The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1855-11-20 00:00:00

THE WAR.

ACCORDING to the concurrent opinion of many witnesses,
corroborated by incidents of varied character, it would ap-
pear that the active work of warlike destruction has about
closed for the season in the Crimea. A correspondent of the
Journal de Constantinople says, that the Allied troops
which had advanced into the valley of the Belbek have been
withdrawn, the plain having been converted into an immense
marsh by the heavy rains which have set in. All the attempts
to draw the enemy into action, in that quarter, having entirely
failed, and the Allies beginning to feel the approach of
winter's severity, without being successful in abating the
prudence of the Russians, have withdrawn from so exposed a
situation. According to the same authority, the Russians
appear much more anxious to prepare winter quarters for their
troops, and to organise their forces for the next spring cam-
paign, than to attempt any effort for retrieving the defeats
they have sustained during the 'past year. It seems doubt-
ful whether even the Russians will be able to sustain
themselves in the position they have taken up on the Belbek,
exposed as they will be there to the frightful inclemency of
the Crimean winter ; and the expectation is general that they
will be forced to concentrate upon Simpheropol. The ex-
pected evacuation of the north forts by the Russians is still
deferred, if it has ever been seriously entertained by the
Russians ; but from all that can be gathered of their intended
movements by distinct inspection of their manoeuvres, there
does not seem much reason for believing in the immediate
carrying of any such intention into effect. A considerable
number of French troops have been withdrawn from the
Crimea, and are replaced by others. A portion of the British
cavalry only is to remain in the huts, which are now in course
of preparation near Balaklava ; the rest will be conveyed to
the neighbourhood of Constantinople for winter quarters.
The Allied fleets also are to be withdrawn from the Black
Sea, and to winter in the Bosphorus.
These conjectures are borne out to a great extent by the
actual intelligence conveyed by the correspondents of the
English and French journals. These parties still speak of
apprehended attacks and threatened surprises ; but they
generally concur in stating that actual operations of nearly
every sort have been almost entirely suspended. This is par-
ticularly the case as regards the immediate vicinity of Sebas-
topol, where scarcely a dozen guns are fired on either side
during the twenty-four hours. Writing from the camp before
Sebastopol, on 'the 29th October, the correspondent of the
Times says, in reference to the

POSITION OF THE ALLIED AND RUSSIAN

FORCES:

On the greater part of our extended line the most profound
peace prevails. The two belligerent parties scarcely see each
other, separated as they are by a kind of neutral ground which
intervenes between them. A few black spots about the bat-
teries on the Mackenzie ridge, which may be made out with a
good glass as long-coated Russians, a Cossack vidette of a few
men on a hillock above Ozembash, some columns of smoke in
the Belbek villages, and a few squadrons of cavalry in a field
behind Yuritala, are all that can be seen by day of the Rus-
sians, while a small number of camp fires and the unceasing
activity of their numerous telegraphs are the only visible signs
of their close neighbourhood at night. It seems to be the plan
of the Russians to show as little of their forces as they can
possibly help, and even the advance of the French to the
Belbek could not draw them out to make any display of their
strength. They are in this respect more fortunate than we
are, for, all the range of heights which they occupy being con-
siderably higher than that which the allied armies occupy,
they have a panoramic view of our position, and may watch
every movement, and estimate every body of men which they
see moving about. It is probably for this reason as much as
in order to keep their troops in continual activity that the
French are making so many promenades militaires. The
road over Alsu connecting the French position on the Baidar
heights with the rest of the line is now all but complete, and
is already used for traffic. All this part of the Crimea pre-
sents more features approaching to English scenery than per-
haps any other in the East. There is such freshness in the
vegetation, so many familiar plants, that you can nearly fancy
yourself transported to some Scotch glen in passing along the
gorge of the Tchernaya.—On this part of our line as well as
on the others you can already see the beginning of prepara-
tions for the winter, more especially at the place where the re-
serves are encamped. Although, according to the accounts
of the Tartars, there is not much snow on these heights during
the winter, yet, from their exposed position, good shelter for
the troops will be essential, if they intend to keep them.
Fortunately all materials are at hand, brush and other wood
abounding all over the neighbourhood. From what we can
see, the French intend to follow the example of the Sardinians
in their huts, both adapting the experience of the natives to
their own purposes—a square space dug out about six feet
deep, and a roof of osierwork, plastered over with mud, and
then covered with earth. There seems to be indeed the ob-
jection to this that the heavy showers may soak through the
plaster, but, as the natives, who ought to know, use generally
the same material, there can be no fear of that.

The correspondent of the Daily News, writing from the
Camp before Sebastopol on the 2nd inst., says, there has been
absolutely no occurrence in this part of the field worthy of
record during the past week. He remarks of a
REPORTED EXPEDITION TO KAFFA :
There has been a rumour the last day or two that an expe-
dition was to start for Kaffa, with the intention of securing a
position there during the ensuing winter. A small body of
• French troops has left, and proceeded in an easterly direction,
and it has been surmised that there was to be another attack
on Fort Arabat. With Arabat and Kaffa in oar possession,
the whole peninsula of Kertch would be secured; the enemy
would be excluded from a district from which he is still said to

draw many supplies, and Kaffa would form an important basis
for future operations. The movement against Kaffa has been
Very generaniM the Fourth., has.. begn
named as the part of the th4tisli force likely to be sent.
Brigadier Spencer's Brigade has returned from Kinburn, but
has not yet received orders for disembarkation ; it has been
supposed, therefore, that these regiments would go on without
landing, and Lord Paulet's Brigade, with General Windham
in command, at once join the expedition as a reinforcement.
What truth there is in the rumour of this undertaking
remains to be seen; no orders on the subject have yet been
issued.

According to this correspondent the Russians have not
given up for the present all idea of annoying the Allies, by
their fire from the North Forts, which seems to have been re-
sumed w ith considerable spirit. He says on the subject of
THE RUSSIAN FIRE :

The fire from the north side has continued very active.
Yesterday, the Ist instant, an explosion occurred in the part
of the town occupied by the French. The report was com-
pressed and loud, and the reverberation was so strong as to
lead to the impression that some considerable magazine had
been exploded ; but some Frenchmen, bringing up a wounded
man to one of the ambulances, declared that it was loose pow-
der in an ammunition waggon which had been accidentally
fired, and that two or three injuries to by-standers, and these
comparatively slight, were the only ill effects resulting. Our
allies are not very communicative on such matters. The
Russians evidently concluded that they had blown up one of
the magazines of the mortar battery behind Fort Nicholas, not
far from which the column of smoke which followed the ex-
plosion appeared to rise, for during the remainder of the day
they concentrated a heavy shelling fire in that direction, They
also kept up at intervals during the night a fire against the
-same position, as if with the intention of annoying working
parties. To-day a truce was held for a short period, between
two and three hours. A boat from the Russian side crossed
early in the afternoon, but what was the nature or object of
the communication has not transpired.

Preparations for wintering seem to be going on in a satis-
factory style. On this subject the correspondent of the Daily
News conveys a few interesting particulars. He says in
reference to