The Ouachita telegraph. [volume] (Monroe, La.) 1865-1889, 1877-12-21
roDLEnES's TRIUMPH AT PLEvNA

TODlEBEN'S TRIUMPH AT PLEVNA.
/ After a tive months siege, illustrated
by several heavy attacks and u heroic
defense, Plevna has fallen into the
hands OF the Cxar, and the starving ar
my Of Osinan Paslla has surrendered
to the far more powerful army by
which it was encompasse<l. rsH
The doom Of Plevna has for some
time been inevita BILE. Osman Pasha' =
army was unable of itself to raise the
siege. When first shut up it's strength
was about a, 900, while the besieging
force was twice as strong. The Turk.
sh force has been terribly weakened
during these months by famine and
disease, while the Russian army has
constantly been receiving REINFORCE
ments, and has had an abundance OF
all kinds of supplies. One Of the ablest
of modern military engineers, Gen.
Todleben, had command of the beeieg-
ing host and no skill or audacity on the
part ofany com ina nder inside of Plevna
had u chance of coping with the power
that Todleben welded against it.. The
only hope Of relief for the garrison Of
Plevna lay in the movements of the
armies that operated outside of 1t, un.
der Suleiman Pasha and Mehemet All.
But in every attempt to advance to-
ward the Russian lines, these armies
found themselves confronted by super
ior bodies of the invaders, aud for some
months past Suleiman PashA's efforts
have been feeble and useless, while
Mehemet Ali, sdoubtlesEs, feeling ag-
grieved over his treatment by the Sui
tan, has done little more than call for
.reenforcements and complain Of his
inability to make any movement until
he got them. s--. f N.* ts-. r'
.4 When the Russians laid siege to
PIevna, they anticipated its capture by
I. comp dc force. Their first heavy at
tack, last July, was brilliantly repulsetl
by the Turks; and SO confOu,.eietl were
the Russians by the staggering blow
they received, that it took them six
weeks to recover from it. In Seltcm-
ber, they made l. more desperate at
tack with Il much larger force; but
again they were driven back, and so
immense was the slaughter that all
further attempts of the kind were given
up. 'Todleben was then put in charge
OF the siege, and he proceeded to make
a close and regular investment of Plev.
ma, with the object Of reducing it in
that way. For three months the invest
nent has been complete. Prior to
that time supplies had been sent to
Osman Pasha from the region between
Sophia and Widin; but neither food nor
munitions he had since then. On one
occasion he made an attempt to force
passage, but failed, and on another oc-
casion y large supply train was cssptur-
ed by the Russians as 1t approached
Plevna. After this there was nothing
for him to do but hold out for the re-
lief that he expected from Suleiman
Pasha and Mehement Ali; but, as this
never reached him, and AS he had nj
last to give up all hope of 1t, and as
his army was rapidly perishing by
hunger, cold and disease, he made a
final desperate attempt on. Sunday last
to break the Russian lines in the direc-
ton of Widin. The enemy knew he
would have to come to this they fell
on him, front, flank and rear and, be-
fore the close OF the day, his fa,nished
army, which had probably dwindied
to one-haif its original strength, was
compelled to surrender. '.
This is, IN reality, the first important
Russian victory in awar which has
lasted for nine months. 1t has been a
costly victory to the invaders, whose
losses in the various operations Of the.
year are officially reported at nearly
one hundred thousand men.
There is no doubt that the Czar will
now seek to enter into negotiation
with the Sultan to secure peace. He
will try to show the Sultan that the
continuance OF hostilities must result
in further disasters to his empire. The
terms which the Gar has been willing
to offer, under the circumstant rs that
have now been brought about, have
recently been published but they are
such as the Sultan cannot accept, and
he must struggle against them until
the Russians win far greater victories
than that of PIevna. The Russo-Turk-
ish war now enters upon IA stage in
which it is full OF danger to the peace
of Europe.
ROMANTIC WEDDING.