The Sun.
London, England, 1855-09-27 00:00:00

LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, SEPTEMBER 27, 1855.

LOSS OF THE NEW YORK, _NEWFOUND-
LAND, AND LONDON SUBMARINE
TELEGRAPH.

(From the New York Journal of Commerce.) '
An attempt has just been made by the "New York,
Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company " to
lay a submarine cable from the Island of Cape Breton to
Newfoundland, with the expectation and under a con-
tract that the Transatlantic Company, composed of
French and English capitalists, will by January, 1858,
connect with them at St. Johns, N.F.

These united companies propose building a line from
Halifax across the Island of Cape Breton to Cape North,
thence across the Gulf of St. Lawrence to Cape Ray, on
the south-western shore of Newfoundland, thence along
the southern coast of the latter island to St. John's, on

its eastern side, and there to connect with a great sat-
marine cable having its terminus at Cork, Ireland ; the
distance across the ocean between those points not beitig
more than 1,680 miles. The land portion of the line is
being rapidly built, while the submarine part of it, be-
tween Cape Breton and Newfoundland, the company are
sanguine will be completed next year. Along this pro-
posed route from Cork to St. Johns, the bottom of the
sea is a plateau or ridge, as discovered by Lieutenant
Maury in 1853, which, from its apparent purpose-of
holding the wires of a submarine telegraph, has been
called the Telegraph Plateau. It is about 70 fathoms
deep, gradually increasing in depth from the shorei of
Newfoundland. to near those of Ireland, and some two
or three miles in width.

St. John's is about two days nearer England than
Halifax, and contains equal facilities for coaling large
steamers. A dangerous rock, called the Merlin Rock,
at the narrow entrance to the harbour, 18 feet below Ithe
surface of low water, has just been successfully removed
by the orders and at the expense of the New York,
Newfoundland, and London Telegraph Company, under
the supervision of Mr. Husted of New York ; so that
now the largest steamers i❑ the world can with safety
pass in and out of that land-locked harbour. The com-
pany have now in process of erection commodious wharf
accommodation, and such other conveniences as will;se-
cure to the oceanic steamers all that is necessary 'for
their success.

Although the zeal and perseverance of this company
have been seriously tried by the failure of this their fir,t
attempt to connect Cape Breton with Newfound'aivi,
and by the severe loss to which they have been sub-
jected thereby, yet they are not at all discouraged, ljut
they will be ready at the earliest practicable momentito
try again. They were fully aware at the outset that serious
obstacles were to be overcome before their objrct
would be accomplished. They had bought out the
charter of an old company, which had failed in
its project of uniting those shores, though partiapy
successful in building the line. They had the oppor-
tunity of profiting by the previous experience of that
old company in laying the submarine cable whib
connects New Brunswick with Prince Edward's Island

—a distance of about ten miles. They also L;rought to
their work the experience of a gentleman in laying the
cable which connects Genoa with Corsica—a distance of
95 miles. They had the counsel and advice of those
who have had the charge of laying the wires across tie
British Channel, the Black Sea, and elsewhere. Still,
in this enterprise they have been unsuccessful. Thy
have, however, learned a lesson from which they can
derive much profit. They have seen the mistaken ecp-
norny of employing a sailing vessel in tow of a laic
steamer rather than one steamer of sufficient strength
and capacity to carry the cable and to pay it out frot.n
her own hold. They have also seen the importance of
commencing their operations earlier in the season, lid
of having the management of their steamer in the co -
trol of one man, nautically and mechanically skillet];
who is thoroughly and experimentally acquainted wi h
all the coast, the sea-soundings, the oceanic and tid 1
currents, and the winds ipreva,lent at a given. season f
the year.

