The Sun.
London, England, 1860-10-02 00:00:00

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Although we talk much more . ,og 4. '-
Rome and Naples than we do an, tl ba of
Tah-lien-hwam, our intimate home, sympathies j Quip
most eagerly towards the last news from that .far
away locality. Its uncouth name has hitherto &Lind
its way into no map, and its position is on imper 9-..
trable secret to the majority of those English
families who know it only as the temporary abiding
place of some one who is very dear to them ; hut a
little boat accident at Tah-lien-hwan has much
more English interest about it than if the whole
Austrian navy went down in a storm in the Grand
Canal at Venice, or after a collision with the un-
lighted Rialto, and the news of half-a-dozen eases
fever upon the shores of that bay with an un-
memorable name would cause more-real alarm in
England than the news that malignant malaria had
held its own at Rome against the approaching win-
ter, and had seated itself triumphant upon all the
seven hills: The fact is, that our own kith and kin
ITrinesrey at the last accounts, away in that distant and
ung laud, where there are neither pi jests, nor
ruins, nor deadly miasmata • and upon this last
Point we are glad to be well assure Nothing can
be more satisfactory-the• a. "
than the tidings our corre-
spondent sends us of
So
fcondition of the expedition
inar atshregayds health and
at the latest despatch.
e
comfort both forces werehighest state of
prosperity and efficiency. Of our own men less
were than four and a half per cent.
ere on the sick-list
and the majority of these invalids were suffering'
from no more grave malady than that of cut feet
—the consequence of bathing upon a beach strewed
with oystershells. The 99th had but two men
absent from duty, and of serious eases there were
not more than one per cent. Nothing could be
better than this. Nor need friends at home be
too anxious about the creature comforts of our
absent warriors. While they pursued their
games like Trojans on their way to Italy, abun-
dant markets enabled them to satisfy the appe-
. kites the exercise had excited, and to eat like
Trojans too: The French, with their usual promp-
titude in settling themselves with all the appear-
ances of civilization about them, had built a town
with its Hotel de Vile, probably with its cafes and
estaminets, and certainly with its surrounding
villas and its flourishing gardens. They also were
in good fellowship with their neighbourhood, and
in the full enjoyment of the sheep, goats, pigs,
poultry, eggs, vegetables, and fruit which a China-
man is always ready to bring out to an enemy who
pays ready money. To these the British added a
large demand for beef, and although John China-
man always looks sorrowful at the untimely death
of the 14bouring ox, even these were led to sacri-
fice before the almighty dollar. If the reader would
put his finger upon the two spots where this highly
satisfactory state of things was in course of occur-
rence, he must search in his map of China for the
Gulf of Pecheli. He will find the entrance to this
gulf narrowed by two promontories, the northern
of which is marked " Regent's Sword," and the
southern " Shantung Promontory." On Itc;ent's
Sword is the bay of Tah-lien-hwan, where the
British station was, and on the Shantung Promon-
tory, near where Tang-chow is marked upon the
map, is the French station of Che-fow.
From these well ehosen stations the two expedi-
tions were to start at daybreak of the 26th July,
and to rendezvous on the other side of the Gulf.
Long ere this our Armstrong, guns must have had.
their first opportunity of testing their efficiency in
rivalry with the rifled cannon of the French, which
have already done service in the plains of Lombardy.
There is, however, a very considerable dispropor-
tion between these two allied expeditions. We have
26 gunboats for the fight which was to come off at
the mouth of the Peiho; the French had 6. We have
11,000 men ; they have less than 5,000. We have
1,050 cavalry as superbly mounted as horsemen can
be ; they have 4 Spahis and 4 Chasseurs d'Afrique.
We have a fleet of 200 vessels of war ; they have
39. We have 6 mounted batteries, two of 12-pounder
Armstrongs, and two of 9-pounders; they have
three batteries of 4-pounders rifle bored up to 8.
Moreover, we have efficient means of landing men,
horses, and material ; and so have they according to
present arrangements, for they propose to show
their brotherly affection by sharing ours. The
landing arrangements were not very perfect, even
at Che-fow, for when we paid them friendly visits
at their home, Admirals, Generals, and Ambassa-
dors were constrained to pass in undignified proces-
sion through 60 yards of mud and surf pickaback,
with the tails of brawny natives for holdfast. Wo
are about to return the compliment to our good allies
at Pch-tang, and to take them in our boats to terra
firma. The original plan, duly set forth in writing, •
had been that the French should land on the south
of the Peiho, while we landed at Peh-tang on the
north ; but after reconnaissance made the French
found that they could not make sure of their land-
ing, so they go with us. Jack grumbles a little at
this arrangement ; for he complains that, after
having waited fur an assistance he does not want
for more than a month, and after having lost the
best of the fighting season, he now has to carry his
French friend ashore, where he will infallibly break
the plan of attack, and make a run out of orders,
and whip his tricolours out of his pockets, and claim
all the glory. These little rivalries and jealousies
always will happen in combined operations. Such
unions seldom add much to the cordiality of the
forces joined in them, and we still think it would
have been wiser if the two expeditions had each
gone its own way, and had, if that be the point
intsnded, given each other rendezvous at Pekin.
However, the dogs are now slipped, and our next
letters will give us results. If we are not success-
ful this time, no fault will lie at the door of those
who prepared the expedition. It is at any rate
pleasent to know that we have made some advance
in the art of sending out a fleet and army. We
have placed a powerful expedition on shore 16,000
miles from Woolwich without a disaster, and in
as perfect a state of efficiency as if they were all
congregated at Mount Edgecumbe. After the first
blow is struck promptitude and rapidity will be
everything, and there will be no more delay for •
anybody, not even, we will hope, for. diplomatists,
until enough has been done to render their work
easy. The plan, we believe, was to land the first
division at Peh-tang, where it may be reasonably
supposed that the Chinese will not expect us. r Bute
tang is the mouth of the unnavigable
Iteßruce.
which the Chinese attempted to lure
30; of the
It is about ten miles north of the
nFourts, and if
Peiho. It is defended by two
small
to be staked
the river should have been found
notadssb at these
the landing party would arh-e whole land force
forts, and, having taken thecFa,k 0
land which sepa-
rates march across the
the Peiho river and thus
rates the Peh-tang frioern
Tabu forts. When this
obtain the rear of
had been
effected, the gunboats
march of 12 miles. r
and the forts be attacked at
would cross the baand ;iver. This plan may of course
have from landi ed
fi by circumstances, and it v
have been d
mod
that the Peh-tang ricer •
have happened that
in its fortifications might be
found to be too. to be
dealt
summarily.with; but Circumstances
thus
• t out this as obviously the plan of the first poinin-
tention, and, as two months have now elapsed
since the attack must have been made, not even
Russian telegraphs can render it an indiscretion to
mention it. Such is the crisis of our affairs in
China as it stood on the 9 hand •
-5t of July last, as it
has been more 1 b
e a orately depicted by our corres-
pondent who en tt d
a s the expedition. For tidings
of the issue we must still wait, and it is vexatious
to feel that the want of telegraphic communication
alone conceals from us events of vast national con-
cern which are very possibly known to another
European Power.—Tintes.

Lord Hotham, M.P., has quite recovered from
his slight illness, and has gone to the Norfolk coast to re-
cruit his strength.

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