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THE BRilSH EXPEDITION. !
THE BRilSH EXPEDITION. CAMP BEFORE SEBASTOPOL, NOV. 24. Scarcely had the ink dried on the paper of my last letter before the weather, which I had been praising for its ex- traordinary fineness, suddenly changpd, and with a rapidity of transition only known in the Crimea, as far as I am aware, rushed from summer to winter. A strong wind, which varied in direction several times before it settled down to a southerly gale, commenced on the afternoon of Saturday. Rain fell during the night; to-day it is falling in torrents, with every appearance of holding out; the verge of.the plateau is concealed by the dense veil of drift- ing clouds the ground is converted into the thick compost so familiar to us last winter; the camp is covered with pools of water, and the gullies and drains are filled with the rushing waters. But this rain is welcome to us, for the scarcity of water, which I ventured to predict many months ago and which sanitary commissioners and great philoso- phers proved to their own satisfaction to be impossible, had become a serious inconvenience for some time past. If one was so fortunate as to get water to wash his face, the pro- ceeding was a mockery, a delusion, and a snare," inas- much as the medium through which it was performed was a thick peaso>)p coloured fluid, churned up from the bottom of the wells. The Fourth Division suffered considerably from this cause, and no one who has not actually endured the discomforts consequent upon the announcement of no water to-day" can form a notion of the trouble, delay, and difficulty of supplying the want. The army is getting into better shape and form every day. Excellent warm clothing' has been issued to the men, and so uniform is it in style that no one can distinguish officers from men, unless by the difference of style and bearing. Our allies are astonished at the profuseness of our military wardrobe, which not only contains a waterproof suit, helmet and all, but fur coats and caps, cowhide boots, tweed coats lined with cat or rabbit skin, &c., and, for the officers, suits of sealskin, sold at moderate prices. The French only receive from their Go vernment an ordinary cloth capote, and must buy any waterproofs or furs which they may find necessary. The sheepskin coats of last year are not in much favour they have a very high odour, and are found to be extremely sought after as residences by objectionable insects of pre- datory habits. The huts blown down by the explosion are nearly rebuilt, but the extent of canvas-cohering which is still visible over the camp would astonish those who im- agine all the troops are within wooden walls. However, a good double tent well pitched and dug out is more com- fortable for one nun than most. huts would be, as it is ex- tremely difficult to stanch the latter, and the former is always sure to be air and watertight. For a sergeant's guard, however, a tent is very uncomfortable, because there can be no fireplace in it which would not expose some of the inmates to be roasted, and stoves are found to smoke with wood and coal, and to be dangerous with charcoal. The cookhouses offer guarantees for the health of the men, and with the blessing of Heaven the army will not suffer any serious detriment from the severities of this climate, although it would be too much to expect entire freedom from some kind of piivations on the part of an army cantoned on the open ground during a Crimean winter. MONDAY. The weather, ever capricious in the Crimea is varying and mutable beyond description. The morning wa3 ob- scure, but about 3 o'clock the wind hauled round from west north-west to north, and brought with it a clearer at- mosphere and intense cold. But the cold for the time being, got rid of the mud-that horrible, sticky, abomina- ble, clinging, slippery c-mbination earth and water which drives clean tent-owners mad, which defies Crimean scra- pers. and makes pedestrians walk on impromptu stilts, which disappedr and collect at every half dozen steps, j But to-morrow's sun, if there be any, will deprive us of this cold comfort, and will make men think twice before they ride out to Kamiesch or Balaklava. The roads are not yet settled down, although a good deal of traffic has been driven upon them by the mud, and the country is as unfavourable to the progression of man or beast as it is usually about this time of year in these parts of the world. The roads, indeed, even now, when we have no trenches, no prospects of attack, no want of labour-the roads are even now objects of much interest to us all. The whist- ling locomotives on the railway -the Alliance, the Victory which recall to us the familiar sounds of Wolverton or of Didcot, and make us believe for the moment we are in a civilised country, are not to be taken as material guar- antees for the possession of material comforts in the com- ing winter. Trains may be snowed up in the Crimea as in England, and, despite the efforts of Lr.nd Transport and Commissariat, supplies of certain articles cannot be accu- mulated in any large proportion to the wants of the army at the divisional depots. What do you think of 319 sheep being killed in one day for a single division of the army, and of that division requiring 100 more sheep to be sacri- ficed before they had their pound of flesh" and their full allowance of meat rations ? But these roads are very good and give no just ground for apprehension of failure, though it is the habit of some persons either to sneer at them as being too Romanesque in grandeur and solidity, or to pro- phesy their dissolution in the winter. Mr. Beatty, with small means at his command, has placed the railway on an excellent basis, as far as wood, iron, and stone can secure it. The soundness of his judgment in laying out the line is confirmed by Mr. Doyne's adoption of a course very neaily parallel to it throughout for the main road between Balaklava and the camp, a tribute which has not been unattended by evils, in as much as the parallelism has given rise to the fears that the proximity of the one may interfere with the safe working of the other. Mr. Beatty goes home immediately, if, indeed, he has not already gone, and I much regret that he has been obliged to retire from a post in which he rendered services not only to the army collectively, but to many individuals in it, who will always retain a deep sense of his kindness and friendly as- sistance in times of domestic difficulty about huts and transports. Already the mud is beginning to tell on our animals. I saw no less than seven dead mules and horses in one little guily crossing the line of transport yesterday. Melancholy quadrupeds, with sore backs and rib-developed flanks, whom nobody cares to own, begin even thus early to wander about the camp, and to crawl to the lee of I sheltering walls. The Russians, having made good roads between their camps, and having established themselves comfortable on the other side of the Tchernaya, seem re- solved to give us an uneasy time of it in Sebastopol, and never ceased firing to-day from one end of the bay to the other. I ventured to express an opinion almost imme- diately after the capture 01 the south side, that the enemy's preparations indicated the intention of wintering where they lay. We have been all too prone, not only in Eng- land, bat out here, to calculate on advantages to be gained by the privations to which the enemy would be exposed, or by imaginary wants to which thpy were likely in our opini- on to be subjected. But the Russian is well supplied with munitions of war and with the means of subsistance. The whole strength of the empire has bten devoted to the sup- plies of the Crimean army, and the Russian General no doubt calculates on the concentration of such a foice in the Crimea next spring as will enable him to meet the allies in every point which they may assail, knowing that Perekop is unassailable by a large force owing the want of water, and to its geographical position, and that no army can operate in the rear of bis position in consequence of the nature or the country. It is not because St. Vladimir was converted in the Cri- mea that Prince Gortschakoff holds Mackenzie's Farm and the plateau of the Belbek and Tchernaya. But he knows that until be is dislodged the allies are paralyzed, and that they can establish no safe basis of operations against Nicolaief or Cherson while he is at Simpheropol, for it would be contrary to common sense to leave such an army in their rear and flank. He hopes, therefore, either to hold the Crimea next campaign, or to be able to make such dispositions in the event of a great defeat as will in- insure the safe retreat of his army by Perekop and Tchon- gar, and perhaps a third road, of the existence of which across the Sivash there are very strong indications. The electric telegraph has kindly aided him in establishing himself all the more securely, for the rumour of a ltus- sian attack to which it gave official weight, prevented the occnpation of Kaffa and the destruction of Arabat this autumn and who can s.iy how the country behind Theo- dot-ia (Kaffa) will be seamed with batteries should we try a descent next spring ? Talk of the harm done by newspa- per correspondents compared with that which has been done by the electric tele;7 by the electric telegraph The first expedition to Kertch, the despatch of the Highlanders to Eupatoria, and the ex- pedition to Kaffa were all prevented by our electric batter- ies at London and Paris, and it is very questionable if they did not do the allies more harm than the Russian guns. The French were, indeed, averse to the Kaffa movement, and Admiral Bruat was, it appears, more es- pecially opposed to it; but there is no reason to doubt that it would have been successful, and the occupation of that place and the destruction of Arabat, would have most ma- terially complicated the difficulty of the Russian position, and contributed to the strength of the allies. 