Book Description

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1903 edition. Excerpt: ... CHAPTER VII Service in the Trenches as Assistant Engineer I JOINED the Engineer Camp the first week of January, 1855, and my first day's duty as an Engineer was the 4th of that month. The officer on duty with me was Lieutenant Pratt, R.E. It was a very cold day, with some rain, and a searching wind blew. I had a good overcoat, so kept fairly warm, but Pratt was very badly clad. I forget how it came about, but when on duty near the Danube before the army went to the Crimea he had lost all his kit, and had afterwards to pick up clothes as best he could. He was of a most uncomplaining disposition, and want and discomfort sat lightly upon him; nor did he exert himself on his own behalf, as he might have done, in all such matters. He did not care how he fared as regarded food as long as he had a pipe to smoke and enough tobacco to put into it. Upon this occasion, his body was wrapped in a brown Turkish Grego that was tied round his waist by a cord or leathern strap, and whose hood protected his head well from the cold blast that came to us from the bleak Steppes beyond the Don. He had no gloves, but a pair of very coarse woollen socks supplied their place, and his feet were clad in the rough ammunition boot of the private soldier. He had all the contentment but none of the light-heartedness of Mr. Mark Tapley. The only work done during my twelve hours of duty was to clear the drains in the third parallel and to relay some of the gun platform sleepers in "Gordon's Battery." But, as a matter of fact, we did nothing in our trenches during the winter of 1854-5 beyond feeble efforts made to keep them free from water. J Amongst the Assistant Engineers at that time was Lieutenant, now General Sir Henry Green, of Jacob's Scind Horse, an excellent...