On the 14th the 1st Battalion lost its first man in the trenches; he was killed by a fragment of a shell.
On October 14 Fyers was with his company in the five-gun battery when he observed a column of Russian infantry advancing. Taking a rifle from one of the men, he put the sight at what he considered their distance, and fired, carefully watching the effect of the shot. When he perceived that it struck the ground a little in front of the column, he ordered his men to fix their sights for 750 yards, and to stand up on the parapet and ‘give it them.’ They had not been long firing when he found that he was under fire from the rear. Some of the Russians had moved up the ravine towards a house which was occupied by a picquet of another regiment, under a sergeant, which had retreated on their approach, and the Russians having taken possession of the house were firing on Fyers’ party. He therefore sallied with his company out of the battery and drove the Russians back, not before they had eaten the dinners of the former occupants of the picquet-house, and carried off their coats and blankets. Most of these they dropped on their way back, as they probably impeded their retreat, pressed as they were by Fyers and his party.
In this affair Hugh Hannan, the tallest man in the Battalion, was attacked by a Russian rifleman who turned upon him. Hannan fired; the shot was returned, and the Russian was preparing to fire again, but before he could find a cap, Hannan rushed upon him, and with a tremendous blow knocked him over a low wall, and leaped after him. They grappled; and a fierce struggle ensued in which Hannan was getting the worst of it. For the Russian had drawn his short sword and was almost in the act of stabbing him in the thigh, when Hannan’s friend and comrade, Ferguson, by a sure shot brought the Russian down dead.[234]
In this affair two Riflemen were wounded. Fyers took a sergeant and some men prisoners, of whom three were wounded; several others were carried off by their companions, and many were killed.
On the alarm Sir De Lacy Evans had moved up two regiments, and some of the 1st Division; and the rest of the 2nd Battalion were brought up and halted in rear of Gordon’s battery, and some guns were ordered up; but before these troops came into action, Fyers had repulsed and effectually disposed of the Russian attack.
On one occasion about this time, when a party of the Regiment had been pushed forward, four Riflemen crept up to within 500 yards of the place and fired into the windows of the grand barracks of Sebastopol.[235]
On the 16th, while the left wing of the 1st Battalion was in the trenches, the enemy opened a murderous fire about ten A.M. on the whole length of the English trenches and continued it for half-an-hour, apparently determined to drive them from their position; however the Riflemen did not suffer much loss, but one colour-sergeant, James Powell, was disabled.
From this date the Riflemen were nightly thrown out in advance of the intrenchments; whatever regiments found the duties, they formed a line of double sentries, to watch and report any suspicious movements in the place.
On the 17th the Allies opened fire.
On the 19th a man of the Regiment was seen to pick off eight men from a Russian battery.[236]