The Express.
London, England, 1853-09-24 00:00:00

Inential point. _ After the

DitOCIN DE Liwys and Lord CLARENDOX.
the French and English Governreents were
bound, before they proposed to Turkey
to adopt the Vienna note, to obtain from the CzAw
an unequivocal pledge that this adoption would im-
mediately be followed by the evacuation of the Danu-
bian Provinces. But in Count NesseutoDes first
despatch to Baron METENDORIT it is declared that
the Porte 's stipulation fur the evacuation of these
provinces is inadmissible. The irresistible inference
is that the French and English governments, though
pledged to make such a stipulation a sine qua non,
had neglected to do so.

The present attitude of the Eastern question is
most humiliating. On the assumption that the
French and English Cabinets have been acting in
good faith, it appears that a semi-hat barous power
has first outwitted and now openly braves the two
most enlightened and powerful nations of Europe.
The only alternative—the assumption that the French
and English Governments have not been acting in
good faith—would be more humiliating still.

A GOOD sign of the times is the increased measure
of appreciation bestowed by the public upon their
true friends. Nothing shows the character of a
nation better than the manner in which it treats
those who have laboured devotedly and successfully
in its service. It is not always, however, that •
nation is awake to the nature of the services it has
received, and consequently it is hut too frequently
the case that only the grosser kind of bene-
fits are repaid by the coin of national
gratitude. A great victory either by sea or by
land requires no very large power of appreciation to
be enabled to decide upon its merits. We see, there-
fore, national monuments to dead heroes outnumber-
ing in a remarkable degree those erected to the
memory of the civic benefactors of mankind. It
requires an education of a certain sort to discover
th.t a JENNER has really been of more use to his
nation than half-a-dozen mere fighting heroes.
This education, however, the people are obtaining.
The SmeuL.Nsoss, the WATTS, red the DAR-
GANs are receiving their due raced of ha
nour from the countries which they have
enriched. We aro rejoiced to observe another
instance of the improved state of public feeling in
this matter, in the meeting which took place at
Dunoon for the purpose of presenting a complimen-
tary address to ItowLAND HILL, to express the
thanks of the meeting to that gentleman for his ex-
ertions in connexion with the Penny Postage move-
ment. The consequences of that movement have
been far more extensive than could ever have been ima-
gined by the proposer of the abolition of the old rates.
' Tho enormous increase of commercial facilities which
the reduction of the rate has introduced is much, but
it is not the most important feature in the change.
The cheering fact was stated by Mr. Mu. in his
answer to the address that where one letter was
written formerly tire are written now—that the gross
number of letters last year was three hundred and
eighty millions, and that it will be four hundred
mil-
lions this year. But the true cause for our delight
should be found, not in the mere numerical increase,
but in the great moral result. What a deve-
lopment of the social feelings is indicated by an in-
crease of letters in the ratio of five to one. Making
deduction of that portion of the augmentation which
is due to commerce, how large a share is due to the
increased facilities afforded to the intercommunica-

dos of thought and feeling between those who for-
merly were separated by a gulf almost impassable.
1 Amongst the pour, some few years ago, a removal of
one portion of a family from another; to a distant
part of the country, caused a separation almost as
complete as that occasioned by death. The
difficulties of space were insurmountable, as
far as their persons were concerned, and the high
rate of postage checked the interchange of thought.
Family ties became first loosened and tr.en broken.
The mother forgot her son, and the son lived alien.
ated from his mother. Both lived with their thoughts
never wandering beyond the narrow circle to which
fate had chained them. Everything beyond for
them had no existence. The penny post has brought
these together. It has prevented the gradual
dying out of the best feelings of the heart
amongst thousands. It has multiplied indefinitely
the links which connect mankind together. The ties
of family and friendship are rendered infinitely
stronger and more enduring, now no distance makes
the communication of kindly feeling more difficult-

The remarkable fact stated by Mr. HILL, that the
gross income, now 2,434,3261., was greater than the
greatest gross income under the old system, speaks
volumeisfor the immense development of the inter-
course between mind and mind. The Post-office
proves to be one of the greatest agents of civilisation,
one of the most powerful instruments for the cultivation
of the humanities of social life. How greatly another
item in the changes in the Post-office—the introduction
of the moneporders—has assisted the poor and

middle-clasee• in their monetary transactions, may
be seen by the fact that the amount of money tr►ns-
mitted by this means hu increased from 313,1241.
to 9,438,2771. in fourteen years. How reasonably
the public is charged for this accommodation may
be seen from the circumstance that the Govern-
ment clear only 12,0001. annually by the opera-
tion.

It is impossible, when reading the statistics given
by Mr. HILL in his speech, to avoid the question,
Why cannot this great boon be extended to the
whole world, or rather why should not England
receive all foreign letters at a cheap rate as well as
all inland letters? This consummation might be
._ .

easily attained. Our columns have often contained
statements from the promoters of international
postage, which prove that nothing but earnest-
ness and goodwill on the part of various
countries are needed to obtain one of the
greatest boons ever yet offered to the collective
union of nations. The subject has just been brought
before the Statistical Ctingreas now sitting at Brus-
sels, aid the plan proposed is so simple that it cannot
be anticipated that tho objections to its introduction
can be long maintained. The whole p:an is con-
tained in two resolutions which have been submitted
to the Congress :
1. That each country becoming a party to the
convention shall charge, collect, and retain the entire
postage of all letters sent outwardi, and that it shall
deliver all lettere received from foreign post-offices
included in the convention, free of all charge what-
; ever.

2. That each country shall make what charge it
pleases on all letters proceeding to foreign countries
but that charge shall be uniform in all things to all
countries parties to the convention.
The effect intended by the first resolution is that
each country shall be totally free to make what
arrangements it chooses as to its own postage rates
France will not be required to assimilate her rates
to ours, but may retain her present rates or adopt
any other. She will only be required to transfer
free of cost all letters arriving at her frontiers from
parties to the convention. In return, she demands
that the austere, to these letters shall be delivered
gratin in the several countries to which they are
directed. As the number of letters sent direct from
England to France must be nearly the same as those
seat direct from Franco to England, it must,
be evident that neither party will lose much'