The Sun.
London, England, 1854-06-06 00:00:00

NO. 19,250.]

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LONDON, TU_ESDAY EVENING, J UN.E 6, 1854.

VIEW OF ,SEBASTOPOL AND ITS FOB-
TIFICATIO.NS.

'5
As it is more than probable that ere long the ne,
will arrive that active operations have actually com-
menced against this great Russian stronghold—the forti-
fications of which alone are said•to have cost 7,000,0001.
sterling, and are considered of immense strength—the
following description of the place will be read with in-

terest :
The Russian topographer, VsevolOsky, says :
" The town stands on a chalky stratum, which rises
from the height of thirty feet at the extremity of the
point to an elevation of 190 feet above the sea in the
upper part. This elevation, with the steep coast oppo-
site, which also consists of a calcareous rock, perfectly
defends the bay, which, from the summit of the heights,
appears to lie at the bottom of a deep cavity ; and, in-
deed, at a very short distance from the shore inland, it
is impossible to perceive the tops of the highest masts.
Near the extremity at the point of land stands the
house built in 1787 for the reception of the Empress
Catherine 11. Behind are situate the Admiralty, the
Arsenal, and the houses of the naval officials ; while
higher up are the dwellings of the inhabitants of the
town, the market, and the Greek Church ; besides which
there is a Russian church for the use of the sailors be-
longing to the Black Sea fleet. The seamen's hospital
and barracks, and the magazines, are mostly situate on
the other side of the harbour, and, together with the
barracks of the garrison, built a short distance from the
former, comprise a sort of suburb. The town of Sebas-
topol itself is not much above a mile in length, and is
nowhere more than 400 yards wide. The harbour,
the most important feature in %bastopol, has been com-
pared to that of Malta. The principal bay is about three
miles and a halt in length,- and ren'evidths-of three-quarters
of a mile at the mouth, widening to nearly a mile, and
then narrowing to 600 or 700 yards at the head. The en-
trance of the harbour is defended by strong batteries
placedatthe extremity of the two points of land that form
the bay. Besides these there is another fronting the
town, and two more on the double point on which the town
stands with a redoubt higher up. About a mile from
the north of the bay the grand port for vessels of war
forms a sort of small arm, running in a south-west direc-
tion. It is upwards of a mile and a haif in length,
with a width of 400 yards at the entrance, andhas a little
narrow creek of about 600 yards in length, in which
ships can be laid up in ordinary with perfect safety.
On the other side of the town, in Artillery Bay, is a
similar creek used to careen vessels of war."
Mr. Oliphant, who visited the Crimea in the autumn
of 1852, gives an interesting account of the town and
fortifications :
"The population of Sebastopol, including military and
marine, amounts to 40,000. The town is, in fact, an
immense garrison, and looks imposing because so many
of the buildings are barracks or Government offices.
Still, I was much struck with the substantial appearance
of many of the private houses ; and, indeed, the main
street was handsomer than any I had seen since leaving
Moscow, while it owed its extreme cleanliness to large
gangs of military prisoners, who were employed in per-
petually sweeping. New houses were springing up in
every direction, Government works were still going on
vigorously, and Sebastopol bids fair to rank high among
Russian cities. The magnificent arm of the sea upon
which it is situate is an object worthy the millions which
have been lavished in rendering it a fitting receptacle
for the Russian navy.
" As I stood upon the handsome stair that lead down
to the water's edge, I counted 13 sail of the line an-
chored in the principal harbour. The newest of these, a
noble three-decker, was lying within pistol-shot of the
quay. The average breadth of this inlet is 1,000 yards ;
two creeks branch off from it, intersecting the town in a
southerly direction, and containing steamers and smaller
craft, besides a long row of hulks, which have been con-
verted into magazines or prison-ships.
" Nothing can be more formidable than the appear-
ance of Sebastopol from the seaward. Upon a future
occasion we visited it in a steamer, and found that at
one point we were commanded by 1,200 pieces of artil-
lery ; fortunately for a hostile fleet, we afterwards heard
that these could not be discharged without bringing
down the rotten batteries upon which they are placed,
and which are so badly constructed that they look as
though they had been done by contract. Four of
the forts consist of three tiers of batteries. We were,
of course, unable to do more than take a very general
survey of these celebrated fortifications, and therefore
cannot vouch for the truth of the assertion, that the
rooms in which the guns are worked are so narrow
and ill-ventilated, that the artillerymen would be in-
variably . stifled in the attempt to discharge their
guns and their duty ; but of one fact there was no
doubt, that however well fortified may be the approaches
to Sebastopol by sea, there is nothing whatever to pre-
vent any number of troops landing a few miles to the
south of the town, in one of the six convenient bays
with which the coast, as far as Cape Kherson, is in-
dented, and-marching down the main street (provided
they were strong enough to defeat any military force
that might be opposed to them in the open field), sack
the town, and burn the fleet.
" In the batteries, a system of casemates, to the ex-
clusion of every other principle, has been adopted, and
their construction in this respect renders them remark-
able in the annals of fortification. The freestone of
which they are built is soft ; and, according to the state-
ment of Captain Jesse—whose work upon Russia and
the War' contains some interesting information on the
subject, and who had extensive opportunities of exa-
mining them—the strength of the masonry is very ques-
tionable. The counterforts are filled with rubble, and
several of the keystones of the arches have certainly
been shaken by the firing of salutes. The Alexander
fort has only one tier of guns in casemates, the upper
tier being en barbette ; the work terminates in a circular
tower, the rampart of which is about six feet thick.
The apertures or portholes of all the casemates are small,
so that there is no possibility of training the guns to the
right or the left. Admiral Greig, who formerly com-
manded the Black Sea fleet, considers this of no conse-
quence, as, from the great number of guns employed,
upwards of twelve hundred, there is no point in or near
the harbour which does not lie under a cross fire of 60
pieces of the largest artillery. The casemates are used
as barracks, 10 men occupying the space between each
gun ; and the general objection is that batteries on this
principle are not capable of making a lengthened defence,
as the smoke fills them rapidly, and so annoys the
artillerymen that they cannot continue to work the guns.
The Alexander battery is covered in the rear by the
guns of the extremity of the wall of the town. This is
the case with all the batteries ; they give a mutual sup-
port to each other, which is the true spirit of fortifica-
tion. Of course they are liable to attack from the land
side, unless, as the public have been informed, the Rus-
sians are taking measures to throw up land defences.
The Russians consider the harbour impregnable, but
,hat remains to be proved."

