The Sun.
London, England, 1853-11-23 00:00:00

IT,-11 '
-

LONDON, WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 1853.

Victory continues to declare itself on the side
of the Turks both on the European and on the
Asiatic Continent. Hitherto, the forces of the
SULTAN have nowhere suffered discomfiture. Stra-
tegic motives may have induced them to retire a
while in the presence of the obvious numerical
superiority of their antagonists, and the marshy
nature of the country, consequent upon the sud-
den inundation of the Danube. But, it must
even in those instances be particularly borne in
our recollection that the Turkish soldiers have
only withdrawn to the position previously occu-
pied on the right bank of the Danube after having
reaped the laurels of success in more than one
memorable engagement. Allusion is here, of
course, made to the movements of the division
which crossed over the river opposite Oltenitza,
and then recrossed into Bulgaria directly intelli-
gence was received of the advance made by
the Russian army from Bucharest, and the despe-
rate effort at concentration urged upon his Cossack
followers by GORTZCHA KOFF. Elsewhere, indeed,
the course taken by the military armaments of
the Porte have been invariably in an onward di-
rection. Neither at Braila nor at Widdin has the
march been retrogressive. On the contrary, the
main body, which passed the Danube in the last-
mentioned locality, has since then pushed forward
even beyond Kalafat, while the forces which ad-
vanced into Wallachia in the neighbourhood of
Brahilon (otherwise Ibrail or Braila) have evi-
denced a disposition to press on towards Bonseo,
so as still more effectually to preclude the Rus-
sians from retreating beyond the river Sereth, so
as to cross, if necessary, by Galatz, to a safe re-
tirement in Bessarabia. At Oltenitza alone has
the course of OMER Peelle's tactics had the mo-
mentary appearance of being retrograde. Let it not
be forgotten, moreover, that even there the passage
of the Turks from the left to the right bank of
the Danube has been proved, beyond the possi-
bility of a doubt, to be one of choice, and not
of necessity, by its being effected without the
slightest molestation. Added to which, it must
be observed that, while the advance of the
SULTAN'S forces in that quarter may be said to
have been at the pas de charge to two successive
victories at Oltenitza, their temporary retreat
has been accomplished with the utmost de-
liberation, and has been a withdrawal, in
fact, to the little island situated about mid-
way in the current of the Danube, di-
rectly, in front of Turtukai, and not, as
was at first intimated by the Russian in-
formants of the French Consul at Bucharest, to
the main land of Bulgaria. Upon that island
the Turkish soldiers appear to have firmly esta-
blished themselves with a formidable battery of
forty heavy gnus, prepared at any emergency to
dispute the Passage of the river by their Musco-
vite antagonists.

Meantime a startling success suoccess has again sig-
nalised the prowess of h
credit• can be attached to tl7lassertion n Apusita—forif-
ward in the Austrian Correspow/ence.
ing to that journal, the Turks had
achieved ail-
Accord-
other advantage in Georga, having somewhere
between Gemni and Al tazich, signally defeated
and driven back the Russian forces under General
BARATYNSKI. Contradictory reports have, never-
theless, thrown considerable dbubt on this affair,
so that delay is advisable until additional details
have been received, before counting upon the
decisive nature of the result of this notable
struggle between the belligerents. Whatever the
upshot may really be of this particular conflict in
Georgia, there cannot be much hesitation as to
to strength of the Turks and the weakness of
the Russians in those portions of the Asiatic
Continent. The military forces of the CZAR
. ,
now in - the Danubian Principalities are noto- 1

.1 •

riously known to be sickly, ill-fed, and,
generally speaking, in a dreadful state of disor-
ganisation. That such is actually the case, the
world has been enabled to see beyond the chance
of being deceived by unwarrantable exaggerations.
The reality and magnitude of the disorder here
imputed to the Muscovites in Moldo-Wallachia has
been proved by the reiterated defeat sustained by
their advance-guard in Moldo-Wallachia—by the
repeated triumph of the Turks at Oltenitza, and
by their easily accomplished retreat across the
Danube without molestation. If such is actually
the condition of the Russian soldiers along the
southern frontiers of the Principalities—how
much more certain is the incapacity of their com-
patriots for a contest with Turkish enthusiasm
along the boundaries of the SULTAN'S Asiatic domi-
nions ! So obviously vulnerable, indeed, is the
army of the AUTOCRAT in the latter direction,
that we already hear it intimated that France and
England, in the event of their ultimately partici-
pating in the struggle, will inevitably direct their
maritime energies, in the first instance, to those
shores of the Black Sea nearest to the disaffected
regions of the Caucasus ! And this, with the
enormous temptations held out in quite
different directions, in the direction of the
Crimea, and in that of Bessarabia, in the
stores of Odessa, and in the dockyards of Sebas-
topol ! No—it were preposterous to regard with
any degree of serious anxiety the situation of the
Turkish forces in the vicinity of the Asiatic pos-
sessions of ABD-UL-MEnnn—whatever at this par-
ticular moment may have been the fate of the
Russians under BARATYNSKI. If solicitude must
be felt in any quarter for the troops of the SULTAN,
it must be along the extreme southern point of Wal-
lachia. The principal portion of the Turkish army,
after crossing the river at Widdin, is known to be
strongly and comfortably settled in the neighbour-
hood of Kalafat. Another body of troops owning
allegiance to the Porte, everybody is by this
time aware, has contrived to occupy a good posi-
tion lower down the Danube, at Braila, so as to
intercept the Russians under GORTZCHA KOFF iu
the event of theft falling back towards Moldavia.
It is towards the vicinity of Oltenitza that
our attention must turn, if anywhere, with feelings
of eager curiosity and solicitude. There, how-
ever, we have already seen, that the Turks have
contrived to be twice victorious, and after their
last successful engagements with their antagonists,
and (observe this !) when it perfectly well suited
their own convenience, they have contrived, more-
over, to withdraw deliberately to the right bank
of the Danube WITHOUT MOLESTATION Leaving,
as we have seen, on their way back to their old
position, a strong body of men with forty pieces
of heavy ordnance in the little island situated in
the middle of the stream immediately opposite
Turtukai ! So much for the actual situation of
affairs at the Seat of War—a situation as propi-
tious for the SULTAN as it is ominous for the
AUTOCRAT.

