The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-12 00:00:00

LATEST NEWS.

BRAZILS AND RIVER PLATE.
SOUTHAMPTON, TUESDAY, 11 A.M.
The Royal Mail Company's steam-ship Avon,
Captain Revitt, has arrived in the river with the
usual monthly mail from Buenos Ayres, Monte
Video, Rio de Janeiro, Pernambuco, Bahia, St.
Vincent, Teneriffe, Madeira, and Lisbon.

THE TURKISH CONTINGENT.

KERTCH, Jan. 24.—The ice having at length
broken, on account of the prevalent strong south-
erly winds, we are now enabled to continue our
landing of stores, and the transport fleet in the
bay are obliged (much to their dissatisfaction) to
have recourse to their boats and lighters once more,
after having amused themselves for the past month
in discharging their cargoes daily on the ice. We
all hail with delight this change in the weather, for
between the various daily reports of an expected
attack from the Russians in our rear and the channel
frozen over to the Taman side in our front (almost
sufficient to allow the crossing of an immense army),
our situation has been anything but comfortable,
and, with the exception of our transport skippers,
who rejoice in anything like dernurrage, especially
in Government employ, everybody seems in high
glee.
We have received almost daily for the past month
accounts from Tartar spies that a large body of the
Russian army are intrenching themselves at Argin
—the place where the 10th Hussars and Chasseurs
d'Afrique had a skirmish with the Cossacks in
September last. From this we can draw two in-
ferences—either that' an attack is meditated on this
place, or that,' the navigation of the Sea of Azoff
being now rendered impracticable by our gun-
boats, the Russians are now availing themselves of
the " tongue of Arabat," in forwarding their sup-
plies into the Crimea. The latter suggestion is
thought the most probable, for since the Kinbourn
affair the enemy will prepare themselves for the loss
of Perekop, and, having determined to "make bay
while the sun shines," are thus taking advantage of
the inclemency of the season. In the meantime,
should their 'object be an attack upon us,
they will find that General Vivian has not been
idle, and with the limited means at his dis-
posal, has rendered'this place, in a military point
of view, perfectly capable of resisting an attack of
an army of 30,000 men. The only obstacle hereto-
fore has been a want of siege guns to put into posi-
tion which deficiency has been in a measure at-
tended ta by the Commander-in-Chief before Sebas-
topol and the Seraskier at Constantinople, the
latter having sent us sonic beautiful long 32-pounder
brass pieces from the-foundry at Tophane.
The Turkish soldiers as you are aware have the
reputation of being the most capable in the world
at throwing up earthworks, and digging intrench-
meats •' and certainly in this instance they deserve
a great deal of praise, for, under the able guidance
of Major Stokes, the commanding engineer officer
of the Contingent, theyhavecompletedworks which
might well be shown as examples to other nations.
Fort Paul is now a second Malakhoff, and, should
necessity oblige us to evacuate Kertch and fall back
upon that place, we could well-defy the whole Rus-
sian army to efect a dislodgment.
On the 6th inst. (the-,Russian Christmas) the
Cossacks paid us,a visit, and approached in large
numbers (supposed 5,000) to within four or five
miles of this place. The alarm guns having been
fired, every man was at his post with wonderful
alacrity, the batteries of artillery taking up their
respective positions in the town and on the Yeni-
kale and Fort Paul roads. Her Msjesty's gun-
boat Weser, although frozen in hard and fast in
the ice, was prepared for action, being in a position
to command the Yenikale road, and by the eleva-
tion of her guns to throw shot and shell far bt yond
the town in the direction of Arabat. Should th e
services of this vessel not hays been required in
either of these points, Lieut. Ross had already vo-
lunteered to place himself and his crew under the
General's orders; and work the batteries if re-
quired. The Land Transport Corps were on the
alert and prepared to convey ammunition to the dif-
feient magazines, and the Commissariat turned out a
large force of Tartar labourers, armed with axes,
dec., to prevent the firing of any of the Govern-
ment stores, which had been well filled with pro-
visions previous to the setting in of the ice.
Our cavalry having been ordered out, under the
command of Major M‘Donald, the Cossacks fell
back, but in the evening returned and burnt the
Spanish farm, about six miles distant, from which
the Contingent had been receiving large supplies
of forage. The health of the Contingent has been
excellent, and Brigadier Holmes, the Commandant
at Kertch, with his able assistant, Dr. Gunn,
leaves no means untried in regulating the sanitary
condition of the town ; in fact, everything has
been done to guard against disease which might
be brought on through negligence in not re-
moving the filth which naturally collects in a
place of this kind. With the exception of the
land transport, whichh requires increasing, since
8,000 more men have been added to the Contingent
force, every department is in thorough order; and
the Commissariat at the present moment have four
months' provisions in advance, already lauded and
stored. No exertions have been spared on the part
of Commissary-General Adams to provide every-
thing in his power for the comfort of the Contin-
gent ; and, considering the late season of the year
before it was determined where should be its field
of operation, as well as the difficulty in making
contracts, I consider the Commissariat has accom-
plished wonders. Two companies of the 71st Re-
giment are in Kertch, and the remainder, under
command of Colonel Ready, are at Yenikale. Part
of a company of the Royal Artillery, under the
acting command of Lieut. Woolfo, are at Fort St.
Paul. These, with the 4th Regiment d'lufanterie de
Marine, division s of the Chasseurs d'Afrique and 10th
Hussars, and about 16,000 of the Contingent, con-
stitute the force under General Vivian's command,
and who occupy the posts of Kertch, Yenikale, and
Fort St. Paul.

