THE next morning was wet, chilly, and uncomfortable; and I heard with sorrow that Miss Nightingale was rather indisposed. It did not, indeed, surprise me, considering the fatigue she had undergone the previous day—more especially as she had taken no refreshment the whole of the time. I made sure that she would postpone her visit to the hospitals. Numbers of visitors poured in as usual; amongst them was Admiral Boxer, Chief Admiral of the Port of Balaklava. Mr. Bracebridge was upon deck, and directly he saw the admiral waiting, he went and spoke to him. “Good morning, admiral,” said Mr. Bracebridge, and then did me the honour of introducing me.

“Oh! so you are the Monsieur Soyer I have often heard of; and I made sure you were a much older man than you appear to be.”

“Did you, indeed, admiral?”

“Yes, that I did. I bought one of your large cookery books about fifteen years ago, and in your portrait you are represented as a man of about forty years of age.”

“I must have grown ten years younger since then; as I am only forty-five now, admiral.”

“I wish you had put that receipt for growing younger into your book. I should have tried it long ago, and have been satisfied with five years, knowing as much as I do.”

“Well done, admiral,” said a friend of his. “If Monsieur Soyer could give such receipts as that, everybody would like to take a leaf out of his book.”

“At all events, Monsieur Soyer, you are welcome to Balaklava, and when you like to come and see me upon business—mind, I don’t invite you for anything else at present, as all here is business, business, from morning till night, and sometimes all night.”

“I assure you, Monsieur Soyer,” said his nephew, “the admiral is always out first and on his rounds; and I, who seldom leave, often find him writing when every one else is fast asleep.”

“Well, well, business must be attended to,” said Admiral Boxer. “At all events, recollect that I give you the entrÉe of the admiral’s ship.”

“Many thanks, admiral. You may rest assured I will not trouble you often, and then only upon special business.”

“Monsieur Soyer, several officers from Scutari have spoken very highly of your services there; and I sincerely trust you will be as successful here.—By-the-bye, I must be off.” Looking at his watch. “Oh, I have ten minutes yet; but could I not see Miss Nightingale?”

“Certainly, admiral. Some gentlemen are with her now—Doctor Henderson and your Balaklava chaplain.”

“Oh, never mind, if the lady is engaged; but I believe you came on board the same ship, and wish to remain together. I must look out for another vessel for you, as the Robert Lowe will be off in a day or two.”

“In that case, admiral, pray see Mr. Bracebridge about it. He is there talking to Thomas, his servant. I will fetch him.”

“Pray, Mr. Bracebridge,” said the admiral, “give my compliments to Miss Nightingale, and tell her from me that I am sorry to disturb her, but the Robert Lowe will sail in a day or two; however, I am going my rounds, and will try and get her quarters upon one of the best vessels in the harbour, and let you know, Mr. Bracebridge. Good-bye! good-bye!”

In a second he was in his boat, holding the helm, and talking to every one he met. His boat was seen in every part of the harbour, and often in the bay, even in rather rough weather. From daybreak till sunset, he might be seen rowing about like a hunted pirate—very active, quick, and expeditious—though very sailor-like—rather rough and straightforward—by report generally liked. Such I found Admiral Boxer.

The weather having cleared up a little, and as I made sure that Miss Nightingale would not go out as it was so very dirty on shore, I prepared to visit the hospitals alone, in order to see how the workmen were going on; intending to ride thence to head-quarters. I purposed getting there about one or two o’clock, his lordship’s lunch-time—the most likely hour to obtain an interview. On my way to Mr. Bracebridge’s cabin, to inform him of my design, and ask him at the same time to go with me—he having expressed a wish that we should go together—Thomas, Miss Nightingale’s page, came and inquired if I was ready to go with her to the hospitals.

“Pray, my lad, tell Miss Nightingale that I was going alone; but that, if she is well enough to go, I shall be very happy to accompany her.” Before I had time, however, to finish the sentence, Miss Nightingale had ascended the cabin stairs, and, I must say, looked very well.

“Good morning, mademoiselle; how are you after your long journey of yesterday? I heard you were rather indisposed.”

“I did feel unwell this morning, but am much better now. I am extremely sorry about Mr. Anderson, who, I am afraid, will be very much disfigured by last night’s accident.”

“I hope it will not prove very serious.”

“It may not; but it will be very disagreeable, as he is obliged to see so many people.”

“No matter; all wounds are honourable in time of war, excepting, perhaps, a pair of black eyes.”

