The Liverpool Standard, and General Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-10-31 00:00:00

TIM SIEGE OF SEBASTOPOL..

A-correspondbut of the Morning Herald; cLiting.tiom
Balaklava, 13tleOct., says, we have no tales of battles sieges.,
or any-of the "'eurrence of a heady fight," te-temmoni-
cate by this post. The fact is, that we have done nothing,
and for the next few- days not likely to do more:' Never,.
apparently, were-trenches so hard to dig, banks. so difficult
to be thrown • up;. or guns so repugnant to be• got into-
position. Our works creep, with a snail's pace—the Rus-
sians spring up in, a single night, as if by magic-, • The
result of the lahours of English, French, and Turks is,
that we have about 25guns in position, with the-trenches
finished for. as -many more. Four days ago the Russians
finished their batteriesf whieh mount close upon l'2oguns.
On the-might of the 11th working parties were' sent
from each, of the regiments, and though much antoyed.by
the fire of the fees; they managed to effect more then .we
have done- any- night since we began. Two Lancaster•
guns were got'into position and masked, and trenches and.
platforms laid for 20 more heavy pieces of ordnanee---six.
68-pounders; the foundations and trenches for which had'
been previdaslY laid; were got into position.
All the - trenches. average. about 2,000 yards' distance-
from the enemy's works. Our first trench, including-the
French and Tinksiwill only contain about 90 guns ; under -
cover from the fire of thisthe second trench will be opened:
700 yards' from' the• enemy's batteries. This trench will-
mount about 40. or 50 gnus: if a breaching battery•
becomes necessary, it wilt be. placed 500 yards nearer;.bht
none of. our engineers say that there is the least prospect
of such a battery, being used; indeed, after the earth-
works and batteries of the Russians are destroyed or'
silenced, we have-nothing to batter. If it is intended, to,
reduce Fort Constantine• on the north, we shall retlgire-
to regularly invest( the place, after the capture of Sebes-
topol ; but it is hoped that the• loss of the town, shipping,.
and all the otherforts, wil/ lead Fort Constantine to eapi,
tulate---".Bakaloum,'.' as the Turks say.
On the morningeof the 112th, at about half-past one,a,
sortie was made- from: Sebastopol ; all the troops were un-
der arms, and forfora about an hour we expected a night at-
tack and generalaction—indeed, for a short time, the-
firing of both musketry and artillery was sharp on both:
sides; but it was-a mere "skrimmage in the dark'int
which few were hurt.. About one o'clock our picquets
and covering parties, who. were lying down in front of the.
trenches, heard an unusual commotion; it was almost im-
mediately followed by a truntendous fire of shot and shell.
The works had to. be• suspended, while the' men, ' lying
down under coven, allowed the storm of balls to pass over
them: this lasted: for a few minutes, and when it ceased,
the covering party on the left heard in the darkness the-
approach of a body of men; they were coming by the
main road .up the-little valley, where the two Lancaster
guns are placed- to command the ship, and where the six.
68-pounder battery threatened the Round Tower. Our
covering_ parties and picquets advanced, and kept up a
smart fire upon the enemy. The working parties also.
stood to their -arms, and prepared for an attack. I was
sitting in my tent when the musketry began, and wan
surprised that our troops did not turn out ; but we live in
an atmosphere of gunpowder smoke and amid the Attie
of shell, so that we are not, as formerly, turned out at the
first alarm; the fact is, we are getting used to, fighting,
Time was when an unusual noise got our men underarms.
On the morning of the 12th, there was a sharp-fire of
musketry for a• quarter of an hour before a soldier stirred.
By that time„, however, the skirmishing fire was so.eharp,
as to . demand attention on the part of the authorities.
The French beat to arms ; our assembly sounded ; every
one wasastir. The regiments had formed and-fallen in
within a minute after the alerte was given ; they were de-
ployedinto line. Some batteries of artillery haniessed and
limbered up,bat did not advance. The light companiesof re-
giments -mere thrown out to strengthen the picquets and
covering. parties, and the instant the enemy found we
were prepared, they retired under their gins. As our
skirmishing had shown the position of our troops, and as
our generals knew that the instant the enemy re-entered
their works a heavy cannonade would be opened, the-troops
were slightly moved. The picquets andcovering•parties
advanced,and laid down, .while the regiments were with-
drawn a hundred yards under the brow of the hill, and
lay down also. The wisdom of the caution was soon appa-
rent : before they had been five minutes in their position,
such a fire was opened from all the Russian works as
would have destroyed our men had they remained on the
spot where they had been last firing. The earth seemed
to shake with the concussion of the heavy guns, and for
ten minutes the shot and shell were roaring through the air
incessantly. The fire did very little harm!—in fact, almost
none—and directly it slackened, and we saw wehad nothing
farther to fear from the enemy, the troops were withdrawn,
and returned to camp, having been an hour under arms. I
have only heard of a few casualties ; but wounds are now
looked on with such indifference, that unless there were a
smart mortality, we should never hear of it. I think we
had about 25 or 30 wounded, and lor 2 killed. It is also
reported we lost two sappers, who were. surprised by the
rapid advance of the enemy, and either killed or taken
prisoners, most probably the latter. An officer of the 20th
was also wounded in thelegs by the splinter of a shell.
A shell burst close to an, aroba, against which I was lean-
ing, and killed one of the oxen ; the splinter, as it is called,
weighed 4 lb., and went right through the body of a fine
bullock.

