is day on a working-party,
with one hundred men, and had just arrived in the tool-yard, about three
hundred yards from the left of the trenches, when I was thrown flat on
my face by some violent shock of the earth. Before the general shock,
the earth seemed in dreadful convulsions. The walls surrounding the
tool-yard were propelled forward from the fort, and fell to the ground.
Stones, bricks, pieces of wood, and, nearer the fort, bodies and limbs,
were to be seen soaring in the air in all directions. For the moment,
consternation and dismay were depicted on every face. When I arose, I
felt much alarmed; the earth seemed still to move under me; and at first
I thought something had happened to me alone; but, on looking around, I
found my men, some in the attitude of prayer, and others lying down,
hiding their faces with fear. Having recovered my senses, I looked
towards the fort, and saw it enveloped in one dense cloud of smoke or
dust, and, now and then, streaks of fire issuing from its battlements.
In the midst of this momentary alarm, there was an indistinct buzzing
that the grand magazine of the enemy had been blown up. This report
having reached my ears, I ran, or rather rolled, along the trenches, and
was informed that their grand magazine had really been blown up by one
of our shells. Again looking towards the tomb of destruction, what a
sight met the eye! The smoke which arose from the ruins seemed to be a
solid and substantial structure, gradually and majestically ascending to
the skies, bearing on its top variegated volumes of vapour, that seemed
to ride upon its summit. From this ascending mountain were ever and anon
vomited forth sheets of vivid fire; and glittering sand fell in showers
around the spot. Through this dense, but really unsubstantial mass, was
to be seen the setting sun, spreading his luminous beams through the
gigantic phenomenon; and the beauty of the sight was beyond human fancy
to imagine. This tremendous volume of smoke seemed almost to rise
perpendicularly, verging off a little with the wind, which scarcely
breathed. When it had ascended so that the sun was visible under it, the
mass above changed colour, and you might trace on it the most brilliant
rays of the rainbow. This continued ascending in various forms, until,
at last, it was lost in distance: after which, every eye was directed
towards the destruction below; and the sight was frightful indeed.
Heads, bodies, legs, arms, hands, spea