The Sun. — London, England, 1855-11-09 00:00:00

i JULLIEN'S CONCERTS. - ROYAL • ITAI I TAN OPERA, COVENT-GA RDEN.—Fifth appear ance of Madame Gassier—The Programme for TIIIS EVENING (Friday, Nov. 9) will include:—Beethoven's Overture, Egmont; L'Etore du Nord Qu idrille ; the Andante from Beethovebn's Pastoral y Madame Symphony; " Ah non Glunge," and "U na Voce," sung Gas- , er; the Al'egro Vivace from Mende'sqohn's Scotch Symphony; lullien's New Valse, La Belle du Village ;Solo, Cor Army Pistons, Quadi assis.ed by the Military Bands; Grand Operatic Selection from Les Huguenots; Solo, Flute, by Herr Reicha.t ; the Andante from Roch Albert's Swiss Symphony ; the Moldavian Schotische; Solo, Trom bone, by Mr. Winterbottom ; Galop, Vise l'Empereur ; God Save the Queen ; Partant pour la Syrie, &c. Prices of admission :—Promenade, upper boxes, amphitheatre stall.; and amphitheatre, Is.; dress circle, 2s. 6d, ; private boxes, 12s , If. Is., and IT. Ils. 6d. Places and private boxes to be had at the box-office of the theatre, and of the principal ransicsellers and librarians. N.B.—The theatre being let at Christmas for dramatic N. 8.-- performances, the Concerts can continue for one month more only. THEATRE ROYAL, HAYMARKET. Under the Management of Mr. Backstops. THIS EVENLNO, WM be performed GUY MANNERING. Characters by Messrs. VIII ers, Compton, and Howe; and Miss Swanborough and Miss Cushman. Followed by TUE LITTLE TREASURE. To conclude with LODGINGS FOR SINGLE GENTLEMEN. LOYAL PRINCESS'S THEATRE, OXFORD-STREET. Under the Management of Mr. CauLza Esau. THIS EVENING Will be presented THE WONDERFUL WONIA.N. Characters by Messrs. F. Matthews, D. Fisher, Cathcart. Everett, and Miss Beath. After which, THE HEIR AT LAW. To conclude with A GAME OF ROMPS. THEATRE ROYAL ADELPHI. Proprietor, Mr. B. Webster.—Directress, Madame Celeste. THIS EVENING, Will be performed THE WHITE lIIRSE OF THE PEPPERS. Gerard Pepp •r, Mr. Hudson ; supported by Messrs. Moreland, P. Bedford. Phelim, Miss Kate Kelly; Magdeleno, Miss Laidlsw ; Agatha, Miss Wyndham. Followed by VALENTINE AND ORSON. After which, the Farce of THE £lOO NITE. ROYAL LYCEUM THEATRE. Lessee, Mr. J. U. Anderson,lS, Norfolk-street, Strand. Increased Attractions, and success in equal ratio : THIS, AND EVERY EVENING, at Eight o'Clock, Will' e presented, with entirely New and Magnificent Appoint ments, MAGIC and MYSTERY, in twelve acts, arranged In two parts, by Professor Anderson. After which, the startling illustrations of Spirit-Rapping. HALF- N-HOUR iwICH TiIE SPIRIT?, being tha most surprising and fiteresting series of experiments ever given within the walls of any theatre. Revival, in an improved form, of the astounding novelty which Startled Loadon 10 years ago, the GREAT GUN TRICK Prices of admission:—Private Boxes, IZ. Ils. 6d. and U. Is. ; Orchestra Stalls, 45.: Dress Boxes, 35.; Ulmer Boxes, 23.; Pit, Is. Gallery, 61. No Half-price. Box-Wilco open from 11 to 5 d Lily. Grand Morning' Performance on Saturday Next at Two o'Clock. Doors open at half-past One. I: )Y OLYNIPIC THE,ITHE. TM.; EVE YING, Wll be presented, TO OBLIGT.I BI , ,NSOY, in which Messrs. Emery, F. Robson, Leslie, Mrs. Stirling, and Miss Ternan will appear. After which,. S TILL W ATER> RUN DEEP. Followed by CATCHING A MERMAID. f:OY STU kNI) Under the direction of 31r. Payne. Tilts EVENING, Will bo parfornic I T tIE OF PARIS, Followed by IS I tOCRIS. To conclude ;vith TiIE LXDliiS' CLUB. ASTLEY'S ROYAL AMPHITHEATRE. Lcsace and Manager, Mr. Wm. Cooke. TIIIS EVENING, The vivid and tremendously real Spectacle, The FALL of SEBAS TOPOL ! • • - - - After which the JEUX EQUESTRES DE L'ARENTE, or Acts in the Circlt., with that miraculous feat, Mr. J. LI. Cooke's Saut du Font, or Flight of the Bridges. To conclude with a BILLET D'ACTION, with a variety of Prin cipal and other Dances, by artistes of celebrity. nok-ollee open from Eleven till Four. Stage Manager, Mr. W. West. Equestrian Director, 51 , W. Cooke. sun. HIGH WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE. TdIES DAY—Morn. 27 min. aft. I—Evening 41 min. aft. 1 T i-gor.ROW—Morn.sB min.aft. I.—Eveningl6 min. aft. 2 THE WEATHER.—SUN OFFICE, Nov. 9. THERMOMETER, IN THE SHADE. 53—highest since noon yesterday. 43 —Lowest this morning and during the night. 52 —this day at noon. BAROMETER, 29'86. Wrsp, S.S.E.—Light, with variable weather, but very fino for a Lord Mayor's Day ; fog in the morning, sunshine and clouds, and some alight rain. 477%1 1 : cC~~~e LONDON, FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 9, 1855. Another Royal visit will speedily be paid to England ! Not one of mere ceremony to which the people would feel perfectly indifferent. Not a COBOURG Cousin or a princely suitor for one of the infantine daughters of our SOVEREIGN, but a Constitutional Monarch who has merited the highest eulogiums for his disinterested and mag nanimious conduct in reference to the pending War. It is scarcely necessary to say that VICTOR EMANUEL will receive a cordial and enthusiastic reception. He comes not under the veil of mys tery to amuso himself—or to promote any merely private objects. He appears rather as the repre sentative of a high-minded people, the incarna tion of a glorious principle. We hail not merely the SOVEREIGN who has exhibited a chivalrous nobility of conduct, but the People of Sardinia, who are as worthy of such a ruler as he is of such subjects, whose brethren have fought side by side with the soldiers of France and Eng land, and proved themselves brave and worthy coadjutors. None can claim a higher meed of praise than that so modestly claimed by the Sar dinian General. His untried soldiers were tested with the veterans of the Western Powers. They showed themselves fitting associates—passed through the ordeal of fire and steel, and received a sanguinary baptism as champions of liberty and civilisation. In honouring King Vic Ton EMANUEL we honour these distinguished heroes —we honour ourselves —by exhibiting the faculty of "appreciation," one of no ordinary importance under circumstances such as th os e in which we are n ow i nvolved. Every honesKingh ear ty cheer bestowed on the Ki ng of SARDINIA. will be an unequivocal c ondemnation of the selfish and heartless conduct of those on whom we had far greater claims. Austria will feel intensely every plaudit bestowed on the Sove reign with whom she has been striving to pick a quarrel, because his honourable conduct placed that which she deliberately adopted in so invidious a light. Prussia will recognise, in every mark of approbation, a distinct sibilation of the paltry tours which she has pursued. But the parallel would more closely apply to Belgium ! King LEOPOLD would necessarily feel the painful corn parison. Sardinia owed nothing to England. VICTOR EMANUEL is not her pensioner, and does not owe his position in any degree to her infl uence. Ile was in every respect an indepen dent Mon arch, one that could give a fair un biassed j u d g , cut on mattersof European concern, affecting the we l fare and prosperity of the civilised world. The accessi on of Belgium to the allied cause might have been imputed partly to her ceoe.raphical position, Partly to the close con nection of her Sovereign w i th „ le English Court. The good-will and friendshi p of F ranee s h ou ld mainly be looked to by Belgium, that of Queen V IC TORIA Phoul d be sought f or by King LEOPOLD. 0 the other hand, there are neither political or personal ties to connect us with Sardinia. She has been perfectly d isi u terested— has followed the course of honour, merely for the sake of honour. There is, therefore, the greater reason that we should pay to her chivalrous Sove reign, as the representative of her magnanimous Per , l 4 o, the tribute which lie and they have be J" .'