The Press. — London, England, 1855-09-22 00:00:00

THE WAR, The Crimean telegraph has been very uncommuni oative this week, so far, at all events, as the intelli gence it may have conveyed is allowed to transpire. Some hints are, indeed, given that the tidings now transmitted relate chiefly to preparations for future movements against the Russians in the field which it would be indiscreet to publish just yet. On this account probably the British Government have allowed many days to elapse without communi cating a single despatch from General Simpson, while even in Paris only a few scraps of news are allowed to transpire from the Pelissier messages, and these refer entirely to the condition of Sebastopol and the relics of stores and munitions found among the ruins. The following are the published extracts : Sebastopol, Sept 17. The enemy have not destroyed their docks, the neigh bouring establishments, the barracks, Fort Nicholas, or Fort Quarantine. _ _ The commission has commenced the ennmeration of the materials left. A first general survey has given the following result :-4,000 guns, 50,000 balls, a few hollow projectiles, a large quantity of round shot, a large quantity of powder (notwithstanding all the explosions that have taken place), 500 anchors, half in excellent condition, 46,000 kilogrammes of copper, two steam-engines of 30- horse power, a considerable quanty of sawn timber for de fence works. A later despatch, dated Sebastopol, Sept. 18, has also been received : The generals and superior officers who have been wounded are going on as well as possible. No cause of anxiety in prospect. Immediately after receiving the intelligence of the fall of Sebastopol, the Emperor Napoleon charged the Minister of War to transmit the following despatch to General Pelissier Honour to you Honour to our brave army. Congra tulate all in my name. His Imperial Majesty also directed the Minister to send the following despatch to General Pelissier : The Emperor charges you to congratulate the English army, in his name, on the constant valour and the moral force which it has displayed during this long and trying campaign. The following are Prince Gortschakoff's despatches respecting the bombardment of Sebastopol of the Bth, as given in the Journal de St. Petertbourg :- Bth September, Noon.—The enemy receives nearly every day new reinforcements. Tbe bombardment con tinues with unexampled violence, Our loss has been more than '2,500 men in the last twenty-four hours. Ten o'clock.—The troops of your Imperial Majesty have defended Sebastopol to the last extremity ; but it was impossible to hold it longer on account of the infernal fire which was poured on the town. The troops have passed over to the north side, after completely repelling six out of seven assaults made by the enemy. It was only at the Korniloff that we found it impossible to expel them. The enemy will find in Sebastopol nothing but blood. stained ruins. The bombardment lasted three days and a half, so that the Russian loss during that time, at the rate cited by Prince Gortschakoff, would have been 8,750 placed hors de combat before the assault, and by tie artillery projectiles alone of the besiegers. Le Nord publishes along and laborious letter from a Frankfort correspondent to prove that the soldiers of the Russian army in the Crimea have plenty to eat and drink. A correspondent of the Vienna Military Gazette, who writes from Odessa on the bth inst., comes to the point at once in the following fashion : The army of Sebastopol is well supplied. Some parti cular articles fetch prices almost incredible ; thus, a lemon is worth a silver rouble (3s. 241. ), but meat is almost given away, and tobacco is as cheap. A despatch from General Gortschakoff, dated Sept,. 11th, in the evening, speaks in the following terms : We have blown up a great part of the fortifications of the southern part of Sebastopol. The enemy begins to appear in (not very numerous) groups amidst the ruins of the town. We have transported to the north part of the place all the wounded who remained in the southern part after its evacuation. On the 15th the Prince reported nothing new in the Crimea. The latest official despatches received in Paris are not important. They only say that the allies are gradually occupying Sebastopol. . Prmce Gortechakoff is supposed to be meditating another attack on the Tschernaya. The allies are strengthening their former position in that quarter, and their cavalry is menacing a movement into t he interior. THE PRESS. Further Russian reinforcements have reached the Crimea, but they have not joined the army on the north side of Sebastopol. Tbe garrison there is known not to be sufficiently supplied; and a surren. der, or a decisive movement in the open field, is an ticipated. The 3oniteur contains the following para graph : A few persons are prepossessed with an idea respecting the strength of the north fort, to which the garnson of Sebastopol withdrew after the capture of the city. That fort is not greater than any one of the forts surround ing Paris. The Moniteur de l'Armhe says of the French gene ral officers placed hors de combat on the Bth : The following list we have learned from our own in quiries to be ccrrect:— General officers killed—The