The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-14 00:00:00

RUSSIA.

A letter from St. Petersburg of the 3d, in the
Constitutionncl, says :
"The Invalide Busse, in its number of the Ist,
published letters of thanks addressed to General
Komantoff, the hettman of the Cossacks, by the
Emperor, and the Empresses Fedorowna and Maria,
on the occasion of the congratulations sent to their
Imp.rial Majesties, by the Cossacks of the Don, on
New-Year':. day. These rescripts are repeated
every year, and I therefore abstain from sending
you the text of them. General Gortschakoff in his
turn has become one of the familiars of the Grand
Duke Constantine. lam assured that it is owing
to the influence of the Crimean generalissimo that
such a change has been produced in a few days in
the ideas of the young Grand Duke. General
Gortschakoff has pointed out to him so clearly the
dangers of the present war that the brother of the
Emperor in the end saw that he had been hitherto
pursuing a wrong course. It is said that he is now
more in favour of peace than even the
hi Czarm•
A medal of honour is about to be distributed
to the sisters of charity who, during the siege of
Sebastopol, gave proofs of such courageaud huma-
nity. These excellent women,
in whose devotedness
such an extraor-
dinary abnegation were displayed
dinary manner, well merit this distinction. Ge-
neral Gortschakoff related to the two Empresses
and to the Grand Duchesses the admirable con-
duct of these ladies,
and urged the.
Government
to send them a
striking mark of its satisfac-
tion. The Emperor, in consequence, decided that
a commemorative medal should be awarded to
each of them ; and the Empress and the Grand
Duchess Helen addressed autograph letters to the
superior of the sisterhood. Adjutant-General Bei-
bikoff, ex-Minister of the Interior, has just re-
signed his rank in the army and retired to his
eitates. An Imperial ukase has been published,
stating that the time passed by soldiers of the army
of the South in hospital shall be counted in their
period of active service. The Chancellor of the
Empire has addressed another manifesto to the
Russian plenipotentiary at Vienna on the occasion
of the signature of the preliminaries of peace,
which, as we learn by telegraph, took place on the
Ist in the capital of Austria. This document, like
those of the 23d Dec. and sth Jan., bears the
stamp of the paeific feelings of the Russian Go-
vernment. As far as regards Art. 5, it declares
that Russia cannot concede more than the rec-
tification of the frontiers of Bessarabia. As this
is all that_the.:Western Powers demand, it is pro-
bable that no difficulty will arise on that point."
Another letter from St. Petersburg of the same
date says :—" The regiment of light dragoons of
Prince Paskie witch is to retain his name, but
the other regiments which also bear his name are to
take their previous denomination. The son of the
Prince has been nominated Adjutant-General of
the. Emperor. The Emperor has ordered that, in
consequence of the bravery displayed by General
Khrouleff at Sebastopol, his name shall be inscribed
with those of other generals in letters of gold on a
marble tablet, which is to be placed in the military
school in which he studied. According to pri-
vate letters from Simpheropol to the 24th ult.,
the fire of the batteries on the north of Sebastopol
was very vigorous. These letters express great
astonishment at the rapid construction of the new
French town of Katniesh. Formerly the site
occupied by the town was azpublic promenade,
known by the ,name of Novaia emba (Newfound-
land)."