It is proposed to enfranchise the counties from
Landlordism by giving them the borough fran-
chise. Ten-pound householders in counties are
affirmed to be the very cream of the community.
" Free from personal interest or ambition, re-
moved from the corrupting influences of great
towns, passing their lives in quiet and in ease,
without anything to inflame the passions or warp
the judgment, these men are peculiarly competent
to form and express sound opinions on public
affairs." Perfect political philosophers, in short ;
and what better can be done than to make them
the sole electoral constituency for the kingdom ?
The borough constituencies, and the present county
electors too, should present their humble petition
to the county ten-pound householders to relieve
them from the charge of electing members of Par-
liament. The towns should come deploring their
"corruption," and, still worse, their "democracy,"
the counties lamenting their hopeless serfdom, and
both should implore the men of " quiet and ease"
to condescend to burden themselves with the Go-
vernment of the nation. They, of all classes in
the kingdom, are best able to save their unhappy
country, now likely to be torn to pieces in the
battle between the " unbridled democracy of our
towns" and the " artificial and factitious oligarchy
of the counties." They ought to be emphatically
the SOLONS called to aid in a new Reform Bill ;
indeed, the shortest way would be to pro-
pose as the title of the new measure, " An Act for
transferring the electoral franchise to the Ten-
pound Householders in counties," or briefly, " The
County Ten-pound Householders' Act." The pre-
amble might state, that " Whereas the landlords
in counties will regard their tenants' votes as
landlords' property, and towns will return cotton-
spinners and Radicals to the House of Commons,
whereby long debates do ensue, to the great
weariness of Mr. SPEAKER and others, and Coa-
lition Cabinets are plagued with inconvenient
questions, and whereas county ten-pound house-
holders are found to be endued with every poli-
tical virtue under heaven—be it enacted," &c.
The sober truth is, that a picture diametrically
the reverse of that drawn by our contemporary,
to whom we have alluded, is, we believe, the just
one. There are, no doubt, in counties many per-
sons of the class he describes, retired tradesmen
and officers, professional men, and the leading in-
habitants of small towns ; the three former as
Conservative as he wishes by nature, the last by
circumstances and necessity. They are, altogether,
however, not a large class, and assuredly a class
most opposed to progress. Their political merits
would certainly not lead us to advocate an increase
of the number of county members, because they
had been endowed with the franchise. They are
not enough implicated in the business of practical
life
to be concerned to clear the way for the men
through the
of action.
tarrhoesty publiccolonotkracutepdonmeadllium,a
n d should affairs
rather be design ted a as men of stiff and unen-
lightened than unwarped judgments. Very re-
spectable persons, no doubt, some of whom take
rather long credit, though most of them duly
settle their accounts at Christmas ; but not per-
sons, we imagine, very familiar with the trade
and navigation returns, though gni re arly noting
the price of Consols--
persons, in fact, who were
born and brought up before the days of Parlia-
mentary
Reform, or, at least, of Free Trade, who
ought, of course, to enjoy the full rights of
citizens,
but who would not be, in our judgment, exactly
the salt of our electoral constituency. The
pre?
would have every one of
sent county members
their votes.
The grand error of the picture we have alluded
to is one of defect. Persons of the class just de-
scribed, out of harmony as they are with the age,
aro but a small part of those who would be
com-
prised in the enlargement of suffrage proposed.
The vast majority of county ten-pound house-
holders would be a mere increase of the number
of each landlord's electoral serfs ; they would con-
sist of village tradesmen as absolutely at the land-
lord's disposal as the farmers themselves. The
village population is the most numerous population
of the counties. And who are the ten-pound house-
holders in a village ? Why, besides the farmers,
and here and there one of the " quiet and easy"
class above adverted to, the village shopkeeper,
the publican, the blacksmith, the carpenter, the
wheelwright, with perhaps a neat dwelling or two
tenanted by widows or single ladies, who, of course,
must wait the establishment of " women's rights"
in England before their legislative judgment will
be in requisition. Not one of these dare vote
against the surrounding landlords any more than
the poor fa
/Tilers themselves ; yet they would, we
have little doubt,
constitute three-fourths of the
proposed addition to the
county electors. The
larger part of the other fourth would be the prin-
cipal persons in small towns ; the few of these who
aro not in trade belong to the cc
quiet and easy
living" Conservatives, but the tradesmen of such
towns are, as the rule, as much
concerned to
please the adjacent landlords as those of the noun-

