The Express.
London, England, 1855-06-29 00:00:00

Ishored yesterday evening off this plow with the skips under
my orders, and apt grouch steamers, I seat Lieutenant-
Commander Horton of the Ardent, accompanied by a
French officer with similar ciders, at daylight this morning,
to demand the surrender of the plate, on exactly the lame
terms es those offered by us at Taganrog ; and I desired him
to impure to the authorities the earnest hope of myself and
of the French senior offieer, that they would not oblige as
to resort to measures which would endanger the whole town,
as our object was to destroy all contraband of war, but to
' respect private property.
At the expiration of the delay granted, no authrrised
person appearing, I sent the line-of.bettle ships' launches
(lent to the squadron) and the boats of the ships under my
orders, with all the marines under Lieutenant Macnamars,
R.M.A., the whole commanded by Lieutenant J. F. C.
Mackenzie, of this ship, to effect our object by force; the
French boats accompanying ours.

On the marines and a body of French small-arm men
landing, under cover of the launches' guns, 600 Cossacks,
commanded by a colonel, evacuated the town, and the
marines and the French small•arm men advanced and took
possession of it; the very extensive stores of grain were
fired and destroyed by parties under the directions of Cap-
tain Lejeune, of the French navy, and of Lieutenant Swirl-
borne, of this ship, every care being taken to cause as little
damage to the town as possible.
Thus was a considerable town on the military high road
from the provinces of the Don to the. Crimea (the only one
left since oar occupation of this sea), held unmolested pas-
mein of by a small body of British marines and French
small-aria men, for five hours, while immense stores of
grids were destroyed.
The grain, plank, and other stores considered as contra-
band of war, being effrctuilly destroyed, the whole party
re-embarked without the slightest accident.

Lieutenant Mackenzie emanated this service with excel-
lent ludgment ; and he speak, in high terms of the judicious
manner in which First Lieutenant Mummers, Roysl
Marine Artillery, posted the Royal Matisse and Royal,
Manii Artillery under his orders, in pretence of a superior
force, who were Nine deterred from venturing to molest
them.—l have, do.,
(Signed) B. M. LYOI4B, Captain.
Rear-Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, Bart., G.C.B.

()REISS.

Her Majesty's ship Miranda, off the town of Ghissk,

Jane 6, 1855

Sir,—l have the honour to inform you that on my arrival
here this morning with the vessels under my orders, end the
launches of the line-of-bat'le ships, accompanied by four
French steamers, I sent Lieut.-Commander Horton, of the
Ardent, with whom was associated a French officer, to de-
mand the surrender of the place on the same terms as these
offered by us at Taganrog and Marioupol. These term,
having been wisely acceded to by Colonel Borsikoff, the
military governor, whose small force was quite inadequate
to defend the town, the marines of this ►hip, under First
Lieutenant Macnatnara, R.M.A., and a French party,
landed and destroyed a vast quantity of hay, stacked
on the beach, ready (for conveyance to the Crimes,
and 1 thousand quarters of wheat, &e. &c•
During this time, Lieutenant Horton and the
French officer went through the town, and had all
the store-houses and magasines thrown open for their
inspection, in order is see that no evasion of the terms
was attempted, and that all contraband of war was de-
stroyed.
On this as well as on the two former similar occasions,
Lieutenant Horton conducted the interview with much
Judgment and firmness.—l have, &c.,
(Signed) E. M. LIONS, Captain.
Rear-Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, Bert, 0.C.8.

KITEN BAY.

tier Majesty's ship Miranda, off Kiten Bay,
Bsa of Asa', June 10, 1856.

Sir,—l have the honour to enclose a letter from Lieu-
tenant Horton, commanding her Majesty's ship Ardent,
which I received on my arrival here this morning, inform-
ing me that he, yesterday, set fire to and destroyed 30,000
sacks of dour, stacked on the beach in Kiten Bay ; this flour
was the property of the Russian government, and evidently
destined for the Russian army in the Crimea. Lieutenant
Horton hu performed this service judiciously and effec-
tivelT.—l have. &e..
(Signed) E. M. LYONS, Captain.
Rear-Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, Bart., G C.B.

Her Majesty's ship Ardent, Kiten Bey,
June 10, 18d6.

