one day's accpiaintance. They cliatttjd
away very f;.imiliarly and cheerfidly, and shook liands
(piite affectionately when we parted, ho[)ing I would
come and see them if ever at Boston. They were in-
telligent girls, and had apparently read most of the
current publications of tlie day. I was amused at the
jividity with wiiioh one of them devoured a newspaper, —
not so generally appreciated by th(» fair sex at home, —
and at tlie eager manner with which they studied, in
the pages of a magazine, a picture of a new, and in my
opinion hideous, fashion in dress. They did not pos-
sess that refinement which is so characteristic of an
English lady, and their manners would certainly not
have been considered perfection at home ; but, spite of
tills they were " cute," kind-hearted, and sociable, and,
at all events, pleasant travelling companions for a soli-
tary l)achelor, who is delighted at the opportunity of
occasionally escaping the melancholy and solitary com-
panionship of his own thoughts.

* The Vermont central railroad, by which I travelled
from Montreal to New York, traverses here and there
some pretty bits of scenery, and skirts for some dis-
tance the waters of the Connecticut river. The green
mountains are the most striking natural object on the
route. The traveller is generally doomed to monotony
iu journeying through the States. Flat tracks of par-
tially cleared wild land form the staple of the scenery.
The thriving appearance of all the towns and villages,

D 2

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

however, on the route, and the observations you hoar
made by travellers concerning their sudden rise; and
rapid growth, lead you, without any violent stretcli of
the imagination, to depict to yourself the altered aspect
of wild and barren nature, in a few years, beneath the
genial influences of energy and industry. The desolate
swamps, disfigured by blackening stumps, will then
teem with a golden harvest, or be transformed into
grassy meads, and all nature around will " burst forth
into singing and gladness." Railway travelling for
many hours together is very tedious and fatiguing. I
certainly had a dose of it to-day. After a bud night's
rest, I travelled from six in the morning till twelve at
night, arriving sleepy and weary at the Metropolitan
Hotel, New York, about the latter hour. Here, in-
stead of turning into a comfortable bed, I was obliged
to be content with a shake-down in a tiny cot in Ji
small bath-room, every room in the hotel being en-
gaged, and several sitting-rooms having already been
converted into public bed-rooms. My bed was so
placed (and almost necessarily so from the size of the
apartment), that were I to have had troubled dreams
and roll over its side, I should inevitably have found
myself in a dry but cold bath. I altered things as
well as I could ; and consoling myself with the reflection
that at sea the rooms were still smaller than the one I
was in, gently sunk into the arms of " Murphy.^''

^ Feb. \2th. — I availed myself of my position this
morning to have a most luxurious cold and shower
bath, indulging in both at the same time. After

-f.

sidei

BROADWAY NEW YORK

u hoar
so and
.^tcli of
aspoct
ith the
lesolate
II then
lmI into
St forth
ing for
ling. I
, night's
,velve at
op<jlitan
ore, in-
obliged
ot in a
■ing en-
dv been
Avas so

of the
(U-eams

^e found
hings as
•eflection
he one I

tion this

1 shower
After

various exorcises of ingenuity witli regard to sp,'vo<^, I
managed to clotlio myself, and walked downstairs to
breakfast. "The Metropolitan Hotel" (which T was
now able to examine a little more minutely and dosidy
than I had been the evening before) is one of those
gigantic palaces with which it delighteth the Yankees
to adorn their great Broadway.

' Its dimensions, and the number of people it will
accommodate, I mean to ascertain before leaving. It
has ])een built within the last two or three years, and
was not in existence, or probably even not thought of,
when I was at New York in tlie spring of 1850. Then
the Astor House was the great hotel ; — novj it is con-
sidered, by the sid(^ of its young and gigantic rival,
quite an ordinary biulding.

* After breakfast I walked down the far-famed
Broadway to Wall Street, armed with a letter of credit
for 500 dollars. The day was lovely, and as warm as
April in England ; everything looked gay and smiling,
and I felt my spirits rising under the genial influence
of new scenes and a new climate. I got my draft
cashed, took a hack-carriage, and drove to houses near
Broadway, to the occupants of which I had brought
letters from Judge Day of Montreal. After driving
about for an hour and a half at a snail's pace (the
carriage being taken by the hour), I paid two dollars
for the pleasure of being bored, and proceeded to
climb the staircase leading to the summit of Trinity
Church, Broadway, the finest in New York. An ascent
of 308 steps brought me almost to the top of the spire

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

:. I

but before reachinji^ this enviable elevation I had en-
joyed the inaj^nificent view coinniauded ))y the Church
from a hunibh'r altitude. The vast city, teeming with
life, bustle, and activity, lay at my feet. The beautiful
harbour, with its coasts reflected in the calm blue
w^ater, bathed in sunshine, encircled it. Tlie white
sails of numerous elegant craft glittered in tlie bright
and joyous light, and gave character and animation to
the tranquil expanse over which they glided. Men
widking below in the busy Jiroadway seemed like
moving specks on the earth's surface. There they
were toiling for business or for pleasiu'e, and playing
their great and little parts on the stage of life ! New
York, embraced in a coup (Vui'd from this point,
impresses the spectat jr by the breadth and grandeur
of its streets, and by the magnitude of some of its
blocks of buildings, as well as with the regularity v.'ith
which it has been laid out. When the plan for this
vast city is filled up (and who can tell, with the energy
of its populace, v;]ien that may be), it will assiu-edl}
be worthy of being called the capital of the world.

* The interior of Trinity Church (in which I was
not sorry to find myself after the fatigue of climbing)
is rich and handsome, but rather somlu-e. The style
is Oothic, and the building itself is, I believe, con-
sidered the best specimen of that style in America. It
has a very rich stained glass window over the altar,
with figures of our Saviour and four Evangelists in-
troduced. Over the central figure, on two glass com-
partments, are the significant Greek letters, Alpha and

k V

AMEHICAN LAPIES

lad en-
Chiircli
iLT witli
niutiful
:n blue
:' white
■?. ])riglit
ation to
]Meii
ed like
re they
playing
! New
^ point,
•raudeur
e of its
•ity with
for this
e ener<]^y
issiiredly
Id.

;h I was
limbing)
"'he style
ve, con-
rica. It
he altar,
elists in-
hiss com-
Ipha and

Omega. The Hisliop of New York usually officiates
in this Church ; and I was told that lie would preach
on Sunday, and hold a contirniation afterwards. The
(-hurch is surrounded by a small burial-ground, filled
with plain, unpretending monuments. A new one, of
rather more ambitious character than the rest, is
erected to Captain l^awrence, who fell in the cele-
brated action between the Ches.apeake and the Shannon.
An iuscriptictn in suitable and dignified language
records the virtues of the deceased, and liis claims on
the gratitude of his countrymen.

' Leaving the Chiu'ch, well satisfied with my visit, I
retraced my steps towards my hotel, my attention en-
grossed by the gay crowd who, in their carriages and
on foot, were out, breathing the pure delightful air and
enjoying the fine weather. Many an expensive carriage
and handsome showy pair of horses passed me, and
occasionally a pretty face might be seen peeping from
a window. I say occjisionally, for the New York ladies
cannot, as a class, lay claim to great beauty. There is
a strong family-likeness between them all, and a pecu-
liar and characteristic, though not an agreeable, expres-
sion in every face. Slight, fragile, and delicate figures,
with feet and ankles which nught be envied, even in
China, — faces filled with an eager, restless, though
clever and intelligent, expression, — countenances unin-
fluenced and unabashed by the gaze of a stranger (from
the American habit of living so much in public), — a
costume renunding one of the outre Paris fashions, —
make a tout ensemble not altogether disagreeable or

CANADA AND TIIK ClSlMnA

I 1

witlifnit iDorits, ])ut wliicli nn Kiiglislniiiiii finds vory
iMt'erior to that (•oiMl)iiiiiti(>ii of" rnvr and Ix'atitiful
traits iind <{iialili(!s which make and characterise one
of his fair conntryvvonien. Those wiio hav<; strolled
down Regent Stieet and down liroadwiiy will at once
see the contrast, and the advantage of it in favour of
Old England. " CV7//7U "ium (Diuiiurn muitint qui
trans mare currunf.'^ I think I shall always be of
the same opinion on this point.

' I visitedon luy way hack to the ]VI(;tropolitan" Hisley's
Moving Panorama of the Thames," and " Bryan's Pic-
ture (lallery." f came in about the middle of the former
exhibition, but was much pleased with what I saw.
The painting is calculated to impress the ^'ankees with
the greatness of England, and the beauties and in-
teresting associations of "Old Father Thames." Its
varied scenes carried me home again ; and I recognised
with pleasure, not unmixed with regret, many a familiar
spot connected with pleasing recollections.

*" Bryan's Picture Gallery" is a small collection of
paintings, collected at great trouble and expense from
various parts of Europe ; several of them by Rubens,
Teniers, Correggio, Kaffaelle, Giorgiune, Hogarth, &c.,
thougli none that could be called a favourable specimen
of the styles of these great masters. A small female
head, by Greuze, pleased me the best, and I was
complimented by the man in charge for my taste,
and told that that was considered one of the jrems of
the collection. Two large paintings from Marshal
Soult's gallery, the " Descent from the Cross," and the

« A(

■

play(

o'cl(»

will

is ex

(line

bein^

toget

atteii

girl (

for 1

table

ladief

!|i

A VISIT TO WALLACKS THKATUE

ids vory

X'HUtifuI

rise one
strolled
at once
ivoiir of
'(lit qui
ys bo of

^Risley's
!ii»\s Pic-
e former
t I saw.
c(^ea with
and iii-
es." ItH
icognised

I familial

eetion of
nse from
Rubens,
irMi, &c.,
^specimen

II female
i I was
Tiy taste,

gems of

Marshal

' and the

I
.1^

" Adoriitioti (if the Slicplierds," evince the eneri^y dis-
played in pnicnriiig pictures. I dined at tlif tive
o'clock ordinary at tlic Mitropojifan ; tlio tliiiing-rooin
will easily contain upwards of 200 jjersons. Tlic dinner
is excellent both in )i><if(h'ti'l and cookery. The ladies
dine with the gentlemen, seats in pHrticulai- j)laces
being generally pre-engaged for parties travelling
tog(!ther. They dress very nicely, and with great
attention to etfect. What a temptation to a pretty
girl (brought up a I'Amei'Uun'nr) with j)lenfy of money
for making herself the observed of all observers ! A
tabl(! ufoddess I Whatever etfect all this mav have on
ladies, it is agreeable enough to the gentlemen to have
pretty faces to look at and admire, even though they
may claim no more ac(iuaintance with their owners
than a cat with a king. In the evenin<r I went to
Wallack's Theatre in Jiroadway to see the " Lady of
Lyons'' acted ; the theatre is a neat and ])retty one, the
scenery and acting were both good, and the audience
remarkably orderly and well-behaved: I had never seen
Bulwer's celebrated play before, — it quite delightcMl me !
The beautiful character of Pauline Desdiappelles wjis
sustained by Miss Laura Keene, and ample justice was
done it by this accomplished and fascinating actress.
The successful conquest of woman's deep unalterable
love over her wounded pride and sense of wrong was
niost touchingly and delicately rendered. Every feeling
of woman's heart, — her love, disdain, contempt, devo-
tion, pride, and despair, — were all truthfully an<l faith-
fully pourtrayed. The character of Claude Melnotte, her

1:1' 'i

' 'i

■ \ .1

i 'I

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

lover, was likewise well acted, and the minor actors
sufficiently good not to mar tlie interest of the piece.

'^ Fabvuary VMh. — Snowing hard when I awoke. 1
gazed from the garret I occupied witli some satisfaction
at the falling flakes, picturing to myself amusement
in the spectacle of Yankee sleighing. I walked to
Trinity Church, and heard the Bishop preach, and
conlirm afterwards, as I had been led to expect I should.
The sermon was good and much to the pc-int: it was on
the subject of confessing Christ before men. [ took a
long walk after church, traversing nearly the whole
length of Broadway, and visiting the site of the pro-
jected Crystal Palace. This latter is partially con-
structed, and gives promise of being both an elegant
and beautiful building. It looks infinitely smaller than
the Exhibition building in England, and is situated
<|uite in the outskirts of the town, on a piece of ground
adjoining the great Croton Reservoir. The two erec-
tions will be a striking contrast to each other, — evanes-
cence and durability side by side. The neighbourhood
of the chosen site is very wild and barren, and the
buildiniTS in the vicinity by no mea,ns either picturesque
or ornamental : we shall see what change the hand of
man may be able to accomplish when the 1st of jNIay
comes. An intelligent citizen, of whom 1 made some
inquiries, informed me that there were to be all kinds
of Hippodromes in the neighbourhood, .and that a
French confectioner was about to erect a Fairy Palace,
and dedicate it to cakes and gingerbread.

^I was much struck by the many noble-looking private

AN EXrENSIYE DINNER BELLE

Dr actor.s

piece,
woke. 1
;isfaction
msement
a Iked to
icli, and
I should,
it was on
I took a
le whole
the pro-
dly con-
i elegant
lUer than

situated
f ground
wo erec-
-evanes-
)ourhood
and the
turesque

hand of

of jMay
de .some
ill kinds
that a
' Palace,

^1
1

residences I passed on my way to this place. P'ifth
Avenue, Union, and Madison Scjuares abound in them.
Tiie number of the wealthy class, " the upper ten
thousand " in New York, must be very considerable :
mendicants there appear to be scarcely any, and I have
only seen one object. The Irish supply the bone and
sinew to Brother Jonathan for carrving out his enter-
prising designs and specidations. An Irishman after a
short residence in the States endeavours often to out-
Vankee the Yankees themselves : he cultivates a peaked
Itt-ard, fjuesses with a rich brogue, and wishes for a
sallow complexion. This I cannot say I have en-
countered myself, but I can easily believe it. To-day
at dinner I sat close to a most gorgeously appar(!lled
damsel, who but for her high cheek-bones might have
been mistaken for a Frenchwoman ; she was dressed in
a rich scarlet geranium-coloured silk gown, trimmed
and ornamented with black, her hair brushed well
hack, after the American fashion, and with " rings on
her fingers," and, for aught I could tell to the contrary,
" hells on her toes ; " her complexion was most delicate,
and something between a maiden-blush and a peach-
blossom. Altogether she was a bright object, and
relieved the black coats of the men near her most
admirably : she w^as stylish without being pretty or
attractive ; had she been either of the latter, 1 should
have spoken of her with more reverence. A Sunday
evenine: in a larsre hotel wdiere you know no one is not

I wrote some iournal, read three or

likely

/ely,

.]<

private

four of Macaulay's speeches (which pleased me much),

'■ ? 1 '.

■ I 1

I t

li'.

[ ''

i I

S '

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

and watched several happy pairs of ladies and gentlemen
promenading up and down one of the large passages of
the hotel. It struck me as rather a remarkable circum-
stance, but one which I noted in many cases, that the
doors of private sitting-rooms, in which ladies are
sitting: talking- to one another, were almost invariablv
left wide open, to afford passers-by an opportunity of
belioldinfj and scrutinisinfj a series of small natural
tableaux vivants. A young damsel, whom I judge from
her eyes, complexion, and youth, to be fresh from the
south and from school, has for the last day or two
directed occasional glances at me, — not of love, but
apparently of compassion for my solitary and isolated
position. I endeavour in return to infuse as much gra-
titude as I can into my looks, and I always, on sitting
down at table, glance my eye round the room in search
of my sensitive little friend. I shall begin soon to feel
that we are acquainted, and shall perhaps, if I am near
her and al)sent in mind, ask after her father in New
Orleans, or whether she finds New York cold after the
south.

'Feb. 14f/t. — Cold, but bright and cheerful. After
breakfast I sauntered down Broadway, and visited
several Law Courts in the City Hall. The absence
of wigs and gowns is at first very striking to an
Englishman. The judge, too, is by no means the
same terrible and imposing person (whose very frown
agitates the hair of a culprit) that we see adminis-
trating justice at Westminster Hall or the Old Bailey.
He is a simple citizen in a black coat, sitting in an arm-

1 1 i

AMERICAN LAW COURTS

ntlemen
3sages of
circum-
that the
Jies are
variably
unity of

natural
Ige from
rom the

or two
ove, but

isolated
uch gra-
Q sitting
n search
a to feel
am near

in New

fter the

After
visited
absence
to an
[IPS the
y frown
dminis-
Bailey.
iin arm-

chair behind a kind of elevated desk. He is addressed
as "the Court." The council engaged in several of the
courts sat on opposite sides (if the term be admissible)
of a round table, placed near the centre of the Court.
They did not appear to me to conduct the examination
and cross-examination of witnesses quite so regularly
as an English barrister does; but they generally looked
keen, 'cute men, ready to catch a point instantaneously,
or detect any flaw in statement or argument. I was
fortunate enough at the District Court of New York to
hear a celebrated lawyer, a Mr. C. B. Cutting, plead
a cause for the defence. He spoke more than three
hours. I heard the latter half of his address, which
struck me as very powerful and impressive. The charge
against the prisoner, whose cause he pleaded, wan for
i^mufjirlinf;,- — a crime which in the United States is most
verely punished, the greater part of the reveime of the
country being derived from the Customs.

I continued my stroll down Broadway after this visit
to the Majesty of Law, and lounged into Barnum's
American Museum, a vulgar collection of curiosities.
The state-coach formerly belonging to (^ueen Adelaide
figures conspicuously : the footmen and coachm<ui in
wax are dressed in state liveries. There is an extra-
ordinary petrifaction exhibited in this ^Museum, which,
if genuine, is certai;- y very curious. It is a group,
consisting of a man on horseback encircled by a
huge boa constrictor. The man is represented as u
South American, and the grctup is asserted to have
been discovered in a cave, where it had been h/ln>j

II- Mi

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

i !,

l" !

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for age.s, and about which probably its present and
future proprietors will lie for ages to come.

On returning homewards, I called at the St. Nicholas,
and requested to be shown a celebrated apartment in
that hotel, called the Bridal Chamber. Bridal chambers
are common enough in steamers in America, but I had
never before heard of a particular room in an hotel
exclusively devoted to the delights of the honeymoon.
The room at the St. Nicholas is small ; its walls are
covered with fluted white satin, and the sofas and chairs
are of the same material. The bed, with a refinement
of ostentatious indelicacy, occupies the centre of the
apartment ; its curtains are of rich white satin, and it
is illuminated by four crystal lustres (each for four
burners), one at every corner I ! ! A rich veil of lace,
worth several hundred dollars, reposing on a quilt of
white satin, greets the eye when looking downwards
from the glories of the curtains. The modest sum of
\50 i\o\\ni'i^ j)er noctem is charged to the occupants of
this luxurious apartment. I think the pair who occu-
pied it, when tliey emerged, would be as great curiosities
as the room itself.

' In the evening I went to the opera, where a
crowded audience were assembled to hear iNIadame
Sontag in " Lucia di Lammermoor." I had never heard
her before, and was a little disappointed at the piano
manner with which slie executed several airs. She
has created a perfect furor in America, — to do whicli
it is only necessary to achieve an European reputation.
Mr. Bancroft, the Ameri''an historian, sat in front of

concern
first esi
breakin
ing up t
in his h
adding,
' Sucl
endeavn
his paro

t martyr ;

.| city of 1

CRIME AND DISHONOUTl

me at the opera. He is a lively old gentleman, with
extraordinary hair and spectacles. Phrenologists would
not, I think, pronounce him a genius at first sight :
he is, I believe, a native of Boston, where he resides.

' Feb. '[5th. — To-day I strolled about Broadway; and,
at about eleven o'clock, paid a visit to the " Tombs," the
Newf^ate of New York. The builiiing is situated near
Broadway, and has somewliat the appearance of an
ICo-vptian temple ; there wci\ of course, scarcely any
windows to relieve the eye. The prisoners, in j)airs,
are confined in small apartments; visitors walk along
a narrow platform, and look at them through the grat-
ings of their dungeons, as thev would at wild beasts. I
hurried away from the spectacle of degraded humanity,
and amused myself by walking up and down Broadway,
and looking at unconvicted citizens.

*I met a gentleman whom I knew at Montreal at
the Metropolitan. He pointed out to me Mr.
Meagher, the Irish editor of the " Nation," who was
concerned in the Smith O'Brien riots ; and who, after
first escaping with his life, had at last managed, by
breaking his parole, to escape from confinement. Walk-
ing up to the oflficer on guard, with a pair of loaded pistols
in his hands, he said, "I surrender myself,"! suppose;
adding, " I'll shoot you if you attempt to take me."

' Such is the flimsy subterfuge by which Mr. JNTeagher
endeavours to escape the imputation of having broken
his parole ; he is treated in the States as a hero and a
martyr; an address has been presented to him by the
city of New York, signed by the mayor ; and he lectures

(1111 11

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

on "Australia,'' and " Grattan and the Volunteers of '82,'"
to crov/ded audiences. l[e is young, and rather good-
looking. The Americans sympathise heartily with every
hlackguard from Ireland or elsewhere, who makes him-
self conspicuous by his pretended efforts for liberty,
against the cause of order and constituted authority.

' A large monument stands in one of their cemeteries
in Broadway, raised to the memory of Thomas Emmet,
brother of ilie celebrated Robert, who, however, in this
case, though a rebel, was certainly a fine fellow.

' I was invited this evening to dine with Mr. Lane, a
New York merchant, livinur in Tenth Street. The con-
versation at dinner turned on the alleged claim of a
missionary clergyman, known in the States as the Rev.
Eleazar Williams, to be considered the Dauphin of
France. It is said that he was privately conveyed to
America, and the body of some other person shown to
the Duchess d'Angouleme a., that of her brother. He
served in the American army during the w^ar, and,
though only in a subordinate jDOsition, received the
thanks of Congress. The Prince de Joinville, it is
further stated, when in America, paid him a visit, and
asked him to sign a paper renoiuicing all claim to the
throne of France, on consideration of the receipt of an
annual income. This jNIr. Williams refused to do ; and
stopped the prince's remonstrances by quietly saying,
" If I am the Dauphin, as you represent, I am your
superior." The whole affair is wrapped in mystery;
but sufficient is known or conjectured to produce great
excitement in the States.

I ' :\rr.

I for son
front iei

A NEW YORK DINNER-PARTY

' ^Ir. Williams preaches at New York ; lie has resided
for some time as a missionary on the Unitod States
frontier. His story has been told l)y some very re-
spectable citizens of New York in one of the maL,'azines,
hut I do not tlnnk very much credit can be attached to
it. The improbability of the Prince de Joinville's at-
tempting- to bribe a man not to assert a claim, whose
existence ho must have been ignorant of, is a strong
argument against the truth of the story.

' The dinner was excellent : young green peas and
prairie hens were great delicacies to a man from the
wilds of Canada. ]\Irs. Law is an intelligent, well-
educated woman. She was very kind and courteous,
and expressed her regret at my not having been with
her in the morning, when she had been paying some
reception visits; and I might have had an opportunity
of seeing the abodes of some of the merchant princes of
New York. Dr. INIetcalfe, one of the guests, had been edu-
cated at West Poin+j and had served in ^Mexico with the
American army ; he described the service on the frontier
as harassing and monotonous, — exertion and exposure
uncombined with amusement or agreeable excitement,
— something of what the Caffre war is to our soldiers.

' The inauguration of General Pierce as Presidcjnt was
expected, I heard here, to be very (piiet, on account of
his domestic bereavements. Senators, ]Mrs. Law told
me, were not the men now-a-days that they were for-
merly. She described President Fillmore as a perfect
gentleman in manner, and most agreeable in conversa-
tion. The children (very pretty ones) joined us at des-

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

,}■

|]!f

!i.

',f

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f " (

sert, find we all adjourned to the drawinr(-rooin toge-

thei

rdinir to the American custom. Dr. and Mn

accon
Metcalfe were eng'a«>-ed to some other parties, and left
soon after dinner. I followed, thanking my hospitable
hostess for lier kindness, and receiving an invitation to
call at her house aijain on mv return from the South.

'Feb. \C)th. — Wet and disagreeal^le. Remained in-
doors all da}^ Kead the papers and wrote a letter to
England. The papers, though generally a little bitter
against " Old England,*' have, I found, often articles
written in a conciliatory spirit, and rebuking the ob-
noxious swagLCer and brng<>-adocio so characteristic of a
certain class in the States.

' While at New York T saw the funeral procession of
one of the New York A^'olunteers, w^ho had died from
the effects of the climate of ]\rexico, pass down IJroad-
way. It was well attended, and I had an opportunity
of seeing a few American soldiers. They looked a rough
lot, marched in a loose straggling manner, and had
anything but a parade appearance. The liberty they
enjoy of cultivating scraggy beards at pleasure is more
than sufficient to destroy uniformity of appenrance. I
left New York at about 5 o'clock for Philadelphia, distant
eighty-eight miles. The line traverses a flat and unin-
teresting country. I crossed two ferries, one at New
York, and the other over the Delaware river, from
Camden to Philadelphia, and reached the latter city at
about half-past ten o'clock. I was poked np as usual
in a small room in the sixth storey, and went to bed tired
and uncomfortable.'

mgs.

ClIAPTEK IV.

I '■

riiiLABKLririA — gihakd collegk-state house.

]^EP,. IS/A.—Girard Collogv, the lion of Philudclpliia,
- is a inag'iiiticent building', or rathtT oToup of liuild-
ings. It consists of a central temple of (Ireciau archi-
tecture, sliL>'htly resend)ling tlie Madeleine at Paris,
and four isolated buildin<i's — two on either side of the
temple, — the whole built of white marble. It is the
most noble monument of individual charity in this or
perhaps any other country, and was constructed solely
from funds bequeathed by Stephen GirarJ, a native of
France, who settled and accumulated an immense for-
tune in Philadelphia. Besides two millions of dollars for
the erection of this college, he left large sums to many
public charities. Girard College is built solely for the
instruction of male orphan children. Their number is
always limited to about .300. Mr. Girard, who in his
will gives minute directions for the construction of the
College, enjoins — "That no ecclesiastic, missionary, or
minister of any sect whatever shall ever hold, or exer-
cise any station or duty whatever in the said College ; nor
shall any such person ever be admitted for any purpose,

B 2

CANADA AND THE CHIMEA

; I

or as a visitor, within the premises appropriated for the
purposes of tlie said College."

* The reason he j^ives for this extraordinary provision
is his desire to keep "the tender minds of tlie orphans"
free from the excitement which clasldng doctrines and
sectarian controversy are apt to produce. " .My desire
is," he furtlier says, " that all the instructors, and
teachers of the College shall take pains to instil into the
minds of the sclxdars the purest principles of morality,
so that on their entrance into active life they may, from
inclination and habit, evince benevolence towards their
fellow-creatures, and a love of truth, sobriety, and indus-
try, adopting at the same time such religious tenets as
their mature reason may enable them to prefer."

'The will was endeavoured to be set aside by Girard's
relations, on account of this provision ; and they en-
gaged Mr. Webster to plead their case before the Su-
preme Court of the United States. They were unsuc-
cessful, however, and the judges unanimously decided
in favour of the will. Girard commenced life as a com-
mon sailor in a French merchant vessel, and raised
himself solely by his untiring energy and merit.

' After dinner I visited the State House, where the
Declaration of Independence on the 4th of July, 1776,
was adopted by Congress, and publicly proclaimed from
the steps the same day. The rooms wear almost the
same aspect as they did then, little change having been
made in the furniture or interior decorations. At the
end opposite the door is the figure of Washington with
the Declaration in his hand. Near him is placed a

DEAF AND DUMB ASYLUM

portion of the identical .step on ^vlliell liis foot rested
when lie read tlie document to tlie nmltitude. Round
the room are hung portraits of W;ishinL,'toii, when a
colonel, William Penn, and Lafayette. The hell whieh
first proclaimed lil)erty(?) is also preserved licre. It
was first cast in England, and suhse(|U(^ntly recast in
America. The room was hung with crape, in memory
of Henry Clay and Daniel Webster.

*The next lion, partaking, however, in its nature more
of the character of the laml), is the Deaf and Dumb
Asylum. It contains 144 pupils, who are admitted at
the age of ten or upwards, and remain six years at the
institution. They are taught to read and write the
English language, and when this great object is at-
tained, arithmetic, geometry, &c., follow.

* The difficulty of communicating ideas and knowledge
of language is, as may be supposed, very great. The
first step towards it is the acquisition of the knowledge
of the names of different objects, and their uses. "The
instructor presents an object, or a picture of one, or
makes a sign for it. He then teaches them to write
the name, presenting each letter by the manual alpha-
bet. When they can all write it, it is erased and re-
written a number of times until it is impressed upon
the memory." The next idea to be imparted is the
quality or uses of particular objects, and their relations.

'Series of sentences, anecdotes, narratives, etc., are
written off, and explained by signs. These are copied
by the pupils and studied as evening exercises, and in
school are written from memory, or recited by signs.

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CANADA AND THE CllIMEA

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II.

MVIk'H once taught to read the mute is supposed
cii[ial>I(' t»r sclt-instructioii, l»iit a lar^c iuiiuIkt do not
cvi'ii reach tliis point from want of capacity.

'Tiiey sometimes display jj^reat inventive genius, and
skill in dravvini; and tiie imitative arts.

' 1 was shewn several lithographs which would not
have disgraced the windows of a London print shop,
which were executed ])y the unaided efforts of some
pupils of the institution.

* Attached to the asylum is a museum fdlcd with
stuffed hirds, and animals, models of various objects,
specimens of grain, v.Vc. ; and is of important use in
imparting definite ideas. Arithmetic is taught hy
means of a nundx'r of black, and red wooden beads
strung on wires fixed to frames, and moved like the
markers used at billiards.

^ Some of the children, the manager told me, were
not ])orn deaf, but lost the power of speech at an
early age. They, however, (.entirely lose the knowledge
of the sound of language, but are generally more apt
pupils than the rest.

* The deaf and dumb alphabet is indicated by one
hand only. Instances never seem to have occurred here
of pupils recovering their speech or hearing.

'The l)lind have an exquisitely fine sense of sound
and of touch, but tlie poor deaf and dumb appear to
possess no superiority either in their senses, or faculties.
Life must, indeed, be a blank to some of them. When,
however, their natural faculties enable them to master
the difRcidties of reading, and writing, they are perhaps

BLIND AyYLl'M

ill it more cnviaLk! position tliiin those who arc unahk'
to sec the ^HorioiiH huu when In' sliines with ail liis
splendour on the fairest scenes of nature. A deaf aii<l
(luiiib person may yet ae([uire a thousand ideas from
tlic (thjccts ai'ouiul him, and a stron^^s natural ri'Ii^ioii
from the contemplation of the wonders of cri-ation.
(jud manifests Himself to him by J I is works.

'My next visit was to another institution even more
intercstinL( than the one [ had just left, — the Asylum
for the lllind. l[cre, as at the Deaf and Dumb Asylum,
I was treated with marked courtesy and kindness. Tlu'
nianai^cr took me to several class-rooms, and T s;),w
some of the girls write. The paper they write upon is
|)laccd on a piece of grooved cardboard. The grooves
they leel through th(! paper, and they serve them as lines.
They look downwards on tlieir papir, as if, poor things !
they could see what tliey were writing, and follow the
movement of their pencil with their left fore-finger.
One, whom I observed, wrote well, and with toleral)le
raj)idity, the words, *' l^lessed are the poor in spirit, for
theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

' I was introduced here to a dear old Quaker lady.
We soon became capital friends. She seemed over-
llowing with kindness and benevolence. The poor little
girls appeared to hail her approach as that of some
heavenly being who had dropped down upon them to
dispense love and happiness.

*The men and boys are principally instructed in
making mats and brushes, and sometimes l)OCome
sufficiently skilful to procure their own livelihood.

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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' After seeing the children at dinner, and taking an
affectionate farewell of my conductress, I continued my
walk to the Fairmount "Water Works, situated near the
river Schuylkill. They occupy an area of thirty acres.
The water is raised by eight wheels, moved by water-
power, and working piniips. The power necessary for
this is obtained by throwing a dam of 1600 feet long-
across the river. Each pump will raise about 1,260,000
gallons in twenty-four hours. The works were pro-
jected, and executed by a ^Nlr. Graff. The Schuylkill
is a small, and rather insignificant river.

* Feb. \9fh. — This was the morning which was ap-
pointed for my introduction to the great Mrs. I{ . I

accordingly, about one o'clock, accompanied the lady
who was kind enough to introduce me to her house.

' The whole of her magnificent mansion was arranged,
and its furniture and fittino-s chosen bv herself.

^Nearl}'- all was from Paris, where she had resided
for some time.

'Three sides of a ([uadrangle at the back of the
house are occupied by a most beautiful conservatory,
richly stored with a profusion of rare and exqidsite
plants and flowers, all in perfect preservation, — a sight
quite refreshing to the eye in this season of snow and
frost.

' The interior of the house was fitted up in the most
siunptuous manner, and in a style of oriental mag-
nificence. Two rich tapestry curtains, which hung
across a folding door, cost 3000 dollars each. The
profusion of gigantic chandeliers and lustres, — the ex-

mag-
hung
The
he ex-

A MAGNIFICENT MANSION 57

qiiisitely carved and richly inhiid tables and cabinets, —
the gilded chairs, ottomans, and sofas, — the vast mirrors
and rich curtains, — all created in the mind the impression
of boundless wealth. One room, furnished in a style
whoUv different from all the rest, and affordiuj'' a
marked contrast to the rich damask, and gold, and the
glories of the French clocks, and candelabras, was unique,
and exquisite in its way. It was in the mediieval style.
The cabinets, and mantel-piece were all of dark wood,
beautifully carved, aid ornamented with highly finished
figures of knights, and warriors in bronze ; and a mass of
helmets, cuirasses, and other armour, admirably arranged
and most delicately executed, brightened the general
eflfect. Everything was in keeping. Not a glittering
object was admitted, and an effect was produced both
tranquillisiug, and agreeable after the comparative glare
of the other apartments.

*I spent the evening with the J s; Mrs. J. toM

me she was god-daughter to the Duchess of Leeds, who
was a l^altimore lady. Three sisters, who accompanied
their father to England, were married to three of the
highest Enjilish nobilitv, viz. to the Duke of Leeds,
the ]Mar(|uis of Wellesley, and Lord Strafford. The
two first were widows, and rich before they became
peeresses.*

' Suiidai/, Feb. 20th. — I dined at the ladies' ordinary
at half-past three, and sat next to three navjd men:
they seemed good fellows. They were not (pute so
refined, I fancied, as our own tars ; they appeared to lack

* Dauglileis uf Kichard Caton, Esq., of Marylaud.

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

a " J(i ne sais quol,'" that easy, gentlemanly manner
whicli makes an English sailors frankness so attractive.
The promotion in the American navy is very slow,
and men remnin for yearn in subordinate positions.
This f[iet has been taken up by the press, and will
probably be brouglit under the consideration of
Congress. It seems a much better service than that of
the American army.

* General Pierce had arrived at Philadelphia, but kept
very quiet, as he has done everywhere, on account of
his domestic bereavements, llis picture, which is in
all the shop windows, represents him as a short and
ratlier plain, but a decided looking, and intelligent man.

' In my walk to-day I had reason continually to
admire the great breadth, and straightness of the streets
of Pliiladelphia, and the manner in wdiich the city is
laid out.

* Though it does not contain such rows of magnificent,
and stately mansions as New York, it may still boast of
some very handsome ones, and of the beauty of some
of its public buildings, built with that most beautiful of
materials, white marble. It has still further reason to
congratulate itself on its extreme cleaidiness, and in
the nund)er of public squares, planted with trees, which
afford delightful shelter during the siunmer heats.

'It is celebrated for fruit and vegetables, which are
grown on a neck of land, separating the rivers Delaware
and Schuylkill ; from this circumstance the streets
derive their horticultural names, Chestnut Street being
the finest in the city.

AN AMEEICAN DOCKYAED

* Philadelpliia at one time was considered tlie principal
city in the States, and endeavoured to retain its supe-
riority against tlie rising importance of Xew '\'t)i-k ; hut
''tlie Empire City" gained the race easily, and its
triumph is now completely acknowledged. The country
around the city is generally \-duw. In this respect, also,
Philadelphia is very inferior both to New York and
Boston.

^Fcb. 2\st. — Fine cold clear morning; after breakfast
I went to seethe U.S. Navy Yard near the Delaware
river. It hardly repaid the trouble of a visit ; a slack-
looking marine in a light blue nniform, something of
the colour of the hospital dress worn at Woolwich, stood
sentry at the entrance; a few badly finished guns, and
two, or three piles of shot, were almost the only objects
of a warlike nature. Two empty docks for Ituilding
frigates, or two-deckers, and several long low^ brick l)\uld-
ings, nsed, I imagine, as workshops, with here and there
an open shed, composed the navy yard. A new ship — a
small frijj-ate — was bein^- finished close to one of the
slips in which she had probabl}" been built ; and another
vessel of about the same size, and in commission, was
lying at anchor a few yards from the shore. A })oat
putting off from the ship afforded me an oppoitunity
of seeing how the American sailors handle their oars,
and I must say they both pidled and shipped them in a
sailor-like maimer.

'I left Philadelphia in a very crowdeil train at two
o'clock, and reached l^altimore at about H v.'si. \\\;
crossed the Susquehanna river in a steam firry, and

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

when safely located in fresh cars at the other side, I
became for the first time aware that the train I was in
was hearing the American Ca'sar (Anglice, President
elect) and all his fortunes. General Pierce and his
suite occupied a car by themselves, to the dissatisfaction
of the rest of the passengers, and especially of an old
jxentleman who had come from Georf'ia to witness his
inaua'uration after voting for him. He seemed to con-
sider such exclusiveness most foolish, and quite un-
precedented, and asserted that General Pierce should
not confound his private and public characters together,
and allow domestic aiflictions to influence his conduct
as the President of the United States. I found my old
friend very sociable and well informed. He was evi-
dently partial to England, and said that America would
never allow any foreign power to subjugate her, and
destroy the last stronghold of liberty in Europe. He
had seen, and known Jerome Ponaparte, whose son, by
his first marriage, he told me, was living at Baltimore,
and was very like the Bonaparte family in features. He
had also lived on rather intimate terms with Napoleon's
eldest brother, Joseph, at Jersey ; and spoke of him as
an intelligent and superior man. He thought the pre-
sent Emperor an insignificant personage (I), but did not
approve of the severe strictures of the English press
against his character and actions, after he had been
chosen by such a vast majority to be the ruler of a great
nation. General Pierce continued his journey, without
stopping, to Washington, where his arrival was announced
this morning in the papers. He seems to have been com-

:ii

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CHINESE JUGGLERS

pletely himted down ^)y office-seekers and rom|»elle(],
ill order to avoid them, to depart suddeidy and unex-
pectedly from place to place.

'It Avas dusk when we reached Baltimore, so I could
form but little idea of the city. The cars took us through
some dirty back streets (the Baltimore "\Vapi)ing), and
we skirted the edge of the basin or harbour, defended
by Fort McHenry.

'After a beefsteak and a cup of coffee, I went to the
theatre, utterly unconscious of a fact which I aftiTwards
ascertained — viz. that Thackerav lectured elsewhere
this very evening. Instead of being delighted and gra-
tified, as I make no doubt I should have been, by his
enlightened and elegant criticism, and his grapliic illus-
trations, I was bored by the rather inferior performances
of a Chinese troupe, in a densely crowded theatre. The
exhibition was not wholly without interest : I had cer-
tainly never seen Chinese eat chow-chow with chop-
sticks, or heard them talk that mysterious language,
the symbols of which adorn our tea-chests. I had also
never previously beheld any living specimens of their
fur sex; and I must say the ladies, though they do wear
trowsers instead of petticoats, have a decided advantage
over the gentlemen. The tricks perf )rmed were gene-
rally but little above mediocrity : two, however, struck
me — a boy throwing a head somersault without using
his hands, and a man darting knives at another, and
fixing them into a board,within a hair's breadth of his
head and face. This last was trulv national, and, thou<rh
rather alarming in appearance, w\as sufficiently excitinf^-.

It-il

sir I

[

\' i

i i^

I;! -Ill

«;2

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

' Biu-Huni's Hotel, Baltimore, in which I had taken
up my abode, is a large and rather seedy place, very
inferior both to the Girard Ifouse, and the INIetro-
politan. At about half-past five in the morning, in the
mid<ll(^ of a refreshing snooze, I was alarmed l)y the cry
of "P'ire!" and the rinLrini*- of divers bells: these
spoiled my night's rest.

< Baltimore, Feb. 22nd.

'After breakfast I started to examine the city. It was
unfortunately wrapped in fog, so that a co^ip (Vo'Al of
the city was impossible. The handsomest portion of
the citv is in the neiLrhbourhood of Washington's monu-
mcnt. The site is a favourable one, and commands an
extensive view. To-day is the anniversary of Washing-
ton's birth. The stars and stripes figure conspicuously
from various public buildings ; balls are given by dif-
ferent public bodies ; and processions march through the
streets in most cities of the Union. The birthday of her
greatest son, however, is not celebrated by America with
any extraordinary pomp or rejoicing.

'Baltimore is on the borders of the Slave States. At
the theatre there is a gallery especially reserved for
coloured people, be they bond or free. The waiters at
the hotel are all, or nearly all, Ijlack. Poor Sambo I
he is a good fellow after all. Good natured, cheerful
(in spite of oppression), with a sensitive and affectionate
heart, if not brought to a state of sullen indifference by
a course of cruelty. Most of the black people I have
yet seen have either been pure nigger, or near approaches

THE SLAVE QUESTION

to tliat stuto of iinpcrfoction. As tlie refloctii>u of Isis
(leyTJuled t'oiiditioii flaslies ncross my mind, I feel a spe-
cies of restraint in the presence of one of these poor fel-
lows. I am afraid to catch his eye, and to re:id in his
looks, and expression the sense of bondage and iid'e-
riority ; of wron;^, contnmely, iind injustice ; and, more
touching than all, to see that look of desponding, de-
spairing submission, which shews that soul as well as
hody is bowed down and crushed. When can i\ slaves
enjoy that common right of all men — self-respect? Is
lie allowed to express — even to form — an opinion of liis
own ? Are not thought, will, and feeling alike shackled
by the iron hand of despotism ? It is this moi'al degra-
dation which, to my mind, is infiniteh' more painful
and hunnliating than compulsory l)odily labour. Com-
pulsory bodily labour is not slavery, or else slavery exists
iu every country ; for in what country is compulsor}'
bodily labour not indispensa])le to the existence of a large
portion of the community ?

' The Slave question is a difficult and delicate one.
Emancipation — sudden and complete emancipation —
would ruin both slaves and slave-ouTiers. Whom do y(ju
emancipate ? Whom do you raise to the rank of free men?
Are they men who even know what freedom means ? Do
we give children edge-tools to play with ? What would
be the effect of suddenly raising several millions of human
beings, ignorant, without the sense of moral responsibility,
without a chief to guide them, surrounded by a liostilo
crowd, with every disadvantage of prejudice and posi-
tion added to those of want of capacity or capital, —

^1
i f

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

what would he tlie effect of suddenly mising this mass
as it were from the dead, in opposition to the encrny,
the ability, the hatred of white men ? It mjiy he said —
Let him, when free, emi<^rate, — let him leave the land
of his past disL,q'ace and ])ondage, — let him hasten to
those countries where his wrongs have so long afforded
a theme over which the sympathising tears of thousands
have been shed. Will not his heart glow with the un-
experienced sensations of freedom ? Will he not be
proud of a bond — a bond of union and brotherhood —
with that race which was formerly to him only an object
of dread or aversion ?

* Bwt what is the practical view ? Where is the negro
to get funds to enable him to leave the scene of his cap-
tivity ? What is he to do in these days without know-
ledge, or experience ? Some of the negroes — the mulat-
tos and quadroons, — those with a dash of white blood
in their veins, — might succeed, after a heroic struggle
with the force of circumstances : but what is to become
of the great mass — the mass for whom this outcry is
raised ?

' How are they to be benefited ? The evident prepara-
tion for freedom is education. Let freedom be the re-
ward of certain attainments. Let us liberate that class
who are most deserving of freedom, and most likely to
use it well — the mulattos, quadroons, &c. This will
be a great step in the right direction. We prepare a
class in the State which will sympathise with the re-
maining victims when they are liberated, and we allow
an interval to elapse to accustom men to the spectacle

■?

THE SLA.VE QUESTION

of a community of free l^laeks, whose intelli^^Tiice will
secure them some degree of respect and consideration.
It may be urged that this spectacle of freedom would
produce insurrection — would lead the negro race to rise
as a man against their oppressors, and forcibly throw
aside their bonds. But do men without a chief or a
head, separated into distinct communities, having but
little intercourse with each other, — do they resort to
fore(3, violence, or bloodshed, when a fair and reasonable
expectation is before them of the peaceful attainment
of their object ? The black man — the pure negro — is
submissive by nature, by education, by habit. We have
removed the great element (jf revolt and mischief, by
removing the most intelligent and spirited. Who are
those who are left behind. ? They are numerically im-
posing, no doubt; but so are the Chinese — so are the
hosts that move at the nod of the despots of India ; —
hut are they not, even more than these, a body without
intelligence or unity of purpose, or a knowledge of
their own advantages or disadvantages ?

' Eeasonable reforms and concessions are the essence
of good government of all kind, — they are the antidotes
against the poisons of revolution and anarchy.

* Feb. 23rd. — Wet, gloomy, and disagreeable. Left
Baltimore at 9 a.m., and reached Washington at 1 1 A.M.
I travelled to Washington with the same chatty old
gentleman who had expressed his indignation at the
President's exclusiveness a few days before ; he told me
that he was bom near Baltimore, and that all his early
associations were connected with that city and its

CANADA AND THE CRDrKA

III

\ -i'

! ,,!

- 1

) il

I, ■!

,: .'III.

nc'ijjfhbourliood; lie ])oiii|-c(I out to ino tho lioiHf lie
used to live in, and the stream in wliicli lie fislied wlicii
a younj^-ster. li'dtimore at tliat time was not one-tliinl
of itH present size; but a pretty plaee, surroundei] liy
fields and ^^irdens. My friend likewise informed inc
tliat the eountry in the vieinity, botli of Washint^ton
and Baltimore, was very poor, the soil being light ami
nearly worthless without manure.

' It was raining hard when we reached Washington.
I went to (ladsby's hotel, a great house sonu^ years ago,
but (piite commonplace now. J secured a good bed-
room, inciuired the English Minister's direction, which I
was told was at the corner of K and 2IJrd Streets, and
drove in a hack-carriage to the Capitol.

' The " Capitol " at Washington is a magnificent white
freestone edifice, built in an elevated and conspicuous
position ; it greets the eye from every point of approach
to the city, and looks down on the straggling town
beloAV, with the dignified complacency of a lion regard-
ing the sports of a party of puppies. The eastern
point is the most magnificent, and is adorned by ;i
splendid portico of twenty-two lofty Corinthian columns:
two pedestals are left for statues or groups of sculpture,
one on each side of the great stone staircase leading to
the east portico. One of them is occupied by a well-
executed group by an Italian artist, representing a
half-naked figure in a crouching attitude, looking
half-imploringly and half-admiringly at an armed
warrior, who is apparently invoking the assistance of
Heaven for some enterprise. The Capitol occupies an

fli:iii

C^rarOL — WiiSlILNHTON

acre and ii h'^lt of ^touhh'I, and a largo hiiildiiii,' is Ix-iiiij
constructed oii each winy, whacli »'ill aild matcriaily t(»
tlie effect.

'Tlie < apitol at WaKlunui-on is iindouldedly the
liands(>i(i-4 ])id)lic biuldiiij^ in America: it is woi-tliy of
the nati«>ii, and of tlie nianwlii>sc city it adonis. It is so
admirably situated, and of sucli vast size, as to impress
any one, even the most travelled monkey, who had
never seen it Itefore. Two rather seedy, but very large
starred-and-striped banners were Hoating on the
breeze from its roof, and destroying the <>:eneral effect
of the edifice they were intended to adorn.

'The east front is nuicb superior to the west. The
building is surrounded by an inclosure, and approached
on the west liy a broad avenue, lined witb trees; two
fountains adorn the carefully kept grass-plot in front of
it: the whole building is surmounted by a dome, which
I did not particularly admire. The interior is devoted
to the Senate, and House of Ivepresentative ('hand)ers,
and to public oftices. In the centre, and lighted by
the dome, is a large circular hall, adorned with paint-
ings and alto relievos: the pictures, executcnl by
Trunibull, represent various scenes ami triumphs in
American history, such as "The Presentation of the
Declaration of Independence," "Tlie Ivesignation of
Cjrnwallis." They appeared to me to be well executed;
the fio-ures were as larsije as life. The intermediate
spaces and niches over the entrance-doors of the hall
are ornamented by alto relievos, representing the
rescue of Smith by the interposition of Pocahontaij, Penu

r 2

■.'i:

CANADA AND THE CRIMKA

111 1

I i

! ,

trontini,' witli tlic Tiidians, S:c. The liall is of strikinuf di-
mensions, and f,'rand and iinposint^ in its ^-cniTal effect;
visitors, and in fact everyone, Jire admitted into tlio
p^allcric^s to lieiir the debates in ])otli llonses. The
galleries in th(! Senate J[onse are very small, and will
accommodate comparatively few persons; an especial
gallery is reserved for lad'es in the House of Represen-
tatives, though I should not imagine that they often
availed themselves of it.

*I visited both Chambers, and heard a portion of two
debates. In the Lower House they were diseussintj a
bill for reciprocity of trade with Canada; and the
mem])er {o\w of the Whig party) whom I heard speak,
advocated the policy of receiving English goods, and
especially iron, free of duty ; on account of the heavy
demand made by the custom house in the State, a
larger siun was paid, a few years ago, for conveying
goods from New York and landing them at New Orleans,
than for sending them to Peru. The House of Repre-
sentatives contains several hundred members ; they sit
on benches arranged in semicircles, and approached
from avenues radiating from the Speaker's chair as from
a common centre. The Democrats occupy the quadrant
on the Speaker's right ; the Whigs, who constitute the
minority, that on his left ; a few Democrats, who cannot
find seats on their own side, are obliged to occupy those
vacant on the other. The hall or chamber is a noble
apartment — ninety -six feet long, and sixty high. It is
surmounted by a dome, supported by twenty-four
columns of dark marble from the neighbourhood of the

THE SKXATE AND lIOUtJE OF llErilE.'JllNTATIVES

ito the
. The
nd will
'speciiil
piesen-
y often

I of two
issing a
lul the
I speak,
(Is, and
D heavy
^tate, a
iiveying
)rleans,
Repre-
they sit
iroached
■ as from
iiadrant
tute the
) cannot
ly those
a noble
1. It is
nty-four
id of the

Potonuic, and of the same colour as the {'ohinuis in llic
Temple church at London, with ('oriiitlii;in ciipitals of
Italian iiiarhle. Tlu! Speaker sits just uudtTthc Luh't's'
jrallerv. He sits on a raised and eonnnaiidiu'' scat,
hut is not rendered so iiuposin^- a,s our Sju-aker hy tlie
robes of authority. In front and below him areliiu-sof
reporters. The jj^reat size of the hall, and its lofty ceilinj^,
comhiued with a perpetual busy hum of conversation,
render it dil^eult to hear the s])eeehes distinctly. I
was every way better pleased with the Senate. There,
dij^nity, order, and decoruiu seem the ])resi(liuL( ^enii ;
the members of the Senate are also older m(>n, noiu;
hein"*' eli'dble for election till after the an'e of thirtv-tive:
and as their powers are the same, or even "greater, than
those (»f the other House, and as they are less nmnerous,
they are generally men of greater weight and ability.
The members of both Houses are regularly paid during
the time Con^rress is sittincf, and their deliberations
generallv extend from 11 a.m. till 4 p.m. dailv. On
the electicm of anew President, both Houses adjourn till
Decendjer, and then commences what is called tlu; long
session. They have thus a much easier time of it than
some of our hard-worked and underpaid public men
and politicians. Another peculiarity of the American
system is, that men, on accepting office, are by the laws
of the constitution obliged to relinquish their seats in
Congress. This I think a defect, and a great one ; for
it is obvious that on the election of a new President of
different politics to the one preceding, all the officials,
who of course are supposed to be selected for ability,

F 3

CANADA AND THE CI?IMEA

1 '

; i

I 1
I

serving imdcr his ])redecessor, are obliged to resign, and
have to strn<wle tiiron«xh another eleetionto get restored
to their seats "n Congress. If they fail, their services
are lost to the country ; and thns a nnniber of able and
willin<i- men are wasting their sweetness and their
strength in the desert air, or on the promotion of their
private interest, when they might have been beneficially
gniding and dir( eting the vessel of the State.

