The Sun.
London, England, 1856-12-18 00:00:00

PRANCE IND SWITZERLAN L,.. i gives up a dozen Neuchatel sovereignties or pro-
tectorates to the Republicans o' the New World.
We shun the responsibility of disturbing the peace
of the world for an empty title. May not Prussia
do the same ? May not France counsel her to do
so? There was a time, indeed, when potentates
thought it the chief duty of their calling, and the
noblest act of their reigns, if they could write their
name and plant their foot in some new territory
where they neither had any material interest nor
the smallest hold on the sympathies and hearty
allegiance of the people. That evident folly was
redeemed, in the opinion of former ages, by the
hope that the single footstep might become at some
future day the nucleus and basis of empire. No
doubt, when Neuchatel was added to the titles of
Prussia there were those who fondly hoped one
day to see all Switzerland gathered to the Electoral
House of Brandenburg. Young and growing
States are apt to indulge in such dreams, and
sometimes suffer much before they c In bed sabused '
of them. Neuchatel has long lost this speculative
interest. She belongs only to the past, and can
have no relation to the future in Prussian eyes.
That State, then, ,which affects so much prescience,
and which can act with discretion even when other
qualities might have been expected to predomi-
nate, ought to have anticipated the present dis-
agreeable phase of this question by writing
off a barren title from her dignities, and leaving
Switzerland at once to the Swiss. It is never too
.
late to repair an omission. What would have
been prudent eight years ago is not less so now ;
k and, even now, Prussia will not lose honour by
acting on Ciat suggestion.

(From the Daily News. )
, For a sensible man, the Emperor of the French
does make sad blunders at times. When under the
influence of personal susceptibilities he is apt to say,
or cause to be said for him,-things he must after-
wards wish had been left unsaid. The threats which
Count Walewaki was instructed to utter against the
Belgian Government for not gagging the Belgian
press, in contravention of Belgian law, was the first
of these betises that attracted much notice. The
fulmination of the Moniteur against the English
press was the next. The article on the 'Neu-
chatel question which appeared in yesterday's
Moniteur is the third, and infinitely the
most absurd of the three. The attempt to intimi-
date Belgium betrayed a want of magnanimity ;
the denunciation of the English press was a sheer
waste of words ; but in both instances it might be
urged in extenuation of the blunder that the Ern-
eror was wincing under sharp and unceremonious
Criticism, more or less merited. But the tirade
against Switzerland is an explosion of self-love
much less easily accounted for than either of the
other two. The Swiss Government has not said or
dons anything uncourteous towards the Emperor
of t'ae French ; it has merely, with all courtesy,
&Alined to see with his eyes, and act in humble
bbedience to his dictates, in a matter where its dig-
nity and power of self-preservation are at stake.
And for acting thus the Swiss Government is ac-
cused of " exaggerated susceptibility,"' and of seek-
ing to " gratify demagogic influences ;" and is
haughtily told that, in so far as France is con-
cerned, Switzerland " must not be astonished if,
in the course of events, she should no longer find
the goodwill which she might. so easily have ob-
tained at the cost of a very slight sacrifice."
- Now what is this " very slight sacrifice ?" From
the foundation of the Helvetia League in 1815 till
1848 the constitution of the Canton of Neuchatel
was a most anomalous ore. It was a monarchical
member a a
biipp,Confederation. 1111848 the
citizens Of Neup )2I en4braced an opportunity to
assimilate their omestic ti tui,i‘ -.cs to those of the
confederate states. This, as a soireiejgn state, mem-
ber of a confederation of sta es, they had a perfect
right to do.: The Central Government of Switzer
land, consequently, accepted the new coestitution
of Neuchatel as a fait accompli. Since 1848 the
citizens of Neuchatel have remained, and they still
remain, perfectly coo tented with their new form of
government. Some months ago a few individuals,
acting apparently in concert with and at the
instigation of foreigners, attempted to overturn the
republican government of Neuchatel. They im-
puted no oppression or injustice to the government
against which they arose in arms. They were utterly
unsupported by anything that could be called popu-
lar syinpathy. They ware put down by the local
authorities, in a few flours, with as much ease as a
meal-mob or any other riot might have been. There
never was a clearer case of unjustifiable insurrec-
tion against constituted authorities. Contemptible
though the eineute was, the Supreme Gok-ernment
of- the Helvetic League owed it to its own dignity,
and to the security of all peaceable citizens, to in-
stitute a judicial inquiry into the conduct of the
ringleaders of the insurrection. There is not a Go-
vernment in the world that would not have acted
—that has not at times acted—in the same way.
The Federal Government of America caused Col.
Barr to be tried for high treason. The English Go-
vernment bad Frost and the leaders of Young Ire-
- hold tried for their insurrectionary attempts. In
the continental states of Europe trials for political
offences have been no rarities during the last quar-
ter of a century. In resolving to put the Neuchatel
rioters upon their trial, the Helvetic authorities
only did what it was unquestionably their right
and their duty to do: The unwarrantable attempt
of the foreign Monarch—who was suspected on
strong grounds of having been at least privy to-the
designs of the ern eutiers—to call in question the
legality of this exercise of the undoubted right of
a sovereign government, rendered it more than
ever necessary for the Helvetic authorities to carry
their resolution into effect. To have abstained
from an exercise of their sovereign right, from
fear of the threats of a foreign power, would
have been such a confession of weakness and

