The Press. — London, England, 1854-11-25 00:00:00

NOVEMBER 25, 1854. During this time the English cavalry had been perform ing prodigies of valour, but not without heavy loss. It had dashed into thii valley of the Tschernaya against the lines of the Russian cavalry, which it dashed through twice; it brought disorder into the very rear of the enemy ; but taken, both when going and returning, in flank and ob liquely, by a fire of grape from sixteen field-pieces, and by the musketry of a large force of infantry, it suffered heavy loss in this audacious charge which so confounded the enemy. Noon having arrived, General Canrobert and Lord Rag lan caused the troops present to take up a less extended position nearer Balaklava, and contiguous to the corps of observation. _ _ Our losses, from the commencement of the siege, amount to seventy-five killed, four of whom were officers, and 618 wounded, seventeen of whom are officers. RUSSIAN SUPPLIES. The Fremden-Blatt has received " authentic " information from Odessa relative to the reinforcements sent to the Crimea. The effective force of Prince Mensehikoff is 115,000 men, of whom 75,000 have joined him within the last month. The reinforcements marched from Perekop in three columns, and met with no molestation on their way. The first, which was 30,000 strong, with 100 guns, under Liprandi, reached Sebsatopol about the middle of October and got into position on the 18th, the day after the first bombardment. The 30,000 men belong to Oaten- Sacken's corps. The two other columns belong to Dan nenberg's corps The first of them, consisting of 25,000 men, reached Sebastopol at the end of last month ; the other, 20,000 strong, was in communication with the main army at the beginning of this month. The Soldalen Freund states, that although the Russian army is stronger than that of the allies it is not likely to act altogether on the offen sive, as Prince Menschikoff has great difficulties in getting the necessary supplies for his army, and must be sparing of his ammunition. The 17th Russian infantry division has reinforced the garrison of Sebastopol. Fifteen thou sand men have been sent from Kicheneff to Odessa. It is confirmed that General Liprandi was wounded in the battle of the sth. The. Russians confess that if Sebastopol is taken their power in the Black Sea is at an end, and there fore people at home must expect that it will be defended to the very last. The struggle is a murderous one, but the enormous value of the stake must not be lost sight of. A despatch from St Petersburg states that, to replace the artillerymen picked off at Sebastopol by the franes-tireurs and riflemen of the allies, the Russian Minister of Marine has taken artillery soldiers from the Baltic fleet and sent them to the south. A special and rapid service of waggons has been provided for their conveyance A RUSSIAN SPY. The Times correspondent says : A strange incident is said to have taken place on the 4th in our lines, which, if true, shows the astuteness of the enemy, and the want of presence of mind on the part of some of our officers. A man in the uniform of a French officer sauntered coolly through our lines to-day, was civil and polite to all he met, entered into conversation with those who were walking about, smoked, and chatted, and laughed, and at last got into a sort of discussion re specting the strength and weakness of our position in the rear towards Balaklava. Nothing doubting, our officers expressed their opinions freely, pointed out our weak points, and spoke plainly of the difficulties of our position. At length an officer of the 79th, who had a more practised ear than his comrades, was struck by the strange accent and curious idiom of the soi-disant Frenchman, but still was afraid of making a mistake, and had no device ready at hand to test. the truth. However, he sent off to Sir Cohn Campbell to say he suspected there was a Russian spy among them. The supposed Frenchman was not to be caught so easily. His quick eye detected the despatch of the messenger, and so he gradually drew off from our lines towards the valley, but in a manner so natural as to perplex those to whom the officer had communicated his misgivings, and when he had gained a good offing he quickened his pace into a run, and got right away into the Russian lines, leaving his late comrades gazing open- mouthed after him ! It argued no common coolness and audacity to undertake such a mission, for had the gentle man in question been captured, he would assuredly have been hanged as a spy. These Ihissians are very nub. The sentinel before the house of the Provost-Marshal in Bala klava was astonished to see a horse, with a sack of corn on its back, deliberately walking past him in the moonlight the other night. He went over to seize the animal, when the sack of corn suddenly became changed into a full grown Cossack, who drove the spurs into his stead, and had vanished ere the sentry had recovered h:s speech. THE BALTIC FLEET. The Indipendance Beige publishes the following letter from Hamburg, of the 17th inst.:— Despatches from England for Admiral Napier reached Kiel on Wednesday evening. From what has transpired among the officers relative to their contents, it appears that the English Ministry, considering the presence of a great portion of the fleet still necessary in the Baltic, has resolved not to recal it immediately, but to maintain it at Kiel until the 4th of December, when Admiral Napier is to receive fresh orders, acquainting him with the number of ships which are to return to England, and those which are to winter at Kiel. The workmen at the Clyde forge are at present, and will probably be for several months to come, emplo)ed in making iron plates for the floating batteries destined for next year's campaign in the Baltic. ATTACK OF PETROPOLOPSKI BY THE ALLIED SQUADRON IN THE PACIFIC. The American journals received