another regiment of cavalry (11th Hussars) in support, with a troop of horse artillery. Some way to our left were the other two regiments of the brigade of light cavalry (the 8th Hussars and 17th Lancers), four squadrons in all: these protected our flank, whilst a mile in rear came Sir George Cathcart with two-thirds of the 4th Division (the remainder being, as I before stated, left to clear the beach). The baggage and commissariat of the two armies were drawn more to the rear of the centre of the ground taken up by the troops. You will see by this that the French presented a front nearly double the breadth of ours, as three divisions were to the front, whereas ours were two deep.

The day was excessively hot, and many men fell out from exhaustion. There were frequent halts during the march to allow the stragglers to join their regiments again. No ground could be found better adapted for the movement of troops than that we marched over; the only want was water, and this was what made the troops suffer so much. The army arrived at the Bulganak river by 2 P.M., when every one rushed forward to drink. The distance

marched by the majority of our troops was ten miles, though some had to come much farther. The river, as it is called, however, proved only to be a small stream, but still the water was good, and consequently most acceptable to our thirsty men and horses. On arriving here a good number of Cossacks were observed on the brow of the hill beyond, at a distance of half a mile. Lord Raglan, being desirous of ascertaining if the enemy were in force beyond, ordered Lord Cardigan forward with the two regiments of light cavalry in advance, to drive the Cossacks off and endeavour to ascertain if any number were in support. Accordingly the cavalry moved on at a trot, and some came up to where the Cossacks had been, and from there they discovered a large body of cavalry on some rising ground a mile off, there being a sort of valley between them. On this being communicated to Lord Raglan he ordered up the Light and 2nd Divisions, and sent for the other two regiments of light cavalry, which were on the flank of the army. In the mean time Lord Cardigan had advanced down into the hollow, and thrown out a troop in

skirmishing order. The Russians did the same, and the skirmishers on both sides commenced firing at one another. This went on I should say for twenty minutes, and during the whole of that time I don't believe a man or horse on either side was touched. So much for firing on horseback! An officer of the 11th told me afterwards that he had seen a Cossack get off his horse and lead him to the rear; but that was not much to boast of. During this time the 8th Hussars and 17th Lancers came up and remained at a short distance to the left rear of the other two regiments of cavalry. Also the Light and 2nd Divisions had got up just to the brow of the hill, but hardly forward enough for the enemy to see their strength.

Lord Raglan was particularly anxious not to bring on a general action, and therefore would not allow the cavalry to attack; indeed, it would have been madness to have done so, as the enemy had five times our strength. The cavalry were therefore ordered to retire by alternate squadrons, which they did as quietly and as orderly as if at a field-day on Hounslow Heath. The enemy advanced also slowly,

still with his skirmishers in advance and firing. These movements on both sides went on for some ten minutes, when what appeared to be a squadron of cavalry came down from the left of the Russians towards our cavalry. When half-way down the hill they halted, and the squadron opened in the centre, and wheeled back right and left, and discovered a battery of guns. One of these was instantly fired—the first gun of the campaign. It was beautifully done, and did great credit to Russian drill. Of course Lord Raglan ordered our artillery to reply, but, finding that the troop of horse artillery attached to the cavalry (6-pounders) did not reach with good effect, he ordered up the troop of horse artillery and battery attached to the Light Division, both of which had 9-pounders. These opened with considerable effect, and the Russians "limbered up" and retired in a hurry. The whole affair was the prettiest thing I ever saw, so exactly as one had done dozens of times at Chobham and elsewhere. If one had not seen the cannon-balls coming along at the rate of a thousand miles an hour, and bounding like cricket-balls, one would

really have thought it only a little cavalry review. The Russians fired fifteen or sixteen shot; we fired altogether forty-four shot and shell. Our casualties were four men wounded (two amputations) and five horses killed, all of the cavalry. We had no means of ascertaining at the time the loss of the enemy, except by seeing the bodies of several horses lying about; but we have since heard that they lost twenty-five men killed and wounded. The enemy's cavalry consisted of the 12th (Saxe Weimar) Hussars, and two regiments of Don Cossacks, regulars; the artillery was Cossack artillery, and, as far as their practice was concerned, was certainly good. Their guns were only 6-pounders. The French army was rather more than a mile to our right, and consequently had nothing to do with the affair, and could only look on. Lord Raglan sent Colonel Lagondie (a French officer attached to his personal staff, and of whom I told you in a former letter) to Prince Napoleon to request him to take ground to his left, so as to decrease the interval between the two armies. Colonel Lagondie took and delivered the message to the Prince, but never