If they have learned this lesson, it may not be t
too dearly bought at an expense of 30,000 dols.
The following are details of the attempt :
The steam-ship Jas. Adger, Capt. S. C. Turner, of th
Charleston line, after an absence of a month, arrived at
this port Sept. 5, at 11.30 a.m., from an excursion tio
Newfoundland, where she had been employed in layin#
the Submarine Telegraph which was to connect that
island with Cape Breton and the Continent of . meric4.
The points of attachment for this submarine cable
were, in general, Cape Ray on the Newfoundland coast,
and Cape North on the Cape Breton shore ; the distance
between these points being 551 nautical miles, as given
by the English Admiralty. The 'ength of the cable wls
74 statute miles, being an increase of a little over 10
prr cent. over the exact distance between these
—a greater allowance for the lee-way and unevenness
bottom than had ever before been made-12 per cent.
heing the greatest ever allowed. The water at Cad 4
Ray point was found to be shoal, and ice was sail
to accumulate in large quantities there and in its
immediate neighbourhood. The engineers in the eni.
ploy of 'the company recommended, therefore, th4t
the point of attachment should be a little further
to the east—namely, Port-au-Basques, about Bevel.
miles east of Cape Ray, and making the distance abod
three miles farther from Cape Nor:1 on the opposiie
shore. The decision ultimately arrived at was that the
cable should start from a point within a cove just to the
east of Cape Ray, and a mile and a half from its extrenie
point. Here it was considered safe from the ice. It
was thence to proceed directly across the Gulf, leavinig
St. Paul's Island ou Ihe right, and to be landed within'
a bay just to the east of Cape North, and some five milCs
from its extreme point. If there should not be cable
enough to reach this point, it was decided to make 'a
temporary attachment on Cape North Point itself ; 'if
not enough to reach this, to fasten it on the south-eastern
shore of St. Paul's (this island being only 14 miles dii-
,ant from Cape North), and to complete the connexion

next year.
On Wednesday, the 22d inst. the machinery on board
the barque being all in readiness, she was towed by the
Adger to the Cape Ray Cove. By night of the follocV-
ing day, the end of the telegraph cable was landed, by
means of boats, which was attended with great difficulty,
owing to a dense fog and a heavy sea-swell setting in
towards the shore, making it dangerous for any of our
vessels to approach near the land. The following day
was spent in making a sure fastening upon shore, and in
waiting for the heavy fog to lift, that we might proceed
out to sea. On Saturday, the 25th ult., a strong wind
from the N.W. prevailed, rendering it exceedingly diffi-
cult, as well as dangerous, for the steamer to attach her-
self to the barque Sarah Bryant which had brought this
cable out from England. After some unsuccessful at-
tempts, it was accomplished. It became necessary,
however, for the barque to " slip " one of her anchors
before the attempt succeeded. Such was the strength
of the wind, however, the roughness of the sea, and the
lightness of the steamer, that it was impossible for her
to keep directly ahead of the barque, with her beam to
the wind, and with 'only sufficient steam upon her to
propel her with the barque in tow at the rate of two or
three miles an hour.
Unfortunately a collision between the vessels ensued,
and the hawser connecting us was cut ; so perilous was
our condition in this narrow cove in a gale of wind. The
Bryant still held on to the telegraph cable over her ster
and after our separation from her, cut anchor. The
Adger steamed up some little distance to the windward
and anchored, while the. Victoria, the company's small
propeller, remained near by. It was evident that all we
could then do was to ride out the gale at our anchors.
In a few moments after, signals of distress were hoisted on
the Bryant. The Victoria near by went to her relief, but
being of insufficient strength, was of no avail it. towing her
out from the lee shore, upon which she was fast drifting
—her anchor cable having parted. The Adger promptly
slipped her own anchor and bore down to her, but so
near was she upon the rocks, that it was hazardous for
us to venture near her. For her own safety, therefore,
she was compelled to cut the telegragh cable, which,
attached to her stern, was the cause of her swinging
round upon the rocks, after her anchor cable was parted.
Captain Pousland, by his presence of mind and skill,

succeeded in getting enough sail to bear upon her to
bring her into safer and deeper water, while Captain
Turner, of the Adger, by his dexterous ruanceuvres,
passed under her lee while under strong sail and a heavy
sea, gave her a line and took her in tow, and so rescued
the vessel, cable, and the lives, of those on board from a
common destruction. The anchor which the Adger
slipped was before night passed to the Bryant, and we
all once more lay safely anchored, bat with the loss of
two miles of telegraph cable. In the collision in the,
mornieg it was found that no serious damage was done
%to either vessel, The Bryant lid part of her after-

bulwarks, with her mizen shrouds on her starbaard side
carried away.

