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NOTWITHSTANDING that the Rodney was a dull sailer, we made a capital passage, and running before a favouring gale, we passed the Straits of Gibraltar six days after leaving England ; and had it not been for an accident which befell us when half-way between Gibraltar and Malta, we should have made a record passage for a sailing-ship. She was running before a heavy westerly gale at the rate of 12 knots an hour, when about midnight the hawse-plugs (blocks of wood to plug up the hawse-pipes where the cable passes through) were washed in, and an immense body of water rushed in and flooded the lower deck. The pace of the ship through the water made it impossible to go forward to plug the pipes, and the sea poured down the hatchways into the cockpit and holds, and she became nearly water-logged, and in danger of foundering with all hands. On deck the uproar was awful: rain was coming down in torrents, and the wind roaring, so that it was impossible to hear the orders of the officers. The ship was running under close-reefed main topsail and reefed fore-sail. All hands were piped to "save ship" - one watch to shorten sail, and the 9 OVERBOARD AT THE OPERA watch below to man the pumps. It was decided to bring the ship to the wind, to stop her way through the water, always a dangerous operation in a gale of wind, and, to make matters worse, we were known to be in the vicinity of the much-dreaded Sorelli rocks, where H.M.S. Avenger was lost with all hands. However, it had to be done. The captain, commander, and master were among the best seamen in the service; the ship was brought-to, when bang went the main top-sail, blown clean out of the boltropes, and disappearing in the pitchy darkness to leeward. Meantime the decks were scuttled in several places, to let the water into the hold; the chain pumps clanked merrily round, and the ship was saved. We reached Malta a few days later, eleven days from England, and joined the squadron there assembled under Vice-Admiral Sir James Dundas. Here we remained four months, enjoying ourselves as midshipmen are so well able to do - riding, boating, and a turn at the opera when our funds admitted it. Au absurd adventure happened to two of our men at this opera. They were in the gallery, and were both considerably the worse for liquor, when one of them fell over the railing into the pit. His chum, under the impression that he had fallen overboard, took off his coat and went after him. Wonderful to relate, neither of them was killed. One broke his leg; the other was unhurt. We were not sorry when the time came to leave Malta, and shaping our course to the eastward, anchored in Besika Bay, at the entrance to the Dardanelles. Here we were joined by the French 10 INCIDENTS LEADING UP TO THE CRIMEAN WAR. fleet, and together we remained for several months, idling our time, so it seemed to us, and varying the monotony by fraternising with our French friends. Our captain always took a great interest in his youngsters, and amongst other things made us keep an account of our expenditure, which he said would be useful to us in after-life. We used to assemble in his cabin every month with our books, which were carefully balanced to the last farthing - mostly cooked up with fictitious items. But one day he sent for us without any warning, - whether he had a touch of gout or not I don't know, but this is what he said : "I've sent for you youngsters to tell you that your accounts are a d---d set of lies from beginning to end," and turning to Captain Randolph, he added, "Masthead the young blackguards!" and up we went, two to each mast-head, the rest on the bitts, till night. The captain then manned his galley and went aboard the French flagship to point us out. After a long spell at Besika, we got orders to pass the Dardanelles and proceed to Constantinople. The ship had to be towed up, as the current runs strong ; but Captain Graham in the Rodney and Symonds of the Arethusa frigate tried to beat up, an impossible feat, so both ships got ashore, and had to be towed off again. However, in due course we reached our destination, and anchored in Beikos Bay, opposite Therapia, where the combined fleets made a goodly show. It was here that we got news of the destruction of a Turkish and Egyptian squadron of seven frigates in Sinope Bay, on the south side of the Black Sea, by a Russian fleet of six ships of the 11 THE "MASSACRE OF SINOPE" line. This action, commonly known as the massacre of Sinope, took place on 30th November 1853, and is justly considered the most disgraceful episode in the history of the. Crimean War. For ten days before the battle it was known that the Russian ships had put to sea from Sebastopol, and were blockading the Turkish squadron in the Bay of Sinope, although war had not been declared between them. The Turkish commander had sent despatches overland to Constantinople asking for assistance; but nothing was done, and on the day mentioned Admiral Nachimoff demanded the surrender of the squadron, which was indignantly refused, when a terrible battle ensued. The Turks and Egyptians, although greatly overmatched, fought their ships till they sank or blew up. It was said that in some instances the captains blew up their ships, preferring death to dishonour; others went down with their colours flying; but even if they struck their colours, it made no difference to the Russian admiral, who continued the slaughter till the whole squadron was destroyed with the exception of one steamer, the Taif, which made her escape and brought tidings of the disaster to Constantinople. It is said that 4000 Turks and Egyptians were killed on this occasion, and that the few who survived were wounded. Whilst these events were happening a powerful fleet of English and French ships was lying idle in the Bosphorus, On receipt of the news we proceeded with the squadron to Sinope, for what purpose is not very clear, seeing that the mischief had been done and the Russian ships had returned to Sebastopol; and even if we had intercepted 12 INCIDENTS LEADING UP TO THE CRIMEAN WAR. them, we could have done nothing, as we were not at war. At Sinope we found abundant traces of the conflict : quantities of wreckage and dead bodies strewed the shore, and guns and anchors were blown far inland by the force of the explosions. After a short stay we returned to the Bosphorus, and on the 28th March 1854 war was declared with Russia, and the combined fleets sailed for Odessa. On arrival off Odessa the steamers of the combined fleets were detailed to shell the place, the line-of-battle ships remaining at anchor in the offing, as the forts were not considered of sufficient importance to require their attention. The Arethusa, a beautiful 50-gun frigate, also took part in the bombardment, manoeuvring in front of the batteries in the most graceful way. The bombardment over, the fleet put to sea, and after cruising for some days off Sebastopol to try and tempt the Russians to come out, bore up for Varna and anchored