The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-12-04 00:00:00

THE WAR.

TILE news from the seat of war in the Crimea continues of
the same quiescent character which has been its leading
peculiarity for some time past : indeed, ever since we became
acquainted with the details concerning the storming of the
Malakhoff and the capture of Sebastopol. The narrative of
events is now meagre and destitute of thrilling achievements ;
elpectation even seems in a great degree to have deserted
those scenes which were lately so instinct with its wildest
heavings, so sensitive to its faintest flutterings. Speculation
as to the probable undertakings—gropings in the dark as to
the course of future events—criticisms on past proceedings—
and sly glances at social deportment, now take the place of
those clear descriptions
Of moving incidents by flood and field,

which have for the last few months constituted the staple of
the correspondence furnished by the daily journals of England
and the Continent; and form a gratifying contrast to those
harrowing narratives, which twelve months ago excited the
pity and aroused the indignation of the public. Among the
other items of information furnished, is an interesting enume-
ration of the different kinds of spoil which have fallen to the
share of the victors in the protracted and arduous struggle
for possession of the town and fortress. As might have been
expected in such a case, the munitions of war form a very
large portion of the multifarious catalogue, and afford incon-
trovertible evidence that Russia did not chiefly value, or mean
principally to use, Sebastopol as a peaceful auxiliary of moral
suasion in her intercourse with Turkey in the first place, and
with the other European powers in the second.
In writing from the Camp before Sebastopol, on the 10th
of Nov., the special correspondent of the Times says :
The weather continues fine. The changes announced in the
staff and in the army are large. The army will be divided, it
is said, into two corps of three divisions each—one to be under
the command of Sir Colin Campbell, if he will accept it ; the
other under the command of General Eyre.

CHANGE IN THE COMMAND.
On the 12th, the same correspondent writes :
General Codrington has assumed the command of the army
from this day, and has announced it in the following order,
which has been received with satisfaction by the army:—
"Head-quarters, Sebastopol, Nov. 12.—1 have assumed the
command of the army in obedience to her Majesty's orders. It
is with a feeling of pride and with a feeling of confidence in
the support which I know will be heartily given to any officer
honoured with such a commission. The armies of France and
Sardinia are united with us on this ground. We know their
gallantry well, for we have seen it ; we know their friendship,
for we have profited by it ; we have shared difficulties, dangers,
and successes—the groundwork of mutual esteem ; and all
will feel it our pleasure, as well as our duty, to carry on that
kindly intercourse which is due to the intimate alliance of the
nations themselves. Our army will always preserve its high
character in the field. The sobriety, the good conduct, and
the discipline which it is our duty to maintain are the best
sureties of future success, and I trust to the efforts and assist-
ance of all ranks in thus keeping the army to be an instru-
ment of honour, of power, and of credit to England. W. J.
CODRINGTON, General Commander of the Forces."—General
Simpson's farewell appeared last night, and is as follows :
" Gen. Sir James Simpson announces to the army that the
Queen has been graciously pleased to permit him to resign the
command of this army, and to appoint General Sir William
Codrington, K.C.8., to be his successor. On resigning his
command, the General desires to express to the troops the
high sense he entertains of the admirable conduct of the
officers and men of this army during the time he has had the
honour to serve with them. In taking leave of them he
tenders his best thanks to all ranks, and offers his earnest
wishes for their success and honour in all the future operations
of this noble army. General Sir William Codrington will be
pleased to assume the command of the army to-morrow, the
11th instant.—By order, H. W. BARNARD, Chief of the
Staff."—The weather is beautiful, and the Russians avail
themselves of it to make roads and build huts like ourselves.
Under date of the 13th, writing in relation to the same
subject, he continues :

