The Sun.
London, England, 1856-09-17 00:00:00

THE PRINCIPALITIES.

The Austrian, Gazette of the 12th says :—" The
question of the union of the Principalities, the
only ono which could give rise to any serious dis-
cussion between the European cabinets, is solved.
It is probable that it will not even be discussed by
the commission which is now assembled in the
Principalities. We have received positive infor-
mation from Constantinople that Austria, France,
and Turkey have come .to an understanding on the
subject ; they agree that the union of the Princi-
palities would be inopportune at the present time,
and it is probable that the English government will
coincide in this opinion. The composition of the
Divans will be such that those assemblies will un-
derstand their true interest to be not to-manifest
any contrary wishes."
_ _

A. letter from Bt4grade, in the Corriere Italiano,
announces that the Servian government has ap-
pointed M. Philippe Hastits member of the com-
mission charged to regulate the navigation of the
Danube.

The Moldavian Minister of Finance has just
published a vizirial rescript revoking in the name
of the Porte the privilege granted by Prince Ghyka
to a French company to run steamers on the
Pruth and the Sereth. This rescript has been
published in consequence of remonstrances made
by the Austrian Internuncio, founded on treaties
concluded between Austria and the Porte, relative
to the' free navigation of the rivers which water
the two Empires. The last treaty of Paris, adds
the rescript, has regulated everything connected
with the navigation of the Danube and its tribu-
taiy streams, and the local authorities had conse-
quently no right to grant any privilege without
previous examination and sanction of the Imperial
governmen t. •

. . „
RUSSIA.
• BERLIN, SEPT. 15.
•
The Journal de St. Petersbourg of the 10th inst.
contains the following manifesto, issued by the
Emperor of Russia on the occasion of his corona-
tion,. and dated.:
" ST. PETERSBURG, AUG. 28 (SEPT. 9).
"His Majesty Alexander 11., Emperor and Autocrat
of All the Ru3sias, King of Poland, being desirous of
marking in an especial manner the solemn day in which
he assumed the crown of his ancestors, deigned, under
date 'of August 26 (Sept. !7, N. S.), to promulgate a
manifesto of grace, the principal dispositions of which
we hasten to reproduce.
"His Majesty's first thought, attached itself to. the
giave events which marked the outset of his reign, upon
those days of trial and at the same time of glory, in
which the Emperor .received such meniorable and such
unanimous prOofs.of prowess, of love, and unshakeable
fidelity from his subjects.
Fur the purpose of perpetuating the remembrance
of this noble conduct of the Russian people, during the
whole duration of tha formidable conflict which has
just been happily settled, his Majesty, as a recompence
for these exploits, and also as a souvenir, has deigned to
institute a commemorative medal, which shall be
worn, accerdinb to the regulations, on the riband of St.
Andrew, St. George, or St. Wladimir, by all those of his
subjects in the civil or military service who took any part
in the events of the late war.

" This medal, similar to that which the Emperor has
conferred in particular on the heroic defenders of
Sebastopol, who have astonished the world by the
longest and moat stubborn defence that the annals of
nations have retained any record of, will recall t the
most remote posterity the military and civil virtues of
which all Russia has given proof, in this grand national
trial which she has just passed through.
" The military that have shed their blood for their
country ; the militia that rose in an instant from the
soil of Russia ; the clergy, whose eloquent words and
unbounded charity have never been wanting to the na-
tional cause; theillustrious Russian aristocracy, whiCh, in
imitation of its ancestors, has again shown itself foremost
in the ranks of valour and devotion; the commercial, in-
dustrial, and operative classes, in fine, which.have made
such great and such noble sacrifices for their country
menaced, have all an equal claim on the gratitude of the
Emperor, who thanks them this day, and invokes on the
entire nation the blessing of God the Merciful, in the
hope that it will soon be granted to his Majesty to efface
even the fast traces of the public and private sufferings
that Russia has home so worthily.
"In the accomplishment of this sacred purpose the
Emperor commences by granting great immunities to the
provinces of Tauris, Cherson, Ekaterinoslaff, and Arch-
angel, as well as to the whole littoral of the Baltic, and
in general to all the provinces that have more particu-
larly borne the brunt of the late campo;igns. Further-
more, and in order to extend as far as possible the circle
of his liberality, his Majesty has been pleased to confer
on the whole Empire the benefits of a general boon, the
importance of which can be measured only by the im-
mensity of the sphere it embraces. The Emperor most
graciously dispenses the whole of Russia from every
burden of military recruiting or conscription for four
consecutive years, unless, which God avert, the neces-
sities of war should interpose obstacles in the execution
of this measure.

