The Press. — London, England, 1856-12-13 00:00:00

1188 THE WEEK. Evarrrs are at last converging towards a solution of those disputed questions which have heretofore prevented the execution of the Treaty of Paris. That Treaty was signed on the 30th of March ; its stipulations were to be carried into effect in six months from that date. Nearly nine months have elapsed, and still the terms of the Treaty remain unexecuted. What Power is justly chargeable with the delay ? It is this question which the Russian note, now published, attempts to solve. Two of the parties engaged in the war are clearly blameless. Franco and Sardinia have fulfilled the Treaty to the letter. In de fining the new Russian frontier, and in determining the exact extent of territory to be ceded to Moldavia, certain difficulties arose, as it was almost inevitable that difficulties would arise. The Commissioners were unable to agree. Russia proposed a reference to a second Con ference. Lord PALMERSTON'S Administration, and Austria, with the sanction of Turkey, took the law into their own hands Hence the English occupation of the Black Sea, and the refusal of Austria to move from the Principalities. Was there any attempt on the part of Russia to interpose unne efessary delays to what the result has proved to be the only possible mode of settlement ? The question is best met by dates. The contro versy as to the Isle of Serpents arose towards the close of July Cr' the 4th of August the Emperor ALEXANDER sent instructions to Baron Bausow at Paris to propose the meeting of a Conference to decide the question. There was no delay here. The representatives of the respective Courts at Paris might have met at once, the question been decided, and all pretence for violating the terms, or delaying the exe cution of the Treaty, have been avoided. The difficulty as to the new frontier line, and the right to Bolgrad, occurred later. But no sooner was it made known, than Russi renewed her demand for a Conference to settle all the questions in dispute. Her second proposal for a Conference was made on the 19th September last. These facts establish that Russia sought an authori tative solution of all difficulties as to the construction of the Treaty as quickly as they arose. The only remaining consideration is, were those difficulties on the part of Russia frivolous and vexatious ? That a Conference has at. last been granted to resolve them, goes far to decide this question in the negative. With regard to Bolgrad, the Russian note distinctly states that at the Conferences the Russian Plenipotentiaries most expressly said that Russia desired to preserve Bolgrad, the capital of the Bulgarian colonies. It is this Bolgrad which she now contends for. The map used at the Conferences was not a Russian map. It was a French map, supplied by the French Foreign-Office. That there has been misapprehension, is clear ; but there is no reason to assurr • that, on one side or the other, was this misappre hension due to bad faith. Nor does it fairly appear that the difficulties were of a nature to justify the delays which have been interposed to the meeting of a Conference, or the measures which have been resorted to for counteracting what have been termed the pretensions of Russia. The Russian note announces that the Conference is to assemble, and that Russia will submit to the vote of the majority, whatever that vote mty be. So far so good. The pointthen to be determined is, whether Austria will immediately and unconditionally evacuate the Principalities, which she has unquestionably occupied too long? Till her troops are removed, the people of those provinces cannot freely express their sentiments. There is no just reason why Austria should not have withdrawn her forces months ago. The Russian note meals the declaration of the Austrian Plenipotentiary at the Conference (Count Boot), that as the operation would not meet with the same difficulties that attended the embarkation of the armies in the Crimea with their stores, it might be done more promptly; and that " the " Austrian troops would have evacuated the Principalities before the "belligerent armies could have completely evacuated the Ottoman " empire." That was the promise ; we see what the performance has been. The Austrians have never budged from the ground on which they set their foot. Hence it will be seen that the Conference will have to deal with grave matters. It cannot assemble too soon. Two items of intelligence are brought us by the last mail from Constantinople. Herat has fallen to the Persian general, and the British expedition to Bushire has begun hostile operations. We have commenced war against Persia at the moment that Persia has obtained a great success against her hereditary enemy, the Affghans. Else where will be found the opinions of the most sagacious Indian poli tician of the last age on the policy of supporting the Persian kingdom. Sir Jons MsLcotm concluded his treaty expressly to support Persia against those hordes of barbarous robbers the Affghan tribes, and Persia was encouraged, by promises of British aid, to undertake the reconquest of Khorassau. An opposite policy twenty years ago led us to support the Affghans •- ... THE PRESS. SATURDAY. against Persia, and we were fitly rewarded by the most terrible disaster in our Indian annuls—the Affghun