The Press.
London, England, 1857-01-10 00:00:00

JANUARY 10, 1857.

wens to the authorities and city of Canton (where all the
Chinese high officials reside) as is enjoyed under treaty at
the other four ports, and denied to us at Canton alone.

To this Yeh returned no reply. Operations were then
commenced against the city defences ; the wall was
breached, Yell's palace bombarded, and an entry
forced into the city. On the Admiral Seymour
informed his Excellency Yell in rather laconic terms
of the result of the bombardment :

Your Excellency sent no reply to my message, and
according to the intention of which I hail given notice to
your deputy, I breached the wall of the city, and thus ob•
'mined access to your Excellency's official residence, which
ritiited yesterday afternoon. This object accomplished,
I withdrew my trucps.

On the 31st Yeh replies that the people of Canton
still retain their original objection to the admission
of foreigners to the city, and concludes :

It may be supposed how little to their liking has been
this storming of the forts and this destruction of their
dwellings ; and apprehensive, as I am, that evil may hence
befall the officials and citizens of your Excellency's nation,
I can suggest nothing better than a continued adherence
to the policy of the Plenipotentiary Bonham, as the
correct course to be pursued.

Further correspondence then ensues. Sir John Bow-
ring forwards to Yeh a copy of a previous communi
cation from Sir George Bonham, in 1849, stating
that her Majesty's Government had then no inten-
tion of renouncing their right of entering the city
of Canton. To this Yeh replies, on the sth Nov.,
that Sir George Bonham, in 1849, published a pro-
clamation prohibiting foreigners from entering Can-
ton, and promising that the question "should be no
more discussed :"

The Kwanitung people (observes Yeh) of the present
day are the Kwang•tung people of 1849. If admission
into the city had been practicable, in 1849, there would
have been no occasion for the prohibiting notice of Mr.
Bonham. Your Excellency's proposition, being identical
with his, will not bear discussion. I would have you ask
yourself, if the question of admission to which the Kwang-
tung people were opposed before be, in all likelihood, less
easy now, when they piave been subjected to grievous af-
fliction, than it was in IN-0).

The destruction of twenty-three war junks at
anchor up the river was the next step on the part of
Admiral Seymour. An attempt of the Chinese to
burn our squadron with fire-rafts proved unsuccessful.
Sir John Bowring, on the Bth, wrote to express his
satisfaction at the conduct of the ad miral, observing
in his despatch of that date !

Whatever may have been the importance of the question
which necessitated the first appeal to hostilities, it has now
assumed a character seriously involving all our present and
future relations with China ; and I am of opinion that
everything possible should be done to give effect to treaties
which have been pertinaciously and recklessly violated--a
small and turbulent fraction of the population of China
cannot be allowed :co supersede the engagements of their
Emperor to the Sovereign of Great Britain.

On the 9th Admiral Seymour again pressed his de-
mands upon the Imperial Commissioner, and warns
his Excellency of the penalty of inciting the people
to resistance, and that active measures will be still
further carried on if he continues obstinate.

Yeh replies, on the 11th, with much moderation :

As to the imputation that T am vainly seeking to incite
the people to a rupture, in support of an unjust and per-
sonal policy, I would ask by what person have they really
been incited to a rupture in this case?
The seizure of some criminals on the part of the
Chinese Government, a small matter, having been misre-
presented as a hauling down of your flag—on the 23rd,
24th, and 25th ultimo, you opened fire on the different
forts of the city. To this, in consideration of the peace-
ful relations so many years subsisting between us, I made
no rejoinder whatever. Had I not referred myself to the
higher principles (which your letter accuses me of not
keeping in view), I should have shown no such forbear-
ance.

As to another observation in your letter, let your Excel-
lency well remember, that without any injury done to the
English by the people of Canton, your Excellency fired at
once into the city, and ask yourself whether this consists
with the forms of war, as waged by a great State, or
whether this is the practice of civilisation.

Upon this, further aggressive operations were
carried out—the Bogue Forts were captured on the
12th, on the 13th the Annunghoy Forts, and by the
15th the entire defences of the city were in tile ad-
miral's hands.

