The Sun.
London, England, 1855-12-31 00:00:00

THE NEW FRENCH GRAND ARMY.

The Paris correspondent of the Times (second
edition), in his letter of yesterday, says :
" The brief harangue addressed by the Emperor
yesterday to the troops assembled on the Place de
la Bastille will do away with any effect which may
have been created by the supposition that the late
pamphlet on the Congress for the
Europe was traceable to a high source. That harangue
you may consider as the best commentary on the
decree for the organisation of the Imperial Guard,
and which appeared in the Moniteur two days ago.
When the Minister of War says in his report which
precedes the Decree that "the moment is opportune
for constituting this select body on a larger basis, by in-
troducing the excellent elements which the army of the
East can now provide it with," he expresses strictly the
truth, but it was left for the spirited address of yesterday
to complete his meaning. The intention is that the Im-
perial Guard, and the other corps that have fought in the
Crimea, and shared in the hardships and dangers of a pro-
tracted siege and a sanguinary assault, shall form the
nucleus of an army which can be directed to any point
wheee its services shall be required. I have no difficulty
in supposing that that point will be on the Rhine in
case Russia does not accept the conditions we propose
to her, and in case Germany again allows itself to be in-
Vtnidated or seduced by our enemy. Nay, more, if pence
be not concluded this winter, if the spring still sees Prus-
sia timid and uncertain, not to say hostile to us, and Rus-
sia still obstinate, I have no doubt that the next campaign
will commence on a scale commensurate with the power
of the two greatest nations of the earth, and that the war
will then become one a l' outrance. The grand army to which
the speech of the Emperor refers, and of which the _
Guard and its companions arms are to form the
centre, is destined for great things, and fertile in events
as the year which is just going out has been, it may
be far less rich in material for the historian of the
present war than the one on which we are about to
enter. Two camps of 100,000 men each will, it is
believed, be formed without delay on the French
territory, and serve as schools of instruction, to be
swelled by successive arrivals from the Crimea. In
the Crimea it is said that our united forces—French,
Ei.,glish, Piedmontese, and Turks—are not less than
200,000, and are far too numerous in a place where ac-
tive operations are not soon expected. Their services
will be more valuable elsewhere. It is said, therefore,
that only sufficient troops will be left in the Crimea to
keep the positions we now occupy, and which will be
strengthened so as to defy any force that can by any pos-
sibility be brought against them. The rest will probably
be called back to France to form part of the immense
host which is destined to put an end to the Russian
question for ever. Russia had better look to it in time.
She is looking to it, and she is now, as when I informed
you a week or two ago, doing her utmost to regain by
her diplomacy what she has lost by defeat on the field of
battle. I told you a few days ago that we were not so sa-
tisfied with Prussia as we were a week previously. Con-
sidering the:sort of incomprehensible man we have to deal
with that news could have surprised no one. It is now an
ascertained fact ; Prussia has been one moment pro-
mising and making engagements, and the next moment
talking and acting as if no such promises or engagements
had ever been no much as hinted at. She is dawdling
between honour and dishonesty, between courage and
cowardice, and the benefit of the doubt she will not
assuredly have. She must make up her mind soon
however, under which King, Bezouian, speak or die
The winter will soon pass away."

