The Express.
London, England, 1864-12-19 00:00:00

SOUTHERN ITEMS.

The Richmond Enquirer of the 3rd has an article
on the late fires in New York, ridiculing the affair
and concluding as follows :
Of coarse it was • rebel Incendiary plot! Did not they
fire on Fort Sumter where fio►ted the " Old Flag !" A
morality that does not restrain violence to the emblem of
the best government, ba, &c., will hardly be proof against
the sin of burning hotels. Nothing can be clearer than
the proof of the complicity of Mr. Davis in the burning, or
attempts to burn, some half dozen houses in New York.
We have never read anything more truly "Yankees!'" than
this whole affair. We are very glad to see that all the
Southern refugees are required to register themselves.
If General Dix will hang them he will do • service to
our cause. A set of cowardly sneaks who have deserted
their country are not above burning hotels. We hope
General Dix will hang every mother's son of them.

New Orleans despatches furnish additional con-
firmation of the recent report that Allen, the Con-
federate governor of Louisiana, had organised ten
regiments of negroes at Shreveport. At present
they are employed in strengthening the defences of
that place, but are instructed i❑ the regular mili-
tary drill, and Allen expects soon to receive author-
isation from Richmond for putting them into the
rebel army. The Union General Lee, in his official
report of his late successful cavalry expedition into
the interior of Louisiana, says that he had a strong
fight at Liberty, and captured 200 prisoners, in.
eluding 25 officers ; 3 pieces of artillery, between
600 and 80 horses, and a number of negroes, and
destroyed immense rebel army stores on the rail-
road.
In the Richmond Senate resolutions relative to the
seizure of the privateer Florida by the Wachusett,
in Bahia Bay, were introduced and ordered to be
printed. They say that the act was "a flagrant
outrage on the sovereignty of Brazil" and " a
wrong to every civilised maritime power ;" that it
is the duty of the Brazilian government to protect
property of the " CoLfed erate States" within its
territory, and that it is bound to enforce the resto-
ration of the Florida to the Confederate authorities.
These resolutions also provide for laying a state-
ment of the case before all the European govern-
ments, and for the appointment of a commissioner
to confer with the Brazilian government in reference
to it.

THE REPORT OF THE SECRETARY FOR
THE TREASURY.

The report of the Secretary of the Treasury says
that the expenses to be provided for during the
current year, including the interest of the public
debt, amount to 1,400,000,000 dole. The customs,
internal revenue, and the missellaneons sources,
are estimated to produce 780,000,000 dole. ; leav-
ing a balance of 620,000,000 dots. to be provided for.
Further measures reduce this increase of the public
debt during the current year to 482,000,000 dole.
It is estimated that the public debt on Jury 1,
1863, will be 2,223,000,000 dole. The expenditure
in the next fiscal year is estimated at 1,168,000,000
dole., and the receipts at 396,000,000 dole. The
balance in the treasury is 330,000,000 dole., leaving
422,000,000 dole. to be provided for by loans.
Mr. Fessenden is opposed to the negotiation of a
foreign loan, awl will not resort to a further issue
of legal tender notes as long as the people support
the war by loans. The amount of interest
payable in gold by the government is
56,000,000 dole. If the sum required for
the expenses of the present fiscal year is raised
upon gold interest bearing bonds, and the
customs receipts do not exceed the estimate of the
first quarter, recourse must be had for gold to seine
other sources of supply. He thinks the govern-
ment should rely upon securities bearing interest in
currency convertible into bonds with interest pay-
able in gold.
REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE
NAVY.

The report begins by enumerating the operations
of the navy during the present administration of
the department which assumed control with a
navy reduced to the lowest peace establishment,
anl with only about 201 seamen available at all
our naval stations an 1 receiving ships, and has
since had to blockade a coast of over 3,500 miles in
extent, besides organising immense expeditions to
important points, every one of which has resulted
in complete success. The Secretary alludes to Wil-
mington as the only port not closed by coast ex-
pedition; and specifies some of the difficulties of
blockading it successfully, concluding with the fol-
lowing paragraphs :
This locality possesses singular natural advantages to re-
sist a blockade, to which the rebels have added others in
the way of earthworks, with powerful guns, to cover the
blockade runners, and to open on our vessels whenever they
come within range. These shore batteries were made to
command the several channels and the numerous inlets in
that quarter. The difficulties of clesiog this port entirely.
while the rebel forts command the chancels, and which
non. of our ships with heavy broadside batteries can
approach, by mason of this extreme shallowness of the
li water, can be rightly appreciated by those only who
are familiar with the locality, and have had ex-
perience on th►t station. Without a co-operating
Lad force, it is not expected that we could close the port
of Wilmington. There has been no time within the last
two year, when the navy has not been ready and anxious to
perform its part in such an expedition, for puseesaion of
the entrances to Cape Fear River is a necessity to stop en-
tirely all ingress to or egress from that place. Running
the blockade at that point hat been made a matter of buil-
INNS by foreign capitalists, so well as by the rebels.
Many who have failed to make themselves acquainted with
the facia connected with the Wilmington blockade have
been free sad severe in their censures of the manner
in which it has been conducted. The intelligent
officers of the naval and merchant eerviee who
have laboured with untiring zeal and assiduity,
and watched with sleepless vigilance through
weary months of winter and summer, and in all weathers,
stimulated by the hope of bsnedttiog their country sad re-
ceiving it. thanks, as well as by every inducement to fame
and pecuniary reward, if sucoessful, do not concur in the
opinion that the port of Wilminaton can be entirely closed
by blockade. Convinced, as this department always bas
been, that it is necessary to take plasession of the entrances,
so as to permit our arms' vessels of light draught to go
inside, no opportunity has been omitted to impress the ne-
cessity of joint naval and military operations for that pur.
pose. The navy has been at all times ready to perform its
part in such an expediti n ; but the army has not yet been
able to unite in a conjoint movement.

An account is given of the engagement in Mobile
Bay, concluding as follows :
The cspture of Forts Powell, Gaines, and Morgan, and
the destruction of the rebel Bret, gave us possession of the
bay, and closed the port to all home. or egress of blockade
ruonsre. This was all that was contemplated. Possession
of the city of 31 Ails could not melee the blockade more
effectual, used without a safficient co-operating land force,
which could sot then be spurt to take sod hold the place,
further dernoostrations were not advisable.

The operations of the Eider° Gulf and South
Atlantic squadrons are briefly reviewed. After