The Sun.
London, England, 1854-08-17 00:00:00

AUSTRIA-

VIENNA, Wednesday Evening.—Yesterday even-
ing Prince Gortschakoff received despatches from
St. Petersburg, and there is reason to believe that
he this morning infortr ed CoUnt Buol that, as long
as the Turks were in Wallachia, the Russian
troops would retain certain strategic points in the
Principalities.

The Russian Guard and its reserves are ad-
vancing by
frontier. forced marches towards the southern

On the
was concluded between the Porte and Shamyl.
4th an offensive and defensive alliance
It is said that Sharayl has obtained a great victory
over the Russians ;
but, according to Russian
reports, General Wrangel had advanced with the
Russian troops from Erivan, and defeated the
Turks near Bayazid with great slaughter.

Sixty thoussind Russians retain a position at
Galatz.

VIENNA, Aug, 15.—M. Bach, Governor of Linz,
is appointed Austrian Commissioner in the Prin-
cipalities.

General Hess has gone to rejoin the army of
Gallicia.

Prince Paskiewitch has arrived at Warsaw, and
is about to take the command of the southern army.
VIENNA, WEDNESDAY, AUG. 16.—The Austrian
neutral forces are not occupying Wallachia.
Sixty thousand Russians retain a position at
Galatz.

We read in a Vienna letter of August 13 :
Now that the Austrian note has been despatched
to St. Petersburg, it remains to bo seen what
results the demands of Austria therein makes will
be productive of. Will these demands be deemed
acceptable at St. Petersburg ? This is the great
and absorbing question of the day here. But to
form a safe and correct judgment as to its probable
issue, is next to impossible at this critical moment.
It may be even fairly doubted whether statesmen
and diplomatists are much wiser upon this point

than the public at large. The philo-Russians
here say, and say it loudly too, that the
Emperor Nicholas will now be as warmly
disposed for • peace, as he has hitherto—
that is, up to a very recent period—been for war.
They stoutly maintain, and that too without the
fear of contradiction, that their demi-god of the
North will be sure to recognise in this answer to
his last propositions, which the Austrian Cabinet
has now sent to St. Petersburg, an " acceptable
basis" for peace negotiations. Of course this sounds
very much like an order from higher quarters to
prepare and pave the way for what is coming.
We must be prepared to hear that Russia will con-
vert these Austrian demands into an acceptable basis
for peace negotiations—that is to say, under the
condition that Austria, as the mediating Power,
consent to ask for, and succeed in obtaining from
the Western Powers, an immediate armistice.
Will this be granted ? I doubt it. If the present
expedition of the allies against Sebastopol, con-
cerning which there can be no more doubt, be in
the meantime unhappily unsuccessful, then indeed
there is nothing so very improbable in an armistice
being conceded ; but if this expedition have not
yet accomplished its object, but still entertains
prospects of success, it is difficult to conceive how it
can be expected that the allies will be induced to
conclude an armistice just yet. Besides, what
guarantees will the allies have for the sincerity
of Russia in entering upon such peace nego-
tiations, which may be spun out ad infinitum, and
lead, to no peace results after all ? But enough of
these conjectures at present. We must patiently,
abide coming events with our accustomed resigna-
tion. Nevertheless, the Lloyd was perfectly right
when it said, the other day, that the only way of
arriving at a satisfactory peace is to give effect to
the war by some great deed of arms. When we
have got possession of the Crimea, and have reduced
Sebastopol, then we can say to ussia, in dictating
the terms of peace—" If you will agree to such and
such conditions, we will, on the other hand, return
to you what we have taken." As soon as this sort
of reciprocity can be brought to bear, hopes and
prospects of peace will deserve credence, but not
before.