The Sun.
London, England, 1869-04-29 00:00:00

DR: RUSSELL IN THE CRIMEA.

Dr. Russell, whose celebrated letters to the Times on
he Crimean war gave Lim a name and established him
mite, writes home an interesting account of his second
lisit to the scene of his former privations, trials, and
riumpbs. His description is of the visit of the Prince
.nd Princess of Wales to the place, but the portions which
ire most remarkable are those in which the doctor
ecalls the memories of the spots now so famous. Speaking
A his sighting of Sebastapol from the ship Euxine, in which
be royal party sailed up the Black Sea, the writer says:—
To some of us the exclamation, There is Sebastopol !'
aused a strange emotion. There it was, indeed—the dim
ontour of Fort Constantine dancing in the mirage far
way, the well-known outlines of the landscape of the
gateau seamed with the French trenches near at hand, and
rowned by the ridges of the Flagstaff Bastion, the lledan,
he Afalakhof, the Matnelon, Cathcart's-hill, Kamiesh,
,nd Kazatch, once black with masts and hulls, now
eft to the wild duck and the seagull—not a trace of the
rosy town to which war gave a vigorous commerce which
anished like the pall of white smoke that once hung
ver the city beyond. As we opened the entrance to the
oadstead, and well-remembered spots came to view,
here came a feeling too deep for le orris. The officers
n the bridge had still the same old chart to guide
hem which served our fleet in 1854. There is a coarse,
)ut very accurate, engraving of the appearance of the
ntrance, as seen from the sea, to direct the course c f
essels ; but on the bluffs or projecting points where were
:fort Nicholas, Fort Alexander, and Fort Paul presenting
heir casemated fronts, there is now nothing but some scat-
ered blocks of stone. The eye eagerly sought out through
he glass the familiar landmarks, and found them ; but there
vere some objects which came in sight that were new to us.
)n the north side there is the Memorial Chapel which the
>ious care of the Emperor has erected, and there is also
the North Cemetery on the hill side, behind Fort Cattle-
ine, with its array of charnel-houses in white stone and
,he monument to Prince Gortschakoff. On the south
iide there is a conspicuous monument on the Malakhof,
.nd in- front of the ruined pile of barrack and
hospital, behind the Peden, towers a colossal statue.
l'he first effect of Sebastopol in its present state (the
ioctor goes on to say) to new corners is one of surprise.
['hey say the place is much smaller than they expected.
[indeed, it is difficult to understand, as it now ap-
pears, how the genius of the engineer and the
sravcry of an army could have cast a wall so
itrong around those ruined heaps that the legions
end fleets of two great Poe ers and two petent auxi-
iarks were held at bay for eleven hang months and
fore. The forts on the north side are jast as they were
'hen the Allies evacuated the Crimea. As we ran past
liort Constantine there were just three men on the
Darapet, and about eight or ten on the rock below. There
,vas no flagstaff, and, as far as I could snake out, no gun
an any casemate. Nowhere, indeed, could we see the sign
A a Ruasian flag. The character of a military port or
itation has been quite abandoned."
The Tistes correspondent goes on to give Ids impression's
)f the Memorial Chapel, the great cemetery, and the places
around them. He recalls deeds of valour, as he goes from
Joint to point, and asks how this or that was done. Then
.ie reminds us of the Alma. " The Prince, disnmenting,
3xamined the position with interest, and inspected
;he names on the memorial stone, and Captain
Skariatine pointed out to his Royal High-
ness the position of the Russian corps, and
related how he and his army on the heights saw the
Ali c advancing in ne•genticent an ray, but very slowly as
It sceme.i, from their bivouec en ae Alma, and how his
Marines, who did Let- fire a shot, and were in the rear
of tie k'eautentcat, srsvrithclye list needy fifty Men from
the long ranging rifle bullets of the Britieh regiments.
'Tice field is unchanged : every embrasure cut in the
epaitien2(9tt can be traced, and tie travels, s can be
nsiited. 'll.e bridge over the river is very Inueli as it
was, and in September meet it is pi ol.able there will be
vineyards full of grapes, as before hut of those who
clambered up that gently murderous slope, anal who joined
in the wild cry of victory and in the cheers which rose
Irian the bridge beyond as tine G na: (Is threw up their
hearskies around I a.rd Low many have gone to
loin their cone a des who tin: n were streteh.d lifeless
below them ? might the Prince of Wales as'e,
Why did we advance straight nteetieet the Russian guns?'
Nearly a thousand men of the gallant Light Division,
which drew the teeth of the Russian hatteries, and forced
them to withdraw their pieces, lea vin g a, the Guards a
comparatively easy task, might have liked to hear the
answer. We saw where Gertschakoff's tent stood—where
Menschikofi's headquarters were—and then, mounting
once more, left the I'rincces and Mrs. Grey, who had come
up in a pony can riage, and, crossing over the bridge and
the ford, rode rat-idly through Bourborik, saw where
the Sec.nid Division was divided by the flames, where
n.ord Raglan crossed with his staff, where Prince Napo-
.eon's division forded the str,aiii and was held in check i y
die gethering masses ;drove thAn, and looked away to
;sight, towards the ferd at the mouth of the river, benne:an
he crag-lilse preeipitou): silts where .I.;os ieet, cover, d
ny the, time of tine lis„,t, pa,,sed his corps across, and,
..;Unibing like ants, and spiking up his guns, turned the
Russian left."
Tine visit to the lied of Sebastopol is also full of interest
r the Crow's Nest Battery, the Flagstaff Bestion, the
ereek Battery, and the Iledan are ea: In noticed.
rhe slate of the et inetery on Cathcart-Lill is
the styli ;vet of a seve re paraeraph. "It is plain
enough," says Dr. Russell, " that if steps Le tint
taken to preserve this ceme!ery from decay and from
wanton dilapidation, it, in COILIP.oIi ith every menu-
went and mennor.al in tine Crimea,, will become
national disgrace—a sort of moral Redan. The fine
slab and tat 1-t over -c Newman, who fell at In-
Lerman,
Las just bet'll chipped and broken at the base.
The star on the Celitaream Mumanent Las been smashed
into fragments, other stones are chipped and split, weeds
and rank grass are growing up all over the stones. What
a seneelal this is we could appreciate to some degree after
..cur' visit to the Russian Cemetery ; but it was not until
we had seen the French that we quite understood its
(enormity. The Russians are as anxious as we ought to be
on tine subject. They have done all they could, and more
than could have beau expected. The Czar has pur-
chased the fee simple of the land occupied by our
numberless graveyards—they are not numbed.: es, for it is
said they are nearly 70, but I suspect there must be smile
„xagg,.ration in that— and the Governmeet can scarcely be
zalled on to talis care of the graveyards themselves. The
sensible inel practicable, a 3 well ascconomieal p'ati weuld
to carefully cell, et all the reran is; which in w lie broad-
cast over the land, preeerving the ideetity as far es nosedge,
aon vey away all memorial stones with them, and
tl,en place them all in sonic eligible spot, none
as it appears to me, lneing more suitable than Cathcart:s-
hill itself, or the Traktir _Farm, in which the English I headquarters' lloese stands. Pray tuirn public attention
to this. Surely no British Parliament would grudge the
money needed tin save the eational reputation."
The field of Pedal:lava much interested all the party
who visited it. "It is still easy to mark the site of the
Light Division and of the Second Division Camps, but it
is not possible to indicate very particularly, or specially,
the position of individual huts. We passed through the
lines of the old camp or cantonment from the Fourth
Divis'on to the extreme right, but there was no time to
visit, the Third Di vision or the Naval Brigade; and,
indeed, but for lines of genes here and there and the
oil lines between tents and huts, still marked out by
rude pavement, there Will little ten distinguish the several
lecalities of the gromal once so full of IFe and • teeming
with men. Fra„,:inessts of broken glass give evidences of
Christian and ci ocenpatien Which promise tube im-
inertia ; ter tlne panne In is ma known, and the old farms
arc abandarosl. s et sheep anel herds of catt!e dot
the brownish areen waste which was once the home of
150,000 men in sries, throui;ll the air which for so
many months wad con vedsed with the shuck of continual
strife, the rattle ef musketry, and the roar of guns, there
is now no noise to reach the ear more formidable than the
lowing o( the kirie, or more piercing than the song of
the crested lark. "Ile pomp and circumstances of
glorious war' has vanished. `The earths has bubbles as
the water hath, mid these are of them.'"
Inkerman, the Malakoff, and the Mamelon, are also
enthusiastically described.

