The Sun.
London, England, 1861-12-20 00:00:00

THE SUN.
LONDON, FRIDAY, DEC. 20, 1861.

Perhaps many of our readers, from want of time,
others from the supposition that it must be dull
stuff, overlooked, instead of looking over, the
American diplomatic correspondence with the vari-
ous European Powers, extracts from which we
published yesterday. The subject is indeed one
sufficiently grave ; yet we must confess Mr.
SEWARD has contrived to make it so far amusing,
that few will read the correspondence without a
smile, while many will even be so rude as to
laugh. Read, indeed as we now peruse it, with
the comment of facts, the difference between the
mortifying reality and the prophetical confidence of
Mr. SEWARD is ludicrous enough. True, we all
felt almost as sure as he did that the North would
easily put down the South; but we had a right to
think so. We supposed the North would use at
once the weapon more powerful than all—the wea-
pon which would have kept Southern armies from
threatening Washington, and holding a couple of
hundred thousand men in check on the Potomac,
and which would have compelled the victors at
Bull's Run to remain at home watching their home-
steads and plantations. But Mr. SEWARD knew
that this was not be done. He knew that
the South was to be, as he thought, netted alive,
negroes and all, and brought back unhurt into the
great preserve of the Union ; while the North was
to be bound to it more intimately than ever by
amendments of the Constitution, giving greater
security than ever to negro slavery. Had we known
how persistently this course would be carried oat
in the North, we should certainly have foreseen the
result which now seems to all persons far the most
probable.

Knowing the Quixotic scheme which Messrs.
LINCOLN and SEWARD had before them, the latter,
nevertheless, writes to all the Powers of Europe as
if he were already the bona fide master of the
whole Union. If the Secession had been but the
outbreak of a mob of Irish immigrants, the Ameri-
can Foreign Secretary could not express himself with
more assurance as to what the Government meant
to do with it. He tells France that the Govern-
ment " indulges not the least apprehension of a
dissolution of the Union in this painful
controversy," and again, " that a favourable issue is
deemed certain." And further using almost the
very words of his chief, " What is wanted is that
the war may be as short and attended by as few
calamities at home, and as few injuries to friendly
powers as possible." Hence, he goes on almost to
spurn the " mediation" which the French EMPEROR
was willing to undertake—much as we expect he
would spurn the offer of arbitration between Eng-
land and America, except from the knowledge that
he is in the wrong—that he could protract the dis-
cussions interminably—and that England would
certainly not be a less difficult antagonist to
deal with than the Southern States. Mr.
SEWARD'S first circular to American Ministers
abroad, dated March 9th, opens the subject
with the same confidence of a speedy restoration of
"harmony and unity". What dces the conceited
prophet think of his March prophecies in De-
cember ?

Most amusing of all is the absurd style in which
Mr. SEWARD lectures and warns all European

nations of the injury they will do, not to the Federal
Government but their own, if they venture in any
way to countenance the cause of the South. Appa-
rently quite oblivious of the fact that it required a
high sense of honour, indeed, a straining of inter-
national honour, for France and England, to the
injury of their own subjects, to respect the inefficient
blockade of the Southern ports, he seemed to have
the same unaccountably foolish notion as the
PRESIDENT expresses in his last message ; that the
European Powers must think it for their interest to
have all the Southern half of North America,
constituting one great Union. Though, what
that Union has done for European commerce except
to tax it heavily in favour of its own, it would
be hard to tell ; and as to diplomacy, England,
Spain, and Austria at least can acknowledge no
courtesies. Russia and France have, we know,
enjoyed the honour of a degree of flattery and a
kind of ill-bred adulation, for which we hope they
are as thankful as becomes them.
Yet even France is " warned." M. THOUVENEL
had told Mr. FAULKNER that though France, as in
the case of the Italian Kingdom, was slow to recog-
nise de facto Governments, yet that the practice and
usage of Europe had established the principle of
doing so. M. THOUVENEL is therefore warned that
the American Government cannot permit even
an unofficial reception of the Southern
" emissaries," and that it " cannot allow France
to rest under the delusive belief that the United
States will be content to have the Confederate
States recognised as a belligerent power by States
with which the Government is in amity! !" Indeed
Mr. SEWARD extends the warning to all Europe,
for he adds, "No concert of action among foreign
States so recognising the insurgents can reconcile

the United States to such a proceeding, whatever
be the consequence of resistance !" Poor Mr.
SEWARD must feel a little puzzled as to the conse-
quences of "resisting" both France and England,
who have acted identically in regarding the South
as belligerents. The French Government unequ-
vocally says that it cannot treat the rebellion of so
many States as if it were a small matter, and con-
fined to a small locality.
The other States of Europe are lectured in simi-

