The Sun.
London, England, 1856-01-02 00:00:00

COURT ESTERIIAZrS MISSIO.

(Prom Galignani's Alessenger.)
Evidently from the want of an attractive subject, the
majority of the Paris journals refrain from offering lead-
ing articles to their readers, and confine their attention
to literary criticisms. The constant/omm/, undaunted
by the reflection that the subject of peace has become
threadbare, and will remain so until the result of Prince
Esterhazy's mission becomes more apparent, continues
to discuss the probabilities of its re-establishment with
great prolixity. Our contemporary is, however, inspired
with less confidence in the restoration of peace than has
been the case for some time past, and its columns, gene-
rally devoted to the expression of pacific views, now
breAlle an ardour almost martial. We extract from the
article to which we allude the most salient passages, in
the first of which a comparison is drawn between the
dawn of the past year and of the present one :
"The year 1855 finishes as it commenced : with hopes
of peace. We keow the fate of those which opened it.
What will become of the present ones ? On the let Ja-
nuary peace appeared more probable than on the 31st
December. Austria, whose troops already occupied the
principalities, bad concluded with France and England
the treaty of the ld December, and had adopted with
those Powers a general and common interpretation of
the four points of guarantee which the protocol of
tl
Bth August has pointed out as the base of the new nego-
tiations. A decision was expected from Russia, which, it
was hoped, would be decisive and quick. That was our
position on the Ist January ; such is our position on
the 31st December. The union which existed for a
long time between France, England, and Austria has
been strengthened, and the Cabinet of Vienna re-
news to the Cabinet of St. Petersburg its propositions of a twelvemonths' date, only in a language
more decisive and firm. We know what has been the
fate of the former diplomatic pressure of Austria, sus-
tained by the military attitude of England and France
a comedy of negotiations which the Czar openly played

(Proni Ow Times if this cosy)
The body which in France bears the name of
Imperial Guard was called into existence more than
50 years ago:- • It first surrounded a Republican
Consul, but it was not until the founder called him-
self Emperor, and meditated the conquest of
Europe, that it assumed its great proportions, and
the matchless discipline which has given it an en-
during fame. In the great battles of the later
empire the Guard was always conspicuous ; as the
enemies of France learnt skill and stubborness from
defeat and grew every day more a match for the
conqueror, the services of the Guard were more
and more a sad necessity. Both Sovereign and
people looked upon them with boundless favour
and admiration. It was the Guard to which Na-
poleon bade farewell at Fontainebleau, and the
feeling was requited by the unflinching devotion of
Waterloo. With this last catastrophe its days of
glory closed, and during a generation it was un-
known to France. The present Emperor had not
been long in power before he carried out a design
probably long before formed. An Imperial Guard
was a natural project of a Bonaparte restored to
the throne. The memory of such a force was deeply
seated in the hearts of the people. If reconstituted
it would equally invite the fidelity of the army.
The revived organisation was even more efficient
than 40 years back. The force was never a mere
body guard, but now it is a complete army of tried
soldiers, having its own cavalry, artillery, grena-
diers, light infantry, and field train. To judge of
the Guard by the regiments which bear a corres-
ponding name in England wohld give a most in-
correct notion. The officers have almost always
served with distinction in the Line, while the pri-
vates are similarly clraughted from other regiments,
so as to avoid the intermixture of young and un-
tried soldiers. The Guard, as reconstituted, is
fitted to be the groat nucleus of French armies, the
reserve for the day of danger, the chief defence in
any long and hardly-contested conflict. But the
French Emperor had no wish that his newly-
formed force should rest at home while less favoured
troops were incurring dangers and earning fame in
the East. It was necessary to the honour of the now
empire that the Guard should inscribe on its
flags names worthy to Le remembered. Accord-
ingly, in the spring of the present year nearly
7,000 landed in the Bosphorus. Under a com-
mander who had shared in the wars of the first
Napoleon they encamped with the reserve of the
French army. A few weeks after they were or-
dered to the Crimea, and at the capture of the
Mamolon they proved that the old spirit was alive
which had led to 15 yews of glory. On the 18th
of June and the Bth of September the same valour
was shown in defeat and victory. These brave
men now return to their own country after an ab-
sence short, if mere time be taken into account,
but of long duration if measured by the crowd of
brilliant actions which have marked the year that
has closed. It would be unfair, however, to attri-
bute the unwonted enthusiasm which the Parisians
have shown merely to the fact that it was the
Guard which entered the city. Several toilworn
and shattered regiments of the Line were thrre—
men who bad bivouacked at Old Fort amid rain
and tempest, who bad fought at the Alma, and for
i 1 months had been decimated in the trenches be.
forne:ebaetopol. The respect and welcome of the
people were equally given to these, but the pre-
of_th -. ;,. , . • ~. 1 1

