The Sun.
London, England, 1859-01-31 00:00:00

TREATMENT OF RAILWAYS IN TVAR•

As any agreement for peace the next fortnight
may bring is, according to the views even of the
most sanguine, to be only " for the present,"
might
not the capitalists of London and Paris advan-
tageously avail themselves of such interval as may
be granted to see if some understanding is possible
on the treatment of railways in war ? The alarm
lately manifested on the question will appear to
many entirely unreasonable, but the extent to
which it prevails, and the consequences that have
followed show that some clear doctrine must be en-
forced, or that there can be little further progress
in that description of enterprise on which the ad-
vancement of Europe at this epoch especially
depends. Let those who are afflicted with the kar,
which some recent quotations have shown to pre-
vail, that railway property must be almost anni-
hilated in War, put their views into shape, and try
for a remedy. People will never again invest their
money in continental lines if it is to be at the mercy
of the first potentate who chooses to attack his
neighbours or to incite their subjects to insurrec-
tion. Happily, the country that has the greatest
interest in the satisfactory adjustment of this
matter is France. Not only have her people in-
vested largely in the railways of Italy, Austria,
Russia, and other counties, but her own works of
the kind are more extensive than those elsewhere,
and if she is to set the example of wanton de-
struction, the ultimate penalty of retaliation must
fall upon her with double force. Uuder such incen-
tives the Emperor Napoleon should be foremost to
express concurrence in any rational propositions
that might be drawn up. Russia has the next in-
terest in the matter, because upon the speedy con-
struction of railways the maintenance of her un-
wieldy power must greatly depend, and she instill
panting for 35 millions sterling, which she may
utterly forego the hope of raising if she cannot
give some guarantee against the results of embroil-
ments such as those which at the present moment
she is suspected of fomenting. Austria also has a
heavy stake, and that of Piedmont, looking at her
relative position and resources, is still more serious.
The United Kingdom, from its insular position, is
alone free from danger. Under sued circumstances
would not each continental Power be glad to join
in the recognition of a few general rules that should
serre to allay vague distrust ? In all the discus-
sions about the isthmus routes of Central America,
Mexico, and Suez the common consent of the world
to uphold the neutrality of the property has been
paraded among the essential inducements to sub"
scribers, and, if we are not to relapse into bar-
barism, some code must be accepted that shall bear
upon railways in the same spirit. But for tile
ruinous fluctuations of the past month the argument
would scarcely have seemed necessary. It is diffi-
cult to conceive what promptings of strategy, °r
even of the wildest revenge could lead to any break
up of such works by contending armies. To
cut off from from its opponents the means of
communication a hostile force would have
nothing to do but to remove short distances 01,
rail, open a trench, or throw up a mound, and the,
moment the temporary necessity was over the first
effort of the occupying Power would be to restore
the means of traffic. At the same time such traffic
would be wholly out of the question except upon
defined and legal terms, because if war is to bring
violence and rapine upon private individuals and
the authorities of every railway would onthe news of the approach of any army remove all
their materiel and stores to the most distant point,
and at the last necessity take their engines to
pieces. Meanwhile the Government business on
such routes as still remained open might probably
yield more than compensation for the local inter;
ruption, and in any ultimate terms of peace ah
damages would have to be weighed. Everything'
therefore tends to encourage a belief that the peril°
to investments of this descripton have, from the
novelty of the subject, been greatly exaggerated.
Each Government would naturally protect such
undertakings with its utmost power, while an in"
vader could gain nothing but the execration of the
people and historical infamy by pursuing an opl)°'
site course.—Times.