The Sun.
London, England, 1855-03-03 00:00:00

LONDON, SATURDAY EVENING, MARCH 3, 1855.

SPIRIT OF 'THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

DEATH OF THE EMPEROR OF RUSSIA.
• ( From the Times of Skis day.) ,

Scarcely had the intelligence of the serious illness of the
Emperor of Russia arrived in this country in the course of
yesterday morning, when 'authentic despatches reached the
Government announcing that his life was already at an end,
and thA soon after midnight on the 2d of March Nicholas I.
had expired. His death is attributed, to pulmouic apoplexy,
or congestion of 'the lungs. No single event could have hap-
pened in Europe of such Momentous importance at the pre- !
sent time to the whole family of civilised nations ;. no event
*Quid have occurred more startling from the contrast between
the pride and power of a ruler who sent -forth but yesterday
' his myriads to battle, and seemed to hold the issues of life and
death in his own hands, but who is now less than the least of
his serfs, and lower than the dust of that empire which was
lately his own. In the long array of history, and among those
figures dimly seen along the ages of the past which bear ims '
perishable traces of their guiltand their doom, none stands%
more visible inArk of retributive justice than he who has thus
abruptly passed from the scene of human affairs. The stun-
mons of Belshazzar upon the fiery wall was not more appalling 1
—the destruction of Seuacherib not more terrible. This blow I
has fallen riot only on the armies which Russia has equipped
for the defence of her territory—not only on her policy and
her allian;es, but more especially non the one great author of
the war, who has expiated with the ' loss' of -reputation, the
loss of power, and the losS of life itself; the otitrage he com-
mitted on the rights of other States and on the peace of
Europe. We shall not press against the bier of the pull-
lie enemy the charges to which in his
.lifetime the
Emperor Nicholas ivas emeritL,,xte„ shall not give
1.71") t to ernv Nichol uestinty
potent will reduces the fabric_ of all earthly power to.. dust
uey•Hac 'of human censure. The touch of an Omni?'
and
the ,course of sternal Justice by
ashes,means ine,.76yrraliove and vi,,,1,--0,08" our knowledge. Such an event silences
the discord of the world, as it were by the stroke of Heaven,
and must suggest even to the most indifferent Minds thoughts
which cannot - find their place among, the petty interests of
daily life.
The Emperor Nicholas was born on the 6th of July, 1796,
from the marriage of his father, the Emperor Paul, with a
Princess of Wurtemberg. He was therefore in the 59th year
of his age, and he had filled the throne of All the Russias for
very nearly 30 years. It has been observed that no Prince
of the house of Romanoff has ever reached old age, and that
the close of their lives- hag been sometimes violent, always
sudden ~Nicholas has lived beyond the customary age of his
race, and probably the cause of his death is to be
traced to the long and uncontrolled exercise of absolute
power, to the natural violence. of his passions, and to the
effect on such a character of the bitter lessons of the last few
months. He ascended the throne in the priule of life, and
he won his crown by his own daring and composure in the
face of great dangers. The revolt of the 26th of De-
'cember, 1325, which broke out among the Guards and'
the populace of St. Petersburg, upon the abdication of
Constantine and the accession of Nicholas was one of
the greatest perils ever braved by a sovereign ;
'but the Czar displayed so unflinching, a resolution,
and so lofty a spirit of command, that he subdued the mal-
contents by his authority, and instantly acquired that domi-
nation over the people of Russia which has remained unshaken
through all ranks of the Muscovite population to the day of
'his death. From that hour, too, the Emperor has played no
inconsiderable part in the affairs of Europe, and the first
years of his reign were agitated by events inferior only in
importance to those of the present time. War soon broke
out between Russia and Persia, and another province was
added to the colossal empire of the north. The Greek insur-
rection, to which the policy of Alexander secretlycontributed,
served to extend the interest of Russia in the East, and in
1828 war was declared between the young Emperer and the
Sublime Porte. In the course of the ensuing operations the
Emperor found, however, that he had not the talent of mili-
tary command, and he never again appeared at the head of
his armies in the field, though he devoted a great part of his
life to the caret of military administration, and undoubtedly
extended and improved the forces of the empire. But, what-
ever may have been his designs against the empires of the
East in the earlier period of his reign, they were suspended,
and a different character was given to the policy of his reign for
2U years by the French Revolution of 1830. From that mo-
ment it was against the free Governinents of the West that
the Emperor Nicholas reserved his strength. He drew closer
his ties of alliance with Austria. and Prussia, insomuch that
, those States continued for many years to act as the tributa-
ries of his empire and the vassals of his policy. He heaped
contumely on the constitutional monarchy of France.
With England he • endeavoured to remain on terms
of goodwill, though not of close amity; and he
is known to have professed through life the belief
that a rupture with this country, especially if it were allied
with France, would be au event of the most fatal import to
Russia and to the prosperity of his reign. He had lived long
enough to verify the prediction, without having the prudence
to avert its consequences. During this period, from 1830 to
1840, his influence on the affairs of Europe was neither very
energetic nor very direct. He had in 1831 crushed with eon-
siderable difficulty, but with unsparing rigour, the great
Polish insurrection, which might have wrested from him the
western provinces afterwards incorporated in the empire. He
succeeded in 1832 in establishing a Russian army on the
Bosphorus, and extorted the Treaty of Uukiar 'Skellessi from
the failing hands of Sultan Mahmoud. Throughout his reign
the under-current of Russian intervention in the affairs of
Turkey may constantly be -traced until it reached, in - 1353,
that catastrophe which has for the last two years convulsed
Europe. In 1840 the insidious propositions Of Russia, being
adopted by the British Government and by that of Austria,
led us to the brink of war with France, and engaged us in

