Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol 6.djvu/462

418 THE BATTLE OF INKERMAN. CHAP, from which the magic hand of Todleben might • qiickly evolve great results. In short, it is plain 6th Period, ^j^g^i- |.]^g |.g^gjj Qf dislodging him was one from which the Allies could scarce shrink, if still they clung to the enterprise which had brought them over the seas. And, whatever General Canrobert may say for his plan of abandoning the offensive, there is at the least one circumstance which affords a presumption against it. The inaction of the Allies was what Dannenberg most had to desire, and tliis we shall presently see. II. Thceuomy'8 The enemy's pretension to attack the Allies on coiulition , /-,, t t ^ i • • i and pros- the Chersouese had been one resting mainly on his command of gross numbers ; but, strange to say, he considered that even that source of strength had now failed him. He had prepared himself, as we saw, to throw upon Mount Inkerman full 40,000 men, and upon the adjoining ridge occu- pied by the Duke of Cambridge's camp, as many as 20,000 mcire, thus invading the north-eastern angle of the Chersonese with troops 60,000 strong, wliilst the infantry the Allies brought against liim on Mount Inkerman rose slowly from only 3000 at the first to less than 13,000 at last. Under such conditions, a complaint of want of numbers on the part of the Russians may at first sound almost absurd ; but, if we assume, to begin with, that the Russian method of fighting required heavy, massive formations, we shall find that