The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-05 00:00:00

111 E ALLEI

DESPA7 CII.

PARTS, August 2.
Subjoined is the full text of the semi-official
article in the Constitutionnel, signed by M. Paulin
Limayrac, a summary of which has already been
published :
" Public attention has been recently called to the
Schleswig question by an exchange of notes between
the Cabinets of Berlin and Copenhagen. The idea
of diplomatic interference in this dispute by
France has naturally presented itself to the ima-
gination, and a host of different interests have
found their account in crediting the opinion that
the French Government had entered into debate
upon this point with the Government of Prus-
sia. Persons who unite the double advantage
of being at once well-informed and well-inten-
tioned are perfectly aware that this was precisely
what the French Government was firmly determined
not to do. It had excellent reasons for this course,
which it would be too tedious to enter into at pre-
sent. The instructions it has sent to its representa-
tive at the Prussian Court were drawn up in this
order of ideas, and excluded the notion of interfer-
ence iu the negotiations pending between Prussia
and Denmark.

" All sagacious minds can only approve, under
existing circumstances, the motives of this far-sighted
reserve. It is therefore with reason that, perceiving
a line of conduct was attributed to the Government
directly contrary to that which it intended to take
and has taken, the Moniteur has re-established

the truth of the situation by declaring that no
note had either been transmitted or read to the
Berlin Cabinet upon the Schleswig question. It
really did not appear possible to quibble at terms so
clear. Nevertheless it has been attempted, and
people have said—' Perhaps it is not a note that has
been read, but a despatch ; and if the Chargé
d'Affaires of France has not read a despatch, he
may at least have received one'
" There is here, upon one hand, a singular igno-
rance of diplomatic usages; upon the other, a
strange forgetfulness even of the terms of the ques-
tion. In fact, the point of importance to the public
—that is to say, as regards relations between the
two countries—is this :—Has the French Govern-
ment entered into debate with the Prussian Govern-
ment upon Schleswig ? Did it make a communica-
tion to the latter, either written or verbal, requiring
a reply, and summoning the Cabinet of Berlin to
explain its intentions ? The majority of the journals
say or insinuate, Yes. The Moniteur has explicitly
answered, No.
" The Moniteur did not say that the French
Government had not written despatches to its
Charge d'Affaires at Berlin. Such a statement
would have been altogether improbable. !Every
one knows that all Governments constantly address,
almost daily, to their agents in different countries,
despatches containing either information or in-
structions upon the different pending questions,
in order to direct their conduct or their language
in the conversations which they have, also daily,
with the Ministers for Foreign Affairs of the Courts
to which they are accredited. Frequently even
they read or confidentially communicate these
documents, the better to convey the impressions of
their Cabinets upon this or that question. These
are acts of courtesy having no official charac-
ter—that is to say, which in no degree affect
the relations between two States. But what may
affect those relations are requests for explanation,
demands which acquire real importance when
they are contained in a note read or handed
in. Thus, to avoid all error, care is taken to men-
tion the fact at the foot of each document in-
tended for this special treatment. This is what is
called a note. The security of international rela-
tions rests upon the maintenance and reciprocal
observance of these traditions.
" One can understand now that, inasmuch as
the fact of a note would have been serious, the
existence of one or of several despatches from the
French Government to its Charge d'Affaires is
little calculated to preoccupy public opinion. That
which might, upon the contrary, disquiet it, and
might astonish the Prussian Government itself,
would be to see the French Government withhold
its impressions upon important questions, shut
itself up in an ill-omened silence, and thus create
one of those situations which rarely occur,
but which always produce a certain condition'
of distrust. Such are not the relations of the two
Cabinets. Is this to be regretted ?
" We are unfortunately compelled to admit, as
we have said above, that various and numerous in-
terests upon both sides of the Rhine endeavour to
lead public opinion astray, and the Teal!y incredible
eagerness they display in falsifying the trust justi-
fies the persistence of the French Government in
re-establishing it.
" All, in fact, who in Europe are hostile to Prussia
flatter themselves that Danish affairs will prove the
apple of discord between the two countries. In
Prussia all who arc systematically hostile to France,
all who speculate upon the excitement of
German feeling, equally await an opportunity
to bring about a revival of Germanic susceptibility
by circulating false reports. Upon the other hand,
all who are animated by ill feeling towards the em-
pire have not dissimulated their intense disappoint-
ment at seeing the pretext disappear which seemed
to present itself of disquieting men's minds and
accusing the Government of rashly embarking in
difficult questions.
" If we add to this picture that of the hidden
vhemes of the speculators of all countries whose
interests would not be served at this moment by too
rapid a rise in the public funds, an easy explanation
may be found for the systematic incredulity with
which attempts have been made to receive the loyal
and reassuring declarations of the Moniteur."

The Railway Accident in France.

We have already briefly mentioned a calamitous
occurrence to an excursion train from Marseilles to
Paris. Orders, it appears, had been given to repair
the up line at St. Albin, where the railway makes a
curve, but by some mismanagement or neglect the
proper signal to warn the engine driver had not
been carried far enough in advance of the spot,
where the gap in the rails was made. The sig-
nalman in fact went only 300 metres distance,
remaining within the sweep. The unfortunate
train in question was conveying 800 passengers,
and when the engine driver, on coming out of the
straight into the curve, saw the signal, he shut off
steam, and at once whistled to the guard to apply
the breaks,,but the impetus was too strong, and the
engine, which was going at an average speed, actu-
ally crossed the gap where the rails had been raised,
and got upon the line beyond in perfect safety. It
proceeded about SO metres when the coupling irons
broke, and the engine then became detached from
the train; the tender and the carriages following
had left the rails, and the former stuck fast in a
heap of ballast and sleepers which were collected
at the spot for the repair of the line. The latter
part of the train, pressing with enormous force
against the carriages next to the tender, crushed
them in an incredible manner. Some were thrown
against a wall with such violence as to break it
down ; whilst others were cast to the opposite
side of the line, and two were completely smashed
to pieces. The train was composed of seven
second and eleven third class carriages ; and it
was the former alone which suffered ; the others,
which had come on with so fatal an impetus, not
having been in the least injured. The zeal of
the railway servants and of the uninjured passen-
gers to extricate the victims of this catastrophe
- is deserving of all praise, and contrasts strikingly
5 with the apathy of such of the country people as
were present, who stood by with their hands
- in their pockets idly looking on. The work
- lasted more than an hour, and the devotedness and
activity of a country doctor and the cure of Saint-
Albin were most conspicuous. The bodies of the
six killed were taken out from among the broken
carriages, and 20 persons were extricated with in-
juries more or less severe, not to mention cases of
were contusion. Saint-Albin is situated between
Macon and Tournus, and is within two kilometres
of Fleurville.

THE ARCHBISHOP OF YOR .—The Archbishop of
York will leave England for the Continent on Tuesday,
the Oth of august, and Will be absent for about piz weeks