The Sun.
London, England, 1853-09-28 00:00:00

THE EASTERN QUESTION.

A telegraphic despatch, from Admiral Hamelin, ar-
rived at Paris on Monday from Besika, bearing the date
of the 16th September. He makes no mention of the
sailing of the whole fleet. As yet only three vessels of
each squadron had been detached to pass the Darda-
nelles, in order to protect the Christians, as well as the
Sultan, against any tumultuous outbreak. That
the whole fleet will follow these vessels there ex-
ists not the least doubt, but not, as was hinted in
some German papers, to impose upon the Sultan sub-
mission to the Vienna note ; far from it. The asser-
tions contained in the second explanatory note of
Count Nesselrode have had the most beneficial effect
on the policy of the Western Powers, in as far as they
put in a strong light the correctness and superiority of
views which a part only of the English Cabinet shared,
now six months ago, with the French Government, when
M. Drouyn de Lhuys, the French Minister of Foreign
Affairs, who, with his celebrated memorandum, first,
and as boldly as calmly, publicly faced the overbearance
of Russia, and proposed to enter the Dardanelles at
once with the combined fleets.
The aim and the effect of this step, at last taken, is
and will be to prove to the Czar that France and Eng-
land are determined to force a Power, which in the
West assumes the part of protector of European treaties,
whilst in the East it shows the utmost and most invidi-
ous disregard of public right and faith, to be consistent
Will war arisweboeougttrheaoatft
Nicholas, seeing
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ifil
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at least in some character.
litut;ioint mofaythsetilti ot
el policyar ns
from the fatal consequences his duplicity might bring
upon Europe and his own empire. But, at any rate,
one immense result has thus been obtained by the
intimate union of France and England in their Eastern
policy—this is, to have put, for the first time for 35
years, an open and public check upon the underhand
policy of Russia, which acquired its enormous influ-
ence in the East, not by a bold and vigorous struggle
against a powerful foe, but by acting like the batter-
ing ram against the weak part of a wall, stroke by
stroke—pushing its armies forward only when the
prostration of the enemy made a victory almost cer-
tain. After this fashion was the conduct of Russia with
Poland ; thus with Turkey, where Russia obtained its
success in 1829 only when, after their struggle against
the Greeks and the destruction of the janissaries, the
Ottomans, then isolated, were exhausted. It may now
be taken for granted, that to put a final stop to this po-
licy of Muscovite encroachment is henceforward the firm
resolution of the two great Western Powers. The en-
trance of the whole combined fleet into the Dardanelles
is but the inevitable consequence of their determination ;
and it, therefore, matters very little whether this en-
trance has taken place already, or will take place to-
morrow—it suffices to know that it will take. If, there-
fore, Europe is to Ibe saved from witnessing the same
proceedings in Italy, where Russia, when once estab-
lished at Constantinople, might perhaps have " pro-
tected' the King of Nayles or the Duke of Modena
against Austria, while it would have made an under-
hand Panslavonian propaganda in Hungary and
Slavonia, the maintenance of the European equilibrium
and civilisation will be due to the now existing alli-
ance between France and England, elucidating thus
the extreme importance of the union of these two
Powers. This circumstance shows also how great
damage might have been caused, at a certain period, by
those of your contemporaries whose violent abuse was
directed against the chief of the French nation, and
who sought to raise prejudices of the most dangerous
nature in the eyes of every impartial man. Some credit
must be allowed to the steadiness with which the Morn-
ing Post, then the "base exception" in the linglish press,
stood against blind passion and evident calumny.—
Morning Post.

MEETING AT STAFFORD ON TEE
EASTERN QUESTION.

On Monday night a crowded meeting of the in-
habitants of Stafford, convened by public requi-
sition to the mayor, was held in the Lyceum,
for the purpose of memorialising the Queen on
the Russian invasion of the Turkish provinces.
The hour fixed for the meeting was six o'clock,
but long before that time the place was filled in
every part by a numerous and enthusiastic audi-
ence. Among those present on the platform were
Mr. J. Turner? mayor of Stafford, Mr. David Ur-
quhart, Mr. Peplow, Mr. Owen, Mr. Martin, Mr.
Flint, &c., &c.
The Mayor, Mr. J. TURNER, having been called
to the chair.

Mr. OWEN moved the following resolutions :
"1. That the actual events in the East have
shown that the process at present adopted for
managing the intercourse of nations is injurious to
England and beneficial to Russia.

"2. That by means of it the physical power of
Great Britain ceases to exist for the maintenance
of our interests and the protection of our honour,
and that, on the contrary it comes to be used for
ends injurious and fatal to the one and the other.
" 3. That such a state of things is not endurable,
awl must be altered ; that while it endures, free-
dom is an empty word, Government is a mockery,
and peace or war alike dangerous.
"4. That this borough shall employ every
means within its reach to induce its representa-
tives to put an end to permanent embassies, to
secrecy in diplomatic business, and to compel a
return to the legal practice of the constitution,
so as to prevent intercourse between the servant
of the Crown and the representative of a foreign
state, save under the warrant of the great seal
issued for that special purpose.

"5. That it will adhere to no projects of reform
in which this restoration is not included. And,
" Lastly. That it will use its best endeavours to
induce other constituencies of the kingdom to act
in like manner."

Mr. PEPLOW briefly seconded the resolutions,
which were then put and carried unanimously.
Mr. URQUHART then came forward and said,
that the time had at last come for proving that he
was right in opposing the Russian influences which
had been at work in this kingdom. In the reso-
lutions they had passed the people of Stafford had
said a great and mighty wrong had been done—a
wrong atrocious in its character and terrible in its
results. They said that wrong had been done—
not by the Emperor of Russia—away with Russia
—they had nothing to do with Russia—but they
had to do with the servants of the British Crown.
That wrong had been perpetrated by them, and by
them alone—.not because the people had willed it,
or because the people had judged it, but in the
total absence of all will and of all judgment. It
was only in the midst of events of such gravity,
and of shame so deep, that they were at last
awakened to a knowledge of their position—and
here he was not speaking of a knowledge of events
in the East, for it was not Turkey, but England
that was at stake—they were awakened to a sense
of the position in which they had lain for so many
long years—namely, that of surrendering the
important affairs of a free state into the hands of
a secret club. That was their position—there was
the true evil. (Hear.) That was the source of every
wrong and of every degradation. They pointed
to that, and said they saw, not the Cabinet, not
the individuals, but the system. (Hear.) Now
that system was based—not on the power of
Russia, but on the character of those whom
he now saw around him. He estimated very largely
the success which the policy of Russia could have
in acquiring the possession of other countries, and
ultimately of overthrowing the dominion of Eng-
land, not merely in India, but in Europe, because,
unless they seized the present opportunity, he
could scarcely imagine a conjucture which could
give them such an opportunity of making a stand
again. The opportunity they now had depended
on the absence of passion. When they were plunged
in a war with France—for that was a part of the
Russian scheme as much as the advance on the
Danube—who then could attend to Russia and the
Czar—who then could attend to Turkey, or any-
thing else ? Their passion would be gigantic in
1 comparison with their judgment and their brain,
and nothing would serve but long-range and Mime
[
rifles against their neighbours. At present, how •
ever, they were all aware of the menacing aspect