The Sun.
London, England, 1856-08-11 00:00:00

LONDON, MONDAY, AUGUST 11, 1856.

It is stated that Russia has already discovered
' the mistake into which she had been betrayed in
supposing that she could so speedily disregard the
terms of the Treaty into which she had so recently
entered. The promptitude with which the Bri-
tish squadron under Rear-Admiral HOUSTON
STEWART returned to the Black Sea, when the
Muscovite doubts as to the carrying out of the
Treaty became known, had no doubt much moral
weight with the Government of St. Petersburg.
To that we may ascribe their speedy alteration of
sentiment, and their readiness to deliver up the
Isle of Serpents and restore Kars to their rightful

owners.

The painful impressions created by their mani-
fest duplicity respecting these places, and the dik•
mantling of Rene and Ismail, and even of Kars,
at times when they were the property of the
SULTAN, cannot easily be removed. Thsy
intimate too strongly the spirit by which
the AUTOCRAT is still actuated, and his
anxiety to persevere in the traditional policy of
his House. He solemnly promised, on attaining
the throne, that he would follow the course of
Lis predecessors ; and he seems more desirous of
redeeming that pledge than those which he has
given to other nations. The approaching corona-
tion to be carried out in the stronghold of the old
- Muscovite party probably increases that desire at
the present moment. But that can be no excuse
to those with whotn he is playing fast and loose,
and whose feelings of distrust must be greatly en-
hanced by the hesitation and bad grace with which
he discharges the solemn covenants into which he
bad entered.

Never was there a more absurd claim put for-
ward than that to Serpents Island. It is true
that it was not expressly mentioned in the Treaty,
but it came entirely within its spirit. The great
object was to insure the free navigation of the
Danube. To guarantee that great desideratum,
Russia consented to abandon a portion of the ter-
ritory she had previously plundered from Turkey.
Her pride and vanity wree appeased by the speci-
ous term—rectification of frontier. But it was to
all intents and purposes a surrender of territory,
for the purpose of preventing her from control-
ling the navigation of that important river.
This solemn and deliberate act she has at-
tempted to neutralise, by taking forcible posses-
sion of an island commanding the Salina mouths
of the river, and indeed both the other branches.
There ca►n be no doubt or difficulty respecting the
purpose with which she has made this aggression.
As territory, the disputed ground would be abso-
lutely worthless. It would, in fact, be a dam
nosa hereditas not worth a moiety of the expense
of retaining possession. But it completely cog.
manded the debouchure of the river, and in the
hands of Russia could still divert the whole of
the traffic to Odessa, the object which the AUTO-
CRAT had, and perhaps still has, so strongly at
heart.
The experiment was also possibly tried for
the purpose of testing the disposition of the
other contracting parties, and seeing how far they
would submit to any infraction of the Treaty.
That point has now been sot at rest ; and we
trust that Russia, who has now accurately mea-
sured the length of her tether, will be contented
to wait for a more favourable opportunity before
she again ventures to display her true colours, or
to exhibit so flagrant a disregard of public opinion
amongst the other nations of the world.

The immense importance to the country of a
dile development of the resources of our Indiam
Empire cannot well be too frequently insisted on.
The glamour which dazzled the eyes and led
astray the imagination of our forefathers has
been dispersed, and in its place is to be found
scepticism, or rather, indifference. The public
believe no longer that India is a granary of pre-
cious stones in settings of barbaric gold, where
boundless wealth awaits the enterprise of the
unscrupulous adventurer. All that ever was
dreamed of India has been surpassed by the pro-
vosts held out by the discovery and working of