The Sun.
London, England, 1861-01-14 00:00:00

THE StIN, LONDON, MONDAY EVENING, JANUARY 14, 1861.

gin to see the ceremony, were like as many

sweeps.
Pekin is not nearly so large or so densely popu-
lated as we have always been led to believe. It has
little or no suburbs, and, judging from a ride through
both Tartar and Chinese portions, I should say it
was not much larger than Manchester or Glasgow.
The inhabitants certainly pack very closely, but
then the houses are only one story, and every one
has some pretensions to a garden behind it. The
grounds of the Winter Palace and the beautiful
park round the Temple of Heaven are each several
square miles in extent, while the different yamuns,
or houses, of the numerous nobles and mandarins
take up acres upon acres each, so that the ground
occupied by the general population is compara-
tively small, and I should estimate the latter
as a little more, perhaps, than that of Glasgow. The
Winter Palace no one has been allowed to see, and
the only two other redeeming points about Pekin
which save it from being contemptible to a stranger
are its walls and the Temple of Heaven. As you
approach the city the walls have a very imposing
and grand effect; they are built of a gray-looking
brick, and rise 62 feet high ; large square bastions
stand out about every quarter of a mile at the top ;
the walls are 17 paces thick, with a perapet pierced
with loopholes for gingals, but not for guns. Over
each gateway there rises a massive structure, with
four tiers of portholes, like a man-of-war, 48 in
front and 16 on each gable. At the four corners of
the walls these towers have only two faces, with
64 portholes in each. There are no guns in them,
however, the holes being filled up with a shutter,
on which the muzzle of a gun is painted. Indeed,
there are only three or four on the walls altogether.
The view from the top over the city is very striking.
Owing to your elevated position you see little more
than a forest of trees, a few straight lines of streets,
the tops of joss-houses, the pagoda of the Temple of
Heaven, and the Winter Palace, built upon a high
artificial mound, with the walls running all round.
When once a place is built in China it seems as if
it was supposed to take care of itself for ever after-
wards, no attempt being made to repair the ravages
of time or use, and the consequence is that these fine
walls are fast falling into ruin. The Temple of
Heaven is a magnificent structure, situated in the
centre of the Chinese city, and surrounded by a
walled park as large as Hampton Court and Bushy
Parks together, and very like them, too, with its
avenues of old trees crossing in all directions ; one
leads directly from the'entrance-gate for about a
mile to the foot of an inclined plane, which takes
you to a terrace hidden by the trees until you ate
upon it. It is about half a mile in length, 17 paces
wide, and about 20 feet high, and paved with
slabs of white marble. On reaching the top, on
your right stands the Temple of the Earth, a
beautiful building in itself, but completely
eclipsed by that of Heaven on the left. For some
reason or other the doors were closed, and we were
obliged to content ourselves with only walking
round the earthly building, but a good-natured
priest opened the gateway of that of Heaven for
us. You enter its portals of beautifully-sculptured
marble, and come into a large enclosure, in the
middle of which is a raised platform, approached
all round by steps. From this the temple, or pagoda
rises in all its beauty. It is about 150 feet high and
has three steps of roofs, exquisitely proportioned to
its size. Inside it forms one octagonal room about
60 feet in diameter, containing the altar and chairs
of State for the Emperor and his family, no one
else being supposed to worship here. The walls
inside are composed of brilliant blue and green
enamel and gold ; eight very graceful pillars,
carved in bas-relief support, the first roof, and the
whole is lighted by windows, which are scarcely
seen from the floor. The outside is encased in blue
