The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1870-07-16
Russia In the Opening Contest-What Part
Will She Play.


Has Russia forgotten Sebastopol? Thereby
hangs tale. The Gear Nicholas was hur-
ried to the grave by the check he and the
policy handed down to him by Peter the Great
met In the Crimea Has not this reflection
been the canker-worm gnawing at the heart Of
the Ozar Alexander? An empire headed by
the magical name of Napoleon has arisen In
the West to rival If not to overshadow the
grandeur Of that magnificent empire which
''the Prince of Rosch, Moschk and Tobolsk"
even In biblical prophecy was predestined to
build up In the East. What Power stood III
the way, then, of Russian advance to that city
Of Constantinople which even the First Ma
poleon admitted to be the key of the East9
Austria, is the historians and the statesmans
answer. Austria was crippled BY whom
First, by France under the present Napoleon,
at Magenta and Solferino, and then by Prussia,
at Sadowa. compelling her to relinquish
Venice. To-day she Is shattered by discussions
in Hungary, In Croatia, In Slavonia. Has
Russia anything to do with this3 Oh! not at
ell. The Panslavonic feeling, however, Is at
work, and that contemplates the building up
Of an empire in the east OF Europe, partly at
Austria's expense, which win not be hostile to
Russia or an impediment in her way. The re-
cent Austrian elections, take them as you will,
prove this.
Has Austria anything to fear from Prussia
Why, she is allied with her in blood, and Prus-
sia faces and marches southwark and west
ward, while Russia faces and moves southeast
ward. They act In parallel, not In rectangular
lines.
What adversary, then, still stands, as in the
Crimea 1t stood, antagonistic to the Russian
advance upon the Golden Horn and the Holy
Sepulchre? France! France at Suez, France
in Syria, France on the Red Sea- Let Prus-
STA be defeated and the French enter Berlin.
French armies will then menace the Russian
frontier, and French fleets ride in the Great
aud Little Belts and on the Baltic Sea. Rus
sian finance is not Aourishing, but the Russian
navy Is strong and well organized, Russia's
fortresses are splendidly equipped and armed,
and her army, even in Europe, is gigantic,
while her people and soldiery are alike fanati-
cal. The recent emancipation of the serfs has
also greatly inspired them. Her successes in
the East her recent victories In Turkistan
and her warm alliance with the Shah of Persia
have reviviHed the old ideas of Peter. The
period for the settlement of the prediction
Europe in fifty years republican or Cos
SACK" may not yet have come, but the ques-
ton of supremacy in the Black Sea, at the
Dardanelles and at Jerusalem, is right upon
us.
The position of Russia, therefore, In case Of
threatening French success, laying all sympa-
thies aside, must, perforce, be with the Power
that stands between her and danger on the
West, and that strengthens and helps her
against her sole great rival in administering
upon the affairs of the Sultan and In estab-
fishing an Independent and friendly ally in
Egypt, on the East Meanwhile, Russia will
act upon her own line of orbit, "by her
inevitable momentum" as Nesselrods once
termed it, and she will lose no time.
Tho Presidents Message ON tho War.
The declaration Of war by the French gov
eminent reached Washington on the very last
day of the session Of Congress and within
few hours Of it's expected adjournment
President Grant therefore lost no time in send
ing message to the Senate and House of
Representatives, suggesting the propriety Of
further postponing the adjournment, not only
on account Of the urgent necessity for passing
the Indian Appropriation bill, in order to pre-
vent hostilities otherwise inevitable, together
with their train of consequences In suffering,
loss Of life and expenditures.-vas in COMPARE
son with the amount asked-but also especially
on account of the latest intelligence of the
existence of war between France and
Germany. In view of this war he sug-
gested legislation tending to enlarge our COM
mercial marine, now altogether inadequate
to meet the increase which war In Europe
will impose upon American commerce, to
advance the interests of our citizens by enabling
them to purchase vessels Of foreign construc-
ton for the foreign trade of this country, and,
finally, to secure the interference Of Congress
in behalf of our postal intercourse with foreign
nations, this Intercourse being now mainly
carried on by North German steamers. If
these steamers should be blockaded or i'm
peded by France our postal Intercourse with
Europe would be greatly embarrassed.
The wisdom and patriotic spirit of the Pre-
sidents suggestions as to some of the great
material interests which will be directly and
powerfully affected in the United States by a
war in Europe are patent; but the two houses,
probably because Of the press of time, or
more likely through laundering lack of states
manship, lot the opportunity 60 by without
acting upon such bill, except 80 far as
windy discussion may be called action, and
have thus left our mail facilities with Europe
at the mercy of anv enterprisinr French