The Liverpool Standard, and General Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-08-01 00:00:00

THE AUSTRIAN AND TURKISH FRONTIER,

At Vienna it is universally felt that the blockade which
Russia has establisned on the eastern frontiers of this em
pire must be raised without delay. The commerce of Austria
received a tremendous shock when the navigation of the
Danube was interrupted, and now the passes from Tran-
sylvania into Moldavia are as hermetically sealed as is the
great German river. The Presse has a letter of the 6th
from Shumla, which contains some interesting particulars
relative to Silistria. There is hardly a house standing in
the town, the Russian artillery from the Wallachian bank
of the river, from the islands, and from the gunboats,
having destroyed everything. During the siege several
lines of defence were broken through, but when the Rus-
sians attempted to pursue their advantage they found that
the indefatigable Turks had constructed a retrenchment.
The Russians have committed great excesses in the Do-
' brudscha. The communities of Battadschi, Sitiskoi, and
Dautsche were obliged to pay a heavy fine for having dis-
played sympathy for the Turks, and the three villages
were destroyed by the Cossacks before they left. A courier,
who arrived at Bucharest on the 11th, stated that when
he left Hirsova the Russians were razing the walls of the
fortress. The same person also related that all the forti-
fied places in the Dobrudscha were to be destroyed.
Prince Gortschakoff on the 2ndof July issued a proclama-
tion, in which he invited the inhabitants of the province
to follow him, promising, in the name of the Czar, that
they should receive a certain sum of money and some
land on the left bank of the Dniester. Bands of Cossacks
had traversed the country in all directions, ill-treating
the Bulgarians who would not consent to cross the Danube.
According to a telegraphic despatch from Vienna, of
the 22nd ult., there appears to have been " a warm affair
on the 16th, between the advanced posts beyond Giurgevo,
in which General Buturlin and the Hetman of the Cos-
sacks were wounded. General Luders has concentrated
his forces at Obiliesti, to the eastward of Bucharest.
Prince Gortschakoff continues to direct his troops towards
the Danube. The Turks are fortifying themselves at
Giurgevo. According to letters from Bucharest of the
19th, Omar Pasha appears for the present to be disposed
to avoid a general action." According to the last accounts
from the Danubian provinces, published by the Patric,
the Russians had completely evacuated the Dobrudscha
on the 12th, and removed their sick to Galatz. A great
number of wounded had died on the road.

Six thousand Russians and as many Georgians were
attacked on their way to Akhaltzik, by Kerim Pasha, and
repulsed. The Russians lost 400 prisoners and six guns.
On the 20th Prince Gortschakoff had a long interview
with Count Buol, and immediately after the Austrian
statesman was closeted with the Earl of Westmoreland
and Count Buol. It is affirmed that the mission of the
Russian diplomatist has signally failed.

In Berlin the belief gains ground that the represen-
tatives of England and France in Vienna have already
communicated to the Austrian cabinet the views of their
governments, to the effect that they do not find any basis
in the Russian answer on which to recommence any ne-
gotiations. The Prussian representatives in Vienna are
therefore believed now to be engaged in drawing up and
agreeing to a form of note, or forms of notes, to be des-
patched with but little loss of time to St. Petersburgh.
From Constantinople we learn that an unhappy piece of
adventure has led to the death of Captain Parker, of the
Firebrand, near the village of Sulina, on the 7th ult. This
village or town is situated at the mouth of the Danube,
and its neighbourhood is surrounded by thickets of tall
reeds. After the capture of Sulina last month, it was
thought that the Russians had entirely left the vicinity,
and a degree of confidence or negligence was inspired,
which has terminated most unfortunately. It appears
that so far from the enemy having abandoned the neigh-
bourhood, they have never ceased to occupy the jungle
which lines the banks of the river, and have waited for
their opportunity to revenge the off-hand capture of this
important point. On Friday, the 7th ult., Captain Parker
was ascending the river in his gig, and at some distance
behind was another boat of the same vessel, and Captain
Powell, of the Vesuvius, in a third. The excursion was
unconnected with martial enterprise, and as the boat came
abreast of a stockade, supposed to have been abandoned
by the Russians, it was suddenly fired on. Capt. Parker
sprung on shore to lead the attack. He had made but a
few steps when he was struck through the heart with a
musket ball and fell dead. Captain Powell then took the
command, and in a few minutes drove the enemy from
their stronghold. The Russians made a brave resistance.
The unfortunate commander who fell in this affair was one
of the youngest post-captains in the navy ; he had, it is
said, just completed his 29th year. He was the son of
Admiral Hyde Parker, late one of the lords of the admi-
ralty. The body was taken to Constantinople in the Fire-
brand, and the funeral took place in the Grand Champ des
Morts, at Pera. The British Ambassador, with most of
the attach4s, attended the ceremony, which took place
with full military honours. The Charlemagne, French
screw line-of-battle ship, is now in the Bosphorus, and her
captain, the Count de Chabannes, with most of his officers,
and a portion of the crew, were present. Detachments
from all the regiments, which have left any of their num-
ber at Scutari, formed part of the procession. Among
them were files of the 28th, 66th, 93d Highlanders, and
95th regiments. Halil Pacha represented the Turkish
navy in his quality of superintendent of the artillery.