The Press. — London, England, 1854-12-23 00:00:00

THE WEEK. Ix the freeest communities there is often a hesitation, perhaps natural, to publish the truth, which spreads in whispers from ear to ear. The scruple is attributed to prudence, when, in fact, it arises only from deficiency of moral courage. Men do not dare to openly speak what they privately believe, as if, under all circumstances, the bolder course was not the wiser and the manlier one. Go where we may, letters are stealthily shown us—as if their open production would be a crime— detailing the sufferings, the destitution, the sickness, and the mortality among our army encamped on the heights of Balaklava. "Not a word "must be mentioned, but the army is perishing ; we musn't alarm " friends and relatives, but not one out of a hundred will return ; it "won't do to say it, but the siege must be raised. This, without exag " geration, is the tone heard in all circles." The danger, great as it is, becomes magnified in these " bated breath " conversations ; every person you meet fancies himself a diplomatist; and the panic spreads through the dense medium of half-expressed fears. Whoever attempts in plain terms to express the real facts, and explain the true magnitude of the danger, " gloats," according to the phrase of Lord JOHN RUSSELL, " o'er the prospect of disaster." Those only are patriots in his view who shut their eyes, open their mouth, and wait to see what Ministers will send them. But secrecy as to what is actually occurring in presence of thousands of spectators, whatever advantages may be on its side, is not in the actual circum stances of this country possible. We have to choose between the twilight when objects are seen confusedly, and the broad noon when they stand distinctly forth in their exact proportions. The state of our army is bad enough, but not quite so bad, we hope, as secret in telligencers represent it ; but whether more or less suffering, in greater or lesser peril, we are hopeless of any effectual measures being taken for its relief until its actual condition be thoroughly understood. Surely at last we shall learn that some of the wooden houses, of which we have heard so much, have arrived—that the comforts of the men have been better cared for ; but for the neglect, with all. its terrible consequences which to this time has occurred, an account must soon be rendered. Two or three months ago, when it was believed that Sebastopol had really fallen, the toadies of the Duke of NEWCASTLE were in raptures. These gentlemen went from club to club, with uplifted hands and countenances full of adoring wonder, exclaiming that it was worth all the cost of the war to bring forth such a genius. It was he who was the author of the success ; it was he who had exactly foretold to the Emperor of the FRENCH the day when Sebastopol would be cap tured. Tinsel passed for gold, and oonceit for sagacity. And now, quantum mutatus ab illo Hectare, the Duke's own dear friends are for ward to proclaim his incompetency, and from the third and fourth rows behind the Treasury bench members rise to denounce his management, and to clamour for his change. If there is any one point on which the mind of the intelligent public is more fully made up than another, it is as to the thorough incompetency of his Grace for the post he fills. It is now the town-talk. But the principle of compensatioh preserves him from the pain of perceiving his own defect, and from feeling the ridicule which attaches to his pretensions. The debates in the Commons this week have been signalised by unsual ability ; but, amid many masterly displays of eloquence, the first place must be assigned to the speech of Sir E. B. LyrroN. The sustained argument, the nervous language, the apt illustration, the manly sentiment, and the statesmanlike views of this noble address, entitle it to rank among the finest examples of our Parliamentary oratory. No attempt was made to answer it on the Ministerial side. Indeed, it is significant that the Government have this week been almost deserted by the great body of their supporters—so far as speaking is concerned. They had no unofficial defenders except Mr. WATSON (practical and positive), and MILNES (more prosy than usual), both notoriously candidates for office. The speech of Mr. WHITESIDE on Wednesday was most effective. His allusions, with all the point and grace of accomplished oratory, to the losses sustained by his Irish friends who sat around him, turning to each as he spoke with impres sive solemnity, thrilled the House with an emotion to the sincerity and depth of which the breathless silence maintained was the most fitting testimony. This gentleman is always effective when he avoids local topics. Parliament is too cosmopolitan in its character to listen with pleasure to religious disquisitions or to purely Irish politics. Sir JOHN PAKINOTON spoke last night with great effect against the bill. The third reading was carried by a majority of thirty-eight, one less than affirmed the second reading on Tuesday. Russian accounts to the 13th of December still notice that nothing of importance had occurred before Sebastopol. But it is evident that the garrison were becoming bolder in their sorties. Continually driven back, they continually came on again, and met our troops at the point of the bayonet. The firing on our side seems to have been slack, and it is to be supposed that the weather had retarded the advance of the French lines. It is reported that the enemy had received considerable reinforcements, and as the winter advances the snow roads will enable their trains of waggons to move forward with rapidity. If there is a lull now, it is only while the elements of strife are gathering for a more terrific outbreak in the spring. In iee horrid chronicle of war, this siege will for ever form one of its most emorable pages. To bring it to a successful conclusion our plan wit be entirely changed, and our force greatly augmented. To assail tau southern side of the fortress while the northern is left open is now