The Sun. — London, England, 1842-11-24 00:00:00

____-- Arrd. —A 4 rr( l . Jlatz- ill, of tad not ow St. p.M.-- - tiebec. ipollo, CHINA. The folloWing letters give some interesting details of the capture of' Tchang-Keang and Nanking : " July 30, 1842. • • i ea he storming and capture of Tchang-Keang on the 21st instant, has been one of the most important, ,its it has b een th e most sangu i nar y engage ment we 'aye yet. had in China. The city is situated on the western bank of the river Yang-tze-keang, near its intersection by the Grand Canal, about 40 miles below I\ranking. The fleet arrived off the town on the 20th, and the troops were landed next morning. • It has been almost entirely a military affair. The troops wer e divided' into' three brigades, which attacked the t own at different points. As little or no resistance W4an ticipated, the services of the naval force were 47, 8 , 1 dered u nnecessary, w ith th e , exce pti on of one e ning Steamer,. and it was- the envied post of the ''' t tekla n d to co-operate with the Royal Art i l l ery i n j„ le , c ting a br eac h i n th a t par t o f th e wa ll w hich over . . esiZtrs: brigndeaodme. commands the river, for the entrance of the The w a ll w hi c h surroun d s t h e town i s b u ilt of t 4di, about 25 or 30 feet high ; it is very abundantly a l/ „P,,rdied with b ast i ons, em b rasures , p or t-holes, &c.,• hat was fortified with 12 and 6 pr. pieces, and jingals. .at part o f i t which is nearest the river (about a • quarter of a mile from it) extends over a rising ground uansdtroofn• g considerable elevation and steepness, and and fort-like appearance. On this point .:...IZ-Aucliland and rocket corps of the Royal Artillery, th,L eh was stationed on a bill close adjoining, opened fire at ten o'clock, and it is merely necessary to ate that the appearance of the wall afterwards gave ti 1 ., 1 : 131 c evidence of the manner in which they ta sl "i- Time. however, was not allowed them to tai a 'e a bre ac h in the wall ; their fire had been main uhneed and returned with srit for about half an hour, n the advance of then appers and miners with three r i fh_ ,ladders, followed by her Majesty's 55th Madras ‘.' - 'rigade, and 2d and 6th Regiments of Madras ee ativ e nt . r -nfantry, (which composed the whole of the brigade) was the signal for them to cease firing. th e lad ders were planted with magical rapidity, and p eo g r enadier company of the 55th (who were, pro . - lia aa Y 'Peaking, the forlorn hope) commenced then- Ri f P e lts ascent under egiver of a close fire from the of ' l es ' who were stretched on their fronts on the face k ept tiro hill, picking. off every man who showed himself embrasures ; from which, however, the enemy galimt up a very deadly fire for some minutes, and a n iany of our men fell dead and wounded. The ,Than wh o reac hed t h e top o f th e wa ll was Lieut. h a ; (l ed 4 Y , of the gr e n a di er co mpany of the 55th ; he be lle . w ith • matchless gallantry—slowly, but firmly, h; 1 / 4 , cl 'inhed the ladder. On reaching the top he waved daftod, a n d th en d e lib erate l y seate d hi mse lf on the an ,,, an d assisted his men over. At this moment the . mtf ,;. ‘ "ety and interest which was felt by every one for his . eo who witnessed his daring conduct was intense. I ui d scarcely breathe ! It was more than miracti ..,..wn,s that he was not -shot dead or hurled from the , 11 411 ' It-was like a man jumping into his own . coffin . Ile was•severelv wounded in Abe . foot' by Jingal ball while 's:l 2t 6 on the wall, Which disabled him for the rest of f H ar a 4 fl ay In about a quarter of an hour the ensign of y arid the colours of the 55th were - shown .!,,,, }l 6 ' l1- tile wall, whi c h was res p on d e d to by three hearty froM the fleet.—but• though the colours were •• e sheers the pl ace was b y n o - means taken ; on the tielntrary, they had the greatest difficulty in driving e e nemy from th e wa ll s; th e ' Tartars fought with 41;eat bravery, made repeated charges on our men 'th their long spears, and disputed every inch of ki; 'gr , " I A- The British -bayonet; -however, at length z s , 4 l e ,vailed. They returned to the town and took eiter in the houses, from which they kept up a ,ti,'nost deadly and harassing fire; our troops were fired Ilt l fror n all Quarters, without being able to see from ~.w „ , - 'nee it came, and it was not until they made a 0-Perai charge and ' closed in upon the houses, that th ey were able - to return the fire with any effect. This -ts tructive firing was protracted for five or six hours, or i n need I may say for the rest of the day , till dark ,. --e3B f avoured their escape from the walls or gates, ." 111 which they were allowed to pass out without hexcepting ' 3ll dran e such as bore arms or gave other evidence of • at I did not witness, I will say nothing about the '''.livein s ents and achievements of the other brigades. . 144 3t3 is. great a many cases of coup-de-soleil occurred ‘ tir ing the day. The heat was great, though nothing at it is in some parts of India. Colonel Driver, oftt.th( Oth Madras Native Infantry, and Major Uniacke, th e s Royal Marines, died from this cause, but the' hi t i -11 , l 'red most, having 'lost about twenty men ; Probably owing to their having been on board bei ,, o oil I , 4 B ll calthy 12. p Salt provisions for seven months, and to their ve r y ' re sh from England. They had, however, been in the Belleisle, although not fewer than s l nlsi including her 'crew, came out in her. with ladred through a part of the town next day ,l east a n escort. It was almost entirely deserted, at wir no furthe r resistance was offered by its now ter rnt;stricaeo inhabitants. I need not say that the dead disgusting sights met the eye at every step. The th e and wounded of the enemy (although most of , dire ln had been carried away) were lying about in all_ e latt a ctl°4 N no attention whatever being paid to the o 1. • Already had the houses and shops been broken s li i ; k and the most valuable property (as teas, bales • tr' fur s, &c.) was scattered about like rubbish. 1 1 ,, ti _ l e houses which were supposed to have any con ,e,eun with Government, or Government officers, ilt 4 e either burned or being burned. As at other e ans 2,we have taken from the Chinese, suicides were i 4rei ii-tted to a fearful extent —men, women, and chi dlowere found strangled, or taken out of the wells iee a ,: e a n t s. • But whydwell on scenes so repulsive ! the to winch humanity should blush ; but which are a ° frequent and unavoidable concomitants of war! 10,4,,,1-'ne Mandarin, besides a good many persons of .4,t'r,r.ank, are on board the flag-ship. all-tbe natives are very kind to us, and have been f • t along- They occasionally bring ,us presents of tat ' l mes, &c. Their vegetables are very fine. They Ilerse excellent brinjals, French beans, celery, enem ies, ; for these they will not take payment, un ; it be a written,slip of paper, with British Protection upon it, which they are all very glad to get. rt. 4 lot;he yang-tze-Keang is a most noble river ; at e r Part the navigation is rather difficult (at least el a .' t ound it so, havin g no prev i ous k n owledge of its ✓ ln . el) on ac count of sand-banks—but for 40 m il es eow: this it is very deep, and here, off Tchang-Keang a e ft is about IA- miles broad, it is only at certain 44 rts tlytt anchorage can be found for the ships. The urrent, at the spr i ngs, is rapid,—more t h an a six dared ~ „ Can pull ag a i ns t. The W eather is now about the hottest — the d7lllolTleter averaging, in the shade, from 84 to 90 g• Fahre n h eit, and I have only once seen it above 90. • "' T he c ountry on the western bank of the r i ver i s 4te Astern s parts i picpicturesque and beautiful, that on the I,,,bank will have s a dead flat, and, as it is marshy, I fear a good deal of fever. Should we winter - as is expected, we are in hopes of being. 1 • ,d ° establish a bazaar, and to have an alnind an t e l f fresh provisions. They have very fine 1.3%1 " Chin-Keang-foo, 35 miles from Nankin, 18th August. ;,: IN i ly d eli . ________,—We did the business entirely at f t.T -- 1 1 '"ee, ass an Irishman would say, and put it outo __.ie Aleads 1 11 o f the Chinese that our guns were the only 1411il"au ' e thing amongst the barbarians; they now confess it is our men and not our (as they now call us) escaladed Sufis. The Powerful nation this fort in splendid style, and soon Were masters of fopplace although glit splendidly and the the Tartar troops 1 7 Ito the last. A Chinese tnandarin, writing stood `these barba- rians are very fierce, to Nanking, says, against 'g len ,. little of _, , they ('pen and there is no standing our strongest gates with a It PoWst.der, and walk over our highest walls with pieces telt' as took I never saw such loss of life and enough, but ~ .spune here ;we lost officers and men . . property , le _ e lt pss even to compute thloss of the " , for when they found thecouldstand no longer y 'aist us, th - and , ety cut the throats of their wives the children, or drove them into wells and ponds, and fr _ n destroyed themselves ; in many houses there were s ,Oeh eight to twelve dead bodies, and I myself have ,e ‘ n a dozen women and children drowning them -1 ,i u 'es in a small Ipond the day after the fight. The 's h le of the city and suburbs are a mass of ruins, `'hole beenstreets have been burnt down, and the place has ty._ completely gutted by Chinese plunderers. We 17 0 11 1 3 Y a Joss house on a hill on the banks of Yang ..),\L—Keang river, together with a company of her f jest3 ' s 138 th ; the 55th and 6th Madras Native In the-antr Y occupy a. similar bill on th opposite side of t r 6 Cit y , about three miles from thine the rest cf the . ops ar e up at Nanking." OFFICIAL DISPATCHES. The f o ll owing :ire the