The Sun.
London, England, 1853-08-08 00:00:00

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LONDON, MONDAY, AUGUST 8, 1853.

The AUTOCRAT has accepted the propositions
dispatched from Vienna, by the Four Powers, on
the 24th ult., to St. Petersburgh. It is so stated
at least by the organ of the British Government.
According to that authority the Cabinet courier
from the Russian capital has been anticipated by
the electric telegraph. It appears, in fact, that'
up to this moment no positive information has
been received in reference to the ulfintatissimui4
decided upon by the English, French, Austrian,
and Prussian representatives—no intelligence even
to the effect that it had reached its destination.
Yet, in the absence of any such intimation, we
are informed that matters are already brought to
a satisfactory settlement. Western diplomacy, it
would seem, has suddenly acquired the gift of pre-
science. Before it is possible to learn whether the
proposal of the allies of Turkey has reached the
hands of the Emperor NICHOLAS we are assured that
his Imperial Majesty is willing at once to concedeto
its suggestions unconditionally. Everything is de-
clared to have arrived in this matter at the hap-
piest conclusion. Substantial evidence of the fact
can be found nowhere visible : but the oracle of
Downing-street has spoken, and we are expected
to listen to its utterance with all submissive cre-
dulity. Nay, the country is not only to accept
its statement as gospel-truth, but—to do a vast
deal more than that—to swallow its rather over-
confident, and, we fear, somewhat premature
congratulations.

It remains, first of all, to be seen whether the
CZAR bas really accepted the proposition of the Four
Powers thus cordially and--unconditionally! Sup-
posing he may really have done so, it will then
be requisite to discover what are actually the
terms of this mysterious ultimatissimum, ! There-
upon it must restwith the people of England them-
selves to decide whether or not they have reason
to be felicitated in regard to the result of these
negotiations. If it prove on inquiry that the
proposal forwarded on the 24th ultimo from
Vienna to St. Petersburgh has been in any par-
ticular modified—if the arrogant claims of the
CZAR have been in any respect acceded to—if no
other advantage has been secured beyond the
mere evacuation of the Principalities—if no re-
paration whatever has been extorted from Russia
after all her
th
duplicitye and her insolence, after her
violation of Turkish
the frontiers, and her despotic
interference with
rights of the Hospodar of
Moldavia—then, tiredlya it must be maintained
that England, .FraneNxtria, and Prussia have
no cause to indulge in
t 2.
elf,-gratulation. It there-
fore becomes necessary
await some more ex-
plicit intelligence from the Cabinet et
of St. Peters-
burgh before we count with security
avoidance of war, much less befoe.rer we ity upn the
rejoicec over
the attainment of a still supposititious peace, Peace, the
means for arriving at which are, up to this
moment, at the best, so entirely problematical.very
Patience, consequently, is still a duty
upon our population. Patience until the dark-
ness of these diplomatic mystifications shall be
dissipated—until the conditions of the proposal
made by the Four Powers shall have been dis-
covered—until its arrival at St. Petersburgh shall
have been proved, together with the fact of its
definitive acceptance by the Russian Govern-
ment.

" It 'ud spoil an
angel to be a Cabman," said
JENNY TOPPS—RoBERT TOPPS, her husband, being
one of the fraternity. We have this assertion on
the authority of DovoLAs JF.RRoLD (" Man Made
of Money," chap.
xxi.)matters of this
and therefore credible enough in
—an authority wise enough,
character. And certainly if any one class of the
community has exerted its utmost ingenuity to
spoil the angels amongst us in the shape of Cabmen,
it has been the small but powerful class of our po-
pular representative. The Legislature has endea-
voured, first of all, to effect this object by allowing
the
Jehus of London a prolonged impunity for all kinds
of insolent and extortionate behaviour. It is now
surpassing this folly by one yet more preposterous,
that of precipitate and bungling measures of im-
provement. Take the following example, as given
in the form of a laconic communication to one of
our morning contemporaries, by way of illus-
tration :

cab question, if
"SIR,--The hasty legislation on th
hire
the I
the clause allowing a charge of sixpeneeef
passenger, for any distance, is carried, will 69411
ex."
anomaly of four persons being able to cabs 1
for sixpence less than they would be obliged to
one; and five persons could hire three cabs, pay and
SIM sixpence for any distance under one mile. Can
absurdity go further'? It cannot benefit the cab-
owner, as nobody will take 'one cab and pay the extra
fare, when two cabs can be had and aixpeno saved. Is