6 P.M. The north batteries have been playing on the south side with little intermission all day. This forenoon they open- ed a cannonade on the French near the Little Redan, from the 12-guii battery at Inkermann, and dispersed some working parties, but did them no harm. They have kept up a fire since at the rate of two guns a minute on the. town and on the docks and as they direct their fire on the houses, it would seem as though they wished to knock over those buildings which would afford cover to the allies. Nevertheless, the working parties continue he proces of demolition, TUESDAY. Last night the cold increased, and a hard frost set in. The thermometer fell to 18 degress this morning, and may have been lower during the night. The water in bottles in my hut froze, oils thickened, and wine hecame muddy, opaque, and filled with spicula of ice. It is now snowing, and the camp is of an opaque whiteness. There would be every prospect of the snow continuing if we could judge from the appearance of the atmosphere. The enemy have renewed:their fire this morning. It would seem as if they had received orders not to let the allies remain in the town. Our batteries do not reply, and beyond the annoy- ance to which our menare exposed it does not much sig- nify whether the Russrans waste or save their powder and shot, as they do no real damage. CAXP OF THE ALLIED ARIIES ON THE TCHERNAYA, Nov. 26. For the last two days, especially on Sunday, we had for the first time something approaching to last year's Novem- ber weather-strong southwesterly winds, low heavy banks of c!ouds, sharp showers of raiu, and real Crimean mud. But this avant garde of winter, so formidable last year, has ceased to inspire fear and apprehension, especially as regards this part of our position. All the Highlanders are in huts, so are the Piedmoiitese and the French at Baidar. The French on the Fedukhine heights are indeed still under canvas, but not under the tentes d'abri. They have got a great number of Turkish double tents, which if properly stretched are water-tight, while the pules, made of one solid piece of wood, resist any wind, as was proved last year in the gale of the 14th of November. Even these tents, how- ever, are gradually disappearing. As it is, more than three- fourths of the allied armies on this side are in comfortable shelter, whence they can brave storm and rain. There is no want of provUms either. The Highland Division has not, P in this respect, been behind the other English divisions on the plateau of Sebastopol, as every one can see from far oft rvache* (be duwih of A FiedoMntaK magazine. Pyramids of biscuit-sacks, rows of barrels with salt, meat and rum, piles of corn and hay, are striking I evidences of the foresight and diligence exhibited in collect- ing ample stores for the winter, especially as the brushwood abounding all around dispenses with the transport of that., portant item-fuel. The Sardinians and the French, not including those at Baidar, have not thought it necessary to form large stores they send to their depots at Balaklava and Kakiloi.i In the Sardinian army the soldiers have always two days rations in hand, and every battalion has to piovide for the transport from the depots, which, while active operation^ire going on, are always supposed to be at the distance of half a day's march. Their system of transport differs, in this way, entirely from the French. To the French army the train" forms a distinct body, not permanently attached to any division or regiment. The whole care of providing for "the army rests on it, without any participation of the re- giments or divisions. Only when a body of men is de- tached from the bulk of the army, at too great a distance to be daily provided for from the depots, a certain proportion of the train is attached to it. In the Sardinian army, on the contrary, each battalion has a certain number of carts and baggage animals perma- nently attached to it. This regulation is of course only cal- culated for warfare in the civilized countries of Europe, with numbers of villages and uood roads, where no tents are required; five two-wheeled carts form the complement of each bat talion one of these is destined to carry the officers' luggage, and the rest are for the troops. The Piedmontese officers, having no bLt horses, as in the English army, are allowed one chest of 3 feet by 2 to carry their things in it 24 of these chests, the number of officers in a battalion, fit exactly in one of these covered carts, drawn by two mules, besides the three days' rations for the officers, which the soldier has to carry with him. In consequence of the peculiar circumstances which must prevail in a campaign in such an inhospitable country as the Crimea, this ratio has been augmented, and two carts are now allowed for the officers of each battalion. But notwithstanding this aug- mentation, and the fact that the Corps del Trono has to I transport the officers' baggage, you will be surprised to hear that the Piedmontese army out here require only 1,200 baggage animals. There is no doubt that the Emperor Alexander has visited the Crimea. He arrived on the 8th inst. in Simpheropol. The reviews of the troops cannot have given him much satisfaction, for, if the accounts of deserters may be trusted, they are by no means in a brilliant state. The regiments, they say, are so reduced that most of them have been melted down to two battalions, and, if the orders which have been given to send 20 men from each company into the interior to instruct recruits are carried out, some regiments will altogether disappear. The 33d infantry Regiment, Borodyn- sky, belonging to the 17th division—a regiment which took part in the battles of Alma and Inkermann—has already had an order to that effect. It will be incorporated or. rather divided among the other regiments of the division, with the promise that it should be reformed in times of peace. The artillery seems not to be much better off than the infantry, especially that part of it which is in front on the plateau. One deserter says that the horses were in such wretched con- dition when the Emperor reviewed them that he reprimand- ed the colonel publicly. Ihe consequence was that the batteries, which were reviewed the next day on some other point, had the beat artillery horses brought up for the occasion from the batteries in the rear, where the horses were in better condition, having been less exposed and fatigued. The-field artillery, which is on the plateaux in front of the Russian position, is, it is stated, only waiting for the first rains, when all danger of an attack from the allies is sup- posed to cease, in order to retire from their exposed position into the interior where they can shelter their horses. If this be true, it would imply that the whole time while we were putting off expeditions and parading every morning in order to be ready to receive the Russians these latter made similar preparations. There is another circumstance which strengthens this supposition not a little, and this is—that the Russian inhabitants of Simpheropol were, some time after the fall of Sebastopol, invited to abandon the place and to retire into the interior of Russia-a thing which many of them actually did in the expectation of an attack from tha allied armies. It would be a curious, and, perhaps, not altogether unprofitable question, to inquire which party was more justified in its apprehensions at any rate, the Russian reaped the benefit of our ludicrous, but rather expensive fight, with shadows. The official announcement from St. Petersburg, which we saw in one of your last numbers, that the Russian army in the Crimea is provided with provisions for eight months is, if not literary, at least to a certain extent, borne out by information gleaned from the spjt. There are said to be considerable stores of provisions heaped up in Simpheropol and Duvenkoi, where the Russian reserves are. The Russians seem rather anxious about the Tchongar road, and they have thrown up batteries near the bridge, as well as on both the peninsulas which it connects. The Tchon- gar and not the Perekop road is said to be their main channel of communication with the interior, which is not at all surprising, as this latter is more exposed, owing to the contiguity of the allied forces at Eupatoria. As regards the disposition of the Russian troops in the Crimea, we hear that there are still 11 divisions of infantry remaining in the south, two having gone north. Immedi- ately after the fall of Sebastopol, when the French went down towards the Upper Belbek, a great number of troops were sent that way, so that from the pass of Aitodor down to Albared and Kutshuk Sioren there were seven divisions, the 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 13th reserve; and the 15th, the 16th, and 17th were on the Mackenzie heights, the 4th and 5th at Inkermann, the 12th in the Severnaia, and the 11th on the Belbek. When the demonstration from Eupatoria forced the Russians to show front in that direction the 4th and 5th were sent there; the llth came down from the Belbek to take their place and the 8th was sent to replace the latter. Since the fall of Sebastopol not a man of regular troops is said to have arrived in the Crimea only about20,000militia. These latter were of those enrolled in April last. Probably, in order to work on the religious feelings of the new con- scripts, they were all enrolled during the holy week-23 in 1,000. They were of all ages, from 17 to Biij-boys and old ineii --no distinction was made; whether they were married or not, they were taken according to the will of their owners, who naturally sent those who were of least use to them. The new conscripts were drilled for a month, and then sent off. They are dressed like the other Russian soldiers, minus the buttons, which have been replaced by three clasps for the sake of economy they get the same pay as regular soldiers, and are divided into druschines or battalions of 1,000 men. Each draschine is attached to some division, and takes alter- nately the outpost duty besides this, the militia are con- sidered as the" handy Bills" of the regular troops, do all the whitewashing, &c. They form the laughing-stock of the regular army, and are bullied by the inferior officers, although they say the generals are kind to them. Nov. 27. For a change we had a frost last night, and this morning a slow, regular snowfall.
