328 THE BATTLE OF INKERMAN. CHAP. VI. 3d Period. Anger of Lord Raglan. The step he took. The enemy's artillery fire. men just brought round, as we saw, from the left, no succour was near. The air at this time had so cleared that a man looking south from the crest of Home Eidge could see on as far as the Wind- mill — a distance of nearly a mile — and yet he might search to the utmost the whole of the interposed space without being able to see even one fresh battalion approaching. When Lord Eaglau saw the French falling back, he for once, they say, suffered his counte- nance to disclose the vexation he felt, and even uttered an exclamation of 'astonishment and ' annoyance.' * Then he sent off an aide-de- camp — not in the direction of the retreating French battalion, but — to the spot where the remnant of the 55th was re-forming its line."f" The enemy, not seeing apparently that his soldiery had crowned the Home Ridge, was still plying it all this while, with indiscriminate fire,
- 'Letters from Headquarters by a Staff Officer.' Colonel
Calthorpe the author of the, woik, was present, it seems, at the moment, and witnessed both the retreat of the French bat- talion, and the effect which the sight produced upon Lord Kaglan. t At least so I infer. The ' staff oilicer ' who saw Lord ]{aglau despatch the aide-de-canij) conceived certainly that the message was sent to Pennefather ; but Pennefather, when he conversed with me on the suliject, had no recollection of hav- ing either received a message from Lord Raglan at this par- ticular time, or of having himself sent an order to Colonel Warren ; and on the other hand, wlien wc look to the men of the 55ih we find them remembering and recording the arrival of an aide-de-camp, though they don't undertake to say whence he came. Upon the whole, therefore, the inference I have drawn seems fairly warranted.