' Thedel)ate in the Senate was on a bill passed by the
other llonse for transferring the management of the
pnblic armonries from the Ordnanc Corps to eivilians
appointed by Government. I heard (leneral Cass (so
celebrated for his animns against England) speak. He
was bnsily engaged in consulting authorities before rising,
and made statements and <|uotations from them in his
addiess. The subject was not of .'i nature to call forth
any particidar display of eloquence; and from the
manner in which he spoke, I should not think that
(xeneral Cass was ever an eloquent man. Jle is stout,
ratlu'r tall, red faced, and corpulent. He is a little fussy
in manner, and I should think irritable. His appear-
ance would not impress a stranger with the idea of a
man of ability.

'The majority of the speakers were against the measure
before the House, and sr^veral amendments for investiga-
tion and reports we^'e liiade. The Ordnance Corps was
spoken of in terms of praise, and the efficiency of the
armouries strongly dwelt on. The votes of the Senate
were taken while I was ])resent. The House divided on
several amendments, and when the aves and noes seemed

GENERAL ArrEARANCE OF WASHINGTON

nearly e(|iuil, another division was called fur, and eacli
party showed its nund)ers distinctly by rising alternately
from their seats. The Vice-President for the time being
is Speaker of the f-Vnate.

' When I again emerged into the open air, after wit-
nessing these interesting proceedings, I walked np an
avenue, opposite the east front of the Capitol, and
adinh'ed its noble proportions from a distance. Opposite
the front is a large white marble statue of Washinulon,
in a sitting posture and, with little superfluous drapery.
The figure is noble and commanding, but nut pleasing.

' After discussing a dozen oysters, 1 commenced a walk
down Pennsylvania Avenue, the great promenade, for the
hiiuse of our ^Minister Plenipotentiary. Tiie road led
past the " White House," the official residence of the
President, and about a mile from the CapitoU

' It is a handsome structure, and has a fine portico,
supported by columns of the Ionic order : two large
buildings, the offices and lodgings of officials, are situ-
ated near its \\ings.

'AH the public buildings in Washington are hand-
some, some of them niagnirtcent; they present a
marked contrast to the general appearance uf the city.

'Any one viewing Washington from an elevation,
would say, in the words of Scripture, these people "began
to build, but are not able to finish." The whole citv
is laid out n\ a gigantic scale ; broad avenues, inter-
sected by otaers at right angles, extend for nules ; but
the houses an' few, small, and far between, like tlu; jdums
in a school pudding. Pennsylvania Avenue contains

F 4

'/ \

i'l

m ¥

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

iiili ^1

: i

I ! «

!' i

nearly uUtlie private l)uil(liiii;-s of any pretension. Tlie
city is not advantag'eously situated for trade; and, in
tlie present state of America, it is not to be wondered
at if Yankees decline to settle down in a "location"
where they cannot accnmidate dollars with rapidity.

' The city is of course crowded to overflowing at the
time of a President's inan;j;-uration ; and at the present,
more than an}^ other, the hotels have been thronged by
swarms of office-hunters, Avho worry and run the poor
President-elect to earth most mercilessly. General
Pierce I believe, turns a deaf ear to their cries, and the
practice is one which tends to lower the American
nation in the eyes of the world. I heard it severely
commented on in the Senate, and denounced in the
above terms. Our ^Minister at AVashinaton lives in a
rather seedy house, about a mile from the President's
jdjode ; his door was opened by a dirty man-servant,
into whose paw I thrust a card, and retired rather
chagrined at the poor tigure cut by the representative
of En Hand.

'^ Feb. '1-iih. — Rose about half-past five, and was ready
before six to start for the steamer. The hack-carriage
that had been ordered for me did not arrive; and I was
indebted to the charity of a paddy for a seat on the box
of another. The nigger driver, my Hibernian told me,
had not come out on account of the coldness of the
morning ; I suppose tlie frosty air does not agree with
Sambo's complexion. The weather was certainly very cold,
the wind cutting and searching, particularly disagree-
■i.ble to an nnbreakfasted traveller, in an exposed position.

•.-ii

RAILWAY TRAVELLING

*Tlie Banks of the Potomac are pretty, but rather
inonotouous. " Washiiit^to!i House," at Alount Veriiou,
is situated on the right bank of tlie river, aljout live
miles from the city ; it is a good-sized, plaiu-h)okiii;^'
l)uil(ling, probably considered a mansion when Washing-
ton occupied it. The tomb of the " father of his
country" is situated near the house; it is a plain red
brick monument, scarcely visible from the water ; the
house and property belong to the United States, having
been purchased by Congress. A high wind, which blew
uninternuttently all the morning, liad driven so nuich
water out of the creek, that our boat stuck in the mud
within a few yards of our landing-place. The tide was
not expected to rise, so the passengers and mails were
landed in boats, the luggage left behind, and the train,
after two hours' delay, proceeded onwards to Kichmmul.
The railway trams are merely flat pieces (.)f iron nailed
down to planks resting on sleepers, and if traverst'd at
great speed, would probably curl up; liftei^n miles an
hour is considered the correct pace. Very slow in these
days, and productive of expressions of impatience from
travellers, pampered by superior methods of annihi-
lating distance. We passed through an luidulating and
pretty country ; here and there might be seen the rude
log shanty of a nigger, and either Sambo or his wife at
the door looking at the cars. We stopped nowhere
for refreshment. The company endeavoured to forget
hunger in the enjoyment of apples, which they munched
with a vigour worthy of better provender. Some en-
terprising youths, at the risk of being left behind, con-

i:ii,

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

lii!

I i

! !

trived to get a drink, but its quality was comforting
neither to mind nor body.

' We readied Kichmond about G r.M. Drove to tlie
Exchange Hotel, a very large one; found it full. ]\Ian
at the bar wanted to put me into a room v.ith two
others; had visions of spitting, snoring, and infraction
of the eighth conunandment, and so refused. Threw
myself on his generosity to find me a room to myself
in ihe course of the evening, and went to the supper
room (having had no dinner during the day), and ex-
ercised my jaws on some inferior beef-steak. Walked
through Kichmond in the dusk ; appeared a well laid
out, pretty place; remarked an extraordinary numljer of
chemists' and pastry-cooks' shops — handsome ones, and
brilliantly ilhuninated. Listened to the distant murmur
of the falls of the James River (on whicli Kichmond is
situated), and saw their spray dimly ilhnnined by the
pale light of the rising moon. Found the man at the
hotel had been w^orthy of my confidence, and had given
me a capital room. On the door, a caution was pasted
up, " Bolt the door to prevent night robberies ; " com-
plied witli the polite re(piest, and shortly afterwards
accepted the invitation of " Somnus " to " come to his
arms." Knocked up at half-past five, and turned out
most imwillingly ; bolted an indigesti])le breakfast, paid
my bill, and started for the ]Meechum River railroad.
This brings me to —

' Feb. '2'jth. — Rapid travelling, early rising, and insuf-
ficient dinners, had rather jaded me. When I started
this morninLj I had the sensation of one who had been

for nigli

narticul

pretty f

itself; 1

the fatif

' I sa)

tame an

After tw

sun cha

to look {

''MyX«

'The!

very few

it is one

and SOUK

much frt

'The(

ohviousb

jumbles

but pass

tolerable

them che

generally

rustic br

were cer

readincf I

surroundi

as a deej

fairer reli

fancy co:

' I

ROMANCE AND REALITY

< J

for nights running to balls or parties ; in fact I was not
narticnlarly disposed to fall into raptures either witli a
pretty face or a pretty prospect, liad either presented
itself; luckily, however, I was not called upon to undergo
the fatigue of admiratiou.

'I saw with my half-opened eyes that the scenery was
tame and monotonous, and so closed them altogether.
After two or three hours' travel, the bright rays of the
sun chased away my drowsiness, and I aroused myself
to look at the passeugers antl the country, and to read
"My Novel;" I was most pleased with the latter.

'The.Meechum Ferry railway carries, I shoidd imagine,
very few passengers in the winter time; in the summer
it is one of the most convenient routes from the North,
and some portion of the South, to the Virginia Springs —
much frequented during tlie month t)f August.

'The defects of the American system of travellinii* arc
obviously seen in inferior railroads. A system which
jumbles up all classes must be always objectionable;
hut passengers between largo cities or towns are more
tolerable than those in the country, as though many of
them chew and spit in a most revolting manner, they
generally pay more attention to soapand water than their
rustic brethren; a few of my fellow-passengers to-da}',
were certainly not perfumed with millefleur. Fancy
reading Bulwer's beautiful and imaginative descriptions
surrounded by such Goths and Vandals! They served
as a deep shadow to bring out in still l^righter and
fairer relief the forms ami figures of those whom my
fancy conjured up from Bulwer's magic page. The

I \'

CANADA ANP THE CRIMEA

I '

(liirk-cycd, liigli-soukMl, glorious Violante, and tlic sweet,
tender Helen, wliat more tlian angels did they appear,
wlien I glanced from tlie pag(; which ])roiight thcni
brightly and vividly before my mind's eye, to the ruffian
forms around me I

' About one o'clock we reached a small tow^n called
Charlotte's ville, w^here we stopped for a few minutes,
and where I oiujht to have got out to dinner. I
speculated, however, on feeding at IMeechum's Ferry
before continuing my journey to Staunton by the stage.
Little did I know what was in st(jre for me I When we
readied Meechum's Kiver, we found a stage ready to
take us on. An American stage is a large, heavy, lum-
bering vehicle, constructed to hold nin6 inside and two
out : the insides are packed together something in the
fashion of clothes in a carpet-bag; that is to say, they
are well crammed in, and pressed down. I managed
to insert my body into a vacant seat, with my back to
the horses ; and having disposed of my legs in as satis-
factory a manner as circumstances would admit of (and
seriously I advise no man of more than five feet ten inches
to venture into an American stage). I looked at my
fellow-passengers ; two pale, sickly-looking women and
a man, the husband probably of one of them, occupied
the back seat ; in front of them, /. e. in the centre of the
stage, and with their backs resting against a leathern
strap, sat three men, respectable, ordinary, w^ell-washed
looking personages ; and on my side were two other men,
probably small farmers, or y)ig-drivers by profession.

'I tried to sret a mouthful to eat or drink, as I

. >

had br(

([iiite 11

and bod

of heiiv^

fu'si, ai

Anieric;

winter.

were bo

which ai

wc shou

slow rat(

nienced

anecdote

his conj'c

the state

pears th;

of this 1

?al)le by

soon aff(

resemble

frozen, a

hollows A

from sid(

denlythe

balanced

be in the

violent t

congratu'

proceed i

in little :

■ s

t f '

AN AMERICAN STAGE-COACII

» I

liad breakfasted at six, and it was now two, but was
([uite unsuccessful. Away we started, after tlie roof
and boot of our "vehicle" had ])c'en tilled with a mass
of heavy lugi>"age ; and then bcji^^an my miseries and my
fii'st, and I trust last, experience of the felicities of
American sta^^e-travellinn' over ccnmtry roads in the
winter. We left Meechum's Iviver at about 2 r.^r., and
were bound for ►Staunton, twenty-ei^ht iniles distant,
which any reasonable human being would have sup|)osed
we should have readied in four or five hours, even at a
slowM'ate of travel. One of my friends opposite com-
menced an animated conversation, t(^ld several pleasing
anecdotes of upsets, and breakdowns, and then gave us
his conjecture, founded on hearsay and experience, as to
the state of the road wo were about to traverse. It ap-
pears that the road is tolerable in summer (th>>ugh even
of this I am sceptical), but is rendered nearly impas-
sal)le by the winter rains. A practical illustration was
soon afforded us of its condition. The road somewhat
resembled a ph)ughed field ; its deep ruts were partially
frozen, and the wheels slipped off their crests into the
hollows with mighty jolts: the stage vibrated and swung
from side to side on its heavy leathern springs. Sud-
denly there was atrcmeiidous jolt — thecoach seemed just
balanced on two wheels, and the next moment likely to
be in the mud. A short plunge, a struggle, a series of
violent throes and convulsions, and we are saved, and
congratulate ourselves on having a good driver ; we
proceed at a snail's pace; we have got over three miles
in little more than an hour, and my companions are

■T

CANADA AXn THE CIUMEA

a \

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;-| iji.

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conf|^ratul;itinL( oik; another on the ra])idity with wliir-li
we ai'c travclliiiL,': tlie joltiiii^-, ])iiiii]>iiii;, and sqiieeziii.;
continue. One old sta;jft'r tries to fall nslee]), and his

head

about like a CI

ad wans aDour liKe a i iiinese nmire. i <cet into con-

fii

I <ret int(

versation with the man opposite me : he proves to l)c an
engineer on a railway — a most desirable one- — intendcil
to coimect the ])oint we liave left with that to which we
are travellinjj;. This railway passes under the Viri>ininu
hills, 'i'he eULiineer told me that they were construetiiiL'
a tunnel which would 1)0 al)out a mile and a lialf lont,%
throu^rh a hill of what he calh'd iron stone — harder than
the hanh'st c^rauite. Their proi^ress was necessarily slow
on account of tlf difficulty of working the rock. To sink
shafts for the nect'ssary supply of air was next to impos-
sible; thus, conse(|uently, they were much inconvenienced
by the want of this real " staff of life,'" and were oblij^-ed
to "raise the wind," or keep things goini:;- by means of
an air-pump.

' We passed several little villages of clean, comforta1>]c-
looking Irish huts and shanties built on the hill-side.
Cows an<l piu's were occasionally visible, but I do not
suppose the latter animal's claim to the best part of the
lodging would be allowed, as he does not here pay the
best part of the *'7^'//f." The Irish labourers get a
dollar a day, and are very provident and saving ; most of
them, as my informant told me, are toleral)ly well
educated, and can nearly all read and write. Tliev
mostly live (Ui beef: in the sunnner they kill an ox.
wait till he is f/ami/, and then cut him up and eat him.
The engineer remarked particularly on that peculiar

ohtaine
and ve
must b
place w
get a c(
the den
able su
flounde
road, ai
means
lialtin<>--
system <
our leaf
cunistai
to])pl('d
'ilad
chests, ]
undoubi
were in j
praise wc
returnee
with ha
Tlie bo(
hroken i
for it ; ;i
we resi]
with eve
deep nn

A imEAK DOWN

imd his
to t'un-
) 1)(' an
itendcil
licli we
iri>iui;ui
nu'tiii^
lit" lontj:,
\vr than
•ily sl(AV

To sink
) impos-
niienced

ol)liu'('il
leans of

brta1>le-
lill-side.
do not
•t of the
pay the
s iret a
most of
ly well
They
an ex.
eat him.
peculiar

eliararteristic of poor Irisli <,nr]s, even wlien exposed to
the jn'reatest tenifttations — tlieir eiiastity : tiiry liave
ohtaiiied a high cliaractcr in tlie States for iliis virtue,
and very few (^f tlie i,nrls in the larL^'e hotels, where tiiey
must be a great d(>al exposed, liave been bodueed. At a
place wliere we stopped to change hoi'ses, I managed to
get a eou[)le of l>iscuits and a piece of cheese to appease
the demon ; and at about lialf-jjast seven had a miser-
able supper at a dirty i)ui. It was dark, and our position,
floiuuleriuii' along, wedged together, over an execrable
road, and expecting every moment to l)e u[»set, by no
means an envialile one. About a nule from our last
halting-place, we found ourselves upon a sujier-exci llent
system of ruts, and the shackle which supported orie of
our h'ather springs, yielding t(» weight and force <d" cir-
cumstances, broke witl' a crash, and the coach nearly
to])pled over.

'l[a(l not our engineer, with three tremendous
chests, probably contaiidng furniture, left us, we should
undoubtedly have been deposited in the mud: as it was, we
were in a nice fix. The driver, however, took things with
praiseworthy coolness, left the stage for assistance, and
returned with a negro blacksmith, two or three men
with handspikes, a chain, and s(jme lueifer matches.
The body of the coach was slioved up by levers, the
broken iron shackle removed, and the chain substituted
for it ; and after about three-quarters of an hour's delay,
we resimied our journey. Finally, after struggling
with every description of bad road, ruts, holes, stones,
deep nuul and clay, pools, and frozen clods, we found

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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onr.solves at Stiiuiiton, tolemMy cxliaustcnl, at half-past
1 1 r.M., after a journey of nine and a lialf lion is. I
walked uhoiit five miles, partly up liill and partly over
.some road which exceeded all the rest in badness.

' 'J'lie scenery among the hills through which we passed
was romantic and prcstty, and thougii not so grand, re-
minded me somewhat of the Western lEighlauds of
Scotland.

'Tlic eastern portion of America along the Atlantic
coast, and in the vicinity of the large cities, is so flat
iuid monr)tonous, that a hill of any description is greeted
by the traveller as a pleasing and agreeable variety ; the
slopes afford good pasturage for sheep, and are many of
them covered with wood, principally pine. I was very
glad to roll my bed-clothes round me, and court the
drowsy god.

STAUN'T
DISAC
AND

THE
H(

rate at v
"New 1
to our "
ever, wh
I heliev(
in all foi
of Engla
given he
that thej
terestincr
I great al
harrister;
was all tl
^Vasliino-
I had he;
C'xtremel^
the sumn

1 ^

CHAPTER V.

STAUNTON. — LEXINOTOX. — AX UNPLEASANT RIPE AXD A
DISAGREEAHLE ADVEXTUUE. — VISIT TO lIARrEIl's FERRY,
AND RETURN TO WASHIXGTON.

' rpHE United States is a country great in newspapers.
-L How the multitude published can pay at the low
rate at which they arc sold is a matter of wonder. Tlie
"New York Herald, '" occupies a place somewhat similar
to our "giant of tiic press.*' It has more rivals, how-
ever, who assert claims to e<iualify than our "Times."
I hclieve the " Times " in America, and I fancy generally
in all foreign countries, is looked on as the ^' vo,r popuJ i"'"
of England. The reports of speeches and trials are not
given here with anything lik<' the fulness and accuracy
that they are in England. I was present at a very in-
teresting trial where the prisoner was defended with
great ability and eloquence by one of the leading
barristers at New York ; but a bare statement (jf fact
was all that appeared in the public papers; and when at
WashiuLrton I referred to them to read over the debate
I had heard on the previous evening, I found the report
extremely meagre and defective, something similar to
the summary of parliamentary intelligence in our papers.

IMAGE EVALUATION
TEST TARGET (MT-3)

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1.0

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1.25

12.5
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"^y^w

Hiotographic

Sciences

Corporation

■^^

23 WEST MAIN STREET

WEBS1 9 N.Y. 14580

(716) 872-4503

l" 4

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CANADA AND TTIK CRniEA

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The American journals are principally filled with foreii^n
intelligence, and comments thereon, lu'cciviiii; Tiiails
from Europe two or three times every week, with a vast
mass of complex politics, and of tlie ahlest criticisms on
men, measures and events, liavin^' merely to c\iU niid
.select the flowers from this rich and fertile field, tliov
are at no loss to fill their columns with both interesting
and attractive matter. Extracts from wliat they always
call the " London Times," with its views on the unent
(|uestions and events of the day, whether as affecting
themselves or the continent of Europe, furnish a kind
of theme for dissertations and remarks of their own.
Besides this, from their geographical p(jsition, tiny
are of course abundantly and constantly supjtlied with
news of all that is going on, or looming in the future
of the Western hemisphere. In fact, news from Mew
Orleans, or other distant points of the t'nion, amounts
very nearly to the same thing as foreign intelligence.
The leading journal, which I mentioned above, seems to
take conciliating views of English |)(jlicy, and of the in-
tercourse between P]ngland ami America. In the mind
of a sensible or enlightened man, a rupture between tlic
two countries would be not only destructive and ruinous
to each as a nation, but would inflict a severe blow oii
the principles of liberty, constitutional right, and good
government. The lower sort of Yankees are a swaLrixering,
conceited set of fellows, and John r.ull has a pretty gouJ
notion of his own prowess; but hapjiily it is not permitted
to these belligerent gentlemen to settle their disputed
points in their own savage or school-boy fashion.

■\

VIRGINIAN WAGGONS

* Staunton is a pretty villnnfe, surrounded by liills;
and when the raih'oad connecting- it with Kichniond
i-; completed, will lie a place (if importance, as it lies
near one extremitv of the n^reat a-jfricultural vallev of
Vjp^inia. At present it is a century behind the North-
ern States. A traveller in a few hours perceives the
\a<t difference in the proi^ress of civilisation between
the two sections of tlic I'luon. After travel I inij throuirh
the North witli speed, punctuality, and comparative
bixuiT, he finds liimself, when ordy a few miles from
tiic licaten tracks of human intercourse, contending
with bad roads, bad inns, dilatoriness, and otiiuii sine
(li;/it't(ll('.

'Tiie old-fashioned plan of travellini;' on horsel)ack is
still adhered to, and is common in Virufinia. Mrtdnian
wa'4i,^ons, havino- the to]) covered with wdiite sail-cloth,
l)iiii(; drawn bv six horses, mav be seen creepinir alon*:
the roads. A nii^ger rides one of the wheelers, and with
oulyny/^' rein attached to a leader, contrives to guide the
whole team. ()rii,dnal, clumsy, and picturesque they
look, slowly coming into view at the turn of a country
road, with the sun shinini>' brii-htlv on their snowv cover-
iug; and they speak strongly, and w^ith incontroverti])le
evidence of tiie comparatively slow^ progress of the people
who use them. Virginia is, how^'ver, awakening from
lier sleep. Ivailways are being constructed across her
ill all dircictions ; the spirit of ente^rprise is shedding its
uwakenintr iiiHuence over the dormant energies of
her [)opnlation, and she will soon be what her size,
climate, and natural advantages seem to foretel, oue of

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the greatest and most flourishing States of the Union.
The white population of Virginia consi(iera})ly exceeds
her black ; and her soil being principally cultivated for
grain, or producing pasture for sheep and cattle, there
are but few regular plantations, where slaves drudge,
and toil like farm-horses. I saw an advertisement in
the inn at Staunton offering a reward for a runaway
negro boy; but I should think that in this State, thougli
there are more facilities to escape, the inducements to
do so are less than those farther South. An intelligent
mulatto driver, who pleased and interested me, said be
had requested his mistress to allow him to go to Siberia.
Hearing I was an Englishman, he asked if they were not
against slavery in England, and if Canada were not a free
State? I told him that Canada was a British colony.
and all British colonies were free. He said he should
much like to go there. I asked him if he were married ;
he answered, " Yes." Have you got any children ?
*' No, there is only me and my wife." His mistress, a
widow lady, made a profit out of him by letting him
out to drive and do jobs. The man was not only intel-
ligent, but courteous and gentle in manner. He had
evidently a great deal of white blood (the element of
freedom) in his veins. He was a fine-looking fellow,
upwards of six feet high. I really felt interested in
him, and f(;ll into a painful reverie on the evils of a
system which degrades what God has made noble.
The day will come when the mulattos, illegitimate
offspring though they be, will prove themselves their
fathers' sons. In my opinion, the event must take

A MULATTO COACHMAN

place in the natural order of things. Here was a man,
sensible of his degraded position, keenly desirous of
freedom, hearing with delight of those lands where
slavery is unknown, intelligent enough to perceive the
injustice of the system which oppressed him, and to
feel that, if he rebelled, he would not sin, but assert a
right, which the God who made all has given to all, —
here was a man, a type of a numerous and rapidly-in-
creasing class it the South, in whose mind was laid a
train, which it required only circumstances and oppor-
tunity to fire, — a man who would fight, as the Greeks
of old fought, under the watchwords of liberty, and
right.

'The coach which was to convey me to Lexington at
length got uuder weigh ; I mourned on the box to enjoy
the sunshine, and to see the country. Our first sixteen
miles was over a terrible road, and we took about four
and a half hours to traverse it. The rest of our journey
was over planks, which appeared by contrast like a
sudden transportation to Elysium, after the cares,
troubles, and contentions of life. I walked over four
miles of the worst part of the road. My driver was a
good, honest fellow ; had driven the stage along that
road for twenty-eight years, and had just earned enough
to bring up, and educate his children. He made some
sensible and intelligent remarks on the advantages of
education, and seemed fully to comprehend the value of
the gift bestowed by his exertions on his family. In
America, education, if combined with energy, application,
and good sense, is wealth to its possessor. Hundreds of

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CANADA AND THE CKIMnA

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roads are open to every man for free and g'enerous coin-
petitioii — tlie true source of much of the greatness and
pros])erity of a nation.

* Ah my time was very limited, and travelling in tlic
part of the country I had arrived at l)oth slow, and un-
certain, I hired a waggon to drive me to the Natural
Bridge, — distant, by the best road, about seventeen miles
from Lexington. The morning was warm, bright, and
cheerful. A hazy appearance in the distance, however,
seemed to indicate rain. ^ly carriage was announced.
I walked out, and ])eheld a waggon painted with three
coats of natural brown from the nuiddy rcxids, with the
sorriest Rozinante I had ever seen. A stalwart ninicer,
with husfe black moustaches and beard, — who looked hi"-
enough and stronix enou^di to carry horse, wan'tron, and
all, — supported the trembling steed by the head, and
replied to my inquiries as to when the animal had last
dined with an indignant assurance that he was well fed,
and could go well. I submitted to my fate, though I
was not without feelings of compunction at inflicting
seventeen miles on a bony anatomy, refpdring not a
day's, but a week's rest.

*I drove steadily, and quietly at first, and endeavoured
to excite my steed to action l)y words of encourage-
ment ; but tliis was jirobably so new to him, that he
did not know what to make of it, and little or no alter-
ation in his sober and solemn gait took place. The last
resource was, I regret to say, applied ; and it generally
elicited a melancholy shake of the ears, and the ghost
of a canter. The country through which I passed

I':

THE NATI'RAL BRIDGE 6 7

wns t)iP snmo in character (tliouL^h perhaps ratlicr of
a j^raiuler description) as that througli wliich 1 had
journeyed on the [)revious (hiy. A series of liills \vit})
curved outlines greeted the eye on all sides. There was
an ahsencf.' of that l)oldness "which characterises the Avihl
iiiountain scenery of Scotland, where the dark rocky
masses stand out against the? ])lue sky in sharp, clear
lines. They hear the same analogy to the wild hills of
Caledonia that the soft, rounded outline of a woman's
form does to the hold, angular tigure of a man.

' I encountered difficulties of every kind on the road,
was nearly upset two or three times, and o])liged to
refresh my I)ob})in with a drink of meal and water to
insure his getting through his lahoiu's at all.

'The Natural l^ridge is situated in a deep vnlle}-,
among some fine hills. It spans an insignificant little
hruuk about fifty feet wide. The bridge is a vast lime-
stone arch 215 feet high, 80 feet broad, and H5 feet
long. Tlie arch has the appearance of having been
gradually excavated by the continual action of water;
and this supposition is in some degree confirmed by the
great height of the banks of the streandet, which are
composed of the same rock, and rise nearly perpendicu-
larly from the water in the vicinity of the bridge. Can
it be possible that the little ])rook, which now ripples
peacefully at your feet, could once have been a mighty
river, and have burst with irresistible violence the oppos-
ing barrier ? The rock in other places has crumbled
and fallen, and may have been preserved from the same
fate here merely by superior hardness. There is some-

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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i:e /'till

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thing wild, grand, and impressive in that gigantic,
lonely arch standing unchanged in solitary grandeur
after the lapse of ages — a memorial left by nature of
some bygone scene in the history of her revulsions.

' My predictions regarding rain were mournfully ful-
filled. It first drizzled, and then poured. The rain
continued all night unintermittently ; and I listened to
its heavy pattering on the roof of the crazy old inn witli
gloomy forebodings of the difficulties and struggles of
the morrow.

' I superintended the washing of my poor Rozinante's
legs ; and directed he should have a good bed prepared
for him, and as much oats as he could eat.

'The stable in which my unfortunate steed was doomed
to pass the night was a construction which would have
been called rude even among the ancient Britons. Free
admission both for air and rain was afforded by nume-
rous yawning gaps and cavities. The wind, in whatso-
ever direction it might be blowing, had the privilege of
whistling through it ; and the horses (hardy beasts ! )
stood there without a scrap of clothing, and lay down
on the hard boards at night to repose. I wish I could
have transported an English groom to this savage spot.
His astonishment might have helped me through a
dreary afternoon.

* This afternoon, however, did not pass without an in-
cident in which I myself figured as the astonished party.
I was the only visitor at the inn ; no one in his senses
thinking of going to the Natural Bridge in the winter
time. Several gentlemen of the neighbourhood, how-

A DISAGREEABLE ADVENTURE

ever, — probal^ly accordiug to their usual Sabbath cus-
tom, — had repaired thitlier on horseback to dine together.
One of these, the biggest and sturdiest of tlie party,
went down to dinner drunk and quarrelsome. ] f e sat
exactly opposite me, and stared rudely and stupidly at
me for some time. He at length asked me, in a rough
manner, where I came from. I told him, and he ate
two or three mouthfuls of his dinner, pausing between
each to continue his steady stare. At last he suddenly
stopped and said, abruptly, " Come here." I thought at
first he might be speaking to a waiter behind me, and
looked round ; but he instantly repeated the command,
pointing to a chair next to him, and saying, " Come
here; I want to talk to you." I answered, as coolly as
I could, " No, thank you ; I prefer sitting here and eat-
ing my dinner, and I advise you to go on with yours.
If you want to talk to me, I can hear what you have to
say just as well where I am." This produced a vacant,
stupid look, and a short silence. One of the hotel
people came up and apologised to me for the conduct
of ray friend (?), saying he was not aware of his being
so drunk, and begging of me to take no notice of what
he said. I saw alarm depicted on every countenance.

'My toper grasped his knife, poised it carelessly, direct-
ing the point towards me, as if with intent to throw it
at me. I was exactly opposite, and though I did not
much dread a drunken man's shot with a blunt knife, I
was anxious to avoid a scene in a low, out-of-the-way
place, where there were few who would sympathise
much with me, though they might assist me if I were

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CANADA AND THE COIMEA

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assaulted. T kiu.'W di-unkcn incu liiivc n ifrcat deal of
sense, and are capable (»t" liein;^' aiiiu.sed by a litt It-
talk; so 1 said to the brute oj)i)(>site uie, "Why do
you want to (juarrtd with lue? Did you ever see iin-
before? Then what reason iiave you for wishing,' tu
(juarrel ? "

'Tiie knife remained poised in the hand ; I finished
my dinner and left the tal)le, my brandy-and-water
friend being held back by tlie others from making a
rush at me. He was very noisy and troublesome for
some time, but at last went home. 1 heard he was a
doctor, and a perfect gentleman ! when he was sober.

* 8andjo woke me, and I rose sleepy and unrefreshed.
The rain had almost ceased ; soon it discontinued alto-
gether. I sw^allowed a cup of tea, ate a mouthful of
bread, cast a doubtful look at poor Do]>bin, paid my
bill for a day's discomfort, and started.

' A benevolent individual at the inn recommended me
to g(j home by a road different from the one I came
by. I followed liis advice, and got into an old and
almost impassable cross country road, and never thought

I should get out of it. About four hours and a half were
consumed in accomplishing the first fourteen miles of
my journey to Staunton. I reached Lexington at about

II A.M., and wished, after breakfast, to have proceeded
at once, but was kept waiting for about an hour for a
carriage, wdiich I had ordered at half-past 9 A.M. The
day was Court day, a great and busy day at Lexington.
Sales by auction were going on, and the place in a state
of bustle, confusion and excitement. These Court days

TRAVELLING UNDKR DIFFICTLTIES

•J I

coiiu' r(»iui(l nt tlio ('ommcncrMiu.it of nu'li moutli, .'iiul
(lcl)ts arc jt.iid jiiid l)iirguiiis niadr <»ii flu; (tccasioii.

'Tlic ;ii rival of iiiv carri.'ii'e, drawn bv iincvenlv
iiiiitclKHl hor.ses, rclievrd at last my almost oxliaiisteil
patience.

'Twenty miles of our journey lay over plank-road,
the rest ovei' jtoojs, aud ruts, nnd mud, which rt-ally diil
lint deserve to be dignified bv the title of ro;id at all.
.My poor horses ( I coidd L(et no cluin^'t? on the road)
^^t re nearly done u]>, and I was pretty tire(l myself
wliiii T reached Staunton, at }ialf-i)ast 7 P.M.

M had supper (which was also dinner and tea, as I
had eaten nothinj;" since breakfast), and tui-ued in for
finu' or five liours' rest. 1 went to Ijed a little after nine,
and was again awaked, at half-past 12 4'.M., to start by
the Winchester coach, which left at one in the morning.

'■ MiU'cJi. l,s(f. — In the lumbering old coacli was onlv
(lue passenger besides myself. Went off into a kind
of doze ; night fine, and moon shining when we started ;
clouded over, and commenced raining soon after. After
some unwholesome and indigestil)le scraps at a dirty
iini, at one o'clock, which passed for a dimier, coach at
length became full. A negress and her baby sat oppo-
site to me, and ol)liged me to keep my face turned to
the open window. Do these people ever wash ? Two
dirty agriculturists, in damp clothes, forced themselves
ill ; and a vulgar woman with a frightful cough, and a
wet bundle and bonnet-l)ox. In stage-travelling in the
States, more than in railways, you see the discomforts
of democracy. I wi h a few theorists wMjuld condescend
to jostle awhile with the " o< ttoXAoj," they would then

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see the cap of liberty grimy with filth. There cm he
no equality unless all men use Hoap and water, and
certainly but WiiXa f rater] ml affect ion Itetween a j^cutlc-
man with imniacuhite linen and the great *' unwashed."
The road passed through a rich agricultural country,
wdiere I was told some of the finest wheat in Americii
was raised. The farms are very large, and but little
manure used ; guano is occasionally employed. Tlio
soil is not so rich as in Winconsin, where it is, if pos-
sible, too prolific, and of inexhaustible fertility. The
climate here is, hijwever, much henlthier, and the Airiiis
nearer the great markets.

* Left Winchester at 8 p.m., in the railway cars, for
Harper's Ferry ; distance, thirty-two miles ; took three
hours to go there ; line out of order, and engines feeble,
as usual. Put into a miserable room, as cold as ice,
with no fireplace nor chairs, and with dirty, cracked
walls. Could have slept on a deal board. Coiled the
clothes round me, and when the candle was out, discom-
fort was banished.

^ March 2nd. — Dressed, and left my dismal apart-
ment between seven and eight ; breakfasted on some
greasy viands, and walked out. The day was lovely,
and the air delightful.

' A gentleman, who, on the previous evening, had
■professed himself to be an Ultra Democrat, and had
received a few languid attempts at jocularity on my
'part with roars of laughter, requested me, on my arrival
at Horper's Ferry, to introduce myself to a relation of
his, who rejoiced in the name of Snooks, and pursued

ili^'t'

HAnrKlUS FERRY

tlio avocation of a boot-makor. Snooks's disposition,
lie told nu', ^vas most aiiiiable ; and his (lflii;ht at tlic
o))j)ortiinity of sliowiiig mo tiic lions, wliicii, without
sonic friendly guide, I should he utterly unahle to
(lis(;()ver, would be unbounded. I thanked him a hun-
dred times, and listened to the praises of the immortal
Snooks with the resignation of exhaustion. I believe I
Nvas too tired to laugh. My friend got out, and with
bini vanished the shade of Snooks.

'The scenery of Harper's Ferry is very ])eautifid.
Nature has done lier part towards rendering the spot
both attractive and interesting; dkoi lias done his
towards thwarting her benevolent designs. He crosses
the two romantic "shining rivers"' on railway bridges
like sheds, superlatively hideous ; and lie accompanies
the gentle murmur of the Potomac for some miles with
the sweet music of a steam-engine. The railwav skirts
one bank of this beautiful river. Mr. Jefferson wrote a
graphic and animated description of Harper's Ferry,
which appears in his work on Virginia. It is the point
of junction of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers ;
and it is supposed that these streams, as if each con-
scious of its individual inability, here combined their
waters, and forced a passage through the Blue Kidge,
which runs almost transversely to their course : this
opinion lias been entertained by Volney, and other
eminent travellers. The Shenandoah is a much smaller
river than the Potomac. In the Potomac, above the
point of junction, are several rocky islets, round which
the water impatiently chafes. The river narrows as it

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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approaches the point, where it formerly encountered its
great obstacle. The current is riipid, but tlie river,
when it eifected the change in the aspect of nature,
must liave been a stream of much greater power and
magnitude tlian it is at present. Volney imagines it
to be the contents of some vast lake (wliose 2)()siti(iii
and boundaries may still be traced by the coal dej)osits
which have l)een left), which at first found a small
outlet through some rocky fissure, in time inci-eased it,
and finally, with the whole weight of its waters, rent
the rocks, and fornfed a mighty river.

' The village of Harper's Ferry is an ugly collection of
dingy houses and barns on a bare hill side, close to the
point of junction of the two rivers. A canal runs ahni^-
one bank of the Potomac, near the village, and c(jni-
municates with the city of Washington, which can be
reached in a day and a half by the boats.

* I walked up to "Jefferson's rock," a very strikiiii^'
mass of stone, on a hill overlooking the whole scene,
and tried to sketch it. From its sununit there is ;i
beautiful view of the two rivers and surroiuidin*'-
country. The whole landscape was bathed in sun-
shine, and lay spread out like a may) at m}^ feet. Near
Jefferson's rock is a pretty, (piiet little cemetery, over-
looking the Potomac Eiver. Its site, like most of the
cemeteries in the States, is well chosen. The resting-
places of the dead are indeed everywhere in well-
selected and appropriate situations. It is some con-
solation to the mourner to think that the ashes of ihc
departed loved one sleep in a spot where the bright sun

AERIYAL AT WASHINGTON

casts his benms on a scene, calm, lioly, and beautiful :
;ai(l that, instead of the foul atmosphere of a city
charnel-house, the air which steals over the tomb is
hulfu with the sweet })erfume of delicate and lovely
flowers, which the liaiid of affection has planted.

'At Harper's Ferrv is a lar<^(' armourv, where muskets
and rifles are manufactured for the United States Army.
[ walked through the workshops, and was much pleased
witli the order, regularity, and method. The barrels of
the muskets are brijj^ht, of the rifles browned. A mus-
ket is manufactm-ed for from between nine and ten
(lellars, and a rifle for aliout eleven or twelve. The
annnury is under the superintendence of the ordnance.
An arsenal is shortly to be built.

^ Mni'cli oi'd. — Started about 5 o'clock A. ^r. for
Washinj^ton. Our enj^ine broke down about half-way
there, and we were delayed for an hoiu' while it was
uiuleru^oing repair. This brought us to Washington at
a more ('hristian-like hour. I went to Gadsby's Hotel,
where I had stayed on my former visit, but fonnd, as I
had anticipated, every nook and corner occupied. I left
my luggage there, and c(»mmenced a systematic hunt
for a night's lodgiug. I tried several of the hotels, but
at all received the same response. AEy hopes now lay
in the ])rolia.bility of there being a room to spare at
seme respectable tradesman's. I tried one or two,
and at last, undeterred by visions of poisoning, had the
courage to enter and make inquiry at a chemist's.
Its owner could not accommodate me, but told me of a
house where it was possible I might succeed in getting

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a shake-down. It was a private residence belonging to
a widow lady, who had consented to put herself to
temporary inconvenience for the benefit of travellers.

* Her house was conveniently situated near the Capi-
tol, the dame herself portly and comfortable-looking,
and I congratulated myself on my good luck ; my joy,
however, was a little damped when my fair hostess gave
the reins to her fancy, and indulged in speculation as
to the number of additional wanderers she could ac-
commodate. I had my luggage moved to the house,
and then went to the Capitol to hear the debates of
Congress.

' The Senate and House sat all night, and on the fol-
lowing morning the members looked very jaded and
knocked up ; however, they had a holiday till the month
of December in store for them, and would soon recover
from the cares and strifes of political life. I was much
pleased with the urbanity, intelligence, and firmness of
the Speaker of the Lower House ; his duties were
arduous and troublesome, a perfect shout being raised,
immediately after a division, of " Mr. Speaker ! " from
all sides of the house, and a great deal of confusion and
conversation going on during the transaction of busi-
ness. The visitors' galleries in both Houses are small,
and do not at all answer the expectations cr meet the
wishes of the sovereign people, who '^ertainly ought to
have a little accommodation to hear with their own ears,
and see with their own eyes, how their servants are
carrying on their affairs.

* I went, during the afternoon, to a large Bazaar held

iM» i>

mm. I

THE EYE OF THE INAUGURATION

jit the Patent Office ; there were a great many people
there, and things of interest exhibited. Among these the
daouerreotypes, and some pUms engraved most beauti-
fully, especially attracted me. The Americans excel in
thedaguerreotypingart ; this climate is more favourable
to it, I believe, than that of Europe. The Patent
Office, in which the fair was held, is a fine white build-
ing, with handsome porticoes and column^.

' The bustle and gaiety of Washington to-day were
quite animating; crowds were arriving by every train,
and every steamboat discharged its living cargo of eager
and expectant visitors. The accommodation of the city
was completely exhausted, and hundreds passed the
whole night of the 3rd of March in the great hall of the
Capitol, or in roaming about tlie streets like troubled
spirits. Even at the huge hotels, which one would think
alone cajiable of accommodating a city or two, scarce a
place could be obtained for dinner at the ordinary. A
small crowd, waiting for vacant seats and sniffing the
fragrant air, was stationed near the entrance to the
diniug-room at Brown's Hotel, where I went to dine.
I remained like them in anxious expectation, till a
black waiter, opening the door a few inches, and par-
tially revealing the paradise beyond, whispered, " Dat
dere was seat for one," and then, without hesitation,
I plunged into the apai'tment, and requested, in a
decided tone, to be conducted to the vacant chair. I
drank tea at my lodgings, and was formally presented
by my buxom hostess to my fellow-lodgers. They were

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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staid, middle-aged, quiet-looking people ; civil, 1)ut
reserved.

*The tea (with a due regard to economy) was served
from a huge teapot by the lady of the house, and a
very small negro boy handed it round to the company.
We all dispersed after it ; I to the Senate House, mv
friends where their inclinations led them. When I
returned, at half-past twelve, I found madame sittini;
up, looking very tired, and complaining of a head-
ache. 8he said she did not know what she could do for
me, as she had told some of the other gentlemen that
if they brought home some friends they would he
accommodated. I replied that it was not likely tliat
they would think of bringing in strangers at that late
hour, and as nobody appeared, she had accommodated
another gentleman (my humble self) who was very
tired ; that he was going away the next day, when a
bed would be much at their service ; and I further
added, as a still more powerful argument, that, thongli
I certainly objected to sleeping double, I should be
delighted if she would afford me the opportunity of
paying for one beside myseJf : I also strongly insinuated
that a bird in the hand was worth two in the bush. By
degrees, my landlady began to admit the force of my
reasoning, but requested double payment in advance.
I placed three bright little gold dollars in her soft palm.
lighted my candle, bolted my door (to secure myself
from the invasion of disappointed applicants), and, with
a chuckle at my diplomacy, and at the mercenary spirit |
of stout females, was soon fast asleep.

CHAPTER VI.

INAUGURATION DAY AT WASHINGTON — MEETING WITH
THACKERAY — CHARLESTON.

' March 4tli. / ."' -r ^

'^PHIS eventful (lay broke gloomily: the sky was over-
J- cast, the air raw and cold, and tlie whole aspect of
tlie city as dreary a contrast as could well be conceived
to the appearance of the previous day.

' Crowds began to muster at an early hour. Small
parties of military, and deputations from various socie-
ties and pid)lic bodies, might be seen, headed by their
1 lands, marching to their place of rendezvous, opposite
the City Hall. Four guns of the Flying Artillery,
preceded by some questionable trumpeters, seemed to
excite great attention. I made no attempt to get into
the Senate House, as I felt my doing so to be utterly
hopeless. I walked again to the platform, and took my
stand among a thin crowd, who were sliivering under
their umbrellas, in a snow-storm. The crowd soon
increased in size, and density, but the space in front
of the Capitol is so large, that there was no crush. I
stood about two hours in th(^ position I had chosen,
exposed to the merciless snow, when distant music was

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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heard, and the shouts of a cheering multitude borne to
our ears by the breeze. A bustle was observable at the
back of the platform; a small dark crowd emerged from
the doorways, and arranged themselves in order under
the portico. An eager buzz of expectati<jn passed
through the crowd of spectators. The dark figures
advanced : a small man, with a large supporter on each
side, occupied the central and most conspicuous place.
He advanced to the table, with his hat off, and seated
himself. This was General Pierce, the President elect.
His face was pale and anxious, but determined and
intelligent ; forehead broad and high ; mouth rather
large ; lips thin and compressed, indicating firmness
and decision ; eyes small, restless and observant ; his
height below the average standard ; his appearance pre-
possessing and gentlemanly. One might almost recall
Macaiday's celebrated description of Warren Hastings,
when gazing on his pale face, beaming with intelligence
and spirit, and upon his small and delicate-looking form.
There was a man, under whose portrait Avas legibly
written "Mens cvqna in ardnis.^^ The members of
the former Government, with their chief, the Supreme
Court and Senate of the United States, seated behind
him, formed a noble background to the j^rincipal figure.
The oath of adherence to the constitution was adminis-
tered amidst breathless silence, the whole multitude, as
well as the President, standing uncovered. The solemnity, |
and impressiveness of the spectacle were enhanced bj
the snow, which fell on the bare and exposed heads oil
the mute actors in the great moral scene, and tbe

GENERAL TIERCE

101

])orne to
)le at tlic
•ii'eclfvom
ler under
)n passed
L-k fig-uies
jr on each
.ous place,
md seated
lent elect.
nined and
nth rather
r firmness
n-vant; his
iiranee pre-
most recall
n Hastings,
intelligence
oking form,
was legihly
nembers of
:ie Supreme
[ited behiinl
icipal figure,
^•as adminis-
nultitude, a«
le solemnity,
enhanced by
)sed heads oi

ue, and tbe

indifference witli whicli tliey bore what, at other times,
and under ordinary circumstances, would have been
.scnipulou.sly avoided, — a striking evidence of the readi-
ness of even the most mixed, and heterogeneous nuiltitude
to recognise and appreciate the sublime. General Pierce
ttiok the oath, one hand raised in the air, and tlie other
resting on the sacred volume. He repeated tlie words
in a low voice, audible to him only who adnunistered it.
He then advanced to the front of the platform, and amid
hreathless silence, only interrupted occasionally by cheers,
delivered his inaugural address. His voice was clear,
distinct, and silvery ; he spoke with energy and gesticu-
lation. At some of the most impressive parts of his
speech, he half turned round, and addressed himself
specially to the Senate. lie was applauded throughout,
and especially at those points where he announced his
determination to adhere to the ]\[onroe doctrine of for-
Itidding colonisation by European powers in the American
continent, and where he declared the Fugitive Slave laws
of 18.51 to be strictly constitutional, and to be unhesi-
tatingly enforced. He considered the slave system a
right of the South, and the slaves a description of pro-
perty as much to be protected and defended from injury
as land or money. Jioth the.se items in his address will
doubtless give offence. In England, the assertion of a
doctrine which forbids our right to colonise in America,
*' beyond present jurisdiction, as utterly inaduiissible,"
when our American territories are of greater extent than
the whole of the United States, will seem a great piece
of filibustering and swagger. The death-blow, also, thus

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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firmly dealt at all the hopes of emancipators, and
the dreams of philanthropists, cannot fail in creatiiii;
a great sensation. I thought the si^eech, in both
these particulars, faulty, and likely to exercise a had
influence on the excited feelings of the great masses of
the American people. The policy of this model repuhlic
has always been grasping, warlike, and aggressive. Sucli
a policy is suited to the feelings of the uneducated classes
of an energetic, and enterprising people. The annexa-
tions of vast territories, with, or without right, have been
frequent and barefaced. Already Cuba, and Canada are
reganled with envious eyes. A war, to secure the pos-
session of either, would be instantly popular ; especially
a war which might annex the former, as the struggle
would be less protracted and injurious to the country,
and the prize rich, and easily preserved. The Senators
themselves say that no other power in the world should
be permitted to obtain possession of Cuba, even if the
Spaniards made a voluntary tender of their island ; and
they have some show of reason for this determination.
The rest of General Pierce's speech I liked very much :
the language was nervous, and eloquent ; the sentiments
noble, and patriotic. He reflected, with just pride and
exultation, on the bright fulfilment of the most sanguine
prophecies of the great foimders of the nation ; on her
prosperity, increase of wealth, population, and territory;
and then advocated, in glowing language, the necessity
of union among the States, saying that if one bright
star were withdrawn from their banner, no human hand
could ever replace it. He concludea by referring all the

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THE INAUGURATION COMrLETED

103

l)les.sinf(s the country enjoyed to that (iod who presides
over all things, and in whom alone countries as well as
men should trust. Every one appeared delitj^hted with
the speech, and I heard many peoj)le remark that it was
the hest inaugural address ever heard. The immense
crowd dispersed in an orderly juid (juiet nianuer, and
tliL'ir shouts of applause were succeeded by the guns o\'
the "Flying Artillery,*' saluting the new President of
the Kepublic. (ieneral Pierce was attired in a suit of
clothes, presented to him, I fancy, by the city of
Boston ; at least, they seemed to correspond with the
description, given in a Boston paper, of a dress in
course of preparation in that city, by the best tailor,
which was to be worn on the occasion. The city of
Boston also presented the General with a very hand-
some carriage, and a pair of fine bays.

' All the fun was now over. There was to be no ball
in the evening, on account of the President's domestic
1 lereavement ; and the great event which had drawn so
many of the sovereign people together, was a thing of
the past. The snow still descended ; I was cold, and
very tired. I determined, however, to exert myself and
see as much as I could, as I was to start at nine in the
evening for Charleston, South Carolina, w^here I wished
to arrive before the 8tli of March, to catch the Havana
steamer. I walked to the Patent Office, where General
Washington's clothes and some of his camp furniture
are shown, and where there is a large Museum, and
collection of curiosities ; but I found tiie doors locked, it
being a public holiday. I made another attempt to pro-

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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cure admission into tlie Smithsonian Institute, a lnr<,^>,
red brick l)uildin<2f in the Norman style, which contains
a picture gallery, and is devoted to scientific instruction.

* I packed up my traps and drove down to the steaniei-,
which I found crammed with some of the Richmond
Rifles, who had taken a part in tlie procession, and were
now returning home, and with a number of pleasure-
hunters like myself.

* The atmosphere of the cabin and sleeping-rooms was
stifling. I walked miserrd)ly about, without knowing-
where to repose my wearied liml)S. At length I sank
exhausted on some flour sacks, where I was exposed to
a fierce draught, which I bore sulkily for some time, and
at last beat a retreat, and threw myself on a seat in the
hot cabin. We were shifted at about 1 a.m. from the
steamer to the railway cars, and arrived at Richmond
just after sunrise on Saturday morning.

' A great part of the journey was through a swampy
wood : all the land around seemed completely flat and
but little cleared. Between Weldon, and Wilmington,
North Carolina, indeed there are scarcely any signs of
habitation ; some of the railway stations are nearly
twenty miles apart, and the houses in their vicinity
poor, and scattered. The railway between these two
last places is an excellent one, and the fast trains travel
at the rate of forty miles an hour. In South Carolinca,
I was told by an engineer who had been employed in
government surveys, that vast unhealthy swamps existed
among the woods on table-lands elevated above the
general level of the country.

MEETS WITH THACKERAY

105

' He instanc'C'd a well-known marsh, called the "Dismal
Swamp," and drew a small illustrative sketeh. Ife said
tliiit tlie woods in the neighbourhood of these dreary
wastes, are more healthy than the eleared country.
The Dismal Swamp mii,d»t easily be drained.

*I reached Wilmincrton between nine and ten o'clock.

^ Sunday f Mdvch i)t It. — The day broke lovely, sun-
shiny, and warm. It was like ])eing suddenly trans-
ported to England at the end of May,

' The boat f(tr Charleston hjft at 10 a.m. We were to
reach ('harleston at four or five o'clock on INfonday
morning. The steamer did not go very steadily, though
there was })ut little swell. What her conduct would
have been had wind been blowing, I am ({uite at a loss
to conjecture; but was very glad not to be in her
under such circumstances. She stopped several times
(luring the night, in the open sea, without any assignable
reason, except perhaps to prevent her boiler bursting,
and let off her steam with a prodigious noise.

* To my great surprise I learned that Mr. Thackeray,
whom I liad long wished to hear and see, was on board this
(jueer little steamer. I recognised him in his spectacles,
and German travelling-cap, from his likeness to his
portraits. He is a tall man, with grey hair; his face is
full ; forehead broad, and finely developed. A keen
enjoyment of fun, and sense of the ludicrous, might be
distinctively traced in his lineaments. I introduced
myself to the great man's secretary (an artist, named
Crowe, whom I found afterwards a very nice, gentle-
manly fellow), and through him had the pleasure of

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CANADA AND THE CIIIMKA

nifikiiK' ATr. 'riiackcniv's ncciuaintauce. Ho was verv
sotl.'ililc, niid talked in an unresiTvt'd, kind manner.

•• ]Ic had Ix'en travt'llin*,' all ni^dit, and turned in for ;i
few hours l»ef(»re tea to jjfet a nap.

M)n a elear, calm evenin*^, with a deep l)lue sky,
spangled with stars over our heads, Thackeray and I s;if
talkin<' for more than two h(»urs. He told me he liked
America, — thou«,dit her a very hue country, and enii-
sidered her future as likely to be more glorious thuii
England's. He said it did an Englishnum a great
deal of good to travel in the States, as it removed a
little of his pride and self-sufficiency.

' The Americans liad received him most kindly and
liospitably.

'One or two articles had indeed ])een written in a
different spirit when he first arrived, but this feeling
had soon died away.

*• He was much pleased with the great men of the
country to whom he had been introduced. He spoke
of the new President as a man of great intelligence,
energy, and observation.

' jNlr. Everett he characterised as an elegant scholar ;
and said the members of the whig administration,
generally, were very good fellows, and perfect gentle-
men.

* General Scott he liked much, and called him a fine-
hearted, noble old fellow.

*He told me that lecturing in America had been a
little harvest to him, and that he thought he should
repeat his visit next year.

very

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sky,

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CTRIIEU IJF.I.L

lo:

* lie was injured a i^roat dral from the dioap rcpritits
(.f Ills works ill the Statt-s, and said lie Imped an inter-
national copyrii,dit l)ill would soon he passed, to remove
the evil under wliicli authors, Kntrlisli anil Ainerican,
l)otli surter. The ])resent system is, he tliinks, more
jMinieious to Ameriean autiiors ami literutiin' even
tiiaii it is to Knj^lish. A puhlisher will not ^'ive a j^reut
writer, either on seientitic subjects or iu general liteni-
ttirc, a high ]»ri('e foi- a work when he knows he eiin
puiilisli one more elever and amusing, and of greater
Karning and research, for n(»thing hut the price of
till' i)aper, and the expense of arranging tlu; types.

' I asked Thackeray if he had read Currer Hell's la.st
novel, " Villette," and he r«'i)lied that lie had not, hut
wished particularly to do ho, as he knew the author.

' I tound subset [ueiitly, fn)m his secretary, that Thack-
eray had been the first to discover and appreciate the
merits of "Jane Kyre," and had written a congratulatory
letter to the author, who was at that time niiknown to him.
He Corresponded for some time with her, not knowing-
all the time whether he was writing to a gentleman or
a lady. Her letters were composed and written in a
most masculine style, and were good botli in manner,
and matter. Her last novel (which I had the satisfac-
tion of being able to lend to Thackeray) is very melan-
cholv, and sad.

' Thackeray liked " Shirley" better than " Jane Eyre,"
and I quite concurred with him. In the midst of our
chat the steamer suddenly stopped, and commenced a
see-saw motion from side to side. She then proceeded

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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to let off her steam, making a most deafening and
rather alarming noise. We could get no explanation
of the reason of this pause, and were obliged to retire
in the hope that aP was right.

* The night continued calm and fine, and when I left
my cabin at about six o'clock on Monday morning, I
could see the glorious old sun, red-faced and happy,
rising in the East, ai^d casting his beams upon the har-
bour and town of Charleston, South Carolina.

' Charleston is built on the junction of the Ashley,
and Cooper rivers. Its harbour is a line one, and well
sheltered by islands, and a projecting tongue of land.
The soil it is built upon is very light and sandy. It
was formerly bounded by a marsh on one side, but this
has been drained, and a quay built upon it, trees and
grass planted, and a pleasant promenade made, miicli
frequented on account of the sea breezes. Overlooking
this promenade are some of the prettiest private houses
in the place. They all have little gardens in front,
which are adorned, so bountiful is nature in these sunny
regions, even in March, with roses, geraniums, and
lilies of the valley in full bloom.

' There are no very prominent, or conspicuous public
buildings in Charleston, but its churches, exchange,
court-house, &c., are all sufficiently handsome, and sub-
stantial. The roofs of most of the houses are made
nearly flat, to allow their occupants an opportunity for
enjoying the summer evenings in the open air.

* I was delighted with the trees in the streets, and
with the fresh appearance of the grass.

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CHAnLESTON

109

' Charleston is an important commercial city. Its
chief trade is in cotton. The plantations are some dis-
tance from the town, and are visited by water — a
steamer, for the convenience of planters, plyinj^ up and
flown the Ashley river. During- the hot summer months,
the air of the plantations is poisonous and pestilential.
Xo white man can exist on them. They leave them
uuder the management of black, or mulatto agents,
and are only able to pay them a visit about once a
week, or fortnight, and then only between the hours of
sunset and sunrise.

' The atmosphere, which is destructive to the white, is
perfectly harmless to the negro race, who enjoy it, and
thrive under the hot summer sun. This is certainly a
strong argument in favour of the existing system of
slavery.

' I saw numbers of blacks in all directions ; most of
therp very black and very hideous, but rarely were ray
eyes refreshed by the sight of a mulatto, or even a
man or woman with a dash of white blood in their
veins.

' The mulatto women are represented as being good-
looking, and having finely-formed and softly-moulded
figures. They rarely appear in public except on great
occasions, such as the 4th of July. They dress nicely,
and are generally virtuous ; and in manner and deport-
ment would give a very good and useful lesson (as I
was told by the mayor of Charleston) even to white

I I

' The great number of darkies is very striking at first.

110

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

!:(

'i ■

You see, even in the main streets, two or even three of
these to every white man, and in the back streets you
see no one else. I wandered to the military college at
about five in the afternoon, and saw instead of a parade
some slovenly marching, and a group of artillery militia
in blue coats, small shakos, and red epaulettes, muster-
ing for drill, with their black band. Blacks are often
employed as musicians. The pure negro has an excellent
ear for music, but can never be brought to understand
it as a science, or even to read it from a music book.
The mulatto, on the contrary, masters these difficulties,
and thus shows the enlightening influence of white
blood.

* The women at the table d' bote were some of them
rather pretty, — generally speaking brunettes, — and
very rarely with fair skins and blue eyes. They are
nicer looking, and more feminine and lovable than their
Northern sisters. The men likewise, in the South, are
more like Englishmen in appearance, manners, and tone
of voice. South Carolina was originally colonised by
English gentlemen, and their blood reappears in
their descendants in spite of the influence of republican
institutions.

* Tuesday^ March Sth. — After breakfast I walked
through the long market, where negresses, with white
or coloured kerchiefs tastefully arranged, sit like pre-
siding goddesses at their cabbage-stalls, and where
negroes, greasy and well-to-do, superintend various
experiments in the comparative anatoniy of sheep and
oxen ; and found myself soon on board a small steamer

AN HOTEL ROBBERY

111

bound for Sullivan's Island. This island is a favourite
.summer resort. Its shores are washed by the waves
of the Atlantic. It is covered, for some extent, with
groves of myrtle, and I noticed several picturesque pal-
metto-trees rearing themselves above the hot, loose sand
of which the island is formed. A large hotel, deserted
at this time of the year, stands on a point of land close
to tlie water, and the summer retreats, with their veran-
dalis, are mostly built focing and skirting the sea.

'I reached Charleston again at half-past 3 r.M.,
and went up to my room to get ready for a ride ; but
f )und something: there, or rather the absence of some-
thing, which detained me at liome. While I was away,
some thief had surreptitiously o])taine(l admission to my
bed-room, broken open my portmanteau, and abstracted
therefrom the sum of 100 dollars in gold, which was
neatly folded up in a small parcel. ]\Iy carpet-bug (in
which were 200 dollars) looking very empty, escaped
his observation. Nothing except the money appeared
to have been taken. Vigorous measures were evidently
necessary. I could entertain very little hope of com-
pensation from the hotel proprietor, as warnings are
pasted up in every room, cautioning travellers not to
leave money or articles of value in their rooms, and
statinnf that there was an iron safe in the bar where
they might be deposited. I locked my door, and com-
menced my long descent to the lower regions of the
hotel, where the respectable occupants of the bar were
to be found. On my way, I encountered Thackeray and
his secretary, to whom I explained my loss, and who

> ■

I V

112

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

i ;

immediately acc(»mpanied me to the scene of devasta-
tion. There lay the portmanteau most significantly
telling its own tale. The robbery had been, performed
by a dexterous and practised thief, as the lock was
uninjured, and the portmanteau had been simply and
neatly torn open.

* The door of the room and its lock did not seem to
have been touched, and indeed the latter was fast
when I returned. We all went together to the bar,
and I made my formal statement of what had occurred.
The accoiuit was received with grave nonchalance, and
indifference ; indeed, I was congratulated by one gentle-
man on my escape from total bankruptcy. A stout
man, with a peaked beard, seemed, however, a little
melted; conjured up an expression of grave concern,
and begged me to show him my portmanteau. I did
so, and listened to the remarks and suggestions of my
corpulent friend for ten minutes, when he left, after
giving me very little consolation — (excej^t sympathy)
for my misfortune — to order a smith up to repair
damages. This useful individual soon made his appear-
ance, and entertained me, in answer to my queries,
with some agreeable descriptions of smashing open
doors, and deeds of gangs of row^dies, who were wont,
in former days, to follow their vocations at the Charles-
ton hotel.

* One advantage I gained from my loss — I was put
into a much better room lower down, and treated
with great civility.

' I went in the evening to hear Thackeray's lecture :

iiiil

.Vf 1

"TRUSS IN DE lord"

113

evast.a-
[icantly
•formed
»ck was
ply and

seem to
^vas fast
the bar,
iccurred.
lice, and
■i orentle-
A stout
a little
concern,
1. I did
is of my
-ft, after
mpatliy)
o repair
i appear-
queries,
ng open
re wont,
Charles-
was put
treated

lecture :

his subject was Jonathan Swift, and he treated it with
skill, pathos, and elofpience. It appeared more than to
satisfy the expectation of the audience, and struck nie
as a finished and masterly performance.

*I met Thackeray on the steps, just {^oing out of
the hall, and he introduced me to the Mayor of Charles-
ton, and tw^o or three other gentlemen, who, 1 found,
had taken him in tow for an evening's amusement, and
were about to entertain him with the spectacle of a
'• quality ball," to show him that niggers could some-
times be happy, and endeavour to soften his Anglican
and abolitionist prejudices.

. ' We adjourned from the Hibernian Hall, in the first
instance, to the Main Guard-House, wdiere we smoked
cigars, to the music of the worst drums to which it has
ever been my evil destiny to listen. They reminded me,
in tone, of the sweet sounds which are evoked from the
toys of our infancy, and in power to three or four hun-
dred penny drums all going together.

' The Ma}' or told us several amusing anecdotes about
the nicrgfers. One was of an old fellow who was cele-
Ijrated for his preaching and religious fervour, and
always took for his text the words " Truss in de Lord."
On this he was in the habit of discoursing most elo-
quently ; and he enjoined, in an impressive manner, the
whole congregation, in whatsoever position of danger,
distress, or difficulty they might be placed, always to
" Truss in de Lord." One day the old gentleman was
seen in a canoe, half full of water, in the centre of a
rapid stream, calling most vigorously and lustily for

1 r

Mti

(

,, ..

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

help. His cries reached the ears of two of his coii-
gre<j;ation, who, at some risk, and amidst his shrieks of
terror, extricated him from liis perih)us position. Wiicu
they all got safe on land, his rescuers could not help
being struck at the complete despair of their reverend
pastor, when he found himself in danger, and one
remarked : " I sa}^ Samho, you didn't seem to truss in
de Lord den much. Why didn't you truss in de Lord,
you nigger?" to which the other replied: "Always
truss in de Lord, my bredren, on de land; but no truss
in de Lord on de water ! "'

'The negroes have a great reverence for the dead, and
their funerals are performed witii much pomp and cere-
mony. They conceal the spot where the body lies hy
a hundred ingenious artifices, to prevent its being dis-
interred, and dissected by medical students, of whicli
they have a great dread and horror.

* ]Most of the negroes are ]Metliodists, or Baptists.
Many of them are really honestly and sincerely pious,
and they all take great delight in going to church. They
prefer white to black preachers ; indeed, the latter often
preach the most extravagant nonsense, — one man hav-
ing gravely told a congregation, which received the
assertion with the gravity of him who uttered it, that
" he had seen Gor de Fader at de footstool of de Holy
Ghost ! "

* There are several free blacks at Charleston, men of
property, who of course are as much under the protec-
tion of the law as the whites. They are interdicted,
however, from marrying white women ; and whi^e n.'^v^

A QUALITY BALL

115

are similarly prohibited from csj)ousinfi; ucgrcHscs, or
nnilatto women.

'Xow for the ({iiality l)all I We threaded several
narrow, obscure, and dirty lanes, and, after groping
tlirnnyh a long, da.rk, breakneck passage, found our-
selves in a tolerably large room, completely filled with
the votaries of Terpsichore. Every one had come for
^'ood, earnest work. There were no louni>-ers and mere
lookers-on, and, in fact, no room for them. We took
lip our stand near the head of the room ; the music
struck up, and ])roceedings commenced. The band
played a noisy air, and the dancers' movements were
regulated by a nigger with stentorian lungs, who
shouted out, in the most commanding voice, "Hands
'cross,"' " Turn your partners," ^^c, all which direc-
tions were complied with, with much grace and in
admiral )le time, Thackeray declared it was the best
dancing he had ever seen. Here, and there a little
attl'ctation and conceit were exhibited by some peculiarly
ebony lady ; but great order, politeness, and decorimi
prevailed.

' One or two of the women were olive, and wore ring-
lets. They might have passed anywhere for Spanish
Creoles, but were all slaves. The contrast of the black
arms, and necks with the white dresses was singular,
and picturesque. The dresses were occasionally pretty,
though there was evidently a great absence of stays.
The women's feet and ancles, hands and arms, and
occasionally figures, were good. The men were dressed
in their ordinary walking clothes, with an occasional

I 2

iM*

116

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

'> !

lover in correct evening costume, and had all of tliem
clean sliirts on. One bouncing Itlack Leanty attracted
Thackeray's attention, and I saw on his table next doy
an admirable little sketch of a gronp of dancers, with
her comely figure in a conspicuous position, executing
" a pas," and a capital likeness of a most die-away and
affected " thing" (as the ladies would have called her),
going through a killing, and bewitching movement at
the side. We stayed about half an hour at the l)all
(merely as spectators, of course), partook of some
refreshment, consisting of plum cake, and very nice
sassafras beer, and toddled home to bed, bidding our
friends adieu.

117

CHAPTER VII.

CHARLESTON — SLAVE MARKET — SAVANNAH — KEY WEST.

' Tluirsdav, March 10th.

' "ITTENT at 11 a.m. to sec the sale by auction of niuety-
* » six prime negroes, which t(3ok jjhiee near the
Exchange. The gang was to be sold in families ; all
good field-hands, or some other excellent qualification,
and to be disposed of, at so nuieh a head, without
reserve. The negroes, with their wives and little ones,
were standing; huddled too-other in a crowd behind the
platform, on which each family was exposed for sale in
turn, according to a printed programme. Many of
tliem seemed indifferent, and a stout negress or two
looked, occasionally, even defiant ; but there were several
mothers with their babies at their breasts (and even
black innocence, and helplessness are pretty and inter-
esting) sobbing bitterly. The auctioneer explained the
conditions of sale to the company, and stated that all
the niggers were to be considered sound, unless anything
was said to the contrary. There was no degrading
exhibition to ascertain physical efficiency, but all the
negroes were in decent clothing. The slaves were

(/ ■■;

118

CANADA AND TKi: CTilMEA

arranired in families, accorcliiii^ to their nearest relati(jii-
ship, and sold in lots at so much a head. The compctitiuii
was tolerably brisk, and several lots — old men, babies,
and all, sold very well. The seeiie, of course, was iii(»sl
painful, humiliatin<5% and dei,n-adin<^-. I Ijeeame (iiiite
affected myself, and was oblij^ed to hurry away, for tear
of showing what I felt.

* March Will. — Left Charleston on a lovely morniiiL;'
for Savannah. AVe entered the Savannah Kiver at half-
past thn.'e in the afternof>n. The sun came out, and
lighted up a jierturbed stream, the C(jloiir of copper, and
low, marshy banks. The Savannali river resembles the
Mississippi in general character ; it winds through
swampy islets, only visible at low water, on which m
summer the alligatoi's deliuht to bask.

' Savannali is twenty-fcnir miles from the mouth of
the river, and in the centre of the rice country. We
passed several rice plantations ; they are perfectly flat,
and heUnv the high-water level of the river. They are
protected from its waters by embankments. In the
spring, when the crops are sown, the sluice-gates are
opened, and the plantations flooded, and kept covered
with water till the yoxmg rice shoots above their surface,
when they are drained, and the rice left to the action
of the sun.

^ Savannah itself is built on a sandy bluff, elevated
about forty feet above high- water mark. It is laid out
in fine, broad, regular streets, and avenues lined with
trees, and green sliady squares, which give it a most
pleasing and rural appearance. The variety and beauty

SPRING IN SAVANNAH

Iff

moniiii';

of its trees are very strikinj^^; there are Hevi'ral descrip-
tions of live-(tak, a tree wliic-h lives ft»r lunidrcds of
years, like our j^iant of tlie forest; tlioii;;h in other
rt'Sjieets it l)iit little resembles it. Its branehes arc
adorned, all the year round, with festoons of dark slatr-
c'oloured moss, which han|4" from them in droopinjjj
dusters, sometimes ten or twelve feet Ion;;-, contrastiui;-
strang'ely with the bri<;ht green buds of oj)eninn- spring,
which the supporting boughs are putting forth. I saw
the olive-tree in blossom, the laurel sixteen or eighteen
feet high, "the sad cypress," the null berry, the pine, the
cedar, the Pride of India tree (covered in summer with
large lilac blossoms of a languidly rich perfume), and
several other varieties I was too i^iKjrant to recounise.
The effect produced by this great and luxuriant variety
of foliage can readily be imagined.

' Mardi \'2th, — At both Charleston, and Savannah I
felt the debilitatorv influence of a southern clime,
and a feeling of languor and depression. This wore off,
however, after a short time. I began even to like the hot
weather. It was such a sudden change from the dreary
monotony of a winter landscape, to the bright and
gorgeous hues of summer. Here all the trees of the
forest are budding, and blossoming. The young fruits of
the earth sprouting green, and fresh above its surface :
the delicate, and beautiful flowers of summer blooming
fearless of the withering frost, the bright and glorious
sun warming, and gladdening the whole with his genial
presence.

' The sun is a great inspirer of poetry ; how does the

ISO

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

younj^ poet, or lover delight to muse under the calm
influence of liis declinin«j^ <ijl(U-i('H, when the whole land-
scape is gorfjjeously painted with the }j;l()win|j^ tints (if
lieaven, and the air, laden with ])erfuin(', is wafted <^t'ntly
throu<»h the boughs, whispering peace, and bidding
thouglits of care and grief depart from the consecrated
ground.

*Love must be quite another passion in these sunny
abodes.

* I left my hotel immediately after breakfast, and, on
the principle of "business first, pleasure afterwards,"
went to the agents for the Havana steamers, and paid
^40 for a passage l)y the good steamship Ysahil. I
was told I must get a passport, and went to the Frentli
Consul for that purpose, but unluckily he was from
home. I procured a horse, and rode tlirough a wood, in
which the wild jasmine was growing in beautiful lux-
uriance, to Bonaventure Cemetery, about four miles
from Savannah. I met with an incident on the way
which amused me. I had become a little confused, by a
number of roads in different directions, and apparently
at cross purposes, and found myself, after keeping for
some time to one, which seemed probably the most cor-
rect, riding past a few rude cottages on the edge of a
bluff, overlooking the Savannah River. A negro was at
the door of one of the huts, and I made inquiries of him
as to the bearing of the lost cemetery. His master
stepped forward to my relief, pointed out the direction
in which I should ride, conjecturing, from my ignorance
of the locality, that I must be a stranger. I told him

i I

A SIAVE OWNER

IJl

wiio, and what T wjih (;. Hritisli siilialttTii on fiirldngli ),
and tlion my old friend (lie told nic lie was st-ventv)
CDnmicnccd a speech Jiliu.ut slavery, which it wouM lia,v«'
cditicd Mrs. Stowc herself to have listened to. His
l;in''ViaL'e with rcLiard to that ladv's famous production
was forcihle, thouj^di ,ot particidarly ele^^•u^t ; and he
spoke with the earnestness, and indij^nuition of a man
whoso character, or fair fame had been unjustly taken
iiway. He tohl me liis father was an Enj^dishman, and
he hoped that F, as an Ku'^lish otficer, would endiracc
every opportunity for observation or investigation which
presented itself, and use my best efforts, if myself con-
vinced, to disabuse the minds of my friends, and (I
think the old gentleman said) the public generally, of
the prejudices, and false notions they had formed from
reading that string of lies, which endeavoured to shelter
themselves in a cabin. "You couldn't buy my slaves,
sir,*' said he, very vehemently, "they wouldn't leave
UK"," and such is the case very fre(piently. " Tliey
enjoy," he added, " more comforts, and are better pro-
vided for and happier, than thousands of your white coun-
trymen in the large manufacturing towns of England."
He told me t(^ go to their church, observe their appear-
ance, and demeanour, and note the neatness, and care
with which they were dressed, and the perfect liberty
they enjoyed during tlie Sabbath. I promised to do all
this, and ))id(ling my friend good-bye, after hearing him
descant on the comparative salubrity of his situation
(near a moimd of oyster-shells in a state of partial de-
composition), returned towards the town of Savannah.

[Jl

122

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

* I rode towards a square, gloomy-looking house,
wliicli lie liad indicated to iiie in the distance, {uiil,
dismounting, knocked at the door to make furtlier
inquiries, according to n\v old friend's direction. 1 was
oljliged to repeat the rap several times, before it was
responded to; ;ind was just on the point of going away,
when the door was opened hy a gaunt negro, witli a
hollow voice, and imbecile manner, lie pointed out a
foot-path, which he said I must follow ; and in answer
to my inquiries as to the proprietor of the cheerful
mansion from whence he had emerged, told me it was a
pest-house, where patients ill with the small-pox were
placed I He relieved my mind a little by telling me
that there was no one afflicted with that disease in the
place at the time, and tliat there were but few cases,
except in the summer months. I did not feel inclined,
however, to prolong the conversation, but wished lay
friend good morning, and commenced tracking the
"bridle path" (as G. P. Iv. James would have called it)
throufdi the wood,

' I soon reached the cemetery, a most secluded spot,
where you might easily fancy the weary lie at rest, and
the wicked cease from troubling. There was a holv,
sacred calm about it, harmonising well with the char-
acter of the place. The trees which adorn it, and
which give it a character peculiarly triste, and appro-
priate, are a descriptit)n of live-oak, more than one
hundred years old, planted in regular row^s, with the
funeral-looking moss hanging in weeping clusters from
their branches over the graves beneath.

I'm hi

BONAVENTURE CEMETERY

123

ig bouse,
Liice, and,
e further
un. I was
re it was
•iiio- uwav,
ro, with a
uted oiU a
in answer
-i cheerful
le it was a
[-pox were
tellin-j; me
^ase in the
few cases,
1 inclined,
^•ished my
ckin;4' the
called it)

iided spot,

t rest, and

IS a holy,

the char-

n it, and

nd appro-

than one

, with the

sters from

'No one who has not sei-n these extraordinary and
beautiful trees can imagine the effect produced by
several rows of tlieni, with intertwining boughs, i)lanted
over a space of five ov six acres of ground. There are
hut few nionunients, and these generally phnn and
unpretending. No ]\Ir. Snooks, with millions of dollars,
has, as yet, erected a shapeless mass to his parents,
children, or wife ; and no ohl gentleman, with an eye to
the future, has engaged a last resting-place for himself
and family, built in the rectangular form, with an inti-
mation to the public, on the outside, tliat it is his
family vuult. I think I saw one vault of this descrip-
tion, but forebore to lool' at it. I rode home at a snmrt
canter, and reached my hotel just in time for dinner.

'At five I called on the English Consul {^h\ Moly-
ueux), wdiom, on second thoughts, I considered I ought
to apply to for my passport, as it would be unpatriotic
on my part to divert the fee from his pocket to that of
a foreigner. ]Mr. ]Molyneux was not at home. I left a
card, and walked through the town to the j)ark, where I
saw several young ladies, walking innocently, and in
pairs, with sprigs of jasmine in their hands — emblematic,
I am informed, of gi'ace, and elegance. Either the
gentlemen of the place thought themselves graceless,
and inelegant, or reserved the charms of their society
for tlie ball-room, and house ; but the young ladies
seemed to be left to waste their "grace and elegance" in
the <iveniug air alone. I would have given anything
for an introduction ; but I was obliged to sit looking on,
like a miserable fox among grapes. My Georgian friend

: :f

' 1

1 :

124

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

i' !

I f

, I

came to my relief, and I strolled aljout with liim, and
went to see the risino" generation instructed in the art
of dancing. The liitle things did very well, and there
were several pretty little girls, of about five or six, who
footed, and glanced it to perfection, and who will do
wonders, if they preserve the similitude of their present
smiles, and ankles. My friend, after arranging that I
should drive out with him to dine in the coiuitry at
twelve o'clock on Monday, left me, and I went home
to tea.

^ March I3th. — After a short stroll 1 went to a
black church, according to my old friend Thunder! )olt
Bluff's advice. The service, I was told by a black at
the entrance, would commence in a few minutes, and he
politely conducted me to the pews especially reserved
for whites. These were exactly opposite the pulpit and
a kind of reading-desk below it, with an old bible on it,
and three or four chairs placed round, as I conjectured,
for the elders of the church. I was the only white man
present. The church was a rectangular, phiin room,
with windows resemlding those of an ordinary house in
size and appearance ; its walls had a dingy look and a
certain air of shabbiness, and poverty seemed to pervade
the whole place.

* The congregation assembled slowlv, and I had
time and opportunity for studying each individual that
entered. The men were all respectably, some well
dressed; the women, generally speaking, patronised
gaudy colours, but looked very nice, and tidy. I got
tired of waiting for the clergyman, but was relieved l>y

A BLACK CONGREGATION

125

a man in yellow ''n-ecches voluntarily taking upon him-
self the duties of pastoi-, and, after a brief expression
of regret at the shej^herd's absence, commencing the
service by reciting a hymn of six verses. This he re-
peated again two lines at a time, joined by the congre-
gation in a loud, harsh, nuisical chorus. After the
liynni, my friend (who had taken his stand at the desk
exactly opposite me) commenced an extempore prayer,
which was good, though a little abounding in tautology,
and was earnest and sincere in delivery. A sermon (on
certainly "an appropriate text for the occasion), " The
harvest truly is plenteous, but the labourers are few,"
gave me an opportunity of forming a better estimate of
my volunteer's powers of composition. I[e preached
very sensibly. A hymn similar in length and execution
to the one preceding it, and another prayer, delivered
from the centre of the church, at the request of the
gentleman officiating, by a member of the congregation,
completed the service. I saw a good deal of friendly
Lauds-shaking, like the " how-dye-do" at an English
village church on Sunday ; u; d, as it was hardly twelve,
went to another church, white this time, and heard
another sermon. After the completion of this second
service I called again on the consid's ; and, hearing that
he was out, but expected home in a few minutes, took a
seat in a comfortably-furnished room, ornamented with
portraits of "H. M. G. 31." and " H. K. H." and par-
liamentary companions, navy lists, &c., on the table,
all remindins: one of Old England, to await his return.
A gentleman (whom I at first took for the consul) occu-

'-;;

i 1

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i i

126

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

,! !

> I

pied a chair when I entered, and exchanged a few
commonplaces with me. Our consul soon came in,
shook hands with me very cordially, and asked me to
dinner. He was a grey-haired old gentleman, who had
filled the office of consul for thirty years, and a thorough
Englishman in appearance and maimer. His wife was
a nice person, and I soon felt myself at home diniiiL?
with the pair; I had a snug little dinner, and a good
glass of wine after it, and talked to mine host about
Canada, the K. jM. A. at Woolwich, and the army. He
told me he had a son at Rughy, who wished to go into tlie
army ; and a daughter whom he occasionally yisited at a
school at New York. He drove me out in a tilbury — a
good old English tilbury ! — to see a great raihvay termi-
nus which is in course of construction, and will be the ter-
minus of the railway to NewOrleans and the inlandtowiis,
and cities of the south. In a few years the facilities of
communication in this part of the country will have
much increased. Xovj, a person may travel by railway,
and steamer across the country to within five or six
miles of New Orleans.

* One or two gent', men came in during tL^ evenin''.
and a slow scientific discussion on the merits of tlie
Ericson hot air vessel was C(/mmenced. I waited for a
pause, rose, and said " Good night," promising to come
to breakfast at eight o'clock the next morning.

^ March I4th. — Wet morning. Borrowed an um-
brella from the man at the bar, and sallied out to the
consul's. Met Mr. JNIurray at breakfast. He is a
Charleston man, and had been educated with the elegant

CHARLESTON RACES

12:

mayor of tlint city. He told me that tlie moiitli of
February wjis the most favonra1)le one for seeing
Charleston in its ,L,dory, as ])eople flocked there then
from all parts of the States to the races. These races
he descrihed as l)ein!4' ^'i^ l'*'st in America; the horses
are ridden by niL;L;er hoys, who take an immense deal
of pride in their master's horses, and would scorn the
offer of a bribe to lose a race. The racing is, therefore,
jiist what it ought to be, a fair and generous competition
between a nmnber of noble aiiimals. Murray further
said that English gentlemen, officers from Canada, were
invited to all the balls, and to participate in all the
amusements of the places He, I Avas happy to learn,
had experienced much kindness from the T'Jth Kegijuent
when he visited (Quebec, and, I think, he had formed,
and, I hope, diffused, a favourable opinion of the hos-
pitality of the l^ritish army. John J^ull, whatever may
be said against him, is a sociable animal, and feels as
much pleasure in securing a wanderer, and ])lacing his
legs under his mahogany, as an experienced fisherman
in successfully landing a fine salmon or trout. .Aly
friend ^lolvneux (the consul), who had these true John
Bullian feelings, wanted me to dine with him again ;
and when I pleaded previous engagements, invited me,
on my return from "the Havana,"" to stay at his house
till the boat started for New York. [ only gave a
(qualified assent. ]Molyneux drove me to my lu^tel, and
shook hands with me. He would take nothing for my
passport, but said it was a general rule that no charge
should be made to gentlemen wearing her ^Majesty's

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

I t

livery. I found that Thackeray and Crowe had arrived,
and walked over to tlie American Hotel to see them.
They were very badly accommodated; the liotel was
dirty and imcomfortable, and the beds well inhabited
with a busy and thrivini>- population. They could get
no rooms at the Pidaski-house.

' A very scraj^'gy-lookin^ man, whom I afterwards dis-
covered was a member of a deputjition from " the Young
jNIen's Association," was engaged in conversation witli
Thackeray when I entered. I afterwards heard that he
felt favourably disposed towards me, and would have
shown me the lions, and probably feasted me, had I
stayed at Savannah.

* Crowe was pleased with the trees and squares, and
the general appearance of the place. They expected a
deputation, so I left them and went back to my hotel,
where I packed a dress suit in my carpet-bag, to change
for dinner when I got into the coimtry. My Georgian
friend called about twelve o'clock, and we started
together at half-past twelve in a light buggy. ]My
attention was attracted, while going through a wood, by
a number of large, dark birds perched on the trees;
my companion told me they were turkey bustards, the
scavengers of the Southern cities, and that it was illegal
to shoot one. I subsec^uently saw a number of these
gaunt, unpleasant-looking birds hard at work, picking
up scraps near the market-place at Charleston. The
proprietor of the house I was about to dine at, was tlie
son of a Scotchnum (a Mr. INI'Alpine), who had com-
menced life with nothing but his wits and a stu:pence,

A DAT IN THE COUNTRY

129

rrivod,
tlieiii.
el was
laViitcd
lid get

rds dis-
Yoiuii^
m wit] I
tluit lie
Id have
, had I

res, and
3ected a
y hotel,

clianj^'e
eori^'ian

started

ood, by
trees ;
ds, the
illeo-al
■ tlie.se
kicking
The
was the
d coin-
j:pence,

and by energy and l)rickmaking had accinnulated a
large fortune, and built a good house. The property
(according to law in this part of the country) was left
to be evenly divided among all the children, the eldest
son managing it for himself and the rest, and getting
nothing but one share in the spoil for his trouble ; a
most ridiculous custom, and the ruin of many line
estates. Passing through a straight avenue of trees,
we came to a little street of negro huts ; ipiaint, square,
peculiar nut-shells, with padlocks on the doors, and a
tire, or the remains of one, burning on a vessel in front
of each, and designed to keep off the insects. The
proprietor's house, which was handsome, stood, unfor-
tunately, on very low ground, and was near the muddy
marshy river; the brothers, who were practising ritle
shooting, received me very cordially. The eldest I was
particularly pleased with ; a kind-liearted, fine, good
fellow. He was much more like an Englishman than an
American. He shewed me his place, his brickmaking,
his saw-mills, horses, rice, &c., and pointed out several
localities which had been the scenes of skirmishes and
encounters during the American war. (Jne tree near
liis house still retained traces of a cannon ball, which
had been, he conjectured, fired by the Britishers to
ascertain their range before opening a cannonade from
their batteries. Sickness and fever had killed more
men than the sword on this occasion.

' Women (negresses of course) were employed at
brickmaking a« well as the men; they seemed very
strong, and able to work very hard. The system my

,!!

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130

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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V * ■

friend employed w.as that of tasks, — a very judicious
one. A certain fair amount of work is to lie gut
througli, and then liurrali ! for li])erty. I have always
preferred this phm to the monotonous lazy drud^-ery of
so many ho\irs' work. Tlie nii;'«4'ers were wlieeHui;-
barrows of bricks, so heavy and piled up, that I,
thougli tolerably strong", could scarcely even lift the
arms of the barrow.

' In a return of births and deaths, published at
Charleston, seven blacks are reported as having- died ovei*
a hundred years old, and between the ages of twenty
and thirty but few negroes had died ; where a corre-
sponding return shewed great mortality among the
whites. This speaks something for the care with whicli
the skives are treated, and the comforts they must enjoy
in their old age. We had a plain, liomely, country
farmer's dinner, and smoked some cigars afterwards.
None of my new acquaintances wer(!: particularly re-
fined either in manner or conversation. They were
kind hospitable people, however, and the elder brother
<|uite realized in my mind, Pope's " noblest work of
Crod." To bed at eleven.

^ Mdrcli \5th. — Walked out before breaktjxst to the
Exchange to get a view of the city and surroundinL;'
country. Savannah looks something like a vast garden:
the trees have a beautiful effect.

' There were a great many passengers, and a vast
number of trunks and portmanteaus for the Havana
})oat. We were all to start in a little steamer at nine,
and lay off the bar till the Isabel from Charleston came

3t'

AN rNTLKASAM VOYAGE

l.Tl

in si<;lit. The day became lovely. I sat on deck
reading "The Caxt(»ns,"' and looking- at the passing
vessels sailing or steaming in or out of the harbour.
We passed a small steamer with funnels near the bows,
and decks piled with bales of cotton, till she looked a
large shapeless mass : vessels laden thus will carry an
inmiense freight. We had a wretched dinner on board
our "wee*" boat, and lay off Pulaski P'ort, — a large
s(|uare work, recently completed at gre.at expense,
near the mouth of the river. I inspected the fort ; it
is casemated, and has great bomb-proof accommodation.
It will be very heavily armed when the guns are moimted
on the pivots designed for them.

' It has only one outwork, a weak ravelin, with a
narnnv ditch not more than twelve feet broad ; the
ditch of the main work is about thirty feet in breadth.
Tlie escarp is exposed, and the faces of the work are
long, and miglit probably be enfiladed by a steamer at
a distance ; the guns will be mounted eti fxtrhctfe.
The sides of the scpuire are broken into small bastions ;
the firo from the casenuites would render the passage of
the ditch dangerous.

' There were a good many passengers on board the
[s((b('l. A group of ladies, looking pale and interesting,
were sittini; imder a kind of roof in the centre of the
passengers' deck. Our party was shipped in small boats,
wliich, owing to a swell, was rather a troublesome job.

' March \(')fh. — Came on deck feeling rather sick;
all the ladies had disappeared fr(jm the scene, and were
^tretclied on btids and sofas in various attitudes of

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132

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

wretchedness. There were sixty-five passengers f)n
board, and nearly every berth taken. I was (loul)led
up with a sea-captain, with stentorian Kings and excel-
lent constitution. I occupied the upper berth, and
generally found my companion, with his clothes on,
asleep when 1 turned in. He never snored, and got up
at daybreak — two very desirable qualities. Every one
looked miserable. I felt a vertigo in my head, but
persevered in reading. The wind was cold and raw,
and blew in a most deterinined manner. P\)r a larjie
steamer the Isabel is a very l)ad sea-boat, rolling and
pitching tremendously. I managed to keep the demon
of sea-sickness at bay, and eventually completely tri-
umphed over him. The gale delayed the steamer, and
we made very little headway.

* March \7tk. — The same monotony as yesterday, but
in sight of the Florida coast greater part of the day.

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133

CHAPTER VIII.

( r

KEY WEST AND THE HAVANA.

March 18th.

' 4 LOVELY clay. We had passed from the regions of
-^ winds and storms into a calm sea, and a delicious,
halmy air. It is about 10 a.m. We are approaching
Key West, near the extremity of the Florida Keef.
Several little deserted coral islands are in the distance,
and we see occasionally the white sails and elegant out-
line of a cutter, relieved by the blue sky beyond. Most
of the passengers are on deck — pale, pretty faces,
scarcely recovered from the effects of that terrible
storm ; but the sea now looks so placid and beautiful,
and the air is so soothing, that they must soon recover ;
besides, we are approaching land, and land is a nuigic
word. We are to have a long rest at Key West (rhyme
unintentional). We shall land and roam about it, shall
get off that abominable little deck, and be able to walk
hundreds of yards without turning. Ha I there are the
stars, and stripes floating on the American barracks !
Two or three companies of artillery are stationed there,
— a dull quarter I should think ; there is, however,

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CANADA AND THE CKIMKA

I f

plenty of fi.sliiiij^' iuifl boatiiif,', T suppose. Tlicre is tlie
towii,a,n(l a fort tluy are build ini;'. Kroinall those (|ueer
seuffol(liii;^s they look out for wrecks, and can see it
vessel on the reefs a.t a <;reat distance. The |i(;oj>le here
fjjain their livelihood by \vreekinL>-, L»eneraliy speaking;,
besides which they catch and sell turtle.

'There was no use in coutinuinj,' our voyage, a> we
should have found the harbour of the JIavana closed
a<j;ainst us, and Ix-en fired into if we had attempted
to enter it. We were too late to reach it befon^
sunset. We will stay at Key West till the eveniuj;-, and
cross the gulf durin*;' the nii;ht. We hope to see the;
sun rise over the island of Cuba. But now what shall
we do? We have a ^-ood deal to look at. What a
strange place this is where we have suddenly found
ourselves, and are so unexpectedly to pass the day at I
Let us look about us.

' ]Marcy and myself strolled along the beach, and
picked up a few small and pretty shells to ])reserve as
mementos. The sun was terrifically hot, and, after
walking about a quarter of a mile, we were not sorry to
take shelter in the friendly shade of the Marine Hos-
pital. Here we had a chat with an attendant, a re-
spectable, middle-aged, sallow man. He told us that,
during the summer, there were frequently the entire
crews of ships in hospital there with yellow fever. They
came principally from New Orleans. There was no
disease produced in the island itself, which was exempt
from the ordinary scourges of a hot climate. There
was a breeze continually blowing, but little rain, and no

KEY WEST

13ft

colli weather, (iales of wiiul were not fre(|ueiit. Most
of the wrecks t(»<»k plac(^ in culiii wcutlicr; they were
occasioned by the etVect of the gu It-stream on vesneKs
whicli liad become becahiied. " Why don't tliey,*' said
I, "iiave a smnll t\v^ steamer to tow tin ni beyond
the reefs in eahn weatiu'r'/ Surely it is worth tiio
cx])ense." "1 don't know, Sir," replied the nmn.
.Alany of the vessels iire fully insiu'ed, and, when tliey
are old ships, they often run npiui the reefs on purpose.
Jiives are scarcely ever lost. The wreckers get thirty
per cent. (I afterwards learned) of the value of the cargo
they save. The wrecking schooners, and cutters are
fust sailers, and beinitiful-louking craft. I saw a little
schooner ajtparently just off the stocks, and as trim
and as neat as a genth-man's vacht. She was rigged
rather like the celebrated America. These wrecking
vessels draw very little water, and are able to sail 111-
side the reefs, where they are (juite protected from the
action of the gidf-streani. They average, I should
think, from thirty to 150 or 200 tons. Numerous hsh-
iug boats sail with fish from Key West to the Havana,
starting from one place with American colours; and
entering the other with Spanish. The fish caught in
these seas are gorgeous to look at, the sun, it would
seem, even illumining their scales " in the depths of the
sea ;" but they are tasteless and insipid to eat. Give
me the fish, fruits and flowers of a temperate clime !
Key West, aljout which and over which I liave been
rambling, is an island about twenty miles long, at the
extremity of a coral reef which stretches in the form of

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136

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

a curve from the southernmost point of Florida into
the Gulf of Mexico. It is a most important point, as
it commands the entrance to the gulf. It belongs to
the State of Florida, and contains a larger population
than any other town or city in that barren tract, num-
bering about 3000 souls. It is at present the southern
limit of the United States. The inhabitants are partly
American, and partly emigrants from the Bahamas,
who at elections hoist a flag with a shell on it as an
emblem of royalty. They are a miserable set, and live
in dirty wood huts in a state of great filth and discom-
fort. They left the Bahamas on account of the libera-
tion of the blacks in those islands. The Yankees try to
paint them worse than they are, but I am inclined to
think that their principal vices are ignorance and
poverty. They gain their livelihood entirely by wreck-
ing. I do not recollect ever seeing so many drinking
establishments ; every third house seemed to be dedi-
cated to Bacchus, though I must add, in justice, that
soda-water and cooling drinks seemed almost as much
in demand as more inflammatory beverages. Key West
enjoys a delightful climate ; the lowest point to which
the thermometer falls in winter is about fifty-nine de-
grees, and this is considered so cold that fires are lighted.
The constant breeze which blows in some degree
mitigates the extreme summer heat, though, from the
nature of the soil, and the few trees growing on it,
the heat is terrific. I thought the place hotter than
the Havana. As may be supposed, the inhabitants
experience much difficulty in procuring fresh meat

KEY WEST

137

and vegetables ; there is little or no pasturage on the
island, and the staple articles of consumption are fish
and turtle. They have dates, cocoa-nuts, and lime>,
as fruits. I did not see any orange-trees. Some of
the houses are prettily built, with tastefully-arranged
little gardens in front, indicating a respectable class
of inhabitants. 1 was told that there were some very
rich people living there.

'1 alone strolled along the shore on the side oppo-
site to that along which I had wandered with ]Marcy
in the morning, the heat keeping all the other pas-
sengers in the ship quiet ; and observed, among other
things, some boats coming in laden with sponges,
another source of wealth. These sponges are coarse,
and cannot compare at all with those from Turkey.
I felt inclined for a bathe, but refrained on account
of the sharks, which occasionally deprive you of a
supporter, if they don't swallow you whole. I heard of
a woman who was sitting on a wharf with one foot
dangling in the v^ater, when a shark coolly nipped it off.
I was told, however, by an intelligent serjeant with
whom I had a chat at the barracks, that during the
three years he had been at Key West he had only heard
of one soldier who had been bitten, though the men
were constantly in the habit of bathing. The ])arracks,
near the military hospital, are built with verandahs on
every side, and looked cool and comfortable. I re-
gained my steamer at about two o'clock, at which hour
we sat down to dinner, there being a full muster of
passengers. After dinner I mounted to the top of one

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133

CANADA AND THE CRDIEA

of the look-out towers, and enjoyed the view of the
little town and surrounding islets very much.

''March Ivth. — At ahout six o'clock, on a lovely
morninf^, a group of expectant passengers might ho
ohserved crowded tojjether on the hows of the <fO()(l
steamer Isabel, straining their eyes to discern more
distinctly the details of the scenes which were opening
to their view. In the distance was the steamer from
New York, which we had passed when contending witli
the gale of wind off the coast of Florida. She had not
been following so correct a course as ourselves, and
had not exactly hit the entrance of the harbour, so we
were before her. As we gradually approached, the
stern old ]Morro Castle, with its frowning ramparts and
lighthouse, became visible, and the Spanish flag (red
and yellow) was clearly seen floating above it. Frown-
ing behind and above the Morro is " El Cabanos," the
great fortress of Havana, built on a steep rock,
scarped and inaccessible, on the side of the har])()ur,
near its entrance, and opposite the city. The city itself
is not seen properly till the liarbour is entered. TIk^
entrance with the old "Morro" standing like a grim
sentinel on one side, and a little fort opposite, looking
as defiant as its size will permit it, is so narrow, that a
steamer is obliged to move very slowly through it, to
avoid swamping small boats that may be passing.
What a beautiful harbom* ! is everybody's exclamation,
and how elegant and picturescpie those noble palms are !
Ah I there is the town : what a singular old place I
There's a Spanish regiment dra^^'n up on parade, with

HAVANA

139

the band playing; what soldier-like little fellows they
look, and how pretty their imiforni is I we must have a
close l(jok at them when we get on shore ; Init when is
that to be? that is the ([Uestion; we have a great deal
of formal misery to undergo before we shall be fit or
worthy to plant our feet on the territory of Her ]Most
Christian Majesty. There goes the anchor, we are
moored off the Alameda de Paula.

' After a general survey of the harbour, and a longing
look of anticipated pleasure in the city, I began t(j be
iinxious to get my permit to land, from three Spanish
officials, who had been engaged in examining passports
ill a little cabin, for a (|uarter of an hour or more, and
whose exit was watched and wished for ])y us all most
lieartily. Formal, empty-headed looking fellows they
were, with their white trowsers and sallow complexions.
At last the ■\\i •. ^'- of a portion at least of the expectant
crowd appeal , ^e gratified. Permits are issued, and
two dollars a-piece are paid for them. When the clerk
of the steamer, with countenance in which annoyance
strufr«"-led with fear, came to me and told me that in
consec[uence of my passport not having been properly
vizeed by the Spanish Consid at Savannah I could not
he allowed to land I Here was a blow ; the cup dashed
from my lips when just on the point of tasting it. I
felt bitterly disappointed and annoyed, as I saw ])oats
conung alongside of the steamer, and passenger after
passenger descending into them, until the deck was
cleared, and I left only with the ship's officers, besides
one Spaniard, who almost cried with annoyance, being

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140

CANADA AND THE CBIMEA

ill

in a similar position with myself. I determined to be
as philosophic as possible, had my portmanteau trans-
ferred to my state room, breakfasted with the captain,
and afterwards proceeded to dress myself in as cool and
respectable a costume as I could select from my rather
limited wardrobe. I wrote a letter to our consul, en-

ck jed in it J 's letter of introduction, and remained

in a state of suspense, between hope, doubt, and anger,
making sketches of houses, &c., from the deck of the
steamer. The day was most lovely, and the harbour
with its varied shipping, bounded by green hills or
picturesque terraces and frowning ramparts, in itself a
picture. Vessel after vessel with her white sails set,
glided beautifully into the still expanse of water, and
came gracefully to her moorings. The stars and stripes
of the United States floated in most cases with swagger-
ing splendour from their mizens. Near our steamer was
a brig which the captain told me had been captured as
a slaver by the English cruisers, and was now the sub-
ject of litigation, her owners having positively denied
that she was ever intended for the west coast of Africa :
he added that the Cubans winked at the departure of
slave brigs from the harbour of the Havana at night.
Our commodore was apprised of this circumstance ])y
an English sailor, who happened to be on board one of
the brigs, and he immediately sent a frigate after them,
which brought them to, boarded them, and on discover-
ing the nefarious purpose for which they were intended,
took all these vessels quietly in tow in a line, and
brought them into the harbour of the Havana that

TICKET OF LEAVE

141

evening. This decided step naturally rather diminished
the popularity of the English amongst the Cu])ans.
During the Lopez troubles, the Spaniards regarded old
England as one of their firmest and most powerful
aUies, and almost conceived that the only object she
li;id in retaining a squadron in the vicinity of their
coasts, was for the purpose of protecting them agr„inst
the republican spirit of annexation which had so dis-
agreeably developed itself in the neighbouring continent.
Their eyes by this decided step were somewhat roughly
opened to the true state of the case, and like a criminal
who after pleasant nocturnal visions, awakes to a true
consciousness of his real position, their guilty souls
became suddenly and impleasantly aware that tliere
were such things as truth, and the fulfilment of solemn
engagements, and that there was a power which would
protect and enforce both.

'My captain took compassion on me, and allowed me
about half-past eleven o'clock to go ashore with a friend
of his, who was to take me to the consul's, where I was
to endeavour to obtain a permit ; in case of failure, I
was on my parole to return to the steamer, as the
captain was liable to be fined if he had suffered me to
land without the usual forms having been complied
with. I rejoiced at the hopes of emancipation, and
cheerfully stepped into the little boat, with a white
awning and graceful sail, which was to convey me to
tlie much desired terra firma. INIr. Wolcott (my guide)
and myself after walking along a hot sandy road for a
few paces, stepped into a volante, and began to thread

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142

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

the narrow and intricate mazes of the city of Havana.
Our veliicle was singular and unique, and demands a
description. Imagine a body sometliing like that of
a Hansom cab, — only lighter, suspended on heavy
leathern springs, attached to an axletree some distance
behind it, on which revolve two enormous wdieels, six
feet in diameter, drawn by a comical little horse, out'
mass of harness, his tail ciirefully plaited and stored
away, like a loop on one flank, and a heavy old-fashioned
saddle on his back, bestridden by a large negro in
enormous boots, and you will have ;i picture before you
of the ordinary vehicle used in Havana, and in fact ttie
only one, I may safely say, wdnch the Spaniards or
natives ever employ. A kind of blind rolled up in cool
weather at the top of the hood, and drawn down over tlie
face during the heat of the day, protects from the rays
of the sun. A volante is by no means an uncomfortable
vehicle : it is a lara'e loun2:in<i' kind of a «jt>nvevance.
where you may loll at ease, and enjoy the otluin etna
dujiiltate of existence.

' We found on in([uiry at the consul's house that lie
w\as out, but supposed to be at his son's office ; thither
we accordingly repaired, and were fortunate enoui;li
this time in nailing our man. ]\Ir. Crawf()rd I found a
o'entlemanlv middle-a^'ed man : he had never received
or heard anything of the letter I had sent ashore for
him in the morning ; but on my stating my case to him,
wrote a letter immediately to the secretary lO the captain
general, praying him, in excellent Spanish, to give per-
mission to Lieutenant George Ranken, of the * Guerpu

Havniia.
mauds a
I that r.f
ri heavy

distance
heels, six
oi'se, one
id st(uv(l
fjxsliioHi'd
Qe<;T() in
efore yi»u
1 fact tne
tiiards or
ip ill cool

over tlie

the rays
nfortahle
ivevaiice,

um CLlin

e that lie
thither

enouu'h
' found a

received
shore for
e to him,
e captain
give per-

' Cuerpo

FKEEDOir

del In2,'enieri,' to land on the soil of Cuha.

143

Armed

with this important document, I aijain started forth
with the oblii^-iiif,^ Wolcott, and found myself within a
few minutes sitting in the pahice of the captain general
with a S})anisli agent of Wcdcott's, "waiting in ])ainful
suspense for the decision of the secretary. That fuiic-
tionarv was husilv eni>-aLred, and niv letter could not for
some time be taken up to him. Instantly upon receiving
it, however, he gave orders that a free permit should
he given me : and, elated with success, I hiUitened to
the amiable Wolcott, and placed the scrawl of pardon
in liis honest palm. I found my way to my hotel,
where I found one of my American friends, and took
a walk with him through the streets, visiting the Catlie-
dral and the Tacon Theatre.

' The appearance of the city is very peculiar and
j)icturesque ; the houses are solidly built, but seldom
more than one storey high ; they have no windows, the
apertures into which in northern climes, these taxed
articles of luxury are fitted, are here filled with formi-
dable, burglar-defying iron bars, and thick, dark,
cool-lookinj; Venetian blinds, which cast a refreshinij:
shade over the whole interior of the apartments. The
rooms are fitted up in the most simple and unostenta-
tious manner; a side-board, table, and a few chairs
being generally the only furniture.

' Senoritas might be seen at ease, reclining on rocking
chairs, lollin"' out the dav or thinking of their evening
drive on the Paseo. Under an archway at the side of
the house, or in a quadrangular courtyard attached to

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

it, might be seen the ftimily voUmte. Negresses were
smoking cigarettes or pipes, and sturdy, naked, bhick
little urchins running about and basking in the sun ;
not afraid of their complexions, certainly.

*My friend and I found our way to the cathedral, — a
cathedral consecrated by the dust of the great discoverer
of America. The ashes of Columbus are deposited be-
neath a mean marble slab, near the altar of the UKxst
tawdry and unsubstantial Koman Catholic church I have
ever seen.

