The Sun.
London, England, 1863-01-07 00:00:00

TILE GREEE. B,EVOLUTION.

(From the limes' Special Correspondent.)
ATHENS, DEC. 27, AFTERNOON.
The Greeks will be ungrateful indeed if they don't
erect at some future time a statue to their mythic
King Alfred, as one of their greatest benefactors in
the time of a great crisis. England may refuse him,
Europe may be scowling and frowning at his in-
fatuation, but for all that King Alfred has reigned
for the last two months and is still reigning in
Greece. Even should his reign possibly soon cease
the Greeks will long remember the reign of their
good King Alfred. One night all that had been
built up for the last 30 years fell down by its own
weight, crushing its rotten foundations. Even those
who had contributed to the downfall stood fright-
ened at the chaos and ruin which stared them in
their faces. The dyke was broken, and the elements
let loose threatened to overwhelm everything
before them, for there was nothing to stop them. A
name was whispered; it was caught up, and acted
as a talisman ; the tide was arrested.
The name of King Alfred has reigned over Greece
more thoroughly and completely than ever a real
King has. He has reigned over minds and hearts,
banishing out of them all those bad instincts which
30 years' misrule had developed. It is only now,
when we are threatened with losing him, that we
can fully appreciate what his name has been for
this country. Scarcely has the threat been uttered
when we feel already the effects of it. All those
bad passions, little vanities and ambitions, which
had been exorcised by that one powerful name,
begin to leave their kiding-places and come again
to daylight. They are as yet timid and cautious,
for the charm has not lost its power as yet ; but we
had some indications of their reappearance during
the last few days in the struggle between some por-
tion of the Government and the commander of the
National Guard at Athens, Colonel Koroneos.
You are aware of the embarrassment in which the
Provisional Government found itself at its advent
to power, with an army thoroughly demoralised,
with a Gendarmerie unavailable because ex-
tremely unpopular, and with a National Guard as
yet only on paper. The most obvious thing to do
seemed to be to hasten the formation of the Na-
tional Guard and to help on the tendency which
the soldiers showed to go home. A Government
the issue of popular will had nothing to fear from
a popular force, and it required no regular army,
always so costly, and in this instance more a sub-
ject of apprehension than of security.
The Government decided otherwise. If it did not
oppose the formation of the National Guard it did
little or nothing to promote it, while it employed
all means in its power to bring together and con-
centrate the army in the capital. In a country so
accessible to suspicion such a mode of acting could
not but provoke remarks, comments, and dissatis-
faction, especially as it was known that a large por-
tion of the Ministry, and at least one member of the
Provisional Government was opposed to this policy.
The whole began to be looked upon at last as an
attempt on the part of the President of the Go-
vernment to centralise all power in his own hands
in view of future contingencies. The dissatisfac-
tion was naturally greatest among the National
Guard itself and their commander. Every step was
up-hill work. At first, the law about the National
Guard, which had been passed by the last Chamber,
but was not carried into execution, was only im-
perfectly applied. All higher organisation was de-
nied, and only squads of 20 men allowed. This was
tantamount to no organisation at all. After a time
the Government had to yield on this point and
allow the formation of battalions. This point
gained, four battalions were formed at Athens and
the Piraeus, besides the battalion of the University;
but then came the question of arming Wand clothing
them. In vain was the matter urged. The answer
was " There are no arms and there is no money,"
and yet the suspicion arose that there were arms at
any rate, ;if not money. A rich Greek merchant
from St. Petersburg, Mr. Bernardallo, had offered
several thousands at the first news of the law on the
National Guard under the late King, but none but
the Government knew how many of those arms
had arrived, and how many of those which had
arrived were lost during the first few days
of the revolution, when every one helped himself.
There had been equally money offers from abroad
tendered for the purpose, but it was oren more un-
certain if any thing had arrived, or how much. No
organisation of the National Guard was possible
without this help in arms and money, and at last a
committee was formed and subscriptions opened
among the public to assist in procuring uniforms for
those who could not afford them. In the meantime
the feeling among the National Guard became every
day stronger against what they considered as neglect,
if not towards the institution. The Com-
mander of it felt this as a personal slight, and, out-
spoken as he is, did not conceal his opinion on the
matter. This led to increased bad feeling. The
President and those who supported him in the Cabi-
net thought it was time to interfere, and proposed
to dismiss the Commander of the National Guard,
under the plea that he was intriguing against the
Government, that he was the cause of a bad feeling
between the army and the National Guard, and
kept up an agitation which threatened to bring
about a collision. It would be difficult to say how
far these charges were justified, for it was easy to
construe the legitimate dissatisfaction of the Com-
mander of the National Guard, expressed as it was
no doubt freely, into a hostile intention against the
Government. Indeed, the majority of the Cabinet
seemed to think so, for they refused to give their
consent to his dismissal. This was in the beginning
of last week.
The news of the discussion on this subject in the
Cabinet got abroad and caused considerable agita-
tion. The students assembled, and sent a deputa-
tion, headed by one of the professors, to the Presi-
dent, to ask whether this report was true that their
Commander was to be dismissed, and to express at
the same time their thorough confidence in him.
The answer was that there was no such intention,
and that if there was the Government would take
into account the wishes of the deputation of the
students. The students afterwards went in a body
to the house of Koroneo, who made a speech exhort-
ing them to be quiet.
No one was taken in by this armistice. Yesterday
the struggle was renewed. The proposal of Koro-
neo's dismissal was again brought before the Cabinet.
This time the proposal was backed by the com-
plaints of several officers, who stated that Koroneo
had tampered with their men and had tried to gain
them over to his
side;
that money had been distri-
buted
among them • and that a number of soldiers
and non-commissiar ' oned officers bad to be placed
under
of the rest for
Cabiner subordination. Still, the majority
held
out,
his resignation,resisting the proposal.
While the discussion was going
on Koroneo sent in
solving the question in an unex-
pected manner. It is interspreted by his enemies es
a
a confession of guilt, and a
proof that he found
the position he had taken up untenable. I am more
inclined to think that the Colonel had patriotism
enough not to jeopardize the tranquillity at the
very last moment of the interregnum. On Monday
next the Assembly will be probably in sufficient
numbers to constitute itself, and then the Provi-
sional Government will have to render an account
of its stewardship. Koroneo, who is a member
himself, will then have an opportunity to bringfor-
ward in a legitimate manner his own complaints
and those of the National Guard.
His resignation having put an end to the discus-
sion about his person, the majority of the Cabinet,
suspecting that those who had brought forward the
dismissal of the Colonel did so with the view of ap-
Pointing their own man, decided that the post of
Commander of the National Guard of Athens should
be abolished altogether ; and they considered this
as a victory. But it is a question whether it be the
best way to promote the object they have in view—
namely, the organization of the National Guard.
As for the public, it is
difficulty has been got Over, and hopes that the
grateful that another
meeting of the Assembly will
remedy many evils.
May that hope be realised by
events.

