he rocks rose precipitously at its mouth, and the
passage through them made a bend, so that the outlet was not visible
from a ship once fairly inside. The coast is steep and bold, the rocky
cliff rising sheer up from the water's edge to heights varying from
400 to 2000 feet. A vessel coasting along it would not notice the
narrow passage, or dream--on entering--that a harbor lay hidden
behind. On either side of the harbor inside the hills rose steeply, on
the left hand, so steeply, that that side was useless for the purposes
of shipping. On the right hand there was a breadth of flat ground
between the water and the hill, and here and upon the lower slopes
stood the village of Balaklava. The valley extended for some distance
beyond the head of the harbor, most of the ground being occupied with
vineyards. Beyond was the wide rolling plain upon which the battles of
Balaklava and Inkerman were to be fought. Taken completely by
surprise, the inhabitants of Balaklava had made no attempt to escape,
but upon the arrival of the British general, a deputation received him
with presents of fruit and flowers.

By this time the fleet had come round, and the sailors were soon hard
at work assisting to unload the transports and get the stores and
siege materials on shore. It was reported that a marine battery was to
be formed, and there was eager excitement on board as to the officers
who would be selected. Each of the men-of-war contributed their quota,
and Lieutenant Hethcote found that he had been told off as second in
command, and that he was to take a midshipman and twenty men of the
"Falcon."

The matter as to the midshipman was settled by Captain Stuart.

"You may as well take Archer," he said. "You won't like to ask for him
because he's your cousin; but I asked for his berth, you know, and
don't mind doing a little bit of favoritism this once."

And so, to Jack's intense delight, he found that he was to form a
portion of the landing party.

These were in all 200 in number, and their work was, in the first
place, to assist to get the heavy siege guns from the wharf to the
front.

It is necessary that the position occupied by the Allies should be
perfectly comprehended, in order to understand the battles and
operations which subsequently took place. It may be described as a
triangle with one bulging side. The apex of the triangle were the
heights on the seashore, known as the Marine Heights.

Here, at a point some 800 fee