The late rise in the price of sugar has naturally
enough directed attention to the various scenes of
its production, and Snore especially to America
and the West India islands, and with results far
from unsatisfactory to the philanthropist and the
Freetrader. In America it is found that the
accursed system of slavery is working its own de-
struction, and in the West India islands that a
perception of past error, and of the to us long ob-
vious policy necessary to insure future prosperity,
is fast dawning on the minds of the population.
The production of sugar in the United. States
is, it would appear, being attended with more and
more difficulty. Each succeeding year por
Quashee is rising in price as a marketable
commodity, and in resolution as a re -wining
animal. Not only is he bad to bey, but had to
keep when he is leceight. He looks the
"stars" in the face, turns the cold shoul-
der to the "stripes," and finds when he can
in the Camden a refuge from the tender mercies
of Uncle SAM, who loves liberty too well to cast it
to the slave. The consequences are, less and less
sugar is being produced, prices rise, and the pros-
pects of the West and :East India planters rise
with them, the increased cost of production iu
America promising theta, if they choose to avail
themselves of the opportunity, a greatly improved
position in, if not the command of, the market.
Taking all things into consideration, we by no
means question the policy adopted by this country
in paying for the emancipation of the slave, the
principles-of free trade' being then little under-
stood ; but we must say that, were there slaves in
any of our colonies now to be emancipated their
CABINET COUNCIL.—On Thursday next the 3d of Jan
freedom would scarcely be purchased. a Cabinet Council will be held at the Foreign-office,
Turning to Jamaica, we find the _Kingston Downing-street, the summonses for which were issued a
few days ago. Lord Palmerston, who is now at Broad-
Journal furnishing a sufficient answer to the lands with Lord Palmerston, receiving a party of visi-
memorial of a member of the Jamaica Association tors comes to town on Thursday morning to attend the
meeting. The other members of the Cabinet, the great
(whatever that is), presented to Lord JOHN majority of whom are absent from London, will return to
RUSSELL in July last. The memorialist, as will town on that day, in order to be present at the Council.
Despatches from the Governe7s of the Australian co lo
of.
be seen in this day's Herald, complains of the in- nies and New Zealand, and also from the Governor
adequacy of the price paid to the Jamaica pl an ters Heligoland, were received on Saturday at the Colonial-
for their " property" in human flesh and :blood, office.
SOUTHAMPTON, Dec. 29.—Lady Palmerston, accom-
and seeks compensation in more cash or renewed panied by their Excellencies the Turkish, Danish, Swedish,
protection, in order to save them from ruin. The
and Sardinian Ministers, paid a visit to the Soutbam
ton Docks this afternoon, apparently
and were mucPh.
Kingston Journal is of opinion that the causes of gratified with their examination of the many magnificent
steam-ships in
Hedger,the basin,t}e the adversity complained of are under their ownthey were edriestlt:
d(i)nckwmhaiscther
control, and that they have only to exercise a guished party also inspected the United States' mail
little common sense in order to get footing
ct?am.-ship Washington in the greatgravingdnc!k, which
s imp, it is now ascertained, has received nu injury, be-
en the highway to prosperity. Instead y and damage to the copper, during her temporary
of whining like baffled blood-hounds for fetranding on the Long Sand on the 22d inst.
THE Missitto ENGINEER OFFICERS.—The body of
compensation from us, he, in, effect, advises one of the missing engineers was picked up in the River
Medway yesterday. It ii placed in the sc
schoolroom; of
them to adopt measures calculated to give cent-
the Royal Sappers and Miners for a coroner's inquest.
peazation, to however small an extent, to. us. THE AMERICAN MAILS. LIVERPOOL, Saturday
Afternoon.—The ,United States Mail steam-ship, the
Ho points out in a word the necessity of adopting
Atlantic, Capt. J. West, sailed from the Mersey for New
an improved mode of producing sugar, and wh ere York, with the usual mails for the United States and
the production of sugar is not likely to pay the British North American possessions, 02 passengers, and
cultivation of articles of commerce adapted to th a full carg )of generalnopiesmeorfchatnbdeisLe onnndfor:ighjto.urnParlisor to
f
her departure,
soil. This is sensible advice, though rather lat& t this date were placed on board by Messrs. Wilmer and
public institutions
nSfintiitieh,uonf
iLteidvesrpaotoels,
anord tch.etnrairdess and
in coming, being precisely that we gave the West
a. The British and North
Indian planters long ago, the facts on which it .American Royal Mail Steam-ship (Cunard) Company
was eliminated being resume their weekly Railings (commencing with the Ame-
of the moat obvious descrip•
la for Boston) on Saturday.
tion. For tance, the growth of sugar is coin-
.sTocKnoLm, Dec. 30th.—A Royal Decree has just
authorized the eutranc3 of foreign iron into Sweden, as
patatiV4dysixtociern in Jamaica, its first value as a
well as woven goofs and ready-made articles of cloth-
common:4l dependency arising from its indigo, I jug. Swedish iron is declared free of duty on exp.orta•
hides, arc., • and afterwards its coffee. Again, qon.