French reserves there to the Seat of War. In spite of the urgent remonstrances and formal disapproval of Lord Eaglan, as well as the earnest representations of several French officers of high rank, General Canrobert persisted in considering the Emperor's commands as leaving him no discretion, and carried out on his own responsibility his determination of recalling the French portion of the expedition. This necessarily involved the return of the English: and this failure of an enterprise, commenced apparently under the happiest auspices, and abandoned in obedience to an inconceivable crotchet, resulted in General Canrobert's resignation of his command-in-chief.
In relinquishing a post in which his conciliatory manners, his amiable character, and his unquestioned personal courage had rendered him popular, but for which he was unfitted no less from his deficiency in that rare comT bination of various talents which goes to the making-up of a great general, than by his invincible repugnance to the assumption of individual responsibility. General Canrobert adopted a resolution which, while it redounded in the highest degree to his credit, savoured rather of the classic spirit of self-abnegation which characterised the heroic sons of ancient Rome than of the degenerate practice of more modern days. He demanded, and his request was acceded to, that he might be permitted to resume his old employment of General of the first division of the French Army, and in this subordinate capacity he continued with cheerfulness and alacrity to render services to the common cause which cannot be too highly appreciated, under the orders of his former subaltern, General Pelissier, who on the Emperor's nomination now assumed the supreme command of the French army.
On the night of the 10th of May, the darkness of which favoured the enterprise, the Russians advanced in force up the Woronzoff Road, and made a determined attack on the trenches on the left of the English right attack. The firing on both sides was so extremely heavy as to warrant the belief that an affair of more than ordinary importance was taking place, but after half an hour's sharp fighting the enemy retired with a loss of about 200 men, our own amounting to only 23 killed and wounded. The attempt was renewed the following night on our left attack, but the sentries were on the alert, and at once gave the alarm, on which Colonel Macbeth of the 68th regiment, who was on duty in the trenches, got his men into order, and received the Russians with a steadiness which completely frustrated their purpose. Some of them contrived to get into the battery, where they were immediately bayoneted. A hand-to-hand struggle then took place outside the lines, in which the Russians were thoroughly worsted, retiring with severe loss. On our side Captain Lloyd Edwards and six men of the 68th were killed, and twenty-two wounded.
About this time a large portion of the Sardinian Contingent arrived. They
THE EAST.
were enthusiastically received by the English, already warmly prepossessed in their favour by the memory of their gallant bearing in the struggle which terminated so disastrously on the plains of Novara, and who viewed with generous admiration their soldierlike appearance, their picturesque and serviceable equipment, the grace and activity of their gait, and their perfect organisation, which caused this compact little force to be universally recognised as the very model of an army in the field.