The next day, the 26th inst., the wind and sea having
lulled, the lost end of the cable was recovered, and by
night was spliced to the end on board the barque. The
Victoria commenced towing her out into such depth of
water as that the Adger might take her in the morning.
The attempt was unsuccessful, for the cable parted just
where the union had been effected. This day's labaur
was therefore entirely lost. On the subsequent day it
was thought best to take the end ashore in boats, and
to make a fresh start from the land. This was success-
fully accomplished, and the Victoria at night towed the
barque out into deep water, making all things ready for
the morning.
Early on Tuesday morning, the 28th, the Adger
passed a hawser to the bark, and commenced towing her,
she paying out the cable at about a mile and a half an
hour. After passing out of, the Cove into the Gulf the
current was found to be strongly setting up the Gulf to
the north, and in a few hours after setting equally strong
in an opposite direction. The cable was paid out at the
rate of about a mile and a half an hour, with frequent
interruptions by the kinking of the coils as they passed
up from the hold of the ship. Early in the morning it
was found that one of the wires was deficient, no electri-
cal current from the shore reaching the ship. About
midnight, on Tuesday, the cable broke in the hold of the
barque, which was not spliced until about seven o'clock
the next morning. After this the cable was paid out
more rapidly. On the noon of Wednesday it was found
that the electrical current was interrupted in the second
wire. On the afternoon of this day a strong wind sprung
up from the,S.W. Late in the afternoon another break
occurred, which was filially spliced, but the last and only
remaining wire was now foundpfective. While laying
to, repairing this, the wind-blowing almost a hurricane,
this last wire was found entirely useless—such had been
the strain upon the cable ; and for the safety of the bark
now pitching and surging most frightfully in a heavy
sea, the whole cable was ordered to be cut, and with it
was severed the high hopes and joyous anticipations' of
all concerned.

It was too evident that the bark'must either go down,
with all on board, and her remaining cargo of telegraphic
wire, or the cable must be cut. There was no alterna-
tive. As soon as the cable was cut, the bark swung
around with such force as nearly threw her on her beam
ends. Most of the cable that had been " paid out" had
been taken from her stun,,, so that her bows were still
loaded heavily, anc it was quite problematic whether
she would be able to ride out the gale, though in tow
by the Adger. Just at this juncture, the British war
steamer Argos hove in sight, and remained with us until,
morning. But, fortunately, her assistance was riot
needed ; for by morning the gale had subsided, and the
bark was gallantly riding behind us.

About noon of Thursday, Mr. Canning, under whose
supervision the cable was being laid, and many of our
fellow-passengers, who were on board the bark when the
gale sprung up, succeeded in getting on board the Adger.
They were welcomed to our circle once more, with
thankful hearts and tearful eyes. We proceeded to Syd-
ney, keeping the bark in tow, where we arrived about'
rfoiir o'clock.

By our unfortunate detention at Cape Ray, we had
already exhausted our stock of fresh provisions and our
coal was getting low. It Became necessary to replenish
these there, and to repair the bark !or sea again. We
accomplished this by Sunday morning, ,the 2d instant,
when, about six o'clock, we turned our course home-
ward, leaving the bark behind us, unloading upon the
wharf the remaining 32 miles of cable, which was now
abandoned to the anderwriters. The run from Sydney
has been delightful, and was accomplished in three days
and five hours. The Adger came to her pier at twelve
o'clock yesterday noon, having been out on the expedi-
tion 29 days and two hours.

To the untiring energy and indefatigable zeal of such
men as Peter Cooper, Esq„ and Cyrus W. Field, Esq„
and to the skill and unwearied exertions of Samuel Can-
ning, Esq., of London, we are indebted for this first at-
tempt to link the European c_mtinent with the western
world in an instant communication. No like company
has ever had to contend against such natural obstacles,
or to labour against greater difficulries ; and though, for
the time being, they have been unsuccessful, another
season will probably witness the complete triumph of
' their perseverance and, energy, in the successful estab-
lishment of their telegraph line from Halifax to St.

