xxxiv BIOGEAPJUCAL SKETCH. 



up to and even crossing the bridge. In Lord Ai-thur's opinion, the MalakofF was the true key to 

 the position. He further thought that our possession of the Mamelon and the " white batteries " 

 ought to give us the Malakoff; but "we have shown no ngour, no energy, no resources, no just 

 appreciation of these qualities in the enemy, and no doAvnright will to take the place. On the 

 contrary, there is no sound or uniform plan of attack, nor is the material we possess made to bear 

 with its full force even if it were sufficient. It cannot be admitted that we tried to take the 

 town as long as numbers of the enemy's guns can be seen without guns on our side corresponding 

 with them. Our batteries are not sufficient in number and are not near enough, nor are our 

 guns heavy enough or numerous enough. The result of all this is, that we cannot keep up a 

 continual fire upon any point we wish to attack, and we cannot subdue the fire of these guns of 

 the enemy, which flank the object of our attack." 



There was a considerable change in the personnel of the army. After the failure of the 

 assault of 18th June and the death of Lord Eaglan, Sir J. Simpson became Commander-in-Chief; 

 and the gaps in the commands caused by death and illness among the seniors were filled up 

 generally by junior officers. 



Referring to the newly-appointed general. Lord Arthur gives him credit for one merit at 

 least : — " He is a disciplinarian. Two officers have already been cashiered. I was on the court- 

 martial of another to-day ; and I believe two more are for trial. This is beginning at the right 

 end, and I have no doubt that the men will be pulled up also in due time. You will be able to 

 judge if he be as good as his word by the number of court-martials. The new Adjutant-General 

 is a very good man, young and energetic, up to his work and with very proper ideas on military 

 subjects — ideas which to you would appear to be ordinary common sense, but which have as yet 

 been rare amongst our authorities. It is satisfactory to feel that now an officer will be borne 

 out when doing his duty. If I may presume to criticise, our late general's leniency was his great 

 failing, and it led, under the peculiar circumstances in which the army is placed, to great mis- 

 chief. Under the late rule the most henious military ofiences were passed over — even crimes of 

 gross insubordination and attempts at desertion. As we now can inflict by drum-head court- 

 martial as severe a corporal punishment as by a general court-martial, those who have the good 

 of the seiTice at heart can ensure punisliment and obviate the chances of its remittance." 



In the early part of July it actually seemed as if the year would pass without any 

 decided result, and that another winter in the trenches was highly probable. It might be 

 said that " the whole English army was at the moment employed as guard to the works then 

 finished ; out of a total of 17,000 bayonets, 5000 were on duty in both attacks; and if there 

 be deducted from these rearguard, general officers, commissariat, ammunition-guards, &c., &c., 

 &c., it becomes easy to judge how severely the trench-duty fell upon the actual service men. 