THE RUSSIAN SHIP OF WAR AURORA, 44 guns,
arrived at Callao on the 16th of April, from Rio.
HORRIBLE MUTILATION AND DEATH.—Within the
last few days the most painful interest has been created
in Hammersmith, in consequence of the death of a poor
but much respected man named Wigley, living in the
neighbourhood, which took place on Sunday last, and
had been caused by the fearful injuries he had received
in a furious attack made upon him by a ndered horse.
g la
Other persons having been attacked by the same horse,
the inhabitants have taken up the matter on behalf of
the widow and children, and instructed Mr. Jones, of
Clifford's-inn, solicitor, to take proceedings against the
proprietor of the horse, as soon as the identity and
ownership of the animal are established. Since the
death of the unfortunate man, a preliminary inquiry
has been opened at the Clarendon Arms, before Mr.
Brent, the coroner. Upon that occasion, Mr. Thomp-
son, barrister, instructed by Mr. Jones, appeared on
behalf of the inhabitants and also the widow. From
the evidence given, it appeared that the horse in ques-
tion had, since April last, been turned out into a field
adjoining the Surrey-side towering-path of Hammer-
smith-bridge, through which, for the last forty years,
there has been a footway to Sharpe's Farm, which is,
in many respects, a public one, and frequented by the
neighbouring gentry. The deceased was a carman, and
had a horse turned out somewhere in that vicinity.
Upon the 27th of April, as the son of a baker at Ham-
mersmith, and some others were near, they heard
screams proceeding from the field, and saw the horse in
question holding the deceased down, near a tree, by the
scalp of his head. The animal then seized him by the
hair, and dragged him some distance. It then raised
him right off the ground three or four times, each time
most violently plunging him down. It then released him
from that position and fell with its knees upon his body,
and, to use the language of one of the witnesses, began
tearing deceased about the head, loins, and shoulders, as
a dog would. Finally, the animal was beaten off, and
deceased taken home, where be lingered until the day of
his death. Mr. Stephen John Peach, M.D., Angell-
terrace, Battersea, saw deceased ; be was delirious and
had a low putrid fever, and his body had upon it nume-
rous tumours, some suppurating. He never rallied. His
death was clearly caused by farcy glanders. His head
and body were much lacerated, and marked with a
horse's teeth. The flesh bad been torn away from the
left arm fully the size of a saucer. Between the two
shoulders a large piece had been gnawed away. The in-
quiry has been adjourned.
THE CZAR A " MACGREGOR."—A. correspondent of
the Scotsman gives the following, in proof that the Rus-
sian Autocrat is of Highland extraction :—" The Empe-
ror Paul was in London, and when one day driving in
his carriage through Hyde-park, he observed a lady, in
the bloom of youth and beauty, riding past on a H.
land shelty. He stopped his carriage, made inquiry
about her, found out who she was, got introduced to
her father, and finally to herself, paid frequent visits to
her at her father's house, was so much captivated by her
beauty, accomplishments, and unassuming manners,
that he offered her marriage, was accepted, and after all
preliminaries were settled, was some time after privately
married to her, wont with him to Russia, and in due
time became the mother of the present Emperor of all
the Russias. The reader will wonder who this lady
was ; in answer, I have to say that she was none other
than the beautiful daughter of M'Gregor, the Highland
farmer of Bridge of-Turk."