We understand that the actual cost of the cable de-
livered at Port-au-Basgtex, including the expense of in-
surance and the cost of transportation, was 75,000 dais.,
upon which there was a full insurance in England, the
policy covering the transportation and the process of
laying the cable. Tli3re had been 401 miles paid out
when the cable was cut. and we were within 12 miles of
St. Paul's, where it had been determined to make a
temporary point of attachment, and which in all proba-
bility would have been accomplished, had it not been for
a detention of seven hours the night previous. It is
not improbable that a part of the lost cable, if not all of
it,. may be recovered, but it can only be done by a heavy
expenditure of tim/ and money. Such is the weight of
it (between five and six tons to the mile), and such the
depth of water, and the perils of the sea, that it will be
a dangerous and expensive undertaking.
The process of making the cable is simple. Copper
wire of a small size, of the requisite length, is taken and
completely insulated by means of gutta percha. Three
copper wires thus enveloped aro placed together side by
side in as compact a space as possible, all the interstices
being filled with rope yarn. These three insulated wires
are then twisted round each other by means of machi-
nery, as in the strands of a rope, and the whole is com-
pletely surrounded by another envelope of gutta percba.
A. tranverse section of this cable now gives the appear-
ance of a solid gutta percha rope, in which appear three
copper wires, running through its whole length. This
is now enveloped by 12 distinct large iron wires, run-
ning parallel to it, which are strongly twisted around
the gutta rope, as before, by means of machinery, at an
angle of 45 degrees. This is then smeared with tar, and
is ready for use. Its diameter is an inch and a half.
This cable was coiled in the hold of the vessel in two
large horizontal coils, as a rope is coiled upon the floor,
filling the entire hold of the vessel. A small hole was
made in the deck, through which the cable was passed
over an iron roller to a large iron drum of 12 feet
diameter, around which it was passed three times. From
this it passed to a second iron drum of equal size,
around which it passed the same number of times. Frora
this point it passed over a huge iron cylinder on the
stem of the vessel into the sea. These revolving drums
were readily stopped by means of powerful brakes when-
ever it was necessary. The number of revolutions was
indicated by a register attached, thus marking the
amount of cable paid out per Imr. Thirty-two men
were constantly employed in the hold of the vessel in
throwing over the coils of cable, to avoid, as far as
possible, any kinks—whieli--might occur from its rigidity,
and also to stand by the brakes whenever kinks should-
occur. Notwithstanding all the care exercised, it was
impossible to prevent these interruptions, and on one or
two occasions to prevent even a break in the cable itself.
. By means of signals shown from the bark our steamer
was promptly stopped at each occurrence of these un-
fortunate kinks. .
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...

SritlT OF THE PUBLIC JottRNALS.

