The Sun.
London, England, 1861-01-02 00:00:00

THE FRENCH DESPATCIIES FROM CHINA.

'The Illoniteur continues the publication of docu-
ments connected with the late proceedings in China.
In a report from the Commander of the French
Corps of Operations in that country to the Marshal
Minister of War occurs the following account of
the plundering of the Summer Palace:—
" After a rather difficult march we reached the
village of Yuen-ming•yuen at 7 o'clock ; we followed
a road paved with granite flags, and we passed over
a handsome bridge leading to the Imperial Palace,
the entrance of which faces the bridge, and is dis-
tant only 200 metres ; the road between the bridge
and the palace is bordered on the left by a row of
stately trees; on the right is a large square con-
taining a row of fine houses, the residences of the
principal mandarins.
" Before bivouacking I determined to examine the
entrance of the palace, which was closed by a very
strong gate and by barriers on the right and left.
It was said that there were Tartars in the courts
and gardens inside the gates. I immediately sent
two companies of marine infantry to examine the
entrance of the Palace and the wood behind, as well
.Rs orderly officer JAW:. de Pina, of the navy. This
a noise inside, summoned them to

open the gates, and receiving no answer, he had a
ladder brought and scaled the wall, followed by
Ensign Vivenon. On reaching the top_ they saw
Tart's armed with spikes, bows,ana arrows, and
muskets, who appeared ready to defend the gate.
On perceiving our officers these men retired, and
Lieut. de Pina got over the wall to open the gate
to our troops.

"At that moment the Tartars returned to attack
M. Pina, and a conflict took place between him
and the men who were hastening up. He
bravely resisted, and fired some shots with a
revolver, but was wounded in the left hand and
the right wrist. The Marines went to his assist-
ance and to that of their officer, 11. Vivenon, who
had received a ball in the side, and the Tartars,
after a useless resistance, took to flight in disorder,
leaving behind them three men killed, and carrying
off several wounded.

" The noise of the firing having attracted me to
the spot, I made General Collineau come up with a
brigade, and occupy strongly the first courtyard of
the Palace, not wishing to advance further during
the night in an unknown place. About 700 or 809
Tartars, who were behind a series of palaces which
extended to the woods, might have attempted to
disquiet our men. But the night passed without
events, and the next day very early in the morning
I went to the Palaee, accompanied by Generals
Jamin and Collineau, by the chief of my staff, and
the English Brigadier Pattle, with whom were
Major Sley, of the Queen's Dragoons, and Colonel
Fowley. A company of infantry preceded us, to
assure our march, but the Palaces were completely
evacuated by the Tartars.
" I was anxious that our allies should be present
at this first visit to the Palace, which I suspected
must contain great riches. After passing through
several apartments of indescribable splendour, I
had sentinels placed everywhere, and I directed
two artillery officers to see that no one entered the
Palace, and that everything should remain as it
was until the arrival of General Grant, who was
sent for immediately by Brigadier Pattle.
" The English officers having arrived, we con-
sulted what we had better do with all these riches,
and we appointed three commissioners of each na-
tion, with instructions to set apart the objects of
greatest value as curiosities, so that an equal divi-
sion might be made ; it would have been impassi-
ble to think of carrying away the whole of I;he
property, our means of transport being very limited.
" Soon after a further search led to the discovery
of a sum of about 800,000 f. in small ingots of gold
and silver. The same commission also proceeded
to make an equal division between the two armies.
which gave about 80f. to each of our soldiers. The
division among the men was made by a crnruaission
which was composed of all the chiefs of the corps,
and of the different branches of the sery ice, and
was presided over by General .Tamin. The com-
mission, ha'cing deliberated in the name of the
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" The army was unanimous in approving this
offering to the Chief of the State, who will consider
it as a mark of gratitude of his soldiers for ha:ving
been sent on the most distant expedition that was
ever undertaken.

" At the moment of the division between the two
armies I insisted, in the name of the Emperor, that
Lord Elgin should make the first choice for the
Queen of England.
"Lord Elgin selected a baton of command of the
Emperor of China, in green jade, of great value,
and mounted with gold. A second baton, similar
in every respect, having been found, Lord Elgin in
his turn resolved that it should be reserved for the
Emperor of the French. There was, therefore,
perfect equality in this first choice.
" It would be impossible for me to describe to you,
Monsieur le Marechal, the magnificence of the nu-
merous buildings which succeed each other over an
extent of four leagues, and which composes what is
called the Summer Palace of the Emperor, being a
succession of pagodas, all containing gods in gold,
silver, and ;bronze, of gigantic dimensions. One
deity in bronze—a Bouddha--is about 70 feet high
gardens, lakes, and objects of curiosity heaped up
for centuries past in the midst of buildings of white
marble, roofed with dazzling varnished tiles of all
colours, add to that the view over a delightful
country, and your Excellency will have but a very
feeble idea of what we have seen.

"In each of thepagodas there exist, not objects,
but whole storerooms of every kind. To mention
to you only one fact : there are such quantities of
is taken care of, and
the finest silk goods that we have wrapped up in
pieces of silk all the articles which I send to his
Majesty.
" What makes one sad in the midst of all those
splendours of the past is the carelessness and waste
of the present Government, and of the two or three
which preceded it. Nothing
most
which
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beautiful things,
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dation. pal the exception of
Palace which the Em-
peror inhabits, are in a deployable state of degra-
" In one of the pagodas, that of the carriages, at
half a league from the inhabited part of the Palace,
we found two magnificent English vehicles, a pre-
sent from
the embassy of Lord Macartney. They,
as well as their gilded harness, were in the place
where they must have been
placed
44 years ago,
without a particle of the dust with they which were
covered having been ever removed.

" It would require a volume to describe all I have
seen ; my greatest regret is that I have no photo-
grapher attached to the expedition, so that I might
lay before the Emperor the picture of what language
cannot express.

SPECIAL SRVIECES AT ST. PAUL'S.—Arrange-
merits have been made for commencing the special Sunday
evening services in St. Paul's Cathedral on the 27th inst.,
on which occasion the Bishop of London will preach.
SUDDEN DEATH OF THE COUNTESS OF ,EGLIN-
Tmv.—lt is with deep regret that we announce the sudden
death of the Countess ef Ejintoo. The Earl and Countess
of Esaex received a telegram on Monday from Seetland,iu-
forming them of the sudden death of the Countess, their
daughter, who died at 9 o'clock on Monday morning, at
Eglinton Castle, Ayrshiro. The lamented Countess, so
untimely cut off, was to all appearance in the best health on
Sunday, and, with her noble husband, was about to receive
a largo circle of distinguished 'visitors at the castle. Her
late ladyship, Adela Caroline Harriet, was the only daugh-
ter of the Earl and Countess of Essex, and was born the
4th March, 1828. She was married in Dublin in 1858 to the
Earl of Eglinton, then Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland, being
his lordship's second wife. We believe she leaves issue au
only child,