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

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 first rtition,
Poland has lost some eight or nine m Poles
through forced conversions, and it sti. oses a cer-
tain number every year, for ix here a marriage
takes place between a Catholic an • a Russo-
Greek the children have to be brought up as Russo-
Greeks. Perhaps Protestants are not aware that
this 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
ether 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
be 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 otherwiseits
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 misunderstandings 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?
But suppose she should agree to all the propositions,
and that the Conference should meet ? In this care
it will either busk up without any conclusion being
arrived at—and we cannot possibly admit that this
could be regarded as a reason for abandoning the
cause of Poland—or it will come to some understand-

ing, and then Poland will not accept the arrange-
ment based on the six points, but will go on fighting.
Would the Powers, exasperated against Poland,
abandon her altogether ? No; 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."
In 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 fightirg
for is our life."

hcleed, 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 hattd
and has endeavoured more than once to kill. She
knows that she is now risking her 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 lite, he waseng,iged in doing
a good work, which seemed to absorb the whole of
his energies. Tat 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
he attacked before long by wife and husband to-
gether, and shall be asked by the former what busi •
ness we had to interfere in her quarrels and increase
the wrath of her husband against her, if we had no
intention of setting her fcee.

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 c'efending him-
self. A trial has always been offered under un-
favourable circumstances no doubt ; but neverthless,
the offer has been made. My informant also
requests me to observe that the Polish 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. The
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 with
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 Grunt 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 parsons 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
of example to the others. They have, gene-
rally speakin,s, 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 Volhynian expedi-
tion. As at least 5,000 men were connected
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
Bi4lPly on suspicion. As he is in bad health, it is
hoped that in a few days ho may be liberated on
bail,the andallowed to go to some watering place in
Austrian dominions, but this is by no means
certain.
lt'h
wiheb.kazgriar viioGiaotveedrnimts own
tma may fairly
in
ay
tbhee mattercharged
of these arrests ;
but afyercincenunwsai tons of quite another
character have lately
b
ma r whiche a v
earr, ea
cs us a eanbtaiar er ld a friend
by the Poles and a
' number of pretended
sthof Poland against it,
out
r,fotuhnadt,athioand,
tahneyd
not at last found their w into
tability, I should think it useless tnarnals oarnryetshpinn;
ve been
• about them. I have seen some
(ac;stheseyadha canards
i started, have watched their flight, an
astonished to find hospitality afforded tothem
places where they ought never to have been
aldn
mitted. It is such an advantage for Poland to-
-
„ey h
have one of the partitioning Powers on its side that,
if the wisest men in the country have any influence
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