The Sun.
London, England, 1863-07-31 00:00:00

THE POLISH INSURRECTION.

(From the Special Correspondent of the Times.)
LE BERG, JULY 2.3.
There still seems to be some doutY in England BE
to whet htr the coneessi.ins proposed by the Western

Powers to Russia on behalf of the Poles will, it

Russia consents to make them, be accepted kt the
Poles. Not only the insurgents, but the men who
direct the insurrection, the men who look on and
approve the insurrection, and even the very few
who look on and disapprove it, and who have whis-
pered from the beginning that no good could come
of such a movement,—all agree in saying that no

measures based on the Six Points will ever satisfy

or evert tranquillise Poland. The Poles may, and
in tho absence of an intervention doubtless will, be
shot and sabred into submission; but the Six
Points wi 1 not, cannot, and ought not to have any

tffict whatever upon their resolutions; for they
possessed quite as much ae is now asked for them
before the insurrection begin, and they know that
they could have it all again, with a great deal more

added,if they would only lay down their arms of their

own sccord, and for once admit the right of Rutsia to
govern them. The Pales of the Kingdom had re-

:presentative imitituttous, a Polish administration,
end entire rel gious freedom before the insurrection

b; eke
ont. They had, moreover, just received an
educational system immeasurably superior to any
that had ever been known before in Poland, except
during the period of fifteen years that elapsed be-

t ween th',, formation of the Kingdom and the rising

which led to the withdrawal of its constitution ;

and there was even some probability—at least the

project was entertained—of establishing a Polish

University at Wilms, the capital of Lithuania. If

the Russian Government were to abolish once more

the University of Warsaw, close the eight new
gymnasiums, and abandon, with the rest of the
Marquis Wietopolski's scheme, his plan for founding
village schools, it might then grant all the English,
French, and Austrian demands, and, turning round
to the Poles, say to them, " See what a position
your friends have placed you in. There was some
hope for you before, but there is none now; and
you have brought all this on yourselves by looking
for sympathy and assistance to the west of Europe."
`the importance of the Marquis Wielopolski's re-
forms was called attention to in the times when
they were first introduced, but they had no effect in
checking the progress of the insurrectionary move-

rn ent, and when once this movement had taken the
form of open resistance it was out of the question
to think of appeasing it by reforms of precisely
the same character as those which had been already
tried without success. The immediate cause of the
insurrection was, as every one knows, the conscrip-
tion, or " proscription ;" but as since 1831 the
conscription in Poland has never been anything but
a " proscription," they alone would not have pro-
voked the rising, which had been long in prepara-
tion, and was not a protest against any particular
act or acts of tyranny, but rather against repeated
attempts at conciliation made by a foreign and
'generally tyrannical Government.
As long as the Poles suffer in peace no one cares
what happens to them. It is only when they rise
in arms that Europe begins to ask what ails them ;
and Europe has been informed this time that their
great grievance is bad government, and, in par-
ticular, an unjust system of recruitment. The
Poles, however, wanted, and want now, to shake
off the Russian rule, which they have never sub-
mitted to, except from compulsion, and which
would be hateful to them even if it were very
much milder than it has ever been or is likely
to be. The government of Alexander 11. may
have been very bad, but until the commence-
ment of the Warsaw demonstrations, and for some
time afterwards, it was incomparably lees severe
than that of Nicholas, under whom, as was well
'understood on both sides, the slightest attempt at

a demonstration" would at once have been checked
by artillery. Moreover, whatever the absolute
-value of the reforms introduced by the Russian
Government may have been, it is quite certain that
reforms as important as those now recommended by
the Western Powers were introduced, and that they