military operations in Syria; but with this exception the
peace of the world remained undisturbed until 1848. Upon
the occurrence of that earthquake, which overthrew half the
thrones of continental Europe, the Emperor Nicholas alone
seemed completely prepared to meet the shock, and completely
unmoved by-its violence. Ins forbearance was equal to his
strength. He sought no pretext for interference int he affairs of
other States, although ho did not refuse his succour when it
was required; he took no unfair advautige of the weakness
and confusion of other countries, and the advica he tendered
was invariably favourable to the cause of order and of peace.
The conduct of the Emperor Nicholas during those event-
ful and perilous years from 1848 to 1851, raised him
higher than he had ever stood before; he was
regarded as one of the wisest, as well as one of the most
powerful Sovereigns of Europe, and those even who detested
his despotic government could not deny that he had shown
moderation, temper, and a strong desire for peace.
Nor had his internal government of the Russian empire been
less successful. Although he continued to oppress the finances
and the population by an enormous military establishment,
he had undoubtedly laboured with success to develope the re-
sources of the country. The means of communication were
improved, foreign merchants were protected, the numerous
departments of public service were placed under severe con-
trol, and the coadition of the rural population on the vast
demesnes of the Crown was notably improved. No Sovereign
ever succeeded in inspiring his own subjects of the Muscovite
race with a more fanatical attachment to his person, and it is
perfectly true that wherever the lofty stature and imperial
port of the Czar were seen throughout his dominions ho was
hailed as a demigod rather than as a man. His pride rose with
his station and his power, and at times he seemed possessed
with hallucinations acting upon a mystical and excitable
nature, as if he, indeed, transcended the appointed limits of
all human greatness.
By what marvellous fatality, by what infatuation, or by

what perversity could it then happen, that a ruler of men
already past the illusions of youth, , versed in the affairs of
Europe, and professedly solicitous to maintain the constituted
order of things, suddenly descended from this exalted position,
committed acts of astonishing imprudence and injustice,
destroyed his own influence throughout the world, and died
at last without a friend ? Two short years have barely elapsed
since Prince Menschikoff's departure on his fatal mission,
and each successive month has been marked by the steady
progress of the Emperor of Russia down this declivity of bad
faith, of aggression, of bloodshed, of defeat, of desolation,
and at last of death, which terminates the appalling history.
Yet at every step his own act has brought about his chastise-
ment, and the other Powers of Europe have been accused of
too much forbearance in their eagerness to avert some of the
deplorable conseqUences of this struggle. He was warned
early, frequently, and emphatically, that if he persisted in
this course, and if he failed to control that indomitable pride
which gave a pernicious import to his smallest actions, he
would fall under the ban of Europe ; and it is impossible to
doubt that the agonising sense of humiliation and remorse at
the loss of all he had reason to prize has terminated his life.
It is one of the most solemn and forcible examples of the tie
which links human greatness to human frailty; and through-
out all future time the reign of Nicholas of Russia will be re-
membered as an instance of the miserable ending of a career
which has been sacrificed to bad and destructive passions,
when it might have been prolonged in peace, good fame, and
honour. •

