The Sun.
London, England, 1855-06-20 00:00:00

AUSTRIA AND THE WESTERN POWERS.

1 The following has been published in a Berlin
journal of high character as the text of the "confi-
dential despatch" mentioned in Count Buol's cir-
Icular of the 31st ult. It is dated May 24, was ad-
dressed to the Austrian Minister at the Prussian
Court, and points out the attitude which Austria
would take if her propositions should be rejected
by the Western Powers.
As a commentary upon the article in the Oesterreich-
ische Correspondenz of 22d inst., I can communicate to
you, in the strictest confidence, the following furtherin-
formation. The Imperial Austrian cabinet had drawn
up an ultimatum to be presented in St. Petersburg, in
which a direct limitation of Russia's sovereignty was
avoided. The ministers, Drouyn de Lhuys and Rus-
sell had undertaken to back this Austrian protocol
with all their influence with their own Governments.
This draft of an ultimatum,
,the rejection of which
by Russia the Austrian Government declared its de-
termination to look on as a cases belli consisted of
two different propositions, the alternative of which was
offered to the Russian Cabinet. The first of them,
grounded on the principle of a neutral limitation of power
to be agreed upon and settled by treaty between Russia
and Turkey, originated in France. The second alterna.
tive put forward by Austria consisted in a progressive
scale of securities against the development of the Rus-
sian power in the Black Sea, which were to have been
introduced into the public law of Europe partly by
a treaty between Austria, France, England, and Tur-
key. Lord John Rus-ell, previous to his departure
from Vienna, was made acquainted orally with these
propositions. The French Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Drouyn de Lhuys, who left Vienna a few days later,
undertook to lay before the proper quarter in Paris
and London the text of the draft which the Imperial
Minister, Count Buol, had handed him. The rejec-
tion soon ensued on the part of France and Eng-
land, and also the resignation of M. Drouyn de
Lhuys. The communications made on this topic by
Lord Clarendon and Count Walewski are strictly con-
fidential, and therefore the Austrian Cabinet does not
feel itself at liberty to instruct them further ; they are
of that tenor that the Imperial Ministry found itself in-
duced to call upon the Cabinets of Paris and London to
enter upon a fresh examination of its proposals, and to
weigh well the consequences to which their unexpected
rejection would expose Europe ;, it at the same time ex-
plained its proposals in fullest details, adduced arguments
in their support, and entirely refuted all the objections
they had raised against them. If this step obtained the
desired success, Austria could not, it is true, dispute the
right of the belligerent powers, but would be obliged to
leave it to them to procure for themselves that title
which the Protoeol of December 2 explicitly recognises,
by making the details of the ulterior bases depen-
dent on the progress of the incidents of the war.
The Austrian Government would abide simply
by the basis involved in the obligations she
has already entered into. She would remain
constant to the principles acknowledged by her in
the Conferences, and continue to protect the integrity of
the Turkish empire against any new attack. In this
attitude it would wait for the moment when at a resump-
tion of the Peace Conferences she could carry her resolu-
tion so as to make prevail the four points of guarantee
as understood by her.
If, on the contrary, her propositions to address an zlti-
matum to Russia was approved by the Cabinets of Paris
and London, the success of the work of peace would
only depend upon a last resolution of the Imperial Court
of Russia.

It is only when it shall have received from Paris and
London the replies to the propositions, accompanied by
the necessary explanations, which left Vienna on the 21st
of this month, that the Austrian Cabinet can be able to
address to the German Governments determined propo-
sitions upon the attitude to be assumed by the confede-
ration. Meantime it thinks it may flatter itself that the
policy it has invariably followed since the moment the
basis of the four points was put, deserves the full confi-
dence of the German governments. It cherishes the
hope that they will readily approve the overtures it will
have to make to them shortly, in either case, and that
the moment for assuming the common action of Ger-
many will not be lost.

Tire manner in which the step recently taken by the
cabinet of St. Petersburg at Frankfurt was appreciated
by the majority of the German governments is well
suited to strengthen the conviction of the imperial court
of Austria that all its confederates will enter into a close
union with it.—l am, &c., Bun.

COMMITTEE ON METROPOLITAN COM•
MUNICATIONS.