A circular, dated Nov. 15th, from Mr. Parkes,
addressed to the foreign residents at the Factories,
concludes the correspondence. Mr. Parkes ob-
serves:—

His Excellency is determined that his demand shall be
conceded. But the community must be well aware that
any course his Excellency may now contemplate would be
compromised by publicity. His Excellency therefore con-
fines himself to stating that he sees no immediate pro-
spect of a restoration of quiet; the security of the foreign
position will be as well cared for as heretofore ; the nature
and object of any measures now to be resorted to, his Ex-
cellency deems it advisable to keep to himself.

THE PRESS.

SIR ROBERT PEEL ON RUSSIA.

SIR ROBERT PEEL, on Monday evening last, attended
the opening of the Adderly-park Museum and
Library, and delivered a discourse upon Russia, re-
markable for its buffoonery, bad taste, and
indecent vulgarity. Sir R. Peel commenced his
address by stating that he had enjoyed the
proud satisfaction of being conveyed to Rus-
sia "on board one of those magnificent vessels
which plough the ocean like queens, and gloriously
assert the independence and greatness of our
country." As he passed up the Baltic and round
Cronstadt he reflected naturally upon the past, and
upon the great distinction that might have resulted
from any successful operations against it. When he
arrive:) at St. Petersburg, though it was in the
heart of summer, he found the weather very change-
able, '° like everything else in Russia." The city, he
said, is built on piles, and is always very subject to
the east wind :

When the east wind blows St. Petersburg has a chance
of being done away with, as the public expected Sir Charles
Napier would do away with it,—at all events, it then stands
a good chance of being sunk in the water. It is not a very
magnificent city, and does nut strike one by its fine streets
and buildings after all.
It was a city of deceptions, "like everything else in
Russia." Sir Robert Peel then detailed a long list
of solid realities for so deceptive a city. The square
before the Winter Palace was " the largest in the
world ;" the monolith in its centre was also" the largest
in the world ;" while the crown jewels in the rooms of
the palace were " the most magnificent in the world."
The ruby in the imperial crown was such "as was
never seen before ;" the emerald in the sceptre was
"the largest in the world ;" the ball of state had an
"enormous" sapphire; the Empress's beautiful crown
of pearls contained " the largest pearl " lie ever saw ;
and in fact the effect produced by this congregation of
brilliants was something "quite magnificent." There
VIM at all events no deception about the crown
jewels, and the Walpole collection of pictures was
quite as authentic and valuable in its way. In the
Winter Palace was the famous Reach collection,
removed there some two years since by order of
the late Emperor. Sir Robert Peel discovers in this
removal a vast political significance :
The man in charge of the collection pointed my atten-
tion to a quantity of works of art, and said, " Here is the
Kertch collection." I snid, " 1 thought they were all
taken by our people," to which he replied, " Oh no ; they
were removed by order of the Emperor two years ago."
That shows the premeditation of the man. Those pictures
had been removed at great cost and difficulty from Kertch
to St. Petersburg two years before ; and this proceeding
leaves little doubt on my mind that there was a great de-
sign against the liberties of Europe.
The next palace was the Marble Palace, the resi-
dence of the Grand Duke Constantine. Both the
palace and its Grand Duke were terrible decep-
tions :
It is called the Marble Palace because it is built of
granite. The Marble Palace is the residence of that
frank and open-hearted sailor " Constantine. How I
laughed when I read that description of Constantine's
character. You may remember what has been said about
the distinguished Admiral Constantine. With all respect
to his Highness, I must say that I never saw a man who
gave me less of the impression of a "frank and open-
hearted sailor." It is all soft sawder, you know.
Sir Robert Peel found no deception in the hotel bill.
The embassy dinner cost 601. a night ; but, con
sidering that, attendants included, the embassy
numbered some sixty persons, the charge perhaps
was not so exorbitant. Besides, too, Sir Robert Peel
himself tells us that they all had "enormous estab-
lishments," and all lived at an "enormous rate."
Being daily so " horribly done" made Sir Robert
anxious to reach Moscow. Arriving there, he is
once more " horribly done " by one General Souro-
chokoff, " a common man, who:ie whole anxiety was
to impose upon people who trusted in him" :
At my command he had sent for me to the station a mag-
nificent carriage with four magnificent grey horses. I has-
tened at once to our dwelling near the English Embassy,
accompanied by my wife, Lord Stafford and his wife, the
Duke of Newcastle's son, and Lord Shaftesbury's son.
Sourochokoff charged me 11X/1. for the hire of each horse,
and, although I objected to the impost, I as compelled to
pay his exorbitant demand.

