ed severely. In the Rifle Brigade Captain | 7.10. Columns of black smoke began to rise Hammond, who was only three days out from from the neighborhood of Fort Paul at 7 12. England, and Lieutenant Ryder, were killed; At 7.15 the connection of the floating bridge and Lieutenant Pellew, (slightly), Lieutenant with the south side was severed. At 7.16 Eyre severely, Major Woodford (slightly), flames began to ascend from Fort Nicholas Captain Eccles and Lieutenant Riley severe- At 8.7 the bridge was floated off in portions to ly wounded. There were no less than 125 the north side. At 9 o'clock several violent men wounded and 13 killed. It will be seen explosions took place in the works on our left, by this that no less than 964 men were wound- opposite the French. The town was by this ed in the Light Division, and it is most credit- time in a mass of flames, and the pillar of able to the medical officer in charge, Dr. Alex- black, gray, and velvety fat smoke from is ander, and to his surgeons, that all these men were comfortably in bed and had their wounds dressed and their wants attended to by eight o'clock the same evening. The loss of officers in Windham's Brigade, and in the portion of Warren's Brigade which moved to his support is equally severe. The loss in the two brigades of this division is not less than 790 men. The whole loss cannot be estimated at less than 2,200 or 2,300 men.

Sunday, Sept. 9.

seemed to support the very heavens. The French kept up firing guns on the left, probably to keep out stragglers, but ere the Rus sians left the place the Zouaves and sailors were in it, and engaged busily in plundering Not a shot was fired to the front and centre. The Vladimir and Grossomonetz were very busy towing boats and stores across. Cavalry and sentries were sent up to prevent any one going into the town, but without much success. I visited a good portion of the place. Explosions occurred all through the day. The plunder was enormous.

At 8 o'clock last night the Russians began quietly to withdraw from the town, in the It is difficult, as I have had occasion to obprincipal houses of which they had previously serve on similar occasions, to give with any stored up combustibles in order to render Se- pretensions to accuracy the details of a battle, bastopol a second Moscow. With great_art but it becomes almost impossible to attain cor the general kept up a fire of musketry from rectness in describing such an affair as the his advanced posts, as though he intended to assault on the Redan under the peculiar cir renew the attempts to regain the Malakhoff.cumstances which attended it. In addition to Ere 2 o'clock this morning the fleet had been the smoke of battle, there were flying clouds scuttled and sunk, with the exception of the of dust mingled with sand, which blew right steamers. About 12.30 the men of the 2d into the faces of the men and swept the hills division on duty in the trenches observed a in their rear, which were crowded with the preternatural silence in the Redan, and some spectators, or those who tried to be so, and the volunteers crept up into it. Nothing could irregularity of the ground offered other im they hear but the heavy breathing and groans of the wounded and dying, who, with the dead were the sole occupants of the place. As the Redan was known to be mined, the men were withdrawn, and soon afterwards the Russian tactics began to develop themselves. About 2 o'clock flames were observed to break out in different parts of the town. They spread gradually all over the principal buildings. At 4 o'clock a stupendous explosion behind the Redan shook the whole camp; it was followed by four other explosions equally startling. The city was enveloped in fire and smoke, and torn asunder with the tremendous shocks of these volcanoes. At 4.45 the Flagstaff and Garden Batteries blew up. At 5.30 two of the southern forts went up into the air, and the effect of these explosions was immensely increased by the rush of a great number of live shell into the air, which exploded in all directions. All this time a steady current of infantry was passing in unbroken masses to the north side over the bridge, and at 6.45 the last battalions passed over, and the hill sides opposite were alive with their masses. Several small explosions took place inside the town at

pediments to their view; but greater than all these obstacles was this, that no one could from any conceivable position in front see what was going on inside the Redan, which seemed to engulf our soldiers within its huge dun-colored and ragged parapets, only to vomit them forth again in diminished numbers. It was all along but too plain to understand what was taking place within from the external aspect of that ill-fated work, the slopes of which have astonished the world with the sight of British troops in flight twice in two successive attacks on its formidable defences. This Redan has cost us more lives than the capture of Badajoz, not to speak of those who have fallen in the trenches and approaches to it; and, although the enemy evacuated it, we can scarcely claim the credit of having caused them such loss that they retired owing to ther dread of a renewed assault. On the contrary, we must, in fairness, admit that the Russians maintained their grip of the place till the French were fairly established in the Malak hoff, and the key of the position was torn from their grasp. They might, indeed, have remained in the place longer than they did,

