The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-02-04 00:00:00

THE CRIMEA.

The Courrier de Marseille contains the following
letter, dated Kertch, Jan. 9, which corroborate*
generally the telegraphic news already published

—" The status quo continues. There is a report is
imvn that an advanced guard of 5000 Russians is
approaching, and that a body composed of the
same number of men has been detached from the
army before Sebastopol to reinforce the corps*
which is to lay siege to Kertch. I am inclined to
believe that there is no truth in the report. The
season is anything but favourable for such an ex'
pedition, and the marshy plain, at the extremity of
which our town is situate, is altogether impractic-
able at this moment. Should the Russians, hew'

ever, entertain such a project, we are prepared to
receive them. The activity of General Vivian, the
Commander_in Chief, has provided for every con.
tingeney. In a very short time he contrived to
have huts built for 11,000 men of our division, to
erect fortific.ations, to dig fosses ; in short, he has
enclosed the town within a line of works capable
of victoriously resisting any serious attack. All
this is incredible, but literally true. It is but just
to arid, that General Vivian is well seconded by
his officers and staff. On the 2nd inst , upwards
of twenty transports, which cost the Government
about 510/ a day, were imprisoned by ice in the
bay of Kertch. The General in-Chief was desirous
to render available those vessels so costly, and fat
the present so useless. To extricate them from'
their position was a very difficult undertaking.
The operation required much patience and bold-
ness, and notwithstanding the enticing offers of
the General, nobody presented himself to execute
it. One of the General's aides de-camp, Major
Berganzi, at last proposed himself and succeeded,
at a trifling cost, after three days' most arduous
exertions, in freeing the steamer Derwent and four
others, and ultimately the remainder of the flotilla.
I feel pleasure in relating to you this fact, not only
on account of its invaluable merit in securing our
supplies and communications, but also because it
saves the Government of her Majesty 5001 a day."
According to official reports, writes a St. Peters.'
burg correspondent of the Cologne Gazette, the
Russian army in the Crimea, which Prince Gorts-
chakoff has just handed over to General Luders,
is compose as follows :—The 4th, sth, 10th, 11th.
16th, and 17th division of infantry (24,000 men).
the 15th reserve division of infantry (4,000 men).
with the appurtenant rifle battalions of artillery
and cavalry, the drusbines of the 38th and 54th
(7,000 men) militia of Kalgua, two regiments of
the 2nd brigade of the 6th division of infantry
(2,000 men), a brigade of the 2nd dragoon divisions
(two regiments, 1,600 men). In the positions of
Sarabus and Troch.Ablun, the 2rd and 3rd grena-
dier division (8.000 choice troops) with artillery'
the half of the 12th division of infantry (2,000 men)
with artillery, the 39th, 40th, 41st, and 42nd
drushines of Kursk (4,000 men). Of artillery 280
field pieces. The corps of observation near
Kertch, Theodosia, and Eupatoria, are not included
in this computation.