The Press. — London, England, 1856-01-05 00:00:00

TII E WAR. The failure of the Land Transport Corps is the leading feature of the late letters from the Crimea. There is no doubt that it utterly broke down upon the first touch of bad weather, and its failure will tax all the talent and energy of Colonel Wetherall to re construct it upon the same or upon a better footing. The loss of animals during the bad weather is generally estimated at between 1;200 and 1,500 horses and mules. Overwork, starvation, want of shelter, and bad tending on the part of the drivers being the leading causes, for the animals still continue to die at the rate of sixty a day from sore back:, diseased lungs, and glanders. The loss of Colonel M'Alurdo's services at the most trying period of the year for this corps is to be much re gretted, but the arduous labours of organising a transport corps from such heterogeneous elements as were placed at his disposal broke down his health, ant* the loss of his services is not easily re medied. The army continues healthy, and drunkenness has decreased, though a considerable amount yet daily goes on, despite Provost Marshals, extra drill, and floggings. By a general order, in future extra pay is only to be given to soldiers for "skilled labour," so that henceforth road making and repairing will be considered part of the daily duty of the troops. This will effect an important saving, and, on the whole, may be considered a very fair and just distinction between ordinary and extra work. The intense cold, eight degrees below zero at night, and at times only three above zero in day, has produced a few cases of frostebite.. Among our men, who are healthy and very warmly clad, the cases have been few and simple, but the French are suffering more severely, with them the deaths from cold have assumed a marked increase, and one division is mentioned as losing twenty five men a day. Some severe gales have occurred, but no serious losses have happened among the shipping. The Russians still continue to fire heavily from Fort Constantine upon the town, and have lately thrown rockets in with some success. A bugler of our Illth Light lufautzy, taken prisoner by the Russians a: the battle of the Tschernaya, lately escaped, and came over across the valley from the north side. He reports that the Itussians have large supplies of provisions, are well clothed, and well fed, and are apparently settled in their position for the winter. By accounts from Vienna strong rein forcements are being sent both to the Crimea and Bessarabia. THE CZAR'S LETTER ON THE FALL OF KARS. The following is a translation of the Czar's letter to General Mouravieff:— The resolute persistence, the exemplary courage, and the warlike circumspection which have marked your en• tire conduct in Asiatic Turkey have now been crowned with full success. The dominating fortress of Asia Minor, the fortress of Kars, has surrendered, with its entire garrison, artillery, and great depots of arms and ammunition. The Anato lian army of 30,000 men exists no more ; its commander in-chief is our prisoner. T thank you heartily for this so glorious feat which has invested the arms of Russia with new renown. I also commission you to express my heartfelt thanks to the army under your command for the steadfastness and courage which have overcome the stiff-necked re sistance of the enemy. In testimony of your high merit nominate you Knight of the Order of St. George of the Second Class, a rank to which you have proved yourself incontestably entitled; and remain, with imperial grace, your well-wisher, ALEXANDER. OFFICIAL DESPATCHES. Lord Panmure received a despatch on Monday from Sir William Codrington, dated December ]5, inclosing the usual monthly returns of sick and wounded from Dr. Hall. The Russian account of the attack on Baga, on the Bth, has appeared in the 'urnlide Busse. Tie object of the enemy was merely that of effecting a reconnaissance, and, though trifling, is stated to have been " a brilliant affair, throwing the whole French camp into confusion," and effected with the most per fect success. AMUSEMENTS IN THE CAMP. Private theatricals, snow-balling attacks and defences of snow-pits and barricades, " paper hunts," and symposiums, where convivial meetings are held every evening, are among the amusements of the camp, and everything tends to show that the spirit of both men and officers is up to a good pitch this winter : We have also civilised amusements going on. On every Satnrda7 night there is a " symposium," or sort of Cider Cellar, in the restaurant of the fourth division, com posed of officers of the division, who meet at half•pnst nine, and have a kind of supper, and then sing till twelve, when the National Anthem is sung in chorus, and the meeting separates. The officers of the fourth division have also gut tap some theatricals, which they are going to set in the I.