'A small bas-relief, by a native of Cuba, of his head,
and an inscriptioji, equally unwortliy of the man or the
country which produced him, are all that assist, or
rather destroy, the sensations of the traveller, when he
stands over the remains of this great man. The altar,
and pulpit near, are from Rome.

' The exterior of the cathedral, though possessing no
architectural merits, is yet picturesque and interesting,
from its venerable greyness. An old pile, over which
the hand of time has passed — not to destroy, but to
soften and im])rove, — is at all times a pleasing and
interesting object. It is regarded with almost a re-
ligious reverence, and it deserves to be so.

' To Americans, these time-worn grey walls must
possess a peculiar charm, after the sharp regular lines
which distinguish their rapidly produced cities and
buildings, which start int(j life, and, I might almost
say, topple over with the same rapidity as fairy card
palaces, such as delighted our younger days.

145

CHAPTER IX.

HAVANA — DE RAMOS, FALM-SUNDAY — A DINNER ^yITH
THE ENGLISH CONSUL — RETUUN TO MONTREAL.

' ^r.ircli 20tll.

' rriHIS is the great day for pleasure and amusement
-■- in Havana. The weather was lovely ; the air soft and
delightful. I sallied out inunediately after breakfast, and
made for the cathedral, whither, it was rumoured, the
Captain-General, after entertaining most of the pu])lic
functionaries at breakfast, was to proceed, attended by
his guards.

' The cathedral was decorated with real legitimate
palm leaves, plaited most tastefully and prettily, laid
upon the altar, find in other conspicuous places. When
I arrived, the service had evidently commenced vsome
time. I stole along a side aisle, and reached a point
whence I could clearly and easily discern the features
of that redoubted hidalgo, the " Capitan- General.'' He
wore a blue uniform, covered witli stars and orders.
He had well-cut, commanding features, with a grave,
gentlemanly, proud expression, and stood nearly six
feet high. He appeared to pay great attention to tlie
service. Almost all the Captains-General of Cuba have

1 I

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14H

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

been officers of liiu^h rank in tlic Sjaiiisli army, and the
present one is no exception to that rule ; Init wliere he
can have distinniiislied himself to have worthily earned
all his decorations, I am at a loss to conceive. The
whole of the hody of the cathedral was occnpicnl hy
senoritas of all aires and sizes, kneeling; on flieir niirs,
and occasionally, in the intervals of fanning*, glancinjif
wirh an indi»lent air of devotion, (»n their prayer-books.
So many l)lack eyes I liave never seen collected before,
nor so many picturesr|uely dressed women. The man-
tilla is a very becominj^' head-dress, and tliere is a grace
and elegance about it which has never l)een attained by
the mijst perfect specimen of Parisian taste. In the art
of using l)oth their eyes and their fans, the Spanish
women are supposed to excel all (others. It is said that
they have the power of expressing any tender feeling
or sentiment by nieans of this elegajit little appendage.
Tills is having the art of love ahjour fuifjers^ oids with
a vengeance ! I did not neglect the favoural)le oppor-
tunity afforded me ])y this collection of Spanish beauty
to criticise and make reflections. I studied the mass of
human heads and faces attentively ; and, though I saw
numbers who were interesting and pleasing, I could not
detect one face which, except by contrast, would have
been called beautiful in England. This may, perhaps,
be owing to the prevailing olive tint of the complexion,
and consequent pallor of the cheek, depriving youtli of
half its charm and freshness, or to the gradual effect of
a tropical climate. I saw several alarmingly fat old
ladies, worthy helpmates for Daniel Lambert. The

THE CATHEDRAL

service i^i the catlicdriil was not imposiii<;-. It was ([uitt'
plain and luipretendini;" iittcr tiic ^onu'oonsiicss of I,:i

Madelcint'. <•!• St. Kocli, :it I*ari>

If altar

(it 1

M>m<4

Passi(»ii-W('('k ) were all in muuriiiiiL,'. I slmuld ii.Ufli
have lik<'d, had it been possililc, to have rciiiaiiu'd t
witness the leligions ceremonies of (Jood Friday and
Easter Sunday. The fonncr of tliese days is most
strictly observed. No vehiclo is permitted to traverse
the streets, the shops are all closed, and 1< ni,' ])rocessioiis,
in which a tii^'ure representing;- the dead body (^f our
Saviour is borne, traverse the silent streets in solemn
pomp. On Easter Sunday the ])eoi)le, as if suddenly
relieved from a stern restraint, plunge, as the En^dish
did on the Kestoration, into gaiety and pleasure. The
theatres are open, balls take place, occasionally a
bull-fiL;ht lends its inspiring* aid; and every one, with
religious enthusiasm, devotes himself, or herself to
personal enjoyment.

par-
ated

I went into several churches; none of them

ticnlarh

y impressed me; all were, oi course, decor
witli palm leaves. The fish-market was open for the
wants of good Catholics. The fish displayed for sale
are of bright tropical colours, — beautiful to look at,
but, I ])elieve, bad eating. In fact, with the exception
of fruits, Havana is not very satisfactorily supplied with
provisions. Meat very poor ; chickens as tough as shoe-
leather.

' I dined with some friends at three, and at five
started out in an open carriage, drawn by two liorses,
for our great evening drive. The Paseo was crowded ;

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148

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

( ■

tlie voliuiti's almost toiicli«;(l each other. At ciicli cud
of th(i lon<jj avemio, and at the turns, were little lan-
cers on horseback, who took care that there was no
joekcyings or impropriety at the corners.

'Tlie ladies, in low dresses, with fans (^q-accful^ly wav-
ing, occupied the vehicles, "at ease reclining/'

' We traversed the whok; length of the Paseo several
times, and after admiring the scene, and criticising the
varictus groups presented, like tdhhaux rirtins, to our
eyes, found ourselves in a few minutes crossing a draw-
bridge over a military ditch, and just entering the
Paseo d'Vsabel Segunda — the Great Drive. This drive
is a broad roail, planted on each side wuth elegant palm-
trees, and running parallel to the fortifications of the
town. Venerable, picturesque-looking old bastions,
which it would be a shame, on account of the facility
of the exploit, to breach. In this "Paseo*" is the
"Theatre del Tacon," of which the "Habeneros"' are
extremely proud, and which they show to strangers
with the exultant superiority of conscious excelleuce.
It is certainly a pretty house, the interior fitted up
with great taste, lightness, and elegance. In size it
must be inferior to our opera-house at Covent-garden.
There were no performances going on while I was
there (Passion- week), but the theatre was to be opened
on Easter Sunday. A nigger showed us the building,
and took us to a lofty point, from whence he intended
that we should look, not at the fine view of the city
spread out at our feet, and l)athed in rich liglit, but at
the mysterious ropes and pulleys which regulated and

Tin; I'ASEo

141)

produced tlic iiiiraculous stfinc-cfTcfts of riijiidfippcMrnnci'
and disapuc'iraiice witli which (»ur eyes arc so especially
dcli^ht((l ill )>atitoiiiiine. 'i'lierc were all kinds (tf dusty
and tawdiy staLjt'-Hiiery and ])ropcrlics heape(l pro-
niiscuonsly foi^ethcr, anionLf which a very dusty and
mild hroun hear was ]»roniiiiejit. ()ur L;uide wmle nn
the wall the nnnd)er of people the theatre would liold,
and furnished us with other statistics, which our har-
harous ignorance alune prevented our properly aj)pre-
ciating.

'After this inspection of the theatre, and a deliLrhtful
view of the city from an elevated window, we hailed a
volante, and merely saviuLT " Pnseo " to our ni'^'-'cr horse-
ni.'in, threw ourselves buck and assumed a pleasing and
indifferent expression, us if we had been natives of the
city, and u drive in a volante was our custom alwayr, of
an afternoon. The weather seemed rather inclined to
he showerv, so the "dear little creatures" did n(jt show
themselves in such numbers as we hud hoped, and as
we were fully prepared to admire. We, however, saw a
good many. Low dresses, l)are arms, and mantillas,
certainly look odd at first : and what is still more remark-
able, the low dresses, l)are arms, and mantillas do n(»t
endeavour, or very rarely so, to heighten their charms
by contrast with the sombre black coats of the worse
portion of the community. The ladies were almost
invariably alone; the gentlemen gazed on them with
respectful admiration from beneath the palm-trees.
"The Paseo," or regular evening drive, is of mme extent.
After traversing the main avenue, the volantes skirt the

! !

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150

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

edge of an inclosnre sacred to IjuU-fights, and follow a
road almost at rifjlit ani'les to the miiin ••no, leadin<;
througli trees and gardens adorned with the magnificent
vegetation of the tropics. From several points very
pretty peeps of the city, and surrounding country are
obtainable, and a view to please horrormongers of the
Bmall castle where Lopez and his fellow-countrymen
were irarrotted, is caufdit from one of the avenues near
the town. Statues adorn '^the Paseo"' at several points.
That of Isabel in the principal road is of bronze, and
represents the queen as an insignificant, pug-nosed, little
dwarf, wlio looks in that vast space mor ? like the statue
of an infant that had lost its way, than that of tlie ruler
of Spain and the Cubas.

* We enjoyed our drive exceedingly : I shall never
forget the state of exuberant si3irits I was in from the
excitement, and novelty of the position in which I
found myself. Here I was, as it were, suddenly dropped
in the midst of a strange land, among people speaking
a strange language, and of an aspect perfectly different
from any I had before encountered : then the richness,
singularity, and beauty of the tropical vegetation, the
eastern effect of the elegant palm-trees bathed in sun-
shine, the associations of the old glories of Columbus
and of Spain; these and a thousand other thoughts
and images started up, and occupied, and exhilarated my
mind. What a contrast do the formal, silly, pigmies
of the present day in Cuba, present to their great
ancestors I They retain, like the fallen ( rreeks, their
pride, prejudices, and religion, but nothing or little else.

U- :i

SrANISH MAREIAGES

1:1

' Their women ret.'iiii the eyes of their ancestors,
and tlieir rich and beautiful black hair; but they
are burnt up by a scorching tropical sini, and ij^et
flit from eatinj; and laziness in their premature old a^•e.
t saw one stout old woman at the catiiedral, enuai^ed at
her devotions, whose arm would have made a leg for
a man of six feet high.

* Both sexes marry at a very early age.

'A young fellow who shared my room with me, and
who had acquired a smattering of t_^>e English language
by a residence in the States, told me, with e\ident satis-
faction at the astonishment his disclosure produced,
that liis father had married at fourteen and his mother
at twelve, that after two years their union was blessed,
and that his mother had died at the age of forty-
two, after having presented her husband with twelve
children.

' There is a great deal of formality in Spanish society,
and tlie Spaniards do not appear inclined to amalgamate
with foreigners. I was told at the English consul's, by
his daughter, that even if you come to the Havana
armed with the best letters of introduction to the best
Spanish society, the probability is that you will merely
be honoured by a visit from the party to whom your
letter may be addressed; told impressively that his
house, and all that he possesses, is at your service, and
then have your existence most flatteringly ignored. I
am inclined to think that this picture may be exagge-
rated, and am pretty certain that the same state of
things does not at all events exist in the country; the

I 'I

152

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

j ■ ;

rich planters, like all other groat landed proprietors, are
g'onerally I fancy hospitable, kind, and generous, and
the arrival of a stranger is considced an agreeable
event. After a very pleasant and lively drive, I re-
turned to my hotel, drank tea, and dressed in evening
costume to pay my respects to his excellency the
English consul. I was shown up a flight of stone,
uncarpetted steps, and found mine host deep in a
rubber, sitting with three other gentlemen in a hall
outside his drawing-room, and dressed in a delightfully
cool, refreshing white uniform. He received me very
kindly, and introduced me to his wife and daughter.
His wife was a very pretty woman. Several other ladies,
in evening dress, called to pay their morninr/ visits, and
a good many Spaniards, who jiaid a formal visit of two
or three minutes, and retired after a couple of compli-
mentary speeches, and a casual remark on some topic,
corresponding, I suppose, to the v:eather in England.
Crawford's drawing-room was paved with black and
white marble, forming a ter^selated pavement. There
was little or no furniture ; and, in ftict, the principal
ornaments were some verv rich and beautiful flowers,
which being alone, as it were, in their glory, without
damask and gold to vie with them, shone pure and con-
spicuous. Everything looked cool and airy : furniture
in this hot climate would be too oppressive. I was
asked if I could play whist, and replying in the affirma-
tive, was immediately booked for a series of rubbers.
Tea interrupted our game. I sat next to a fine and
pretty woman, a sister of Mrs. Crawford's, who had passed

1*1'

DINNER AT THE ENGLISH CONSUL'S

153

several years in Germany : she must have been brouo;ht
up, however, in Cuba, as she strongly objected to the
European fashion of wearing bonnets. After tea, iced
champagne and fruit were handed round. I thought
tlie champagne an elegant and good idea. After one
more rubber, I managed to escape from thi; whist-table,
and have a chat with jNliss Crawford and aer brother ;
listening also to the singing of some American ladies.
The Spanish country-dance followed the music, and I
was a pleased spectator of its gracefulness. At half-
past eleven 1 took my leave: and then, as I descended
the stairs, thought for the first time that I had to find
my way to my hotel the best way I coidd, unless E
bothered Crawford to procure a volante for me. I had
a general notion of the geography of the city, and of the
bearings of its streets, and I felt pretty certain that, if I
could manage to strike +he harbour, I should soon find
myself on ground made familiar by my morning's
wanderings.

* I accordingly struck off in a straight line. There
was a beautiful, clear moon and a star-spangled sky to
guide me, and I felt confident that I should soon
manatje to reach home. While walking down a narrow,
straight street, I perceived a figure^ wath a long pike in
its hand, leaning against a w\all, with a lantern at its
feet : it proved to be a watchman, guarding the slum-
bering city.

'Before Tacon's time, Havana was a most unsafe city,
and the scene of many robl)eries and midnight assaults.
Under his firm and able rule, a proper guard was organ-

\ ' \

(■ 1

;

( .

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I I

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I' I

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154

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

ised for the protection of the city, and it is now con-
sidered as safe as any hirge city in America. I was
rejoiced l)y the sight of the calm water of the harbour.
After a few minutes' walk, got upon some well-known
ground, and soon found my way home. My bedroom
was at the top of the hotel, and I was told in the morn-
ing that the house was too crowded to admit of my
enjopng an apartment to myself, so that it was with
mingled feelings of doubt and curiosity that I entered
my apartment. Two large beds, with mos([uito-curtains
well drawn down, and concealing all that iiiiglit be in
or on tliem, greeted my eye on my entrance. Perhaps
they were both occupied. I made a cursory inspecticju
<jf the apartment, and perceived a pair of foreign
boots and some chjthes in the vicinity of one of the
mysterious couches, and nothing of the same character
near the other. I lifted the curtain, and, to my great
delight, found the bed unoccupied. Undressed speedily,
and popped into it, wondering what sort of a fellow the
owner of the l)Oots might be, and carefully placing my
waistcoat, with my little property in it, under my pil-
low. Slept pretty well. Quite a luxury to be ashore

agam.

^March'Ilst. — The Spaniard with whom I was doubled
up, in answer to several intpdries I made respecting the
sugar trade and sugar plantations, told me that, at the
opposite side of tlie harbour, I should see a great sugar
store, and possibly get some information as to the pro-
bability of seeing a phmtation in the neighbourhood of
Havana. Accordingly, armed with a Spanish direction

AN EXTORTIONATE BOATMAN

1j5

worded thus, "A Regla Establecimieiitos y Aliuacen y
de Azucar," I walked to tlie ]iar})()ur, passing ou my way
the square opposite the Captaiii-Geiierars, wliere several
companies of a regiment were undergoing an inspect ion,
and, hailing a little boat with a white awning, threw
myself in it, pronounced the words " a Kegla"' with the
nearest approach to the air of a native I could assume,
and sank into the back seat. The harbour at this early
hour looked bright and beautiful ; the air on the
water was soothing and delightful. I gazed round me
on the charming landscape and clear sky with a feel-
ing of enjoyment I hope worthy of the most pleasant
and agreeable portion of a spring day in the tropics.
My boatman, when we got " a Ivegia," wanted to clieat
me, seeing that I was a stranger and an Engl isln nan,
and probably thinking that several ejaculations of his
in praise of tlte "Inglesi" while crossing the liarbour
would have softened my heart, and opened the palm (»f
generosity. Nothing, hcnvever, have I greater dislike
to than being cheated ; and, therefore, after aj)i)ealing to
one or two bystanders, and endeavouring, in inferior
French, to explain the state of the case, and gathering,
from their gestures and manner, that I was in the right,
I gave my friend half what he asked, and walked off.

' I was destined to be disappointed with the " Esta-
blecimieuto de Azucar."' I found nothing Itut some
spacious stores, in which were piled up innumerable
casks of sugar and molasses, and several vessels lying
off the wharves lading. Stalwart niggers, almost nude,
were working hard at moving casks, and a few formal-

156

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

I'lokiiin' Spanish superintendents were j:^'azin;L>- on their
efforts witli a stupefied air. To one of these I appealed,
and endeavoured, in French, to make him comprehend
that I particularly wished to see a sugar estate, and that
I could only spare a few hours to see one in. He said
somethin;^' about meeting me at Regla during the after-
noon, or appointing some one else to do so, I do not
now quite recollect which. I can only remember that
his answers were unsatisfactory, and that I abandoned
the scheme. I wandered on the shores of the harbour,
and endeavoured to reach the citadel of La Cabanos,
but found a marsh intervening, the distance farther than
I had anticipated, and the sun gradually moimting
liigher in the heavens, and increasing in ferocity. I
looked out in vain for l)oats, and w\andered on, begin-
ning to feel very hot and rather tired, when I crossed
a railway line, and immediately began following it to-
wards the shore, guided by the advice of an old cottager,
who miiucidousJi/ understood a word or two of English,
and who, pointing to the line, emphatically told me to
"P'ollow him." I found the cars, drawn by jive or six
Qnideii, had just arrived, and, following the passengers,
was soon on board a steam-ferrv, which took me over
the harbour in a few minutes, and for a small sum. It
landea its passengers in a part of the city I was not
altogether acquainted with, and my morning's walk was
lengthened by my again losing my way, and wandering
through a labyrinth of narrow streets ; I was quite
ready for my light claret, breakfast, and cigar, after all
this hot work. ]My wanderings had led me through the

LAST ETENING IN CUBA

i:.:

" Almedta de Paula," a fine broad walk, planted with
trees, and close to the harbour.

'The Habaneras very sensibly make the streets of the
body of their town, where business is performed, nar-
row, in order to be eool and shadv, and their evcniiiLj
drives, which are not used till the sun's rays are beconi-
iug- horizontal, broad and spacious. I made my j)ur-
chases of eij^ars, fans, and preserves, to-day, and eallfd
on the consul to recpiest him to advance me some
money, as my Charleston misfortune had reduced my
finances so considerably that I had no money to get
back ^v^th, or scarcely any after paying my fare l)y the
steamer. He told me he should be most happy to ad-
vance whatever I wanted, and to call at his office again
at two o'clock ; he was engaged in some law business
with regard to a brig seized as a slaver, whose owners
positively asserted she was merely meant for the sugar
trade. Crawford was not at his office at two when I
called; and in the evening, when I took ^Nlarey to in-
troduce to him, I learned that the whole family had gone
into the country. I should have been in a fix if .'\lar(?y
had not kindly accepted my draft on Cox and Co. for
£20, and paid me that sum.

*My last evening in Cuba was delightful. The moon
shone brightly on the city, and the music of the IkuuI
had a soothing and almost melancholy effect. I felt
sorry to be obliged to hurry from the i)lace; it liad a
kind of fascination about it., and, as Willis sav'^, pos-
sessed the rare merit of "just enough amusement aii'l ex-
citement to prevent citaai, without producing fatigue."'

;, i

Tim,

;' ,

158

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

It is ipiitc ii contrast in tliis respect to London, Paris, or
iiijy of those ^-reat j^ay places during the bustle and ex-
citement of tlieir seasons.

' Miii'cJi 22iul.. — Our steamer got under weigh at
half-past six. I had Ijccn up at five, and had managed
to <^ct my last cup of coffee at "The Imperial," where
they ceitainly make it worthy of an empei'or, and to
l)uy some cigarettes. The Spaniard, wlio had been
doubled up with nie on shore, was my companion on
th(^ voyage. He was very ill, and almost did for me
the next mornino- : the motion of the vessel, bad as it
is, is nothing to the spectacle of the misery of others
on board. T, however, escaped illness on ])oth my
vovasres. We had a very violent thunder-storm on
the first night after leaving the Havana, and got to
Charleston, after a quick run, on Friday morning. The
vovau'e was without incident. We were out of sight, of
land, and in the centre of the Gulf Stream all the time.
W(^ saw several flving-fish scudding alon<>- and risini;
very prettily from the water, but did not encoimter the
sea-serpent, or any other redoubtable *' monster of the
deep." I made the acquaintance on my passage of two
Oxford men, who seemed very good fellows. They had
l)een through jNIexico and the greater part of the
Western States; they gave glowing descriptions of
jNIexican scenery, but drew a melancholy picture of
the degraded, miserable state of the ]Mexicans them-
selves. Every kind of vice, scarcely credible, prevail
among them. I got my cigars and preserves passed
through the Customs House after paying a heavy

RETURN TO MONTREAL

159

Paris, or
and cx-

veigh at
iiianag't'd
,""' where
', and to
ad been
mion on
I for nio
)ad as it
)f others
l)oth my
;torm on
(1 got to
The

sight of
the time,
id risin^jf
iinter the
er of the
TO of two
They had
t of the
Dtions oi
icture of
us theni-
prevail
passed

a heavy

1^-

duty of forty per cent. As it was Good Friday I went
to cliureh.

' S;iw Thaekeray and ('n»\vo again, and ealh'd on
tlie fornior and gave liini a descrij)tion <tf my trip to
Cui)a.

' Mitrcli 2Hfh. — Up early on deck to see the entrance
to the harbour of New "i'ork. Morning fine, ('(»l(b (dear,
and frosty — rpiite a contrast to the weather I liad a
few (h\ys before been enjoying. Tlio entrance to tJio
liar})our of New York is not oidy beautiful, but strong:
two forts opposite one anotlier, Ijuilt according t(» the
latest principles of art, stand like grim sentinrls gtmrd-
ing it ; a sort of modernised imitation of tlie castles on
each side of the entrance to the harbour of Havana. T
went to the Clarendon at New York, a <jind hotel, and
a great contrast to the noisy, vast, Metro{)olitan. I
stayed two or three days at New York, and returnc'd to
^lontreal rid Hudson liiver Railway, sleeping again at
Rouse's Point, and recrossing the St. Lawrence in a
half frozen and rather dangerous state on the 2nd of
April, after au absence of about seven weeks from
Montreab

' I found everything at ^Montreal on my return look-
ing miserable. The streets almost impassable from lialf
melted snow ; the air raw^, damp, and chilly; every (tne
laid up with influenza and bad spiiits.

' The bustle and excitement of my journey had dissi-
pated the uloom I laboured under on startini>- almost
entirelv ; but after bein'>- back several davs, 1 foimd the

i )

I > .,

1(30

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

blue devils gradually beginning to exert their influence.
I had a touch of ague and a sore throat, and found
myself affected by the trying changes of weather,
like every one else, till the horrible snow disappeared,
and the sun and nature began to exert their revivifying
influence.

lil

CHAPTER X.

Ql'EBEC — GxiVAZZI RIOTS — KUMOrKS OF WAR.

'Juue llth, l^on.

' /QUEBEC, ^Montreal, and, in fact, the whole country
Mt* have been enlivened in a manner whiL-h wo neither
anticipated nor are able to appreciate. leather Cfavazzi
has appeared like a firebrand among us, and, in fact,
set the whole population by the ears. Protestants
a<;-ainst Roman Catholics, and both ag'ainst the soldiery.
There has been a riot at Quebec, happily unaccom-
panied by loss of life. In ^lontreal, however, the
military have fired upon the people, and killed, and
wounded twenty-six of them. Here an attempt was
made by an armed mob of wild Irishmen to murder
Gavazzi while delivering his lecture. Gavazzi behaved
in the most gallant manner ; did not throw away a
single blow, but felled his assailants as they successively
endeavoured to clamber into the pulpit, in a mnnner
which would have excited the admiration of the vene-
rable Ben Caunt. He contemplated the tumultuous
assembl}'^ with a smile of contempt, and declared, if al-
lowed a fair field and a wall to lean against, he would

! .r

I i

i. \

10-2

CANADA AND THE miMrA

tiLjIlt tlif wlmlr |(it (it'thfiii. They succ'ocdt'd, lifter M tiiiio.
ill liiirliiiLT liiiii tVdiii the pulpit, aiid he piu'iicd, Cor-
tiiiiiitt'Iy for himself, on soiiu; cushiuns wiiich hinl Imcu
removed from a ptw, or his skull would iiifdlihly
liave l)eeu fractured.

' When pursued hy the molt into a vaidt lieneath tlir
eliurcli, ho merely eoolly stepped one ]>ace to his ri^iit.
and the moh rushinij past him, groped with murderous
hands in vain in the (hukness. The French ('ana<lians
liave taken no part in these oiitrai^cs ; indeed, at ^lon-
treal, they expressed their deep horror at the eondnct
of these Irish fanatics.

' Tlie 2()th Regiment who have been at ^Montreal, and
excited such violent feeling's l)y firing on a p<'aceful
congregation retiilng from church, have only just
arrived in the country. How or by whom the order
to fire could have been given remains a mystery. Some
of the most peaceful and innoc(>nt inhabitants have
fallen victims to it. (lavazzi, indeed, has appeared like
a sj)irit of evil in this country. By attacking the tenets
of the Koman Catholic faith in an insulting, scornful,
and (inchi'istliLn manner, he has excited to the utmost
the religious animositv and hatred of the Irish, and the
great mass of the inhabitants of the Lower ])rovinces:
and has revived that bitter feeling of religious enmitv,
which it has l)een the policy of Government t(j soften
and repress, and which will be a source of weakness
and disunion fnjm which, I fear, the colony will not
very soon recover. Tlie whole business is a painful
one, and in everv wav to be regretted.'

liUMOUnS OF WAIl

Ifj.T

I tlllU',
il, foj-
il been

["allibly

itli the

rdcrous
uadiaiis
it Moii-
coiuUu't

eal, and
p<,'aceful
Illy just
le order
Some
s have
u'ed like
le tenets
scornful,
utmost
and till.'
ovincc'S :
enmity,
o soften
,veaknes>
will not
painful

[Notliin;;' of i^eiieral iuferest is nn'iitionetl either in
my l)rotherV Icftris or j<»urnal until February ls.'>4,
wlien news of an impending,' war with l\ii-;sia reached
Cana(hi. -KniToi!.]

' Kepoits liave readied us lu-re of wars and ruinoiii.-;
of wars, and I suppose Knuiaml will shortly be en^jan'cd
in the terrible thoiij^h i,dorioiis struLri,de, into wideh, after
h(j much ministeiial vacillation, she has at length entered.
I should like to he ordered out to the scinie of action:
l)ut as T have not been so loiio- on foreiun service as
many others in Canada, I shall probably l»e kej)t out
here another year, when Nicholas will have drawn in
his horns, and the struj^<j;le have come to an end.

'Itmavbe ima-'incd how eai;eilv we look for news
of the march of events in this ice-bound corner of the
earth, where news recpiires a furtnii^ht to penetrate.
Just at this crisis, all measures of ndlitary reform and
reori>anization are important. The ''(vHiarterly Heview,"
about a year a«;o, discussed the injustice and folly of the
present system of promotion in the Ordnance Corps,
and pointed out its evils and discouraj^'ements. In many
regiments of the service I nught have ])een a captain,
or next door to it; in the Engineers, I cannot iioi)e to
be one in less than ten or twelve years indeed, if the
present system continue; and I shall be fortunate if I
am even then. My colonel at (»>uebec was t\vent3'-three

rears a s

ul)alt

ern

' I am leading a fpiiet life for a soldier. I generally
rise at seven, and read or write for a couple of hours

!, II

I I

1 I

i •'

1C4

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

[I '

l)efore breakfast. (At present that period is devoted to
an essay on fortification.) In the winter, when tliere is
little professional work to be done, two hours generally
suffice for the office. Two liour'^' ^nore in the afternoon
I devote to reading history, and the rest of tlie day is
given up to exercise and anuisement. Balls nnd parties
interfere a great deal with my arrangements. Late
hours do not suit me at all : I feel want of sleep much
more than fatigue. However, Lent and its forty days
«jf rest are approaching, and the restless aiitoniaton
motions will cease for a while.

''April 2&h. — To-day is appointed to be kept as a
fast-day throughout Great ]^ritain. I have ju.«t been
to the cathedral, and listened to a powerful and eloquent
sermon, preached by Dr. Adamson, in aid of the wives
and children of the soldiers who have been sent to tlie
vv-ar, to fio-ht the battles of their countrv, and of civili-
sation. Dr. Adamson connnenced his discourse by a
retrospective glance at the triumphs and progress of
religion, education, and enlightenment, since the ter-
mination of the last great war.

' He described the rapture and gratitude of the nations
of Europe when the sword, which had spread desolation
over tlie fairest countries of the earth for a quarter of
a century, was at length returned to its scabbard.
Man tJien became socially, morally, and politically,
another being, and step l)y step peace achieved gentle
and unostentatious but glorious triumphs. A rude
hand, however, has shattered the beautiful fabric of
victory she had reared. Peace is no raore! The sw(jrd

•ntle
rude
ic of

DR. A DAMSON S SERMON

165

again Hashes fc^rtli ; again tlie notes of wniling arc
heard. Knghmd, united to a sister whose liand had
long been withhehl from her, has drawn the swurd to
protect the oppressed, and to cluistise tlie oppressor.
After dwelling fur some time on the efforts being niado
in this struggle by civilised Europe, the preacher intro-
duced the important subject of his discourse. lb
reminded his hearers that i^reat sacrifices were neee--
sary to accomplish great objects.

''•'The statesman devoted his time, his talents, his
health, his days, his nights, to the service (d' his coun-
try. Who can justly appreciate his labours, his anxieties,
his noble abneiration of self, the ma<nutude of his sacri-
fices and his services ?

* " But the women of England, — the wives, thf
mothers, tiie sisters of soldiers, — what did iJu'n con-
tribute to the war ? One gave the father of her
children ; another her dear son, the pride of her old
age; a third a brother; a fourth, perhaps, one who
stood in a dearer relation still, whose loss would crush
her young heart, make life a bhmk to her, and leave
her the sorrow, too deep for utterance, of unweddcd
widowhood.

* " And shall we offer them nothing in return ? Shall
we refuse our svmpathv and assistance in their desola-
tion and distress?" '

[Another considerable break occurs here in the
journ.al, and nothing vorthy of notice is recorded
until the summer, when cholera of extreme severity

. t

1 ;

^ i:

166

CANADA AND THE CEDIEA

visited Quebec. ]My brotlier exerted liiiiiself to miti-
gate, as far as lay in his power, tlic sufffriiig of the
unfortunate poor. in the Lower Town : and it is pleasant
to reflect, tliat his last acts in Canada were tliose of
unostentatious charity. — Editor.]

' Quebec, .Tilly I'Oih, 18o4.

' Ninety-four degrees in the sliade. We are in the heart
of our terrific summer. We have had the tliermometer up
to OG" in the shade, and no rain for about a fortniijht.
Tlie cholera is prevalent in tlie dirty, Inidly ventilated
streets of the Lower Town, where many sailors, emi-
grants, c^c, have fallen victims to it.

*The L'pper Town where I live has as yet in a great
measure been spared ; but every one feels the necessity
of great prudence and caution.

* As a means of enlightening the igiiorant popidation,
who were ri.arked out from their habits uf life, and the
locality in which they resided, as the most probable
victims of the disease, I have liad a lOOO copies of
the Government regulations for the prevention cf
cholera, issued in England in 1847, printed and circu-
lated, distinguishing the more important paragraphs by
the employment of larger type. I have also strongly
advocated, in several letters to the (Quebec papers, the
necessity of the formation of a society for the relief and
assistance of distressed emigrants at Quebec. My obser-
vations have been favourably received and commented
upon, and I have it now in contemplation to a])peal to
the clergy of Quebec, to afford their countenance and

CHOLERA AT QUEBEC

ig:

support to my design, and to solicit the assistance of
the Coh)nial Government.

' A central board of health has been established at
Quebec, of which several of my friends here wish me to
be elected a member. The nomination wovdd be an
honour, but involve at the saine time great respon-
sibility and some risk and trouble. The latter however,
I woidd, I hope, willingly encounter if I could do any
iTOod. The streets are as deserted during this intense
heat as on the wettest day.

'If you can possibly do it, and have any regard fjr
your own health, you will keep at home till half-past
six in the evening, and then only take a ([uiet drive.
One of our thermometers, placed in flui sun the other
day indicated, I am told, a temperature of 130°.'

I ?'i

I !

If.S

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

CHAPTER XL

BOUND FOR THE CRIMEA ARRIVAL AT .^EBASTOrOL.

' August I800.

'rpiTE scene cluuiges ngaiii. The uncertainty of u
J- soldier's life could not be better illustrated tliau
by my last entry. However I have myself to thank
for it. ffearinsj that the number of En<>-ineers 1)efore
Sebastopol was nuieh reduced, I felt impelled to
volunteer mv services for the Crimea, and to suui»(.'st
that an officer, who might have been invalided, shouM
be sent to Fort (jreorge to supply my place.

' I hardly expected so sudden an answer as I re-
ceived. A few days after my letter to Colonel Matson,
and while at Inverness, on my way to Dingwall in
Ross-shiri', whither I was ordered on some special duty.
I suddenly had a letter put into my hands from the
Ordnance Office, informing me that the Inspector-
General had approved of my being employed in the
Crimea, and that I was to proceed at once to London,
to embark as soon as my passage should have been
provided for me. I felt mixed sensations of satisfac-
tion and regret. I felt sorry, after getting perfectly

DEPAIITUUE FROM ENGLAND

169

settled, niifl having found several pleasant acquaintances,
to be suddenly ordered off at a moment's notice, — and
glad at the opportunity of witnessing some of the great
and stirring scenes which were so completely absorliing
the attention of Europe. I endeavoured to assume
cheerfulness, though my heart was rather anxious and
heavv, not knowing what the terrors of a l)attle-tield
or actual hostilities might he. I rather mistrusted my
own powers, and could only pray (rod that I migl:t
have strength and courage to perform Uiv duty. I liad
little tinu; allowed for preparation. I was obliged to
procure the various articles of my kit with railway
speed, and was kept continually ti'ivelling between
Hertfordshire, anil London. ]My horse aiid servant
were shipped off from Southampton in the " Hima-
lava.*' I started, after takinff leave of mv relatives at
Brighton and Dover, with Captain Nicholson, R.E.,
overland for the Crimea, via Paris and ^Marseilles.
Nicholson's brother travelled with us, and w(^ had a
very pleasant journey to Paris, and enji^yed ourselves
a ii'reat deal the dav after oiu' arrival, in lionising
and visitinfj the Parisian Industrial Exhibition.

'On Sunday, August 3rd, we left Paris: travelled
all dav and all ni^'ht, and arrived at ^Marseilles on a hot
Monday morning, at 8 or 9 a.m. We got our tickets
for the steamer, and our lu'><>a!i-e arraiiLred, break-
fasted, strolled about, and made purchases to complete
our kit. Marseilles is a large, rich, dirty, connnercial
place ; its streets smell abominably. We had no time,
or were too tired, to make a minute inspection of

ji-M

I :

170

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

it. At r.M. we started in the French mail steamer
" Simois " for Constantinople. Tlie passengers were nut
nnmerons ; but we liad 400 or .lOO French soldiers on
deck, l)el(>n_i>ing- principally to a regiment of Chasscm-s
de Vincennes. As far Jis ]Messina, in Sicily, we had
lovely weather, — a clear blue sky, and an intense
ultramarine sea, — rather lujt, but on the whole enjoy-
able.

'The Chasseurs de Vincennes slept like sheep on
deck; but sang, and made themselves merry with their
hardships. Some of them are very fine, handsome
fellows, with the soft blue eyes and dark eyelashes
so popular among' sentimental young ladies ; and ]
am <[inte sure, as their manners are really good, that,
if well washed and dressed, they would cut respect-
able figures in an English ball-room.

' At ]\lessina w^e landed to look at some chiu'ch'-'s.
It is a very finely situated city, but its inhabitants
appear a dirty, degraded race. Tlie place itself was
the most filthy I had ever seen, and the stench in
some of the streets insufferable. We took a short
drive, which had the effect of partially broiling us,
and were not sorrv to be again on board, and under
weigh.

*We touched at the Pirams, drove over a hot, dusty
road to Athens, climbed up the Acropolis, did the ruins

in twenty minutes or so, and returned to our steamer
as fast as om' wretched little steed would draw us.
The remainder of our voyage was without incident.
The weather was hot, the cabins badly ventilated,

k I

CONSTANTIXOPLE

171

steainor
^'ere in»t
ditn-s oil
bassciirs
we liad
iiitriise
3 C'lijoy-

lierp on
itli tli.ir
iiulsoine
'Veluslies
; and I
od, til at,
respect -

'hurches.
labitants
self was
eneli in
a sliort
lin<^' us,
d under

ot, dustv
he ruins
steamer
draw u>.
incident,
■ntilated,

;ind the Chasseurs d<' Vincennes anvtliine- hut mUlr-
jJcurs.

' Wf reaclied ConstantinopU' on 31<>nday aftcrnnun,
landed part of our han'ii^ai^e, and witlk diflHculty clinihrd
the steep liill to Messiris's J[oteh Constantinople from
the water (Hd not disappoint nie. "NVIien exaniiiied I
found it the dirtiest phice I was ever in, and that
most of tlie oreat lions were exaijfi^erations, and looked
hotter on paper ihan in reality. — AllonTs di-awin^s
are very faithful. We found at .Alessiris's, Colonel
(iordon, K.K., who had distinL;uished himself so much,
and been wounded before JSebastopol, on his way
home for the benelit of his health. He seemed to
think we siiould have to winter in the Crimea.

'The delu<;e which poured on C(.)nstantinople on tlie
(lay after our arrival, [ thiidv I shall never forget.
We landed our heavy bao-gage in the midst of it.
The streets resembled Seoteh mountain water-courses;
and how our porters, with their heavy loads, c(»ntrived
to struggle up the almost perpendicuhir hill through
the midst of it, I know not. The thing, liowever, was
at'Cumplished. The rain lasted all day, and we c(juld
do httle or nothing.

'Next morning Nicholson and ^v,t, df went over in
a caique (with Mure of the 42nd, aide-de-camp to
(reneral ^Earkham) to Scutari, to report ourselves t(j
Lord William Paulett (commanding there), and got
passages on to the Crimea. We were told we were all
to proceed next day at 2 p.m., in the " I^randon " screw
transport (13D). We passed the afternoon iu seeing

172

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

the iiHis(|ii('S of 8t. S()j)lii;i jiiid Aclmu't, ami otlitT
lioiis. With the former I was j^reatly struck, Init a
little disappointed (iinaginatioii is so invariably stronger
tlian reality). On the morning of our departure I
ma(h' several pm'chases of saddle-l)ags, Turkish mat-
ting, ^.e., in the streets and great 1)azaar, ])ee])e(l in a
Turkish l)ath, and peramljuhited the streets on ii
little horse for several hours. Scratehley, and myself,
were almost late for our steamer. We found she was
a very slow craft, and had to coal on the coast, whicli
might detain her for several days. As we had l»eeii
puri»osely sent overland to reach our destination a>
soon as ))ossil)]e, the delay wa^ annovini!" and vexation.-.
We had been put to great troubh.- and expense, shifted
our baggage seven or eight times, and after all, fnuiul
that we should have readied our destination bv comiD;:
direct, in nearly or ([uite as short a tinie.

'We remained two days at Kosloo, or thereabout, on
the coast of Turkey in Asia, to coal. A 3Ir. l^arclay,
CE. has charge of the mines. The coast and sur-
rounding hills are extremely rich in coal, wdiich bursts
forth, or crops out on the cliffs in patches. The coal
is very inferior in quality to that of Newcastle, and docs
not go half so far. The ?oaling of steamers is performed
by means of boats, the coast being an iron-bound one, and
water very deep near in shore. The prevalence of strong
northerly winds likewise compels vessels to anchor at a
greater distance from the shore than they would other-
wise do. The mines are worked by about 1 700 Croatian
Turks, Albanians, SiC, some of them arjued to the teeth

I I

Ii: =

KOSLOO

111 other
k, but u
: strongi'i'
jiirtiire 1
:ish iiiat-
L']K'il iu ;i
'ts on ;i
1(1 inyself,
1 slie was
fist, wliicli
liad lieeii
illation a-
v^'xatit•u^.
se, si lifted
all, ftniiiil
bv coniiu'j;

cabout, on
|r. l^arclay,

and sur-
icli bursts

Tlu' onal

ami d(tfs
performed
lid one, and
|e of stroni;'
nclior at a

uld otber-
1)0 Croatian

) tlie teetli

with pistols and daj/gcrs, a picturosqup, troubh'soino set
td li-ovcrn. Mr. I^arclav has l)C'cn four or five V( ars
almost constantly rosident on the spot, has ac(|uir('d tli»^
Turkish language respectably, and being intrepid and
energetic in character, and fond of a wild active life,
discharges his arduous duties con amorr, rulinu- his
inotlev subi<^cts with a rod of iron. The mines are
situate about four miles from the coaling points, the
coal being brought up on the l)acks of mules. When a
heavy surf is running no coaling can take place, and
diips are often detained for several days on this aecoiint.
Tlie scenery along the coast, and in the vieinitv of
Kusloo, is very beautiful and striking, consisting of hill
and dale, and towering nKumtains wooded to their very
.-unimits ; a most pleasing contrast to the aiid coast
iif Sicily and (rreece. We enjoyed a scamper aci'oss
wjiat in England would have been considered gi'ouiid
impracticable for cavalry, on little Turkish ponies,
which galloped like the \vind, and descended preci) tires
without ever making a false step. They are sImkI with
1 plate liaving a small hole in the centre, and how they
preserve their fo(ttin<' as tliev do is a marvel to Knulish-
men. We irot under weigh from Kosloo on a beautiful
eveuinff, and stood boldlv across the Bkick Sea for our
destination. A heavy peculiar rolling moti(»n was im-
[larted to the steamer by one of the Black Sea er( ss
>well8.

'A)(rj. \'2fh. — We reached the entrance of the
narbour of Balaklava after sunset, too late therefore to
•nter, and accordingly cast anchor among a fleet of

i:j

CANADA ANI» THH CHIMKA

slii|ts ;m(l stcMiiuTs of ;ill kinds nioorcd mitsidp. Tli^'
coast is wild, uiid very lofty and |K'r|K'iuli(;uiar. IcoiiM
ciisilv iinai^iue tlir tcrrilic conscfiiu'nors of a ^julc ot
Nvind to ;i fleet iincliorcd in it. The huts of the saiiatn-
riuin, rec<'iitly estahlished on the hei'^hts, were alnni
visihle, with a few tents of the marine eiieaiiij)iiiciir.
Next inoniiiij^% ^Nlcdiday, Aui^'iist l.'itli, we lande(l to n-
port ourselves and ascertain how the hiud lay. I fouih!
two brother otfieers, whom I knew, at i'alaklava, througli
whose assistance I obtained a pony, and rode with
Cajttain Nicholson to head-(|uarters, to rep(»rt myself ti'
(Jeneral .loues. Our conductor throu_L>h the mazes ot
the C!un[), was an officer of my own hatch, who had
led the storming' party on the iSth .lune. He li;h':
escaped by a miracle. He says every one he turned tn
speak to seemed to l)e shot before he could return an
answer. The whole plain near Halaklava, where tlii'
j^Tcat cavalry charge took place, and the hills in it
vicinity, are occupied by the English cavalry, hoiv
artillery, and field batteries, a most efficient and im-
posiuLj force of 5000 or (iOOO men.

' The vallev of Halaklavaissurround<'d l)vwild rii<'i'«^ii
hills, now in our possession, but last 3'ear occupied in
force by the Cossacks.

' I'alaklava, oriL>'iiiallv a prettv Tartar village, has beeu
metamorphosed into a collection of dirty, dihipidatei!
tenements. Every tree, I believe (literally, with tl.
exception of one clump) has been cut down. (lardeii-.
vineyards, and other more ephemeral adjuncts t"
beauty, of course, went at once, and now, the peaceful

BALAKLAVA

173

litflc vill:i:^«> is cli:ini;'c(l into n nni<y, Imt. SiTniiiMln.;',
ilirty, irrc^uliir place ( iiitcrcsfiiiL;', Imt (iisaj^n'reaUIc ), in
tact, a prrffct clians (it'iiicii of (litVcrcnt nations, clotiict!
in different L,'!irl»s, and jaliltcrint,' ditVcrrnt lan'4nau'<'s.

'Tlicre is, iiotwitlistandint;, imtre order ami cleanli-
ness than I expected to tind. Almost every rc'^Hnient
lias its slore (one of the wooden hnts) here: and the
Conunissariat have erected several larL^c iron hniIdin!J'.>

itl

1 circnlar roots.

Til

littl

liari

»onr IS ii

terall'

crammed with s}n"ps lyini,' side hy side with their stern

toward

the sh

lore, and aihniralilv arranufed

The neiL;h-

honrlMiod of Halaklava, hefure our landini;-. was excecd-
inirly pietures((ne and pretty. On leaving tlie villaLTc
and proceedintf towards Sehashopol, \\e encountered )-ieh
vineyards empurplinjjf the ij^romid with Muscatel ^^rape-.
Sweet, secluded little tannhous( ■^ peepii ^' fhroui,di cool
foliage, and nestling aniong>t orcliards and flower.-.
The valley, through which our light cavalry eliarucd
with such despairing bravery, was tlien covered wit!i

vinevards and dotted with tree

ow not a shrr.h i-

to 1

)e seen.

The roots of the vines even 1

iave been

grubbed up for fuel, leaving fields covered with small
holes to mark wliere they have been. The valley ex-
tends through bold rocky hills as far as the Tchernaya.
Near Halaklava, and to the left (jf the road towards
Sebastopol, tbe valley and hills are dotted with tlie
tents of the English cavalry and field batteries, wiHi
long lines of liorses, picketed in rows ])elnnd them.

'About a mile from Balaklava is the village of Ka-
dekoi. With the exception, however, of the churclu

IMAGE EVALUATION
TEST TARGET (MT-3)

u
^

1.0

I.I

1125

Hi 1^

- 1^ IIIIIM

.. .,. IIIIM

1.8

1.25 1 1.4 ||.6

„ 6"

►

//,

Photographic

Scientes
Corporation

23 WEST MAIN STREET

WEBSTER, NY. 14580

(716) 872-4503

17G

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

and perhaps one or two Russian houses, the whole con-
sists of recent fliniKy-looking nondescript wooden or
iron slieds, where the names of several leading Knglish
firms are posted up, and in which most of the wants of
the officers of the army are supplied at a tolerably fair
rate. I was introduced to General Jones, wliom I
found sitting: in his hut with a r<)U<>-h sketch of the
Eniilish sieu'e works before him. He said we were all
very much wanted, and must get our things sent up to
the front, and report ourselves ready for duty as soon
as possil)le. We continued our ride to the front to see
a little of the work, which the continual booming of
the guns (which never cease for a minute, day or night),
told us was going on.

' The country, as you approach the beleagured city, is
cut up into dreary and precipitous ravines. The ground
l)ecomes rocky or parched, and dusty, and not a bladi'
of grass, not a shrub or tree is to be seen,

'^ Rut all is rocks at random tliro\\ni,
Black waves, bare cra<>s, .and banks of stone ;

As if wore here denied
The summer sun, the spring's sweet dew,
That clothe with many a varied hue

Tlie bleakest mountain side."

Above all this there is a magnificent blue sky and n .
glorious sun. The climate of the Crimea, as far as I
have seen of it, is delicious in the autumn, and I shtaikl
imagine, exceedingly healthy. About Sebastopol the
ground is rocky and difficult. Elsewhere, I should
fancy very rich and fertile. We saw fresh encanip-

II i I

FIRST VIEW OF SEBASTOPOL

177

liole con-
oodeii or
or Enulish
3 wants of
jnibly fiiir
, whom I
ch of the
e were all
;ent up to
ity as sooa
rout to see
oomiug" of
J or uightj,

ired city, is
[The gruund
lot a blade

one

sky and n-
as far as I
ud I shoukl
astopol the
?, I should
di eucauip-

nients in valleys (»r on hills to the left and right of us
as we proceeded onwards towards the fruiit. An hour,
or less, brought us to the head-quarters of the British
Army, and in view of that cidehratt.'d mansion, depicted
on every plan, and conspieuously designed in every
model of the sie^e, called '" J^tn'd Kaglan's House."' A
plain, one-storied little cottage holds the English Com-
mander-in-Chief, his staff, and his fortunes.

'We continued our ride to Cathcart's Hill, whence we
looked, for the first time, on the famous city, the cause
of so much bloodshed, and misery — the scene of so
much heroism, and endurance. It presented a very
singular appearance. The Mahikhoff, and ]\famelon,
and the Kedan, looked like mere mounds of earth frtjm
the point we occupied, distant about 4()()() yards, and
it was impossible to do more than form a vague notion
of the defences and appearance of the town, and of our
own, and the French works. Of their magnitude^ how-
ever, we were able to form an idea from the wide circuit
of the flashes, extending for several miles on either side
of us. We could hear the whistling of the shot and
shell, and occasionally a 32-pound shot flew |)ast us,
and buried itself in the earth within a few vards of
where we were standing. The Allied Armv, from in-
formation obtained through spies and deserters, had
been expecting an attack and under arms for three
uighis previous to our arrival. It w\as rumoured that
the Russian army, under Liprandi, had been reinforced
by Ijetween 80,000 and 100,000 men. With my tele-
scope I could clearly see dense columns of Russian

V ■

178

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

)

i ^

i, '' ;,

-■1

■ ''-

troops drawn up on the hills on the north side of the
har})oiir.

* It is impossible to convey to a person at a distance,
a correct notion of the appearance of our camp. In
fact, one is, at first, completely bewildered at its
immense extent. From the top of every hill, and
through every ravine, you see nothing but long regular
rows of white tents with bare spaces around them. The
roads are perpetually traversed in various directions by
long files of cavalry in undress uniform, taking their
horses to water, — by lines of mules laden with wood
or stores, — by commissariat, ammunition, and forage
waggons, — by soldiers of the various armies, French,
Sardinian, and English, — by Croatians, Greeks, Alba-
nians, and all descriptions of ruffianly, bronzed, pic-
turesque looking fellows, in various showy dresses of
faded splendour. The Turks, Sardinians, the English
cavalry, and field-batteries, and a division or more of
the French army, occupy the valley of the Tchernaya,
and cover our position from Balaclava to the right of
the siege lines beyond Inkerman.

' The engineers' camp is situated close to Cathcart's
Hill, and near a road which leads to the Woronzoff's
ravine. It consists of several rows of huts, in which
repose our men vis-a-vis to several rows of tents
dedicated to the officers. Nearly the whole English
army wear white covers over their caps and helmets,
and are easily distinguishable by this means from the
French, who go through the greatest heat without any
such precaution.

! . I

FIRST NIGHT IN CAMP

179

' I met in the camp a number of men I know very
well. I (lined with De ]\Ioleyns, E.E., Capt. Wolsely,
90th Kegiment, Major Camp])ell, 49tli, Assistant-En-
gineer and Capt. Browne, E.E., director of the right
attack. We had soup, some stew, plenty of hitter ale,
and brandy and water — in fact a very fair dinner. The
booming of the guns of the attack and defence was our
music ; while every now and then, a whistling sound,
followed almost immediately T)y a heavy plump, told us
that we were within range of the enemy's guns.

* ]My first night in camp was passed, I acknowledge,
in a state of great apprehension. The shot kept pitch-
ing close to our tents, and around us all night. I had
been told of an artilleryman having been killed in his
bed by one, a short time before, fifty yards beyond us ;
and as I lay awake in the dark, sheltered merely by the
frail canvas of my tent, and heard the roar of shot after
shot, and the explosion of shells, which seemed to burst
only a few yards from us, my sensations were similar, I
should imagine, to those of the criminal whose head is
placed under the guillotine, and who is waiting for the
fatal axe to drop. Notwithstanding, however, I man-
aged to compose myself to sleep for a few hours.

' The Russians managed to throw shot into our camp
(at least, so we conjectured) by burying the breech of
one of their guns in the earth, and firing at an angle of
45°. I was told that they had discontinued the prac-
tice for several months. Our camp is one of the most
advanced in the army. The Rifles and 89th Regiment
are close to us, and share the delights of our nocturnal

N 2

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180

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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(listui'l)anco.s. Tliis long range practice lias only been
going on for a few days. I must say I dislike it more
tiian anything else; but I hope, with God's help, to be
able to sleep as serenely in danger as in safety.

