The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-12-18 00:00:00

COMMENCEMENT OF WINTER,

the Times' correspondent, writing on Nov. 24, from the
camp before Sebastopol, says :
Scarcely had the ink dried on the paper of my last letter,
before the weather, which I had been praising for its extraor-
dinary fineness, suddenly changed, and with a rapidity of
transition only known in the Crimea, as far as I am aware,
rushed from summer to winter. A strong wind, which varied.
in direction several times before it settled down to a southerly
gale, commenced on the afternoon of Saturday. Rain fell
during the night ; to-day it is falling in torrents, with every
appearance of holding out ; the verge of the plateau is con-
cealed by the dense veil of drifting clouds ; the ground is con-
verted into the thick compost so familiar to us last winter;
the camp is covered with pools of water, and the gullies and
drains are filled with the rushing waters. But this rain is
welcome to us, for the scarcity. of water had become a serious
inconvenience for some time past. The army is getting into
bette&shape and form every day. Excellent warm clothing
has been issued to the men, and so uniform is it in style that
no one can distinguish officers from men, unless by the dif-
ference of style and bearing. Our allies are astonished
at the profuseness of our military wardrobe, which not
only contains a waterproof suit, helmet and all, but
fur coats and caps, cowhide boots, tweed coats lined
with cat or rabbit skin, &c., and for the officers, suites of
sealskin, sold at moderate prices. The French only receive
from their government an ordinary cloth capote, and must
buy any waterproofs or furs which they may find necessary.
The huts blown down by the explosion are nearly rebuilt, but
the extent of canvas covering which is still visible over the
camp would astonish those who imagine all the troops are
,within wooden walls. However, a good double tent well
pitched and dug out is more comfortable for one man than
most huts would be, as it is extremely difficult to staunch the
latter, and the former is always sure to be air and water tight.
The cook-houses offer guarantees for the health of the men,
and with the blessing of Heaven the army will not suffer any
serious detriment from the severities of this climate, although
it would be too much to expect entire freedom from some
kind of privations on the part of an army cantoned on the
open ground during a Crimean winter.
MONDAY.—The weather, ever capricious in the Crimea, is
varying and mutable beyond description. The morning was
obscure, but about three o'clock the wind hauled round from
west north-west to north, and brought with it a clearer atmos-
phere and intense cold. But the cold for the time being got
rid of the mud. The roads are not yet settled down, and the
country is as unfavourable to the progress of man or beast as
it usually is about this time of year in these parts of the world.
Already the mud is beginning to tell upon our animals. I
saw 'no less than seven dead mules and horses in one little
gully crossing the line of transport yesterday. Melancholy
quadrupeds, with sore backs and rib-developed flanks, whom
nobody cares to own, begin even thus early to wander dis-
consolately about the camp, and to crawl to the lee of shelter-
ing walls.

On the same and kindred subjects, the correspondents of the
other morning journals give pictures of a similar character.
The correspondent of the Daily News, writing from the camp
before Sebastopol, on the 27th of November, says
The weather for the last two days has been wet and cold,
thereby stopping church parade and drill, besides impeding
greatly the hutting, roadmaking, and draining for the army.
The, railroad brings a good number of huts up from Balaklava,
as far as the "iron huts" near the Guards' camp; but still as
yet this iron road has given but a poor return for the original
contract (£200,000), whatever it may do this winter. This
amount does not cover any of the extra labour or material used
since the single line was first laid down. The chief commis-
sariat officers of each divition say that if all the roads and
transport failed this winter, still they have enough provisions
at each brigade depot to last both man and horse for two
months. If this is the case, it redounds greatly to the credit
of that department. The English and French are striving
which shall be soonest ready to demolish the docks of Sebas-
topol. Instead of twelve or now ten days, I give the English
engineers eighteen days—in fact till the 14th December—to
be quite prepared, and if the weather does not mend they will
not be all ready for firing by that date. Already a covering
has to be fixed over the mouth of this shaft, because of the
rain. The hutting is progressing but slowly. The severe
frost of last night will make the ground hard again, and con-
sequently assist the transport department.
THE RETURN OF SIR COLIN CAMPBELL.
The special correspondent of the Morning Herald, writing
on the same date in reference to the return of this gallant
general to the Crimea, says
I have certain intelligence that Sir Colin Campbell is
coming back to the Crimea. Some say he is to have a separate
command in Asia. The Highland division are in a perfect
delirium of delight at this news, and the pipers now give out
" The Campbells are coming," with a Gaelic gusto, and
thrilling intensity it would do your heart good to listen to.
Every one who knows Sir Colin's career cannot but acknow-
ledge the daring intrepidity of the man. We may class
among our " Household Words" his celebrated exclamation
at Alma—" Highlanders never retire." Those who seem
well acquainted with Sir Colin Campbell expect more from
his sword than his pen. The latter will probably aim at
Spartan brevity—a praiseworthy style for which Wellington
was, as his grace's despatches prove, pre-eminently distin-
guished. So much for the pen. And then, as to the sword,
we may proudly point not only to the present Crimean cam-
paign, but to battle after battle, from Corunna to Vimeira,
Barossa, Terifa, Taragona, Osma, Vittoria, St. Sebastian,
and Bidassoa, and to services in America, the West Indies,
China, and India. Our Highlanders have neither eyes nor
ears for aught else but " Sir Colin," and Friday next, St.
Andrew's day, when all honour will be heaped upon their
favourite hero, although absent, and hopes from their very
hearts expressed that hi 3 appointment will prove a fact and
not " a shave"—a fiction.

