The Press. — London, England, 1855-06-23 00:00:00

592 THE WEEK. THE incidents of the week, though numerous and important, are all cast into the shade by the telegraph despatch received by Lord PANMURE early yesterday morning, announcing that an attack made on the 18th of June by the English on the Redan, and by the French on the Malakoff Tower, had not met " with the success which has usually " attended our efforts." Coupled with the announcement that "both " the French and ourselves have suffered considerably," it was at once understood that the attack of both armies had been repulsed with heavy loss, and it would be difficult to describe the painful feeling this announcement excited among all classes in the metropolis. There are many circumstances which contribute to heighten this painful sentiment. The attack must have been long meditated ; it must have been made in considerable force ; it was the first occasion on which the allies have together attacked any principal outwork of the fortress ; and it was the first check the English arms have yet received in the whole of the war. We have been so accustomed to attach the idea of invincibility to the British bayonet—we have known such marvellous deeds achieved by it, transcending in valour all that history or heroic fable can record of successful daring—that we were quite unprepared for a repulse. Had it happened when our army was weakened by suffering and disease in the autumn and winter, when scarcely twelve thousand bayonets could be mustered, we should have been less sur prised. But Lord RAGLAN has now 30,000 fighting men under his com mand ; he has the Sardinian Contingent; ho has a considerable force of Turks, and General PELISSIER must have one of the finest armies France ever sent into the field under his orders. Moreover, all the troops are in the finest order ; they were flushed with the pride of re cent successes ; and the British troops as they rushed to the assault must have felt their hearts glow as they remembered that the day was the anniversary of the battle of Waterloo. That the repulse took place under such circumstances, and after so long a period of preparation and tremendous cannonade, is the strongest proof we have yet received of the valour of the foe and the strength of their position. It is everywhere said—" We must expect a check ; the fortune of " war is proverbial ; the French were checked in their first assault on " the Mamelon, yet took it triumphantly on the second occasion." All this is true, yet the repulse shows, at least, the arduous nature of the work the allies have to accomplish, and warns us how much blocd must yet flow before that fortress which was to be taken by a coup de main can be wrested from the foe. Have it we must and will now. But the nation must nerve itself for new efforts, must prepare for war on a yet grander scale. How is it that our troops are so far, far below the requirements of the war? Why is there not more energy in col lecting and sending reinforcements ? We can have from our own popu lation any numbers we require by increasing the rewards of the service. Since the war broke out, every one has been repeating liberality will be true economy, yet we have been weighing every shilling we paid for bounty, and our Sebastopol army has been starved by the niggardliness of our recruiting scale. Last year the number of men voted were never raised by several thousands. This year, to all ap pearance, will tell the same tale. Not until we resolve to offer men what they are worth shall we get recruits of the right sort in the num bers we desire. Grants of colonial land at the end of periods of ser vice, and a liberal bounty, would attract the prime of our labouring population to our banners ; and money couli not possibly he so well spent as in attracting a large addition of picked men to our ranks It is dreadful to think that the scenes of slaughter and destruction of which almost every day brings tidings may be protracted through years, or the life of a generation, from want of due energy at the right time. The expedition, undertaken without due preparation, or accu rate information of the strength of the enemy, was a mistake in the first instance. The conduct of the siege has, we fear, been a mistake since. We lose the immense advantage we possess in having com mand of the sea by so large an army remaining stationary The expe dition to the Sea of Azoff shows what may be effected by more enter p-ising measures. It would seem comparatively easy to entirely cut off the Russians from all their supplies, and to isolate them in the Crimea, by occupying certain positions commanding Perekop on one side, and the road by the Putrid Sea on the other. The war thus far—even from the commencement of hostilities betwen the Turks and Russians—shows the importance to be attached to well-chosen posi tions. The Russians could not force the lines of Silistria—they were driven back by the Turks from Eupatoria—they could not with all their forces carry our position at Inkermann—and we, after a year's siege, have made next to no progress before Sebastopol. The genius of a general is shown by his strategic movements, by the boldness and brilliancy of his invention, by the energy of his action, the fertility of his designs, and the celerity of his proceedings. We have laid siege to Sebastopol as if we were founding a Crimean colony. We have made our position secure no doubt, and have effected a marvellous change for the better in Balaklava; we have our railway and telegraph, and This 'mld be all SATURDAY, both in Paris and London for two or three days previous. As the engagement took place early on Monday morning, intelligence might have been received of it the next day at latest. To account for the delay it is said that the telegraph was out of order. But was its disorder purely accidental? And how came it that the rumour of the repulse got abroad before intelligence of it was officially received? We always felt that the exclusive possession of the telegraph by Government afforded, we will not say the opportunity, but the possibility