did not cause the demonstrations to cease for a day
Indeed, the Government was told fairly and openly
by Count Andrew Z imoyski, the representative of
the moderate party, that nothing less than the full
execution of the promises made by Alexander I. in
1815 could give peace to Poland, while the extreme
party announced with equal candour, through the
publications of the Central Committee, that it would
mike no terms whatever with Russia, and that its
sole object was to liberate Poland from foreign op-
pression.
Lord Russell's reference to the Emperor Alex-
ander s project for uniting the Russo-Polish pro
vinces to the Duchy of Warsaw has caused many
persons here to entertain a hope that the " Poland"
on whose behalf the three Westerns Powers are
writing Notes may, after all, be something more
than the kingdom. Indeed, it Lord Russell thinks
only of the kingdom, it is impossible to understand
what he meant the other nignt in the House of Lords
by saying that Russia had attacked the religion
and language of the Poles," and that the Poles
might be induced to lay down their arms by the pro-
spect of obtaining an amnesty, free ieenitutions, and
the use of their own language in their courts of
justice." A formal law establishing "a legal and
regular system of recruitment" already exists in the
Kingdom of Poland, though, like other laws, it is
not observed ; but in the courts of justice the Poles
of the kingdom not only have a right to use their
own language, but, as a matter of fact, never use any
other. In the newly established University, in the
gymnasiums, and schools and in al! the public
cffices, Polish is the official medium of communica-
tion. Even during the reign of the Emperor
Nicholas the national tongue was never seriously
interfered with in the Kingdom, and since the ac-
cession of the present Emperor its nee in all public
affairs has been legalised and rendered obligatory.
As for the Catholic religion it is no more " at-
tacked in the Kingdom of Poland than in Eng-
land. The ministers of that religion have recently
been Bahjscted to shameful persecutions for political
causes; but no attempt has ever been made to
force the poles of the Kingdom
the Greek Uniates it the Ruthenian
districts
of the Kingdom are suffered to remain
Greek
Uniates still, and enjoy the free exercise
of their eeii
the Rutheniage"l .whereas, in Lithuania and in
ofptrhovinces.they have all been driven
into the fold
ask the Russians taoßussian Church. In short, to
poiesre?ect the national religion and
language of the
make a superflaous teriind the kingdom of Poland is to
a request ofunmeaning request ;
but it would be
the. highest moment if
msde in connection
ThehreLithuania and the pro,
vinces of the South.
the
pion of the Poles are really language and reli •
Lord Russell's speeches and a_ttacked, bat there (if
be ready literally) no attempt is
notes are to
defend them. to be made to
Unless the English, French, and Austrian
be regarded as only the preludes to further Notes
the most important of the communicationrateimands,
to the Ru,,sian Government on behalf of
podiressed
the letter frog the Pope, which recommends quite
a new sate of things in the provinces incorporatedgutte
with the Russian empire ; whereas the diplomatic
Notes seem only to recommend the adoption in the
Kingdom of what, in principle, has been already
adopted. The religious question in the Russo-Polish
provinces is of the highest importance, for there
every member of the Latin Church is a Pole, and
every member of the
Greek Church a Russian. Pro-
fessor Salavieff, of the
i University of Moscow, lays
"
it down as a principle n his "History of Russia,
that Russia and Poland are separated only by re-
ligious frontiers—that as far as the Russian re-
ligion extends Russia extends, and that where the
Catholic religion ceases to be in the ascendant there
ns her
Poland ceases. Accordingly Russat adva
frontier towards the west we she cceompels
Greek Uniates to abandon the union with Rome and
to embrace " orthodoxy," and it is with a view to a
rectification of frontiers that the Pope wishes to see
full religions liberty introduced into all the pro-
vinces of ancient Poland.
The Pope declares that all the evils from which
the Poles suffer arise from the persecution of the
Catholic Church by the Russian Government ; and

it is at least certain that this persecution has in-
jured and weakened Poland as a nation to a con-
siderable extent. Thus, since the fret itltinn
Poland has lost some eight 'rains m on Poles
through forced convemions, and it stir oses a cer
fain number every year, for Ns here a marriage
flakes place between a Catholic an a Russo-
Greek the children have to be brought up as Russo-
(reeks. Perhaps Protestants are not aware that
Alia rule applies also to the issue of marriages be
tween Protestants and members of the Russian
Church. The fact that such is the case induces the
Poles to hope that the first time Russia can be got
into a Conference she may be requested by the
European Powers to introduce religious liberty into
the Russian Empire in general. In this question
oiler nations are interested as well as the Poles ;
but it is nevertheless in the Russo-Polish provinces
alone, where members of the Western and Eastern
churches live side by side, that it possesses any very
great practical importance. In the kingdom of
Poland, where the immense majority of the popu-
lation are Catholics, the unjust law on the subject
of mixed marriages also exists, but it can scarcely
he said that in this part of the ancient Polish Re-
public the Catholic religion is persecuted.
Since the publication of the Russian reply to the
English note, the Poles seem to have come to the
conclusion that this note really means much more
than appears on the surface, or that otherwise its
very moderate demands (with the exception, per-
haps, of the armistice) would at once have been
granted. Accordingly it is hoped, more than ever,
that the diplomatic intervention may lead to a series
of misunderstandiegs and complications which will
at last leave the intervening Powers no choice but
to declare war against Russia. " Suppose," wrote
the Czas, a few days age—
" Russia should accept the six points and reject
the armistice and the conference : would not the
Powers be obliged to press these two propositions
upon her in order to bring the question to an issue ?
Bat suppose she should agree to all the propositions,
and that the Conference should meet ? In this case
it will either break up without any conclusion being
' arrived at—and we cannot possibly admit that this
could be regarded as a reaso❑ for abandoning the
cause of Poland—or it will come to some understand-
ing, and then Poland will not accept the arrange.
went based on the six points, but will go on fighting.
Would the Powers, exasperated against Poland,
abandon her altogether ? Rio; for they are not act-
ing on behalf of Poland, but on behalf of their own
interests, as set forth in this formula : " The re-estab
lishment of Poland in permanent conditions of peace."
En the case supposed by us peace would be less easy
to secure than ever, and the Powers would be obliged
to propose other measures in order to attain their
desired end."