.46 solemnity, inasmuch as itc,.llled—w—onthe Ale!
of the State to address in person the troops whiCh •
are especially his own.
We are not among those who endeavour to ex-
tract a meaning from every word that falls from a
potentate or his Miniet-rs. It is, perhaps, impos-
sible for the French Emperor to titter a sentence
so guarded that the political world will not see in
it peace or Isar. A speech addressed to veteran
soldiers newly landed on their own soil, amid
the plaudits of thousands, must be animated, and
in a certain degree warlike ; yet, making allow-
ance for the occasion, the Emperor's address
certainly gives signs of a determination to carry
out the war which has been begun. The Guard
is recalled that other regiments may have their
turn of service and its rewards. "The coun-
try," lie says, " which maintains €OO,OOO Fol.
Biers has an interest in maintaining in Franca
numerous and experienced army, ready to march
wherever occasion may require." He tells them to
preserve carefully the habits of war, and, whi'•
resting for a time from hardships, to be yet in
readiness to respond to his appeal. This is cer-
tainly not the tone of a man who c, ntem elates the
ending of an incomplete war by an ineffect.4
peace. It rather shows a conviction that the con-
test is more arduous than was at first believed •,
that, though success is sure, it is still far off, and
must he sought by new exertions over a wider
field. No nation of Central Europe need fear the
announcement that the French Guard are to hold
themselves " ready to march." Although the Allied
Powers would gladly see the co-operation of Prus-
sia and Austria in so great a cause, yet their neu-
trality is not likely to be interrupted, so long as
it is a reality. It is against the common foe of
Europe that the newly-raised levies of the French
empire will be directed ; it is on the frontier of the
Czar that the storm will break which is presaged
by the short address of the French Sovereign.
The plan of the next campaign is not decided,
nor can its extent be yet foreseen. It must be
remembered how the contest in the Crimea grew
from moderato beginnings until it became the most
gigantic of modern times. But we are able at
least to form some image of the war of 1856. It
will be carried on with equal energy in two seas,
and will threaten the enemy's ill-acquired pro-
vinces at both extremities of the empire. It is
probable that the struggle in the Baltic will net
fall short of that in the South either in regard to
its magnitude or results. The land forces may not
reach the numbers which are now congregated in
the East, but the fleet which the two nations will
shortly despatch to the northern; waters will exceed
anything that has hitherto been known in naval
warfare. The danger that impends over Cronstadt
and St. Petersburg is not neglected by the Czar.
Everywhere fortifications are springing up, and
the lessened bands of Russia are still further di-
vided by the (necessity of defending the capital
itself. There is good reason for such precautions.
It is more than probable that a portion of that
Guard whose return Paris has just celebrated will
be sent within a few months to earn new titles to
applause on the shores of the Baltic. At last the
war in this part of the world must lose the reproach
of incurring great expense to effect little, and even
the two former fruitless! campaigns will not be
wholly lost if the experience gained is useful for
eventual success. The Crimea and the Transcau-
casian provinces may each of them be the scene of
important events. It is the peouliar advantage o f
the Allies that they can, in a few days, change the
seat of war, and land a powerful force on any point
Odessa can of the Black Sea coast from the Danube round to
Batoum. Their army is available for any enter-
prise ; they can attack where they please, certain
that the enemy cannot retaliate. On the other
hand, Russia is compelled to maintain. nt
army at every point of her territory.
ill support Simpheropol—Tiflis can hope far no as-
sistance from either. In these circumstances there
is indeed encouragement for the French Sovereign
to persevere, and to promise the noble force which
he has created that it shall render new services to
France and civilisation. He has in his Guard a
co bodyinp eof completing troops
h well affected to his family and
throne,
triumph over the adversary against
his an
- whom he and is% are banded.
' tnut theyis
he
.

