The Press.
London, England, 1855-01-27 00:00:00

A BOLD RECONNAISSANCE

The Moniteur de Vdrinie publishes a letter dated
from the French camp before Sebastopol on the 3rd
instant, from which we extract the following inter•
esting account of a gallant enterprise succesfully
accomplished by a party of Zouaves
A few nights since, when completely dark, and during a
beating rain, the sentinels on duty saw advancing towards
the town a score of those intrepid volunteers who are de-
signated in the Frehch army by the name of enfant; perdva,
because they devote their lives to the most dangerous enter-
prises. Two marched at the head, one behind the other,
at five paces distant from each other, and a little in their
rear came the remainder of the band, preceded by an
officer, named Benner, of the 7th Regiment of the line.
But the moment they got beyond the French sentinel their
mode of advancing became most curious, as the whole of
them threw themselves flat on the ground, and crawled
along without a word being spoken. Their chief, an old
Zouave, had taught them to advance in this manner ; as
soon as they have lain down, they stretch forward in front
of them their musket as far as they can reach ; they then
drag themselves along the ground to a line with it, and go
on repeating this movement unfit they reach their place of
destination, keeping themselves always ready to start up
and rush on any enemy that may come within their reach.
The route they had to follow was a crooked one, for they
had to leave on their right a mound of earth behind which
s,,rne Russians were in ambush. It was not their object to
have anything to do with this post of the enemy; it was

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necessary to turn it, and glide between it and the ditch in
order to examine the enemy's works, and return without
being observed. before entering the narrow apace which
separates the ditch from the Russian post, the officer left
there more than half his men, and if they were discovered
they were to fall on the post. He, with five or six deter-
mined followers, crossed this dangerous passage, and went
along the edge of the ditch. lie round un the edge of it
chevaux de frise, made up of palisades of wood ; he tried
with his hands the strength of these defences, and found
them firm in the ground, and solidly bound together. The
ditch was six feet deep, and the rain-water lay deep at the
bottom of it. To fill up the ditch appeared impossible, to
tear up the palisades would occupy too lung a time, to
burn them would be better. The chevaux de Rise were
fastened together with chains, and if the former were
burnt the latter would remain. It would be better to carry
them off. The night was as dark as can be conceived. A.
man was seen a few paces from the leader. Astonished at
his appearance, the leader crawled gently towards him,
and found him to be one of his own men. The officer
continued to advance, when suddenly he was stopped by a
trench, and he heard the sound of shovels and pirksus,
workmen talking, and guards walking with their feet in
the water. What were they doing? They were preparing
a mine. He marked the spot from which it started, and
the direction it took. The rain continued falling, and thu
exploring party could not do anything further; the flash of
a cannon might betray them, and the officer gave the sig-
nal for retreat. They followed the same route, which they
could readily discover by the marks of their bodies on the
muddy ground. They again passed near the post of the
Russian soldiers. The latter, from the darkness, did not
see that death was at a few paces in their rear. All of them
might have been killed or taken prisoners, but the French
party had other parts of the works to reconnoitre, and the
success of the enterprise was worth more than the destruc-
tion of ten Russian soldiers. After having finished their
exploring, the officer and his party rejoined the men they
had left behind them, and who remained lying in the mud.
" Nothing new, mes enfans ?" whispers the officer. " No-
thing," was the reply. "Then let us return," and the
twenty brave men repassed our sentinels in the same
silence. On the following night, these same men advanced
and threw down the guidons which inconvenienced our
troops, made one Russian prisoner, and brought away
several bags of powder. One of them was hit by a ball in
the foot.

MISMANAGEMENT AT BALAKLAVA.

The following instance of the utter confusion which
prevails in the British port of the Crimea is given
in a private letter
A vessel arrived at Balaklava loaded with boots and
shoes. Having no bill oflading, and the cargo beingmerely
stated as shoes for the army, the vessel was ordered
out of the harbour to wait her turn. A few days after-
wards an order came from Lord Raglan to obtain a vessel
to prooeeed to Constantinople instantly on a most pressing
service. This vessel was consequently ordered to proceed
to Constantinople, with Lord Raglan's agents, without
unloading. When she had nearly reached that place one
of the agents imparted in confidence to the captain that ho
w.,s going to Constantinople to purchase hoots and oboes,
the army being in a great state of destitution fur want of a
supply. The captain replies, " Why my vessel is filled
with boots and sloes I" Upon which the ship was put im-
mediately about and returned to Balaklava.
THE LAST OF THE BALTIC FLEET.
The steam-frigate Magacienne (the last remaining
man-of-war in the Baltic) arrived at Elsinore on the
15th from her second cruise to the eastward. She
had been within thirty miles of Libau on the Rus-
sian coast. The weather experienced on her last
trip was particularly severe ; the ship was completely
covered with ice, the anchors frozen to the bows, and
the forecastle gnus to the deck. A large number of
her crew (40) were laid up by the intense cold. The
presence of an English frigate in the Baltic at so ad-
vanced a season had given great confidence to our
merchant vessels, and was the means of preventing
the escape of several Russian ships from Elsinore and
Copenhagen, where they have beets all summer, wait-
ing a chance of leaving for Itiga. It is now too late.
The Magicienne arrived at Leath on Sunday evening,
having remained a month later than any other of the
flying squadron.

The correspondent of the Herald writes, under
date of the sth inst.:—

The siege—if siege it may be called—goes on, or rather
stands still, as usual. The day when the French made
their reconnaissance in the rear at Balaklava the Russian
batteries fired heavily upon the French works, which replied
with shell from the newly-mounted mortars. These mis-
siles appeared to do tremendous execution, both in the
town and among the enemy's earthworks, and almost com-
pletely silenced the fire of the tiartien Battery. All look
forward with the greatest confidence to the destructive and
final effects of our bombardment whenever we recommence.
The weather now is our only enemy. However, if the frost
should continue fur two or three weeks, and plenty of tresh
horses be sent up, sufficient supplies of ammunition may
be forwarded from lialaklava to enable us to opt= fire
again much sooner than is generally anticipated With
horses to transport the huts, ammunition, and rations, We
shon:d do very well ; without them we can do nothing.
All kinds of fresh provisions still continue to sell at the
most exorbitant prices. Iron sancepans, stoves. and general
canteen utensils are in great request, and fetch any stirs
when they are to he had, which is r.eldom. Warm clothing
Or fresh provisions of any kind sell for about their weight
in silver.
Jas. o.—The cold is still most severe. and if we tiny
judge from the northerly wind and clear, bright airamisre,