dispatches transmitted to the ‘2overn or - Gelieral of India, 1w Admiral Parker, de tribing the operations of the British fleet in the ang-tze-Keang river up to the 26th of June : SECRET DEPARTMENT. BOMBAY CASTLE, OCT. 8. The honourable the Governor in Council is pleased "-) l'e-publish for general information the following gene ral order issued at Simla, on the 23d ult., by the Right 1. on. the Governor-General of India, directing the pub leat-ion of a dispatch from Vice-Admiral Sir W. Parker, • Naval Commander-in-Chief on the coast of C:hina, enclosing copies of his Excellency's reports to the -Admiralty of the successrul operations of the coin- Lined forces .in China, -in the ct;pture of- Woosung, Paoushan, and Shaughae. By order of the Ron. the Governor in Council, J. P. WILLOUGHBY, Secretary to Government. THE SUN, LONDON, ITHURSDAY MORNING, NOVEMBER 24, 1842. OVERLAND MAIL ;), CHINA AND INDIA. _ SECRET DEPARTMENT. SIMLA, SEPT. 23. GENERAL ORDERS HY THE RIGHT HON. THE GOVERNOR- GENERAL OF INDIA. The Right Honourable the Governor-General of India has directed the publication of a disratch this day re ci-ived from Vice-Admiral Sir W. Parker, K.C.8., Naval Commander-in-Chief on the coast of China, inclosing copies of his Excellency's reports to the Admiralty of the successful operations of the combined forces in China, in the capture of Woosung, Paoushan, and Shanghae. By order of the Right Hon. the Governor-General of India. T. bl. MAI)DOCK, Secretary to the Governor-Gene ral of India, with the Governor-General. FROM HIS EXCELLENCY VICE-ADMIRAL SIR W. PARKER, K.C.8., NAVAL COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, CHINA, TO THE RIGHT HON. LORD ELLENBOROUGH, GOVERNOR-GENE- RAL OF INDIA. CORNWALLIS, AT WOOSUNG, - JUNE 26. My Lord,—l have the honour to enclose, for your Lordship's information, copies of my dispatches to the Secretary of the Admiralty, reporting the capture of Woosung, Paoushan, and 6hanghae, on the 16th and 19th instant, with a total of not less than 400 guns, and a large quantity of arms and military stores, with com paratively small loss I and I beg to offer my congratula tions to your Lordship, on these events. Sir 11. Pottinger returned to the expedition on the 20th instant, and nearly the whole of the expected rein forcements of troors and ships of war have arrived in this quarter, with ample supplies of provisions and stores. As I believe his Excellency Sir Hugh Gough sends your Lordship the copies of our late correspondence with Elepoo, I do not trouble you with another set, and have only to add, that no time will be lost in advancing the expedition up the Yang-tse•Kiang in prosecution of fur ther operations.—l have, &c. W. PARKER, Vice-Admiral. FROM HIS EXCELLENCY VICE-ADMIRAL SIR W. PARKER, H.C.R., NAVAL COMMANDER•IN-CHIEF, CHINA, TO THE SECRETARY OF THE ADMIRALTY, &C. Sir,—l did myself the honourof apprising the . Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty on the 26th ult. from Chapoo, that his Excellency Lieutenant-General Sir IT. Gough and myself had it in contemplation to make our next descent at Woosung, situated at the entrance of a large river of that name, branching from the Yang tse-Kiarg ; and I have now the gratification of report ing to their Lordships, that after a severe cannonading yesterday from her Majesty's squadron and the steam vessels of the Indian navy under my command, and a spirited resistance on the part of the Chinese, the whole of their numerous and heavy batteries, defended by se veral thousand men, were carried with little compara tive loss by the seamen and marines, and a practicable place for disembarking the troops having been thus se cured, the combined forces under Sir H. Gough took possession of Paoushan, a city of the third class, at the northern extremity of the sea-line batteries, without fur ther resistance. _ _ _ In detailing these. operations, I beg to inform their Lordships that, as soon as the guns, arms, and military stores of every description taken at Chapoo were effec tually destroyed, not a moment was lost in re-embark ing the troops. The fleet sailed thence on the 28th of May, and on the following day reached the Rugged Islands, lying 14 leagues distant to the eastward, where Commanders Kellett and , Collinson had recently discovered a safe and extensive sound, conveniently situated as an anchorage for the expedition, pending the further examination of those officers, assisted by L cotenant Maitland, of the .Algerine, to ascertain a safe channel for the large ships into the Ystng-tse-Kiang ; but it was not until the 4th inst. that they were able to rejoin us with a satisfaCtory report of their investigation. • • The fleet proceeded to tare northward on the following day ; but from the strength of the tides, calms, fogs, and the necessity of anchoring during the nights, we did not arrive at the appointed rendezvous off the Amherst Rocks before the•Bth, when the .Modeste, with the Nemesis and Phlegethon steam-vessels, were immediately detached off Wreosung to intercept- any conimunication, with that place ; and six of the small vessels were at the same time placed as beacons at the edge of the shoals on the north side of the channel leading into the Yang-tse-Kiang ; this highly important duty was executed most skilfully by ComManders Kellett and Collinson, as no landmarks are visible on the low ,banks of the river by which the dangers can be defined, and the Ariadne iron steam vessel very narrowly escaped foundering, by striking on the point of a rock before unknown, near the position taken up by the Algerine. This rock is awash at low water, and had not more than four or five feet on it at the time ; the bottom of the steam-vessel was completely perforated, and the compartment which contains the en gine instantaneously filled with water ; but by prompt assistance from the squadron, and a sail being got ;under her bottom, the leak was sufficiently absorbed to enable her, with the assistance of the Sesostris, to reach Chusan, where I trust her damages will be made good in a fow weeks. The weather continued too thick for the ships again to break ground before the 13th, when I am happy to say the Cornwallis, conducted by Commander Kellett, and accompanied by the squadron, viz., the Blonde, Colum bine, Jupiter troop-ship, Phlegethon, Tenasserim, Me dusa, steam-vessels, and twelve transports, succeeded in reaching the anchorage off Woosung under sail without a single accident, though running for a distance of 30 miles in water, which only exceeded by three feet the draught of this ship. 1 found that Commander Watson, with Mr. orster, the master of the Modeste, had been indefatigable since their arrival in making observations and sounding the narrow channel, by which alone the Woosung river can be approached. The banks at the entrance were lined with strong batteries, the western side presenting for three miles an uninterrupted' fortified embankment, mounting 134 guns, between the city of Paoushan and the village of Woosung. This village is bounded by a creek, on the opposite bank of which a semicircular bat tery, mounting ten 24-pounders, was erected to flank the entrance of the river. A strong fort, mounting 21 guns, at the eastern entrance of the Woosung, completed the sea defence, making a total of 175 guns, which were all placed in judicious positions. The distance between the last-mentioned fort on the east side and the main battery on the west lineis scarcely a mile, and the channel which runs between them on the west side in a curved direction is not more than 320 yards wide. A close reconnaissance was made by Sir Hugh Gough and myself in the Medusa steam-vessel on the 14th ; but we were unable to discover any spot where the troops could be landed, except under the guns of the ships ; and I could not entertain a doubt of soon effecting the object, if they could be placed in good positions for cannonading the works. Although the weather was unfavourable, every diffi culty was overcome by the zeal and perseverance of Commanders Kellett and Collinson, assisted by the masters of her Majesty's ships—viz., the Cornwallis, Mr. J. Coaker ; the Blonde, Mr. H. A. Thomas ; the Modesto, Mr. J. T. Forster ; the Columbine, Mr. B. G. Wills, who during the nights sounded and buoyed the channel with admirable accuracy. The Medusa was then advanced as near the batteries es we could venture to anchor her, supported by guard-boats, to prevent the Chinese removing the buoys, and by the vigilance of Lieut. Hewitt, none of them were disturbed. The Sesostris returned from Chusan on the 15th, and the wind being adverse for the ships taking up their po sitions under sail, I determined on placing them against the batteries by the aid of the steam-vessels, and the following morning being from the state of the weather and tide favourable for our purpose, they were lashed alongside her Majesty's ships at dawn of day, and at six o'clock the whole proceeded to the attack in the following order:—The Blonde, towed by the Tenasserim; th e Cornwallis, towed by the Sesostris; the Modeste, towed by the Nemesis; the Columbine, towed by the Phlegethon; the Clio, towed by the Pluto; the Algerine to get in as far as possible under sail, the Medusa being reserved to meet any unexpected contingency. The Blonde and Cornwallis were directed to anchor against the heaviest batteries at 'the entrance on the western side, and when placed, the sloops were to pro ceed higher up under the cover of their fire, to attack those adjoining the village of Woosung, and the flanking hattery . immediately opposite to it, which it was evident could be passed and enfiladed if the depth of water marked on the charts in our possession proved correct. The Blonde was kept ahead of the Cornwallis, to be ready to support the sloops should they require it, the narrowness of