Foxholme Hall, and Other Tales

by William Henry Giles Kingston

let him go also. I can trust them.They dare not betray us."

  This act of the chiefs was looked upon as the very acme of heroicgenerosity; and certainly nothing more worthy of praise has beenrecorded of Ninco Nanco, the Brigand.

  Having inspired the inhabitants of the surrounding districts with awholesome terror of his name, Ninco Nanco soon discovered that theeasiest way of collecting his revenue was to write a letter to anywealthy proprietor he might fix on, demanding the sum required, orhorses, or provisions, as the case might be; and he seldom, fails toobtain what he demands.

  Marco and 'Renzo reached home safely, when Chiarina, who had been almostheart-broken at their absence, in the exuberance of her joy at theirreturn, threw herself into the arms of her father, and then into thoseof 'Renzo, quite forgetting all rules of propriety.

  The young couple married soon afterwards; and, if they are not perfectlyhappy, it is that they dread lest Ninco Nanco should some day pouncedown on them, and insist on 'Renzo joining his band. They, therefore,very reasonably hope to hear some day that that gentleman has been shot,or hung, or sent to the galleys, or has been induced to accept asituation under the Government, or been disposed of in some no lesssatisfactory manner.

  Story 12--CHAPTER ONE.

  STORY TWELVE--THE STORY OF THE DEFENCE OF KARS.

  However averse we may be to war, we must acknowledge that it is often astern and cruel necessity: that it is calculated to draw out many of thenobler qualities which exist in the human heart and mind, and that itshows more than most other callings a man in his true colours. Therewere many gallant deeds performed during the late war with Russia; but,taking all things into consideration, none surpass the defence of Kars,or more completely prove what can be done by courage, energy andperseverance, devotedness and unanimity, when directed by wisdom andscience. All these qualities were displayed in a remarkable degree bythe British officers who undertook the defence of Kars against thewell-disciplined troops of Russia, with materials which ordinary menwould have considered utterly useless. I feel particular pleasure inwriting a short account of that heroic undertaking, from having soonafterwards met some of the British officers engaged in it in Russiaitself. There, no longer enemies, but as honoured visitors, they werereceived by the Russians with that respect which their gallantry hadwon. They were visiting, as I was, the gallery in Saint Petersburg ofthat talented artist and persevering Siberian traveller, the late MrAtkinson. While exhibiting his magnificent pictures, Mr Atkinson gaveus a deeply interesting account of his own adventures when he wasengaged in making the sketches from which he had painted them, andaltogether I look back to that morning as one of the most agreeablespent during a short visit I made, soon after the war, to Russia.

