The Sun.
London, England, 1852-04-01 00:00:00

72d year, and WB3 very old of his age. The Com-
mander-in-Chief o' Madras is expected to follow him
shortly.

" A locomotive is now. at work daily on the Bombay
railway, and crowds of natives assemble to gaze and
wonder at the Arg Gharry,' or ' Fire Chariot,' as they
have christened it.

" General Manson, commanding the Scinde division
of the Bombay army, died on the 223 of February.
" The English mail express of the Bth cf January
reached Lahore, rid Bombay, many hours before it
reached Calcutta.

" The Zenobia steam-frigate, with the Southampton
mails of the 20;h of January, is now nine days overdue.
Considerable apprehensions aro entertained regarding
her absence."

(From the Overland Bombay Times.)
The crisi2 that has overtaken us within the last fort-
night illustrates the maxim that India in the midst of
peace is at war—that we know not at any time whdt a
week or a month may bring forth. The Irrawaddy,
which now flows undisturbed stud unoccupied to the see,
will, be`ore a month expires, hear a fleet of eight war
steamers, und an army of 8,000 men on its bosom ; and
the ci•ies of Rangoon arid Martaban, now peaceful, fair,
and fleurishicg, will be heap., of smoking ruin=, heir
inhabitants scattered, and the British dig fl 'sting
where they now stand. We mentioned in our last the
extreme anxiety of the Governor-General to avoid cm-
filet, and to accept of any arrangement that could be
made not inconsistent with our safety and dignity to
restore amicable relations with Burmah ; he was said
to have disapproved of the abduction of the Burmese
ship-of-war by Commodore Lambert, and to have eff,red
to restore her; but he insisted on justice being done to
our injured merchants. The proposition was treated
with insolence, and replied to through the hands of
a common labourer, and it became quite clear that
all that was desired was to gain time —the Burmese
Sovereign had no intention to comply in any way
with our behests. Our frontiers nearest to Burmah
were ordered to be watched, and arrangements were ac-
cordingly made to meet any sudden aggression that
might arise. Her Majesty's 18th Royal Irish were dis-
patched by the Precursor steamer from Calcutta to Monl-
main, where they arrived in 73 hours; her Majesty's
80th, from Dinapore, taking their place in Fort William.
Two native corps, and three companies of artillery, were
to follow. A like force of artillery and native infantry
as that ordered from Calcutta were to be provided from
Madras, being in all two European (11th and 51at) and
four native (38th and 67th Bengal and 9th and 35th Ma-
dras) corps, with four companies of artillery, mostly
Europeans, in addition to those on board the Bombay
steamers. The 49th and 26th Madras Infantry are
betwixt Moulmein and Mergui; they probably number
about 1,200 men; so that in all we shall have about
10,300 fighting men, independent of the ship's crews
at our disposal. The entire force is to be com-
manded by Major-General Godwin, C. 8., of her
Majesty's army, who was present throughout the last
Burmese war from 1825 to 1827; with Brigadiers War-
ren and Elliott to command the Bengal and Madras
brigades respectively. Colonel Foord, of the Madras
army, is to be in charge of the artillery, and Major
Frazer. of the Bengal army, of the engineers. On the
19th February, brders were received at Bombay from
the Governor-General for dispatch for the Bay of Bengal
as speedily as possible, of all the steamers which could
be spared, and such is the high condition of the Indian
Navy, that on the 24th a squadron, under the command
of Captain Lynch, consisting of the Fercze, trans-
formed from a packet to a frigate, and the Moozuffer,
both 1,500 toes and 500 horse-power, and the Sesostrie,
frigate, with the troop steamer Berenice, of about 800
tons each, sailed from our harbour within five days'
time of their being aware that there was any chance of
being required. The Zenobia was intended to follow,
thaakdesahheer arrivedpleae; in time from Aden—the Queen now
and this, with the Medusa iron
steamer, completes our armament. The steamers are,
as they were during the China war, supplied with Euro-
pean artillerymen to work their guns. The Semiramis,
a frigate of 1,200 tons and 300-horse power, from
China, and, the Hugh Lindsay from Madras, can be dis-
patchedif required. From Calcutta, the Enterprize, Fire
Queen, Tenasserim, and Phlegethon, with the iron
steamer Nemesis, are under orders. The vessels of the
Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company,
capable of transporting 1,000 men each, are available as
troop-ships. While these matters wero being arranged,
dispatches wero received from Burmah professing a de-
sire for peace; the first condition was, that To should
change the channel of communication to Major Bogle,
the commissioner, instead of through Commodore Lam-
bert. The arrogance of dreaming of prescribing to us
how we should conduct our arrangements sufficiently in-
dicated the temper of the Monarch, so our preparations
were pushed on. The squadron sails direct for Rangoon
and Martaban, cities by the river side, of 30 000 and
10,000 inhabitants respectively; they are doomed to be
destroyed, and as they are constructed chiefly of wood,
our first fire will set them in a blaze. We have not
leisure fur a regular campaign, and should matters not
be completely settled by the middle of May, the force,
after doing as much mischief as possible, will return to
Bombay and Calcutta, to renew operations in October.
By some it is surmised that the river steamers will push
on as tar as draught of water will allow, it requisite con-
tinuing the war without interruption—the fleet remain-
ing at hand throughout the rains.
CALCUTTA, FEB. 21.—The following, says the Ben-
gal RUP karu is the ruestance of the intelligence brought
by the Fire Queen, which arrived yesterday from Moul-
mein and Rangoon river.
The Fire Queen left the Sandheads on the 28th ult.,
and arrived off Rangoon river on the 30th stem at 10
P at. She went in the next day, and anchored ale ad of
the Fox frigate at 2 P. 11., and towed her up off the
Hasting's Sand, which is abort four or five miles below
Rangoon. On going up the river, on passing the first
stockade, which is 10 or 15 miles from the entrance, the
steamer and frigate were fired upon, by which a man of
the Fox was so severely wounded that he afterwards
died of the wound. The fire was returned by the frigate
with shot and shell. The Tenasserim, in passing up
the following day was also fired upon, but without effect,
and the Fire Queen in passing down. The Fire Queen
called off the entrance of Rangoon River, coming back
on the morning of the sth instant. The Fox frigate
was then coming out its tow of the Tenasserim. The
frigate was going on a cruise to Negrais for a week,
leaving the Phlegethon and her Majesty's ship Hermes
to blockade the Rangoon river.

