The Sun.
London, England, 1840-08-21 00:00:00

AFFAIRS OF THE EAST.

From the Constitidi6nrcl.)
CONSTANTINOPLE, J'ITCY q9.-A degree of in-
quietude has for nine time been apparent among the
members of the Divan. The power of Reschid Pacha
and Ahmed Fethi Pacha:was saidto he on the ivenAa and
that they had received a check from the Fl.ertaa himself,
by a refusal to comply with a Aenietal from them fcr
the exile of the ex-Minister of War, Halil Pacha. It
was affirmed that a powerful party prevailed in the tlas.
lace, and that Khosrew Pacha and Halil Pacha would
be restored te their places under the inituenee of Russia.
The public was in a state of great uneasiness. On Sa-
turdar, Sunday, and Monday, consecutively, the Divan
helti sittings, and the Government steam-boat., the
'Esseri bad been sent off in '6,11 haste
out rfebody knew where. To-day iso learn that
tiro 'exile of Halil Pacha has never been thought of,
na that all this agitation has arisen `from the dis,
covery of a plot, of which old Kl_lZarew Pacha pttlled
the strings, and the object. of which was the re-esta-
, Olisiament of the Janissaries, an ins'arreetion of the pc-
, pulwo, the overthrow or d., present administration, and
the forcing of a ethtviction on the mind of the Sultan
that the people were averse to all reform, and that
Khosretv ?acha was the only man capable of ruling the
country. Fortunately the present Ministers were
on their guard. Twenty persons have been already
arrested. Among them is a Khodja, who has taken a
chief part, and whose examination has thrown a great
light upon the viewsof the conspirators. Several persons
of high consideration, will, it is said, be arrested to-day.
No doubt of the part which has been playing by Khosrew
Pacha remains, and the Esseri Khair was sent on
Sunday to Rodosto, with a detachment of troops, to
form a close guard round his house. All his papers
be seized and sent to Constantinople, and he and
his confederates will be brought before the Grand Coun•
cil of Justice. It is, however, believed that he will not
be made to appear in person, but a commission will be
sent to Rodosto to take his examination. Halil Pacha
has remained a perfect stranger to this attempt. Haider
Pacha, Governor of the Dardanelles, a satellite of old
Khosrew Pacha, having involved himself in the plot,
was yesterday dismissed. The Greeks mingled with the
Raya population, whose religion they profess, and whose
language they speak, have hitherto been admitted into
the corporations, and allowed to carry on trade in re-
tail ; but the Turkish Government, in recollection of
the etoaspiracy discovered in Athens five months ago,
':;nich had its ramifications extending as far as the
Moroa, where it wished to excite an insurrection, has
felt the necessity of subjecting them to a strict surveil-
lance. Besides, Greece carries on a coasting trade,
hich does great injury to the mercantile marine of
Turkey.
All these considerations have induced Reschid
Pacha to present to the Greek Charge d'Affaires at
Constantinople the following note previously communi-
cated to the three protecting Powers, France, England,
and Russia ;—"The undersigned Minister of Foreign
Affairs to the Sublime Porte has the honour to inform
the Charge d'Affaires of his Hellenic Majesty, that in
order to guarantee the interests of the commerce and
industry of Turkey and its local security, his Imperial
Majesty the Sultan has adopted the following re-
solutions :-1. From the Ist of October next,
the coasting trade, whether in native or foreign pro-
duce, will be interdicted to the Greek flag in all the
ports of the Ottoman Empire.-2. From the said Ist
October all the wine, oil, and tobacco imported from
Greece into the Ottoman Empire will be subjected to an
ad valorem duty of 20 per cent.-3. All Greeks shall
henceforth be excluded from the corporations esta-
blished in the Ottoman Empire ; neither shall they carry
on any retail trade. Orders shall be given to the com-
petent authorities to enforce this restriction.-4. Every
Greek subject convicted of smuggling shall be liable to
a penalty equalling in amount four times the established
customs' duty.-5. Every Greek subject accused of a
crime or an offence shall be tried by the local tribunal."

