Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 5.djvu/274

 252 THE BATTLE OF BALACLAVA. cha p. by the right wing of the Kussian cavalry could , hardly have numbered more than some twenty horsemen ; * and this scanty force being now at the close of a rapid advance carried on for more than a mile under destructive fire, was not mov- ing down with such weight and compactness — nor even, in truth, at such a high rate of speed — as to be able to deliver that shock which is the object of a cavalry charge. It was plain, how- ever, that, with all such might as was now pos- sible, the blow must be dealt ; for the Kussian horsemen, by remaining halted, were offering once more to the English that priceless advantage which they had given to Scarlett in the earlier part of the day. The density of the smoke had pre- vented the commander of the 17th Lancers from seeing that three -fourths of his horsemen were confronted by the battery ; -f* and he apparently believed that, in executing a charge against the enemy's cavalry, he would be carrying with him the whole remains of his regiment. J hie charge. Be this as it may, Morris, turning half round the 17th Lancers, a large portion of the left squadron (probably not much less than a troop) was confronted by the battery, and entered it ; and if also it be true, as I imagine it must be, that by far the greater part of the casualties which ultimately re- duced the regiment to a strength of only 37 had already oc- curred, it would seem to follow that there can hardly be any wide error in the surmise which puts the force engaged in Morris's charge at a number not exceeding twenty. + This is proved, as 1 think, by a little sketch-map in which he conveyed his impression as to the position of the guns. { This is inferred from the fad mentioned in the foregoing note and from the general tenor of Colonel Morris's narrative.
 * It is known that, besides the whole of the right squadron of