It beats on the roof with a noise like that of a cataract; it is a veritable water spout. The wind is shifting and changing all around the compass. The lightning is fainter, and the gusts less violent. Sometimes for a minute there is a profound calm; again it blows a hurricane.

as the French were scarcely in a condition to cannonade. This supply of water will be very molest them from the Malakhoff with artillery, seasonable to the camp, where that article of and could not be permitted to interfere with consumption has been for a long time scanty our attack had they been able to send rein- and dirty. forcements to us; but the Russian general is 4.15 A. M. a man of too much genius and experience as a In the whole course of my life I never heard soldier to lose men in defending an untenable or saw anything like the deluge of rain which position, and his retreat was effected with is now falling over this portion of the camp. masterly skill and with perfect ease in the face of a victorious enemy. Covering his rear by the flames of the burning city and by tremendous explosions, which spoke in tones of portentous warning to those who might have wished to cut off his retreat, he led his battalions in narrow files across a deep arm of the sea, commanded by our guns, and in the face of a most powerful fleet, paraded them in our sight as they crossed, and carried off all his most useful stores and munitions of war. He left us few trophies and many bitter memories. He sank his ships and blew up his forts without molestation, save some paltry efforts to break down the bridge by cannon shot, or to shell the troops as they marched

over.

His steamers towed his boats across at their

leisure, and when every man was across, and not till then, the Russians began to dislocate and float off the portions of their bridge and to pull it over to the north side.

4.23 A. M. The waterspout has passed away. Had it lasted 10 minutes longer it threatened to drown the camp.

9.45.

There is a tornado passing over the camp once more-hail, storm, and rain. The ground is a mass of mud.

The disappointment of the many persons who wished to spend a quiet snug day in Sethere is a positive order against going into the bastopol is diminished by the knowledge that town, and that General Pelissier has declared his sentries will shoot any person who may be

found in the streets in disobedience of that injunction. Passes will be issued from the

Sept. 10. The town is still burning and in ruins. It Adjutant-General's department, without which is in possession of the French. The following all persons will be stopped at the entrances to order has been issued on the subject-" five the works. The rain and hail quenched the officers and several men injured by explosions fire, which the wind had previously fanned to to-day." exceeding fierceness, so that there was little left for the flames to devour. Sebastopol is now a mass of white ruins, streaked and barred with black smoke.

Tuesday Morning, 1 A. M.

THE INTERIOR OF SEBASTOPOL
Wednesday, Sept. 12.

For the last hour an exceedingly violent storm has been raging over the camp. The wind is from the southward and eastward, and blows with such fury as to make the hut in which I am writing rock to and fro, and to fill it with fine dust which flies in through every It is delightful to abandon the old heading, crevice. The Russians are very busy with "The siege of Sebastopol," which for the last their signals over the Tchernaya. The fires 11 months might have been stereotyped, but in Sebastopol, fanned by the wind, are spread- it is not clear what is to be put in its place, for ing fast, and the glare of the burning city illu- the enemy, having abandoned the south side, minates the whole arch of the sky towards the seem prepared to defend the north side, and to erect there another monument of engineering skill, and to leave there memorials of their dogged resolution.

north-west.

2 o'clock, A. M. The storm has increased in strength, and rain is beginning to fall heavily. The most The wonder of all visitors to the ruins of dazzling flames of lightning shoot over the Sebastopol is divided-they are astonished at plateau and light up the camp for an instant, the strength of the works, and that they were the peals of thunder are so short and startling ever taken; they are amazed that men could as to resemble, while far exceeding in noise, have defended them so long with such rum the report of cannon. The rain has somewhat around them. These feelings are apparently lessened the intensity of the fire at Sebastopol, in opposition to each other, but a glance at the but its flames and those of the lightning seem place could explain the apparent contraat times to contend for the mastery. There is diction. indeed, a great battle raging in the skies, and It is clear, in the first place, that the fire of its thunder mocks to scorn our heaviest our artillery was searching out every nook

and corner in the town, and that it would be- turb many of our wearied soldiers. When I come utterly impossible for the Russians to arose ere daybreak, and got up to Cathcart's keep any body of men to defend their long hill, there were not many officers standing on line of parapet and battery without such mur- that favorite spot; and the sleepers who had derous loss as would speedily annihilate an lain down to rest, doubtful of the complete army. Their enormous bomb-proofs, large success of the French, and certain of our own and numerous as they were, could not hold failure, little dreamed that Sebastopol was the requisite force to resist a general concerted ours.

