The Press. — London, England, 1854-06-17 00:00:00

JUNE 17, 1854. RUSSIA, Recent letters from St. Petersburg state that it was rumoured the Russian Government intend making a loan in Holland. After the last visit made to Cronstadt by the Em peror of Russia and the Grand Duke Constantine, a visit which did not appear at all satisfactory to them, several general and superior officers fell into dis grace, and were sent to the army of the Caucasus. A subsequent order of the day provides for their replacement, and changes the commanders of a great number of places in Finland, principally in the governments of Viborg, Tavastchus, Kuopio, and Uleaborg. These measures are attributed to the situation in which the country happens to be, hostile as it is to Russia, and a part of the military authori ties being accused of slackness of rule. The chief of the Russian navy, the Grand Prince Constantine, has issued the following order of the day : "His Majesty the Emperor has been graciously pleased to entrust the flag of the English steam-ship Tiger to the corps of marine cadets. I, therefore, order that this flag be kept by them along with the other hostile flags. " CONSTANTINE." The archives of the Chancery and Treasury at Bucharest were transported thence to Fokschan on the oth inst. The Russians, in leaving Lesser Wallachia, sub jected it to pillage. They took possession of the archives and the public money, and despoiled the convents and the churches of all their valuable orna ments. The commander of the Ottoman troops, Halim Pacha, has reorganised the administrative service at Krejova. At his invitation the greater part of the persons employed returned to their posts, and proprietors who had emigrated with their families returned home. The Moniteur de la Flotte states, on the authority of a letter from the shores of the Black Sea, that great fermentation prevails in the Crimea, in conse quence of a recent decree of the governor of the province ordering that all the crews of the coasting vessels should immediately proceed to Sebastopol to be incorporated in the Russian navy. A number of them had taken to flight with their families, to escape the measure. GREECE. Athens advices of the 9th state that friendly rela tions with the Western powers have been completely re-established. The districts of Suli and Lachi have submitted. A commission had been despatched by the Government to Volo, to recal Haggi Metros, and other Greek subjects, to their country. The Greek Minister had left for Constantinople. The insurrection in Epirus is stated to be quelled. On the 22nd ult. 2,000 insurgents were defeated by Achmet Pacha at Silkstrie., in Epirus : part of the insurgents retired to Greece, the others into the mountains. Twelve hundred English troops arrived at the Pincus on the Bth inst. Two Austrian men-of-war sent to the coast of Epirus have commenced cruising from Avlona to Prevesa. The new Greek Ministry, composed by the French and English Ambassadors, consists of the follow ing :—Mavrocordato, Ambassador at Paris, as Pre sident of the Ministers and Minister of Finance ; kanaris, Senator, Minister of the Navy, and Presi dent till Mavrocordato arrives; Palamides, Senator, Minister of the Interior ; Psyllas, Senator, Minister of Worship ; Kallergis, Major-General, Minister of War; Argyropoulos, Professor of Jurisprudence and co-editor of the Panhellenium, Minister of Foreign Affairs ; Kalliga, Solicitor-General, Minister of Jus tice. Only two of these are natives of Athens, and their political bias is, of course, thoroughly Franco- English. By H.M.S. Triton, which arrived in Constantino ple from Volo on the 2nd inst., news was received of a defeat which the Turks had suffered at the hands of the Greeks under Grivas. The affair came off in a narrow gorge near Teicata, when 5,000 Turkish and Egyptian troops were surrounded and cut to pieces by 10,000 Greeks. "It was not a battle (said one of the officers of the Triton), it was a butchery." The Greeks made no prisoners. The Turkish com mander, Selim Pacba, with a small band of followers, managed to cut his way through and escaped. All the rest were massacred. AMERICA. The Europa and Franklin have brought New York dates of the 31st May and 3rd June respectively. The Cuban difficulty was assuming a serious cha racter, Mr. Soule having failed in getting a com pliance with the demands of the American Govern ment at Madrid. It is stated that President Pierce was about to send a message to Congress represent- Ingtthe critical state of the relations with Spain , and asking for an appropriation for the outfit of two special commissioners to Madrid, to bring about a Satisfactory settlement of the difficulties. The Pre• ndent had issued a proclamation