We got an excellent illustration, on the 11th instant,
of the: formidable effects of the Russian gunnery. An
Austrian barque, la4len with hay for the use of the com-
missariat, in coming down from Eupatoria to Malaya,
when close off Sebastopol the wind fell light, and the cur-
rent setting in, took her so close that, to avoid going on
shore, she had to sail past all the forts, at about 1,500
yards. Of course, as she came along, every gun pointed
to seaward from. Sebastopol was brought to bear upon her.
Barely moving through the water at one-and-a-half knots
an hour, this unfortunate vessel began her course with a
probability of being sunk in about five minutes ; yet, to
the astonishment of every one, and thero, were hundreds,
both English and French, watching the occurrence from
the heights, not a shot struck her—they were either too
high or too low, too, far forward or too far aft. I presume
the Austrian pilot got nervous when he had conducted his.
Vessel to a point where the fire of the Russian batteries
could be concentrated on her—he ran her aground : here
she lay for an hour and a. half, when the crew abandoned
her, and the vessel was apparently left to its fate, for it
seemed impossible but that tho Russians would sink her ;
yet your readers would scarcely credit it, out of some 400
or 500. cannon balls fired by the enemy, only four struck

her. Seeing the state of Airs, the Beagle (late carrying
two Lancaster guns) went coolly in, protected by the Fire-
brand,andmade preparations fortowing theAustrianbarque
out. The instant the attempt was seen, the Russians redou:

bled their fire,but the Beagle went alongsidethe barque, an
managed to get her in tow. While doing so two Russian fr
gates came out of Sebastopol—yet though under fire of the
guns, and though the little Beagle and Austrian barge

were not

B Firebrand was kE

the Beag
one on bi

vessels &din

The following order was issued by the Commander-in-
Chief on the 11th instant :

" GENERAL ORDER,

" Camp before Sebastopol, Oct. 11, 1851
et
The Commander of the Forces is sorry to have to ani-
madvert strongly upon the conduct of the medical depart-
ment, in an instance which came under his observation
yesterday. The sick were sent down from the camp to
Balaklava, under charge of a medical officer of the division
to which they respectively belonged ; but on their arrival
there, it was found that no preparations had been made
for their reception. The Commander of the Forces is
aware that Deputy Inspector General of Hospitals, Dr.
Dumbreck, gave the necessary order verbally to the staff
medical officer at Balaklava ; but that officer neglected to
inform his superior, and the consequence was that the
sick, many of them in a very suffering state, remained in
the streets for several hours, exposed to very inclement
weather. The name of the officer who was guilty of this
gross neglect is known to the Commander of the Forces.
He will not now publish it, but he warns him to be care-
ful in future, and to be cautious how he again exposes
himself to censure. Dr. Dumbreck, will on future occa-
sions of importance, give his orders in writing, addressed
to the responsible officer. When a convoy of sick is sent
from the camp either to the hospital, or to be placed on
board ship, it is henceforward to be accompanied not only
by a medical officer, but likewise by the deputy assistant
quarter-master general of the division, who will precede it
to the place of deposit, and take such steps as may ensure
the due reception and care of the men confided to his
charge. " BiGLAN."