try village. According to the size of the place
there are more exceptions, but, generally speaking,
the electors of small agricultural towns and bo-
roughs must go with the landlords.
Of course, we shall be asked whether we then,
as Liberals, object to extending the county fran-
chise. Our answer is very short. We do not
t o, we ob-
jecte
demand, a real extension ; but
w
repudiate a sham. We would grant a
yet wider extension willingly enough, but it
should bo by an increase of the number of
independent voters, not of the number of land-
lords' tools. The proposed extension would only
strengthen the power of the lords of the soil
by widening its base. Election agents would still
poll landlords, not farmers and tradesmen. The
" quiet and easy livers" would spontaneously vote
with the squires ; the farmers and tradesmen must
do it. And yet, on the ground of more voters
being put into their hands, the landlords are to
ask for more members ! It really reminds us of
the principle adopted in the Slave States of Ame-
rica, where though of course no slave has a vote,
yet they are to a large extent included in the po-
pulation estimates, according to which the number
of members to each State is allotted. The more
slaves in a State, the more representatives it has ;
and it would seem the more voters the landlords
can have placed at their disposal, the more county
members we must have—the slaveholders and
landlords being the only real voters in the respec-
tive cases. Very plausible ; but it will not do.
No, we mean to have independent voting to
begin with. That is the flag which all real Re-
formers must nail to the mast. Give county
voters the Ballot, or any other efficient protection,
and then give votes as freely as you please. With-
out this all else is but "a mockery, a delusion,
and a snare." A mockery to the voter to whom
you offer a vote, indeed, but a vote which both
he and you know he dares not use as he pleases ;
a delusion in the aspect of liberality which it pre-
sents to those who demand an extension of poli-
tical freedom ; and a snare to the conscientious
elector, who is tempted to warp his judgment to
the necessities of his position. Our Peelite and
Whig Reformers may flounder as long as they
please amidst a flood of ingenious proposals and
suggestions, all intended to stave off the real thing,
but the country we think will not be so easily
gulled. Any measure which does not secure in-
dependent voting and large constituencies, which
does not vastly enlarge the number of England's
freemen, and make them freemen not in name but
in reality, will be sure of a fate as ignominious as
that of the Whig abortion of 1852—it will be
consigned to its grave without funeral rites and
without a monument.

THE SUN, LONDON, WEDNESDAY EVENING, NOV EMBER 23, 1853.

A DENSE LONDON FOG.

Probably for many years so much confusion has not
prevailed in the metropolis as was caused last night,
when one of the most dense fogs ever witnessed com-
pletely enveloped the whole of London and suburban
districts, causing a complete stagnation to the general
traffic throughout the thoroughfares. At one time, be-
tween eight and nine o'clock in the evening, the great
lines of route leading to the South-Western, the Great
Northern, the North-Western, the Eastern Counties,
and Great Western Railways, were blocked up by a vast
number of vehicles conveying passengers and goods to
the various railways. The different omnibuses on the
several lines were for some time obliged to be preceded
by men carrying lighted links, but at length the vehicles
were obliged to stop altogether, and by that means the
greatest confusion was created, so that it was a work of
no little danger for a pedestrian to cross any of the
roads.

The different vessels proceeding on the river with the
tide had to be moored in the roads above bridge ; the
watermen and lightermen, however, in several instances,
being unable to see the buoys, had no alternative left
but to allow their craft to drift along with the tide, and
several vessels were driven against the piles of the
bridges, and it is feared that some of the watermen have
met with watery graves. The greatest care was obliged
to be taken by the officials of the railway companies in
starting the trains, and also in seeing that the London
termini were kept clear for the expected incoming trains.
At day break this morning the fog still continued to
hang over the metropolis, and it became denser as the
hours advanced, until by one o'clock the whole of London
was enveloped i❑ such a cloud of darkness that traffic on
the railways and the Thames was almost at a stand
still, and business in the different shops and elsewhere
could only be carried on by the aid of gas light. We
have not yet heard of any casualty.

LA W INTELLIGENCE-(THIS DAY.)

COURT OF BANKRUPTCY.
(Before Mr. Commissioner Fonblanque.)
IN RE C. W. MATTHEWS.

The bankrupt was described as a butcher, &c., at
Woolwich, and to-day was appointed for consideration
of his certificate.

Mr. Beard, from the office of Mr. W. R. Buchanan,
appeared for the assignees ; but the bankrupt not having
paid the fees for insertion of the advertisement, it be-
came necessary to adjourn the meeting. It is a point
in dispute, whether, under the act, the Court is not
bound to cause the insertion of the advertisement out of
the funds of the estate, if any, and it is usually the case
that the money is subsequently returned to the bank-
rupt.

An audit meeting took place, but the proceedings were
devoid of interest.
There were no cases before one o'clock.

SECONDARIES COURT.
(Before Mr. Secondary Potter.)