“But what has become of your brave compagnon de voyage, P. M.? Has he recovered from the effects of his fright?”

“All I know is, that he was not at breakfast this morning, and he told everybody last evening that he would not, for any amount of money, again accompany you, mademoiselle, or even her Majesty, through such danger as he incurred yesterday.” Every one who knew him laughed at his bravery, particularly Miss Nightingale, who, turning to Mr. Bracebridge, said—“Monsieur Soyer and myself are going to the General Hospital, and thence to the Sanatorium, where I wish you to be kind enough to meet us.”

“About what time?” inquired Mr. Bracebridge.

“Two o’clock, as at that hour Mr. Anderson and Dr. Sutherland will be there about the ventilation.”

We then started. The roads were very muddy. I observed to Miss Nightingale that she ought to have had boots made on purpose for such rough walking, to which, she assented, saying, “I will do so, Monsieur Soyer.”

As we were passing, I left my card at Colonel Hardinge’s, the commandant of Balaklava. I had the pleasure of meeting many officers there with whom I was acquainted; they all gave me pressing invitations to visit them in camp, and others to dine with them. As I had no time to stay, I promised to call upon every one, and rejoined Miss Nightingale. On arriving at the hospital I found the workmen in full activity. Miss Nightingale remained there about two hours. We went next to the Sanatorium, and, in going up the hill, called upon the sick officer who was in Dr. Henderson’s hut. The nurse said that he was a little better, but far from being well. He was delirious at times.

“You had better go back to the hospital this evening, Mrs. ——, and tell Miss Weare to appoint another nurse to attend in your stead.”

“Thank you, madam, I will do so; and am rather glad of it, as I feel very tired.”

We then proceeded to the Genoese Heights, where I had the pleasure of meeting Captain King, the chief engineer, whom I found very ready to assist me in every way.

“You are aware,” said he, “that we are not in London; and I cannot build a kitchen in the Crimea such as you had at the Reform Club.”

“I should be very sorry if you could, as in that case you would have to get somebody to manage it, for I assure you I should not like to begin my gastronomic career again; and I must say I feel every bit as proud in having to cook for the soldiers, if not more so, than ever I did in cooking for the greatest epicures or the first lords of England.”

“Then,” said Captain King, “we shall work well together.”

“I have no doubt of it, captain, as I only require a few workmen, such as carpenters and bricklayers; some planks, nails, and a few bricks and a little mortar. If my new field stoves were finished I should not trouble you at all, as they will cook in the open air, and do not require any fixing.”

“If you do not need anything more elaborate than your kitchen here, we shall be able to give you satisfaction. Have you seen the plan I have drawn out for you?”

“Yes, I have—it will do very well.”

I then went to look after our party. Miss Nightingale, Dr. Sutherland, the hospital surveyor, and several other doctors, were all together, and they had nearly finished their rounds. They informed me that they were going to see a small naval hospital, situated nearly at the top of the high mountain to the left of the Sanatorium.

The boy Thomas came, and said Miss Nightingale was going home immediately, inquiring, at the same time, for Mr. Bracebridge.

“He has been here,” I said, “these two hours; and I saw him ride with Captain King towards the heights, as if he was going to the naval hospital.”

“Very well, sir, I will tell Dr. Sutherland.”

We were then all going towards the new kitchen. I showed my plan to Miss Nightingale and Dr. Sutherland, who both admired its simplicity and expedition as regards cooking. I observed that this one, when completed, would serve as a model for any others which might be required in the camp.

“Where are the utensils?” asked the hospital purveyor; “we have nothing in store.”

“I assure you you are mistaken,” said I, “because it was only yesterday that I saw them in Mr. Fitzgerald’s store-room.”

“I declare,” said he, “that for days and days I have been asking for kitchen utensils, and the only things I could get were some spoons, a frying-pan, and large forks.”

“Oh,” said I, “very likely; but they only arrived with us, and were ordered, at my suggestion, by Mr. Robertson, the purveyor-in-chief at Scutari.”

“I beg your pardon; that’s all right; but I can assure you that if you had depended upon the Balaklava or Kadikoi tinkers, they would have made you pay as much as five or six shillings for an article worth one in London.”