' The next day was passed in arranging my things.
I found that most of the officers of my corps under
canvas out here, had holes dug out for their tents.
This gives more height, and enal)les a man to stand up in
his tent without knocking his liejid aii^ainst the canvas.
I considered myself fortunate in being able to purchase
a hole in the earth, about ten feet in diameter, and two
feet six inches deep, for ten shillings. Over this my
tent was pitched ; my matting from Constantinople
covered the irregularity of the floor, while a barrel tilled
with earth supported the pide. I had several shelves
put up, inserted partially into the earth ; horse rugs,
matting, and India-rubber sheets placed over the bare
earthen sides of the tent ; and soon found myself en-
sconced in a very habitable little snuggery ; in fine
weather almost as good as a, room in a house. Of
course many luxuries, or what perhaps in civilised
countries would be called necessaries, had to be dis-
pensed with : no sheets for my bed, flannel instead of
linen shirts, no chairs, and in the feeding line, no
butter or milk, and ration bread and beef as a staple
article of consumption, varied by the purchase of sheep,
&c., all procured from Kadikoi or Balaclava, a distance
of five or six miles.

' I naturally looked forward rather anxiously to my
first night's duty in the trenches ; I was to go as a super-

A BOMBARPMENT

181

iiiimerary to lenrn tlie ins and outs, and rjot a irenoral
confused idea of our attackiiiL,^ lines, and tlie defences
of the enemy, Anderson, K.E., a subaltern, rather junior
to myself, was to be my conductor. I was surprised to
find the whole of our attack a])pear so clear, especially
the approaches on the liedan, carried along the crest of
a hill.

* The Redan itself is but a short distance off, and we
seemed to be creeping close up to it. The noise of the
cjuns and mortars, and the roaring and whistlinir of the
messengers of death, as they winged their way througli
the air, was bewildering enough. A bondjardment was
i^oing on durinix mv first niu'lit in the trenches, and the
casualties were rather numerous. Every projectile ap-
peared to have a sound pecidiar to itself, and oars
different to the enemy's. Our thirteen-inch shells were
really pretty objects at night, ascending majestically,
with a rolling motion, accompanied by a singing sound,
to their highest point, and descending witli the same
grace and precision into the enemy's works. Their fall
was followed immediately by a bright flash, caused by
the explosion of the shell on striking the earth. Our
shells fired from guns, and our round shot, made a most
terrific rushing noise. Grape flew past with a rushing
whistle ; minie bidlets whizzed by with a gentle sing-
ing sound, like a loud musquito buzz ; the fi-agments of
shell, with an irregular half whistling, half roaring
noise, very disagreeable in character. A shell bursts
with a loud crash. Our fuzes are nuich better than
the Russians'. The enemy's shells continually burst in

182

CANADA AND THE CimiEA

the air, ])efore striking the ground, tlieir fragments
descending vertically and with great force.

*The nigh^ duty in the trenches is extremely fixtiguing.
The walking is execrable. It is necessary, in addition
to avoiding stones and other obstacles, to step clear of
men asleep, or half r^sleep, lying all along the trenches.
The working parties ])reak off their work at a])oiit
2 A.M. ; and from 2 to 5 the exhausted Engineer may
consecrate to repose, if he can manage to sle(^p in a
wretched little hut but a few feet square, crowded with
three or four others, with a sand-bag for a l)e(l, and
fleas and mice for companions. Notwithstanding all
these drawbacks, it must be remembered that this hut
was a place of safety, to which ncj missile (except perhaps,
by an extraordinary chance, a splinter of a shell) could
penetrate.

* The trenches of the Eno-lish right attack are about
five miles in extent, full of zigzags, batteries, and
parallels ; they are surrounded by other trenches and
batteries which, from the broken and curious character
of the ground, it is at first difficult to determine as
friendly or hostile.

' Directions were given by my companion to the various
working parties, superintended by sappers, as to the
duties they were to perform during the night. Most
of them were working within rifle range of the Redan,
and were consequently exposed to great danger, should
the enemy open a heavy fire. (On one occasion we lost
five or six men in planting three or four gabions as a
continuation of the parallel or approach.) When

AN ANTICIPATED ATTACK

183

aguients

itiguing.
additioii
clear of
reiiclie.s.
it about
eer may
M^p in ii
ded with
)ed, and
ding all
this hut
perhaps,
ill) could

u'e about
cies, and
ches and
character
rmine as

lC various
IS to the
t. Most
e Redan,
;r, should
in we lost
lions as a
When

)

arrived in the vicinity of the Kedan, it was especially
necessary to keep as much as possible under cover, as
the Redan lowered upon us at a distance of 200 yards.
The Quarries are more extensive and important than I
supposed when in England. Their possession, with that
of the adjoining Mamelon by the French, I consider of
immense importance. It is now almost impossible for
the Russians to make effective sorties, as they used to
do, on our line ; and the possession of the ^Nlamelon
by the French protects most effectively our advanced
trenches from falling into the hands of the enemy, as
they are commanded by it. I remained nearly all night
in the Quarries.

' A sortie was expected at head-quarters, and a tele-
cjram sent down to the General commanding in the
trenches to be prepared for it. Tlie guard of the
advanced trenches consisted of the Guards and High-
land Brigade, so that the Russians would have met with
a warm reception had they made the attempt. Large
masses of troops had been, during several days, observed
marching from Sebastopol into the Redan; and as a
very large army is in the neighbourhood, aiid the siege
is approaching a critical period, it wi; 1 1> ought not un-
likely that a desperate attack might be made to impede
its progress. The left face of the Redan had been
much smashed and battered by our fire of the two pre-
ceding days, and orders were given to preserve a fire of
musketry on it the whole night, to prevent the enemy
from repairing damages.

* Suddenly the Russians opened upon us with the

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184

CANADA AND THE fRIMKA

utmost violence; evorv one in cninp lliou^'ht from the
cxtrciiit' licavincss luid rapidity of the fire that a sitrtie
was ,L;oiii:; on. Croiifiu'd under tlic parapets, our mm
remained witli tlioir arms in tlieir iiaiids, [n'epared for
any event. Tlie L;rape Avliistlcd past us and over our
heads like liail. We eouhl sec tlie shells win^'in^ their
destructive course ahove us, wiiilst every now and then
one of them would phimp down in our vicinity.

' When this '• tire of hell " had a little slackened, my
confrere and myself started to visit the workinLi; parties,
and prevent their al)an(h>nin;4' their work. We were
exposed to a jjfreat deal of dani^er in doinjjj this; hnt it
is a uKJst necessary duty, as our fellows, though as brave
as lions in the held, certainly have a dread of working
imder fire. The Sappers are noble fellows, and in-
valuable men in a sie^-e. One private has often a party
of 50 or loo line soldiers to direct. The other ni<dit
two of them distinguished themselves }»v carrvinjj out
the body of a poor fellow killed by a shell, in our ad-
vanced approach : his own comrades (probably young
soldiers) were afraid to fetch the body. I mentioned
tlie sappers' names in my report, and General Simpson
directed 3/. to be given to one, and 2l. to the other.
The men were much gratified. I have written for books
for the men in my company, and those in the hospital,
to read, as well as a few for my OAvn perusal.

* The life in camp abounds in contrasts. When off
duty, I take pleasant rides through scenery picturesque
and full of interest. The country beyond the valley of
Balaclava, towards Baidar, is richly wooded, romantic,

BATTLE OF THE TCIIERNAYA

185

our 11 11 '11

and bcniitifu]. The Worouzoff road is adiniralily iniido,
and carried alonuf tlu' side of |)reci])ict'S, and on tiif in.st
of Nvoodi'd ravines ;ind hollows.

*()n tli(! iiiorninLT of Tlmrsdav tiie lOtli, at idtoiit
lialf-pnst 3 A.M., the htn^i^-expeeted attack of the l\us-
sians on tiie French and Sardinians near tlie Tcheniaya
took place. A brotlier officer of mine (tiie Hon. ('a)it.
Keano), stationed at Tialaclavn, liad hi.s attentit»n at-
tracted, about one or two o'clock in the mornin,L(, l>y the
disphi}'^ of a nuinl)er of lights from various parts of tlie
English camp. Knowing how many spies we have
amongst us, he ri<jhtlv coniecturod that these were siu-
nals to the Knssian armv, to intimate that all was
right, and that they might advance. Acting promptly
on this idea, he wrote a despatch to General Jones, and
mounting a horse, rode himself direct to the (piarters
of General Scarlett, wdiom he requested to send a
mounted orderly, to warn General De la Marmora of tlie
probability of an attack. This information was given
an hour or so before the order arrived from head-([uar-
ters for the troops immediately to get under arms, and
advance to the front. The Kussians advanced on the
Tchernaya, and the heights held by the French and
Sardinians, with the utmost resolution. They were
supported by the fire of several l)Jitteries on the heights,
and they brought forward a powerful field-battery on to
a plateau, to cover their attack. Their main effort was
directed against a French ii^te du pout, guarded by only
sixty men. These they drove from their works, and
cro'-siug the river (a mere brook) witli little rude port-

186

CANADA AND THE CIlIMEA

iildo ))ri(l<:jr's, stormed tlie hcij^Mit.s with the r^roatcst
m'alliiiitry, and did not ul)}ind(»n the utteinpt until tiie
ifiound was covered with their shiiu.

* After th(; l)iitth', I visited tiie Tcliernaya and tlie
Chasseurs d'Afriiiue — very fine-h)(»kin^' feUows in(h'ed,
mounted on small Arab horses, with lonjj^ manes and tails.
A l)roiized Zouave, I was told, refused ijl. for a small pocket-
book, taken from the body of a Russian officer. It con-
tiuned locks of hair, and the portraits of two or three very
pretty girls. He said he had shot tlu^ Russian himself,
and intended keeping it as a souvenir of the battle.
The French were very kind after the Tchernaya to tlie
Kussian wounded, and they covered the faces of all their
own dead they had been una])le to inter on the day of
the battle. I saw hundreds of Kussian slain, lying in
every attitude of agony over the ground, mangled with
round shot, or pierced by bulletr. : some of them, poor
fellows, near the crests of the heights which they had so
gallantly tried to storm. Their boots were all stripped
from them, as well as every article of any value. These
poor serfs were clothed in the rudest fashion ; they had
no socks, but merely a bit of canvas wrapped round the
foot, to protect it from the pressure of the boot. Their
grey coats were worn and dingy ; the bread they car-
ried resembled earth ; it was strewn about in various
parts of the field. They all carried three or four days'
provisions.

* The Russians apparently had endeavoured to turn
the Sardinian and French positions, and isolate the
Turks and Sardinians from the rest of the army. The

FIUNT NIGHT IN THE TIlKNCHES

187

Sai'tliniiins fm^'lit adruiniljlv, l»ut tlic diit f liniiit (tftlio
buttle was \nn'iut l»y thf Fn-ncli. Tlity arc very pnnul,
and with jiistiot', of tlieir victory. Tlu; Uussiaiis, it is
said, lost 40()() killed, wouiidi'd, and prisoners. They
retreated in jj^roat order, their rear covered liy immense
masses of cavalry, at ahout noon. (Jenend IN'lissicr was
on the field at (5 a.m.; hefore that time the l-'n-nch were
commanded ))y General LeClerc. It is said the stren,L,'th
of the Russian army was 7(),()()0, thoiijj^h they did not
hriny: anvthin«' like that niind)er into action. The ad-
vance division was provided with entrenching tools, and
it was clear that the Jvussians intended establishing
themselves permanently on the heights, if they had won
them. I knew nothing of the battle until it was nearly
over, but saw the Russians in retreat, from a hill a few
miles off. The 12th Lancers was, I believe, the only
English regiment engaged. It was sent to the front at
General Pelissier's request.

' On my first night of actual duty I was associated as
junior officer with Captain Cooke, R. E. We had to
commence a new sap from the fifth parallel, on the
salient of the Redan. A number of gabions, bread-bags
full of earth, hand-barrows, and spades, and shovels
were collected. Our working party was a strong one,
and set about their labours skilfully and cautiously:
two gabions were quietly pulled out of the parapet, and
an opening made for men carrying gabions to pass. The
direction of the sap was indicated by a white tape, and
the gabions were placed in a row, with as little noise as
possible, along the line thus marked out. The utmost

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188

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

silence was necessary, as we were Avithin a hundred and
fifty yards of the Kedan, in ran^-e of every descriptir>n of
missile, and, l)esides were close to the Russian sentries.
The fii'ino-, whicli had been maintained with some spirit
during the evening from our trenches on the Eedan,
suddenly almost ceased, and the suspicif^ns of the enemy
appeared to he aroused in ci>use(iuence. They threw out
a fire-ball which alighted within a few yards of our
newly-placed gal)ions, and blazed brightly up. We witli-
drew our working party as rapidly as possible to prevent
their being ol)served, and waited in anxious suspense
watching the burning missile. By what seemed ahuost
a miracle, the light fell in every direction, apparently,
but that of our trench; and the enemy clearly had not
perceived us, as no fire Avas opened for several minutes,
and then only a chance shower of grape, with the view f»f
making sure all was right, directed across the space in
front of the salient. This unhappily killed one of our
working part}^, and I had an opportunity afforded me uf
witnessinsf the coolness and unconcern with which a
casualty was regarded in the trenches. The poor fellow's
body was borne past me as I stood near the entrance of
the trench, and haif-an-hour afterwards, when at tlie
same place, one of the bearers returned to report that the
man was buried, adding that *•* he was surprised to find
he made such a handsome corpse." All this was said with
the enemy's shot and shell flying over us, and scattering
death around. There was only one casualty in the work-
ing party, and 87 gabions were placed and filled, and a
small trench dug behind them.

ABSURD STYLE OF DRESS

189

*I had charge of another working party of 100 men,
employed in improving the otli parallel. The ground
was extremely rocky and unfavoural)le, and it was
necessary, in order to obtain earth, to place a portion of
the party employed outs'tde the trench, unprotected by
any cover whatever. The men worked in their red coats
buttoned up to the throat, and with 60 rounds of
ammunition suspended across their shoulders, as they
had to resume their arms and act as part of the gv^ard of
the trenches on the slisrhtest alarm being given of a
sortie of the enemy. It was not to be supposed that
men thus encumbered would be al)le to <ret throuifh mucli
work.

' The real fact of the case is, that the system pursued
is wholly an erroneous one. It is not to l)e supposed
that men will work well buttoned U}) to the throat, and
weighed dtjwn with straps and pouches: nt.'ither can it
bu thought that inexperienced workmen will achieve
much under auv circumstances. In addition to these
disqualifying causes, a man is physically unable to under-
go much fatigue after a night passed in the trenches
without sleep, and under the enemy's lire (as all morn-
ing working parties have to do ). The proper mode of
proceeding in my opinion would be, to establish two
regular permanent working corps of 1000 or 1*200 men
each, selected from the various regiments in the army ;
to give these men higher pay and a more suitable work-
ing dress, and to camp them as near to the siege-works
as possible. These corps would be sufficient to furnish
all the requisite working parties for each attack ; they

1 1.

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•■'y.ai;3fw>-.'i,.iaifti

190

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

i-i

would perform more work in an hour than ordinary work-
ing parties would in five or six, and do it in a more work-
manlike manner. They should be marched home to
camp immediately their labours were over, and have
plenty of time for rest and sleep, being merely worked
as ordinary navvies or labourers. It seems surprising
that some system of this kind has not been adopted.

^August 25th. — Last night Captain Browne, K.E., the
director of the right attack, was severely wounded by a
minie-rifle ball through the shoulder; the doctor hopes
he may get over it well. We all feel great regret, as he
is an excellent officer, and a very good fellow. As we get
nearer and nearer the Redan, our work becomes more and
more dansferous.

* A great attack, near Baidar, was anticipated last night.
The whole of the Highland Brigade was sent there to
co-operate with the French, and extra troops marched
into the trenches to guard against a sortie, which was
likewise expected. The unfortunate Light Division
(which has suffered so heavily throughout) were detained
48 hours in the trenches. Our artillery and cavalry
were under arms and in readiness to move at a moment's
notice. It is now past seven in the morning, and we
have heard nothing of the attack in camp, though the
siege-firing has been heavy all night.

' August Slst. — My nights in the trenches are generally
rather hot ones, i. e. there are a great many casualties
— one night especially so, when one regiment alone
(90th) lost 36 men, killed and wounded. I had the
superintendence of a number of working parties, amount-

:m.ib\\

HARASSING DUTY IN THE TRENCHES

191

ing to about 400 men, and was walking about visiting
and directing them. I came to a hole where a shell had
evidently burst. A corporal of some line regiment was
standing by, with a bayonet and part of a belt in his
hand. I inquired what had happened, and was told that
the shell, which had fallen close to where I was standing,
had blown some poor soldier literally to atoms. A foot,
a few yards in the rear of the trench, was all they had
been able to discover of the dead man. I hurried past
the scene of this shocking accident to encounter another
of a similar character, a Mttle farther on.

* I can imagine no duty more trying and harassing
than that performed every day and night by our army
in the trenches. If a man gets a medal for going through
a battle which lasts only a few hours, without running
away, what do they deserve who, night after night, and
day after day, are exposed to be killed or wounded, lying
in a ditch, and have to perform their duties without the
stimulus and excitement of action? I saw one poor
fellow after another brought up to the doctor's, but many
of them frightfully wounded by splinters of shells. Such
perpetual exposure to death, in cold blood, tends, every
day, to demoralize the army, and makes men fear the
shot of the enemy.

' My night's duty in the trenches, on one of the last
occasions 1 was down, was diversified by a little incident
rather exciting in character. We were engaged about
the time in making a sap from our 5th parallel along the
slope of a hill, with the view of establishing a rifle-pit at
the end of it, to silence the fire of several guns on the

K^:

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192

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

proper left face of the lie Jan, which were unpleasantly
annoying our gallant allies. The Russians seemed to
have divined our intention, or at all events to regard our
nearer approach with great uneasiness ; for the moment
they discovered the existence of our sap, they directed a
heavy fire of shells, grape, and round shot at it, killing
and wounding, night after night, the men of our work-
ing parties, and knocking our gabions into toothpicks.
They also made frequent sorties for the purpose of pull-
ing down our parapet, and impeding our operations.
The sap was not far from the MalakhofF, commanded by
that work in some measure. The Russians (who are
admirable at outpost and picket duty) almost always
manage every night to get possession of the ground in
front of our works, and of a small rifle-pit, in a ravine,
whence they were able to annoy our men. They were
partly favoured in their approaches by the colour of the
grey great-coats ; they were undistinguishable from earth
at a short distance.

* It was proposed to establish a rifle-pit on the side of
the ravine opposite theirs, with the view of silencing their
fire. Elphinstone was on duty with me (though my
junior officer) on the night the attempt was directed to
be made ; he had been in the Crimea almost from the
commencement of the siege, and knew the ground
perfectly. We both repaired, shortly after nine o'clock,
to the most favourable point of our line for starting an
expedition across '' the open." Unluckily, though this
was by no means an exception to the general rule, our
sentries had been jDosted late, and the Ruskies were in

ileasantly
iemed to
eijard our
I moment
iirected a
it, killing
Diir work-
oothpicks.
se of pull-
)perations.
manded by
s(who are
ost always
grovmd in
1 a ravine,
They were
)lour of the
from earth

the side of
nicing their
though my
directed to
from the
;he ground
ine o'clock,

starting an
though this

d rule, our
Lies were in

A DANGEROUS ADVENTURE

193

possession of the ground in front of us. Nevertheless we
determined on trying the experiment. Our party con-
sisted of three soldiers with muskets, and a small working
party of a sapper and ten, or twelve men. Elphinstone
and myself, with our three armed men, crept on in front,
followed at a short distance by our working party
carrying tools and (gabions.

'We advanced as cautiously as we could: the shot and
shell directed from our batteries at the enemy, and by
theirs at us, whizzing over our heads. We spoke in
whispers and endeavoured to tread as lightly as possible ;
I groped about for a flower to bear off and send to my
mother as a trophy, but my liand encountered nothing
but thistles and grass. At length, after walking about
thirty or forty yards, Elphinstone stopped, and told us
he thought we had reached the right place. He had
no sooner said this, and our small working party halted
to wait for our workmen, when a low whistle was heard
from the Russian sentries, lying concealed aroimd, and
we perceived that we were discovered. Our men in the
trenches had been told we were out, and directed on no
account to fire. Our discovery was immediately followed
by a volley of musketry directed at us from all around,
and our men, in spite of the warning given them, seeing
the blaze of the Russian muskets, opened an indiscrim-
inate cross fire on every one (ourselves included). We
took to our heek and made for our own trenches as fast
as our legs would carry us, and happily reached them in
safety. Three of our working party, however, had been
wounded, and they had been forced to abandon their

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194

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

tools and gabions. This adventure led me to suggest
that buglers should ])e sent into the advanced trenches
to sound " fire," " cease firing," &c., in order that a
command might be instantaneously conveyed along the
trenches when necessary.

* On the night of my rifle pit adventure, the advanced
sap was guarded by a vStrong party of the 55th Regiment,
whilst the Guards lined the adjoining parallel. The
Russians were distinctly heard advancing, and their yell
was quite audible. They soon gave more convincing proof
of their approach, by firing a volley at the trench. I
thought I perceived signs of wavering among our fellows,
but they happily stood firm, and returned the enemy's fire
with vigour. The officer commanding the detachment
of the 55th said he wanted reinforcements, and I accord-
ingly ran to the nearest parallel, and got an officer of
the Guards to bring up twenty of his men. The enemy,
however, seeing the English soldiers stand firm, withdrew,
abandoning his attempt.

* I continue my rides in intervals of duty. The other
day I rode to a French battery near the head of the
harbour, whence I had an admirable view of the town,
harbours and shipping. The houses on the north shore
are pretty-looking white villas, quite uninjured. We are
firing now more frequently on the town, and some of
its finest buildings have been greatly damaged. The
Russians are making a bridge across the harbour, which
looks as if they were ready to make a run for it if neces-
sary. The Malakhoff is immensely strong, and fortified
towards the town as well as towards us. Everythiug
depends on the approaching assaults. If they fail, some

to sufffjest

order that a

THE MONASTERY OF ST. GEORGE

193

wholly different movements may be made. Everybody
is sick of the siege, with its perpetual hammering, and
the gradual daily consumption of life in the hot, dusty
trenches, apparently to all the world in general without
any result.

* I have visited lately, amongst other places, the
Monastery of St. George. It is very pictures(|uely
situated. A few Eussian monks are still permitted to
live there, and there the French (gay everywhere) delight
to have their little picnic, occasionally enlivened by the
presence of aome piquaute brunette^ the wife of an officer
of the navy or army. On the occasion of my visit, a
party were sitting on the ground around the relics of a
feast, singing and drinking champagne. It was certainly
a contrast to " life in the trenches."

*The Monastery of St. George is almost the only build-
ing within range of the camp which has been respected.
It consists merely of a few plain buildings, and a couple
of little chapels. It has, however, a noble well, and a
fountain of the coldest and most delicious spring water.
The ground immediately in front is arranged in small
terraces, shaded by trees, overlooking the perpendicular
cliffs and the blue sea. There is a sanatorium in its
neighbourhood for sick officers and soldiers. One of the
attractions of the place is a pretty little Greek girl with
classical profile, and gentle winning demeanour; she is
quite a child, only twelve years old. She will have plenty
of youthful memories to cherish up. The beauty of the
weather almost reconciles one to the monotony of camp
Hfe. There has been scarcely a drop of ruin since I came,

o 2

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196

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

and the sky and temperature resemble those of Canada
in September. I should think, to people living in
properly drained cities and iniexposed to hardships, the
Crimea must be a most healthy residence.

* A grand combined attack on our siege works and
the whole position is daily, and even hourly, expected.
The whole of the troops on the line of the Tchernaya
have been, I hear, under arms every morning at three
o'clock for the last fortnight ; and the Highland Brigade,
consisting of the 42nd, 72nd, 79th, and 93rd Regiments,
under 8ir Colin Campbell, have been marched to the
left of the Sardinian army as a support.

* Since the battle of the Tchernaya, the French have
fortified their position very strongly, and the hills are
covered with musketry ambuscades, entrenchments, and
masked batteries. No one is allowed to cross the river,
and Zouave sentries, in their picturesque uniforms, line
the banks at intervals of a few yards. The position I
consider now almost impregnable at this point. The
choicest troops of the French army defend the line of
the river, and the Chasseurs d'Afrique, their crack
cavalry, are in great strength in the neighbouring valle3%
The variety of uniforms, and the picturesque costume
of the African corps of the French army — the Zouaves
Indigenes, Egyptians principally, the finest infantry
they have — is very striking, and one continually en-
counters groups forming perfect little pictures. The
French are quite at home in the field. One of their
regiments is encamped on the top of a bleak hill with
no shelter except tentes cVabH, blankets stuck on bayo-

ANOTHER GENERAL BOMBARDMENT

197

nets. Here and there they have formed arbours of
boughs of trees, and the other day I saw a pretty minia-
ture little garden.

* General Pelissier's head-fjuarters are surrounded by
a chevaux-de-frise, and the front of his tent gravelled,
and kept in the neatest order ; no officer, even of the
highest rank, being allowed to ride to the door, l^ut
obliged to dismount before approaching it. The youngest
ensign of our army may ride or walk to General Simp-
son's unmolested.

' Sept. 5th. — Thank God, I still keep quite well,
though disease and death are rife around me. Exposed
constantly to danger, I can rely only upon God, and
place my life in His liands. Last Sunday I received
the Sacrament with seven or eight of my brother-officers,
— the ceremony, within sound, and even range, of the
enemy's guns, was to me deeply impressive. Nothing
makes a man feel the extreme uncertainty of life, and
his entire dependence on the will of God, so much as
war. I was on duty in the trenches on Sunday night,
and I think the ceremony I had gone through strength-
ened, and supported me a great deal. I had several most
providential escapes.

* There are stronjj rumours current of the evacuation
of Sebastopol after a grand despairing effort of the enemy.
This morning, shortly after daybreak, another general
bombardment from the English and French batteries
on the whole Eussian line of defence commenced, and
was conducted with such violence that in half an hour
the Russians withdrew their guns from the embrasures,

( I

198

CANADA AND THE CKIMEA

;, ■jjs

I >rr 1

and ceased to reply to it, — it is to be continued for
thirty-six hours. Its object, I understand, is to enable
the French to push forward on the 3Ialakhoff: they
are so close that a final assault cannot long be delayed.
The Russian defence has been admirable ; their batteries
are beautifully constructed, and quite models of en-
gineering. One cannot help both admiring and pity-
ing them.

^Sept. Qfh. — Yesterday morning, an officer of the 3 1st
(Captain Anderson), who had been acting for some time
as Assistant Engineer, was killed by a round shot in the
trenches. He was a very fine young fellow, and one of
the handsomest men in the army. All of us Vv'ho were
able (I believe) attended his funeral in the afternoon.
I had only known him a few days, but liked what I saw
of him, and his death has been a blow to us all. The
band of the regiment played his funeral march to the
grave. The coffin was a plain deal one, and on it were
placed a Union Jack, and the cap and sword of the de-
ceased. The procession moved from our camp at about
six o'clock. The evening was lovely. The burial-place
(Cathcart's Hill) was in full view of Sebastopol and the
siege works, and a bombardment was going on from
various parts of our line as we lowered the corpse into
its last resting-place. Groups of soldiers off duty stood
watching the sad procession as it moved slowly past
them ; some civilians, who happened to be present, un-
covered ; and cavalry soldiers dismounted and stood by
the side of their horses. Nothing could well have been
more impressive. I walked side by side with the clergy-

tinned for
to enable
tioff: they
>e delayed,
ir batteries
lels of en-
and pity-

of the 31st

some time

shot in the

and one of

IS v;ho were

e afternoon.

what I saw

IS all. The

larch to the

i on it were

of the de-

mp at about

Durial-place

)pol and the

ng on from

corpse into
f duty stood

slowly past
present, un-
md stood by
11 have been
h the clergy-

A RUSSIAN SHIP ON FIRE

man, and thought of who might he tlio next victim.
One must steel one's feelings and summon all one's forti-
tude to bear tlie spectacle of the miseries of war.

' Last night one of the enemy's large line-of-battle-
ships, moored in tlie harbour, caught fire and illuminated
the whole horizon. There wore also, I hear, two other
smaller firer. The sight of the burning ship was very
fine. It could be seen distinctly from a hill near our
camp. The guns went off as the fire reached them ;
but it seems the Russians had contrived to save the
powder, as no loud explosion was heard. The sight of
this fire was of course very clieering to our men, who
devoutly wish the whole place would burn to the ground.
The bombardment is still going on, and the thunder of
artillery accompanies my pen as I write.

' Orders have been given to form steps in the most
advanced parallels, and also to hasten the completion of a
small battery for three heavy guns near Egerton's rifle-
pit, to silence the fire of one of the flanks on the proper
left face of the Redan, which commanded the space in
front of the salient angle.

^ Sept. 7th. — Thank God, I am alive and well after
another night in the trenches. The bombardment is
still going on. The Russian shells killed and wounded
several of our men in the advanced trenches ; but I
managed to push forward our approaches satisfactorily.
*An officer of the Guards was killed whilst visiting
his sentries at the head of one of them ; I had been
speaking to him shortly before. The duties of the
Engineer officers at night in the trenches are very

ft-

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

arduous. I was walkiiii^ iihout uudrr firo noarly
the whole ni^'ht, haviii;^; woikiui,' parties in various
parts of the trenelies 4.^0 stronj,'. I was several times
o])Hge(l to throw inysclf on tlu? ^'nmnd to avoid splin-
ters of shells. There is a little hut protected from fire
in the (juarries, which, is called the Engineer Oftiee.
It is so small that one cannot stand upriglit in it, and is
full of fleas and mice ; hut it is a welcome retreat from
danger, after a long and fatiguing round through tin-
rocky trenches. I gave it u[) in great measure to th»^
doctor on duty last night, but happened to he present
when several poor fellows were brought in with limbs
torn away by splinters of shells. I was much shocked
at the various sights I was compelled to witness. The
wounded men behaved heroically.

'The Engineer on duty, though perhaps only a young
subaltern, is the next greatest man to the General of
the trenches. Every one consults him; and I was
frequently asked by experienced officers how many men
should be placed at particular points, and how they
should be disposed; and my advice was always imme-
diately acted upon.

' After an arduous ami sleepless night, and a fatiguing
walk from the advanced trenches to a point wliere a
horse can be brought in safety, Engineer officers, on
their return to their tents, between live and six in the
morning, have to write detailed reports describing the
progress of the work during the night, the operations of
the enemy, and the employment of a variety of working

INTENDED F NCH At?S<AULT

301

parties. This moniint; my rcptut covt-rcd more than a
shoet of Inra,*' letter-paiMT, so it can Ik* easily imaj^'ined
tliat it recjiiin's some effort to write t!ies»! reports \v1h*ii
very tired; btit necessity kuowH in) law, ami there is
some Batisfiirtiou in knowing tliat one's effusions are
perused by tlie (.'onimander'iji-i^'hief. My recommen-
dations of various men for distin;i;uishud romhiet have
l)rou<^l»t ]f,'ratuities from (leneral Simpson for the in-
dividuals praised, amounting,' alto;j^ether t(^ 8/.

'It is rumoured that the French assault the Malakhotf
to-morrow. The Kn<dish Li'dit Division are also re-
ported to be under arms, so that it is probable the En-
glish army may take part in the assault. * # *
May God bless all who are dear to me, and have them
in His holy keeping. The above rumour has been
fully confirmed, and this may be my last night on
earth.

' If the French army succeed in their assault ou the
Malakhoff, the English are to attack the Kedan ; in
fact, there is to be a gen(a-al attack along the whole
line. All the officers of Engineers are to be told off to
their several positions to-morrow; several accompany
the assaulting column, some remain with the reserves,
I may know early to-morrow where my place is to be,
but of course everything is uncertain in war. I am
sad, but quite calm; I look upon all this butchery with
horror, but accept it as a stern necessity, and am deter-
mined with God's help to do my duty. If I die, may
God of His infinite mercy prepare me for the great

■ «Kfc<fett- -' rtl^nTiilln-iTiHitiiOTln "i-

«<HaMtr» A"(e*f ■•»>*»0%-!-W

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202

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

changfe. How many hundreds of poor fellows will
breathe their last to-morrow ! I must not think of
home, or I shall unman myself. May God be pleased
to bless and preserve me.

'Sept. 8th. — lam to lead the assault with the scaling
ladders. I march down in about half an hour.

Imi

203

1! J

CHAPTER XII.

THE ASSAULT OF THE REDAN.

TTHE secret of the attack was admira})ly preserved. Xot
-L a whisper was circulated. It took us all by surprise,
as we imagined no furtlier attempt would be made
on the Eedan, after the failure of the assault of the
18th of June. We heard, however, that it was arran^^ed
that both armies should "go in" in earnest, and that the
success of the French in their attack on the Malakhoflf
was to be the signal for our advance on our old enemy
the Redan. Oar several positions were not assigned to
us; but knowing that it would probably fall to my lot,
as Senior Subaltern, to occupy the post of honour and
lead the ladder party, I prepared myself, as well as the
short interval permitted, for the probable fate which
would attend the performance of the desperate duty.
I took farewell of my mother and all my relations,
committing them to the blessing and protection of God.
I endeavoured to pray earnestly, and to compose ray
mind. I felt the only course left open was willing
submission, and fixed resolve that if I were to die, to
fall in endeavouring to do my duty to the uttermost.

h i\'\

'- iHipj^iri^t i^fS ii^'tftifaiH.'i;

■ ' 111

1 Li

■^■■-"'-^*>i,i4itai^'^^«^'*ii^..iaiqfVVW-'>i

h i

204

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

Beyond this, I was determined not to go. Though
every soklier should expose himself without the slightest
hesitation to the greatest danger when necessary, reck-
lessness should never form part of his creed. His duty
to his country should be the primary, and the preserva-
tion of his life the secondary, consideration. No really
good soldier throws his life away without aim or object.
' I had been on duty in the trenches during the night
of the 6th September, and was consequently very tired
on the night before the assault. I slept well and
calmly on the whole, but awoke rather early in the

mornnii):.

' Between five and six o'clock, a.m., the Adjutant came
in and confirmed my conjecture that I was to lead the
ladder party. Soon after Anderson came into my tent,
and informed me he was told off for the working party
to follow when the storming party were well in pos-
session, and form a lodgment across the Redan. I rose
and dressed; I put on my red shell jacket to look as
much like the men as possible, and carried in my
pocket besides a tourniquet, portion of a night-shirt
torn into strips for bandages.

• ' I called at my Colonel's (Col. Chapman) to read the
written instructions given me by General Jones. I
found they were as follows: — "The Subaltern of En-
gineers in charge of the ladder party should, as soon
as the troops have got into the Eedan, commence a
communication by a ramp from the ditch to the glacis.
It will be necessary for him to ascertain whether any
parapet will be necessary across the ditch of the two

rnEPARING TO LEAD "THE FORLORN HOPE

205

faces, to guard against any attacks the enemy may be
disposed to make by them. If the scarp and parapet of
the salient of the Redfin do not form an easy ascent and
descent, it must be made so."

* These directions were clear and explicit enough ; but
to carry them out, positively no working party, with tlie
exception of a few sappers with shovels, nad been told
off. I immediately pointed this out, and asked for and
obtained a working party of 100 men, who were in-
structed to follow immediately after the storming party.

* I had an interview with Nicholson (now JNIajor
Nicholson, R.E.), to whom I gave my brother's address,
with a request that he would communicate with him in
the event of my death. He promised to act for me in
everything as he felt I should have wished him to act,
and tried to reassure me as to my chance of escape,
though (as he told me afterwards when 1 came back ) he
had not the slightest expectation of ever seeing me
again safe and sound. These matters settled, I rode
down to the trenches with Anderson, Sedley, and Major
Camp-jell, 46th. They were thickly lined with troops
when A re arrived, and the batteries were firing heavily
on the Redan and Russian works; the enemy replying
with grape and round shot.

' I lound the ladder party, composed of men from the
3rd Buffs and 90th and 97th Regiments, lining the sap
in front of the Redan (called the sixth parallel), the
trench which Cooke, and mvself commenced on mv first
night's duty in the trenches. The party consisted of
320 men, who were told off to forty scaling ladders,

)! II

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^P^iUv^^ '".^-^jtf.jmfeHl^i-A-^ -■■'•■.»-^*ifc.'.l,ji

!^T,

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206

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

each twenty-four feet long. My instructions were, to
advance with my sappers, armed with crowbars and axes
for cutting through the abatis, and with the bidder
party immediately after the skirmishers had been
thrown out. The party was under the command of
Major Welsford, 97th Eegiment, with whom I conferred
for several minutes, and to whom I explained the point
where tlie ladders were to be placed, in order to screen
them as much as possiljle from the fire of the enemy.
I tlien told my party of sappers what they w^ere to do,
and assembled the non-commissioned officers to point
out the measures to be taken under their directions, in
the event of my being either killed or wounded. These
arrangements being made, I awaited the signal to
advance, silently calling upon God to aid and assist me
in doing my duty, and, if it were His will, to preserve
my life. Suddenly there was a shout that the French
were attacking the iNIalakhoff. I looked over the
parapet, and saw them rushing up the salient. They
were apparently unresisted. The French flag in a
minute was seen waving on the ramparts. All this
happened so instantaneously, that it took us all by sur-
prise.

' We had anticipated a hard struggle, and we were
ordered not to advance till a decided success had been
achieved ; but, as it were, in a second the dreaded
Malakhoff had fallen into the hands of the French.
Our men could be no longer restrained ; before there
was time to get the ladders to the front, and before
the sappers could advance to cut away the abatis, they

THE ASSAULT OF THE EEDAX

207

MLS were, to

rushed in a straggling line over the parapets, and
dashed onwards to the salient. I hurried up my
sappers as fast as I could, shouting to them till I was
nearly hoarse, and ran forward with tliem and the
ladder party, with a drawn sword in my hand (my
scabbard and belt I left behind). In the hurry and
confusion, many ladders were left l^ehind. There was,
however, little excuse for this, as the men had had their
places distinctly assigned to them, and should not liave
left the trench without their ladders. It was of course
impossible to perceive that anything of the kind had
occurred, and still more impossible to have rectified it
had it been known. The only word was — " Forward ; "
the only course to pursue — to advance as rapidly as
possible. Nearly 200 yards of rough broken ground,
and an abatis had to be crossed under the enemv's fire.
The men advanced with the greatest spirit. I could
see bodies dead and wounded lying along and strewing
the ground on each side of me, as I pressed forward,
shouting continually to the men to advance, and not to
pause for an instant. When I came to the abatis, I
found five men nearly exhausted carrying a ladder and
trying to get it over the opposing branches ; the remain-
ing three men composing the l)arty of eight had pro-
bably been killed or wounded in the advance. I lent
them my aid and urged them on. The edge of the
ditch was soon reached, and I was relieved to find the
ditch not nearly so formidable as it had been repre-
sented, and as I had good reason, from the solidity and
extent of the Russian defences, to suppose it was likely

! I.

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»ss^jr-w'iO»«*utaiJ>i«cc.-t.*,»«j;;

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208

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

to prove. I was prepared for a broad deep ditch,
flanked by caponieres, and for military pits, chevaux-
de-frise, palisades, and all kinds of obstacles. The
dreaded ditch of the Redan, however, proved nothing
but a simple trench, perhaps fourteen or fifteen feet
deep at the counterscarp, and twenty or rather more at
the escarp. I kept my ladders rather to the right of
the salient angle, having been warned that the flanking
fire would probably be severe up the proper left face.
Half-a-dozen or so were lowered and reversed in a
minute, and the men poured up them with eager haste.
I set to work with every sapper I could get hold of, or
to whom amid the din I could make myself audible, to
tear down the rubble stone-work with which the salient
of the escarp was reveted, and form a ramp practicable
for ascent without ladders.

'The long continuance of dry weather which pre-
ceded the assault must be regarded as a very favourable
circumstance. The gabions staked to the ground with
wooden spikes (with which the counterscarp was
riveted) were torn down, and used in forming, with
rocks, stones, and debris, a small parapet across the ditch
of the proper left face, and a similar counter-caponiere
thrown up also on the other side. I had to work, how-
ever, with my own hands; it was difficult to get any
one to do anything ; the men, as they straggled up to
the assault in support of the advance, seemed stunned
and paralyzed — there was little of that dash and en-
thusiasm which might have been locked for from
British soldiers in an assault; i": fjut it required all

\¥

WHERE ARE THE RESERVES?

309

eep ditch,
!, chevaux-
cles. The
red nothing
fifteen feet
ler more at
he right of
he flanking
er left face,
^ersed in a
eaccer haste.
, hold of, or
f audible, to
a the salient
p practicable

■y

which pre-
favourable
OTound with
erscarp was
rming, with
OSS the ditch
er-caponiere
work, how-
to get any
iggled up to
ned stunned
ash and en-
.1 for from
irequired all

the efforts and example of their officers to got the men
on, and tljese were rendered almost ineffective from the
manner in wliich the various regiments soon irot con-
fused and jumljled together. The men, after firing
from behind the traverses, near the salient, for lialf-an-
hour at the enemy, — also firing behind his parados
and traverses, — began to waver. I nished up the
salient with the view of cheering them on, and the
offictrs exerted themselves to sustain them ; the men
gave a cheer and went at it afresli. Tlie supports or
reserves, ordered to follow, straggled up in inefficient
disorder, but w^ere unable to press into the work, as the
men in advance, occupying the salient, refused to go
on, notwithstanding the devoted efforts of the ofificers
to induce them to do so. Whether it was that they
dreaded some secret trap, or some mine which would
destroy the whole of them at once — whether it was
that the lono: and tedious sie^'e works had lowered their
"?nora/e" — or whether it was owing to the dreadful
manner in which tlieir l)i\ision (the Light, most in-
judiciously selected to lead) had been cut up in previ(ms
actions — it is a melancholy truth, that the majority of
the assaulting cohunn did not display the spirit and
dash of thorough good soldiers, when assaulting the
enemy. They refused, however, to retreat, and seemed
to look round for aid: I trembled when I saw no one
coming, and looked continually, anxiously, round for
the reserves I considered, as a matter of course, would
be advanced immediately it was perceived that the

II ' ■

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210

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

leading columns had failed to carry tlie position, and
were commencing to waver.

* It wan in vain, however, to look ; our Crenerals had
left their reserves about an h')ur's march in the rear, so
that even if our soldiers had charged forwards, as they
should have done, they woidd probably have found
themselves compromised, surrounded by the enemy,
and immolated, before any assistance could liave been
brought to them. I had just given directions to the
fraction of the working party of 100 men told off to me,
which reached the ditch, what tliey were to do, and was
returning towards the salient, when the sad repulse took
place. What brought matters completely to a crisis, I
have never exactly ascertained : I heard directly after I
regained our trenches that three officers of the 41st,
after vainly striving to induce the men to advance,
rushed forward together, and were all three sliot down
like one man by the cross fire of the Russians behind
their parados. This w^as the turning-point, according
to this account, of the men's indecision — they w^avered
and fled. I was near the counterscarp, when I saw the
whole living mass on the salient be<jfin reelini>' and swav-
ing to and fro. In a moment I found mvself knocked
down and lying on my face, with a number of men
scrambling over me — their bavonets running through
my clothes. I expected to have been stunned and
bayoneted, and to have l)een left insensible in the ditch,
or shot by the enemy before I could drag myself out of
it. However, at last I saw an opening, and holding on
by my hands and knees, managed to force my way to it

THE UEPULSE

211

Dsition, ami

enerals had
the rear, so
rds, as they
have fouiul
the enemy,
I have heen
tious to the
id off to me,
do, and was
repulse took
to a crisis, I
rectly after I
of the 41st,
to advance,
■e sliot down
Asians behind
nt, according
they wavered
len I saw the
no- and sway-
self knocked
iber of men
ning through
stunned and
ill the ditch,
myself out of
id holding on
my way to it

tliroufdi the niovino: mass, and recrain mv lef's. I ran
tlien as fast as I could towards our advanced trenches,
the grape whistling past me like liail, and tlie Russians
standing on the top of tlieir parapets, and firing volh'vs
into the crowd of fuiritives.

'In our trenches all was shame, rage, juid fear — the
men were crowded together and disorganized. It was
hopeless to attempt to renew tlie attack with the same
troops. ]\Iy Sappers all went to the (^larries, but I re-
mained for more tlmn half an hour, in the most advanced
trench, with the shattered remains of the assaulting
column. An officer of the 92nd came up to me and
shook me by the liand, saying that he was glad to see
me safe and sound, and that of liis regiment he was the
only officer left, — ]Majoi- Welsford and "olonel Hancock
(whose wife, poor thing! was then in the Crimea) hav-
ing both been killed, and several others wounded.

' Finding there was to be no attempt to renew the
attack, and mentally returning thanks to God for my
wonderful preservation from imminent jjeril, I returned
to join my party at th(; Quarries. ( )n my way I passed
General Sir ^^'illianl Codrington, who was charged with
the direction of the attack, sitting in one of the trenches,
with his aides-de-camp about him. I repeated to him
a few Avords I had heard fall from the lips of an officer
of the 33rd, to the effect, that if it were possible to col-
lect the men of the various regiments together, under
their owti officers, he would be willing to renew the
assault. Sir William said the fire of the grape was too
heavy to admit of the attack being repeated that day. I

P 2

I ; i

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212

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

>J<

r' '
I'' i

was received with very kind and hearty congratulations
l)y one friend or brotlicr officer after antjtiier, whom I
encountered in niv proLrress throuirh tlie trenches —
Anderson especially, who was attached to the same
company as myself, said he had been particularly
anxious ; and when he found I did not return with the
{Sappers, thought it was all over with me. The
Enoiueers' hut, near the Quarries, presented a most
lamentable spectacle when I reached it. Every stretcher
had been put into recjuisition for carrying off the
wounded. Some of the men employed as bearers, it
was said, had not returned — remaining away to avoid
the danger (for dejith and wounds v/ere rife through
every part of the lines this day, and men were actually
killed in the stretchers on which they were being borne
wounded to the rear).

SSeveral poor fellows, more or less grievously wounded,
were lying helpless and in agony in the trench. Inside
the hut was a poor gunner, with his leg badly shattered
by the splinter of a shell. In front, in the centre of the
roadway, lay a rifleman dying, covered with blood about
the head and face, and foaming at the mouth — a most
ghastly spectacle. Near me was a poor fellow shot iu
the small of the back, iu great pain : I managed to raise
him up, Avith some emjity sandbags, to make his posi-
tion easier — this was all I could do. Three or four
more victims lay groaning or faint and silent around ;
while the inexorable roar of cannon and shot continued,
and death remained l)usy at his work. The rags I had
taken down with me proved very useful : I bound up

SHAMEFUL XEGLECf

il3

the •Nvounds of several ])oor fellows wirl tlicni, i tlie
ditch of the Kedan, during thi' assiult, udiniiiisteriu<;'
some V)raiidy to them from my flask ; and actually wa^
thanked by the surgeon in the advanced trendies for a
couple which I gave him from my cap, as 1 went down
(he having told me he was (piite destitute of any
supply!), and that by some shameful negh-ct he had
been on duty during a terrific bondiardment, dressing
tiie wounds, or y)erhaps merely roughly binding tliem
up, as well as the urgency of the case would admit,
for forty-eight hours. I felt very indignant and dis-
gusted at this, after all that has been said and written
on this painfid subject.

* Wliilst waiting in the Quarries with the remains of
my party of sappers (some of my mere handful of
twenty-two having been killed or wounded), a naval
officer came up and asked for Elphiustone, the engineer
officer on duty, as he wished the direction of an em-
brasure in a battery to be altered, in order that one of
the guns might be turned on some shipping. Though
my duty strictly speaking was over, yet I felt I wjus
called upon to supply Elphinstone's place at a time like
this, and therefore repjured with a party of sappers t(j
the battery indicated. I heard that the Eussian fire
had been very heavily directed on this and an adjoining
battery, and that they had succeeded in silencing several
of the guns. I gave the necessary directions for the
alteration of the embrasure, and then repaired to a
point near where Col. Chapman, De Vere, and several

/ :M

CANADA AND THE CIIIMEA

I I

I 7'

I >

km:

otliiTs, were loi>kiu;;- over the parapet, ftrid wjitdiiiiL;
anxidiisly, as well as the dense tlouds of nmoke mid
dust would admit, tin? assault of tlie Frcneli. It was
impossible, however, to (listiii;L;uish any olijeet very
clearly; all was <lin, smoke, and confusion. A kind of
hurricane blew during the day of the assault, and pre-
vented the intended co-operation of the navy. Col.
Chapman told me that my ladders had been admirably
planted, and that as there appeare<l n« -thing for me
then to do, I had better go and report myself to .Sir
William ('odrington, and ask him if he re(|uired my
services any further. If he said not, I was to return to
camp, and write a short report of the assault for General
Jones. I returned to the Quarries, and found on my
way there that 8ir Colin Campbell was left in com-
mand. I accordingly addressed my inquiries to him.
He told me that he shoidd not want me, and asked me
to sit down beside him, and give him some acconnt
of the attack. I did so in a few words. On my way
home, every one that I met who knew I had been with
the ladder party, seemed ast(jnislied, and I am haj)py
to add glad, to see me back. Tired and excited as I
"svas, I had to write a report, which was altered oii
account of the last paragraph, which might have got
me into trouble, and to give me an opportunity of
mentioning the names of the sappers who distinguished
themselves. There were nine I think killed or wounded
out of a small party of twenty-two. The following is
a copy of this report : —

OFFiriAL nKPOKT

21:.

• " IJ. i:. Caiiil), S.'|.t. >«tli, IS.M.

* " In oltcdicnco to your instnit'tioiis, F hnvc
the lioiiour to report for yoiir iiit'oniiatioii tlic j»io-
ftM'diiii^'s of ilie siippcrs mimI hidder jcii'ty to which I
wa> attached at the assault iA' the I{e(laii tliis luoniiun'.
I was ordered to advaiu'c witli the ladder party, iiiuiie-
diately after tiie skirmishers had heeu thrown out.

'"The exeitenieut auioii;^'' the' troops in the trenches,
however, was so ^reat when they ])ereeived that the
French were masters of the .MaJakhoff, that they rushed
unexpectedly over the parapets, hefore the ladder party
had liad time to <'et clear of the advanced treiu'h. I <jot
niy sappers to the front, as soon as possible, with tiieir
crowhiu's and axes, and ran on with tlie advanced
ladders.

'"The enemy opened a lieavy musketry fire upon
us, and occasioned many casualties auKju^' the huhh'r
party ; however, the men pressed rapidly forward.

*"The abatis did not prove a serious obstacle, and
the ladders were soon low^ered into the ditch, and
reversed from the counterscarp to the escarp. The}'
were placed in such a position that the men descendin<;'
and ascending them were scarcely, if at all, exposed to
the flanking fire of the Russians up the ditch «-»f each
face.

' " The ditch of the Redan itself is not more than
15 or 16 feet deep, if so much, and only 8 feet broad,
and tiiere was no difficulty experienced in forming a
ramp for the men to ascend.

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216

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

■^

1 v^

m I

'"The working party told off for me (consisting of
100 men of the 77th Eeginient) were not to arrive till
the whole of the assaulting column had come up. I,
however, employed the small party of sappers under my
charge till their arrival, with a few men of the assault-
ing party, in forming a small caponiere across the ditch
of the proper left face, up wdiich the enemy was pouring
volleys of musketry.

* " Cfabions were torn down from the counterscarp,
and filled as wx*ll as possible with loose stones, and a
partial cover was soon obtained.

' " The fire of the enemy, however, was so hot that,
after half-an-hour, the work had to be suspended. A
small caponiere was also in course of construction
across the ditch of the proper right face, near the
s:ilient, and a fair cover had been obtained there when
the assaidting colrmm retreated. A portion of my
working party had arrived just before the troops with-
drew, and they were engaged on these caponieres, and
on forming an easy ramp into the ditch from the glacis,
when the repulse took place.

' " It is not my duty to offer any opinion on the
general arrangements for the attack. I shall therefore
forbear from stating, vudess called upon to do so,
the causes which in my opinion led to its failure.
' " I have the honour to be. Sir,
' " YoiQ' most obedient hianble servant,
' " George Ranken,

* " Lieut. Koyal Engineers.
' •' Lieut.-Col. Chapman, C.B., &c. &c. &c."

!i'

isisting of
arrive till
lie up. I,
; under my
he assault-
s the ditch
Tim pouring

unterscarp,
)nes, and a

io hot that,
oended. A
■onstruction
3, near the
there when
tion of my

oo-pH with-
inieres, and

the glacis,

lion on the
I therefore
to do so,

dure.
Sir,

e servant,

Engineers.