CLARK V. HELLYARD.-IMPORTANT TO THE COMMERCIAL

WORLD.

This was an action to recover the sum of 181. on a
cheque for money lent. Plaintiff also claimed interest.
Plaintiff was called, and proved the loan of the
amount, and produced a cheque for the same, but which
had not been paid.
The Learned Secondary said that the loan was proved
in his opinion, but he could not allow interest on a
cheque unless notice had been given of the intention to
claim it, it was different from a Bill of Exchange or
promissory note—a cheque would only be taken as cor-
roborative of the loan.

Mr. Oliver, the plaintiff's solicitor, said that the de-
fendant had had notice on the back of the writ, and put
in an affidavit of the service of the writ.

The Learned Secondary held that was insufficient.
Mr. Oliver then claimed to be sworn, and proved that
the defendant called on the previous day, and said that
if he would wait till this morning he would pay the bill
and interest, and any charges.
The Learned Secondary said he considered that that
would be sufficient.

A juror said, he for one, would not give a verdict for
interest contrary to the usage of trade, and he was sup-
ported in that view by some of his brother jurymen, be-
sides there was no proof of the presentation of the
cheque.

Tile Learned Secondary said that was unnessary, for
the plaintiff's evidence would have been sufficient with-
out the cheque at all, but the verdict was entirely for
the jury, on the evidence which stood uncontradicted. •

LATEST FOREIGN NEWS.

RUSSIA AND TURKEY.

By electric telegraph, dated Vienna 22d, we
learn that the Turks have erected a camp near
Utzitza (probably Wrbitza), on the Servian fron-
tier. They have commenced throwing a bridge
across the Drina (probably Zrna), and have sent
out pickets.

The Servians, greatly excited, have risen as one
man to defend the frontier. Cannon have been
sent there from Kragujewatz.
A conflict is expected.

The jury after a short consultation gave;;;;aiafor
the debt and interest.

SPORTING NOTES.

From Jassy, under date of the 11th inst., it is
stated that the 3d and sth Russian corps are on
their march, but up to the present time no fresh
troops have arrived at Jassy. The arrival of
General Buaberg is expected. He is to preside
over the administration of Moldavia. Each of the
two Principalities is to have a separate Govern-
ment. The Consuls of France and Great Britain
are still at Jassy, although their official communi-
cations with the local Government have been in-
terrupted for some time past.
It is generally supposed in Vienna that an Aus-
trian corps of observation is concentrating at Te-
mesvar, on the Servian frontier. Two regiments
of infantry of the garrison of Vienna, and three
battalions of Jagers have been ordered to hold
themselves in readiness to march. Two batteries
have already left Vienna for the Servian frontier.
Letters from Krajova of the 10th inst. state that
the Russians have concentrated a large force in and
around that town. Their outposts are close to
Kalafat, where frequent skirmishes took place.
Ismail Pasha's head-quarters were at Kalafat,
which Omer Paella has been instructed to hold if
possible, while at the same time he has been or-
dered to abstain from further operations during
the winter.

NOTES ABOUT NEWTON.
Neither pleasure nor profit is likely to attend the
Newton Meeting. Few representatives of the Ring
will " assist" at the celebration, and even the power-
ful attraction of the steeplechase will be scarcely suffi-
cient to induce the most ardent lover of excitement, and
the most inveterate sightseer to encounter
"the icy fang,
And churlish chiding of the winter's wind,"
in the pursuit of sport.
Little information is to be gathered respecting the
events to be decided, although rumours of "good things"
and private arrangements are rife. In the legitimate
turf market they have not been touched upon, and at
the list houses the transactions on them have been very
limited. For the Hurdle Race Theodine and Oxford have
been backed, and the latter, it is whispered, is " going
for the money." Not having yet seen the "selling-price
deductions," lam of course unable to deliver an opinion
on the chance of the probable competitors.
Some investments have been made on Solyman and
Bethgelert, for the Handicap Plate. Reports of " queer
understandings" have, however, discouraged the backers
of Bethelgert, whose light weight was perhaps his only
recommendation to favour. Effie Deans, the Helena
gelding, the filly out of Thalia, and Roger Thornton,
are the only other animals that have received support.
The most formidable horses in the race will perhaps be
Solyman, Effie Deans, and the Thalia filly.
The Colliers' Handicap is said to be " a certainty,"
for the three-years-old Maid of Monton filly.
The Steeplechase, I dismiss without comment.
November 23. A FRESH MAN.

LLOYD'S SHIPPING.-(THIS DAY.)

In the Council held at the Sublime Porte on
the sth, at which Fuad-Effendi was appointed to
act as Commissary-General with the army of the
Danube, two Generals, Sivri and Sadoullab, were
also appointed to replace in case of need Selim
Pacha and Abdi Paella, who now command the
two corps d'arinee of Asia. The Council also ap-
pointed Zeinel Pacha as Caimacan or Vice-Governor
of the Province of Broussa, in the room of the
Governor General Habl Pacha, who has resigned.
The Presse of Vienna, under date of Constanti-
nople, 7th, says :—" A. conference took place be-
tween the French, English, and Turkish admirals,
the subject of conversation being the entrance of
the fleets into the Black Sea. This expedition will
take place in the course of the week. A part of
the Turkish fleet will proceed to Batoum, and two
French and two English steamers will cruize on the
Russian coast. It is rumoured that there is a schism
in the Turkish ministry; several of the ministers
would see with pleasure the termination of the dif-
ferences by a pacific arrangement. Accounts from
Asia state that the Turks were making preparations
to advance and give assistance to the Circassians.
Their forces amount to 70,000 men, all regular
troops ; 24,000 are near Batoum under the com-
mand of Selim Pacha, and 46,000 on the frontier
of Grusinia under Abdi Pacha."