the channel in which we were to anchor naiking it doubtful in that event whether there would be space for her to pass this ship. Captain Bourchier led in with his accustomed gal lantry and ability, closely followed by the Cornwallis, bearing my flag, under a heavy fire from the batteries on both sides, which we were obliged to approach. Com manders Kellett and Collinson handsomely volunteered their assistance as pilots ; and about half-past 6 o'clock the two ships were anchored by the stern, in excellent positions, within COO. yards of the batteries, the sloops passing on successively to their stations. The Algerine was obliged to bring up astern of the Cornwallis, and the Sesostris, after casting off this ship, in proceeding to take a station to enfilade the fort on the eastern side, unfortunately took' the ground, but in a position which enabled Commander Ormsby to render very essential service, of which he ably availed himself. Before the Tenasserim could take up her assigned station the North Star was observed outside endeavouring to enter the Channel; the former vessel therefore was dispatched to tow her into position, , s an p d la u ee n d de i r ea the ggetend dance of Commander Kellett she eras berth, ahead of h e th rrss the ( B n Blonde, theta p e f i time a attempted participate i inse ourthe operations. The eastern battery, but with which the Sesostris and some of the larboard guns of th e Cornwallis engaged,were in doing so she likewise took t he ground, although in a si tuation to render very effective service. It is but justice to say, - that the Chinese evin fi c r e e d much firmness at their guns, and kept up a smart fur a considerable time,, although it gradually slackened after the ships opened on them. The gun practice of the squadron equalled the most sanguine expectations, and by eight o'clock our opponents were all driven from their batteries, those opposite to the ships being reduced to a ruinous state. Large bodies of troops, however; were still observed from our mast heads collected in different directions to oppose our h landing, llNe b re ut th t n9 he? v , n u , • , e i r t e h a e t l xee e l n le g i t l l d t i pr i e s e p is e i r ( s m ed by by the the officers of th e C ornwa lli s an d Bl o nde, withtle gur ad i - - dition of some rockets from the former ship. During the proceedings at the entrance of the river, the Modeste, Columbine, and Clio, led on with great spirit by Commander Watson, and skilfully conducted by the steam-vessels respectively attached to them, gal lantly and coapletely achieved the service assigned them. The Modeste pushed at once into the creek at the village of Woosung, while the Columbine and Clio approached the OppoSite flank of the semicircular bat tery, which was immediately abandoned, and, the guns adjoining the village being soon silenced, the three commanders landed at the head of their men about eight r o'clock, and took possession of it, but not without some resistance from the Chinese troops in that quarter. On perceiving this movement, the main body of the seamen and marines, who were already in the boats, immediately disembarked opposite the Cornwallis and Blonde, under Captain Bouchier, supported - by Captain P. Richards and Sir J. E. Mine, and, forming a junction with Com mander Watson's party, the whole line of the western batteries were completely in our hands. • The Chinese in the eastern battery, which also suffered considerably,. retired shortly afterwards, when Corn. mander Ormsby promptly landed with a party of men from the Sesostris and_ Tenasserim, and destroyed the guns and works. The smaller steam-vessels equally contributed to the success which attended Commander Watson's division, and when the NeMesis•and Phlegethon were disengaged from the Modesto and Columbine, Lieutenants Hall and M'Cleverty proceeded with - their usual activity in chase of 13 war junks which had fired on. them in their ad vance ; these were totally destroyed, each mounting about three guns besides small arms, but the crews after sustaining much loss made their escape. Three small junks, newly constructed with paddle-wheels to work by hand, were also taken. In performing this service the Nemesis took the ground and remained some hours On shore, but got off without injury .; and I must not omit to notice the exertions of the Medusa and Pinto . ' with similar approbation, No time was lost in dispatching the available steam vessels for the troops, and before one o'clock I had the satisfaction of seeing the whole of the land forces disem barked without accident under their gallant General op posite to the Cornwallis, and in the afternoon the com bined forces entered Paoushan without resistance. • I now gladly acquit myself of a very gratifying part of my duty in bearing testimony to the gallantry and satisfactory conduct of the captains, commanders, offi cers, and men of all ranks in the Royal and Indian navy andiloyal Marines under tny command. It would be almost invidious to particularise where all have displayed the most emulative spirit of enterprise and zeal, the whole being entitled to my unqualified com mendation ; but from the special position of my flag captain, I may be allowed,. without prejudice to these sentiments, to express my acknowledgments for the very valuable assistance which I at all times derive from the unwearied exertions and good judgment of Captain P. Richards, and I may acid that my secretary, Mr. B. Chimmo. and flag-lieutenant, C. E. Tennant, have inva riably attended me on every occasion of service with most praiseworthy I transmit herewith for their Lordships' information lists of the killed and wounded, the damages sustained in the respective ships, the names of the officers who were attached to the landing parties on the 16th, and au ac count of the guns which have been taken. It is impossible to state accurately either the force or loss of the Chinese, as they are quick in removing those who have suffered; but, from the number of bodies found in diffeient directions, I cannot estimate their killed at less than 100, and a proportionate number of wounded ; and, from various accounts, they must have had from 5,000 to 10,000 men for the defence of Wroosung and Paoushan. Many additional guns have fallen into our hands at and to the northward of the city ; a considerable num ber of those taken are of copper, which we are now em barking in the ships of war and transports, and as soon as the destruction of the Chinese military stores is completed, the General and myself propose to advance on the city of Shanghae. I have, &c., W. PARKER, Vice-Admiral. From a return of the killed and,wounded on board her Majesty's shipS and vessels, and those of the Indian navy in the attack on the batteries of Woosung, the 16th of June, it appears, that - two only, both of the Blonde, were killed, and 25 in all wounded. FROM HIS EXCELLENCY VICE-ADMIRAL SIR W. PARKER NAVAL COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, CHINA, TO THE SECRE. TARY TO THE ADMIRALTY, &C. Cornwallis, off WoosungHarbour, June 24. Sir,—ln anticipation of our advance on Shang,hze, communicated in my letter of the 17th inst., I beg to acquaint 'you, for the information of my Lords Commis sioners of the Admiralty, that the Phlegethon and Medusa were dispatched up the river on that day with Commander Kellett, to ascertain if any obstruction might be expected, either from the Chinese forces or want , of water fin• the steam-vessels in their passage with the troops ; but they returned in a few hours, having been stopped by two strong batteries on each side of the river, about six miles above Woosung, that on the left bank mounting 46, and on the opposite 14 guns; the latter opened a distant but ineffectual fire on the steam-vessels. The Modesto, Columbine, and Clio, towed by the Ne mesis, Phlegethon, and Pluto, were therefore immediately sent in advance, with directions to Commander 'Watson to take up a position as near as possible to these bat teries, without drawing their fire, until the expeditionary forces joined ; but to destroy the guns and stores in them, if the panic caused by the attack of the 16th should induce the Chinese to quit them without much resist ance ; am! I now transmit a copy of Commander Wat son's report of his having taken possession of both these works without opposition. The expeditionary forces were joined on the 16th by the Dido, with eight transports, containing the 2d Madras Native Infantry, and other reinforcements from India, and, 'the destruction of the guns and military stores at Paoushan and Woosung being now completed, the troops were embarked, on the morning of the 19th, in the Te- nasserim,,Nemesis, Phlcgethon,and Pluto, which respec tively took the North Star, Modeste,Columbine, and Clio, in tow, and proceeded up the riser, the marines of the squadron being put on board the Medusa, in which the General and his staff did me the honour to accompany me, together with Captains Bourchier, Richards, and Koppel, and a few boats from their respective ships to assist in landing the troops. A force of about 500 men, - including some Horse Artillery, were also despatched by the General' by land towards Shanghae, which is about twelve miles above Woosung. With the exception of one or two narrow channels we found no difficulty in navigating this splendid river, and by half-past one o'clock had approached within sight of the city, when the North Star, which was leading, ob served a range of batteries at the north end of it, which soon afterwards opened a distant fire without doing any mischief ; the squadron were then directed by signal to cast off the steamers and engage, when the ships promptly shot in to close positions, and on the discharge of two well-directed broadsides from the North Star and Modeste (by which four guns were dismounted) and