The Abbeville banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1847-1869, 1859-03-31
A YOUNG AMERICAN AT sEBAsTopoL.

vessels whole, and the steamers Turk
and 'Grasney;' the 'Grasney' has copper
boilers, which are %orth 500 900 to cut up.
They are now breaking her up and cutting
her engines to pices. Since my arrival
here, they raised the Danube another
steamer. She is Of iron, and came I'D in
two halves. The chain, in attempting to
raise her, cut he: entirely through. Her
engines are valued ut $4,000. They
have also raiset! a sixteen gun brig and two
large schooner. Cob ,.nwan has now
made contract with the nllssians to have
all the property that he recovered, and he
is to find I'll the powder and purchase it o.
the Government ut their price. This con.
tract came III vogue last June, lut was not
signed until November 10th. The first
was that the Government should have one
half OF the property and liHd all tie pow
der The price Of powder here Of the
Government is 10 for Sc pounds. They
have already used eight tons of powder up.
on the Constantine, and it will need us
much more before she is so: up. The ap-
pea'ance Of the ships upon reaching the
surface, is singular enough after their long
s"journ in their muddy bed. The rails are
all honey combcd, the decks are covered
with mu! to the depth of two feet, coils Of
rigging, spars and ballast are scattered over
the decks. The matches, in most cases, are
open, and the hold half full of mud, and
muscles arc clinging to every part but the
copper. Many of the ships were burnt be-
fore sinking.
"Thc method that the company have
adopted for raising the vessels is by means
of four large 'caissons," Will, small steam
engines OF fifteen horse power upon each
Two OF these caissons are stationed each
side ot the sunkcn ship; large chains are
then passed under lcl keel leading up 10
the docks or caissons 10y opcnn" Il sub.
merged valve these docks are sunk down
to the proper DEPTH and the Chain is then
hauld taught by aid of the steam engine
The wateris then pumped out and the docks
commence rising, and the engine at the
same time at work produces draft of no
ordinary kind. But the experience Of last
summer has convinced them that there is
not power enough to raise The large ships
so at present, under the direction of Capt.
S. llolLrook, the company are constructing
two other large ones, which will be com
plcted next spring. With the aid of these
they expect to raise large ships of so guns.
''Be!ore close, will say a few things
about places Of note around here, which
are familiar names to all Of you. Iscvera
:imcs V siic'l the far-famed Malakoff. TO
the summit Of. the hill it is about 100 feet
The ground is all dug up with trenches
from base to summit. The remains of the
tower are still standing. Near to the NAL
akoif is the Eedan. which. is nothing more
than broad deep trench; here and there
are sunkcn pits that cover the gallant dead ;
all arosnd, the ground is s,rcwed with
pieces of skulls, and the other day as I was
walking along upon the edge of Victoria
Battery saw the place where the jacka!s
had dug out the skeletons of six English
men, which had been buried bv part of tho
battery sliding upon them. I picked up
the skull Of one and intend TO send it home
from Constantinop!c, I have also been to
/ Jnl.. ~, al
great number of accidents here from the
bursting Of shells; some twenty men and
women have been killed the past year. A
young Englishman, belonging to the steam
er Bryant, which put in here last spring,
with some Of his shipmates was walking
over the Black Bastion, and picked up
shell, with the intention Of taking it home
with him, but fiuding it too heavy, he
threw it down, when it exploded, killing
him instantly. A party of Tartars had
kindlcd fire round the round shot, as they
supposed, aud bad placed their kettle of
rice npon them, when one of them, being
a shell, exploded, killing and scaIding
number OF them. few days ago, par
ty Of Russians were engaged weighing old
bombs, for shipment, when alLof sudden
one Of them exploded, cutting one man in
frightful manner. This occurred within
twenty yards Of ol'r machine shop.-Pri-
cate Letter from Sebsstopa
'->.-.~
Cutie Epidem,c in Southsotstern Geoyaia.-A
correspondent, writing from Florence, Stewart
| county. Ga, in the course of business letter,
stutes that his COWS had recently been taken
with a very fatal epidemic, dying, sometimes, at
the rate OF three or four in day fourteen in
all. having died in twelve days. He thinks their
sickness caused by the cows eating the peas
which grow OH what ,s called clay-galled lime.
lands; they seen, to fatten and thrive on the
peas, and appear perfectly healthy, but.will sud
denly drop down, aud die in a few hours. Having
never heard any remedy prescribed, he5pat them
up in dry lot, and as an experiment, give them
salts on their food aud in the water they drank
Some refused to take it and Of these several sub