The Sun.
London, England, 1866-08-10 00:00:00

Government Bill on the ground of its incomplete ,
and unsatisfactory manner of dealing with a com-
prehensive question ; but this was not the ground
on which the majority of the members rejected it.
A £6 franchise had been carried repeatedly, but the
new House thought £7 a dangerous innovation.
This may induce us to ask how far Parliament, as
at present constituted, does accurately represent
the mind of the community ? Mr. CLAY'S Educa-
tional Franchise put the sincerity of professing
Reformers to a severe test, which proved too search-
ing for many of those who talk the loudest
about the elevation of the people. here is a chance
for the Conservatives to achieve a great victory
over their rivals. If they will grant the educational
test and the Ballot they may settle the minor points
of rental and rating as they like, and will effectually
prevent any swamping of the upper and middle by
the lower classes by admitting the numbers of edu-
cated men, clerks, and others, who are now excluded
from political power.

The new Cabinet have indeed a heavy task before
them. They have assumed the direction of affairs
at a moment of grave anxiety. They have to
maintain the honour and power of England
undiminished, while preserving a strict neutrality.
They have to deal with a formidable, because in-
tangible enemy, already busy among the population.
They have to reorganise our Navy, which, in spite
of the enormous estimates voted year after year, is
in a most unsatisfactory condition. They have to
consider how to mitigate the effects of a com-
mercial panic of _ almost unparalleled severity,
if, happily, of brief dufation. They have to
face questions of national importance which
imperatively demand solution, and prominent
among these are Parliamentary Reform, the Bank
Charter Act, and the amendment of the Poor-Law
system. The boldest statesmen might well feel that
such were no light task, but Lord DERBY is not a
man to shrink from what he believes to be a public
duty, and, having accepted the responsibilities of
office, he will, no doubt, do his best to discharge them
faithfully. In all matters really affecting the wel-
fare of the country at large, such as the efficiency of
the navy, the improvement of the public health,
&c., he is certain to receive the support not
only of the Opposition, but of the general public.
With political and ecclesiastical affairs he will find

it more difficult to deal, but the task is not impos-
sible. There is a growing tendency to remove all
hurtful distinctions of creed, and race, and party
between subjects of one Queen and residents in one
country, so that much of the bitterness of old has
died away.
The recess, which gives ordinary M.P.'s the de-

lightful prospect of a few months complete holiday,
offers much anxious thought and labour to the
occupants of the Ministerial benches, so that every
position has its drawback as well as its compensa-
tions ; and the Liberal party may console themselves
with the thought that the cares of office are no
longer theirs, even while they profit by thd recol-
lection that their own shortcoming as administrators
have greatly tended to expedite the catastrophe of
the Session.

It seems as if the great matters of war and peace
in Germany will not pass away so easily as some
have imagined. We learn from Paris that the
French Cabinet has addressed a note to the Prussian
Government, in which it is pointed out that the
great changes in the political organisation of Ger-
many render it necessary that the French frontier
should be rectified by a cession of territory to
France. Not content with this, the Cabinet made
a further communication yesterday to the Court of
Berlin, demanding the restoration of the French
frontier as it existed in 1814. This certainly
sounds very ominous, and has doubtless caused
great consternation in the councils of Berlin, just
when they were all congratulating themselves upon
having had their own way so completely, both as re-
garded the opponents at home and the allies abroad.
This document on the part of the French Cabinet
is doubtless very inconvenient, and all will be curious
to hear what answer will be returned to it. No
doubt if France had urged this upon the Prussian
authorities at the commencement of the year, in
the event of a Congress taking place, it might have
been partially acceded to for the sake of kee'ing
on good terms with the Emperor NAPOLEON, but
at this time, when they are flushed with success, it
is not at all likely that they will pay so much heed
to it. They have met with such a series of unpre-
cedented triumphs, and gone on so exultingly from
one thing to another that their beads seem com-
pletely turned, and they do not show any signs of
concession in the smallest degree. Indeed we are
justified in thinking that a sort of amour-propre
alone will prevent the ICING and BISMARCK from
agreeing very readily to this request from Paris.
After the very arrogant speech of the
KING at the opening of the Chambers, it would
be quite a falling off for the Diet to learn
that there was no solidity to the achievements so
much vaunted of, and that what had been gained to
Prussia from her acquisitions in the war was coun-

