MILITARY EXPEDITION TO ADEN.

For some considerable time past the Foodlee tribe of Arabs, under the leadership of their chief, Ahmedben- Abdoola, have given great trouble to our countrymen at Aden. They had established a blockade and intercepted the supplies of provisions sent for sale by the friendly tribes into the Aden market, on which the garrison and residents were mainly dependent. Latverly this frc-ebooting chief, having assembled Lis tribe and mercenaries to the number of 1500 men, marched from his stronghold, Shugrn, and took up a position within twenty miles of the Aden fortifications, whence he proceeded to ravage the whole country held by the Sultan of Lahedj, who is a firm ally of the British; and the inhabitants of Aden could sea at night the flames of burning villages and crops which the Foodlee chief and his followers had already begun to destroy. In order to put an end to this state of things, 6SO men and four gun?, under the command of Colonel Woollcorabe, C.8., left Aden on the 22nd December last. The Foodlee chief was totally surprispd and routed in his encampment, about twenty miles from Aden, the first day's ma-.ch of the column, at 'a place called Bir Said, and his whole following only escaped destruction or capture through the entire absence of cavalry from the British force. As it was, the chief escaped on horseback with some difficulty, leaving all his camp standing, and having 175 men of his tribe killed and wounded. The first success Aras achieved with the loss of ten wounded on the side of our people. Aftrr a short rest, to organise the column for further operations, the pursuit of the Foodlee chief was continued, and he Avas overtaken near the village of Jowalla, after a long and exhausting forced march of 32 miles. Thence, after a few rounds from our Armstrong guns, he beat a further retreat to a position near Ahmoodea, where he had a residence and some forts. On the appearance of the Britisli force in front of Ahmoodea, he again retreated, skirmishing, to Assola, losing only a few men from the distant fire of the British, but abandoning four iron guns. The British force then marched on Assola, which they occupied and destroyed, taking three more iron guns. Here some of the heads of the Poodlee tribe tendered their submission to Colonel Merewether. The Foodlee chief retired from Assota to Shugra, and after plundering that place he abandoned it and fled to the mountains, leaving hisowu. territories in the plains in the hands of the British. The force then proceeded to Dehran and Al Khour, destroying all the forts and defensive strongholds, in the destruction of which Wo officers (Captain Jacob, of the Engineers, and Captain Hardy, of the Royal Artillery) were injured. The forts of Ahraoodea, Avere finally bloAvn up and levelled with the ground, and the column returned to Aden on the morning of the 9th of January.