The Sun.
London, England, 1857-04-02 00:00:00

meot, and its battery will shortly receive an important
reinforcement.—China Mail, Feb. 15.

THE PERSIAN WAR.

We take the following description of the brilliant
affair under General Outram near Bushire from the
Bombay Telegraph of March 6
" The Victoria, which arrived from the Gulf on
Monday afternoon, brought intelligence of a rather
smart engagement having been fought between the
British and Persian troops at a place called Koosh-
ab on the Bth ult. Sir J. Outram, learning that a
large body of Persians, under the command of.
Soojah-001-Moo]k in person, was hovering around
Bushire, resolved at once to bring matters to an
issue. The troops, consisting of the 3d Cavalry, the
Poonah Horse, the 64th Foot, the 2d European
Light Infantry, the 78th Highlanders, the Sappers,
and Miners, the 20th Native Infantry, the 4th
Riffles, the 26th Native Infantry, the Beloochees,
3d Troop Horse Artillery, 3d and sth Light Field
Batteries—numbering in all 419 sabres, 2,212
European Infantry, 2,022 Native Infantry, and 18
guns, marched from Bushire on the evening of the
3d Feb. They were without tents or extra clothing
of any sort ; each man carried his greatcoat, blan-
ket, and two days' cooked provisions. After a march
of 46 miles in 41 hours, during which they were
exposed to the worst of weather, cold nights and
deluging storms of rain, they reached the enemy's
intrenched position on the morning of the sth, but
found it abandoned. The enemy on hearing of our
approach had evacuated their. intrenchments so
precipitately that their tents and camp equipage
and ordnance magazine were abandoned ; the for-
mer were being rapidly carried off by the village
plunderers operating for some hours before we
arrived. Every exertion was made to intercept the
retreat of some bodies of the enemy's cavalry still
in sight, and some little skirmishing with a few
horsemen took place, but eventually they all made
off. After occupying for two d4s the position the
enemy had evacuated, and hearing that they had
succeeded in getting the guns which they carried
away into the difficult pass of Mhak, the troops
commenced their return march on the night of the
7th, carrying away the large stores of pour, rice,
and grain which the Persian Government had col-
lected for their army, and destroying their magazine,
found to contain about 36,0001 b of powder, with
small-arm ammunition, and a vast quantity of shot
and shell, thereby crippling the future operations of
their army; some of the guns are supposed to have
been cast into wells, and, as their wheels fell into
our hands, cannot again be used. At midnight an
attack was made upon the rearguard by the enemy's
horse, and parties threatened the line of march on
every side ; the troops were halted, and so formed
as to protect the baggage and resist the horsemen
in whatever direction they might attempt to chare.
Before this was quite completed four of the enemy's
gum of heavy metal were opened upon the force,
but the darkness of the night prevented any steps
being taken to capture them. At break of day the
Persian force, amounting to between 5,000 and
6,000 men, with five guns, was discovered on our
left rear, north-east of our line of march. The ca-
valry and artillery immediately moved rapidly to the
attack, supported by two lines of infantry, a third
protecting the baggage. The fire of artillery was
most excellent, and did great execution, the cavalry
also twice charged with great gallantry and success
—indeed, upon these two arms fell the whale brunt
of the action, as the enemy moved away too rapidly
for the infantry to overtake them. By 10 o'clock
the defeat of the Persians was complete. Two guns
were captured, the gun ammunition, laden upon
mules, fell into our hands, and at least 700 men lay
dead upon the field. The wounded, the number
of whom must have been considerable, had been
carried away, the remainder fled in a disorgan-
ised state, generally throwing away their arms,
which strewed the field in vast numbers, and
nothing but the paucity of our cavalry prevented
their total destruction and the capture of the re-
maining guns. The troops bivouacked for the day
close to the battlefield, and at night accomplished a
march of 20 miles over a country rendered almost
impassable by the heavy rain which fell incessantly.
After a rest of six hours the greater portion
of the infantry continued their march to
Bushire, which they reached before midnight
on the 9th of February, thus performing another
harassing march of 44 miles under incessant rain,
besides fighting and defeating the enemy in its pro-
gress, within a short period of 50 hours. The
cavalry and artillery, with infantry escort, -readied
camp on the morning of the 10th ult. The result
is most satisfactory, and will, Gen. Outram thinks,
have a very beneficial effect on our future opera-
tions in Persia. We subjoin the despatches
1

" NOTIFICATION.
"POLITICAL DEPARTMENT.

