The Thorogood Family | Page 9

pattern of promptitude and obedience, so they
respect him. Moreover, he is a kindly and jovial man, therefore they are
fond of him.

The battlefield of which we write was in the East. The fight had been
between the British and Russians. The British had been victorious, and
slept on the field.
When the bugles sounded the next morning they stopped the nasal
trumpets everywhere, and Corporal Robert Thorogood was the first
man of all the host to "fall in"--which he did by himself. But he was not
long alone; others quickly joined him.
The companies were soon numbered, proved, formed into column, and
marched off. Then there was a short halt for breakfast.
"Why, you're not half a soldier, Bob," said a hearty young comrade,
while hastily eating his rations. "I saw you spare a Russian officer
yesterday after he had cut off the little finger of your left hand."
"What good would it have done to have killed him?" asked Bob, with a
smile, as he looked at the bloody stump, which had just been dressed
by the surgeon; "the poor fellow's leg was broken by a bullet the
moment after he had done it, so he could do us no more harm in this
campaign. Then, his death would not make my little finger grow on
again. Besides, I don't like killing men."
"Why did you join the army, then, if you did not do so for the honour
and glory of fighting, (which means killing), our enemies?"
"Ah, you may ask that indeed! I mistook my profession, I suppose.
However, I'll do my duty while I remain in the service."
As he spoke, firing was heard in the distance, and the men were ordered
to fall in hastily before breakfast had been quite finished.
The firing increased, and soon the advance guard was seen falling back
in good order over the brow of a small hill or slope. Rifle balls began to
fly overhead, and a few to drop unpleasantly near the troops. Suddenly
our Corporal was startled by an appalling cry behind him. He turned
quickly, and saw the young soldier with whom he had been so recently
conversing lying on his back stone dead, with the blood oozing from a

hole between his eyes.
There was no time to think, however. His battalion was ordered to the
front to defend a narrow rocky pass which the enemy were attempting
to carry by storm. Twice already they had made the assault, and had
almost succeeded on the second attempt. A third assault was being
made when Thorogood's company came up. They rushed forward just
as the Russians crowned the heights and were driving the British back.
The reinforcements checked them, but did not turn the scale at first.
There was one gigantic Russian who stood towering above his fellows
with clubbed rifle, furiously knocking down all who came within his
reach, like Horatius or one of the other heroes of ancient Rome. At him
Corporal Thorogood sprang, grasping his rifle by the muzzle as he ran,
and whirling it on high. The Russian saw him coming. The two rifles
met with a crash, and flew into splinters. Bob dropped his weapon,
grasped his adversary by the throat, thrust him back, and bore him
headlong to the ground. This incident turned the scale. A cheer
followed. The British swept forward with such irresistible fury that the
men in front were thrust upon the foe in a mass, Bob and his enemy
being turned heels over head in the rush. A well-sustained fire scattered
the foe like chaff, and those who had been thrown down were taken
prisoners. Among them was the gigantic Russian, with the Corporal
still holding his collar tight in his iron grasp.
"Well done, my man!" said the Colonel of the regiment as he rode past
Bob.
The Colonel was a man of few words. He said no more on that occasion,
but every one knew that he would not forget the man who had so
bravely turned the tide of battle that day.
Bob, however, did not escape altogether unhurt. He had been rather
severely wounded, and afterwards had to spend a considerable time in
hospital. As his wound did not prevent him from moving about, he
soon became a valuable assistant to the surgeons and nurses in the
hospital.

"Ah!" said he one night, when smoothing the pillow and attending to
the wants of a severely wounded soldier, "this comes more natural to
me. It suits me better than fighting."
"I wish you were one of the regular nurses, Corporal," said one of the
surgeons heartily; "you do everything so thoroughly, and with such a
will."
But Bob was not allowed to remain long at his peaceful work. Being a
healthy and temperate man