Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 5.djvu/250

228 THE BATTLE OF BALACLAVA. chap, as a qualification of what is coming, it may be ' said that the three sides of the quadrangle in which our cavalry moved, were not only lined with Russians, but with Russians standing firm to their duty. Soon, the fated advance of the Light Brigade had proceeded so far as to begin to disclose its strange purpose — the purpose of making straight for the far distant battery which crossed the foot of the valley, by passing for a mile between two Russian forces, and this at such ugly distance from each as to allow of our squadrons going down under a doubly flanking fire of round-shot, grape, and rifle-balls, without the opportunity of yet doing any manner of harm to their assailants. powerful Then, from the slopes of the Causeway Heights uponttiT on the one side, and the Fedioukine Hills on brigade fron the other, the Russian artillery brought its power both flanks . to bear right and left, with an efficiency every moment increasing ; and large numbers of rifle- men on the slopes of the Causeway Heights who had been placed where they were in order to cover the retreat of the Russian battalions, found means to take their part in the work of destroy- ing our horsemen. Whilst Lord Cardigan and his squadrons rode thus under heavy cross-fire, the visible object they had straight before them was the white bank of smoke, from time to time pierced by issues of flame, which marks the site of a battery in action ; for in truth the very goal that had been chosen for our devoted squadrons — a goal rarely before assigned to cavalry — was