The Sun.
London, England, 1854-01-25 00:00:00

liar significance. It must be recollected then, at
the outset, that it was as far back as the 28th of
February, very nearly eleven months ago, when

Prince MENscruKoFFmade his memorable entrance
into Constantinople. It was on the 16th of March
that he made his first demands on the Sublime
Porte, accompanying them with condem-
natory allusions to the conduct then re-
cently pursued towards his Imperial mas-
ter's authority by the Turkish Government. It
was in consequence of the threatening tone of these
communications to the Divan from the Russian
Envoy Extraordinary, that Colonel ROSE, her Bri-
tannic MAJESTY'S Charge d'Affaires, deemed it
advisable then (ten months since) to summon the
British fleet forthwith into the Dardanelles. It
was at the beginning of April that Lord STRAT-
FORD, the British, and M. DE LA COUR, the French
Ambassador, arrived in Constantinople. It was
on the 19th of that month that Prince MENSCHI-
KOFF, in a fresh note addressed to the Turkish
Minister of Foreign Affairs, a note couched in
terms yet more arrogant than its precursor, de-
manding from the Sublime Porte, besides a firman
relating to the silver star at Bethlehem, and
an order for the repair of the Dome of the Holy
Sepulchre—" A Sened or Convention guarantee-
ing the strict status quo of the privileges of the
Catholic-Greco-Russian faith, of the Eastern Church
and of the sanctuaries which are in the possession
of that faith exclusively, or in participation with
other sects at Jerusalem." It was on the morn-
ing of the sth May that the reply of the Porte
agreeing to the demands of the CZAR, with the
solitary exception of the. Sened or Convention,
was delivered into the hands of the Russian Am-
bassador. It was on the evening of that same
day that Prince MENSCHISOFF responded to this
communication by delivering into the Divan his
memorable ultimatum, giving the Porte until the
10th to pronounce its definitive resolution. It
was on that pre-arranged 10th that RIFAT
PACHA, in a temperate note, replied to this ulti-
matum, by intimating that it was impossible
for Turkey to accede to its requirements. There-
upon, it will be remembered, that it was on the
21st of that same month, after reiterated de-
mands and reiterated refusals, stormy inter-
views, and stormier correspondence, that Prince
IVIENscuixoFF took his departure from Constan-
tinople. Ten days later, namely, on the 31st,
came forth that intimidating letter addressed by
Count NESSELRODE to RESCHID PACHA, in which
the former Statesman announced boldly and
explicitly that in a few weeks from that time the
troops of his Imperial Master, the AUTOCRAT,
would receive orders t 6 cross the Ottoman fron-
tiers, and enter upon the formal occupation of the
Principalities. An alternative was held out by
which the evil might be warded off—the accept-
ance of the demands in all their integrity, without
any change (sane variantes), precisely as they
were submitted to the Divan by Prince MEN-
SCHIKOFF. That was the opportunity—that was
perversely and wantonly lost by the British and
French Governments ! Had those Governments
in their capacity as the allies of Turkey responded
to that intimation of Count NESSELRODE by de-
claring—lf you cross the Pruth wo shall im-
mediately cross the sea of Marmora, directly you
venture to despatch your military forces beyond

the boundaries of Bessarabia into Moldavia and
Wallachia, we shall instantly order our maritime
armaments to proceed without delay through the
Dardanelles and the Bosphorus, taking up a power-
ful position in the Black Sea, instead of remain-
ing inactive at such a crisis in the Mediterranean
—had England and France replied thus in June
last to that Note of the 31st of May, in which
Count NESSELRODE formally announced that the
troops of the CZAR would then in a few weeks
more proceed to the occupation of the Princi-

palities—the Russian frontiers would never have
been passed, and peace would within a brief
interval have been solidly re-established. The
opportunity was lost, On the 11th of June came
forth that specious, but untruthful, explanatory
circular addressed by Count NESSELRODE to the
diplomatic agents of the Russian Govern-

ment. Shortly afterwards, on the 27th, ap-
peared in the official Gazette of St. Petersburg
the famous Manifesto of the Russian AUTOCRAT
proclaiming the entrance of his forces into the
Danubian Principalities. A second circular, dated
the 2d of July, revealed still more glaringly, in
the name of Count NESSELRODE, the mendacity of
the Muscovite Government. Afterwards (how
soon shall we forget it ?) took place that no-
torious Vienna Conference—out of which came
the Note that was such a diplomatic abortion !
In the midst of all which negotiations arrived
that monstrous despatch, addressed by Count
NESSELRODE, on the 7th of September, to Baron DE
MEYENDORFF explaining beyond the pos-
sibility of further misapprehension the real

enormity of the demands made upon Tur-
key by the Russian Government. Followed.on the
31st of October by that atrocious Manifesto in
which the CZAR followed up a series of monstrous

