Page:The invasion of the Crimea Vol. 4.djvu/131

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page needs to be proofread.

UKROIG RESISTANCE OF SEBASTOPOL. 101 CHAPTER VI. I. Upon withJrawiufr his army from the scene of chap. VI the threatened attack, Prince Mentschikoff had ' distributed amongst three commanders the author- Jerentf' ity which was to be exercised at Sebastopol dur- seUi^toi>oJ: lug the period of his absence. To General MoUer he had left the command of General the small body of land forces which was suffered ' to remain in the place, that is, of the one imper- fect battalion of sappers, and the 5000 militiamen. Of the officer thus placed at the head of the town garrison, it cannot be said that he had dis- closed the qualities needed for any momentous charge ; but, at all events, he was so constituted as to be able to show his devotion to the public service by a generous abandonment of every pre- tension or right that miglit clash with the general good. The Prince ordered that all the seamen who A.imirai Xacliiiuoff S had been withdrawn from the fleet for the defence of the south side of the town should be under the orders of Vice-Admiral Nachimoff..