New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-11-07
LIE WAR NEWs.

tskipg Of Kipburn by the Allies is the most inpor-
taut forward step they have made 'ince the fall Of
the south eide Of Sevsstopol II gives them an IN
s.s,ilable position on the peninsula between the
Dneper and the Crimea position com handing
the entrance of the Lnsn estuary OF that river
and menseDe at the same time the communlcahons
between Perekop and Cherson. There ia arumor
mentioned in the Vienna papers that the Allies
had landed thirty thousand men on the spit Of
Tepdra. long, narrow island stretching within
few miles distance along the southern shore Of the
peninsula Of Kipburn If the fact Of the landing
be true, the numbers are evidently exaggerated
But if even small body only Of the allied troops
had occupied this spit, it would show their inssn'
ton of establishing themselves on the peninsula
AID Of seriously meDaciDg the Russian Lines Of
communications They might from this position
prove as troublesome to Russian conveys as tie
corps of Gems. D'Allon7ills and Pas st, from Eups
tora, might to the eonvoys coming down from
Perekop to Synpheropol They might even. by
rapidly concentrating strong force on this penn
sula, IL axe dash at Cherson, and burn everything
with the exception of the mall citadel-unles' IN.
deed the Russians have fortified that town too and
can spare q strorg garrison to defend 1t. Anyhow,
KiLDSya and the long, fat sandy Islands al"p; sar
shore Of the gulf leading TO Perekop form a series
Of positions which the Allies can easily hdd by
small bodies Of troops and each Of which they can
turn at sDy moment into base for ultenor and
rapid operations. The Russians may this, bya
few bsttalions, be obliged to disseminate great
number of their troops in order 10 secure nest i'm
portant points from sudden irruptOns; ard so long
as the allied fleets hold command of the sea, these
newly gained possessions cannot be STACKED By
any Russian land force.
The few details yet known respecting the taking
of Kinburn confirm the experience o. former cpl
sedes in this war, while they again tend to prove
the intentional incorrectness of the Russian charts
On all the best charts there is no water Of sufi
cient depth for ships of theline or heavy frgates
to be found anywhere within some miles of Kin
burn. Yet when the allied fleets sent out gun
boats to take soundpgs within easy range Of Kin
burn, they found fully fsur and half hthoms at
sixteen hundred yards from the walls-at least, so
it appears, on the north side within the Liman.
Nire heavy steam-frigates could approach to that
distance and shel the place and while the mortar.
boats did the same from far nearer stations, the
gun boats en6laded the faces of the bastions, and
the floating batteIies-which must have ap-
preached to some six hundred or seven hundred
yards, if not closer succeeded in laying several
breaches in the ses-walls.
What the precise nature of the defenses of Kin
burn was, We cannot as yet make out very distinct
ly. The small town stretching right across the
narrow spit was defended BY a sort of continuous
rampant Of masonry, something like a Fashioned
pentagOn or square, with guns firing en- barbette,
or through masonry embrasures. The guns for the
most part stood uncovered but on the points where
their fire was to act with the greatest force there
were two tiers, the lower one cssemated, the up
per one firing through masonry embrasures in q
wall erected on the fiat roof of the casemates. AS
at Bomarsund, the masonry, as soon as it was act
ed upon by vastly superior fire from the ships
crumbled away, and three breaches, it appears,
were formed by the floating batteries in six to
eight hours This is explained by the very small
number of guns in the fortress of which there were
only seventy and, as the attack could be expected
from any side every front of the fortress had to be
armed, so that against the main attack no more
than from sixteen to twenty guns could be brought
to bear. That their fire must have soon been
silenced by the vertical fire Of the mortar. boats,
the enfladDg shots Of the gun.boats, the
shellstorm of the eam-frigates, and the breach
ing front fire of the floating batteries, bring
ing into action at least eight to tenold the number
of guns, is not to be wondered at And as the day
was exceedingly calm, the fire from the floating
batteries was as steady as it would have been from
any shore battery; it therefore could really act as
preaching fire. These unwieldy, floating masses
helpless and useless as soon as the least amount of
swell destroys their steadiness, must necessarily
be able to do great execution in perfectly calm
weather, and in situations where the large vessels
can approach within range, and thereby draw upon
themselves the principal fire of the enemy. Such
favorable circumstances, however, occur but sell
dom and where fortresses like Cronstadt. swea-
borg or the seaiorts Of Sevastopol, were the OBJ
ject of their attack, the floating batteries would
prove more cumbersome than useful Thus on the
whole, the affair at Kinburn cannot be said to have
proved any thing in favor of these clumsy sea-mon-
steIs.
The allied troops who landed TO the southeast
of Kinburn must have amounted TO a couple of
thousand for of the English alone there were six
b,ttalions on board the feet numbering, with ar.
tillery, nearly four thousand men, of which
but portion, however, was landed; while
the French had another brigade on board
their ships. The part taken by the troops
in this action was very uncomfortable