against lawless en. terprises for the invasion of Cuba. At Boston t nere had been a great riot. A fugitive slave, named THE PRESS. Burns, was arrested, and an attempt made to capture him. The mob broke into the court-house, but were repelled. One man, a special constable, was shot dead. The military and marines were put under arms. The slave was afterwards delivered up to his master. His surrender had to be accomplished with the aid of a large military force, including a detachment of artillery, to overawe the populace, and prevent his rescue. Several arrests were made for disorderly conduct during the riot, and many per sons badly hurt. The affair had renewed the excite ment against the fugitive-slave law. The failure of a Philadelphia firm, Messrs. Platt and Co., is announced. Their liabilities exceed 1,000,000 dollars. An explosion of gunpowder had taken place at Wilmington, Delaware, which caused the death of eight persons, and destroyed property worth 80,000 dollars. The King of the Sandwich Isles has applied to the American Consul there, urging the speedy adop tion of measures for annexing these islands to the United States. _ . Later accounts from Peru state that a Peruvian transport, conveying 800 troops to Callao, had struck upon a rock, and immediately went down, when the captain and 730 out of the number perished. PERSIA. The Patrie states that private letters from Erze. roum of the 12th of May announce that the late Persian Ambassador at St. Petersburg had arrived on his way to Teheran. The rupture between Persia and Russia was complete. A great number of Russian subjects resident in Persia had already left the country from apprehension of events likely to occur. CHINA. Hong-Kong journals of April 22nd announce that in all probability the city of Pekin would succumb in the course of a fortnight to the efforts of the insurgents. The life cf the Emperor was in danger, he not having fled until the last moment, with an escort of 2,000 cavalry, collected in haste. A serious affray took place at Shanghai on the 3rd and 4th of April. The Europeans, having been insulted and pillaged by the Imperial troops, which were besieging the town, formed a corps of 300 volunteers, and, accompanied by four pieces of cannon, made a sortie with the insurgents. After a pretty sharp combat the Europeans seized on the enemy's camp and artillery, and made an immense booty. In the fight one English and one American sailor were killed, and fifteen persons wounded, among them two of the zealous body of volunteers. Arrangements were afterwards being made for the better protection of the place. The French and English naval stations were also making prepara tions at Hong-Kong against the Russian division wbich is cruising in the waters of China. His Excellency Sir John Bowring arrived at Hong-Kong on the 12th of April, and landed next morning under the salute due to his rank from the battery, repeated by the men-of-war, both British and American. At noon he was sworn in as Governor and Vice• Admiral of Hong-Kong, and Chief Superinten dent of British Trade in China. INDIA. From Calcutta and Madras there is no intelligence of moment. Lord Harris arrived in Madras on the 28th April. Sir Henry Pottinger had left a few days previous to Lord Harris's arrival. The electric telegraph proceeds rapidly, and before the close of the year is expected to reach l'eshawur. The line between Calcutta and Delhi • was to be opened on the Queen's birthday. The line between Bombay and Indore is complete, and the first direct message was received at the Presidency on the 7th of May. WEST INDIES. A West Indian mail arrived on Wednesday by the La Plata. The news from the islands was limited to a statement that cholera still prevailed in many districts of Jamaica and in Barbadoes. The crops were looking well. AUSTRALIA. The exports of the local produce from South Australia now amount to about 1,000,0001. per annum. The banking statistics of the colony indicate great prosperity, for, with a population of only 300,000, there were, at the close of 1853, 30,00) depositors, whose balances amounted to nearly 0,000,0001. THE ELECTRIC TELERAPH has just been extended to Somerset-house, by wires from the Strand to the victualling department of the Admiralty. By this arrangement the office is placed in direct communi cation with the great naval arsenals at Pembroke, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Deal, Dover, Chatham, and from the last-mentioned yard with Sheerness by means of numeral flags. Considerable delay will now be avoided in sending orders for supplies of provisions, medical and surgical stores to ships fitting out, and for conveyance to those vessels forming the Baltic, North Sea, and