and green enamel tiles, and is a perfect picture of
quiet and repose. There is no joss or figure inside
the temple, but in some houses round its enclosure
there are a great many. The Emperor visits this
temple once a year, especially to plough and sow
grain, to show he still retains the simplicity of life
of his ancestors. He is very lame, having nearly
lost the use of both legs ; in all his apartments at
the Summer Palace pairs of crutches were found.
The Summer Palace is about seven miles north of
Pekin, situated in grounds many miles in extent,
laid out with artificial lakes and canals, crossed by
fatastic bridges of the old willow pattern, mounds
on which pagodas and Lama temples are built, and
the whole beautifully wooded. It must, indeed,
have been a lovely palace in its pride, but now
nothing remains but the bare walls and blackened
timbers of 42 palaces that were burnt.
It has been estimated that the amount of property
pillaged and destroyed exceeds £6,000,000 sterling.
Every soldier who was present is replete with
loot. On entering the Emperor's particular resi•
dente no one knew what to take; silver was
thrown away to take up gold, and gold to take
up jewelled watches and gems ; china and enamelled
vases (the manufacture of which is lost), of price-
less value, were broken because too bulky to carry
away. Rooms and rooms full of costly silks,
bronzes, jade-stone ornaments, and the presents
received by the Emperors, every article being
labelled with the name of the donor, were ruthlessly
looted and destroyed. Much more has been buried
beneath the ruins, however, than was carried away.
The Emperor's washstand, basin, and ewer of gold,
studded with stones, were sold for £2,000 by the
captor. Lord Amherst's watch was sold by a French
soldier for 20 dollars, it was worth £2OO. Many
men have 331 b. or 401 b. of pure gold in their pos-
session, and others have pearls and precious stones
of unknown value. 400 eunuchs were found in the
palace, and it is worth noticing that all the ladies
of the Court must have had natural-sized feet, all
the slippers found in their rooms being large—not
a single cramped-footed shoe was seen. The winter
has regularly set in, the thermometer sinking to 22
deg. at night. We have been particularly fortunate
in the weather during the whole of the campaign.
If it had been a wet season it would have been next
to an impossibility for the army to reach Pekin, the
roads throughout the country being nothing but
cart tracks through the fields, and, after a few
hours' rain, becoming a foot or 18 inches deep in
soft mud. There is no drainage, the water being
purposely kept on the land for agricultural uses.
The 67th Regiment has been the first to leave
Pekin; it marched on the sth for,Tien-tsin. The
heavy siege guns have also left. The distribution
of the army for the winter will be as follows :—The
31st, 60th, and 67th winter at Tien-tsin, where it is
also proposed a number of French shall stay ; one
wing of the 31st will occupy the South Taku forts ;
the 99th go to Canton, the 44th to Hongkong ; the
Royals, Queen's and 3d Buffs go home ; Fane's
Horse remain at Tien-tsin ; Probyn's and the
Dragoon Guards go back to India, and the Bth and
15th Punjab Regiments will winter at Cowloon.
Brigadier Stavely will remain in command at
Tien-tsin. Two batteries of artillery remain
behind, and two go to England. The report
that the Emperor had sent in two Mandarins who
were implicated in the atrocities committed on
the prisoners was incorrect. Lord Elgin will leave
about the 19th. The Russian Minister leaves
at the same time, going overland to St. Petersburg.
As soon as the army has embarked on board the
transports, the whole of the fleet will leave the
mouth of the Peiho for distribution over the station
during the winter. The Sampson, Fury, Inflexible,
Adventure (with the Marines), Magicienne, Nim-
rod, Sparrowhawk, Roebuck, and Cruiser, are
ordered home, and thus ends our short and, it is to
bephoped, our last and effective campaign.