by the last mail convey the important intelligence that the allied THE PRESS. fleets in the Pacific made an attack on the Russian town and fort of Petropolopski, Kamschatka, on the Ist and 4th of September, and destroyed two Russian batteries. No official accounts have as yet arrived, and the details given in the transatlantic journals are not only evidently tinged with Russian prejudice, but differ materially among themselves. They represent the result to have been that the allies lost sixty-four men. The loss of the Russians is reported to be very heavy, but the number not ascertained. The allies retired, having captured two Russian vessels. Rear-Admiral Price was accidentally killed. Captain Frederick, of the Amphitrite, succeeds him. Petro polopski, the place assailed, was, it is reported, very strongly fortified with above 100 guns, whilst the fri gates were dismantled and put into a position of advantageous defence, 2,000 men manned the bat teries and lined the woods ; nevertheless, our gallant seamen and marines, with their characteristic im petuosity, effected, if not all that was desirable, at least more than could have been expected of them, against such odds as those to which they were exposed. The San Francisco Times, of Oct. 11, publishes the following account of the engagement, which, however, must be taken with much reserve:— We have stirring news from the first scene of conflict between the allied powers and the Russians in the Pacific. On the Ist and 4th of September an attack was made by the combined fleet upon the fortress of Petropolopski. The English vessels-of-war comprised the President, the Pique, ani the Virago ; and the French, the Forte, Fury dice, and the Obligado. The action was a very severe one, the English vessels firing 3,000 balls. Two of the Russian batteries were destroyed, and two crippled. The loss on the side of the latter was very heavy, but is not ascertained. Of the English and French forces, 64 men fell during the assault. The Russian frigate Aurora, of 44 guns, and the Diana, of 20 guns, were moored inside, and protected by sandbanks, behind which they operated as batteries, be yond the reach of the French and English. When leaving the port, and a short distance outside, the Russian merchantman Sitka was captured by the allied forces, and sent to Vancouver. 4 Russian supply vessel was also taken and burnt. Throughout the siege we learn that the Russians fought with great courage. The Sitka was captured on the Nth of September. She carried 10 guns, a crew of 35 men, and had 25 passengers. The Seiko was loaded with provisions for the Russian settle ments. The Times correspondent at San Francisco gives some additional particulars respecting the fortress and the attack upon it. He says : Petropolopski is a place of considerable importance, is the residence of a military commandant, with a large garrison, which was considerably increased about a month before the declaration of war reached the Pacific by rein forcements from Siberia, under the command of an expe rienced Russian general. These reinforcements were con veyed down the river Amoor to the Bay of Saghalian, and thence across the Okhotsk Sea to the garrison. The troops were conveyed by steamers, for which the Amoor is navigable. The town and garrison of Petropolopski are situated on a sort of inner bay, across which a long sand bank runs parallel with the town, leaving a narrow en trance from the outer to the inner bay. The allies found two Russian men of-war, the Aurora, of 44 guns, and the Diana, of 20 guns, dismantled and moored broadsides on as a battery, defending the entrance of the harbour. They were sheltered behind the sandbank and only became visible when they opened a galling fire. The French officers describe the havoc of the Russians during the bombardment as awful in the extreme. Many of them were cut in two by the balls from the ships, and fragments of bodies were seen flying about in the air over their batteries, and it is admitted that they fought through out with the utmost bravery and determination. As un example of the unflinching courage displayed by them, an anecdote is related of a Russian sentinel at whom sixty rifle shots were aimed, but nothing could overcome his stoicism, and he continued to pace up and down the ram parts of the fort on which he was stationed, without turn ing his head either to the left or to the right. He escaped, as he deserved, Russian though he was. The land engagement was a most desperate one. The men landed under the direction of an American pilot, who represented the environs of the town as quite easy of ac cess. But, whether by mistake or treachery, in advancing upon the principal redoubt the forces of the allies found themselves entangled in a " chapartil"—a thick hush of underwood and brambles, which arrested their progress at every step, but which afforded the Russian sharpshooters, who lay in ambuscade in the bushes, a secure and almost impenetrable shelter, when they shot dead every msn of whom they caught a glance. Notwithstanding the galling hidden fire to which they were exposed, and to which they could not reply with effect, the troops pressed on with the greatest intrepidity, until the similarity of the uniforms of the English and the Russians caused confusion in the ranks of the French, who feared to fire upon the red uni forms (of the marines), thinking they might be those of their brethren-in arms. When retracing their steps they lost their way, and fonnd themselves suddenly brought up by a precipice seventy feet deep. Deadly volleys were pouring in upon them from the rear, and they bad no alternative bnt to jump down the precipice or i.e shot; several did jump, and some of them were killed and others maimed. Authentic intelligence, according to the Herald, has reached official quarters, which leaves no doubt that the death of Rear-Admiral Price was not acci dental; he fell by his own hand in his cabin at the moment before going into action. 