The Sun.
London, England, 1859-10-01 00:00:00

RUSSIA.

The Journal de St. Petersbourg has the follow-
ing account of the ceremony of the taking of the
usual oaths of fidelity by the Hereditary Grand
Duke of Russia on attaining his majority on
the 20th ult. : _ _

"Detachments of the different corps of the army
arrived at the Winter Palace at midday, and were
formed in lines from the private apartme.nts of the
Imperial family up to St. George's Hall and the
principal chapel. Prince Orloff, Prince Menschi-
koff, and Count Bloudoff, accompanied by Court
officials, subseqn,ently bore to the chapel, on
cushions made of cloth of gold, the imperial crown,
globe, and sceptre, and placed them on a table.
Shortly after, the diplomatic body, the ministers,
and the great dignitaries of the State, with their
ladies, entered the chapel. At two o'clock the
Emperor and Empress, and the Imperial family,
went in procession from their private apartments
to the chapel, and were received at the entrance by
the Metropolitan of St. Petersburg, the members
of the Holy Synod, and the clergy of the Court.
The Empress wore the Imperial mantle, the train
of which was borne I'y three pages, apd the Em-
peror was in a Cossack uniform. Their Majesties
having taken their seats near the table, the
Princesses of the Imperial family ranged them-
selves on one side, the Grand Dukes on the other ;
and the Hereditary Grand Duke Nicolas Alex-
androvitch, who wore the skyblue uniform of
Ataman of the Cossacks, stood between them.
The great dignitaries of the Court, the Ladies
of Honour, and other personages of distinction
were admitted to the chapel, which, from the
uniforms of the men and the toilettes of the
ladies, presented when filled a magnificent
appearance, and a number of personages
of less dignity occupied the adjacent saloons;
Divine service then commenced ; and after it had
proceeded some time, the Emperor approached the
Hereditary Grand Duke, and led him to a table on
which were deposited a crucifix and the Holy Gos-
pels. The Metropolitan then handed to H.I.H. a'
copy of the oath to be taken, and the Prince read
it, holding it in his left hand, and' keeping his
right hand raised. The oath was one of fidelity
to the reigning Emperor and to the country, and
promising to maintain the order of succession to
the throne, and the family arrangements. The
Grand Duke read the oath in a firm, expressive
voice, and as he did so the most profound silence
prevailed. He afterwards, at the request of the
Metropolitan, signed a 'register recording the taking
of the oath ; the Prince then threw himself into the
arms of the Emperor, who held him for some in-
stants clasped to his breast. H.I.H. after-
wards bowed low to the Empress and took
her hand to kiss ; but her Majesty drew him to
her and held him long embraced. This scene pro-

duced much emotion among the persons present.
At this moment the bells of all the churches in
the city were rung and artillery thundered. The
register of the taking of the oath was then handed
to the Minister of Foreign Affairs for the purpose
of being deposited in the national archives. The
Grand Duke then seated himself by the side of
the Emperor ; some more prayers were said, and
a re Deum was sung. Their Majesties and the
Grand Duke then received the congratulations of
the great personages present, and a procession was
formed, and it went to St. George's Hall. The
Empress there ascended to the throne, but re-
mained standing ; the Emperor placed himself
standing on the steps leading to the throne ; the
Princes and Princesses ranged themselves on
either side; and the diplomatic body, ministers,
other dignitaries, and ladies took places provided
for them. The Hereditary Grand Duke standing
opposite the Emperor, and having before him a
• table bearing a crucifix and the Gospels, then pro-
nounced in a firm voice the oath of military fidelity,
which was read to him by a chaplain of the guard.
As the Prince did this the standard of the regiment
of the Cesarwitch's Cossacks was held above his
head, The flags and standards of the different
corps of the army were ranged in the hall. When
the ceremony had terminated these colours were
borne before the Emperor, and their Majesties and
the Imperial family returned in procession to their
apartments."
The Emperor of Russia two days after left Tarskoe
Selo for Moscow, whence he is to proceed to Toula
and Kiev. H.I.M. is accompanied by Count Ad-
lerberg, Minister of the Household, and Prince
Dolgoroukoff, Aide-de-camp General.

On his arrival at Ravenna, General Garibaldi ad-
dressed the following words to the people who had
assembled under the windows of the Governor's
palace :—" We must arm while we are able to
wield a weapon ; independence is more difficult to
preserbe than to conquer. Armed as we are, our
concord frightens our enemies; we shall always be
united for the liberty and independence which
Italy demands. When a whole people calls for it,
it is God himself who inspires it with the thought,
and in God's name we will defend it. To-morrow,
at six, an enlistment roll will be opened. Who-
ever writes his name in it shall be beloved by his
country. I shall myself undertake the duty of
conducting this chosen detachment of my fellow-
to s nsmen ; we shall be the stronger the more united
we are. Ravenna is my native town, and its
name shall remain engraven in my heart as long
as I breathe."

The Madrid journals of the 26th ult. state that
the force ready to be sent to Africa, if required,
consists of 24 battalions of infantry, 6 squadrons of
cavalry, and 22 guns.