Page:Memorials of Capt. Hedley Vicars, Ninety-seventh Regiment by Marsh, Catherine, 1818-1912.djvu/205

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"Sunday night, March 11th, 1855.

"—I must write a few lines before I go to bed, as the mail closes to-morrow; and I shall have plenty to do then, as we expect to shift our ground early in the morning. For myself, I don't much care about it (though, of course, one does a little!), but I do feel for the sick, many of whom are now in nice wooden huts, and will have to revert to tents again, at any rate, until we get the former on the new ground upon which we are to encamp.

"After our usual tent services, I walked with Cay and Vandeleur towards the Victoria Redoubt. The Light Division formerly furnished a picquet here, but the French have it now. From the advanced work in front of the redoubt we got a capital view of Sebastopol, with its long line of frowning batteries. We soon perceived that our enemies had erected a new work in front of their Round Tower Battery, and considerably nearer to us, for the purpose of enfilading the Gordon. We could trace where each shot or shell fell. I am glad to say that their practice was very bad, for out of about fifty rounds which they fired while we were looking on, only one or two hit the battery. I only hope they may be as ignorant of the range when we storm!

On our return, we learnt that a strong party from the Light Division is to be detained on duty to night, in the trenches, in addition to the usual guards. We have 300 men of the 97th out to-night; so we have only forty or fifty effective men left in camp. Three Captains, besides Subalterns of the 97th, are either on covering party or out-lying picquet. I have a night in bed, for my comfort.