  But to our story about Kars. While the British, French, and Sardiniantroops were before Sebastopol, the Russians hoped, by sending a powerfularmy by way of the Caucasus, to attack the Turkish dominions in Asia onthe east, and to compel the Allies to despatch some of their forces tothe assistance of the Sultan. The English Government had foreseen thatthe Russians would do this, and had accordingly sent out GeneralWilliams, then holding the rank of Colonel, and other officers, to putthe frontier Turkish fortresses in a state of defence. On the confinesof the Turkish dominions in Armenia, and to the south-east of the BlackSea, stands the town of Kars. It is situated under a precipitous androcky range of hills, running east and west, and in most partsimpassable for artillery. This range of hills is bisected by a deepgorge, through which flows the river Karschai, over which are thrownfour or five bridges. On the south side of Kars a fine level plainstretches away for many miles till it meets a range of easy-slopingheights. Kars has a picturesque old feudal-looking castle, built on thesummit of a craggy rock, rising out of the gully, with the brawlingriver at its base, and commanding the whole of the city. The streets ofthe town are narrow and dirty, and there are very few even tolerablygood houses, while the appearance of the population is sordid in theextreme. Besides the castle, there were no fortifications of anyconsideration. This was the place which, early in 1855, GeneralWilliams, Colonel Lake, Major Teesdale, Captain Thompson, and otherEnglish officers were sent to defend, with a disorganised Turkish forceunder them, against a well-equipped Russian army, commanded by GeneralMouravieff. General Williams had received the rank of Ferik orLieutenant-General in the Turkish army, with the title of WilliamsPasha. He and the gallant men with him had numberless difficulties tocontend with. The Turkish officers were generally utterly worthless--the neighbouring tribes of Kurdistan broke into revolt--the troops wereill clothed, and ill fed, and unpaid, and the whole _morale_ of the armywas at the lowest state, while the town itself was to be placed in adefensible condition, to withstand the assaults of the powerful armyadvancing towards it. The soldiers were upwards of two years in arrearsof pay--their shoes were worn out, their uniforms were in tatters, and alarge number were suffering from scurvy, caused by unwholesome food andtheir long confinement in the ill-ventilated huts of Kars. GeneralWilliams and his companions were first engaged in fortifying the town ofErzeroum, which will be found on the map some distance to the west orrear of Kars, and from thence they proceeded to the defence of thelatter place itself. The Russians were at that time assembling an armyat Gumri, and were evidently meditating a speedy attack on Kars. As notime was to be lost in preparing for it, the English officers setmanfully to work to overcome all obstacles, and to put the place in aproper state of defence. All vied with each other in zeal. In allweathers, at all times of the day and night, in the saddle or on foot,they were to be found labouring with head and hand, sometimes in thetrenches with spade or mattock, sometimes drilling troops, receivingchiefs, settling disputes, encouraging the wavering, and organisingvarious departments of the service. Here is a description of GeneralWilliams when the enemy had arrived before the town:--"We are all in thesaddle at half-past three a.m., and ride round the works; the troops arecertainly full of enthusiasm, and Williams Pasha or Ingleez Pasha isalready a great favourite. They see him everywhere; he is with thesentries at the menaced point ere the morning has dawned, anon he istasting the soldiers' soup, or examining the bread, and, if anything iswrong here, his wrath is terrible. His eyes are everywhere, and hehimself is ubiquitous. Each soldier feels that he is something morethan a neglected part of a rusty machine: he knows that he is cared for,and he is encouraged, and confident of being well led." To ColonelLake, however, belongs the credit of having formed the chieffortifications round Kars, as he was there while General Williams wasstill at Erzeroum. They were of considerable extent. The chief batterywas on the summit of a semicircular range of hills, to the west andnorth-west, and at the distance of two miles or more from the town.This was Major Teesdale's position, and here General Kmety had his camp.To the north again was a line of fortifications known as the EnglishRedoubts, where Colonel Lake commanded. The river flowed between thetown and the above-mentioned batteries. To the east, at a distance of amile from the town, was Captain Thompson's position--the KarsdaghBattery, and from thence a line of batteries circled round to the south,till they joined the river on the west. Thompson's and Lake's positionswere connected by a bridge thrown across the river by the latter. Thestrongest position was a closed work, constructed by Colonel Lake, on aheight overlooking the city to the west, and known as Veli Pasha Tabia,or Fort Lake. It was armed with four heavy and several lighter guns,and was the key of the whole northern position. Day and night, officersand men were employed in strengthening this extensive line offortifications, the whole northern part being on a succession of ruggedheights, commanding the surrounding country. No one worked harder orwas more enthusiastic than the gallant Teesdale, and there also was thebrave Thompson with Dr Sandwith, the chief of the medical staff, whogives a most graphic account of the first attack of the Russians. Itwas the 16th of June, the Feast of the Bairam, when the Turks generallydeliver themselves up to idleness and rejoicing, and all duty isneglected. But the vicinity of danger kept the garrison of Kars on thea
lert, and early in the morning news was brought that the enemy wereadvancing on the town. The alarm was quickly raised, and all thecitizens rushed to the batteries. Every one was in gayest apparel--thegallant Karslis slung on their scimitars, buckled on theircartridge-pouches, and shouldered their rifles, and in groups by thedozen, with hearts beating high and glistening eyes, scaled the rockyheights above the city. Here is a picture:--"The women crowd thehouse-tops, and cry to each passing warrior, `God sharpen your swords!Remember us--we are praying for you--go, fight the infidels--God speedyou!' In a short time each man is at his post, where, by those lookingdown from the batteries, were to be seen the dark masses of the enemysteadily advancing over the broad plain of rich meadow land, coveredwith brilliant yellow flowers. As they advance, a beautiful livingpanorama is before the spectators--the enemy throw out their Cossacksand Georgian skirmishers of