of jobbery on a gigantic scale ; and wo are not sure, after all, but that the best way would be to throw it open to the public. The intelligence communicated by Lord PANMUBE was less precise than could be wished. Why should details be whispered about in social circles before they are officially announced to the public ? The circumlocutory language of Lord PANMURE'B note is how ever to be accounted for by his desire to avoid using any of the words employed by Lord RAOLAN iu his despatch, as in that case a key might be afforded to the cypher. Another message was received by Lord, PAsmuaE yesterday afternoon, but at the hour we write it had not been communicated. We deeply regret to hear it stated that the names of Sir JOHN CAMPBELL, general of the 4th division ; Colonel YEA, 7th Fusileers, acting brigadier-general ; and of Colonel SHADFORTII, of the 57th, were among the slain. The despatches and letters from the camp contain full details of the attack and capture of the Mamelon and Quarries upon the evening of the 7th of June, on our side with a loss of some 500, and on that of our allies some 1,500, men and officers killed and wounded. The Russians in the Mamelon made but a poor defence at first—they were surprised ; the French columns swarmed in over the parapets and in a few minutes bayoneted or drove out their defenders. A panic appeared to have seized them for the moment, but being quickly supported by their reserves in the Malakoff they attacked the French in force under the support of the guns of the Round Tower and an eight-gun battery. The French, in their turn surprised for the moment, were driven out of the Mamelon and compelled to retire down the slope, but their reserves coming up a return rush was made, and after a severe contest for a few minutes the Russians were a second time driven out of their position Elated with their conquest, the French troops appear to have attempted in the heat of the moment a coup de ►nain against the Malakoff, but the attempt not having been agreed on, and the attack being made in a rash and hasty manner, the troops were driven back with severe loss. On our side, the capture of the Quarries in front of the Redan must be ranked as one of the most gallant actions of the war. Lord RAGLAN observes, in his despatch, that nothing could be more spirited than the attack, and nothing more determined than the gallant defence of the ground captured. The 88th, with detachment from the light and other divisions, comprised the attacking force, and, although every inch of the ground was hotly contested by the enemy, and the ground was swept by the guns of the Redan, Malakoff, and eight-gun battery, our gallant troops drove out the Russians, and, moreover, held their ground during the night against six desperate assaults under cover of a tremendous cannonade from their batteries. In the camp, the health of the troops still continues satisfactory, though cases of cholera are very frequent in the immediate vicinity of Balaklava. The army encamped on the banks of the Tschernaya still remain in position. A strong reconnaissance towards Baidar was executed ou the 3rd, and a convoy of provisions seized, the Russian videttcs offering no resistance to the allied troops. From the sea of Azoff we have had no news of importance during the week. Sir GEORGE BROWN does not appear to have advanced from Kertch in any direction, or to have re-embarked upon any fresh expedition against either Kaffa or upon the Circassian coast, The proposition that a large tract of Canadian land should be set apart for the members of the Foreign Legion appears to be open to strong objection. Why should foreigners have more bounties given to them than the troops of our own kingdom ? But, independent of the partiality in favour of strangers, there are colonial objections to the proposal. Introducing men of continental races into an English colony in America is not a good mode of securing the connection with the mother country. The evil does not terminate in new countries with a single settlement of foreigners. Where they are once located and established, others of their countrymen will be sure to follow and increase their numbers. There is already a large French element in Canadian society, and it would be better to graft the future population as much as possible from the Anglo-Saxon root. If the war continues (and who can say when it will stop?) we shall want all our colonial resources to reward our officers, with large families, unable to provide for them in this expensive country. It is not well to appeal too largely, to the generosity of the Canadian Legislature, though we are sure that it is cordial and loyal in its feelings to the Crown. The slaughter at Hango of the boat's crew who went to the coast, under shelter (as they thought) of a flag of truce, to lanclsome Finnish prisoners, is one of the most ho rr ible incidents in the annals of modern warfare. There seems no room to doubt the substantial truth of the man's story who succeeded in effecting his escape, though the Russian account received by telegraph states that Lieutenant GENESTE, Dr. EASTON, and Mr. SULLIVAN, were prisoners. They were wounded, however, and it would be impossible for BROWN, wounded himself at the bottom of the boat, to know whether they were merely wounded, or dead, when they were struck down. The outrage is aggravated by every circumstance that can add to its barbarity. The savages perceived and understood the flag of truce, they attacked unarmed. perhzol i n a tie preparing for another winter. This would be all very I tfigeired to effect a settlement on a hostile coast, bu ~.0014 whether it is the most effective means of carrying on in • 4 •- - gc •• n ; and sure wo are that it was not thus that t n record, from ALEXANDER tO WELLINGTON, . 7, . l e. '''' • .: 14 . : it 43. ..: i achieved their successes. -3 i r i* A , - i .1 sage announcing the repulse was received by 414.0.044 ic- ,; Lox. !v. - • ~..i. :sidence, in Belgrave-square, at two o'clock on Fr it* , 1 • • : : sinister rumours of a reverse were prevalent 4. " • m...- THE PRESS: