Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol 7.djvu/389

RETURNING STRENGTH. 345 Agents were simply to enter the port of Bala- chaf clava, and invite our suffering troops to come ^' down, and take, and appropriate vast cargoes of goods, they would be in danger of rather increas- ing than assuaging the winter troubles by making an additional call upon scant means of transport, and besides, on the labour of the soldier already overworked — overworked far beyond any limit allowed by the laws of health. Better taught than our Government, they avoided the error of leaning upon any English resources collected in the Crimea for either land-transport or ' hands.' By timely exertions, Mr Brackenbury (the agent of the Association despatched overland for the purpose) gave prompt effect to the counsels of Mr Glyn and Mr Jervoise Smith, so that when the Erminia reached Constantinople, arrange- ments there made had already prepared the way for purchasing and forwarding to Balaclava twenty-four transport animals, with a large sup- ply of provisions for man and beast, and, more- over, for engaging the services of a ' cavash,' an interpreter, twenty ' liamals ' or porters, and ten muleteers. (2^) It is true that even after obtaining the services of all these working men, Tower and Egerton were still without ' hands ' enough for the for- midable task of landing, carrying, and storing the mountains of goods they had brought ; and there was a time when less resolute men might well have despaired ; for on all the low ground be- tween Balaclava and the foot of the Chersonese, Nature, busied in her worst Deluge mood, had