Current:

Leader (1850-1860), 18th November 1854, Edition 2 of 2, Page 11

Page 11
Page 11
11 of 24

On this page

  • Departments (3)
    • ^rrfl'frsrrmf f ^wmpL
    • TY* (^W+l Qv*\0f^ /Ha /- V V, ^F'Hr ^ °& djf & ' \ ^ * /* p?\W /& w^k f> ' ' \ r <*V \* ? C2/^ ¦
    • ;. ... . . '..- : ¦¦ . : , ' :' ¦ ¦' / ^i -tr |v \ + i* ~ (t\ -fTrr \v-tf JiyUullT ^lUUZi0* • "
  • Text (11)
  • Transcript

    • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

      Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.

      November 18, 1854.] The Leader. 1091

      November 18 , 1854 . ] THE LEADER . 1091

      ^Rrfl'frsrrmf F ^Wmpl

      ^ MiBUtyt

      .An Extraordinary Gazette Was Published ...

      . An Extraordinary Gazette was published last evening . It contains several despatches from Lord Raglan , the last being dated November 3 rd , with lists of casualties among officers from the 27 th October to the 2 nd November , and with lists of the killed and wounded among privates and non-commissioned officers from October 22 nd to November 1 st . The details of the battle on the 5 th cannot be expected for some days . Lord Raglan ' s despatch , dated the 3 rd November , is the first authentic account of the position prior to the battle of the 5 th , and after the affairs of the 25 th—26 th . Before Sebastopol , November 3 , 1854 .

      My Lord Duke , —Since I wrote to your Grace , on the 28 th ultimo , the enemy have considerably increased then- force in tie Valley of the Tchemaya , both in artillery , cavalry , and infantry , and have extended to their left , not only occupying the village of Camara , but the heights beyond it , and pushing forward pickets and even guns towards our extreme right ; and these yesterday fired a few shots , apparently to try the range , which fell somewhat short .

      These movements have induced me to place as strong a force as I can dispose of on the precipitous ridge in thatdirection , in order to prevent any attempt to get round to Balaklava by the sea ; and the whole line is strengthened by a breastwork , which has been thrown up . by the Highland Brigade , tie Royal Marines and the Turkish troops , thus circumscribing that part of the position ; whilst immediately in front of the gorge leading into tlie town , a strong redoubt is in course of being completed , which is to be garrisoned by the 93 d Regiment , and armed with several guns ; and on high ground behind , and to the left , is a battery manned by seamen , which terminates the position to be defended by the troops uifder the command of Major-General Sir Colin Campbell .

      Further to the left , and in a more elevated position is the brigade of the 1 st French division , commanded by General Yinois , ready to move to the assistance of any of the British force that may be assailed , and maintaining the connexion between the troops in the valley and those on the ridge on which the main armies are posted . The harbour of Balaklava is under the charge of Captain Dacres , of the Sanspareil , and Rear-AdmiraL Sir Edmund Lyons is in the roadstead , outside , and is in daily communication with me . Thus every possible step has been taken to secure this important point , but I will not conceal from your Grace , that 1 should be more satisfied if I could have occupied the position in considerably greater strength .

      With reference to the operations of the combined armies , engaged in the attack on Sebastopol , I have the honour to state , that there is no material diminution in the enemy ' s firo , and yostorday morning , two hours before daylight , the cannonado from all parts of the south front was heavy in the extreme , both on the French and British lines , and it occasioned , I deeply regret to say , some loss , but less than might have been expected under the circumstances .

      In the meanwhile the French ^ who __ . have . before them the town and real body of the place , have taken aclvnntnge of the more favourable ground , and aro carrying on approaches systematically on the most naliont and commanding part of the enemy ' s lines ; and they have constructed and opened batteries , the precision of the fire from which lias most materially damaged the Russian works , although kb yet they havo not succeeded in silencing their gun a . Tho woiUhcr m Htill fine , but it . hart become extremely cold , and then * wna n novoro frost lust night . IIAOIjAN . Ilia Gi'oco tho Duke of Noweiiatlo , & c , & c , & o .

