Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 3.djvu/121

 BATTLE OF THE ALMA. 95 had inclined away towards their left, and, fording chap. the river higher up, had left Codringtou's brigade ' without any skirmishers to cover its advance.* The Division - not covereJ No other light-mfantry men were thrown lorward by suir- " luishers. in their stead, and the whole body went stark on with bare front, driving full at the enemy's stronghold.^ XIX. Sir George Brown's right brigade, consisting of Tiie tenor ^ <=> <^ *-" of Sir G. the Eoyal Fusiliers, the 33d and 23d Eegimentsj Brown's •^ ' ox orders for the advance which had had to advance in front of Codrington's brigade. Lawrence found himself so baflled by the smoke of the burning village, that he inclined away to his left, leaving Codrington's front uncovered, and got at last to the front of the 19th Kegi- ment. + Sir George Brown's omission to cause skirmishers to be thrown out from the regiments of Codrington's and Buller's brigades seems to have been caused by his imagining that the necessity of the step would be effectually superseded by the operations of the Rifle battalion. The event proved his error ; but one would have thought that it might have been perceived beforehand ; for, however well an independent body of rifle- men may be led, and however important a share it may be likely to have in governing the result of a battle, there is no safe ground for anticipating that its operations will supply the place of skirmishers thrown out from the formed battalions. Indeed, it may be said that the more able and enterprising the leader of an independent body of light infantry men may be, the less his force will be likely to fulfil the peculiar duty of companies thrown out from the formed battalions, and kept in close relation with them by the link of that obedience -which a captain owes to his colonel. X When I speak of several regiments in the same limb of the sentence, I generally follow the order in which they would be ranged, going from right to left. In a brigade consisting cf three regiments — say, e.g., of the 1st, 2d, and 3d Foot — the
 * The right wing -the wing under Lawrence — was the wing