A slightly favourable "hange has taken place in the
health of the Bishop of Salisbury.
TRIAL OF BELGIAN RIOTEES.—TIVeIIty-tiVO
prisoners have just been tried at Eons for the share whi..ll
they had taken in the disturbances in the Borinage.
Four were sen, t ence, to three months' imprisonmeut,
two to two months, and 11 to one month. The others,
lads of from to 18, were acquitted. on the condem.
leaving the court, the police and gendarmes Lad great
difficulty in kee:ring Lack the crowd of colliers 10,0
a'.rove to a;,proach their compankns. The strikes, on.
fortunately, still continue.
THE BISHOP OF LONDON'S FUND. The new
Bishop of London, Dr. Jackson, has issued an appeal to
the clergy and laity of the diocese, urging upon them the
importance of continued efforts to sustain the operations
of the Bishop of London's Fund, instituted by his prede-
cessor. Ile observes : " Thereto! no failure in the resources
to which we may look. The wealth of our country multi-
! lies yet faster than its people. Christian benevolenrre
chews, thank God, no signs of flagging. The Bislun of
London's Fund has as yr:t been supported by few Oily
out or toe many w i:o certainly have the means, and pro.
bably have the will, to help. Its objects and effects have
to be pressed on the notice and conscience of each famity
of every parish and district, and every class of society
should have the opportunity gf contributing its proportitn
t thy work." -