The Sun.
London, England, 1855-10-12 00:00:00

SEAL PBUSSIER.

(Front the Journal des Debats of yesterday.)

The corps-d'armee of Eupatoria constitutes, al-
though at a distance, the extreme left of the general
system of the Allies. This corps menaces both the
right of de Russians and the centre of their com-
munications with southern Russia, from which they
obtain their supplies in the Crimea. Their army
before Sebastopol maintains for the present its right
at the northern forts, its centre in the fortifications
of the Mackenzie heights, opposite the lower
course of the Tchernaya, and its left on the heights
above Tchorgoun, which are occupied by the Pied-
montese. But this left appears at present greatly
menaced by the movements of the right wing of
the Allies in the mountains of Baidar. The only
elements of appreciation which we yet possess are
the despatches of General Gortschakoff, the last
of which is dated the 6th. He first of all spoke
of engagements of the vanguard towards Urkoussa,
or Ruilkacsta according to the maps, a village situ-
ated above Baidar, and said that our advanced posts
had been repulsed by the Cossacks ; then he an-
nounced that that place remained in our power ;
then that the allies had, on the 22d ult., an engage-
ment with his infantry and that they retired to wards
Urkoussa ; and afterwards that the Allies, having
come down from the mountains, had forced them-
selves a passage—an ingenious expression to dissi-
mulate some combat in which the Russians were
driven from their position. Finally, under date
the 4th, the Russian general announces that the
allies were extending their operations from the
mountains of Baidar to the valley of the Upper
Belbek ; and according to another despatch of the
same General, of the 6th, our troops had left the
Upper Belbek. Thus then they had only gone so
far to make a reconnaissance. But this sole indi-
cation denotes a marked progress of the allies on
the left wing of the Russians to surround them.
The Belbeck in fact flows at three or four leagues
to the rear of Mackenzie. We do not know to
what part of the valley of the Upper Belbek they
went, but it may be supposed that it was to
Karlou, opposite Foti Sala, because there exists
there a road which crosses the mountains of
Baidar to that village. It is even to be noted
that from Foti Sala the road runs on the right
bank of the Belbek, to join the high road
from Sebastopol to Simpheropol at a place
named Khutor-Traktir (the Inn farm). It is the
road which the Tartars of the southern region
were accustomed to take to reach Bakshi-Serai.
As the Russians no doubt still occupy the village
of Ai-Todor, at the rise of the Chouliou, which
falls into the Tchernaya at Tchorgoun, and the
village of Chamli-Ozembak, the allies will probably
not attempt to establish themselves on the Upper
Belbek before having driven the enemy from Ai-
Todor and the other position—if that is to form
part of the plan of Marshal Pelissier to prolong his
right wing to the Belbek. General Gortschakoff
lastly announces that the allies have removed their
troops from their right, between Balaklava and
the Tchernaya. This is very well explained by the
movements which we have just described. The
Russians will not attempt to advance in that di-
rection (where, by the way, there are reserves),
because then they would expose themselves to bo
taken in the rear by our right wing. However
this may be, all the right wing of the army has
taken possession of the mountainssituated between
Baidar, the Chouliou, and the Belbek, on the ex-
treme left of the Russian army. It is even fortify-
ing itself in the most important passages, in arm-
ing redoubts on commanding positions, and is form-
ing roads to facilitate the arrival of provisions and
ammunition. These measures seem to indicate
that the army thinks of establishing itself during
the bad season on the line from Sebastopol to the
Upper Belbek.