The same journal, in its general summary, under date
of Feb. 21, says:—
" The Governor-General has ' plucked up a spirit '
and resolved that the Burmese shall no longer hold
alone the power of deciding whether there is to be war
or no war. He has determined that there shall be war,
unless they render it absolutely impossible by a prompt
and unequivocal submission. Their intentions are not
yet perfectly known. They have again fired on our men-
of war when passing the stockades, and killed one man
of the Fox frigate, but they still keep up a show of
negotiation, whether really to avert hostilities or
merely to gain time remains to be seen. The character
of the court of Ave, and the experience of the
former war, however, render the latter the more
probable hypothesis. The Burmese evidently do not
like Commodore Lambert. Apart from an offence in
having carried off their King's ship—a proceeding
pretty generally condemned—he is doubtless quite too
firm and straightforward to suit their peculiar ideas of
negotiation. They have opened a communication through
their Governor of Martabtin and our Commissioner at
Moulmein, and the Governor-General having promised
that on their aecealing to their moderate demands, he
would send down a high functionary to settle the terms
of peace and friendship, they request that this official
may be sent immediately. The request cannot, of courusn
be complied with, as any concession on our side would
incdlatdirty
be attributed to fear. An answer to the Governor-Ge-
neral's nerars letter was sent on board the Fox,
instant, by the hands of a low native,
canoe-- a studied icsult, of course, and certainly_ no
onheryearidioarv.oGenno:saill,enced
appears,
Calcutta by Fire
iTnhdoicatmioinssivoef wag, nevertheless, enseirveertfhoerlesasn,
and we believe brought up to
9th instant. Another
Queen, which arrived here on the received, it
by the
received
letter from the King to thehi delivered with the
through Moulmein, where " way
the P
hlegethon on
„umpired as to
aleutta and Madras
proper formalities, arrived here by
the 15th inst. Nothing has t the contents
the
" note of prpparation" w--
b ctoollected
o from C been raised before
of these royal epistles, butchth h
their arrival. Troeps are g
as soon as they can ,_-eneoe, find heral',l equipped. Her
Majesty's 18th go!, D
dDe With alsjestra 51st from
the southern Pres'
as
tY. them go several regi-
ments of Native I° nerrY and a strong detachment of
European artillery- Mikiestre 80th, now at Di-
,.
_ounog down to relieve the •
napore, i ..,
Wiliam and " that lBth, in garrison
at Fort i • .
is corps, as well as those for
service ir, Bullmen, to travel hitherward by steam.
Godwin, who served Genera1 ,in
Major
in the former Burmese war,
is to command chief, *jot. Hugh Frazer,
zer, of the Ben•
gia Eg
0 inee r s , is to directdepartment; the and
Dr. Montgomerie, garrison ' ... surgeon of Fort William, is
to superintend the medic
al staff. The arsenal here is a
scene of busy activity. Ships have been taken up for the
conveyance of troops and stores, and steamers of the
Indian navy are ordered round from Bombay to Madras,
to aid in carrying the expedition across the bay. The
Burmese have, on their side, been actively engaged in
preparations f
l ' or war. The old town of Rangoon,
prig on the banks of the ri • ver. has been cleared away
by fire, and the new one, a little inland, has been
strongly stockaded''

MILITARY INTELLIGENCE.
Casualties by death in the armies of India since the
departure of the mail on the 17th of February:—
H. M. Troops—Captain Henry Hugh McKenzie
Fleming, H. M. 61st Regiment, at Goojranwallah, on
the 12th of February.
Bombay—Brigadier-General A. Manson, C. 8., Artil-
lery, at Bombay, on the 28d of February.
Madras—Lieutenant•Colonel D. A. Fenning, Ist Ca-
valry, at Bellary, on the 16th of February.
Bengal—Major C. F. Farmer, Invalid Establishment?
at Mussoorie, on the 4th of February.