The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-27 00:00:00

FRANCE.

PARIS, TUESDAY EVENING.
The Plenipotentiaries did not meet to-day.
They will meet to-morrow (Wednesday), at 1
o'clock.
We hear Russia will make a stand in the Confe-
rences about the Greek Church not being affected
by the proposed reforms in Turkey.
Prince Jerome Napoleon yesterday received the
Grand Vizier Aali Pacha and Count Orloff. The
former was presented by the Turkish Ambassador.
Prince Jerome also rec, ived the Baron de Mender-
strom, the new Swedish Minister.
The Constitutionne/ gives the following parti-
culars relative to the proceedings of the congress :
".A.ccrzding to diplomatic u-ages, and following the
precedent of the conferences of Vienna, the sitting com-
menced by the nomination of Count Walewski as
president. The verification of the powers of the
plenipotentiaries having next been duly gone through,
the president delivered an address, in which he briefly
summed up the object of the meeting, and pointed out the
order in which the deliberations were to proceed. All the
Plenipotentiaries pledged their wor,is to observe the
most profound secrecy on the subject of the discussions.
M. Benedetti, director of the political division at the
Department of Foreign Affairs, has been appointed by
the Frduch G,veroment to draw up the protocol of the
C,,nferences, and is assisted by a Fob-director of the
Caine section. Ou Thursday :ast the Plenipotentiaries
of the Allied Powers, exclusive of those of Russia, 1,a,•1 a
preparatory sitting at the l'tliniGtry of Foreign Affairs,
in order to agree as their attitude and the language
to be held towards the Plenipotentiaries on all the prin-
cipal questions. It was in order to be present at this
preparatory sitting that the Turkish Ambassador re-
turned in such haste to Paris, instead of waiting at
Marseilles fur the arrival of Aali Pacha."
The Debats, on the same subject, says :
" The Plenipotentiaries have taken rank to the right
and left of the President in the order established by the
regulations of the Congress of Vienna. These regula-
tions allowed two forms of precedence • one according
to the alphabetical order of the names Of the Powers re-
presented, and the other according to the order in which
the Plenipotentiaries were presented to the Sovereign.
It is the latter forth which has been adopted on the pre-
sent occasion, and according to it the places to the right
of Count Walewski are occupied by Lord Clarendon,
Count Buol, Count do Cavour, Count Orloff, and Aali
Pacha ; and the places on the left by Lord Cowley,
Baron Hubner, the Marquis Pes de Vidamarina, Baron
de Brunow, and Meherned-Djemil Bey."
A decree in the Moniteur promotes Colonel C.
Muidebled, of the sth Legion of Gendarmery, to
the rank of Commander in the Legion of Honour.
Other decrees make four promotions to the rank of
Officer, and 34 appointments to that of Knight in
the same order, and confers 69 military medals on
different officers, sub-officers, and privates of the
Imperial Guard.
The Moniteur publishes the official return of the
customs revenue for the month of January, which
amounted to 11,105,280 fr., showing a decrease of
1,396,786 fr. on the corresponding month of 1855,
and an increase of 2,074,184 fr. on that of 1851.
BOURSE, Feb. 26.—The following were the closing
quotations :

Cash. tr. e. End of Month.
4: per Conte 96 -- —f. —c.
3 per Cents 73 15 73 40
New Loan 74
Bank Shares 3,460 Roman
t.:redit Mobilier 1,565 Austrian
Belgian Fives ...... .. 03i Spanish Threes
Piedmontest (5) .:;... 8',./ 25. Home Debt

RAILWAYS—you Ce.ss.

871
89
42
38;

fr. c. fr. c.
lirYlans ........ .1,275 Western B7T 50
Northern
Lyons .....,.......... 1,25 ) New Ditto 835
Uti,litorraneau . 1,44 i 'Grand Central: 64i 25
Lyons Geneva 705 Y.sto
(Jetta

RUSSIA.
BEILLI N., Feb. 24.—One of the most satisfactory
features of the Russian press of the last dates that
have come to hand, is the circumstance that iu a
number of official documents that have been pub-
lished of late with reference to the navy the Black
Sea and the Sea of Azoff are no longer mentioned.
This looks as if ilie.Goviinment recognised the
destruction of the Rack Sea fleet, and the disper-
sion of the small remnant of its crews still extant,
as a fait accompli, on which the Conferences in
Paris are about to impress the stamp of perma-
nence.

In the columns of the Wojenny Listok (Military
Journal) are to be found official data as to the
strength of the late Black Sea Fleet, which, as be-
ing official, will have a certain historical interest
of authenticity. According to these the Russian
Pontus Fleet consisted of 4 ships of the line of 110
to 120 guns ; 12 ships of the line of 80 to 100 ; and,
finally, 2 reserve liners, of 80 guns ; altege:her 18
ships of the line, carrying 1,628 guns. Of frigates
there were 12 of 52 to seguns, together with about
40 sailing vessels of 10 guns each, and 15 war
steamers. The total force of the Russian war fleet
in the Black Sea consisted thus of 85 vessels of all
rates, mounting 2,810 guns. The entire commer-
cial fleet that Russia po,,sessed in the Black Sea has
been destroyed, with the exception of 11 vessels
still lying at Odessa, some 20 odd at Nicholaieff and
Cherson, and 20 odd that have taken refuge up the
Don. The craft destroyed in the Sea of Azoff are
stated to have amounted to several hundreds.
The Emperor has ordered that the two Grand
Dukes, Nicholas and Michael, shall at once enter
upon their respective functions, the former as In-
spector of Engineers, the latter as Master of the
Ordnance. General nalm, of the Engineers, aud
General Koff, of the Artillery, have been asso-
ciated with the two Grand Dukes in these offices
under the title of Assistants.
Prirate letters from St. Petersburg state that
General de Berg reported that he could not under-
take to answer for the fidelity of Finland to
Russia, in case of au invasion, unless his army was
tripled in numbers.

AUSTRIA.
A letter from Vieina says :—" It is now cer-
tain that Prince Gortschakoff has confidentially
stated, in the name of his Cabinet, that the Court
of St. Petersburg considered the convocation of a'
=gen of Europe= Powers, after tho signing of