Sir,—l have the honour to report that on my arrival here
yesterday, having failed of 'petting fire to the stores of flour
by means of shells and CUMIN!, I took advantage of •
favourable state of the weather in the evening to drop the
Ardent's bow chum in shore, and to veer Mr. Roberts, the
gunner, uhore in the dingy, with two men, under cover of
musketry from aloft. I had previously ascertained that no
ambuscade was there, and had cleared to • distance the 30
or 40 Cossacks who were watching by firing round shot in
their direction.
Mr. Roberts and kis party very quickly and effectually
fired all the staeks, and I anchored the Ardent off to watch
the fires.
The whole stores are now consumed, estimated by the
Lyn: at 30,000 sacks.—l have, &c.,
(Signed) W. HORTON,
Lieutenant and Commander.
Capt. Lynes, Her Majesty's ship Miranda.

Her Majesty's ship Minna', off Temrerick,
June 9, 1865.
' •

84,-1 cannot allow the launches of the line-of-battle
ships to return to their ehipa without requesting permiesion
to bring to your notice the sea and intelligence of the
odious in command, and the excellent conduct and good
discipline of all employed in them, which has enabled them
to tender such important service in the Sea of As4f, and
which—if I may be permitted to say so without presump-
tion—reflects so mush credit on the ships they belong to.
I should also beg leave to bear similar testimony to the
merit of the commanding altars of the Danube and Salina,
and those under their command, as well as to that of the
officers of Royal Marine Artillery who have been lent to
this aquatints during the tame period.—l have, &c.,
(Signed) E. M. LYONS, Captain.
Rear-Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, Bart., G.C.8.,

Royal Albert—Firet launch : Lieutenant J. D. Curtis;
Mr. H. M. Blomileld, acting mate. Second launch : Lieu-
tenant T. M. S. Pulley ; Hr. H. C. Leek mate.
Hannibal—Pint launch : Mr. A. F. Hurt, acting mate ;
Mr. W. H. Maxwell, midshipassa ; Mr. C. G. Woltenden,
aseistant.eurgeou. emend launch : Lieutenant J. H.

Crang ; Mr. E. N. Streatfleld, midshipman.
Algiers—Fiat launch : Mr. J. C. Wilson, mate ; Mr. J.
G. Smith, assistant-minion. Second launch; Lieutenant
F. G. C. Paget; Mr. H. W. Brent, mate.
Agamemnon—First launch : Lieutenant T. L. Gammen ;
Mr. Biddleoombe, master's assistant. Second launch : Lieu-
tenant T. J. Young; Mr. G. F. Cottam, midshipman.
St. Jean d'Anre—First launch: Lieut. E. W. Timm ;
Mr. J. B. Creagb, mate. Second launch : Lieut. H. W.
Comber ; Mr. R. C. Mayne, acting mate.
Princess Royal—First launch : Lieut. John Murray ; Mr.
F. 0. Shaw, midshipman. Second launch : Lieut. W. H.
Jones ; Mr. T. L. Pearson, mate.
Danube—Lieut. R. P. Cator.
Salina—bir. C. H. Williams, acting mate.
Nugent Miramar'', let Lieutenant, R.M.A. (Royal
Albert); Joshua R. Brooks, ditto (St. Jean d'Acre) ;
Frederick A. Forster, ditto (Princess Royal) ; William
Pitman, ditto (Algiers).

LORD RAGLAN AND GENERAL PELISSIER.

A correspondent of the Indepesdance Belge writes :
—"The ommequences likely to be produced from the coo •
hinting views of men of such opposite temperame•ets as kird
Raglan and General Pelissier, have perhaps Ireen exagge-
rated; SiVertheleli, 1 am assured that the c Anoinnicatioas
between the two chiefs of the Allied armies an not what
they wen in the time of General Canr obert. The latter
was accustomed to communicate him pleas before they were
realised to Lord Raglan, who ones; made no reply for
some days, such delay being sometir,ies prejudicial to the pro-
' Posed movement. It appears the•o General Pelletier confines
himself to naming, to the Geearal-ia-Chlef of the English
1111111111 y the part which he proposes him to take, the site tO
be eeeeleede end the number of men necessary, reserving to
bimmiftite right of acting alone if (contrary to probabilities
ead Priesient) Lord Raglan does not thick the operations
liMety to be names'. It appears then, according to them
lemments, which I believe an strictly correct, that the ',ell 1
pewees previously demanded by General Pillager for the
employment of the French tomes in Peetieeln have been
rented Ma."

