The Sun.
London, England, 1863-05-16 00:00:00

THE SIEGE OF PUEBLA.

The Moniteur publishes the following report of
General Forey to the Minister of War :
" Cerro San Juan, April 2, 1863.
"Monsieur le Marechal,—My general report of
the 2d inst. will have informed your Excellency of
the progress of the works of the siege of Puebla up
to the 29th of March.
"I had fixed upon that day for the attack upon
Fort San Xavier, and I have now the honour to
send to your Excellency the details of that opera-
tion.

"Fort San Xavier is defended on its western side
by a bastion, on the north by a curtain, on the east
by a half-moon covering the entrance to the town
side, and on the south by an irregular bastion.
These works, forming a continuous encemee, sur-
round a vast construction which comprises a Peni-
tentiary connected with the Convent of San Xavier.
The whole of this solid structure has a length of 180
metres, and a width of 80 metres. It contains three
inner courts and various outhouses. The approaches
wore covered by accessory defensive works, and
flanked by numerous works still intact. Tne defence
therefore was easy, and the internal arrangements
allowed it to be made to the last extremity. It
was indispensable to get possession of this great
obstacle. Our engineering works had brought
us up quite close to it. The fire of our artil-
lery had destroyed its batteries. It remained for
the infantry to do the rest.
" Confident in the vigour and energy of my
troops, I did not hesitate to order the assault. The
Ist battalion of Foot Chasseurs and a battalion of

the 2d Zouaves formed the attacking columns, in-
dependently of two battalions from the trenches. I
entrusted the execution of this important operation
to General Rizaine, who, accompanied by his Staff,
took the command of the trenches at 1 p.m. At
4 p.m. all our batteries opened a heavy fire on the
Penitentiary, which destroyed its outworks. At
5 p.m., at a given order, our fire ceased. General
Bazaine, placed in the fourth parallel, gave the sig-
nal. Repeated shouts of Viva l'Empereue re-
sponded to it, and the first column, issuing forth
from the trenches, advanced at a charge against
Fort Xavier, scaled the parapet, and forced an en-
trance. The enemy was for a moment disconcerted,
but in a few minutes a hail of bullets was sent from
the crenellated walls, terraces, and windows upon
our men. The Mexicans at the same time open( d
some masked guns from behind the barricades; a
field battery placed in front of Fort Carmen also
opened fire against us, ae did also all the other forts,
but this deluge of grape did not stop the advance
of our troops. The second column soon followed
the first, and forced an entrance into the Peniten
fiery. The garrison, which consisted of about 700
men, made a show of resistance. For the first time,
the Mexicans felt the points of our bayonets ; they
gave way before the impetuosity of our attack.
Driven from story to story, from rcom to room,
some succeeded in escaping, many fell, the rest were
captured. Trains had been laid in various parts of
the building, but owing to the energy of Captain
Barillon, of the Engineers, they were not fired, and
no damage was done.

" The enemy, finding that we had got possession
of the Penitentiary, attempted to retake it. A re-
serve of 2,000 Mexicans advanced to the east front,
but the Chasseurs and Zouaves who had taken
possession of the first storey of the building received
them with so well-sustained a fire that they were
compelled to fall back behind the barricades i❑
the town, The enemy still kept up a heavy fusil-
lade, which lasted till half-past 7 o'clock.
"The loss of the enemy was serious, as the interior
of the building was full of dead bodies. We cap•
tured three mortars, one field piece, and a quantity
of ammunition, with 200 prisoners, including two
colonels and eight other officers.

" Our officers and men deserve the highest praise
:'or their courage and discipline durirg the fight.
" FOREY, Commander-in-Chief."

La Patric publishes the following

" The official reports of the recent military events
in Mexico reached Paris yesterday, They confirm
the information already received from various sources
of the attack and capture of the city of Puebla. Ac •
cording to our private advices, our troops, at the
latest date, were in possession of the town, with the
exception of two forts, against which the attack was
not to be directed, as the occupation of all the other
positions of the enemy rendered thesurrender of those
forts inevitable. Despite the supplications of the
inhabitants, the Mexican garrison, commanded by
General Ortega, had resolved to withstand the
siege, and the resistance it made, according to the
reports of those who took part in that desperate
struggle, was as energetic as it was courageous.
Street by street, house by house, our soldiers, inspired
by that heroic ardour which is common to them, had
to fight their way. The streets were barricaded, the
houses, coated with earth, formed so many forts,
against which our artillt ry was obliged successively
to direct its fire. Thanks to the skilful plans of
General Forey, and to the maintenance of order
during the advance of the besiegers, whose zeal it was
at times necessary to restrain, our losses have not
been, happily, in proportion to the difficulties which
arose at every step. The artillery, under the able
direction of its brave Colonel, recently promoted to
the rank of General, spared its fire as much as
possible, as Well to prevent the destruction of the