The enemy have made no sign—they are only making huts
and preparing for the winter. Still the Allies expect, or rather
hope, that the Russians will be considerate enough to play our
game, and come down to assault our position. The extraordi-
nary fineness of the weather affords a daily approach to what-
ever general it may be who ought to act offensively. Within
one day of the first anniversary of that terrible 14th of Novem-
ber, which will never be forgotten by those who spent it on
this plateau, it is still calm. Since the expedition returned
from Kinburn, there has not fallen one drop of rain, and each
day has been cloudless, sunny, and almost too warm. The
mornings and nights, however, begin to warn us that winter
is impending. The event of the week has, of course, been the
change of commanders-in-chief. The retirement of General
Simpson was by no means unexpected, but it was not known
who would be his successor, and very few indeed ventured to
hope Sir W. Codrington would be selected for the post. Al-
though too active and able a soldier to be neglected in a war
like this, it is possible that Sir W. Codrington would not have
had a chance of obtaining his present distinguished position,
but for a piece of good fortune. On the 20th of June, last
year, certain promotions took place, more particularly among
colonels of the Guards, and among them was that of Colonel
Codrington to Major-General. Of course theeffect of such a pro-
motion would have been to remove him from his regiment, and
take him home ; but the major-general was most anxious for
active service. By the time the Gazette was promulgated, the
expedition to the Crimea was spoken of, and Major-General Cod-
rington tried hard to evade the necessity of returning home,
which, to many, was by no means disagreeable, judging by the
alacrity with which they availed themselves of it. He was lucky
enough to succeed in his object, and thus got an opportunity
of entering on the career which in a very short period has
led him to such great honours and to such a proud position.
The acting quartermaster-general had just died, and
Brigadier-General Airey, who commanded a brigade of the
Light Division, was selected as his successor. The brigade
thus left vacant was given to Major-General Codrington,
whose anxiety for active service led him to turn every stone
to seek it. A very short time elapsed before officers and men
began to discover that he was one of the best soldiers in the
army, and his reputation extenied beyond the limits of his
brigade to every regiment in the field. The Light
Division hailed his accession to command, on the second and
final retirement of Sir George Brown, with the liveliest satis-
faction, for he had won the confidence of the men by coolness
and unexaggerated intrepidity in the field, and had gained
the affection of the officers by his amenity and kind manners,
while they placed full reliance on his vigilance and his love
and knowledge of his profession. General Simpson left for
Marseilles direct in the steamer Telegraph yesterday. All
must feel sorrow from the circumstances under which a
veteran officer like Sir James Simpson resigned his command.
His simplicity of manners and singleness of mind never failed
to conciliate the regard, if not the respect and admiration of
those around him, but he failed in determination and firmness
in a matter of vital importance to our army when opposed to
a sterner will, greater vehemence, and force of character. I
regret to state that the army is likely to lose Colonel Mac-
murdo. He has been very ill of fever for some days, and
passed the crises on Sunday night. His wife had just arrived
before he fell ill, and lie must go home as soon as he is strong
enough to be moved.

PEACEFUL AND WARLIKE OPERATIONS.
In reference to these the same correspondent, on the same

day, writes :

The main road has now been completed from Balaklava
(Kadikoi) to the central depot, a distance of six and a half
miles. It is a grand military work, which will last for cen-
turies. In less than seven weeks the road has been completed,
and in that time upwards of 60,000 tons of road metal have
been prepared and laid down to fit it for traffic. There are
yet several branches to be completed; one to Karanyi-valley
is nearly ready, and the others are in a fair state of progress.
When Mr. Doyne began his roads he had only 1,500 soldiers
to assist him, but by degrees he received increased aid every
day from the quartermaster•general's department, until he
had no less than 8,000 men at work, which, with his own
navvies and native labourers, gave him a force of about
10,000 men. The drainage of the road is excellent, and
numerous and capacious culverts have been constructed to
carry of the rush of water in the ravines. Altogether we
shall have at last left a Romanesque work behind us when we
abandon the Crimea, and if we bequeath no marks of our
existence to posterity in India, we shall at least do so to future
generations of Muscovites and Tartars. The duello between
the north and south sides is intensely tedious and profitless ;
it is also without loss —the stones alone suffer.

THE BOOTY AND THE CONVENTION FOR
ITS DISTRIBUTION.

Upon this very important topic the Times' correspondent
writes as follows, on the 13th ult.:—