THE CARPENTERS STRIKE.

-~ ~

It is a maxim as old as the hills, that no man profits
by the experience of another. Were it otherwise, it
would only have been necessary to sacrifice a few gene-
Lations on the altar of Happy Humanity, and their sue-
co, .sore upon the surface of the planet might have passed
thro,egh life without a weakness, without a folly, with-
out a crime, almost without an ailment, until the
time ha.l arrived for that last sleep, which would
then have fallen as gently upon their eyelids as its
warm midday slumber upon those of a healthy child.
Unfortunately it is otherwise—we cannot; fund for our
benefit the remorse, the repentance, the self-inflicted
agonies undergone by our predecessors. For others we
can play the Mentor to admiration—for ourselves, we
must learn the harsh lesson of forethought and self-
dis eipline by our own experience of life. It is not, how-
ever, the less painful to see men carefully elaborating the
process of their own misery, when we know what the
result must be as certainly as we know the effect of
some dee.dly Poison if once suffered to cross the lips.
Some few rules of social economy are established as
firmly as any' of the laws which regulate the phenomena
of the physical world—and lvoe to those who transgress
them ! Misery, ruin, death, are the certain conse-
quences of any mis take in these particulars. The Rus-
sian Czar, who is at This moment engaged in sacrificing
thousands of his wretci,cl subjects to the projects of his
insane ambition, is making a sad mistake in one way,
and the artisans of Western Europe, who would modify
or distort the laws of property ac.:"ording to their
own views of their selfish interests, are equally in
fatal error In the last case, to be sure, the
consequences will fall entirely upon themselves, for
society will crush them in the struggle almost without a
consciousness of the petty obstacle which for a moment
stopped the way. A few years ago, indeed, there might
have been danger in such combinations as that which at
present exists among the carpenters of Nottingham, be-
cause the experiment had not been tried, and because
large masses of ignorant people appeared disposed to
test the result. Even in France, however, at a season
of wild revolutionary excess, and in a country far more
favourably situated than our own for the trial of such
theories, the experiment broke down. It has been
tested since among ourselves upon more thaw one occa-
sion, but in every instance the result has been t hernisery
and ruin of the misguided men who endeavoured to
establish the rule that one man should dispose of his
property in the way another man might please. The
contingency that property would in the last resort
withdraw itself from the action of the labour-market is
one which does not seem to have entered into the
calculations of our modern philosophers. The jour-
neymen carpenters at Nottingham may retire—
they may induce others to retiro—from the shops of
the builders, unless they will agree to discard the use
of certain machines ; but that which they can cer-
tainly not prevent is that their late emp;oyers may, any
day they please, cease to be builders alto,gather if they
cannot find a third way out of their ditt:culty. The
threat is no visionary one. If these new champions of
the rights of labour against the rights of property will
consider anything, they should at least be at the pains
of considering what has taken place in the case of the
amalgamated engineers, and more recently at Preston
among the spinners and other artisans. Taking the
case simply as one of selfish prudence, and assuming
that the seceders are altogether right in their views of
social economy, and that their employers are tyrants,
oppressors, and what not, still is the present moment an
encouraging one for renewing an attempt which has
once and again so signally failed ? If the Nottingham
men are capable of putting a few figures together, they
must surely see that in numbers, in merney„ and in
resources of all kinds they are infinitely in a v7litse Posi,-
tion at the commencement of such a contest :hat the
men of Preston were some months back. Upon 'what
considerations, then, do they found their hopes oi. a
more prosperous result? They may have noticed that the
employers of labour at Preston were perfectly pre-
pared, if driven to the last extremity, to retire altoge-
ther from a line of business which they could not hope
to carry on at a profit, rather than succumb to the dic-
tation of their workmen. They made no idle pretence,
but they did what they threatened to do. For mouths
and months, to their own most grievous loss, they
kept their mills closed altogether, or performed a scanty
day's work with the hands who did not set them at de-
fiance. Nor can there be any doubt—we speak ad-
visedly, and with full knowledge of their determination
—that the masters of Preston would have transferred
their capital to some other district, or even to eeme
other country, or they would have retired from bue_4l-
- altogether, had they not succeeded in carrying on
their industrial undertakings in their own way. This
result might have been obtained by the employment of
fresh hands from a distance. and by improvements in
machinery, or it might have been obtained by the return
to their work of men fatigued with misery and weak with
starvation, who had exhausted all their resources,
carried their little articles of property to the
pawnbroker's shop, pledged the pledge ticketi, wea-
ried out the patience of those who had too long
contributed to their support in idleness, and who had
finally discovered that all was unavailing, and that the