THE NEXT MORNING

217

* After I had finished my report, I dined with Ander-
son and his l)rother, the same party which had dined
together with anxious and rather gloomy forebodings
on the previous evening. Before I had well eaten my
dinner, a telegraphic message summoned me to head-
quarters. I rode there with Captain ^Montagu, K.E.,
(who had had the superintendence of the various parties
at the assault,) and found the old General sitting up in
his arm-chair looking rather grave and stern. He was
in conversation with 8ir William Codrington, who had
evidently been giving him a description of the day's pro-
ceedings. I explained to him about the ditch of the
Redan, and answered a number of c[uestions, and he
then told me I might go. I retired to rest on this
eventful day, hardly able to express my gratitude to
God for my deliverance.

' I was very tired, but the heavy fire of cannon
which still continued, and my excitement, prevented
much sleep.

'fS^fpf. 9tJi. — I w^as awakened from a broken slumber
at [ibout four this morning, by a tremendous explosion,
and soon after heard Nicholson (who had just come back
from a night's trench duty) assert, that the liussians had
evacuated the town, and were firing their magazines by
galvanic batteries. I immediately dressed, and after a
cup of coffee rode off with Nicholson, De Vere, and Sir
Edward Colebrooke (an English gentleman who had come
out in his yacht to see the fun) towards Sebastopol. We
bad not gone far, before we saw an immense cloud rise
into the air accompanied by a deep sullen sound, the

^ !

I 'I

'' '^fHiiX- ■'■■...'-, Ut:-...

^ I

.M'

21S

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

explosion of another large magazine. The whole of
8eha.sT;opol was in flames ; but nearly half of the burn-
ing city was hidden Ijy the impenetrable cloud caused
by the exj^losion. The huge line-of-battle-ships which
formerly lay like grim floating towers, blocking up the
harbour, had been sunk. Nothing of them but the
tops of the masts was visible. A few steamers, looking
melancholy and isolated in the midst of the general
■wreck, alone remained of the fleet w^hicli had sjiread
terror over the Black Sea, and the possession of which
had been urged so strongly Ijy the Russian negotiators.
' When we reached the Woronzoff ravine, we met
Highlanders bearing out the wounded men found scat-
tered over the ground in the neighbourhood of the
Redan. By some unaccountable negligence, though it
appears that the Redan had been in our possession from
midnight, or eleven o'clock on the previous evening,
these poor fellows, though exposed the whole night to
the cold, had not had any species of refreshment ad-
ministered to them. I gave the first three or four I
met some l)randy from a small flask I had with me, hut
this was soon exhausted, and I thought I could do some
good by returning to camp and loading a baggage pony
with half-a-dozen bottles of brandy, and taking a couple
of servants with water canteens and drinking cuj)s.
Sir Edward Colebrooke* approved of my idea; we re-
turned together, and on oiu' way back again to the

* I take the opportiniity which the mention of this geuth*niaii.
fts associated with my l)rotht'r in a work of mercy, alfords me, to
express tlie gratitude which all my family feel at his generous

A WOKK OF MERCY

219

Kedaii, were able to refresh upwards of fifty jiour
fellows, some of them in the last stages of faintuess
aud exhaustion, with brandy and water.

* The refreshment was, in all cases, most gratefidly
received, with the exception of several too desperate fer
any remedy. We emptied four or five bottles in a
short time, and I hope did some good. I saw Sir Colin
Campljell, who seemed to approve of what I was doing,
and told me I was playing the good Samaritan.

' »So great had been the neglect of the proper au-
thorities, that I actually gave a wounded man some
brandy and water, with my own hand, as he lay at the
l)ottom of tlie ditch of the Redan on the sp(jt where he
had received his wound. I refreshed several p(jor Rus-
sians who were found wounded, and who expressed their
gratitude in a sort of uncouth joy. They were simple,
ignorant-looking fellows, perfectly vh-tuous of aml)ition,
— bodies without souls.

'Tlie salient of the Redan presented a terrible ap-
pearance. ' nitside the ditch, and a little to the left of
the salient angle, in a small hole, lay the bodies of fifty
or sixty English soldiers, thickly piled together. Xear
the crest of the counterscarp was an officer with hi-^
band stretched out as if in the act of waving his sword.
His features were not distorted, but noble, composed,
and manly, though a portion of his head had been
carried away by a grape shot.

f'yinpatliy to us during- our gi'cat aflliction. and tiie kind mention Ik'
\\\\^ made of my brother's name in hir» iuterefitiuir Journal, whieli
I have had the privilege of reudiuy. — Editou.

(^ 1

220

CANADA AND THE CRDIEA

II'

' The ditch near the salient was full of bodies, ga-
bions, and debris, lviu<i' in horrible chaos to<>-ether.
Inside the Kedan few bodies were to be seen, but a
handful of our men having penetrated into the in-
terior. At a point, however, more than twenty yards
from the salient, I saw the body of a y^ung English
officer, and close to him, three or four soldiers lying
side by side, or across the bodies of several Russians.
The attitudes of the various figures bespoke the energy
of their death struggle. There were several Russians
wounded sitting or lying on the terreplein of the in-
terior, or concealed in the splinter-proof barracks con-
structed under the parapets, but 1 did not see many
dead bodies. At one of the flanking batteries I saw a
deeply impressive spectacle, and from it was enabled to
form an idea of the devotion of the Russian artillery-
men.

* On both sides of the guns were the bodies of tlie
gunners lying one upon the other, five or six deep.
All around were strewn canisters of the grape-shot they
had been firing to the very last. The Redan proved a
very large work, undefended at the gorge, except by a
single infanay trench, but with huge traverses, and a
double line of parapet, which would enable the defenders
to open a cross fire on the head of any column advanc-
ing from the salient-angle (as they actually did on our
troops). The width of the work at the gorge facilitated
the advance of reinforcements, while it rendered the
formation of a lodgment more difficult. The whole
interior space was ploughed up by our shot and shell

^ries 1 saw a

EUSSIAN BARRACKS

221

ill the most terrific manner. It was a mere chaos of
deep holes, dismomited J4'uns, shattered gal)i(»ns, l»roken
iron, and solid shot. It seemed a marvel to us how
men could have existed in such a place at all.

' The losses of the Kussians from our tire, when their
works must have been filled with troops in readiness to
repel an assault, must have been tei'rific. A certain
garrison, however, tlie defenders could hold safe and
sound. We found under the huge piles of parapets
and traverses, both in the ]Mahikhoff and the liedau,
long splinter-proof barracks, calculated to contain
several hundred men, most solidly constructi'il with
beams and the masts of shijjs, and perfectly safe from
the effects of the heaviest projectiles. Long lines of
beds, in double tiers, where the men slept at night,
were found in these galleries and l)arracks, covered with
coats and clothes, full to overflowing of fleas, and per-
fumed *' a hi llusse.'" Soldiers' wooden spoons,
fragments of their black bread, innumerable articles of
clothing and accoutrements (some nearly new) were
scattered about these s])l inter-proofs and the parapets
of the work. Huts for the oflicers were also discovered,
containing cupboards, empty wine l)ottles, and in some
cases, chairs.

'My faithful domestic (a sapper named ^Miiiiro) who
accompanied me, bore oft:' an arm-cliair from the J\cdan
in triumph, which afterwards decorated my tent (and
in which I now sit as I write this), proljably used by
some I-iussian Captain or Colonel.

' Walking with Graham and Campbell (whom I met

"'«4*J'--ii'.,'*irt*^.,

222

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

i .!-■

viewing the works) towards the Maliikhofif, I encoun-
tered Genernl Simpson, to whom I w^as introduced by
Colonel Chapman, as the engineer officer w^ho led the
ladder party. The General said he had heard of me,
and that I was a fortunate fellow to have escaped. I
looked upon our rencontre with some satisfaction, as
I considered my heing thus prominently brought under
the notice of the Commander-in-Chief might increase
my chance of being mentioned in despatches. Colonel
Chapman told nie to direct any Royal Engineer officers
I met to come back to camp as soon as they could, as
their services woidd probably be required. We had ail
of us visions of various duties and occupations before
us. Surveys, plans of the Russian works, itc, demoli-
tion of forts and docks, and perhaps the construction
of fresh batteries to silence those of the Russians on
the Xorth shore. However, the great consolation — the
inexpressil)le relief — of the termination of " duty in the
trenches" had come, and other fatigues and dangers
seemed child's play to this great all-absorbing service.
I walked with ]\Iajor Campbell and Lieutenant Graham
almost as far as the larsj:'e white buildiniis behind the
Redan, perforated in all parts, and a scene of desolation
and ruin from our batteries. The wliole of the civil
portion of the city w^as still in a blaze ; and as it was
(juite uncertain where the Russians might have secreted
their mines, or what fjrt or buildings thev mio-ht intend
to blow up, it was by no means j^rudent to venture far
into the town. We had no time to look at the ]Malak-

■' '^ ; I

'■1. I

SEBASTOrOL

223

lioiT, and, in fact, were rather hungry, having liad only
a sort of military snatch before starting fortli on our
rambles.

* The Church service, performed under our rough
taipaulin roof, was very impressive to-day, tliough it
was difficult to abstract one's thou^dits from the stirring
events which had taken place.

'Sept. lOfh. — I rode down with Anderson to visit
the ruins of the still burning citv. We were en;ibled
to traverse the military portion of the town without
molestation. We foimd the ma<»-nificent ransjes of
white barracks and public buildings all more or less
injured; the barracks near the Redan perforated in all
directions l)y cannon shot, or torn and smashed by
shells; a number of smaller buildings, jjrobably the
poorer suburbs, literally a mere heap of ruins. The
requirements of the vast defensive works were mani-
fested by the gutting and dismantling of several fine
ranges of barracks, solely for the purpose of obtaining
materials from them for powder magazines, splinter-
proofs, and platforms. While endeavouring to force
our way througli the civil portion of the town, occupied
by the French, we encountered General Pelissier and a
large staff, and uere warned by one of the Generals on
the staff not to advance furtlier, Ijecause an explosion
was expected to take place in the town. We accord-
ingly turned back, and reached the ]Ma1akhoff, on our
way home, about the same time as the Frencli General.
He is a small, very active loijking man. He jumped off

11 '

224

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

■;!

i . in
I 10

his horse, and ran clown into one of the ditches of the
]Malakhoff with the vivacity of a schoolboy.*

' The ]\Iahikhoff presented a ghastly spectacle, dead
lying everywhere in it and near it ; Eussians evidently
shot while running away, and Zouaves killed whilst in
the ardour of pursuit; noble-looking fellows lying dead
on the escarps and the embrasures, all along the ditch
leading from the ^Nlalakhoti' to the Little Redan ; bodies
in every attitude, with faces little distorted, but rather
ennobled by death. Many of the dead had been col-
lected and buried, l3ut there were at least a thousand
or fifteen hundred lying about in all directions, filling
the ditches, or collected together for interment. I
fancied I should never have been able to look on the
dead on a battle-field ; however, as my three weeks of
warfare, from the battle of Tchernaya to the grand
assaidt, has been nothing but bloodshed and death, I
am now familiarized with the spectacle.

' Wliile urging on the men to the assault of the
Redan, I stood in the midst of the dead and dying, and
poor fellows in every state of suffering lay around. It
was a scene of such horror, that I have hardly yet
recovered from the shock. The French say we fought
well at the Redan, and that if we had succeeded iu
gaining possession of it, we could not have held it, as
it is quite open and very wide at the gorge, and the
Russians could consequently bring up heavy masses of

* It was probably General Bosquet my brother saw ou thi?
occasion. — Editok.

i' ?M

GREAT STRENGTH OF THE REDAN

O-T,

tches of the

ctacle, dead
lis evidently
[id whilst in
rs lyinj^ dead
ng the diteli
edan ; bodies
1, but rather
ad been col-
it a thousand
ctions, filling
interment. I
) look on the
hree weeks of
to the grand
and death, I

Lssault of the

nd dying, and
y around. It
^e hardly yet

[say we fonght
succeeded iu

lave held it, as
^orfre, and the
?avv masses ot

ther saw ou thi?

men to envelope, and crush our straggling cohnnn (»f
assault, already torn and disordered by a terrific flank
fire of grape on their advance. Instead, therefore, of
our useless and bloody assault, we should, in my
opinion, have done much better had we sent two or
three regiments to assist the French in holdino- the
Malaklioff, and when they liad gained a decided footing,
and beenenabledto turn some of tlieiiuns in the ]N[alak-
hoff to sweep the gorge of the Kedan, made our assault
on that work, which being isolated and shut to reinforce-
ments, nuist have succumbed to a vigorous and spirited
attack. This is the more certain, as, even as it was,
had onr Generals employed their reserves pr(jperly,
we should, iu my opinion, have carried the work and
held it.

*The Kedan is, in a military point of view, much
stronger than the ]Malakhoff ; the latter, from its com-
iiianding position, is a very imposing hooking work, but
to our surprise, we found it very badh', if at all, flanked;
whereas the Redan is flanked by an indented Hue
mounting half-a-dozen or more heavy guns ou one
face, and on the others by batteries in a ravine, very
difficult of access to our projectiles. ]]y far the
strongest work of the whole is the Flagstaff Batter}-,
covering the civil portion of the town ; the defences
here are very well contrived, and so formidable that I
might safely stake my existence that no troops in the
world could carry them if only tolerably defended.
The Flagstaff is in itself a Kedan, with a broad deep
ditch with palisades and military jjits in it; beyond the

I A

226

CANADA AND THE CRDIEA

U !•

ii^

I:'

I I

counterscarp of the salient is a small l)attory of •^•iins;
and mortars, s\ve('])ing the approach and iirini,' into our
lines, which it sees into most unpleasantly. Behind
the Uedan an; two or thi'ee other strong lines of cii-
trenchments niountinL;- the heaviest guns, and wlicn all
these are passed you suddenly come upon a hattery
swee[)ing the approach to the town, and placed on ;i
risin<; knoll in front of some l)uil(Ungs very difficult
to carry l)y assault ; this })osition is, therefore, im-
pregnable, and it is extremely fortunate for us that it
was iwt the key of the whole.

* The extent of the French siege works is enormous,
I suppose that altogether tiiere must he thirty or forty
miles of trenches and zigzags in front of Sebastopol.

'The liussians possessed inunense advantages over us
in having all the stores of the dockyard avaikable aud
close at hand, and all the heavy guns and amnuniitir»n
from their ships and arsenal, while we had to drag-
everything over miles of morass and mud, and do all
our military work idso with a mere handful of nien.
The interior of all the Russian works is tremendously
ploughed up by our shot and shell, but all the parapets
for purposes of defence are sound and good ; we may
look upon our success as a marvel. It is no disgrace to
the Russians, no array could have fought better or
defended itself with more unflinchinfj courage and
skill. An officer of artillery tells me that his battery
fired right into dense cohnnns of Russian troops,
advancing" to drive the French out of the ]Malaklietf.
and he could clearly see the effects of its shot, wlioK'

ENTRY INTO SEHASTOl'oL

987

:ory <>t" g'uiis
I'inj^' ii\to our
tly. lU'hiiul

lines of cu-
and wlicii all
oil a ))attc'ry

|)l:ie('(l tin a
very difficult
lieri'forc, im-
for us that it

; is enormous,
thirty or forty
5ebastopol.
ntao-es over us
i available ami
(1 aniiniuiition
had to drag
ud, and do all
ndful of men.
tremendously
11 tlie parapets
good; we may
no disgrace to
Li<dit better or
f courage ami
hat his Ijattery
Uissian troops,
the Malakhntf.
its shot, ^vholl•

ranks were ploughed up by if, l)ut theeolunui reniain<'(l
as steady and firm as if not a single sliot was being
fired into it.

' liotii armies, it is uiuiecessary to say, liave a great
respect for their (»pponents. Tiie day after the assault,
.')(),()()() fresh troops march(Ml into Sehastopol ; their
arrival thus late must be regarded as another happy
accident, or rather interposition of Providence, as their
presence on the preceding day might liave turned tiie
scale ai^ainst us.

'The French have undertaken the police of the
town, and the streets are lined by their pickets. The
churches (none of which have been destroyed by the
Ixussians) are used as guard-rooms, with a few other
buildings which ])reserve the semblaiu^e of a roof, and
our brave allies may be seen chatting together in
lively groups over their rations and "vin ordinaire,"
with their arms piled and glittering in the sun in front
of them. I rode yesterday through all the French
portion of the town ; we have the military side, and
come in for huge barracks, hospitals, SiC, most of them
(lihipidated, but of vast size and admirably built; these
may perhaps be fitted for the reception of a Division
of the Army during the winter.

' The liarbour is the most lamentable spectacle of
desolation I ever witnessed, completely choked and
filled with wrecks and the masts of sunken vessels.

r y

838

CANADA AM) THE CRIMEA

CHAPTEli XIII.

INSIDE SEBASTOrOL.

THOUGHT I had sceu sufficient liorrors on the 8tli
and tlie (.'iisuiiit,^(lay; l)ut on the morning of tlic lOtli.
I witnessed a spectacle more terril)Ie than any f had
yet witnessed. About a thousand or more poor wounded
Russian soldiers and officers were found in a large
]tuihlin2 near the ruins of Fort Paul, on the mornins;
i>f the 10th. Tiiey had passed nearly two days in agony
and misery, without food or any assistance. ]Many dead
were there, and the stench in the vast charnel-house of
horror so dreadful, that it is a marvel how any had sup-
ported existence. It is a stain on the humanity of tlie
Russians that they coidd thus leave these poor wretches
to their fate without even indicating where they Averc,
A flag over the l)uilding, or even a surgeon or officer
with a flag of truce left behind to explain and direct
our attention to the Hospital, W(udd have been suffi-
cient. A flag of truce was, I believe, sent over from
the North shore on the morning of the 10th, and some
Russian officers selected from amongst the mass of poor
sufferers those whom they thought the most likely to

( •

SrFFEKINGS OF THE SOLDIRUS

223

recover t'roiii tlicir wounds, and t'a[);il)le ot' iK-inj,' aj^'aiii
rendered lit for service. Ail tlie Imd eases I iienrd were
left to tho Knirlish and Fre'neii surifeons. Tliev had
enoiij,di oil tlieir liand.v •■*y. it was, tliouL;'li they of course
undertook their ])ainful task as well as they could.

*ThiH lon^' siejj^e, — the dreary drudj^ery of French
duty, — the constant spectacle of death, and wounds
unacconipanic'd by excitement, — the losses of our old
soldiers, uud the fresh draui;-lits of yuunj^' recruits that
have been sent out, liave all contril)uted to depress nnd
demoralise our army; who can wonder at it ? .Alarch-
ing down for periotls of twenty-four sometimes thirty-
six hours to<;'etlier, exposed in a ditch to lie killed as
they slept or while at work, tired and dispirited as tliey
wended their Aveary way back to the camp : they must
have hard hearts indeed, who cannot make some allow-
ance for men thus sorely tried. No one can ima«^ine
what the work has been ; even I though out so short a
time, felt a gnawing anxiety eating into my miu'l. I
was very much exposed on duty, and I never could feel
any confidence when I went down for a night in the
trenches that I should return. Our army I feel sure
will recover by a campaign in the field, which is nuicli
more congenial with the feelings of the soldiers, and
lias much that is animating and inspiring about it.

' The native strength of the Russian soldier's con-
stitution was demonstrated in several instances. I saw
a poor fellow sitting on the steps of the Hospital, who
Lad probably passed nearly forty-eight hours without
sustenance, supporting the stump of one of his legs, the

I i

230

CANADA AND THE CTiniEA

',•■ I

lower part of wliieli must eitlicr liavo been sliot away
or amputated. Tlie man did not look very faint or ill,
and bore his sufferinLTs without a OToan. Above this
scene of misery was a store, full of Russian miiforms,
helmets, &c. I obtained a few trifles as trophies. The
harbour and dockyard creek near this hos])ital were
strewn w^ith ft\ai>ments of wrecked ships, and a s^nall
steamer partially burnt and submerged was washed by
the swell almost against the quay walls. The Kiissians
appeared to be very loth to burn the VJadlmlr (their
pet steamer).

* One of the subalterns of my company w^as ordered
down with a detachment of sailors to build a battery on
the coast, the night after the attack, for the purpose of
sinking her. The jack tars were .•ou:'ed to the highest
pitch of enthusiasm, and w^orked like demons. The
steamer moved up within a hundred yards or so of
them, and took a melancholy glance at their prepara-
tions. In front of her w^as the whole Eno'lish fleet.
Escape seemed impossible, and the final step of burn-
ing the vessel was at length (to the great anger and dis-
gust of our sailors) resorted to. When she came close
up, they proposed to suspend work, and sink her with a
field gun.

' Fort Paul, standing at the end of a split of land,
running out into the harliour, and probably not more
than seven hundred or eight hundred yards from the
nearest Russian batteries on the opposite shore, was a
shapeless moimd of ruin ; its demolition had been per-
fect. Fort Nicholas had been partially burned, but the

STREETS IN SEBASTOrOL

2.")1

sliot away
faint or ill,
Al>(>v(' tlii^;
1 uniforms,
)hios. The
(S])ital were
lud a small
; washed by
he Kussians
Ibnir (their

was (^'dered
a hattery on
e purpose of
3 the highest
■mons. The
rds or so of
leir prepara-
ilnglish fleet,
jtep of burn-
nc:cr mid dis-
le came close
:ik her with a

split of land,
,bly not more
irds from the
i shore, was n
had been per-
irned, but the

sea bomb-proof wall was still uninjured, and the embra-
sures for upwards of l.jO guns were as intact and solid
as ever. The enemy's arrangements for blowing up
this fort nuist liave failed. Possibly the wires connect
ing the mines with galvanic batteries on the opposite
shore, were broken, by coming in collision with the
wrecks f»f suidcen vessels, or some tind)er or larixe float-
ing body may have driven a^'ainst them bv the heavy
sea which was runninf' during the whole of the 8th.
The walls of P'ort Alexander also stand very \\ell,
though the enemy managed to explode the mines in-
tended, without doubt, fin* tlieir destruction.

' I visited the French portion of tlie town a few days
after the place was tako.'ii, in conijiany with Lieut, (ira-
liani, K.K. We were neither of us provid(^d with the
re(|uisite papers for the French trenches, and the whole
of the main street of the civil portiou of the city, oc-
cupied by our gallant allies, glistened with the bayonets
of their pickets. Yet, nevertheless, through the igno-
rance and vanity of a little French sentry, who mistook
our English "permit" for a correct document, we man-
aged to obtain an entrance into the ruined streets.

'Sebastopol is finely situated, and laid out in broad
spacious streets. Some of the houses, though n(jw
nothing; in o-eneral remained of them but blackened
disfigured walls, must have been very handsome and
elegant. The club house and several cluu'ches remained
nearly intact. The principal church had been already
converted into a French guard-room. We looked with
the deepest interest at the remains of the famous city,

, J

232

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

■ I

M i.

,_'Si

aDfl Doted oven within its streets preparutions for ob-
stinate and desperate defence. There were barricades
at intervals down the streets, and fire-arms and gun-
powder we learnt had been found in many houses.
What the final strui^-rjle mi<4ht have been, liad not God
in his infinite mercy permitted onr surprise to succeed, it
is almost too terrible to picture. All the scenes of blood
here enacted woidd hiive shone feebly by the side of it.
We rode to P\)rt Nicholas, close to wliicli is a large open
space, used l)y tlie Russians during the siege as a market-
place. It was almost the only part of the city out of
reach of our shot and shell. A naval officer on board
one of the ships of the fleet told me, it was always
densely crowded, and that large military parties were
constantly emplo3'ed there, making gabions, &c. From
Fort Nicholas the Russians coidd be seen very plainly
walking about, with apparent nnconcern, on the oppo-
site shore, or on the tops of the parapets of their re-
doubts. From this point their works on the North side
had a most formidable appearance, battery after battery
rising tier above tier, seemed ready at a given signal to
lay the remains of the devoted city into ashes, and to
render the whole iminhabitable to the victors. Graham
and I dismounted from oiir horses (as we did not wish
to tempt a Russian rifleman by being too conspicuous),
and leaving them in charge of a French semry, ad-
vanced in front of the fort and close to the water. The
masts of the Twelve Apostles and other line-of-l)attle-
ships, were almost within a stone's throw of the spot
where we stood. With a telescope, I could almost dis-

'i*.

BEST AFTER THE STORM

233

ions for ob-
3 barricades
s and gun-
any lionses.
lad not God

succeed, it
nes of blood
16 side of it.
a large open
as a rnarket-
e city out of
2er on board

was always
parties were
, &c. From
very plainly
:>\\ the oppo-

of their re-
e North side
after battery
ven siirnal to
ashes, and to
rs. Graham
did not wish
conspicuous),

1 seniry, ad-
water. The

ine-of-l)attle-
V of the spot
[1 almost dis-

cern the features, whilst I was enabled clearly to watch
the movements of Ivussian working parties, pursuing
their avocations as quietly and unconcernedly as if
nothing Jiad happened. Groups of two or tliree might
be observed here and there standing; lookin«r at their lost
city, and watching a few stragglers who, like ourselves,
had reached the opposite coast. As if by mutual consent,
hostilities seemed lo have been suspended. J^otli armies
weary with iighting, were taking a kind of holiday.
We found that the French portion of the town w^as very
strictly guarded, and saw noljody but sentries, a few
French officers, and some of the English staff, who had
doubtless with some trouble obtained permission to
enter the place from the French liead-cpiarters. We
therefore considered ourselves fortunate in havinq; ob-
tained this early view, and rather congratulated (our-
selves on our successful impudence.

'The English are not allowed to enter the tow^n, a
cordon of cavalry being drawn up to prevent it. The
French have it all to themselves. There can be few of
the excesses, which generally attend a successful assault,
perpetrated. Almost all the valuables are either burnt
or removed ; and the inhaljitants, with very few excep-
tions, have quitted the devoted city.

* The Russians are now in the forts on the North
shore, and in a large entrenched camp close to the
harbour. They wdll probably open fire upon us soon.
Last night was a disagreeable one in camp ; the wind
blew with great violence, accompanied with clouds oi'
dust, which soon filled the tents and reduced every-

2.14

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

,'v

•

■^

! %

i II

tliiii^,^ to an iiniforni dral). Tlie tent viljratcd to and fro.
and r expected my pole every ifionient to l)reak and the
tent to come down on my head. I made dispositions
to meet these events l)y partially dressing, and placing
stools, iSic. on high points, to prevent the tent lialf
smothering me hy receiving it when it fell.

' The wind was soon followed by a thnnder-storm
accompanied hy very heavy rain ; this lulled the wind
and I got to sleep.

* This morning our parade ground is covered with the
most adhesive clay I ever encountered, and the rain
pours on ; ho^vever, these are but small matters now that
Sebastopol is ours. The city is now like a great charnel-
house. I met to-day strings of waggons fdled with the
Russian dead almost in a state of putrefaction. They
say that to-day 100 Russian officers were found lying
dead in a large room all together ; they had probably
perished from want of food and attendance after their
wounds. The Russian army fought with desperate
courage. A French officer told Nicholson to-day, that
after the French had carried the ]Malakhoff, a Russian
officer and forty men in a pit near the centre, refused to
surrender, and fought till nearly all were killed.

' We do not know the precise loss on both sides. All
we know for certain is, that it is enormous. What the
Russians can possibly gain by prolonging the struggle
no one knows : the Crimea is filled with their sick and
wounded. I observed them again to-day on the North
shore, apparently getting timber from the wrecks of
their vessels.

RUSSIAN WORKS

2;i5

' Tlic jjcneral eliaracteristic of all tlio Iviissiaii work^
was their extreme streiij^th and solidity. They seem
the works of giants. It is impossible not to l)e asion-
islied at the vastness of the undertnkiiiL;", or to avoid
conjuring up the hosts who must Jiave toiled day and
nis^dit to carry it out. A great (h'-'d of the vast labour
expended was, liowever, unnecessary, in a military point
of view, and even defeated its own oliject. Tlie gigantic
traverses witli wliieh most of tlie principal works were
covered, and the splinter-proof barracks under them,
in which garrisons might remain safe from shot and
shell, both jH'oved detrimental to the d(>fenders when
the assault was given. Tlu; traverses formed ])ara])ets,
equally for the attacking as for the defending troops,
and the splinter-proof barracks, prisons, from whence
their tenants were effectually debarred emerging by a
few opponents. The necessity of both, however, ap])ears
obvious when the interior of the works is exandned.
The terre-plein of the Kednn is a sea of crater and
debris. The enemy had formed a slight covered com-
inunication between it and the barracks in the rear,
along which relief might pass comparatively, though by
no means, effectually, sheltered from our fire. The
whole of the ground near the salient of this worJc, so
especially and so long the object of the Englisli attack,
was covered with half-buried disabled guns, whose
muzzles, or breeches protruded grimly and moui-n fully
in the midst of the chaos of holes, fragments of shells,
and debris of gabions.

'The ]Malakhofif, in my opinion, would never have

, ' r -
I. ,r

:i|

: SI

■ill

236

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

been taken except by surprise, — once surprised, the
holding of it was a matter of no great difficulty, tliough,
of course, accompanied by rather heavy loss. Tliough
the key of the whole line of works, it was on this
.•iccount, one of the weakest. It possesses also but little
saliency beyond the general contour, and is most im-
perfectly flanked. Most happily for us, the Eussians
had been led to adopt the form indicated by the primary
round tower, merely at first l)uil(ling an earthen parapet
around it ; happily too, they liad been led to neglect it
till the latter portion of the siege, on account of the
projection of the salient portion of the ]Mamelon, which
effectually commanded all the approaches of the Allies.
Had they constructed a second bastion du m.lt, re-
trenched only half as strongly as the original, our hopes
of taking Sebastopol by an assault would have vanished,
or must have been luiderta^-en against another part of
the defences. It was painful to reflect on the small
part the English army had taken in the great assault,
and how that small part had been marred. I still
think our fellows would fight better than any others in
a fair field, and under a good general, who kept his
recruits away from vital positions.

' I had charge of the water- works for the supply of the
army after the siege was over, taking it from Elphin-
stone, who had been wounded severely in the trenches
by a stone, knocked out of the parapet by a round shot.
My labours were not arduous, and 1 had time f<5r little
trips into the coimtry to explore the scenery, and get a
few ideas respecting the position of the various corps

I i m

•prised, the
Ity, tlnnigh,
s. Tlumffli
,-as on this
so but little
is most ini-
he I-iussi.ans
the primary
lien parapet
:o neglect it
ount <jf the
lelon, which
f the Allies.
in mat, ra-
il, our hopes
,ve vanished,
itlier i)art of
»n the small
reat assault,
red. I still
my others in
dio kept his

supply of the
'rom Elphin-

the trenches
I roimd shot.
ime for little
ry, and get a

arious corps

JIICIlAEL^rAS DAY 237

(Varmee. One of my expeditions proved a very interest-
ing and exciting one. Our party was arranged several
days before our start, and consisted of Captain Nicholson,
Lieutenant Edwards, and myself (all K.E. officers) ;
Major Campbell, 4Gth Regiment, and .Air. Smith (an
uncle of Nicholson's, staying in the camp on a visit). I
had been on duty, commencing a battery near the ruins
of Fort Paid, (Mi the previous evening, and liad not gone
to bed till nearly three in the morning. It had been
arranged that a cart, with provisions and blankets,
should be sent in front of us to Haidar (seventeen
miles\ there to await our arrival. I was so freijuently
awoke during my very short night by per[)etnal dis-
turbances, noises of bugles, c^c, that I felt <[uite
uurefreshed, and thougli the rest of my ])arty h'ft at
a quarter to eight, I delayed my departure until nearly
two hours after. The day (Michaelmas Day) was most
lovely, and the pass beyond Kamara looked perfection ;
I had never, on any other occasion, been more than a
few miles ])eyond the Sardinian camp, so that soon all
became new to me. The Woronzoff road (which we fol-
lowed in the main through all its twistings and windings)
led through rocky, w^ooded ravines, skirting and edging-
spurs of rock, which jutted like so many capes or })ro-
montories into the deep valky below. Emerging from
this romantic and beautiful pass, tinted with the hues of
autumn, and showing all the varied and striking effects
of light and shade in strong contrast, the road enters
the valley of Baidar, a sweet little vale, enclosed by
green slopuig and wooded banks, whilst in the dis-

238

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

■ I-

1 • I

I t

tarice, to tlie East, rise ruj4'<>'e(l mountain peaks and
lofty siinimits of hills, redeeming tlio landscape from
tameness, and serving, as it were, as a setting to its
gem-like riclmess. Peroski's villa, a small rather fan-
tastically-! )uilt chateau, with a white tower surmounted
by a green cupola, standing out very conspicuously, and
situated a few yards to the right of the road, al)out a iinle
from Baidar, was the point which, on a previous occa-
sion, had been selected as a reiidezv(ms,and I accordingly
hoped, wiien after a long sharp canter I approached
it, that I .sh(juld find my party engaged in a rustic
'^' dfjedner a la fuurcltdte'' on the green sward, under
the trees surrounding the house. A French guard
proved the sole occupant, and the sentry informed me
as I rode up that it was " tUfemlit " to enter ; however,
on incpuring, I learnt that my party had ])een there
only ten minutes before, and riding on at a rapid trot,
I soon sighted them, traversing in a line a grec^n plain
that bordered the road. We found our cart at Baidar,
where we arrived at noon. Baidar had not been very
long in the occupiition of the P'rench.

' After the fall of Sebastopol, they pushed forward
their advanced posts wdierever they coidd, and the Kus-
sians retreated before them. We found the streets of
this quaint, picturesque little Tartar village crowded
with '■'- Franca 18^'' buying meat, onions, and bread, or
chatting together in groups. A regiment of Chasseurs
d'Afrique is now encamped in the place, whilst con-
spicuous on a neighljouring hill-side, to the rear, may
be seen the white tents of the Turks. We lunched,

THE PASS OF rnOROS

239

1 peaks and
(1 scape from
ettiiijjj t(» its
I ratlitv fan-
siinnounted
icuouslv, and
.about a milt'
•evious oeca-
I accordingly
[ appr<)aclie(i.
1 ill a rustic
sward, under
'rench guard
informed me
:er ; however,
[ been there
, a rapid trot,
a green plain
irt at Baidar,
.ot been very

shed forward
and the llus-
tlie streets of
la<)-e crowded
ind bread, or
of Chasseurs
e, whilst con-
the rear, may
We lunched,

seating on the grass, near the watering-place at 1 Gaidar,
and fed our horses. Our road, after leaving Baidai',
wound up a hill, at the top of wliich we found a regular
masonry arch and a French guard of \20 men; this was
the entrance of tlie pass of IMioros, which tlu' French
had taken possession of. Tiie archway, with very little
difficulty, could be strengtlu^ned in such a manner as
completel} to close the road against the advance of an
army, however formidable. It is situated on a most
commanding point, overlooking the road for more lliau
a mile, and the nature of the ground (composed prin-
cipally of gigantic landslips) is such as to necessitate a
most tortuous and winding route, and several apparently
retrograde movements in the advance from one point to
the other. At the archway the scene burst upon us in
all its grandeur ; we rode along admiring more and more,
as we advanced, the loveliness to which it had served as
a portal, and to which we had so suddenly been intro-
duced.

' To our left was a continuous lofty precipice — varying
only occasionally in height and ruggedne^ss — towering
proudly into the clear blue sk}^, its edge defined with
beautiful distinctness and delicacy against the chai-ming
background. Trees and shru])S, here and there instinc-
tively^ rooting themselves in the small patches of earth,
niggardly sprinkled over the harsh barren rocks, shot
up fresh, green, and beautiful, on its sond)re sides. At
the foot of this vast rampart of cliffs were masses of
rocks tossed confusedly alxmt, as if by some Titan
hands ; here and there standing bold!}' out, but gene-

240

CANADA AND THE CRIMKA

■ 1

; I
i (

'I !

;l!

in
1 1

111

r.illy imlx'flded in eartli, and ludf hidden ])y the folia^fc
of the trees springinijc up from tlieir restin^^-pluces. The
road wound ahniLT the l)ase of tliis wihl and heautifiil
chaoH. lUdow it was a scene somewhat similar— a series
of gi'^antie landslips jutting out into the sea ; but below,
earth and vegetation predominated over rock and bar-
renness. A little Tartar village, close to the sea, soon
greeted our eyes. It consisted merely of a few little
white houses, >Nith red tile roofs. Just opposite it, and
not half a mile from shore, lay a French man-of-war
steamer at anchor, and at a short distance beyond, u
second steaming slowly up. They were stationed at this
point to guard and observe the pass.

' We expected to have met with some diflPiculty in
getting through the French advanced posts, as a per-
mission in writing from the French head-([uarters was
generally demanded. We, however, fortiuiately found
a very complaisant young Frenchman on duty, who,
after a few explanations, permitted us to proceed. I
offered him my "Illustrated" to look at (happily con-
taining a picture of General Bosquet on the first page).,
and left it with him to peruse till our return. We were
warned by him not to proceed along the road beyond
the most advanced French posts, which he stated to be
"two hours" in front of us (in the phraseology of the
country two leagues). We rode on and on, however,
more and more charmed and delighted with the scenerv
as we advanced, and looking right and left of us for tlie
red troAvsers of a Frenchman ; none were visible, yet
still we proceeded till, towards evening, we reached a

OUT OF IJOrNDS

341

places. Tlie
\{\ bt'iuitit'ul
lar — «a series
; but below,
ck and bar-
he sea, soou
a few little
)osite it, and
man-of-war
te beyond, a
:ioned at this

difficulty in
its, as a per-
kpiarters was
mately found
duty, who,
proceed. I
happily con-
first page),
rn. We were
road beyond
stated to he
leology of the
on, however,
h the scenery
of us for the
! visible, yet
we reached a

small road-side chateau, which appeared (di^dblo as a
restiii'4-]daee for the nii^'ht. it w;is in a half-pillau't'd
stat", with lirokeu windows, and Hotrs strewn with tin'
debris of chairs, and tables. Tiiere w.is a t(deral)le stabh'
for the horses, who were soon tied up and diseussinL;-
their well-earned eveuini;' meal. I busied myself in
liijlitinLT fires, ])uttinLf larL,^e drawers collected from a
war(lrol)e in requisition as chairs. We found a ca|)ital
round table ready for our use, and a deal planic on a
stand foruu'd an excellent side-board. Nicholson and
Campbell, rather mistrUntiuL,^ the security of our retreat,
rode on for a fcnv miles t(> recoimoitre.

'Thev reported on their ]-etui'U that thev had dis-

covered nothiufjf. Our dinner consisted of a, kind of

nondescript stew, made of slices of mutton inunersed,

with pieces of onion, pressed vegetables, and a small

tin of essence of beef, in water, and cooked in a camp

fryin<;'-|)an. Some potatoes were set to boil on a fire

made of broken furniture. Whilst dinini^^ we held a

council of war as to our movements; to stay or run

away, that was the question. We felt lialf convinced

that we must be beyond the French advanced ])()Sts.

We had seen no wag^'ons of the '' efjHijxn/r.^ 1,1!!'-

taires,''^ (the constant attendants of the French army,)

or even nudes carrying provisions or fodder. We were

at least twelve miles beyond IJaidar. If, too, any of

the Tart;u- inhabitants of tlie houses which we liad

passed on the road, actuated by the hopes of u reward,

should inform the Cossacks of our whereabouts, whiit

could we do ? As for four or five of us resistinii: a larue

243

CANADA AM) TIIi: ( HIMKA

1;?'

i 'J

i '%

I! I

i. ;■

iiriiird party ''f cMV.'iiiT, (»r iti;ikiii,n' ^^ood our retreat,
wlicii pressed by tlieiii, (m oiir jiided horses, tlie idea
(to me ;if le.'ist) a|>peiired prep<)>ter()Us. Siipposini,' we
wei'e siii'roiuided. and made prisoners Ity tiie Iiiissians,
wiiat should we liave to say iu our (h-teiicf wiieii we
returned to Kn:L,da,iid, it" we ever j^'ot hack? We siiouhl
proliahly all h)S(; our eommissions. On the othrr liaiid,
it was jjh'aded tliat, if we reaJly weiv too much " out of
hounds," we were so uniiiti'iitioiially ; tluit wo liad l)eeii
mish'd l»y the ofTieer commandini,' at IMioros. If we
sliowed U(» lii;ht towards the road, the clianees wore,
tliat recoiinoiti'in^* parties of the enomy miLT'it oven
pass dose by witlioiit diseoveriiif; us, and Hrially, tliiii
seven Eiiuflislnnou could satisfactorily tlirash at lea.st
double the niniibor of Cossacks. Our liorsos wore tired,
and wo had made all our arranu'ements for tho niniit.

' It was finally agreed, therefore, that we should stay
where we were, but that the whole party should be on
the gni vice during the ni<>-ht, with revolvers close to
their lieads, and an armed sentry shoidd perand)ulate
the <jjarden. I was so completely done up with the
fati_!L>'ues of the i3rovious night, passed j^rincipally on
foot, and the long day's ride, that by general consent I
was kindly omitted from keeping guard. I rolled a
horse cloth round me, placed my revolver close to my
Iiead, to be ready in case of an alarm, and soon fell fast
asleep. I had previously arranged a tolerably comfort-
able bed by help of an arm-chair, and bench (In)th
stuffed), and an air pillow I always sleep on out here,
and wdiich I have found invaluable. 1 have no doubt

AN i:\( ITlNti IUI»K

2i;j

our retreat,
cs, tlie idea
iH»i)<».viu<^ \vi'
lie IJussiiin-^,
(•(• ^vllell we
We sliouKl
■ otliiT liand,
lucii '• out of
wc liail l)een
oros. If Wf
haiices wrvr,
niio;lit even
. finally, tliiii
rash at least
es were tired,
the niL;ht.
e should stay
should be on
vers close to
peraiuhulate
up with the
iriucipally oil
:>ral consent I
I rolled a
r close to my
soon tell fast
ahly conifort-
l)ench (l)otli
on out here,
avc no douht

my friends kept an exe'dleiit hmk out; hut, as luini-
nately tliey were Uot ol>lii;e(l to ehallenn'e any oin-, i hey
were uiialde to afford any prartieal pro(»t' of their
vii^ilanee. Sonu after dayhi-eak we idS", diank suuie

ff(

eiuuM

niuiK

hed

(ICCC l>

f Itread, sadilled, ;ind rixh'

aloni;' tile road towards tiie ixU^sians, to cxplori' still
fui'tiier.

'Tiie ride was certainly very excitini;' and enjoyahle.
Tlie luorniuL,^ was h»vely, and tlie air most exhilaratinu^

and ins[)U'inL;. llie I'oad woimd so much a'nn;^ tiic
hase of a projecting,' spit of rock tiiat w(,' could at iio tiiue
see far hefore tis. Still we advanced — the excitement
everv nu>ment b(!comini' more infeiise. W'e were all
eyes and ears. We scannetl every inch of the ;;rouiid
(»u eitlier side, scrutini/iiiL;' sus|)ieiously every Imsli,
and even goin^' so fai- as to ima^dne a small strc aju of
water to h(.' the sword or bayonet of some !\ussiaii
soldier, to which in fact at first it bore an uiipleasantlv
stroni;' res«'nd»lance. At len:;th wo si;;iited a \illage
half buried in sonie trees close to tiie water's ed^e.
Several people were walking" about, and one or two
were distinctly visiiile standi ul,' on a ruuf. and loukin;^'
up at us with apparent astonishment.

'We held a council of war. It was maTufestly im-
prudent to proceed, as if, as was exti'emely })i'ol)al)le,
there were any Cossacks concealed in the vilhi^e, our
retreat eoidd be com[)let(dy cut off. The ([uestion was
put to the vote, and decided in favour of an advance
by the casting vote of old .Air. Smith, wlio was in a state
of intense excitement. On we went, therefore, Camp-

R 2

•I(

CANADA *.ND TTFE Crj:MEA

'I.

i i

i -"■■

' I

Ix'll and myself mentally saying', " Wliat fools v>'e are!"
After ridinij about a mile or less, we came to distinct
traces of a Cossack picket near a bend of the road,
whence a !L>"ood view could be obtained of the route we
liad fallowed in our advance. Traces of watch fires,
liay scattered over the half-charred bushes, and unmis-
takable sij^ns of the recent presence of horses, shewed
us clearly enou^-h where our friends had ])een. A few
paces further, we encountered a Tartar, whom at first
we took for a Cossack. He had l)read and salt in his
hand, which he offered to us, and of some of which
Nicholson ate. We questioned liim by o-estures, and
repeatiuLi; the w^ords " Kusses," " Francese," as to
whether tliere were Kussians or French ahead. From
liis replies we learnt, that we were quite beyond the
French outposts; and there were nothing but Kussiaii>;
in front of us.

'At leno-th, after we had o-one four miles or so be-
yond our cliateau, we decided on returning. We
deviated to the right on our way l)ack, to visit one or
two deserted French villas near the sea-side. The
principal one was the property of M. Demidoff. It
had been a ver}- pretty place, and evidenth- fitted up
in a stvle of great luxurv and comfort. The situation
was very fine, tliough a little difficult of access. We
foiuid a large wine press, and materials for wine
making ; a cabinet-maker's shop, fine stables and out-
houses, and the remains of a very hantlsome decorated
little chapel, wantoidy pillaged by the French and
English cavalry, who had made a reconnoissance along

IL; AM

TARTIALITY

245

the road some days before. The priest's house, which
was small, Lut furnished with taste and elegance, was
united to the chapel, and had shared the same fate.
Edwards found, seated peacefully and happily on a pile
of broken chairs and tables, a very tame and pretty
little white cat, with hazel eyes and pink ears. Puss,
who illustrated the old saying, of a cat's never abandon-
ing the house, was borne off in triumj)h, and now
inhabits a tent on the heights. We had to clind) an
almost inaccessible hill to regain our chateau ; and
having breakfasted, packed our cut as we could, bear-
ing away with us a coujile of chairs, a bookshelf, a
form, and a drawer from a wardrobe as trophies.

'I am much annoyed at finding my name has not
been given in General Simpson's despatch, though
perhaps, considering all things, it is not a subject of
jjreat regret. Nothin<i: can be more insultin*; to the
arm} and the common sense of the country, than the
manner in which general officers persist in mentioning
almost exclusively their own staff — men who, in a
general action, do little or nothing, and hardly one of
whom left the shelter of the parapet (jn the 8th of
.September. If I find I am not recommended for im)-
motion, I shall try to ascertain the reason of the
omission. Every one here says, I have been very
badly treated. At the assault of the 18th of June,
three euixineer officers were killed ; on the 8th of
September, I was the only engineer officer who left
the trenches. I performed uiy duty to the entire

I :ill!

246

CANADA AND TIIH CRIJiEA

■J h

. (

III

'I "I

;' I;

t\ '1

.-•atisfacfion of all th(3 senior officers of my corps, several
of ^v}l(>nl, Colonel Chapman, ^Nlajor Bent, and ]\Iaj(jr
Stanton, expressed themselves to me very handsomely
on the subject. I sent the other day the following
letter to the Times on the subject of the scaling-
ladders, most untruly described as too short by their
correspondent.

' " To the Editor of the Times,

' " Sir,

^''Your Correspondent's letter describing
the grand assault of the allied armies u^ion Sebastopol.
though generally very acciu'ate and correct, contains a
misrepresentation respecting the English attack upon
the Kedan, which, as I was personsdly present through-
out the assault, and charged by General Jones with the
conduct of the scaling-ladders, you will perhaps permit
me to rectify, through the mediiun of your columns.
The scaling-ladders are stated in your Correspondent's
letter to have been 'too short,' and it is further asserted
that there were very few of theni placed round the
salient. A simple statement of the facts of the case is
the best answer to these assertions.

' '' Forty scaling-ladders, each twenty-four feet long,
to be carried l)y 320 men, were collected on the morn-
innf of the assault in the most advanced trench. iM'dit
men were told off to each ladder ; and about lialf-an-
hour before the attack took place, the late 3fajor

liii

:' !.

LETTER TO THE ^Tnii:;:;'

247

rps, several
iind INIajor
landsomely
followinLi
le Kcaliiifj-

rt by tlieir

descril)in;4
Sebastopol,

coutaius a
ittack upon
lit. tlirouL>li-
les with the

aps permit
ir cohiiniif*.
cspnndeiit'.'^
ler asserted

round the
f the case is

ir feet hmg,
I tlie luorn-
icli. height
)ut half-an-
hite ^Nfajor

Welsford, in command of the party, ordered, at my
request, eveiy man to stand or sit by the side of the
ladder lie was told off to assist in carrying.

' " ]\[y duty consisted in conducting the party to the
best point for placing th^ ladders, and I had about
twenty sappers under n.y orders, provided with axes
and crowbars for breaking through the abatis, and with
picks Jind shovels for forming a ramp into the ditch,
Sic. When the signal for the advance was given, the
ladder party ran to the front as rai:)idly as they could.
.... The fire of the enemy, however, was hea\y,
and several ladders were left behind in the advauci-d
trench.

' " The ditch proved much sligliter than had been
anticipated. Its depth at the salient could not have
been more than twelve to fifteen feet.

* " I was ordered by General Jones to makc> the
descent into the ditch, and the ascent of the escai'p,
practicable. With the assistance of my sa})pers, I
effected this in a few minutes, and numbers of men ran
up the ramp thus formed, without using any ladders at
all. When the first column mounted the salient, they
drew several ladders after them. This may have led
those who came up afterwards to imagine the number
of ladders emploved much smaller than tliev rcallv
were. Xot a inaii was delayed from want of means for
moimting tlie escarp. Trusting that you will excuse
my trespassing upon your valuable space, but feeling
that it was only due to my corps and to myself to make

,.f.

I< 1

1 1

,;<■

lit!

248

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

the statement that I have; done, and that you would be
the first to receive such an exphmation,

* " I liave the lionour to be, Sir,

'' " Your most obedient Servant,
' ^' George Kanken,

* " Lieut. Koyal Engineers.

• " Royal Engineers' Camp, neav Sebastopol,
October IG."

' Nothing so annoys and dispirits one as finding-, after
passing through the most trying ordeals, everything
misrepresented and unappreciated, and rewards and
honours conferred on imdeserving men, who have done
little or nothing to gain them. This miserable system
I hold to be one of the chief causes of the inferiority of
om* army, as an intelligent machine of war. Every one
who has had the dangerous and arduous trench duty to
do, is disgusted beyond measure at finding himself,
instead of being distinguished, coiifuunded in a hetero-
geneous mass, with the cavalry, who have not been
imder fire for a year, and even with men on board ship,
and at Kertch, who have been indiscriminately re-
warded with " the Sebastopol clasp." Injustice and
stupidity are seeds which never will produce good fruit,
and until justice and common sense prevail, no one
nuist feel surprised at misfortune and failures.

'Our movements since the grand final struggle have
been principally confined to preparations for the ap-
proaching winter. It would astonish a novice to see
the prodigious amount of labour necessary for the form-

rKErAI{I>G FOR WIMEli

24 y

oil would be

iition of a thoroiioLly oood road frum J5alucliivu to the
front. Several thousand men are employed daily alon^;
the whole lenj^th, under the superintendence of tlu-
Army \Vork« Corps, and several captains of line regi-
ments, specially told off to i)articular sections. 1 am
the only officer of engineers employed, and I have be-
tween 500 and (iOO men under my directions. M\'
portion will be iinislied in ten days or a fortnight, its
breadth varying, according to circumstances, fi-om
twenty to twenty-four feet, well macadamised, with a
margin of several feet on each side, sloping down to-
wards deep trenches. Several large culverts are con-
structed where, from the nature of the ground, thei'c
appeared a probability of a great rush of water.'

i 1
i

250

CANADA AND Tltil CKDIEA

chaptp:Pv XIV.

AVINTEIl IN TJIE CKIMEA.

r '

' Noveniljer 23rd.

* rpHE variet}^ of residence is amazing in camp; almost
J- every officer who could procure laboiu' has built
himself a small snugo-ery. The general rule is to dig
a square pit in the ground, and then edge it with a
dwarf wall, cutting an opening at one side for a window
and at another for a door.

' After the terrible explosion which occurred on the
15th, it was fully expected that the liussians would
have made some decisive movement. We shall pro-
bably remain in quiet winter quarters, jiaddling about
in the mud, or wading through snow drifts ; we have on
the whole been very fortunate as yet with regard to our
weather. "We have only had one short taste of the
Crin\ean winter, consisting of three or four days'
decidedly disagreeable weather. The army is going on
building, and making roads, as if it had several more
weeks of sunshine and clear sky to depend on. The
main communications are all but finished, and building
is going on well everywhere.