( staurant. They are to perform twice, I am told, for the men—that is, f, r ten or twelve men chosen THE PRESS. from each regiment, and twice for the officers of the divi sion, once for each brigade. I hear the first piece is Box and Cox Married and Settled. These must be the first theatricals ever performed on Crimean soil, a) I don't think the Tartars indulge much iu that style. The Crimea is subject to new innovations every day. There is now a real, bona-fide yellow oflorilins hi Kantiesch. If we are here much longer we may expect to be carried from camp to camp in Hansoms. There are one or two dog carts here already. We have a bunt here also—the " H. Q. P." hunt, which means the Head-quarters Paper Hunt. This is carried on in the following manner :—The fox, which is in this hunt a well mounted man, has a quarter of an hour's law, and goes off with his pocket full of pieces of paper, one of which he drops at intervals. At the end of his quarter of au hour the field, which has con slated on the two or three meets which have taken place of nearly a hundred, go off after him, a little scattered, all looking eagerly on the ground for pieces of paper. The pace is very fast, and consequently the field tails con siderably after a few minutes. There were a great many men out last time who had evidently hunted iu a very dif ferent country, and among them Sir W. Eyre, who was mounted on a very fine horse, and kept well ahead. — Times cor., Dec. 21. Last Monday evenly'? the 7th Fusiliers had a great snow-balling. One wing of the regiment had to assault and take a hastily thrown up redoubt from the other wing. Rifle-pits and barricades were made on the occasion, and a great deal of amusement was caused by the plucky manner in which one of the besiegers' pits, formed of snow and barrels, was destroyed by a sortie from the garrison. At last, after some hard fighting on both sides, the work was carried by assault. Similar challenges have taken place in various regiments during this week, one company attacking another, and so forth; and in many cases several casualties have been caused by wounds in the face.—D. News cor., Dec. 2.2. THE DESTRUCTION OF THE DOCKS. From the letter of the correspondent of the Daily N"ws we gather that for some reason the blowing up of the docks has been more than once postponed by Marshal Pelissier After our allies the French had postponed blowing up one of the docks of their half portion last Monday, they gave out that the anxiously looked for demolition would take place on the following Thursday ; but, much to the annoyance of the whole army, the engineers, or else the commander-in-chief, Marshal Felissier, again postponed the event, and no further day for the effectual destruction is yet mentioned. Yesterday I heard, on good autho►ity, that, owing to the water percolating through the soil into the galleries in greater measure than had been expected, the French were rather in a fix, as they don't happen to have made arrangements like our engineers for being sup. plied with pumps in case of emergency. This circum stance, together with the severity of the weather not per mitting the prosecution of the underground works at n►ght, will, it is generally expected, prevent the entire demolition of these famous stone docks being completed or ready for completion for some days to come. The destruction of these five dry docks, basin and entrance, may be con sidered by many as a great piece of barbarism; still, un less Sebastopol is declared a free port, this sacrifice of pro perty, tantamount to about twenty millions, is a necessary evil.—D. News cor., Dec. 22. THE FREN C H TROOPS. Winter clothing does not seem to have been dis tributed to the French troops in the same ratio as our own. In the valley of Baiaar, and throughout the camp, the French are reported to suffer severely from want of warmer clothing and fuel : Our allies have no fuel served out to them as we have, in addition to wbich they are not warmly clothed, have no gloves or stockings except what they themselves buy at the stores. As they walk along they appear haltstarved, and to be suffering greatly from cold. Their hands, from the severity of the weather and hard diet, appear in most eases almost black. Yet they are very industrious, hard•wurking, and fortunately have no pride. I have seen many picking out bones and discarded sheeps' heads from our ashpits or dunghills, and I have also seen others in camp selling paper which they perhaps have bought tolerably cheap by going to Kamiesch or Kadikoi. Every French soldier you meet, from a (Masseur-it-Pied to a Zouave, will tell you, if asked, that a great many of his regiment are frostbitten in the toes and fingers, and that a large proportion of their new arrivals are dying from a kind of cholera—just as our men did last winter.--D. News cor., Dec. 22, THE CAVALRY AFFAIR AT KERTCH. A letter from Kertch,dated the 19th, and published in the Journal de Constantinople, gives the following version of the late affair with the Cossacks at Kertch : You know that of all the cavalry of the Anglo• Turkish Contingent only a detachment of 150 horses remained here as a guard and as an escort of General Vivian. This morning sixtyfive men of this detachment, ordered to go out foraging and to buy provisions from the inhabi• tanta of the neighbouring villages, left the place, under the command of Captain Sherwood. This little troop, not having found the provisions in the neighbourhood of the most advanced outposts, went further into the country. All at once, when they least expected it, they were surrounded and attacked by a hun dredfold their number. Captain Sherwood ordered a retreat, but they were obliged to cut their way through the mass of the enemy. The Turkish soldiers, listening only to the voice of their chief and the inspiration of their own courage, threw themselves on their enemies and fought with heroism. Captain Sherwood, who was conspicuous by his English uniform, fell one of the first. His death did not check the SATURDAY,. ardour of the soldiers, who fought with renewed fury. Twenty fire succeeded in cutting