The Sun.
London, England, 1870-07-25 00:00:00

THE WAR AMD THE WORKING MEN.

The war is not likely to be very popular among
the working men of any nation for long, however
much they may be carried away by temporary en-
thusiasm. It has already put an abrupt termination
to the much-talked-of "Passion Play" at Ober-
Ammergau, and the peasant who played the chief
part in the drama has been summoned away to figh t•
The Telegraph, always apt at drawing graphic morals
from the ordinary events of life, advises the popula-
tion to watch well that other Passion Play of Napo-
leon and Bismarck in which "Moloch is grandly
set forth upon the stage of. war as a contrast to the
Prince of Peace.' Perhaps, says the monitor, the
audience of many populations gathered about the
Passion Play of the Dynasties, will hiss the piece off
the stage of humanity for ever. In the plainer lan-
guage used by more ordinary mortals, the labouring
classes of the various nations affected by the war
will resent indignantly the needless misery and loss
inflicted. "War will go out of fashion for ever,"
says the Telegraph, laying metaphor aside,

"on the day when the workmen of the
world refuse to slay each other." That they have
good reason to do so is shewn by the fact stated at
the recent meeting of English working men on this
subject. Since the declaration of war wheat has ad-
vanced nine shillings a quarter, and bacon has *gone
up twopence a pound. Such alterations as these
press very heavily on the toiling classes, and thus
even the nations whose rulers stand resolutely aloof
from the now "Passion Play" will have cause to con-
demn the reckless policy which prompted it.

"OUR SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT " IN TROUBLE.

The correspondent of the Times at Metz has given
a long account of his arrest by the French military
authorities. He takes some blame to himself for the
conduct that led to his short confinement, and it
must be acknowledged that his offence was, to say

•
the least of it, injudicious in the extreme. The
correspondent and two English officers, who seem to
have been as indiscreet as himself; met a soldier in a
caft, and, struck with his joviality, invited him to j oin
the party, and to take a glass of beer. It is denied that
any attempt was made to elicit information. from the
soldier, but the conversation turned naturally upon
the topic uppermost in their minds. They remained
chatting for about twenty minutes, when the special
correspondent left, and retired to bed. About mid-
night, however, he was awakened by a waiter, who
informed him that the two English officers had
been arrested. He immediately proceeded to the
guard-house to explain the matter, when
he too was arrested upon the ground of
his having given liquor to a French soldier

in order to sound him as to the movements of the
force. In fact he was accused of being a Prussian spy.
The correspondent dwells on the fact the soldier had
but one glass of beer. He thinks that considering
no compromising documents were found on them,
but that, on the contrary, one officer had his passport
and commission, and the other his passport, while he
himself had private letters shewing that he had had
letters of introduction from M. 011ivier, unnecessary
strictness was shewn by the officer on duty in
placing them under arrest at all.