Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol 7.djvu/493

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APPENDIX. 449 i.e., little more than one-tenth — which did not range under one or other of the hve zymotic heads above shown. There is reason, it seems, to believe that if the additional thousands of deaths which occurred at Scutari could be accurately traced to their causes, the proportion marked out as attributable to zymotic disease would prove quite as great as the one disclosed by the above given figures. NOTES TO CHAPTER IX. Note 1. — One of the expedients for masking the weakness of our people from the enemy's penetration is thus mentioned by Colonel Steevens: ' The detail in orders for the trench and picket ' duties was always by companies, not numerically; this was ' done, I understand, with a view to mislead the Russians about ' the actual strength of the trench guards, &c. , in case they might, tiirough spies, procure any intelligence about the daily detail. ' — Crimean Campaign with the Conuaught Rangers. Note 2. — In the early days of the war, the querulous letters from officers were so rife in England that the Duke of Newcastle becoming indignant, and even alarmed, imparted his disgust and anxiety to the commander abroad. Lord Raglan, in answer, ob- ser'ed that the same ugly symptom had disclosed itself at the time of the Peninsular war, and ascribed it to no really dangerous spirit of insubordination, but rather to that exercise of tiie Eng- lishman's indefensible 'right to grumble,' which was to be ex- pected at times when no active operations were going on. He said their letters would not do ' any real harm,' and reinforced the consolation thus ofiered by archly predicting that they would be eclipsed by ' our own correspondent. ' — See quotation, post, from letter of 17th September 1854. Note 3. — A memorable example of this almost romantic fealty on the part of newspaper correspondents was given by Mr Henry Stanley, the great African discoverer. Without previous warn- ing, he suddenly found himself summoned from Spain to Paris, and thence ordered to go off at once into the interior of Africa, and there find Livingstone ! How brilliantly he obeyed the order, the world knows. Note 4. — In justice towards the great nation whieli I like to call ' English,' and sometimes refuse to call ' foreign,' I ought perhaps io acknowledge that the extraordinary triumphs of European journalism at the time of the Franco-German war of 1870-71 were due, in no slight degree, to the vigour, the sagacity, and the VOL. VII. 2 J