Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol 6.djvu/460

 416 THE BATTLK UF INKERMAN. CHAP, was not SO encourafnnj:^ to Canrobert as the con- VI. . L_ ficlent, dare-devil sentence translated to him a few 6th Period. „^ji^^j(-,gg before, and the French Commander re- sisted all efforts to engage him in aggressive action * With that large force of all arms which hisdcfinitive wc found present under his orders, he subsided abandon- . • n r • mentofthe into au attitude 01 passive expectancy. After offensive. t ■ t it dividing the whole strength of his infantry be- tween the English Heights and the now peaceful slopes of the Kitspur, he thenceforth kept it un- moved, allowing our wearied soldiery in his front to go on as they might with their struggle. His batteries, though oftentimes moving, and seeking in vain for good berths, were worked valiantly under a fire which inflicted upon them grave losses ; but liis infantry not attacking, nor being attacked, remained altogether inactive, and took no i'urther part in the conflict.-f* and Canrobert, Colonel, now Sir David, Wood was present, and he says that Canrobert spoke thus : ' Mais, ma foi, milord, ' qu'est que je puis faire ? Les Russes, ils sont par tout' (pointing with his uuwounded aiTn), 'ils sont, Ih, Ik, et IJk.' At that moment, a round-shot from a new quarter caused Sir David to decide that he must instantly go to the front to 'see after' Townsend's battery, and he therefore of course did not hear the rest of the conversation. t I need hardly say that the statement in the text is not meant to negative the fact that soldiers, whether Russian or French, continued here and there to amuse them selves by trying long shots with their rifles. The fact that the French infantry desisted from further fighting at eleven o'clock, is acknowledged by the French authorities. See extracts from some of them in the Appendix, Note XI. What the French say is — not that their infantry fought after eleven o'clock, but — that at that hour the battle came virtually to an end.
 * During' a part of the conversation between Lord Raglan