DOMESTIC ECONOMY

251

'omber 23i'd.

iinip; almost
)ur lias built
iilo is to dig"
,^e it with a
or a window

rred on the
isians would
e shall iDi'o-
dling ah<nit

we have on

egard to our

taste of the

four days'

is Cf'^inc: on
everal more
id on. The

md building

^ I genernlly have my hnnds full of work, and have
reeentlv been re(|uesti'd, in addition to mv other duties,
to act as Treasurer of the K. E. Mess in eau)]). We
are about to get a hut put up, finish off a, stone eook-
liouse, buy sheep, geese, S:c.^ and, in fact, start a regular
mess in a rough and practical, but I am in hopes by no
means unsatisfactory style. As yet 1 dine every night
with a thick coat and cap on, in a single tent. Our
soup (a concoction of beef-ljroth and onions generally
speaking) is served up in an old Kussian wooden bowl
of irregular proportions, and coloured a dingy red. Our
candlesticks till (piite recently were bottles, our
drinking cups, old jam pots. We live very well on the
whole: and a fat goose w^ell stulTed is not an unknown
thinn: with us. I have been endeavoiu'im:^ to make mv
company of sappers comfortal)le for the winter. I get
up wood from ^Sebastopol every day in a Maltese cart,
which I purchased a few weeks since, and have two
sawyers of my own company constantly at work sawing
it into thin planks for lining the interior of the men's
huts. I gave my colour-serjeant 10/. the other day to
l)uy the men jjlates, and to get a couple of sheep, and
half a dozen geese, etc., for Christmas Day. Turkeys
do not thrive in camp, and are besides continually
killed and eaten by the rats.

'Nov. 25th. — The wdnter, which withheld its approach
longer than the most sanguine could have anticipated,
is at length upon us. It began l)y several days' frost ;
it has now turned w^et. To-day is one of the most
drear v that could be conceived. A howling wind :

I i; '

U' iu%.'j .«!_«*. '^B^-4r.«,

I.-

j!H

252 CANADA AM) THE CRDIHA

torrents of min ; a muddy chaos witlioiit ; tents (|uiver-
iiiL;' and Hupping" ; huts leakini,^ and soaked — hapj)}' tlie
man, liowever, who like myself is in one. I slept in a
tent till the 16th of November (just alx)ut three months
from my landing). I was driven out of it more liy tlie
rats than by the cold. I am now ensconced in a snug
corner of a hut, with a good fire in it. It leaks a little,
hut u'liiiporte, such matters are trifles. I only wish a
tithe of the army were as comfortable as myself. The
lints have not nearly all arrived. They are, it is true,
being brought to the front as fast as they are unloaded ;
and they require but a short time to put up; but it
will probably be some weeks before the whole army is
under roofs. Some regiments, the 88th and 44tli
especially, have made themselves very snug, by build-
ing thick stone walls round their wooden ones. Their
vicinity to rocks and stones enabled them to do this.
The 4tli regiment (close to us) have built several entire
huts for themselves, and collected tiles from Sebastopol
to roof them with. Want of wood, or rather of sawyers,
has prevented them finishing them completely. I
have had to drain the camps of the 3rd Division, and
to send a report in respecting those of the whole army
on the heights before Sebastopol. Of course this report
necessitated a preliminary inspection, and I was com-
pelled to visit every camp of the position on the heights.
I have likewise had charge of the construction of a
portion of road, and of the works near and about two
water tanks of the 3rd and 4th Divisions.

' My health has been most mercifully preserved, my

IMrROVEMENT.S

2j;3

reserved, mv

promotion very rapid; and I liave every reason to be
thankful to the (river of all good. I only wish I was
more deservini; of the blessinjxs and favours bestowed
on me.

' Deremher \sf. — Last night we had a gale of wiinl
whieh blew down several tents, and recalk'd, to t]\oi<c
who were hero last winter, recollections of the <Teat
fjale of November 14th. The rain beat furiouslv
iigainst my hut, but only penetrated slightly at one or
two places.

'To-day the camp is a sea of mud. I have notict'd
at several points that this mud only appears to lie
superficially, and that imderneath it there is a tolerably
hard surface of a kind of gravel, infinitely preferable to
the mud, though not exactly perfect. I am effecting a
variety of improvements; draining and paving; build-
ing a stone guard hut; and forming, with a woodrn
trough and a number of ship's tanks from Sebastopol,
a supplementary tank, where the men may fill the
water-bag carried by the mules with greater facility. I
am having a step made along the line of iron tanks, to
render the operation more easy, and am in hopes the
men will derive benefit from it during the Avinter. The
mud destroys the roads almost as fast as they are made.
Nothing seems to stand but large rough paving stones ;
the broken metal i«! (piickly transformed into mud.
Huts continue to arrive from Ealaclava, })ut very many
are yet required to complete the requisite nund)er.

'The Russians fire daily at the docks. The denioli-
tipn makes but slow progress, although the men work
(lay and night at it.

^-3a

2:>4

CANADA AM) THE CUIMEA

! .

! ■

*1 am l)nsy ^vttinjL;' live) stock and provisions for tlu'
Hoval Kiiiiineers' mess. We have many difficuUlcs in
our WMV, our snppers bein^" so complt-tely absorlx'd in
adniinisterinn' to tlie j^'cneral wants of tlie army— super-
intendini;' \V(»rkinL,f parties, giving;' dirrclions aliout
liuts, <Sn'. — tluit we very seldom can <;'et tlicni to attend
to our own wants. AVitli all this we enjcty the repu-
tation of being the best eared for officers in the
arm}'.

'."My coh)ur-serjeant (Falkner) ol)lained to-day his
appointment to the Land Transport Corps. Ife has been
upwju'ds of thirteen years in th'e service witliout a
sin<de crime on Ins defatdter's sheet. I feel a sincere
pleasure in seeing merit thus rewarded.

' ])('C. 3r(/, — on which the weather was a l)riglit
exception to that we had for some days, was marked
by a grand steeple-chase and a dinner. The steeple-
cdiase came off on some grounds not far from the
jvamiescli road. It attracted a very large nundjer ui
both French and Englisli oflficers, and was even graced
with the presence of ■Marshal Pelissier and (Jeneral
Codrington. The former came in his carriage-and-four,
attended by a large staff, and preceded by a Spain with
a turban, and wearing a pictures(iiie red cloak folded
round him, <»n which two decorations shone conspicu-
ously. iU>- duties consist in holding the JMarshafs
liorse when he dismounts, and in heralding, l)y his
singular and picturesque aspect, the approach of the
General-in-Chief to the army. I had not seen Pelissier
before, though just after the siege I bad imagined

..;A«.-irAL fBfflSSIER

355

sions for tlif
(liflicuUits in
y }il»s(irl)('il ill
fU'inv— supi'i-
)cti()iis al»ont
liciii to iittcucl
ijoy the rtpu-
fficcrs ill tlif

ed to-(l;iy liis

;. He lias been

ice ^vitllout a

feel u sinciTc

was a bright
;, was inarke(l
The steei)k-
far from the
re niunher ut
IS even graceil
and General
L-iage-and-foiir,
y a Spahi with
cloak fohh'd
one conspicu-
the ^Nrarshal's
aiding, hy his
)proach of tlu'
seen Pelissier
had iningiiu'l

Iliad at tbe jWalakhoft, and _ \<'i iiiin credit for per-
ibrming a feat of agility w' -li wlien I hehelil the
■(■al iiKUi, liecanu- ([iiile out of tlie ([neslidii. 1 had
heard that tin; .Marshal was fat, hut I was imj)re|»ar(d
for the !uar\«llously hroad tigui'e which |»n'><iit('d
itself to niy view, 'i'hc Mai>hal stood for the greater
portion of the day on the shpe of a hill overlooking
the races, lie, however, not (pute satisfied with thi-;
distant view, towards the close of the day drove down
to the brook, and stood up in his carriage to have a
good view of the Jmiip there. [ studied his (Nam-
tenance, and was struck by it. it is peculiar, l<ut full
of sense and energy. I lis head is large, and covere(l
with very shoi't and very whiti' bristles, which contrast
oddlv with a skin bronzed by the sun of Africa.

* Sir AVilliain Codrington, who rode on the ground
luiostentatiously on a small grey horse, with scarce
an attenihmt, chatted with the Marshal for several
minutes.

'After the first race, the winning jock (raj)t. YeKer-
ton, Iv.A. ) was led up to IVlissier by his own request,
and complimented very politely by him on his success.
The races on the whole went off admirably. There
was a great deal of good fencing, and a great deal ol" de-
termined j)luck. A heavy fall, which entailed a sevei'e
sliaking and an embrowned and bespattered visage, was
treated rather as a joke than otherwise, and the un-
horsed jock, gaily mounting his steed, went boldly at
the next jnmp. After two steeple-chases, at wliich
none but English officers rode, there was a French flat

i. i

'(.'

2.")fi

CANADA AND TIIK CniMKA

racp, (Hif of tlic most ridiculous cxliiljitinus ini:t<;iii;il>lc.
llorsn-riU'liii;' is ccrtMiiily not tlic forte of the Frctir-li,
;ni(l tlicii" notions of" '" Ic sjxirf"' nrc l>y no means iden-
tical witii our own. On tin's occasion, on little poniep.
witli their peculiarly-t'ashioiu'd nether vestments, in
sonu! cases witliout coats, and hrandishini^ laru,'c whips
(whicli were coni|)romises between riding; and wai^'^oners"
ones), they .Lfnlloped slowly alon;.% tlourishinpf, gesticu-
lating', and tali<iug to their horses.

*A (leneral was one of the jocks, and his admiriiiL!
friends ridin;^; by his side incited liini to fresh effort-;
)»y encouraginn^ cries of " Allez,, inoii Gfun'til,'' '■^ lirai'D,
nioii Genera f,''' c"(:c., ail of which produced increased
vociferations, and Avln*]) brandishing. It was difficult
to refrain from laui>"hter, thouijli of course <;ood taste
and politeness forbad it. However, I think the
Frencli w^ere themselves sensible that they had not
shoni' particularly, as a Colonel remarked in my hear-
ing, that it was not " una belle journee pour I'
France."

' One Frenchman alone contended in a steeple-cliase.
His name was Viscount Talon, well known in sportinu'
circles in England. Thongh very rich, he entered the
Chasseurs d'Africjue as a private soldier, and in fact
now is only a corporal. He w^as mounted on an iron
grey pony, and rode with great courage, but nnhappily
witli little success. At the first wall his horse fell, and
the two next horses all Init jumped upon l)oth steed
and rider as they lay sprawling on the ground. The
Viscoimt, despite this unpleasant conunencement.

niMNd wiTir Tin: 3i:n nivrsioN

857

inouiitcd, and rode on a;^',iiii likt> a man. and I iic-
licvc, at'trr onr or two nioi'c fnni)ilr», ^-ut inimd tin*
conrx', or as sonic sav, ai-ldcvcd that result williout

liirtlici' inisroitiUK'

\r three |»rMic'i|»;il raoes were won liv Mrfillerv

•fill.

officers, — ^'elverfoii, I>iddnl|tli, and I'at ('ain|»lii II.

* III flie e\-enin;4', Ni''liolson and myself went todinner
at file IJestanrant of tlie .*5rd Division. Ahoiif seventy
or ei'difv officers were iireseiit, and on(f civilian —
the TiiiK's' ('ori'esj)ondenf. The dinner passed olV veiy
Well, flioiiuli flic wines wei'e indifterenf. We liad
some capital siiiLjfinL;', und wound up the e\-enin'j; by ji
^'cuuine and liearty cliorus of d'cd N'V'v; f/if (Jiimi^
followed by three I'rifish cheers which made the weiki

rin)>- a2'ain.

^ Dec. 7fh. — Fine warm day, with rather a hi^ii wind.
Iiode round the works in fiie niorniiiLi" : L;roniid in u
most muddy stafe. Xicholsoii came up from Seliastop.d
in tlie affenioon. Jle gives a most favoura,l)Ie account
of the prooTcss of the demolition of the doek<. The
Kussians fire less than they did on the W(»rkinL;' partii's.
We are slowly geftinL;' fhe ground levelled for oiu' mess,
hut our men are so much occupicil in the ofhei- camps
that 1 fear some time iniist elajise ere we get oiii' mess
satisfactorily ,>tarted.

' 7>c. H/A. — A variable day, showery but mild. Ou a
reuimenfal court-martial in the morning: rode after-

Viscount Tiilon. iin another occa.^ion, Vdi

dr hi

s own li()rs(^

a|raiust tlu; best l''ii^lisli riders for a i^-rrat liiu'dU' race o))i'ii to all

nations, which ho won in yood stvU

■ EinTtjii

h ^

! i >

'; i

258

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

wards to inspect, at Col. CJordou's request, a dilapidated
powder magazine near New Kadikci ; found it, though
brimful of powdei', in a most ruined state, a l;u'ge hole
in one angle, no locks for tiie doors, the walls giving way
in various directions, and yet close to the main road
and to that drunken })andemonium called, variously,
New Kadikoi or Donnybrook, Dined early with Schaw,
and went in the evening with him to visit the school

established recently for the men. Found it was not a
school niglit, so returned to my hut, where I read out
some passages of Na}iier's animate»l and graphic des-
criptions of J^attles in the Peninsula, and afterwards
played a veiy tough game of chess with Schaw. Nights
fine, with "■ stars so l)ri*ditlv shininj;:, because they've
nothing else to do."' It is quite a r< iief to see the blue
sky again, though I fear we shall have but a glimpse
of it.

'Dec. 9tJi. — Wet in the morning, but fine and mild
in the afternoon. Attended service in our rude church,
composed of old marcpun^s and tents, stretched over
some rough scantling between two stables: and itself,
I believe, on week days, used as a stable for ciuiiels.
In the afternoon, when the weather cleared, I rode
"Zouave" to the KiMlan. The old siege works were very
muddy, anil partially dilapidated. The light was thrown
very beautifully on the formidable Eussian works; and
I do not recollect ever seeing the Malakhofif looking so
noble and inq)osing. Every end)rasure was distinctly
marked by its inangular dark patch of shadow. Nichol-
son was up during the morning from iSebastopol. He

THE LAND TRANSPORT CORPS

259

dilapidated
I it, tli()Hi,fh
I larL,'e liole
s giving \v.'iy
? main road
d, variously,
with Sc'liaw,
t tlie sc'liool
it was not a
•(' I read out
orapliic dt.'s-
d afterwards
haw. Nights
cause they've
) see the hhie
ut a glimpse

ine and mild
rude church,
tretched over
;: and itself,
for camels,
ired, I rode
rks were very
it was thrown
» works ; and
ff looking so
was distinctly
dow. Xiehul-
astopol. He

promises an ex])l(»si(ni in the dockyard in a w^eek or
ten (l;iys. Sir William Codi'ington called at the c;nu]>
in the eveniuLf to see Colonel (iordon. He said, he had
received no official intimation of the fall of Kars, and
that he was in hopes that it mi-rht have held out.
Kumours of its fall are, however, I believe, rife. — Time
will show. Night, starlight and ]deasant.

'Dec. lO/A.— A beautiful day. A light frost in the
morning — warm in tho ndddle of the day. Little
effect, how^ever, apparently produeed on the mud and
puddles. Sent my cart with servant on bat ]>'Miv to
Balaclava for sheep, Jtc. Atteiuh-d (rencral I']yi'e*s
levee at 11 a.m. He retjue.sted me to confer with the
head of the Land Transport Corps, attached to the .Srd
Division, with the view of ascertaining what assistance
I could afford him in rooting-in the stables. Cobtnel
Edwards, IHth Regiment, asked me to look at ono of
his large hospital huts, which had been much shaken
by a recent gale of wind. I complied with his recpicst,
and also went three times through the nuid to the Land
Transport Corps, without finding the Captain.

'I inspected the stables, however, in company of the
second in command. Walls had been built, and a
small portion of roof fixed, scantily: but nearly all the
animals (4(i() in number) were without cover. Planks
and nails were required. Some were supposed fo hn
Oil theli' 't''('i/ from England, but nothing positive hiul
been heard respecting them. The f.and Transport
Corps has b?en recently very much worked, and their
horse.5 and mules, parth^ from this cause, and parth',

s 2

|I !

i't

200

CANADA AND THE crjMEA

I cannot but tliink, from want of proper care and
attenti(»n, have suffered a p'eat deal.

' [t became manifest, tliat if tasked in tliis manner
mucli lonu^er they would eventually become ineffective,
and that the army would ajj^ain liave to contend with
the paralyzing' influence of deficient transport on the
resumption of liostilities in the spring. An order was
accordin^'ly issued to spare them as much as possible,
an(l fatigiie parties of several regiments are marched
down to l^alaclava daily to l)rini>- up their huts and
stores to the front. The march there and back cannot
be less than from twelve to fourteen miles. I was
much pleased at finding that the men performed it
with ease, ami plodded over the mudd}' roads with
their long ])oots, carrying for six or seven miles portions
of their huts, and occupying but a few hoars in the
task. I think that this marchinu' wdll be a u'reat benefit
to the army. The more exercise the men take, con-
sistent with health, the ])etter. I visited Denne at the
small-arm anuuunition Ijrigade, and lunched with him.
I also paid two visits to the magazine of the li'fr.
siege train, and rode round all my working parties.
Tilings are going on, on the whole, satisfactorily. 1
took a walk with Cooke in the eveninsf. Schaw and he
dined with Scratchley and myself, and afterwards came
over to my liut, where I read them a few chapters of
the immortal Pickwick. To l)ed about 11.30 r.M.

^ Dec. Wth. — Saw the chief of the Land Transport
Corps, and called on (leneral Eyre to report on his

uestiou. 1 had mentioned, at an interview^ on the

AN AFTERNOON IN THE DOCKS

261

r care and

previous day, tliat it might be dcsiraMe to establish a
saw-pit ill the diteh <>t' the Kedan, wliere the heavy
beams and timbers, which tixed and sup])orti'd \]\o
Eiissian bomb-proof barracks, might be sawn up into
portable planks and rafters. lie told me, to-day, he
had suggested that this sliould be done. I said l would
ride to Sebastopol, and tind out where wood could be
most easily in-ocured ; and left Iiim, after receiving his
thanks for my cigar, and majis. I rode straight to the
Eedan after our interview, and gro))ed into some of the
old casemates there. The beams and tind)ers seem so
securely fixed, that some difficulty wouhl ])e expe-
rienced in getting them out. I found, however, that
there were a good many rafters in the White ihiildings
apparently sufneient for the required ])urpose. After
this inspection I rode to the docks, where working
parties of both French and iMiglish were busily en-
gaged in sinking shafts and driving galleries, in spite of
very great difficulties, caused by springs breaking
through into the shafts and inundating the ga1lerit\'-.
I heard a poor soldier had been di-owued on the pre-
vious niuiit, bv fdling into a sliaft with six feet of
water in it. ,Men were engaged pum[)ing water out
sufficiently lov>' to admit of work being performed. I
^pent an interesting afternoon altogether in the docks.
It seems that our demolition will be nmi'e complete
than the Freueh. We have given ourselves miieh more
trouble than thev have.

'The svstem of demolition appears very siuiple: —
charges, proportioned to the lines of least resistance.

; I

262

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

pl;iC(Ml at intervals of twice its len^-tli Ijeliiiid the re-
tainiiiL!' walls. I lunched with two or throe officers of

gi(j-

the 18th, iu the hoiise formerly occupied \ty the Angl
French Com mission. P>om a small l)alcouy outside, I
was able with a telescope to scrutinize very minutely
the formidalile line of Kussian batteries which frown
grimly from the north shore. I was told not to expose
myself too conspicuously, or the Kussians would pro=
hably fire on the house, "vvhich was in easy ranire of
most of their batteries. They sent, in fact, shot and
shell every now and then, within a few feet of it, and
one of the latter most disao'reeable messengers had
alighted only a day or two before in the back yard.
I could S(>e Jxussian sentries most distinctl}', and even
the gunners loading and pointing their guns, The
Russians fire continually on the town and docks, every
now and then wounding a few men. No notice w^hat-
evei', however, is taken of their fire.

^ IJec. I'Mh. — A fine frosty morning. There had
lieen a dehige of rain the previous night, which did
some daiiiao-e, carrv'ni; away two strouu'ly-bmlt brido-cs
over a stream in one of the ravines. I walked out with
i^chaw a.nd Cooke to the J^astion du Mat, where wo
studied the Russian defences.

•• Behind the ]?astion du Mat are numerous batteries
and parap(^ts, and the ridge at the end of which it
stands is swept by the fire of an indented line of tlio
most formidable fianking batteries. We found some
French r(\giments hutted in patched-up little houses
just behind tlieir works. We returned l)y the Creek

LECTUKE ON THE f'RDIEA

263

batteiy, which had l)Cen a grc-it deal injured l)y tlie
flood, i^art of the phitl'onn, v.V:c'., havinj^ heeii swept
away; just outside was a pcrfeet little lake.

' At () r.M. I went to hear a lecture dcliven-d by the
Chaplain-General to the sappers, on tin; History ot" the
Crimea. l[e went back to the earliest i)eriod of history,
and described the country from those days to tlie present
time, as the theatre of perpetual warfare, and as con-
tinually inhabited by barbarous tribes, drivini^- one
another out in turn. People from Iferaclea in Asia
Minor crossed the Bhick Sea, and occupied tlu; very
heights on which we are now encam))ed, as far back as
800 B.C., and Mithridates l)uilt a wall to protect their
successors from the invasion of a wild tribe of the
northern steppes, who dashed in, in search of booty, as
soon as the |)rosi)erity and wealth of their mcjre peaceful
neighbours became temjjting.

'Tlie Crimea was at one time in the power of the
Romans; but they exercised but little control over so
distant a proviucf^. The Ivussians under Princt' N'ladi-
mir attacked the Crimea, and licsieged Sebastopol .-ibout
the third century. They took the place then by cutting
off the water of the town, after a siege of many nudiths'
duration. Vladimir was a very able as well as a very
earnest man. His mind was much discjuietc'd by
religious feeling, and he strove zealously to discover
which (.'f the various creeds professed by ditlerent
nations was the best. Whilst engaLCed in wai-like
operations in the Crimea, he ilespatclied ambassadors
to Constantinople, to make in<iuiries respecting the

I ' I

, \

i'.

264

CANADA AND THE CIUMEA

Christian faitli. Tlicv \\cv<' iiilrodiu'cd iii*"o tlic inao--
infic'L'iit church of St. Sophia, now the L;T('at temple of

ihonietanisni,

and were struck witli achniratioii,

pro])ably more witli tlie sph'iidour of the W(»rs]iip tliaii
by its spirit and njianini;'. Theii' report and the efforts
of a missionary converted \'ladiiiiii', who was l)a{)tize(l
lifter the capture of Sebastopol, it is supposed, on a spot
ch)se to the montii of the liarl)our. He did not ictain
possession of liis coiK^nest : a„nd notliiny," more was heard
or seen <»f the l^ussians in the Crimea till the time of
Catherine II. The lecture was, on tlie whole, vei
interestinu".

^ Dec. HUh. — Old Winter has us at 'enulh

;i Jus

clutches, and we bc-'in to see that we shall have to roU!J-!i
it a little in our wooch-n huts. For the last two morn-
ings, I liave had to break the ice in my bath before
washing ; my ink I was compelled t) thaw before I
could write my name to the INIorning State of the C(

)m-

pany ; an(

1 even now, at 11.1.3 a.:m., there i

s a coveruiLT

of half an inch oi" so of ice on some water at the further
end of till' room, which a]>pears to exhibit no C!)nvictinu
that the temperature in that locality has yet risen above

yet had no cold com[)arable to that

?^'2°.

We 1

lave as

of Canada, and I do not imagine that my experience of
severe weatlier will be nuich increased b}- a winter in
the Crimea. I have driven out at (^)uebec with the mer-
curv more than 40° l)elow freezing point. The m-eat
difference will of course consist between the dwellinu's
here, and in Canada. A wooden shed, with nothing but
a wood fire to warm it, is of course a j>-reat contrast to a

MAKING TiriNGS COIMFOUTABLE

205

solid stdiio liousc, with stovt's and tire [)!aces, douljlc
doors and douMo winilows. As ;i field ofticcr, liowcvcr,
my allowance (»t' fuel is la,ri,^o, and with the assistance of
wood brought tVdni St'liastopol iu my own cart, I dare
sav I shall do very well. We have coals, and eharcoal,
ulternately with wcmxI, issued as rations. I met to-day
French soldiei's earryinn' old ^^abions, and roui^'h j)ieces
of plank or timber. They are evidently rather hard
pressed to procure firewooil. The French soldiers do
not receivt^ half the attention ours do.

'All the Russian accounts f have seen of the opera-
tions of the war ari' much more true and rational
than the l)ond)astic descri2)tions in our newspapers.
They ticar, I think, witli a contempt, in a, certain
degree well merited, our magniticent achievement of
capturing- the little fort of Kinburn, with a naval ibrce
sufficient with a few discharges to blow it almost to
atoms.

'There are no anuisements here just novr ])ut read-
ing, and walking. I expect Sir William Fyi-e (the
General of my ])ivision) in a few minutes, to inspect
the huts of n~iy Company to-day. I have postponed the
dinner hour, that he may see the men at their meals. I
have been ena])led to make my fellows pretty conifort-
n,ble. With wood I have brought up in my ouii cart, I
have managed to lirie their huts, and have given direc-
tions for the construction of tables. I have also bought
each of them a tin plate for dinner ( /^r'/b/v; tiny had
nothing), and stone drinking uuigs. These comforts,
with sixty or seventy volumes td" light reading, and

!;»

266

CANADA AND THE CiaJIEA

tlu' prospect of a j^ood Christniiis diruuT, have, I tliink,
pnxliurd iu some measure the effect 1 desired, and
ma(h' my men mon; contented, and well behaved. If
you treat nu n like hrutcs, you cannot wonder at their
feclini,^ disn'usted with themselves, and l)ehavinL( so as
to justify the treatment they receive. I have one or
two "shocking bad characters" amonjjf my little party
of sixty, but I do not despair alto,L,'etlier of any one of
them. 3Iy Serjeants (one in particular) are very kind
to the men, and hold the same opinion that 1 do, that
persuasion is better than force.

' One of my corporals is now enga^'ed in cutting a
monument (entirely his own design) in stone, to the
memory of all the Sappers and Miners who have been
killed, or died during the war. It will be erected in
the Sap'pers' l^urial (Iround. The officers of the Engi-
neers out here have subscribed very liberally, in
conjunction with the Sappers, to erect a joint momi-
nient to the memory of all the officers and men of the
corps who have perished since the commencement of
the war to the fall of Sebastopol. A committee to
select the sculptor or architect, and choose the design,
has been appointed in London ; and I hope when I
retiu-n home (if it please God I should ever do so) to
see a worthy memorial to the gallant fellows wlio have
fallen out here.

* Dec. 2\sf. — We have had two or three davs of most
severe weather. On the lOtli the thermometer fell
below zero at day-break, and even in the hut where I
lodge, the mercury, though assisted by the warmtli of a

VERY ROUGH WKATKF.R

S67

ave olio or

wood fire, did not rise liii^dier tliau 13'' at (S a.m. TIic
wind blew witli penctriitiiig shuvpncss from the X.K.
The sky ^vas <^Yoy and gloomy, and the weather LTeiie-
raliy resembled that of a <lay in the midst of a Canadian
winter, when a storm is just abont to l)urst in fury over
tlie landseaj)e. In tlie afternoon, in spite of tlie eold, I
walked with Cooke, Schaw, and Seratchley to Sebastopol.
We met a lon<4' procession of French and Kni:;lish sol-
diers, many of them (poor fellows I ) looking" half frozen,
carrying" old beams and planks, windows, door frames,
and even staves of barrels for fuel. One poor little
Fr(ii((^uls had the end of his nose regularly frost-bitten,
and I had the satisfaction of restoring animation to it,
acc(n-(liug to the Canadian fashion, by the judicious
application of a snow-ball. The little man bore the
operation very quietly, though he confessed tliat hv, burnt
a little. We found Sebastopol much warmer than the
heights on which we were encamped. The water of the
harbour -^^as steamini>' like boilini>: water, as I have seen
that of the St. Lawrence on a very cold day. On our
way back, I fell in with a drunken soldier (^f the 18th
Kegiment, who, with the assistance of a corporal of the
14th, of the same name as myself, 1 secured, and finally
trettinsj: more aid, had taken to the i>uard-rooni. Several
men, it appears, have; recently been frozen to death by
lying down, when drunk, to sleep on the snow. The
sudden ciianu'ein the weather has caused much sufterinii'
in the army. One poor fellow, on sentry, had both liis
arms frozen, having, incautiously, mountf^d guard with-
out his mits. Tw(j men, even in one of <nir hospital-huts.

208

CANADA AND THE CKDLE.V

]);

waniii'd !>y ;i st«»V(.' in liic criidT, ;iu(l supposri) t" he
v<'ry t'iiiui"iiit;ilil(', wcrr actually tVost-liitteii : ami if is
said that, in oiu' way or dtlici'. almiit lOOO men iiavc
siif'fci'cd. ( )r(lr)'s have liccii issued for tli(> institution ot'
a, strict search after stra;4'i;'lers ami drunken men al»sent
from cvcnin!;' parade, with a view <d' dinunishinL;' the
chance (tf casualties from ex])osure.

^ J)<'c. '2'.)fil. — A thaw, and most lovely day. Attended
Church Service in tlie niorninii;, and walked in the atter-
noon with Cooke to Sebastopol, to see the ruins of tin.'
dock demolished hy tin; I^'n-ncli. The town and hai'liour
lookeil charnunLj in the hri-^ht sunshine. The demoli-
tion had succi'e(led veiy well. 1 <»nly ho{)0 oi'i's may
be ecpially siu-cessful. Xo stones flew more than about
100 yards, vertically : and the ])iers and walls contiguous
to the explosion were ([uite uninjured. The troops were
withdrawn early in the niornini;-, to Ix; out of the way,
in the event of the enemy's openins^' a lieavy fire. Had
another look at the Ivuskies with a telescope. There
were about twenty of them collected at (he water's e(lL;'(%
close to Vdvt Michael. They ha,ve liuiit a look-out po.sf
on the summit of one of their most elevated works.
Every time I look on the Northern forts they a[)pear
stroni^ei'. Theyseeni beautiful, — constructed and hnished
with sh.irpness and <lelicacy. The nii^ht is most lovely.
There is a <^-lorious full-moon shining now', and the sky
is studded with stars.

''Dec. 2()th. — Christmas-day has passed and gone in
the Crimea. It was a day without incident worth not-
ing. The weather was very fine and mild for the time

ll^:

CniasTMA.'>i I>AY

269

()

f \

(';ir,

. AttciitK'd

;i tlir attrr-
uius (if the

11(1 liMi'lidiir

'he (IciiKili-

ot'rs may

tliaii altniit

11(1 gone in

worth iiot-

or the time

We liad service in Hie iiiMniinu', .'hk

i r.

Ill

niipiiiiy with nearly all my lUMtliei- olhei r- m cami),
took tlie sacnuiieiit. The iiji'ii of my eoiii|iaiiy had ;i
jj-ood Christmas diinicr, of wliid

I a sinco

I had

IVell

tliem proveil one of the rhief iii^"redi(nt<. 'I'lay had
arrani^f'd, and e\-eii decorated a hut Ncry eoiiil'<»rtaI>!y,
and Were all seated toL''ethei" round llio Li-ood fare, spre.'ul
out on ii coiiph' of loll-;- tallies, when I |»aid my visit.
After wisliin!4' them a merry Ciirist mas, and iiKiuirinL;'
wlietlier tliey had a '^'owd <linmr, I drank their healths
in a glass of slierry. offered me on a glass plate l»y
tlie c'olour-serireant. One of the men then called

out

Tliree dieers tor ^Iaj<>r I\ai,ken,'" which was
Iieartily respondvd to, and in the midst of v.hich I
with(h'ew.

'In tlie afternoon T nceonipani''d Colonel Jient,
Ewart, Schaw, ('ooke, Scratchley. and (Jraham to
Inkermann. ^\'e \isit(>d the Kngineers' hnrial-ground
at the (dd right attack camp, and continued our walk to
the redoubts on the heights, oj)posite Inkermann. held
bv the French. The view of the town and harlmur of
►Sebastopol from the heights wc were on v.as v^ry fine.
Our position at Inkermann seems a naturally strong
one; ])Ut there were, I was surprised to find, very few
ji'uns mounted in anv of the redoubts we saw.

'Our Christmas dinner, the component ])a.rts of which
were furnished ])y various contributions, had well nigh

oved a failure. Fate seemed, in fact, to frown on our

efforts. A fat turkey, which we had permitted to in-
dulge our imaginations with the hope of de\uuii.ig, wa.s

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270

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

stolen on the 24th, and a hanncli of i^'oat, destiiKMl for
the other ''ji'^ice de ri'msiance,''' was likewise uncere-
moniously walked off with l)y some scoundrel on Clirist-
mas-day itself. When I returned from my walk ;i,t
3.30 P.M., I found little or no preparations had been
made. Cooks and servants were missing', or the worse
for liquor, and our prospects anything but cheeriiio-.
A goose and a shouhler of goat supplied tlie missing
dishes. I worked like a servant, and laid the table,
drew the wine-corks, &c., myself, till shortly after six
we had the unexpected satisfaction of hearing, spite
of all difficulties and disappointments, dinner was
read3\

' Our party was ten in number (Colonel Gordon,
Major Kwart, ]\Iajor (>ooke. Major Nicholson, (.'aptain
Schaw, Dr. Dowding, Lieutenant Graham, Goi-don,
Scratchley, and myself). Our dinner consisted of soup,
a goose, a shoulder of goat (nearly raw), a hain, a
tongue (bad), a ])reserved chicken (very seedy), and
plum pudding, gooseberry tart, and stewed apples. It
went off very well on the whole, and was kept up suc-
cessfully till between eleven and twelve o'clock.

* Bee. 2dth. — Cold day; rode in the afternoon with
Scratchley to the left of the Russian works, visiting the
(Quarantine Fort, and the French batteries erected in its
vicinity. It was the first time that I had been to see
this portion of the Russian lines. I was struck with the
crenated wall, evidently the commencement of a per-
manent chain of works lor the defence of the citv.

THE LAST DAY OF TKE OLD YEAR

!:i

'stincil for
id UTiccrc-
on Chri.Ht-
V wrilk <'i,t

had been
' the worse
b cliccrinL!,'.
\w missiiijjj

the table,
:ly after six
irinj;-, spite
iimier wis

el Gordon,

on, Captain

u, Gordon,

ted of soup,

a ham, a

eedy), and

apples. It

apt up sue-

)ck.

The Quarantine Fort is a lar<;-e, lon;^', and narrow work,
with broad ditches, strongly palisaded, and with revet-
ments of bricks formed of clav and straw, veiv neativ
built up, and combined with masonry walls. I^'ort Con-
stantine appeared quite close to us. The French bat-
teries are well-biiilt, and mount a number of '^nn^ and
some veiy heavy mortars, 1 tearing to all appearance
principally on Fort Constantine. The solidity and tinish
of the l\ussian works are as cons|)iciions and admirable
here as at all points of their wonderful lines. We
Tjassed throuuh the Cemeterv, the scene of a i^reat
struggle between the French and Kussians: the irrave-
stones were much injured, and the ground strewed with
broken stones: there I saw a marble monument to the
memory of ]Mrs. I'pton (wife of the English engineer
who constructed the Docks) and her two 5"oung children.
The inscription was in Englisli and Kussian.

*In the eveninii' I went to Ewart"s hut, to coiisidt
Avith him about ordering some wine, and on my ictuiii,
I read a novel called The Ileail of ihe Fainil;/, which I
liked on the whole; it is evidently written by a woman,
as the insight into female character is very (hn-p, and
the delineations are sometimes both delicate a)id beau-
tiful. How seldom one meets with the heroines of
novels in real life! those pure, loving women whom we
picture to ourselves in day dreams, and so ardently
wish to encounter.

'Lee. 'Slst, H.oOp.m. — Ten minutes or less ;nid 1<S.3.>
is over. I will not moralise on the subject, but express

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272 CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

51 hearty and fervent wisli tliat IH.jd may l»n)ve a ])ri;^'l\t
contrast to this hist eventful yeai". The Kn^>lish papers
tell us that Europe is balanced between peace and war.
A few days will decide the j;;-reat (piestion, and the
destinies of thousands, periiaps millions of human
})einu-s. What a state of anxious suspense ! '

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273

CHAPTER XV

THE NEW YEAR.

].i:

'/\UR mess is at length, spite of difficulties and
\J struggles, fairly started. I have almost the sole
direction of it, and go into " my kitchen " and confer
with my cook on the important subject of dinner re-
gularly every morning after breakfast. The difficulties
of house-keeping are somefhlnf/, wdien, as is often the
case, messengers are sent on vain expeditions for four-
teen miles or so, over the muddy roads, and return
almost empty-handed, — when a cart is two days and a
night bringing up some wine from Xazatch bay, — when
two journeys to Kamiesch are necessary to procure
a dozen scare-crow fowls (at the modest price of 4^.
M. each). I am expecting supplies from Baidar,
Sinope, Constantinople, and Malta.
' Being the fortunate possessor of a cart and mule of
I my own, I manage to accumulate, by a series of efft)rts,
ft a certain stock in hand, — a few sheep and goats, some
flour, potatoes, &c. ; so that I do not suffer under a

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274

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

daily pressure, and am I'rco to devote my jiowers to tlie
iiitiire. Had we to (le|>end on (lovernment sii]>[)lies, we
slioidd, even now, have salt [)ork and Ix'i-t" to live on
four d;iys out of the seven, and get bread only once or
twice a week.

'The poor French soldiers suffer a gi'eat (lc;il, tln^ugli
nothiny; is said of it. There is a vast coiitiast between
the conditions of the two armies. Our men l;it, healthy,
and both well and warndy ela.d and lod^'ed : the Fn-m h
pale, thin, and many of tlaim still under canvas. It is
sometimes melancholy to sec; the poor fellows lookiii;^
half starved, though still soldier-like and resolutf, hover-
ing about an English camp, in(|uiring anxiously if there
is any "^<6t*M<7" to be sold. They are too ])roud to
accept it as a gift. I do not think this suffering is uni-
versal through the whole French army; but I am sure a
great deal of real want ;uid sickness exists, perhaps n(>t
more than nught have been expected under the cir-
cumstances, l)ut still painful to C(mtrast with our own
prosperity and abundance.

' Last night, in company with a large gi'oup of
Engineer <jfficers, I witnessed some exj)losions in the
docks. The charges were fired by galvanic batt'ries,
and the result I miderstand is very satisfactory. It
was so dark that no one was able, at the time, to see its
effect. Our walk home through the liedan, and over
rough and difficult groimd, was rather hard work.

'January 6th. — No incident worth mentioning has
occurred within the last two or three days.

'V^^^'t

KAZ.VTCII BAY

275

'Oa January 4tli (my twonty-ciglitli birtliday) Harns-
ton (Hiit'd witli me.

' Yt'sterday I nnl' with Scratchlcy to Kazntch ])ay, to
visit a (U'taclinu'ut of mv (•()ini)aMv at work tlicn'. The
load to Kamic'sch was crowdL'd witli Froncli wa'^L^^ons laden
with liay, l)r('ad, ^.^c, and we eueouutert'd likewise large
parties of soldiers carryinL;' firewood, and strinL:> of mules
with chests containing boiled beef, swung over their
backs like panniers, — a French soldier here and there,
by way of making his animal more contented, sitting
complacently on its back, in the ct'utre of the said
<;hests, and seemingly well satisfied with his temporary
throne.

' Kazatch ])ay I liad not seen before. It is a small
liarbour. A miniature dockyard, and a few huts occu-
pied chiefly by marine guards, or used as stores or
offices, are the only buildings visible. Thei'e were two
floating batteries, looking like pictures of clumsy
solidity, in liarbour. These had arrived from Eng-
land subse(|uent to the bombardment of Kinburii.
My Sappers are engaged in making landing piers for
the navy, and in erecting huts. The wind rose and be-
came piercingly cold in the afternoon, and we were not
sorry to get to camp again.

* To-day, after church, I walked witli four or fivf>
others for a couple of hours. The whole country is
now covered with snow to the depth of a foot or mor<\
The sleiiihinu" would be excellent, were there sleighs to
drive. I think of fitting one up.

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CANADA AND THE CKIMEA

' J((u. [2th. — Two days a<;(» I rode with Scratclilcy to
Ka!iiar;i, to ])ay ^Nfoiitiij^uo and ICdwards a visit. I
ioiiiid the Sardinian army very snui^dy Initted ; tlitir
camps perfect models of neatness, and <(ood. Mai;y
French rcij^iments were still under canvas. JM-'nta^^ue
and Edwards had effected jj^reat im])roveinents in their
little settlement. Their " drawing room " was decorated
with green fir branches and si)rigs of misletoe ; the
initials V. U., with a scroll partially encircling them,
giving a loyal air to the apartment.

'On Tlinrsday I attended a meet, and rode across
country on my little mare INIargaret, in a grand paper
hunt. The ground was very heavy, and took it out of
the horses considerably. My nag carried me excellently
well, and took her jumps in a style that excited the
admiration of the field.

' Last night I ploughed my way, with the assistance
of a lantern and a very limited allowance of moon-
light, through the mud, to see the Amateur Theatricals
of the Fourth Division. The audience were smoking
vigorously when we arrived, though the premonitory
notes of the orchestra told us we were in timie. We
saw, and laughed heartily at, two capital farces, capi-
tally acted. The ladies' parts were wonderfully well
sustained. The fainting fits and " interesting agitation"
were perfect.

rat ell ley to
ii visit. 1
ted ; tlicir
i)(l. M:ii;y
JSr-^^'ntamie
its ill tlu'ir
H decorated
sletoe ; tlie
:'lin<j^ them,

rode across
;'raiid paper
ok it out of
J excellently
excited the

e assistance
e of moou-
Theatricals
re smoking'
premonitory
time, ^^c
arces, capi-
erfuUy well
g agitation"

AMATEUR THEATIJICAL^i

This was the play-hill : —

THEATRE ROYAL. — Fourth DmsioN,

This evening Her Majesty's sonants will perform

TO PARIS AND lUCK FOR £5.

Mr. Samuel Snozzle
Mr. Charles Markiiam
SpRiacjixs
Lieut. Spike, R.M.
Pounce, a detective ojicer
Fanny, niece to Sprigoins
.Joseph . . . .
Guard Superintendent .
Clerk of tue Teleorapii

Mr. Lacy, (i^ird Re<rinienl.
Capt. Nicholas, 4(>tlj Regt.
Dr. Howard, 2()tli Regt.
MR.IlARUiNaTON,RitlrP>ri;.M(le.
]Major Somerville, r.Sth Regt.
Mr. Hamoni), 4(5tli Rej>t.
Capt. Rlakeney, 4stli Reo-t.
Mr. LiaiiT, (58th Regt.
Major Womijwell, 4t>tii J{egt.

To bo followed by
BOX AND COX MARRIED AND SETTLED.

Box, a retired printer

Cox, a retired hatter

Mrs. Box

Mrs. Cox

Mrs. Bouncer .

Capt. Earle, 57th R<>pt.
Ma.ior Garrett, 4»5tli Re<rt.
Mr. Lac , (y-\ri{ Regt.
Mr. Saundi;rson, Osth Real.
Mr. IIamond, 40th Regt.

Stage-Manayer. — Major Lord A. G. Russell, Rifle Brigade.

Prompter. — ^Iajor Wombwell, 4GLh Regiment.

Scene-Painter. — Mr. Shaw, 21st Fusileers.

Doors open at half-past Six : performance to commence at Seven

precisely.

irs

CANAKA AM) Till: Clil.MF.A

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• Tiusc little ))r(.':il<s in the monotony of rrlnionii life
(!>» one i;i>(m1. 'riicrc ''Viis !i iMiiiiour, (•ri<^nniitii)^' iVnui
tlic FniH-li iie;i(l-(iuart<'rs ycstiTtlny, thai tlic liussi.m.s
iiitcii'lc'd uttackiiiir •mr position at tlavbrcak this morn-
ill<^ Tlicv have not done set liuwcvcr. Tlio liriirj; IVoiii
t!ie Noith >\\i>n' is nnich slacker than it fornioily was.

',hiii. IS/A. — On till! ]C)\]\ we entertained at dinnfi-
three Danish and three Spanish officers of engineers and
artillery. The ])arty nnnil)ered twenty-one altogether,
and passed of[' very well. The seni<jr officers of both
])artii's s.it on eitlier side of onr Colonel. The Spani.ird
was a rather formal individual, jxdite and prond, in facf
thoronghly Spanish. He spoke with a reseived for-
mality, intended doubtless for di«_aiitv, hut which tn
Englishmen, accustomed to an almost unreserved
freedom of intercourse between all ranks of gentlemen,
appeared rather an excess of stiffness. He was, however,
polite and gentlemanlike in his bearing, and seemed to
enjoy the; entertainment thoroughly in his own (jniet way.

'■ Of the other dons, one was a lively rattlinglittleCuban,
/( CaiiUnnic (V Ai'fiUcrie Villason,who smoked cigarettes
and conversed in sprightly manner; the other, quiet and
affable, always ready with a smile, and an expression of
assent or approval. The Danes were contrasts to these.
The chief (whom we nicknamed Canute) smoked 2)hilo-
sophically and spoke little. The others were fidl of
professions of i)leasure, Otc, and very anxious to obtain
information.

''Jan. 22 lid. — The rumours of peace which reached
the camp yesterday have received still further confirma-

PROSPKrT OF TFACE

279

tion. ('t»I. Frois^art, tlic rMiiim;ni(liiiLC ciii^iiifcr of tlir
Fn'iirh Jiriiiy, told Col. (r.tidoii that bo liinisclt' ii;ul
soen a (losj»;»tc]i adflrcssod t«» Marslml I'clissicr, statiiiu*
that I\iis<i;i h;i<l accepted the terms ottered by the Allies :
and be further said that be had Li,iven orders to press
forward the deiiiolitioii of the locks and wharves in
Sebastop(tl, as the operations iiiiubt at any inranent be
siispende(b These are rrrcwt and <4lorions news, if they
can be relied on. I most sincerely trust that better
and ])riL^diler times are about to dawn upon us. I
think the bard fijj^ht lias not been fouLcht in vain —
that we have tauf,dit Russia a lesson that she will not soon
for<:fct — thrown lier back fifty, perhaps a hun(b-ed, years
in her careijr of conquest, which slie so conveniently
styles her destiny.

' We an^ full of doubts and conjectures as to what
may be done next. Though Kn^^laiid may not quite
have fulfilled th(^ anticipation of that restless, (>xif/c(fi)f,
dissatisfied, and not over wise-portion of her citizens,
which mav be desinrnated the John Hull class of her
subjects, she occupies, nevertheless, a most imposing
attitude at the present moment. Thorougldy roused,
tlioroughly in earnest, straining every sinew of h(;r huge
frame; with trade and finances most flourishing: with
a navy and an army such as, perliaps, she never had
before; what, in human probability, would slie not be
able to accomplish ? It will, perhaps, be rather difficult
to appease, at once, the excitement, and repress the
appetite for war, conquests, and glory ; but she will
sliow her greatness and self-denial more by forbearing

980

CANADA AND THE ('IJIMKA

tliiiii l>y actin<(. I trust most fervently that, if Hiissiii
is really in earnest, and wislirs sineerely for peace, this
j,M-e;it blessing' may not he lost hy foolish clamour, <,n'fe(lv
arnhition, and restless dissatisfaction. If our pride has
been a little hund)led, we shall douhtless Ix; hcnetited
l)y it. Our overweening^' self-confidence often bordered
oil almost insolent arro;jfance. We have h;id our l('ss(»n :
as well as the Czar of all tlu' Kussias.

'•Jan. 24fh. — Last iUL,dit we had a party at mess,
eighteen in nund)er, includinn- (rent^ral Harnard, com-
manding Second Division, and formerly chief of th(?
staff, and General Crawfurd, comniandinir the Hri<^^,de
of (luards. The dinner passed off admirably. Tlie
Bill of Fare wius as follows :

rdl.L OF FAIIE.
lioj/al U/u/hicn-s' 3Iess, Camp near Schaatopol, Jan. 2'\i-(l, ]8.")«).

V' ■

].>■■

' V

1 ■

'■!;■ ■'

■

OTHI.KT SOUP PEA SOUP

EOAST (iOOSE

boar'8 hkad green peas haogis

uoiled leo of mutton
i'ork cutlets curry

roast loin of pork

STEWED sheep's HEAD GREEN PEAS

MINCED BEEF AND HAM
BEEF STEAK PIE

A SUCCEs».SFUL DINNEIl.

281

yncoNi) corusiE

AITLK I'll;
JKLLY HTF.WKI) Ari'Lllrt AND UICi;

VFUMIti;i,l,I l'LI"I)IN(i
RASPBERRY TAUT ROI.Y-I'OI.V ITDDINfi

APPLE PUFFS MACCARONI AM) CIIEKSF. (IIIIKKV TAUT

lUCE Pl'DlUNO

IN PEAS

' Genenil Cniwfunl took posessioii of a copy to send
home to his friends in Kny^land as a curiosity, and a
specimen of wliat the hardshi[)s (»f the Crinica were.
His aide-de-camp complimented me on the dinner, and
said that "our mess" beat tliat of tlie Grenadier (iuards
hoHow, thoui,di tliey spared no expense, and gave tlieir
cook 12/. a month. Our cook gets 7/. which one would
think finite sufficient for an ordinary mortal. J[e
deserves great credit for the manner in which, notwith-
standing drawbacks and deficiencies (such as the total
absence of eggs, fresh milk, c*v.c. ), he manages to put a
dinner on the table.

* General Barnard confirmed all the reports and state-
ments respecting the acceptance by Kussia of the terms
offered by the Allies. It is generally believed in tlie
army that peace is all but certain. I trust in God it
may prove true. It appears almost like a dream to
,hink that the great contest is really over, and tliat
before a few mouths have passed, we may find oiu'selves
at home again, or in some peaceful colonial garrison.

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2H2

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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Supposing even tliat tlie tidings are full}' confirmed, it
will take some months before this large army, with its
thousands of mules and horses, and innnense accumu-
lation of stores and materials can be removed. Tlie
(^uartcr-Master-General of the iirmy, I believe, expressed
his opinion that six months would be required. What
joy iuid gladness will be wafted to the anxious hearts of
friends and relatives all over England by these great
news ! I shall be truly rejoiced ; and, though I should
feel a great interc-^t in a campaign in the field, and
l)esides stand chance of furtlier promotion and distinction,
I cannot for a moment vvei<>-h these inducements with
the liorrors and misery of war. I have been behind
the scenes, and seen too much of the iStern renlity, to
be caufdit bv such sliadows. How delicflited I shall be
to feel I am once more at home ! I have had, of
course, many doubts and misgivings as to the chances of
my ever seeing any one I loved, or my country again.
T have seen so much of death in every shape, that I
began to look on my oami existence as hanging 1)y the
merest thread, which an}' accident, or apparent accident,
might sever.

' Death is spoken of with such indifference out here,
and ti'eated necessarily as such an ordinary every-day
event of war, that one loses in some measure the
horror one feels of it in peaceful times. I thought
the spectacle of a battle-field would be more dreadful
than it really was. I have found the sight of suffer-
ing far more distressing than that of doath, and, if
anything, more melancholy.

THE ATTITUDE OF ENGLAND

S83

' It is very natural tliat people in England should
desire a more brilliant series of successes — some of
those ra[>id and decisive strokes which decide the fate
of empires, and end a campaign and war at thi^ same
moment. As far as we have gone yet, however, I <lo
not think England has any great reason to l)e dis-
contented with the results of the war. We connneiiced
it disorganised and unprepared. We liave fissisted
materially, in the short space of two years, in crippling
our great adversary and bringing him to our feet. Tn
another year, should the war unhappily last, we may
look forward with some confidence to his complete
abasement and prostration. What more could wt> wish,
or expect ? I am fully con\inced that the wdiole of
this campaign will be regarded with very different eyes
by the next generation.

* Now the war seems virtually over. Peace is on
every one's lips — and though the military glory and
prestige of England might possibly be increased by
another campaign, and her sensitive spirit of honour
satisfied — the army generally, and I hope the majority
of thinking men in England, welcome the prospect
of a cessation of hostilities with real satisfaction.
The attitude of England, too, at the present moment,
could not well be more dignified and imposing than
it is. Our great floating batteries have not, as yet,
measured their strength against the enemy. We had
two of them out the other day, and there was a fine
opportunity for an experimental trial against the, as
yet, scatldess walls of Fort Constantine.

