164 REMINISCENCES OF 



" DEVNA CAMP, igth July 1854. 



" DEAR JACK, 



" I am a horrid beast for not writing to you 

 before, but it really is such a bore writing here, what 

 with the heat, flies and no table. I got out to Varna 

 on the 1 5th, and disembarked on the i6th in such a 

 storm. I was very lucky in not losing a horse and 

 landing them all fit to go, and I had a very fair ship, 

 only too small for the purpose, being the smallest out 

 (570 tons). I enjoyed the passage very much, par- 

 ticularly the Mediterranean and the Bosphorus, Greek 

 Islands, etc., which are beautiful. I made several 

 sketches, but could get no paint blue enough for the 

 sea. They fed us pretty well on board, and I was 

 not sick. We touched at Malta, Gallipoli, Scutari 

 and Varna. Tremayne's ship was towed with me 

 from Malta, and we got to Varna three days before 

 Oldham, who was beat. We stayed at Varna three 

 days, and then our squadron, ' Jos' and I, was sent on 

 to Devna, about fifteen miles north. The i7th and 

 8th, with Lord Cardigan, were here. We got a deal 

 of kudos about our nags, all others having so many 

 sick and dead. Tremayne only lost one. When we 

 had been here five days our squadron and one of the 

 8th started under Lord C. for a patrol, as sudden 

 orders came from Lord Raglan to go and find out 

 where the Russians were, as they had left Silistria 

 and not recrossed the Danube, so it was supposed 

 they were near Bassora or on the road to Varna. 

 We were out sixteen days, and have only been back 

 a week, and we found the 1 1 th and the rest of our 



