The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1861-10-31


inc Secretary OF State having recommended the m.
thcaton Of seaports anticipation or trooh,s th
Foreign Powers will be interesting 70 inform our..,vs.
OF the strength OF seacoast defences Of their power N
resist the attacks OF fleets and Of the protection which
ncy require against assaults by land We can rsfer the
reader to no more source OF Information On
tnese subjects than tho report q Colonel R. Dclaeid q
the United States Army, the cart Of War in Europe"
published ny order Of the Senate 1900 and issued
Colonel Dclaned was the senior officer OF commission
consisting Of himself Major Mordecai and Captain (now
GENERALLY Mcclellan sent by government 70 Europe. /.
1855, to examine the practical working OF the improve
ments In the art Of war in the Crmea They entered Il
once upon their task and after meeting with MANY Oh
staces, reached the Crmca, whore thoy examined the
camps depots parks, &C., Of the English Sandman and
Turkish armies having first visited the principal for
tresses Of Europe.
Their reports are before II appears that ths
change in the art Of CONSISTS in the Increased magn
tude and perfection OF bs engines of war; rather than IN
inc introduction principles and in the schools
Of instruction established for every branch Of the service
Wo quo.e the following passage from Colonel Deanelds
preace'-We should not be indifferent this perfection
OF the military art and it's alton command Of
tho few; Tho moneyed interest," general ruie Ia In
he hands Of the mobiles and artist cracy. Thor welfare
AMI happiness is that Of the n,ona-,sn r... ,..
upon which that fem Of government a,,s,s :. .n,.ro
nistc to our own. Their scfprcscrvaton must always
hem to look with anxiety and apprehension to ON
growth, and ere becomes all powerful to combine In
some way to protect Themselves" Uf our deficient pre
paaton for the difficulties which he has orcshadowed he
says-"Our seacoast ofences conducted with -
much energy as an ndv dual besuws building resi-.
dence for his famiy-thc latter, many instances OK.
pending mo IN year on his dwelling than people
WIN authorlze TO be expended in the same time Tor
the ueicnce OIL a CITY, In this IMP ep.l0 state
on our part, seye al Of the powe OF Europe
nave steam transports and mlnitit ready at any mo.
ment to throw on our coast longer than Is me-
cessary to steam the Atlantic disciplined armies
that could land six hours after anchog do us injury
and cripple our resources to that would require
q long time to restore"
Warnings such as these from military men have long
fallen unheeded on the pubic ear and that events
have proved their Importance Is to be hoped that tho
people will repair their nel Ct while there yet time
Turning from the preface that portion Of the work
which treats Of the Importance II seacoas deences wo
find the proposition brca stated that the boosted
premacy Of ships over forts onge be maintained.
To sustain this position the thor gives brief ex
ceedngy interesting account Of the investment Of Sebas
topo by the allied armies and OF the combined attack by
land and sea upon iortresses. u appears that ater
the Allies had discovered the gntude Of the undertaking
and had been checked by tho fierce offered
them At the battle Of Alma, they laid regular siege
to the place. The Russan 10 tia ati0ns were built
Of soft stone, very inferior 10 anything in tho harbor
Of New York. Their walls were M, sod but only shells
u masonry filed in with Iubbe They were neither
fully armed nor manned when the Allies st invested
them. To complete their armament they Obliged 70
transfer the guns OF the fleet In the habOr TO the forts,
which were OF course inferior 10 he artillery required.
After the Allies had approached enough open nrs
effectively, the bomba dmcn c'mmelc,d on the morn
ing OF the 18th October, 1854. At the time tho
whole allied ec consisting OF twenty -four vessels war
and carrying 2,l56 guns, with other vessels,
approached TO from 600 to 500 yards Of the otsthe
French leading tho Turks following the English bring
ing up the rear. The French anchored rst opened
fire. the Turks passed on and continued the assault and
the English occupied the nearest position to the enemy
the order OF battle reversing the order or approach The
bombardment thus commenced, under the favorable
circumstances by the combined fleets Of the most
powerful nations Of Europe and nded by lombard
ment from tho heaviest siege guns and by land
results-The face stones Of III ~onry were in many
places broken and the space between embrasures in
Fort was broken through but MT 50 as v
njure tho batteries The fleets suffered considerably:
two Of tho large English ships damaged that r.
pair was mpraccabe without going to tho dockyards n
Consantinople One of these sustained serio damage
from pungng shot, Of which penetrated the ships
side under water and several OF them Gre by
hot shot, and had TO be towcd out Of action BY tho
steamers One Of tho Frcnch line battle abb was :
damaged by the bursting Of sho in the engine room
70 make necessary to send her 70 Franc to repair II:
through her side, two feet below the water line.
