The Press. — London, England, 1854-12-30 00:00:00

1240 klata are Gironly places wanting reform ? No, we shall not; so we will proceed. If Lord Raghtfi is the man he is thought to be—aud nobody doubts his high courage, his perfect coolness, and his great ability in his former em ployment* he wants better instruments. He wants better ceflutore and staff—men who will supply that übiquity a ch the,chicf is incapable, tell him every thingeonrey Wants of the, army, ta ke ordera, and see • thit thry iieented. • Wend out men who tall save th e artnY; ntit•fremitlfd rfultitatut, though t l ti t are 'formidable is tiodgh, bet ftom despair, Which is hdig - down the spirits of every one, and an titter aitruiitih the arrittige went of the expedition. It will be of little use to send out reintbroemente by thousands unless we 'take stepb for their better management. As it is they march to their grarves, and begm, 4o , parish by scores. from the hour they laud. Misrule -- • them the . beach, and wearies them, worr2 .............._ receives ....ern on ~.. _.....a. Wiz, . , 1 worries them, drenches them, ehivera a ..... tom, and so destroys '" them, till a few spectral floras are,all that. remain. The u:stildiers of the l'eninsula, - 'ivheu they saw the Duke of . Wellington after an absence ivied 6:, iitelstim that his face &aid them more good than this' *rival of ten regiments. :),I Such a her* or coadjutors equisittlealo ta it ; -is what we 1,. want for the Crimea. ,1,. • e • ' " The ilisappointeil . publie uire ier nuee i ratively • . ! vi t t y i k.. , tw that the army be reinforced; net only w ins, fresh sinew aud -o,lbone, but 'oleo With new heart and mind. It is iiiati— .l, lIIIDAD--11EAD that is wanted, as' well as the HIM* of the ierestle helpless soldier. What is the use of Sending regi eosuenta perpetually onwards to the seat of war, to perish by es o Wares from the very day of their arrival, if we do not aend o ,,pat plea who can take care, of them? The regiments , ad vanced., from ,U,ibraltar,- Malta, Aqa Corfu, and. even the f li f ft. i M x°4 l 4 ' b it.4%l ) . °li4el PPP , 9ln thi* •telf o P9. ll l4 ' 1 IC 1). au die, w re 'they hare ke C live, to, wor , tO,rfalk, ."'to sit, to eat atfidrink, and 'steep , in wet clothes and wet . boots, under wet' tents, on the wet ground, in watery .- trenches, under rainy skies. The human frame was not made for this sort of work, and since th 4 work has doubled, the food beingfristinced to half ratliiiii, 'And the tenth been blown away, the pest has stalked triumphant through the camp. What, too, can be she use of seeding for more of e rahe unfortunate Turks whin they bring no food'withithem, ~,pre dependent. ou a very short, allowance of biscuit from 4 4 „itlie l ash • stores, awl, 4A..l.ritahlaboureris en fourpence a 0 , flay, . nothing , for , AlQo4g.? jt . lit ,t4E4I) that bilS been , Ivan throughout. .There ;a not wing it. A plain ' proof is 'found in the fact that nothing whatever has hap p nred in the siege that was nyt known beforehand, and ` , 'that could not have been 'provided for. This was not, the ,-! , efibe of a fbrtrvss or IS position in the interior, some IP lunelreds of Miles from the coast, attacked alter a lohg nand destructive march, presenting unexpected obstacles, „Au be encountered by an army diminished beyond compu tation., Thie was a tertrosa on the sea, which we call. Our ~ l awn,,Elll*, with our ships, within ftuty.eight hours' sail of fritießy : eheres and eittes, the besieging army being ill the tune within sight, and even . within sound, of the surge. There was nothing whatever that could *lnot have been Provided against. We kneW the size and - Ileidesprettd position of Sebastopol. The very Maps halig. Sting up on our walls are from plans that existed in this I country long before the siege began. We knew that the siege might, be protracted into the heart et 'winter, and That the latter Mouths of the year would be rainy and stormy, We *new, that.spaltliera would infallibly perish without sufficient food, clothing, cud covering over their heads. We knew the serkof diatances and roads We should have to traverse in the event of our having to establiah ourselves ouiside'the walls. e knew perfectly well tie nature of the sctll r W round Sebastopol, and that, while we were hammering in vain at the extetior'defenct?s, it ito'uld he in the power of the Russians to oronstract an inner line. ,We knew that whatever could be done would he flOrie. 