A letter from Bucharest to the M ercure de &web e
say, The metropolitan here has caused a decree to
he read in all the churches, declaring the marriage be-
tween M. Alexander Philipesco and the second daughter
of the Princess Euphrosine Gbika to be null and void,
onnac?ount of the previous marriage of the brother of
the bridegroom to the eldest sister of the bride—two
brothers being thus married to two sisters. The priest
who performed the marriage ceremony has been sus-
pended, and the bishop demands that a criminal process
be instituted against Alexander Philipesco and his wife.
There is no law in Wallachia, however, to justify a trial
of this kind."

RAILWAY LIBRARY.—YEW VOLUME.
Price is. 6d., fancy boards,

HAROLD. 29.
NIGHT ♦ND MORNING. IS. 6d.
LUCRETIA. IS. 6d.
PELHAM. IS. 6d.
MT NOVEL. 2 Vols. 2s. each.
LEILA. IS.
DEvzusuz. Is. 6d.
DISOWWID, THE. 19. 6d:
GODOLPHIN. Is. 6d.

-----
London : George Rontledge and Co., 2, Farringdon-street.

TUEATRE ROYAL, DRL'RY-LA.NE.
Lessee, Mr. E. T. Smith.
EVENING.
TRYING IT ON.
Followed by
TUE GREAT GUN TRICK.

ROYAL OLYNIPIC THEATRE.
Lessee and Manaaer, Mr. Alfred Wigan.
THIS EVENING,
THE JEALOUS WIFE.

Characters by Messrs. A. Wigan, G. Yining, Emery, Leslie, Dan-
vers, Mrs. Stirling, and Miss Marston.
After which will be produced a New and doubly-moral, thrlgh
excessively old, Melodramatic Fairy Extravaganza, entitled
THE DISCREET PRISTCESS; or, the Three Glass Distal's.
In which Messrs. Emery, F. Robson, 11. Cooper, Miss 3farstol,
and Miss Haskell will appear.

TELEATRE ROYAL AJDELPEUT.

Proprietor, ifr. E. Webster.—Directress, Maclaine Celeste.

THIS EVENLNG.
MOTHER AND CHUM ARE DOING WELL.
After which HOW'S YOUR UNCLS ?

To conclude with a Graad Coalition of Burlesque and Pantomime,
to be called
JACK AND THE BEAN STALK; or, Harlequin and Mother
Goose at Home Again.

in
which Me.srs. J. Bland, P. Bedford, Ma'am° Celeste,
Wyndham, and Miss E. Arden will ap)ear.

ROYAL SURREY TFIEATRE.

Lessees, Messrs. Shepherd and Crew Lek.
THIS E VENING
THE FLOWER GIRL.

To conclude with
A PRINCF: OF' PEAFCLS ; or, Harlequin and Jane Shore.

ROYAL STRAND TIIEATRE.
Under the direction of Mr: Part..

THIS EVENING.
NOME; or, The Foster Sister.

After which,

IT RUNS IN THE FAMILY.

To conclude with
HARLEQUIN BLACK-EYED SUE ; or. All in the Downs and
Davy Junes's Locker.

ATYLKY'S ROYAL. AMPIIMIR &TIM
Lessee and Manner, Mr. Wm. Cooke.

THIS EVENING,
ROOK WOOD; or, TURPIN'S RIDE to TORK.
After which the SCENES in the ARENA.
To conclude with one of the most extraordinary productions ever
witnessed, en Equestrian Comic Pantomime, introducing SO hones,
pontes, and other quadrupeds, trained by Mr. William Cooke, erilled
HARLEQUIN AND ST. GEORGE AND THE DRAGON, or the
Seven Champions of Christendom.
Morning Performances at 2 o'clock,SaturElay, Jan. sth, 12th, and
19th.

,t,,x-ofnce °nen from Eleven till Fonr. Stage Manager, Mr. W
West. Equeetean Director, Ur. W. Cooke. ;tat.

HIGEI WATER AT LONDON BRIDGE.