SATURDAY, perceived to be a rank absurdity. The enemy have taken advantage of the delay to immensely strengthen themselves, and the best autho rities acknowledge that the only rational hope of reducing the place is by completely investing it. A great mistake has been made : not 50,000 but 200,000 men are required for the capture of this bulwark of Southern Russia, and even with that force we must now expect that resistance would be long-protracted, and the struggle mortal. The Austrian treaty has been published, and has sorely puzzled those confiding persons who expected to find some definite conditions in it. A more unmeaning diplomatic paper never mocked expectation. The only intelligible point in it is that which we noticed last week. If Austria should be involved in the war, she would, ipso facto, be entitled to claim the armed support and alliance of France and England ; but France and England, being engaged in the war, can claim no support from Austria. All previous protocols, which settled the four points as the bases of pacification, are duly cited, and if some arrangement is not come to upon those bases by the end of the year— now so near at hand—why, then, further diplomatic proceedings will take place. But Russia has already declared her acceptance of the four points .What says Lord JOHN RUSSELL himself?— The Russian Minister declared at Vienna only the other day that the Emperor is willing to accept these propositions as the basis of the conditions which in August last he rejected.—Speech, 1914 inst. May not Austria, therefore, now declare herself satisfied. Again, hear Lord JoHN He quite agreed that Austria might still, at the last moment, say that—" These " terms of yours, those four bases explained in a way I did not expect, would reduce " Russia too much, and diminish too greatly her weight in Europe, and she can never be " expected to agree to them."—Speech, I'~lh inst. What, on our part, can be the value or use of negotiations which, after all, leave Austria perfectly free to act as she pleases? M. Vox UsEDOM, an experienced diplomatist, arrived in London on Thursday on a special mission from the King of PRUSSIA. The Morn ing Post supposes that he has come to obtain the good offices of the English Government in the negotiation of a special treaty of alliance between France and Prussia ; but, considering the intimate alliance between France and England, such a supposition is manifestly absurd. The more probable supposition is, that his mission relates to the negotiation of a treaty between Prussia on one side, and France and England on the other, that Prussia might then be in a position to act separately from Austria, and raise her own banner for the German States to rally under. " What will the people say at Cockermouth? " was once stated by a slippery politician to be the motive of hie votes in the House of Commons. And " What will they say at Portsmouth and Plymouth?' may well be asked, on learning that the First Lord of the Admiralty exchanged an English frigate worth 40,0001. for two gun-boats that cost abou; 12,0001. ! The gun-boats were to be exchanged for two old corvettes of ours. The two corvettes were changed into an old frigate, and the frigate given turns out to be the Thetis, thirty-six guns, of the venerable age of eight years, and one of our fastest and best•appointed sailers. In June gun-boats might have been worth something in the Baltic; but Sir JAMES GRAHAM is cleverer at opening letters than at answering them, so here we are in December. A Prussian captain brings one of his gun-boats to Plymouth, expects to take the Thetis back, and we are told in Parliament " the honour of the country " is pledged to let him have her. Adherence to commercial rules would in such a case be " shabby." The word is a favourite one with the First Lord, and by it he designated several of his present colleagues when they were in the Melbourne Ministry. Let the Prince go to the bottom of the sea for want of a proper commander, and let the Thetis be tossed to the King of Prussia for want of proven supervision. Who need care about such things, as they are mere trifles in the eyes of so masterly an Administrator as Sir JAMES GRAHAM ! As for " what they may say " at Cockermouth," Pooh ! •••• We learn without much surprise that the visits of Mr. (late Archdeacon) MANNING have recently been very frequent at the War-office. It accounts for a good deal that the newspapers have lately told us about the doings at Scutari and elsewhere ; the expulsion of scripture readers, the " free-warren" accorded to nuns, &c. We quite acknow ledge the propriety of the Secretary at-War consulting with Ro manist authorities on matters connected with the spiritual welfare of our Roman Catholic brethren engaged in the war. There is no ac counting for tastes, however, and we all know Mr. SIDNEY HERBERT'S; but we should have thought it possible to accomplish the object with out insulting Protestants by making a confidant of a "pervert." Next week we shall probably hear that, acting with his usual fairness to all Churches except his own, he has made the balance even between the rival communions, Latin and Greek ; and that after taking a pervert for his ecclesiastical confessor, he has adopted a " deserter" for his military secretary. The last Message of the American President is a decided im provement on his former manifestoes. There is nought:in his Address that can wound the sensibilities of other countries ; but in the present crisis of the world, the head of the United States might, one would have thought, at least have expressed a ifenerous hope that the interest of humanity and the liberties of Europe would be finally served by the present war. The most noticeable point in the Message is the defence of the attack upon Greytown? He designates that rising place as " a marauding establishment too dangerous to "be disregarded." His maiadroit attempts to show that wrong is right read awkwardly, though we acquit the President of any desire to be vauntingly offensive. .. THE P.ltEgS:i'