- 1 - 1 37 -merited at our hands. It .cannot be denied that the burdens of war aro sufficiently onerous without any additions an d unnecessary annoyance being inflicted in the inc ,,lo of their collection. The people bear them bravely, and al thong . they may ,nat urally grumble at th© increased taxation, accompanied as it is by a general ri in the rrke of all the articles 9f daily consumption, whether of necessity or luxury, they never have hesitated for a single moment in meeting their share of the War expenditure. But, under all the circumstances of the case, it is Rot too much to ask, that the parties appointed to col lect the fiscal charges should exhibit some degree of kindness and indulgence in the execution of their unpleasant duty, and that no harsh regula tions should be framed to render tike payments more vexatious or oppressive than they have hitherto been. We have recently received complaints as to the unusual stringency exhibited in the collection of the QUEEN'S Taxes in certain dis tricts. It was, we believe, invariably the practice when these fiscal liabilities were in arrear to give a written notice to the debtor, stating that his name had been returned to the Commissioners, and that proceedings would be taken to enforce payment, unless the claim was satisfied by a certain day. That ordinary courtesy has now been withdrawn, and the first intimation afforded to the debtor is the appearance of a broke; attended by a man to leave in possession if the demand be not liquidated at the moment. The time selected is during the absence of the head of the house, so that great vexation, annoy ance, and expense is entailed on the parties if the money be not immediately forthcoming ; and even under the most favourable circumstances, when the charge is at once paid, a broker's fee is insisted on. The excuse. for this very summary, and, we must add, very harsh proceeding is, that the letters of application were not duly attended to. We trust that the Commissioners of Inland Revenue may remove this very serious grievance, which, if persisted in, may possibly attract legis lative attention at no very distant day. We have repeatedly pointed out the un questionable advantages of direct taxation, alai have demonstrated that the cost of col lection is thereby greatly diminished, and that a much smaller sum is thereby extracted from the pockets of the eventual payers. But if the parties acting on behalf of the Exchequer exhibit so complete a disregard to the interests and feelings of the tax-payers--if they strive to disgust them, and to aggravate the necessary an noyance by additional costs, the prospects of fiscal reform will be greatly deteriorated. These matters may seem of trifling importance to the wealthy legislator who, like Sir JosErH BOWLEY, has hi 3 cheque-book at hand to satisfy every claim on the first application ; but thereare others in the posi tion of TROTTY VECK, who are obliged to look to every sixpence, and to exercise considerable management in meeting the various claims on their scanty resources, who must be a little behindhand, notwithstanding indefatigable exer tions and the most stringent economy. Unfor tunately this class constitutes an overwhelming majority, and some attention must be paid to their feelings and impressions, by the more for tunately circumstanced minority who have to decide on the ways and means by which the na tional Exchequer is to be replenished. It is the " last straw" that breaks the camel's back. The trifling addition of the broker's fee may drive men to desperation, and induce them to prey upon the community, in place of being numbered amongst the good citizens—the crea tors and producers of national wealth. There can be no question that to our parochial and municipal systems our greatness as a nation is largely owing. A. people accustomed to the ad ministration of their local affairs oppose an irre sistible barrier to the advent of despotic sway. Initiated into the mystery of government on a small scale, they are enabled to form a pretty correct notion of what is right or wrong in the conduct of public affairs, and acquire that confi dence in their own judgment, and that spirit of independence necessary for successful resistance to the insidious or open encroachments of power. In every parish and borough the system of self-go vernment has in effect established and maintained a nursery of Liberty, and with the growth of freedom the spirit of enterprise has found its best development, and conduced most largely to the moral and material welfare of the community. No wonder that a people so much indebted to the principle of self-government should be jealous of its infringement, and regard with uneasiness all approaches to centralisation. Unfortunately, the best arguments for centrali sation have been furnished by the people them selves. Neglectful of the pearl beyond all price in their possession, they have done much thereby towards bringing it into disrepute. Instead of committing the management of their affairs to men of probity and intelligence, they have suffered it in too many instances—and for too long a period —to fall into the hands of unprincipled adven turers and ignorant tools ; and this has been more especially the case with regard to the parochial system where bal management was sure to be pro ductive of the most disastrous consequences. What the actual results have been, those acquainted with parochial history can best tell ; but it is no exag geration to say that they have by no moans fallen short, but on the contrary have far surpassed any estimate that could have been predicated respecting them. The most rascally jobbery and peculation, and the most villanous inhumanity, have gone hand in hand. The smoke of the official feast, towards the cost of which the pockets of the rate payers had to contribute, has gone up with the shriek of the bestialised lunatic, the sigh of the half-starved and neglected pauper, and the moan of enfeebled and unfriended youth and age, as a sa crifice to the parochial Moloch. Instead of the humanity of the Legislature contributing to the solace of the afflicted poor, in but too many in stances it exposed them to new indignities and more acute suffering. The BMIBLES, the workhouse porters and nurses, waxed fat under the dominion of overseers and guardians, whose merits could be s enot best recognised on m thiseratarnaaadgmemilel.nt, a Of rl uwre r e there were degralike.At every board good men and t rue were li to be found, but in the history of few parishes will there not be discovered abundant cause of complaint. As for the ratepayers, they naturally murmured at the extravagant taxation to which they were subjected, but the individuals who ought to have stepped forward to their rescu e were deterred by the knowledge of the sort of op position with whi c h they would have to contend. It is not pleasant to enter the lists in a bear " garden, or to argue among riotous drunkards, but it is always incumbent on a man to do his duty. To what extent the parishes of the Metropolis have been misgoverned and the ratepayers robbed it is not necessary, were it possible, to describe with any minuteness. Perhaps nowhere has the fcrce of knavish impudence gone further: or the capacity to be swindled been more largely de veloped, and, so far as humanity is concerned, the less, perhaps, that is said the better. It will not be with the decease of the existing generation of the poor that the memory of the crue lt y shown to paupers, young and old, will die out, nor is the remembrance of official pom posity and insolence likely to cease much sooner. Other matters, spiced not a little with the farcical, stand a good chance of equal preser vation. These thing should be so far useful, however, as to furnish a lesson. The ratepayers, while congratulating themselves on the prospect of such a state of things being for ever done away, should take into consideration how it came to pass. The knaves who thrived under it were in some sort their representatives. To their want of moral courage these evils were mainly owing ; for had they and their fathers before them done their duty, prevention would have stood in the place of cure. Had they returned proper men to the vestry, or even confronted, as they ought to have done, the knavish adventurers who got there, there would have been fewer dupes and infinitely less mis chief. In vain is it to have good institutions unless you have men honest and courageous enough to work them, and unless the ratepayers take care and avoid