As it may be interesting to give some particulars of the
proceedings of the mixed commission, I have procured the
following information respecting them with some little diffi-
culty. On the 10th of July this year, a treaty was entered
into between France and England with respect to the distri-
bution of booty and trophies, which enabled the French and
English governments to form a mixed commission for the
purpose of classifying and arranging such articles. In com-
pliance with this provision, Marshal Pelissier named the
following officers on behalf of the French army immediately
after the capture of Sebastopol :—General of Division Niel,
ade-de-camp de l'Empereur, president, and commanding the
Engineers ; General of Division Thiry, commanding Artillery;
Admiral Regault de Genouilly, commanding Marine Artillery;
M. Paris, Intendant (Commissary-General) ; M. Budin,
Payeur-General. General Simpson named the following
officers for the English army :—Sir G. Dacres, commanding
Royal Artillery ; Captain Drummond, R.N. ; Colonel Chap-
man, commanding Royal Engineers ; Mr. Drake, Assistant
Commissary-General. It will be observed that the English
officers are not equal in rank or numbers to the French mem-
bers of the commission. The commission met on the 15th
of September at the quarters of General Niel. Its first act
was to order an inventory in detail to be made of everything
found in Sebastopol. To effect this the city and forts were
divided, and the care of exploring each part devolved upon
sub-commissions. On the 25th of September the commission
held its second sitting, and all the members were present except
Gen. Thiry, who was represented by Gen. Mazare. That officer
and Brigadier-Gen. Dupuis,as presidents of the sub-commission,
then laid on the table a detailed statement of everything which
had been found in Sebastopol. The number of cannon in
bronze (brass) is 128 ; that of iron guns, 3,711' total 3,839.
The president read the convention of the 10th of July, and it
was then unanimously agreed that the guns should be divided
into two equal parts, paying due regard to the different calibres,
and that one-half should be sent to France, the other half to
Great Britain, with the exception of two field brass pieces,
which should be offered to General de la Marmora, with the
approbation of the commanders-in-chief; but that for the
present they should remain in Sebastopol, and in the redoubts
and fortifications of Kamiesch and Balaklava, till such time as
they were not required for the defence of the place, when each
government might do what they liked with their own share. i
These decisions, taken conformably to the first act of the con-
vention, leaves the valuation of the pieces out of
.the question ;
but by the 4th article of the same convention it is agreedte
twotat
the value of the booty, &c., shall be divided between the
powers proportionally to the number of men each had serving
in the siege. The effective strength of the Anglo-Sardinian
army on the Bth of September was 63,715 men, and that of the
French army on the same day was 126,705 men. The emus

mission, therefore, decided that France should have two-thirds,
and Great Britain one-third of the value of the booty and
trophies. It was declared impossible to fix the value of the
guns immediately, in consequence of want of sufficient informa-
tion, and of the necessity of employing the iron guns in the
defence of the place. The commission, therefore, passed on to
the partition of the other materiel taken, and divided the
following into three parts, two for France and one-third for
England, with the understanding that they are to remain for
the supply of the defence :-407,314 round shot ; shell,
101,755 ; canister cases, 24,080 ; gunpowder, 525,0001 b. • ball
cartridges for muskets and carbines, 470,000 in good condition,
and 160,000 damaged ; waggons, 80; yawls, 6 ; logs of lignum
vitce, 500; anchors of port moorings, 400; anchors of different
sizes, 90 ; grapplings and small anchors, 50; chains for anchors,
200 yards; old copper for sheathing, 104,0001 b.; old ropes,
100,0001 b.; water casks, 300; new ropes of different sizes,
50,0001 b.; pulleys, 400; spars, 40; tools, 300; bar iron and
steel, 1,460,0001 b. ; iron wire, 4001 b. ; iron checks, 3201 b. ;
sheet iron, 16,0001 b. ; tin plate, 14,0001 b. ; red copper,
120,0001 b. ; nails, 6,0001 b. ; firewood, a large quantity ; pitch
and tar, 200 barrels; barrels of paint, 150; small boilers,
weighing 6,0001 b. ; the remains of a steam-engine of 220-horse
power, taken out of a steamer burnt by the Russians ; large
copper boilers, weighing 100,0001 b., 8; old copper, 100,0001 b.;
copper screws, 10,000 lb. • old iron, 160,0001 b. ; large bells, 6 ;
small bells, 10; hospitafbeds, 350; iron forges, in great num-
bers; main tackles, 12; coal, 2,000 tons; steam-engines, of
30-horse power, for the basins, 2 ; large pumps, for the basins,
3 ; iron boilers, 3 ; 1 high-pressure engine of 16-horse power,
for the basins ; iron cranes, 17; an engine of 12-horse power
in the military bakery; two dredging machines, of 30-horse
power, unserviceable ; a still, a clock, six marble statues, two
sphinxes, a large basso-relievo; biscuit, 500 tons; flour, 160;
barley, 9 ; buckwheat, 117 ; oats, 18 ; millet, 54; wheat, 20 ;
peas, 1z; salt meat, 60; wheat in the granaries, 600 quarters,
&c. The commission, having examined the quantity and
quality of the breadstuffs found in the magazines, declared
them unfit for the use of the allied armies, and decided that
they should be sent to Eupatoria for the support of the Tar-
tars, to whom the allies furnish subsistence, and the French
Intendence is charged with that duty. They consisted of 11,000
sacks, weighing 500 tons, of black bread, 370 sacks or 150 tons
of flour, 100 sacks or nine tons of barley; 1,300 sacks or 117
tons of black barley, 18 tons of hay, 64 tons of millet, 20 tons
of barley, 11 tons of peas, 60 tons of salt meat, and 500 quar-
ters of barley in the granaries. The commission decided fur-
ther that the few objects of art found in the place should be
placed at the disposal of the generals-in-chief, and finished the
sitting by nominating as secretary M. de Genoux, Capitaine
de Fregate. The third sitting took place on the 30th of Sep-
tember, and the subject of their deliberation was the valuation
of the guns. As the calibres of the Russian artillery do not
correspond with those of the allies, it was decided unani-
mously that in the valuation of the guns they should only
take count of the value of the metal, which was fixed at
2f. 50c. per kilogramme for brass guns, and at 10c. for iron
guns. One of the members observed, that among the brass
guns there were two Turkish field-pieces, and it was at once
declared to be the wish of the commander to put these guns
at the disposal of the Ottoman Porte. It was further decided
that, as many of the articles could not be divided, a distribution
should take place as might be best arranged, and, accordingly,
a high-pressure engine of 20-horse power, a distilling machine,
and a clock were comprised in the French list, and in the
English list were comprised a high-pressure engine of 16-
horse-power and a furnace. As it would be impossible to di-
vide the wood of the houses and buildings to be demolished,
the city itself was divided, and to the English was allotted the
east and to the French the western portion. The list already
published gives the gross amount found, but there were im-
mense quantities of all kinds of articles, muskets, clothing, &c.,
improperly removed. Mr. Johnson, naval instructor, was
named as English secretary ; and Mr. Cruikshank, since the
close of the sittings, has discovered a store containing about
6,000 suits of Russian military clothing. The following is a
part of the English return :

