Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1855-05-27
fFr0Da tie London Times 14frI SOL
PROGRESS OF THE SIEGE SEBASTOPOL Is M
PRFGNABLEI

PROGRESS OF THE SIEGE SEBASTOPOL Is M
PREGNABLE!
The latest dispatches from Sebastepol apprse US
that the FIRE of the Russian batteries is still unsub
dued, and we arrive, accordingly, at the conclusion
that the deences of besieged town, after having
been twice exposed during SIX months of hostile
approaches to concerted cannonades of the most de-
structve character, are still in position to offer
resistance to assault. This result is so contrary TO
all received assumptions on the subject, and tends
TO exercise so great an influence upon the theory
AID practice OF war, that we may be permitted to
consider it for moment in its abstract import,
without reference TO the immediate interest nvolv
ed in the struggle. Of course, the reimbursement
OF the town, and the inexhaustble resources thus
opened to the garrison, are considerations ola most
Influential kind, but it is clear that the Gefences
themselves possess some novelty of character, and
it is this novelty which deserves our attention -
To make our observations more readily ineligible,
we promise brief and simple sketch Of the lead
ing theories OF fertilization successfully adopted,
and of the doctrines which each involves.
The earliest idea ola strong place implied the
existence merely Of walls too high to be escaladed,
and too thick to be battered down by any force
then known. When gunpowder, however, was
discovered, and heavy ordnance invented these
fences soon los: their strength, and then curse
was hsd to the expedents Of a sunken well and
ditch By digging a ditch, and building the wall
as it were il it, Q defence of masonry was still
provided, which was not visible, and therefore not
exposed to fire except on very close approach
The loss OF height however, thus occasioned, re-
duced the armament of the defenders to a single
line, since cannon could only be mounted on so
much of the crest of the wall as overtopped the
ditch, and this, consequently, was the measure Of
the defenders force The ramparts of fortified
town, instead of presenting the lofty walls of an
| IL Al
and the guns were all on a level To strengthen
the defence therefore, and augment the means OF
fire at the command of the beseigera, the system
Of bastions was adopted The system consisted in
throwing out from the ramparts angular projections
the fire from which would sweep along and there
by protect certain portions of the face of the wall
The theory itself as old as the Oldest scheme
of fertilization, for the object sought in
those projecting towers, which may be seen at in
tervals in the remains plans OF any old walls
castles but the idea was elaborated by Italian en-
gneers, so skillfuly and completely, that at last
forts assumed the outline of stars every front of
fertilization appeared protected by the anking fire
OF one or more batteries, and it seemed as if such
| places must be impregnabe. A very simple dis
| coveTy, however demolished all this system. If
the reader will look at draw upon paper, one Of
these bastions in its form of hall diamond top
Of lancet, he will observe that position be
as exactly to catch one face or side of the baston
| at right angles For instance-if the line or face
of that side is prolonged upon the paper, and then
battery is supposed to be planted across this pro-
longed line it will be evident that the shots from
such battery would strike the guns of the bastion
ntheir sides. In aid Of this idea, new mode of
firing was adopted by which shots were so fred as
Just to pitch the parapet and run along inside
IT, face the bastion by success i've rebounds. The
consequence was, that in these etounds they
struck the guns Of the defences and dsmounted or
| disabled them the fire Of the bastion became ex-
tinguished accordingly and tie beseigers having
no longer any thing but the plain front Of wall
to deal with, brought up their own batteries as
close as they pleased without fear, preached the
wall, and effected an entrance into the place.
All this while, be it observed, the obstacle be-
tween the besiegeIs and the town was still wall;
perpendicular wall, to get az which, so as to es-
calade it Or batter it successfully the single
object and the continued superiority of the assail-
ants consisted in this, that they could always secure
an ascendancy of fire. IL the place, Indeed could
be protected by high walls with two or three tiers
of defences, then this condition might be changed,
but in that case the walls themselves, being fully
exposed must in the end yield TO the stroke Of can
non shot Thew were therefore sunk, as we have
described to the level of asnge plane or floor above
the ground, and, when the attempt to compensate
for this weakness Of defence by the baston system
had failed there appeared no longer any escape from
the conclusion that the means of attack were su-
perior to the means of defence
Recently, however, an engineer ofour own coun.
try projected new system of ratification the
Leading principle of which was to construct the
defences of such material as would bear exposure
to fire. and consequently permit such an elevation
of the raTparts would allow Of an accumulation
of guns for direct firing sufficient to overpower a
besieging force without recourse to the baston e.
teUI This engineer was Mr. JAS Fergu sou. and sll
that we need say of his system at present is, that
it consisted in the erection Of earth works instead
OF walls OF masonry, and that it throws considerable
light upon the operations now proceeding before
Sebastopol Here by the construction Of earth
works tier above tier, which seems the essence of
the system, the guns of the defence can be made
almost as numerous at any given point as the guns
Of the attack and the first condition or assumption
therefore, on which sieges used to proceed, viz :
that the besiegers could always at selected point
command q superiority Of fire, entirely falls
There is no wall whatever, or next to none, be-
tween the allied force and Sebastopo but there is
in front Of the town long line of earthwoFks,
mounting apparently at some points as many as
three tiers Of guns and il is against this line that
our own batteries are planted Here and,thtra as
at the Flagstaff Battery and the Redau the defen-
ces do assume the bastion form, and here our fire
to have told with the greatest effect but as
the works are constructed OF eartE, and therefore
easily repaired, aud as the Russians apparently
nearly strong in artillery as we are the ordinary
advantages on the eide of the besegers have been
wanting
If we consider these results for moment it will /
hn seen that the theory of the Russian defense is |
simple. The earthworks are well con-
structed, the advantages derivable from the conOr-
nation of the ground have been adroitly seized and /
the courage shown in repairing the damage done /
by our proectiles has been, as our correspondence
informs the public, very great. But all this would
probably not have been effective except for the ex
4, id -, ,la Of, -