, 1865-08-08

~ SUCH Il NOuSItSS lave lOSG lIlLie Ol tHoIE
force. No question except the Polish
has in the interim taken itself out Of The
way. The Catholic world is still in
doubt whether the temporal power is or
is not essential to the vitality of the Ca
tholic system, Austria still holds Venetia,
the fate Of the Duchirs is still unsettled,
Turkey still offers in her wealth and her
weakness a prize to the ambitious, Ger
many is still DESTROYS at once of moe
unity and greater freedom, Italy is still
resolved 10 possess her capital and her
lost province. GaribaIdi is not dead. nor
has the priesthood lost its power. Moth
ing has occurred except the %subjugation
of Poland to make it easier for any power
to give up its wrongful prttrnslons, or
for aOYppopIc to surrender its rigbtiuI
claims to make it simple for Prussia to
cede back Danish SchIeswig, or tor Aus
tria to let 90 her last hold upon the So
yerelgnty OF Italy, or England to aban-
don her virtual ptotcctorate over the
Porte. The execution Of the DEGREES Of
Congress, except by the sword, is there
fore as difficult as ever, while the Pow
ers are rather more reluctant to resort to
the sword. At the same time 10 proof
has been offered Of any greater readiness
to settle disputes by discussion. Parll0-
mentary Government has in the interim
scarcely advanced step. The only Con-
f~ererce held since the Emperor's first
proposition has been the llttIe one about
Denmark, which ended in leaving all
sides more exasperated than before, and
preventing the decided action which
might have avertrd war. England IN
decd, by ac" nti'g - a more OF less Of
iICrot way We doctrine Of n0n-intprven-
ton, has rather diminished the influence
her ENJOYS would carry into the Con-
grcSs, while The consciousness that a sew
tnth great power, im%pregnabIe at home
and very formidable abroad, will staud
aside Indifferent but prepared, must tend
to increase the CONSCIOUSNESS that its de-
cisions will bat slightly affect the facts.
No peace which does not bind The Anne
riCan Union Can have much effect upon
the British marine.
Nevertheless, a second refusal to enter
tain the proposal would, we believe, be
most unWise. III such "A Congress could
be assembled, and could be induced 10
agree, and could carry ont its decisions,
1T must be most beneficial to Europe, and
there is reason to think that the condition
essential to these results is already srcur-
cd. The difficulties in the path of the
Powers have not diminished, bat their
Willingness to face them by means other
than hayonels has very greatly increased.
The best argument used against the first
Congress was the historical one-the
fact that Congresses were only successful
when nations had been exhausted. It is
only when c~onsious of weakness, of risks
too great 10 be endured, of an imminent
chance OF destruction, that Governments
begin to perceive that the sacrifices de-
manded are really of little import, or at
all events endurable. When the balance
at the bauN disappears, men discover that
the retrenchment which seemed impos>i-
bic is after all very easy. In the greater
part of the Continent the armed peace
has produced the exhaustion usually pro-
duced by war, and to four of at least Of
five Powers any honorable means of
amending the situation will appear ire
slstibly pleasant. Austria may fud it no
easier In the face of German feeling 10 re-
nOuncn Venptia. hut anv oOmnromico not