plied with rockets during the night. During the next day the attack was continued. The whole place now seemed a sheet of flame, and on the morning of the 11th, the enemy's batteries having ceased to reply to our guns, the action was discontinued. On our side only a few men were wounded, but the Russians lost considerably. Though the fortress was much knocked about, a few days would have put it in a condition to sustain another bombardment; and whether it surrendered or not, we were unable to land a sufficient force for its occupation. We had, however, shown that a powerful fortress could be attacked from the sea, and without great loss, if undertaken with plant adapted to the purpose. It was simply a question of providing sufficient material, and keeping up the supply until the object was attained. Success would rest with that side which possessed the longest purse and the greater resources. With an absolute command of the sea, the impregnability of a fortress becomes a comparative term, and another year of war would doubtless have seen a similar attack on Cronstadt. But Sebastopol now fell, and peace was made.
This war produced no naval actions or single combats between ships, but maritime strength had in other ways brought about a result even greater than could have been secured by a great naval victory. The voluntary sinking of a large portion of the enemy's fleet, the inaction of another part, the invasion of territory, the reduction of some fortresses, and the total stoppage of sea commerce, were directly or indirectly owing to