LONDON, Nov. 23.--Wind this day at noon, N.N.W. ;
light airs, and calm, with thick fog.
DEAL, Nov. 22.—Arrived—Constance, from Singapore;
George, Charleston ; Jacob Grosse, New York ; Britannia,
Quebec; Marchioness of Queensberry, do. Arrived from
the River, and sailed—Hyderabad, Adelaide, S.A.
PORTSMOUTH, Nov. 22.—Wind, N.E. to E.N.E. Ar-
rived—Gumania, from Callao ; Paragon, Quebec. Sailed
Margaret, for New York ; H.M.'s s. Spy, eastward. Off
Port—Moffatt, from Bombay.
POOLE, Nov. 22.—Arrived—Sisters, from Labrador.
DARTMOUTH, Nov. 22.—Wind, N.E. Arrived—Emelie,
from Whampoa.
Jamaica ; Sir T. Gresham,
London, of Douglas,'
PLYMOUTH, Nov. 22.—Wind, E. Arrived—Pax, from
Bahia,VLoalnodronuf'os,rfdooßr.re;AHmd.eeMlna.i;Sd.lesabebsSepellailate,do. OffPort--Desmond
for Sierra Leone; Imperieuse, westward ;
from Grimsby ; Pegasus, Amsterdam, for New York.
NEWPORT, Nov. 21.—Wind, E.N.E. Arrived—Graf
von Schliefers, from London, for St. Thomas ; Worthy of
Devon, Gloucester, for New York.
ABERDOVER, Nov. 22.—Arrived—Ide, from Quebec.
ABERYSTWITH, Nov. 21.—Wind, S.E. Arrived—Ann
Davies, from Quebec.
FALMOUTH, Nov. 21—Wind, E.S.E., fresh breezes, and
fine. Arrived—Pilade, from Bahia ; Jane Clark, Ha-
vannah ; Wards, Galatz ; Maria, Patras ; Jane May, do.
WISBY, Nov. 10.—The Juno, of Hull, has been assisted
Slitohaum, with damage, having been on shore.—The
Choice, of Shields, from Cronstadt to London, got on a
reef off Fahludd, on the 11th Nov., and is a wreck ; crew
landed ; part of the ship's stores, materials, and cargo, are
expested to be saved.
QUEENSTOWN, Nov. 21.—Wind, W.S.W. Arrived—
Sarah Huntley, from New York, for Alexandria. Off
Port—Georgiana, from Callao ; Carsee, do., and both
sailed for London.
BELFAST, Nov. 21.—The Otterburn, of this port, from
Troon to Havannah, which sailed hence Nov. 11, after re-
pairing, left the Lough yesterday, but has been turned
back here to-day, having got on-the rocks off Ballywater,
and will probably have to discharge.
LIVERPOOL, Nov. 23.—The Gyffden (smack), of Port
Madoc, from Cardiff, was run down early this morning in
the Horse Channel, by the Brian Boroilime (s).
YARMOUTH, Nov. 22.—The Vanquelain, of Bordeaux,
from Newcastle to Bona, which was assisted into this har-
bour leaky, after being ashore at Bacton, will have to dis-
charge.
ODESSA, Nov. 11.—The Patriot, Hercus, in ballast, ran
on shore at the mouth of the Dneister, Nov. 7, and it is
doubtful whether she will be got off, as it has been blowing
a gale S.E. the whole of yesterday, and up to this morn-
ing. The Austrian brig Agatha was driven against the
Pratique Mole during a gale, and went to pieces. The
Austrian ship Circassiana, with fruit from Smyrna,
dragged her anchors, and ran on shore, during the same
gale.

The National Gazette of Berlin, under date of
Jassy 11th, states that M. Tastu, the French Cox-
sal in Moldavia, having received orders from his
Government to quit the country, the Prussian Con-
sul is charged to take the French subjects under
his protection.

(BY SUBMARINE AND EUROPEAN TELEGRAPH.)
CUSTOMS ItETURN.

The Cologne Gazette states from Constantinople,
7th, that an association, called the Teutonic So-
ciety, had, in the sole interest of truth, published
a declaration numerously signed, and addressed to
all the German papers, stating that all the reports
published in the Augsburg Gazette relative to per-
secutions against the Christians in Turkey are false
and unfounded.

" Although," says a letter from Constantinople
of the 7th, "the troops and the employes are always
regularly paid, the scarcity of money is extreme ;
there is a total absence of small coin for the most
ordinary wants of life, the exchange on the pound
sterling has risen to 133 piastres (33fr. 25c.), and
it is feared that it will rise still further."

