The Press.
London, England, 1855-02-17 00:00:00

THE PRESS.

The 9th French division was to have left Constan-
tinople for the Crimea on the 6th of February.
By the fire which broke out in the arsenal near
the Golden Horn, a severe loss of stores was sus-
tained by the French.

The Russian army in Asia had taken up its winter
quarters, and awaited reinforcements.
PROGRESS Or THE SIEGE.
The letters from the camp bring intelligence to the
29th ult., but their contents are almost devoid of in-
cident. The following extracts contain the details
of most interest :

Our men are now feeling the effects of the cruel priva-
tions which all underwent from the latter part of November
shunt to the beginning of this week. An awful proportion
of sickness and mortality prevails. It is not enough to say
that our men are sick and that many the, but it literally
seems as if the army was melting away day by day. That
this is no exaggerrated statement your readers will readily
believe when I tell them that I am informed, on good au-
thority, that between the Ist December, 1854, and the 20th
January, 1855, no less than 7,804 officers and men were
invalided at Scutari. This number, of course, does not in-
clude either the men sick in hospital at Balaklava, or those
treated at camp in the various regimental hospital tents. It
is simply the number of men actually sent out of the
Crimea. But, enormous as this amount of sickness may
appear at first sight, it is really less than that which I was
led to anticipate from seeing the condition of the men in
the various regiments and divisions For instance, I know
that the Guards landed here upwards of 3,000 strong, and I
know that they have received reinforcements of nearly 6,000
men since they arrived at Balaklava. Yet I know also that'
they have lost 986 men and officers since it:kerma/in, and
that yesterday their whole effective strength was 738 men.
The Guards, in fact, are but a remnant, a mere shadow, of
one of the finest brigades which ever eutered a field of
battle. In single regiments the loss appears to be some-
thing quite beyond comprehension. The 23rd, I am told,
buried thirty-five men at camp within one week. The 28th
have a rnerelly nomival existence, and the 63rd have ceased
to have even that. The gallant 40th are reduced to some
seventy or eighty men, and,the 89th are almost as bad. In
fact I believe there is not one regiment at this moment in
camp which musters four hundred men, and there are not
many which could turn out three hundred. Thank
Heaven, as far as atmospheric influences are con-
cernel, the condition of the allied forces is consider-
ably better. The weather is magnificent ; the nights clear
and cold, the days mild and genial, as in the month of April
in London. In fact the weather is exactly that which we
have wished for, though hardly expected. Advantage has
been taken of this unlooked•for interval to get up supplies
to the commissariat depot at head-quarters, and I am in-
formed that it now contains nearly ten days' provisions for
the whole force. The warm clothing has also been issued
in large quantities; and at present there are only two or
three regiments which are not supplied with those admira-
ble sheepskin great-coats, the comfort of which the men
are never tired of lauding. As a matter of course, the whole
force is on full rations, and by the arrival of the k'srious,with
a large supply of sheep and oxen, fresh meat will be issued
for two days this week. The three hundred mules which ar-
rived in the Trent are used to carry up the wooden houses,
but as the disembarkation of the mules was only completed
yesterday (27th) very little worthy of notice has been done
in this respect. It will still be the end of February before
all our men are under cover. This will be of no great
moment if the present weather continues, but if any
change for the worst takes place, of course the troops must
suffer as before.—Herald Correspondent.
The weather has of late taken a favorable turn for our
troops. It is moderately cold at night. The days are
clear and sunny. The wind is low, and incoming vessels
report fair average passages. Among the late arrivals was
the 14th Regiment, and the Jason, with a fresh load of bat
horses from Constantinople. Mules, too, the finest that
were ever seen with the army, have arrived from Gibraltar,
accompanied by Spanish drivers, who, it is to be holed,
will know how to take care of these invaluable animals.
This opportune accession to our transport cannot fail to
make the service more efficient ; and, as good will is not
wanting in the commissariat, though method may be, there
is every reason to believe that all our troops in front will,
from this date, receive full rations regularly. In this respect
our prospects are certainly brightening. There is yet no sign
of the tramway, which at the earliest date will at least take
two months for its completion, counting from the day of its
commencement. Supplies of charcoal have been issued to
the troops during the last two days, and raw coffee beans
are still the order of the day.—Daily News.
Strong earthworks have been thrown up all round the
town of Balaklava, which is now garrisoned by about
' 20,000 English, French, and Turks. The latter form
three-fourths of the entire strength of the place. But there
is one point which cannot too strongly be pressed upon
the attention of authorities at home and in camp. Unless
energetic measures are taken to cleanse Balaklava and
the intrenched camp from the abominations which have
been allowed to accumulate during an occupation of four
months, early spring, with its fever season, will do quicker
and deadlier work among our troops than has been done
by all the rigour of winter. We should be free of fresh
graves, old filths, and the rotting carcases of thousands of
horses before the advent of that trying season. Colonel
Hardinge, the new commandant of Balaklava, has up to the
present done little or nothing to cleanse the town of muck
and mire. It is asserted. though it is hardly to be believed,
that he finds difficulties in the way of procuring fatigue
parties for the work to be done.
The Gottenburgh and Oscar remain in the harbour of
Balaklava, with all their numberless little comforts, which
were to have been sold at cost price, still untouched.
This is about the most striking and gravest piece of
ntgligenee which ha' occuaed ma out here. 111 the

