The Sun.
London, England, 1860-09-29 00:00:00

the annexation of the Two Sicilies and the Roman
states, an attack might be made upon the Venetian

,erritories of Austria. And to show the error of

doing so, Lord JOHN urges all the arguments he
can think of. He has evidently been prompted
from some quarter to speak a good word for Aus-
tria in Venetia. Probably Prussia, which with an

infatuation is very much concerned at the thought
of Austria'slosingVenetia, even though she will not I
go the length of guaranteeing its possession to her.
Austria, herself, may have touched the noble lord's
heart with pity for her deplorable condition, though
hitherto Lord JOIN and our Premier have regarded
Verona as a menace to Italy, not as a bulwark of
Germany. We cannot say we like the style
of the arguments, not because there is not
a great deal of truth in them, but
because of what they do not say. We look in
vain for any admission that the occupation of
Venetia by Austria is a wrong to Italy. Techni-
cal, and diplomatic, and prudential moons are
urged for letting Venetia alone ; but they are

unaccompanied by any acknowledgment that
substantially the presence of the Austrians in
Venetia is a wrong to Italy; that they are there
by force, by treaty, by every reason, but that of

the wish of the oppressed inhabitants.
The King of SARDINIA is told of the Treaty of
Zurich, and of his being bound by it to live in

good neighbourhood with Austria; a Government,
however, which refuses to show to him the
ordinary civilities of Courts. He is reminded
that the attack might fail, and that
failure might be followed by the restora-
tion of Tu;cany to the GRAND DUKE, and of
the Romagna to the POPE. That France could
not consider these acts as inconsistent with the
Treaty of Zurich. That Austria would be "fight-
ing for a good cause, the preservation of her terri-
tory, and the redemption of her military honour."
His lordship seeming quite to forget his former
representations of Verona being a menace to Italy,
not the best of causes, surely. That the only hope
of Sardinia could be " in bringing France into the
battle-field and exciting a European war." He
hopes the Count " will not give way to such dan-
gerous illusions ;" and lest he should, he is warned
that the Great Powers are bent on the maintenance
of peace, and that Great Britain has interests
in the Adriatic, over which she keeps a most care-
ful watch.
A pretty stiff lecture certainly to a foreign Go-
vernment, accompanied, too, with an intimation
that Great Britain has been thought too indulgent
in the allowances she has made for the Count's
position. We need not; however, deny that Lord
JOHN RUSSELL may be substantially right in his
arguments ; but, for the first time, in the affairs of
• Italy, we do not like the tone of the communication.
Lord JOHN evidently writes at GARIBALDI, as well
as to Count CAVOUR. Now we have every rea-
son to feel sure of his hearty sympathy
with the great General, and we have not forgotten
his noble vindication of him in the House of Com-
mons. What we should like is, for him to write, now
the House is not sitting, just as he would do if he
expected soon to have to produce the despatch
before it. It is perhaps hardly fair, but we can-
not help suspecting that, had Parliament been
sitting, the document would have been one which
• would have had in it some expressions to call forth
' the accustomed cheers, even if he had thought it
desirable to warn Sardinia and GARIBALDI off
Venetia.

But is it our business at all to remonstrate in
this style. Should not our Foreign-office remon-
strate rather with Austria. We do not, indeed,
see now citt..D.t,..l
against Venetia, without risking too much. We
quite believe that if he left Rome and Venetia for
a while, and consolidated the strength of Italy by
union with Sardinia, and the formation of a strong
national army, Rome and Venetia could not long
remain as they are. We hesitate to sacrifice
all that has been gained in Italy—for such a
chance she will never have again—for the pos-
sibility of gaining the whole of Italy at once
and revolutionising the States of Austria—
still we cannot relish what will be regarded by
Italians as the chilling and impertinent style of
this despatch. We could not take the responsi-
bility of advising the KING and GARIBALDI not to
meddle with Venetia at present ; but we could not
have advised them to refrain, without denunciations
of Austria's doings, or even existence there, in
language which might have consoled the patriots
for the advice we felt compelled to give, and which
should have left the brutal oppressor no room for
boasting of our despatch.

The translation of a remarkable Spanish docu-
ment was given in our impression of the 24th of
this present month of September. It will doubtless
have been remarked already by the more observant
of our readers ; and, if not, is eminently worth
turning back to for careful examination. It is the
pronunciamento addressed by DON JUAN to his fel-
low-countrymen—DON JUAN DE BORBON, second
son of DON CARLOS, and younger brother of the
present claimant for the old Spanish crown, the
Conde DE MONTEMOLIN. The State paper here
alluded to is absolutely apropos des bott es—for the
reason of its issue at all at this particular juncture
is certainly nowhere apparent. The Morocco war
is over, and that, moreover, rather creditably than
otherwise to the Madrid Government. The abor-
tive Carlist insurrection that last broke out at the
very moment of the successful close of that Morocco
war expired in a few wretched little tinder sparks
at the first " flash-in-the-pan" of that attempted
conflagration. The Conde DE MONTEMOLIN, taken
prisoner with the youngest of his two younger
brothers, was scarcely incarcerated--it will be re-
membered—before his Royal Highness obtained
his release from confinement by signing a formal
abdication of his claims to the Sp, i anisihintdhrocnite
willand
sceptre thenceforth and for ever
also be in popular remembrance) had scarcely
returned to his place of exile in the country before
he as formally retracted and recanted his appa-
rently deliberate and final words of abdication.
Nothing since then has been heard or, for that
matter, has been even thought of the rival aspi-
rants to the diadem now worn by Queen
ISABELLA. The influence of O'DONNELL over
the councils of that Sovereign remains
undiminished. The allegiance of the provinces
of her kingdom continues wholly undisturbed.
Progressistas and Moderados, Legitimists and
Constitutionalists, give no sign anywhere of an
intention to revive their ancient bickerings.
When, suddenly, without any visible or conceiv-
able why or wherefore—At a moment of all crises
that could have been selected for such an en-
tirely unlooked-for demonstration—the second son
of the late DON CARLOS puts forth this singular
proclamation, or pronunciamento, addressed to the
race of " Spaniards," a State-paper of an entirely
unparalleled character, in which his royal high-
ness may be said to advance a twofold claim to
the crown of the Spanish sovereignty. Distinctly
we say—a twofold claim to that sovereignty
As a Legitimist, or, rather, as the very type and
representative of legitimism—and as a Constitu-
tionalist, or, rather, again, as the very incarna-
' tion or embodiment of constitutionalism. As to