      Mailh To Awstkaija.—It N]>Peur.I Thul Th...

      Mailh to Awstkaija . —It n ]> peur . i thul thorn w hoi no tinnier of pontnl com inimical ion with Australia Imln / jf Bu «|)« ndod for muno liino , Tho General Hcrow Company , which him tho contract for l \ w next muil out , mid cannot , take it , wanted to himuI tliu hii ^ rt l > , y t . lm lCw Tnelujt , Railing from Liverpool on tho ltl > of iWuniWar ; font tho owiioch of the U « rf . Indict will not nowl h \ -. v round to call at HoMtluiiiipton , anil , though a Hpodul train could run from London to Liverpool in llvo houm , Lord Canning , l ' oHtiunKtur-Gonunw , innirttrt ojj tho cull at Southampton . Is not thta ubmirtlV

      Terms Of Subscription To "®&E 3leabet." ...

      TERMS OF SUBSCRIPTION TO "®& e 3 leabet . " For a Half-Tear £ o 13 0 To be remitted in advance . f 3 F Money Orders should be drawn upon tho Straktj Branch Office , and be made payable to Mr . Alfred E Galloway , at No . 7 , Wellington Street , Strand .

      To Correspondents. It Is Impossible To A...

      TO CORRESPONDENTS . It is impossible to acknowledge the mass of letters we receive . Their insertion is often delayed , owing to a press of matter ; and when omitted it is frequently from reasons Tniite independent of tho merits of the communiea tion . j tfo notice can bo taken of anonymous communications . Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenticated "by the name and address of the writer ; not necessarily for publication , but as a guarantee of his good faith . Communications should always be legibly written , and on one side of the paper only . If long , it increases the difficulty of finding space for them . We cannot undertake to return rejected communications . All letters for the Editor should be addressed to 7 , Wellington-street , Strand , London .

      Ty* (^W+L Qv*\0f^ /Ha /- V V, ^F'Hr ^ °& Djf & ' \ ^ * /* P?\W /& W^K F≫ ' ' \ R ≪*V \* ? C2/^ ¦

      < 5 jrp ^ j * c

      ^— R V ^ Y " "V Saturday, November 18, 1...

      ^— V ^ y " "V SATURDAY , NOVEMBER 18 , 1854 .

      ;. ... . . '..- : ¦¦ . : , ' :' ¦ ¦' / ^I -Tr |V \ + I* ~ (T\ -Ftrr \V-Tf Jiyuullt ^Luuzi0* • "

      ^ tt liltc Ma ra .

      There Is Nothing So Revolutionary, Becau...

      There is nothing so revolutionary , because there is nothing so unnatural and convulsive , as the strain to keep things fixed ¦ when all the world is by zhe very law of its creation in eternal progress . —Db . Arnold

      Where Is The House Of Commons? Parliamen...

      WHERE IS THE HOUSE OF COMMONS ? Parliament stands prorogued to the middle of next month ( the 20 th December ) . . This is not a very usual proceeding : and it means that Parliament will then- —or soon after the 25 thmeet " for the despatch of busvness "—if the country chooses . The moderate demand for a November session—a demand altogether confined to the newspapers—suggested , no doubt ,

      the cautious adjournment for a month , lest , in the meanwhile , the cry should be taken up by some accredited party leader ; and , it may be inferred , the Government will be entirely guided , on the poflbt , by the wishes of the House of Commons itself . Silence , when the House is concerned , is assent : why should it be collected among Christmas inconveniences merely to declare that it has perfect confidence in the Government ?