delay, it is said, arises from the want of a quartermaster
with some non-commissioned ofcer•s to superintend the
sale. The delay in the distribution of clothing and
stores, and, inleed, the whole system of the quarter-
master-general's department, is bitterly complained of.
Even for such a simple thing as a pair of shoes the appli-
cant must have a properly tilled up requisition, to get
which and have it sikied by all the authorities occupies, or
rather wastes, three days.
The immense masses of wrecks which lie outside the
rocks of Balaklava, and which, if collected, would have
served the whole army with firewood for the winter, have
been set fire to by some ruffian. and have been burning for
the last three or four days. These piles of wood, which
are now destroyed, would have been brought into the har-
boar long ago if the naval authorities had not refused per-
mission to auy one to touch them, under the plea that the
Maltese would steal it, and sell it to the troops at exorbi-
tant prices. But even according to this shallow excuse
the troops would ultimately have derived the benefit, for
it would have been flar better that exorbitant prices
should be paid for the wood than the men go without it
altogether, and freeze to death, as many dui. The real
fact, however, is, that the wrecks of these ten or eleven
ships were exclusively set apart for the use of Lord Raglan
and his staff. Boats from men•of•war were sent out each
day to collect it fbr Lord Raglan, and it was regularly
forwarded to head•quarters, and though his lordship
could not have consumed the immense amount of wreck
wood in ten years, still no one else was allowed to take
it.—Herald.

OMER PACHA ON BOARD SHIP.
The following particulars relative to the Turkish
Commander-in-Chief are extracted from a letter from
an officer of her Majesty's steamer Inflexible, a native
of Cork :