Generals of Brigade Saint Pol, Breton, de Marolles, Rivet, and Ponteves (this last died of his wounds). General officers wounded—The Generals of Division Bosquet, Mellinet, De la Motterouge ; the Generals of Bri gade Conston, Bisson, and Truchu. The embarkation of Turkish troops at Eupatoria is suspended. Admiral Bruat has caused Tamar and Tangoria, in front of Yenikale, to be occupied by 1,200 of the allied seamen. The Invalide Russe announces that the allies are fortifying their positions at Kertch in the most formidable manner. The Cologne Gazette has a letter from St. Peters burg stating that the stores of the Government of Kherson are completely exhausted, as merchant vessels have ceased to bring corn from the fertile countries of the Don by the Sea of Azoff. The forage for the animals employed in transport must now be brought from Perekop, and even the water they require—for there is no forage in the Crimea, and the springs are dried up. The Salgir has be come quite a little rivulet. The crop of potatoes has also failed, and the price risen more than three- fold. Vegetation is everywhere withered, and the price of corn is constantly on the rise at Simfe ropol. The Vienna Fremden Blatt asserts that the Rua sians have concluded " another armistice with Schamyl for the term of six months." A letter from Odessa, in the Military Gazette of Vienna, states that— The Russians in Baktchi-Sergi are barring all the monn tain defiles, breaking down the bridges, and destroying the communications with Balaklava, which indicates that they are expecting the allies will commence a campaign in the interior of the Crimea. The Russian forces in Asia received a check on the 7th. General Koukoleffski was killed, and Colo nel Jalgrene wounded. The Partrie gives intelligence from the seat of war in Asia Minor to the 18th ult., according to which the Russians were trying to reduce Kars by starving out the garrison—a project in which, it was said, confidently, they would fail, as the place was well supplied, while the approach of the bad season would of itself oblige the enemy to seek winter quarters. Respecting the Baltic fleet a private telegraph despatch in the Patrie has the following, dated Hamburg, September 10th : Several English war vessels have recently made a re connaissance in the Revel•roads. The inhabitants were expecting an attack from the allies. Meantime consider able additions were being made to the fortifications of the place, and t large quantity of infernal machines of a new construction had been received from St. Petersburg. The following official despatch from General Simpson has appeared in the Gazette : Before Sebastopol, Sept. 4. From the heavy fire maintained by the enemy on the head of our sap, the progress made has been slow, and accompanied, as must be expected, by several casualties among the sappers and working parties ; and it is with great regret that I have to report the death, last night, of Captain Pechell, 77th Regiment, whose conduct I had oc casion to bring before your lordship's notice in my despatch of the lat inst. Within the last few days a second bridge has been corn. menced from the north shore to Karabelnia, the object being evidently to expedite the removal of stores from the dockyard. The continued reports we receive induce General Pella. Bier and myself to believe that the enemy still meditate an attack in force on our positions on the Tschernays, to meet which the troops are kept in a continued state of readiness. The 42nd Regiment have arrived from Corfu, and have disembarked this day. I intend them to relieve the 13th Regiment at llalaklava, which has joined the First Divi sion, under Lord Rokeby. The health of the troors is excellent. J. SPAPSON, General Commanding. SIEGE CHRONICLE. Letters from the camp to the Bth inst. have ar rived, having been brought by the Indus to Mar seilles. That steamer left the Crimea on the 9th, hut all communication with the shore was prevented by heavy gales for nearly twenty-four hours preced ing her departure. The correspondence now re ceived accordingly brings up the detail of events to SATURDAY, the very hour of assault, but no further. The ac counts given of the bombardment, which opened on the morning of the sth, are full and interesting. The following is from the letter of the Times corre,pon dent : SEPT. b.—At dawn this morning the French opened fire. The air was pure and light, and a gentle breeze from the south east, which continued all day, drifted over the steppe, and blew gently into Sebastopol. The sun shone serenely through the vapours of early morning and wreaths of snowy clouds on the long lines of white houses inside those rugged defences of earth and gabionade which have so long kept our armies gazing in vain on this " august city." The ships lay floating on the waters of the roads, which were smooth as a mirror, and, like it, reflected them, and outsi3e our own fleet and that of the French equally inactive, and not quite so useful to us, were reposing from Kazatoh to Constantine as idly as though they were " painted" upon " a painted ocean." Suddenly, along the earthen curtain between Nos. 7 and ti Bastions three jets of flame spring up into the air and hurl up as many pillars of earth and dust, which are