most populous portion of the city, where the ill"
offensive inhabitants had sought shelter, as t°
economise in some measure his ammunition, which
had been procured at great cost of conveyance. The
precision of aim remedied in some degree the rela-
tive want of shell and shot, and the part played by
the artillery in this sanguinary combat deserves,
to
this point of view, the highest praise. Let us
hasten to add that G2.nerai Laumiere, of the Artil-
lery, whose death had been reported, is "II
wounded. He was struck by a bullet in the fore-
head, and, though the wound is serious, no fears of
a fatal issne were entertained when the last de.
spatches left. This is the only general officer Who
has been wounded. Among the superior officers,
one colonel only received a slight wound in the
shoulder. The number of prisoners taken by °llf
forces is considerable. Our officers, actuated by
that generous spirit which always animates thel°l
endeavoured to avoid as much as possible the al?'
sion of blood in the houses which fell into their
hands. Nevertheless, it was found necessary t°
blow up many of the houses, which had been trans.
formed into so many fortresses, and to bury the
defenders inside, who held out to the last, in their
ruins_ The composition of the garrison of Puebla
has again corroborated the assertions of all the car'
respondence which represented the majority e`
the Mexican population as favourable to Bur°.
pean intervention. The Mexican flag, or rather
the flag of Juarez, counted among its defender°
deserters from General Prim's army,
lishmen, Americans, and a great number of COP
mopolite soldiers, which the European condign",
provides in all adventurous wars. The presence
of these various elements explains in part the
unexpected resistance which has been made. Pas.
sengers who left Vera Cruz by the last steamer are
of the opinion that in the week which would lopnvi
the departure of the courier the complete oncePtsr
tion of Puebla must have taken place, and that the
inhabitants, protected against the mercenaries vibe
had joined General Ortega's army, must have re.
ceived our troops with cordial hospitality."
The account given in the Constitutionnel is some'
what vague, and is much more brief. It says'
The courier from Mexico has brought glorious
news. Since the commencement of April We
troops had gained a footing in Puebla, and, if flit
town was not yet completely in our hands, at leas
our troops entered it on the 31st of March, after -
victorious assault, and were every day making far'
ther progress. They entered the city on the north'
west side, and on the 3d of April advanced agaiees
the fortified redoubt in the centre of the town, °ger
to attack it on two sides at once. The various le.;
tified works of Morelos, Carmen, San Pablo, ao
others had surrendered ; the first fire of resistal
having ceased, it no longer seemed doubtful th,e
the complete occupation of the town would short
follow, and consequently lead to the surrender °
Forts Lorte and Guadaloupe."

COUNTRY MARKETS.

.-1.,

LIVERPOOL—MAY 15. a,
At this day's market there was rather a small Aden t
ante of the trade, and wheat met with a slow inquire..
prices in favour of buyers. Oats were not so saleaS
Oatmeal was scarce. Barley and peas were fully as dew,
Indian corn hardly so brisk, but full prices obtaina
New Egyptian beans rather dearer, and in better reqtle
Flour at former quotations, and more business doing.

WAKEFIELD—MAY 15.
A fair show of wheat at market to-day, but the busilleol
done was limited, at about last week's rates. Barley ig
steady. Other articles unchanged.

Averages for the week :
Wheat 2,441 qrs., at 485_3363:
3T
Rye
Barley 152
Peas .. 10
Oats
Beans

STAMFORD—MAY 15.
t see
White wheat, 45s to 50s; red, 44s to 48s per 3.8-°,lr.
Barley, malting, 36s to 42s ; grinding, 32s to 34s per,;'er
Oats, 22s to 26s per 24 stone. Beans, old, 41s to
qr. ; new, 38s to —s.

•
The following were the quotations this morning :
wheat, —s Od to Os 01; white, Os Od to —s Od , barleYdd to
Od to Os Od ; oats, 6d.to 9s Od. ; black do., 70
Os Od.

CORK-MAY 15,

EXETER—MAY 15.
Wheat, white.. Gs 3d to Gs 4d I Barley.

3s 6d to is,

, ... ... ~
td 3,
Ditto red. .6s Od to Cs 3d I Oats .........2s 9d
Flour, fine, 36s to 36s ; seconds,;34s to —s per sack.
Fat beef, p sc., 10s0d to 11s6d CATTLE 613
Ewes, per lb ....sid to
....A
Pork carcases, 7s Od to 8s Od Wethers, d 0...... • 7d t°Td
Lamb, p 1b.......—d to —d Fat calves, d0...61,4 to, J.
Rough fat, 31c1 per lb.
1

BRISTOL SUGAR—MAY 15. the
The languid tone which characterised the market at op
close of last week continues to mark its operations. 811,0 e
though importers have made some concessions. buy re AL •
come forward sparingly, and the sales have only been ,7119
small extent. Refined goods are a slow sale, and prices fwd
6d per cwt lower. Jamaica rums bring 2s 9d to 38 6cli
Demerara is 6cl to is 7d per proof gallon.

COAL b
Prioes of Coal per Ton a
s. d.

ARKET.
the close of the market' 4,
8.