THE FALL OF SEBASTOPOL.
(Front the Times of this day.)
The narrative of the ever-memorable assault ntid;
fall of Sebastopol which was published yesterday,
in these columns so far surpasses all ordinary
events in terror and in gloom, in. the glory of our
conquest and in the grief for our losses, that we
know not in what terms to convey. the feelings
which still agitate the country, and which he
perusal of this extraordinary relation w'll extend
as widely as the English language is spoken and will
renew as long as tho destruction of Sebastopol glows
upon the page of history. The spectacle of chat
appalling catastrophe—the pitiless conflict of the
day, followed by the mute unyielding retreat Ce
night—the torrent of fire which had raged against
the city, stilled at last by the dreadful explosions
of the magazines and forts of the enemy—the
superhuman efforts of valour and endurance,
which seem on both sides to have exhausted all
that man can dare or suffer, until humanity sickens
over the recital—all tell us of the cost of such a
victory, and fascinate the mind as it lingers with
unmitigated pain over these scenes of anguish and
of horror. But, if war drenches the earth with
blood, and sports with the life of man, it dignifies
these frightful contests by the noblest qualities of
our nature ; it shows men superior to the crash of
falling cities and the volleys of instant death ; it
pursues with undaunted resolution the objects
for which we took up arms ; and in the de-
struction of Sebastopol it discovers not a
mere scene of carnage and of ruin, but the
triumph of that moral energy which ennobles even
man's fiercest passions. If there be any who have
doubted till now of what the allied armies before
Sebastopol were capable when their whole force is
directed against the enemy,-those devastated ruins
tell the tale of their avenging power. Happily for
mankind the violence—of the storm of war has as
yet fallen exclusively on one isolated point ; but
it may well serve hereafter as a warning to those
who, like the Emperor Nicholas, so wantonly pro-
voke such awful calamities.
The painful feelings which this narrative must
everywhere excite are greatly aggravated in this
country by the details of the attack on the. Great
Redan by the British troops, and by the confir-
mation of the unfavourable remarks which we have
already been constrained to make upon General
Simpson's despatch. We are now enabled to com-
pare the attack by the French on the Malakhoff
with the unsuccessful assault on the Redan by our
own forces, and we regret to say that this com-
parison is greatly to the disadvantage of the British
army iu all that relates to the previous arrange-
ments, to the conduct of the attack, and to the
final result. With regard to the previous ar-
rangements, it must, in the first place, be observed
that the French had brought the head of their double
sap to within 10 yards of the point of attack ; our
advanced parallel was two hundred yards from
the salient of the Redan, and in crossing
that fatal space under fire (as on the 18th of
June) a very large number of officers and men
were struck. A few planks thrown over the ditch
brought the French storming column into the
work ; the Russians were surprised ; and, the
work being a closed redoubt, could be held with
success against the reinforcements of the enemy
when the garrison was overpowered. In our as-
sault the ladders were, as usual, too short ; and
the men having clambered over the salient angle
of the Redan found themselves exposed to most
formidable obstacles, which were increased by their
peculiar position. A Redan is a triangular fortifi-
cation, open at the base. Our men held the angle
of the work ; the Russians retained possession of
the base, and threw their reinforcements into it.
It is evident that a column of assailants in such a
Position must be destroyed, because their fire is to
that of the enemy in the ratio of the base to the
angle. The only chance of success was to assault
both the sides of the Redan simultaneously, and
to charge the breastwork which' partly closed the
gorge of the work and sheltered the Russians.
But the want of reinforcements preveet3d the first
of these attempts, and the men's notion that the
whole place was undermined materially checked the
Vigour of our attack, in which alone safety lay.
Of Colonel Windham's heroic valour, coolness, and
determination it is impossible to speak too highly,
_and he retrieved in his own person the honour of
thoarmy on that day, aided by those brave men
who fell for the most part at his side in the attempt
to sustain this unequal contest. We trust ►hat
they and their gallant leader will instantly receive
from the Government the honours and promotions
their intrepid carriage deserves, and we are glad