massacre. We see no reason why Herat, even supposing it to be regarded as the key to India, would not be much safer in the hands of Persia than in the possession of the faithless and merciless Affghans. But in any case, the notion of taking the field against Persia with a force of five thousand men is monstrous. This little war if it continue must become a great war. We have yet to hear an exposition of policy to justify it. In the constitution of the Metropolitan Board of Works, one im portant particular seems to have been overlooked. A number of mag nificent undertakings have been cut out for the Board,—a street to cost near a million of money here ; another to cost half a million there; a new system of sewage to cost two or three millions more or less, as the case may be. Already tho Board finds that it has employ ment for about four millions ; and now comes the question, where is the money to come from? It cannot be raised from ratepayers at once; it cannot be borrowed, as lenders would think the security of rates rather " shy." In its perplexity the Board applies to the CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER, requesting Government to advance the required 4,000,0001., or to lend its credit that the money may be more readily burrowed. The CHANCELLOR of the EXCHEQUER with some acuteness suggests the probability that the Board may make a mistake in their system, and that future ratepayers may reso lutely refuse to pay. This was a view of the case Mr. TtiwArrEs does not appear to have contemplated ; and it is tolerably certain that the great schemes which the Board was constituted to execute must be postponed until the monetary difficulty- is in some way overcome. Meanwhile, we hope that the sewage scheme may be thoroughly considered before a plan is adopted. Any proposal to discharge the sewage into the river at any point within reach of that extension of London now rapidly going on is manifestly incomplete. If we are to drain London thoroughly, let us do the work well; and to do it well we must carry our sewage down to the sea, and not leave it vibrating between Erith and the German Ocean, at the mercy of every wind and tide that blows and flows. In case of a really comprehensive plan being adopted, every householder might fairly be called on to contribute towards what would be essentially a national work, May it not at last be discovered that Government ought from the first to have taken the work into its own hands, as there would then have been a better chance of its speedy and satisfactory execution than now that it is left to " King " Ben and his little Parliament," with all the jobbing influences which will be certain to surround those intrusted with the work, and with -4,000,0001. The question at issue between Mr. BERKELEY and the Timm. i • not capable of being settled quite so easily as either disputant appears to imagine. The Times simply pooh-pontes the whole affair " England will have none of it," and so forth. Mr. BERKELEY, on the other hand, replies by asserting that the Ballot is the popular topic at all elections, and by referring to its results in other countries as eminently satisfactory. Now we agree with Mr. BERKELEY so far as to be ieve that the Ballot is by no means an obsolete question, but we differ from him in thinking that it could be introduced successfully into England. At all events, in the case of the small towns and villages in this country, wf , defy any man to keep his vote secret. Does any one acquainted with English country life believe for one moment that a man could leave his own village for the nearest polling booth, give his vote, and return home again, without any one of his neighbours being a bit the wiser? The thing is incredible. His conduct would be canvassed at the public•house, at the blacksmith's shop, and outside the church on Sunlay would be made the subject of incessant g issip, till at last the truth came out. Besides, even granting that this wished for secrecy could be insured, what a very eligible state of feeling would thereby be produced between landlord and tenant—the one not knowing whom he could trust, the other meeting him always with an uneasy con sciousness of having acted in an underhand way. This would always be the result in England as long as the relation of classes to each other, on which our stability is mainly founded. continues. We have no theoretical objection to the Ballot, but we have this cne prac tical objection, which we think sufficient to outweigh a host of imaginary advantages. Mr. LANDOR'S 951. has been in jeopardy. The noble crime of tyran nieide has been nearly consummated. With what thrilling suspense must that enthusiastic worshipper of Liberal principles look each day for the latest Neapolitan news. With what ecstacy must he have perceived that his own suggestbns were beginning to bear fruit. With what bitter disappointment have read that the wound was only slight. How he must curse the clumsiness or cowardice of Neapolitan aspirants to glory. Will he now, despairing of the prowess of the Italians, rest his last hopes on the subjects of Austria or France? or will he merely double the reward in order to tempt some more skilful assassin? Briefly, the general disgust which the attempt on the life of the King of NAPLES has excited, ought to b suth.ieut to assure Nlct