The Sun.
London, England, 1864-03-02 00:00:00

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

Ttetes.—A glance at the seep of 'Europe is stifS
eleet t' show that there are severe' reeeens which,
in various degrees, singly or in combination, have
constituted its several divisions as they now stand.
The geographical reason prevails in large islands
and peninsulas, in regions backed by mountain
ranges, frozen deserts, or inhospitable seas. The
national reason, or the influence of race, tells most
when the cognate branches of some one human
family have been closely packed, and other circum-
stances have favoured their assimilation and fusion.
The political reason takes its origin from history—
from the achievements of conquerors and great
statesmen, or from a course of policy favourable
to alliances and compacts for mutual advantage,
leading to closer and more permanent union.
If we review the States of Europe under these
three divisions, it will be observed that the most
enterprising, ambitious, and revolutionary are
those which either possess the concentrated strength
of a great race, or the perfect security of a good
geographical position, or both these advantages.
The most conservative are those which have grown
out of policy, and must depend upon it. It may be
a bold word to say, so we say it in all humility—.
nothing but a folly approaching to madness can pre-
vent France, England, and Russia from being very
great Powers. This cannot be said of any one of
the States that lie between them. The more we
admire the genius and the audacity which made
Prussia in the last century, the more we must
admit that her existence depends every day on
the soldier and the statesman. The more we ad-
mire the astuteness, the good fortune, the patience
and fortitude, and all the good and evil qualities
which have packed the Austrian empire, and have
held it together, the more must we see
that so motley a population, and so federal a Go-
vernment will only hold together so long as its
policy is modest and wise. When Metternich called
" Italy'' a geographical expression, he spoke like a
clever craftsman doing honour to his own craft ;
but he must have inwardly lamented that the Aus-
trian Empire had neither a geographical origin nor
the bond of race; nothing, in fact, but the policy of
which he was a master. How fine that cunning
thread, and how easily broken, he well knew when
he foretold the " deluge" that should come even
earlier than he expected. As he found it, so he left
it—a virtual federation, the form of dynastic unity;
telanndle of races, allied with some loyalty, but
more sense of mutual benefit. But it is a combina-
tion fatal to political enterprise. All that Austria can
safely attempt is to keep things together and as they
are, to hold its own if possible, to leave its neighbours
alone, to maintain a good police on its frontiers, cul-
tivate tolerable relations with its neighbours, and
let the influences of peace do their work in cement-
ing and mixing her various and scarcely congruous
races. Such is the Power which, urged by sudden
impulse, has raced across Europe to inflict a deadly
wound on another Power, whose only crime was to
resemble Austria herself in the composition of her
reople and her designs for their amalgamation.
Denmark, with much more reason than Austria,
and a longer prescription to plead in her favour,
has been attempting, perhaps not with equal clever-
ness, but with more than equal candour, to reduce
into an actual administrative unity provinces which
have been held together now, without interruption,
for several generations. There is not a fault to be
found with the Danish policy that does not lie
against the Austrians, in the dealings of the house
of Hapsburg with its discordant multitude of sub-
jects. The difference in favour of Austria is one of
might, not right, for she conspires and co-operates,
after a fashion, with forty million Germans, akin
to the malcontents with whom Christian IX. has
to deal, hostile to those under Francis Joseph.
But as Austria lives and breathes by policy, by
policy she must stand or fall. As she does to Den•
mark, so must she expect to be done by. What-
ever she says to Denmark must be read in Venetia,
in Huneary,in Transylvania, andfealicia. When she
declares war upon Denmark she declares war alto in
behalf of all those alien dependencies against her-
self. W hen she says this is her time, she proclaims
with trumpet voice that this is their time also to
assert their national independence. So Austria finds,
in fact ; for scarcely has she completed her occupa-
tion of Schleswig before she has to deal with the
more terrible occupation of one of her own provinces
by the original race itself, fighting with the best
means and the best weapons at its command. Eng-
lishmen can speak their thoughts with a good con-
science at such a time. We, too, have had to deal
with divers races, but we have done all that wars
possible to make them one, and, on the whole, we
have succeeded. Our only interest in the approach-
ing conflict is that populations held under an alien
Crown shall either be made to feel that their true
interest, their improvement, and their self-respect
lie that way, or shall achieve their independence.