terbalanced by the nature of her secessions to France.
The gains in North Germany will not be of so much
value under these circumstances, and, notwithstand-
ing all that may be said about policy, it is not likely
that a speedy reply will be given to the communica-
tion. The demand on the part of France is not at
all to be wondered at, and, indeed, it seems only
surprising that some such intimation has not been
made before. It has been foreseen, from the outset
of this war, by experienced persons that great ap-
prehensions would be entertained by France if
Prussia were to succeed in the war. Had Aus-
tria been the victor, it would have been
different ; she would have been more passive
than active, and under no circumstances would it
have been likely that she would have interfered
with France. The mere confusion that has arisen
shows the folly of people going to extremes and
attempting too much. Had not the pretensions of
Herr BISMARCK led him on to acquire so much

territory, there is no doubt that the Emperor

NAPOLEON would have been very glad to let things
alone. As it is, he is in a manner forced to do
something, if it is only to satisfy the scruples of his
people. There is great dissatisfaction in Paris just
now at the state of affairs in Prussia, and on all sides
it seems pretty certain that great offence has been
given by the speech of the King and the cavalier
conduct of the Berlin Government altogether. The
policy of the French Emperor is certainly anta-
gonistic to war, and that policy has been popular
in France ; but it will be very different if the in-
sults already received from Prussia are followed up
by non-compliance with their last demand. .No
doubt in that case there will be war, and it will
be a bad look-out for the Prussians if this should
be the result of the affair. The French are
very different opponents to the Austrians,
and they will start fresh for the con-
test, whereas the Prussians are greatly ex-
hausted by the severe campaigns they have gone
through.powso At any rate it is satisfactory that the
powers of Berlin seem about to be checked in their
a
arbitrary course, and any stop that
is put to their
ad.ultvi ae
sn t
aa
iu the way of
rgeearising
prolgVrleiislse wt
lelseb ediaffin
a settlement of the Prussian part t f the war the
Italians seem to be toning down a ' ttle, and it is

, now expected that an armistice will be shortly
agreed upon ; their troops have been withdrawn
across the Tagliamento, to the line of demarca-
tion that Austria had demanded, before she
would agree to commence negotiations. It is,
indeed, high time that some change should take
place in the course pursued by the Italians, for they
have been as perverse as they could all through
this affair, and by their pertinacity have greatly
increased the difficulties of Austria in coming to a
settlement of the complicated matters before her.
It is said that a complete understanding exists
between France and Italy on the subject of the
cession of Venetia, and the KING has appointed
Plenipotentiaries for Italy at the Conference to be
held at Prague, which looks as if some definite
understanding had been arrived at. It is
so far satisfactory that progress has been made,
because it was keeping people in unnecessary sus-
pense thus to delay continually, and to waste time
in disputing over technicalities. The real secret of
the matter is, that the Italians are quite disgusted
at the result of the war, so far as they are concerned.
Their pride has, indeed, gone before a fall ; and
now they know and appreciate that whatever gains
may accrue to them will be in consequence of the
efforts of others. No doubt this is mortifying, but
they do not improve matters by giving way to petu-
lance, and by exhibiting a spirit of contention that is
quite out of character at the present eventful epoch.
It cannot be said that any of the nations which have
taken a prominent part in the war have come out
very creditably, considering all things. Austria
has manifested a total want of recognition of the
principles of nationality, and thus lost a great op-
portunity ; while Italy has alienated many friends
and disenchanted admirers by her prejudiced course;
and as for Prussia, it is very difficult to define accu-
rately the extent to which she has gone in forfeit-
ing the respect and estranging the feelings of inde-
pendent parties. But we have not yet seen the end
of the game.

CORRESPONDENCE FROM PARIS.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)

PARIS, Thursday Evening.
The position of affairs in regard to Germany
is thus explained by the Moniteur :
" The preliminaries of Nikolsburg have been
arranged upon every point upon which the con-
tinuation of the war between Austria and Prussia
depended. To arrange the clauses of definitive
peace there only remained the task of drawing de-
ductions from the principles admitted by both par-
ties. We are assured that this negotiation is now
far advanced. The treaty will be signed at Prague.
The Southern States will negotiate separately with
Prussia, and their plenipotentiaries are at this mo-
ment at Berlin.

