The Sun.
London, England, 1857-07-03 00:00:00

TURKEY.

CONSTANTINOPLE JUNE 22.
The Sultan has at last undertaken his long
talked of tour in the Sea of Marmora. Every one
thought that he had given up the idea, or at least
deferred it until the festivities of the circumcision
were over, when, all of a sudden, on Saturday last
at noon, the Grand Vizier received a notice that on
Sunday (that is, yesterday), at 1 p.m., his Ma-
jesty would start, and wished the Grand Vizier
and his two brothers-in-law (Ahmed Fethi, Direc-
tor-General of the Ordnance, and Mehmed Ali, the
Capudan Pasha) to accompay him. This trip of
the Sultan, ordered and counter-ordered as it was,
is, like every other movement in the palace,
brought into connexion with changes in the Go-
vernment, and speculation is so much the more
13118 Y as on one occasion a change of air for the
health of the Sultan was followed by a change in
the Ministry. Strange things are these changes.
Since the beginning of the Ottoman history there
never has been a reign during which so many
changes have taken place as under the present.
In 18 years as many as 17 diff,rent G,,vernments
have been formed, which gives almost one for every
year—nay, if we calculate that Redschid Pasha
has been twice in power for several years, we shall
find that there are almost two for each of the re-
maining years. This is so much the more curious
as these frequent changes fall justat an epoch when
Turkey is supposed to have abandoned the old
system of favouritism under which the Sultan's
whims were law, and to have established fixed
rules according to which the Government of the
empire is to be carried on.
Her Majesty's ship Medina, Captain T. Spratt,
left'this on Wednesday last for the Danube, where
she will be of the greatest service to the Com-
mission on the Danube Navigation. The Medina
Was up in those parts last year, and all the three
branches of the river have been rninu, ely sur-
veyed and sounded by Lieutenant Wilkinson, un-
der the superintendence of Captain Spratt, who has
drawn up a report on the subject. I shall have to
speak of this report at some other time. I wish only
to remark here that these are the first reliable sur-
veys ever made of that country, and that they
will, together with the practical suggestions of
Captain Spratt, considerably facilitate the work of
the Commission. On her way from Malta to this
place the Medina has made soundings between the
!ormerislandan.dCan.dia,which have given some very
Interesting results. , The bottom between the two
islands appears to be one large valley or basin, with
very steep sides, so that at 30 or 40 miles from the
shore the depth rapidly increases overl,ooo fathoms,
showing at the deepest point explored as much as
2/000 and odd fathoms. By an ingenious contri-
vance Capt. Spratt has succeeded in getting up a
considerable quantity of perfectly dry and hard
yellowish soil from that depth, the examination of
which will throw considerable light on the forma-
tion of the whole basin of the Mediterranean.

According to an announcement of the Messageries
Imperiales, the direct boats of that company will
leave this from the Ist July on Wednesdays instead
• f Mondays.