a few guns from the steam-vessels, the Chinese fled with precipitation, and Captain Bourchier immediately landed with the seamen and marines, and took possession of the batteries, on which 49 guns (17 of brass) were mounted, and a considerable quantity of arms of different descriptions, the whole of which, with the exception of the brass guns, were destroyed. The troops disembarked in the city from the steam vessels nearly at the same, when they were joined by the party that marched from Woosung, which had previously entered can the west side, but the mandarin authorities had all fled, and the principal inhabitants were departing as fast as possible in every direction. The Columbine and Medusa were sent to the south ward of the city to endeavour to check this depopulation, but although the river at Shanghae is not less than 650 yards wide, it was literally covered with junks and boats of ail sizes, carrying off furniture and goods. The re spectable inhabitants, however, who did remain, ap peared to regard us with less apprehension than I had anywhere before seen, and they freely produced the sup plies of provisions, &c., that were required. We were informed that the day before our arrival a serious affray had occurred between the inhabitants and a mandarin party, and several lives lost, in consequence of the heavy exactions of the latter, for the avowed purpose of de fending the place, and their hasty .abandonment of it on our approach. A large number- of guns, arms, and other munitions of war, as well as an abundant store of rice, were found in the arsenal and magazine at Shanghae,-and while the land forces were occupied in examining and destroying them, and the ships in getting off the brass guns, &c., feeling it very desirable to ascertain, as far as it was practicable, the navigable course of ie river and other water communications of the interior, Captain Bour chier and Commander Kellett proceeded on the 20th with the Phlegethon and Medusa, the barge, and some marines of the Cornwallis, and a boat of the Colum bine, for 30 miles without interruption, when two hat teries of five guns each were observed on the left bank, in the supposed vicinity of Sungkeang ; they were, however, abandoned on the approach of the steam vessels, and Lieutenant Wise, with the boats and Ma rines of the Cornwallis, landed and destroyed them without resistance, although a considerable body of troops had assembled within a short distance. Ctptain Bourchier's report of his progress up the river was so satisfactory, that I determined to prose cute the examination still further, and accordingly pro ceeded, on the following day, with the addition of the Nemesis, and we succeeded in ascending 37 miles in a direct line, and 47 miles including the sinuosities of the river above Shangbae, where we were stopped by the shallowness of the water at the entrance, of a large lagoon ; but having spoken with some small junks loaded with coal, which left Suchanfu only on the pre ceding day, we satisfactorily ascertained that there is a water communication from the Woosung river with that rich and populous city, and that we had actually reached within 25 miles of it, with encouraging hopes that.,g 2 the small steamers may convey troops within a short distance of it, should it be desirable. Commander Kellett's zeal on this service, and every other in which he is engaged, exceeds all praise ; and I have the satisfaction of herewith transmitting, for their Lordships' information, a sketch, which he has drawn with much ability, of the coast of the Woosung, from it s entrance as far as we have pr o ce e d e d. I t will convey to their Lordships the best idea of the locality in which we have been Operating, and, I trust, prove a satisfactory addition to our present geographical knowledge of these parts. . _ The troops were all re-embarked at Shanghae early on the morning of the 23d, when th e squa d ron drooped down the river, and they were in the course of the after noon transferred to their respective transports at the an chorage of Woosimg. The sqrveying-vessels and light-ships of the squadron will now proceed up the Yang-tse-Kiang, and their Lord ships may depend that no time will be lost in proceeding wills the expeditionary forces in , prosecution of further operations.—l have, &c., IV. PARKER, Vice-Admiral. P.S.—I enclose a list of guns taken and destroyed in the batteries between Woosung and Shanghae, in the arsenal and batteries at Shanghae, and above that city on the banks of the river. (True copy.) W. PARKER, Vice-Admiral. FROM COMMANDER R. B. WATSGN, HER MAJESTY'S SHIP MODESTE, TO VICE-ADMIRAL .SIR W. PARKER, K.C.8., COMMANDER -IN-CHIEF, &C. Modesto, Woosung River, June 18, half-past 1. S;r,—ln pursuance of your Excellency's order of yes terday's date, I have placed the ships under my corn ninnd (except the Clio, which unfortunately got aground on her way up, and has not as yet- been got afloat) out of gun-shot of the batteries. Finding this morning that the batteries on the star board, and larboard sides a b ove us h a d b een d eser t e d by the enemy, I dropped the Modesto nearer, and landed and tr)ok. possession of them with the Marines and small arm men of the-Mod?ste and Columbine. I found the gum—viz., on the larboard side, 8 copper guns, 33 iron ditto ; on the starboard side, 8 copper guns 6 iron ditto—had been dismounted, tents destroyed, and, carriages most of them taken away. Above the batteries I found 8 war junks, all of which were burnt, except a small one, in which I hope this evening to have all the copper guns embarked. I have also the honour to enclose.to your Excellency a copy of Mr. Forster's remarks, who has been sounding about a mile above the batteries in our boats. I have also to inform your Excellency, that the chop intrusted to me was forwarded to the city, of Shanghae by a Chinaman, who undertook 'to `delrver'it' tlidee on the • payment of a few dollars. I have, &c., R. B. WATSON, Commander, her Majesty's ship Modeste, (True copy.) W. PARKER, Vice-Admiral. No less than 135 guns of different calibre were de stroyed in the batteries between Woosung and Shanghae, at Shanghae itself, and above the town. Grand total of killed and wounded, A officers and men, 6 horses. Officer wounded—Ensign Stannus, 16th Regiment Bengal Native Infantry. - W. NOTT, Major- General, Commanding Field Force. Examined, T. POLWN ELE, Captain, Deputy-Assistant Adjutant-General. THE OCCUPATION OF CAUBUL FROM MAJOR-GENERAL POLLOCK, C. 8., COMMANDING IN AFFGHANISTAN, TO T. N. MADDOCK, ESQ., SECRETARY TO THE GOVERNMENT, POLITICAL DEPARTMENT. Camp, near Caubul, Sept. 16. Sir, I have the honour to forward, for the informa tion of the Right Hon. the Governor. General, copy of my dispatch to the address of Major-General Lumley, Adjutant-General of the army. I have, &c., GEORGE POLLOCK, _ _ . Major-General, Commanding in Affghanistan FROM MAJOR-GENERAL G. POLLOCK, C. 8., COMMANDING IN AFFGRANISTAN, TO MAJOR-GENERAL J. R. LUMLEY, ADJUTANT-GENERAL OF THE ARMY. Camp, Caubul, Sept. 16. Sir, —I have the honour to report, for the information of his Excellency the Commander-in-Chief, that on the 14th instant we marched from Khoord Caubcl to Bootkhah I took the precaution of sending parties to crown the heights of the Khoord Caubul pass, but we met with no opposition. On the 15th I moved on to Caubul and en camped on the race-course. This morning I proceeded to the Bala Hissar, with the following troops :—a troop. of Horse Artillery under Major Delafoase, a company from each regiment of Infantry under Lieut.-Colonel Taylor ; the 3d Dragoons, under Major Lockwood ; a troop of the Ist Regiment of Light Cavalry ; rissaah of the 3d Irregular Cavalry, with the whole of the Gene ral and Division Staff. The ob:ect was to plant the Bri tish colours in the Bala Ilfssar on the spot most conspi cuous from the city. The Prince Futteh Jung, who joined my camp at Gundamuck, expressed a wish to go with the party, to which I assented. On our arrival at the spot selected, the colours were hoisted, the band of her Majesty's 9th Foot immediately struck up the na tional anthem of " God save the Queen," and a Royal salute was fired from the guns of the Horse Artillery, the whole of the troops present giving three cheers. I have left the colours in the Bala Hissar, to be hoisted daily as long as we remain. The Infantry also remain under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Taylor, but they will ba relieved on the arrival of Major-General Nott by a Native Regiment from his force. I expect General Nott will reach Caubul to-morrow or the next day. Since our arrival hero we have not been able to obtain any certain information of Mahomed Akbar. It appears, however, that Amcen Oollah has separated from him. Neither of them have ventured to return in the direc tion of Caubul. The following prisoners have come into the camp :—Mrs. Trevor, with eight children ; Captain and Mrs. Anderson, with three children ; Captain Troup and Dr. Campbell. Unless some very unforeseen circum stances occur, I expect to obtain possession of the re mainder of the prisoners in the course of eight or ten days, with the exception of Captain Bygrave, who, I regret to find, has been taken by Mahomed Akbar, and was with him during the action of the 13th inst. . • I have, &c., GEORGE POLLOCK. Major-General Commanding in Aflghanistan. FROM MAJOR-GENERAL G. POLLOCK C. 8., COMMANDING IN AFFGIIANISTAN, TO T. 11. MADDOCK, ESQ., SECRE TARY TO GOVERNMENT, POLITICAL DEPARTMENT. Camp, near Caubul, Sept. 17. Sir,--I have the honour to forward, for the informa tion of the Right lion. the Governor-General, copy of my despatch, of date the 14th instant, to the address of Major-General Lumley, Adjutant-General of the army. I have, &c., GEORGE POLLOCK, Major-General Commanding in Atfghaniztan. THE FIGHT AT TEZEEN. FROM MAJOR-GENERAL G. POLLOCK, C. 8., COMMANDING IN AFFGIIANISTAN, TO MAJOR-CENERAL J. IL LUMLEY, ADJUTANT-GENERAL OF THE ARMY.