the old error, the great boon they have received at the hands of Sir BENJAMIN HALL will prove comparatively valueless. The day of election of vestrymen for the respective parishes of the metropolis is at hand. On Monday next the ratepayers have a most important duty to discharge. The principle of self-government has been somewhat under a cl - O - Ud - -it is theirs, in a great measure, to remove that cloud, and show forth its resplendent worth. The poor have had grievous cause for complaint—it will depend on their choice whether or no it shall be renewed. The office of vestry man has become more than ever important, for, with a solitary exception, the members of the General Board of Works (entrusted with the most responsible duties) are to be selected from the District Boards. We call upon them, therefore, to elect none but intelligent and trustworthy men to the office, and not to be deceived with professions of repentance or promises of good con duct by those whose connection with past mis management has justly bees the cause of re proach. Two years (and what years !) will elapse before there is another election. THE SUN, LONDON, FRI DAY EV_ENING,_ NOVEMBER 9, 1855. THE PROSPECTS OF THE WAR IN THE CRIMEA. TO THE EDITOR OF THE TIMES. Sir,—The new ukase of the Czar, ordering a levy of 10 in every 1,000 souls throughout the empire, with the ex• ceptions of the government 3 of Pekoff, Poltawa, Tscherni goff,Charkoff, Ekateriuoslaff, Kherson, and Taurida, has given rise to a good deal of speculation on the continent, and it seems that some politicans incline to the belief that this vigorous proceeding is intended as a blind to cover a pacific policy. I trust this opinion, who 3ver may share it, will not in duce the Government to relax for a moment preparations for an active campaign next year. The chances of an honourable and secure peace will not be diminished by a complete preparation for war • and that the enemy is not likely to offer such a peace without hazarding at least one more issue will, I think, appear probable from the following considerations : Only is, few days before the general ukase referred to notice of another appeared in the papers, ordering a levy of no less than 23 in a thousand in the two governments of Orenburg and Samara. This partial conscrip tion has not elicited any comment, so far as I have seen, in either English or foreign journals. It is not the less important for that. The inhabitants of the governments in question (which lie on the eastern side of the Wolga) consist almost exclusively of free Imperial peasants (in many cases military colonists), or of Tartars, Ural Cossacks, Calmucks, and other semi -barbarous, and in some instances pagan, hordes. Every man drawn thence will, from his previous habits of life, be a ready made soldier for the duties of light cavalry—one ac customed to endure the most violent alternations of heat and cold—for this country has the w;nt3r of Lapland and the summer of Egypt—able and willing to live on carrion, and mounted ou a horse which, with no better food than the weeds of the steppe, and no other shelter than the vault of heaven, will carry his rider across deep and broad rivers, parched deserts, or rugged mountains, in a way which no animals of Western Europe can pretend to match. The joint population of Orenburg and Samara amounted in 1851 (the year in which the new distribution of govern ments was made) to 2,861,800 of both sexes. The pro posed levy, after making all allowances, would bring not less than 30,000 men to the depot, all or most of them ready to act in the field, with scarcely any additional training. The question, of course, occurs—whence are the infantry to come who are destined to act together with this cavalry ? Obviously not from the new levies. These could not be brought to the south early enough in the spring, to say nothing of their untrained condition. My conjecture is, that the present winter will be rendered available for moving, by means of sledge-transport, seasoned soldiers from all that part of the empire which lies north of Toula and Ponsa, and bringing them to such points on the Wolga as to enable them to descend its stream, the great highway of Russia, immediately on the resumption of the naviga tion. If this plan has really been entertained by the Russian Government, there are not wanting reasons for believing that ever since the end of September steps have been tak ing to carry it out. In a letter of the date of October 9, your correspondent in the Baltic fleet had the following paragraph :—" We hear from Revel that the Russian Government has seized all the horses along the northern coasts, for the purpose of conveying provisions to the Crimea." (It will bo observed that at the time of this proceeding the Czar was aware of the fall of the south side of Sebastopol.) Soon, afterwards a letter from Hamburg (of the date of October 16), in the Independance Beige, informed us, "that the latest com mercial letters from Courland mentioned that the entire Baltic coast of that province, from Polsngen to Windau, had been evacuated by the Russian troops on the approach of the bad season,"—i. e., as soon as th e na t ura l d e f ence o f winter rendered their presence superfluous, and enabled them to be made available elsewhere. It seems not un reasonable to suppose that two such strong contempo raneous; efforts, made, the one in the north, the other in the south of the empire, are intended to be combined for one common purpose, and no other appears so likely as a fresh attempt to retain, although necessa r ily a t an enor mous cost of life, the military possession of the Crimea. The problem to be solved appears to me to be only a question of transport, although on the most gigantic scale. It is required to convey men, stores, and munitions of war to an enormous amount, so far south daring the win ter as to be able on the opening of spring to pour a con tinuous stream of troops into the peninsula, of sufficient strength to overwhelm the Allied forces. When the frost has once set in, and the snow fallen and har dened, the means of communication in Russia are for a considerable distance southwards actual:y improved ; and, if the question were merely of stores and material of war, there would be little difficulty in conveying them to any part of the Wolga between Nijni-Novgorod and Zaratzin, or of the Don between Voroneje and Kascha linkaia, in the course of the next four months. With men, however, the case is different. They, even when Russians, require not only food, but also clothing, fuel, and shelter, if they are to be available for field sery ice when the inclement season comes to an end : and this circumstance of itself im poses a limit on the choice of their location during the winter. Now, there is, perhaps,no mereremarkable characteristic of Southern Russia than the extreme scarcity of fuel. I be lieve I am literally correct in saying that in the valley of the Wolga, south of Saratoff, firewood of home growth is a thing unknown. What is used comes down the river from the north, and at a very considerable expense ; but the common substitute throughout the whole steppe coun try is a kind of artificial peat (called by the Germans " mi ttorf,") composed of consolidated farmyard manure, the use of which the Southern Russians learnt from their Tartar neighbours. It seems unlikely, therefore, that many troops moved from the north should, under whatever facilities of sledge transport, be brought into a region where the supply of fuel is strikingly insufficient during the severe season—that is, that they should be ad vanced much further to the south than Saratoff on the Wolga, or Voronejo on the Don. Whatever resources exist south of these points can scarcely be more than sufficient to meet the winter wants of the bodies of troops which are at the present moment in the north of the Crimea, or on the mainland hetween Genitchi and Izioum. If, however, Saratoff and Voroneje may be assumed as the nearest pui..4B to the theatre of war at which any con siderable portions of the northern army can bo assembled during the winter, it is equally.probable that,no part what ever need find itself further off than Nijni-Novgorod at the moment that the fro-t breaks up. In that town as well as in Kasan and Samara, ample stores of fuel and fur clothing, as well as food and shelter would be available; and from the same points there wauld likewise be means of water transport as far as Rostoff to any extent required. Oar possession of the Sea of Azoff would, of course, neces sitate a land march for the remainder of the way. I will only add that the transit from Nijni-Novgorod to Rostoff would, to the best of my judgment, occupy not more than 60 days ; and if the voyage were continued during moon light nights, possibly much less.