Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol 6.djvu/167

18( Period. THE MAIN FIGHT. 123 point any considerable proportion of the men. chap. No lengthened resistance was made by either the Rangers or the 49th men ; and, indeed, when our infantry officers found that there were no limbers or teams at hand with which to effect the with- drawal of the guns, they, most of them, seemed to have determined that any effort to save them must of necessity prove vain, and would therefore be unwarrantable. So our Foot continuing their Tiireeofhis /> m 1 ; 1 Kuns left retreat, passed on to the rear of Townsend s three; exposed to '■ the power foremost guns, and thus left them exposed to the of the o ' >- ^ Russian immediate attack of two columns advancing upon columns. them. These, it seems, were two of the Catherin- burg battalions. Colonel Wood being asked for orders in this emergency, answered tersely, ' Fire case ! ' but the enemy's masses — which before, though unseen, had been close — now broke out at once into sight through the curtain of mist, and were presently within ten yards of the half-battery. They came on, approaching it from the direction of our right front, and were uttering strange, joyous cries. Without limbers or teams (which already were a long way in rear), no attempt to withdraw the guns could be made ; and our artillerymen, re- tarded somewhat by their very eagerness, had de- livered but one hasty shot when already the enemy was closing upon them. Left without any sinfmiar kind of support, Miller in last resort bade liis undertaker gunners draw swords and charge, and he himself Jimer and under a shower of bullets rode straight at the men.