326 THE BATTLE OF BALACLAVA. CHAP. I. The killing of the disabled horses. The losses' suffered by the brigade. time for the final and deliberate severance of many a friendship between the dragoon and his charger; for the farriers, with their pistols in hand, were busied in the task of shooting the ruined horses. Upon counting the brigade, it appeared that the force, which numbered 673 horsemen when it went into action, had been reduced to a mounted strength of 195 ; * and there was one regiment, it seems — namely, the 13th Light Dragoons, which, after the charge, mustered only ten mounted troopers. From a later examination it resulted that, in officers and men killed and wounded, the brigade had suffered losses to the number of 247, of whom 113 had been killed and 134 wounded ; and that (including 43 horses shot as unserviceable on account of their wounds) the brigade had 475 horses killed, besides having 42 others wounded.-f It has been stated by one who had good means of knowing the truth, that of all the officers acting with the first line, those who came out of action without a wound received by either the horse or the rider, were only two in number. Lord Cardigan, as we saw, was wounded though not disabled ; and of the three officers who acted
- It will be vain to seek for any correspondence between the
result of the first muster and the officially stated casualties. Many wounded men and wounded horses might be present at the muster ; and on the other hand, neithertheunwounded men whoso chargers had been killed, nor the un wounded horses which came back into our lines without their riders, would contribute to the ' mounted strength ' as ascertained at the first muster. t These figures may not agree exactly with other returns, but I have <rood reason for believing them to be accurate.
