The Press. — London, England, 1854-10-21 00:00:00

OCTOBER 21, 1854. bees attacked him with such fury that, abandoning his prey, he rushed from the spot, pathetically exclaiming M Luther ! =Miler ! " The hive was, however, SOOII, emptied of its store by the baggage gu irds, who miracu lously contrived to hold in each hand an immense block of honeycomb, without letting fall their firelocks, or dropping the dignity of the British soldier. The savage bees, in stead of attacking the proper criminals, very absurdly darted at the inoffensive pack-horses, who certainly exhi bited an energy for which they had hitherto received no credit. l'rince Menschikoff 's carriage captured at the Alma was found full of boxes, containing most magnificent hussar uniforms, and also portmanteaus of valuable articles. These were quickly ransacked. Watches and jewellery, arms, and fine clothing of every kind were extracted, which soon exchanged possessors in the persona of our men. The officers came in but for a very small portion. Among the various articles found was a pair of white satin slippers, which made one suspect that the gallant chief was most agreeably attended in his campaign sujournings. Dennis Corbett, of the 55th Regiment, was sent by his master to a garden, in front of the lines, but occupied by a French outpost. While gathering vegetables the French gave the alarm of " Cossacks!" and fled. I tennis Corbett, who had,a broomstick in his hand, was making off likewise, but, finding a Cossack gaining ground on him, turned and faced his pursuer. He parried two lance-thrusts with his stick, rushed in and tore the lance from the Cossack, who then fired his carbine without effect, and made off, while Dennis returned to camp with his trophy. In the outposts skirting Sebastopol we were amused by a new occupation on the part of the enemy. they had placed a large frigate so that it could send torth shot and shell at a great elevation, so much so that some fell in the midst of us. The men rushed to the stipountiers to secure them for grinding their coffee, and have found them most useful ; and now every shot is carefully watched as to its pitch, that the prize may be secured. The coffee is issued raw, and the difficulty is to reduce it, when roasted, to any• thing like powder. The natives have begun to supply the troops at Balaklava with comforts. A soldier bought sixty•three eggs for 25., and an officer shortly after sent to say, that if he could have twenty of the eggs he had just seen he would readily pay halla-sovereign for them. Down at Balaldava prices are enormous: tobacco, which sells in Malta at Id. astick, there sells at lid. and Is. ; brandy ranges from t4s. to 12s. the bi.ttle, and other things comparatively dear. The want of tobacco is severely felt by the men, and pipes are in great demand. A sapper offered 2s. (id. for a common clay pipe, and when an officer loses his meerschaum he bewails as one who has lost a brother. Government should have supplied the men with tobacco as a part of their rations. On a cold morning, when the dew is as heavy as rain, a pipe is as good as a breakfast to a soldier. Only just now I heard a man say, " What shall I do? all my tobacco is gone, and I miss it more than my food." We had a quiet night on the 2nd. These Russians are poor warriors as far as tormenting besiegers goes. Were we workinglagainst the French (may such never again be !), we should have small bodies hovering about our picquets, and calling us to arms two or three times every night; but here we are just over Sebastopol, and yet left to sleep at ease. THE RUSSIAN STORY. The St. Petersburg Journal of the fithicontains the following notification as to the war in the Crimea : Prince Menachikoff, in a report made to the Emperor, and dated the 30th of September, states that, after having executed his flank movement from Sebastopol to Bakshi semi, he was ready to take the offensive on the first fa vourable opportunity. This plan promised to be still more successful, because the allies had divided their forces. While the French approached the fortifications on the north of the Bay of Sebastopol, the English troops betook themselves to Balaklava by sea, where they effected a landing. Prince Menschikoff, Wormed of what was taking place, made a movement in advance, but the French, de clining the combat, also abandoned the north of Sebas topol, and effected a junction with their allies on the south. On the 30th Prince Menachikoff had arrived, with the greater part of his troops, at the fortifications on the north, and established himself there, waiting until the intentions of the allies were more plainly manifested. Troops leave Ocessa daily for the Crimea. The time required to join Prince Menschikoff is calculated at fifteen days. On the 30th a victory of the Russian army in the Crimea was celebrated in all the churches at Odessa, which " victory," it appears, was the "relief" of Fort Constantine, at first threatened by the allies. This glorious victory was announced to the troops in a general order, tothe effect that Prince Menschikoff had forced the enemy to withdraw from Fort Constantine to the south, and to give up their intention of attacking this fort. According to the Soldaten Freund, Prince Menschi koff left 20,000 men in Sebastopol, and entrusted the command of the army there to General Chomutoff. He left on the Ist for Perekop, where three infantry divisions, three cavalry divisions, and eight Cossack regiments had been concentrated. On the 7th Prince Menschikoff left Perekop with reinforcements, and it was expected that, with the reinforcements ad vancing from Kherson, the Russian army would, on the 20th, be 76,000 strong. 