The Sun.
London, England, 1864-08-03 00:00:00

back to France 5,000,000 dollars. This illus.
tration, therefore, of the success, the brit•
liant and indubitable success, of the foreign
policy of France—the illustration just now
drawn !:rom Mexico of the conspicuous triumph
of that policy—is not only complete in its
way, it is twofold. There in Mexico, France
has proved victorious, both in arms and diplo-
macy. Wnereas, the illustration derived from
Denmark of the utter failure of the for-
eign policy of England, is an illustration also
of a twofold character, but, alas ! how completely
different. The result of that Foreign Policy, as
applied to the affairs of Denmark, has been, not as
with the French Foreign Policy in the affairs of
Mexico, a building-up, but on the contrary, in
every sense, a most disastrous palling down. His-
tory will relate it. History is already relating it.
Whatever the paltering majority of eighteen may
have declared to the contrary in the British House
of Commons—History has already declared, or is
even now at this moment declaring, that the name,
the fame, the reputation, the glory, the influence of
England, as affected for good or for evil by the
issue of her Foreign Policy, have been marred,
flawed, tarnished, degraded, however you may
care to express it, by the lamentable results just now
of that Foreign Policy of hers as applied within
the last few months to the affairs of Denmark.
Have they not ? Let these results themselves—
as they are now only too well known to us—answer,
and answer conclusively. And those results—What,
in a few miserable words, are they ? They are these
—that, under the benign aegis of the Foreign Policy
of England—Denmark our ally, Denmark who
but little more than a year ago gave her fairest
daughter, in wife, to the young Prince who is heir
to this our ancient sovereignty, that Denmark,
of all the countries of Europe, within the
last very few months, under the benign
xgis of the Foreign Policy of England, has been
invaded by the monstrously superior forces
of Austria and Prussia, has lost largely both in
blood and in treasures, has been cloven down to the
(last under the brutal heels of her German assail-
ants, and has now, as her only escape from total
destruction, had violently torn from her grasp very
considerable portions of her territory, the whole of
Schleswig, of Holstein, of Lauenburg ! England
standing by the while—never once striking a
blow is her behalf—expending only for a time, and
at uncertain intervals, a few big empty words (of
threats to Germany, of encouragement to Den-
mark) bat eventually hushing even these
at the last, while meanly looking on,
"quite chap fallen' during this partial dismem-
berment of the Danish Kingdom ! Such are those
two widely contrasting illustrations—here of the
Foreign Policy of England, there of the Foreign
Policy of France. " Look on this picture, and on
his!"—yonder in Mexico—yonder in Denmark!

England is at the present moment at peace, and
under the rule of the Ministers who for the time
hold office every endeavour will be made and every,
humiliation submitted to to avoid plunging into a
war. But the very fact that it has been declared
England will not go to war—that her councils are
swayed by a peace-at•any-price party—that her
pledges shall not be maintained, and her allies de-

serted for fear of involving the country in a contes
with some Continental Power►—may at any momen

bring about the catastrophe which it is endeavour-
ing to avoid. The belief that England may be
insulted and bullied with impunity may any day
lead some foreign Power or combination of Powers
to act in such a manner as to leave this country no
alternative but rcnder war inevitable. In such a

contingency in what state of preparation wculd
England enter upon the contest ? Our army is in
a fair condition for service, it is supplied with field
ammunition second to none, and the rank and file
have been trained to the use of a first-class rifle;
and in the absence of the troops 150,000 disciplined
Volunteers would be ready to defend our shores and
repel any hostile attack. Our armour-plated Navy
is considered the strongest in the world, and so it is
probably, in so far as its defensive armour is con•
cerned. We grant that it would be difficult for an
enemy to sink and destroy the Warrior, Black
Prince, or Royal Sovereign ; but, on the other hand,
could any of these vessels inflict any serious damage
upon ships armed even as the Gloire. It is admitted
that for penetrating the Navy is not provided with
any guns which are superior to the old 68-pounder.
It will naturally be asked what has been the use of
the five years' experiments at Shoeburyness ; and
if this statement be true, why has the public been
deluded with the accounts of the wonderful per-
formances of the 150 and 300 pounders against all
conceivable kinds of targets, and the answer is that
the Ordnance Committee are endeavouring to ascer-

tain wha4 gun possesses the greatest power of penetra-
tion, the greatest range, and the greatest accuracy.
Their object does nit seem to be to provide a useful
gun for the navy, but rather to decide scientifically
between the respective claims for superiority, rival
inventors, any of whose guns are more than equal

to the exigencies of the service. We do not coma
plain of the protracted trials at Shoeburyness,
although there can be no doubt that much time and
money are expended too often for inadequate results.
We admit that it is highly necessary to test the
merit of all guns in every possible manner, but we
certainly consider that the requirements of the
moment should be attended to before elaborate and

tedious experiments are entered upon. The estab-
lishment at Shoebnryness has become an important
one; it may be considered, says the United Service
Magazine as a little martinet. There are barracks
for 730 men, besides officers' quarters for the com-
pany, and staff cfficers', instructors', sergeants',
married men's quarters, hospital, gun sheds, drill
house, stores, and commissariat, covering many
acres of ground. There is incessant firing of guns
from morning till night. Now it is firing twelve
pounders for ordnance, and seventy pounders and
nine inch guns, and some other kinds of projec•
tiles as fast as they can be loaded, and relays of

men are necessarily nquired, as it is hard work.
From all this expenditure of time and money no
doubt important results are obtained, at least theo-
retically speaking, for practically the service has
gained little except the adoption of the Armstrong
field guns which were recommended for service in
1858 after short but satisfactory experiments. Why
in 1864 should not heavy armour-piercing guns be
recommended for the Navy ? Why, while the
pending controversy between the Armstrong and
Whitworth guns is dragging slowly along, while
protracted trials are being carried on with 90 poun-
ders, which have been proved just heavy enough
not to penetrate strong targets, are the 150 and 300
pounders neglected ? We know what guns can
penetrate even six and a-half inches of iron, and
yet we needs must wait until tho best of
good guns, all fit for service, has been decided
upon. Why, in the name of common sense,
cannot (micro be given for the construction of a
reasonable number of 150 and 300 pounders ?
upon ARMSTRONG or WHITWORTII'S system of
rifling. Both are good, and therefore both might
be adopted. It is not, after all, so much the system
of rifling as the construction of the gun, that is of
real importance, and the Government possess all the
requisite machinery at Woolwich for their construe-
tion, tte_do likewise the ElswiekCompAny, at New