A Dresden journal states that two Austrian regi-
ments and three battalions of chasseurs at Vienna
have received orders to hold themselves in readiness
to proceed to Temeswar, to form part of an army
of observation, and that two batteries of artillery
have already set out for that destination.
The Journal des Debats says, and a singular
statement it is—

"One.of the Russian prisoners captured by the Turks
in the fort on the frontier of Asia Minor was taken the
other day before the Seraskier, and there he underwent,
in presence of several persons, a short interrogatory.
This is what one of the witnesses of the scene has re-
lated :—After having addressed to the prisoner several
questions on the corps to which he belonged, and on the
military regime of Russia, the perspective was opened
to him of passing some days at Constantinople, and then
of being sent to Prince Gortschakoff, on condition that
he would everywhere say what he had seen, and
that he would tell his comrades that the Turks do
not eat the Christians. The soldier refused, saying that
he did not know what awaited him on his return ;
the best that could happen to him would no doubt
be to be sent back to his regiment, but that he had
had enough of it. But,' it was said to him, you
can see your family again !" My family !' replied
the soldier, it is now eighteen years that I have been
separated from it, and since the day that I was
taken off from my village, I have had no news of my
father, my mother, or any of my relatives ! They are
perhaps all dead, or they have forgotten me ! Leave
me here until the peace, there will always be time
enough to give me up !' This declaration produced a
very strong impression on the auditory, and it was
naturally related everywhere, Some of the loaves pre-
pared for the Russian soldiers were taken in the same
affair, and they were so disgusting, black, sour, and de
testable, that the captors placed them on board the
steam-frigate charged to bring here the trophies of the
combat. They have been exhibited, and do not produce
less effect than they did on the frontiers of Asia Minor."
An extraordinary supplement of the Journal de
St. Petersburg of the Ist (13th inst.), publishes
the following bulletin :

"General Prince Worontsoff, Commandant-in-Chief of
the Caucasus, has addressed to the Emperor the follow-
ing report, dated the 19th October (Ist Nov.) :---‘ I have
received from Ozourghet a report from the military go-
vernor of Koutais of the 16th October, which announces
that the Turks commenced hostilities against us in the
night of the 15th by the attack and capture of the post
of St. Nicolas. The attack was made at midnight by
numerous bands, part of whom came in boats along the
coast. The post of St. Nicolas was not considered as a
fortification, and still less as capable of supporting a se-
rious attack, and had never been armed with artillery ;
but as from its local position it contained a large depot
of provisions, it was judged necessary to maintain it as
long as possible in order to be able to remove the provi-
sions. There was no time for so doing, and the detach-
ment left there having been suddenly attacked, could nei-
ther resist nor retreat, and fell with honour. Of the troops
which were in this post only about 30 soldiers and 3 offi-
cers succeeded in cutting a passage through the enemy's
ranks, and arrived at Ozourghet. The two pieces of ar-
tillery fell into the hands of the Turks, and all the stores
found in the place were burnt by them. General Prince
Gagarine, who is at Ozourghet in expectation of aggres-
sions on other points of the frontier, has adopted mea-
sures, which, he hopes, will check the ulterior success of
the Turks. It is painful for me to commence my re-
port of our hostilities with the Turks by this event so
unfortunate for us, but it remains for us to hope in the
future, and to say, as in 1812, ' God will punish the ag-
gressor.' Immediately after sending off this report,
General Prince Worontsoffreceived through the military
Governor of Koutnis, a report from Colonel Korganoff,
commanding the troops in the Gouriel, who states that
agreeably to orders received he was advancing on the
post of St. Nicolas, when he received information that
the place had been attacked, and carried by the Turks.
This account induced him to hasten his march. Having
surmounted considerable obstacles, particularly the
passage of two rivers, lie discovered within two
versts from the post a large force of the enemy en-
trenched in a thick forest behind trees which they
had cut down. Notwithstanding his small force,
only 5,000 men, he determined to attack them,
which be did, and, after pouring in on them a sharp dis-
charge of musketry, his troops advanced on the enemy
with the bayonet, and dislodged them from their posi-
tion after an obstinate resistane, and drove them
back on the post of St. Nicolas, and would have
followed them intro the place had not the bridge been
removed which prevented the passage of the artillery.
At nightfall the Turks, who had received considerable
reinforcements, attacked our position three different
times, but were each time driven back with great loss
and after leaving 300 dead on the field. Colonel Kor-
ganoff, in reporting these facts, testifies to the exemplary
bravery of the officers and soldiers under his command.
Our losses in all these affairs amount to one officer and
62 soldiers killed, and 4 °Seers andl27soldiers wounded.
The military governor of Koutais adds to the report of
Colonel Korganoff that, in addition to the losses sus-
tained by the enemy in his attack on them, the Turks
lost more than 1,000 men killed and wounded in the
attack on the post of St. Nicolas. General Prince Wo-
rontsoff, in concluding his despatch, adds that up to the
20th October no account of any fresh hostilities on other
points of the frontier had reached Tiflis."
Prince Ghika, Hospodar of Moldavia, addressed
the following communication to the Council Extra-
ordinary of Administration on giving up to it the
direction of the government :
" Alexander Ghika, Hospodar of Moldavia, to the
Council Extraordinary of Administration.—Our position
having become incompatible with the present state of
things, brought about by serious events, we consider it
a duty to give up the reins of government into the
hands of the Council Extraordinary. We call on it to
accomplish both collectively and individually the tank

GRAVESEND, WEDNESDAY, 10 A.U.
'Wind calm, thick ; tide, quarter ebb.
Arrived—Nov. 13—Loncion, from Guernsey ; Jane
Heward, Callao ; William, Guernsey; Williams Adven-
ture, Guernsey ; Dublin Lass, Guernsey.
Sailed—William Jolliffe (s), for Ostend.