LUSSIAN RAILWAYS.

cowardice as could not have failed to invite further

aggressions. What had heen at first merely a ques-
tion of expediency became a question of self-pre-.
servation and a point of national honour. Tne
"demand" .of the French Government, that the
Swiss authorities should forthwith release their
prisoners, was neither more nor less than a demand
that they should renounce their rights as the sove-
reign government of an independent state. Even
on the plea of humanity-the "demand" was alto-
gether unwarrantable. It was au insult to the
Central Government of the Helvetic Longue to as-
sume that it would not temper justice with mercy.
To such a "demand" there was only one reply,
and that the Swiss authorities have most properly
given. They hays civilly declined to sacrifice their
own rights and the rights of the Helvetic nation,
and have allowed the judicial investigation to take
its course.
It is to he hoped that-, the Central Government
of the Helvetic. Levu() may be strengthened to
endure with equanimity the loss of the " goodwill"
. . . .

of the Emperor of tite French, with which they

are threatened. Anything more serious they have.
nc)t to fear. The' King of Prussia is notoriously
-more given to speak about swords than to use them.
The "goodwill" of the French Government will
not be needed on the present occasion. And if
Switzerland is so unfortunate as to fall into tie bad
graces of the French GovernMent, she way console'

herself with the lively sympathy which her digni-
fied conduct will excite among all truly liberal Go.-
vernments. In rejecting the. insidious counsels of
France, Switzerland is in truth asserting the coin-
mon rights-of all constitutional states. The " de-
mand" that the Neuchatel prisoners should be set
at liberty was in fact an attempt to olrein an ad-
mission that popular Governments have not an equal
right with despotic Governments to punish rebels.
What would Austria have said to any " demand"
from a foreign Government to liberate Itohert
Blum without trial 1 What would Napoleon 111.
have said to any " demand" from a forei,gn G)-
vernment to liberate the emeutiers of Augers ?
And what right has any King of Kaiser, who would
have resented such an interference with his own
exercise of sovereign authority, to call in question
the title of the republican Government of Switzer-
land to inflict a just punishment on conspirators,
who have endeavoured by force of arms to subserve
the ambition of a foreign Prince at the expense of
their country's liberties ?