warmed into ruddy hues by the horizontal rays of the sun. The French have ex ploded three fougasses to blow in the counterscarp, and to serve as a signal to their men. Instantly from the sea to the Dockyard-creek there seems to run a stream of fire, and fleecy, curling, rich white smoke, as though the earth had suddenly been rent in the throes of an earthquake, and was vomiting forth the material of her volcanoes. The lines of the French trenches were at once covered as though the very okouds of heaven had settled down upon them and were whirled about in spiral jets, in festoons, in clustering bunches, in columns and in sheets, all com mingled, involved together by the vehement flames be neath. The crash of seoh a tremendous fire must have been appalling, but the wind and the peculiar condition of the atmosphere did not permit the sound to produce any great effect on our camp; in the city fur the same reason the noise must have been terrific and horrible. The iron storm tore over the Russian lines, tossing up, as if in sport, jets of earth and dust, rending assunder gabions, and " squelching " the parapets, or bounding over among. the houses and ruins in their rear. The terrible tiles of iron, about four miles in front, rushed across the plain, carrying death and ruin with it, swept with its heavy and irresistible wings the Russian flanks, and searched their centre to the core. A volley so startling, simultaneous, and tremendously powerful was probably never yet uttered since the cannon found its voice. The Russians seemed for a while utterly paralysed. Their batteries were not manned with strength enough to enable them to reply to such an overlapping and crushing fire ; but the French, leaping to their gene with astounding energy, rapidity, and strength, kept on filling the very air with the hurtling storm, and sent it. in unbroken fury against their enemies. More than 200 pieces of artillery of large calibre, ad. mirably served and well directed, played incessantly on the hostile lines. In a few moments a great veil of smoke spread from the guns over on the left of Sebastopol ; but the roar of the shot did not cease, and the cannonade now pealed forth in great irregular bursts, now died away into hoarse murmurs, again swelled up into tumult, or rattled from end to end of the line like the file-fire of infantry. Stone walls went down before the guns at once, but earthworks yawned to receive shot and shell alike. However, so swift and incessant was the passage of these missiles through the em brasures and along the tops of the parapets that the enemy had to lie close, and could scarcely show themselves in the front line of defences. For a few minutes, then, the French had it all their own way, and appeared to be on the point of sweeping away the place without resistance ; but, after they had fired a few rounds from each of their numerous guns, the Russian artillerymen got to work, and began to mum our allies' fire. They made good practice, but fired slowly and with precision, as if they could not afford to throw away an ounce of powder. The French were stimulated rather than impeded by such a reply to their astonishing volleys, and their shot flew with in creased rapidity along the line of the defences, and bounded in among the houses of the town. But what were we doing all this time? What was our admirable Naval Brigade and our gallant siege-train doing? They were just working their gins as usual, and had received no orders to open general fire. Our batteries, therefore, rendered little assistance to the French, but they main tained their usual destructive and solid " hammering" on the face of the Redan and of the Malakoff, and aided our invaluable allies by keeping up a regular shell practice on the batteries from the Creek to the Redan. Now two re three mortars from Gordon's then two or three mortars from Chapman's, hurled 10 a nd 13 inch shell behind ,he enemy's works, and connected the discharges by rounds from long thirty-twos or sixty-eights. It is not known why this evident want of unanimity existed, and why we did not open fire at the same time with the French. Ge• neral Pelissier was over at our head-quarters, and had an interview with General Simpson yesterday, and it is not unlikely that the French commander, with his charac• teristic impetuosity, resolved on opening fire, finding thtt we were not quite prepared to do so with effect, and rely ing on his own numerous and heavy ordnance and abundance of ammunition. lam by no means prepared to say we were not ready to open on the day agreed upon, nor do I insinuate that there was the smallest want of unanimity between the generals, but it is a fact that we had not all the guns and ammunition required for opening a three days' fire of intensity, and that with plenty of a certain sort of atageriel and missiles there was not the re quisite quantity of those of a different., but useful descrip tion. Meantime our allies are pounding away with exceeding warmth at everything within range of them. Our Quarry Battery, armed with two mortars and eight cohorns, just 400 yards below the Redan, plies the suburb in the rear of the Malakoff vigorously, a nd keeps the top of the Redan ' clear. Roden and Malakoff are alike / silent, ragged, and ■ai