The Sun.
London, England, 1854-06-30 00:00:00

ODESSA.

A letter from Odessa, of the 15th, states that
nine persons, among whom were two Russian
officers, had arrived in that city, from whence they
were to be conveyed-under an escort to St. Peters-
burg. Those indiViduals, accused of having set
on fire the military and naval magazines at
Cherson, had been sentenced to imprisonment for
life, although they pleaded their innocence to the
last. The authorities, it appears, wished to inti-
midate the population, whose dispositions are
hostile .to the Government. Those unfortunate
victims, 'Who all belong to the wealthy class, had
asked to be allowed to travel in carriages, at
their. own expense, and accompanied by their fami-
lies. That favour, however, was denied them, and
they performed the journey on foot like common
malefactors.

MARCH OF THE FRENCH ARMY TO

ADRIANOPLE.

We extract the following from an Adrianople
letter of June 14 :

"It may be doubted if in all Europe more beautiful
or more fertile territory is to be found, or a soil which,
though neglected, affords more abundant supplies of the
fruits of the earth, than the part of Turkey between
Gallipoli and Adrianople. Any one who sees the mag-
nificent valleys of the Carrack. the Erkeneh, and the
_Maritza, will easily understand why the Russians are so
anxious to get possession of them, Neither the most
richly cultivated 'counties of England, nor the richest
plains of Normandy, approach the valleys of Ronnielia
in fertility and. •beauty. Wheat, vineyards, barley,
and oats, in profusion, cover the plains, while
-the hills grow most magnificent timber, fit for all
uses. Wherever the French soldiers passed, and
in all the places where they halted or bivouacked,
the comforts of the troops were complete—perhaps too
complete. The peasantry arrived from all sides at the
camp, bringing bread, milk, eggs, poultry, and wine,
and all this at a pribe so excessively moderate that there
was not a soldier who might not, it he chose (and few
lost the opportunity), have his poule au pot several times
in the course of his eight days' tnarch f um Gallipoli to
Adrianople. The result of so much good feeding, and
so many over-abundant libations, might have been seri-
ous, had the commanders not taken timely precautions,
and reduced the orgies within sanitary limits. Never-
theless, it must be said that the discipline of the troops
was not for one moment relaxed, Nowhere was there
any outbreak of violence on the part of the troops, nor a
single act of pillage. The poor Turks, in fact, hearing
that an army was about to pass through their peaceful
country were at first —disposed to fly. They now re-
main in their towns and villages and are open-mouthed
in their praises of the French, whose name was hitherto
almost as great a source of terror to' them as that of the
Russians themselves.

"During the whole distance from Gallipoli stores of
provisions for the meu and cavalry had been provided at
different points by the activity of the commissariat. At
all the halting places the muzdir, or mayor of the place,
waited upon the commander of the forces, to offer his
assistance in providing for the necessities of the troops.
The ben encamp under small Cliouan tents, which every
soldier carries in his turn in his bag. The camp was
always pitched outside the tents and villages. No
sooner was the bivouac installed for the night than
clouds of Greek, Turk, and Jew vendors of all manner of
luxuries invaded the camp. " Bono vino" has already
passed into the language of the natives. Some of the
French soldiers speak a little Turkish ; the regular in-
terpreters assisted from time to time ; and amongst, an
extraordinary jumble of tongues, the business of all parties
was managed a merveille.
"Adrianople is the second city of the Turkish empire,
of which it was at one time the capital. It is generally
reckoned to contain 100,000 inhabitants, but in reality it
contains only 80,009. Situated at the confluence of the
Maritza (the ancient Ebee) and the Todja, it is spread
out in the midst of pretty gardens and trees, partly on
the side of a pretty hill, and partly on the plain. Seen
from a certain distance, it appears to be nothing more
than a mass of verdure, from which the minarets of its
thirty mosques rise majestically. The Minaret of Selim
111., built about the commencement of the 16th century,
is the principal work of architecture in the place. Its
immense cupola, supported by eight columns of 20 feet,
and 100 feet high, is of a boldness and grandeur almost
equalling the Pantheon. Towards evening, at the mo-
ment when more than s,ooo—believers, kneeling under
the light of 900 lamps, invoke Allah, it presents a sight
of which no idea can he formed.

"The arrival, at an intervalof three days, of the first
French columns put the whole of the population in com-
motion on all the roads through which the Chasseurs-h-
-pied, the Chasseurs d'Afrique, the Zouaves, the Turcos,
and the infantry of the line passed. An immense crowd
of men, women; and children—Turks, Greeks, and Ar-
menians—in their holiday costumes, assembled to admire
the martial air of the French troops.
" General of Division Bosquet, commander of the
troops at Adrianople, arrived on the Bth, along with the
3d battalion of Chasseurs-a,pied and the 12th regiment
of General d'Allonville's cavalry. On the 13th General
Bouat's brigade of infantry arrived. The rest of the 2d
division will soon follow, along with the artillery. Be-
tween this and the 20th upwards of 15,000 French troops
will have assembled at Adrianople. The troops, after hay-
ing passed through Adrianople, of which the passage re.
encamped outside the tent,
quires more than an hour,

on the road to Schumla, and on the borders of the Tod'
ja, precisely on the spot where the Russian, arm,' en
camped in 1829. General Bosquet, like General Die,
bitscb, has his bead-quarters in the old seraglio ; and,
round him, in ,the island of the seraglio, bivouac the •
infantry of the line. This land is a most beautiful
place, planted with trees, now a hundred years Old;
the shade of which keeps up a delicious coolness and :
freshness. The cavalry is encamped on the great plain
of Hadji Dossun, separated from the island of the wear
lio by the _Todja. A wooden bridge will unite 01,0
two parts of the .camp. The Greek who. has undertaken)
the construction is the same who, twenty-five years sr,
made- a similar bridge, preciselfitt -the sifte pladOe'r
the Russians. Strange destiny ! Perhaps the very.
same timbers are employed."