| Description | Written from the Camp before Sebastopol.
Little happening apart from always being on piquet, the division being the hardest working, with only a few officers, the Colonel and Adjutant on duty: having been under fire, but not in a regular engagement: seeing 2 Russian officers a long distance off on horseback, and being ordered by the General to send half a dozen men to drive them off: Russian sentries shooting at their line, with bullets flying about him: on another day landing of a shell 20 yards in front of him and shot flying over his head, but not being hit: false alarm another night of being turned out and marched to entrenchment a mile in front of the camp: snow last night, with a tent not being much protection, his pillow wet through with water: being near Christmas, attempts to get a goose or turkey and plum pudding, which will be difficult, with it being 8 miles to Balaklava and the roads very bad: having a candlestick [sketch drawn] in the form of a Russian bayonet, from the battlefield of Inkerman: kind letter from Lord Napier offering to do anything for him: thanks to his sisters for their letters: money matters all right, with a field allowance: likelihood of his being on duty in the trenches at Christmas. PS: recommendation for others coming out to have good long waterproof boots.
Sheet, with 5½ pages of text, including 1½ cross-hatched. |