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2{»4

CANADA AND THE CKIMEA

' The Russians seem always to be on the qui vive.
They \v[itch all our movements with jealous vigilance,
and their guns and mortars continually send forth their
warning notes, reverberating through the wild ravines,
and even shaking the huts of our encampment. We
never reply. The fire does us little damage, and does
not impede our operations. The docks are totally
destroyed. I am at present superintending operations
for the demolition of the great barracks. They are
mined, and the charges would be ready to fire in two
or three days if the order was given so to do ; but
General Codrington is averse to these extreme mea-
sures ; and should negotiations take a favourable turn,
the order which would consign several ranges and
blocks of valuable and imposing buildings to destruc-
tion may never be given. Still we .are directed to have
everything prepared, and a large party of sappers and
infantry are daily at work. I am afraid that it would
be next to impossible to achieve any decisive success
against the tremendous lines of forts and batteries held
by the Russians on the north shore. Every hillock,
almost every slope, bristles with cannon. The gunners
are constantly on the alert. A broad, deep harbour
intervenes, and in a military point of view the Russian
position on the harbour is unassailable. Further on
along the line of the Mackenzie heights the prospect
cannot be said to be better. The heights themselves
present an almost insurmountable obstacle. They can
neither be assaulted in front nor turned. They can only
be taken in reverse ; and this cannot be done unless we

PRErAKING TO DESTROY WHITE BARRACKS

285

tment. We
e, and does

embark our army and land again at Eupatoria, or at
some point on the western coast of the Crimea.

* Februai'y \st. — I am very busily occupied just at
present. I hfive been ordered to prepare a project for
the immediate demolition of the huge white Russian
Barracks in Sebastopol (which figure so conspicuously
in every view of the city), and have actually already
commenced the destruction of a portion. General
Codrington has given orders for the southern range
(the roof and woodwork of which has been destroyed by
fire) to be blown up ; and I have had permission to
make a variety of experiments in mining and ])lasting
while effecting its demolition, and have had 12,()()() lbs.
of gunpowder and 120 sappers placed at my disposal.
The southern range is about 584 feet in Icm^-th, and
exactly corresponds in every respect with the northern.
It faces the interior of the Kedan, while the other looks
towards the harbour. There is a very long row of
buildings, occupying tlie western side of the great
square, which is also to be included in my project, and
a number of small buildings and offices, already mort;
or less injured in the centre. To-day I blew up about
100 feet of the southern building by blasting and min-
ing, using only 100 lbs. of powder. The demolition
was complete, not one stone being left on another.

' I feel interested in the work, though it gives me
some trouble, and necessitates an early breakfast and
a ride to Sebastopol, and back in all weathers. I send
in reports almost daily, for the information of the
General Commanding-in-Chief, who takes a great deal

28fi

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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of interest in explosions and demolitions, and was very
regular in his attendance to witness the destnietiou of
the d(jcks. It appears strange to go on with these-
hostile operations when the cry of peace has gone forth,
hut I quite approve of what is ))eing done towards such
a treacherous enemy as Ilussia.

* The Russians the other night, wdien it was almost
pitch dark, sent five or six boats towards the south
shore. These were perceived (it is said l)y the French),
and fired into. The Russians replied by one of tlie
most terrific cannonades I have ever seen from their
whole line of batteries on the north shore. Our troops
in Sebastopol all turned out under arms, but no attempt
was made to land. The cannonade was maintained fur
upwards of an hour w^ith the greatest fury. Its effect
from Cathcart's Hill was very fine ; the flashes lit up
the whole horizon, and there were sometimes five or six
shells in the air at the same time. I have not seen
such a fire, except at the great bombardments of the
siege, and even then, though maintained longer, were
scarcely of the same vehement character. The shot
and shell fell all over the town, but did very little
miscliief. Everyone is at a loss to account for this
vindictive and useless display at a time when the
whole world l)reathes peace.

* I was nearly all to-day in Sebastopol, and between
my duties there, and those as captain of a company and
treasurer and caterer of the mess, had not a minute to
myself all day long. We are waiting very anxiously
for news of peace or war : suspense is most paralysing.

OUR SHARE IN THE CAMPAIGN

•28:

*I do not admit, witli tlie very exl(jeant ])ritisli
public, that the Englisli army has not done its sliare in
the campaign. If it is expected tliat 4(),()()() im n
should do as much as I.jO.OOO, I admit it has not Ijih-u
done ; but if even much moi'e tiiau a fair proportion is
demanded, I tiiink that demand is satisfactorily imt.
We won tlie ])atties of Alma, and lukerman, or bore
nearly the whoh; brunt of both ; and hist winter, with
our miseralily reduced force, in spite of most teiritic
sufferings and wholesale mortabty, we lichl and main-
tained a very extensive and exposed positi(»u. Our
only check was the last assault on the Kcdiin — a
position which the J^ritish })ublic would probably ii;ive
carried, but which, in the opinion of experienced
military men, was almost unassailable. It seems to be
entirely forgotten, also, that the French took t'le
3Ialakhoff entirely by surprise, and that in all tli(;ir
other attacks by open force, even the one on a simple
curtain near the ^Nlalakhoff, they were completely
repulsed.

' I think it is a pity tliat such unfounded complaints
should be made ; though everyone concerned should
know Ikjw to appreciate the d!scriiiilit(Uiu(j praise o-
censure of John Bull.

'Tlie other day the French blew up Fort Nicholas
with about 120,000 lbs. of powder; the explosion was
magniticent, and the demolition most complete. 1 wit-
nessed it in company with Cols. Gordon, l\ose, iV.e.,
from the terrace in front of the " White IJuihlings."
General Froissart commanding the French " Corps do

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

Genio," was present also, and I was introduced to him,
subsecjuently, as the officer charjijed with tlie demolition
of the barracks. He is a very fine looking fellow ; he
commanded the French Plnfjineers at the sie<>:e of
Kome.

' Our weather, though variable, is mild on the whole :
and the winter here, if one were snug in a house, is a
great deal finer than the general winters of England.

' I have now two subalterns of Engineers employed
under me ; and expect that preparations will shortly bo
completed for the destruction of the whole barracks,
should a sudden order arrive directing us to do so.

' I think the war may be considered over ; the desire
for peace is too palpable, and too clearly shown by thr
French, and Austrians, to be mistaken. Wh atever we may
say, we must yield in some measure. I only trust that
the great vital points may not be lost sight of; if they
are gained I shall be glad of peace, notwithstanding all
our preparations for war, — for what is the object of wai-
but to establish and secure peace on a right basis ? Our
having built ships, cast guns, and called out soldiers, is
surely not a sufficient reason for deluging the world
with blood ! Let those who talk loudest come out and
see what they think of the real thing. Still I want no
hollow peace ; and I almost think another campaign
might obtain every result we long for, and perhaps be
of great advantage to Europe a hundred years hence.
It is generally thought out here that the game is up.

' The armistice is a bad thing ; we should insist most
peremptorily on its being of the shortest duration. If

THE WHITE BUILDINGS

289

the neiiiotiations fail, tliore is littlo doubt but tliat the
re-estal)lis}miont of our prestige in Asia by the recapture
of Kars will be one of our first acts.

'The country is ^vil(l, beautiful and interesting;", but
the climate I fear not over healthy. The present is a
most ;mxious crisis for all of us. What a nund)er of
fates h;nig on a tlu'ead !

' Fl'I). loth. — Since my last entry I have been en-
ijaijed in various duties, the chief beinLj the demolition
of portions of the White }]uildings or large Russian
barracks in Sebastopol, and I have made a variety of
experiments in blasting, mining, c^c, all of which have
as yet succeeded well enough.

^ Feb. I5lh. — On ^Monday I again returned to my
labours at the White Buildings; had an explosion in
the afternoon, at which a hirge number of French and
spectators were present. Tried the experiment of con-
necting the charges by powder hose under ground ;
it did not answer, and the whole explosion was a
failure, to my great mortification.

'On Tuesday, however, by an alteration in the
arrangement, I blew up and demolished great portion
of the wall experimented on.

' Wednesday I sjient up in camp, visiting the Laud
Transport Corps, and giving directions for the formation
of a f]-esh watering place;

'Feb. '22nd. — On a court-martial, on INTonday, Tues-
day, and Wednesday. Have been several times to
Sebastopol. The operations for the dcmoliti«jn of tlie
White Buildings progress rapidly. The northern range

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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lias ])een mined throughout, shafts having been sunk,
or chambers formed in the walls, according to circum-
stances, for the destruction of the whole buildinf%
vaults, partition walls, &c.

* We have had several days of most severe frost,
the thermometer at head-quarters near zero in the
morning, and a sharp piercing wind from the north.
To-day it is quite warm, and half a gale of wind bl()w-
ing from the south, making doors creak, and tents
flap.

* Our news from England are that the Peace Confer-
ence will assemble about the end of the month, and that
the armistice, when signed, will probably extend to the
31st of March.

* The French seem very sanguine respecting peace,
and it is even rumoured that the Emperors of Eiissia
and Austria will pay a visit to Paris, when the negotia-
tions have terminated : the former visit I should think
improbable.

* On Wednesday last, we entertained six sergeants of
Sappers who had obtained tlieir promotion into the
Land Transport Corps. My old Colour-Sergeant Falk-
ner was one of the party. The dinner passed off very
well, and the " cornets " seemed to enjoy themselves.
We sang a portion of God save the Queen, as a wind up
— no man recollected the whole.'

291

CHAPTER XVI.

THE LAST DEATH IN THE CRIMEA.

AN tlie 28th of February, less than a week after the
^ last entry in his Journal, the aceident which
deprived my brother of life took place.

The following is Sir William Codrington's dispatch
to Lord Panmure, giving official intelligence of his
death : —

' Sebastopol, Feb. 20th.
' My Lord,

' I regret extremely to have to inform your Lord-
ship of the death of Major Ranken, of the Royal
Enjjfineers.

' He had the superintendence of the operations
necessary for the destruction of the large White Ear-
racks, in the Karabelnaia, where part of the mines were
fired yesterday afternoon, but several of them did not
explode.

'Major Ranken, in the energetic performance of
his duty, seems to have proceeded to light the fuse
again in several places where the connexion had failed.
It appears the powder hose, as well as the fuse ignited,

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CANADA AND THE CltlMEA

tli(3 t'Xj»l(jsii.ri took plnrc, utid Ijuricd liiin under the
ruins of part of the wall.

' Kncrj^etit* efforts were made at once to discover
tlH> body, and tlie removal of tlie ruins l)ei;<'in and con-
tinued tlirou;;-liout tlie ni^lit. This morning the body
was found. Deatli nuist have beeu inmiediate ; and tluis
this excellent and jj^allant officer, who had done j^ood
duty in the siege, and at the assault of the Kedau, lost
his life from eagerness to complete the work entrusted

to him.

*I have, &c.,

' W. J. CODRINGTON,

* General Commandinf^
' The Lord Panrauro, &c.'

Colonel Gordon, of the Royal Engineers, (now
Colonel Gordon, C.B., Deputy Adjutant-General,)
wrote on the same day to a near connection of our
family, a letter, which, by his kind permission, I
insert.

li:^^-

li,*'

i!i.-'

Sir,

' Camp, Sevastopol, Feb. 29th, I80G.

'I presume that a telegraphic communication lias
reached you of the death of Major Kanken, Koyal En-
gineers. This very sad event occurred yesterday, the
28th instant, at about p.m.

' To him ^vas intrusted the demolition of the large
Naval Barracks, called the " WTiite Buildings."

* At about half-past 4 p.m. on the 28th, the mines
w^ere fired.

COLONEL GORDON S LETTER

203

I niidcr tlu-

ite : and thus

* Several of tlie mines in one buildinjx liaviiiLr
missed fire, Major I\anken made fri-sli iirran^'cmenls
for firing' them, — lie himself takinj,' up a position in the
interior of tlie buihlinj,', to fire one set of mines.

*I was on the outsich* of tlie hnihling, close to liim.
With a lig'ht in his hand, he ealled to the men to run
away as fast as possible, for there was oidy a minute
for them to escape. He stooped down, and lighted the
train. T supposed tliat he had attached to the focus of
the powder hoses a length of I'ickford's fuso of a) tout
a yard, which is calculated to burn for al)out Ji minute,
the time ho allowed himself for escape out of the
buildinir.

' But no sooner had he applied liis light than (froni
what cause I know not) I saw the running fire and
smoke of the ignited hose.

* The crash and fall of the walls and roof followed
almost immediately. 3Ien crept wherever they could
into the ruins to listen for sounds of life, but alas !
none were heard. A working party was immediately
put on, and search w^as continued by reliefs of men
durin<j: the w^hole night, until about eight o'clock this
morning, when his body was found. His death must
have been instantaneous.

'This very melancholy event, coming at a time
when we were all so well, and had been so long without
a casualty, has cast a gloom over us that I can compare
to no other but that which followed the announcement
of poor Leving's death in Bulgaria. As then, so now,
there are not the distractions of war to witlidraw our

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CANADA AM) THE CltlMKA

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lhoui,']its from hroodiii*,' over siicli ;», sudden fuid ;i\vful
lesson of'tlie imeert!iint_v (»f"limii;m life.

' IvMiikeii liiid ese.'iped the perils of tlie sicj^c. On
the ineniondtle Htli of Sej)teiiilier, liy liis cool coiiraj^'e
Mild intrepid ze;d, Ik won u iinnie f(»r liiniself in tin's
;irniy, miuI <>n that day too, he, hy his i^-jdlaiit hearinus
coiitrihuted to raise the reputation of that eorps which
now laments over the untimely death of one of the l)L'st
and the bravest.

'The sorrow that is felt in this eamp has spread far
and wide to other camjis, tor he was ij^reatly esteemed,
and especially in his own (the '5rd) Division.

'General Sir William Kyn^, commandiuL,' that
Division, and many ofTieers of distinction, will attend
the funeral to-morrow. We will hury him side by side
with those wlio have <;one before him. The burial
place is on tlie left bank of the ravine, at tlu^ bottom <jf
which is CareeninL!; Hay, and its tup the Windmill. The
spot is not (pute 400 yards below the mill, and a little
below the Engineers' cMicampment, Ivight Attack. His
brother oflficers would have iTected a stone to his memorv,
but I know that this will be done i)y the non-commis-
sioned officers and men of his company ; and nnich as
we desire to do him honour, wx» will give way to the
men.

* A good, a kind, and a just officer ho was, and
greatly w^as he beloved by them. INIany years his senior,
I cannot boast of having been amoncfst his most inti-
mate friends ; but for some time j^ast I have been his
immediate Commanding Officer, and I hope, his friend,

COLONKL (.oKDonV I.KTTKR

2!>rj

•11 juid jiwfiil

mid r (•;iTi truly s.'iy from mvHrlf aiid nil my ])n)tlu'r
officers, tlutt In; left hclilnd liim ;i iiniiu' tlmt will loii<4
1)L' rciricmlK'nd, and will never l»e mentioned Imf with
honour.

*Jfe liad i^rf'at attainments, threat zeal, and lie was
an officer of ajuiroveil coiira^^-; kind and clieerfnl, lie
endeared himself to all. Uespected and a.dnnre(l lor
his Ixiievoleiice, and for his tridv Christian cmidnct ;
his ])rother officers hav«' a llrm liojte that he has been
found worthy of the heavenly inheritance.

*This will liL,diten our j^rief, and may (Ictd, in his
ause it to lirini,' consolation to you, and t(» all

mercv,

vvlio mourn so arc

!it a 1

OSS.

' Yours very truly,

*.I. W. (JoKnoN,
^Capt. Ivoyal Knginocrs, and Cohjiicl.
' Licut.-Col. At^kwith, 11. A.'

My l)rother was huried on Smulay, ]\Iarcli the 2nd.
A correspondeut of the J)<ii/i/ X<'.ii\^ descri])es his
funeral, and the generous sympathy exhibited by his
brother officers.

' Sebastnpol, ^hm.-h 4lli.

* The funeral of tlie late Major Kanken, K.K., was,
on account of the weather, postponed from Saturday to
Sunday afternoon at two o'cU)ck. He was buried at tlie
Eiglit Attack burial-ground of the Engineers, near the
famous milk Round this piece of ground a stone wall
has been built, and wdthin tlie euclo.sure eleven (officers

,1.

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

of Engineers are buried, viz., Colonel Alexander ; Cap-
tains Craigie, King, Crofton, Jesse, Dawson ; liieiiteu-
ants JNIurray, Bainbrigge, Lowry, Carter, and (Iraves ;
besides three Artillery officers, viz., Captain Gordon
and Lieutenants jNIitchi'll and Luce. A tombstone has
been erected to the memory of Captain higlis, R.E.,
who was drowned in the Prince on the 14th of No-
vember, 1854. In addition to these officers, all the
Sappers wdio were killed in the Right Attack, or died in
the Eight Attack camp up to the commenci'ment of last
August, have been likewise buried here, and a very
handsome stone monuiment has been placed by their
comrades to their memory. At the funeral, which was
one of the largest in the Crimea, most of the officers
following rode ; this w'as necessary on account of the
distance and the nuid. The body was carried on a gun-
carriage, preceded by a firing party of the 8ap)K>ys, and
four bands of the 3rd Division, being followed by
Colonel Gordon and his brother officers, Colonel Lloyd
and staff, a large number of Artillery and Infantry
officers, and lastly, by his General, Sir William Eyre
and staff. ]\[ajor Ivanken was attached as engineer to
the 3rd Division, although he was temporaril}- employed
in destroying the \Miite Buildings, where he met his
death in so melancholy a manner.'

jNIany were the high eulogiums that sul)sequently
appeared in^ various Newspapers, from amongst which
I select the following from the MonuiKj Fust and
the Times.

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EXTRACTS FROM ^'EWSPA^ERS

29:

The ]\[nrning Post.
' The late MAJOR GEORGE RANKEN, R.E.

'Two (lays ago our oMtiiiiiy contained tlii.s notice —
'•'On the 28th ult., killed at Sebastopol, by an accidental
explosion, Major George Kanken, Royal Engineers,
aged 27, deeply lamented." ]Major Kanken, a few
months ago, volunteered for service in the Crimea, and
had the good fortune to escape without injury from the
attack ujDon the Kedau, in whicli he led the party en-
trusted with the carrying of the scaling-ladders. When
he arrived in the Crimea, he held merely tlie rank of
Lieutenant, but having succeeded to a company by a
death vacancy, his galhnit conduct, in leading the
storming party in the memorable attack which we have
mentioned, led to his promotion to the rank of ^lajor
" for distingidshed services in the field." The honour
which he thus nobly won, it has not been permitted
him, by the decrees of an all-wise Providence, long to
enjoy. His death will be lamented by the distinguished
corps of which he was an ornament — ^l^y his friends,
who can only be sustained under their unexpected and
melancholy bereavement by the knowledge, that every
grace which elevates and dignifies the Christian charac-
ter were united in this gaUaut and accomplished gentle-
man. ^Nlajor Ranken served for several years in
Canada, and Avhen, in the autunm of 18o4, the cholera
broke out in that province, at his own expense he

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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printed and circulated the instructions that had been
issued by the Board of Health in this country, in the
hope of staying the ravages of that fearful pestilence.
In no place more than in Canada will his loss be de-
plored, where his virtues and his amiability will long be
held in remembrance. On his return to this country
he was detached to inspect the fortifications in Scot-
land, but not desiring to enjoy that ease to which his
colonial service entitled him, he volunteered for the
Crimea, where he arrived in time to participate in the
glories of that army which he loved so well, and to find
a premature grave. He took a lively interest in all
matters connected with his profession, and these columns
have been the means of conveying to the public many
valuable suggestions from his pen calculated to promote
the efficiency of the army. He has met a soldier's
death — not by the hands of the enemy, but by an un-
foreseen and melancholy accident ; but his name will
long be affectionately remembered by his friends, by
his companions in arms, and, we would fain hope, by a
grateful country.'

I' i

The Times, Fridaij, March ^\st, 185G.

' It is with the sincerest regret that I record the death
of a most amiable young man and gallant officer —
Major George Ranken, of the Koyal Engineers, who v/as
killed in the zealous discharge of his duty at the explosion
of the Wliite Buildings on Thursda}'- evening last. The ac-
cident occurred at the south-western corner of the edifice.

II : i

THE TOIES' ' SPECIAL CORrESrONDENT '

299

and h;is Leen related to me as follows : — A mine havin-j:
failed to explode, and some minutes having elapsed,
Major Ranken sent his men to a distance, and himself
entered the place to renew the train, scatterinj^ loose
powder over it. P'rom the position in wdiieh his corpse
was found, it is supposed tliat he had completed his
perilous task, and was ahout getting through a window,
when the explosion tok place, and the building fell in.
His arm was broken, and there were injuries to the
skull and spine, Avhich must have occasioned instant
death. Army Works Corps men dug f(n' his Ijody until mid-
night on Thursday ; they were then relieved by Sappers.
The b(jdy was not extricated imtil past eight o'clock
on Friday morning. The unfortunate officer was buried
yesterday, with military honours, a,t the Engineers' Ceme-
tery, Left Attack. He was followed to the grave by
General Eyre, commanding the Third Division ; h\
Colonel Lloyd, commanding the Royal Engineers ; and
by a large niunlier of officers of his own corps and of
other arms. INLajor Ranken, as you will doubtless re-
member, commanded the ladder party in the attack on
the Redan. He was a most promising officer, a great
favourite with his comrades, and his loss is deplored by
all who knew him. It was hard to have escaped the
murderous fire of the 8th of Se2:»tember only to die,
less than six months later, crushed beneath a shattered
wall. If peace be now definitely made, Major Ranken
will, perhaps, have the melancholy distinction of being
the last Englishman killed in the Crimea. The last
Frenchman killed here, up to this date, fell in a duel.

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

Two French officers, who have gone through the whole
war unwounded, ({iiarrelled the other day and f(.)nght
with sabres ; one was killed, and the other was so badly
hurt that he is not expected to live.'

These extracts will suffice to show the deptli and
universality of the regret and grief felt by those ac-
([uainted with his noble character and actions, and
such, with very numerous private letters, bear precious
testimony to his worth and good deeds.

The commencement of the Journals (from which I
liave extracted must of Avliat is contained in this
volume) date from February, 1853. Written b}' my
brother exclusively for his o\vn inspection, they contain
many touching reflections on the existence of imperfec-
tions in his disposition (known frequently only to him-
self) ; many earnest \vishes for growth in grace : many
unselfish projects of future usefulness, and many self-
rejjroaches on account of neglected opportunities. They
exhibit the workings of a mind singularly devoid of
self-interested motives, full of humility, generosity,
sincerity, and truth. I shrink from dilating in any
degree on matters of a private personal character, such
as are many Avhich with a most sad pleasure I have
read, and which in my opinion should never be made
known but to most dear and intimate friends, to those
who in life w^ere especially beloved and confided in.

Without any departure from such a rule, there are,
I find, some observations written in the months of
February and April, 1855, which 1 shall insert liere, as
giving probably a better idea of my brother's character

REFLECTIONS ON AVAR

301

and feelings than any feeble tlescription of my own
would succeed in doinfj:. Tliev are these —

' How great are the horrors of war, and what an
anomaly and paradox it is I — affording an outlet for
the worst and most degrading passions which curse
human nature, and at the same time for the display of
the greatest and noblest qualities which dignify and
adorn the jiosition of man on earth.

' Still, taking it all in all, what a mighty curse it is !
David preferred Pestilence to War, saying that he would
rather fall into the hands of God than into the hanus
of man.

' Those who fall on the field of battle are perhaps
the happiest of war's victims — happier, one would
almost think, than the poor wretches who, struck down,
or blighted in the prime of youth, drag out a wretched
existence with mutilated })odies, and shattered constitu-
tions — happier far than those loved ones who mourn,
and will not be comforted, for whom the future is a
dismal blank, through which they may, by the grace of
Grod, be permitted to see the cheering star of religion,
but which they hail only as the presage of immortality,
and the escape from the burden of life.

' What is my own position now, and how is it affected
by the war? I am an officer in the army, liable to be
called upon at any time to expose my life, and devote
all the energy and ability I possess to the service of ni}-
country ; God grant that I may do so readily and cheer-
fully. Still, admitting this stern necessity, how are my
prospects of happiness affected by its very existence V

302

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

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I can scarcely for a moment feel composed or tranquil
in mind, for my thoughts are ah'jays with the army.

' I feel it would be almost unworthy to enjoy life in
the midst of its sufferings; my mind would he rather
quieted by sharing them, great and appalling though
they be. Then w*hat are the chances of war ? Wliat
are my prospects if I do go out ? Death, mutilation,
disease : and the reward for all or any of these a fleet-
ing glory, and the sense that I have been struck down,
or sacrificed in the path of duty or honour.

' These are times in which every man has to bear his
burden. God grant that Englishmen may so bear
theirs as to shed a lustre over their country, and to
increase the respect of nations for right and justice.

* The question which, in my opinion, w^e should all
ask ourselves is, " What good can I do in this world be-
fore I go hence, and am numbered with the things that
were?" What I wish is to be filled with a fine
enthusiasm, an onward pressing feel'ag which will bear
me up and carry me tlirough difficulties, danger, and
opposition — an enthusiasm for whatever is right, noble,
lovely, and of good report. I should wish to be filled
to overflowing with an intense sympathy for all that is
suffering, oppressed, bowed down, isolated, stricken, and
comfortless ; a yearning and a longing to bind up the
wounds of the broken-hearted— to pour comfort into
the breast of the comfortless — to remove the heavy bur-
then from the shoulders of those who strive honestly
and nobly — to whisper encouragement into the heart
that desponds. And I should \.i^ii. no less to drink in

WANT OF SYMPATHY

303

and enjoy to the uttermost the beauty of all things in
nature and in art — to read their meanings, and to com-
prehend the eloquence of their silent Ian<^ua*fe — to
possess a soul unfettered and uncramped, free to tliink,
feel, and love ; to feel that I liad a spirit within me
fresh as it were from the hand of the Great Creator. I
should wish, too, for the greatness of mind which would
recognise merit wherever I met with it, and do all
honour to it even when it might he despised by all else.
I should wish also, if it were possible, to pass through
life without sneering at, or ridiculing anything, or to
ridicule only in the sense of wholesome sarcasm or plea-
sant banter.

* There appears to me to be a dreadful, stiff, stereo-
typed monotony among men ; somehow or other they
never unburthen themselves to one another freely and
fully. There is always an inner consciousness which
but too frequently belies the outward word and action ;
there is a want of sympathy between soul and soul.
For instance, people talk of what they neither think,
feel, nor care about, except perhaps transiently, and
each knows that the other mind is occupied with
thoughts at variance with the common-places, the fri-
volities, or the measured formalities which he (^r she
may be uttering. This of course is not always so, but it
occurs too often, and tends to kill, strangle, and sup-
press much that is good, noble, and true in us. J^ulwer
says, and I fear too justly, that the souls of few are
known even to their most intimate friends — that if a

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CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

man tried to express wliat was in him, and to awaken
sympathy for his tlioughts and feelings even in the
breast of those who h)ved liini most, he wonld l)e mis-
understood and considered tedious ; he would fail to
obtain what he sougiit, and shrink back into himself

again.

I.) i

' How strange this is ! It seems as thougli the soul
could hold intimate communion with none hut God
alone. God has that insight into us which man cannot
have, and God loves us all witli an infinite love, and
sympathizes with us with an infinite sympathy. If we
cannot — and we certainly cannot — meet with what we
seek for from men, we draw nearer to God, and give
Him our whole heart with all its imperfections, and its
unanalvzed chaos of thought and feeling.'

In the beginning of the year 1855, I find the fol-
lowing, on the position of many unmarried women in
England : —

' Though women seem to live at ease, theirs is too
often a life of very painful dependance. "We do not
sufficiently appreciate the merit of many of them in
keeping " the straight path," when they yearn for sym-
pathy, and meet with nothing but indifference and
contempt f'om the hard, cold, selfish world. Religion
can be their only consolation under all these evils, and
happily a woman's mind is so constituted that she turns
to religion more naturally and readily than a man. She
accepts its doctrines with simplicity, and unquestioning
confidence. It never occurs to her to arrjue the
matter. She finds that which fills her wounded spirit

'i: I

BRITISH AMERICAN LEGION

805

to overflowing — perfect love, perfect sympathy, per-
fect {ijoodaess. She asks no more. AVhat a blessiufj
religion proves when thus received I

* A man's pride and self-sufficiency ; tlie impurity of
his mind, produced by the rough jostling with im-
purity and crime he is exposed to in his progress through
life, his natural desire for reasons and proofs of what
he hears ; his distrust of other men, from his painful
experience of the internal governing principle of intense
selfishness which actuates them in their every-day
dealings with one another, all combine to form l)arriers
in his mind against the holy light and blessed influence
of religion.'

In the same year he wrote thus to a friend in Canada,
suirefesting the enrolment of a I^rit" 'h American lecjion
to assist their countrymen in the East. Some of his
remarks are singularly appropriate just now :

' I hope that Canada will raise three or four Pnjvincial
regiments, and put herself in a position to bid doHance
to Yankee filibustering. She would feel her own self-
respect increased by being self-dependant and self-
reliant, and her people would be prouder of her and
be n:^re pleased to be called her citizens. Canada has
given so many proofs of her loyalty, and attachment to
the British Crown, that it is unfair to her to suppose
that she would be unwillinof to make some sacrifice at
the present crisis, and that she would not rej(jice to aid
the gallant old mother country in the hour of need.
But any movement on her part towards sending us the
slightest assistance in the shape of men would l)e hailed

306

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

i!i

iil

li '

?,«

with the utmost enthiisiiism in Kunlaiul; would demon-
strate even more proudly than her princely generosity, as
shewn in the grant of 2(),()()()/. to the Patriotic Fund,
the loyalty of the Province, and would serve to knit
still more closely tlie bonds which unite true English
hands and hearts thronghout the whole world.

* Canachi, in my opinion, promises to he one of the
greatest nations on the earth. The heterogeneous
materials which compose the Government of the
United States are hable at every moment to disloca-
tion ; tlie Union is divided by contending factions,
which, Hydra like, start into existence and power on
the rnins of their precursors. \Vh;it a powerful body
the " Know Nothings " have become I and what a
baneful influence they exercise over the acts both of the
government and the country! They liave already
driven many excellent citizens to re-emigrate and to re-
turn to their native hmd. In Canada none of these
evils exist. The government is paternal, and fosters
and cherishes all classes alike; such, at le;ist, is its
spirit and such are its principles, though it may, and
does sometimes deviate from them in action ; but never
to an extent which might cause anarchy, or be productive
of evil to the country at large. The only fault of
Canada is that she scarcely appreciates as she should
her great advantages, and her noble future.'

307

APPENDIX

THE following Letters, which are amonnrst my hi-otlu'i's
many comnuinications to the Press, l)uth in Canada and
Englaiul, (generally under the signature ol" Delta,) treat of
suljjects of so much pu1)lic interest that 1 need no excuse for

inserting them.

' To the Editor of the Quebec Morning Chronicle.

EMIGKANTS.
' Sir,

' It strikes rac as a somewhat peculiar circumstance,
that there should ha no society in Quebec Jbr the specilic })ur-
pose of affording relief to distressed emigrants on their arrival
in this country. The amount of misery and destitution Avhicli
passes annually through this city is enormous. It surely has
a claim on our sympathies, and on our assistance, and we
cannot relieve ourselves entirely oi" the responsibility of afford-
ing such "help in time of need,*' l)ecause those who require
it do not come to settle here. It is sufUeient for us that they
are ignorant and want counsel, that they are destitute, and in
suffering, and want sympathy and assistance. I have authority
for stating that there is great misery and most severe distress
prevailing among many of the poor emigrants who pass

X 2

308

CANADA AND TUE CRIMEA

■f

■i i

throiigli tliis city. What drove, tlicin IVoiu their own dear
native land but misery or lliniine utarinjr tlii'in gauntly in tlie
face ? They cotne out many of tlieni in ahnost utter ijriiorance
of the country (I will not say this is invariably the ease, but it
is olk'U so). They imairine it a land of hope and promise, and
they build golden dreams of I'uture success and prosperity, and
thou^.di they are not wholly mistaken, they little know the
diflicullies that are before them, or the labours and trials tliey
must undergo l)el'ore tlnir hopes are realised. Those who
emigi'ate, too, are often biirtheiied with large families; there
are lew in this city who have not seen thcan c Elected in groups
on the wharves ])revious to their embarkation on the steamer
whit'h is to tak(! them the first stage of the journey, or huddled
together near her bows mure like pigs or sheej) than human
beings. The spectacle is surely both an interesting and aifecting
one. It is a living roproadi to us, to a large eomnumity of Chris-
tians — many sjieaking the same language :and coming Irom the
same land — that this distress should pass hy comparatively un-
noticed and unheeded. We should always recollect that a little
assistance, at the outset of a man's career, is often infinitely
more valuable than great assistance at a subsecjuent period.

' The imrelieved misery which exists under their very
eyes is a great and terrible rejiroach to those who live at ease
ami indifferent to the lot of others, and it will rise hereafter
as a terrible witness against many a man and woman.

' Nearly all the crime and misery which exists among the
poorer classes of mankind exists from want of sympathy, from
the indifference of those who, receiving their being fiom
the same God, appropriate with heartless selfishness the bles-
sings which accomjjany it to themselves, and close their hearts
against the wants and suffering Avhich keep from companion-
ship with the existence of their miserable brethren. How
nnich might all of us do ! How little do any of us jjcrform !
and yet our duty to our neighbour is to love him as ourselves.
We may remember, not inappropriately, that the charitable
otHces of the good Samaritan were performed to a traveller.

AlTEXniX

809

* I tliiiik tho question luis only to ho fiiirly stated to Ik-

ngrecd to, and uctt'd on. TIktc aro tt-w I hclicvc' in this (.-ity

ulu) would nt>t citntriliiitc towards so ^ood a work. The

wliol(M\ inter is before tla-ni, tlu! season ol' charity, love, and

good-will towards men. Let them avail themselves, when

spring returns, to welcome, cheer, and assist some of the poor

outcasts and exiles whom necessity hiiA driven to a strange

land.

' 1 remain, »X:c.'

' To the Editor of the Quebec Mi>rniiiij C/ir!»tii:le.

* 8ll!,

' "Would you permit nu! through the niedimn of your
columns to oiler the following suggestion to the consideration
of yoiu" readers with resj)ect to provision for the reception and
relief of sick or destitute emigrants. The i)r(;sence of this
class in the crowded, hot, and dirty streets of the lower town,
at this season of the year, is justly regarded as most objection-
able in every way, and yet the (pieslion naturally occurs, what
is to become of the poor creatures.' They must go somewhere.
They are possibly too unwell, or too weak to continue their
journey immediately; they want lot ul, rest, or money; l;)Ut
they find no door open to them but those of low beer shojjs, or
dirty .stifling dwellings, where it is marvellous that human
beings contrive to live at all. I would ventiu'c to suggest that
a great relief would be allbrded to the city, and the ends of
humanity ellectively promoted, by the establishment of one,
or more, large emigrant hulks for the reception of all emigi-ants
who it might be clearly ascertained were incapable of continu-
ing their journey. These reception ships might be under the
control of government, or of a private society supported ])y
voluntary contribution. However, it would be clearly the
duty of government, Avitli the large surplus fund at their dis-
posal, to assist and support to the uttermost any private enter-
prise undertaken for so laudable an object. I merely throw
out this suggestion for consideration, as its practicability and

.310

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

1 V

iulvantngcs apjiear oljvious; and tlioii,2;li scliemcs, in every
rcspt'Ct prcfcrahle, may ])r("-.i'ut tlicmsclves to others, yet 1
l)elieve that it is desiral)le that siiL-'gestious wliich appear ])rac-
ticabi;* should be made the object of discussion and compari-
s(jn, and it is Avith tliis conviction .iiat [ have achh'cssed
myself to the public through the medium of your columns.
' I am, Sir,

' Your obedient Servant,

' DELTA.

' (imhiv, July 12, 1854.'

' To the Editor of the jlfoniing Post.

' THE WAR AND THE AEMY.

Sin,

' At a crisis like the present it ])ehoves every one to
assist his country to the utmost of his power, and to embrace
any opportunity that may present itself ol" rendering it a
service. Though filling a subordinate position in tlie service,
I would venture, Avith all deference to superior judgment, to
offer a few suircestions as to the course which 1 consider
might be advantageously pursued by (tovernment and by the
military authorities in the present emergency.

' It is our oliject, at the opening of the campaign on a grand
.scale in the ensuing spring, to have a large, well-equijiped,
well-organized army in the field, Avliich shall .su})port our
claim, not oidy to su};or-eminent lu'avery, but to super-
eminent intellisrence. We have no desire to bhish arain, and
to mourn again, over such a scries of fatal errors as have;
marked our progress hithei-to before the walls of Sebastopol.
We wish to retrieve our character, to rectify and remedy
what is amiss, and to guard against the repetition of similar
calamities. We desire to bring into the field an army Avhich
in (!A'eiy respect may Avorthily represent the nation. Let us
see how this is to be done.

ArrENDix

311

3R, in PVPrv
tlicrs, yet 1
;i]i])car ])rac-
lul coiiijuiii-
e addressed
columns.

' DELTA.

every one to
to embrace

idering it a
tlie service,

iidgment, to
I consider

; and by the

I on a arand
ll-eqnipped,
support our
to super-
i again, and
)rs as have
SebastopoL
md remedy
n (-)f simihir
irmy Avhich
Ion. Let us

' Where (h) we in tlie first instance turn to? Naturally to
the yoiitli (if oiu* own country. The military spirit i>f the
people has been appealed to, and this a})peal has met with a
hearty, thougli perhaps ncit unanimous, response. AVe should
first consider how this spirit, Avhieh is at the present crisis *hc
mainstay of the country, may be best jn-omoied and encou-
raged. Latterly the condition of tlie soldier, and the, terms
of enlistment into the army, liave been much ameliorated. A
prospect has Ix'en opened to every man in the ranks of ])ro-
motion and distinction, of tlie innnediate recognition of dis-
tinguished gallantry or merit, of honourable rewards for
woiuids received in the service of tlie country, and the con-
solation ailbrded to tliose who have formed domestic ties, that
their wives and little ones, in the event of their death, l)e-
come the especial objects of the solicitude of their country.
So far, so good. Now, Sir, 1 Avould venture to suggest a
still further encouragement, and one which is, in my opinion,
both just and judicious — / imti/if double the p<tij oj' nil
soldiert^ eiKjiKjed on active service in the field. Even with this
arrangement, at the pres(mt high rati' of wages and demand
for labour, the renameration would be very small compared
with the hardships undergone and the dangers braved ; but a
very great encouragement would be afforded to nn'u to volun-
teer from the militia.

' Next, having considered the method of obtaining men, I
shall proceed to my second point — their tvainini/. We may
accumidate a large mass of raw material of all kinds in this
countrv. from the untrained general of divisicm to the I'aw
recruit, who does not know his right hand from his It ir, ami
all we may thus collect, without su])jecting it to the imnnt-
acturinn Drocess, Avill be conii»aratively worthless. The arm

sensibly felt the value of the military ti-aining at Chol)ham.
Many of tuir generals and colonels had never seen so large a
number of men manueuvred togethei', and confessed that
before " Chobham " they knew little of v/ar or military
movements on a largo scale. How, in fact, could they ? Such

•mm

312

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

;:U

knowledpfc (loos not conio intiillivcly. Let lis, now ^ve arc
actually engaged in a war with one ol' the greatest powoi-s in
tlu ivorld, Inrm at once several great eanijis lor tlie training
of our ollici!i's and men. I would establish three camps — on(^
in the s(>uth of England, one in the north (where the Scotch
recruits miglit be trained), and one in Irelan(L

* Durintf the winter months the men miirht live in wooden
houses si)iillii)' to those which have heen sent to the Crimea,
or iiiofc connnodious. Each camp should be conuuanded by
a general officer, wdio should live with liis staff on the ground,
and take every opportunity of exercising it in its various and
important (hities. ]\Iilitary sketches and reports of th(^ sur-
rounding districts, 8cc., should be continually demanded, and
everything conducted as if the army were in the presmce of
the enemy. Each camp should have its waggon-train and
conunissariat staff, and supplies should be regularly bi-ought
in by the Avaggons belonging to the army. The men should
be continuallv exercised, and should l)e Itrouu-lu into hiirh
physical condition. (Wi; seem to lorget in our treatment of
our soldiers that the lioman Avord lor aii ai'Uiy iqgnifiea
" exercise,"' and that, in time of pi'ace, the fatigues tluy went
through, and the weapcms they were; instructed to us(\ called
for nuich greater exertions than were usually necessary in
ordinary cam])uigus. AVe shut our men U]) in ])arracks, and
give them a sht)rt march once a-week !) The men, after
going thi'ough their ordinary drill, after being thoi'oughly
instructed and initiated into cam]) duties, should l)e ma-
nanivred in masses and tauglit to act in large bodies: they
should 1)0 instructed hoAV to defend themselves, how to throAV
up intrenchments, to make gabions, fascines, iK:c., and in
every description of duty tluy are likely to be called on to
perfoi'm in active service. (I may nu'ution as a suliordinate
part of this plan, that the men should be taught how to avail
themselves of the resources of a country, how to cook, make
soups, v!(:c., all things in Avhich they are lamentably delicient
to the French, and all highly important as far as they go.)

ArrENDix

318

* To form an fidoqiiatc army of rosorvc in tliis cmmtiy, tlic
force (listril)ute(l in the thivi' camps should not, in my liumbh-
opinion, be less than ir)(),0()(). We may, however, more
safely assume lialf tliis number as the more jn-obable. If
we take this important step at once Ave shall, liefore the cam-
paign has well commenced, i.e., l)efore April, it is to be hoped
liave an elHcient reserve; corps to di-aw on for the supply of our
army in the field. This is one oi' the modes which have ■sug-
gested themselves to me of re-esta])lishing our military ascen-
dancy. There is anotlier which 1 shall proceed to mention —
it is, in my opinion, of great importance, and if is also one
which demands ])rompt and vigorous action. We ai)pear to
liave forgotten that we have immense military resources in
India, and that these resources are available to a great extent
without weakening our ascendancy in that great country. I
am assured l)y officers of ex})erienc(! from India, that then; are
iiicilities for recruiting to Mny extent in many disti'icts. If, there-
fore, the East India Company assisted the Crown by transfer-
ring, let us say, uO,()0() or lO, ()()() men liest suited foi- the war
we are engaged in, and thoroughly ti'ained to service in the
field, it could in a ft'W months obtain recruits in India to
sup])ly their places. Why do we not, then, form an Indian
Division in our Eastern army, officered by experienced men,
inured to a hot climate, and accustomed to tlie hardships and
difficulties of Avar? If we availed ourselves freely and fullv of
the magnificent means of transj)ort Avhich exists between this
country and India, we might l)efore May accunn date a respeo
table force at Gallipoli or Constantinople, and by the end ol
June have at least 1(J,U0() or 15, ()()() men from India, available^
for active operations. We have only to turn to our colonies,
to find a spirit of patriotism as glowing and devoted as thai
Avhich fills the mother country. In Canada especially, the
most ardent wish has been expressed to form a division lor the
assistance of England, and her citizens burn for the honour ot
fighting, side liy side, Avith the soldiers of Alma and Inkcr-
mann. We should not let enthusiasm like this die a natural

314

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

t i

(loatlu In Canada there aro several officers of groat experience
Avlio have coine forward to assist their country with heart and
hejid. Enghind shouUl not neglect such sources of strength.
By establishing a generous emuhition, ])y a judicious distribu-
tion of rewards, by a ready recognition of services performed,
she may fan the military and patriotic spirit 'wliich now glow's
in the breasts of her sons into a i'lrc, v/hicli will be inextin-
guishable as long as there is material for it to consume.

' It is Avith the liope that these remarks may attract some
notice, and may be productive of some beneficial lesult, that I
liave ventured to oHIt them to the piiljlic tlirough the medium
of your columns. They are not jiut forward presumptuously,
but earnestly and with sincerity, by one Avho wishes only the
good and glory of his country.

' I am, Sir,

' Your obedient Servant,

' DELTA.

I i

' To the Editor of the Morning Ileruhl.

' liEFKESIIMENT FOR THE TROOPS IN THE
TRENCHES AND FOR THE WOUNDED.

' Sir,

* I beg to offer the folic tving suggestion to the notice of
the commissarat, the medical depa.rtment, and the command-
iniT officers of regiments in the Crimea.

' The idea has occiirred to me that the troops should have
something to stimulate and refresh them ichile on duty in the
trenches, and there does not, as far as I can judge, seem to be
any reason why this idea slu)uld not be canvied out.

' It has suggested itself to me that tin vessels (something
similar tt) those used in railway refreshment rooms), filled with
hot tea, mixed Avith brandy or rum, might be swung, like pan-
niers, over the backs of nudes, and thus conveyed along the
trenches to the men on duty.

APPENDIX

315

t experience
li lieart aiul
f)f strength,
us (listribu-
performed,
1 now glo'ws
be inextin-
unie.

ttract some
esult, that I
the medium
imptuously,
les only the

' DELTA.

N THE
ED.

le notice ol"
command -

lould have
dutij in the
seem to be

(something
, filled Avith
;5, like pan-
l along the

' Tlio tea might be kept hot by means of a pan o{ cliaix'^al,
or a spirit lamp. A tin cu[) should hv suspended by a chain
to each vessel for the nu'U to drink out of, and every man
shr)uld be provided Avith a cup when going on duty into the
trenches, Avliich might bo attached to his belt.

'I see nothing impracticable in this idea, and I trust it may
be acted upon.

' I may add, that mules canyinghot tea, or even cold spii-its
and water, in the Avay I have described, might accompany the
ambulances in search of the wounded, so that refreshment
might be at once administered to them Avhen first discovered
on the field, and Avhen they most require it.

* I would suggest to the managers of the Crimean Army
Fund tt) send some tin vessels, such as 1 have described, with
the aj)paratus for fixing them securely on the Ixicks of
mules, and protecting the animal i'rom heat (which may be
easily done Avitli a little ingenuity), at once. The month of
March is a raAV and chilly one, and (it (ill times refreshments
administered as I have sugirested Avould be most beneficial to
the sick and Avounded.

' I have the honour to be. Sir,

' Your most obedient SerA'ant,

'AX ENGINEER OFFICEK.

' Eclinburgli, Feb. 27.
' I enclose my card.'

' To the Editor of the Morniuij Post.

' THE NEEDLEWOMEN OF ENGLAND.

' Sii?,

' It has been truly remarked, that vice springs almost
entirely from the absence of alfection or from its aberration. It
may be said, perhaps, still more truly, that vice proceeds very
much from the A\'ant of sympathy, and from the indil]eren(;e
with Avhich suffering, Avroug, and misery are regarded by the

316

CANADA AND THE CRIMEA

i) I

)

Avorld. Every Christian man or woman slionld put to them-
selves the question, " Wliat itrood can I do in this world lieforc
I go hence and am niimbered among the things that were i "
There are surely objects sufiicient on which to expend our
enei-gies. "We are surrouTided and environed on all sides by
claims aHke upon our reason and our feelings. "We slioidd
consider those that we are the most called upon to meet, and
meet them at once manfully and earnestly as good soldiers of
Christ. No claim that I know of could Avell be stronger than
that of the poor, struggling, oj)pre3sed needlewomen of Eng-
land. There is no class, either in the great metropolis or
elsewhere, which more deseiTedly claims both our sympathy
and our aid. There is no class more ])eculiarly exposed, more
cruelly and harshly treated, more hopelessly condenuied by
society, if they yield to the mighty temptations to sin which
surround them. Take the case of a young female, almost
alone in the great harsh world, struggling for an honest sup-
port, finding the beauty God may have given her a great and
terrible snare, or the absence of it a source of contempt and
indillerence — looking around with the indescribable yearning
ofj'outhand isolation for sympathy — condennied early and
late to unceasing and monotonous toil, to a horrible drudgery
— doomed to confinement while the bright sun is shining, and
all nature seems rejoicing for all but her, finding her health
failing, her spirits sinking, her young blossom of hope nipped
in the bud, with a dreary vista before her of monotonous days
of toil and imprisonment, unrelieved by a gleam of brighter
and better things, Avith no one to turn to to whom she might
pour out her heart, with its deep longings and its pent-up
suil'ering. Think, ye stern moralists and censors, of what this
must l^e to the young, inexperienced, and ignorant heart, that
wishes, may be, to do well — that sees and dreads the misery
and contamination of guilt, but feels itself sinking beneath
the weight it has to bear, and seeks in vain for encouragement
and assistance. Yet society looks coldly on ; the victim falls;
it points the finger of scorn and contiuuely at her ; she

ArrENDix

317

to tliem-
rld before
t were ? "
pcnd our
1 sides by
^^c sliould
meet, and
wldiers of
nger than
n of Eng-
ropolis or
sympathy
)sed, more
Qmned by
sin which
le-, ahnost
Dnest sup-
grcuit and
tempt and
; yearning
early and
Inidgery
ining, and
ler liealth
ie nipped
nous days
brighter
e miglit
])ent-up
wliat this
eart, that
10 misery
beneath
ragement
tim falls;
her ; she

-u

striiggles on honestly and sincerely, it maintains its indiifer-
ence. These victims fall and struggle on around //»% and, as
it were, luider our very eyes. There are thousands of needle-
women in London and elsewhere, leading lives of utter
wretchedness, drudgery, and jx'nury. It may be said their
case is well knoAvn, and that it has been graphically jiaiuted
and feelingly told. 1 answer, if it is so, why is not more done
for them? On those who employ the class I alliule to, any
appeal, however urgent, would be utterly thi'own away. Th<y
wrap themselves in an impenetrable mantle of self-interest,
and listen with complacent indilference to all that may be said
against them. We must tiu-n from these to all "who have
feeling hearts, and are capable of sympathy, in the great
world around us, for it is time that such things as this shoidd
cease in a Christian country — it is time that a crusade should
be directed against all those who abuse, lor their vile self-
interest, the fairest and gentlest portion of God's great (creation
— it is time that a strong voice which shall make itself heard
should be raised in the land against a sin and o])pi'('ssion
which cries to God like this. Shall we, as a nation, content
ourselves Avith the hypocrite's fast ? Shall we mortily and
prostrate ourselves before the throne of grace, and sutler the
heavy Inirden to remain, and the oppressed still to sti-uggle
under the yoke ? Private exertion is not all that is needed.
It should, by its pressure from Avithout, make itself felt by the
Legislature, but Gcvermnent should step in in this matter
with the only great argtunents that are o^'any avail — sti'iiigent
and effective laws to control employers and protect the em-
ployed. Something should be done, and done at n/in', lo
better the condition of the poor, struggling needlewomen of
England. Their Avorking hours should be limited; a scale of
wages for particular services, or services of a ])artieulai' class,
Avhich Avill lairly remunerate those employeil, shnidd be
established. All employers should l)e compelled to give their
Avorkwomen a half holiday once a Aveek or (>ftener. (iovern-
ment might do thus nmch — it Avould remain i'w pri\'atc

.•H8

CANADA AND TIIK CRIMEA

i ':■■

-I )

i^;

• .«

;

\ i

•i

■

pliihinthropy still more tn ameliorate and improve. The
great social deficiency of the present day is, in my opinion,
the want of healthful, innocent, and improving recreations for
the poor. We shonld endcuivour to increase their self-res])ect.
ir necessity com])els them to be mere machines when at their
daily toil, they shonld be ri'stored to the recollection ol" their
humanity and ca])abilities -when it is over. There is, after all,
less effort required to effect this than is supposed. Dickena
touched and won the hearts of thousands, whose sensibilities
liad perhaps long Ix^en frozen over, Ijy merely reading a book
out to them. We look to the bodily wants of the poor, their
food and clothing, the liare necessities of existence, in fact;
and we forget what is cif infinitely more importance — their
thoughts, hopes, and feelings. We thus too often give them
no chance. The pleasures of sin stand opposed by nofhinrj.
It is not Avith them, as with us, the delil>erate rejection of
virtuous for vicious pleasure. It is the pleasures of evil
opposed by a positive blaidv — a dreary nothingness. And
yet Avc take credit to ourselves for sympathising Avith our poor
i'ellow-ereatures, ;md express a virtuous horror and indigna-
tion at their error, crime, and insensibility. God grant that a
better time may come, and that this deep reproach may be
remoA'-ed from us ! Let those of a higher and better class
manifest sympatliy and interest Avith their ])oor brethren —
sympathy of the kind Mr. Dickens manifested Avhen he read
his Christmas tale out to them — and aa'c should soon find
hoAV nuich there Avas that Avas admirable and excellent — Iioav
much that might be diverted from evil and turned to good in
the heart and mind of the poor man or Avoman. Circmu-
stances and opportunity only are required for developing
chai'acter. Who Avould have sup])osed the despised private
soldier to be AAdiat he has shoAvn himself to be — fidl of the
noblest traits that can dignity humanity — till the fieiy trial
brought his character out in bright and full relief My voice
is feeble to urge on this matter, but I raise it earnestly and
hopefully. The cause advocated Avould ennoble any appeal.

s !:

APPENDIX

319

I trust that, «vGn in this utilitarian ago, some worthy chann>i„u
may be found to do battle in its behalf; that some .k,.,
earnest, and thou-htful mind may coneentrati- its ener-ifs lur
the remedy of this and similar evils, and that the «,nntry
may be delivered from the reproach which now climbs to j, on
account of them.

' I am, Sir,

' Your obedient Servant,

'C. R.

'Edinburgh, April 11, 1855.'

THE END.