The Sun.
London, England, 1864-05-23 00:00:00

gifted LONGSTREET. There is unhappily but
little room left for hope that the reported
deaths of the two Federal Generals, that
is WARREN and SEDGEWICK, may be found to have
been wrongly so reported as killed. But to the
last we shall continue to hope that the wounding of
LONGSTREET may prove to have been nothing
serious. His loss, in effect, would, for the cause of
the South, be second only to the yet lamented loss
of the famous "STONEWALL" JACKSON. The
new position taken up by LEE since his retreat—
that retreat of the Confederates being in truth,
strictly a strategic movement—the Federal assail•
ants having been repulsed at all points on the
Bth, the 9th, and the 10 Ii instant—is
unders'ood to be fortheL south than Spottsyl-
vannia, on the road to Richmond. The upshot of it
i all being that in traversing merely 20 miles on their
way towards the Southern capital,the northern army
has lost two Generals as well as 40,000 men in
killed and wounded. With only too fearful reason,
it must be said that the sensation headers of the
deadly news from the Seat of War, in the New
York newspapers, included among them in flaming
capitals, AWFUL FIGHTING IN VIRGINIA. The
fighting being doubly awful. thus in truth—first,
because the war is a civil war; and, secondly,
because the fighting, even thus frightfully, has led
to no decisive result.

Herr VON BISMARK seems determined to let
there be no mistake regarding his notions on the
chief topics of the important concerns now occu-
pying the Conference. It would appear as if the
Prussians had resolved to try how much they could
do to outrage public opinion and to exhibit their
utter indifference to the restraints which compacts
and obligations impose. The London Treaty is
now, it is alleged, to be looked upon as nil, and the
astute and active brain of the Berlin Minister is
employed in twisting phrases and distorting facts
until he makes out a very specious show, and de- r,
monstrates how right end proper it is to ignore the
terms of the treaty altogether. It is true that
many persons of experience were sage enough to
prophecy that this would b 3 the next move; but
notwithstanding it is most likely that the authentic
announcement of the determination will astonish
and annoy many. There are always some infatuated
individuals who will persuade themselves that
things will go right in the end, and however per-
verse the authorities may be at present, that they
will shortly hear reason. These sanguine expec-
tations have not assuredly been fulfilled in the
smallest degree since the coaamerc:ment of the late
war, and far from any hope of seeing its fulfilment
we may rather say that our fears have been more
than realised. This last move of Herr 'VON BIS-
MARK'S is to do away with the least chance of the
Conference interfering with his cherished plans,
and to destroy the only hope that remains of a
satisfactory adjustment being arrived at. It is all
very fine for him to go back so far, and try to make
oat a case for himself, bat it does not need a very
sharp-sighted politician to detect the inconsistence
of his arguments. If the Danish Government had
gone too far in its attempts to frame the constitu-
tion of Schleswig, was that a reason why such in.
tolerable conduct should be exhibited by the Prus-
sians in particular, and the allied armies in general.
The whole of the despatch is a contradiction in
terms, and explains very accurately the disin-
genuous form adopted by the Prussians when ex-
plaining a difficult question of their foreign
policy. All through the retrospective glance
we meet with a series of encroachments on
the part of the Danes, and of wise forbearance and
finally slow resort to arms for the restitution at
their rights. A stranger who studiod BISMARK'S
letter attentively would never have imagined that
the i,..sues of the contest thus begun had attracted
the earnest attention of all Europe, and that alt
sympathy was on the side of the people so denounced
and stigmatised by the official narrator of events in
this epistle. It must be borne in mind that this is
all written for a purpose, and that in some respects
it is almost useless to discuss it too particularly and
to analyse its bearings too closely, for it is the ex-
pression of opinion on the part of those who have
made up their minds beforehand what to do, and
afterwards invent a plausible reason for their ma-
eceivres. It makes very little difference to the
Prussians whether the terms of the London Treaty
are complied, with or not, bat it is a very conve-
nient excuse for violence and oppression to assert
that the Danes have violated the solemn engage-
ments entered into, and that the honour and in-
terests of Prussia alike call for their fulfilment, or
for some new proposal being entered upon. In his
statement about the Danes not fulfilling their con-
tract, Herr von BISMARK seems totally to forget
that he is insulting the Powers that were parties to
the Treaty of 1852, and that he is virtually telling
them to let him alone, for they cannot or else dare
cot interfere with him to prevent the execution of
his design. After perusing the communication of
the Prussian Minister to the Ambassador in Lon-
don we may well ask what is the use of having
agreed to a Conference at all if the ground is to be
cut away from under the feet of those who delibe-
rate. The members of the conclave meet to impress
the necessity or urge the advisability of Prussia
adhering to some fixed regulations, and maintain
ing her engagements with Denmark, and also with
the other countries that were parties to the Treaty.
Instead of agreeing readily the Cabinet of Berlin
have, from the outset of the deliberations, inter-
posed as many obstacles as they can to the fulfilment
of the purpose of the meeting. First there was a
serLs of delays before beginning the deliberations;
then upon one protest or another a perpetual put-
ting off when the business had actually commenced.
Now we meet with a more serious check than any
previously encountered in this abjuration by Herr
BISMARK, of the vital principles of
the rights of
nations—a more arrogant piece of assumption than
this declaration has seldom been perused. First of
all there is a recapitulation of the assertions of the
Government of King WILLIAM, and then from
these it is deduced that the Prussians have a right
to act upon the threats and menaces which have
been so plentifuly hurled against the Dines. This
is strange reasoning, and indicates a total want of
respect for the opinion of others, and a complete

disregard for the observance of solemn obligations

that alternately amezTs and exasperates one. We
are fallen upon evil days indeed if the spirit of
Elgland is to submit to this ind;gnity, and thv

intelligence of her people to atop to such a level

as that to which M. BIS3IARK seeks to degrade us.

If it is to go forth to the world that NVO arc unablL
lr unwilling to protect cur allies frcm the rupture

of traatica to w hich we were parties, and to intcrposk

in aff:kire
any cheek to the attempts of invad3rs against their
privilege,we had better not rnix up .O
at all, If it amounts to this that we mast not vin-
dicate cur rights or avenge the wrongs of others,
if we era powerless to support our integrity acd
assist their independence, it stands to reason that
it will very soon cease to concern the aggreseivC
States, whether England approves of their conduct

or not, and that all she does is to send despatches
that give encouragement, and then to disavow them
by
still when no heed is paid to our warn-
standing
Mach hf.s hc;:n said and written regarding
;Aar mism‘inagentent of the Danish Tustin, but no

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