''''"''""' REPORTING DESTRUCTION…
REPORTING DESTRUCTION OF CORN, &c. IN I GHEISK-LIMAN. Royal Albert, Kazatch Bay, Nov. 24. Sir,—Their Lordships are aware that when the small gun- boats were no longer required at Kinburn I sent them back to Capt. Osborn, to afford him the means of destroying at the latest period of the season the harvest of this year, which I understood to be collecting in the neighbourhood of Gheisk- Liman for the purpose of being transported in the winter months, partly to the enemy's army in the Crimea over the frozen Gulf of Azoff, and partly to his army in the Caucasus by the military road. 2. The enclosed copy of a letter from Captain Osborn will show their Lordships that in this, as on many former occa- sions, he has fully justified the confidence I have placed in him. The skilfulness of the arrangements made by him, and the admirable manner in which they were executed by himself, by Commander Kennedy, of the Curlew, and by the officers and men under their orders, completely frustrated the efforts of the large force that was brought against them in defence of the stores, which the enemy appears to have considered safe from any naval attack in consequence of the shallowness of the water. 3. The effects of this brilliant enterprise, in the destruc- tion of so much corn and forage at the commencement of winter, cannot fail to be severely felt by the Russian armies both in the Crimea and the Caucasus I 4. Commander Kennedy, in reporting his large share in the proceedings of the day in the command of the Curlew, states to Captain Osborn that at one place alone the rows of stacks were six deep and extended two miles, and it appears that, for economy in transport and storage, the straw was cut near to the ears of the corn. 5. As the ice is now forming on the shores of the Sea of Azoff and the squadron is withdrawn, I feel it to be due to Capt. Osborn to record that, under circumstances of great difficulty, occasioned by unusually tempestuous weather, he has most ably continued through the summer, and brought to a successful close in the autumn, operations novel in their nature and extremely detrimental to the enemy, which commenced auspiciously in the spring under the direction of the late Captain Lyons, of the Miranda; nor is it too much to say that both commanding officers were supported through- out by as dashing and as intelligent a band of young officers, seamen, and marines as ever shone in the British navy. am, &c., EDMUND LYONS, Rear-Admiral and Commander-in-Chief. The Secretary of the Admiralty, London. Her Majesty's steam-sloop Vesuvius, off Gheisk, Nov. 7. Sir,—After dark, on the evening of the 3rd inst., the squadron under my command was assembled and anchored in 16 feet water off Gheisk-Liman, and I made arrange- ments for the morrow to operate against the extensive col- lection of corn, forage, and fuel belonging to the enemy, stacked along its shores, so as to distract the attention of the large force which, from previous observation, I knew to be in the neighbourhood. Under Lieutenant Ross, of the Weser I placed the Curlew in the temporary charge of Lieutenant Miall, and the Ardent in charge of Mr. Tilly, second master, each vessel having sufficient men left in her to weigh an anchor or fight a gun, and man a few boats, giving orders to Lieutenant Ros3 to close in on the northern side of Gheisk, and to be prepared to co-operate with me inside the Liman. The Vesuvius I left in the offing, denuded of every avail- able person and embarking officers and men, as in the annexed list from the Vesuvius, the Curlew, the Weser, and the Ardent, with their boats, we left at daylight, towed by Her Majesty's gunboats—the Recruit, Lieutenant G. Day the Boxer, Lieutenant S. P. Townsend the Cracker, Lieut. J. H. Marryat j the Clinker,, Lieutenant J. S. Hudson. By 6.30 a.m., the flotilla was off Vodina, three miles north of Glofira. Here long tiers of corn stacks and much fuel was stored along the coast, with a Cossack guard for its protection. I immediately detached Commander Ken- nedy with the boats, covering him with the gun vessels, and in a short time all was in flames, and the party cleverly re- embnrked at the moment that a large body of Cossacks rode | op from lawlnite. The town of Glofira became the next point of attack it was greatly changed in appearance since visited by Capt- tain Rowley Lambert, in July last. Corn stacks, for some miles in extent, might now be seen along its southern and eastern face, placed close to the water's edge ready for transport, and between the rows of houses tier on tier were to be seen. An intrenchment has been cut along the edge of the cliff commanding the Spit large bodies of dismounted cavalry were seen lining it, and armed men showed in the rear of every house. To endeavour to flank the defences, as well as destroy the corn stacks stored on a high hill east of Glofira, I de- spatched Commander Kennedy, with the boats of Her Majesty's ship Curlew, a paddlebox boat and cutter of the Vesuvius, the whole towed by the Clinker, Lieutenant Hudson, with orders to turn the Spit end, and then attack in that direction, after giving a certain .time to allow the enemy's attention to be divided by the other attack. The gunboats Recruit, Grinder, Boxer, and Cracker, opening fire on the intrenchments with Shrapncll shell, and on the corn ricks with carcases. As the enemy could only be dislodged from the extreme west, and the carcases did not answer well, and moreover- endangered the whole town, I despatched Lieutenants Day and Campion with the small force of marines available, a howitzer boat and two rockets boats, t) aid more effectually in carrying out my object. Lieutenant Campion, with Mr. Verey, gunner, charging at the head of the Marines, supported by Lieutenant Day and the seamen, all being under a sharp fire of muskety, succeeded in driving the enemy, with considerable loss out of their trench work, and captured a small brass piece, and then steadily forced them back with loss from store to store, until the whole of the vast quantity of corn, stacked ready for thrashing and transport, was in flames. The gallant manner in which Lieutenant Campion led the Marines deserves to be bought under your notice. Seeing the enemy collecting a number of men, ready to charge our men if they advanced beyond a ravine on the east face of the town, I recalled my force, and had the satisfaction of seeing all embarked, with only one man wounded. The vessels off Gheisk were now seen to be engaged, Lieutenant Ross, of the Weser, having placed them in capital positions; and, as the enemy moved down large bodies of troops, especially cavalry, to resist his landing, and opened fire on him, he, very unwillingly, had to fire on the town to dislodge them. The proceedings of Lieutenant Ross were ably executed, and he fully succeeded in keeping in check a heavy body of cavalry which might have much incommoded the small force under Commander Keuuedy, who, by the most strenuous exertions, had reached his position, and, finding the cliff too steep to scale in the face of a large number of troops, who were firing on him from