State of the Army--Food, Clothing, and Shelter--Absence of a Road--Want of Transport--Numbers of the Sick--State of the Hospitals--Miss Nightingale--Mr. Roebuck's Committee--Military Operations--The French Mistake--Improvement of the Situation--Arrival of General Niel--Attack upon the Malakoff Hill approved--The Russian Redoubt constructed--Death of Nicholas--Todleben's Counter-Approaches--Raglan and Canrobert disagree--The second Bombardment--Egerton's Pit--Night Attack of General de Salles--The Emperor's Interference--Canrobert's Indecision--The Kertch Project--Arrival of the Sardinian Contingent--The Emperor's Visit to Windsor--The Emperor's Plan of Campaign--It is rejected by Raglan and Omar--Resignation of Canrobert 80 CHAPTER VII. THE REIGN OF VICTORIA (_continued_). The Course of Diplomacy--Austria's Position--The Four Points--The Czar agrees to negotiate--Russell's Mission to Vienna--Prince Gortschakoff's Declaration--The Third Point broached--Its Rejection by Russia--Count Buol's final Proposition--The War debated in Parliament--Lord John Russell resigns--Strength of the Government--The Sardinian and Turkish Loans--Vote of Censure on the Aberdeen Cabinet--Finance of the War--General Pélissier--The Fight for the Cemetery--Success of the French--Occupation of the Tchernaya--Expedition to Kertch--Description of the Peninsula--Sir George Brown's Force--The Russians blow up their Magazines--Occupation of Kertch and Yenikale--Lyons in the Sea of Azoff--Result of the Expedition--Attack upon Sebastopol decided--Ordnance of the Allies--The Attack--The French occupy the Mamelon--The British in the Quarries--Lord Raglan overruled--New Batteries--Pélissier's Change of Plan--The Fourth Bombardment--Preparations for the Assault--Mayran's Mistake--Brunet and D'Autemarre--The Attack on the Redan fails--Abandonment of the Assault--General Eyre--Losses on both Sides--Death of Lord Raglan 91 CHAPTER VIII. THE REIGN OF VICTORIA (_continued_). Changes in the Allied Camp--Advance upon the Malakoff and Redan--Prince Gortschakoff determines to Attack--The Allied Camp on the Tchernaya--Gortschakoff's Reinforcements--The Russian Plan--Read's Precipitation--Check of the Russian Attack--The French Counter-stroke--Gortschakoff changes his Front--The Battle is won--Allied Losses--The French sap towards the Malakoff----The British Bombardment--Combats before the Malakoff--Gortschakoff secures his Retreat--Council of September 3rd--Plan of Attack--The Last Bombardment--The Hour of Attack--The Signal--Assault of the Malakoff--MacMahon and Vinoy--Failures upon the Curtain and Little Redan--MacMahon is Impregnable--Failure to take the Redan--Evening--Gortschakoff's Retreat--End of the Siege 113 CHAPTER IX.