sian party is more turbulent and self-willed, and is runder.
stood to have goaded on the late Czar to attempt the fiilfil-
=wit of the ambitious projects of Petcr and,-Catherine more
precipitately than Nihcolas himself desired. yenschikoff is a
mere soldier, but of strong will ; Siniavin, the *Pupil -of Nes•
selrode, rivals his mast r in his tact and talent for intrigue,
but is a bigoted Sclavonian. • From the- peculiar feelings
'cherished by the Russians towards their priesthood, it is diffi-
cult to conjecture what is the exact ciameter or amount o
the influence-of the Patriarch. The power of the Russian
party appears to have .prepoaderated during", the latter years
of the reign of Nicholas. Its influence—based as it is upon
national prejudice--will probably be increased during the
earlier years of a new rsign. If Alexander ascend the throne;
he will be its reluctant instrument ; ii Constantine, he will.
be its.willing instrument and loader. rlie imrLdiato' policy
of the Aussian .Governincut whi depend in 'a great measure'
upon the extent to which the pressure of the war has begun'
to be felt. If the merchants are embarrassed in _their cir.
cum Stances - if the noblea teel their :uxuyies curtailed—if
the people. have .become sore and irritable under the con=
scriptioa, that policy will be tcmporsiag. ' But, tempo.
rildug or audacious, the objects of the Russian thiveinmeut,
to thwart and baffle which the Western POwers are . now
in arms, will not be relinquished. Material guarantees
that Russia will henceforth abstain from committing
aggressions on its western neighbours, ail from troubling the
peace of Europe, will be as indispensable as ever.
- -.. How far France and England can rely upon the co-opera.
thin of Germany in their efforts to obtain-these guarantees is
extremely. doubtful.' The Austrian Cibinet, relieved from
immediate fears inspired by Nicholas, and reverting to its sus-
picions of revolutiOnary propagandists inthe west, may.not be-
indisposed to patch up peace with the neuSovereign ofßussia.
The King of Prussia may be emancitedfrom the servile fear
with which Nicholas iikepirf_l-=
hci;infin:ii7oVer him, to
lieuitilitTnielFßussia; and despotism. It were sheer waste
of time to conjecture what may be " the drift of hollow
states, hard to be spelled." But this much is certain, the
mutual jealousies of the Austrian and. Prussian Cabinetil will
induce them to seek pretexts for delay, each fearing that the
other. may be trying to ga;is an advantage over it; and much
time will be lost before the Germanic Confederation can de-
cide who is to command its federal army—more before that
army can be organised, and money raised for its support.
France and. England cannot afford to wait for the dilatory
movements of the Germanic Powers—they must act promptly
and vigorously for themselves.
There has been a good deal of nizntification—someOf it
wilful— about the nature and objects of Lord John Russell's
mission to Vienna. ,His enemies—boti those of the peace-at-
any-price party and those of the ultrarevolutionary party-
have assiduously propagated the belief that the sole pur-
pose for which Lord John has been sent to Vienna is to
put an end to the war as soon as possible. They are dis
seminated as a preparation for raisin/ an outcry- against
Lord John as an unsuccessful negotiattr in the event of his
not concluding peace; or of rendering lima suspected by the
decided opponents of Russia. Unless we are much mistaken
in the man, he has undertaken the mission with a view to
make peace if Russia consent to terns that will give real
security to Europe; but if there shotill be any appearance of
insincerity in its overtures, or of a disposition to waste time
in aimless and dilatory negotiations as the part of the Ger-
man Powers, he will doubtless cut the lumbug short, peremp-
torily, and at once. And this is the only sound policy.
Peace—a durable peace, with ample security for the tranquil-
lity and independence f the nations 0.! Europe—is most de-
sirable ;' but it can only be obtained b: inflexible firmness on
the part of tile Western Fowers.

