The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-10-30 00:00:00

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SYRIA.

The following appeared in our second edition of .Tuesday
last :

The latest news from the coast of Syria, which comes
down the 28th ultimo, is encouraging. Ibrahim Pacha is
losing ground on all sides.
On the evening of the 23d, five battalions of Turkish
troops, a battalion of Royal Marines, and two companies of
Austrian troops, were left to cover the camp at Dejoun. The
remainder of the army, consistin7 of four battalions of Turkish
infantry, one of Royal Marines, and two detachments of
Austrian rocketeers, were formed in the upper position of
the camp, with the view of attacking at day-break the ad-
vanced guard of Ibrahim Paella, consisting of 1000 men,
commanded by the Emir Massoud, then employed in
keeping open the Pacha's communication between his
head-quarters at Merouba with Beyrout. After a fa-
tiguing march of five hours, and having forded the
Kelbson river, Commodore Napier, who was in command
of the allied force, menaced the enemy's front with
his battalion of Marines and his Turkish troops, whilst
General Jochmus, with the third battalion of Selim Pacha's
division, turned the enemy's right flank with so much promp-
titude and success as to cut off his retreat to the Pacha's
head-quarters, and make prisoners of four companies of
regular infantry, consisting of 100 men each. The Albani-
ans fled, with the Emir Massoud, and the Druses, 400 in
number, dispersed to their houses. The allied troops
bivouacked on the field of battle, on the 25th September,
and on the 26th returned to Dejoun, leaving a single batta-
lion to keep open the road between that fortress and the
province of Kata, whence the mountaineers were joining the
Turkish standard in great numbers. According to the re-
ports of these fugitives, Ibrahim Pacha was collecting means
of transport in the villages round Merouba and Guatashos,
and preparing to withdraw his partisans from that neighbour-
hood with all convenient speed.
On the day after the one on which these successes were
obtained, Admiral Stopford proceeded to besiege Saida (Si-
don), and having formed a detachment, composed of one
English line of battle ship, her Majesty's frigate Guerrier, a
Turkish frigate, an English brig, and three large British
steamers, conveying 700 Turks and 300 Marines, placed it
under the command of Commodore Napier, who anchored
before Saida on the 26th, and demanded its immediate sur-
render. His requisition not having been complied with, a
brisk cannonade was commenced, and 1000 men landed, who,
after some resistance from the garrison, took the town by
storm. The Egyptians having lost their commandant, laid
down their arms, and two thousand men were accordingly
carried prisoners to Dejoun; beside which, a large quan-
tity of arms and ammunition fell into the hands of the
Turks. Saida, as well as the small town of Sur, which
had also been deserted by the Egyptians, was then oc-
cupied by the Turks. The capture of Saida is of consider-
able importance to the future operations of the allied troops,
inasmuch as it enables them to pass the mountain Gerseje,
arm the inhabitants of the south of Lebanon, and even
menace the Emir Beschir. It appears the Egyptians no
where maintained their ground against the troops of the
Sultan and the armed mountaineers. Of the 8,000 men as-
sembled by Ibrahim at Balbec, Zahle, and Deir-el-Kamar,
with whom he had approached within five miles of Dejoun,
he could only muster 4,000 when he arrived at the last men-
tioned point. The Metualis, a warlike race between Balbec
and Saida, were beginning to follow the example of the Me-
ronites, and were continually presenting themselves at the
Turkish camp, to ask for arms and ammunition.
The Egyptian prisoners and deserters who had expressed
their willingness to fight under the Turkish standard, form-
ing almost an entire regiment, constituted the outpost, and
were supported by the armed mountaineers in the most en-
thusiastic manner. On the 27th no fewer then 60 Egyptian
officers escaped from the camp of Ibrahim Pacha, and arrived
at that of Dejoun. It is confidently anticipated that before
the season arrives which will render it necessary for the
Anglo-Austrian squadron to repair to winter quarters, the
whole of Syria will be once more in the possession of the
Sultan. _ _

MALT, October 16

The Liverpool contract steamer, with the London mails
of the 30th ult., arrived from Falmouth and Gibraltar at
two, a.m. on Monday, the 12th instant, and on the same
night her Majesty's ship Vanguard with the despatches for
Admiral Sir Robert Stopford and mail for the fleet, brought
by the above named-steamer, put to sea for the coast of
Syria, and met the Rodney outside, with the second wing of
the 19th regiment, under Major Hodgson. This vessel in-
creases the Mediterranean fleet to 43 ships, of which 14 are
of the line, all on the coast of Egypt and Syria.