its crest, he very judiciously executed the duty I had intrusted to him with the gun and the carcase rockets of the ship's boats, setting every store in flames, except one large Government building considerably in the rear. Commander Kennedy speaks in the highest terms of his party, for the shallowness of the water obliged the crews of the boats to be rowing and wading through the water from noon until midnight, the season too being now very cokl. Throughout the night the stores were burning fiercely, a sheet of tiames extending fully two miles, but the town of Glofira, except where the troops had used the houses against us, remained untouched. At an early hour on the 6th of November we weighed and proceeded into the Liman, steering towards Gheisk; the valuable services of Mr. George Perrv, Acting-Master of the Vesuvius, and Mr. Parker, Second "Master of the Recruit, came here into play and, at an early period I had the satisfaction of seeing all the gunboats anchored just in their own draught of water, within long gunshot of the east extreme of Gheisk and the neighbouring steppe, along the edge of which, for four miles, corn and hay were stacked in quantities far beyond what I had conceived to be possible, and at the base of the steppe, as well as that part of the Spit commanded by the town, timber yards, fish stores, boats; &c., in numbers were accumulated. To attack upon as many points as possible was, I thought, the only way to foil the troops that had now had 36 hours to prepare for us the gunboats Grinder, Boxer, Cracker, <ftnd Clinker were left to cover the landing party. To LieutenÍllt. Ross, of the Weser, I signalled to prepare to land, and divided the force in the Liman into three bodies; the left undefr Lieutenants Day and Townsend consisted of boats ani men of the Recruit and Boxer the centre I entrusted to Commander Kennedy, having under him Lieutenants Hamilton, Cam- pion, and Mayne, with all the boats of the Curlew, Ardent, Grinder, and Cracker, and port rocket and gunboats of the Vesuvi us, in charge of the officers named on the margin the right division under Lieutenant Chetham Strode and Lieutenant Hudson, consisted of the starboard gunboats of the Vesuvius, and those ef the Clinker, together with some marines, Mr. R Farquharson, midshipman, in charge of the latter. Lieutenant Ross, on the west side of Cheisk Spit, had the boats and small-arm men of-the Weser, with a small force from the Curlew and the Ardent, under Lieutenant Miall, and Mr. Tilley, stton(I master, in readiness to co- operate. The different parties pulled in and effected a landing at the appointed places, fully a mile apart; the Russian troops, within light breastworks, attempted to prevent them, but failed and in a few moments a screen of flames and smoke rolling from our men towards the enemy prevented the latter seeing where or how to manoeuvre in order to cut off any of our small detachments. On the right and centre the enemy mustered strongest, and at one time, observing a column of some 1,500 Cossacks moving rapidly off the left, I directed Commander Kennedy, who by that time hau connected his fires with those of Lieutenant Day, to re-embark all. but the marines, and with them to proceed to his right, and I reinforced him with the II marines of the Recruit and the VVeser, under Lieutenant Campion. This answered perfectly the enemy arrived too late to save anything on the left, while our men steadily worked towards the right division, under Lieutenants Strode and Ross, who, in spite of a heavy but badly directed fire from the heights, steadily held their ground, and effectually destroyed a great accumulation of materials for boats and ship building, fish stores, cavalry camp gear and garrison. When everything but the town of Gheisk was destroyed, I ordered the embareation to take place, and detached some boats to cover Lieutenant Ross, between whom and his boat the enemy were throwing a body of men, who, by their uni- form, I believed to be regular infantry. By 2 p.m. everything was finished, and all the parties safely re-embarked on board their respective gunboats, the casualties amounting to only six men wounded in all, one of them dangerously, and another severely. Nothing further being left within our reach in Ghiesk- Liman, except the store of corn which escaped on the pre- vious day at Glofira, I, therefore, ordered Commander Ken- nedy, with the moiety of the boats, to return to their re- spective ships, and remained with the Recruit, Ardent, Boxer, and Cracker's boats to finish what had escaped east of Glofira. On the 6th the weather, which bad favoured us most providentially, changed, fogs and strong breezes came on but directly I was able, the rocket boats and carcases were again employed upon Glofira until the fires extinguished yesterday were relighted, and another extensive accumula- tion of corn in flames I then weighed and returned to the Vesuvius, reaching her the same afternoon. I despair of being able to convey to you any idea of the extraordinary quantity of corn, rye hay, wood, and other supplies, so necessary for the existence of Russian armies both in the Caucasus and in the Crimea, which it has been our good fortune to destroy. That these vast stores should have been collected here, so close to the sea, while we were still in the neighbourhood, is only to be accounted for by their supposing that they could not be reached by us, and judging by the position the squadron under the late Captain Edmund Lyons took up in May last the Russians had established a camp and fortified their town only to meet a similar attack. During these proceedings we never had more than 20 men engaged; the enemy had, from the concurrent testi- mony of Lieutenants RJSS and Strode, and from my own ob- servation, from 3,000 to 4,000 men in Gheisk alone. Where every otticer exerted himself to the utmost and all did more than I expected of them, it would be invidious for me to mention one more than another; it was their coolness, zeal, and exan.ple that rendered steady many of the younger men who for the first time were under fire, and but for their general intelligence and zeal the enemy would have easily frustrated our operations. The zeal, good conduct, and gallantry of the men were deserving of every praise. Commander Kennedy, my second in command, gave me the most valuable co-operation, and from him, as well as the reports of the other officers, I feel justified in placing before you the names of the following warrant officers and men, who, under fire, behaved remarkably well, i,iz. :-Mr. Ri- chard Verey, acting gunner of Her Majesty's ship Ardent; Thomas Kerr, gunner, Royal Marine Artillery Iler Ma- jesty's ship Vesuvius; Peter HanhlIl, A.B., Her Majesty's ship Curlew David Barry, A.B., Her Majesty's ship Cracker. The enclosed plan, illustrative of our operations, by Mr. George Perry, Acting-Master of the Vesuvius, will, I trust, be of use, and I beg you will allow me to call your attenrion to the unvarying zeal of that officer. I have, &c., SHERARD OSBORN, Captain and Senior Officer in the Sea of Azoff. Rear-Admiral Sir E. Lyons, Bart., &c., G.C.B.
I THE WAR.
