The Sun.
London, England, 1854-12-29 00:00:00

POLAND.

The' Independance Beige publishes the following
letter from Hamburg, of the 22d inst.:—
" We received the night before last the Warsaw mail
of the 11th. It was stated in that capital that the last
order from St. Petersburg enjoined the military en-
gineers to terminate the additional works of the citadel
of Alexander, commenced three month■ ago, in the first
fortnight of January next. Marshal Paskiewitch had
ordered the organisation of three parks of flying artil-
lery. The Inspector-General of that arm in Poland,
Lazareff Stanischtsheff, whom be had especially charged
with that organisation, returned on the 10th to War-
saw, to report to the Marshal the result of his inspection
in the Government of Mohilev, where one of those
batteries had been completely organised at Bodrujsk
It appears that, in the two provinces bordering on Prus-
sian Poland, the number of Russian troops is very small.
A few squadrons of cavalry, which arrived there lately,
only stopped a few days. Detachments of Lancers and
Cossacks assist the Customs officers in repressing smug-
gling, which is organised on a large scale along that
frontier. The recruits of the new levy, decreed by the
Czar, are intended to create a second grand army of
reserve, which is to be concentrated at Moscow and in
' the neighbouring provinces. Those recruits are not to
be incorporated into the reserve battalions of the regi-
ments formed, in virtue of an imperial ukase, issued in
March last, with the soldiers sent home on unlimited
furloughs. Those battalions are included in the different
divisions of the corps of infantry of the six active armies
which Russia has now is the field."

AUSTRIA.
VIENNA, DEC. 24.

It was yesterday known that Colonel Manteuffel
was the bearer of the congratulations of his Sove-
reign to the Empress Elizabeth on her birthday,
and in the evening it was related that the military
diplomatist was also charged to explain to the Aus-
trian Minister for Foreign Affairs the nature of M.
von Usedom's mission to England and France.
Such is the version which has been given by a per-
son generally well informed, but a Government
()Egan of the press this morning hints that Col. Man-
tauffel and M. von Usedom have probably been sent
" to endeavour to find out the true nature of the
secret conditions which have been made between
the three Allied Powers." Not more than 20,000
or 25,000 Turks would V e ]eft in the Dobrudscha
and Moldavia, as all doubt as to the resolve of
Austria to defend the lines of the Pruth and Danube
a,ainst any aggressive operations on the part of
Russia was entirely removed.
Not only the whole of the British Embassy—
with the exception of its chief, who is still unwell
—but many other persons of distinction, as well
civil as military, were present at General Duplat's
funeral. Among others were M. de Bourqueney,
the Turkish Minister ; Baron Hess, General
Letang, and a great crowd of generals and staff
officers. Our local papers tell us that all the qua-
rantines between Orsova and Galatz have been
abolished, and consequently the communication
between the two banks of the Danube is perfectly
free, which was not the case under the former
regime, because the Russian Consul-General ob-
jected to it. The communication between Tultscha
and Galatz has also been restored. A more satis-
factory postal communication is likely to be estab-
lished by the Austrians in the Danubian Princi-
palities.

Another letter from Vienna states that the
answer of the Russian Government to the last pro-
positions had been expected there for two days,
but had not arrived. The Russian Ambassador,
however, had stated that ho should soon re-
ceive it.

The last bulletin of the health of the King of
Bavaria, dated the 24th, states that his Majesty is
in a fair way of prompt recovery.
The Constitutionnel states, on the authority of
a Warsaw informant, that the news of the recent
calling out of the battalions of reserve of the Rus-
sian corps of grenadiers is incorrect. The resource
in question was exhausted as long ago as February
last.

A letter received in Paris yesterday from Bala-
klava of the 10th says—" The arrivals of troops,
ammunition, and provisions go on incessantly, and
wooden houses for receiving them are rising up on
all sides. We expect by the Christophe Colomb a
number of draining pipes, which will carry off the
water into the ravines, and improve the salubrity
of the camp. The sanitary condition of the troops
is excellent. Our friends the Turks are full of zeal,
and perform with the most perfect goodwill all the
work which is assigned to them."

