Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 4.djvu/449

 THE 17TH OF OCTOBEU. 419 two of them, without itself haviii" a jrun dis- CHAP. XIII mounted, and without even losing one man. '__ 3. At ranges of from 800 to 1200 yards, and Mith the aid of steam-frigates throwing shells at a range of 1600 yards, three English ships in ten minutes brought to ruin and cleared of their gunners the whole of the open-air batteries (con- taining 27 guns) which were on the top of a great stone foi't at the water's edge. 4 The whole Allied fleet, operating in one part of it at a range of from 1600 to 1800 yards, and in another part of it at ranges of from 800 to 1200 yards, failed to make any useful impression upon casemated batteries protected by a good stone wall from five to six feet thick. 5, Under the guns of a great fort by the water's edge, which, although it had lost the use of its topmost pieces of artillery, still had all its case- mates entire, and the batteries within them uninjured, a great English ship, at a distance of only 800 yards, lay at anchor and fighting for hours without sustaining any ruinous harm.* III. Whilst the fleets plied their thunder in vain, and the still silent guns on Mount Eodolph con- the Agamemnon must depend upon a question still somewhat obscure — i.e., the number of guns in the casemates of Fort Constantine which could really be brought to bear upon her. The impunity of the Rodney would be even more instructive than the experience of the Agamemnon, if it were not for the surmise referred to, aitic, p. 3D6.
 * Of course, the value of the experience thus acquired by