But France has not that purely philanthropic
interest in the question,nor even has Russia. France,
with her commanding geographical position, has a
singularly homogeneous people. Her varieties of
race sink into insignificance compared with her
oneness. Indeed, the policy of all her great states-
men has been direeted for centuries to the aboli-
tion of everything that could stand in the way of
unity. The nobility, religion, language—every-
thing liable to assume a local and independent cha-
racter„has been beaten or smoothed down into the
ideal Frenchman. The result is a power unknown
to any other forty millions of men. But France
hes her grievance, the abstract justice of which
cannot be denied. She sees beyond the frontier
imposed by European jealousy, but within the
frontier that Nature herself seemed to ordain, a
large population more French than German, and
disposed to union with her. This is her interest
in the gathering strife ; and at the present time the
only object of ambition placed within her reach.
If Germany, whether in the Diet or in a less
regular way, by the hands of her two most powerful
States, lays down the law and carries out the prin-
ciple that no Germans shall be allowed to remain
under an alien Crawn (the Rhenish provinces fall by
natural gravitation into the lap of France. England
has already laid down the self-denying ordinance
that she will not interfere again to arrange the map
of Europe, unless she be required either by treaty
or a necessary regard to her own interest. Whether
we should indeed look on quietly must be left to the
circumstances of the time and season, but such is
our present attitude. France, then, is the State
principally interested in the success of this mon-
strous aggression. But what " nationality" will
fail to hear the call, and hesitate to obey it, even if
it has waited for that time? There is not a State
between the Mediterranean and the Baltic that is
not either encouraged or menaced by this movement,
and told that now, if ever, is the time to get its own
again, o' keep and acquire what it can.
POST.—The despatches which relate to the special
mission of Lord Wodehouse to the Danish Court are
those which in that mass of correspondence known
as the Danish papers will be read with the greatest
interest. The Dano-German dispute underwent so
total a change on the death of Frederick VII. that,
except as a matter of historic interest, the negotia-
tions to which the Schleswig-Holstein question had
previously given rise possess but little intrinsic
value. On the accession of Christian IX., however,
the right of succession to the Duchies became for
the first time agitated, and almost simultaneously
the promulgation of a oorn mon constitution for Schles-
wig and the Kingdom Proper gave to the German
Powers a fresh pretext for pursuing towards Den-
mark that aggressive policy on which they had long
resolved. The miesion ()Mord Wodehouse, accredited
as that nobleman was to the Court of Copenhagen,
with the object of congratulating the new Sovereign
on his accession to the throne, consequently marks
the opening of a new phase of the Dano-German
question, and the fact that the English Govern-
ment took advantage of his visit to Denmark to
unfold their views of the policy which, to their
minds, it was incumbent on the Danish Cabinet to
pursue, rendersit equally the starting-point of those
negociations which have hitherto produced such un-
profitable results. In the last instalment of the
Danish correspondence presented to Parliament are
contained the special instructions given by the Go-
vernment to Lord Wodehouse on his departure from
Engiatoe4 together
with the substance of the com-
munications
,
passed between our Envoy and
amser when the former was
ta the eB Prussianlin. Prime
m
This blue book also contains a very re-
markable despatch of the English Foreign Secre-
tary on the subject of the common Constitution ;
but as the correspondence ioce pot extend beyond
the middle of December, the time of Lord Wode-
house's arrival at Copenhagen, no information is
afforded respecting his communications with the
Danish Government or of the result of hie mission.
The documents before us, however, furnish ample
matter for comment. So far as we can
gather from the letter of instructions ad-
dressed by Earl Russell to Lord Wode-
house, the latter was authorised tq exercise
the quasi-judicial function of hearing the com-
plaints of the aggrieved parties, and then to tran-
mit them to the English Foreign-ottiee, there to be
duly sifted by her Majesty's Secretary of State.
It is not my purpose,' writes Earl Russell on the
9'.11 ef pacember, " either to point out how these
engagemeote ,(the diplomatic engagements entered
)3!.,nrine6;aertke
witht 4vni s4hrbi ao ReadtPrussia in 1851)
inisters of
to wake their eemplaints oh
h., further inetrueted
se Prance,

have been .