to see that General Simpson has appointed Colonel
Windham Commandant of the Karabelnaia, with
the rank of a Brigadier-General. But what are we
to say of the unexampled conduct of the Generals
commanding this critical attack, when we find that
no reserves ever reached the scene of action in a
condition to be of use, and that the only officer
who survived to command the troops inside was at
last obliged to go himself to make General Codring-
ton comprehend the position in which his men were
placed ?
Another great error seems to have been come
mitted in the choice and in the numbers of the
troops engaged. General Simpson states that he
selected the Second and Light Divisions because
they best knew the ground ; but, independently of
the injustice of selecting for this service regiments
which had already suffered so severely in previous
actions and in the trenches, the Commander-In Chief
appears to have overlooked the fact that thesegallant
corps, which we may remark had already failed is a
similar operation on the 18th of June, had more raw
recruits and inexperienced officers in their ranks
than any other divisions of the army—the inevita-
ble result of their previous losses. Had the attack
been made or supported by the veterans of the
Highland Brigade or the Guards, who would at once
have borne down upon the enemy at the breast-
work, very little doubt can be entertained that the
result would have been different. But it is now
demonstrated that our inferences on this subject
from General Simpson's own despatch were per-
fectly correct. The attack was ill-directed, in spite
of the warning of a previous defeat ' • the troops
were not judiciously chosen and well handled ; the
reserves did not come up in time, and the Rus-
sians recovered their ground after a furious con-
test of more than an hour. The officers who en-
tered the work showed the most brilliant courage,
and the men, considering that they fought at such
a disadvantage, held their ground with extreme
firmness ; but their task was a hopeless one,
from the want of intelligent and energetic
support outside. It must, however, be stated
that of the three French attacks two failed, like
our own, and that the strength of the Russian
army in the defences of the town was surpris-
ingly great. The French fortunately carried the
Malakhoff in 10 minutes, and were able, by a fly-
ing sap and a rapid intrenchment, to establish
themselves in it ; but for four hours more they had
to withstand the efforts of the Russians to recover
the work, all of which were repulsed with great
slaughter ou both sides, the French loss on that
eventful day amounting in killed and wounded to
more than 7,000 men. These attacks would have
been more formidable if tho whole enceinte of the
town had not been simultaneously threatened and
assailed, and General Niel states in his report
that, although the importance of the secondary
attacks was not overrated by himself and General
,Tones, yet they were considered essential to the
success of the main operation. The feeling of the
army is, that both nations have contributed to
the best of their ability to the grand result, and we
do not remember a more touching example of gene-
rous gallantry than the hearty and spontaneous
cheer raised by the men of the British Second
Division on the following day when the French
Zouaves, more successful than themselves, marched
past their quarters. The British army is proud,
but vanity and envy are not among its defects.
It is grievous to turn from these examples of the
nobler spirit of a soldier's life to the scenes of horror
and barberity witnessed by those who first pene-
trated into the recesses of the beleaguered city.
The Russian General had effected his retreat, but
he left behind him the most hideous evidence of
the straits to which he had been reduced and of
the indifference to human life which disgraces the
Russian army. Fort Paul and the adjacent build-
ings were used as hospitals, in which, after an in-
terval of three days, hundreds of corpses were found
of those who had perished from their untended
wounds or the unsatisfied cravings of nature. To all
appearance these unhappy beings had been aban-
doned to their fate, just as the wounded after the
battle of the Borodino were left to perish in the fire
of Moscow in 1812 ; and that fate, inflicted by their
own savage countrymen, was infinitely worse than
aught that can be conceived of the horrors of a
field of battle. It was surely in Prince Gortscha-
koff's power, when ho resolved to evacuate the
town, to leave behind him persons qualified to re-
live the immediate wants of the sick, whose office
would have been respected by any civilised Power.
Instead of this, he abandoned them to their fate,
twell knowing that the 50A Qi fire 110 hAd 401e(13