Inflexible, Varna, Jan. S.
I told you that we were going from here to the Crimea
with Omer Pacha and suite. Well, we have been there,
and back again. We left this with his Highness on New
Year's-day, arrived on the morning of the 3rd at Eupatoria,
where he went on shore and examined the defences of the
place, coming on board again in the afternoon, and we left
Eupatoria early on the 4th, and got into Balaklava in the
evening. Next day Omer and staff disembarked, and went
to the head-quarters of the allied generals,•where a council
of war was held, from which he retnmed in the evening,
Next day, the 6th, at noon, we left lialaklava, and, after a
fine ran, arrived here at eight last night, when his High-
ness, taking an affectionate leave of us, bade us farewell,
having distributed fifty sovereigns among our servants and
ship's company.
Omer is what may be called a handsome man, and
wears his age remarkably well, being close on fifty. He
has a very pleasing expression of countenance, and an im-
mense flow of spirits. He was quite delighted with the
attention shown to him and his followers by our mess. He
occupied, of course, the captain's portion of the ship, but
every day regularly, twice or three times, he would walk
into our gunroom, take his glass of wine, or more gene-
rally grog, and sit and chat fur an hour or so. His great
amusement was in caricaturing Lis followers for being sea-
sick ; in especial, he was very hard on Prince Stourza, of
Moldavia, one of his aid,es-de-canip. It appeared thin
prince had: just married a very beautiful woman, and was
very jealous of her, so much so that, when he was leaving
to accompany Omer, be sent her off with a few servants to
some old estate of his in the interior, with strict orders
that she was to see no one. Omer knew al,l this, and used
to get this fellow into a dreadful rage by talking about her,
and telling what, happened in time of war, when beautiful
ladies were deserted by their spouses. In fact, he was the
life of the whole lot. I had to explain to him all about the
machinery. Yesterday he came in, and wrote his name
in Turkish and in German on each of our cards. The
Turkish cypher is most remarkable, and Le never signs
his name in it except on great occasions.
The Inflexible has been placed for the present
entirely at the disposal of Omer Pacha, to allow of
his superintending the transport of the Turkish
troops to Eupatoria.

SUPPLIES FROM INDIA.
A. letter from Calcutta states :
The progress of the war in Europe excites intense in-
terest in India. The subscription to the Patriotic b'und
has been headed by Lord Dalhousie with 3001., and will
probably reach from all India 20,(X)01. There is a strong
feeling among military men that India might send aid to
the forces in the Crimea. We cannot spare Europeans,
and the idea of sending Mussulmans is a mistake. Oar
Mussulmans are not fond of the Turks, and are not easy
to hied. The Sikhs, however, would go willingly, and
10,000 irregular Sikh horse would be equal to at least
'20,000 Cossacks. They mess altogether, drink rum, will
eat anything except beef, and would be proud in the ex-
treme of such a proof of confidence. The only difficulty
would be in transport, and that is, in India, simply a ques-
tion of money. We cannot get steamers, hut we can get
any amount of sailing tonnage by paying for it.

A PROSPECTUS has been in circulation in Paris for
a pleasure trip to Sebastopol atthe commencement of
the spring season. The travellers are to start from
Paris and proceed to Marseilles, thence to Constanti-
nople, next to the Crimea, afterwards to Egypt, and,
finally, home by Algeria. The vessel fixed on for the
tour to the East is the Isabella steam pleasure-yacht,
under the neutral colours of Tuscany. The charge
for each person is tl be 12,00 K. The trip is to last
three months, and only ten passengers are to ►e
taken.

154

THE LATE CAPTAIN HENRY THOMAS
BUTLER, D.A.G..
_ _

THE following letters of condolence have been ad-
dressed to Lieutenant-General the Hon. Henry E.
Butler, the father of this lamented officer :
From His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge.
Constantinople, Dec. 2, Itis4.
Sir,—Having been prevented by press of business and
indisposition from writing to you sooner, I feel that an
apology is due to you on my part that I have not sooner
performed a painful and most melancholy duty. You will
easily understand to what i allude. Your gallant and most
amiable son was attached to the Ist division during the
whole period of our army being in the field. He was there-
fore under my constant observation. I had many opportu-
nities of judging of his talents and of his worth. It was
therefore with deep grief that I saw him fall at the battle
of Inkermann on the sth of last month.