'The northern forts of Sebastopol, and not Bakchi-Sarai, now form the base of the Russian operations. STORM IN THE BLACK SEA. The transports which carried the heavy cavalry to the Crimea have met. with a succession of gales which fully justify the fears of those who recommend cau tion in navigating the Black Sea at the period of the equinox. One, which carried a portion of the Royals and 130 horses, and was towed by the Simla, put in at Bujukdere Bay, after receiving much damage. A gale came on when she was about halfway on her journey. The hawsers parted immediately, and the unfortunate vessel was thrown about for more than an hour without being able to set a sail to steady her. So violent wet the motion that the upper deck gave way, and the horses above were precipitated on those below. A scene followed such as has been seldom witnessed. The horses are described as actually screaming with pain and terror. Of course no one dared to go near them, and the end of it was that of 130 only twelve remained alive at the conclusion of the day. In the Sea of Marmora the Ganges ran into the screw steam-ship Persian, which left port for Smyrna on the 3rd inst. The Persian has returned to Malta with very considerable damage. The accident oc curred about midnight, and is accounted for by the state of the weather. Seve► al passengers on board the Persian were much hurt; and Lieutenant N. C. Singer, Royal Artillery, asleep iu his berth, was crushed to death by the collision. THE BALTIC FLEET. Winter storms are commencing in the Baltic : ice even has begun to form in the recesses of creeks and harbours; and the vessels which heretofore composed the allied Baltic fleet are one by one returning home. The Leopard, Captain Giffard, with the flag of Rear• Admiral B. Martin, passed through the Downs on Tuesday. Two French line•of-battle ships and three French frigt\tes passed Nyborg on Sunday on their way to Prance. On Monday the Austerlitz, accom panied by twO French frigates, passed in the same direction. TO Inflexible, the flag-ship of Admiral Parseval Deschenes, has also sailed homewards; and so have the Neptune and Prince Regent. The St. George was at Kiel early in the present week. Sufficient vessels will of course be left to preserve the blockade of the Gulf of Finland until the Russian ports are fairly sealed up with ice. THE REINFORCEMENTS. Some detachments of Guards are to be sent out on Tuesday next. The regiments will supply about 340 men ; the Scots Fusiliers, who lost so severely at the Alma, supplying the larger number. All the other regiments of the light division are prepared to send out a considerable number, but the augmentation will be confined to supplying the want oceasioned by the loss in the late engagement. Since the news of the late victory has arrived, ap plications for admissions into the army have increased nearly tenfold. A letter from Marseilles to the Salut Public of Lyons says : The reinforcements intended for the army of the East amount to 25,000 men, of whom only 12,(XX) are to be sent out at once, 6,000 being taken from the camp in the south. The rest are to be furnished by the nearest garrisons. All our maritime agents are occupied in engaging transports. All the cavalry regiments in the East are to be increased to their full complement. Five thousand French cavalry have left Constanti nople for the army, and were expected to arrive in the Crimea in a few days. The Wrangler, screw gun-boat, arrived at Spithead on Thursday from the Baltic. She will probably sail at once for the Black Sea, where her services will be brought into requisition more readily than they were in the Baltic. The new iron screw•steamer Jura, belonging to the Cunard Company, is being fitted at Liverpool for the con veyance of troops to Constantinople. She is a magnificent vessel, and admirably adapted for a transport•ship, as regards accommodation, speed, and security. It is not yet known what regiment she will take out, but there is no doubt that she will ere long wail from one of the British ports for the East, with 1,200 troops and ordnance stores on board. SYMPATHY AND ASSISTANCE FROM HOME, The Patriotic Fund, under its governmental organisation, has hardly as yet commenced opera tions for raising the intended fund by way of provi sion for the widows and orphans of soldiers killed during the present war. Large preparations are, however, already making, and channels opened through which streams of contributions will flow immediately and abundantly into the fund. A pro position for contributing one day's pay or revenue has become widely accepted among various classes and groups of our population. Ships' crews, the staff of railway companies, the employes of large manufacturing or mercantile firms, and the managers of several theatres have eagerly proffered their sub scriptions or their houses. The Crystal Palace Company will devote the entire receipts on Saturday next, the 28th inst., to the same purpose, and the day is made a " shilling " day, with considerable additions to the usual attractions, in the shape of musical performances, &c.,with the view of enhancing the attendance. The corporations of London and other towns, the universities and other large aggre• gated bodies, will also furnish their liberal quotas ; and, besides these associated efforts, the sympathies of private individuals are strongly awakened, and will result in a full and general response to the appeal now THE PRESS. 