Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 4.djvu/120

Its a.l 90 KVA5I0X OF MKXTSCIIIKOrF AND HIS ciiA!'. policy oi' the Allies had left open to him. Willi ^' this view, he resolved that he avouUI withdraw his i>iau. his army from Sebastopol at night, move it by a south-easterly march to the valley of the Tcher- naya, cross the valley, turn northward, ascending the ]rackenzie Heights, and place himself upon the highroad which leads thence by Baktchi Seriii to the interior of Eussia. Once there, he hoped to be able to keep open the way to the interior of liussia, and give the hand to his expected rein- forcements from Odessa, as well as to those com- ing up from the neighbourhood of Kertch : but this was only a part of the plan which he pro- nis pretext fcssed to liavc formed; for by way of justitica- abam'ion- tiou for the withdrawal of his army from Sebas- SciLu.i.oi : topol, he engaged to hang upon the i]ank of the Allies, and to do this so formidably that his atti- tude would be sure to hinder them from under- takiug any resolute attack against the north sitle of the fortress. Except in so far as he might be aiding the cause in this collateral way, the Prince was to leave the main defence of Sebastopol to the Piiilors ; f(jr, save only 5000 militiamen, and one battalion of sappers, he proposed to withdraw from the place the whole of his army. Koiuiiofi's When Korniloff was apprised of this resolve by liran"' Prluce IMentschikoff, he protested and said, 'That 'i.uiu^* ^ ' it would be impossible to hold Sebastopol if ' the troops were to leave it; that a handful of ' seamen would not be able to resist the onset of ' the numerous army of the Allies on the noith- ' eru fortifications, and, these being carried, they