"In strict conformity with this same idea, the Em-
peror, in his solicitude for the welfare cf his subjects,
has• instructed his Minister of Finances to set ou foot
immediately a new census'of the population of the empire,
.so as more equitably to hues,' the burden of the capita-
tion tax, 1 i
possibly weigh disprorrtionately on
certain c'ases, Whose nuinbers have been more or less
sensibly dimiiiished by the war and by the'epidemic
scourges that have raged more particularly among them.
" Forthermoie_ his Majesty orders that the different.
arrears of taxe.,,, altogether amoentieg to at least
24,000,000 silver rouble,, as well ai all pecuniary .fines,
shall be graciously remittedtc the debtors. Finally, the
Emperor del .n by
the same act to abolish the tax
hitherto rased on. passports for foreign parts, reserving
only a 8"P"P dW'y to be. appropriated to the benefit•of
the

" Ills INT:ijesty further extends his Sovereign clemency
to those who havo become obnoxious to pubic
and. o•ants to all repentant criminals whose conduc;
been irreproachable
.since their condemnation either tl o
entire reinksion of their sentence or a considerable com-
mutation of their punishment.
" With respect to State prisonens, both those who
belonged to secret societies discovered in Russia at
various times, and those who took part in the Polish
rebellion of 1531., the Emperor ordains—that as re-
gards some, their lot shall be 'considerably alleviated in
the Vace to which they were banished ; as regards others,
they shall be permile.l to settle in the inland provinces:
of the empire ; and as to the rest that they may be en-,
tirely restored to freedom,
with the liberty to fix the
place of their residence in any of the towns of the
empire, as well as of the kingdom of Poland,
with the exception of the taco capitals, 'Moscow
and St. Yeti rsburg. Finally, as the crJwnirg
point of his clemency, the Enipsror deigns to grant to
all these State prisoners their rights of nobility, and
also to their legitimate children born since the condem-
nation of their parents, whether they be already dead or
still alive.

" His Majesty being desirous of extending to the very
farthest li►nits of his empire the benefits which he has
deigned to confer on his people on occasion of hiS corona-
tion, has been pleased further to confer on the population
of his western provinces certain special favoursof peculiar
impoteance. In conformity herewith the Emperor, in
two supplementary ukases addressed to the Administra-
tive Senate, prolongs the temporary legislative nieasure
which hitherto has regulated the entrance into the service
of the State on the part of the nobility of the Governments
of Wilna, Ku wrio, Groduo, Minsk, Volhynia, Podolia, and
Kieff. Henceforward, and in consequence of the gra•
cious de.i ion of his Majesty, the conditions of the pub-
lic service will be tha same in the western provinces as

those 3011cl' are• in, force far the inhabitants of all the
other part of the empire.

' " Flis 141ajeAty's subjacts professing the Jewish per-
suasion have also been the objects of the generous cle-
marsey of the Emperor, who has deigned to relieve them
from the special burdens which the conscription has
hitherto entailed noon them.

"Finally, the chiitlxv-n of soldiers, sailors, scc., can-
t)trists, who have been born during the period of their
Lthers' service, and who hitherto have belonged to the
army, are henceforth to b 3 restored to their parents, and
he at liberty to enter upon any station of life that they
meY choose for themselves.
Such are the principal dispositions of this manifesto,
of which we have only beer, able to touch upon the most
prominent features. A great number of other acts of
grace and favour, both financial and administrative,
which occupy no less than 38 separate articles, have refe-
rence to details which, although of high national im-
portance, cannot offer the same interest to our foreign
readers."

The same number of the Journal de St. Peters-
bourg contains also the following orders of the
day :
" On the 26th August (Sept. 7) his ME.jesty the Em-
peror deigned to issue the following orders of the day
to his armies and to the fleet :

" I. Brave Warriors !--In remembrance of your
valiant exploits in the last war I have instituted by my
manifesto of this day a bronze medal, so that there may
be seen shining on the breast of each of you a mark of
my satisfaction' and my gratitude, and as an evidence
that you have justified my confidence by your constant
readiness to sacrifice yourselves for our religion, the
throne, and the country.

The troops will wear this medal in conformity with
the arrangement made by me.

ALEXANDER.'
" In his active solicitude for the brave soldiers
that had sealed with their blood the valiant fulfilment of
their duties towards the Throne and the country, the
Emperor Alexanderl., of glorious memory, instituted
the committee' of August 18, 1814, and confided to it the
care of watching over the fates of wounded officers with-
out fortune.

" Our dearly beloved father, of blessed memory, never
ceased, with indefatigable and paternal attention, to
direct the development of this Committee and the suc-
cess of its operations.

" This solicitude for the brave officers of our troops,
who had acquired by their wounds a claim upon our
constant care, has been no less dear to our hearts.

"' Lithe desire of manifesting on this day, so holy and
so solemn to ourselves, the sincere interest which we
feel for them, we have 'enjoined the Committee of Aug.
18, 1814, to arrange for augmentind the pension assigned
to wounded officers out of the sums at its command.

"c Having sanctioned the new scieitlerZFpe;iens to
be settled on officers of all grades out of the Fund of de
"Elvalidos," which has been submitted to us by the
Committee, we have ordered, that these pensions shall
be regulated according to the said schedule dating from
to-day, and we bring this ordinance to the knowledge of
our armies and our fleet. ALEX INDER.'

A letter from Sebastopol of the 3d says On
Sunday last Divine service was performed for the
first time on the south side of Sebastopol. It took
place in the unfinished church of the Admiralty,
the only one not destroyed during the siege. The
altar had formerly been on board the Grand Duke
Constantine, line-of-battle ship, which had been
sunk. After the service the crews of the fleet were
reviewed to the number of 3,000."