I THE WAR. I LORD HARRY VANE, M.P. At the Darlington Fat Cattle Show dinner, on Thursday, Lord Harry Vane took the opportunity of addressing his constituents on the war. His remarks were not very favourably received, and were evidently not in unison with the views of his hearers. The noble Lord said :—In the earlier part of the evening he had alluded to the great calamity of war. On one of the flags which decorated the walls he saw written Peace and Plenty," Peace, unfortunately, we have not. In a meeting of this kind he should think it improper to step out of the salutary regulation which ordered that no subject of party politics should be introduced. But he found that at every meeting recently allusions had been made to the present state of things in connexion with the war; and, as a public man, in a meeting of his countrymen, many of whom were also his constituents, he could not forbear from following the example so set. He merely gave it as a mat- ter of opinion, bu", in his view, we might originally have avoided the war. Others might entertain different views, but he had always thought so. His hon. friend had alluded to him as having served diplomatically in foreign countries. He had done so, it was true, but he did not put the circum- stance forward as accounting for his particular views, and as it was rather beside the question to discuss how the war was brought about he would pass it over. We were now engaged in war, and he would be the last to advocate any departure from the utmost fidelity to our engagements. He would not now make peace without certain conditions, but he certainly would say that he could be no party to what he thought was a popular delus;on--the advocacy of an in- definite war without any definite purpose. He looked with some alarm at the opinions entertained by some persons, and expressed at public meetings. It appeared to him to be no part of the mission of this country to enter at all hazards and at any time into all indefinite state of war, to settle every question at the cannon's mouth or th* bayonet point. Having engaged in war, it was necessary to I conclude that war upon certain definite conditions. The subject was of a grave character, and he thought it his duty, as others had done in different parts of the country, to I state his views upon it. Entertaining, as he did, extremely decided views on the matter, he could not but seize this opportunity of stating them to his constituents, more espe- cially as rumours were'afloat of certain negotiations and certain proposals which the Emperor of the French was alleged to have in some measure countenanced, but the great obstacle to the consideration of which was said to arise from popular feeling in this country. (Some symptoms of impatience and an indistinct murmur began to be mani- fested; but the noble chairman, remarking that he did not catch the observations made, proceeded.) To have stated what would be acceptable to all was something he could not hope for or expect; but, as a public man, meeting his con- stituEnts on a public aboasion, he had thought it right to state what were his views on this point. Had another opportunity presented, he would have availed himself of it, for the subject was most prominent in the thoughts and in the mouths of all. His views had been stated with the utmost good-will and with the greatest deference to the opinions of others but he felt that if we were to carry on a war for indefinite purposes, and if we wrre to go on heaping up mountains of debt with the prospect of a doubtful issue to a protracted war, those very interests which were now deriving a temporary benefit by reason of high prices must in the end greatly suffer, and those who now perhaps heard him with little favour would come round to the opinions he had expressed.
SIP. ROBERT PEEL.
SIP. ROBERT PEEL. Sir R. Peel, Bart., M P., who is the Captain of the An- glesea troop of the Staffordshire Yeomanry Cavalry, enter- tained at dinner on Wednesday at the Queens' Hotel Burton the non-commissioned officers and privates of his troops, and proposed the toast of The Army and Navy," in a style which betokened linuslially strong feeling upon the subject. The hon. baronet's animation was especially marked when he was referring to the navy. He said they were proud of the prosperity which followed the manufac- j turing and commercial enterprise of the people of these realms they were proud of the institutions of old England, and of her power, and of the position she maintained among the nations of the world but let them never forget that the safety of our shores, and the repose of the country mainly depended upon the united efforts, the gallantry, discipline, and valour of the two services, the army and the navy. Heartiiy drink, then, he would say, to the gallant yeomen whom he was then addressing, the toast of the"Armyand Navy. The gallant deeds of the army and navy had, he might say, been pencilled in blood in the undying annals of our country, and if theysearched through history they would find what Had been done by them in times gone by but, how glorious sover the records of the past might be, he was sure they would find nothing to equal the noble dating, the enduring courage, the brave mag- nanimity, which had distinguished our soldiers during the last two years' campaign in the Crimea. Let them for a moment take the services of the army, and consider what must be the self-deiial and devotedness of the soldiers in the performance of their arduous duties, They themselves it was true, wore the uniform of their country but they remamea in 1' « 11.1ilpl enjaying the comforts of the social board-let them, the for a while give a thought to the soldier. He was far away from home, uncheered b) its comforts and endearments, yet he bore his trials not only uncomplainingly, but with a magnanimi'y worthy of the noble cause in which he was engaged, sustained by the knowledge that he was fighting for his own home and the interests of his own country, as well as the interests of the civilised world. The soldier fought and bled, and it might be that he fell; but he knew that he fell and bled in the interests of his country—interests as dear to him indi- vidually as they were to any of those who were sitting at home at ease. What, thought they, was the feel- ing that rose dominant in the breast of the soldier when facing the foe ? He was speaking in the presence of those who could testify from experience what those feelings were, and he was sure he should express them when he said that the honour of his regiment was his pride, as the glory of Jtictory would be his praise and reward. There was a 80ldier then present connected with a most distinguished regiment, and he would appeal to him if these were not the feelings which animated the soldier when engaged in serious conflict on the battle-fiel 1. It had been well said— For gold the merchant ploughs the main, The farmer ploughs the manor But glory is the soldier's prize, The soldier's wealth his honour." Did not those lines well describe what the feelings of the soldier were when he was fighting for others, as our soldiers were now fighting in the Crimea. Many fell-it might be amid the shouts of victory while in the unflinching discharge of their duty-and we in England might well afford to let fall a tear of sympathy for the homes of the families who were never to welcome them back again. The tears of sympathy must drop but if they were any consolation in the affliction which had thus come upon those homes, by the fall of the beloved away in the Crimea, it was the re- flection that they had fallen with a halo of victory to encircle their graves. Well, he would now take the navy. He felt that the navy had made us Englishmen the lords and arbiters of the sea, and he would say to any man who in- sinuated a slur against the navy, that he knew not how to appreciate the character of the mariners of England. He well remembered, indeed, that, happening to propose the toast of the navy on a recent occasion in virtue of the office he had the honour to hold, it was alleged against him that he availed himself of his position to insinuate a slur against the navy. lie asked them if they thought it possible he could have done so ? No; they knew nim better. They (his friends and comrades) knew him better than to suppose him guilty of such an act as that. (Great cheering.) He would rather lose the utterance of his lips, the power of speech God had given him, than insinuate a slur he had not the courage to avow. If they would believe him, he had not the courage to avow the insinuation of a slur because his heart did not acknowledge. He never insinuated any- thing against that service, but nevertheless he must say that when a man served a Government, to his mind he should first of all serve his country, and put his country above every other consideration. He would say, then, that in proposing the toast they had so cordially received, he trusted they clearly appreciated the feelings with which he gave it. He knew perfectly well that he could hold his own against the rest, and all he would say in answer to tho,e who had made the allegations to whieh he had alluded was, that if every British heart beat as his did, he would war- rant that there would be no lack of spirit or loyalty within the sea-girt cliffs of old England. Of course it would ill become him to make any political allusion to what was passing in the East, but a few reflec- tions might not be out of place. We had gained great victories, but at cost of many men, and now at the enti of the year we heard rumours of a peace which was to be brought about by the intervention of Austria. Now, this was a subject very interesting to them all, as it came home to their breasts, and affected the interests of each indivi- dual. There were, then, some ideas of a peace. The funds were rising, and the hopes of the public were raised at the idea of a peace which was to be brought about through the intervention of Austria. Now, they all anxiously desired peace but the danger was that that very desire led them hastily to attach importance to prospects not unfrequently based on shallow foundations. His idea was that there was little importance to be attached to these rumours of peace. (Hear, hear.) He admitted the importance of peace, and, with every one else, would be glad too see it re-esta blii lied and to this end he would say) so long as the honour of the allies was secured, that It mattered not through whose intervention it was secured that of Austria or of a friendly Power. He knew, and 'hey all knew as well as lie did, that Austria was no friend of ours. Austria, under a professed lukewarm friendship, had only cloaked an ill-disguised hostility and what he would say was, that if they did have negotiations for peace, they must be cautious how they dealt with proposals that came from Austria. lie wished to put the case fairly before them. He wanted peace as much as any man, but if the negotiations for peace were to come from Austria, he should be exceedingly cautious about them. He could not forget the past-he could not forget the hesitation and vacillation of Austria during recent proceedings, and he could not close his eyes to the treacherous conduct of Austria in the Danubian Principalities. Austria entered the Principalities as our friend, but her conduct had been nothing else than that of the ally of Russia. If they were to have a peace, the cause the allies had espoused, and which had been hallowed, he might say, by the blood of our countrymen, absolutely demanded that it must be satisfactory to the country and such as the sacrifices it had made demanded. The country had cheerfully accepted, because the war was just, all the hardships and burdens war imposed. From the highest to the lowest there had been breathed a spirit of patriotism, as witness of which he might mention the noble contributions to the Patriotic and other funds and these burdens were accepted in a spitit of magnanimity as great as any nation had ever shown as we were fighting for a nation whose safety was threatened, and her very people enthralled with a slavery more despotic than any which had ever threatened Greece or Rome. But, independently of all this, there was the honour of our own country to be held sacred, and therefore he said they must not be satisfied with the bare Fonr Points. The Crimea was no longer an integral part of Russia, and it never must be, and, he would add, it never should be. Let them think of the corpses of their countrymen by which the Crimea was hallowed in the eyes of Englishmen, and then say whether they were to be satisfied with any false peace, which might be offered through the medium of a Power which had proved itself anything but friendly towards them.
