The Sun.
London, England, 1854-09-28 00:00:00

THE ARMY IN THE CRIMEA

The Debats has a long article on the last ac-
counts received of the expedition in the Crimea.
We extract as follows :—" What the army appears
to have intended was to go and occupy, as near
Sebastopol as possible, a position, cape, or tongue
of land, favourable for the establishment of an
entrenched place d'armes, in which will be
placed the hospitals, stores, provisions, and
ammunition, where the heavy siege artillery
will be landed, and from which place com-
munications may be daily kept up with the
fleet for a continued supply of food fur the army.
This is indispensable ; and, in addition, the posi-
tion must he so situated as to serve as a base for
the operations of the siege, which will naturally be
necessary against the forts situated on the northern
side of the harbour, and in front of which extend
the town and port of Sebastopol on the opposite
side. The country which the army has to pass
through in skirting the coast is a dry and stony
soil, intersected here and there by sandy patches
and rising grounds of no great elevation. There
are several roads parallel to the sea, which the
Tartars pass over every day with carts drawn by
two dromedaries, which are the camels of the
country, as they are in Algeria, where, however,
it is not the custom to harness ;hem. During the
dry season in the Crimea vehicles can follow every
kind of path, or even go across the fields. It is
known that field artillery passes everywhere, and
that if any obstacles present themselves, the pick-
axe and the shovel soon make a practicable pas-
sage. The army will find on its road four small
rivers, the Bulganak, having the village of Zamride
where it disembogues itself; the Alma, on which
Prince Menschikoff is said to have concentrated his
troops ; the Kalcha, where it was first intended to
effect the landing, and the Belbek or Kabarta, a
league and a-half from Sebastopol. The valleys of
these rivers are wooded, and furnished with some
Tartar villages. Perhaps but little water will be
found there in the present season. As to the re-
ception of the Tartars, it is seen that it was fa-
vourable on the first day, and that the inhabitants
were anxious to favour as much as possible the
march of the allied troops, where the presence of
the Turks could not fail to excite their sympathy.
In fine, this great and perilous operation of land-
ing 60,000 men in an enemy's country has been
accomplished with wonderful rapidity and ability
—an operation unequalled in military annals, and
which the strategists of our last great continental
v ars, Jemini at their head, looked on as almost
impossible on such vast proportions. In fact, the
enterprise was as difficult as it was stupendous ;
and who could foreiee that not one of the Russian,
masses of troops, of which so much was said, would
be found on the shore to dispute our landing, or
to make us pay dearly for taking possession 01 the
beach ? Great was the anxiety felt hero for some
days, and the news of the happy lauding has pro-
duced on every mind the effect of a victory."
The Allgemeine Zeitung says :—" Will Sebastopol
fall ? will it hold out ?" So much is certain, that
our calmest and most clear. sighted military men
predict its fall. According to the communications
made by competent judges, who have lately seen
the fortress, it does not seem to be remarkably strong.
By sea it is almost impregnable. Sebastopol, by its
singular site, is not very accessible from the land
side. Russia herself always sends troops, provisions,
and ammunition to it by sea. It is an isolated post,
which, should it once fall into the enemy's hands,
Russia herself cannot menace further, save with
vain demonstrations. Moreover, it appears that
the corps now stationed in the fortress consists of
mere recruitsf in whom no great confidence is felt.
Under these circumstances the chief speculation of
political persons is for its fall.
The Vienna Lloyd asks :—" Why have the
troops of the allies encountered no resistance at
their landing on the Crimea ?" The Soldaten Freund
thinks it can answer the question in the fol-
lowing manner :—"This lies in the system of
the defence. Excepting Sebastopol, not one
single Russian object situated on the Tauric coast
could seriously oppose a landing covered by float-
ing batteries consisting of 3,000 guns. The ad-
miral and adjutant-general, Prince Menschikoff,
offers no impediment therefore to the allied troops
on any point of the coast whatever. Then there
are neither artificial nor natural objects of defence
on the uniform plan, from Eupatoria to Simphero-
pol, the seat of the governor-general of the Crimea.
But not far from Simpheropol the Russian cavalry
corps is encamped, while three divisions of infantry
occupy the heights towards Bashi-Seral and Se-
bastopol. Among these heights, by-the-bye, there
are three water-ridges. This tract is a regular
theatre for war ; it may be compared with that of
Castiglione delle stiviere, where in every war
hitherto waged the contest has been fought out in
Upper Italy. Above Bashi Seral the Russians
have erected fortifications on detached eminences,
and these will have to be stormed by the allies.

THE GOVERNOR OF BOMARSUND'S
OPINION OF SEBASTOPOL.

The Satul Public of Lyons contains the following:
—" In a trip which I recently made to Havre, a
friend had the kindness to present me to the Rus-
sian General Bodiico. I led the conversation to
Russia and Bomarsund. Amongst other things the
general said : I wish that Prince Paskiewitch
had been confined with me in the fortress of Bo-
marsund. lam certain that, like me, he would'
not have thought of prolonging a useless resist-
ance. You know the courage of the Russian sol-
dier, but in this case courage went for nothing. It
was impossible to stand against the excellent firing
of the English, and especially of the Chasseurs- de-
Vincennes. As soon as we showed ourselves at an
embrasure, balls arrived with such precision, and
in such profusion, that it was impossible for us to
take aim.' One of the persons having referred to
the disembarkation, I asked General Bodisco if he
did not believe the force of Sebastopol exaggerated
by the newspapers. ' No,' he replied ; 'Sebastopol
is, towards the sea, truly formidable ; but if the
fleets can approach it as they did Bomarsund, and
if by land the Chasseurs-de-Vincennes can get the
walls of Sebastopol within reach of their rifles,
resistance will be no more possible to its garrison
than to that of Bomarsand.'

CONSTRUCTION OF BATTERIES NEAR
EUPATORI A.
Cape Baba, near Eupatoria, is chosen for the an-
chorage ground of the fleet, and the construction of
batteries commanding the road was commenced on
the day of the landing. The disembarkation of
the reserves, amounting to 20,000 men, according
to the plan of the expedition, was to begin on
the 24th. The crews of the fleets, 25,000 men
in all, will only be landed in case the reserves
should be required to reinforce the main army.

The Lloyd of Vienna, of the 23d, in a letter from
Bucharest says :—lmmediately on the news having
spread of the landing of the troops, it was reported
that the Russians had been beaten by the allies.
But it is certain that the Rusians are retiring by
forced marches from the coast into the fortresses.
It is believed that they will take up a position at
the foot of the mountains, and that their left wing
will extend from St. Kryni to Karassu-Bazar. The
body of auxiliary Tunisian troops is to leave at
once for the Crimea without stopping at Varna.
Several small steamers have been despatched to the
Sea of Azoff, to cruise and give chase to the four
Russian steamers that are constantly carrying over
troops and ammunition to the Crimea,. These ,