The te (Pima the Times.)
serions--,aezbatel question forms the subject of a
Prussia,
in the Moniteur of yester-
day.
had sought thie as was already known to the world,
asked intercessiont of France, which ac-
cordingly
release the Royat Swiss Federal Government to
trial. As this waa
tprisoners, for her sake, without
man° be done at the solicitation of
France, it was
cot would
that the hon. ur of the
Federal Govern
coirwo.ould. be saved, and that
France would be
4ttled. to employ her good
offices for a settlement
question in conformity
with the ideas of Swite,rile
declined, and the Moniteuarud• The offer has been
informs Ole world,
with a little of that verytmnti"
which is ascribed
that the latter
with some reason to Switzerland,
might
not find on the
must rat be surprised if she daond,
sicle of France the good will she
at a very slight sacrifice, Such galit have obtained
pears to us so little in harmony with the
ap-
vieystated,
kindness which must have prompted ttlile genuine
had another
intercession that we hope it is rather 0 e original
„ras, thought
and that France is not really going to
example of the two disputants, and throw the
point of honour into the quarrel. We
that the days had gOne by when Europe
convulsed with questions of etiquette, am. When
trifles light as air, of absolutely no suhstantiani
significance, were to' be made the occasion of the
most real and Momentous disasters. If France
however, is to discontinue her, mediation fo'r
the peace of her neighbours simply because one, of-
fer has been declined, one experiment has not suc-
ceeded, one view of things not been adopted, and
•f the result of that express and formal withdrawal
is encouragement to the stronger and disconeage-
merit to the weaker, then we feel that we have
+'" °}
the progress of liberal and rational
letm. ..i vhe boast that we live in the nine-
teenth century does not in that case mewl quite. so
much as we thouelit. It is still possible for a
world to be sllake;'),
with blood ' for a continent to %e del aged
, for civilisation to be arrested. in
its onward
progress,,, on some question of mere
form
and m
be brougheanner. Whatever other charges might
,m/ainst the allies in the late war, it
be
not
qconualrdrenl;evpave: pretended that the matter of the
of the
gravest consequence to the
whole world . and
even now, when another Con-
ference is about to at least, as. to asseble, there can be no
can
be •otho 'importance
de-
mands. There of our
as little doubt RS to' the
utter; unimportance of
the matter in the Neuchatel
cities lion.
We feel that we have a right
speak and to be
heard in.this affair, seeing that
e a on various occasions
rree to sacrifice intest
we have shown how ready w
dig-
nity when our own material is not such as
can be set against the general interest and peace of
the world. IT Prussia, Switzerland, and France
will refer to any American authorityid they will be
nr informed that we have gle it a r
everything in that par of the • weeld:,,,ob give up
when it was
only a name on our side but a substanFe on the
side of the United States. Yes,
emphatically, we have, during the lastwe say it 2O years,