Austria and Prase,.
this head." The Ambassauo,
to communicate with the Ministers u. _
Russia, and Sweden at the Danish Court, and, it
possible, to induce them to make joint representa-
tion the Danish Government, the main object to
be kept in view being the fulfilment of the Treaty
of 1852, as well as of the engagements respectively
entered into by Denmark, Austria, and Prussia in

the preceding year. Frcm this despatch, then
it would seem that, in the first instance, Lor
Wodehouse was simply directed to sound the Ger-
ream Powers, and that the do finite attitude to be
assumed by him towards the Danish Government
was left to ho determined by subsequent events.
In pursuance of his instructions, Lord Wode-
house went, in the first place, to Berlin, and there
had an interview with M. von Bismark. The sub-
stance of the conversation which psssed between
them is contained in a despatch from Lord Wode-
house to Earl Russell, dated December 12, and is
important as manifesting without any affectation of
concealment the true grounds of the hostility of the
leading Powers of Germany to Denmark. It was
not, as was generally supposed, to rescue either the
Schleswigers or the Holsteiners from a despotism
which was intolerable to them that Austria and
Prussia were about to take up arms against Den-
mark. The object of the German Powers was far
different. "'l he fact was," said M. von Bisrnark,
" that Germany would never be on good terms
with Denmark so long as the present democratic
institutions of Denmark were maintained." It
was not, we are left to suppose, because the
common Constitution of November tended to
incorporate Schleswig with the Kingdom Proper
that it gave umbrage to Austria and Prussia,
but because it tended to disseminate the prin-
ciples of constitutional liberty, and against such
dissemination Austria and Prussia felt it to be
their duty to protest. " Let the King of Denmark,''
said M. Von Bismark, "dismiss his Ministers ; a
coup (taut would be the best solution of the diffi-
culty." Such was the language of the Prussian
Minister to our Envoy, and such the counsel which
he desired to be transmitted to a constitutional king
within a month after his accession to the throne.
As, however, the German Powers could not decently
proclaim to the world that their main object in
attacking Denmark was to crush free institutions,
the stalking-horse of Schleswig-Holsteinism was
once. more turned to account, and the Englsh
Minister was informed that the Danish Govern-
ment would be required to suspend the common
Constitution before the Ist of January, which was
known to be impossible, and to fulfil their engage-
ments of 1851 in such a manner that the existing
connection between the Kingdom Proper of Den-
mark and Schleswig should be finally severed. In
communicating what passed at this interview, Lord
Wodebouse fulfilled the first portion of his mires
sion. The English Government were then made
perfectly acquainted with the specific nature of
German grievances and German demands, The
neat despatch in the series to which it is necessary
to refer was addressed by Earl Russell to Lord
Wodehouse on the 17th of December, and conse-
quently subsequent to the receipt of Lord Wode.
house's despatches of the 12th. By this time, just
eight days after the date of the letter of instructions
above referred to, the Foreign Secretary had evi-
dently made up his mind on the merits of the chief
question in dispute between Germany and Danmark.
The Ministers of Austria and Prussia had made
their complaints, and Earl Russell was now in a
position to affirm that Denmark had violated her
engagements. In the despatch of 17th December
the Foreign Secretary unhesitatingly declares
thnt the Constitution of November virtually
effected an incorporation of Schleswig with Den-
mark, and, being consequently a violation 01 the
engagements entered into by the Danish Crown,
ought forthwith to be repealed. " How this is to
be done," the despatch concludes," it belongs to the
King of Denmark, his Ministers, and his Parlia-
ment to decide, It is the wish of her Majesty's Go-
vernment that it should be done in the manner
most suitable to the dignity and character of Den-.
mark as a free and independent State." As this
brings us to the point where the Special Envoy
received definite itistrectiona respecting the lan-
guage he was to hold to the Danish Cabinet, and as
the correspendence already published carries us no
further than the date of his arrival at Copenhagen)
we will for the present abstain from offering any
tht commentthe onalish
on those instructions, We now know
Government did press upon the
Danish Cabinet the necessity of revoking the com-
mon Constitution ; but how the latter received
those counoiht we have yet to learn.