CATER twenty days Of unccasing labor by army q
marched to the Alma), with siege battcri,s mounting
l2e guns. and . fleet Of ships Of the lue mounting
and water. from morning till night fail entirely in the
great object for which 1t desructioa
OF the Russian feet and Gepots in the BsVcA Sea-"
These results were so that the feet mover
ventured to attack the forts again even when The
Russians abandoned onshaf Of Their works and tho re-
mainder much weakened by the 81 20 The Allies
confined themselves TO the tedious process Of reducing
the fol Is by regular land approaccsa tacit admission
that their fleets were unable TO cope with the soft
stone walls Of Sebastopol
later period Of the the author tells US that the
forts of Sweaborg and Cronstadt overawed Anglo
French feet which was sent against th m that Cronsa4
saved ST. Petersburg from capture afforded per.
feet protection to the coast that the imperia family
passed the summer at their usual vla within an hours
stcaming Of tho enemy's fotiia. The forts q
Cronsadt hastily fitted up those at sebas-
up to guard the dockyards, without the necessary
protection in the Tho Russians, however, had
advantage both at Sebastopo and Constant which do
not possess They were able to obtain strong arms
mont from their bockaded fleets We have 8 CHI
sort in time OF need and should at once procure sufficient
artillery forts and substitute the eight
and ten inch guns for the old fashioned thirty two pound
ers which now frown from oar batemcnts The author
adds"The permanent defcnccs constr cted In time OF
peace equal to their object against every combined
permanent preparation Of tn Allies Under like
stances with the immense Of country,
our ability to provide auxiliary seacoast deem would
BIO readily accomplished those Of Russia, provided
we are prepared against existing at the com
mencem2nt Of hostilities II is IN power Ia inspire
our citizens with like confidence and enemy with
like respect for our strength and power OF Resistance
Is only for the people and Congress to will 1t IN The
example Of Russia is q lesson every way entitled to our
study and imitation"
fleets Colonel Delaned uses the following anglage:-T
but draw tho important .rsi from these facts
that permanent sescoast batteries be relied upon
for the defence Of harbs that they superior
every known floating battery and that me present expe
rence Of the best naval well military auth rites of
Europe confirms the supremacy Of land batteries
over those III the fleets Of the ,-esent day.
In the authors opinion We should pay more attention
TO the land approaches Of Our forts. He saysWe have
that the dcfences could be relied for
security against tho most powerful feet that could attack
them. More ships could not find anchor before
them in hostile attitude. At tho time ind
these harbor deences Of value without being pro-
pery protected In the and 70 do temporarily and
at the spur Of the moment required very large army,
and the dsmanting Of fleet, 10 aiord thu necessary
armament and munitions. Now, W. hive no such fleets
nor have we depots Of mutations e our several
decnces, from which, il had tho men, to
temporarily constructed land deleDces."
We regret that have not the space to make public
tho valuable Information collected by Colonel Deaed
many other branches Of the at Of war For improve
menis in and projcctes, for ingenious hospital and
army wagons, for camp equipage, Tor coaveyanccs
for wounded soldiers for the wonderful applications Of
steam war for the arrangement Of hospital hudirgS
and Ships for the transportation Of horses ths
making of bread and for the different schools OF fortaca
ton we mustrefer the curious reader to the work itself
Unde. system Of government no recommendation
of the Executive requiring the expenditure o. money win
be attended to unless IL is approved Of by the people,
is therefore proper that those who popular opinion
whether in out of authority as well - the m neyed
classes who must eventually pay for these orncations
should inform themselves Of their nacssity tnat tns
tk.a