'Yet we had foreseen nothing; and, possessing the mbk.4 ingenious, as well.e.s the richest people in the world, we bave,really shown no more skill or artifice in the siege of Sebastepol thau our ancestors would .have done 2,000 . years ago. All this time we are surpassed by everybody, and only boast a sorry superiority over the Turks, whom, accordingly, we abuse very freely. The French surpass ps in their, roads, in their port, in„theie hots, ip their food and clothing, hi their hospital's, In ? everything, and are hegiuningte look on our helplessnesit much as we look on that of Our 'barbarous allies. The Russians surpass all three--FMtich; 'British, and Turks—in everything, eXcept In met* phySieal' strength and conrfige:' . i'hete we come of the best. Yet how disgraceful that England, so 'wealthy, so mechanical, and with such infinity of resources, should, after all, depend on the rawest material of War , — the British soldier—and should be reduced to throw him away by wholesale in order to make up for our want pf military science, not to say common sense ! That has been the case hitherto, though we cannot think that it will last much longer. i 1.1- A NEW Posrxr. TREATY has been entered into with,France, the principal effect of which will beithe reduction of the postage upon prepaid letters weigh ing not more than one quarter of an ounce (a weight which includes the great majority), to 4d. instead of Bd. or held., as heretofore. This reduced postage of 4d.. will carry the letter from any part of the United Kingdom to any part of France or Algeria. If the letter be posted unpaid. the charge will be double. The new treaty will some into operation on Monday next the Ist of January. Bssinss decorating Generals Canrobert, Bosquet, and Forey with the order of the Medjidie Ist class, the Sultan has decided that she order of Medjidie shall he given to all the generals, officers, sub-officers, and soldiers of the allied armies whose names should be given in to the Sublime Porte by the generals-in chief. THE PRESS. Sortign nnb &Wig attiligente. FRANCE. OPENING OF THE, LEGISIATIV},I SESSION. On Tuesday ,the legislative session of 185.5 was opened by the Emperor Napoleon with the following speech : Messieurs lee &nestles, Messieurs les Deputes, . Since your last meeting great events have taken place. The appeal which I made to the country for advances to deftly the expenses of the war has been so 'Well received as even to serpass my hopes. Oar arms have been victorious in the Baltic and in the Black Sea. Two great battles here shed lustre on our flag. A shining testimony has been given in proof of the intimacy of our relations with England. The Parliament has passed votes of thanks to our generals and our soldiers. A great empire, renovated by the chivalrous sentiments of its sovereign, has been detached intim the power which for forty years has menaced tire independence of Europe. The Etnperqr of Austria hail concluded' a treaty defensive tbr the prettent • tithe, offertsfve, perhaps, hereafter; and he theca nnitetilis cause td that of France and England. Thus, gentlemen, the more that the war is prolonged, the more does the number of out allies increase, and 'the more closely ire the link that bind us drawn together. What more solid links could be formed than the names of the .victories eipfed by the two armies, recoiling 4 glory shared by b , white the sa me disquietudes end - the same hopes tigitift' I t the tweet:AlM:rids, and the wile views and the same intentiens ordinate the two Go4fernments in every quartet of the globe ? Thtis the alliance 'with England is not the effect of a monamititry interest and a policy of Mr , owasiterices ; it is the union of two powerful nations asso eirited for the trittrispirof one cause, to promote which their . greatest efforts have been made fur wore than a hundred rers—the interests of civilisation,. and, at the same time, the, liberties of Europe. Join, then ' with me on this solemn occasion to thank, in the name of Franc; the Par liaineet for its warm and cordial demonstration, and the English army and its worthy chief for their valiant co operation. lam happy to pay ajust tribute of praise to the army and