It would appear from this that not one of the right
hon. baronet's numerous carriages or horses had been
forwarded to Moscow. _

As the great fair was being held at of course
Sir Robert Peel must "do " the fair. The appear-
ance of the postmaster appalled him:—
I went to the postmaster, and found him one mass of
decorations. I was quite frightened with his pomp and
ceremony. He gave me what he called an official, but a
man I .hould have taken for a general officer, so splendid
was his uniform.

Everything was at length arranged, and he started.
Road travelling about Moscow was tolerably good
for so deceptive a country and people :

29

We travelled on a road as smooth as Hyde•park front
Moscow to Nishni, four hundred miles, in twenty.eight
hours—fifteen, sixteen, and seventeen miles per hour fre•
quently. We were in the second carriage, and I once
made signs to our richly-dressed director that we were not
going Last enough, eel that the first carriage was outstrip•
ping us. He immediately rose from his seat, dragged the
man from the hoc, and cast him to the ground, nearly
killing him. I took care not to complain again.
—•- -

• -
Sir Robert, however, enjoyed this sort of thing :

There was no postillion for one of the six horses when we
stopped at one post•honse, but the director in gold insisted
that we must have six horses and six riders, and, to supply
the vacancy, rushed into the crowd which had collected,
seized the first person, put him upon the horse, and started
off again. The man had no stockings or shoes on, but
that. did not matter ; he soon got in a dreadful state from
riding, and dropped off the animal. The horses frequently
became tired, and when they fell down exhausted were
left by the roadside. The postboys suffered the same
treatment when they became unable to perform their
duties. Ido not think I ever enjoyed travelling so in my
life.

The hospitality of the inhabitants at Nishni was
no deception, and the Governor was a " brick" :

Our arrival caused a great sensation, for they had never
perhaps seen an English face before. The following
night some of our party went to the theatre. The Governor
was there, and, seeing strangers, inquired who we were,
and as soon as he ascertained he treated us with the
greatest possible hospitality. During the whole time I
was in Russia I never saw such a brick as the Governor
was.

But the fair and its Ci
Sir Robert :

were the things for

What delighted us most, however, was going to the fair;
We saw there Calmucks and lovely Circassians, the latter
being particularly engaging, and I was nearly engaged twice
by some of them.

Here, too, was a little business to be done : there
were teas and caviare to buy—good investments—
but, above all, some turquoises from the people of
Bokhara

These I felt snre would realise in this country all that
General Sourochokoff robbed me of. lam always anxious
to recover, arid never like to be " done."

But the Emperor was about to enter Moscow, and
no time was to be lost in returning. Nothing was so
magnificent as the Imperial cortege on the day of the
Emperor's entry. The hon. baronet then gave a
series of graphic descriptions of the illustrious per-
sonages present at the coronation. First was—

THE EMPEROR ALEXANDER.
The Emperor Alexander is a fine-looking man,
his appearance and the expression of his physiog-
nomy being mild—in fact, nothing desperate-looL:ng
about him. The homage he receives from his sub-
texts is godlike, and such as could scarcely be con-
ceived in a free country.

THE EMPRESS.

As the Empress entered she fell flat on the floor,
I supposed by accident. It was, however, to kiss
some sacred stone or other ; and then she carne in
wick her hair dishevelled, looking like Norma in the
opera.

COUNT MORSY.

The French Ambassador, a spick-and•span man
of considerable aplomb, and who, by the way,
is one of the graatest speculators in the world. He
speculates in everything, and bought a lot of pic-
tures to sell again and make a profit of.

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