* Camp, Bootkhak, Sept. 14. Sir—l have the honour to report, for the information of his Excellency the Commander in Chief, that I marched from Sell Baba on the 11th instant, and arrived at Tezeen the same day, where I was joined by Major- General M•Caskill, with the 2d division. On the 12th I halted, in consequence of the cattle of the 2d division having suffered from the effects of fatigue, caused by their forced march ; this halt the enemy imagined to be the result of hesitation, and in the afternoon attacked the pickets on the left flank, and became so daring that I considered it necessary to send Lieutenant-Colonel Taylor, with 250 men of her Majesty's 9th Foot, to drive them back ; some sharp fighting took place, and the enemy were driven up the neighbouring hills, from the crests of which they kept up a heavy fire. Lieut.-Colonel Taylor, however, with a small - party crept up one end of the hill unperceived by the enemy, who were hotly engaged in their front, and lay c4ticealed until joined by a few more of his men, when, ruching up on the flank of the astounded Affghans, he inflicted a severe lesson, pouring in a destructive fire upon thew its they fled down the hill. A chieftain was found among the slain, who it is supposed \vas the brother of Khoo , dabux Khan. The enemy remained inoffensive on our left flank, in consequence of this very well planned and gallant affair of Licut.-Culonel Taylor's, and withdrew to the right, where they commenced a furious attack upon a picket consisting of 80 men of the 60th Regiment of Native Infantry, commanded by Lieut. Montgomery, who sustained the assault with great resolution until re inforcements reached him, when the enemy were beaten off ; in this attack the picket had 4 killed, Lieutenant Montgomery and 17 men wounded ; the enemy came so close that frequent recourse was had to the bayonet. Their attempts on the pickets continued thoughout the night, but were invariably unsuccessful. The valley of Tezeen where we were encamped, is completely encircled by lofty hills, and on the morning of the lath it was perceived that the Affghans had occupied in great force every height not already crowned by our troops. I commenced my march towards the mouth of the Tezeen pass, where I left two guns, two squadrons of her Majesty's 3d Dragoons, a party of the Ist Light Cavalry and 3d Irregular Cavalry. The enemy's horse appeared in the valley, with the intention of falling upon the baggage, but it gives me very great pleasure to state, that the Dragoons and native cavalry (regular and irregular) made a most brilliant charge, and with such effect, that the whole body of the enemy's force was completely routed, and a number of them cut up. The pass of Tezeen affords great advantages to an enemy occupying the heights; and on the present occa sion Mahomed Akbar neglected nothing to render its natural difficulties as formidable as numbers could make it. Our troops mounted the heights, and the Affghans, contrary to their general custom, advanced to meet them, and a desperate struggle ensued ; indeed, their defence was so obstinate, that the British bayonet in many in stances alone decided the contest. The light company of her Majesty's 9th Foot, led by Captain Lushington, who I regret to say was wounded in the head, ascending the hills on the left of the pass under a heavy cross-fire, charged and overthrew their opponents, leaving several horses and their riders, supposed to be chiefs, dead on the hill; the slaughter was considerable, and the fight con tinued during the greater part of the day, the enemy appearing resolved that we should not ascend the Huft Kotul ; one spirit seemed to pervade all, and a determi nation to conquer overcame the obstinate resistance of the enemy, who were at length forced, from their numerous and strong positions, and our troops mounted the Huft Kotul, givin g three cheers when they reached the summit. Here Lieut. Cunningham, with a party of Sappers, pressed the enemy so hard that they left in their precipitation a 24-pounder howitzer and limber, carrying off the draught bullocks.. Having heard that another gun had been seen, and concluding that it could not have gone very far, I detached a squadron of Dra goons under Captain Tritton, and two Horse Artillery guns under Major Delafosse, in pursuit. The gun (a 12-pounder howitzer) with bullocks sufficient for the two guns was soon captured. The Dragoons again got among the,enomy, and succeeded in cutting up many of them. Captain Broadfoot with the Sappers advanced, and with the Dragoons happened to fall in with another we party of the enemy, of whom upwards of twenty re killed. I have ascertained there were about 16,000 men in the field opposed to me, a considerable portion of whom. vas cavalry, Mahomed Akbar Khan, Mahomed Shah "Khan, Ameen Oollah, and many other chiefs with their followers were present, all of whom I have reason to believe have taken to.flight. We have gained a complete victory, and our enemies have suffered se verely, hav,ing several hundreds killed, losing their guns and three standards, one of which was taken from the enemy's horse by the Ist Light Cavalry. Although many attempts were made at the baggage, none were successful, chiefly owing to the judicious and admirable arrangements of Lieutenant-Colonel Richmond, com manding the rear-guard, and for which he deserves the greatest credit. The Lahore contingent; under the able direction of Captain Lawrence, has invariably given the most cheer ful assistance, dragging the guns, occupying the heights, and covering the rear-guard. , While ascending Huft Kotul and at Tezeen their long jezails told effectively in keeping the grinind. Major Skinner, her Majesty's 31st Foot, had been de tached with a strong party on the night of the 12th, for the purpose of dislodging a b od y of the enem y on the heights in front of the camp ; this duty, was performed with great gallantry the next morning, and his operations contributed much to frustrate the attempts of the enemy on our right flank. As the Major's movements were for some time separate from those of the main column, I deem it expedient to annex his report. The enemy being completely dispersed, we pursued our march and encamped atalthoord Caubul without fur ther opposition. The troops cn this, as on all former occasions where they have been engaged with the enemy, s h o wed the most determined valour, and I feel that I cannot too highly praise their conduct ; each regiment seemed to vie with the others in their endeavours to dis lodge the enemy, which they most effectually accom plished. Ihave received from Major-General M`Caskill, K.H., who on this occasion commanded the main column, every assistance, and from Major-General Sir R. Sale, G.C.8., commandingC the advance guard, the most zealous co-operation. The following officers have also given me every reason to be satisfied with their exertions :—Bii gadier Monteith, C. 8., commanding the 4th brigade ; Brigadier Tulloch, commanding the 2d brigade, and Bri gadier White, commanding Cavalry brigade ; Lieut.- Colonel Bolton, com manding her Maj es t y ' s 3 1st F oot ; Lieut.-Colonel Richinp . nd, commanding 33d Native In fantry ; Lieutenant -Colonel Taylor, K.H., command ing her Majesty's 9th Foot ; Major Skinner, her Ma jesty's 31st Foot ; Major Hnish, co m m an di ng 26t h Na tive , Infantry ; Major Del afosse, commanling . the Artillery ; Major Crommelin, commanding the Ist Light Cavalry ; Major Lockwood, commanding hor Majesty's 3d Light Dragoons i Captain Naple- ton, .commanding the 60th Native Infantry ; Captain t Seaton, commanding the 35th Regimentl of Light Infan try; Captain Ferris, commanding the Jezailchees; Cap tain Wilkinson, commanding her Majesty's 13th Light Infantry ; Captain Broadfoot, commanding the Sappers ; Captain Tait, commanding the 3d Irregular Cavalry, and Captain Lawrence, commanding th e Sikh contingent; Captain Abbott, Chief Engineer ; Captain Abbott, com manding the Light Field Battery ; Captain Alexander, commanding the 3d troop of the 2d Brigade of Horse Artillery; Captain Baekhouse, commanding the Moun tain Train ; and Lieutenant Becher, commanding the Sappers and Miners. The services of Mr. Mackeson, commanding the Bildars, have always been conspicuous. Superintending Surgeon Saran's care in providing for the conveyance and comfort of the wounded has met my approbation. From Major Thompson, at the head of the Commissariat Department, I have received every assist ance ; likewise from Captain Lane, Commissary of Ord nance' whose exertions have b een unrem i tt i ng through- . out. From the following officers of my personal and the I general staff I have on this, as on ever y o th er occas i on, received the most effectual aid :—Captain Macgregor and Lieutenant Pollock, Aide. de-Camp ; Lieutenant Sir 11. Shakespear, Military Secretary ; Captain Ponsonby, Assistant Adjutant-General ; Captain Codrington, As sistant Quartermaster-General ; Captain Riddle, Pay master ; Captain Macadam, Deputy Judge-Advocate- General ; Lieutenant Mayne, officiating Deputy Assist ant Quartermaster General. The follbwing officers of division and brigade staff have also Effectively performed their respective duties :—Captain liavelock, Deputy As sistant Adjutant-General ; Brigade Majors Havelock, Smith, Wade, Lugard ; an d Brevet Captain Fitzgerald, artillery division staff. I must not omit the expression of my regret for the fate of Ryder Ali, the native com mandant of the Jezailehees a most gallant and enterpris ing soldier, who was killed while attempting to seize one of the enemy's standards. I have the honour to forward reports from Lieutenant- Colonels Richmond and Taylor, and Major Skinner, with returns of killed and wounded, and of ordnance, ammunition, and stores captured.