to the fleet which have, 'by their devotion and their discipline, in France as in Algeria—in the north and the south—worthily responded to my wishes. The army of the East has up to this day endured everything and overcome everything—epidemics, fire„tempesta, privations ; before a fortress constantly supplied with every necessary, defended by formidable artillery by sea and land and two armies of the enemy, each euperioe An number—nothing could damp. their courage or arrest them in their gallant career. Every . one bat nobly done his duty, front the marshal, who seemed to have compelled death to wait till he had secured the victory, to the soldier and the sailor, of whom the last cry in dying was a prayer for the glory of France—a shout for the elected of his country. Let us, then, unite in declaring that the army and the fleet have deserved well- of their country. The war, it is true, demands caul sacrifices ; nevertheless, everything calls upon me to push it with vigour, and with this object I count on your concurreoce. The army Is composed at present of 5811443.0 soldiers, with 113,000 horses; and the marine, of ()2000 sailors afloat. Te maintain this force in an effective state, and to fill up the vacancies occasioned by the annual discharges and by the war, I mast demand front you, as I did last year, a levy of 140,000 men, and a law will be presented to you which will have for its object to ameliorate, without sag mending the charges on the Treasury, the position of the soldiers who will be re-engaged ; it will confer immense advantages, and increase the number of veteran seldiers in our army, and will eventually permit the weight of the conscription to be diminished. 1 hope this law will soon receive your approval. 1 shall reqiire your sanction to conclude a new national loam. Without doubt that toes. sure will increase the public debt; but we must bear in mind that by the conversion of the Reines the interest of that debt has been reduced by 2•24 millions. My efforts have been directed to place our expenditure on a level with our.receipts, and the ordinary budget will show that they are in equilibrium. The resources derived kepi the loan will be sufficient to meet the charges of the war,.!md you will see with pleasure that our revenue is not diminished. Industrial activity is unchecked ; all the great works of public utility are continued ; and Providence has been pleased to heetow a harvest upon us which satisfies our wants. The Government, nevertheless, is not insensible to the uneasiness occasioned by the dearness of provisions, and it has taken every means in its power to dispel this uneasiness, and in order to alleviate the effect* of Whom erected in many localities new sources of labour—thus striving by its moderation and justice to produce calmness in the hearts of those who are terrified for the future. Foreigners cannot fail to be struck with the spectacle of a country which, trusting in the Divine protection, supports with energy a war at a distance of 000 leagues from its frontiers, and which develops with the same ardour its internal resources—a country in which war does not prevent agriculture and industry from prospering, the arts front flourishing, and the genius of the nation from expanding in whatever san conduce to the glory of France. The delivery of this speech was accompanied by enthusiastic cheers, and after its conclusion the Minister of State declared the session opened. On the 27th a projet de loi was presented to the ' legislative body authorising a loan of 500,000,000 f. ' The report of the Ministerial programme was re ceived with acclamation by the assembly, which im mediately withdrew to its bureaux to name the commission charged with the examination of the project The Minister of Marine has ordered a new levy of sailors, comprising all of the class who have not served the State four years. SATURDAY, The Minister of War bas ordered that the officers of the army may, on demand, receive from the store houses of the State, either at Constantinople or at Sebastopol, a sheepskin paletot or a great-coat with collar and hood. These articles will be delivered gratuitously. The Paris bakers have determined to give 275,000 kilogratntnes (about 550,000 lbs,) of best bread to the poor, instead of the. Christmas - boxes usually given to their customers. - The Moniteur published . pa Monday a convention made with the Einperor of Hayti relative to the re. liqinteilt of the loan contracted by the latter State in 1825. The tett of the new postal treaty between Fratibe and England has also appeared in the Mon{_ tear. GERMAN Y. The semi official CorrOworulen. of Iferlin Bays there is a probahliity,that the enrolment of German troops for foreign countries will he prohibited, seeing that, by Article 4y;11. of the Mt of the G erman Federation;it'ia'expretlitly forbidden to German sub. 