in Balchic Bay, which became our headquarters for some months, whilst preparations were made for the invasion of the Crimea. Our life at this place was somewhat monotonous; varied occasionally with some midshipmen's pranks, which were not always creditable. One day a couple of us landed to practise with a revolver, and we had the misfortune to shoot a horse: the poor animal kicked up his heels and rolled over dead. Some Turks, hearing the shot, at once gave chase; but we were too nimble for them, and escaped to the beach and so on board, where we remained for a week in fear and trembling, but 13 FLOGGING IN THE NAVY we heard no more about it. Another time we were attacked in a village by three savage dogs, one of which I killed, while I wounded another; but we had to fly for our lives, and took refuge in a barn, from which we with difficulty escaped. None of these escapades came to the ears of our commander, or we should not have been allowed ashore again. In those days discipline was maintained with much more severity than it is at present. Men were flogged for offences which are now met with stoppage of grog and leave. I have seen half a launch's crew receive forty-eight lashes for drunkenness, and the gunroom steward who supplied them with grog was served in the same way. No doubt in war-time it is necessary to be more severe, and in those days the men were not so perfectly disciplined as they are now, nor so well educated or respectable ; nevertheless, it is a good thing for the service, and the country that flogging is abolished in the army and navy, for there is no doubt the liberty to use it was often grossly abused. Some captains have been known to have flogged every man in the ship. Men used to be flogged for not coming down smartly enough from aloft, and suchlike trivial offences, by brutal officers. My opinion is that an officer who cannot maintain discipline without flogging is unfit for command. I have heard of some amusing cases where the tables have been turned on some of these tyrants. A small craft was paid off at Devonport many years ago, on her return from the West Coast of Africa. Nearly all the ship's company had been flogged during the commission. The captain was taking a walk up one of the streets of Devonport 14 INCIDENTS LEADING UP TO THE CRIMEAN WAR when an old woman came up to him and said, " Be you Captain ? " " Yes, my good woman ; what can I do for you? " Take that! for flogging my son," said she, at the same time whipping out a hake-fish and " letting him have it" across the face. There is an old service yarn of a frigate captain, a notorious bully, who, not content with using the foulest language all round, abused his officers in the same manner. One day the second lieutenant went up to him, and touching his cap in the most deferential manner, called the captain all the names he could think of. The skipper, exasperated beyond measure, shouted out to several officers who were on deck to come round, and called upon the officer to repeat his language, when he altered his tune, and began some long rigmarole on matters of quite a different tenor: as there were no witnesses, the captain could do nothing. This same skipper was also served a neat trick by his clerk, who had long suffered from his abuse. The captain was a small man, the clerk a big, powerful fellow; so one day he went into the captain's cabin, knocked him down, and gave him a good thrashing. The skipper yelled for help, and the sentry rushed in; but the clerk threw himself on the deck, and dragged the captain on the top of him, at the same time shouting for assistance. The only evidence was the sentry's, and he said that all he saw was the captain on the top of the clerk, apparently striking him. This was vouched for to me by an officer who was in the ship at the time, and I give it as it was told me. No one would object to flogging when properly 15 STEERING FOR THE CRIMEA applied for brutal and cowardly assaults on women and suchlike, any more than they would to birching in schools when deserved. I speak feelingly, having been twice well flogged - once for a most innocent remark : when our master's wife presented her husband with a son, I asked if the babe had a stiff leg like his father! The other occasion was perhaps well deserved, for some of us threw a pail of water over the master's daughter in bed. She had changed rooms that night with her brother, for whom the douche was intended. To go back to my story. Whilst lying in Baldric Bay the fleet was visited by a most terrible attack of cholera, which decimated the crews of some of the ships, especially the three-deckers, which were more crowded: some ships lost over 100 men, and the whole fleet, English and French, put to sea to get clear of it. In the mean time transports full of troops were collecting at Varna, and by the end of August we were nearly ready for a start. The Turkish squadron now joined us, making altogether a grand fleet of thirty line-of-battle ships, besides frigates and steamers, which with the transports made up the large total of some 300 vessels assembled in the bay. On the evening of September 6 the French and Turkish fleets put to sea, and were joined by the English the next day; the combined fleet steering for the Crimea, the sailing-ships in tow of steamers, making altogether a magnificent display. We had fine weather across the Black Sea, and arrived without accident at Kalamita Bay on the 14th September. For the next three days we were hard at work from 3 A.M. till 9 P.M. disembarking 16 INCIDENTS LEADING UP TO THE CRIMEAN WAR troops, guns, and stores. Five hundred marines were also sent to take possession of Eupatoria. On the 19th September we all shifted berth and anchored off the Alma, when we observed the Russian army on the heights. I do not propose to touch on the subsequent operations on land, except so far as they concerned the navy. This is a matter of history, and has been often well described. The battle of the Alma was fought on 20th September; we had a view of it from the mastheads of the ships. The same evening the Russians retreated into Sebastopol, leaving the Allies in possession of the heights. For several days following we were busy embarking the wounded on board the transports, after which we shifted berth and anchored off the river Katcha, the steamers exchanging shots with the batteries of Sebastopol. The Agamemnon, Sir Edmund Lyons' flagship, proceeded to Balaklava, each ship sending 100 marines to form the garrison. The London, a fine 90-gun ship, also went there and landed some of her guns, each ship sending six from her upper-deck battery. A naval brigade, consisting of three captains, two commanders, several lieutenants, mates, and midshipmen, with a proportionate number of men, was also landed, and we heard no more of them until our commander, Randolph, and one of our mates returned to the ship with cholera. The steamers of the fleet now engaged the batteries daily with the object of obliging the Russians to keep them manned. ^ back to top ^ |