(Prom the Times' Correspondent.)
ST. PETERSBURG, Nov. 30.
The Times has rendered a great service to the
capitalists of the West in putting them, on their
guard against a certain project put forward for a
general network of rail Ways to be constructed in
Russia by a joint-stock company. Hitherto the
object of companies of this kind has been to pro-
cure for their shareholders a higher rate of interest
than they couldlet for their money is the public
funds Y • hut in the undertaking in question the
shareholder can never, not. even under the most
favourable hypothesis, hope for dividends which
exceed or even equal the interest that may
be obtained by buying into the Russian
,funds the dividends which are payable
in London and Amsterdam. Moreover the con-
tract that has been signed by nessrs. Pereira,
Baring, Hope, and others with the Russian Go-
vernment contains a number of obscurities which,
even in a country with independent courts of jus-
tice, and where, if need be, the Government itself
may be' amenable to them, would put the capital of
the shareholders entirely at the mercy of the Go-,
vernment with which they contract. The fact that
the shareholders under the most favourable cir-'
cumstances would never get any dividend higher
than the per centage guaranteed is sufficiently
proved by the way the line from St. Petersburg to
Moscow pays—a line which is incontestably and
infinitely superior to any other that can be con-
structed in Russia, and which, nevertheless, only
at the time of the latecoronation, returned enough
to pay 1 per cent. on the cost of construction over
and above the expenses of working, while up to
that time it had hardly covered current expenses.
The Times has brought out int) admirable relief'
several of the stipulations of Messrs. Pereira and
Co.'s contracts, which are of a nature to frighten
any speculators as to the responsibility the com-
pany is taking upon itself, and which may very
probably even reduce the percentage guaranteed,
if it do not entirely sweep it away. There are,
however, a few points more that may still be added.
Who, for instance, will indemnify the, company if,
as will inevitably happen to the greater part, if not
to all 'of the lines, not even the expenses of work-
ing are covered by the receipts ? Who will indem-
nify it for the repairs which from time to time will
become necessary, as, for instance, the renewal of
the sleepers and also of the rails? We find in the
contract nothing said about 'the creation of a re-
serve fund that is to provide for these expenses,
nor of any,guarantee of any supplementary per
centage for this purpose.
In order to give those who nevertheless might
feel disposed to throw in their lot with the company
'in question an idea of the extent of the obligations
which this company has contracted, not only as
regards the construction of the lines of railway, but
also with respect to the term within which the
lines must be completed, let us take the railway
thatha3the greatest extent, and to which the Russian.
Government appears to attach particular impor-
tance, probably because it. is intended to serve as a
means of communication with the Trans-Caucasian
provinces, either by communicating with the banks
of the Konbau, or by crossing the Black Sea from
Theodosia (Kaffa) to Redoubt-Kaleh. I mean the
railway from Moscow to Theodosia. The length of
this line is estimated in the programme at 1,356
versts ; the half of this length would traverse go
vernments the average population of which, accord-
ing to the latest data, quoted by Koppers, does not .l
amount to 800 s-mls per Gerrnart league (14k miles,
English). Immediately after passing Orel (a quarter
of. the whole distance) wood begins to be very
sparce, and two-fifths of the whole length of the
line would pass along the barest steppe of New
Ruseia, totally devoid of all trees or even shrubs.
Where in this waste and desert would be the timber
necesesyy for the works, or Ore fuel necessary for
the locomotives, be found t. Bachmont, where
coals are to be had, is 210 vesests distant from the
nearest point the railway will pass, and is to be got
at only across the steppe. Water even is very
scarce on the steppe in ens umer, a circumstance
that-may be extremely inconvenient for the work-
ing of the locomotives. Asgain, in winter, those
fearful snowstorms are mot with on the steppe that
at times bury whole caravr,ns, and would certainly
interpose temporarily insi irmountable obstacles to
the traffic, while the con struction of the railway
itself would be immeasurs .bl' impeded by the deep
and broad fissures which. are frequently to be met
with on the steppe.
Doubtless, all these ob etacles are to be overcome
by dine of perseverance, • Lime, and plenty of money;
but would the shareholders, bound down by these
contracts to get the rai: [way finished and to gua-
rantee its being open ed between Moscow and
Theodosia by a fixed ti me, be able to estimate in
advancethe whole weig ht of the obligations imposed
upon them ? And if tb ey do not or can not get it
finished within the ter m fixed for the completion
and the opening, would not the Russian Govern-
ment consider itself ei ithorised to take possession of
she railway, to finish z he works, and insure its being
opened at the expense and on account of the share-
holders, and for this purpose lay an embargo on the
percentage, it has qua ranteed ?
For procuring lab o urers—for setting in motion
the public officials, venal and corrupt as they are
in Russia to the highest degree—for a hundred
different things w Mich is a country like Russia
will create almost -insurmountable difficulties to
foreign entrepreneurs, whether for the construction
or for the working ,of the railways, the Russian
Government is in polisession of means which stand
at its disposal alone., Why, then, one is tempted to
ask, does it hold b seek from taking on itself the
direct. charge of con ;eructing its own railways as it
did in the case of the line from St. Petersburg to
Moscow, and as it lead begun to do with the line
from St. Petersburg to Warsaw?
It is true that the, Government, according to the
letter of the contract 110 W lying before me, is virtu •
ally the, master of the company, and can dictate to
it as soon as it hats once embarked a sufficient
amount of capital for it not to be aisle to draw back;
but will it also suit the shareholde rs equally well,'
for the purpose of getting 5 per 043nt., or, rather,
41 per cent. interest for their mone2 r to place them-
selves absolutely at the mercy 'of the Russian
Government ? Let us suppose that a war of
longer duration than the one whiciti has just come
to a conclusion should plunge this 4 ;overnmdnt in a
state of serious financial. embarr, assment which
Would not permit of it fulfilling a?.l its pecuniary
eligae,eneents, is it to be suppose4l for a moment
that it would continue to pay tine shareholders
ttelbe f
eir_gus.ranteed 44 per cent., to the, prejudice of
eguitr payment of the interest on the loans it
lcontracted.r on foreign Bourses, and. hy,so doing
ruin it edit for ever ? Or would it mot rather be
moor©
e
much_,oprobable that it would be. the 'share-
hwohl
ideehr: Len would
be first -sitcrificed ?--a process
the incomplete and tenour of the' cornintrg
all the oe et, might be carried'. out with
obscure
apparent legality,event hough the
Government should
refrain
that clause of the contr from availing itself of
act which enrnosvers it ,to
buy up the railway at an arbit
rary
It seems to us that if the contractors had ws.shed
to actin a frank and open manner they ought to
have appended to their prospectus an a bstra ct of
the detailed reports sent in
by the erigneeme and
the architects
different lines and they had (env() ,
Yee. to survey the
f
_orm estimates of th u exile uses
of construction ; or, it this latter core mon —as
one is led to believe from the short Spat s of-•_time
that elapsed between the opening and the of
the negotiations—has been omitted, they celit to
have frankly avowed that they had, as it IA
called,
purchased "a pig in a poke. 111-the foe inter caste
public-discussion might possibly have con t: ributel
to the enlightenment of those speculators la •ho are
looking out for an advantageoui invekn lent of
their capitel, and are not simply seeking
a premium out of the Egyptian a k earen es s which
habitually shrouds all matters at the f u • end of
Russia.
I must, in conclusion, make one that e remark