(Frew& the Morning Herald of this day.)
The news of the death of the Emperor of Russia was re-
ceived last night in the two Houses of .Parliament with pro-
found emotion. It will, if we mistake not, create correspond-
ing emotion through every rank and in all portions of this
great empire. Whatever may be the feelings which animate
Englishmen against their common enemy—however convinced
they may be of the truth and justice of their cause, it is not
their wont to rejoice over a fallen foe ; still less over one' who
has been called away from this earth to render his account to
a higher aid more solemn tribunal. The din of armies, the
rewards of subtle and dexterous policy the achievement of,
long-conceived plans, can soothe no longer " the dull cold
ear." The contrast between the dead and the living man,
whose single word could marshal armies and terrify the na-
tions, awakens thoughts far removed from any feelings of
triumph.
On Friday morning, March 2d, between the hours of twelve
and one, died Nicholas 1., Emperor of all the Russias, of a
fit of apoplexy, which had succeeded an attack of influenza,
in the 26th year of his reign and the 60th year of his age.
The late Emperor was born July 6th (June 25), 1796, and
succeeded his brother Alexander 1., December Ist (Nov. 19),
1825. • His elder brother Constantine had. voluntarily abdi-
cated his right to the throne in conseqtence of his marriage
con-
sideredw ithaPtohliiss hr
eg ladysin aotfithl inferiorno
as ranl
Alexander, and there were indications among the populace
which would have encouraged a more ambitious man to press
his claims and mount the throw,. Th., conduct of the two
brothers deserves to be recorded. At this uncertain moment,
wonger Butre

the first to present himself to take the oath of fealty to Con-
stantine was Nicholas, the legal successor ; nor would he con•
sent to accept the crown until the 13th December, when
Constantine had repeated his formal abdication. Once, how.
ever, pronounced the successor, Nicholas displayed that in.

flexible resolution and iron Will which never forsook him to
the-last moment of his life. Ho svgs NIL; 29 years old when
-he--znoauteil the throne ;---incliratirmint-AUCoritant werl rnani,
tested in various parts of his dominielni, put the -prudence
and intrepidity of the new Czar were proof against all mis-
fortunes. His person was enough to inspire awe, and his
erect bearing and martial carriage, not without their effect
upon more enlightened people, were unspeakable advantages
in gaining the favour of the half-civilised masses of his domi-
nions.

Nor were these advantagesof person unsupported by men-
tal and moral qualities of a peculiar order. Whatever might
shake the confidence of others, Nicholas never shared in any
of their doubt's; ho had not an atom of the amiable weak-
IIeSSC3 of his brother Alexanler. Ho possessed a perfect and
unshaken faith in himself and his destiny; he never ques-
tioned fur a moment the blessings of a despotic Government ;
heenever wavered in his loyalty to the Week faith. The two
convictions lent strength' and support to each other. They
guided and inspired his conduct towards his own subjects ;
they influenced his policy towards foreign nations. Nor can
it be doubted that he succeeded in planting the same convic-
tions in the minds of his subjects ; and thus- gave a unity of
action and a consistency to his measures, in which most of
his strength consisted.
The battle of Navarino in 1827 soon gave the new Sove-
reign an opportunity of signalising‘ himself. A campaign,
ending with the surrender of Varna and the treaty of Adrian-
ople in 1829, laid the Turk at the feet of Russia, and enabled
the Czar to show how much moderation is compatible with
the most inflexible self-will. Then came the French revolu-
tion and the insurrection in Poland (1830—an upheaving of
an oppressed people, rebelling against the
savage brutality of
Constantine. With those two exceptions, Nicholas was
enabled to devote himself exclusively to those schemes of in-
ternal improvement and self-aggrandisement the results of
which have been so fearfully displayed within the last twelve
months. The condition of the various kingdoms of Europe
was favourable to his designs. France was shaken by revo-
lutions and change of dynasties ; Austria was troubled by
dissensions in Italy and the ware of Hungary ; Prussia was
too much bent upon securing its own interests to interfere
with a rich and powerful Sovereign, who thus advanced un-
molested with real but inevitable strides to the unquestioned
supremacy of all Eastern Europe,
The revolt of Bucharest, in 1848, gays Nicholas an oppor-
tunity of tasking the force and value .of his long-husbanded
strength and resources. He now came forth in his new cha-
racter, as protector of the kingdoms on his borders. Turkey
and Austria were to feel the weight and value of his help.
" Russia was to fulfil its mission." This was his striking
and fanatic declaration. In that mission it was to respond
to the call of all the neighbouring nations, and establish their
authority who, in the Czar's apprehension, were not able to
establish it for themselves.

