rmit, and the officers relaxed the rule in my favour everywhere. So,
early in the day, I was in my old spot, with my old appliances for the
wounded and fatigued; little expecting, however, that this day would
so closely resemble the day of the last attack in its disastrous
results.

It was noon before the cannonading suddenly ceased; and we saw, with a
strange feeling of excitement, the French tumble out of their advanced
trenches, and roll into the Malakhoff like a human flood. Onward they
seemed to go into the dust and smoke, swallowed up by hundreds; but
they never returned, and before long we saw workmen levelling parapets
and filling up ditches, over which they drove, with headlong speed and
impetuosity, artillery and ammunition-waggons, until there could be no
doubt that the Malakhoff was taken, although the tide of battle still
surged around it with violence, and wounded men were borne from it in
large numbers. And before this, our men had made their attack, and the
fearful assault of the Redan was going on, and failing. But I was soon
too busy to see much, for the wounded were borne in even in greater
numbers than at the last assault; whilst stragglers, slightly hurt,
limped in, in fast-increasing numbers, and engrossed our attention. I
now and then found time to ask them rapid questions; but they did not
appear to know anything more than that everything had gone wrong. The
sailors, as before, showed their gallantry, and even recklessness,
conspicuously. The wounded of the ladder and sandbag parties came up
even with a laugh, and joked about their hurts in the happiest
conceivable manner.

I saw many officers of the 97th wounded; and, as far as possible, I
reserved my attentions for my old regiment, known so well in my native
island. My poor 97th! their loss was terrible. I dressed the wound of
one of its officers, seriously hit in the mouth; I attended to another
wounded in the throat, and bandaged the hand of a third, terribly
crushed by a rifle-bullet. In the midst of this we were often
interrupted by those unwelcome and impartial Russian visitors--the
shells. One fell so near that I thought my last hour was come; and,
although I had sufficient firmness to throw myself upon the ground, I
was so seriously frightened that I never thought of rising from my
recumbent position until the hearty laugh of those around convinced me
that the danger had passed by. Afterwards I picked up a piece of this
huge shell, and