Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 3.djvu/292

 2GG liATTf.i; OF Tin: ai.ma. CiiAi'. limnovtals, they strike no blow, they snatch no ^' man's wcajion, they lift away no warrior in a cloud. What the angel of light can bestow is valour, priceless valour, and light to lighten the path to victory, giving men grace to see the bare truth, and, seeing it, to have the mastery. To regiments which arp to l>e blessed with victory the Angel of Light seems to beckon, and gently draw his men forward. What the Angel of Dark- ness can inflict is fear, horror, despair; and it is given him also to be able to plant error and vain fancies in the minds of the doomed soldiery. By false dread he scares them. Whether he who conceived this prayer was soldier or priest, or soldier and priest in one, it seems to me that he knew more of the true nature of the strife of good infantry tlian he could utter in common prose. For indeed it is no physical pcnver which rules the conflict between two well -formed bodies of foot. The mere killing and wounding which occurs whilst a light is still hanging in doubt, does not so alter the relative numbers of the combatants as in that way to govern the result. The use of the slaughter which takes place at that time lies mainly in the stress which it puts upon the minds of those who, themselves remaining unhurt, are nevertheless disturbed by the sight of what is be- falling their conn-ades. In that way, a command of the means necessary for inflicting death and wounds is one element of victory. But it is far from being the chief one. Nor is it by perfect-