—lam, Sir, your obedient servant, Nov. 7. A HERTFORDSHIRE INCUMBENT. of Clarerinwdoani&y Town -hall were The ilaytien Minister had an interview with the Earl eVerday, at the Foreign-office. SOUT thy L l E ac c a T r x d o e N ci — w lr it e h st b e i r u d s a a y sk tli n e g walls the- electors the "to vote for abuses, o n Cons') Eon. W. Knox, the reformer of all that Mr. Knox would l ive principles." The bills added person ~ but as we uco solicit the votes of Ike electors in had wade his appearance not learn that any such person a mere electioneering re in the borough, it is probably REPRESENTATION oroaN%Aprf appeared in Meath. Thel----A now candidate has reverend the representatio n o f the county gentlemen wno have satisfied with any one o f the three in th e i r h an d s are no t already introduced as aspirants for the seat vacant b The new candidate is Mr. by the death o f M r . L ucas . John O'Connell, of Limerick, pretty well known in London and elsewhere as Lord Kilmallock. FIRE AT MESSRS. BRYAN, PRICE, AND Co. ,s Yester day niorning, between four and five o'clock a-- out on the extensive p remises belonging to meaar fire broke s. Bryan, Price, and Co., the well-known army contractors, situate in Dacre-street, West minster. N umerous engines speedily on the spot, an d the fl ames were, by etre were o oou' exertions, prevented from r eac h i ng the main factory or any of the surrounding premises. A serious amount of damage was, however, sustained. The portion of the premises destroyed served as workshops and stores, and, it is understood, contained a large quantity of army ao . -coutrements. Mr. Braidwood, in his official terxrt, states :—"An eight-roomed building used as workshops and stores, about two-thirds destroyed. Loss covered by insurance iu the Anchor-office." shn s. LATEST NEWS. THE EMPEROR OF RUSSIA. BERLIN, THURSDAY EVENING. The Emperor of Russia has returned from Nicolaieff, direct to St. Petersburg, without visiting Warsaw. THE RUSSIAN CONSCRIPTION. ST. PETERSBURG, THURSDAY. The Emperor has issued special instructions re lative to the new conscription. The commissioners are directed to take recruits between the ages of twenty and thirty-six, and are to swell the num bers as much as possible. The Czar is expected to return to-morrow. BERLIN, FRIDAY MORNING. The Russian Government has issued special in structions to its officials, ordering as many new recruits to be raised as possible, and of all ages from 20 to 36. A FRENCH CAMP ON THE DANUBE, The Austrian Gazette states authoritatively that a French camp of 50,000 men will be formed al Silistria. Large quantities of provisions and building ma terials are collected on the spot. TI lESTE, Nov. 8. Accounts from Constantinople of the 29th ult. state that winter quarters were being prepared in that city for a numerous body of cavalry. TREBIZONDE, OcT. 20. The Russians have marched 12,000 men from Kars on Ardelman. Selim Pacha is appointed Commandant of Kars, The Duke of Newcastle has arrived in Circassia, Omer Pacha, who left Batoum with 22 bat talions, may penetrate as far as Tiflis before winter. Georgia is now only occupied by 10,000 Rus. OPERATIONS ON THE DNIEPER. The following telegraphic despatch has been sent from Nicolaieff to St. Petersburg, by order of the Emperor : NICOLAIEFF, OCT. 29, 9.40 P.M. The number of the enemy's vessels moored near the Spit of Kinbourn is still diminishing ; to-day there are not more than 60 left. The ships that were stationed near Ochakoff, and a little higher up, have moved nearer to the shore at Kinbourn, and continue to take on board troops. A ship-of-the-line and two transports, the latter having completed the embarkation of men, have weighed anchor and put to sea. The number of tents on the Spit of Kinbourn is also leas than before. There are two steamers and five gun-boats off Cape Stanislaff, in the embouchure of the Boug. The main body of the fleet has not changed its position. Prince Gortschakoff has transmitted to St. Petersburg the following despatch from the Crimea : OCT. 29, 9 P.M. The enemy's force kept its position at the village of Saki during the past night, but at 8 this morning it has again moved to Eupatoria. Our outposts have taken their former positions. Nothing remarkable has occurred on any other point. THE MEDITERRANEAN. SOUTHAMPTON, FRIDAY MORNING. By the Peninsular and Oriental Company's steam-s2hip Ava, Captain Field, with the India, China, an d Mediterranean mails, we have dates from Alexandria, October 25th ; Malta, 29th ; Gibraltar, November 4tb. The Ava brings 70 passengers, and a cargo con sisting of silk, flax, wool, dates, &c. On the 2d inst. the Ava passed the screw steamer Melbourne, 350 miles to the eastward of Gibraltar. On the 4th passed the steam-trans port Orinoco in the Gut of Gibraltar. NICOLAIEFF. According to the Ost Deutsche Post and Oester reichische Zeitung, of the 27th, Todleb en i s sa id to be working wonders at Nicolaieff. Below Spasika, where the Boug is 600 saschen or fathoms broad, the new gun-boats, which will be manned by the remainder of the crews of the former Black Sea fleet, are to be stationed. The demonstrations of joy with which these veterans were met by the population of Nicolaieff is said to have been indescribable. The Emperor made them an address in person, which concluded with the words—" Through your agency Sebasto pol was made to be what it was, the gra ve y ar d o f the blood of Europe's mightiest armies, and the terror of all our enemies ! Exhibit to the world that your presence alone is sufficient to convert a little fishing village into a second Sebas topol I" " Thine, we are thine till death !" was the reply of the stout Russian seamen, who accom panied their monarch with repeated hurrahs up to the gate of his Imperial residence. The two banks of thp river will be defended by forts and redoubts. The inhabitants of Nicolaieff have been informed that, as an attack on the city was not beyond the bounds of probability, they might, if they pleased, retire into the interior. Three-fourths of the people have emigrated, and things are not better at Kherson. It is related that all the batteries at Odessa are to be disarmed, and the guns sent to Nicolaieff. Mouravieff is said to be retiring to the Russian frontiers. Madame Sechanovitch, the wife of the ex - Commander of Kinbourn, has gone with her children to share the captivity of her husband. ODESSA. OCT. 27.