untruths with a declaration of war, closing his
document with a versicle from the Royal Psalmist.
Everybody remembers vividly enough what fol-

lowed. The subsequent events need no detailed
recapitulation. There was the advance of the
combined fleets from Besika Bay to their Beycos
anchorage. There was the execrable massacre of
the Turks at Sinope. There were those

portant victories at Cifale, by which OMER PAcHA
followed up so nobly his earlier successes

at Oltenitza. There were the acceptance of the

final proposals of the Four Po. wers,,at Constan•
tinople, and their refusal at St. F'etersburgh,
Finally, we have now witnessed the latest events,

which may be said to have brought matters to a

climax—the advance of the Combined Fleets into
the Euxine, and the indignant reception of the

news of that movement at the Russian Capital
and at the port of Sebastopol. And so matters

stand now at this memorable and most critical
juncture, when we are simultaneously on the

verge of an European war, and on the eve of a

stormy session of the Imperial Legislature.

To Sheffield belongs the honour of opening the
Parliamentary campaign of 1854, and well has it
done its part. A question of far more permanent
consequence than any settled by Mr. GLADSTONE
last session is to be the grand topic of the pre-
sent One ; and it would ill become the English
boroughs to let her MAJESTY'S Coalition and her
faithful Commons commence the great discussion
without those preliminary instructions which they
have always given on weighty matters to the great
Committee of the nation. We trust the example
will be followed in every borough which some
Lord or Gentleman " of influence" cannot "crum-
ple up and put in his pocket." While the House
of Commons so imperfectly represents the people,
it behoves the people to represent themselves.
Let them not imagine it is of little use. On the 1
contrary, their own members, if right-minded,
need the support ; if wavering, need a weight to
turn the scale ; and, if quite wrong, will doso much
less harm, for the awkward fact of their own con-
stituencies being in open mutiny against them.
Just at the present time, moreover, silence is being
misconstrued for apathy, and a Premier quite as
indisposed to attack electoral as Imperial tyranny,
will assimilate his domestic to his Russian policy,
unless, to use a Spanish phrase, the country pro-
nounce in time. Up to the hour when Lord Jon/v.
ALTS 84144 rises to make his Beform dill 13Peeell i

will important concessions be waiting for the yea
or nay of the country. The public demands and
their bearing on the stability of the Cabinet
will be carefully watched till the last ; and let it
be remembered, that, thoughit has often not
been very difficult to prevent some objection-
able Government proposal, it has always
been next to impossible to gain Cabinet assent to
anything good which Ministers have not them-
selves proposed. We believe this is frequently
due to the simple fact that they had not proposed
it. The credit would be but in small part theirs,
and they know the people will endure better the
continuance of some old evil than the infliction of
a new one. We advise all our constituencies then
to be up and doing. There is, indeed, no time
to be lost. The QUEEN'S Speech we shall very
soon have the honour of laying before them, with
its cautious Reform paragraph ; and it then can-
not be long before we shall present them also with
the Reform Speech of the Leader of the House of
Commons. The substantial propositions of that
Speech will depend much on the Public Meetings
held before it is delivered.
Sheffield has, as already observed, set an ex-
cellent example. We indeed, of course, must
think so. The two resolutions of the meeting
comprise the two points which for some months
past we have pressed upon public attention—a
largo extension of the constituency and the Bal-
lot. The latter too was, as with us, obviously of
primary importance with . both the meeting and
the speakers. Though it belonged to Mr. BRIGHT'S
resolution, Mr. COBDEN could not refrain from
occupying with it the best and by far the most
earnest part of his speech ; and Mr. BRIGHT
did not fail to do it equal justice. If our readers
have not perused their admirable remarks, we
beg them to turn again to The Sun of Saturday.
With perfect truth Mr. BRIGHT observed, that
"as to the Ballot, he affirmed that no man ever
heard a fair tenable argument against it." It
seems that so early as 'the time of JAMES I. the
Ballot was enjoined of his free will in the Charter
of Pontefract, "to the intent that the aforesaid
election may be without any contention and ma-
lice in any shape." We have sometimes been
told that Americans are indifferent to the Ballot,
though we never met with the Yankee who avowed
this indifference. The truth seems to be, that the
number of dependent voters is comparatively
small, as may be expected in a country where
labour is at a premium. Mr.. BRIGHT, however,
mentions that "the Attorney-General of the United
States, a man of remarkable intelligence and libe-
rality, and possessing a large fund of information
on all subjects, said to him the other day, speak-
ing of the Ballot—' We consider the basis of
freedom to be representative institutions, and we
consider the Ballot to be the basis of representative
institutions.' "
There is a weighty truth in this last clause, for
as Mr. B. added, " The Ballot would give what
the law often failed to afford—it would give the
vote actually, positively, and sole!y to the man
whose name was on the register ;" that is, the
representation would be real, the representation
not of the voters, masters, creditors, landlords,
or purchasers, but of the voter himself. The
speaker also fully concurs with an opinion we
have more than once expressed, that hard work
as the Government will have to carry any respect-
able measure with the long list of members who
must be consigned to schedule A, the proposal of
the Ballot alone would rouse the people to carry
it for them ; " would create greater enthusiasm
in its behalf than anything else, and would do
more to insure its passing than the introduction
of any other provision which could be placed
in it."