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THE REPRESENTATION OF ROCHESTER.—Monday, Dec. 10-— A report has arrived in this city that the Hon. F. Villiers, M.P., has accepted the Chiltern Hundreds. MI- Phillip Martin, of Leeds Castle, has been brought forward by the Liberals, and commenced a canvass yesterday after- noon. It is understood that'Mr. W. II. Bodkin will be brought forward to contest the representation on Conserva- tive principles. REPRESENTATION OF GREAT YARMOUTH.—We have authority for stating that, in consequence of the intended retirement of Mr. Rumbold at the next election, the Hon. Col. Vereker has been requested to offer himself for the representation of Great Yarmouth, in conj unction "ith Sir E. II. K. Lacon, Bart., one of the present sitting members, whenever a dissolution takes place. THE REPRESENTATION OF STAFFORDSHIRE.—A report prevailed a few weeks ago, says the Staffordshire Advertiser, that Smith Child, Esq., one of the representatives for the northern division of this county, was about to retire, and that Hugo Meyneil Ingram, Esq., of Hoarcross Hall, had been solicited to come forward as a candidate in the Con- servative inteiest. We believe that we are correct in stating that although Mr. Child had contemplated retiring from the representation of the county, that gentleman has been solicited by the Conservative committee to reconsider his determination, in consequence of the unsuccessful issue of the invitation to Mr. Ingram and although Mr. Child's decision has not at present been made known, he has been assured of the continued support of the Conservative party, should he accede to their wishes. In the event of Mr. Smith Child's resignation, we understand that Lord Sandon will probably be solicited to come forward as a candidate, and it is thought that his lordship would be likely to obtain the rapport of all parties.
- - -_. - -MOTIONS FOR NEXT…
MOTIONS FOR NEXT SESSION. I (From the Press.) I The day for the opening of Parliament having been formally fixed, it may be convenient that members and the public should know what Notices of Motion are already upon the book. The following is a transcript, completed up to the time of our going to press Lord John Russell.—To move an address to the Crown humbly requesting that the country may be immediately saved. Lord John Russell.—To move an address to the Crown humbly requesting that the only means for effecting the above-mentioned object may be at once adopted-namely, his being empowered to form a Ministry. Lord John Russell.—To move the appointment of a select committee to inquire and report to the House what Lortl Somers would have done if he had been sent to Vienna with self-contradictory instructions to negotiate in a languaxe he did not understand. Mr. Cobden.—To move that in all future cases where the Order of the Garter shall be conferred, a piece of plain blue calico shall be used instead of the ribbon at present employed. Mr. MialL-To move, as an addition to Mr. Cobden's motion, that in all cases where the new Knight of the Garter shall be a Dissenter, a dissenting minister shall pet form the religious part of the service instead of the Bishop of Winchester. Mr. Henry Drummond.—To move that upon the pedestal of the new statue of Sir Robert Peel, in the City, there shall be inscribed the record that the price to which en- lightened legislation has brought the quartern loaf is 110%; elevenpence. Mr. Apsley Pellatt.-To move an address praying that in aid of the war an extra tax be laid upon every article used at table, except china and glass ware. Mr. William Williams, or any other Member who may be sitting under Mr. A. Pell-,ttt.-To move that the Speaker be instructed to apprise Mr. Pellatt that he ought to keep his hands to himself, and not to be perpetually smashing the hat of the Member before him. Sir Charles Napier.—To move that Sir James Graham be placed at the bar, and generally blown up until further notice. Sir James Graham.—To move that Sir Charles Napier be expelled the House and the service, fined X50,000, and have his new cocked hat taken away. Mr. Bright.—To move that smoking be allowed on the part of members of the House, during the debates, much inconvenience having arisen from the practice of driving Members to the smoking-room, as, upon their return, they have frequently replied to speeches that have not been de- livered. Mr. Brotlici,ton.-To move the repeal of the income-tax, and that its place be supplied by a tax upon all butcher's meat and all other killed food, including pickled whelks. Mr. Vincent S,tilly.-To move that whether an Irish Member is talking against time or not, it shall be breach of privilege for the gallery not to report him in full, and in the very tirst person. Mr. Bowyer.—To move for a copy of the Austrian Con- cordat, and that it, anl an Ainsworth's "Latin Dictionary," may be printed with the votes, in order that upon another occasion he may be able to explain to the House the real meaning of the document, as understood by Cardinal Wiseman. Mr. Tite.-To move a large measure of Administrative Reform, and at all events to move, as an instalment thereof, that the policeman in the Octagon hall of the House of Parliament be not permitted to buy ginger pop of the stall-keeper, over whose proceedings he ought to exer- cise strict vigilance.
ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE. I
ASSIZE INTELLIGENCE. I At Rochdale, Jonathan Hey wood was indicted before Mr. Justice Wightman, for the wilful murder of Martha Jones. The deceased was a widow woman with whom the prisoner cohabited. On the night of the 21st of July, the prisoner and his paramour slept at the Half Moon public house at Rochdale. Early on the following (Sunday) morning the prisoner left the house, and about the middle of the day the deceased was found in the bedroom in which they had slept with her throat cut, and other appearances which had led to the present inquiry. The prisoner would be shown to have left the house very early on the Sunday morning, and, after changing his clothes and washing himself, he went away from the neighbourhood and ulti- mately obtained employment as a labourer at Chadwick's farm, in that county, where he was eventually apprehended The frial lasted from nine o'clock in the morning of Friday till eight at night, and after an immense mass of evidence bearing more or less against the accused, the jury returned a verdict of guilty, and the Judge passed a sentence of death. At Kingston Assizes, Thomas Woods, Samuel Eastwood, William Foyle, William Blackman, and David Smith, were indicted for the murder of John Donaldson. Mr. Justice Crompton presided Oil the 29th of July there was a dis- turbance at a public-house at Hrislemerc, amorg a number of nanies. The deceased who was an Inspector of Police, went in and had the house cleared. A row took place and Smith was taken into custody and locked up in the cage. The other prisoners attempted a rescue, and Woods struck the deceased a tremendous blow on the head with a plough whippance," which in a short time proved fatal. The jury acquitted Smith, and found the other prisoners guilty of aggravated manslaughter. Woods was sentenced to 20 years' transportation, and the rest to six years' penal servitude. THE BCRDON SLOW POISONING CASE.—Joseph Snaith Wuoler, a respectable individual, was indicted for the wilful murder of his wife, Jane Wooler. The circumstances of the case weie published at the time On the 8th of May, Mrs. Wooler was taken iit and lingered until the 27th of June. She was attended by a Dr. Jackson, his assistant Mr. Henzell, and Dr. Haslewood. During the time of their attendance these witnesses had their suspicions that the deceased was being poisoned by some one, but they said nothing until after the death and burial. The body was examined and the presence of arsenic detected in the stomach, liver and kidneys. It was shown that Mr. Wooler had Fowler's solution of arsenic in the house and had a knowledge of poisons, and the manner in which the arsenic had been administered plainly manifested that it was given by a person who had experience on the subject. On the other hand the evidence went to show that Mr. Wooler had always treated his wife with affection, and no motive for the crime was suggested. The trial last three days and resulted in a verdict of acquittal in which the Judge concurred. At Exeter, on Saturday, Robert Ilandcock was indicted for the wilful murder of his wife Philippa Handcock. The parties lived at Northam, and had done so for 16 or 17 years On the night of Wednesday, the 1st of August, the prisoner I beat in his wife's br.uns with a hammer whilst she was asleep in bed, and afterwards cut her throat. The defence was that the prisoner was insane at the time, and a number of witnesses were called to prove that he laboured under the monomania that his wife was unfaithful to him with a man of the name of Puncher; that there was not the slightest ground for his jealousy, in fact that he was mad on that point, although sane on all others. The jury took this view and returned a verdict of Not Guilty. At the Liverpool Assizes, on Monday, James Pagen was found guilty of wilfully setting fire to his house at Salford on the 20th of August last, and sentence of death was re- corded tgainst him.
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FIRST FRUITS OF THE AUSTRIAN CONCORDAT.—Seve- ral private Protestant schools, which had been established in Hungary without the permission of the Austrian Go- vernment, have been already closed. A DISGUSTED CHAIRMAN.—Mr. M'Combie, editor of -N--I r.  l C ornb i e, e oiitor of the Free Press, a Scotch paper, when lately presiding as chairman at a lecture in Aberdeen, suddenly resigned the post, saying he could not stand the lecturer's introductory nonsense. REPRESENTATION OF LEEDS.—Robert Hall, Esq., re- corder of Doncaster, has intimated his intention of offering himself as a candidate for the representation of Leeds, in opposition to the Right Hon. M. T. Baines, but only in the event of very important questions" arising before the day of/lection. Mr. Hall is a Conservative. AN FJNVOY FROM MADAGASCAR TO THE POPE.—A letter from Rome states that there is now in that city a Malgach ian envoy, or, more properly speaking, an envoy from a Malgachian Prince, the said envoy being a French- man. It appears that this Sovereign of one million and a half of subjects, in the island of Madagascar, has been converted to Romanism, and has driven out all the Pro- testants from his state. The envoy, on leaving Rome, is to proceed to Paris, having letters for the French govern- ment. In an old Almanack of the year 1750, (Rider's British Merlin) we find for the month of December the following observations Let a warm fire and a cup of generous wine, or good October beer, be thy bath, the kitchen thy apothecary's sliop hot meat and broth thy physic, and a well spread table the proof of thy charity to thy poor niegh- bours. And by ending the year after this manner, thou wilt lay a good foundation towards the beginning of the next." FiRE AT ALDEltSIIOT CAMP. A few minutes after 9 o'clock on Sunday evening a fire broke out in the officers' quarters of the Antrim Rifles, being letter H in the south camp. It first occurred in the hut occupied by the lieu- tenant-colonel, and originated by overheating the stove. The alarm was immediately given by the sentinel close by, but so rapidly did the flames extend that the officer occu- pying the next room succeeded in saving but a small por- tion of his property. A large number of men, many of them but half-dressed, were speedily collected, but, no officer with authority having appeared, they were unable to render the least assistance. Blankets were, however, placed on the top of the next block of huts, and the sol- diers, anxious to be of use, began to destroy such portions of the building as were still accessible. No water could be procured. Within 30 yards were some wells, but there being neither ropes nor pumps great difficulty was expe- rienced in obtaining it, and the quantity was too small to be of practical use. In a few minutes the whole block was a mass of flames, and neither fire-engine nor iron screens for isolating the block had yet arrived. The greatest con- fusion existed, and it soon became evident that it would be impossible to preserve the next block of liuts indeed the tar and pitch with which all the huts are covered soon be- came ignited, and the flames then spread with great ra- pidity. The engines now arrived, but were of little use as the supply of water was so extremely limited. Men were marched to the pumps in great numbers, and only added to the confusion while the screens were delated fjr a long time on the road for want of help, and when they arrived one at least was found to be broken and of no use. The men behaved with great zeal and activity; several ofifcers also did their best, but the want of organization was most gross, and is the subject of universal reprobation. For half an hour at least no effort whatever was made to check the fire on the contrary, the fact of pulling down doors and windows increased its violence by admitting air to every part. \s it was a calm night, one block of huts might have been ?aved had the most ordinary means been avail- able, but without water, engines, screens, and authority (hit was quite impossible.
- - - -REV. R. J. H. THOMAS…
REV. R. J. H. THOMAS VERSUS WILLIAM GWYNNE THOMAS. [Before Vice-Chancellor Sir W. P. Wood ] The plaintiff in this suit filed his bill for a declaration of his rights under the marriage settlement of his father and mother as against the devisees of his father's will. By the marriage settlement, made in 1814, certain real estates to which the plaintiff's mother was entitled were conveyed to trustees upon trust as to a portion thereof as the wife should appoint, and in default of, and until such appointment, in trust for the wife, for her life, for her sole and separate use, and, after her death, in trust for all and every the child and children of the marriage as tenants in common. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas appointed the settled estates by way of mort- gage to secure E600 in 1815. with a covenant by Mr. Thomas for payment of this sum. Mrs. Thomas died on the 25th of August, 1832, without having exercised her power of appointment, except by the mortgage deed. There were six ch.ldren born of the marriage, two of whom died in the lifetime of their mother. The plaintiff, who was the eldest son, attained his majority in 183G. Mr. Thomas, the father, entered into possession of the property upon the death of his wife, and received the rents up to his death, the 25th of August, 1852. By his will, dated the 25th of August, 1851, Mr. Thomas gave his real and personal estate to the defendants—William Gynne Thomas and Mary Ann Thomas, two of his children, and appointed them executor and executrix of his will. The plaintiff, (who represented the two children who had died in the lifetime of Mrs. Thomas) claimed, in his own and their right, three-sixths of the settled property, which was re- sisted by the defendants on the ground that his claim was barred by the Statute of Limitations (3 and 4 William IV., chap. 27). Mr. Daniel and Mr. Charles Hall, for the plaintiff, contended that the statute had no application, as Mr. Thomas, the father, must be held to have entered into pos- session as the guardian of his children, and to have received the rents as their bailiff. At any rate, adverse possession against the plaintiff could only hafe commenced in 183(5 upon his attaining 21, since which time the 20 years pre- scribed by the statute had not elapsed. Mr. W. M. James and Mr. Cairns, for one of the children, adopted the same line of argument. Mr. Rolt and Mr. Renshaw, for the defendants William Gwynne Thomas and Mary Ann Thomas, contended that from the death of Mrs. Thomas in 1832 there had not been at any time a possession consistent with the rights of the plaintiff. There was no evidence whatever to show that the father entered as guardian of his children, nor was there any necessity that he should have so entered, as there were trustees of the settlement who ought to have entered on behalf of the children in 1832. The plaintiff, whose right accrued during infancy, ought, within 10 years from the termination of that disability, to have asserted his rights against his father, according to section 16 of the statute. Nut having done so, the adverse possession dated back from the time when the right first accrued, more than 20 years before filing the present bill. The Vice-Chanceller, without calling for a reply, said that an important principle in these cases was, that where the possession of a person could be treated as that of the lawful owner it was not to be considered as adverse. In this case the father, with several children, all under age, had, upon the death of his wife, entered into possession. Prima facie he must be taken to have entered on behalf of the infants, and not adversely. There was no evidence of his not having discharged his obligation of maintaining the children out of the rents, and, looking at the circumstances, the possession might reasonably enough be referred to his entry as guardian. The case was different from that of a mere stranger. It had been said that, although the entry might have been lawful, yet that the retaining possession after the infancy of the plaintiff ceased enabled the Statute of Limitations to be set up as a bar to his claim This Court, however, would not allow a person who had pntered as guardian afterwards to set up an adverse title and claim the benefit of the statute, and, at all events, would not confine the assertion of right by the person whose land had been thus entered upon to ten years from the termi- nation of his infancy. The infant's right in such a case would first accrue at 21, and the previous possession would be taken as lawful, and not adverse. The objection, therefore, to the claim of the plaintiff, of the Statute of Limitations was entirely obviated, and it must be declared that he was entitled to three-sixths of the settled property; the clients of Mr. James to one-sixth. On Friday, the Vice-Chancellor observed, that upon the question of how far the plaintiff in an equitable cjectment was entitled to an account of the rents and profits where the parties were contending hostilely, the practice was that the plaintiff could only get the account from the time of filing the bill. Where, however, the party in possession filled a fiduciary character the account was carried back according to the discretion of the Court. As he had before observed, he thought that Mr. Thomas must be considered as having entered into possession as guardian, and was therefore amenable to the process of the Court. The account would be taken from 1852, when Mr. Thomas had died, it being understood that the plaintiff waived his right to six years' account.
