Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 4.djvu/457

 THE 17TI1 OF OCTOBER. 427 which had been kept near the gorge of the Eedan chap. in order to meet an assault, now all at once fell ;_ back lor shelter towards the jNIarine Hospital, and t^,'e*Russ'Jan dropped down behind the scarp of the rock over- '"f^in^'y^ hanging the jNIan-of-war Harbour. ' Thenceforth,' says Todleben — and the time he speaks of is that which close followed the great explosion — ' thence- ' forth there disappeared all possibility of reply- ' ing to the English artillery. The defence in defenceless, J p ji T 1 condition of that part oi the lines was completely paralysed ; the Redan: ' enemy avail himself of the advantage he had And, indeed, it might well be imagined that tueopror- ° tuuity there the time ^•as at liand when (after one final salvo was for ^ assaulting which would build up a wall of dim smoke to 't: cover the front of the assailants) the gunners in the English batteries might now at last take their rest, and deliver over the site of what had been the Eedan to assaulting columns of infantry. From first to last I have been careful to keep under a full light the tissue of evil consequences that resulted from neglecting the element of time, and consenting to give the enemy his respite of twenty days ; but although Sir John Burgoyne gave counsel which tended to this capital error, the soundness of his conclusions in other respects may fairly, perhaps, be subjected to a separate criticism ; and when once the field of scrutiny is thus narrowed, it becomes right to say that, so far us concerned the English part of the siege, the
 * and in the Karabelnaya men expected to see the
 * gained, and at once advance to the assault.'*
 * Todleben, p. 329.