ALLEGED ENCROACHMENT UPON
PUBLIC RIGHTS AT HIGHGATE.

At a meeting of the vestry of St, Pancras, held
on Wednesday—Mr, Churchwarden Carter in the
chair—a communication was read from Mr. Joseph
Taylor, the solicitor to the promoters of closing
Bromage's-lane, enclosing a request on the part of
certain inhabitants to close the thoroughfare in

question. This document was in the form of a
peremptory notice as follows :
"To the Vestry of the Parish of St. Pancras, in the county
of Middlesex, and to Francis Plaw, their clerk.
" Whereas, we, the undersigned inhabitants residing
within your parish, being desirous of stopping up a certain
street and public highway, called or known as Bromage's-
walk,' otherwise Love-lane,' leading from Swain's-lane to
Highgate, and within the said parish, hereby give you
notice of such our wish, and desire and hereby require you
to convene and assemble a meeting of the said vestry, and
to submit to such vestry our said wish and desire.—Dated
this 2d day of January, 1861.
(Signed) ," WM. LANGDA.LE, 3, Holly-terrace,
Highgate.
" ROBERT BARCLAY, West-hill."
A further memorial was also presented by Major
Wilkinson to the following effect :
" To the vestry of St. Pancras.—The memorial of the
undersigned justices of the peace for the county of Middle-
sex, clergymen, gentry, and ratepayers resident in the im-
mediate vicinity of Bromage's-walk,' otherwise ' Love-
lane,' leading from the district of St. Ann's, Brookfield, to
Highgate, in your parish, showeth, that the above walk or
lane has been well known to us for many years past, and
that the same has been very little used for foot passengers,
and then only in the height of summer, when the same has
been passable.
" That the same has been allowed to get into very bad
repair, and has never been lighted, and from the same being
a dark unfrequented walk, it has become a resort of thieves
and other improper characters, and for the reasons aforesaid
has become useless as a highway, and should the same be
allowed to remain open it must, for the protection of the
public, be thoroughly repaired and properly lighted. •
" That, inasmuch as the closing of the same would be of
great benefit to the inhabitants residing at the north end of
Kentish-town and Highgate aforesaid,
" Your memorialists trust that you will be pleased to take
the necessary steps for causing such lane to be stopped up."
Major WILKINSON, in presenting this memorial,
said it would be observed that some of the memo-
rialists had qualified the prayer of the memorial by
attaching a note to their signature to the effect that
if the path were properly repaired and lighted the
necessity for its being closed would be removed. He
would move that the memorial be read and brought
up with the other memorials already presented.
This was adopted.
Mr. DOUGLAS would like to know under what
authority the two gentlemen who had signed this
notice did so? He did not know that any persons
had the power to require that vestry to convene a
meeting. He had heard it stated the grand object
in closing this path, which was undoubtedly a right
of way, was to enable Miss. Burdett Coutts to take
it into her grounds. (Hear, hear, and " No, no.")
He could not see that they had any right, or could
be compelled, to convene a special meeting, nor did
he think it desirable that they should take any
step till the next meeting of the vestry, when the
report of the surveyer would be before them. (Hear,
hear.)

Major WILKINSON said he certainly must protest
against the allusions which had been made to Miss
Burdett Coutts as wholly and entirely unfounded.
(Hear.) The notice calling upon that board to
summon a special meeting was simply a formal
compliance with the provisions of the Highway
Act. The vestry had no power of refusal, but he
agreed with Mr. Douglas that it might be conve-
nient to postpone fixing the day till the next ves-
try, when the report of the surveyor would be before
them. Though he (Major Wilkinson) entirely
acquiesced in the propriety of abstaining from en-
tering into the case till the survey or's report was
received, he hoped the vestry would indulge him
with permission to add a few words that had refe-
rence to that lady, who had justly commanded the
respect of the vestry, and whose name had been
mixed up with the present proceedings. He hoped
that it would be distinctly understood that Miss
Burdett Coutts had neither instigated nor taken
part in the application now before the vestry to
close this path. All that Miss Coutts had done
was to give notice to the vestry of the present
disgraceful state of the path and to call upon them
to repair it, and she added as a reason for her hav-
ing delayed to make the application, that she
thought, in consequence of the very slight use made
of the path by the public, the vestry were about to
close it ' • but beyond that she had not interfered,
nor did she desire to do so. The name and cha-
racter of Miss Burdett Coutts were a sufficient
guarantee that she would be the last lady
in the land to seek to interfere with or curtail
the liberties and privileg^s of the poor. (Hear.)
The application then before the vestry was the
legitimate and independent expression of the feel
ings of the inhabitants of Highgate, and although
a contemptible report, which was hardly worthy of
attention, in reference to himself (Major Wilkin
son) and another gentleman had been circulated,
he would take that opportunity of giving the most
unqualified contradiction to the assertion, that he
and another gentleman, whose name had been men-
tioned, were taking the matter up from private
friendship to Miss Coutts, and in return for social
civilities received from her. Until now he (Major
Wilkinson) had not interfered at all. He was still
no partisan either way, but quite prepared to give
an independent judgment upon the facts of the
case. (Hear.)
Mr. DOUGLAS said no doubt what Major Wil-
kinson had stated about Miss Burdett Coutts was
the truth, but he considered they ought not to call
a special vestry without more notice, and he should
therefore move that the whole subject be deferred
till their next meeting for consideration, and that
notice be given to the vestrymen on the subject.
Mr. C. CRANE said he would second this motion
with pleasure, as he thought the more the subject
was considered and made public, the more it would
be seen that those who wanted to close up this path
were in the wrong. (Hear.) He did not hesitate
to declare that he would do all he possibly could to
prevent such a proceeding taking place. (Hear.)
The resolution was then put and carried.