Miss Nightingale and party were by this time half way to Balaklava, but we soon caught them. The weather was bad, the road worse, and rain kept falling. In fact, the mud was so deep in front of the ship, that we were obliged to form a kind of bridge across the road for the lady to get to the boat to go on board. Dr. Sutherland, the captain of the Diamond, and the doctor of the Naval Brigade, then made an appointment to go and visit the new hospital building for the sick sailors on the Leander Bay side, facing the Genoese Tower. After this we parted—to meet early the next morning. Upon our return, a message was delivered from the admiral, to the effect that there were two ships at our disposal, and requesting Mr. Bracebridge to go and see them, and choose the one he liked best without delay, as probably the Robert Lowe would leave the harbour for Constantinople.

Mr. Bracebridge attended to the order immediately, and having inspected both, selected the London, as she was likely to remain the longest. The captain informed us that it had at one time been called the Great London, and that it was launched in the beginning of the reign of George the Third. The inhabitants of London used to go and view it as a curiosity; but when it sailed from the Thames the crowd was immense. It was built by Mr. Green.

This being probably our last day on board the Robert Lowe, we invited a few friends to dine with us, and, despite the bad weather, we passed a very pleasant and sociable evening, enlivened by the sound of merry glees and national songs. Our hearts and souls were fluttering either in France or England, according to the style of harmony. As Miss Nightingale’s state cabin was at a good distance from the saloon, she could not be in the slightest way disturbed by the double harmony which reigned among us. The conversation was turned chiefly upon the arrival of the Sardinian army, and of the destruction by fire of one of their vessels, called the Capitole. She was filled with troops, but I believe none were lost. This made a sad pendant to the French vessel, the Semillante, wrecked some time before.

The next morning, some large vessels were reported in sight, supposed to be the Sardinian fleet, though, from their great distance and the contrary winds, they were not expected in till late in the afternoon. This led to the departure of the Robert Lowe that day, and earlier than the captain had expected. We all left her early, and Miss Nightingale installed her nurses in the Sanatorium at the Genoese Heights, near the Tower, a sketch of which appeared in the Illustrated London News, of the latter end of May, 1855, where we accompanied her with a numerous escort.

As it seemed probable that Miss Nightingale would be engaged the whole of the day classing her ladies in their various departments, we postponed our visit to the Leander Bay naval hospital till the morrow. It was also necessary for us to take up our quarters on board the London. The morning had been gloomy, and about one o’clock it began to rain. I thought this would be a good opportunity for obtaining an audience with Lord Raglan at head-quarters. Having mentioned the matter to Mr. Bracebridge, he approved it, and proposed accompanying me. We dressed to face the weather. I rode the mule, and off we went through the rain and deep mud.

In going, we took the longest way and the worst road, and were nearly two hours on our journey instead of three-quarters of an hour, which is about the time required, and even less in fine weather. We had almost reached the general’s house, when we perceived, at a short distance, a kind of squadron of cavalry coming towards Balaklava. Mr. Bracebridge exclaimed, “If I am not mistaken, Lord Raglan and his staff are going out.”

We perceived that some of them wore their rough weather coats. We immediately galloped towards them, and found that it really was Lord Raglan and his staff, with about thirty mounted officers, amongst whom were some attached to the French and Turkish army.

Our first intention was to retire, but seeing Colonel Steele, I rode up to him, told him I had called, and requested him to fix an hour for an audience. Colonel Steele replied, “You could not have come at a better time. Come with me; I will introduce you to his lordship; he will be delighted to see you; he has been inquiring daily after you and Miss Nightingale.”

While this conversation was going on, we had got quite close to Lord Raglan. Colonel Steele addressed him, “I beg pardon, my lord; Monsieur Soyer is here.” Lord Raglan turned suddenly round, and, before I had time to salute him, said, “Ah, Monsieur Soyer, how are you? I am indeed very glad to see you.” I assured his lordship I felt highly flattered at his kind reception.

“You are welcome to the seat of war, Monsieur Soyer. It is many years since we had the pleasure of seeing each other.”

“It must be about ten years, my Lord.”

“More than that; let me see—it cannot be less than fourteen, I am sure. I recollect going with some friends of mine, to visit you in your interesting kitchen at the Reform Club. You remember?”

“So well, that I recollect your lordship saying you never had a good dinner excepting when they gave you the pot-au-feu made after my receipt, and that I was one of your great benefactors.”

“Perfectly right, Monsieur Soyer. You have been one not only to me, but the public at large, in making all your receipts known. Since we met, you have worked very hard, and, although I did not see you, I watched your progress and industry.”

“I am still quite ready to render myself useful, and willing to work harder than ever, under your direction.”