1118 THE REINFORCEMENTS. Recruiting for both services is progressing with great activity and success. The greatest enthusiasm prevails among the militia regiments, and large numbers of the men are eagerly volunteering into the line. The 90th Regiment, 860 strong, sailed from Kingstown for the Crimea on Sunday in the Europa. Yesterday (Friday) 1,349 troops of the Guards, 77th Regiment, and Royal Engineers, proceeded to Portsmouth, whence they will embark in the Royal Albert to-day or on Sunday. From Constantinople and Malta troops are incessantly de parting for the seat of war. Among other vessels, the Napoleon left Constantinople on the 7th with 2,000 men on board, and the Sass with 1,100 troops on board. A despatch from Marseilles of Tuesday announces the arrival of divisions of the French army and their generals at Toulon, where they are about to be embarked on board a flotilla of steamers. Instructions have been sent to the depot, Newbridge, to give over immediately twenty•eight young three-year olds from each regiment on service, and take over from the cavalry at home the same number of seasoned troopers. The British Government have hired a large Bremen steam-ship of about 1,1100 tons fur the conveyance of some of the reinforcements. Another 90-gun screw-ship has been added to the list of the fleet in commission —via., I.:rawer!, ( Albion class), converted into a screw, with 400-horse power engines. Captain the Hon. F. T. Pelham (1810) has been appointed to the command of this ship. The E.rmouth is fitting at lkvonport. Four millions Minie rifle-ball cartridges were forwarded from the Royal Arsenal yesterday week for use in the Crimea. A manufacturer at West Bromwich has received an tinier for 480 tons-weight of shot and shell, the former to be 3, 9, 42, and Elf pounders, and the shells to be 4i and 8 inches. They are to be forwarded as fast as possible to Woolwich, where they are to be filled up by the Govern ment officers. Two waggons, each containing twelve mile* of tele. graphic wire covered with gutta percha, and with ploughs and the necessary arrangements for laying down the wires, were put on board the Prince, screw steam-transport, at the Royal Arsenal, previous to her proceeding to Greenhithe to embark the 40th Regiment; and there can be no .loubt the valuable invention is now in full operation to prevent surprises, or be made available for concentrating the British and French troops in any required locality to check the Russian force in any future at tack s on the position of the allies. VOLUNTEERING FROM THE MILITIA. The following important circular has been issued from the War-office to the several colonels of militia regiments throughout the kingdom : War.oftice, November 20, 1804. The rapid augmentation of the regular army being at this moment of urgent importance, it bas become neces sary to call upon all embodied as well as disembodied militia regiments to give as many volunteers as possible to the regiments of Guards and line, and to the royal marines. In taking this step the Government is aware that the efficiency of your regiment will for a time be considerably impaired by the sudden loss of a large proportion of highly. trained men, whom you will have to replace by raw recruits; but, at this moment, the maintenance of the efficiency, for immediate service, of regiments raised especially for home duty, important as it is, must yield to the necessity of strengthening to the utmost that portion of her Majesty's forces which are engaged in the operations of war abroad; and upon an occiuolion like the present I am confident that the same spirit which has induced you to devote your self so successfully to the formation of the regiment under your command will secure to the Government your amis. tance and co-operation in strengthening her Majesty's regular forces by drafts from your regiment. It is intended to limit the demand thus to be made on militia regiments to 25 per cent. on their strength. Recruiting parties will be forthwith directed to pro ceed to your head-quarters in order to recruit volunteers. It is proposed to give a priority to the recruiting parties from those regiments which have a county connection with your regiment. provided such regiments form a part of the force under Lord Raglan's orders, but men will be at liberty to join other regiments or the marines, if they prefer it. The Guards will be allowed to send parties to regiments generally, their standard not enabling them to obtain enough recruits from any corresponding number of militia regiments. The marines will likewise send parties. All these parties will be recalled immediately the num ber to be raised shall have volunteered. The men will lie offered a bounty exceeding by 11. the augmented bounty authorised for ordinary recruits— namely, 11. in addition to 01, or 71. in all. Though the limit of 25 per cent. is placed on the number of men ulioni the recruiting parties will be empowered to raise, any larger number of men will be accepted, provided you are willing, with a view to further the public service in this emergency, to consent to their discharge. The General Commanding-in-Chief, sensible of the great exertions which have been made by militia officers to bring their regiments to their present high state of effi ciency, arid of the sacrifice which they are now tidied upon to make, has authorised me to state that be is prepared place at your disposal, fur any officer in your regiment whom you may wish to name, an ensigncy in the line, without purchase, for the first seventy-five men who shall volunteer from your regiment, and have been and accepted in the regulars or marines, and enu re s r the second seventy-five, and a third ensigncy for a third seventy-five, if the strength of your regiment enables you to give them.