The Sun.
London, England, 1854-07-03 00:00:00

and, we believe, in no way exaggerated calculation.
Compelled to retire from Lesser Wallachia in the
direction of the Dobrudscha—threatened by the
approaching armies of France and England, hither-
to encamped at Scutari and Gallipoli, but hastening
at last towards. the head- quarters of 03IER PACHA
by way of Varna and Adrianople—convinced, at
heart, that sooner or later the forces despatched
into Moldo-Wallachia must be withdrawn from
thence before the aggregated array of the allied
armaments—the Commander-in-chief of the forces
of the Russian AUTOCRAT determined, at least,
that he would obey the mandate of his Emperor
in one particular, namely, by signalising the
date of his memorable retreat by the bril-
liant and glorious capture of Silistria.
How utterly the unfortunate leader of the
Muscovite legions was worsted in this last des-
perate endeavour, Europe has just witnessed with
delight and admiration. The heroic defence of
Silistria, the unflinching valour of the Turkish
soldiers, the gallant death of MUSSA PACHA, their
Commander, will long be cherished in the world's
remembrance. It capped the climax of the Me-
CC3S of the brave Mussulmans. It completed for
the Russians the long sequence of disastrous dis-
comfiture. The latter at once commenced a re-

,rograde march through the ravaged Principa-

lities—in the midst of which movement the CZAR
nevertheless deems it befitting his dignity (!)
to reject the Austrian demand of evacuation.
The Emperor nosoras, in other words, will, if
it so pleases him, agree to concentrate his
forces once more in the vicinity of the Pruth, with
a view not to submission, but to farther operations
against his antagonists, but he will not consent at
the summons either of Austria or Prussia, any
more than he had hitherto done at that of France
and England, to order his soldiers formally to
withdraw from the Principalities. Pride is the
one dominant passion by which his Councils are
directed. Pride altogether precludes him from
the possibility of listening to the summons of any
power upon earth. England and France have
had their demands refused. And now Austria
and Prussia have been replied to precisely
in like manner. And thus has the CZAR signa-

lised the anniversary of the passage of the Pruth
by his troops—at the very time when those troops
diminished by 50,000 men, and with their prin-
cipal leaders killed or wounded, are making a
hasty and general retrograde movement through
the two ravaged Principalities.
Let it now be particularly observed how this
reply on the part of the CZAR will be met by the
chief powers of the Germanic Confederation !
Virtually, those powers are pledged to co-operate
with England and France in defending Turkey
from Russian aggression, and not only the pro-
vinces and the capital of Turkey, but the liberties
and civilisation of the principal States of
the European part of Christendom—in the event
and on the condition of the AUTOCRAT refusing
to evacuate the Principalities. Well—the AUTO-
CRAT has so refused : he has refused, again and
again, and again, in reply to an almost intermin-
able series of diplomatic communications—now
persuasive and now peremptory. What, there-
fore, it may be asked, will be done by Austria
and Prussia in this juncture and under

these circumstances 7 Some of the more
credulous class of politicians may expect that
they will demonstrate their sincerity and good
faith by at last openly joining in arms the ranks
of the still-increasing contingents sent to the EAst
by the British and French Governments. Ho-
nestly—we do not. We believe they will persist
to the very end in temporising. If for no other
reason, at this moment our jealousies must be
aroused in regard to Austria by the suspicious
pretexts and the ominous moment selected for the
entrance of her troops into the Principalities.

