Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 3.djvu/280

 254 BATTLE OF THE ALRLV. c 11 A r. Seeing that, before many moments were over, ^' the Grenadiers would be up in the redoubt Kvetzinski's Kvetziuski conceived that his retreat by the movement great road was already cut off, and he ordered witii the that the right Vladimir column — the column mir column, with which lie was present — should move from the field obliquely, avoiding the English right. This was a path which would take the column along the eastern skirts of the Kourgaue Hill, and bring it towards the spot where the right Kazan column stood posted. Kvetzinski, still firm and soldierly, charged a few of his men with the duty of covering his retreat ; and, entrusting the command of this little rear-guard to Ensign Berestoffsky, gave orders that the march should be leisurely. He was not ill obeyed ; but the movement was hardly one which could be executed with all the accustomed dignity of Rus- sian troops in retreat, for the column had to move slantwise across the front of the battalion which was swiftly ascending the hill, and, if it were to ' clay. I hope due credit will be done to my fine fellows, for it ' was a proud sight to see them behave so well ; and what an ' iionour to command such a body of men ! . . . The bat- ' talion has been the admiration of French, Englisli, and Rus- ' sians.' — Private letter, 21st September 1854. My numerous quotations from the private journal and private letters of Colonel Hood correspond so closely with the tenor of this part of the narrative that the reader will be likely to say, ' That journal and those letters were evidently the authority ' on which the Author based his account of the operations ' of the Grenadier Guards.' It is, however, a fact, that I never saw the journal nor the letters, and never knew anything of their tenor, until after the publication of the first and second editions of this book. — Note to ilk Edition.