The design was a bold one. It was pursued by Nicholas
with undeviating constancy
could dishearten. It did Ot tlliwa
with this
s perseverancedesign thtaot nboethniinege
in the choice of his means, much less to employ violence
where moderation and conciliation were available. Ho knew
stoluormwetlhl
ehijseeolwolystroefngotthhaenrsd theuri t
hpor:tc 1 oe
su suns
ee,ss
oorf the
sprize
eti or
pride by any needless appearance of arrogance. But this
mildness and this moderation were not incompatible with the
most determined obstinacy, or with an unflinching resolve to
carry out his purposes. By no means. He was one of those
men who, having once set their minds upon the accomplish-
ment of an object, are not to be diverted from it. 11l success,
only to whet their appetites and
aduelgnayie,
it with Nicholas. Was there any object upon which he had
set his-mind that ho ever abandoned I Did ever the prostra-
tion of his hopes at any time induce him to abandon those
udtimthPePir°idnetsraireen andt setrair struggle for possession. So was
hopes entirely I Under that apparently impassive face and
statue-like form, rigid and perfect as marble, there lurked a
fire which never died out, an ambition
amounting to fanati-
cism, which nothing could extinguish,
The later events of his life are too recent to require any ex-
tended notice. They are a lesson to illimitable power not
easily forgotten. A little grain of sand,- a little drop, the
almost imperceptible particle of floating air, can bring the sense
of mortality to the bravest and most thoughtless of us all. A_
handful of mountaineers in the Caucasus, a purpose Imbed a
little too indiscreetly has stopped for everthe advance of a great
power, which all Europe has fur many years been n gazing at with
uneasiness or dismay. We cannot fora certainty predict the
return of all things to an ordinary and peaceful channel by
his removal, who was the soul of,this great enterprise, whose
breath kindled and fanned the war, but such a result is almost
inevitable. Not only is there now a better chance for peace
and the mediation of Lord John Russell, but Alexander Nice-
laievritch, who succeeds his father, is unfavourable to the con-
tinuation of the war. He has signalised already his
prudence
by strongly proteiting against it. Ho has even been placed
under arrest for his manly firmness in opposing his late
father's wishes.
Were he, indeed, inclined to give credence to those dim
feelings of foreboding which sometimes have attached the mis-
fortunes of great men and great houses to certain spots, the
new Czar would regard the Crimea with more than feelings
of aversion. It is there that the best blood and treasure of
his house has been wasted. There, too, hundreds and thou-
sands of his bravest countrymen have been cast away and
sacrificed in a fruitless and unworthy Contest. The Crimea
has been fatal to his family. It has broken the heart of his
father. It was there, also, that, after a visit to Sebastopol,
on his way to Bakshi-Scrai, Alexander, his uncle, was taken
ill, and died in• the arms of the Empress, on the Ist of De-
cember. In his last moments the 'sinking man ordered the
blinds of his window to be thrown open, and, gazing on the
cloudless sunny skies, exclaimed, " What a lovely day ! "
Little did he anticipate what sorrows to his race and nation
that very spot should witness within a generation

