The Sun.
London, England, 1865-04-05 00:00:00

It is evident that the repulse of SHERMAN'S troops
by JOHNSTON was much more serious than the
Federals were willing to admit. BRECKENRIDGE'S
official report states. that JOHNSTON attacked SHER-
MAN'S advance at Bentonville, which is 20 miles
south-west of Goldsborough, and drove it back a
mile. Subsequently the Federals were reinforced,
and rallied, but were again repulsed and held in
check till darkness came on and closed the combat.
Both sides held their positions for the night, and in
the morning the Federals had intrenched themselves.
BRECKENRIDGE states that the Confederate loss was
small, and does not mention that of the enemy. It
seems from the Richmond accounts that the columns
repulsed were SCHOFIELD'S. The Northern organs,
as usual, affect to think very little of the affair, but
it has apparently damped the energies of their
leaders, since the troops have made no further ad-
vance. Another engagement has taken place be-
tween HARDEE and a part of SHERMAN'S forces, in
which HARDEE claims a decisive victory. It took
place midway between Raleigh and Fayetteville on
the 16th. The Federals lost 3,300 men, and the
Confederates 450, according to the Confederate
version, which we may take, from former experi-
ence, to be a pretty cloie approximation to the
truth.
All accounts agree that SHERMAN is concen-
trating his forces at Knoxsville, with the
intention of advancing into Virginia in the
rear of Lynchburg. SHERIDAN is said to
have crossed the James River and joined GRANT,
but the reports concerning him are not very defi-
nite. The general aspect of military affairs is de-
cidedly favourable to the South, and every week
gained at this crisis is of service to them. " The

hour before dawn is the darkest ;" and so it may

prove that the invasion of SHERMAN and the evacua-
tion of the seaports may precede the ultimate suc-
cess of the Southern cause. Civil dissensions are
not yet ended among them, but it is possible that
DAVIS or LEE may assume the authority, with
which the great body of their countrymen would
willingly see them invested, and carry out that
prompt and vigorous policy which is necessary
for the salvation of the Confederacy. The
Congress, indeed, blames DAVIS for want
of promptitude in making known the needs
of the country, and there is no doubt that he
hesitated long before deciding upon the enlistment
of the slaves. He would have done more wisely to
have recognised the necessity earlier, and to have
expressed his convictions more positively. Still the
Congress should not blame him for this delay, since
when he did propose the measure they refused to
pass it, and even after the emphatic language of his
late address the Senate withheld its consent from
several of the measures which he declared to be
indispensable to the public safety. The Congress
blames DAVIS for the tone of his Message, which

they think is calculated to promote discord and dis

sension, as if discord and dissension were not already
in existence in the Congress itself, and as if the
people could be deluded by fair speeches and assur-
ances when they see the enemy marching uninter-
ruptedly through their States. President DAVIS has

never attempted to deceive his people, and therefore
his words have weight. When their prospects have
been gloomy and the news disheartening, he has

not failed to tell them frankly of their dangers, at
the same time urging them to fresh exertion and to

unshaken endurance. He would be unworthy of
the responsibility with which his-fellow-countrymen

have entrusted him if he shrank from telling them
- -

what he believed to be necessary in the hour o:
danger. The address of the Confederate Congress,

assuring the people that the conquest of the South

is " geographically impossible," may be very en-
couraging, but the straightforward address of the Pre-
sident will impress the people more strongly. DAVIS
replied to the notification of the adjournment with
dignity, saying that he hoped events would prove
he was mistaken in those views which the Congress
objected to, but that he proposed to defend the
country to the full extent of his power. We trust
that this declaration inaugurates a new and vigorous

policy, and, meanwhile, the friends of the South

should take heart, since the clouds that have so long
overshadowed the prospects of the Confederacy are
at last breaking.

It is very seldom that an affair of considerable
moment, in which many different localities are mixed
up and many conflicting interests concerned, can
be carried to an end without delay, vexation, and
perplexity. A smooth and prosperous beginning is
no proof of a speedy or tranquil conclusion. Per-
sons holding the most opposite -views may agree as
to certain fundamental principles, especially under
the pressure of danger or excitement ; but when it
comes to a question of details a thousand rivalries,
jealousies, and other petty motives come into play
and retard the whole scheme. All may wish to
arrive at the same goal, but they are by no
means agreed as to the road by which to reach
it. Thus it 11).8 unfortunately p.oved in the

occasion for toasts, yet that one must be given,
" Success to the great national undertaking, the
completion of which we have witnessed to-day."
His Royal Highness also congratulated Mr.
THWAITES and Mr. BAZALGETTE upon the great
public work that had been so successfully inaugu-
rated that day. It may be considered that the
PRINCE did not indulge in false expectations when
he expressed a hope that the good of that undertak-
ing would be found in the future, when " London
would become one of the healthiest cities in Europe."
It so often happens that the most promising works
are comparative failures, and the most fair-sounding
projects have to be ultimately abandoned, that one
cannot but rejoice with renewed eagerness at
the prospect of a successful accomplishment
of a large standing work, and one that may
truly be said to have been a great national deside-
ratum. It is, moreover, one the importance of which
will increase as time goes on, and it is almost im-
possible to estimate the benefits derivable from it,
and the evils from which it will have preserved the
community. Even already we may realise the
utility of its immediate introduction ; for if the fears
of some are realised, and the plague now devastating
some parts of Europe visits our shores, it would have
been a deplorable thing if it had found us in hot
weather with the Thames in the state in which for
many past summers it has been. This main drainage
has been one of those tasks which imperatively
called for speed in their construction, and all
time lost in such matters is a calamity not to
be over-rated by intelligent and acute ob-
servers. Yesterday's undertaking was worthy of
the eclat by which it was surrounded, and it is no
mere compliment to say that Mr. THWAITES as
chairman of the Metropolitan Board of Works, and
Mr. BAZALGETTE as engineer, are entitled to credit
for their exertions. The ceremonial of yester-
day was a proud day for them, but no
doubt they feel more gratification at the
consciousness of having been instrumental in
effecting the manipulation of a great public bene-
I fit than they can derive from any outward tokens
of approval, or superficial displays of the hour. It
is, indeed, a work to form a landmark in the history
of a city, and to be connected with which may well
be remembered as an honourable distinction in a
man's career, by his grateful fellow-citizens.