—General Luders has broken up his head quarters at Aleschki, and marched with a division of Grenadiers, and four regiments of cavalry, to defend the line of read between bourn and Kherson. The first division of the Guards has at length arrived at Perekop and joined the corps of Gre nadiers quartered there. The presence of these crack troops has tended to relieve any fears of a successful attack on the Isthmus of Perekop on the part of the enemy. Within the last few days four of the enemy's steamers have attempted to go up the Boug, but after proceeding a distance of 20 verets, the fire of the batteries erected on the banks compelled them to retreat. The population of Nicolaieff and Kherson are seized with a panic, anticipating an immediate attack from the enemy, which might be accompanied by the most fatal results, as the defences, though carried on with great energy night and day, are far from being completed. Accounts received here from the Caspian Sea state that great energy was displayed in fitting out a squadron of war-steamers. Two of teem, each of 160 horse-power, had been named the Astrachan and the Derbent. They are each armed with ten guns of heavy calibre. Two smaller steamers, the Astora, of 60 horse power, and the Buriak of 40- horse power, were also equipped and armed, besides which a couple of schooners had been fitted out, and christened the Cossack and the Turko• man. AUSTRIA. - The usual monthly statement of the Austrian National Bank for last month has just appeared. Its details are worthy of notice. The bullion in hand amounted, on the 31st ult., to 48,013,198 florins (at the end of September it was 47,999,671 florins). The amount of notes in circulation is stated at 392,331,023 florins (at the end of September it was 393,220,226 florins). The amount of bills dis counted is stated at 83,263,413 florins (in the previous month it was 80,998,551 florins). The advances made on Government stock amount to 59,317,200 florins (in the preceding month they amounted to 78,719,400 florins). The balance of the Government debt, accruing from the last con version of State notes, which has still to be paid off by the instalments on the National Loan, amounts to 41,821,575 florins, and the further Government debt, for the better security of which the State domains were mortgaged to the Bank, in virtue of the agreement of the 18th of last month, amounts to 155 millions of florins. The 12th instalment on the National Loan is due on the 6th inst. 1-.- FRANCE. PARIS, THURSDAY EVENING. M. Lacour, French Ambassador at Naples, is recalled. M. Brennier takes his place. The following is a list of gold medals awarded by the International Jury : Class I.—Medaille d'Honnenr—Geological Survey of Great Britain. Class 2.—Medailles d'Honneur—Canada, McArthur (New South Wales), British Guiana. Class 3.—Medailles d'Honneur—Crosskill, W., Gar rett, R., Hornsby, R., and Son, Howard, T. and F., Ransomes and Sims. Class 4.—Medailles d'Honneur —Todd and Mac- Gregor. _ _ Class 6.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—Whitwortb, .1., and Co. Medaille d'Honneur—Clayton, H. Class 7.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—Platt, B. S. Medaille d'Honneur—Parker, Ch. (Dundee). Class 8.--Medailles d'Honneur—Frodsham, C., Ord nance Map Office. Class 9.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—Elkington and Mason. Class I.o.—Medaille d'Honneur—Oastler and Palmer, Tennant and Co., Price's Patent Candle Company, Burile, J., Kay, Robert. Class 11.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—Dr. N. Ar nott. Class 13.—Grande Medallic) d'Honneur—Napier, Ro bert. Class 14.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—Stephenson, R., M.P., Rendel, J. Class 15.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—The town of Sheffield. Medaille d'Honneur—Spear and Jackson, Turton and Sons, Wastenhohn, G. Class 17.—Medailles d'Honneur—Hunt and Roskell, Hancock, C. F., Garrard, R. and S. Yechti (France). Class 18.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—Minton and Co. Class 19.—Grandes Medailles d'Honneur —The Man chester Committee, the City of Glasgow. Medaille d'Honneur—Holdsworth and Co. Class 20.—Grande Medaille d'Henneur—Titus Salt and Co. Aiedailles d'Honneur—Pauson and Martin (Leeds), Akroyd, J., and Son (Halifax). Class 21.—Medaille d'Honneur—Courtauld and Co. Class 22.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—The Town of Belfast ; Medaille d'Honneur—Baxter (Arbroath). Class 23.—Medaille d'Honneur—Crossley and Co.) Ball and Co., Hine, Mundell, and Co. ; the Town of Nottingham. Class 24.—Medaille d'Honneur—Jaekson and Gra. ham ; Hoole H. (Sheffield). Class 25.—Grande Medaille d'Honneur—Th. De larue. Class 26.—Medaille d'Honneur—Lockett, Manchester. The unclassified medals are— Grandes Medailles d'llonneur---East India Company ; Dr. Royle, co-operateur. Medaille d'Honneur—Board of Trade. THE BOURSE—N•v. 8. Cash. ff. e. End of Month. 4 3 / 4 per Cents 9O —f. - -o. 3 per Cents 64 65 61 75 New Loan 65 Bank Shares 3195 Roman Credit Mobilier 1165 Austrian Belgian Fives — Spanish Threes — Piedmontese B5 75 Home Debt 34 RAILWAYS-808 CASH. ft. Organs 1105 C. Western 765 C. Northern Lyons. 1126 25 New Ditto xd 751 25 Mediterranean 1217 50 Grand Central 582 50 Lyons Geneva 667 50 Taste - Cette 668 75 Austiian Com. 705 25 LAW INTELLIGENCE—(This Day.) QUEEN'S BENCH. (Sittings in Banco.) KENT V. GOATS. This was an appeal from the City of London Sheriffs' Court, relative to an alleged breach of a written con tract for the purchase of 15 tons of best refined rape oil. Their lordships said judgment must be for the re spondent, the plaintiff in the original action. FORBES V. FLDERFIELD. This was a special case. The action was brought for the recovery of half-a-year's rent of a farm called Dig well, in Hampshire ; but the real question in issue was with reference to 371. 9s. 9d., rent charge in lieu of tithes. The question turned upon the terms of the lease, and was of no general interest. COURT OF EXCHEQUER. (Sittings in Banco.) MORGAN V. LORD CLINTON. Mr. Bramwell, Q.C., moved for a rule for a new trial in this case. The action was tried a few days since, before Mr. Baron Martin and a common jury, and was to establish the defendant's liability as a director of a mine, situate at Aberystwitb, in Wales. The Jury returned a verdict for the plaintiff. The learned counsel contended there wai no evidence on which to go to the jury, and that the learned baron gave too much weight to certain documents produced on the trial. The Court granted the rule. COURT OF CHANCERY. BINDLE V. TAYLOR--JUDGMENT. The Lord Chancellor gave judgment to-day in this case, which was an appeal from the judgment of the Master of the Rolls. The plaintiff, Mrs. Hindle, is the wido w of a gentleman who died in 1853, and by her bill she claimed to be entitled, under the provisions of the will of the father of her late husband, to two an nuities of 2001. each, one out of the proceeds of 20,0001., 31 per cents., which the 'plaintiff's father-in-law had directed to stand in the name of trustees for the benefit of his son, the late husband of the plain tiff, and his children ; and also out of the sum of 5,0001., part of a sum of 20,0001., raised upon certain trusts, out of which the father of the plain tiff's husband had directed that she should have an an nuity of 2001. at the death of her husband, and subject to that payment the proceeds of the 20,0001. was to be held in trust for the benefit of his sons, children of the plaintiff. The plaintiff's husband died in 1853, leaving her, his widow, and two daughters surviving. Under these circumstances, the bill was filed asserting the widow's right to annuities out of both funds. The Mas ter of the Rolls directed that the plaintiff was entitled to both annuities, and from that decision the appeal on which his Lordship now gave judgment was brought. The Lord Chancellor felt, no doubt, that the Master of the Rolls had come to an erroneous conclusion, and ordered that judgment to be corrected. Appeal allowed. LORD MAYOR'S DAY. This morning the usual ceremonies consequent upon a new Lord Mayor taking office were gone through in the City. His lordship (Mr. Alderman Salomons), after having breakfasted with the civic authorities and the principal members of his household, went to the Guild hall, and from thence, after luncheon, proceeded in state to Westminster. The procession consisted of his lord ship in his state carriage, the Sheriffs, the Aldermen, a military band, a few flags, and a troop of cavalry. . . . .. . _ The Lord Mayor baying been sworn in, the procession returned by the usual route. MA.RSTIAL PELISSIER ON THE TAKING OP KINB URN. The following order of the day, dated " Head quarters, Sebastopol, Oct. 20," was published by Marshal Pelissier ou the taking of Kiuburn : The army will learn with joy the announcement of a fresh success. The flags of England and of France have since the 17th floated on the walls of Kinburn. The key to the mouths of the Boug and of the Dnieper is in the power of the Allied armies. Surrounded on the sea side by the squadrons of Admirals Bruat and Lyons, and on the land side by the Anglo-French division under Gene ral Bazaine, the fort of Kinburn capitulated after a bombardment of five hours and a half. Its garrison, composed of one general officer, ten other officers, and 1.380 soldiers, left the place with the honours of war, and surrendered as prisoners of war, abandoning in the fort 174 pieces of cannon, 25,000 projectiles, 120,000 cartridges, with ammunition and supplies of different kinds. The day of the 17th October, in which the fleet and the army so happily united their efforts for the same object, adds to the glory and the renown of the Allied armies. The success thus obtained terrified the Russians, who, in their despair, on the following day blew up the fort of Otchakoff and three batteries near it. Kinburn in our hands will become a formidable menace against Nicolaieff and Kherson. Fzussural. OMAR PASHA IN CIBCASSIA. SOUCHTJM KALEH, OCT. 12.