"The Right Hon. the Governor in Council has the
highest satisfaction in publishing, for general informa-
tion, the following despatch, received from Lieut.-Gen.
Sir James Outram, 5.C.8., commanding the Persian
Expeditionary Force, dated the 10th of February, an-
nouncing a decisive victory, obtained on the Bth of the
same month, by the British forces, over the Persian
army, at Shoosh•ab.
"The Right Hon. the Governor in Council directs
that a Royal salute be fired from the garrison of Bombay
at noon this day in honour of this victory.
"By order of the Right Hon. the Governor in Council.
"H. L. ANDERSON, Sec. to Government.
"Bombay Castle, March 3."

" FRO3I LIEUT.-GENERAL SIR JAMES OUTRAM,
COMMANDING EXPEDITIONARY FORCE, To HIS
EXCELLENCY LIEUTENANT-GENERAL SIR H. SOMER-
SET, K. 0.8., AND K.H., COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF, BoM
BAY.
" Camp near Bushire, Feb. 10.
" Sir,—l have the honour to report for your Excel-
lency's information that the Persian Expeditionary Force
obtained a signal victory over the Persian army com-
manded by Shooja-001-Moolk in person on the Bth inst.
" 2. The enemy's lose in killed and wounded must
have been very great. It is impossible to compute the
amount, but from the number of bodies which strewed
the ground of contest, extending several miles, I should
say that ful'y 700 must have fallen. Two brass 9-pounder
guile, with their carriages and horses, eieht mules, laden
with ammunitien, and several hundred stand of arms
were taken ; and the Persian Commander-in-Chief, wiih
the remainder of his arm', only escaped annihilation,
owing to the nume ical weakness of our cava,try.
" 3. The loss on our side is, I are happy to say, com-
paratively small, attributable, I am inclined to believe,
to the rapid advance of our artillery and cavalry, and
the well-directed fire of the firmer, which almost para-
lysed the Persians from the commencement. I have,
however, to regret the loss of Lieut. Frankland, 2d
European Regiment, who was acting as Brigade-Major
of Cavalry, and was killed in the first cavalry charge ;
Captain Forbes, also, who commanded and most gallantly
led the 31 Cavalry, and Lieut. Greentree, 64th Foot,
were severely wounded.
" 4. Returns of the killed and wounded, and also of
the ordnance stores taken, are annexed.
" 5. I myself had very little to do with the action,
being stunned by my horse falling with me at the com-
mencement of the contact, and recovering only in time
to resume my place at the head of the army shortly
before the close of this action.
" 6. To Major-General Stalker and Colonel Lugard,
Chief of the Staff, is the credit due for successfully guid-
ing our troops to victory on this occasion.
" 7. The circumstances preceding this satisfactory ter-
mination of a brief but arduous campaign I now proceed
to detail for your Excellency's information.
" 8. On the 27th ult. I landed at Bushire and assumed
the command of the army. The vast preparations of
the Persian Government for the recovery of Bushire then
came to my knowledge. Shooja-001-Moolk, who com-
mands the Persian troops, had assembled a force, said to
amount to 8,500, and subsequently found to be 6,900,*
at the town of Burazjoon, 46 miles distant from Bushire,
and intrenched his position. This army was well sup-
plied with food and ammunition, of which considerable
magazines had been collected. It was intended that this
force should form the nuclus of a very large army to be
assembled for the recapture of Buahire.
" The First Brigade, Second Division, which arrived
on the 31st ultimo and Ist instant, was landed by the
2d, and on the evening of the 31 the troops, amounting
to 4,653 men, and 18 guns,± marched from this camp,
without tents or extra clothing of any sort, each man
carrying his great coat, blanket, and two days' cooked
provisions, the Commissariat being provided with three
days' in addition ; the protection of the camp and town
of Bushire being duly provided for by a detachment of
troops under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel Shep-
hard, reinforced by a party of seamen from all the ships
in the harbour, which the senior naval officer was so good
as to place at my disposal.
" 10. After a march of 46 miles in 41 hours, during
which the troops were exposed to the worst of weather,
cold nights, and deluging storms of rain, they reached
the enemy's entrenched position on the afternoon of the
sth, and found it abandoned ; the enemy, on hearing
of our approach, had evacuated his entrenchments
the previous night so precipitately that his tents and
corp equipage and ordnance magazines were left be-
hind. The former were being rapidly carried off by
village plunderers operating for some hours before we
arrived. I endeavoured to intercept the retreat of some
of the Eilkhanee's' Horse, who had held the camp dur- ,
ing the night, and were still in sight, and a little skir-
mishing took place, but eventually they made off.
"11. The enemy
having succeeded in withdrawing'
their guns to the strong Passes, where I did not deem it
prudent to fellow them, and being satisfied with the
moral effect of our occupying their position for two days,
I decided upon moving tee troops back to Bushire. The