DRILL AND AMUSEMENTS OF THE BRITISH

TROOPS.

The same correspondent last quoted, writing from the camp
before Sebastopol, on the above subjects, on the 4th Nov.,
says :

" The statements which you copied from an evening•
paper respecting the strength of the British army next year,
we all received with satisfaction, not altogether free from
apprehension that the writer may be mistaken. On one point
he has certainly miscalculated, and that is the strength of the
regiments out here. He has assumed an average which is
considerably too high. For example, the 80th has received
very few draughts, and we all know how it suffered at the
Alma, at Inkerman, in the trenches, and at the two assaults
on the Redan. Its present effective strength would tell on an
average very materially. There are several regiments in the
Fame category, while others are very strong in men, though
not, perhaps, containing so many old soldiers as could be
desired. There are four months, however, before us, and the
drilling sergeant is busy all day. Every camp resounds
to his voice, and to the tramp of the awkward squad.
Recruits have little time to spend in idleness and drink-
ing, and steps are being taken to provide • soldiers with
the means of reading, which they will so much need and
enjoy in the long winter nights before us. But cannot •
Government be a little more liberal in the matter of candles ?
The issue of light is one ration to every twelve men—that is,
one ration for each tent or sergeant's guard. Now, good
public, do you know what one ration consists of ? It is just
two-thirds of an ounce of sperm candle, or two ounces of tallow
candle—that is, of a bit very like what economic housewives
are familiar with under the name of " save- alls." No one
need ever say " put out the light" in the British camp, for the
candle is not lit very long before it dies of its own accord.
An officer receives the same ration as is given to 12 men, but
he can afford to buy candles, and if he is a field-officer his
rations are increased, on the principle, I suppose, that there is
more necessity for his keeping wide awake than exists in the
case of a subaltern. The libraries are well filled with books,
but there is little time to use them by day, and it falls dark
before six o'clock ; but 12 men are not likely to make much
way in a novel, a tract, or an entertaining miscellany, by the
aid of two-thirds of an ounce of candle. They club their little
pieces of candle together, and resort to many ingenious devices
for keeping the lights in. Some of them, like the Russian or
Dutch sailors at Spitzbergen, of whose very uncomfortable
residence we all have read, use the extra fat of mutton in
lamps, but in general they are obliged to purchase what extra
candles they like. And all this time there are the canteens
alight till an hour or 'more after "retreat." We have had
" balls" at Kamiesch lately, which were, I hear, distinguished
by remarkably good conduct on the part of all present. Of
the progress of the libraries and of the lectures you will hear
from other persons. There are hotels established at Kamiesch,
and restaurants, at which excellent fare is to be had at high
but not extravagant prices.
The lines at Kamiesch are nearly completed. Eight heavy
redoubts and a splendid profile of parapet and trench enclosing
the place will remain as lasting monuments of French military
skill, and will enable them to retain the ports of Kamiesch
and Kazatch when the bulk of the army has retired.