He is deeply regretted by all who knew him, and by
none more so than by myself : but his death was gallant and
I trust not painful. I can easily understand what your
feelings must be to hear of his loss after your recent
bereavement, when another gallant son also fell in the per-
formance of his duty and in so distinguished a manner. I
shall not therefore further trespass on your moments of
sorrow and grief than to inform you of my deep sympathy.
—I beg to remain sir, yours very truly,
(Signed) GEORGE.
_ . _

Lieut.-Gen. the Hon. H. E. Butler.
From the General•Commander-in•Chief Lord Hardinge.
Horse Guards, Dec. 5, 1854.
Sir,—T deferred expressing to you my sincere condolence
in the sad loss you have sustained while the affliction was
still fresh, but I beg you will now accept the sympathy which
is due to the father of two gallant sons who have fallen in the
cause of their sovereign and their country. Your son had
been placed on the staff of the army in the East solely on
account of his acquirements and promise. In his early
fate you have the consolation of his having with so many
other brave soldiers, who fought and fell at Inkermann,
nobly done his duty, a comfort which cannot fail to be in-
creased by the manner in which Lord Raglan mentions
both your sons in his despatch of the 11th of November.—
Begging you again to accept my sincere condolence, I have
the honour, &c. (Signed) HARDINGE,
Lieut.-Gen. the Hon. H. E. Butler.

PUBLIC VEHICLES IN CONSTANTINOPLE.
THE writer of a letter from Constantinople, which is
published in the Times, gives the following account
of the system of public conveyance in that capital :
It is natural for any man accustomed to English modes
of doing business to be confused and harassed by the su-
perintendence of a department at Constantinople. The
famous Golden Horn, which would contain the navies of
Europe, has only about two hundred yards of miserable
wharf, half of which is on the Stamboul side, and therefore
useless to the allies. Except s few dwellings of the Perote
aristocracy, the whole city is composed of wooden edifices,
sometimes large and rambling abodes of wealthy Turks,
more generally mere sheds, and a single night sometimes
witnesses the destruction of hundreds of these by fire.
Stores and warehouses do not exist beyond the wants of
the petty Galata merchants. The only water carriage is by
crazy caiques or barges, slowly propelled by three or four
Lazes or Armenians. Yet these deficient means of trans-
port cost large sums. A lighter sufficient to carry a few
hundredweight of goods is now paid for at the rate of three
hundred piastres, or 21. 10s. per day. Even private persons
find the cost of locomotion enormous. A man in London
thinks it a great deal if he spends Bs. or 10s. in a day for
cabs ; but any one whose business forces him to traverse
this capital thinks himself well off if he has not spent such
a sum is horses, caiques, and backsheesh. Constantinople,
with its suburbs, is the most extended city in the world
after London ; nor does it consist, like our own metropolis,
of several nuclei of business or pleasure, each of which is
a world to its inhabitants. Every one who has work to do
must go everywhere at a great loss of money, time, and
temper. This is the reason why business is so slowly
done. The distances are so great, and the mechanical
means of communication so defective, that two or three
transactions occupy almost the entire day. Each man
spends a great part of his time in going from place to place,
so that when a call is made it seldom happens that the
person sought after is to be found at home, if he is he
is sure to be just going out. As there is no lighting of the
streets all business must take place during sunlight, and
the time for effective exertion is consequently diminished.
The waste of labour is enormous, and yet the population
does not thrive. From the Oriental never having risen to
the idea of a cart, all burdens are carried on the backs of
men or animals. Five or six sturdy porters may be seen
staggering under the weight of a moderately-sized barrel,
slung at a great mechanical disadvantage to two crossed
poles. Timber for houses is carried by strings of miserable
donkeys in a manner unsightly and dangerous. The ends
of the long beams swing from side to side of the narrow
streets, and compel the passing ladies to rush for safety
into the nearest shop. Of course, anything like a post for
letters is unheard of; any one who wishes a note earned
must send his servant, or engage a porter at a cost of 2s.
or 3s. Yet, with all these advantages for unskilled labour,
the lower classes are in constant want. We see here in
full operation the state of things in which neither admi-
nistrative nor material machinery exists, and the labourer
can make his terms without fear of being supplanted by
artificial appliances. The result is what every thinking
man might expect. Individual pieces of work are highly
paid, but this work takes a long time to execute, there is
little employment for labour on account of the difficulties
which surround every enterprise,
n and, owing to deficient
cultivation, food is dearer in any country with the
same natural advantages. Looking at Constantinople