"
The artillery officers themselves laid their guns, which were served
and fired with promptitude and precision.
Now followed a short but sanguinary duel. The Russian guns answered
shot for shot, and at first worked terrible havoc in our ranks.
Colonel Gambier of the artillery was struck down: other officers were
wounded, and many of the men.
Still Lord Raglan stood his ground, watching the action with keen
interest and the most admirable self-possession. He was perfectly
unmoved by the heavy fire and the carnage it occasioned.
One or two of his staff besought him to move a little further to the
rear, but he met the suggestion with good-natured contempt.
"My lord rather likes being under fire than otherwise," whispered one
aide-de-camp to another.
He certainly took it uncommonly cool, and in the thick of it could
unbend with kindly condescension when a sergeant who was passing had
his forage-cap knocked off by the wind of a passing shot.
"A near thing that, my man," he said, smiling.
The sergeant--it was Hyde, returning from the Barrier, where he had
been with more ammunition--coolly dusted his cap on his knee, replaced
it on his head, and then, formally saluting the Commander-in-Chief,
replied with a self-possession that delighted Lord Raglan--
"A miss is as good as a mile, my lord.
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