-1. have, &c. G. POLLOCK, Major-General. (True Copy.) G. PONSONBY, Assistant Adjutant-General. Return of Killed and Wounded of the Troops under the command of Major-General Pollock, C. 8., in the Tezeen Valley, and on the Haft Kotul, on the 12th and 13th of September. Total of killed 32 Ditto woundel l3O G. PONSONBY, Capt., Assistant Adjutant-Gen. NAMES OF OFFICERS KILLED AND WOUNDED. Killed. Hyder Ali, Commandant, Jezailchce regiment. Wounded. Captain Lushington, her Majesty's 9th Foot, severely. Captain Geils, of the 60th Native Infantry, slightly. Lieutenant Norton, 3kh Native Infantry, severely. Lieutenant Montgomery, 60th Native Infantry, slightly. (True Copy.) G. PONSONBY, Captain, Assistant Adjutant-General. COPY OF A LETTER FROM LIEUTENANT-COLONEL TAY LOR D COMMANDING HER MAJESTY'S 9TH REGIMENT OF FOOT, TO CAPTAIN PONSONNY, ASSISTANT ADJU TANT•GENERAL. Camp, Khoord Caubul, Sept. 13. ir,—l have to report, for the information of Major- General Pollock, C. 8., commanding the troops in Aff ghanistan, that, agreeably to his orders, I proceeded at half-past five o'clock yesterday evening with 250 men of her Majesty's 9th, to the support of the guards in charge of the public cattle feeding on the left of the camp in the Tezeen valley, which were much pressed by the enemy. On clearing the left picket I was joined by Major Lluish with a small party of the- 26th Native Infantry. I threw forward a strong body of skirmishers, who quickly drove back those of the enemy on the plain, pursuing them to a range of low hills, where they made a stand till dislodged by our advance ; further on I feund the enemy, in force from 500 to 600, had taken post along the crest and on the top of a range of steep hills, running near a mile from the northward into the Tezeen valley ; those towards the north were assailed by Captain Lush in,9-ton, her Majesty's 9th Foot, with the left support and skirmishers, whilst I directed the attack against their front and left flank, which being turned, I ascended the heights between two , ridges which concealed my ap proach till close to the summit and within 20 yards of their main body, consisting of over 300 men. Collecting 30 to 40 men, with Lieutenants Elmher,t, Lister, and Vigors, I ordered bayonets to be fixed, and the enemy to be charged, which was done with such resolution and effect, that the whole mass taken by surprise, was pushed headlong down the hills, nor t:id they rally till out of musket shot. Their loss must have been very severe, as I observed numbers lagging behind to carry off their killed and wounded. As it was getting dark, I deemed it imprudent to pursue the enemy Further, ordered the halt to be sound, and after remaining in possession of their position for halt an hour, retired without molestation. It affords me great gratification to bear testimony to the spirit and gallantry displayed by officers and men on this °motion, especially Major Huish, 26th Regiment Native Infantry ; Captain Lush. ington, and those concerned in the charge on the enemy. I beg to transmit a return of the killed and wounded. I have, &c. - A. B. TAYLOR, Lieutenant-Colonel, 9th Foot. (True copy.) G. PONSONBY, Capt., Assistant Adjutant-Gen. COPY . OF A LETTER FROM MAJOR SKINNER, HER MA JESTY'R 31ST FOOT, TO CAPTAIN PONSONBY, ASSIST ANT-ADJUTANT-GENERAL. Bootkhak, Sept. 14. Sir,—l have the honour to report, for the information of the Major-General commanding the army in Aff ghanistan, that I ascended the heights above the Tezeen valley, in front of our camp, with the following de tachment :—Qne company of her Majesty's 9th Foot, one company of her Majesty's 13th Light Infantry, one company of her Majesty's 31st Foot, one company of her Majesty's 26th Native Infantry, one company of her Majesty's 35th Native Light Infantry, one company of her Majesty's 33d Native Infantry, 50 Broadfoot's Sappers, and 50 Jezailchees,—on the afternoon of the 12th inst., and occupied the ridge till daylight next morning. From a communication with Major-General Sir R. Sale, G.C.B , I learned that I was to take the high peaks to the right of my position, and, having driven the enemy from them, continue to operate among the lower hills to the head of the Huft Kotul, on the right flank of the advanced guard of the army. These peaks were occu pied in some force by the enemy, who was, however, easily driven from them and cleared away to the higher hills on my right. I ascended the first peak, which, although the way was steep, was not very difficult, in two small columns ; the first, the companies of her Ma jesty's 9th and 26th Native Infantry under Captain Bor ton, of the 9th Foot ; tne second under Lieutenant Sayers, of the 31st, composed of the two companies of her Majesty's 31st Foot and 33d Native Infantry, covered by the Sappers and Jezailehees under Lieutenant Orr. I detached Lieutenant Sinclair, of the 13th Light Infantry, with the company of his regiment and one of the 35th Native Infantry, to the higher peak on the right hand, and supported him by Lieutenant Orr and the Sappers (after I had possession of the first height), who ascended by a steep ridge that connected them. Lieutenant Sinclair attained the summit of the hill without loss, driving the enemy away, and held it until the main column of advance came in sight, when he led his column on my right over the hills at the base of the higher mountains. The height I gained descends to the high road by a succession of small peaks, each connected by a narrow ridge ; tho enemy occupied with small parties each of these peaks, and was driven in suc cession from them. Captain Borton, at the head of a party of the 9th Foot, made a gallant chars upon upon a strongly posted party of th e enemy, and dilve them away ; he showed a great deal of boldness, however, and made repeated attempts to recover his ground, tak ing advantage of the necessarily slow advance of the supporting parties from the steep and difficult nature of the hills. After I gained all the peaks, and the enemy had fallen back, I continued parallel to the main column over the hills to some distance beyond the top of the Hutt Kotul. Considering the great number that at one time opposed mu until the appearance of the main column drew them off, my loss was not great, while the enemy suffered consid era bl y. I b eg leave to bring to the no tice of the M a j or -G enera l t h very good conduct of the officers and men who were under my command. I have, &c., THOMAS SKINNER, Major, her Majesty's 31st Regiment. (True copy.) G. PONSONBY, Captain, Assistant Adjutant-General. COPY OF A LETTER FROM LIEUT.-COLONEL RICHMOND, COMMANDING THE 33D NATIVE INFANTRY, TO CAPT. PONSONDT, ASSISTANT A C Camp, Bootkhak, Sept. 14. Sir,—Major-General Pollock, C. 8., commanding the troops, having intrusted me especially with the com mand of the rear-guard of the army from Tezeen through the Huft Kotul Pass, on the 13th instant, and having placed at my disposal the troops detailed as follows : Her Majesty's 4th Light Dragoons Ist Regiment of Light Cavalry 295 Detached 3d Irregular Cavalry 6O Sikh Cavalry 2OO Total sabres 750 Two 9-pounders, No. 6, light field battery. Pickets of her Majesty's 9th and 3lst Foot 4th Company of die 26th Regt. of Native Infantry 310 Right wing of the 33d Native Infantry 129 35th Native Light Infantry Pickets of the 60th Regiment of Native Infantry 124 Sikh Infantry Total bay0net5............... 1,300 I have now the honour to report the operations of the day for the Major-General's information. Having made the necessary disposition ,of my force to protect the baggage in the valley of Tezeen, and to secure the gorge of the pass, the different pickets were gradually with drawn to strengthen the latter. Soon after I observed a large body of the enemy coll ect i ng near the Fort of Tezeen, south-east of my position, and directed Lieu tenant Douglas, whose guns had been previously posted on a commanding poin', to open on them. but the dis tance proving too great for shells the flee was discon tinued. The enemy, I suppose encouraged by this, formed his cavalry in the valley to the number of about 600 men, with the evident intention of moving towards my post. I instantly decided on anticipating him, and as Captain Alexander's (horse Artillery) three guns were still on the ground, I availed myself of his services, by sending forward his guns within rarm of the enemy, supported by th e front squadron of her Majesty's 3d Light Drago ons, under Captain Unett, o ne squadron of the Ist Li g ht C avalry under Brevet-Major Scott, and the detachment of 3d Irregular Cavalry under Captain Tait, with or d ers to charge the enemy if the ground proved favourable, and an opportunity offered. Thf • ceatel soon occurred, the guns having made good impression and the instant I observed the cavalry advance, the other squadron of Dragoons was hurried forward under Major Lockwood, as a support ; thus insuring the success achieved b o y the spirited and gallant charge of their com rades in front, which completely dispersed the enemy who left about 50 men on the field, and a standard, the latter taken by the Ist Light Cav a l r y, t h e bearer of which was cut down by Brevet-Captain Goad. Having accomplished all I wished, the troops returned to their original position in excellent order, covered by the very effective fire of the guns directed by Captain Alexander, and by a company of the 35th Regiment of Light Infantry, the latter ordered forward for the pur pose. • As the enemy showed no disposition to molest us fur ther, and the whole of the baggage having entered the Pass, the Horse Artillery and Dragoons were permitted to commence their march, but before the latter had filed off; the enemy brought two guns to bear upon our posi tion, which