991 made upon their just benevolence. From abroad, and in our colonies also, Englishmen all over the world will hasten to share in the good work. Alto• gether the fund promises, as it deserves, to be the largest ever raised by voluntary contributions iu any time or country. There are at this present time twenty houses in the course of erection at Pinner, Middlesex, for the benefit of the widows of the army and navy, at the sole cost of Miss Howard, of Pinner, and York-place, Portman-square. On Sunday last a sermon was preached at the British church iu Hamburg on behalf of the fund " fur the widows and orphans of the soldiers and sailors in cases arising out of the present war." The appeal was liberally responded to, and the collection amounted to 1,263 marks. Mrs. Nightingale, who has been for some time acting as superintendent of the Ladies' Hospital, at No. 1, Upper Harley-street, has undertaken to or ganise a staff of female nurses, who will at once pro ceed with her to Scutari at the cost of the Govern ment, there to act under her directions in the English military hospital, subject, of course, to the authority of the chief medical officer of the estab lishment- Mrs. Nightingale will herself select the persons who will accompany her, and will recommend them to the War-office for certificates, without which certificates, of course, no one will be admitted to the hospitals. After her departure, arrangements will be made for the granting of certificates, upon the re commendation of persons to whom Mrs. Nightingale will have delegated the duty, to such additional number as may, from time to time, be forwarded to Scutari upon her requisition. By this arrangement it it hoped that much confusion and disappointment may be prevented, it being obviously impossible in any hospital, but especially in a military hospital, to admit as nurses any persons offering themselves, without any proof or evidence of their possessing the knowledge, experience, and general capacity requisite for duties so difficult and so responsible, and the wil lingness to submit implicitly to the regulations of one central authority. THE MEDICAL SERVICE. Replying to various complaints urged by certain London papers, and supported by divers reports from correspondents at Scutari, that the supply of medical stares for the army had been wretchedly insufficient, and the staff of medical attendants much too few to take proper care of the wounded soldiers brought to the hospital there from the Alma, Dr. Smith, Di rector-General of the Army and Ordnance Medical Department, has published an official return on the subject. He says : As much misapprehension seems to exist as to the suf. ficiency of medical attendants, and of medical stores and supplies with the army and in the hospitals in the East, and as great anxiety has thereby been caused to the Fels. tives of the sick and wounded, Dr. Smith sends the accompanying papers, showing the number of medical officers, and the quantity of medicine and hospital stores, which have been forwarded from this country at different times since the 24th February last. The list of stores and articles supplied is exceed ingly long and copious. They were forwarded from this country at three separate cargoes, in April, June, and September last. The catalogue contains, among innumerable other articles, more than H,OOO lbs. of lint, enough to cover several acres ; 3,000 beds ; 1,200 dozen of wine; 600 gallons of brandy ; and 2,600 lbs. of tea. Further supplies were also despatched yes • terday (20th) of every description of necessary or comfort which could be available for the wounded soldiers. On Monday also a vast quantity of medical stores and comforts were taken out of the Tower stores and forwarded to Liverpool for immediate con veyance to the head-quarters of the medical depart ment. Among the articles sent cut are a number of woollen serge gowns and and trousers for the use of the convalescent. As regards the personnel of the medical service, Dr. Smith states that the number of medical officers with the British forces in the East, at the time of the battle of the Alma, was 276—being one to every ninety seven of strength. In the Peninsula the number of medical officers was only one to every 154 of strength. At the present moment there are thirty more medical officers on their way to Constantinople, and fifteen more are waiting embarkation. Dr. Smith is happy in being able to state confidently that the medical officers at Scutari (he believes twenty one in number) have at their command everything neces sary to the treatment of the wounded soldier; hence there is no necessity whatever for any effort being made by the public to send out to Constantinople lint, old linen, Sm. In addition to the supplies sent. from England, the head of the medical staff at Scutari has an absolute carte Manche, an unlimited discretion, to purchase stores of any kind, and to any extent, which in his judgment might appear expedient : and, if the markets of the country have been unable to supply him with all that he required, he has only to apply to the Turkish authorities, who have most liberally plead their atoms at the disposal of the allies. •