DEAL, WEDNESDAY, 9.15 A.m.
Wind N.W. light, and frosty.
Anchored—Olympus, from Penzance, for Bremen ;
Pauline Houghton, from London, for Bussorah ; Bato,
from London, for Hobart Town.

SECRET SOCIETIES IN FRANCE. —The Journal el' Inclre-
et-Loire states that the confession made by one of the
persons recently arrested at Tours on a charge of belong.
ing to a secret society has led to the discovery at the
residence of one of them of some stone beer bottles in
which were 1,220 musket balls. The light cannon which
were lately discovered in the Caves of Veretz are more
formidable than was at first supposed. They are com-
posed of a tube of cast iron covered with wood, and then
encircled with iron hoops, and appear so solid that they
could on occasion be used as cannon with considerable
effect.

which we confide to its responsibility until further
orders. " GREGORY ALEXANDER GHIKA.
.....

"Jassy, Nov. 18."

A private letter from Constantinople, of the 9th
inst., announces that news had been received of the
Turco-Egyptian squadron, of whose operations
Trebizond is the centre. It is stated fhat a division
of that squadron, composed of the Egyptian ship-
of-the-line Fayoum, the Turkish ship-of-the-line
Fevysen, and the frigates Fadoullah and Sirigiad,
had perceived a Russian division proceeding to land
supplies at Poti. The Russian ships, inferior in
number, had escaped in consequence of a thick
fog ; but a transport, laden with troops, had run
aboard a Russian frigate, and went down. The
Turco-Egyptian squadron kept a strict watch on
the coast of the Black Sea, from Trebizond to
Redout Kaleh, in which district the army of Abdi
Pacha is operating. A Turkish garrison had been
stationed in fort St. Nicholas, and it was placed in
an excellent state of defence. It is ascertained
that the Russians are inferior in number in that
country.
We read in the Patric :—" All the letters which
have been received from Vienna to-day confirm the
accounts of the capture of Krajowa by the Turks.
The town was not taken, as has been stated, with-
out firing a shot, but after a warm rencontre with
the Russians under General Fischbach. Krajowa,
a town in Wallachia, is situated on the ).ef.t .bAnk
of a small river called the Chyl, only
.4 sh9Et_cli§
tance from Kalafat. It has a strong fort well
placed, and which, although in a bad state, would
powerfully aid in its defence. It is announced
that, according to the last accounts, Omer Pacha
is to fortify himself with a body of 40,000 men in
the triangle between Kalafat, Krajowa, and Nara-
cat. He will thus secure his communications be-
tween the two banks of the river, and establish a
very strong basis of operations to act in Lesser
Wallachia."

As the Constantinople letter of the 7th in the
Wanderer contains much matter which appears to
be incorrect, it will, instead of being given in ex-
tenso, be worked up into the following summary of
news from the east. We read in the paper just
mentioned, that the French and English Ministers
had presented notes to the Porte, in which it was
declared, " that France and England would stand
by the Porte, although they could not act on the
offensive against Russia. The sentence is given as
it stands in the original, but what its real meaning
is no layman can pretend to say. M. de la Cour
disapproved of Omer Paella's passage of the Danube.
" The English ambassador, who will let the British
fleet enter the Black Sea, to protect the coast
against any attack on the part of the Russians, has
offered vessels for the transport of troops to the
Asiatic coast." It is learned, from Odessa,
that the Ist and 2d Infantry Corps will advance
towards the Pruth, and Poland be occupied by the
guard and grenadier corps. On the 7th, the whole
of the Turco-Egyptian fleet was to enter the Black
Sea with orders to attack the Russians wherever
they might be found. Suleiman, who appears to be
the wisest of pashas, has placed the Ulemahs and
Christian priests in Aleppo on the best possible foot-
ing. On the sth Namik Pasha left Constantinople
on board of a French vessel. On the 6th, the
Turkish, French, and English Admirals held a con-
ference on board the Mahmoudie. It is said that a
part of the Turkish fleet will go to Batoum, and
four French and English steamers cruize off the
Russian coast. The strength of the army on the
Asiatic-Russian frontier is about 70,000 men, of
whom one-third are regular troops. 24,000 are at
Batoum, under Selim Pasha, and 46,000, under
Abdi Pasha, on the frontier of Grusia. As horses
or oxen could not be procured to draw the artillery,
the inhabitants of the different districts relieved
each other, dragging 30 guns, weighing 1,500 cwt.,
all the way from Trebizond to Kars. The English
are said to display a singular longing to try whether
Sebastopol is really impregnable. " The arrival of
French and English auxiliary troops has been
officially promised by the representatives of the
Western Powers." The information contained in
this last sentence is of a very questionable kind,
but it cannot well be omitted.

