The Press.
London, England, 1853-12-17 00:00:00

RI StilA AND TURKEY.

The great news of the week front the shores of
the Euxine has been that of it Maid viettiry obtained
Ly thif I:ll,4sians at Simpe, on the :tool ultimo, A
Turkish squadron of frigates, muter Rear-Admiral
Osman Patella, was conveying troops ►►ndl stores to
the army I'rou► Constant no pit WIWI' it
fell in with a Russian fleet of fa• superior fitter.
The Pacing male for the harbour of Sinope, whither
he was pursued by the enemy, who entered the
roadstead, silenced the weak and ancient batteries
en shore, and after a cannonade of an limn. and a
half destroyed the whole of the Turkish vessels.
Set en frigates, one steam-frigute, two sehooners, and
three transports were thus sunk or burnt. The
carnage is stated to have been immense. Osman
Paella and the crew of his ship were taken prisoners
arid eanied to Sebastopol. On the Russian side
much loss is acknowledged, and the flag-ship of
Admiral Ilachinoff, who conntuunieti, was so much
damaged that it was brought into harbour with in-
finite d►fliculty. Immediately on receiving the
tidings of this victory, Prince Menschikoff despatched
an attaeliC from► 4 ►dessa to convey the news to the
Emperor Nicholas. The Russian force in this en-
counter consisted of four ships of HO guns and four
of mri. 4 Ismau► Paella is said to have succeeded in
landing at Sinope the warlike stores and the crews
from the transports which he was charged with es-
eorting to Trebizontl, and which we.e not captured
by the Russians. The landing was effected while
the Paella was, with much gallantry, defending
the entrance of the port.
The defeat at Sittope was known at 4.011%61114-
norle tin the Irti inst., where great excitement pre-
vailed. A Orand Divan w►ts held, at which all the
foreign 31inisters were present. The English anti
French Ambassadors wt re urged to despatch the
combined fleets into the Black Sea, but they had an
audience of the Sultan. at which it was resolved not
to send the whole fleets at once, but four frigates, to
obtain more precise information. nitre was, how.

. SATURDAY,

ever, little doubt that the whole fleet; would shortly
enter the Black Sea.

The Turkish passenger-steamer, Medari Tidjaret,
which was captured by Russian cruisers in the Black
Sea, came into the Bosphorus on the 214.11, and
caused great astonishment. The vessel was taken
before the expiration of the delay granted on both
sides for placing merchant ships out of danger.
As there were several Russian merchantmen at Con-
stantinople when the Medari Tidjuret was captured
the Russians were unusually scrupulous in dealing
with her, fot• fear of reprisals.
A column of the new legion of Turkish Cossacks
has arrived at Constantinople, t 4,11110 volunteer
Scoth•icns have been organised m Albania, and a
new corps of 10,0410 Kurds has been formed by the
sheiks of their country.
Lord Stratford de Reachffe has removed from
Therapia to Pera, to be nearer the French Amine:-
sador.

The merchants of all nations at Constantinople
are signing an address to the Sultan expressing
their best wishes for his cause.

A letter from Berlin says :—" A piece of curious
news is circulated here as authentic, but the truth of
which it is impossible to ascertain at Berlin. Narvik
Packet has not succeeded at Paris in negotiating a
loan. This was to be expected. But what could
not be foreseen is, that the United States of America
have (so it is said) uttered a very considerable sum
to the Porte, on the condition that some small island
in the Archipelago shall be ceded to them."
Intelligence front the Danube of the 16th, as given
in the Austrian Lloyd's, states the Mussulman army
at 205,155) men, of whom 45,issi were at Widdin and
Kalafat. All these troops regularly received their
pay m specie.
hostilities were virtually suspended. The snow
was very deep in the mountains, whilst the frozen
ground in the plains impeded the construction of the
entrenchments continence(' by the Turks at Tama
Drift iee was floating about the Danube. The Alma
and other smaller rivers were frozen over. General
osten-Sackers was expected to reach the Danubian
principalities out the 12th inst.
Entrenehments have been thrown up around Bit
charest. The hospitals in that placa were full of
sick soldiers. A cordon was to be formed along the
line of the 'Meister.
The Russians and Turks in the states of the
belligerent powers have been placed, by mutual
consent, under the protection of the Austrian
agents.
Prince tiortschakoff has, by imperial order, de•
dared the ports of Galatz and Braila neutral for
exportation and importation.
General lludberg, the Russian commissioner ex-
traordinary to the principalities, arrived at Bucharest
on the 6th inst. The Boyards received him with
great honours.
The Prince of Servia, doubting his safety at Bel-
grade, has left that city for Topola.
llodzewitch, late secretary to Prince Gortschakotr,
arrived at St. Petersburg on the 29th ult., in custody
of an escort. lie was accused, together with another
Pole, of having kept up a correspondence with the
Turks. Both are stated to have been shot on the
spot, and privately. An officer who was said to have
furnished the 111C11111 of their correspondence was
publicly shot in St. Petersburg on the :25th.
The St. Petersburg papers state that ill the morn-
ing of the tilt. the gulf of Cronstadt was covered
with ice as far as could be seen. On the 27th the
ice had greatly increased, but still left large open
places. On the 29th the ice was so strong that men
could pass on foot between emnstadt and Oranien-
baum. The daily service of the post-office between
Cronstadt and St. Petersburg ceased from that date.