The Express.
London, England, 1854-01-11 00:00:00

chief chamberlain, which he occupied with distinc.
Lion till the death of Sultan Mahnioud, and then
entered the service of the present monarch, with the
rank of pacha, and mushir of the imperial palace.
Subsequently, in addition to these functions, he was
promoted to the poet of Seraskier, and contributed in
that capacity for many years to the organisation and
present excellence of the Turkish army. Itiza thus
possessed an enormous amount of favour, influence,
and power for a very long interval—perhaps such as
before vested in any ono individual—and it is
generally acknowledged that no act of tyranny or
oppression has ever been laid to his charge.
Apti Puha has been dismissed, as was long anti-
cipated, and Ahmet Pasha named Seraskier of
Anatolia.

I have received the following letter from Armenia:
ERZEROUM, Dsc. 3.

A friend of mine has just arrived hue from Tabriz, in
ten days, and gives me statements which I regard as very
interesting in the present state of affairs. I transmit them
to you accordingly, such as they are.
I wrote to you that our charge d'affaires had taken down
his arms and broken off his communications with the Shah.

Persia is positively in a league with Russia ; the govern-
ment has issued orders for t►e army to be formed in four
corps of 30.000 men each. One corps is destined for Kiwi,

one for Kirmanshab, whence it may march upon Bagdad, a
third is located in Bushier, bot the fourth in Herat. Per-
haps these two are intended to intimidate our Queen ?
Russia, by way of compensation, promises to Persia the
two provinces of Sulimenia and Bagdad, the cession of her
ald debt amounting to fifty thousand totnauns (shout
250,000!.). Moreover she supplies her with arms, munition,
and more money. .

The Turkish ambassador at Teheran will withdraw, and
take the route of Bagdad.
Our charge d'affairea was to leave Teheran on the Itith of
November, but it appears the Shah is endeavouriag to de-
tain him, in order to gain time, that his own complaints
may reach London before those of our diplomatist can get
there.

Five Persian regiments; with 20 pieces of cannon are
already in Khoi.
All these preparatives of Persia against Turkey are for
the most part nominal, since the Shah will never be able to
keep a good army an foot. The treasury is exhausted, the
administration infamous, the soldiers wretchedly bad, and
certainly not disposed to fight against the Turks. Well-
informed persons are of opinion that 20,1100 Turkish
regulars would suffice, provided they were commanded by
good generals, to bring Persia to her leases, and impose on
her such conditions as she pleased.
Let us, however, examine the army of Kars. I think I
mentioned to you before that the entire corps had crossed
the Arpa Chai, had invaded the Russian territory, and
blockaded after a fssbioa Alexandropol; thst 13 Russian
battalions, with 16 pieces of cannon, had fought with a
Turkish division having 42 pieces of cannon, in which en-

counter the Russians lost 60 men and 13 horses. The Turks
lost 15 men, baides 56 badly wounded among their regular
troops; what the loss may have been among their irregular
ones has not been ascertained. Neither party gained an
inch of ground, and during the night the Russians returned
into Alexamlrepol. On the 30th of Nov. the Turkish army
evacuated the Russian territory, and matched through liars
for taking up its winter quarters.
It is said that all the inhabitants of the Shuragbel have
abandoned their villages, which were in part sacked by
hordes of irregular Koords. The heads of the Russians
slain in the fight were carried about the battle-field and
paraded in Kars. Several European medical men have
arrived here from the army. They relate that the commie-
sariat of the army is in a deplorable state, the soldiers with-
out pay and short of food. All the army surgeons complain
of ttcir treatment, and say that they were threatened with
the bastinado and put under arrest. I am, believer, con-
vinced that there is great exaggeration in this statement,
for it is hardly a mouth ago that I myself was on the spot,
and I saw there enormous stores in granaries and countless
armaments. I cannot picture to myself how such abundant
supplies could so quickly have disappeared and have been
followed by such scarcity. They surely state this as some
• extenuation for their conduct, that cannot be deemed praise-
worthy. That which appears true and to admit of no con-
tradiction, is the inefficiency of the chiefs, which every one
, complains loudly of.
' Four pieces of a battering train arrived here from
Baybout, and were sent on to-day to Ardahau ; the other
thirteen will be here in a few days, ar.d will be sent on to
Kan. It fa said that the Russians have 19,000 regular
troops in (Gamri) Alexandropol.
Serri Pacha arrived here yesterday from Coapoli, and will
start for Kan in two or three days.