(Prom, the Daily News of tias day.)
Let due honour be paid to every merit
quality, even in an enemy. We haVe no'
slow to comment upon the faufaranpoeles is
of Prince Gortschakoff's despatches, the ins
perversions of truth and the downright fals:.
in others. But it is impossible to read -the 1 •
of our Crimean Correspondents, giving au a
of the last days of South Sebastopol, , witho
riving at the conclusion that the man is a coin
mate general. It is now clear that the exact 0,
of the south side of the harbourwa,.anot the
of sudden panic. Arrangements must have ei
deliberately made some time before 'fOriretr: h
as soon as it was no longer tenable.. As far h
safety of the Russian troops is concerned, the sr
rangements were completely successful. Ever at
who could be moved was• conveyed across the r
hour in the face of a victorious enemy. .The co -al
preparations for inflicting destruction on a at
scale upon the conquerore who shOuld first er
the abandoned forts happily failed in a great a-
sure, but they were skilfully designed. . The m
foresight of the chief was worthily s4conded b e
devoted valour of his soldiers. The assailants re
obliged to fight hard for every inch of groun n
the day of the assault, and only in the Mala..ff
were they able to maintain the positions N h
their impetuous onset had wrested from the en: y.
Sebastopol has. been• Won by fair fighting fits . e
defenders have shown that they. are " notbabe- o
play withal."
••::i
This simply just tribute to the valoUr and ill
of our foe is the best- eulogium . that can 'be o-
pounced on the ,victors. The masterly idepatc i• f
General Niel (which, along with, the , &spate 0.
General Pelissier, appeared exclusively, in :
whole of our morning imkession. Of yester• s
shows that the conquest of Sebastopol is the re 1
of a plan adopted at the first, and steadily pe •
vered in. The storming of the Malakhoff, and • l
more the storming of the Central Bastion by :
division under General de Salles, ,are feats t:
would have added to the laurels of the,- ar •
which conquered at Austerlitz and . Jena. i
share taken by our countrymen in tke exploit-.
the day offer& room for diversity of opinion ;
no stain has been left upon British .courage—
the fame for unblenching valour acquired .by t
present generation on the fields 'of Alma, Ba -
klaa,a, and Inkerman ; whilst the regimental o -
cers engaged have done all that could,belexpect
of gallant gentlemen and ripe soldier S..- • - ;
The truth, however, must be told. 'The Engli
soldiers who fell at the Radon are 'victims to t
incapacity of those in command. We- publi
this day letters from three correspondents—all 1
them men of intelligence, observation, and a hi
sense of honour and veraoity, but differing wide
in natural temperament, acquired habits of viewii
the events of life, and the point of view from whi
they observe the proceeding of the Bth of Septe
ber. From a careful collation of their commun
cations it is apparent that there has been a wauto
and needless waste of British blood. It is allowe
on all hands that the French assailants of the Mal
khoff, *hose trenches had been pushed close up t
the ditch, reached the breach almost unscathed b
the enemy's fire. Their trenches were extensi
and roomy—capable of sheltering large nuMbers
soldiers, perfectly protected from the fire, withoi
being crowded ; and thus the column of assaut
could be made strong and the supports moved ui
with perfect regularity and promptitude. Th(
English trenches, on the contrary, were twice of
thrice as far from the point to be assailed as tit(
French, and were so narrow and inconvenient thai
the troops assembled in them were so .crowde
as to render the preservation, of order utterly im
possible. Either from this cause, or from gros
ignorance of their business on the part of those i
command, the assailing column was deficient iii
numbers, and it was left unsupported to maintain
a hopeless struggle under a deadly fire. Yet
we learn from our Correspondent late on the
Danube that reiterated remonstrances had been
made by the French commanders on the ground o
the danger and impolicy or not pushing the sap dos
up to the ditch, but in vain. Our publicly accre-;
dited Correspondent for the Crimea affirms that
General Codriugton, for some mysterious reason,
kept back the troops which crowded the trenches
till the Russians had time to bring up their re-
serves, and that his aides-de-camp, ignorant of the\
topography of the trenches, carried his orders tot
the wrong regiments. And lastly, our third Cor •
respondent—who has traced the events of the',
whole siege in what we may call a regular journal,
compiled from actual observation—states that'
owing to want of proper command* the most com-
plete and paralysing confusion pervaded the whole
of the attack. These three gentlemen move in,
entirely different circles, and their letters were;
written and despatched before they could have
any communication with each other. Their)
views, too, are corroborated by two witnesses,i
who are animated by sentimenls the reverse of?
inimical to those in command. General Simpson,'
in his confused and uncommunicative despatch,
admits • the damning fact that the trenches:
' wore so over-crowded that the supports could.
not be moved up. The principal correspondent'
of the Times—we are certain, from sincere
conviction—labours hard to show that the fault
in the assault of the Redan lay with the men, not
with the commanders. Opposed to this view there
are numerous circumstances that cannot be over-
looked. The writer to whom we allude would seem
to imply that the assailing column was composed
exclusively of raw recruits. If this had been the
case such a selection would reflect severely on the
judgment of those in command. But our own Cor-.
respondent, who visited the scene of slaughter about
noon on the day after the assault, writes : " By the
time I reached the fatal open in front of our fifth
parallel the dead had been gathered off the ground
—the officers having been taken to the camp and
the men thrown into the broad deep ditch of the
Redan. . . Those who had died within the Re-
dan had also been gathered into the ditch ; so that I
looked upon nearly all the British who had fallen in
this last scene of an eleven mouths' tragedy. The
first fact that struck an observer was, that nearly all
who lay there were old soldiers, men who had borne
the heat and burden of the day ; hardly a beardless
face was to be seen." And fora proof that these vete-
rans fought bravely, we need only refer to the fact
that the time they are estimated, by Generals Simp-
son and Niel, to have kept their ground against overpowering odds varies from one to two hours. And
there is another fact, stated by the correspondent
of the Times himself, that forbids us to attribute to
the gallant dead the blame which must rest else-
where. " Colonel Windham saw there was no time
to be lost. He had sent three officers for reinforce-
-nts . . . . and now he resolved. to
ao to General
me. . n himself. Seeing CaptainbCrealoch, of
near him, busy encouraging his men, and
exerting himself ;Pith great courage and energy to
ex
- •said,
"I must go to the
etl°lodOriOnteit,°
get them into order, he
General for support. NO7-, mind, let it be
It knon
is the
in case I am killed, why I wet:t away'"
old story over again. We have ;s_ oldiers and reei-
thobse
mental officers iu the Crimea unequal.' by
. but, we
of any army of present or former times ;
have men in command who are utterly incork.,"
tent to make a proper use of such an army.
Now, as from the beginning of the war, the fault
is in the home authorities. They have .learned
nothing by the experience of last winter ; they have
remained unmoved to penitence and amendment
by the dread revelations elicited by the Sebastopol
We have heard the remark made by
Committee.
veteran foreign officers of high reputation, that, in
their intercourse with our Ministers, they have
been impressed with the painful conviction that
there is only one man among them—Lord Hardinge
—who understands anything about military affairs. 1
How could it be otherwise ? The only other soldier
among them is the Minister at War, and his expe-
rience is confined to what he acquired as a subaltern
officer in a marching regiment in country quarters
long years ago—before he had laid down the sword
to devote himself to party politics. When Parlia-
ment meets, the public will look for another Sebas-
topol Committee ; and if the people are true to
themselves they will take good care that their re-
presentatives in the House of Commons do not fol-
low up the investigation by a scandalous shrinking
from pronouncing a well-deserved condemnatory
judgment.

