Page:The invasion of the Crimea vol. 2.djvu/322

292 ORDERS AND PREPARATIONS CHAP, By the 19th of August our regiments iu Bulgaria •^^^^' had lost 532 men. But it was amongst the three French divisions marched into the Dobrudja, and especially in General Canrobert's Division, that the disease raged with the most deadly virulence. In the day's march, and sometimes within the space of only a few hours, hundreds of men dropped down in the sudden agonies of cholera ; and out of one battalion alone, it was said that, besides those already dead, no less than 500 sufferers were carried alive in the waggons. On the 8th of August it was computed, by an officer of their Staff, that out of the three French divisions which marched into the Dobrudja, no less than 10,000 lay dead or struck down by sickness. If the cholera had been confined to the land- forces, the Generals would not, perhaps, have allowed it to delay their embarkation ; but it now reached the fleets. In a few days the crews were in such a slate that all idea of at- tempting to embark the troops was, for the mo- ment, quite out of the question; and on the lltli and 12th of August the Admirals put out from their anchorage, in the hope of driving away the disease with the pure breezes of the sea. But they had scarcely done this when, on board some of the ships, the mysterious pest began to rage with a violence rare in Europe. The Britannia alone out of 985 lost no less than 139 men.* • In foinicr editions (owing to some mistake of figures Avliich 1 liavc not traced to its canno) I stated the lo.ss at only 105 ; but act;oidiny to the btalLiiieiit furnished by Dr Rees, the