The Sun.
London, England, 1860-03-02 00:00:00

(From the _Daily Hews)

•
To make peace lasting, great military empires must pur-
sue a policy which calumny itself cannot call tortuous,
fickle, restless, or domineering. It is not given to any
mortal power to be at one and the same time self-denying
and rapacious, grasping and chivalrous, revolutionary and
dynastic ; and any attempt to flatter and betray friends
and enemies indiscriminately can only result in the
establishment of a self-defensive league against the com-
mon disturber. It is the misfortune of the annual speech
of the Emperor of the French to his Legislative
Corps that it reads too much like one of those articles
in the .11oniteur, which declare war in one sentence
and proclaim eternal peace in another. If the speech were
addressed exclusively to that resigned and well-regulated
audience for which it is constitutionally composed, it would
be hardly amenable to foreign criticism. But it is in point of
fact addressed to Europe, and we are justified in protesting
on the part of England against any presumptive interfe-
rence with the free will of the Italian nation on the plea of
services rendered—disinterested services, for which for-
sooth nothing more than a province is demanded in return.
Neither the British Government nor the British people will
countenance such counsels or tolerate such claims.

(From the Morning Herald.)
Every possible reason urges him to stand well with the
greai powers. It is not to his interest, one would imagine,
to drive the continental states into a league against him, by
treading in the footsteps of his uncle. It was but the
other day that all Germany bristled with arms against him.
Russia, if she has not signed a treaty with Austria, never
will and never can be a reliable ally to France, England
looks with greater suspicion than ever on the recent deve-
lopment of his Italian policy. In France he is gradually
alienating the sympathies of the enlightened classes ;
and he has pushed away one of his strongest supports,
the clergy. What, then, are we to think, when,
under such circumstances, he deliberately announces
his intention to protect his frontier from the incursions of
Piedmont by the annexation of Savoy, except that he, too,
yields to the intoxicating delight of military triumph, and is
ready on a very slight pretext to give his 700,000 soldiers a
new cause and a fresh battle-field. The annexation of
Savoy, now openly proposed, is a deliberate gage of defiance
to Europe. It is the proclamation of the Majesty of force
and of the Emperor's triumph over the treaty of 1815—a
proclamation rendered all the more significant by the assur-
ance that if Europe will leave France to do as she likes in
Savoy, France will not interfere with the projects of her
powerful neighbours upon weaker States. Europe, the
Emperor may rely upon it, will form its judgment of the
Italian policy of the French Court quite apart from his
protestation of disinterestedness. The notion of Piedmont
being a dangerous rival to France, or in fact being any-
thing but a third-rate power, whilst the line of the Mincio
forms the Austrian frontier, is too preposterous to be dis-
cussed. All the arguments and assertions in the world
will not convince the world either that the aggrandisement
of Fiance is not one of the " ideas" which dignify the call-
ing of the " Soldat de Dieu," or that Napoleon himself is a
maligned and calumniated, but well meaning and amiable
ruler, whose chief desire is to devolope the resources of his
country and live in amity with his neighbours.

ROYAL COLOSSELM.—This highly popular insti-
tution has, it affords us much pleasure to hear, been mere
numerously attended during the recent Christmas holidays
than on any former occasion ; and this success is likely to
continue, now that the very able and talented lessee has
resumed his popular lectures on science. Those of
our readers who may remember Dr. Bachhoffner's
pleasant and agreeable style of imparting informa-
tion when, for so many years, he lectured at
the Polytechnic Institution, will doubtless be glad to
know that, on the Thursday evenings during the Lent sea-
son, they may hear him on the favourite topic of Astro-
nomy. The present subject embraces a most interesting
and graphic description of our satellite the Moon, illus •
trated by a magnificent orrery, and several wonderful pho-
tographs of the Moon's disc, kindly supplied, we are
informed, by Mr. Warren De la Rue, F. R. S.,
and Messrs. Smith and Beck. These marvellous fac-
similes of the Moon's surface must be seen to be appre-
ciated. We must not forget to mention a most ad-
mirably executed series of coloured photographic views of
the Holy Land, supplied by Messrs. Negretti and Zambra,
and magnified by the oxy-hydrogen microscope. Many
may remember the beautiful views of the same subject,
from the pencil of David Roberts, R.A. ; but beautiful as
they were as artistic sketches, still they lacked the
fidAty to nature so peculiar to the photographic :.rt.
To those who have not visited the Holy City,
the present slries of views (twenty-two in number)
will form an excellent substitute, and from the truthfulnex ;
with which they are produced, and the interest attached to
this now desolate land, we anticipate for the present vie vs a
large share of public favour. A very concise but interesting
description accompanies each view, delivered by Mr. Jones
Howson, which, together with the other exhibitions of this
noble institution, form one of the most rational and agreeable
modes of spending a few hours, at the small cost of one
shilling, that can be found anywhere, in or out of the
metropolis. _

. -
OXFORD DRAMATIC CLUB BALL.—The annual
ball of this amateur dramatic society was held at Willis's
Rooms on Wednesday evening. The entire suite of rooms
have been re-decorated, and looked very handsome. Up-
wards of 400 ladies and gentlemen responded to the stewards
invitations, and kept up the "spirit of the bill," to the ex-
cellent music of Mr. Jones's band, until five o'clock the
following morning.