The Express.
London, England, 1863-03-31 00:00:00

BERLIN, Rama 27.
The government clique and the so-called feudal
party have during the last few days had a severe
disappointment. The imprisonment of Langiewicz
and the partial dispersion of his army was, of
course, with the proverbially hasty connexion
between wish and thought, regarded by them sa
the death-blow both of the insurrection and of their
bugbear, the Polish question ; and great was their
arrogance and self-congratulation in consequence.
They were slow to believe that it is not Langiewicz,
but an irresistible national feeling, which laughs at
treaty frontiers and is unassailable by governments
or armies, that is the true leader and organiser of
the insurrection ; that the disaster in the south-
east is merely local, and has not even crushed the
insurrection in that part of the country ; and that, !
so far from being disheartened, the Poles have
since continued the struggle with greater determi-
nation than ever. Indisputable facts have forced
them, however, reluctantly to arrive at these con-
clusions The imprudent conduct of Langiewicz in
leaving his army without their knowledge at first'
caused much confusion ; but after the more dis-
contented, amounting to about 700, had departed
for Galicia, there still remained a compact body of
excellent soldiers in two divisions, one of which
proceeded westward, and the other towards the
north-east, in the direction of Swienty Krzyz. The
fate of the former is not known; the latter, under
Colonel Crachowski, was overtaken by the Russians
in large force near Krzeszow, on the Galician
frontier. In two desperate encounters, at Potak
and Huta, the Russians, under Biedraga, were
defeated with great loss ; but at Gorda a portion
of a division of 8,000 men advancing from Volhynia
under General Itzewuski came up, and the Poles
were so immensely outnumbered that, after a heroic
struggle, in which 100 of them were killed or
severely wounded, 400 escaped into Galicia, and
the rest retreated towards Janow. They are now ,
in great danger, for the rest of Rzewuski's division
has, it appears, crossed the Bug at Usciluga ; but
it is probable that before it comes up with the
insurgents, they will effect a junction with the
corps of Lelewel and Lewandowski, who have
hitherto carried all before them in the north-east I
of the palatinate of Lublin, and who have already I
done serious injury to Rzewuski's division, by
burning its magazines at Hrubieezow on the 22n
Besides the corps of these two leaders, there are
numerous bodies of insurgents scattered all over
this district. Several are at Pilisx ; others at
Olkusz • and upwards of a thousand, under Colonel
Cieszkoiniki (who should be distinguished from
Czachowaki), are proceeding through Siewierz to
Swienty Krzyz, which is a sort of central point for
these guerilla bands. Altogether there are at
least 15,000 armed insurgents on the scene of
Laugiewicz's former exploits, and they fight quite as
gallantly and successfully without him as when he
was their leader. _ _ _

The Russian troops opposed to these 15,000
Poles appear to have suffered considerably from the
late battles. Many of the companies have dwin-
dled down from 100 to 76 or 80 men, and they
seldom venture out of the large villages or towns.
The places occupied by them are, Kielce in the
north, Stobnica and Staszow in the east, Michalo-
wice in the west, and Opatow and Saudomir in the
south-east.
The insurgents under Mielencki, stationed about
Konin, near the Posen frontier' have performed a
most brilliant feat of arms. A detachment of this
gallant band, consisting of 400 men, was attacked
on the 21st at Olazow, near the Kazimierz-woods,
'by 1,000 Russians. The battle lasted four hours,
and the Russians were at length forced to retire,
leaving 158 of their dead on the field. The next
day they were again beaten, losing 232 men, 100 of
whom were afterwards taken up by reinforcements
from Konin, and carried in 22 waggons to that
city. The Poles, seeing that the Rumanian
bad been reinforced, ther. abandoned the
field, carrying their wounded, among whom
was the gallant Mielencki, with them, and
proceeded to Slesin. Here they met with 2,000
Russians, who were advancing from Dloclavek •
and after a sanguinary encounter, which lasted
till night, completely dispersed them with a loss
of 238 men. it is said that in this last battle the
Russians were struck with such a panic that they
were ordered to charge ten times by beat of drum
in vain. The Polish loss in these three battles was
but 50 men. In reading of these extraordinary
victories against such tremendous odds, it must be
evident to every one that, valiant and heroic as are
the Poles, the Russians fight with very great nuwil-
lingnesa. It is impossible to account in any other
way for the enormous and utterly disproportionate
losses of the Russians in nearly all their recent
encounters with the Poles, especially when it is
borne in mind that the former are disciplined and
thoroughly equipped soldiers ; whereas the latter
are mostly townsmen, armed with scythes, who,
three mouths ago, had never handled a weapon.
It was not the fault of Prussia that these splendid
victories were not converted into defeats. The
Russian agents in Posen, Weymarn, and Krywonos,
are bard at work collecting information, with the
help of the Prussian police, for the authorities in
Russian Poland. On the 19th, five armed Cossacks
passed through Prussian territory, ou their way
from Pyzdra to Kalioz, with despatches from
Colonel Prince Wittzeustein to General Brunner,
and returned on the same day through Ostrow in
Posen. A few days after, a Prussian officer had
an interview with a Russian officer, accompanied
by five hu at Borzykow, in Posen. Yon per-
ceive that the Convention is not a dead letter yet.
The insurrection musters very strong iu Lithu-
ania, chiefly near Pinsk, Sluck, Mozyr, Groduo,
Wilna, and Kovno. A guerilla leader, named
Rykow, has raised the Polish standard also in
Livonia. The Russians were severely beaten on
the 21st, at Mlawa, by the Poles under Bryozowski,
and lust three guns.

M. EDGAR QOINET AND TEI BISHOP or ORLEANS.
—The Sickle of to-day publishes an eloquently.wntten
letter from M. Quint in reply to the late communication
from the Bishop of Orleans. Referring to a remark of the
prelate that his efforts for Poland were checked by steer of
having the liberal party in Europe as his allies, M. Quinet
rya:—"ls it thus, moeseigneur, you imitate the good Soma-
Man? I cry to you, There is • man struggling with mur-
derers. They have surrounded him and covered him with
wounds; be is weltering in his blood; if we
. .