The Sun.
London, England, 1866-08-25 00:00:00

4 .4),
ttg e 4104, Pt-A

LONDON, SATURDAY, AUGUST 23, 1866.

At last the gratifying intelligence has reached us

that peace has been signed between Austria and
Prussia—on the 23d inst. the event took place—
and the ratifications being exchanged the evacuation

of the Austrian territory by the Prussians will com-
mence, and in three weeks it is expected that
Bohemia will be freed from the presence of foreign
troops. 'I he treaty has been sent to Vienna in order
that it may be ratified. This may be welcome intelli-
gence to many who have mourned over the distress
and disasters occasioned by the war; and so far

they hay° cause for satisfaction, but it is certain that
the state of the Continent is autlaino. but satisfae-
urez tr the rrussian

tory.

Government heve raised all the angry feelings and
bitter jealousies that had long •remained dormant,
and it will be a long time before we hear the last of
the consequences of this war. It is a noticeable
fact that the Prussians cannot agree among them-
selves as to the manner in which the late proceedings
should be regarded, and accordingly we meet with
a wholesale denunciation in the semi-official North
German Gazette of the style in which the Kreuz
Zeitung has commented on Italy. It declares
that the Italian Sovereign is an ally of
Prussia, and that it is not suitable that he
should be written about in the hard terms alluded
to.

We really cannot see that there is much truth
in the assertion made that Italy has powerfully
aided in bringing about the military and diplomatic
success of Prussia. The Italian ventutts, both by
land and sea, were totally unsuccessful, and if any-
thing they must have retarded the movements of

the Prussians. As for the cession of Venetia that
could have been as easily effected without the
Italians going to war at all, and might have been
made one of the conditions of the Treaty between
Austria and Prussia without a single blow being
struck on Italian soil. Now that the pressing
anxiety of the war is over, the Vienna Government
seem determined to attend to Hungarian affairs.
There are all sorts of rumours afloat respecting the
mode in which this vexed question is to be settled, or
at all events endeavoured to be settled. The Impe-
rial Cabinet have, indeed, bitter cause to regret the
neglect which they have shown in this matter, and
the period of comparative leisure which they now
enjoy might be profitably spent in retracing their
steps, and changing their
policy towards that king-
dom. Had Hungary been placed on a proper foot-
ing some time ago the results of the late war might
have been very different ; but even as it is, if the
Emperor, FRANCIS JOSEPH, would consolidate his
empirp and strengthen the weak points of his
dominion; he would certainly give ear to those
who counsel the adoption of a more liberal and en-
lightened policy. Perhaps the stern lessons of
adversity may teach him more wisdom for the
future ; but, at any rate, Hungary will very likely
profit by the many important changes that have
lately taken place in Germany.
Saxony is also realising the advantages of a ces-
sation of hostilities, and the inhabitants of Dresden
have witnessed the welcome disappearance of foreign
troops from their streets. The King of SAXONY
has issued an order which instructs his Ministry to
afford "honourable and friendly co-operation to the
Prussian authorities." Thanks to the determina-
tion of the French EMPEROR, this State will enjoy
a greater immunity than the rest have done from
the ravages of war, and,
despite all the rapacity of
the Berlin Government, they
have not to cede their
wishes iu this respect. The unpopularity of Count
BISnAl:CI: in Paris is one of the chief features of
French politics just now, and the constant abuse
that is showered upon him is oue symptom which
cannot by overlooked by those who dwell on the
consequences of events. Hereafter Count BISMARCK
may find the full effects of his bad generalship
respecting France. Just now it is not an Oppor-
tune time for the French to go to war, but they will
not forget or forgive the insults and injuries they
have received, and the Berlin Government may
rest assured that they have not heard the last of
their conduct. It is always a dangerous thing for
any power to provoke a strong neighbour, and we
regard the state of affairs in Paris as very adverse
to Prussia in the long run. It is all very fine to
talk of Prussian supremacy and superiority ; but
whenever the French really resort to war, it will be
seen that it is a very different thing for them to en-

gage the Austrians from what it is to compete with
the French. The peace now signed has no solid
basis, and cannot be considered as lasting in its
character.

