The Sun.
London, England, 1854-12-12 00:00:00

Her MAJESTY will express a hope that,

" although the prosecution of the War will natu-
rally engross the chief attention of Parliameit,
other matters of general interest to the public
welfare may not be neglected." 'We earnestly
trust that this anticipation may be verified to the
letter. It is not because we are engaged in an
arduous contest that acknowledged abuses should
be suffered to prevail. The people will not the
less readily submit to the demands that must be
provided for because they perceive an earnest
desire on the part of Government to redress
grievances under which they have so long been
labouring, and to abate intolerable nuisances.
Our troops will not fight less vigorously because
their brethren at home obtain large and compre-
hensive measures of Parliamentary, legal, fiscal,
financial, and monetary reform.
As to the general prosperity and satisfactory
state of the Revenue we shall be able to speak
more when Mr. GLADSTONE expands hid Budget—
a matter that cannot be delayed until after Christ-
mas. We trust the expressions are not intended
to indicate an intention, on his part, to persevere
in his policy, of defraying all the extra-expendi-
ture from current revenues, and refusing to modify
the currency laws, so injurious to industry and
prejudicial to the best interests of the nation. A
real prosperity we should hail with delight ; but
we must not suffer ourselves to be misled by a
false and spurious glitter—to fancy that all is
right when it is really quite the reverse, and when
the chief result of the mistake will be enable the
financial Minister to persevere in a policy that has
already proved deeply injurious to the nation,
and may possibly lead to the most serious results.
Whatever may be the case in other matters, it
is certain that, so far as the war is concerned, wo
shall prove a " thoroughly united People ;" that
English, Scotch, and Irish will he actuated by an
equal spirit, and that their only struggle will be
which can best advance the objects of their cow-
men country.

We hope some versions of the • Austrian Treaty
may be correct, though whether they be or not
no mortal, beyond the favoured few, can tell at
the moment we are writing. That " Sebastopol
must be razed" is become the creed of every Eng-
lishman. We all felt the necessity before the
proof of it was displayed 'so glaringly before our
eyes. What was known by report, and by the
telescope, was quite sufficient to show its incom-
patibility with the freedom of the Danube and the
Euxinc, and the safety of Constantinople ; but now
we depend on no reasoning or reports : we have the
demonstration of facts that it was constructed for
the Marine mastery of Eastern Europe. Should
Russia now endeavour to vamp up a peace, not one
English ear could Lord ABERDEEN gain for her till she
had consented to blow up every port, and dismiss
every ship war from that noble harbour. We
have long regarded it as the marauder's strong
hold, but we could not have dreamed of the vast
treasuries of mischief for her neighbours which
Russia was accumulating in this robber's den.
For seven or eight weeks now it has been able to
keep up such a fire upon the besiegers, to burn
powderand hurlshells and shot with such profusion
that it is evident its resources were gathered with-
out restraint and can be wasted without stint.
Never, probably since the siege of Gibraltar, has
any fortress replied to such a cannonading with
such boundless supplies, both of ammunition and
the most powerful guns. The purpose of all is

now before the world. Russia is a conviete,

aggressor. No discovery, it is true. Every map
is evidence enough against her. But here we have
compelled her war-hounds to show themselves.
We have made her unkennel them, and the sight
is appalling beyond all expectation. That they
must be annihilate#l, and that for ever, even our
Premier will not deny. Even Austria must re-
joice in the emancipation of her Danubian com-
merce, though she got most of what she wanted
by getting into the Pyincipalities, and has wasted
most cruelly and wantonly the blood of our brave
soldiers. The utter ruin of Sebastopol, and, with
it, of every Black Sea Russian and Danubian for-
tress is indispensable, whether by war or by
treaty.

But of one other most essential condition of
European security we bear no mention of in the
Treaty. 'Poland is not named. Diplomatists,
perhaps, dare not utter it yet. But will no
member of the House of Commons announce the
word ? Will not the constituency of Marylebone,
which has now an opportunity to declare English
opinion on the greatest of European questions,
require that its new representative shall be a
worthy and sincere follower of Lord DUDLEY
STUART ? Ardent advocates as we are of the Bal-
lot and Reform, we think the Polish question, at
least, equal to them, and at the present moment,
indeed, of greatest importance. A time for them
may soon come again, but now is the occasion
which may never recur of removing the stain from
Europe of the murder of Poland. We have sur-
mised before that Austria need not be reluctant
to restore Gallicia, and, possibly, will not if
she come into actual conflict with Russia. It is
merely a. territory offering facility for Russian
aggression, and the Carpathians are her natural
boundaries on that side. To England and France
it would be unquestionably gratifying beyond
measure, and to all of Germany also Which cares
for independence, to see Poland a nation and a
power once more. We are not without hopes
that some indications are favourable to the desire
of all free Europe. Added to the movements of
Lord DUDLEY STUART, and of Lord PALMERSTON,
and Prince CZARTORYSKI, in Paris, it is now cer-
tain on the authority of M. KOSSUTH, never yet
contradicted, that BARAGUAY D'Huramts was
told by Sweden that Polish emancipation was a
necessary condition of their joining the Allies.
This week we have the still more significant
fact of the Polish prisoners at Aix being per-
mitted to join the Foreign Legion in the
Crimea. A step, too, taken since Austria
declared foi the Allies ! Does this intimate that
Lord PA LM ER STUN, Prince CZARTORYSK I, and
Louis NAPOLEON, have agreed on a policy favour-
able to Poland, and that Austria does not dissent
from it ? We would fain hope these twilight
indications of statesman-like counsels do not mis-

lead us. We are confident that the policy we
advocate would be hailed with enthusiasm from
the Grampians to the Pyrenees, and that men and
money would be abundantly forthcoming if the
❑ame of Poland was but emphatically prowl:need
by the Governments of France and England.
The Imperial barbarian of Moscow might fight
hard before he surrendered his stolen kingdom,
before he let go those whom he has enslaved in
Siberia or on their own soil, but the penalty of
not giving up Poland without a campaign. would