The last returns from the Bank of England
showed a very large increase no less than
760,5981.—in the amount of bullion stored up
in the vaults at Threadneedle-street. But not-
withstanding that increase—notwithstanding the
easy and comfortable position of the " Old Lady"
in all material points, there is still a further re-
duction of the notes in general circulation—a re-
duction following the heavy diminution which
has been going on, without exception, for a con-
siderable time past. How, we ask, will it be
possible for the overburdened tax-payers to meet
the additional war imposts to which they have
recently been subjected if the nation is still to
undergo further depletion, and to witness, week
after week, the continued withdrawal of the
"life-blood of industry?" How can the unfor-
tunate pater familias, who is compelled to ears
his daily bread by his own exertions, continue to
make both ends meet, while the demands on him
are materially enhanced, and his earnings neces-
sarily diminished in consequence of the constant
withdrawal of Bank paper ? It is clearly impos-
sible for struggling men to maintain the unequal
contest. If the Bank Directors persevere in the
course on which they have entered, demanding
extraordinary rates of interest, and keeping on
the screw, we shall, ere the cicse of the year, wit-
ness a more disastrous state of affairs than that which
paralysed the industrial energies of the nation in
1847, and spread dismay and ruin on every side.
It is impossible to estimate the extent of the mis-
chief that must follow should Parliament separate
without eliciting the views of the Chancellor of
the Exchequer as to the renewal of the Bank
Charter Act, and the mode by which an adequate
circulation may be maintained during the interval.
Never was there more striking illustrations of
the fatuity and short-sightedness of our so-called
statesmen than in tin" various monetary enact-
ments that have from time received the legislative
sanction, all tending to restrict and diminish the
supply of money, the representative and mea-
sure of value, to create virtual monopolies, and to
prevent anything approximating to "Free Trade"
or "unrestricted competition" in banking. These
various regulations have been occasioned by con-
founding the shadow with the substance—by
thinking that the currency must have intrinsic
value in place of being merely the representative
of that value. What would be thought of the
existingt
'sanity of any person who proposed that no Bill
of -4zehanae or promissory note should be issued
tlie
unlessengraved on a gold plate, equal in
value
fiarmmosu n
should
therebybe
secured,limited
or
to thatthe
amount of
all
such bill or not as they had
out at a
they show
greatly they t
1,4.
"-ena their business operations,
Pa'tioular period, and that no matter how
not, under any circumstances, be al-
lowed to increase the
amount of such securities,
while every new firm should be sternly prohibited
from at all dealing on credit, being obliged to
send bullion backwards and
forwards for every
tranasaction ? The person Rho Proposed it would
lunatic, be almost universally deemed
person who ventured to Su and every
laughed to scorn by the commerci t al
Ppor
it would be
and yet it would be difficult to show otZraatiniutnity,
in any respect more ridiculous, or more untenable
than the code which is regarded as the perfection
of financial skill ! We have recently seen the
Nottingham carpenters striking against the use of
machinetry, prohibiting everything that might
diminisl inianual labourarid lead to cheaper produc-
tion. Our legislatorial wiseacres, our City SoLoiss
and bullilonists of every class, wax eloquent on the
folly and. ;absurdity of tlic,se comparatively ignorant
men. Th :y spout the maxims of political economy
to prove t he mistake into which they have fallen,
but althol agh thus clearly perceiving the mote in
their nei9 ;hbour's eye they are utterly insensible
to the be am in their own. They virtually strike
against ti le "labour-saving machinery" of an ade-
quate ci r culating medium ; they prohibit that
which we mid enable us to obtain cheap production,

not in one or two articles merely, but in every .
species of manufacture. They strive by these ex-
travagantly landed regulations to make money
scarce, and therefore dear, and thus to bestow
very unfair advantages on one of the belli-
gerents in the great Contest of Capital versus
Labour. Let them then reform their money laws
before they dare to condemn the folly, or to sneer
at the ignorance of the Nottingham carpenters !
Why, wo as'.-, should there not be free trade in
money as well as in any other commodity ? Why
is banking the only business in which unrestricted
competition is to be prohibited ? Why should we
place notes and deposits on a different footing,
rigidly insisting, so far as the Bank of England is
concerned, on not merely full security for the one,
while no guarantee is demanded for the other,
but requiring that security of a particular class,
for all beyond a certain amount, while up to that
amount a different kind of security is taken ?
Why, as to all private and joint stock banks, save
the Leviathan, do we altogether dispense with se-
curity up to certain amounts, but refuse to accept
any securities, even the deposit of bullion beyond
these specified sums ? These various glaring in-
consistencies, proving that our Legislature is not
based on any fixed principle—that arbitrary rules
have been framed without resting on any recog-
nised basis—all prove, beyond the possibility
of doubt, the necessity of a speedy modification of
these rules, and the transfer from a private
although wealthy establishment to the public
exchequer of the privilege of making money that
shall be made a legal tender, and of the control
and management of the national currency. At
present all is doubtful. Threats have been used
by a Government organ—significant hints have
been given. We desire that these should be
carried out fully and fairly, and that the nature
of the intended changes should be made known,
for the prevailing uncertainty is far more inju-
rious than any distinct and definite course that
could be enunciated by the Financial Minister.

Sir JAMES GRAHA3I2 in reply to Mr. MILNER
GIBSON'S question touching the nature of the pro-
perty destroyed in the Gulf of Bothnia, carried
with him the feeling of the house by his spirited
appeal in behalf of the officers, seamen, and ma-
rines employed in the execution of the orders of
their superiors. We should be sorry if the same
alacrity of sympathy be not responded to by every
Briton whenever such appeals are made ; but we
must not, nevertheless, allow ourselves to be car-
ried away, or to be hoodwinked as to the real
question at issue by the First Lord's eloquence.
Ist, Was the property destroyed the property
of the Emperor or of the State ?
2d, Are the Fics Russian at heart ?

