The Sun.
London, England, 1864-01-08 00:00:00

Russia and the Western Powers.

The Livalide Russe of December 23 contains a de-
scription of the banquet given at St. Petersburg by
what is called the " English Club," in honour of

Prince Gortschakoff. It says that o❑ the 19th of

December all the members of the club at the time
in the capital assembled to do honour to the Prince
—recently elected honorary member—who on that
day dined at the club for the first time. At the
termination of the dinner one of the directors, M.

N. Tolstoy addressed the assembly, and in a short
complimentary speech proposed the health of the
Prince. The toast having been drunk with great

enthusiasm,

Prince Gortschakoff rose to reply. He said :-
I'l am profoundly moved by the welcome you
have accorded me, gentlemen, in such a flattering
manner. I shall not respond by chosen and pre-
pared utterances, but shall confine myself to a few
words as cordial as your reception. You have been
kind enough to express a sympathetic approbation

of my acts. I attach to the expression of these
sentiments a still higher signification. Everybody
knows, and I shall repeat, that my acts have been
only the faithful and conscientious execution of
the orders of our Emperor. I have only had
the enviable honour of being the organ of him
to whom the dignity and the glory of Russia
are more dear than to any other. (Vehement
cheering.) All Russia, enraptured, raised its voice
in support of our recent, replies, of which the
object was to confound and repel pretentious at-
tempts on our national dignity. It has lavished
encouragements so flattering to the writer of those
replies that the reflection is induced, 'lf this
feeble manifestation of the will of the Czar has pro-
duced such an impression, what will Russia not do
if God sends her new trials, and the Emperor makes
a solemn appeal to the nation ?' (Prolonged cheer-
ing.) God grant that it may not be necessary to do
so—God grant that our people may not be turned
away from the pacific work of their development ;
but we all see this day the strength and tenacity of
the tie which connects the Sovereign and his
people—that sacred. and permanent tie which con-
stitutes the happiness of the power of our native
land. (Cheers.) Yes, gentlemen, the Russians have
long and ardently loved their country; but it must
be admitted that hitherto that love has only been
instinctive. At the present day we are on the
threshold of a Russia regenerated by the will of its
Sovereign—of a Russia in which all our sentiments
are not only centered as in the past, but which re-
sponds to and satisfies a progressive and rational
development. Now, gentlemen, permit me to wish,
with all my heart, the prosperity of the reunion,

in which I shall have the honour to be henceforth

included, and to express the firm conviction that
within its limited circle the same sentiment
will be manifested which animate the entire
Russian nation—that is to say, an ardent love of
fatherland, and an entire and unlimited confidence
in our Emperor." (Great demonstrations of Bp-

proval.)
M. M. Oustinoff having made a few remarks on
the subject of the election of Prince Gortschakoff as
honorary member of the club,
M. Le Comte Orloff Davidoff said :
" Permit me, gentlemen, to add a few words to
what has already been so aptly said. I would re-
mind you of the time and the circumstances under
which our illustrious guest was placed at the head
of our political affairs. Russia had just terminated
a severe war, glorious, but unfortunate, and the
general belief was spread throughout Europe that
our country was enfeebled, that she had lost her
prestige for a long period, and that it only remained
for her to look with powerless vexation, so to
speak, on the political scene. But the well-known
expression of the Prince, Russia does not sulk—
she collects her strength,' is as memorable as sig-
nificant. Without losing time in useless regrets,
we put our shoulder to the wheel. We see already
how much has been done in a short time, and all
that is being accomplished for the future. But, as
M. Thiers says, labour and anxiety never cease in this
world. There has burst full on the western fron-
tiers of the empire a civil struggle, which has met
with sympathies in Europe—factious, perhaps, and
little sincere, but which are not the less noisy—
a struggle sustained and envenomed by malevo-
lent instigations from without. The acts and the
intentions of Russia were falsely interpreted ; pro .
positions were made to her, and advice tendered.
based on arbitrary estimations of our tendencies aad
of our situation."
After some farther remarks having special refe-
rence to Prince Gortschakoff and the manner in
which he had dealt with the pretensions of the
Powers who exhibited a desire to interfere between
Russia and Poland, M. Davidoff concluded amid
the liveliest marks of approbation, which did not
terminate until
Prince Gortschakoff again rose to reply. He
said, after a few words of a general character :
" The Count makes it a great thing for me to
have been gay and tranquil in a moment of trial
and agitation. Such calmness is easily explained
by the fact that during all that time I had my eyes
fixed upon the Russia of reality, up to nat time
unknown, and not upon the Russia which was pre-
sented to the vision of abused Europe. The efforts
of the malevolent, the arbitrary interpretation—in
part, perhaps, our own fault—have had for conse-
queece to prevent Europe from seeing Russia, except
through a veil of mist which robbed her of her
reality. We had only to blow and the mist was
dissipated. Europe has seen our country in the true
light of day ; it is convinced of the indissoluble
u?lion between Sovereign and people, and it is this
which has enabled us to rest immovable. May that
holy and powerful union be maintained for ever t"
After this speech, says the Invalide, the conversa-
tion became general and animated, and so continued
to the close.