'Jetts to enter into the Military service of foreign States. It 14 stated in a ptivate ,telegraphic despatch from Hamburg that Emilie of the officers of the disbanded army of Holstein have offered their services to the British Government 4 I had declared that they can bring with them 2,000 well disciplined soldiers. --. Prince Gortschakoff on IVedtiasday presented a note ninth he had reeeived from St. Petersburg to •Count Butyl. It is believed to be unsatisfactory, but it not She final reply of Itussia. _. . Count Manteutielarrived at Vienna on the evening of the 2dixl, from Berlin, and on Sunday was received by the Emperor in a private unthaws°. Letters from Darmstadt report that the heahh of King Louis of Bavaria had suffered a serious relapse. .On the 21st he was suddenly overtaken by al retu rn of his malady, became unconscious, and exhibited symptoms so alarming that for hours his life was considered to be in extreme danger. Afterwards he began to recover, and by six the immediate danger was past. SPAIN. The Madrid Govertimebt has not accepted the prcipbehion made by the English ambassador to pro claim the slave trade piracy, but has given orders for the strict execution of the conventions already existing with England on that subject. Senor Cbilado, the Minister Of Finance, had pre sented his budget to the Cortes. There is to' be a diminution in the future expenditure of 140,000,000 of reals. The savings are of some importance. A considerable reduction is made in the emoluments of all the employes, and a stop is put to the pensions that were allowed to those who form part of 'any Ministry. RUSSIA. By a ukase dated the 13th inst., a levy of ten men in every thousand throfighout the eastern half of the Russian empire is decreed. This levy will com mence on the 15th of February, and must be finished by the 15th of March. The Jews are not exempt. By other decrees the ex port of sheepskins is for bidden during the remaining term of the war, as well as of cattle, salted meat, fresh provisions, rope, sail cloth, and linen from the porta Of the Danube, Black Sea, and Sea of Azeff. Notice is also given, that any Rtatian subject re sident in the kingdom of Poland who shall quit the impelial dominions without leave, will be punished by the confie'cation of his estate and effects. ' A further tikase contains an imperhdretteript, or daining that whoever after a battle' commits acts of cruelty on the wounded or unresisting shall miter the punialithent Of *death. Gen ral Osten-Sacken I. is removed from 'the command of the 3rd to that of the 4th corps, vice Dannenberg, disgraced. ' The 'lemma de St. Peterabouirg states that the Czar has sent from the Widows' hospitals of that capital and bf Moscow sixty. Sisters of Charity, who are to go and tend the wounded in the military hos pitals of the Crimea. Money is scarce in St. Petersburg. Imperials have advanced forty two kopess. It is said that the Emperor has sent for the vene rable Field Marshal Prince Paskiewitch from War saw to consult with him on the best means of de fending the frontiers of the Austrian line, and to concert measures for contingencies that may be shortly expected in that quarter. The recal of the Grand Dukes Michael and Nicholas has been decided on. They will probably return to the theatre of war next spring with the Czar himself. It is stated that the princes have been recalled because Prince Menscbikoff complained at St. Petersburg that his plans were thwarted by other influence. Odessa letters of the 12th in the Oest. Correa pondenz state that the fear of an attack by the allies is so great that new strand batteries have been con structed and intrenchments made on the land side. General Sohabelsky, a most energetic man, has suc ceeded General Annenkoff as governor. Ths rail ' „