POBl of this day.)
MEMOIR OF THE EMPEROR OF RUSSIA.
man,°Tuoiecega mighty empire, whose
mofilaliogruseaotf and
human race—who re-
A few ho(uPrsroaragothtehelif:t2t7lenitngion of all Europe was fixed upon
presented in himself the barbarism of the North. Now, for
v et hlea:w Sovereignto fiffifty
y
the second time, brought into contact with the civilisation
and progress of Western Europe, and now, by the inscrutable
decree of the King oflKings and Lord of Lords, he has been
suddenly cast down, to afford, by his sudden and melancholy
fate, another emphatic commentary on the inspired words,
that "in the midst of life we are in death." . •
Nicholas Paulowitch was born at St Petersburg on the 7th
of July, 1796, being the third son of the Emperor Paul, by
his second wife, Mary of Wirtember
g• Of his father, whose
OcCeatrigities amounted to inenuity, and who wan Volorod
_ ____

by his nobles in consequence of an alliance which his infatu-
ated admiration for the Emperor Napoleon the First had in-
duced him to contract, it is unnecessary to speak. His
mother, a woman of intelligence, superintended his educa-
tion, which she committed to General de Lambsdorf, who was
assisted, amongst others, by the Countess de Lieven, the
philologist Adelung, and the Councillor Stork. At an-early
period he applied himself with great ardour to military pur-
suits,..in which he evinced consideralge proficiency, especially
in the art of fortification. He also studied the science of po-
litical economy, and became as familiar with the French and
German languages as with his native tongue. He cultivated

music, a taste which he g-atificd after his accession to the
throne, not only by the composition of several military airs, ,
but by attracting to his capital the most distinguished
clans of Europe. However, in youth his instructors formed
no high estimate of his abilities, He was taciturn, melan •
-
choly, and, when not enkaged iu his military studies, absorbed i
in trifles. In after life he distinguished himself as a patron
of the Fine Arts, -to gild, with the tinsel ef an imported
ciiilisation, the native and bUrbarie splendour of his Court. I
When the'Frencli invasion took place ,Nicholas was too young
to take part iu the noble defence which Russia made, or to
join in these great military operations which ultimately led
to the overthrow of Napoleon and the oc:Mpatien of his capi-
tal. He, was, however, old enough to be au observant,
though. distant, spectator of the greatest struggle in which
the people' ,that- he was afterwards called upon to govern
were ever engaged;-and .the recollection of the enthusiasm -I
and•devotiou. then exhibited by them, in a just cause, may-
have lured him en .to those fatal and boundless schemes of
aggression wbicih now -suddenly' have been brought to a close.
On the restoration of peace in 1814, lie left Russia to travel,
and visited'tho principal battle-fields of Europe. In 1816 he
ial welcom
Russia, for the, purpose of becoming acquainted with the
On returning home,: he tei-egieveaMil
actual condition of the population. In July, 1817, he mar-
ried-Charlotte Louisa, the eldest daughter of. Frederick WU-
! lima of Prussia, and sister of the present King. Four sons
and three daughters are the issue of this marriage, the eldest
son, Alexander Nicolaiewitch, having been bees born in the
year• 1818. At this time. Nicholas had little expectation of
obtaining the Imperial Crown ; but in the year 1825, his
.eldest brother, the Emperor Alexander, died at Taganrog, in
the Crimes, it.is stpposed by poison. The next heir to the
throne was the Grand Duke Constantine, who was then at
Warsaw; and Nicholas hastened to take the oath of fidelity.
But his brother had already renounced the Crown in a paper
which be had secretly signed on the occasion of his marriage
with the daughter of a private Polish gentlemen. Nicholas,
with expressions of regret, then ascended the throne ;
and now came a terrible struggle. A vast conspiracy, corn-.
posed of two classes—the enthusiastic lovers of liberty and
'the old Russian party, , the supporters of ,Constantine—were
formed ; but elements so 'discordant could not long act toge-
ther:, The troops were called upon to swear allegiance to the
new Emperor; but they had previously sworn fidelity to Con-
stantine, and not understanding the reason for the change of
commenced,
the
the officers oath which they
stepped
yheadd
mheaeineed faithful
f
out of their ranks and denounced Nicholas as an usurper, and
,-Wthheyenret
declared that he held Constantine in confinement. The
taken.maste masters,
soldiers followed officers, with cries of " Constantine and the
constitution." Milarodovitch, the Governor of St. Peters-
burg, and the veteran favourities of the' army, were sent to
parley with them. The archbishop appeared in his ecclesias-
tical robes ; but all in vain.' The populace began to sympa-
thise with the troops, and the scene which followed has thus
been described :—" The tide and tumult of death swept on
the imperial palace. The Emper—or and the Empress
had proceeded alone to their chapel, and, on their
knees upon the altar steps had mutually sworn to
die as Sovereigns. Then placing himself at the head of
the guard, that yet remained loyal, the Czar rode
out and confronted the rebels. Standing before them
with haughty hearing, he cried in a firm tone, Return to
your ranks—obey—down upon your knees !' The energy of
his voice—his countenance calm, though pale—and the vene-
ration with which every Russ regards the person of his Sove-
reign--•-prevailed. Most of the soldiers kneeled before their
master, and grounded heir arms in token of submission. They
say in St. Petersburg that while he harangued them, one of
the conspirators four times came forward to kill him, and
four times shrunk back in fear. One thing is certain, that to
the intrepid self-possession of that hour he is indebted to the
continuance of his authority. Victory was now easy. He re-
tired from the spot ; wherever resistance was made, the artil-
lery played upon the gathering crowds, and the fire of mus-
ketry completed the work of destruction." The hopes of the
Liberal and old Russian party having been thus quenched,
Nicholas found himself the sole and absolute master of the
gigantic Russian empire. The Marquis de Custine, who had
a conversation with the Emperor as to the memorable events
of that day, records the following words used by Nicholas :
—" I did nothing extraordinary. I said to the soldiers,
Return to your ranks,' and at the moment of pass-
ing the regiment in review I cried On your knees 1'
They all obeyed. What gave me power was, that the instant
before I had resigned myself to meet death. lam grateful
for having succeeded, but I am not proud of it, for it was by
no merit of my own." On another occasion, he said, "My
honour was at stake, and it was well worth while for me to
appear courageous." In the punishments inflicted ou the re-
bels, Nicholas evinced the most unappeasable severity, thus
affording a melancholy spectacle of an union of chivalrous
bravery with' barbarous cruelty. In September, 1826, the '
Emperor was crowned at Moscow, with great pomp and cere-
mony. AbSolutism was henceforth his darling doctrine; To
Use Marquis of Cnstine he said, " I have no conception of a
representative-ittanaretkr-- It is the Govtaaident of falsehood,
fraud, and corruption, and, rather than auopt It; 1 would fall
back to the borders f China." Again, " Despotism is the
very essence of my Government, and it suits the genius of the
land." Shortly after bis,Coronation, war was dclared with
Persia, which, after continuing more than a year, was c 3n chided
by a treaty, *hereby the Shah ceded two fine provinces to
Russia, and bound himself to pay 20 millions of silver roubles
as the penalty of resistance. About a year afterward Nicholas
declared war with Turkey. Adrianople opened its gates, and
tonstantinople was itself in danger, although the Turks in the
Balkan, and ,in the defence of Sdistria and Varna, had co-
vered themselves with glory. In 1829 the peace of Adria-
nople was concluded, by which Nicholas was permitted to
retain authority in Wallachia. and Moldavia, :-.lnl the Porte
agreed to indemnify the expeires of the war by a payment of
eleven millions and a-half Dutch ducats—a sum from which
three millions were afterwards deducted. In 1830 the Polish
• '