THIN Day—Morn. 39 min. aft. A—Evening 9 min aft.. 9
TO-MORROW—Mori:I.IO min. aft.lo —Evening 40 ruin. aft. 9

THE WEATHER-Su' OFFICE, JAN. 1.
TIIERSIOIIETER, ICI Tll3 SHAD%

43 highest since noon yesterday.
42 --iowest this morning and during the night.
50 -this day at noon.
BAROMETER, 29'63.
wram, E.—Light, with dull, cold weather.

r e 44
I=l q:-;•.4).
Zigt°l- 774_re

LONDON; WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 2, 1856

Russia is not as yet prepared to abandon her
traditional policy, or to give up her schemes of
aggression. Her humiliation and losses, great as
they have been, have not as yet brought her
rulers to a sense of their true position, or what is
due to common honesty and common justice. The
CZAR still looks forward to the goal which dazzled
the vision of PETER, Of CATHERINE, and of nano-
LAS ; and albeit the path has become rough and
perilous, still hopes to follow it en to its termina-
tion. Nulla vrstigia retrorsum is still his guiding
principle, and will be so until the Western Powers
oarry on the contest with energy and determina-
tion, sparing no vulnerable point, and showing
an inflexible resolution to render it a war a rou-
te-a/tee, in which the power of the common and
unconscientious disturber of the general peace
must be effectually diminished.
In our impression of yesterday we gave the
alleged particulars of the proposals which Count
ESTZRHAZY has been authorised to lay before the
Cabinet of St. Petersburg. From the vast im-
portance of the subject we here repeat them. They
are as follow :
"1. The relinquishment of the Russian Protsctorate
over the Danubian Principalities and the conditions
essential to a securing of a new order of things there.
This difficult point, which is already in process of
being carried out, is drawn up so decisively
and so clearly, that in case of its acceptance every pre-
judicial influence on the part of Russia en the del:bera•
Mons as to the regulation of the affairs of the Principali-
ties is excluded at once. Russia is required simply to
give her assent to the arrangements about to be made,
without Participating In any deliberation or in any re•
solution on the subject.
"2. Cession of a portion of Bessarabia, to such an
extent that Russia would be not only removed from the
delta of the Danube, but would have to give up her
entire position on that river. The geographical line for
the future Russian frontier is traced on a map appended
to the papers, and according to that the Russian frontier
would be considerably thrust back.
"3. Neutralisation of the Black Sea, without any
Russian fortresses and arsenals on its coasts ; at the
mouths of the Danube, however, there is to be a station
for vessels of war of small burden, fur the purposes of
marine police.
1. comm,n protection of the Christian subjects of
the Porte.
" Admission of Consuls into the harbours of the
Black 5%, and an undertaking on the part of Russia
never for the future to erect any fortifications on the
Aland Isles."

The first four conditions have, it is said, emanated
exclusively from Austria ; while those relating to
the admission of Consuls into the harbours of

the Black Sea, and the undertaking that Russia
shall not attempt the reconstruction of Bomar-

sund, or other fortifications on the Aland Islands,
. .

have, it is said, and with mileh apparent truth,
been added at the suggestion of the Western

Powers.

The Austrian suggestions are manifestly " the
means of accommodation " which Count BuoL
declared, at the breaking up of the
con.

'OTTNTIES RAILWAY, Carriage Free, by CLAYTON and SC ,
,eneral Newspaper and Advertising Agents, 265, Strand, Londe ,1

Z ANONI. By BULWER LYTTON„
Also, may be had::—
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The whole of Sir E. Buiwer Lytton's works being now complete In
the " Railway Library," we can hardly imagine that there will be a.
library, however small, without the works of England's greatest.
novelist.

After which,
fIEY DIDDLE DIDDLE; or, Harlequin King Nonsense and the
Seven Ages of Man.

THEATRE ROYAL, HAYMARKET.
17nder the Management of Mr. Buckstone.
THIS EVENING,
SHE STOOPS TO CONQUER.
After which the New Comic Christmas Pantomime, entitled
THE BUTTERFLY'S BALL AND THE GRASSHOPPER'S
FEAST ; or, Harlequin aad the Genius of the Spring.

gOTAL PRINCESS'g TEL OXFORD-STRENT.
Under the Management of Mr. CUAILU Klee.
Tun EVENING,
The Historical Play of LOUIS XI.
Louis (King of France), by Mr. Charles Kean.
After which,
HARLEQUIN AND THE MAID AND THE MAGPIE ; or, the
Fairy Paradise and Hanky Panty, tke Enchanter.
Harlequin, Mr. Cormack ; Clown, Mr. Haline ; Pantaloon, Mr.
Pante; and Columbine, Miss Caroline Adams.