seen coming down towards the
shore, this time accompanied by a couple of field-pieces, which quickly
opened fire. The first shot, however, fell short, and the party were
soon safe on board the _Tornado_.

As the _Tornado_ steamed off, the Cossacks were seen again coming
forward, in the hopes possibly of still being able to plunder the wreck.
Just then, however, the flames burst furiously forth from every part of
the wreck, and in another minute a loud roar was heard, and a portion of
her deck rose high in the air, while her sides, rent and shattered, flew
out in every direction; and as the smoke from the explosion cleared
away, a few burnt timbers of the wreck alone remained, while the
Cossacks, disappointed of their booty, were seen galloping off in the
distance.

The scanty remnant of another shipwrecked crew having been saved by the
_Tornado_, she steamed back to Balaclava. During that fearful storm no
less than forty vessels, with upwards of four hundred men, had been
lost; one Turkish line-of-battle ship, and several transports, had gone
down with all hands. The French lost one of their finest line-of-battle
ships and a corvette, with nearly twenty smaller craft. The most severe
loss was that of the _Prince_, with a crew of a hundred and fifty men;
she had arrived two days before with troops, who had providentially
landed--but the army was doomed to suffer terribly from the loss of her
cargo, consisting of warm clothing, ammunition, medicine, and supplies
of all kinds.

A few ships being left to watch Sebastopol, the remainder of the fleet
and all the transports were sent back to the Bosphorus; and soon
afterwards, Admiral Dundas having struck his flag, Sir Edmund Lyons
became commander-in-chief.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN.

STATE OF AFFAIRS IN THE BEGINNING OF 1855--MURRAY IN COMMAND OF THE
GIAOUR--SHELLING SEBASTOPOL BY NIGHT--TOM FINDS MATTER FOR SERIOUS
THOUGHT--THE TORNADO CHASES A RUSSIAN STEAMER--ATTACK ON A FORT--ANOTHER
STEAMER SIGHTED--FRIEND OR FOE?--PROVES TO BE THE GIAOUR--THE FLASH
APPEARS--THE FORT STORMED.

The fearful Christmas of 1854 was over, and of the troops, which in
gallant array had left England, more than one-half had died or been
disabled by the shot of the enemy or the still more deadly pestilence.
Sufferings, such as an English army had never before been called upon to
endure, had been borne with fortitude. The siege, notwithstanding, had
been carried on, and now reinforcements,