3d, Have we not been told that all the Finnish
sailors taken in the prizes have been anxious to
enter into our own service and to fight against
Russia, or, if not all, many of them ?
4th, Is anything gained by harassing and Tex.-
ing the Fins ?

sth, Has one single vessel, in any way intended
for warlike purposes, been destroyed ?
We merely put the questions, leaving it to our
readers to reason upon them. We have our own
opinions, and we are free to admit, that the more
discontented the whole population of Russia can
be made, the more it can be shown that she is
unable to throw a shield over her population, the
more contemptible she can be made to appear as
a naval power in the eyes of her own people-4h°
nearer may be the approach to some internal
commotion or home convictions such as, by some
means or another, may result in that sort of peace
that will insure guarantees against future en-
croachments or outraging of general interests in
the lifetime at least of the present tyrant.
There is another side to the picture which will
not escape the scrutiny of such of our readers as
condescend to reason on our queries, but time
and space call upon us to enter upon the real ob-
ject of our article. Sir JAMES GRA.HAI2 said well
that " if the enemy would not face us in the open
sea, we were bound to follow or seek him in his
recesses." The inference is, that orders have been
given for so doing, and that the merit or the
blame for late transactions is not with our Ad-
mirals, but with our Admiralty or our Govern-
ment, or the authorities by whose orders the
Admirals have acted. The result and loss of life
are most lamentable, and we would ask,whether in
giving directions fur destroying property in ports,
harbours, and rivers in the occupation of inoffen-
sive inhabitants, proper provision ought not to
have been made fur the protection as much as
possible of life and limb in the event of a sur-
prise, such as came upon our poor fellows who fell
ingloriously, or were taken prisoners at Ganda
Carleby ? Did the Admiralty furnish the Com-
mander-in-Chief with gun-boats capable of going
into as shoal water as ships' launches, and whose
bulwarks would have protected the crews from
the shot of Minie rifles, to which men in our
boats are so exposed that half a dozen good shots
from an ambush are more than equal to a whole
boat's crew pulling for a landing?
A launch's crew, or the crew of a paddle-box
boat, such as was taken or destroyed, would, with
the officers and marines, number perhaps thirty
men ; and from the time they came within point
blank range, when with a cool enemy every bullet
would find its billet, until the boat touched the
shore and the enemy could be reached, if they
did not cut away, probably ten rounds might be
fired from one rifle at the backs of the poor
sailors, nervously rowing—amid the dropping of
their companions—the catching of crabs—the un-
shipping of oars—alarm and confusion—no matter
how courageous. Talk of six rifles. One well
handled would almost suffice to unman the best
manned boat, where the crews, from the small of
the back to the crown of the head, are exposed,
and whose sides are more or less unable to pre-
vent the passage of a rifle, or common musket, or
oven pistol, ball lower down. We say, and we say
emphatically, if our sailors and marines are ordered
-upon services within point blank range of the mus-
ketry of the enemy, they ought to be provided with
steam-vessels of as light a draft as possible, with
a rudder at each end, and with, at the same time,
as heavy an armament as is equivalent to the
scantling, whose bulwarks would protect their
crews from the rifle and musket balls of the enemy
they are ordered to molest. Such vessels the
Prussians and the Russians have, which were
built in England. Such vessels have been built
by Mr. LAIRD, for one power, and Mr. RUSSELL,
for the other. Such vessels have been advocated
by Captain CODRINGTON, Captain CLAXTON, and
other officers of the Royal Navy, who have had
experience in boat service, and such vessels,
drawing from 5 to 6 feet of water, Sir CHARLES
NAPIER has asked for. Snell vessels our Admi-
ralty have not sent, but in lieu have spent, per-
haps, 200,0001. on vessels whose lightest armed
and equipped draught will be over 10 feet ! !
and greatest, probably, not less than 12 feet ! ! !
If we stand alone we shall cry shame, until what
we feel to be, and what we know is professionally
thought to be a proper end, is arrived at.

A. Cabinet Counsel was held on Saturday afternoon at
the Foreign-office, Downing-street. The Ministers pre-
sent were— the Earl of Aberdeen, Lord John Russell,
the Marquis of Lmsdowne, the Lord Chancellor, the
Duke of Argyll, Viscount Palmerston, the Earl of Cla-
rendon, Sir George Grey, the Duke of Newcastle, Sir
James Graham, Sir Charles Wood, the Right Hon.
Sidney Herbert, Sir William Molesworth, and Earl
Granville. The Council sat two hours and a half.
THE QUARTER'S REVENUE.—The revenue to be made
up to Wednesday next, the sth July, will, as far as-can
be safely estimated at the present time—wanting three
days to the completion of the quarter—show a decrease
on the principal items so far as the quarter is con-
cerned. In the Customs this will hive been anticipated.
In the Excise, it is possible there may be a slight excess,
but it is very likely that both in Stamps and Taxes there
last
Wit 1 lie a Cccrease, though to no considerable extent. On
thei_ other hand, as regards the Property-tax and the
-1-!it-0
under ale; there will, in all likelihood, be an increase.
increase will e=pecially appear, it is anticipated,
during the-e
of
operation
sth iv ,e,v. the latter head. As regards the revenue of the
)attri,
matiattiough
i the chief items may show a decrease—
attributable
whicho tiie lieadvuecntioownscoonfieduftuyllymiandthe
up to the sth dullr.obable that the total amount received
sponding year, eYa'•lBs4, will exceed that of the cone-
ERRA.TUM.—lnadvnelaimently, in our impression of Times. ending the sth of July, 1853.—Sunday
in the list of Divinity p ." of
y evening, the
don. It should hate rizenaen at King's College, Lon-
o been J. C
«J. C. Hase" was given
. SOBE.