As to Mr. COBDEN, he appeared quite to long
for another organised crusade in the cause of free
voting. It would certainly be a most worthy
supplement to his Free-trade labours, and the
country would have almost as much reason to
thank him for one as for the other. He thinks
himself, however, too near fifty for that work.
He was most indignant that the very class who
refused thorn a trial of the Ballot were those who
used it in all clubs and societies of their owu ; he
desired especially that all the country should learn
of Oxford, for the University employs the ballot
in their meetings of Convocation —in every-
thing, in fact, but electing members of Par-
liament. lie looked upon open voting as
a mere piece of feudalism, as the means of
keeping retainers and vassals to their duty,
as much a badge of feudalism as bad been
the corn laws. It was because everybody thought
he had a hereditary right to control somebody's
else vote. He was confident that if a trial of it
were made in only a few towns it would spread
like wildfire. The good order would be such as
he had witnessed in Spain and America, and all
had heard of in France, a quiet like that of one
of our Sundays, rather than the perfect Satur-
nalia which disgrace English elections ; and yet
Whigs and Tories alike were doggedly opposed to
even a few trials of it ! It is somewhat singular,
after language like this, heartily applauded by a
meeting of a thousand people, and a resolution
passed accordingly, that the influential morning
journal, whose leader we gave with the report of
the meeting, should speak of the Ballot as some-
thing quite shelved by the public. It is, how-
ever, one thing for the public to despair of real
reform from a Coalition Ministry, and another to
renounce its rights. We perceive that Mr. COB-
DEN, also, has no faith in the extension of the
county franchise being anything more than a
multiplication of dependent votes—that is, under
the present mode of taking them.
Of course, the petty boroughs were shown up
as they deserve. Yorkshire was quite sufficient
for perfect specimens. The boroughs returning
17 members, yet not numbering altogether more
than 80,000 inhabitants, while Sheffield, with
nearly double the number', 140,000, returned
also but two. The little pets presenting
also some pleasing varieties of absurdity in-
ter se. Richmond, with a population under
5,000, returning two members, while Scar-
borough and other little boroughs, though
having a population and constituency more than
twice as large, also returned but their two each.
The specimens of " influence" are equally normal.
At Richmond the DUNDAS family, for instance,
(the Earl of ZETLAND) " doing what they will
with their own." Earl FITZWILLIAM, of course,
doing the like at Malton, where no Peterborough
rebellion has yet been known; " no contest has
been heard of for half a century," saith the fin

passible DOD. RIPON was bequeathed, according
to the same authority, by the wealthy Miss LAW-

RENcE to Earl DE GREY, and it has worn. the
GREY livery faithfully ever since. We must not
wander farther, however, among these venerable

relics of feudalism, so soon to bo utterly ruined
by Reform Vandalism. We can onlyexpress our
hope that some faithful few at least will be found

to call in every independent borough a meeting
which shall vote on the two Sheffield resolutions,
prepared, if needful, to follow it up by petitions
and memorials to their members. One demand,
we think, might uniformly be made, that wher-

ever a majority of a fairly-called public meeting
declared in favour of the Ballot, that there at least
it should be tried. It would in all such cases be
clear that the non-electors also preferred to in-
trust their cause to the consciences of the electors.

Many years, must elapse before the cabman's
strike of 1853 will be forgotten by the sojourners
in or visitors to the metropolis during the
glorious (!) days when there was so deplorable a
lack of vehicular accommodation. Mr. FITZROY'S
Bill had just come into operation, and its provi-
sions were singularly distasteful to the irritable
It is true that there were many points in
exceedingly favourable to the body, but they
Were unwilling to take the good with the bad.
The extra fare for additional passengers, the pay-
ment for small parcels, the double mileage beyond
the circular line, were all very agreeable to the
heroes of the stands ; but the giving of tickets
with the number of the vehicle, so as to insure
their identification in case some indignant passen-
ger should choose to haul up the delinquent, the
summary jurisdiction bestowed upon magistrates,
the enactment which enabled the fare to direct the
driver to proceed at once to the nearest police-
station, and, above all, the 6d. fares (!) were re-

race.