Two Persian Ambassadors, each furnished with letters
of credence to the Turkish Government, are here at
the same time. A grave discussion has arisen between
them, as to which of the two ought to bs received
officially by the Turkish Government. This very strange
occurrence has greatly embarrassed the Divan, and a
commission composed of a delegate from each embassy
accredited to the Porte has been appointed to decide
upon this singular question. Ibrahim Bey, an officer
appointed by Mehemet Ali to make enrolments in
Albania, who had been arrested by the English on board
one of the two vessels taken by them on the coast of
that country some time since, has, after being detained
in one of the ships of the British squadron, been sent
here in the steamer Hydra, and was on Tuesday last
delivered up to the Porte by Lord Ponsonby. The
Divan intends to send him immediately to Mehemet Ali.
We (Galignani's Messenger) arc in receipt of intelli-
gence to the same date through the medium of the Ger-
man Papers. One of them, the Leipsic Gazelle, magnifies
the rumour of a conspiracy, and asserts that the plot had
been actually attempted to be carried into effect, the
Sultan having honoured one of the conspirators with his
presence at dinner, and having had only just time to call
on his guards to escape from the conspirators. This
is probably incorrect, not being confirmed by other ad-
vices. The Count de Pontois, according to the same
paper, had received satisfactory despatches from France,
and had openly expressed his conviction that the Eastern
Question was in a fair way of being settled. Permis-
sion had been given to 300 Greeks, notwithstanding the
decree against them, to remain in Constantinople, on
the demand of a French Catholic Bishop. The Jews
of Rhodes had petitioned that 150,000 piastres, spent
by them in the legal proceedings which have just ter-
minated in their favour, might be reimbursed by the
parties accusing them. The Divan had recommended
them to address the representatives of England, Aus-
tria, and Sweden, on the subject of that part of the
reimbursement which would concern the Consuls of
those Powers at Rhodes, who were among the ac-
cusers ; and it is said that Lord Ponsonby has written
home on the subject.
The National mentions a rumour of Marshal Vallee
having received intelligence from government, that in
case of a war, the Balearic Islands (Majorca, Minorca,
&c.) would probably be occupied by a French force.
Amongst other wild rumours which agitated the
Bourse yesterday, the Commerce seems to attach some
importance to one, which states that a traveller, recently
arrived from the frontiers of Persia, has informed M.
Thiers that a large Russian army was moving towards
the country of the Upper Euphrates, and that the
officers who were assembled i❑ great numbers at Tauris
did not dissimulate that the object was a descent upon
Syria. We will only remark on this report that it is
highly improbable, first, that Russia should have resolved
on sending an army to Syria whilst the treaty of Lon-
don is in an incomplete state, and without the concur-
rence of the other power ; and, secondly, that the officers
of the army should know what the intentions of the
Emperor of Russia are, whilst the diplomatists of
Europe have received no intimation of them.
PEACE OR WAR.:
(From the Gazette de France.)
Are we to have war—arc we to have peace ? Are
we to arm, or are we not to arm ? Will M. Thiers be
the second of Mehemet Ali, or will he offer himself as
arbitrator between Europe and the Paella ? What
orders has he given at Toulon? What has been the
result of the mission of M. de St. Aulaire to Vienna ?
Can we at the same time fit out naval expeditions, under-
take canals and railroads, carry on speculations, build,
plant, and set up factories, without fear of block-
ades, coalitions, and invasions ? If we consult the pe-
riodical press, we find it full of contradictions on all
these questions. The Ministerial Journals themselves
offer no fixed point upon which public opinion can
repose. Men cannot make up their minds either for
peace or war. There is a suspension or check upon
every interest. If there is to be a war, whose idea is
it ? Is it the King's? Some say yes ; others no. If
it be, why not declare it ? Is it the wish of the nation ?
The journals of M. Thiers pretend that it is ;
but we shall declare the contrary, until the nation shall
have been called upon to declare itself. Is it the desire
of Parliament ? Tha Parliament is not sitting, and the
country is ignorant as to whether it approves or disap-
proves. Until the Parliament shall have declared itself;
public opinion will float on an ocean of doubt and un-
certainty. Now, it is not the Royal intention, for the
Royalty of July says nothing, and even if it were to
speak, we should not be more advanced, as it reigns
and does not govern. It is not the intention of the
Parliament, for the Parliament is in the fields, in
the vineyards, on the high-roads, every where but
where it ought to be, and it will only come, when war
shall have been decided, to furnish the men and the
money which shall be required from it. Whose idea
is it then ? That of a single man, who, like Louis XI.,
takes counsel only of his night-cap ; it is the idea of M.
Thiers, separate from the nation ; which has no rights;
from royalty ; which he has despoiled of government ;
from the Parliament, which is not together, from even
the Council of Ministers, which is composed only
of his clerks. It will be by M. Thiers and for M.
Thiers, that the conscripts will be made to march,
seamen be pressed, ships be fitted out, and millions
be made to leave the Treasury. If war is to take
place, all the interests engaged in peace-speculations
ought to be informed of it, and this decision ought
to be sanctioned by the nation, or at least by the Cham-
bers. It is proper that we should know what sacrifices
we are to be called upon to make, whether it is to
be a war purely military, or a revolutionary war, which
would expose the country to the most grave dangers.
We do not think M. Thiess is willing to hazard his
head, but we will say that he would be guilty of high
treason if he were alone, and without the concurrence
of at least a majority, to undertake the propaganda
with which his journals have menaced Europe. If
peace be maintained, which is highly to be desired, what
will have happened ? Under the parliamentary regime,
and without the concurrence of Parliament, M.
Thiers will have expended seventy-six millions
of supplementary credits ; he will have called out
100,000 men who were destined to remain at their
homes ; he will have fitted out ships uselessly, and in-
curred, without utility, a heavy expenditure for materiel.
He will have created doubt and anxiety, compromised