OPERATIONS ON TH^ DANUBE. 207 for liimself the last home, where he charged his chap. comrades to hiy him as soon as he attained to die. . 1_ Omar Pasha not choosing to march to the re- lief of Silistria, but being unwilling to leave its defenders to sheer despair, sent General Cannon* (Behram Pasha he was called in the Turkish army) with a brigade of irregular light infantry and instructed him to occupy some of the wooded ground in the neighbourhood of the place, with a view to trouble the enemy and to encourage the garrison. General Cannon, however, learnt, on reaching the neighbourhood of Silistria, that the hopes of the garrison had already ebbed very low ; and therefore, though without the warrant of orders, he resolved to throw himself into the place with his whole brigade. This, by means of a stratagem and a long circuitous night-march, he was able to do. His achievement, as was natural, gave joy to the garrison ; and, turning to account the enthusiasm of the moment, he administered, as is said, a direful oath to the Pasha in command — an oath whereby the Turk swore that, happen what might, he would never surrender the place. It was whilst General Cannon was in Silistria that Captain Butler received the wound of which he afterwards died. The Paissians had sapped up so close to the ditch that, if a man behind the
- General Cannon was an oflicer of our Indian army who had
served with distinction in India, and in the force (the British Legion) which operated in Spain under the orders of General . Evans.