The Recorders.of Exeter and Penzance on Mon-
day referred at some length to the present system of punish-
ment. The learned gentlemen concurred in 'recommending
a return 0 transportation.

The Late Battle of Fredericksburg.

(FROM AN EYE-WITNESS.)
_ _ _

We (Quebec Mercury) have been permitted to
make the following extract from the lett( r of a Cana-
dian surgeon in the Federal army to a relative in
Montreal, dated from Burnside's headquarters on
Sunday last :

"Being attached for the time to headquarters,
with nothing to do but to watch the progress of the
fight from the gallery of the Phillip's Mansion,
which commands a view of nearly the whole field
of operations on the other side of the river, I had
as good a sight of the battle after the fog lifted
about noon as from a box seat of a theatre. At in-
tervals the clouds of smoke obscured the scene, but
again they rolled off, and a grand panorama of the
fight was exhibited. The battle on our side was a
carnival of cowardice. Whatever the newspapers
say, the highest officers here do not pretend to con-
ceal that the Union troops never fought so badly.
After they bad got within point blank range of the
enemy's fire, nothing could induce them to advance.
Fredericksburg was filled with stragglers in thou-
sands before the engagement had commenced, and
this went on all day, until before night more than
half the army had disbanded, and was skulking and
plundering about town. Including the reserves,
which went into action late in the afternoon, the
Union force engaged was not less than 200,000. I
do not think, from all that I can learn, the killed
killed and wounded will reach 6,000, and should
not be surprised to learn they are not more than
4,000. The position of the enemy, although good,
was not exceedingly strong, and so wide spread
that it was liable to be cut in half. It was not to be
compared to that held by the Russians at Alma,
which the Allies forced with so little difficulty;
and I am satisfied that a European army of one-
fourth the Federal force would have carried it
with a single rush. But our men would not fight ;
when the columns were got within range, they
halted, began firing, every man on his own hook,
became confused, and fell back in a perfect mob
to be reformed. Seen from a distance, the attacking
columns looked like so many street mobs, on which
the police had made a sudden attack; a convulsion
seemed to shake each in its turn, it opened out
apparently with a desperate resolve to form line
and advance, and then came a regular sauve qui
pent, and every man ran for cover to the rear, as
though the devil were after him. Then the jeering
yells of the Confederates would ring out above the
dull booming of the cannon and the pattering of
musketry, and springing up from behind fences
and rifle pits, the dark, gray line would advance at
a run, and pour crushing volleys into the flying
rout. I don't believe on the Confederate left and
centre that our troops got within 150 yards of the
advanced defences ; and it is certain very few of
our wounded were too near to the enemy's line to
be carried off. On the right the fighting is said to
have been better. The greater part of the loss on
our side was among the skulkers in the streets of
Fredericksburg. We took and lost some prisoners
on our left, but on no other pert of the field were
the two armies sufficiently near to each other to
make captives. The greater part of our dead have
been left where they fell, but arrangements have
been made by flag of truce to bury them. It is
whispered, however, that it has been resolved to
retire the army to this side of the river, General
Burnside being satisfied it is useless to make another
attack on the Confederate position with such troops.
The material of the army is worse now than ever it
was ; a battle is the signal for ' skedaddle' among the
conscripts, substitutes, and bounty volunteers, and
a disaster in any other position would lead to disso-
lution. But for the guards at the bridge-heads
yesterday tens of thousands of skulkers would be
by this time well on their way to Washington.
Nothing is known of the enemy's loss beyond the
statement of one of Lee's officers, who came in with
a Rag and permission for us to bury our dead in
front of his lines, that it is very small. This
would naturally be the case from his troops being
under cover of rifle-pits, earthworks, and woods,
and the rolling nature of their position allowing
them to be concealed, where neither rifle nor
cannon could reach them. The weather is as
cold as November with you; ice forms every night,
and does not disappear during the day; the roads
are very bad, and in consequence the distribution of
provisions irregular. There is a general talk of
winter quarters, and a general hope that the cam-
paign is ended until spring. All day long the cars
have been bringing up ammunition for the batteries
on this side from Acquia Landing, the firing last
week having exhausted the magazines. A good many
of the wounded have been brought across the river,
and the hospital arrangements being bad, as usual,
arrangements are being made to forward all that
can be moved to Washington."