New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1855-05-31
EUROPE
THE STATE OF EUROPE.

.~.,;o. ia composed principally Of the members
- t.yee families-Howards, Cavendshes and
Govers. all of them related to or in affinity with
..eh other, and that Cabinet Council, with
.se sole exception of Sir w. Wordsworth, might
be taken for a family party at Sutherland House.
Woburn Abbey or Castle Howard. we might
extend this remark still further. The House oil
Lords, with the exception OF few law peers
has become a family party. Earl Granviiie just
ly remarked the other night that he Is related
to 80 many Peers that he sees his kin
eoually divided between the supporters OF the
administration and the opposition, and many
other Peers may say the same. In fact, the
governing classes in England have by inter-
marriage become a clique divided into two fac
tions apparently differing in opinions, and alter
uately upsetting one another, still united In the
desire not 10 allow the reins of government to
fall into the hands Of the middle classes. Such
beinp the constitution Of the House of Lords
the discussion on Lord Ellenborough's res0lu-
tions on Monday last was very tame affair
Lord Peterborough very justly censured the
pclicy Of the Government as regards the
expedition to the Crimea, and pointed to
a far better plan, that is to say to
double campaign; one Trrko-French, the other
Turko-EDglish; one in Bessarabia, the other In
Georgia and Armenia. But the House OF Lords
did not pay any great attention TO these sugges-
tions, real Craftsmanship and iarseeing policy
being at a discount among them. Administra-
tive Reform is now the fashionable phrase
introduced by the middle classes, and accord
ipely Lord Palmerston has promised to unite the
Board of Ordinance with the COmmandership-
in-Chief, and Lord Derby again used the phrase
of the "righf men in the right places" BY adopt
ing the shbbOleth of the London Tavern the
Aristocraey wishes to divert attention from the
really important point, and instead Of attacking
Capitalization, which deadens the energies of
the people and accustoms them not to exert
their freedom in controlling the actions of the
Administration, the governing classes desire to
lead the public to believe that all depends on a
few clever men put at the head of affairs instead
of on the vitality OF the principle of self-goyern-
ment which educates individuals and teaches
them to take care public concerns. The Tories
have lost most admirable opportunity OF gain
ing political strength and popularity. They lad
not the pluck to attack the Centralzing system
of the Wings, with all its APPENDICES of patron
age and irresponsible boards.
Since both the Government, as represented in
the majority of the House of Lords, and the op-
position of the Middle Glasses, as represented
by The London Times, do not as yet, see the
blunders of the Crimean expedition, and still
speak of it with satisfaction, cannot refrain
from quoting letter from a Russian naval Off
Ger which lately appeared in the Ostresche lei
tang. The officer assures his Austrian friend
to whom the letter is directed that the Russians
did not contemplate an offensive war against
Turkey when they occupied the Prncipalities.
They intended only to keep their material guar
antee in order to force the Sultan to accept the
Menchikof propositions; in the worst case 1t
was to be a defensive war. He says that the
troops of Princes Pashkiew.ch and Gorchakof
never amounted TO more than 10, 900 men, in
GLIDING the reserve of Gen. Osten- Sacken and
Liprandis corps in Lesser Wallachia, force
insufficient for conquering war, but amply
sufficient to keep the Principaities and the
Danube, on which the expectation of corn
TO Constantnople was to be prevented, in
order to starve the capital of the Turkish
Empire into submission. According to the
Russian version the siege of Silistria was only
a means of keeping 0mer Pasha with his army
of 100000 men o at shumla and checking his
progress toward the Danube. AS soon, says the
Russian officer, as the Vienna protocols Che
should have said the dispatch of Drouyn de
PHuys) acknowledged the protectorate of Rus
STA over the Christian subjects of the Sultan
though giving collective force to it--and as
soon as the German powers felt their German
interests ieoparded by the interruption of the
free navigation of the Danube, Russia yolun-
tarily withdrew from the Principalities and re-
crossed the Pruth. The officer continues:
1--WE at that time seriously feared war in Bessa-
rabia. The loss of this province and the appearance
of the Allies on the Dnoster would have destroyed
our prestige and military power on the Black Sea-our
aeaporls and would have been destroyed
and our armies would not have arrived beNre No
yemher from Poland and lithuania where they were
enoamyed Golchakoff could not have got reinforce
ments account Of the great distances and bad
means OF communication But instead of attacking
when they could have done il with success, the
Allies committed the greatest military hlsnder ever
recorded in history by undertaking the Expedition to
the Crnea, which, had we anticipated such stupidity,
last, after destroying more than one army without amy
possible result
In opposition to these Russian statements
quote few words from Lord Lansdowne's re-
cent speech; he says:
Z" few DAYS before the death Of the Emperor Mich
olas return made mp stating that no 000 Rus.
Fiars had died. and according a supplementary re-
turn furnished some days later 10000 werc added TO