Last night a public meeting was held in Holborn
to take into consideration the removal and eviction
of numbers of the poor women, children, and aged
men of the district, because their dwellings were re-
quired for improvements in Holborn valley. The
resolutions passed were very sensible, and deserve
attention. One of them was to the effect that the
crowded condition of the poor in houses not fit for
human habitation " was an evil of such magnitude
in this city that it called for the immediate atten-
tion of the Legislature." A letter was read from
Mr. TORRENS, which contained some truths on the
subject. It said that harder things have been ac-
complished, but now more needful and useful than
this result of rectifying the evils under which the
poor suffer in this respeet. It is indeed a disgrace
to our civilisation that such hardships should be in-
flicted on those who are not able to protect them-
selves. We trust that something decisive will be
done in this question next session. Lord DERBY
has the credit of being the first to turn the
attention of Parliament in that direction ; and
though some declared he was mistaken in
his opinion the time has shown that he was only
too correct in predicting that great misery would
ensue from the thoughtless conduct pursued of
driving out the poor tenants without providing them
with a habitation. In a letter to the :_ta7idard of
to-day this subject is alluded to, and it is truly said
that great discontent prevails among the poor of
the metropolis in consequence of the great hard-
ships that are inflicted on them through the change
so rapidly taking place in so many directions. As
for the large buildings erected for the poor the writer
states that " really one could gather such a cloud of
witnesses to prove that none of the poor we are
speaking of could afford to live there that one is
almost ashamed to be compelled to make the asser-
tion." The great increase in house rent must be
also taken into account, and it is no exaggeration
to say that, both directly and indirectly, the many
schemes for the improvement of the metropolis press
hardly upon the poor. At the present season it
it is particularly to be deprecated that so
much overcrowding should exist ; and it may
be noticed that people are very prone to
descant upon the want of care and cleanliness ob-
servable in the dwellings of the poor, without
taking into account how difficult, if not impossible,
it is to prevent such evils under the present system
that prevails. To leave the wretched classes here
alluded to to the tender mercies of landlords is a
great blunder of political economy, and it may also
be called an unrighteous act on the part of autho-
rities, for it is neglecting thosa who are not able to
defend their own cause.

The members of the British Association have been
discussing a matter of great national and political
importance. In section G mechanical science,
those vital points of national defence, which have
so long perplexed our statesmen and burdened our
taxpayers were regarded in their scientific aspect.
In this section Captain NOBLE read a very valuable
paper "on the penetration of shot, and resistance
of ironclad defences," in which :he detailed the re-

sults of some experiments on iron plates, which had
been made by the Ordnance Committee. These ex-
periments were made with the view of ascertaining
the power of resistance of ironplates to steel-shot,
and as this is a matter upou which it is imperative
that our authorities should arrive at some definite
conclusion, it will be interesting to examine the
i result. Ine general rule was penetra,ion, ana al-
-1 though the experiments were not fully carried out,
this fact was considered established. The plates were
4. inch and 5k inch, and the experiments were made
with shells and spherical shot. It was proved that
the plates might be perforated by heavy shot at low
velocity, and still more effectually by light shot at
a high velocity. This was the result of direct
firing, much greater force of shot being required
for oblique firing. The superiority of steel
shot was found to be very strongly marked,
cast iron projectiles being nearly useless
against armour plates. The pointed shot was
found to be superior to either the flat or the
hemispherical, and the substance of the con-
clusions arrived at was, that iron plates, as a
rule, could be penetrated by steel projectiles
from a 12-ton gun. Iron-built ships, in which
the backing is composed of compact oak or
teak, offer more resistance than wooden ships
similarly clad. The general result of the experi-
ments were not, however, very satisfactory as to the
invulnerability of our ships, and Admiral Sir E.
BELCHER had some reason on his side when he said
that unless it were possible to render vessels abso-
lutely impenetrable it was better to leave them
unarmed. Such is, in fact, the principle which
modern science has adopted with respect• to our
troops. This principle, however, is not accepted in
naval warfare, so we must go on trying our guns
against our ships, and our ships against our guns,
until the odds are pretty fairly balanced. Sir
WILLIAM ARMSTRONG, no mean authority, who was
present during the discussion, objected to the use of
long projectiles, expressing his belief, which appears
theoretically well pointed, that a long projectile
would have a tendency to crumple up instead of
damaging the plate against which it impinged.
Colonel SYKES looks on all modern inventions as
hopeless, and after candidly telling the assembled
company that he believed the millions which we had
spent on our fortifications had been thrown away,
he stated a new and very unpleasant idea by asking
whether it would not be possible to destroy the
crew of an American Monitor by stopping up the
ventilating shaft? These uncanny-looking vessels
are not very popular in the service already, but if
the sailors are to anticipate such an unheroic catas-
trophe, they will be still less inclined to go into
action with them.
Such are the differences of opinion on a
very practical matter, and we need not wonder
that doctors disagree in questions of theory and
speculation. But, unfortunately, this matter of
national defence is something more than a mere
abstract problem to be solved this woafytohre ttnmhoate waynt.
according to the favourable theory
We have spent precious years in debatliigitanisd
tcon-
sidering on experiments, and the end of
after an expenditure to be reckoned by tens of mil-
lions, we should find ourselves, if suddenly plunged
into war, in a very awkward position. Nu one
wishes to go to war if it can be avoided, but the
most extreme member of the Peace party would
admit that it was a position unworthy of England
to keep up naval and military establishments and
to be unable to protect herself. Yet what is the
fact? The weakness and inefficiency of the Navy
is notorious, and the lack of naval reserves has '
been reluctantly admitted in Parliament by the
chief of the Admiralty himself. As for our troops,
a battle on the Continent throws us all into a panic
from a conviction that our men are armed with an
inferior weapon. What have our authorities been
about? The advantage of the breechloader has
been recognised for some time, and the arms might
have been earlier adopted in the service. With re-
we have certainly been called
gard to the Davy