The Sun.
London, England, 1859-10-28 00:00:00

CHESTER AND HOLYHEAD RAIL WAY.

The line of rails at Bagillt, onithe above railway,
was washed away by the sea on Wednesday morn-
ing. The telegraph posts have been blown down,
and communication with Holyhead interrupted.
The Great Eastern in the course of Tuesday even-
ing had her steam got up, in case of necessity, to
run out to sea. Wrecks are reported on the coast
in that neighbourhood, but the number cannot at
present be ascertained.

TILE ENGLISII AND FRENCIIPRESS

ON THE 2REATY-0-IiURICII.

The following article by M. A. Poyrat appears

in La Presse :
On the 21st of June, 1807, seven days after the
battle of Friedland, an armistice was concluded at
Tilsit between the Russian and French armies,
with a view to negotiate a peace. On the 25th a
first interview with the Emperors Alexander and
Napoleon took place in a tent set up on a raft in
the middle of the Niemen.
On the 11th of June, 1859, after the battle of
Solferino, followed by an armistice, the Emperorof
Austria and the Emperor of the French had an in-
terview at Villafranca, and fixed the basis of a
preliminary treaty. At Villafranca, as at Tilsit,the
Emperors were surrounded by a brilliant staff, cora-
posed in part of the marshals of the two empires.
History has informed us of what took place •n
the raft in the Niemen. "I do not like the Eng-
lish any better than you do," said Alexander to Na-
poleon, " and I am ready to second you in any enter-
prise against them." " In that ease," replied Napo-
leon, " everything will be easily arranged, and
peace: is already made." Is it possible, by any
chance, that something analogous was said at
Villafranca? We do not think so ; yet one might
think so on seeing the attacks directed against
England by certain journals of Paris and the de-
pai tments, with a significant simultaneity which
has been much remarked in Europe.
But who knows exactly what was said at Villa-
franca? The two Emperors, excluding on this oc-
casion diplomatists and soldiers alike, shut them.
selves up in a small room, without any witness than
a bouquet of roses placed on a small table. After
an interview of two hours they came out radiant :
they had just given peace to Europe. What took
place in that mysterious interview? As neither
bouquets nor tables speak, we must wait until it
pleases the two interlocutors to inform the world ;
and in the meantime confine ourselves to judging
of the results.
The results of the treaty of Tilsit were clear,
well understood, and submitted to by Europe with
trembling. There remained only a single state
really and absolutely independent—England. The
other powers, vanquished and humbled, subscribed
unreservedly to the wishes of Napoleon, whose
power was not more formidable than the tempta-
tions and miscalculations of a policy always gigan-
tic, incoherent, and unaccomplished.
Matters evidently took place otherwise at Villa-
franca. The Emperor Francis Joseph arrived there
more thoroughly beaten and overthrown than the
Emperor Alexander after Friedland. Austria had
lost all she could lose. She had been dislodged
from every position ; conquered in every battle.
PORTSMOUTH. The prestige of her arms was destroyed, and her
The Owen Glendower (one of Messrs. Green's soldiers fought in retreat, even less demoralised by
Blackwall fleet) put into St. Helen's Roads on Wed- their repeated defeats than by the incapacity Of
nesday evening, with loss of her foreyard. Capt. their chiefs. Venice was threatened; Pcschiera
Dickenson reports that the gale in the Channel invested; the taking of Mantua or of Verona re-
first showed itself from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. on Tues- garded as certain. In this position, to sign an ar-
day, when it blowed fresh from the south. From 1 mistice was to confess that Austria gave up the
until 5 p.m. it freshened to a perfect gale, with idea of measuring herself against the allied armies
Violent puffs of wind veering to S.S.E., accompa- and of retrieving her military honour.
nied by heavy rain. At 5 p.m., when the gale had On the evening of Solferino the Emperor Francis
reached its height, the ship lost her foreyard, from Joseph had irrevocably lost all hope of re-esta-
which a part of the crew had luckily but a short blishing his authority over Lombardy. He had
time before come down. The barometer at this time before him this alternative—either to submit for-
stood at 28.90. From this period the gale broke, but mally to the conqueror or to make up his mind to a
still blew hard during the night, veering round to new battle, which could only be a new defeat. He
S.W, and W., shifting suddenly from various points submitted, and we may believe that in resigning
in the squall's. The Owen Glendower is froin London, himself to negotiate the peace, he had calculated
bound to Melbourne, calling at Plymouth for her the necessary conditions. Even supposing an un-
passengers, and will sail as soon as she has her new eiampled moderation on the part of the conqueror,
foreyard on board. On the Isle of Wight numbers it was impossible that it should extend to permit-
of large trees were blown down in different parts. ting the vanquished to push his claims beyond
At Ryde the new pier, now in course of erection, what he still possessed. The Archdukes, placed
has sustained serious damage. The pier is formed between Austria and Italy, had taken sides with
of iron screw-piles, on which the roadway is laid, Austria, and like her they had been conquered at
and was laid to sonic 1,000 feet. From the pier- Solferino. It seems that it was as impossibleito re-
head nearest the town, to a distance of over 300 feet, establish them on their thrones, which they had
the heavy roll on the shallow ground, caused by staked and lost, as to restore Lombardy to Austria.
the south-easterly winds, has torn away the road- Three months before, Europe, reckoning on peace,
way from the iron piles below, twisting and bend- had been surprised by war. After Solferino, when
ing the piles with their iron braces into all manner she had no doubt that a lost battle, fought by Aus-