revolution broke out ; but England and France remained
neuter, and Austria and Prussia aided the Czar in crushing
the insurgent patriots. After a heroic resistance, Poland was
reeonquered—the Russians entered Warsaw, and au iron
despotism was substituted for the semblance of constitu-
tional government, which previously had been permitted to
exist. A citadel was built on the heights above Warsaw,
and when, in 1835, the citizens went out to compliment the
Czar, pointing to the citadel, he exclaimed—" You see that
fortress ; if you stir, I will order your whole city to be de-
stroyed—l will not leave one stone upon another, and when
it is destroyed it will not be'rebuilt by me." When the cho-

lera invaded St. Petersburg, the ignorant populace acc-ised
the physicians of having poisoned the sick in the hospitals,
and put some of them to death. Nicholas rode to the
mob, and shouted, in a voico of thunder, " Down
upon your knees before God, and ask pardon of him
for your offences. I, your Emperor—your master,
order you." The populace obeyed, and Nicholas, in
describing the scene, said to the Marquis de Custine, " These
moments are the finest of my life. I ran in the face of dan-
ger without knowing, as a King, how I should retreat. I did
my duty, and God sustained me." In 1839 war was declared
with Circassian —a war which, with littlo honour to the Rus-
sian arms, has continued up to the present time. The causes
which have led to the present war it is unnecessary to detail.
The two ruling passions of the Emperor's life appear to have
been to consoldate And extend despotic institutions, not only
within his own dominions, but in neighbouring countries, and
to acquire, at all sacrifices, Constantinople as the scat of his
great empire. His claim to exercise a protectorate over the
Christian subjects of the Porto may be contrasted with his
persecution of Christians differing from the Greek Church
in Russia, and his prohibition of the Sacred Scriptures. He