—1 f the interest of the public irr England with respect to the Georgian campaign is increasing as rapidly as the plot is thickening here, the proceedings of Omar Pasha's army will soon be as closely watched as those of Generals Simpson and Pelis- Bier, and they will be as well worthy of attention. Not only are the green hillsides of Souchom becoming every day more thickly dotted with tents, but a great part of the army has already commenced moving along the line of march ; and, as the character of the country through which they are about to pass is now acquiring a special interest, I was glad to avail myself .of the opportunity which was afforded to me of accompanying a small re connaissance which was made a few days age to the Mingrelian frontier. Our party consisted only of Mr. Longworth, the English commissioner, and his secretary, Mr. Champoiseau ; Col. Ballard, of the Turkish army, who has followed its fortunes ever since the siege of Silistria ; the Commander of the French brig of war La Vigie, and myself. The Abasian houses are made generally of wattle, and thatched with Indian corn. In most of the villages there are both Christian and Mussulman inhabitants, but none of the women cover their faces, or are more shy than savages generally. The men are afraid of commit ting themselves by hospitality to strangers in time of war, and profess sympathy with the invaders. How far this is genuine it is difficult to judge. The country is thinly populated, and we only passed two or three vil lages before reaching Shemsherrai, the first important place upon the line of march, about 36 miles from Sou chum, and situated upon the sea, three miles from the point at which the road strikes into the interior. We tound that it was not safe to proceed by land beyond this point. A Ruisian force of 4,000 men are stationed at Sugdidi, 12 miles distant, and the intermediate country was completely in the hands of the Russians, and occu pied by Mingrelian militia. We heard here that a num ber of Cossacks and militia were at Anaklea, and it 'was important to discover the truth of the rumour 2 • we there fore embarked on board th e Cy c l ops and La Vigie, which met us here, and proceeded to the mouth of the Ingour. Fort Anaklea is a picturesque ruin, situated upon the left bank of the river, and sur rounded by a dense forest. As we saw smoke rising from behind the fort, it was judged necessary to enter the river with an armed force in case of an ambuscade. Seven boats, with a force of about seventy men, under Lieutenant Ballard, of the Cyclops, and Lieutenant Vilmorin, of the Vigie, pulled towards the mouth of the river, which was completely commanded by the guns of the vessels. We found five feet of water upon the bar of the Ingour, which is one of the most considerable streams upon this coast. Upon our party landing at the fort they came upon the smoking embers of a fire, which our guide told us was that of the militia; a perfect stillness, however, prevailed everywhere—not a human being seemed in the neighbourhood, and the wood was so thick that we did not anticipate much warning from the men stationed in the maintop of the Cyclops to give an alarm. We proceeded up the bank of the river for some time, and came upon the remains of the village of Anaklea, of which a few charred logs alone remain. Having satisfied our curiosity, we were re turning to the boats, when two musket shots from the Cyclops threw our party into a state of some excitement. We immediately threw out skirmishers to protect our em barcation, and soon after saw a large group of persons collected at some distance up the river. As they seemed to be people of the country, Messrs. Longworth and Champoiseau went up with a flab of truce, with M. De Vilmorin, our guide, and myself, One of the group, putting 48 white cap upon the top of his gun, by way of responding to our flag, came forward to meet the interpreter, and we learned from him that the immediate neighbourhood of - Anaklea was comparatively free of Russians, that the nearest large force lay at a distance of nine miles off, and that they rarely visited Anakk a . The people them selves professed themselves in the highest degree friendly, and we gave them a sovereign to cement the alliance. From the accounts of these men the whole Russian force within a circuit of 15 miles frbm Anaklea amounts to 10,000 men. The most important point, and the one at which the first struggle may be anticipated, is at the fortress of Ruchi, about six miles beyond Sugdidi, and about 60 from Souchom Kaleh. Taking the Vigle in tow, we returned to Shemsherrai the same evening. It is a considerable place, at present only partly inhabited. The Greek ani Russian popu lation have shut up their shops and decamped, and the Turkish merchants have it all their ove n way. Prince Michael has a handsome house here, bkilt of wood in the Russian style. It is his principal residence. At a distance of three hours in the mountain; are his game preserves, where he strictly prohibits Lny one f rom peaching his wild boar, wild sheep, and de er . The limits of Prince Michael's jurisdetion in this direction are not very clearly defined. He claims Samuraschan, a province lying between Abasia and Mingrelia, on the frontier of which Shemsherrai is situated, and the people of Anaklea professed to owe him allegiance, but it is very certain that his powers of protection do not extend beyond Shemsherrki. As we rode out of the town, on our way back to Sokchum, we found that there was an addition to our party, and we were soon after enlightened upon the subject by the arrival of an Abasian, who pronounced himself to be the slave of a Turk in Shemsherrai. He spoke to one of our servants, who was a Pole, and informed Um that he and six of his unfortunate compatriots were at that moment slaves to Turks in Shemsherrai. We assured him that his freedom would be obtained, but insisted upon his returning ; for the masters of the othersla,ves, finding we had liberated one, would have secreted the others ; they are now thrown completely off their guard, and Omar Pasha has since assured me of his intention to liberate them. The road generally follows the seacoast, crossing the mouths of innumerable rivers, the bridges over which are almost invariably destroyed. We slept at a large village upon the other side of the Kodor, in a magnificent situation ; the lofty elm trees being completely hidden by masses of wild vine. Here we were hospitably received, a comfortable hut vas placed at our disposal, soft coverlet sand pillows were arranged upon wooden stretchers, and we passed a most civilised night. The staple food of the country is pasta, or Indian corn bread, almost exactly similar to that of the States, and quite as good. The cheese is eal eatable, but very salt, and boiled pumpkin is popular, Fruit is abundant ; so that for a wild country the living is upon the whole above the average. When we were within a few miles of Souchum we met three squadrons of cavalry, the avant garde of the army which is now moving into Mingrelia ; our information about tho road was therefore very acceptable, and I was rather asto nished at the rapidity with which Omar Pasha is hurry ing on his campaign. In spite of his energy, however, the number of bridges which must be constructed along the first 40 miles of his march