TURKEY.

OWE TIN CORRIMPONDRIfT OP THE DAILY NEWS.)
CONSTANTINOPLE, Julia 18.
The Munedjim Cachi, or chief astrologer, was thin
year rather out, it would appear, in his e,alculationg
and the new moon all of a sudden peeped unceremo-
niously from the firmament to proclaim the Moslem
fast. It was thus that, about midnight, heralds had
to be despatched in all directions to announce this
event and rouse the faithful from their slumbers.
All were on their legs in a twinkling, rubbing their
eyes, seedy, sullen, and out of sorts ; and pots,
(kettles, saucepans were soon got under weigh with
an impromptu store to provide, as best might be,
against the tribulations of the morrow. The Ramazan
runs through all the seasons—the Arabiaa year being
lunar—and completes its cycle in about 33 annual
revolutions. When it falls—as was the case this
year—on the summer quarter, total abstinence, u
imposed by law, during twelve or fourteen hours, is
lin all truth a most serious affair. From sunrise to
sunset nothing is allowed to enter the mouth or other
parte of the body—not even medicine, if required:
and these rigorous injunctions of the Prophet are
strictly observed, and most severely felt by the great
mass of the population. Moreover, the pastime of
the bath, the harem, and the chibouque, which latter
is the Moslem's counsellor and refuge in the hour of
trial, are all interdicted—nay, even the sceptic—for
such there are hers as elsewhere—dares not smoke in
public.
The day is devoted to charity and works of bone.
leolence; and the great functionaries ramble about
s'ecog., consoling those in affliction, and distributing
alms in every direction. These pious and humane
duties are, above all perhaps, rigorously fulfilled by
those attached to the imperial court ; and the vener-
able traditions of Islam exist still unchanged in the
recesses of the Seraglio. It is really a goodly and
imposing eight to contemplate the euouchs assembled
at the hours of Nemec in the great hall of their
chief: their melodious voices, in solemn recitative,
united in thanksgiving and praises of the Most High.
Meantime they are not altogether forgetful of their
evening, and of revel and festivity, and when relieved
from these pious exercises they while away an hour
in preparing dainties for the Iftar. Thus, divers
cauldrons may be seen gaily seething in the :court-
yard, and each encircled by a swarthy group of
doubtful gender, all in deep deliberation, Red come
snuffing slily. the savoury. perfumes of the Tehal-
came. This is a most exquisite Arabisu ragout, con-
sisting of a great variety of ingredients, such as a
turkey, pheasant, partridge, vegetables, and all the
spices of the East, I believe, boiled down for several
hours to a censomme. This the eunuchs send round
in portions at sunset to the members of the imperial
family and inmates of the harem—and this delicious
little bait, in these primeval waters, is sure to catch
whole shoals of gold and silver fish.
The Bairam also, this year, was ushered in un-
seasonably, and on a Friday, thus doubling the duties
which this festival imposes on the Sultan and all
the great functionaries. At early dawn the thunder
of artillery from the land batteries and war chips in
port announced the event, and the Sultan, in magni-
ficent attire, entered his state barge at the Palace of
Tcheragan, and proceeded, as usual, with the whole
retinue of his court, to perform the duties of the
Bairam Namaz at the mosque of St. Sophia.
The prayers and ceremonies of this feast are un-
usually long, and Lasted on this occasion above two
hours, after which his Majesty, mounted on a splen-
did Arab, decked out in the richest trappings, pro-
ceeded through the Bab Humayoun to the presence
chamber, situated in an inner court of the old Seraglio
proper, and there received the ministers, the corps
of the Ulemahs, the chiefs of the various corporations,
and all the great officers of state. This /mom oda is
a spacious saloon, and full of lugubrious, or rather,
perhaps, somewhat ludicrous associations. It was
there, I am told, that their excellencies the repre-
sentatives of the European powers, in the olden
times, were received in audience—a favour,
by the way, rarely granted in these days,
and only on most important occasions, such as the
declaration of war perchance, the presentation of
credentials, or the delivery of passports. Whatever
the object, however, the ordeal was attended with
great discomfort and certain humiliating inflictions.
Only fancy his excellency in the dog days, may-
hap, packed up in a great pelisse to make him de-