never recognised the Sovereignty of Louis Philippe ; and by
that astute policy which distinguishes Russian diplomacy, in
1840, in reference to the Egyptian question, he endeavoured
to detach England from the alliance of France. Of his pri-
vate character it is difficult to form a correct opinion. Ho
has been placed in a position of terrible responsibility; he has
now gone to his account, and his opponents can well afford
to draw the veil over his errors, his failings, his insatiable
ambition, and his iron despotism. Can it be said of his
melancholy fate—
His foes' derision and his subjects' blame,
He steals to death from anguish and from shame.

EUPATORIA AND ITS CAPABILITIES.

TA TIIE EDITOR OF THE TIMES.

Sir,—Your recent leader on the importance of Eupatoria to
the Allies will attract the attention of the public to that lo-
cality, and doubtless the movements of Omer Pasha will be
followed ou the map with an interest only second to that ex-
cited by the siege of Sebastopol.
It is, I fancy, not generally known how almost impregnable
a position Eupatoria furnishes to a Power commanding the
sea, and able by that means to throw supplies and reinforce-
ments at pleasure into the place. Beyond the immediate
neighbourhood, which is sandy and impregnated with salt,
the steppe surrounds it on every side with a barrier more
valuable for defence than a wall of granite. Any army sitting
down to invest Eupatoria would not only have to dig wells
through a horizontal stratum of limestone of great thickness,
but likewise to bring all its supplies and materiel of war through
a region of wide extent, equally destitute of the first necessary
of life—good water.
Some idea of the effect of this hindrance may be formed
from the circumstance that the Russian army under Marshal
Munich, in the, first invasion of the Crimea, nearly perished
from this cause in its march from Perekop to Eupatoria, in
spite of the greatest precautions. They only found three
streams of fresh water on the whole march (which occupied
them 11 days), and the sufferings of the wretched soldiers
were aggravated by the sight of many brooks, all of which
were the mere overflow of salt pools. These facts will perhaps
give some insight into the cause of the immense loss reported
to have been sustained by the last reinforcements which en-
tered Sebastopol. If an attempt was really made to convoy a
large body of troops over the snow from the north of the
peninsula, awl if any detention occurred from a sudden thaw,
the unhappy victims of Imperial ambition will have found
themselves exposed to destruction from a more terrible enemy
than frost and cold.
When the steppe is covered by the luxuriant grass of the
spring the task of crossing it in force is of course an easier
one, as the baggage animals find their provender on the spot,
and, being entirely grass-fed, the scarcity of water is, as far
as they are concerned, much less felt. But this favourable
period is comparatively short. The heat of the sun ripeus
i
the herbage very rapidly ; early in June t begins to scorch
up, and becomes iu July and August highly inflammable from
its dryness. So remarkable is it in this respect, that it was
a cane of great anxiety to Munich lest his camp should
be destroyed by the firing of the steppe ; and every wheeled
carriage was furnished with a large bosam, for the purpose of
instantly extinguishing the first sparks that might be seen. As
a means of defence against an invading army, it is scarcely
necessary to point out how effective such a conflagration must
be. When Munich, the year after the expedition to the
Crimea, laid siege to Ochsakoff, the Turks burnt the steppe
for three leagues around the town ; and this circumstance of
itself would have compelled Munich to abandon his hope of
taking it, had not one of his shells accidentally exploded a
large powder magazine, causing such destruction that the
Governor surrendered in a panic. In the plain of the Crimea
a westerly breeze generally prevails through the months of
May and June ; and, if necessity required it, nothing would
be easier, after securing as much hay as could be brought
within the defence of the linos, t 11414 to
.0.10 aid ,age 0 the