will necessarily retard the progress of his army, and ten days or a fortnight must elapse before he finds himself in face with the enemy. Meantime troops are disembarking with their usual.rapidity ; the Great Britain has disgorged 1,800 men in an incredibly short time, and returned for more. She brought Colonel Sirumonds from Balak lava. There have been 20,000 men landed within the last fortnight. The Duke of Newcastle has also arrived in the Highflyer, from Anapa and Soudjak. On their way the Highflyer picked up the Naib, who was coming to pay Omar Pasha a visit. He declares his ex pedition against the Russians to have been eminently successful, which is somewhat at variance with the re port of the Karachai men, to which I alluded in my last letter. At all events, Omar Pasha evidently has a high opinion of his power and influence in the country, as he has appointed him Civil Governor of all the provinces of Circassia, from the country of Schamyl to the provinces of Tchapsugh and Natquoltcb, which are present under the jurisdiction of Sener Pasha. The terms of his buoy ourouldi are almost identical with those of Prince Michael ; the object of the appointment is in both cases the same. Invested with authority from so high a source, and in a manner calculated to impress the natives of the country , who witnessed the ceremony, he goes back to his Go vernment under the most favourable auspices, and there can be no doubt that in adopting this course Omar Pasha has done more towards utilizing the Circassian', than could have been effected by the most elaborate and judicious treatment of the individual and petty chiefs. These will now be afraid to resist the will of the Naib, who, owing everything to Omar Pasha, will be a useful instrument in his hands. The great difficulty in dealing with the Circassians lies in the fact that they aro determined to be subjects of the Porte, in spite of the Porte itself ; indeed, it has aiways (publicly at least) disclaimed the idea of appropriating territory in this direction ; and it is evident that it is no less the te terest of Turkey than of the allied Powers to abstain from any such addition to the Ottoman diminyms. No treaty of peace with Russia which depended upon the forbearance of these mountain tribes would be worth a rush, and we should be continually. broiled with Russia if we attempted to preserve "the independence and i n • tegrity of the Ottoman empire" upon the Kuban ; while a frontier composed of such materials would be an end less source of annoyance to the Porte. It is probable that Omar Pasha sees this as well as many of the more intelligent Turks, and has constituted the Naib as a supreme authority, with the expectation that the allied Powers will render him ultimately independent. At present no man whose power was not derived from the one venerated source could acquire any influence among those bigoted mountaineers. It is in ais acute perception of these leading features of the internal policy of Cir• cassia that Omer Pasha has proved himself a skilful diplomatist ; and perhaps it may be questioned how far it was a wise measure to foam a commission inde- pendent of him to settle all political and civil questions in the theatre of his present operations. Such a com mission has nevertheless been formed, and it will call for the utmost discretion on the part of the gentlemen com posing it in the exercise of their functions ; the political complications in Mingrelia and Georgia and the other Transcaucasian provinces are infinite, and offers of assistance upon certain conditions have been and cer tainly will again be made. Omer Pasha will want to promise everything, so as not to compromise the safety of his army. The Civil Commissioners will promise nothing, so as not to compromise their Governments. They will both be perfectly justified in their separate lines of conduct. How far the great cause which each have at heart will be benefitted by the result it is for others to determine, and I have no doubt that Omer Pasha, on the one hand, and Messrs. Longworth and Champoiseau and Emin Bey, on the other, will do all in their power to avoid what appears to be almost the inevitable consequences of the position in which they are placed with reference to one another. OCT. 13. This morning our slumbers were disturbed by the thunder of cannon, and we saw the ships in the harbour decked out with flags. ytt + o found the cause of these re joicings to be the - at.fival oT despatches from Kars, an. nouncing the total defeat of the Russian army investing that city, with an enormous loss, the particulars of which have, doubtless, reached you. Looking out of my window, I saw Omer Pacha informing his army of the fact, which ,they received with loud cheers. It was an inspiriting sight, after having exhorted his soldiers to march to the entire annihilation of the army which their comrades have almost destroyed, to see his Highness, upon a prancing charger, lead his battalions to the war. 5,000 men, with two batteries of artillery, followed him along the Kutais road. The moment was well chosen, and the music of their bands harmonised well with the booming of the heavy guns, which were still celebrating the victory. The troops were in good heart, and have perfect confidence in their General and in the successful issue of the campaign i❑ which they are engaged. It is much to be regretted that its importance does not yet seem to have been recognised in England, when the at tention of the Government cannot be diverted from the Crimea. If, instead of sending the Contingent to Kertch, it bad been put -under Omer Pacha's orders, its services would be made more available, and a good meral effect would be produced among the Turkish troops, who are already beginning to recognise the merits of English officers. A t present, if Omer Pacha succeeds, his triumph will not be the less complete that it has been won in spite of the obstacles thrown in his way by the Allied Powers. THE BATTLE OF .KARS. The following is an extract of a private letter from Kars : " KARS, OCT. 2. " We have bad, as you are aware, for the last 17 weeks a most tedious and painful blockade, maintained by a formidable Russian army of at least 35,000 men, whose numerous cavalry—regular and irregular—did their duty so well that we could scarcely contrive to get a letter through their lines. The neglected state of our army, which, after having been delivered over to the worst of commanders, had been beaten in five battles, and since then neither paid nor reinforced, forbade all idea of our acting in any manner on the offensive. Since the arrival of General Williams and his staff, however, the most has been made of the army, the men have been cared for, encouraged, and instructed by Captains Thompson and Teesdale, the most formidable batteries have been planned and erected by Colonel Lake, and General Williams has worked incessantly to encourage, feed, and take care of the soldiers, and to arm and in• spirit the citizens of Kars. "For some days past we have observed large convoys of heavily laden waggons proceeding from the Russian camp, which movements, occurring as they did after the receipt of the most glorious news of the fall of Sebas topol and the landing of Omar Pasha, made us suppose that the enemy was intending to raise the siege and pre pare for the defence of Georgia. One gallant officer, however, General Kmetz (Ismael Pasha) persisted in the opinion that the Russians would try an assault before their departure, and this officer commanded the works on the heights on that side of the town nearest the Russian camp. Before I proceed to narrate what happened on the 29th I must give you a rough description of Kars. The city, a truly Oriental one, lies at the base of a line of rocky bills, about four miles in length on the north. The forts of Tahmasl lie on the western extremity of this range, which is cut in the centre by a deep gorge through which flows a river ; the eastern ex tremity terminates in a large rocky hill called the Karadagh, well fortified, and on the eastern brink of the gorge is a strong earthwork, called Arab Tabia. Between the eastern and