their way through and so escaping. The remaining furty horsemen, officers and soldiers, either died on the Lottle-field or were taken pri• soners. . . THE WAR IN ASIA. Letters from Erzerotuu contain further details of the surrender of Kars. General Mouravieff had behaved with great nalensss of feeling, and that high spirit which marks an honourable foe. In drawing up the terms of capitulation, with his own hand he inserted a clause allowing the officers to retain their swords ; he allowed the non combatants to leave, respected private property, protected the inhabitants, anti readily granted passports to the Hungarian officers in the Turkish service. His con duct throughout is spoken of as irreproachable. The condition of the garrison at the tune of surrender was frightful : CONDITION OF THE GARRISON OF KARS. Their condition, even before leaving Kars, was as wretched as could be ; so much so ( I quote word for word from an eye-witness) that it was positively painful to stir out of doors. They were lying about in all directions, groaning piteously—watching the Russian provision•wag. bons, which, as if to add to their misery, passed almost all day within their ken. Townspeople and soldiers alike suffered all the horrors of famine. The former crowded round the general as he rode out of his quartets, and prayed him with all the eloquence of despair to seek some means of putting an end to their misery. Women forced their way into his very rooms, and, throwing their starving children at his feet, implored him rather to kill them at once than let them perish thus piecemeal for want of sustenance. The hospitals were crowded with sick ; on the Thursday before the surrender eighty men died in one day. Many went mad or became idiots from sheer hunger and hard work. Those who preserved a remnant of health, half starved as they were, and scarcely clothed, were obliged to mount sentry almost every night up to the alleles in snow. Since the battle of the 29th there had been no animal food to issue to the troops. Horses had indeed been killed in the general's stables secretly by night, but the meat was sent to the hospitals for the sick. A pittance of bread or flour made into weak broth was all that the working soldiers had to subsist upon. Discipline was almost at an end.—LeUer from Erzetuuut. At Erzeroum there was little news. The inhabi tants were leaving in fear of the Russians, and Salim Pacha was contenting himself with hanging a few spies caught within the town. Omer Pacba, according to brief and doubtful tele graphic despatches, had fallen back from before Kutais to Soukham•Kaleh. It was doubtful whether he would winter in so exposed a position. The Vienna Military Gazette has the following remarks upon the relative positions of Omer Paella and Mouravieff:— It is probably no longer doubted by any one that our correspondent at Trebizond was well informed when ho wrote that Omer Pacha had not fur weeks lost sight of the Pontic cast, and that he had not advanced Waller than the small town of Chopi, on the right bank of the small river bearing that name. Skender Pacha, it is true, advanced along the excellent road that runs to Abashn, but die not venture further than Tchenitzehale. He only did this for the purpose of ascertaining whether or no the Russians, under the command of General Bagration Mu haraki, and reinforced by the troops of General Brunner, had taken up a position in Levano and Kutyri on the left bank of that river. Having done this, Omer Pacha decided on retreating to Redout.K.ileh and Anaklea. It having at the sam4stime become known that the Russian comman der intended sending to Mingrelia all the troops collected in the fluvial districts of the mountains near Lion, so that they may act on the offensive, the Turkish admiral, Ahmet Pacha, received orders to place all the disposable Turkish and Egyptian steamers at Omer Paella's service. It is possible that a re-embarkation of the troops is to be made. Mustapha Paella has, iu a similar way, retreated to Ratoutn, in order to pass the winter in that unhealthy coast station. As we cannot suppose Omer Paella means to persist in wintering where he is at present, seeing that he is exposed to the danger of being attacked by the Rus sians, and unable to make any great resistance, Anaklea and Redoutlialeh being only small forts, it is highly probable that the entire Turkish army will be brought to the Roumelian harbours, and stationed there in winter quarters. The Russians, too, will do no more than garrison Kars, and will not advance on the offensive in the wide radius between the Western and the Eastern Euphrates. General Mouravieff has detached one division to Achal kaiak and Achalzik, whilst another division has escorted the captured garrison of Kars to Tiflis. The Pachas, and a few superior officers, will be transferred to Moscow ; the remaining officers, with the men, will probably have to pass the winter in the government of Tithe. COUNT ESTERIIAZY, who delivered his overtures to the Russian Government on the 27th ult., it is ex pected will return with counter-propositions from St. Petersburg. The Austrian explanation of the "cession of so much of the territory of Bessarabia as is necessary to secure to all nationi the free naviga tion of the Danube," one of the points offered for the consideration, of Russia, is interpreted as applying to "that part of Bessarabia which lies between the fortress of Chotyn on the north, the Salt Lake Sasyk on the south, and the Pruth on the west."