attack made all along the line with rapidity All was ready for a renewed assault on and without previous warning. On the other the Redan; but the Russians, having kept up hand, the strength of the works themselves is a brisk fire from the rifle pits and embrasures prodigious. One hears our engineers feebly to the last momeut, and having adopted the saying, "they are badly traced," and that kind same plan along their lines, so as to blind our of thing; but it is quite evident that the Rus- eyes and engage our attention, abandoned it, sían, who is no match for the Allies in the open as is supposed, about 12 o'clock, and the silence field, has been enabled to sustain the most tre- having attracted the attention of our men, mendous bombardment, ever known, and an some volunteers crept up and looked through 11 months' siege; that he was rendered capa- an embrasure, and found the place deserted ble of repulsing one general assault, and that by all, save the dead and dying. Soon aftera subsequent attack upon him at four points was only successful at one, which fortunately happened to be the key of his position, and the inference is that his engineers were of consummate ability, and furnished him with artificial strength that made him equal to our best efforts.

wards wandering fires gleamed through the streets and outskirts of the town-point after point became a light-the flames shone out of the windows of the houses-rows of mansions caught and burnt up, and, ere daybreak, the town of Sebastopol that fine and stately mis tress of the Euxine, on which we had so often The details of the French attack will no doubt turned a longing eye, was on fire from the have been made public ere this letter reaches sea to the Dockyard Creek. Fort Alexander you. It is sufficient to say that of the three or was blown up with a stupendous crash that four points attacked, the Little Redan and the made the very earth reel, early in the night Malakhoff on the right, and the Bastion Cen- At sunrise four large explosions on the left trale and the re-entering angle of the Flag- followed in quick succession, and announced staff Works on the left, but one was carried, the destruction of the Quarantine Forts and and that was a closed work. The Great Re- of the magazines of the batteries of the Cendan, the Little Redan, and the line of defence tral Bastion and Flagstaff Fort. In a moment on the left were not taken, although the attack afterwards the proper left of the Redan was was resolute and the contest obstinate and the scene of a very heavy explosion, which bloody for both assailants and defenders. must have destroyed a number of wounded Whether we ought to have attacked the men on both sides. Fortunately the soldiers Great or Little Redan, or to have touched who had entered it early in the night were the left at all, is another question which is ven- withdrawn. The Flagstaff and Garden Battilated by many, but which it is not for me to teries blew up, one after another, at 4 45. At touch upon or decide. It is certain that the 5 30 there were two of the largest and grandenemy knew his weakness, and was too good est explosions on the left that ever shook the a strategist to defend a position of which we earth-most probably from Fort Alexander held the key. and the Grand Magazine. The rush of black Sebastopol in flames, his ships sunk, told the smoke, of gray and white vapor, of masses of story next morning, and some 10,000 French stone, beams of timber, and masonry into and English soldiers were its commentators. the air was appalling, and then followed Could we have done so it would have been the roar of a great bombardment; it was a well for the English to have claimed the honor magazine of shells blown up into the air, and of joining in the assault on the Malakhoff, exploding like some gigantic pyrotechnic disthe tower of which we had beaten into ruins, play in the sky-the effect of the innumerable and to have abstained from attacking the Re-flashes of fire twittering high up in the column dan, which could offer a desperate, and as of dark smoke over the town, and then changevents proved a successful resistance till the ing rapidly into as many balls of white smoke works around the Malakhoff were taken. like little clouds. All this time the Russians The surprise throughout the camp on Sun- were marching with sullen tramp across the day morning was beyond description when the bridge, and boats were busy carrying off ma news spread that Sebastopol was on fire, and teriel from the town, or bearing men to the that the enemy were retreating. The tre- south side, to complete the work of destruction mendous explosions, which shook the very and renew the fires of hidden mines, or light ground like so many earthquakes, failed to dis-up untouched houses. Of the fleet all that

remained visible were the eight steamers and the masts of the sunken line-of-battle ships. As soon as it was dawn, the French began to steal from their trenches into the burning town, undismayed by the flames, by the terrors of these explosions, by the fire of a lurking enemy, or by the fire of their own guns, which kept on slowly discharging cannon, shot and grape into the suburbs at regular intervals, possibly with the very object of deterring stragglers from risking their lives. But red breeches and blue breeches, kepi and Zouave fez could soon be distinguished in amid the flames, and moving from house to house.