lar style and with more success. It is assumed

that all Europe is interested in the triumph of Re-
publican supremacy being re-established over its
rebellious half. What would become of all their
Governments if this precedent were successful ? a
question which some of them would answer if they
spoke out their sentiments, by- telling Mr. SEWARD
that they should be heartily glad to see the great
Republic driven to the old-fashioned expedient of
finding themselves a king or an emperor, as the
only resource against anarchy; and that what
the PRESIDENT hints at as the most horrible treason
of the South—their even talking of Monarchy—
would seem to our Governments here rather an in-
dication of returning good sense.

Prussia, Austria, and Spain must have given Mr.
SEWARD great comfort. From all of them he re-
ceived assurances that they were no friends to de
facto governments. Prussia would be " one of the
last to recognise any de facto government of the
disaffected States of the American Union." Austria
" hoped to see them reunited: she was not inclined
to recognise de facto governments anywhere."
Indeed! Count RECHBERG must have been think-
ing of Italy only. What, we should like to know
is his master's Government in Hungary ? By
what law is he King and Administrator there P
Is it by any other than that by which Mr. JEF-
FERSON DAVIS reigns at Richmond—the law of
being strong enough to keep his position
in spite of law. Spain, too, has no love
for the de factor, unless she had forgotten
St. Domingo, and the not very perfect legitimacy
of the present QUEEN. However, Spain gave all
the assurance possible, that the Government would
receive no emissaries from the South in any capacity.
For ourselves we have nothing to complain of in
what is published. Like all the rest of the Govern-
ments we are supposed to be most influenced by the
meanest considerations; this, of course, only indi-
cates the class of considerations which touch most
those who use such arguments ; but, having dis-
missed these, the better ones of fraternity and
paternity, and our presumed undying ambition to be
the founder of great nations, and the leader in the
war of civilisation and humanity—is the kind of
appeal on which Mr. SEWARD relies as a sub-
sidiary one. We are warned not to recognise
the rebellious States in any way—not to receive
any officials of any kind from them, and that as
acknowledging them to be belligerents may be mis-
taken, our doing so " will not pass unquestioned."
The position of our Government appears, however,
like that of France, to be all that we could wish—
both countries decline to say that they will in no case
recognise the independence of the South, but they
agree that " questioned" or not, they do not care—
the South are belligerents and will be dealt with
by us as such.

While the Guards are on their way to Canada,

and the attention of all England is yet divided be-
tween participation in the grief of the SOVEREIGN
and expectation of the answer from Washington—
does it not occur to the more keen observer of events,
that we are on the eve of "the beginning of the
end" of the revolutionary movement in Italy ?
The indications there discernible--to those who care
to look for them—of some imminent, and grand,
and final movement with a view to the completion
of the great work of the political emancipation of
the peninsula are, we cannot but think, quite as
clearly discernible, even from this distance, as
though the recent eruption of Mount Vesuvius were
really the oriflamme giving the signal of renewed
conflict to the Nazione Arnzatal It is scarcely
possible, indeed, that things could go on there much
longer without some such development. And
this without any effort on the part of the pro-
moters of the national cause. Without any need
for GARIBALDI'S raising a finger—or for a single
glance from the Calmuck eye of the Re Ga-
lantuomo. Yet "The General" has not simply raised
a finger of late—he has spoken out recently on that
occasion, pretty plainly too. And as for "The
KlNG"—well his gay, careless chivalry of charac-
ter is hardly capable of being more aptly expressed
by any terse motto than by the two words semper
paratus. Like the race of the NAPIERS, he is still
manifestly and momentarily, as he has practically
been, in truth, ever since the Battle of Novara,
"Ready, aye Ready." Whether for the North or
for the South—whether to crush out the Royalist
insurrectionary bands still skulking about the
Abruzzi, or to unfurl the national banner against
the German forces garrisoning the Quadrilateral
—it is all one to VICTOR EMMANUEL. When
the hour has struck we may be certain of this—he
will be there, where the interests of his Crown
may seem most to require his aid. And there by
his side—as his Right Hand, having in its grasp
the Sword of Italy—will as certainly appear at the
first moment of the renewal of the struggle, the
later and nobler RIENZI.
It cannot possibly have been regarded as other-
wise most significant that but just now—without
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hastened through Genoa to Paris. Still more
significant is it that, immediately after his