Guys IN MALAKOFF, REDIN, &C.
Serviceable. Unserviceable
38 23
76 11
846 135
310 86

8-inch guns
7 to 7f inch ditto
6 to 6f ditto
5 to 52 ditto
Smaller calibres .
13-inch mortars ,
10-inch ditto
Brass cohorns, 6 to 61 inch
Brass field-pieces
Wall pieces . .

Total guns. 1790 297
The return includes eight 8-inch and two 3i-inch brass
guns, 257,314 shot, 60,515 shells, 13,380 grape, 1,240 live shells,
419,2001b5. of powder, and 436,0001b5. of ammunition.
Three small bells and one large one of fine tones.
Two marine condensing steam-engines of 30-horse £
power in good condition, nearly new 2,000
Three large pumps for pumping out the docks, in good
condition, with gear complete 2,500
Three iron boilers for engines
Spare gear for the above
Blocks, with brass sheaves
One 16-horse power engine, for pumping out coffer-
dam, not complete.. BOO
Three 3-ton cranes, good
One ditto, not fixed, good 2OO
One 12-horse power condensing engine, for bakery
One 20-horse high-pressure engine, incomplete, with
gear, packed in cases 9OO
Iron boiler and iron chimney, complete „ 800
Copper boiler for steaming plank ...... ..... ... ............ 836
Pair of 220-horse power marine engines, unfit for use,
original value 12,000
Eight copper boilers for ditto, repairable, 50 tons
3,100
Patent ship cradle dredging machine, &c

32,146
Copper, pumps, forges, hydraulic pump, cranes, &c 13,280

Total £45,426
This, taken with the French return, gives the total in the list ;
but there is an immense number of small articles which would
swell this inventory to an immense extent. The Karabelnaia,
or English portion, it will be observed, conletins the largest
and most valuable portion of the articles captured. The
quantity of wood taken from the place is very great, and it
still furnishes our officers, who are left to their own resources,
with vast supplies of wood, iron, bricks, and cut stone. It is
a hard tug, for horses and men to get them up from the city,
and the enemy are sure to let fly a shot at them whenever
they see a party engaged in collecting wood or building ma-
terials. The army is busy hutting itself, and it will soon be
in a condition to bid the weather defiance. The French are
far behind us in their preparations for making themselves
comfortable for the winter. Their main road is not nearly
completed, and the Sardinians .get on but slowly with their
branch to Kamara.