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All doubts respecting the rumoured dissolution of Par- liament are set at rest by the fiat of the Council held on Friday afternoon at Windsor Castle. It vjlg there or- dered, that Parliament should be further prffogued from the 11th of December until the 31st of January, and that a proclamation should be issued summoning Parliament to meet on the 31st of January for the despatch of busi- ness. A VETERAN'S EXPERIENCE.—At a recent demonstra- tion in Banff, in honour of the birthday of the Earl of Fife, Captain M'Donald, in returning thanks when his health was proposed, said—" I am much obliged to you for the honour you have done me. It is now the eleventh hour with me. I am now 75 years of age, and the oldest man in the room. You all know that I have taken an active, I may say an independent part, in the affairs of the burgh. I came here to live and die amongst you. (Cheers.) I did not come here to make money. I had sailed far and wide, and laboured hard to acquire some means. I have sailed four times round the globe. (Cheers.) I have been in all the climates of the known world—(cheers)—and I may tell my young friends here that for 55 years I have di^nk nothing stronger than tea and coffee, and I always ,,td the cold better than any man among my crew. I ha made nine voyages round Cape Horn—(cheers)—and I always stood the cold better than any of my seamen, so you will see that its only Dutch courage' that drink gives. We seamen call it Dutch courage' when a man is in liquor." SOMETHING LIKE A WII,L.-The Jok;i Btill publishes the following particulars of the will of the late Mr. Dixon, of Stanstead-park, near Emsworth, Hants, a house, by the way, which was built by the celebrated Parliamentarian General, Fairfax. He has left the estate, with house, furniture, 8:0. I wortn aoout tj(ju u a-year;, anu wu,uw in tne tuuus, absolutely, to his widow zC20,000 to each of his aged sisters (two) £ 50 per annum to each of his servants, with £.500 in additipn to those who had lived long in his service L5 to each labourer on the estate, and a fewer minor legacies. A month or two before his death he gave (in lieu of legacies) ?.5,910 to different friends he also bui?t and endowed an almshouse for six decayed merchants, with a church, par- sonage, and schoolrooms at Stanstead, at a cost of £ 56,000. To all the local charities, as well as to the poor, his liberality was exceedingly great, and no loss can be felt like his. He was the first port wine merchant in the world, and lie died worth upwards of one million sterling. He had no issue by either of his two wives. His widow is sister to Admiral Walcott, the Member for Christ Church, and first cousin to Sir Admiral Lyons, the Commander-in-Chief in the Black Sea. A Tartar conveying despatches from Kars to Constantino- p e, was seized in attempting to pass through the Russian lines. He was the bearer of several maps transmited from our en- gineering department to the commanders of the garrison at Kars. These became the legitimate spoil of the Russians, but a medal for the Burmese war, directed to Captain Thompson, the reward of his services in the last Indian campaign, was sent into Kars, with a flag of truce, by General Mouravieff, in compliance with the anxious request contained in a letter of Captain Thompson's mother. A FOUTUNAIE CLERGYMAN.—Her Majesty has com- manded the publication of the sermon preached by the Rev. Mr. Caird, of Errol, in Crathie Church, in October last, during Her Majesty's sojourn at Balmoral. The sermon is entitled "The Religion of Common Life." It is no secret at Balmoral that Prince Albert expressed his high satisfac- tion with Mr. Caiid's pulpit discourse and appearance by stating that lie had not heard a preacher like him for seven years, and did not expect to enjoy a like pleasure for as long a period to come.-Aberdeen Herald. SIR C. NAPlEit.-On Tuesday a numerous body of the supporters of Sir C. Napier met at the Bridge-house Hotel, to celebrate his return for the borough of Southwark Mr. Vickers in the chair. After the usual loyal toasts, Sir Charles Napier, in reply to his health, which was drunk with the greatest enthusiasm, made some allusion to gene- ral pontics anu to uie war. liis intention was to support Lord Palmerston. The Chairman had told them that he did not believe Lord Nelson himself could have done more than he (Sir C. Napier) had done in the Baltic. He hoped they would not receive all the chairman had said on that point as Gospel, but all he could say was, that he had not one single act to accuse himself of. He truly went into the Baltic on a voyage of discovery, for he assured them all that when he went to the Gulf of Finland he did not know where to turn—whether to the right hand or to the left. He was without charts or pilots, and had men who were picked up about the streets, and hardly knew their right hand from their left. He was an agent of the govern- ment; but instead of having to deal with wise men of busi- ness, who would inquire and learn from him the difficulties of the position, he was ignominously dismissed, and not a single question of the kind was put to him. With regard to the war, he was persuaded the people of England would carry it on til! they obtained an honourable peace. What was an honourable peace it was not for him to say, but he thought that they must drive the Russians out of the Crimea before they talked of an honourable peace. He also thought that Russia which dragged them into the war, should be made to pay the expense which It occasioned. Russia had thirty sail of the line fully manned in the Baltic. Was there no danger to their shores In the prox- imity of such a fleet ? He was of opinion that the reduc- tion of that fleet, and also of the Russian army, should be made one of the conditions of peace, so as to give security to other countries and especially to Sweden and Denmark. But whilst looking to the security of the nation abroad, he should not neglect to press for those administrative and parliamentary reforms which were so much required at home. He thought the time was come when the best man should have place, whether he was the son of a tailor, a shoemaker or a duke.