With reference to the defences of Sebastopol, the Journal
des De'bat says f—The site of Sebastopol consists of a series
of platforms running up a steep acclivity from the sea to
the high hills which tower over it at the distance of a league
and a half, and from the top of which is unfolded the whole
panorama of the town and harbour. Nearer that ensemble
ceases to be visible, and even the tops of the masts are no
longer seen, so deeply does the site sink down to the level
of the roadstead and of the pert. From this configuration
of the ground it comes to pass that the town is built. one
part over the other, so as to form an amphitheatre, hie
Algiers, but better built, as its construction is quite
modern, dating from 1790. The transverse streets;
parallel to the roadstead, communicate with each other
only by steep ascents ; but at their ettremities there ate
lines of communication of a less abrupt character for
vehicle*, The town contains several monuments, and,
among others, the churches, and principally all the build-
ings of thenavy, the arsenal, the barrack* and the hos-
pitals. Thepopulation is about 40,000 in ordinary times,
including 20,000 soldiers or sailors. The 20,000 civil
inhabitants are'employis of all kinds—persons from the
army and the navy on half-pay, a few shopkeepers, and
some workmen, and-fishermen. The reader must bear in
mind this fact, that, not one of the great forts situated
outside the town. on: the harbour can protect it against

attacks by land ; and that the two batteries of the Quaran-
tine, situated at the lower part of the outward ground,
cannot aid in its defence. When the Russian Govern-

meat conceived the plan of a great fortified place to'onin-
mend the Black Sear it had all these forts constructed'-at
an immense expense, and' the double and triple storey- of
their casemated batteries give them such a formidable
aspect that they have been even compared to the fortit,
cations of Malta. The* roadstead and port are, in fact,.
almost unattackable by sea; but the town itself was never'
fortified—all that was denebeing to draw round it a weak-
wall,Merely intended to protect itagainst a coup de main.
The Russian Cabinet could never have imagined then, that
an Anglo-French army of 100,000 men would one day land
in the Crimea to lay siege to 6eliastopol. At present, as
that extraordinary fact is being realised in the most
serious manner, it has been necessary to think of fortify.
ing the town on the land side;' and that is what the
Russians have been doing for theflast three months.
The Quarantine Bay on the west (the extreme left of
the attack), defended by the double battery of the same
name. Nearrthat spot is Fort Alexander; and by the side
of that fort, a' battery called the Battery of Sebastopol,
because it forms part of the town inielt Prom this bat-
tery runs a crenellated wall for musketry, about five-eighths
of an English mile in length, which rtinsup the steep hill
to the top, whey e is a large round fdrt with 20 guns on
the platform, and surrounded below• by, a, battery, the
rampart of whielvis 2:0 feet high. The wall and the bas-
tion have a ditch in front, but there is neither covered
way nor glacis in flront of this ditch. TEe-Frenek being
charged with the attack on the left, wifl larobablY have to
bombard the fort, after which they will command the bay
as well as the Quarantine Battery, and even! the whole of
the western side of the town. But they will. have other
obstacles to overcome before arriving there: Under the
cannon of the round fort is situated a large fortified bar-
rack, which has been lately flanked by several strong
works. From that barrack runs a wall entirely surround-
ing- the town, the port, and the arsenal, to. beyond the
careening bason toward's-the Tchernaya, at the extremity
of the roadstead, which,-eves a development of from 31 to
& English miles, inelnding the sinuosities. This wall is
three feet thick, is crenellated, and has in front a. ditch,
the earth of which has. been thrown in fn:mtleform a
ghicis covering the mason work in many planes. This
wall is not terraced—that is, does not form: a rampart
above on which artillery can be placed. But °Tithe points
where, in a regular fortification, there would be bastions,
the Russians have raised batteries, in the form of cava-
liers', firing above the wall- The disarming of. their line
of battle ships has furnished them with the means of pro-
viding all their works with, artillery of large calibre,, and
they have, without doubt;. plenty of men to. serve them,
more or less expert. This- imperfect system of: fortifies-
don cannot have any value;. except by the tenacity of the
besieged, by their great number, and by the ability of. the ,
engineers. The centre of the, line is defended by. the for
of Akhtiar, raised on a high.point at the top of: the town
At a little distance from this fort commence threo ravines
descending to the roadstead.' One, on the west, termi-
nates by the Quarantine Bay; another, in the centre; cuts
the town into two unequali parts ; and the third, on the
east, descends right to the north to form the pert, which
is the prolongation of that same ravine into the sea. It
is principally at the lower opening of this ravine; and: on
the western side of the port, that are accumulated, the
defences, for (even should the ships of the line.behurnt
by the Russians) it is still important for them:to prevent
all access to the port, particularly that of the faubourg of
Kerbelnaia, on the eastern side. If the besiegers on the
right, the English, seize on •this faubourg, while the
French have made themselves -masters of the round, fort,
the town would find itselEtbetween two fires,. and so
overwhelmed with bombs,. balls, and shell*,:. that no
garrison could remain there. But it. is to be noted that
this garrison cannot be forced to capitulate,-,not being
blockaded, and that the Russians, when at the end:of their
efforts in the town, will always be at liberty tecross the
roadstead, and take refuge in the forts on the northern side.