THE CONTEMPLATED RUSSIAN ATTACK.
Writing from the camp on the Tchernaya, on the 13th
November, the Times' correspondent, remarks :

The nightmare of a Russian attack is still hanging over us ;
but although, if anything of the kind was really contem-
plated by the Russians, this part of our line would probably
be chosen by them in preference, the idea of an attack haunts
the imagination less here than, perhaps, in any other part of
the allied camp. The little which can be seen of the Russian
position just near the edge of the plateau shows rather an
intention of the Russians to follow our example, and make
themselves comfortable, than to attack us. You can see them
continually burning the brushwood, and several white lines
which can be observed some days after in the wake of their
fires proves that they are just as busy with their roads of
communication as we are ourselves, and the series of mole-
hill-like huts which are crowning the edges of the cliffs show,
that they are more advanced with their hutting—at any rate
on the more exposed part of the plateau—than we are. But,
certainly, if one has made up one's mind that there should he
a Russian grand attack on our lines, followed, if successful, by
the evacuation of the Crimea, all these signs may be construed
into so many proofs of the contrary of what they must
appear at first sight, supported as they are, moreover, by the
relative positions of the allies and the Russians. The question is
simple enough—What ought to be the object of operations for a
general of the allied armies, superior, as they have proved
themselves without one single exception, to the Russians in the
open field Naturally, to force them to accept a battle. To
suppose, therefore, a Russian attack, is to suppose that the
Russians are fools enough to play our game. If their lines of
communication were seriously threatened, it would be another
thing ; but this is not the case. The departure of Sir Colin
Campbell is very much regretted. Although he worked his
men harder than, perhaps, any other general, leaving them
scarcely a moment's rest, and drilling and parading them the
whole day, he was very popular among them. Hence the idea
of forming corps d'arme'e in the British army, which is
talked of, finds nowhere more ardent supporters than in the
Highland Division, which naturally attributes the command
of one of these corps d'arme'e to Sir Colin. The day before
yesterday the Sardinians had a grand review in the plain.
Their little army was never so complete as it is now.
They did not come out all at once ; and, before all had
arrived, sickness began to decimate their number. Now, with
the reinforcements which they have received, they equal, if
they do not surpass, the number which had originally come
out. The beautiful weather had attracted a large number. of
spectators from the English army, who, in their scarlet coats,
formed an agreeable contrast with the sober blue of the Sar-
dinian staff-officers. I hear these latter were flattered by the
interest thus shown for their army ; but, besides this, the
sight alone was sufficient to compensate for the ride. The
Piedmontese have every Sunday, when the weather permits, a
church parade for their whole army, and a review afterwards.
I had not attended it for some time, and was consequently
struck by the difference in their number. While formerly
the whole looked like the parade of a strong division, now it
quite deserves the name of an army, and as fine an army as
any one could wish to see.

- - -
OFFICIAL DESPATCHES.

THE EXPLOSION OF THE MAGAZINES.

War Department, Nov. 29.
Lord Panmure has this day received a despatch addressed to
his lordship by General Sir W. Codrington, K.C.B. :
SEBASTOPOL, Nov. 17.

My Lord,—On the 15th inst., about 3 p. m., a terrific explo-
sion shook the camp of the army, and spread heavy destruction
in the immediate neighbourhood of its force. Even here, at
headquarters, two and a-half miles, perhaps, distant, it burst
open and broke windows : all felt the power of it, and the
high column of smoke, with shells bursting in the midst and
around it, told too well the cause, and showed the danger of all
within its reach.

It was not long before we were on the spot ; to the sudden
burst had succeeded a continued and dark drift of smoke,
which told its tale of continued fire and of danger; constant
bursting of shells was going on, and the ground was covered
with bits of wood, musket balls, and splinters of shells from
the first heavy explosion, which had strewed the ground with
destruction and killed and hurt very many people.
100,000 pounds of powder had exploded in the French siege
train, set fire to all the stores there, and to our neighbouring
English park, where all was fiercely burning, while the ten-
dency of the light air at first threatened a second and as seri-
ous an accident from powder, not 80 yards off, for the roof of
the building had been damaged and the door blown in by the
shock.

---
It is at the head of the ravine, which, as it gets towards Se-
bastopol, forms the steep and rocky valley of Ravin du Care-
nage.

The Light Division was on the ground which it first took
up in October, 1854; the Rifles on the right, then the 7th,
the 33rd, and 23rd ; on their left the 34th Regiment, which
subsequently joined, was on the right front in advance ; and
the vacating of a spot of ground by the Sappers' camp enabled