Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 8.djvu/134

 102 THE ENEMY'S GEEAT NIGHT ATTACK. CHAP. IV. Part of the invading force checked by some men of the 21st Fusiliers under Carl ton; and ulti- mately re- treat mg before it. Russian troops for a while in the two advanced bitteries; near to the trench they had carried. In the hope of apposing to these some beginning at least of resistance, Lieutenant Carlton of the 21st Fusi- liers—a. young officer, on guard at the Zigzag uniting the two foremost .parallels — collected his own little force — about 50 in number — adding to it some men of the 57th whom he found within reach, and then at once opened fire on the hesi- tating conquerors of the advanced trench who were thus, as it seemed, brought to bay. Instead of advancing, they replied to the fire of our people with fire from the ground where they stood. After combating in this way for some time with the small English force which had challenged them, the intruders slackened their fire without seeming inclined to advance. Observing this, Carlton once more collected his men, pushed forward into the trench, and there found the enemy already in the act of deserting it. Those separated bodies of men which had en- tered the ' VII.' and ' VIII.' batteries, where our men were at work, took three of them prisoners with also the captain of engineers who was direct- ing their labours. They made themselves at home in the ' advanced No. VII.' and the ' advanced No. ' VIII.' during nearly, it is said, half an hour, doing all the little mischief they could to unfinished sandbag - batteries which had not at that time been armed. They also possessed themselves of seventy pick- axes, together with fifty shovels, and the simple Russian soldier — always strangely enjoying the