At Yenikale I am informed the men of the 71st
Regiment have established a capital theatre, and
perform one day each week before a well filled house.
With the exception of an occasional soiree at one
another's barracks, I think the Turks are without
amusement ; but, being naturally a very steady
race of men, they are contented with sitting by
their own firesides nightly, and listening to the
recital of Oriental tales. They all appear well con-
tented with the discipline, &c., established by the
English officers who command them, and their
wants being amply supplied in food, pay, and cloth-
ing, they have no cause of complaint.

ASIA MINOR.
EEZEROUM, Jan. 4.—The latest letters from
Persia state that Mr. Murray is on his way to
Bagdad. The Shah had issued orders for all the
Persian authorities to treat him with every possible
civility on his route, but at the same time bad
written to him in a tone which makes reconciliation
at present entirely impossible.
Letters dated the 14th of last month have been
received from Sir William Williams. He was than
at Tiflis, on his way to Moscow. He and his com-
panions were all well. The kindness of the Rus-
sian authorities, civil as well as military, is repre-
iented as having been unvaried.

FRANCE.
PARIS, MONDAY EVENING.

The Emperor yesterday received M. Pahaud,
Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies, and
' M. Conrad, chief engineer in the service of the
King of tho Netherlands, president of the commis-
sion for cutting through the Isthmus of Suez ; they
had the honour to be presented to his Majesty by
M. Lighteuvelt, envoy extraordinary and minister
plenipotentiary of the King of the Netherlands.
fa The following report has been presented to the
Emperor by "M. Billault, Minister of the interior :
" Sire,--In the opinion of your Majesty, the right of
initiative conferred en the Senate by Art. 30 of the Con-
stitution is not a nominal and sterile prerogative as re-
gards-the-welfare of the country. As stated in a recent
article of the Mon itcur, the Senate may suggest to your
Government any great measure of public utility ; it re-
ceives the petitions of citizens, exatninei the situation of
the country, inquires into its wants, studies improve-
ments in its organisation, points out useful reforms, and
proposes real ameliorations.' But, in order to accomplish
properly such a high and delicate mission, an inces-
sant investigation as to what is required for the
moralisation and welfare of the people, the in-
terests of agriculture, the developments of labour
and credit, the security and prosperity of Prance is
necessary. The annual resolutions of the Councils-
General may be a valuable element in this task. In the
limits determined by the law, these resolutions, adopted
by men who are best acquainted with the heal interests,
and give for each department the opinions of its repre-
sentatives on the situation and wants of the different
public services. The collection into a volume of these
documents, and the annual publication of them at the
expense 4,f the Ministry of the Interior, had been
suspended for some years. but 1 ordered the resump-
tion of this undertaking. The analysis of the
resolutions of the Councils General in their sessions
of 1852, '3, and '4 is already printed ; that of 1851
'is in the pro s, aud thrt of 1855 is being actively
prepared. These volumes are dietrituted to all the
great bodies of the State, bnt perhaps your Ilajesty will
think it right that they shall be more particularly thought
under the atten':.en of the Senate. The senators will find
.14 Uvula La 0.14 40Par4iaeut a faitlatd acioUt ()fits ,

wants, it desires, and its demands. The collection of
the- e re,olutions cannot fail to offer to their wisdom the
most useful indica‘ ions in the search for those measures
of amelioration and of practical progress which the con-
stant solicitude of your Majesty imposes on all branches
of your Government, but which has been more particularly
confided to the initiative of the Senate by the constite-
tion.—l am, &o."

The Emperor has approved of the reoomtnenda-
tious of this report.

The Moniteur publishes another long list of per-
sons who have received permission to accept and
wear decorations granted by foreign Sovereigns.

BOURSE, Feb. 11.—The market continued buoy-
ant, when the following were the closing quota-
tions :

Cash. fr. C. End of Month.
per Cents 96 —f. —a.
3 per Cents 72 50 72 90
New Loan 73 20

Bank Shares 3,190 Roman
Credit Mobilier 1,560 Austrian
Belgian Fives A7— Spanish Threes
Piedmontese(s). B9 -- Home Debt 38

RAILWAYS-FOB CASH.

fr. a. ft. 6.
Orbaans 1,250 Western 847 50
Northern
Lyons ~....1,230 New Ditto BlO3—
Mediterranean 1,375 Grand Central 632 50
Lyons Geneva 736 25 Testo ' ' 755
Cette 735 Austrian Corn. ..... . 868 75

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