The Press.
London, England, 1854-10-07 00:00:00

942

proceeded to make formal proclamation of the event
from the steps of the Royal Exchange. The Park
and Tower guns fired salutes on Monday at sunrise.
In the course of Sunday and Monday the tidings
flew about England and Ireland, eliciting everywhere
tokens of joy and triumph. Paris was illuminated
on Monday evening. In many French towns there
were salutes, flag hoistings, and other triumphal
performances. The Austrian Minister for Foreign
Affairs, Count Buol Schannstein, on behalf of his
Majesty the Emperor Francis Joseph, transmitted to
the Emperor of the French his sincere congratu-
lations on the brilliant success of his arms in the
Crimea, and to add, that he heartily associates him-
self in all the hopes which are attached to them.
This message was conveyed by M. Hubner to M.
Drouyn de l'Huys, and published in Wednesday's

Monfteur.
FURTHER PROCEEDINGS.
Within a few hours of the publication of the
despatches announcing the victory of the Alma,
Loudon and Paris were startled by tidings that Sebas-
topol had been taken by a coup de main. This
intelligence was accompanied by a variety of circum-
stantial details which gave it apparent authenticity.
Fort Constantine, on the north side of the har-
bour, was said to have been blown up, Fort Alexan-
der taken, six Russian ships sunk, and 18,000
Russian soldiers killed. Prince Menschikoff, it was
added, retreated into the inner harbour, where he
threatened to blow up his remaining ships and forti-
fications it' the attack continued. Six hours had
been granted him to consider whether he would not
prefer a capitulation "for the sake of humanity."
This story agitated the public mind for four days,
and obtained extensive belief, notwithstanding its
evident improbability, and the almost miraculous
rapidity of the military operations which it inferred;
for this assault on Sebastopol was stated to have
taken place upon the 23rd, only the third day after
the battle on the Alma. Still the tale came to us
repeated from so many points, and occasionally with
additional particulars, that at length it was almost
accepted as veracious, and the Times of Tuesday
morning printed the wondrous narrative over again,
with the heading " Decisive Intelligence," and
published also a leader taking for granted its truth
to the fullest extent. Some contradictions, and even
impossibilities, of time and locality, were, however,
detected by known critics in the details set forth in
the story, and although its versions were innumera-
ble both in London and Paris, yet the origin of all
could be traced no further than Bucharest, where the
only basis for the report seemed to be the verbal
statement given by a Tatar, or courier, bringing
despatches from Constantinople to Omer Pacba,
which contained, he declared, the authentic an-
nouncement of the great event.
All surmises were, however, set at rest, and the
public anxiety appeased and disappointed, by the
publication of official despatches bringing down the
history of the Crimean expedition to a late date, the
28th ult., and sufficiently proving that, up to that
time, Sebastopol had not even been attacked. The
despatch appeared also in an Extraordinary

Gazette :
" Translation of the Exact Copy of a Telegraphic
Despatch, received October 5, 10 a.m., and trans-
mitted by the Agent of England in allachia, at
Bucharest, the 30th of September [evidently 3rd of
October], 1854, 31 p.m.
"Lord Stratford, Constantinople, to Lord Clarendon,
Minister of Foreign Affairs, London.
" September 30, 1854, at 01 p.m.
" The allied armies established their basis of opera-
tions at Bala Cleve on the morning of the 28th, and
were preparing to march without delay upon Sevas-
topol. The Agamemnon and other vessels of-war of
the allies were in the port of Bala Clam There
were facilities there for disembarking the battering
train.
" It is stated that Prince Menschikoff was in the
field at the head of 20,000 men, expecting reinforce-
ments ; that the fortified place of Anapa has been
burnt by the Russions ; that its garrison was march-
ing to the scene of action ; and that a convoy of
ammunition, escorted by Cossacks, had been taken
and destroyed by an English detachment.
" The Banshee, bearer of this news, left the Crimea
on the evening of the day before yesterday.
" STRATFORD DE REDCIIFFE."
There are some geographical perplexities involved
in the despatch and an hiatus of time which we have
but slender and unauthentic intelligence to fill up.
Bala Cleve lies on the coast of the Crimea, several
miles to the south of Sebastopol, while the Alma
flows into the sea nearly twenty miles to the north
of the fortress. Between these two points are two
or three rivers, several ridges of high land intersected
by deep ravines, and the harbour of Sebastopol
itself, which makes a deep incision into the land.
To cross from the Alma to Bala Clara also the allies
must have cut through Menschikofes line of commu-
nication between Sebastopol and his military head-
quarters at Bakchiserai. How the allies got to
Bala Cleve is not stated in the official despatch