Weekly national intelligencer., 1854-12-02
SIEGE OPERATIONS BEFORE sEBAsTopoL.
coRREspospEScE OF THE LONDON HERALD


OCTOBER 29In my despatch, written yesterday, ex-
paated the fneness of the weather. little thinking
what woful change was impending over The
ing splendid up to seven o'clock when in the
of half an hour, the sky became overcast, with driving
showers Of hail. which hit with the force of small shot
To add to the dscomfors Of the evening the enemy be-
gan make pretended to begin to make sorte at
every battery along the whole line from tho Flag
staff Mound to the circular earthwor suddenly opened
fire. Upwards Of hundred guns fred incessantly
scattering shell and redhot shot in all directions Ex
pectng immediate attack all the troops got under
in few minutes and moved up to the brow of the
hills which overlook the town. Here they remained
der for nearly two hours and two hours Of such dis
comfort and misery never endured The night in
tensely dark, and the wind, which amounted to q
perfect hurricane, swept the bleak hills with force
and codness which penetrated to the very bones and
with long sulen moan which drowned all sounds
those produced by the enemys guns The hail and half
frozen rain, which driven against faces with
the fierce gusts made it almost uneidurabe Yet here
all troops Stood drcnched to the skin and nubed
with cold, watching with perfect Indifference the
mendous cannonade which swept along the enemy's de-
fences Whatever the which led to this extra
ordinary waste of powder do not know. suppose as
the wind from them to u.s. the Russians
should take advantage Of this circumstance attack their
works. and therefore resorted to the cannonade for
chile proof OF their being the alert it may have
been intended attempt to harass u.s. If So was
quite successful for thoroughly tired
when they returned to their tents The night which fol-
lowed this unpeasng diversion certainly Of the
most miserable of the many miserable nights which we
have spent in the Crimea. The strength Of the wind
swept under the wall Of the tents carrying in
the hail and seet and half freezing the unfortunate oc-
cupants, who were trying in vain to sleep away their
cares. Many Of the tents were torn and many more
were blown clean away. Towards one O'Clock the cold
grew intense that it impossible to lie in the tents
and nearly half the men got up and about keep
themselves from being almost frozen This weather gives
terrible foretaste of Crmean autumn and what we
may expect if the winter surprises with the siege of
Sebastopol still uncompleted
To-day the fire Of the Russians commenced early and
was kept sharply before batteries returned shot
Orders also received to-day that each gun only to
fire twenty rounds per dem every half hour. /
suppose it is the shortness Of ammunition which led to
this order for it seems impossible to for in
any other way. For the last two days have been
pecng the ammunition would fail at least get scarce
but no seems to have imagined that the time was so
This ORDER Of course nearly slenced trenches
which the enemy perceived and redoubed their
ade Their fire to-day has been extremely hot from
nearly NIL points The Circular Battery has some eight
ten guns dismounted but about twenty continue in
constant play fresh battery has also been erected to
the left of this and higher up the valley 1t seems to
mount twelve or fifteen very heavy and ongrange guns
Its FIRE is principally directed against the six 6pounder
battery right The Redoubt Battery continues in
full work. does also the Flagstaff Battery against the
French The atterno am glad say not only hold
their ground, but evidently proving too much for
their antagonists The Flagstaff Mound has got sadly
maued and nearly all its guns dismounted by the fire
Of the FEench, but replaced again by the Russans The
stores OF warke det IN SebaStopol appear lnexhaus-
BILE. The French preparing preaching battery
within $50 yards Of the Flagstaff Mound and 200 yards of
the strong stone wall which encrcles all the south side
Of the town near the cemeteries In addition to this
bGttery which expect will be opened in the of
day or two our allies preparing covered way, with
view to mining the Flagstaff Mound. Cur troops
TO have advanced battery within preaching distance of
the redoubt and redan WALL but informed that the
result of the engineers survey states the whole Of the
ground in that locality to be rock 1t is said there
FORE that our battery is be abandoned that
side and in lieu OF il battery of f6Spounders thrown up
IN the valley far to our right, command the ar-
sena Shipping and in fact, all the OF the harbor
The result Of this days contest in respect differs
from these preceding except that have lost fewer
men, and, as far have been able ascertain, Off
Ger either killed wounded The wind still continues
with binding showers Of rain and altogether the weather
Is miserable and intensely cold. We likely TO have
such night as last.
the valley on right opened fire. 1t only consists OF
two long 6S-pounders, but is spienddly placed the
south side Of the valley from which 1t fires right down
into the arsenal dockyard, and shipping in the harbor
The hre from II to-day has principally been shells and
rockets The latter before eight o'clock set the sheds
and warehouses of the dockyard fire in two places.
i One was soon extngushed, but the second did much
damage apparently The shells also seemed TO drop with
terrible effect full among three small vessels and
two line-ob battle ships which moored high up the
harbor and broadsde its mouth These vessels are
slightly protected by the land, yet much so but
that this battery destroy them unless they slip their
the enemy they be annoyed and surprised at the
fire Of these guns and apparently throwing fresh
! earthwork to contend against them