obliged me to place the remainder of the cavalry under cover of the high ground in the vicinity. These guns fortunately did no harm, and were soon after either withdrawn by the enemy or silenced by the fire of round shot from Lieutenant Douglas's 9-po - under, ably directed by that officer and by Captain Lawrence, poli tical agent, commanding the Sikh contingent, who hand somely volunteered his services on the . occasion. After allowing the main column and baggage to get well forward in the pass, I directed the remainder of the cavalry to enter, and followed with the infantry, the dif ferent parties of which gradually retired on the poste I had previously occupied, the enemy's infantry closing in and opening a heavy fire, which continued till we reached the top of the pass, a distance of three miles ; and, although I was compelled to hold my ground near the top of the pass for a long time, to admit of tho guns and baggage passing over, I ion happy to say that the enemy, though he pressed our several posts very warmly, did not then, or at any other time, obtain the slightest ad tdheesitsrtoeodpfsroarnudienoonl etslitliunegnulys, march e v n at a i b ta le g d e, m an e d to at re leil f towards my with all the stores and baggage, except a few leads o f -o g r i t u h camp, where I arrived about 8 o'clock P . M ., which were destroyed ou the road, agreeably to orders. grain ; also some camels and bullock; unable to proceed, My best thanks - are due to the officers and men en gaged, both European end native, for their cheerful en durance of fatigue under an intensely hot sun, and for their gallant bearing when in contact witl► the enemy ; the whole seeming animated with one and the same spirit, which enabled them to overcome difficulties of no ordinary nature, highly creditable to British sol diers and especially so to the Bengal Sepoys. 1 feel it also just to notice the useful assistance afforded by the men of the Sikh contingent, under Captain Lawrence, who took their full share of duty in the valley of Tezcen, and in defending the different posts in the plus. Accompanying I have the honour to torward a return of the killed and wounded, which I rejoice to observe is not so heavy as might have been expected from the na ture of the operations.___ I have, &e., A. F. RICHMOND, Lieutenant-Colonel, 33d Regiment of Native Infantry, Commanding the Rear Guard. P.S. On reaching the top of the Hull Kotul pass, it was reported to Captain Lawrence. commanding the Sikh contingent, that Sirdar Akbar Khan was present in the Tezeen valley when the troops charged his cavalry. A. F. RICHMOND, Lieutenant-Colonel. (True copy.) G. PONSONBY, Captain, Assistant-Ad jutant, General. (True copies.) T. H. MADDOCK, Secretary to the Go vernment of India, with the Governor- General. (True copies.) J. P. WILLOUGHBY, Secretary to Go vernment. SINGAPORE. (From the Straits Messenger, Sept. 20.) MONEY MARKET AND COMMERCIAL INTEL- LIGENCE. (Num—Our ptivate advices represent the state of the opium market to be very flattering, prices having risen, and the demand for the drum was rather animated- A large quantity exported in the Rob Roy from this port had met with a quick sale at highly remunerating pries, and several orders for the purchase of opium for that market arc expected. Since our last issue the market has materially changed for the better. In the early part of this week a sale of 10 chests of Benares was effected at 510 dollars to 515. dollars cash. On the 17th the drug rose higher, and at further sale of 15 chests of Benares at 575 dollars to 580 dollars was effected, but immediately after it rose to 595 dollars, at which rate a further sale of 12 chests, all for cash, is reported. The price for Benares may now ba quoted at 600 dollars ; and in consequence of the recent; accounts from China, and the expectation of several: orders by the Ationyina, which vessel is daily looked for, we must expect to see prices advance still higher, should no supplies arrive from Calcutta in the interim. There is scarcely a chest of Patna in the place. Our own market still continues without activity fer all descriptions of British goods, but the approaching Bugis season may effect some alteration for the better. ALE.—Scarcely a single cask of good in the place, and a moderate importation would realise our highest quota tions. MARINE AND OILMAN'S STORES.—Anchors and chains arc in no demand ; Europe cordage much inquired after. A large stock of hums and cheeses is in the place, and the demand limited. MADDAPOLLANS.—Some inquiries after this &scrip tion of goods, but at such rates as are hardly remunera tive. Extensive sales have lately taken place, at rather long credits. MUSKETS.—Large stocks on hand, but rather difficult of sale. The only transaction we have heard of is a sah of 200 fowling-pieces at 3- dollars, and 200 muskets, with bayonets, at 24 dollars. WOOLLENS. —ln very little inquiry. COFFEE.—In good demand, and we have heard of sales to some extent at our quotations. for the continent. GiulN.—Very scarce, and much inquired after. TEA.—In good demand, and prices remain firma. The shipments to Europe from the Ist instant exceed 4,000 piculs. _ _ • SUGAR.—We have not heard of any transactions in this article. TlN.—This is an article that will always command a good market, although the prices may vary. What little of good there is in the place will fully command the prices quoted., _ . _ _ CIGARS.—No. 3 continues in demand, and iirst impor tations will scarcely rule below our present quotations. In freights and exchanges we have nothing particular t o notice. THE QUEEN'S VISIT TO WALMER CASTLE. .-- —rr wet, he E rough, I NG andN r Bat her this day W h A a L s Ai b E e tt e , n A e l x o c N e n e d A i v n g E h v , disagree able, with a change of wind to the south-west, con sequently her Majesty's visit to Ramsgate has been again put off. The reports as to her Majesty's stay here are so various and contradictory that it • - is - hardly worth while recording them. It is our opinion, however, from the sources of in formation we have an • opportunity of consulting, that the Queen will not go to Brighton from hence (indeed we may say this is now certain), but that she will proceed from here direct to Windsor. From one week to three is reported as the. period her Majesty will yet remain at Walmer Castle. Her Majesty has not left the Castle all day, nor has Prince Albert taken his usual ramble on the beach. Viscount Sydney left Walmer Castle yesterday. Lord liardwicke arrived at the Castle this morn ing, and has succeeded Lord Sydney as Lord in Waiting. There are no additions to the Royal dinner list to day. Her Majesty conversed with Captain Pring, of the Thunderer, on the beach yesterday, and compli mented him on the appearance, &c. of his ship. Last night, Wahner, Deal, and Dover, tied with each other in illuminations in celebration of the birth day of the Princess Royal. About six o'clock the Thunderer was magnificently illuminated with blue and other lights, which were hung all over the vessel, from the top-gallant mast head to the lower deck. Many discharges of cannon and small arms were fired off while the display of rockets and other fireworkS from her sideso f -- oak il luminated the sky for many miles round. The Fear less steamer and two other of her Ma j esty' s i were also illuminated, and let off f ireworks • At and Walmer many convivial parties met • D eal m t even ing in honour of the bizth (lay the Princess of he while the streets were pa ra d e d t R o y a l,. o a late h loyal inhabitants of theseplaces,our by the bandsof ' •in attendance. music being We mentioned yesterday that her M • her sense of th e pleasure Majesty expressed sailing excur s i on th re she derived f rom th e gran d eDeal and w 1 up in front o f the Castleboatmen. The Mayor r ece i ve d a ,rom Walmer Castfe. His Wor ship assembled the _crews of the fl ee t o f b oa t s t oge th er h and read to them er Majesty's letter. 12 lIE PRLSTO N GUILD ROISBERY.--It will be recol lected, that at the late Preston Guild, a gentleman of the name of Marquise, a manufacturer in Lancashire,, and who was formerly a foreman in the employ of the late Sir Robert Peel (father of the Premier), was robbed of his pocket-book, containing bank -notes to the amount of 2,000/. and upwards. It seems that one of the notes stolen, of the value of 3001., has re cently been presented by Messrs. Masterman an d C o.. to the Bank of Eng,lan.l for, and refused, payment, and the Bank of .England has detained the note. Messrs. Masterman and Co., it appears, received the note from the firm of Rothschild and Co., who stated that their house at Paris transmitted it to them. Information of the presentation and detention of the note having been communicated to Mr. Marquise,. he immediately took active measures to trace the note back to the party who paid it into the Bank at Paris, and sought and obtained an interview with the woman whom, it will be remembered, he successfully prosecuted for being concerned in the robbery. This woman disclosed where the pocket-book which con tained the note was hidden, and it was su bsequently recovered ; and th a t h er accom plice in the robbery • was a ma n , a mechanic, well know" n Sheffield where, before th e ro bb er y, h e had worked and re sided for some years; and that she believed he had left the country the day following that of the rob bery. There can be no doubt that the man is con or about Paris. IN D IA. (From the 'Bombay Government Gazette Eztraordinary, Saturday, Oct. 15.) SECRET DEPARTMENT. BOMBAY CASTLE, OCT. 15. With reference to the notification issued by Govern ment,. on the 12th instant, publishing for general infor mation a copy of the general orders dated Simla, the 30th ultimo, by the Right Hon. the Governor-General of India, announcing the occupation