The Sun.
London, England, 1837-02-03 00:00:00

TO THE EDITOR OE THE SUN.

Sir—Although my name and that of my late firm in Bu-
charest have been frequently mentioned in the public prints,
and on several occasions very recently, in connection with
gross and injurious misrepresentations proceeding from the
German press in the interest of the Russian Government, and
put forth, as many other intrigues have been, for the purpose
of destroying a rising and rival commerce, still I have ad.
hered to that best of rules for private individuals, viz., not to
embark (if it be practicable to avoid it) in personal discus-
sions in public prints ; but as, within these some days past,
the Russian Government have thought fit to propagate, in
their Official Gazette and Frankfurt Journal, statements re-
lative to the voyage of the Vixen to the coast of Circassia
which they must know to be grossly false, and which are in-
tended to hold up the British Government to the eyes of all
the world as instigators and co-operators in an attempt to aid
and supply with munitions of war what they call "rebellious sub-
jects" of Russia, and to stamp my brother and me as agents of our
Government for that purpose, as smuggling contrabandists,
and not as merchants prosecuting legitimate trade ; and, fur-
ther, as I find that some newspapers and persons here have
proceeded to argue upon the premises assumed by the Russian
Government, I feel myself compelled, now that I have re-
ceived the proper documents, to make public the real facts of
this simple case.
My attention was first directed to the question of the trade
with the coast of Circassia in consequence of an application
to me by the Government of the Turkish principality of Wal-
lachia, and afterwards by the farmers of the salt mines of that
country, to take an interest in the extension of the sale of the
salt produced from these mines, and, as very advantageous pro-
posals were made to me, I set on foot inquiries, antrfound, on
an examination of the state of the neighbouring countries, as to
their supply of salt, that no one afforded a greater or better
debouche or market than the eastern coast of the Black Sea. I
immediately made application to the British Government to
know whether any legal impediment existed to the prosecution
of a trade with that coast in the shape of a blockade, as I had
heard that an attempt had been made by the Russian Government
to institute one some years ago, which had not been admitted.
I received from the Foreign Office such replies, referring me to
the Gazettes, as convinced me that nothing of the kind, if it
existed, was recognised by our Government. This led me
and my brother into much more extended researches, in various
literary works, treaties, &c., and we found much valuable in-
formation relative to Circassia, and, among other things, that
a most valuable branch of British trade had, within these few
years been totally cut off, solely through the apathy of our
own merchants in never questioning the Government
whether there was any good cause for such a change. We also
found that some years before Russia assumed her soi-disant
sovereignty over these coasts, there used to arrive there an-
nually between two and three hundred native vessels, laden
with valuable cargoes, the greatest part of which consisted of
British manufactured or colonial produce, brought from Con-
stantinople or the Levant, for which the staple articles of pro-
duce of these countries were exchanged. It is now said by
Russia that this claim to sovereignty is founded on the treaty
of Adrianople, by which Turkey ceded to her all the eastern
coast of the Black Sea ; but I believe there are ample docu-
ments within the walls of the Foreign Office to prove that
Turkey never had herself the possession of the country which
she ceded—that she did make the cession of it solely under the
pressure of Russia's demands—and that Russia had never yet
been able to obtain possession of the ceded country. And
further, from the information I have lately received from Cir-
cassia, she is still less likely now to succeed in getting bold of
more of it than the three ports she has of Anapa, Glielendjik, and
Soukoum- Kale, beyond the walls of which her troops never
venture except In strong face, and with artillery, for the
facilities she has hitherto had consisted in the disunion of

the various tribes, encouraged by her intrigues iwhcreas these
t ibes are all now impressed with the idea of the necessity of
concert in the prosecution of their opposition to Russia's at.
tempts to encroach on their independent country, and under
one powerful chief, and a national flag, are measures now
being taken to drive the Russians even from the three sea• eeast
positions before-mentioned, and several towns across the Rus-
sian frontiers have been lately taken and pillaged. These,
then, are the " subjects" for whose preservation the Russian
Government, in their paternal solicitude, now on the appear-
Ince of British traders declare the necessity of quarantine and
eusionisi iegulttooto, whereas it the trutil Wofe NO, the