The military engineers at Warsaw have positive
orders from St. Petersburg to finish the citadel of
Ilexauder by the middle of January. Paskie-
witch has ordered the formation of three parks of
flying artillery. The frontiers of the kingdom of
Poland next to Prussia are denuded of troops.
The field hospitals. of Austrian mobile army have
been placed under the command of a colonel. The
3d Artillery Regiment is being placed on a full war
footing, and in a few weeks is to proceed with a
powerful staff to Gallicia. Several companies of
engineers and pioneers have also recently received
orders to be prepared to march.

THE MEDITERRANEAN.

MALTA, DEC. 22.

We have had several arrivals of steamers with
wounded and shipwrecked men. Our streets have
had quite a melancholy appearance from the num_
ber of wounded that are moving about, many, I
regret to say, with the loss of a limb.
accommodation.
Himalaya cleared us out of invalids, and the
and
this who awaited a passage to England,
this fine ship gave them ample accommodati
,
Since then we have had the Hydaspes, Jura, and
Taurus. After coaling they proceeded on the two
first for Marseilles, the latter for Liverpool,th taking
most of the wounded with them
the worst cases remained for the
rived from our fine climate. e-
vessel has Alicantehya.sTahrerivTerdenftroimsi.
with 96 mules
rapidlyb erneeopfivatigrthionsgob.me Iledeorfl
Majesty's ship Sampson,
forAtl
d‘v Bich arrived from Con-
stantinople in a very
sad
state, is to be repaired
perfect wreck. The ; she looks, without-masts, a
worse plight. Retribution is said to be in a
The French steamer left Constantinople on the
the lsth, notwithstanding which
she did not arrive at Malta till the 22d, owing to
boisterous weather.

MALTA, DEC. 19.
I enclose a list of the numbers of troops, both
French and English, that have gone through here
lately.
The Taurus came in yesterday, and the Jura to-
day, both filled with wounded men and officers.
The Constantinople mail is again behind, though
we have a few letters by the Jura, of which I will
give you a few extracts :
On the morning of Nov. 12, when lI,M, ships

Tribune, Highflyer, and Lynx were cruising off
Anapa and the Straits of Kertch, a large white
building, which was afterwards discovered to be a
martello tower, was observed on a spit of sand
about ten miles to the westward of Anapa,
.as the
ships neared the shore two smaller ones, so placed
as to flank the approach to the larger one, came in
view ; and when within half-a-mile from the best
a gun was fired from the tower.

'The ships were immediately anchored in. four
fathoms water, with their broadsides beari*g on
the tower, and after a few rounds of shot and shell
the party in charge evacuated it, and fled along the
sands in the direction of Anapa, leaving b3hind
theca many accoutrements, muskets, &c. The boats
were then manned, and a party landed to destroy
the works and endeavour to bring off the guns, one
iron 30-pounder and one brass 18-pounder, with
instructions to blow up the fort afterwards. The
brass gun was lowered down and placed in a cart ;
but the wind and sea had increased so quickly that
all hope of carrying it off was abandoned, and the
boats' crews were compelled to re-embark as
speedily as possible. This, however, was net
effected without considerable difficulty ; but the
Hon. Capt. Carnegie, who was in command, by his
energy and decision embarked every man, the surf
rising so fast and strong that several boats (and
among them his own) were swamped four or five
times in the attempt.
The tower, and the ammunition within it, was
blown up and destroyed, but from some unex-
plained eause the explosion took place prematurely,
and Capt. Moore and Lieut. Smith were both most
severely scorched and injured. Both, lam glad to
say, are recovering.

The Cossacks witched these operations from a
distance, but did not interfere. The detachment
occupy* the village or town, which is called
Djimete, amounted to about 200 men, of whom the
greater part were cavalry ; only three prisoners
were taken.

On the 11th a sortie was made by the Russians ;
it was well met by our people ; only 5 of the naval
brigade were wounded, none killed. Capt. Lush-
ington, as usual, was at kis post, and was not
taken by surprise. Our force, with the French,
now nearly approach to 100,000 men, and they
expect in a few days we shall march to the attack
of Sebastopol.
Jura leaves to-night, so I send by her. -
An accident had occurred to the condensing ma'
chine of the Royal Albert, and she was in con-
sequence temporarily detained at Constantinople,
but would proceed on immediately.
Emeu, Ripon, and Cambria are to come to Malta
as soon as possible, the orders being that each
alternate one should be sent to Marseilles, the
other to England, there being about the same de-
maid for steamers at each place.
Himalaya left for England with invalids on the
19th.