heavy chair several miles, or a table, or some such article, was deprived of it by our sentries. The French in one instance complained that our Dragoons let English soldiers pass with Russian muskets and would not permit the French to carry off these trophies, but there was not any foundation for the complaint. There was assuredly no jealousy on one side or the other. It so happened that as the remnants of the French regiments engaged on the left against the Malakhoff and Little Redan marched to their tents this morning, our Second Division was drawn up on the parade ground in front of their camp, and the French had to Ere 5 o'clock there were numbers of men pass their lines. The instant the leading Reg. coming back with plunder, such as it was, and iment of Zouaves came up to the spot where Russian relics were offered for sale in camp our first Regiment was placed, the men with before the Russian battalions had marched out one spontaneous burst rent the air with an of the city. The sailors, too, were not behind- English cheer. The French officers drew hand in looking for "loot," and Jack could be their swords, their men dressed up and marchseen staggering under chairs, tables, and lum-ed past as if at a review, while regiment after bering old pictures, through every street, and regiment of the Second Division caught up the making his way back to the trenches with vast cry, and at last our men presented arms accumulations of worthlessness. Several men to their brave comrades of France, and the oflost their lives by explosions on this and the ficers on both sides saluted with their swords, following day. At 7 10 several small detona- and this continued till the last man had marchtions of shells and powder magazines took ed by. Mingled with the plunderers from the place in the town behind the Redan, and also front were many wounded men. The ambuon the left of the Dockyard Creek. At 7 12 lances never ceased, now moving heavily and immense clouds of black smoke rose from be- slowly with their burdens, again rattling at a hind Fort Paul, probably from a steamer which trot to the front for a fresh cargo, and the we found burning in the Dockyard. ground between the trenches and the camp The Russian columns which had been de- was studded with carolets or mule litters. Af filing in a continuous stream across the bridge, ready the funeral parties had commenced their now became broken into small bodies, or went labors. The Russians all this time were swarmover in intermittent masses unscathed by the ing on the north side, and took the liveliest shot and shell which plunged into the water interest in the progress of the explosions and close beside them. At 6.45, the last dense conflagrations. They took up ground in their column marched past, and soon afterwards the old camps, and swarmed all over the face of bridge was pulled asunder, and the pieces the hills behind the northern forts. Their were all floated across to the north side at 8.7. steamers cast anchor, or were moored close to The boats did not cease to pull backward and the shore among the creeks, on the north side, forward all the time, and the steamers were near Fort Catharine. By degrees, the Generexceedingly busy long after the garrison als, French and English, and the staff officers, moved. At 9 there were many explosions in edged down upon the town, but Fort Paul had the town amid the burning ruins, and the bat- not yet gone up, and Fort Nicholas was burntlements of Fort Nicholas appeared in flames. ing, and our engineers declared the place Still there was no explosion there nor in Fort would be unsafe for forty-eight hours. MovPaul. As the rush from camp now became ing down, however, on the right flank of our very great, and every one sought to visit the cavalry pickets, a small party of us managed Malakhoff and the Redan, which were filled to turn them cleverly, and to get out among with dead and dying men, a line of English the French works between the Mamelon and cavalry was posted across the front from our Malakhoff. The ground is here literally paved extreme left to the French Right. They were with shot and shell, and the surface is deeply stationed in all the ravines and roads to the honeycombed by the explosions of the bombs town and trenches, with orders to keep back at every square yard. The road was crowded all persons except the Generals and Staff, and with Frenchmen returning with paltry plunofficers and men on duty, and to stop all our der from Sebastopol, and with files of Russian men returning with plunder from the town, prisoners, many of them wounded, and all deand to take it from them. As they did not jected, with the exception of a fine little boy, stop the French, or Turks, or Sardinians, this in a Cossack's cap and a tiny uniform greatorder gave rise to a good deal of grumbling, coat, who seemed rather pleased with his kind particularly when a man after lugging up a captors. There was also one stout Russian

