The Sun.
London, England, 1855-05-16 00:00:00

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WRONG.

Englishmen congratulated themselves on the declaration
of war against Russia, and the feeling of certainty that
the hour for the restoration of Poland was come, that we
should be glad if wo could content ourselves with merely
alluding to their disappointment. But who would have
thought that the Poles, instead of putting their faith
in England, should find themselves compelled to with-
draw it, and to turn their eyes to the throne of a despot
for the only hope which remains to them of their
country's re-constitution ? But what other impression
can we admit, after a perusal of the Polish addresses
which have just been presented to Louis Napoleon, con
gratulating him on his providential escape ?
:Geneial Rybinski, one of the leaders of the democratic
Poles, speaks thus :—" The hopes of Europe for a grand
and calm future can alone be realised by your providen-
tial and heroic ministration. Sire, without yon, Europe
stops short, or tumbles into an abyss. Poland has reli-
giously pursued, with love and veneration, those glori-
ous traditions which, revived and developed by your
Majesty, open up a new epoch for France and for Poland,
and by the union of these two countries, for the grew,
European family. Sire, Poland places its hopes ha Di
vine justice, and its faith in your Majesty ; it is con-
vinced that this justice can only be meted out by you."
A man who is gradually subsiding from a high to
an inferior position does not feel the evidences of his
decline all at once. They break upon him slowly one
by one. What says England, the friend of the Poles,
to this evidence of the depth to which she has already
fallen ? The General would naturally express his hope
principally in the Emperor, because he is addressing
him. But England is not so much as named, nor is
the slightest allusion made to the alliance of the
Western Powers as the foundation of hope for Poland.
buted, and
It is from the Emperor alone that General Rybinski and
his friends hope anything. It is to his "heroic minis-
try" that they think the safety of Europe is to be attri-
(
peror. Louis
into an 8 byss."
without him she "stops short, or tumbles
In a word, " Poland places its hopes
in Divine justice, and its faith in" his Majesty, the Em-
d says
er
ees oural Paris aGr iesn
General
R correspondent
y b ii
isl
the right thing, the right '
Napoleon with his keen perception of
man, and the right time, im-
mediately adopts these addresses. " These sentiments,"
official paper, thereby implying that the Emperor en-
dorses
neighbouringlet
terh as
wro wrongs, ,
hwehricvhithaalsv.e slotlown,ign ‘‘
sentiments,werepub liashaded
thaintthhee
thus holds out a promise to Poland to redress their
caused
speodt s
much have
surprise 1) batten-
inguneasiness
t oan butd sloittbitterlyle rI
youfor r
to e -
Baron Hubner, as well as the appointmentof
learnveng e ' thatwhilst this
the Pole,
Walewski, to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the mission of M. de Persigny to London--all of which look
ominous for 'the fate of Austria and Treachery, and
inspire the friends of Poland and Justice with hopes
which they may possibly see fulfilled, as the interests of
the Western Powers now impel them to repudiate the
bonds which they signed in the hour of need."
But, if the Western Powers do at length adopt those
measures which were, from the beginning, no leas re-
commended by policy than by honour, the credit will
not be England's. Represented by her Government, she
has fought shy of a step which Lord Palmerston, not
many weeks ago, declared to be essential to the satisfac-
tory solution of the difficulties of Europe. She has
sought the alliance of despots of the most tyrannical
character, and in her negotiations for peace has displayed
as feeble a spirit as she has shown in the prosecution of
the war. We entreat the people to consider this well ;
and once more we would ask them, what was it which
made this war with Russia so popular in this country ?
Was it the prospect of an alliance with France ? No.
We had for centuries stood opposed to that nation ; and
—brave as we confess her sons—we had men able to
match them. We did not fear to undertake, single-
handed, the cause of the oppressed ; though if there is
one aspect of the war on which in this moment of dis-
aster and 'defeat we can reflect with satisfaction and re-
joicing, it is the cordiality which exists between the
fleet.; and armies of England and France, and which,
with the magic touch of kindred heroism, hasobliterated
the memory of ages of contention. But it was not the
prospect of so happy an alliance which animated us to
urge our rulers to a declaration of war. One grand
thought possessed our minds. We felt, as a free people,
that we had a mission to perform, which was, to strike a
blo Wat despotism, and to uplift the fallen, but still strug-
gling, ultionalitie., which confederated despots had for a
wlii'e trampled on. That was a cause worthy of freemen
whose hearts were with Poland, and who longed to wipeout
the disgrace with which theircoun try covered herself when
she looked calmly on at the dismemberment of that
kingdom.

dile would have thought that when, at last, England
went to war with Russia, who had taken the lions' share
of Poland—had enabled Austria to crush the rising inde-
pendence of Hungary, and was about to absorb Turkey
into her dominions—she would have done something
worthy of a people who had set themselves up as cham-
pions of the injured. One would have thought that Lord
Palmerston, who was believed to entertain so sincere a
sympathy for Continental patriots, and who was there-
fore hated by despotic Courts, would have urged the
adoption of measures with a view to link the cause of
Poland and Hungary with that of Turkey. We see
what he has done ; we see the position of the country,
the pre-eminence of our ally, and the certainty of a de-
spicable future, if we do not at once gird up our loins for
the race, in which energy, promptitude, and determina-
tion alone can win the prize.

THE " TIMI2"__GBOGRAPHICALLT

In commenting on Lord Ellenborough's statement on
Monday night, as to his opinion that a portion of the
allied army should have been employed in Asia in sup-
port of the Turkish troops, the Times of yesterday makes
one of its usual displays of school-boy geography and
erudition, and is, as usual, totally wrong.
The Time., states' in the first place, that an expedition
of
that nature must cross the range of mountains which
was the great obstruction to the retreat of the. Ten
Thousand. Now we beg to inform the Times that Zeno-
phon's army came direct from Koordistan down upon
Trebizonde. Consequently in no portion of their route
could they have possibly intersected the march of a force
moving from Batoum to Kars.
Moreover, the Times asserts that the severity of the
winter in Georgia would, of necessity, be destructive to
our troops. If the Times be ignorant of the fact, we
would suggest that a little investigation would convince
it that the finest wintering ground upon the face of the
earth is to be found on the rich plain of Mogan, lying
between the Arras and the Kur, or, if it will be classical,
we can call them the Araxes and the Cyrus.
It was here that the armies of the early Persian kings
always took up their winter encampment. It was here
that Ileraclius passed the winter previous to his great
campaign against Khosroo Purveey. And in modern
times the same encamping ground was used at various
periods by the two greatest soldiers of modern Persia,
namely, Nadir Shah and Aga Mahommed Khan. We
presume that the geographer of our contemporary must
be one and the same as the strategist who, in the same
columns, lately recommended operations in the Crimea
upon quadruple external lines. —Morning Herald. •

_