western extremities of this ridge, and to the north of the town, are placed a line of earthworks, connected by breastworks, called the Eng lish Tabias, and the nearest to the Tahmasl forts is that called Fort Lake, which contains a blockhouse, and is the key of the whole position. On the south of the city a certain portion of the plain is enclosed by a square line of forts and breastworks, like the rest, all of earth and of recent construction. " On the morning of the 29th, or rather at midnight, the distant rumble of guns was heard by the sentries on Tahmasl, and General Kmetz at once called all the troops in that direction under arms, but after this a long inter val of silence ensued. About an hour before the dawn sundry suspicious noises were again heard, and at last, by the feeble light of the crescent moon, a large dark moving mass was observed advancing towards a battery in which was Capt. Teesdale, a most gallant young sol dier ; at once the guns were opened on the column, when a loud hurrah arose from enemies un s ee n w h o had almost surrounded the whole of the north-west works. MI suspense was now at an end, the corps of Turks in this position found themselves assaulted in front and flank, while a column was moving round in their rear. It was still nearly dark, so that in this, the commence ment of the action, very little of our powerful artillery could come into play. The Russian columns, advancing with wonderful steadiness, were met by volleys of mus ketry at point-blank range, directed from flanking breast woske, while from time to time Teesdale's guns poured out murderous grape. At the extreme point of Tahmasl the enemy actually penetrated into the batteries and were at once bayoneted. While this murderous struggle was going on, a vigorous artillery fire from the enemy was kept up on Kanli Tabia, in the plain, far removed from the real point of danger. This, of course, was but a feint. Fort Lake, the key of the whole position on the north, and the English batteries immediately behind the town, which I have mentioned, were now attacked, and the latter being defended by a very weak force, chiefly irregulars, were carried by assault, and the enemy then began shelling the town. But daylight now showed clearly each position and movement of the enemy. General Williams despatched two or three com panies of Rifles to the English Tabias under one of our best officers, Kadir Bey, and these, with troops from Fort Lake, charged the Russians, and fairly drove them out of the batteries at the point of the bayonet ; mean time, from Karadagh, Captain Thompson had, with the eye of a General, albeit a young one, despatched one or two companies over the gorge and the river, who took up a flanking position in the midst of rocks commanding these English Tabias, and by immense exertions he also got some heavy guns to bear on them, so that he soon changed the Russian retreat into a rabble rout. Some Russian cavalry made a gallant charge here, but soon came to grief among some trous de loup. " Meanwhile the battle was raging at the original point of attack ; the rolling fire of the musketry was incessant, and the thunder of the artillery from the numerous batteries never ceased for a moment. At one time, and only once, some little symptom of giving way was observed, but no sooner observed than the fresh fire from reinforcements, despatched by Gene ral Williams and Colonel Lake, and ably handled by General Kmetz, changed the backward into a forward movement ; the loud hurrahs of the Russian hosts were soon mingled with the yells of the Turk., who fought with the ferocity of tigers, charging repeatedly w ith t h e bayonet. White-turbaned cit'zens were seen rushing into the fight, hewing with their scimitars ; and Lazi bountaineers springing like wolves from behind rocks, nid charging with the clubbed rifle or broad two edged dagger. The grey-coated Russians, too, fought with wondrous courage ; again and again they advanced to the deadly breastworks, and were blown film the very mouths of the guns or layenetted in thj batteries. As the action continued, and each nevi' movement of the enemy was tried, the excel lersle of Colonel Lake's batteries was fully proved. Wherever the columns of the enemy were directed they found themselves under a flanking fire of heavy guns ; if they gained possession of a battery weaker than the rest, they were again pounded by our artillery from some battery which commanded the weaker point; meantime any assault on the keys of our position was altogether hopeless,—the Colonel himself, under a heavy fire, directed the artillery of the two principal batteries, and well did the Turkish officers, who are second to none in the world in their practical skill in this branch, second his efforts. "I am unable to do justice to this gallant affair of the heights of Kars ; the battle continued without inter mission for seven hours, and about midday the Russian columns were seen running down the hills much faster than they had advanced, their cavalry and horse artil lery protecting their retreat. Two of our forts, named Chico Tabia and Tek Tabia, or the one-gun battery, both of which were out of reach of the enemy's light guns, fired into their retreating columns with heavy ord nance, the former battery especially doing much execution. Oh for two regiments of cavalry to complete our day's work ! But we had none, and so were mortified to see the Russian army, or what remained of it, quietly re treating to their original camp, but not without consi derable symptoms of disorder. I rode round the batte ries soon after the action, which forded about 11 a.m., and seldom had the oldest soldier seen a more terrible sight ; there were literally piles of dead stripped of their clothes and lying in various postures, while the plaintive cries of men with shattered limbs arose from all sides from amid these acres of defaced humanity. I have no time to go into further details, nor will I endeavour to form a calculation of the Russian loss iu killed and wounded, lest I be accused of exaggeration, but I will give you an unadorned fact. We have already buried upwards of 4,000 dead Russians, numbers of the enemy also crowd our hospitals, where the Turks treat them as musafirs or guests, a sacred word used by the Musbir Vassif Pasha, as he directed them to be taken care of even more than our own men. Our own losses are scarcely above 1,000. "P.S. Oct. 3.--I reopen this letter to say that we have buried already 6,300 Russians ; numbers were car ried off by the enemy besides. A deserter came last night into our camp, and he tells us that the second in command was killed, and numbers of the highest Rus sian officers. Some thousand carts were sent to Gumri this morning, full of wounded. A heavy rain has fallen during the night, which prevents Mouravieff from moving. Had we but two regiments of cavalry the en tire destruction of his army would be a certainty. I must mention that when the English batteries were car ried several Lazi flags were taken ; these were small mountain standards belonging to the villages, and are almost the only trophies the enemy has got in exchange for the ruin of his army. If Omer Pacha show a little enterprise the conquest of Georgia will present no diffi culty whatever. During the attack Mouravieff ordered up reserve after reserve until his camp was almost en tirely unprotected. A large body of Kurdish and Cir cassian irregulars, in Russian pay, were unable to resist so fine an opportunity for indulging their predatory habits, so they fell upon the camp and pillaged it." THE HUME MEMORIAL.—At a preliminary meeting of the friends of the late Joseph Hume, held last evening, at the residence of Sir James Duke, M.P., Mr. Nicholay accepted the office of chairman of committee, Mr. W. Williams, M.P., Col. Sykes, and Sir James Duke, Bart., M.P., consented to act as trustees of the Memorial Fund, and it was resolved that an appeal be made to the coun try for raising subscriptions to commemorate in a suit able manner-his eminent public services ; and, with view to carry ont that object, it was proposed public meetings in the districts of the metronor