From Belgrade we learn that on the morning of
the 14th au important event occurred there. The
new Russian. Consul-General, who arrived there
three weeks ago, took down his flag and was to
leave Belgrade on the morrow. The Servian Go-
vernment, after a great deal of hesitation and un-
questionable embarrassment, thus makes a public
acknowledgment of the Sovereignty of the Porte,
and an announcement of the determination not to
co-operate with Russia at present. The Councillor
of State, de Munich, came to Belgrade three weeks
ago with aletter from Count Nesselrode to the
Prince, accrediting him on the Russian part as Con-
ul-General, but of course without any berat or
exequatur from the Porte addressed to the Pasha of
Belgrade. The Servian. Government was there-
fore in a very great embarrassment ; for although
the Russian agent was technically no consul, and
could not be so in the dominions of the Porte, yet
the power that Russia has frequently developed in
this principality, and the incontestable prestige of
Russia among the people, made the Government
pause before they put an affront on the Russian
agent, who had, avoiding the Turks, sought to
establish himself, not only not within the purely
local Turkish district of Belgrade, nor even in the
mixed district, but in the purely Servian one. A
few days ago the Prince paid him a state visit in
full uniform in return for his presentation, and
M. de Muchin himself, aware of his equivocal
position, had gone in uniform to the Prince, but
only in plain clothes to the other Consuls-General,
and when informed by the Servian Government
that the Pasha would require his expulsion, he
answered that " Servia had only to pay her
tribute to the Porte, which was an acquit-
tance in full of her obligations to Turkey." The
Servian Government in all this painful crisis,
having gone upon the principle of speaking fair
to both Russia and the Porte, and avoiding a colli-
sion with either, has at length, as far as forms
go, cut the Gordian knot, and the Pasha of
Belgrade, backed by the Consuls of England and
France, having distinctly told the Government here
that an agent of Russia on Ottoman ground was
no Consul without his berat or exequatur, and that,
moreover, his presence after actual war had com-
menced was an abnegation of the Porte's Suzerain
rights, and that M. de Muchin himself, remaining
on Ottoman ground, placid himself hors de la lot
internationate. The Prince has very prudently
yielded to the indisputable soundness of these
reasons, and M. de Muchin has been requested to
withdraw (which he has done with a very good
grace), having said that, being unprovided with a
credential to the Pasha, his diplomatic position
was incomplete. Ho goes to Semlin.
The following letter has been addressed to the
journals
" I feel myself compelled by a sense of duty to con-
tradict all the accounts which have given to General
Prim a command in the Turkish army. When I quitted
the general I left him full of gratitude for the atten-
tions which had been lavished on him by the Sultan, and
by the principal personages in the empire ; but the ques-
tion was never entertained of his entering the Turkish
service—a thing morally impossible, seeing that, there
was never an instance of a Christian commanding an
Ottoman corps d' armee' and that it was not probable
that the general would renounce the brilliant position
which he held in his own country. The recent news
which I have received from him proves to me that he
has followed with impetuosity the movements of the
armies, exposing himself with his officers to the thickest
of the fire ; but I can assure you that he has never de-
parted from the instructions which he has received from
his Government. You will oblige me by inserting this
letter in your estimable journal.

(Signed) "Marquis DE SERAVALLE, Secretary
of the Special Mission presided
over by General Prim."
FRANCE.

The subject of the coronation of the Emperor is
again mooted; and it is believed that the ceremony
will be performed on the anniversary of the mar-
riage, the 29th of January, by the Archbishop of
Paris, who will have previously received a car-
dinal's hat. The rumour also prevails of a projected
marriage between the young King of Portugal and
the daughter of the King of the Belgians, who is
now iu her 14th year, Dom Pedro V. is in his
17th.

The count de Walewski left Paris on Monday
night for London, after a stay at Fontainebleau of
only two days. It is understood that he has not
only received instructions from the Government as
to the course it means to take with respect to the
Eastern question,, but that he is the bearer of an
offensive and defensive treaty—or, more properly
speaking, a treaty of pacification—which has been
agreed to between England and France, and in
which the other European Powers will be invited
to join. It remains to be seen whether the
Northern Powers will submit to this sort of arbi-
tration. Among diplomatists it is thought that
the plan will be as unsuccessful as the negotiations •
at Vienna, or the conferences at Oltnutz.
The news that the English and French fleets had
entered the Black Sea has created an immense
sensation in Paris ; and the fact is confirmed by
other telegraphic despatches which have reached
Paris direct from Vienna. On the other hand, it
is confidently stated that the Emperor of Russia,
on learning that his troops had wet with a defeat,
gave immediate orders to Prince Gortschakoff to
assume the offensive.
Reports were current yesterday of an insurrec-
tion at Lyons, caused by the high price of bread.
It has already been mentioned that the cholera
has shown itself in Paris. The number of cases
does not exceed nine a day, and the diseaseis con-
fined to the sth, Bth, 9th, and 11th arrondissements.
A. Council of Ministers was held at Fontaine-