The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1854-11-01
sebastopOI--Its Position and
strength.

hold of Russia is from the London 1sWes'
and will no doubt be interesting to our
readers
Sebastopol, the famous stronghold OF the
Rpssiana In the Black sea is one OF the
most modern creations in the. rapidly grow
inc empire of the Czar, its site until 1886
having been occupied by nothing more pre-
tentine than a miserable village of Tartar
huts, named Akhties. The splendid natural
advantages of its harbor for first rate ma
val port, however, attracted the keen atten-
ton. of Catharine H., and in 1880 the first
stone of the new fortress and arsenal was
laid, and from that period it has rapidly in
creased in strength and importance. Sebas-
topol is situated on the western coast OF the
peninsula of the Crimea, in an amPhithea-
tire to the south of the harbor, extending
along point of land which separates the
Bay Yujnaia Bukhta, which forms the port
from Artillery bay, small indentation on
the other side.
The town stands on a chalky stratum,
which rises from height of thirty feet at
the extremity of the point, to an elevation of
one hundred and ninety feet above the sea
in the upper part. This elevation, with the
steep coast opposite, which also consists of
calcarious rock, perfectly defends the bay,
which, from the SUBMITS of the heights, ap-
pears TO lie at the bottom of deep cavity,
and, indeed, at very short distance from
the shore inland it is impossible to perceive
the tops of the highest masts. The town is
composed of parallel streets running up the
steep acclivty, and is divided into quarters
by few traverse streets. Near the extrem-
ity of the point of land stands the house
built in 1887 for the reception of the En-
press Catharine Ii,
Behind are situate the admiralty, the ar
senal and the houses of the naval officials,
while higher up are the dwellings of the in
hab itants Of the town, the market and the
Greek Church besides which there is Rus
sian Church for the use of the sailors be-
longing to Black Sea fleet. The seamen's
hospitals and barracks of the garrison, built
a short distance from the former, compose a
sort Of suburb. Outside the town, towards
Artillery bay. are quarters Of the artillery
corps, few private houses, the quarantine
station; and scattered here and there on the
shore opposite the roadstead, the country
| houses and gardens of the officers of the
dockyard and arsenal. The town of Sebas.
| topol itself is not much above mile in
length, and is nowhere more than four hun.
dred yards wide; but neither the regimenta
barracks, erected about mile and a half
| from the part of the town, nor those for the
sailors, opposite the town itself nor the hos
pitals are included within this space.
The harbor. as being the most important
feature Of Sebastopol, and which has been
compared to that of Malta, merits more
minute description. The principal bay is
about three miles and half in depth, with
width of three quarters of a mile at the
mouth, widening to nearly a mile, and then
narrowing to six hundred or seven hundred
yT:@rr519 al the head The average depthat the
mouth is not above ten or eleven fathoms;
as far as the ancient village of Akhtier,
where the naval magazines now are, it is
about line fathoms, and from there dimin-
shes gradually between the two ports to
three fathoms. There is not rock or shoal
in the whole harbor, except opposite the
Scverna in Kossa, or northern point, where
there is a small sand bank, which ships en-
tering the bay have. to avoid, and where the
sailors find abundance of fish. At the fur
ther end OF the port the water becomes grad
uallJ shallower, in the direction of Inker-
man, and near the little river of Byngusen
is more than yard or half yard in
depth, with muddy bottom.
The entrance to the harbor is defended by
strong batteries placed at the extremites Of
the two points of land that form the bay
Besides these there is another fronting the
town, and two more on the double point on
which the town stands, with redoubt high
er up. One of these batteries, which is
semi-circular, also defends Artillery bay
The large harbor, as we'll as the lesser, is
perfectly protected from all winds by the
chalk rocks which surround it, and which
rise to a greater height more inland, SO that
it is only on the lare occurrence Of tenn
pest from the west that any danger can be
occasioned to the shipping in the bay. About
a mile from the mouth of the bay the grand
port for vessels of war forms a sort of
small arm, running in southwest direc-
ton.
This arm which the Tartars used to call
Kartali-Kosb (Vulture bay) is now Yujuaia-
Bukhta, or Southport. 1t is upwards of
mile and d half in length, with width of
four hundred yards at the entrance, and has
a little narrow creek of about six hundred
yards in length. in which ships can be laid
up in ordinary with perfect safety. On the
other side Of the town, in Artillery bay, is
similar creek, used to careen vessels of war,
for the purpose of cleansing and scorching
their bottoms. The sea worm teredo nauaLis,
which pierces submerged wood, exists in
large numbers in the Black Sea, especially
along the shores of the Crimea and in the
harbor of Sebastopol. In less than two
years, if vessel is not copper-sheathed,
these worms pierce through the whole of the
outer timbers. Hence it is found necessary
to counteract their operations by careening
the vessel every two years and scorching the
outside with pitch and juniper wood.
The situation of Sebastopol on dry soil,
causes it to be extremely healthy, the air
being tempered in summer by cooling winds,
and softened in winter by the shelter of lof-
ty hills to the north and east. The greatest
heat in summer does not exceed twenty-six
degrees of Ceaumer, (77 IL F. Land and
sea breezes alternate successfully, morn
ing and evening, cooling the air, and at the
same time favorng the entrance and depar-
ture of vessels, while at sea outside the har-
Dor the prevalent winds are northeast and
northwest.
--sSo4A-
D. VUOUnsS ESnfrea0f