“Well, well, you may depend upon it I shall do all in my power to render your services available.” Turning to an officer on his left, Lord Raglan said, “Will you allow me to introduce Monsieur Soyer?” Then addressing himself to me, Lord Raglan said, “Monsieur Soyer—His Excellency Omer Pacha.”

I bowed to the distinguished Turkish commander, who said in French, “Ah, Monsieur Soyer, I have frequently heard Beyram Pacha speak of you; only yesterday he mentioned your name. He is acquainted with you?”

“Yes, your excellency; I had the honour of sailing from Marseilles to Constantinople in company with the general.”

“He told me you were about to open a large hotel at Eupatoria.”

“No, no, your excellency; Monsieur Soyer is come to show our soldiers how to make the best of their rations, which I consider very kind of him; and no doubt they will improve under his tuition. They will not change their old style of cooking for anyone else. Myself, several colonels, and even generals, have taken a deal of interest and trouble in trying to teach them a better way of cooking. They adopt our plan while we are present, but when once our backs are turned, they go on in their old way.”

“Very true, very true,” said Omer Pacha. “It is just the same with my men. Show them anything better than their pilaff, they will not adopt it for the world.”

“You have done wonders, Monsieur Soyer, in the hospitals at Scutari, as I perceive from the report and the letter addressed to me by Lord William Paulet.”

“I am very happy to have succeeded so well; and hope the system will in time be followed out by every hospital, as it is less trouble than the old one, not more expensive, and has been highly approved by all the medical authorities.”

“Oh,” said Lord Raglan, “if it has been approved of by the faculty, there is no doubt of its being adopted at home.”

“I have great numbers of testimonials from the heads of the medical departments.” By this time we had arrived near Kadikoi, which then consisted of only a few wooden huts. The rain never ceased, and we went at a foot-pace all the way, which gave us an opportunity of conversing. I had the honour of riding on Lord Raglan’s right side, and Omer Pacha was on his left. No sooner did we come within view of the plain of Balaklava, than his lordship pointed out the spot where the battle was fought, and asked me if I could see a small church at a distance.

“Perfectly well,” was my answer.

“From this spot, on a fine day, you can see the enemy quite distinctly,” said Lord Raglan; “and on that large mound which appears so close to us, you can easily see their sentries.”

“So I can, my lord. Is that a Russian picket?”

“Yes, it is.”

I thanked Lord Raglan for the information; saying, “As I have no particular fancy to have the honour of being made a prisoner of war, I shall take care not to go too near our friends the enemies.” His lordship turned round and made some remark to Omer Pacha, who laughed heartily; but I did not distinctly hear what he said—the road was rugged, and Lord Raglan wore a mackintosh with a hood over his head—it was, however, to the effect that the Russians could not secure a more useful prisoner than myself, especially for—— (the name escaped me), who is a great epicure.

We were by that time near the Col of Balaklava. Lord Raglan asked me if I had seen the Sardinians land. I replied that, although I knew they were expected, I was not aware of their arrival.

“Oh yes, General della Marmora has arrived, and I am going to receive him.”

A large crowd had by this time gathered round the general and his staff. When near the harbour, I took leave of his lordship, who kindly invited me to call at head-quarters, whenever I liked, and told me that Colonel Steele would give me all the information and assistance I might require to carry out my views. I followed the brilliant cortÈge, being anxious to witness the reception of the Sardinian general, which was most cordial and effective, especially when the band struck up “God save the Queen;” such an animated and enthusiastic tableau never met my eyes. The sketch was worthy the pencil of the great Horace Vernet.

Mr. Bracebridge, who had been introduced to Lord Raglan at the same time as myself, but who drew back and conversed with Colonel Steele, left us at the small bridge leading from the Col into Balaklava, and went direct to the town side, while we turned to the left hand, where the Sardinian fleet was anchored. The arrival of the Sardinians had created quite a stir in Balaklava. Towards dusk, they might be seen in all directions. Their dress, manner, language, &c., all formed a marked contrast to the usual daily routine. The fraternization between them and the English took place immediately; they were like brothers who, not having met for many years, were at last united in order to defend the same cause and brave the same dangers. All was joy, heroism, and thirst for glory. The incessant roar of the cannon of Sebastopol had for the first time re-echoed on board the English and Sardinian men-of-war, producing a double impression upon the feelings of both armies. The evening closed with the vibration in the ear of “God save the Queen,” “Partant pour la Syrie,” and the grand Sardinian national air, which was performed by their band.