The Press.
London, England, 1854-01-28 00:00:00

THE PRESS.

the entrance to the Black Sea was free. At daylight
of the 3rd the order was given to get under way.
A large crowd had assembled on the shore of Therapia
to witness the magnificent spectacle. Eighteen
powerful frigates were seen getting up their steam
at the same time ; small sailing •vessels were gliding
along between the larger ships, and the latter weighed
their anchors, made fast to the steamers which were
to take them in tow, and loosed their sails, and in a
short time a general movement was visible. Later
in the day, however, the wind again lulled, and it
was not until the following day that the whole of the
fleets, which consist of thirty-three vessels, of which
fifteen are of the line, had all entered the Black Sea.
A correspondent of the Pays, in giving an account of
the event, says :

" The Henri IV. was the first to start in tow of a frigate,
and proudly passed along with every sail set. The others
followed, each as they were ready, and, as the French fleet
was at anchor in advance of the English, it had the appa-
rent honour of leading the van. But when the English
line-of-battle ship the Queen, bearing the flag of Admiral
Lyons, got under way without waiting to be taken in
tow, and dashed into the Bosphorus with all the precision
and rapidity of a steamer, a shout was raised on the shore
in applause of the admirable way in which she was
handled."

The latest news of the fleet is communicated by
the captain of a steamer from Trebizond, who en-
countered it steering with a fair wind and tine
weather for Batoum, which was then within a day's
sail. The "message" to the governor of Sebastopol
was delivered on the 7th, when the two steamers
despatched for that purpose arrived before the port.
The governor is stated to have contented himself
with answering to the notification of the entry of the
fleets into the Black Sea, that he was astonished at
so unforeseen a communication, that he could not
understand what they wanted of him, Russia being
at war only with Turkey, and that, consequently, he
could not say what he meant to do under the cir-
cumstances.

The following is a list of the Russian naval forces
in the Black Sea :

"Varna (admiral's flag-ship), 120 gins; Twelve Apo*.
Ike, 120 ; Rostilas, 120 ; Sviatoekt, 120; Selglond, 120 ;
The Three Svialitely, 120; Sultan Afahmoud, 80; The
Three Terorchow, Fri; Uriel, 80; Yagontlib, 78; Chabry,
80; Crelem, 84; Silutria, 80 ; Catherine 11., 80.
" FRIGATES.—Midia, tlo gam ; Korarna, 56 ; Flora, 54;
Brailow, 60; hfirifrla, 66; Zisopol, 52 ; Kagul, 48 ; Alga-
-46. Fifteen small ships (such as brigs, corvettes,
and schooners).
STEANlEBB.—Beuarabia, 6 guns ; Gromonos, 6 ; GrOgNyt
6. Total, 1,042 guns."

Of these ships many are supposed to be not
fully equipped.
A Russian official communication has been pub
fished at Trieste by the central naval authorities.
All vessels carrying ammunitions of war, and stopped
by Russian cruisers in the Black Sea, will be re-
garded and treated as good prizes, whether belonging
to a hostile or neutral power.
_

The statement thaC the two English engineers
captured in the Egyptian steamer Medari Tidjaret
had been set at liberty is contradicted. The Go-
vernor of Odessa obstinately refuses to give them up.
Enormous preparations both in the way of men
and money are making by the Czar to carry on the
war. The armaments throughout the whole empire
are stated to surpass all belief. The organisation of
all the reserve battalions has been ordered, and half
the invalids are called in for garrison service. A
part of the infantry corps stationed in Warsaw under
General Paniutin has received orders to be prepared
to march. It is intended to form a depot of 150,000
soldiers at Moscow, to leave 100,000 in Poland, sta-
tion another 100,000 in columns among the provinces
of the Baltic and in Finland, and raise the army on
the Danube to 200,000 and that of Asia to 100,000.
A ukase has been issued calling upon the seamen
of the Baltic fleet to rejoin the ships by the 15th of
March. The concentrations are to take place at
Cronstadt, Revel, and Sweaborg.
On the side of finance, in addition to the 50,000,000
francs withdrawn from the Bank of France, and
25,000,000 francs demanded from the Warsaw Bank,
it is stated that a new issue of paper money will im-
mediately take place, to the amount of 0,500,0001.
sterling, to meet the war expenditure.
The Paris journals report sundry sayings dropped by
the Emperor Nicholas, or his chief advisers, respect-
ing the current events. We are told that when the
Emperor learnt the entrance of the fleet into the
Black Sea he displayed perfect calmness, and said
to those about him:—

" When battle is offered to Russia, Russia accepts. She
can afford to mourn for a fleet, but not for the honour of
the nation.
" I expected the resolution taken by France and Great
Britain, and therefore lam not found unprepared. All my
orders have been given in advance, foreseeing this act,
which, by violating treaties, frees me from their obli•
gations."

There happened to be a grand reception at the
Court on the day that M. de Reizet attended for the
purpose of presenting the declaration of France re-

79

lative to the entry of the fleets into the Black Sea.
After the ceremony was over, the Emperor Nicholas,
addressing some members of the diplomatic corps
who were near him, said :

" Gentlemen, I have done all I could to maintain peace.
lam driven into war. Russia never refuses battle when
offered to her. She may mourn the loss of a fleet, but she
will never have to mourn the loss of her honour."
The following melodramatic dialogue between the
Czar and Prince Menschikoff is reported, with a
voucher for its truth, by the Constitutionnel
" The Czar : lan we make head against these formid-
able squadrons?
" Menschikoff: Conquer them, no ! Fight and die to
the last, yes !"