" Italy had consented to the armistice stipulated
by Austria and Prussia, although no official act
had been signed between the Cabinets of Vienna
and Florence. In order to facilitate an agreement
upon this subject the suspension of arms first agreed
to was prolonged till the 10th of August. The
difficulties in the way of this arrangement relate to
the question owing whether the armistice is to be
concluded on the basis of the military uti possidetis,
or if the line of demarcation resulting from the
territorial cession consented to by Austria is to be
adopted."
Accounts from Denmark state that the knowledge
of the preliminaries of peace has created very great
interest. It was learnt with much emotion that a
special clause of the treaty stipulates the restora-
tion to Denmark of the districts to the north of
Schleswig, according to the desire freely expressed
by the population. The Cabinet of Copenhagen
knew that the French Government had never lost
sight of this question. It perceived in the stipula-
tions of the Convention of July 26 upon this sub-
ject a fresh mark of the beneficent interest taken
by France for the welfare of Denmark.
A letter from St. Petersburg, dated Aug. 3, says
—" Events which are passing in Europe have
not diverted attention from those of which
Central Asia has been the theatre. Since several
months Russia has made rapid progress in those
regions, and has taken important positions in Tur-
kestan. That vast country comprises States which
have about nine millions of inhabitants. The letter
proceeds to give an account of a great battle which
took place on the Bth (20th) May between the Emir
of Bokhara and the Russian troops. The Emir, at
the head of 40,000 men, was completely beaten at
Irdjar. The Russians are said to have lost only 12
men killed or wounded, whilst the Emir had 1,000
men killed. The Russian General Romanovski,
after this great victory, did not think it expedient
to invade the territory of Bokhara, but marched
towards Khodjent, in the Kokhand.

A clerk in a commercial house in Paris has just
become possessed of a large fortune in a very curious
and unexpected manner. One morning he met an
old woman who was selling pencils. She begged
him to buy one for a sou, and that it wouiLl bring
him good luck. Every day, on going to his office,
he saw the same old woman, who repeated the re-
quest, always with the same addition. This con-
tinued every day for nearly a year and a half. One
fine morning he missed the old woman from her
accustomed spot. lle thought no more about the
matter, but a day or two ago he received an invi-
tation from a notary requesting the young man to
call at his office, as a large fortune had been left to
him. lle came into possession of securities to the
value of about £3,000, and also of a country house
and vineyards at Suresnes and Argenteuil. The will,
written by the old lady herself, and properly attested,
is in these words, "I am almost arrived at the end of
my existence, and I have no relatives or friends.
I therefore appoint, as my universal legatee, Mons.
L., a clerk, living nue-, Paris, who bestowed alms
upon me every day during nearly a year and a half,
and to whoni I always said it would bring him luck.
During six months I took all the necessary steps to
know his name and procure information about him,
in order that I might enrich him without his know-
ledge."

The packet boat, Le Pereine, Captain Duchesne,
belonging to the General Transatlantic Company,
has just traversed the distance of 3,000 miles,which
separates New York from Brest, in eight days and
22 hours, being an average rate of 14 knots an hour.
The English Cunard Company has only one boat
at all comparable with the two boats of the Trans-
atlantic Company, the Pereine and the Ville de
Paris. This boat is the Scotia, of 1,400 horse-
power, which has been on the line since 1862, and
' which, during this interval of four years only, we
crossed the Atlantic from New York to Liverpool
in eight days and 23 hours. As the distance from
New York to Liverpool is 3,030 miles, and that be-
tween Brest and New York is 3,000 miles, the dis-
tance has just been performed almost identically in
the same time by the Pereine as in the exceptional
instance of the English boat.
At the third day's races at Deauville the Prix de
la Place, 3,000 f., given by a member of the Jockey
Club, was won by Castagnette, Chantilly second.
The Deauville Cup, 20,000 f. in money,
and a
work of Art worth 10,000 f., the produce of a sub-
scription, was won by Affidavit ; Fidelite 2d ;
Mandarin 3d. Amount of prize, 27,200 f. 200 f.
to the second. The third receives his entrance

111011 Cy.
The Free Handicap,of 3,000 f., was won by Prince
Regent ; Due de Bourgogne second.
The Prix de Consolation, 2,00Qf., was won by
Belisaire; Juliette second. Belisaire was claimed
for 3,757 f. by the Marquis de Galliffet.
The ,Siecle states that, when the truce signed by
General Marmora with the Commandant of Verona,
on the 2d of August expired, the reply of Austria
to the proposal for an armistice of four weeks had
not arrived but the delay was extended by mutual
consent. This truce has nearly expired, and the
armistice is not yet concluded. It is officially known
that difficulties arose which prevented the armistice
from being signed. We do not think that they are
sufficiently serious to arrest the work of pacification
Which is in progress. It is not impossible to give a