The new journal of the National Government en-
titled Independance also contains an article on " the
six points," in which the following passage occurs:
—" For us there is no question of reforms, no ques-
tion of a greater or lesser amount of suffering—and
greater there can scarcely be ; what we are fighting
for is our life."

Indeed, Poland is in the position of an injured
wife, who will make any sacrifices to get free from
the power of a husband whom she has always hated
and has endeavoured more than once to kill. She
knows that she is now risking ner existence against
his, that he is ten times as strong as she is, and that
in his heart, whatever he may say, he will never
forgive her for seeking his destruction just when,
for the first time in his life, he wasengaged in doing
a good work, which seemed to absorb the whole of
his energies. The chances of arranging this quarrel
by prevailing upon the husband to make a small
separate allowance to the wife, which the wife has
declared she does not want, are certainly not very
encouraging, and if we only attempt this we shall
be attacked before long by wife and husband to-
gether, and shall be asked by the former what busi •
nese we had to interfere in her quarrels and increase
the wrath of her husband against her, if we had no
intention of setting her free.

JULY 24.
In reference to some recent remarks of mine on
the conduct of the Polish National Government in
sentencing persons to death without trial I am now
assured that at least no one has been condemned
without being formally accused, nor without having
had an opportunity afforded him of defending him-
self. A trial has always been offered under un-
favourable circumstances no doubt ; but neverthlesi,
the offer has been made. My informant also
requests me to observe that the Polibh National Go
vernment, being at war with Russia, has a right to
take such measures as the General of a Polish army
in campaign against the Russians would, by the or-
dinary military law, have a right to adopt. Tae
commander of a regiment marching against the
enemy if he found a traitor in his ranks would, in
the first place, shoot the traitor, and in the second
place would present himself before a court-martial to
account for having in an arbitrary manner caused
him to be shot. The Polish National Government
will I am told, but cannot believe, be prepared at a
fitting time to maintain and prove the justice of
all its sanguinary and eminently revolutionary pro-
ceedings, which are the more remarkable from the
fact that the best men in Poland are most anxious
that their cause should not be confounded wan
that of revolution in general.
But if even the right of private assassination be
conceded to the Poles (and to deny it would be to
give prove of a sadly illiberal and unsympathetic
nature) they ought at least to be careful not to kill
the wrong man. After the arrest of C 'ant Severin
Borkowski, at Lemberg, a photographer was sur.
rounded in the street and murdered on suspicion of
having " denounced" the Count to the police. lam
assured now, by persons who are well acquainted
with all the circumstances under which Count Bor-
kowski was arrested, that the said photographer had
nothing to do with the matter; and moreover, that
when the "revision" took place at Count Borkow-
ski's house nothing of a compromising character
was found. The fact is, no denunciations are neces-
sary, for it is well known that almost every edu-
cated man in Galicia has taken some active part
in helping the insurrection, and that every one,
without exception, who is in the receipt of an
income has contributed towards its expenses.
The Austrian Government would soon count its
prisoners by tens of thousands if it under-
took to confine all persons whom it had a right to
suspect of having given aid to the national move-
ment. As it is, the police arrest from time to time
some man of distinction, and keep him in prison by
way of example to the others. They have, gene-
rally speaking, no proofs that these selected victims
have broken the law, but they feel that it is quite
impossible that men like the Sapiehas and the
Borkowskis should not be doing their utmost to
promote the liberation of their country. It has
been said that Prince Adam Sapieha had something
to do with the departure of the Volbynian expedi-
tion. As at least 5,000 men were conneated
with it one way or another, it is quite
possible that the Prince may have been one of the
number. Nevertheless, after his house had been
thoroughly searched from top to bottom, neither
Arms, nor ammunition, nor even a scrap of paper
could be discovered on which to base an accusation.
Re is at this moment, like many others, confined
simply on suspicion. As he is in bad health, it it,
hoped that in a few days he may be liberated on
bail. and allowed to go to surne watering place in
the
Austrian dominions, but this is by no means
certain,
The Austrian Government may fairly be charged
with
having violated its own laws in the matter
of these arrests
pretended
buter
el ti f
rieCeUnds 0
Aat 10:1 Spoolfand quiategaainnostth
character have
number of been made by the Poles and a
which are so entirely
a that, had they
without foundation, and
moreover, of so absurd a character,
not at last found their Nva
respec-
tability, I should think it
Useless intoos journals of
Reless to say anything
about them. I have seen om of
and
these canards
started, have watched their tligh,have been
astonished to find hospitality afforded
places where they ought never to been in
ad-
mitted. It is such an advantage for I
have one of the partitioning Powers on its siadlleath t
to
if the wisest men in the country have any infiuence
over the most foolish, they ought certainly to exer-
cise it in order to prevent the circulation of calum-
nies against their newly made friend. It is quite