The Sun.
London, England, 1858-10-19 00:00:00

RUSSIA.

A few days ago the Gazette de Cologne learned
from its Vienna correspondent that a conspiracy
against the life of the Emperor Alexander had been
discovered, and the persons concerned in it arrested,
but nothing tending to confirm the intelligence has
come to my knowledge. In fact, the correctness
of the news is greatly questioned. Every man of
well-constituted mind must sincerely hope that a
special Providence may watch over the Emperor
Alexander, and that he may be permitted to com-
plete the great work which he has begun. The
Russians boast much of the personal courage of the
Emperor Nicholas, but the present Monarch is the
braver man, for he has dared to undertake a task
from which his father shrunk. The late Czar
once in plain terms confessed to a celebrated
Austrian statesman that he was " afraid" to meddle
with the serf questioa. A most shameless attempt
to defraud the Russian Government has just
come to light. The Imperial authorities declared
the distance from St. Petersburg to Moscow to
be 607 wersts, but M. von Struve has found it
to be 88 1-3 d wersts less. The American com-
pany which is to construct the railroad would
have pocketed about 12,000,000 dols.—or, at
all events, a considerable part of that sum—had it
not been for M. von Struve's opportune discovery.
In order to make .out the 607 wersts all the dis-
tances given on the projected railroad were erro-
neous. Th• Emperor, as you can easily conceive,
is very angry, but the matter is likely to be hushed
up, as the reputation of men of high rank for com-
mon honesty is in jeopardy. There was a tremen-
dous fire at Orel (the capital of the Russian Govern-
ment of the same name) on the Ist October, and
another on the 26th Sept., at Livny, in the same
Government. At Orel 500 buildings were de-
stroyed, and about 200 at Livny.

ELECTION INTELLIGENCE.

REIGATE.

The writ for the election has at length been sent
down. Yesterday morning it was proclaimed in
due form, and Friday morning has been appointed
for the nomination. The only candidates ostensibly
in the field are Mr. Monson and Mr. Wilkinson ;
but Mr. Edwin James came down yesterday, and
was in communication with some of the electors,
but it is not known whether he intends to stand.
It will be recollected that Mr. Wilkinson had re-
tired from the contest shortly after the vacancy in
the representation of the borough originally
occurred, and Mr. Edwin James then offered him-
self to the electors ; but Mr. Wilkinson a second
time announced his intention to stand for the
borough, and claimed the support of those electors
who had pledged themselves to vote for him in the
first instance. This proceeding created a complete
schism among the liberal electors, and occa-
sioned a good deal of excitement and personal feel-
ing in the borough, and the result was, that Mr.
James expressed his intention not to divide the
liberal interest and declined to stand. It is
rumoured that there is an intention again to put
him in nomination on Friday, and which is the
cause of his coming down to Reigate yesterday. A
great deal of angry feeling and excitement prevails
upon the subject, and the contest is expected to be
a very close one.