cent, and cover his " unmentionables," which of all
things in those times were most offensive to
Turkish decorum. This same operation was
hence also performed on all and each of
his attendants—their arms pinioned to boot,
by the grasp, right and left, of a powerful Baltayi—
and in this plight, squeezed to death, the perspiration
oozing out at every pore, they were ushered into the
presence of the Caliph, and thus all temained to the
end of the chapter. As a climax, I way fuither men-
tion, that to ensure good behaviour and strict obser-
vance of etiquette, a phalanx of ferocious Janissaries,
armed to the teeth, blocked up every avenue,
and all chance of exit during the ceremony.
The tortures and various inflictions of this exhibition
were such, that ono ambassador and well-known
orator, I am told, forgot his speech in the very
exordium, and required, to get him through the lem-
ma any how, continual poking and prompting from
his astounded and secretaries.
I merely allude to those facts of historical noto-
riety, to prove what I have often noticed in the course
of my correspondence, namely, that the whole face of
things has been totally altered in this country within
the last thirty years • and that the (Liman:eta have
advanced more, perhaps, than any other cation would
have done under the circumstances, in the path of
freedom and civilisation. Lord Palmerston, who is,
as I have often said, their idol, may depend upon it
that the Turks will do all he can wish, and still more
—provided the allied governments give them fair
play, prosecute the war with vigour, and bring it to
a triumphant issue. All their best efforts
have been paralysed for long years by con-
tinual pressure from within and without, by a
hateful and perpetual aggression—which, like Su&
fon's " monster polypus," had firmly grasped with its
gigantic claws the old state-ship, and shackled all its
onward movements.
The Sultau,after having gone through the reception
of the great officers of state at Constantinople, returned
in his barge to the new stone palace of Dolma
Baotche—and after having beard prayers at noon
in the neighbouring mosque of the Valide, h:s Ma-
jesty finally returned to Tcheragan for the Mon-
haiade or " Baise-mains." There is something pleasing
and patriarchal in this ceremony, at which, notwith-
standing the fatiguing duties of the festival, the
Sultan, like a good shepherd, reviews twice a year
his whole household troop. They are all received in
the presence chamber—a spacious and splendid
saloon—where a company of the Imperial Gusuld is
posted in lines, and Donizetti's band executing with
great precision at the same time a variety of beautiful
national airs. The Sultan is usually seated on a
fauteuil, richly embroidered, and studded with pre-
cious stones. This year the four young princes
i magnificently decked out were standing in a line on
I the right of the sovereign, and the ohamberlains and
pages of the imperial court, in splendid uniforms,
I grouped rigtit and left, forming a semi-circle a little
Ito the rear. In former times, about ten yards in ad-
vance arid fronting the Sultan was placed on a
cushion a richly-embroidered cloth, with gold fringe ;
and to this point all the courtiers advanced with a
profo and oriental salaam, and, kissing the
elot'a, filed off right and left till all
he d paid in succession their annual tri-
tmte of gratulation. This year, however, I may
mention, as a "sign of the times," that the eastern
usage of' the etenama, or profound obeissance, which
had existed from time immemorial up to the present
day, was finally abolished by the spontaneous act of
this magnanimous young sovereign; thus, this
I said traditional gold cloth was held within net more
than half-a-yard's distance from the Sultan by the
chief chamberlain, and having been kiseed, as is
usual by the courtiers at this festival, the •Atuewhat
humiliating ceremony required hitherto 'otas entirely
dispensed with on this occasion.
His Majesty wore a splendid tiara, surmounted
with ostrich feathers, and le,oked remarkably well.
No doubt the stirring events at the seat of war, and
the conviction et laigth that his allies are really in
earmte eetntributed much to cheer and inspirit the
Bourg sovereign, and to enliven the ceremonies of
1 the festival. It has been often remarked by travel-
lers and correspondents of the press that the Sultan
when in public appeared " pale, emaciated, and care-
worn " Wu, hoWerers strictly speaking, is not the

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