Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 4.djvu/62

32 THE FI.AXK march; CHAP, nuinication between the fleet and the land forces. ■ As experience proved, lie was wrong ; bnt upon a naval question — and such this question was — his Risdeci- opinion, of course, had great weight. It pre- vailed. For the sake of retaining Balaclava, Lord Raglan elected to take the right in the Allied line, with all its burthens and perils. One may say his decision was cardinal ; for, if he had chosen the other alternative, the remainder of the campaign and of the war could hardly have proved at all similar to the actual course of events. Pursuant to the understanding between the two chiefs, the French marched on to the west- M'ard ; and the forbearance they had shown w-as re- warded, for it proved that the bays of Kamiesh and Kazatch yielded excellent means of landing supplies for an army. Thus the French gained the vast advantage of having ample, convenient ports, together with all the comparative ease and immunity of being on the left of the Allied line ; whilst the English, with one diminutive harbour, were taking a post which seemed to involve them in the double duty of covering the siege and taking part in its labours ; but this allotment resulted from the free (though mistaken) choice of the English, and not fiom any endeavour to overreach them on the part of General Canrobert. srtthto The Allies, pushing forward, proceeded to The' Ames cstablisli their besieging troops upon a line pass- fhei'rgn-)und iug from cast to wcst across the centre of that SLiwstop,.]. district of high ground on the south of Sebastopol