Farm IN CBARLBSTON BARBOUR.

Fort Moultrie is situated on Sullivan's Island,
at the mouth of the harbour, and about three miles
in a direct line from the city. It is (if hot destroyed)
an enclosed water battery, with a front on the water
side of about 300 feet and a depth of about 250 feet.
The work was constructed with salient and re-enter-

ing angles on all sides so as to adapt it admirably
for defence either from the attack of a storming

party or regular approaches. The outer and inner
walls are of brick, capped with stone, filled in with
earth, so as to make a solid structure 16 feet thick.
Within the last month the fort has been very much
strengthened by closing thepostern gates,by cutting
sally-ports, by placing 12-pounder howitzer guns in
the angles, so as to command all points, by the
digging of a ditch 15 feet wide and 15 feet deep,
and by other improvements that added materially
to its defensive capacity. The garrison consisted
of about 70 men, including officers and musicians.
Fort Moultrie is memorable for the victory gained
by. the American troops, commanded by Colonel
Moultrie, over a British squadron, commanded by
Sir Peter Parker, Jan. 28, 1776. The British force
consisted of a fleet of 40 or 50 sail, and the opposing
force of 433 men, rank and file. The fort was
hastily constructed. In its general plan it presented
a square, with a bastion at each angle,built of pal-
metto logs, dovetailed and bolted together, and laid
in parallel rows 16 feet asunder; between these rows
the space was filled with sand. In the engagement,
which lasted from 10 a.m. till 9 p.m., and which
was one of the fiercest of the Revolutionary War,
the British were defeated, their loss being 225 killed
and wounded, while the Americanloss was 11 killed
and 26 wounded. Fort Moultrie was subsequently

rebuilt on an enlarged scale, so as to render it one
of the most extensive fortresses on the coast. Fort
Sumter is a work of solid masonry, octagonal in
form, is classed as one of the strongest fortifications
in the country, and is generally regarded as being
as nearly impregnable as possible. It is situated
about the centre of the harbour, on the edge of the
ship channel, some three-fourths of a mile from
Fort Moultrie, and nearly three and a half miles
from the city of Charleston, which it commands,
as it does also Fort Moultrie and Castle Pinckney.
It is situated on an island, though it seems to rise
directly out of the water.' It is pierced on the north,
east, and west sides with .a
double row of port-holes
of the heaviest guns; and on the south, or land
side, in addition to openings for guns, is loopholed
for musketry, and is bomb-proof. The armament of
Fort Sumter consists of 140 guns, many of them
being the formidable 10-inch " Columbiads,"
which throw either shot or shell, and which have
a fearful range. There is in the magazine a large
amount of artillery stores, consisting of about
40,0001b5. of powder, in addition to what has now
been removed there from the abandoned fortress,
and a proportionatequantity of shot and shell. The
wharf or landing of Fort Sumter is on the south
side, and is of course exposed to a cross fire from all
the openings on that side. A large number of
workmen have been engaged several weeks in
mounting guns and placing this fort in condition
for any emergency that might arise. General Scott,
it is said, pronounces the fortification, when manned,
one of the strongest in the world. Castle Pinckney
is located on the southern extremity of a narrow
slip of marsh land, which extends in a northerly
direction to Hog Island Channel. To the harbour
side the so-called castle presents a circular front.
It has never been regarded as a work of first mag-
nitude, although its proximity to the city would, if
garrisoned, give it importance. Recently some
improvements have been made in and about the
fort, with a view of strengthening it. Commanded
as it is by Fort Sumter, it cannot be assailed. It
has several Columbiads, and a full supply of powder,
shell, and shot. —New York Tribune.