The Sun.
London, England, 1855-05-05 00:00:00

.RUSSIAN .REWARD OF MERIT.

While we are ready to appreciate the courage exhibited
in the advance of this week, under the actual circum-
stances, and while we cannot but think it promisee much
more, yet we remember, with a feeling akin to humilia-
tion, that in thiQ, the eighth month of a siege conducted
without stint of life or treasure, we are only just taping
up the position we ought to have ar ived at by the 17th
of last October, if not still earlier. Just at this moment,
when we are slowly making up for lost time, and actu-
ally learning siege operations from a foe we hal been
taught to despise, an opportunity occurs for comparing
the spirit that directs the operations of the besieeers
and the besieged. A letter from Sir John F. Bur-
goyne gives us once more the familiar picture of
the veteran military savant, who Views a siege
principally as a school for teaching the science of
fortification. The gallant old general is still of
opinion that everything was done right, though it led
of necessity to a disastrous conclusion, and that in theory
we have aehieved e splendid performance, tl ou!iila in fact
we have suffored disaster. Thus far Sir Jelin is rea !y
exclaim with the stoical reouhlican, " Victrix cause
Deis placuit; sed victa Catoni." The road he still holds
oneht not to have been attempted under the circarn-
fences, it being, in his opinion, impossible for an army
of seventy or eighty thousand men to make about six
miles and a-half of rood, involving, at the. utmost, the
collection and laying down of about 40,000 cubic yati=
of the loose shingle and stones lying on the whole sur
face of the country. Had the Russians gone (in the
same principle, we might by this tune have been in S ,-
hastopol, and migl.t even have been maFt,re of the whole
of the Crimea. But they did not. We believe we can
inform our readers who -n it was that Sir John had to
cont.nd- with. The m.me of the heal engineer at Sebas-
topl is Todlehen. He is 32. years of age. His parents
are poor shopkeeper; in Riga. When the siege com-
menced, Prince Menechlkoff, it is said, asked the then
heal engineer how long it would take to put the place
into a state of defence. He ans vered, " Two months."
37°u''.g. caP'ain, named Todieben, steep d f rward and
aid he would undertake to do it, if he hal as meny men
as lie required, in two weeks. He did in 12 days, and
was niAe colonel. Since that time he has had the direc-
i ion of everything in the way of building hat criesede-
iences. e!'ec. The other day the Grand Dukes called
upon his wife, who is residing in St. Petersburg, tc
congratulate her noon her husband's promotion ; for he
is now general and aide-de-camp to the Einneror. Is
anything more wanted to explai., the painful discrepancy
;e,tween what has been done by the Russians and by the
allies? The former will be bound by no ties of seniority
'•r clivs ; they take the man. that will do his work the
best, and they get it the hest done.— Times.

AccinErr To riff: EATGLISH, FRE'Y H,
AND DELGIIN MAlt PACKET' DOVER.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.

Sin,--We regret to inform you that we have received
n. teleurapli deg Patch from Ost.md, to the effect that the
steam pael“-t Dover, which lf.ft Dover on Thursday
night, at 11.30 p.m., with the mils br Belgium, Pru.,.
ii a, &c., strurdc on the bar at Ostend and was F trawled.
The mai:s and passengers were landed without difficulty
aud in perfect safety ; but it ii feared that, owing to the
heavy gales from the north-east, the packet will he too
touch d:trnage,l to be got off.—We are, sir, your obedient
7ervants,

CITURCHWARD & CO.
56, Lombard-street, May 4, 1855.

VISIT OF HER MAJb.STY AND PRINCE
ALBERT TO THE CRYSTAL PALACE.

Her Majesty the Qiieen and his Royal Highness
Prince Albert, accompanied by the Princess Royal
and the Princess Alice, the Princess of Hohenlohe•
Langenburg, the Princesses Adelaide and Feodore, and
the Prince Viqlr of Tinhenlobe-Langenburg, paid a visit
to the Crystal Palace yesterday morning.
On the arrival of the Royal party they were received
by Mr. Grove, the secretary, Mr. Beishaw, and the
traffic manager, Mr. Boomer.

The party vi.ited every part of the building, and
walked for a short time in the terrace-garden.
The lion. Beatrice Byng, Major-General Buckley, and
Captain Du Plat were in attendance on her Majesty.

A Cabinet Council was held at the Foreign-office,
Dowring-street, yesterday. The M inisters present were
—Viscount Palmerston, the Lord Chancellor, the Mar-
qms of Lanadowne. the Duke of Argyll, Sir George
Grey, the Earl of Clarendon, Lord John Russell, Lori
Panniure, the Chat,callor of the Exchequer, Sir Charles
Wood, the Right H.n. R. Vernon Smith, Sir Wiliam
Molesworth, Viscount Canning, and the Earl of Har-
rowby. The Council sat three hours.
The Countess de Neuilly visited her Royal highness
the Duchess of Kent, yesterday, at Clarence House, and
also paid a visit to the Duchess of Gloucester, at Glou-
cester Hon=e.
The Earl Fitzwilliam and the Ladies Charlotte and
Dorothy Fitzwilliam, have arrived at Mortimer House
from Milton Park.

The Vi4countess Palmerston will have an assembly
this evening.
The Earl and Countess of Kintore have left the Claren-
don for Bath.

The Count Von der Straten has left the Clarendon for
Brussels.

THE Mane.—SOUTTIAMPTON, May 4.—The Penin-
sular and Oriental Company's steam-ship Indus, Cap-
taM Soy, left this afternoon with the India, China,
and Mediterranean mails and about ninety passengers,
among whom are—Lieutenant-Colonels Cockburn
t and Durnf a], Colonel Bravbrook, Captains C.
Gribble, Sedley, and Cook, Lieutenants Seagrave,
Dumares, and Crowe, Dr. Garden, 300,0001. in specie
' for India and China, 18,020/. ditto for Alexandria,
and a, full general cargo. The Indus alsa takes out to
Malta 60,000/. on Government account, and 59 packages,
cantaining ink and stationery of various descriptions, for
Btlaklava. There is also a detachment of Royal Horse
Artillery, consisting of 20 men and a serjeant, for convey.
ance to Gibraltar. Toe Molrid, Captain Cook, with the
homeward portion of the Peninsular mails, is hourly ex•
pected. The Tagus, Capt. Joy, with the I.ulia and China
mails„ may he looked for about the Bth or 9th inst. The
Iberia, Captain Chri,tian, will probably convey the
mails for Vigo, Oporto, Lisbon, Cadiz, and Gibraltar
on the 7th inst. The Sultan, Captain Burney, is
ppninted to take the India and Mediterranean mails
of the 20th inst. ; and the Madrid will leave on
the 17th inst. with the Peninsular mails. The
Royal Mad Company's stearti-;:hip Solent, Captain
Jellicho, will leave on the 9th inst., with the usual
dmeonjtlyeirmo,aiDlsahfioar,
pßetrientaionsi
buAcoy,reS%.lVluit'nt:etVit'isi,lenTeßtteio-
rife, Madeira, and Lisbon. The Atrato, Captain
i Woolley, is appointed to convey the West India and
Pacific mails on the 17th inst., and the Tay, with the
homeward portion of the West India mails, and the
Aron, with the return nails from the BrAllilA and
River Plate, are due on the 16th in t, The United
States' mail steam-ship Washington, C ptain Cavei.dy,
is expected to-morrow with the usual French, English,
and Bremen mails from New York. The Union, Capt,
Adams, will leave on Wednesday next, with the Znglists
I and French mails for New York.