Among. the works destined to defend the raidneall;
port, two great batteries in the form of towers are
mentioned—a recent construction, said to be. bunt of
stone'and brick. From want of time to raise a, third tower
at the bottom of the fort, the Russians have placed a line-
of-battle ship to perform the duty of a battery against the
mouth of the ravine. Besides, the works Are. still going
on, night and day, without interruption. One-half of the
garrison is occupied with. them, and all the able-bodied
inhabitants are obliged to take part in them. Sebasto-
pol is commanded almost on every side by hills rising one
over the other to a great height, as already stated. But
the nearest hills have been a long time back levelled by
works which lasted 12 • years ; and the earth taken from
them was removed to• the side of the .Quarantine or to
certain hollows which might facilitate ,the approaches.
There is not, consequently, any height now commanding
the town within 500 or 800 yards of the .place. But beyond
that radius the Russians occupied with strong redoubts
several elevated positions, which have •forced the besiegers
to open the trenches at an unusual distance 1,500 to 1,800
metres from the place, it is said. Althoughthese positions
were only fortifies'. by earikworks,where a sadden assault
might be attempted, the allied generals have preferred
operating by ruloto sacrificing good soldierswhose devoted-
ness and bravery will be required at a later period for de-
cisive blows. .The redoubts of which we szespeakbag, were
to have been battered in breach, and taken, we cannot say.
at what date. The besieging army will then be pushed
forward on that ground to make • its. trenches against the
place itself. However, outside the wall round the town:it
will be necessary to batter- down ,and destroy some works
protecting it on the weakest points. In fine, all these,
works andconstruetions, raised in haste, cannot have • the
stability and resistance of areal permanent fortification.
Although the Russians are provided with large cannon,
such pieces are not sufficient without good ramparts. • It
is, besides, proved by the experience of all sieges that the
fire of the besieging party has always an advantage over
that of the very strongest place, because the fire of the
attack is always convergent, whereas that of the defence
is, on the contrary, divergent.

DAILY COMNIZNICATION, WITH THE EAST.-..The Pails
correspondent of the Independence Beige writes to that
iournal that the French,.Englisb, and Turkish authorities
at Constantinople have combined to organise a service
which will supply a daily communication between the
Crimea and, the capitals of England and. France. A
steamer, it is said, will be despatched day by day as a: rule
from Sebastopol, Balaklava, or some other convenient
port to Constantinople, where the intelligence it conveys
will be forwarded by courier to Bucharest, and. thence
further to.Cronstadt or Hermanstadt, both in Transylva-
nia, and the nearest respective termini. of the Austrian
telegraphic line. In the present and, expected state of
navigation and of the country to be traversed, it is not anti-
cipated that news will be transmitted-under this arrange-
ment in,a shorter space than eight or nine days. The ex-
tension of a telegraphic line from apoint in the Austrian
system. to Bucharest will abridge the. interval by a day;
but this work is not likely tobe complete for a month or
five-weeks.

MALINGERING.--A private of the Grenadier Guards
named Cumming, on hearing that his company were or
dered for the East, expressed his disinclination to go.
.broad, and went to a retired part of the Wellington bar-
when with a hatchet ho chopped off the first and
second fingers of his left hand, He was conveyed. to the
hospital in Rochester-row, and will be tried by, a court-
martial as soon as he has recovered.
RUSSIAN 'AVA./iT OF AMMUNITION.—GIerman letters
refer to the increasing scarcity of ammunition in Russia
and of the' materials for manufacturing it. So severely is
this felt, that the Governnient at St. Petersburg is making
every exertion to discover mines of lead, sulphur, or coals,
Ind will resume the working of those which have hitherto
neglected. The price of lead has *4 a mn 11 florins
6 roubles. Sulphur, also, owin- the him ,de, is ex-

iug cold,

favourabl;

pense which in former NI

Or sister, until they were reliev