Years of Peace
It was to be 1856 before the regiment found itself on active service again. In the interim there had been a short spell in England, a long posting in Gibraltar, several years in Ireland, another six year tour in the West Indies — where once again fever caused much suffering. These were followed by a short three year tour in Canada which provided one item of note. On the voyage home two companies, under the command of Captain James Draper, and about 100 women and children were on board the barque Alert when the ship hit a reef about 100 miles out of Halifax. The ship was refloated but in a heavy sea was at risk of sinking and was taking on water. The master of the Alert decided that the only course of action was to beech the vessel however he was worried that the ship was becoming top heavy as the troops and their families made for the upper deck. Captain Draper and the troops were persuaded to remain on the troop deck despite the rising water level. The ship was beached on an uninhabited island and all on board were later rescued. The Duke of Wellington Commander-in-chief of the British army directed that the story of Captain Draper's detachment be read out to every regiment and corps in the army as an example of the rewards of steadiness and discipline. The two companies were reunited with the rest of the regiment in England, serving in England and Ireland until being posted to India. Based here until 1856 it saw no active service despite being mobilised as part of a Reserve Field Force in Sindh in 1852.
Read more about this topic: 64th (2nd Staffordshire) Regiment Of Foot
Famous quotes containing the words years of, years and/or peace:
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—Mary A. Livermore (1821–1905)
“Flood-tide below me! I see you face to face!
Clouds of the west—sun there half an hour
high—I see you also face to face.
Crowds of men and women attired in the usual costumes, how curious you are to me!
On the ferry-boats the hundreds and hundreds that cross, returning
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And you that shall cross from shore to shore years hence are more to me, and more in my meditations, than you might suppose.”
—Walt Whitman (1819–1892)
“On fields all drenched with blood he made his record in war, abstained from lawless violence when left on the plantation, and received his freedom in peace with moderation. But he holds in this Republic the position of an alien race among a people impatient of a rival. And in the eyes of some it seems that no valor redeems him, no social advancement nor individual development wipes off the ban which clings to him.”
—Frances Ellen Watkins Harper (1825–1911)