As the Inniskillings neared the enemy they gave a wild cheer; but the Greys came more silently, though their faces were lit up with the stern joy of war. An officer sat in front of the Russian squadrons, and General Scarlett, passing him on his left, hewed his way into the serried masses behind. The General’s aide-de-camp rode straight at the Russian officer, and, parrying a cut made at him, drove his sword up to the hilt in the Russian’s body. For a moment he could not withdraw it, and clinging to the hilt he turned the wounded Russian round and literally tore him from his saddle. He then disappeared into the mass, as did the orderly and trumpeter, and Jack found himself face to face with the foe. A trumpeter, probably obeying some order, was sounding a call, and had turned his head towards his comrades while doing so. As Dainty raced by him Jack raised his sword to cut this trumpeter from his saddle; but seeing the man was unable to protect himself he stayed his hand, and dashed at the Hussars behind. The two Russians who faced him forced their horses to right and left, and left Jack a space, into which he urged his horse. He made a tremendous cut at the Hussar on his right as he did so, and the man reeled in his saddle. The other man, though, made a point which Jack parried; and, his horse still going forward between the files, he found himself surrounded by enemies. For a few seconds that half-dozen intrepid cavalrymen were alone amidst thousands of Russians; then came a wild yell, a crashing shock, and the first line of Inniskillings and Greys had reached the foe. Jack was forced farther in, being absolutely surrounded by blue jackets and gray greatcoats. Blows were rained at him; but by keeping up a rapid circling of his own blade above his head he managed to ward them off. Another crash behind told that the second rank had charged in, and the forward movement of that handful of red-coats became accelerated. The Russians did not directly face their enemies, but always gave way to right and left, as much as they could, before them; then they closed in on the flanks and behind, and tried to cut the Englishmen from their saddles. But the heavy Dragoons were men of fine physique, larger, heavier, and better mounted than the Russians, and their blows told with terrible effect. Fierce denunciations and epithets of disdain were hurled at the foe by Irishman and Scot as they hacked and hewed; but the Russians, with lips curled back from their clenched teeth, made only a sort of gurgling roar or a low kind of hissing noise. The turf beneath the horses’ hoofs was thick and spongy and deadened the sound of the trampling of thousands of hoofs; but the ceaseless clash of sabres, the frequent firing of pistols, the incessant jingle of cavalry accoutrements made such a volume of sound as must have been heard by the headquarter staff up on the heights above.