CRYSTAL PALACE.--The Crystal Palace and
Park are always delightful. Just now this is pecu-
liarly the case, for both in extent and condition the lee on
its ornamental waters need not fear comparison with any in
the country. The lakes and basins cover a space of nearly
20 acres, and owing to the rapidity of the frost, the ab-
sence of snow, and the judicious care taken by the com-
pany's officers, the surface of the ice is everything that
could be wished. Knowing that some of the most ardent
skaters in the country are to be found among those whose
avocations forbid them to practise their favourite art till
after dark, the manager of the Crystal Palace has made
arrangements for continuing the skating till a late hour in
the evening. The entrance gates at Anerley, Sydenham,
and the railway station are kept open till eight—the road to
the lower lake is indicated by rows of lamps, round the
margin large bonfires are lighted, and torches are provided
at a moderaTe cost. Each night there must have been at
least a thousand persons present. The arrangements ap-
peared to give universal satisfaction, and the effect certainly
was admirable, for as the torches were whirled about by
hundreds of skaters the ice seemed covered with gigantic
fire flies. The sport was maintained till a late hour without
any accident or contretemps whatever. The Royal Humane
Society's men are in attendance, and refreshments are pro-
vided on the spot. The bonfires and illuminations will be
continued during the continuance of the frost.

Prince Napoleon's stag-hounds hed great sport
last Sunday, which terminated rather oddly. After
running for some time in covert the deer took to the open,
and with twenty couples of hounds streaming after him
made for VerriZres. Hero the pack gained on him, and the
deer jumped a small fence and went straight into the din
ing-room of a " cottage of gentility" in which paterfamilias
was just helping the soup; he had his back to the door,
and was horrified at seeing his wife spring up, exclaiming,
" The devil I the devil I " and gather her children to her
bosom, He turned round and saw the large, red, calf -look-
ing animal just entering his own private room. Having
shut tho deer in his study, he hastened to close the other
door and keep out the hounds. When M. Paul Uerusez,
the artist, whq was the first man up, arrived, he found 40
hungry hounds clamouring outside the door, the weary
hunted animal in a back parlour, the man of the house in
a fury, the children in a panic, and the lady ill a fit.
RAILWAY COMPANIES AND LANDOWNERS.—Yes-
terday, at the Sheriffs' Court, Red Lion-square, in a rail-
way compensation case, Mr. J. Wilkinson, as counsel for
the claimant, alluded to the present discussion in the public
press respecting landowners and railway companies, which
was worthy of consideration, now that railways were likely
to interfere in all the suburban districts. Landowners
complained of the summary powers given to railway com-
panies, and that they could be turned out without much
notice. Mr. Lloyd, Q.C., who appeared for the company,
objected to the subject being introduced into the present
case, and Mr. Under Sheriff Burchell was of opinion, un-
less it had reference to the present case, it should not be
continued. The subject dropped, Mr. Wilkinson remarking
that the newspapers had takeß it up.