Byass's Bebside West
Hartley ....15 3 Haswell .. . ...... 6 3
Carway and Duffryn
Malting , 19 6 Hartlepool.. ......... 1.6 5
Trimdon Hartlepool. "6 6
Eden Main ...14 9 Hetton ............. . 4 0
Tunstall
t 6
Cassop •....•'l5
Hough Hall ..........

Walls End.
K elloe

Ships at market
By a general resolution,
Derby-day) the merchants wi

31 ; sold, 26:-
next Wednesday (being th°
ill not attend the market.

Foreign Mail Packet List•

MAILS DUE. r v 10'
Atis'attlia and Mauritius, via Southampton. .. INia, pf,
via Marseilles ... ...... Dl ay 4
lie
Brazil and Cape Verds, by British pach Ju
et. 9'
Cape of Good Hope, Ascension, and St. Helena.. 318. v. 27„ lg.
China, Penang, and Singalorc, via Southarapton.l‘l') pi.
via Marseilles ..•D1 3Y 4.
Falkland Islands
Gibraltar, via Southampton
India (Calcutta), and Ceylon, via Southampton •"`-' 14.
via Marseilles I"J il.
India (Bombay), via Southampton Mal 0,
via Marseilles
MO A
%.
Portugal....
Jllll-
11 '
Malta, Egypt, and Aden, via Southampton Ma. 14.
via Marseilles MO 3
1 •
Newfoundland
Oporto and Vigo
,lay
13'
U. S. and British N. Amorica, by Brit. packet....,'-'
by U.S. packet.... 15,
W.C. of Africa, Madeira, and Canadianaby'eneiffe packetifiatly 10,
r 4.
June-g,
Bahamas, via New York
Mexico. .....
' ' •.Mo'.O' 14
All parts of West Indies, including Chili, Peru, IM
California. and British Columbia..

'lVg
[ADvEnmsEmENT.]—Holloway's Ointment and ph. - I 1
voit
Chest Complaints.—The propriety of disturbing the el:lter
and vascular system in pulmonary maladies by adroal.e'oor
ing internal medicines, was long questioned before Pre' lief-
Holloway was enabled to prove the practicability of
.00
ing over-gorged lungs and restoring their natural ilat,itivoli
external means. His Ointment, thoroughly rubbed 4
the walls of the chest twice a day, gives theutmost Beehiove'
and comfort in influenza,
11
acute and chronic coughs:s„atlJt
chitis, pleurisy, stitches in the side, shortness of
„,-0310
and palpitation. The weakest may safely try this re.' an
and will find that they have not staked their hopes Bait'
uncertainty, or frittered away most valuable time
less or injurious experiments. Moderate doses of 110110'
Pills are sometimes advisable.

Births. , , C.
P
BARING,—On the 14th inst., at 1, Chester- lace; 'W.'
Baring, of a daughter. T.'r Ca'
COSENS.—On the 15th inst., at Clapham-park, Ws' -
Cosens, of a son,
ws,fial
FESTING.—On the 13th inst , the wife of Major ' -
It MA., of a daughter. gr°'
SuDLow.—On the 13th inst., at Charlton, Dent'
Sudlow, of a son.

Marriages.
CHOLMELEY—STRICKLAND.—On the 12th inst., ("to go'
Thomas C. Chohneley, Esq., Commander RY
salie Sr. Quentin, only dang,hter of the late O:W.-ft
land, Esq., of Sans ,Souei, near Naples. ft, nalP
WALTON—CLEVELAND.-011 the 14th inst., A'
kirk, Yorkshire, Thomas Walton, Esq., Ben-
to Lizzie, fourth daughter of the Rev, Henry I°
rector of the parish, _ _

-
Deaths.
Nathaniel
, BORRER.—On the 14th inst., at Pak ns Manor,
Borrer, Esq,, aged 73. Y ,iyille,
CATTLEY.—On the 13th inst. at at his i esidence, Clift°—
Hove, Thomas T. Cattley, *Esq., aged GO. , the
CURZON.—On the 14th inst., at Parham-park, Sti-v-°e;e'oal''
Hon. Robt, Curzon, third of Assheton, first v'-
Curzon, aged 90.
EDGELL.—On the 14th inst., at 21 Cadogan T god
IRO)
Edgell, Esq., Bencher of Gray's-inn, aged 96.
e, Plir
FARNELL.—On the 15th inst at Holland IlVis
worth, Henry Parnell, Esq ,*solicitor, aged 61.
ton. ~..ree
MAY.—On the 14th inst., at 2, Burton street, Bu
r
cent, J. H. May, Esq., at an advanced age. „sad, St
TREBLE.—On the 15th inst., at Marlborough-ry
~ge
John's-wood, John Treble, Esq,, aged d 67.

, --•••"'"""'"'''...-------7-----
CS
_ _---- 01,
London : Printed and Published by WILLIAM ANPATO 112,
Strand, liln2,
tShteranydrec, Pinrientteorf, athteTtEvo:ol9:
10ece. - —°l
County
lithidletaex.—Saturday. May 10, 1603.