option at last was between the mill and the poorhouse.
We leave it to the carpenters of Nottingham, who are
just commencing the same weary round of folly and
error, to determine for theinselves more accurately what
the real result has been.
The principle for which the Nottingham carpenters
are now contending is, if possible, more absurd than the
one which recently drove the men of Preston to seces-
sion. The carpenters wish to bind their employers down
to the rule that they shall not use " machine-made
mouldings." This is just the old war of hand-labour
against machine-labour, which we had hoped was long
since decided. Lord Byron, then a youth of twenty-
one years of age, made his maiden speech in the
House of Peers upon the subject of the Notting-
ham framebreakers. That was half a century ago,
and here are the Nottingham men again renewing
the folly of their fathers. From time to time
since then we have had deplorable results of the
same fatuity and ignorance, but we all know the
result of' these violent outbreaks, whether directed
against the spinner or the agriculturist—against power-
looms or thrashing-machines --a disgraceful and violent
death to the leaders of these riots, and misery in its
most hideous forms to their dupes. Upon more recent
occasions experience has taught the misguided men who
have thrown themselves into the hands of the club
leaders that, whatever else may answer, violence, at
least, is out of the question, and, for their own sakes,
we are thankful for, even this moderate extent of enlight-
enment. Why cannot they profit by the lessons of this
stern taskmistress to even a greater degree ? Indepen-
dently of the considerations which may be deduced from
the example of the Preston strike and others of the like
kind, a knowledge of their own business might give these
men juster ideas of the effect of machinery upon their
employment. The hammer, the saw, the plane, are but
machines for shortening and lightening human labour.
Were not these implements and others of the like kind in
existence, we should creep into caverns for shelter,- or
scoop out holes in winter, or tear down a few bon-Wig in
summer, to shelter us from the inclemency of the sea-
sons. We should pick up beechnuts from the ground
and sloes from the hedges, we should knock down a
hare or a rabbit with a stone, and consume those
luxuries without the help of chair or table. We should,
in point of fact, do without carpenters altogether. The
ingenuity of man, however, is happily such that one
generation has improved upon the discoveries of another,
and in no respect has this quality been more signally
displayed than in the houses we inhabit. The greater
the improvements made the greater has been the call for
improvement. The more houses that have been built,
the more have been called for. Streets, rows, crescents,
places rise out of the ground like last night's mushrooms, 1,
and still the call is for more. Except by the aid derived
from machinery, from the moment the tree is sawn into
planks by the steam-mill until the machine-made mould-
ing is fixed against the wall such results could not be
obtained, and the services of the carpenter would be
but moderately called into requisition. But for the jus-
tification such a course receives from the fact of this
strike at Nottingham, we should be ashamed to treat such
a point as one for grave discussion ; but if the move-
ment be really one made in pure ignorance it oan
scarcely be superfluous to call the attention of these mis-
guided men to facts which they cannot deny. The
more numerous the improvements, and the greater
the employment of machines in the carpentry business,
so much the greater will be the call for carpenters. They
should not, moreover, forget that they deal in a very
perishable commodity. Houses,—as every householder
knows to his cost—are constantly in need of repair, and
certainly the hammer of the carpenter rings quite often
enough in any house we have ever known to disturb the
serenity of the inmates. These wise folks at Notting-
ham are just now engaged in an attempt to keep down
the construction of houses. Their maxim is, virtuafly—
the fewer houses the better for the carpenter. They must
not lose sight of the fact, that machines are constructed
for two purposes—to aid, or to supersede human labour.
Fortunately for them, the ingenuity of our mechanics
has been hitherto directed to the construction of ma-
chines which may be referred to the first of these two di-
visions. There can, however, be little doubt that, should
our builders be reduced to extremity, they will soon be
enabled to do without personal sleight-of-hand to a far
greater extent than at present. The most favourable con._
dition for the carpenter is that mechanical science should
work with him. It may be, as an alternative, that our
mechanists may be called upon to solve the problemsiboief
reducing human co-operation to the smallest pos
gh-
extent.—Times.

------
STABBING AT LIVERPOOL. —We regret to state that
the above crime is on the increase in Liverpool. On Wed-
nesday last the magistrates at the lice•court were
occupied with three cases, in one of which a married
woman named Higgins was charged by Bridget Maeown
with stabbing her in several parts of the person while in
a fit of jealous feeling. In another case the parties were
sailors—Robert Bloom being stabbed by George Brown'
in a quarrel about a female in a dancing-room. The
third case was of a serious character, a sailor, named
John Gilap, having deliberately cut the throat of an un-
fortunate woman with whom he cohabited, named Barlow.

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