The committee on metropolitan communications again
assembled yesterday at the usual hour, Mr. W. Jackson
in the chair. The members present were Lord Robert
Grosvenor, Lord Ebrington, Mr. W. Williams, Mr. Pil-
kington, Mr. L. Hayworth, and Mr. Biggs. -
A model on a large scale was exhibited in the room
illustrative of the City terminus and improvements pro-
proposed by Mr. C. Pearson.
Mr. J. Hargreaves Stevens, engineer to the City im-
provement commissioners, was examined, and be stated
that his attention had been called to the traffic of the City
generally, and particularly to that going east and west.
He had proposed a remedy to relieve it. In 1837 his at-
tention bad been called to it by the passing of a bill for
making a railway from Camden-town to Skinner-street,
Snow-hill. In 1844, when the Direct Manchester Rail-
way was proposed, he received a communication from
the chairman of that company, requesting him to survey
the line, for the purpose of forming a terminus in the
City of London, such site being proposed to be made in
Smithfield. Having surveyed the line, the result was that,
instead of recommending it to be in Smithfield, he reported
in favour of a terminus in Farringdon• street, passing alor g
the valley of the Fleet. The bill went to Parliament, but
it broke down on the standing orders. Since then his at-
tention bad been turned to the want of metropolitan com-
munication, and he found that while the population within
the walls of the City was getting smaller, in consequence
of those engaged in business there living at a distance
from it, the population of those living outside the City
walls was increasing. The space within the City walls
was much larger than that without, and yet in those dis-
tricts without the walls the population averaged 10 to
each house, while within the walls they only averaged
7i to each house, which was the average beyond the
City, and, indeed, of the entire metropolis. The Direct
Manchester Railway proposed to come to Farringdon-
street on the south side, and much about the same time
the London and North-Western Railway Company pro-
posed to extend their line also to Farrivgdon-street on
the Old Bailey aide. The plan embraced in the
scheme of the Metropolitan Railway for an exten-
sion to the Eastern Counties Railway was proposed
by Mr. Charles Pearson so long back as 1850, hav-
ing the central terminus .in the City,. with branches
to the Lenlon and North-Western and Great-West-
ern Railways. In addition to connecting the
North-Western, Great Western, and Great Northern
Railways, Mr. Pearson proposed a new roadway, 100
feet wide, to the north, and under this roadway to be
laid down four lines of railway to relieve 'the traffic pass-
ing between the north and south, and also that passing
along the Fleet Valley. Putting a-ide the railway, he
considered the roadway proposed by Mr. Pearson from
north to south, would not only. relieve the crowded
streets, but would be of great advantage to those driven
out of London, and considered that short lines of rail-
way would be highly remunerative. He adverted to
the line originally intended for goods traffic between
Camden Town and the East and West India Docks,
but it was now greatly used as a passenger line.
The Blackwell Railway was another instance in
which, by two pair of lines, one up and one down
they carried annually about 8,000,000 persons. They
took the London and Blackwell, the North London, the
Southend and Tilbury, North Woolwich, Greenwich,
and other traffic, and growing neighbourhoods derived
great improvements from railways. Some other railway
accommodation was required to London for goods and
coal traffic, as the Great Northern sent out about 350
tons of coal daily, and that coal traffic in the streets of
London led to great inconvenience. The Metropolitan
Railway adopted smile parts of Mr. Pearson's plan, but
it did not provide so much accommodation for goods and
warehouses. He generally recommended the plan pro-
posed by Mr. Charles Pearson, to meet the wants of the
City of London.

Mr. FRANCIS BENNOCH said he considered that great
obstruction in the public streets was occasioned by the
large number of public conveyances, which number might
be considerably reduced if a proper organisation were
carried out. They had omnibuses moving in all direc-
tions meeting together at the Bank or Mansion House,
and these vehicles were of themselves sufficient to occupy
the whole space of the Poultry, without a cab or other
conveyance. The consequence was that in the middle
of the day the Poultry and Cheapside were almost im-
passable. He considered this state of things might be
obviated by the establishment of a central depot, from
which the passengers arriving east, west, north, and
south should be exchanged or transferred from one line

of omnibuses to another, by which means they-should
dispense with at least half the present number of omni-
buses going along Cheapside. At present there was no
law in the City to remedy that • particular defect. Hs
considered an underground railway to a station either in
Smithfield or Fore street, or to any place within half a
mile of the centre of the City, would prevent what was
now a great nuisance in sending goods to a large collect-
ing warehouse, like Pickford's, situate in narrow streets,
with hundreds of waggons in a day, if they had a central
railway depot. He was of opinion that all bridges should
be toll free, and mentioned that the abolition of the City
toll hadbeen of great alvantage in setting free the City
to the commercial classes.
Shortly before four o'cicck the committee adjourned.
RAILWAY TRAFFIC _RETURNS.

LONDON AND SOUTH-EASTERN RAlLWAY.—Traffie re-
turn for the week ending June 16, 1855 £18,953 810
Corresponding week last year 17,128 0 4

Increase in 1855 £1,825 8 6
LONDON, BRIGHTON, AND SOUTH COAST RAILWAY.
Traffic return for the week ending June 16,
1855 ................... ... : ........................... £13,201 11 11

Corresponding week last year
Total of the half-year to this date, 1855 270,902 11 0
Total of the half-year to this date, 1854....., 280,416 2 1
GLASGOW AND SOUTH-WESTERN RAlLWAY.—Traffic re-
turn for the week ending June 16, 1855 £6,332 8 6
corresponding week last year 5,798 5 10
Increase in 1855 £534 2 8

Most of the non-commissioned officers and men who
have come borne wounded from the Crimea, and were
too ill to be present at the distribution of the medals by
her Majesty, have so far recovered as to be able to proceed
to London, where they have received the medal and
c:asps.