soldier, who had evidently been indulging in | heaps of shot, of grape, bits of shell, cartridges, the popularly credited sources of Dutch cour- case and cannister, loose powder, official paage, and who danced all the way into the pers, and cooking tins. The traverses are so camp with a Zouave and an Indigene. There high and deep that it is impossible almost to were ghastly sights on the way too. Russians get a view of the whole of the Malakhoff from who had died, or were dying as they lay, any one spot, and there is a high mound of brought so far towards the hospitals from the earth in the middle of the work, either intenfatal Malakhoff. Passing through a maze of ded as a kind of shell proof, or the remains of trenches, of gabionnades, and of zigzags and the old White Tower. The guns, which to parallels, by which the French had worked the number of sixty were found in the work, their sure and deadly way close to the heart are all ship's guns, and mounted on ship's carof the Russian defence, and treading gently riages, and worked in the same way as ship's among the heaps of dead, where the ground guns. There are a few old-fashioned, oddlybears full tokens of the bloody fray, we come shaped mortars. Look around the work, and at last to the head of the French sap. It you will see that the strength of the Russian is barely ten yards from that to the base of the was his weakness-he fell into his own bombhuge sloping mound of earth which rises full proofs. In the parapet of the work may be twenty feet in height above the level, and observed several entrances very narrow outshows in every direction the grinning muzzles side, but descending and enlarging downof its guns. The tricolor waves placidly from wards, and opening into rooms some four or its highest point, and already the French are five feet high and eight or ten square. These busy constructing a semaphore on the top. are only lighted from the outside by day Step briskly out of the sap-avoid those poor and must have been pitch dark at night, unmangled braves who are lying all around, and less the men were allowed lanterns. Here come on. There is a deep ditch at your feet, the garrison retired when exposed to a heavy some twenty or twenty-two feet deep, and ten bombardment. The odor of those narrow feet broad. See, here is the place where the chambers is villanous, and the air reeks with French crossed-here is their bridge of planks, blood and abominations unutterable. There and here they swarmed in upon the unsus- are several of these places, and they might set pecting defenders of the Malakhoff. They defiance to the heaviest mortars in the world: had not ten yards to go. We had 200, and over the roof is a layer of ship's masts, cut in were then out of breath. Were not planks junks and deposited carefully; then there is better than scaling ladders? See how easily over them a solid layer of earth, and above the French crossed. You observe on your that a layer of gabions, and above that a pile right hand, as you issue from the head of the of earth again. In one of these dungeons, French trench, a line of gabions on the ground which is excavated in the solid rock, and was running up to this bridge. That is a flying sap, which the French made the instant they got out of the trench into the Malakhoff, so that they were enabled to pour a continuous stream of men into the works, with comparative safety from the flank fire of the enemy. In the same way they at once dug a trench across the work inside, to see if there were any galvanic wires to fire mines. Mount the parapet and descend-of what amazing thickness are those embrasures! From the level of the ground inside to the top of the parapet cannot be less than eighteen feet. There are eight rows of gabions piled one above the other, and as each row recedes towards the top it leaves in the ledge below an excellent banquette for the defenders. Inside the sight is too terrible to dwell upon. The French are carrying away their own and the Russian wounded, and there are five distinct piles of dead formed to clear the way. The ground is marked by pools of blood, and the smell is already noisome; swarms of flies settle on dead and dying; broken muskets, torn clothes, caps, shakos, swords, bayonets, bags of bread, canteens, and haversacks are lying in indescribable wreck all over the place, mingled with

probably underneath the old White Tower, the officer commanding seems to have lived. It must have been a dreary residence. The floor and the entrance was littered a foot deep with reports, returns, and perhaps despatches assuring the Czar that the place had sustained no damage. The garrison were in these narrow chambers enjoying their siesta, which they invariably take at twelve o'clock, when the French burst in upon them like a torrent, and as it were drowned them in their holes. The Malakhoff is a closed work; it is only open at the rere to the town, and the French having once got in threw open a passage to their own rere, and closed up the front and the lateral communications with the curtains leading to the Great Redan and to the little Redan. Thus they were enabled to pour in their supports, in order and without loss, in a continued stream, and to resist the efforts of the Russians, which were desperate and repeated, to retake the place. They brought up their field guns at once, and swept the Russian reserves and supports, while Strange's battery from the Quarries carried death through their ranks in every quarter of the Karabelnaia. With the Malakhoff the enemy lost Sebastopol. The