Black Sea fleets. THE WAR. 559 THE ARMIES. Tan combined forces at the date of the last accounts from Turkey (the sth inst.) were in rapid course of advance towards the scene of operation. Seventeen thousand men, both English and French, had left Gallipoli and Scutari for Varna. On the 2nd of June twenty.two transports arrived at the latter place, with General Brown's light division on board, and effected a landing with much difficulty in very tempestuous weather. The third French division was expected to arrive almost immediately from Gallipoli, under the command of Prince Napoleon. The last British division sailed from Scutari on the sth inst. A Cabinet messenger who has arrived in London from Constantinople, which city he left on the Ist of June, brings word that the Guards had not left Scutari on the Ist, but only the light division had sailed for Varna. Everything was in readiness for the transport of the divisions of the Duke of Cam bridge and Sir De Lacy Evans, and of the cavalry under the Earl of Lucan. Several French transports had gone up the Bosphorus, and it was fully expected that the French and English force under Lord Raglan and Marshal St. Arnaud would be in line by the 10th of June about fifteen miles from Varna, on the road to Schumla, intercepting the route to Silistria, and acting with the main body of Omer Pacha's army. There was a French force also marching on Schumla, by way of Adrianople, through the Balkan Pass. A number of French officers and intendents were in Adrianople for some days before the' oth ult., making every preparation for quartering the French troops, which are daily expected. Provisions of every kind were purchased, including cattle, rice, corn, barley, Sm. Several stone buildings were being put in readiness to receive ammunition and the baggage of the troops. General Forey arrived with his division of French troops at Gallipoli on the Ist. They bad come from the Firms. Lord Raglan has sent to Malta for 8,000 mules or beasts of burden, for commissariat purposes. A hundred or so might, it was believed, be obtained in the island, at about 181. each. Most of the remainder will have to be procured from Spain. The French have been somewhat unfortunate in the conveyance of their cavalry. In the large men of-war they incurred but little loss, but a British naval officer just returned from the Mediterranean states that he saw hundreds of French horses slaughtered at Malta, and hundreds more were thrown overboard on the passage from Marseilles or Toulon; that in some of the small sailing transports not more than ten per cent. of the French horses were saved. As soon as they got to sea they became sick, a constant watering from the nose ensued, the poor animals lost their stamina, and gradually sunk into a state of debility, from which they never rallied. Many cases of the kind occurred on board the British transports, but the fittings and conveniences for the horses were far superior, and the animals having in general good constitutions, with the exception of • very few, they all quickly recovered. THE FLEETS. The latest accounts from the Black Sea contain no other intelligence than that on tho 3rd inst. the combined fleets were at Baltschik, and the Turkish squadron at Kavarna. The blockade of the Black Sea was officially announced by Admiral Dundas on the lstof June. Admiral Lyons had rejoined the fleet at Baltschik from a cruise on the Circassian coast. A number of Russian prisoners, exceeding 300, having been taken by the ships of the Black Sea fleet, Admiral Dundas made proposals for an ex change, hoping thus to obtain liberation for the crew of the Tiger. The last advices state that the demand, which was addressed to General Osten•Sacken, bad been referred to St. Petersburg and rejected, notwith standing the favourable report made by the general himself. From the Baltic fleet our last news are of the Rth inst., communicated by a despatch from Stockholm. Sir C. Napier had arrived on the 4th in the Bay of Poskala, three miles south-west of Sveaborg. From the lighthouse a part of the Russian fleet, composed of ten line-of battle ships, was perceived, sheltered by the fortifications. Admiral Corry was with his division before Hango Head. From Lubeck we hear by a despatch of the 14th inst. : " Admiral Plumridge has been punishing the Russians. He hss destroyed their dockyards at Uleaborg and Brahestad, burning 10,000 barrels of tar at one place, and 18000 at another. He has also taken several of the gun- boats which had been prepared to oppose the English fleet. Uleaborg and Brahestad are not far distant from each other in Finland, on the upper part of the Gulf of Bothnia. ti eaborg is nest to Abo, the chief commercial town of Finland."