On the night of the 1st of May, the French attacked a counter -guard which the Russians had established in front of the Central Bastion, in which they were preparing to place guns, and in which they had already mounted nine hand-mortars or cohorns, which caused considerable annoyance to our Allies. At ten o'clock at night, by the light of a bright moon, the French troops, formed into two columns of attack, under the orders of Generals Bazaine and De la Motterouge, issued from their parallels, rushed with irresistible vehemence and without firing a single shot on the right and front of the work, and attacked its defenders with the bayonet. Tlie Russians soon brought a heavy fire of musketry and artillery to bear on the assailants, and a severe and protracted conflict ensued, ending by the French, after repeated charges with the bayonet, succeeding in driving the enemy from every part of the work, in which they captured eight of the cohorns. The Engineers, ever ready to turn to the best account the suc- 2 F
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cesses of their comrades, at once set to work, turned the parapets, and amidst a heavy fire from the Russian batteries firmly established themselves in the work, Avhich they connected vpithout loss of time with the French parallel in its rear. At four o'clock on the following afternoon the Russians attempted to retake this outwork, but were repulsed in a vigorous sortie which they made with this object, and suffered a severe loss from some guns which were brought to bear on them by the French, whose conduct in both affairs was exceedingly brilliant. Their casualties were heavy, but still could not have nearly equalled those inflicted on the Russians. This dashing affair advanced the French about 150 yards nearer to the Central Bastion.
On the 3d of May, a secret expedition, which had for some days been in preparation, and whose destination Avas pretty generally known to be the Straits of Ivertch, sailed from Balaklava and Kamiesch. It was composed of about forty -eight vessels, containing 8000 French, 4000 English, 18 guns, and the proper complement of land transport and commissariat. It was admirably planned, equipped, and organised; the troops were in the highest spirits and the most splendid condition, and delighted with the novelty of the service; the Allied commanders were sanguine of success — all circumstances of time and place and weather seemed to combine in its favour, and yet, to the astonishment and disgust of those who had gone and those who had remained behind, in a few days a report, at first indignantly repudiated, was at length undeniably confirmed by the return of the expeditionary forces. On the 6th of May they had reached the appointed rendezvous, and everything was in readiness for the expected disembarkation, when a French steamer arrived at full speed with positive orders from General Canrobert that the expedition was to return at once to Kamiesch.
It is impossible to describe the disappointment and annoyance of the Allied commanders; one of them, it is asserted, who on more than one occasion has emulated the conduct of Nelson, cited as a precedent the coui'se taken by him at the battle of Copenhagen, and proposed to ignoi*e the obnoxious orders altogether. This suggestion, however, if it ever was made, was overruled by the stricter sense of discipline in his colleague, and the expedition leturned. The extraordinary resolution thus adopted by the French Commauder-in-chief was attributed to his having received a telegraphic message from the Emperor directing him to concentrate his troops, and to despatch all the transports at his disposal to the Bosphorus, to convey the French reserves there to the Seat of War. It spite of the urgent remonstrances and formal disapproval of Lord Raglan, as well as the earnest representations of several French officers of high rank, General Canrobert persisted in considering the Emperor's commands as leaving him no discretion, and carried out on his own responsibility his determination of recalling the French portion of the expedition. This necessarily involved the return of the English: and this failure of an enterprise, commenced apparently under the happiest auspices, and abandoned in obedience to an inconceivable crotchet, resulted in General Canrobert's resignation of his command-in-chief.