of Ghuznee by the Candahar division of the army, under the cowman i of Major-Ge ueral Nott, and of its en ti re d estruct i on, an d lik ew i se th e defeat of Mahotned Akb ar Kh an at Tezcen, by the forces under the command of General Pollock, C. 8., and the subsequent occupation of Caubul, the lion. the Go vernor in Council has the highest gratification in repub lishing the fallowing dispatches detailing the particulars of the operations on the above occasions. By order of the Hon. the Gd ver nor in Council, J. P. WILLOUGHBY, Secretary to Government. THE DESTRUCTION OF GIIUZNEE. FROM MAJOR•GENERAL: NOTT, COMMANDING FIELD FORCE, AFFGHANISTAN, TO T. 11. MADDOCIC, ESQ., SECRETARY TO THE GOVERNMENT OF INDIA, WITH THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL. Ilead-quarters, Camp, Ghuznee, Sept. 8. Sir,—My dispatch of the 31st ult. will have informed you of my havingdefeated the Affghan army commanded by Shumshoodeen. On the morning of the Zdi inst. I moved on Ghuznee. I found the city full of men, and a range of mountains running north-east of the fortress covered by heavy bodies of cavalry and infantry ; the gardens and ravines near the town were also occupied. The enemy had re ceived a considerable reinforcement from C.iubul, under Sultan Jan. _ _ _ I directed Major Sanders, of the Bengal Engineers, to reconnoitre the is orks, under escort of the 16th Regi ment of Native Infantry and a party of irregular caralry. This brought on some smart skirmishing, in which our Sepoys ;behaved to admiration. Captain White, of her Majesty's 40th Regiment, commanding the light com panies of the army, was pushed forward, accompanied by Anderson's troop of horse artillery, to support the recon noitring party, and I at one.: determined on carrying the enemy's mountain positions before encamping my force. The troops ascended the heights in gallant style, driving the enemy before them until every point was gained. The village of Bullal is situated about 600 yards from the walls of Ghuznee, urea the spur of the mountains to the rep north-east, eaavn3d, battery to it to placed 300 paces in to be a desirable spot for p ad vance, I ordered it to he oeclPied by two regiments of infantry and some light gnus; and retired the columns into camp. The engineer officers, Sappers and Miners, and in fantry working parties, were employed under the direc tions of Major Sanders, during th e n ight of the s th , in erecting a battery for four 18- po unders ; th ese guns were moved ltom camp before day-light in the morning of the Gth, but before they had reached the position assigned to them, it was ascertained that the enemy had evacuated the fortress. I directed the city of Gliuznee, with its citadel and the whole of its works, to be destroyed. I forward the En gineer's Repizt. In these operations our loss has been much less than might have been expected from the numbers and position of the enemy, and the fact of the troops having been ne cessitated to move under range of the guns of the fortress. I inclose a list of killed and wounded. The exertions of Major Sanders, f the Engineers, were as usual, most zealous, and hem,. t o hanks are due to him and th e d epartmen t under his charge. I beg to not i ce t h e following officers :—Brigadier Wymer, M a j or Hibbert, comman din g her Majesty's 40 th Regiment ; Captain Evans, in temporary charge of the 16th Regiment of Native Infantry ; Captain 'White, her Majesty's 40th Regiment, commanding. the light com panies of the furce ; and Major Sotheby and officers of the artillery. • eral, Captain Water field, Aid e -d e -Can-JP • en eri tl. I continue to re ce i ve t h e from I have every reason to b e satisfied with my st 4 fT, Captain Ripley, and Lieutenant Kay, D e p u t y J u d g e Captain Polwh e l e , D e p u ty-A ss istant Adjut an t - General ; greatestl assistance Advocate-General. Major Leech. I have., &c•' W. Major-Gen P.S. Commandin g Fi e ld Force, .Affghanistan. te .S. I have recevered about 327 of the Sepoys of the 27th Regiment Bengal Native Infantry, wh o had been sold into elavery and dispe rsed village 30 and 40 miles round Ghuznee. i n v W. NOTT. • ut e: ri t the Hills stnorth9 p C pr a o m a p ch ß o o f ze t h h , DIEMORANDM Not t On the morning of the sth of September Generalh moved his camp to take up a position before G u n ziT , . An advanced party was ordered to protect a reco nan awe of the works undertaken by the e ngineer depart ment. On the a of the city, it was opposed in force, but was immediately supported by the General, and thus reinforced cleared the hills of the enemy, and took possession of the village of Bullal, within 400 yards of th e city. is ne p ar ar: The General immediately. irected this important point, with the heights near the village, to be maintained, and they were occupied by two regiments of Native Infantry and two nine-pounder guns. While these operations were going on the camp wa s established at Rozeh, t wo miles and a half from the city. The guards required for the protection and general duties of the camp absorbed so many men , that but few were available for the duties of ft si,,_. e. : g T he General there fore determined not to invest the place in form, and di recta. the engineer to concentrate the forces at his dis posal in one spot, where protecti on m i g ht be most conve niently afforded to th e siege operations. With advertence to thse instructions, the engineer proposed to establish a battery on the ridge of the hill north of the town, in adv ance of the village o f B u ll a l , and distant about 350 yards from the nearest point of the wa lls. From this f i battery - was expected that the four 18-pounder guns would lay open the thin flank-wall con necting the citadel on the west with the town wall in a few hours. The defences of the citadel could be swept from the same point by the Light Artillery, and the lines of loopholed wall which would bear on the advance of the storming party were all viewed in enfilade from the site selected for the battery. 'The advance of the party to the assault woull have been greatly facilitated by the exist ence of a thick dam of earth across the ditch immediately opposite the point marked out for the breach. It was further proposed that the principal assault should be supported by two other attacks ; one an attempt to blow in the wat er - gate (both the others hav ing been strongly built up, and the causeways in front of them cut through), another to escalade a weak point near the Caubul gate, which would have been greatly aided by the fire of the artillery from the 11111. This project met the General's approval, and at dusk on the evening of the sth of —opternber a worhin,, ,, party, composed of the Sappers and 160 men from the regi ments occupying the hill, , ,- e ° , nmeneed work on the bat tery. By 4 s..m. on tne 6th of September cover for the party had been secured across the ridge of the hill, and so much progress made in the execution of the work as to lead to reasonable expectations that the four 18- pounder guns and two 24-pounder howitzers would be established in position, and ready to open their fire during the day. Early on the evening of the sth a brisl t matchlock fire was kept up from the citadel on the hill, but this gra dually slackened, and at 10 P. 31. had entirely ceased. The enemy's infantry had been observed at dusk crossing the river near the water gate, with the intention, it was supposed, of attacking the working Party during the night ; but towards the morning of the 6th there were grounds for believing the fort was evacuated. At day light this was ascertained to be the case by Lieut. North, of the Engineers, who took possession, at that hour, of the water-gate without opposition, leavin g Ensicr n New ton and twenty sepoys of the 16th I..Tative Infa 6 ntry, in charge of the gateway, and returning to the battery for further assistance. The whole of the wo r ki ng party was immediately moved into the town, of which and of the citadel of Ghuznee they were in possession before sun . EDWARD SANDERS, Ar "Aior, Engineers. rise. A ,-,„ E FROM MAJOR E. SANDERS, ENGINEERS, To MAJDR-GENE RAI. W. NOTT, COMMANDING FIELD F - - ••,, GIWZNEE. C c a i m pa p ti ß or of elit nea r Ghuzne e , S ept. 9 . Sir,--On the occupation he fortress of Ghuznee by the troops under your command, .I received orders from perinit. you to take measures for the destruction of the citadel, to as great an extent as the means at command and the , that the engineer would department c al l: mffbiaennvdeteillitotbvlllyc attached eci haltto honourof, ot your :.toodfraseo has ' I been employed rseriously mines, the walls, shaken by during the 7th and Bth instant on the w ork of demoli tion, and to state the progress effected. the citad e l, a ll with good effect. ' 1, e upper f or t has been completely destroyed ; the second li ne o f works ex 3. Fourte e n mines have been sprun g i n the walls of tensively breached in two places ; and t h e outer and lower walls have their revetments blown d own and greatly injured in thr e e places. though 4 . ln theyseveral have n spots ot the explosions that unless immediate and energetic mea sures are adopted, on the departure of your force, for their rep a i r an d se curity, they must crumb!e down during the ens u i ng winter. remote fallen, so the 5. The gateways of the town and citadel and the roofs of the principal buildings have been fired a n d are st ill burning. I have. &c.. E. SANDERS, Major, Engineers. Return of the Killed, Wounded, and Missing of the Field Force, under the command of Major-General William Nott, in the engagement with the enemy be fore Ghuznee, on the sth of September. S. W., ►ieg Boor . from 3atto, SeY" nl , to goon Bth, from Van 29t11, idon. kills, c an, one, ;lon, b 3 rt. 23dt Tan' ton' A • w ill re- :de• 1 of iort :ng the L>ly of 1