A loan is to be effected by Belgium to the extent of
25 millions of francs, it is believed, towards the end o.
November.

At the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, the mean
height of the barometer in the week was 29-984 in.; on
the last three days the mean reading was above 30 in.
The mean temperature of the week was 59.6 deg., which
is 3.8 deg. above the average of the same week in 38
years. The mean temperature was above the average on
every day after Monday, and this excess was from 4 deg.
to nearly 6 deg. The highest temperature In the week
- and occurred on Friday ; the lowest was
I '4B 3 deg and occurred on Saturday. The range of
temperature, both on Friday and Saturday, was 25.7 deg.,
- which is nearly the whole range of the week. The mean
F dew point temperature was 54.6 deg., and the difference
'f between this and the mean temperature of the air was
e' 5 deg. The temperature of the water of the Thames was
) 60.4 deg. The general direction of the wind was south-
t west. A thin misty rain fell in the early part of the
week, but towards the end the weather was fine, though
a sometimes with haze or fog.

MORTALITY IN THE METROPOLIS
NUMBER OF DEATHS FROM ALL CAUSES REGISTERED
IN THE WEEK ENDING SATURDAY, SEPT. 22.
.
Zymotic Diseases
Diseases of Uncertain Seat
. Tubercular Diseases
Diseases of the Brain, Nerves and Senses
. Diseases of the Heart and Biood-vessels 4B
Diseases of the Lungs and other Organs of
i Respiration
Diseases of the Stomach, Liver, and other Organs
of Digestion
1 Diseases of the Kidneys, &c.
0 Childbirth, Diseases of the Uterus, &c. ;I 6
0 I' -11-guretlie-Joints, Bones, and Muscles
if Diseases of the Skin, &c.
Malformations
4
Premature Birth and Debility 23
Atrophy 45
Old Age .
Sudden lO
Violence, Privation, Cold, and Intemperance 25
Causes not specified

DEATHS PROM ALL CAUSES 931
Population Deaths in corro- Deaths
Enumerated. spending week in the
1851. of 1854. Week.
West Districts
Noith Districts 490,396
Central Districts 393,255
East Districts 485,522
South Districts

Totals
.
_ dales
Females

2,504

BIRTHS IN THE WEEK.

Males
Females

46G
465

Total ..

841
817

..1,658