The Sun.
London, England, 1850-07-23 00:00:00

FIRE AT ST. PETERSIWRGH.

(Extract from a Private Letter received at Hull on the
22d instant.)

ST. PETERS-BURGH, JULY 16.

A tremendous fire has been raging for five or six
hours on the north side of the river near the Guard-
ship, and the loss of property will be immense.
The wind is strong from the S.E. The Sulphur
Wharf on the opposite side of the riveit has taken fire;
should the wind change the Tallow Wharf on Baird's
Quay will be greatly endangered.

THE GREAT BULL FROM NINEVEH.--The lovers of
art will be pleased to hear that the Great Bull and upwards
of 100 tons of sculpture, excavated by our enterprising coun-
tryman Dr. Layard, are now on their way to England and
may be expected in the course of September. In addition to
the Elgin, Phigalian, Lycian, and Boodroom marbles, our
museum will soon be enriched with a magnificent series of
Assyrian sculptures. It is said at Nineveh that the French
Government are determined to excel us in the exhibition of
Assyrian works of art in order to compensate the comparative
deficiency which the Louvre is obliged to acknowledge as to
the treasures it possessee in the other great catalogues, and
that large sums have been accordingly voted for the expenses
of excavation. A drawing which represents the shipping of
the sculpture has been just brought over by one of the Messrs.
Lynch, of Bagdad, who has been with Dr. Layard ex-
ploring the remains of Nineveh. It represents the action of
Placing the Great Bull on board the Apprentice, at Morg-
hill, on the right bank of the Euphrates, about three miles
above the old city of Bussorah. This place long formed the
country residence of Colonel Taylor, lately the political agent
of this country at Bagdad and Bussorah, and is now rented,
by Messrs. Stephen Lynch and Co., to the Hon. East India
Company, as a depot for their vessels on the Euphrates.
Alongside the Apprentice is the Nicotris steamer, under the
command of Captain Jones, 1.N., whose influence with the
natives is most powerful, and to whose assistance the success
in effecting the difficult operation on the muddy and deserted
banks of the Euphrates is in a great measure attributable.
The Apprentice was sent out from this country by Mr. Al-
derman Finnis, at the instance of the trustees of the British
Museum, and to that gentleman and his nephews, Messrs.
Lynch, the public are indebted for a periodical communica-
tion between the Thames and the Euphrates. Another ves-
sel belonging to the Alderman is, we understand, about leav-
ing London, and it is hoped that she may iu like manner re-
turn home laden with the monuments and trophies of what
we had been too apt to regard as the semi-fabulous metro-
polis of the ancient world. _

EXPERIMENTS WITH SMNLL ARMS.---A committee
on small arms 13 at present sitting at Woolwich to test
several descriptions of muskets, the experiments being made
at the butt in the Royal Arsenal. The experiments have
been carried on for some time by artillerymen and have
row commenced with line regiments. One captain, one
lieutenant, two sergeants, two corporals, and twenty privates
selected from the three regiments of Foot Guards, arrived at
Woolwich on Wednesday evening last to continue the expe-
riments.