      We do not suppose that it can be any doubt of the voice of the House of Commons which induces the Government to continue and conduct the war on its own responsibility . The Coalition Government excludes only one party—Lord Derby ' s agricultural party : and , for the moment , that party is too placid to admit of the manoeuvres of its leaders . We see in the speech , this week , of Mr . Miles , that , in the great thoughts inspired by the wax , faction is dead : and by this time , also , Mr . Disraeli must have ascertained that even tho Hebraistic-Protestant cry has but slight

      chance of an echo from a . squirearchy ' intent upon 80 s . a quarter . The Ministry can have no reason to believe that they would not bo perfectly safe with tho present Parliament , and it is not likely that us they now want men and money , they would bo disposod to reject any proffer from Parliament itself to increase their moral power by a . unanimous vote . If , then , there is no session until next year—until tho time when new great-diplomatic and military measures have beon decided on , if not executed , let tho responsibility attach to those members of tho Legislature who are as quiet as tho members of tho Corps- lA-ginlatif of Franco— -mid comparison can no further go .

      But has tho Government deserved this trust ? To put the question more politely—Ought not tho Government to render itself

      worthy of this confidence of the nation and the Legislature ? The blundering , up to this moment , has been conspicuous , and awful in its consequences . We decline to coincide in the compliments paid to the Ministers by the plushed journals , because the Government happened to think of reinforcements before an astute press had urged reinforcements . For "why are reinforcements being sent ? Because the army sent to the Crimea has been found

      insufficient—because the arm y sent to take Sebastopol has been found too small to talce so strong a place . Certainly General Lord Raglan was the chief " blunderer in the calculation , and we count him . among the Cabinet . Granted that nearly the whole country has been mistaken in this estimate of Russian capacity in the Crimea : it was the business of the Government to get at

      the facts , and to prepare for the facts . They were not without warning from the few who escaped the popular delusions , and who were not misled by leading journals . For pur own part , when we heard that St . Arnaud and Lord Raglan were going to the Crimea with their little army , we took for granted that the Governments were calculating on a general flight of the Russians .

      The Government entered on a great war with a small spirit , and have done everything in a small way . They did not believe in the war until it had begun j and as they delayed the declaration , so they have delayed everything else to the last moment . History might call this war , so far as England has been' concerned , the war by degrees . Let us recall the facts : the array suggests the tone of the men in whom we are still trusting- Dull conception and fidgetty disbelief—these have been the characteristics of Ministers iii carrying on the Government , as respects Russia .

      When , on quiet Lord Aberdeen ' s easy accession , the Emperor Nicholas frankly conveyed to the English Ambassador at St . Petersburg his views on Turkey , Lord John Russell , then Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs , treated that remarkable revelation as a mere conversation , entered into for an evening's amusement , and having written a despatch or two—of course not without some sort of consultation with his Queen and his colleagues—he considered that the matter was at an end , and that the Czar would drop a design on Constantinople just as readily as an episodical Lord

      John Russell drops a Reform Bill . When Prince Menschikoff appeared at Constantinople in a state and pomp not usual in an ordinary embassy , and made demands on the Sultan which he knew beforehand that the Sultan would not be allowed to comply with , our Government treated the matter as an ordinary difficulty of diplomacy , and assumed , and assured Europe , that there was nothing serious . When , to enforce these demands , a Russian army crossed the Pruth , our Government still saw in tho event a mere passing occupationrefused to advise tho Sultan that there was a

      casus belli , and offerod mediation between tho two sovereigns . When the Czar accepted tho mediation , via Austria , our Government believed him in earnest , notwithstanding that , at tho very moment , ho was exhausting all the resources of his dominions in raising- vast armies . All this tirno our ( loot , under strict orders , was playing at demonstrations- —sunning in the sea of Marmora

      while tho Russian forces at Sevastopol were preparing for tlio foil swoop on Sinopo :- —also , all this time , Turkish ngonts wore being withhold from raising tho loan which , raised a year ago , would havu onnblud tho 8 ult . au to act for himself . At last , thu grand insolence and magnificent courage oi' tho Czar had quelled the moan minds oppo . Hod to him into tho conviction that hu mm not to bo protocoled by

  • Citation
    • Leader (1850-1860), Nov. 18, 1854, page 11, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_18111854/page/11/