The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1877-08-04
Ghe4Mtslliasuter.

Tho Inmincnce Of English Iuter.
VcnIiOm In the RuSHO.Turk ish
War.
N. Graphic.
The crisis Of the Eastern war ia evi.
IDENTIFY near at hand. The coming week
is big with the fate Of Turkey in Europe
The struggle in Turkey has hitherto
failed to elicit any great interest on this
side Of the Atlantic, principally on &C
count Of It's one.sided character, and were
it likely to be restricted TO the same par.
tie, in the future, this would still be- tho
case. 1t seems, however, from the facta
above referred to, as IL II were now Ger.
tain that England will become party to
the struggle before many days are over.
She has been hesitSting and complaining
for a long time. The passage Of the
Prulh by Russia brought forth the well.
remembered Derby manifesto, 20 menac.
ing in tone, so Insignificant in its conse.
qucnce,. Ever since then We havO had
rumorJ oil ill.feeling between the
two countries, alleged sights to
military attaches, apologies and
explanations, disavowals Of hostility ac-
companied with warlike preparations,
and general state Of uueasiness on the
part Of both England and Russia, that
has BODIED i'll for the maintenance Of peace
between the two countries. With all
this, however, there has been no overt act
by either country up to the present week.
With plenty Of bad feeling, there has
never 6een any irrevocahle quarrel. The
Russian diplomatists, with the utmost
patience ahd apparent cordially, have
patched up every breach made by the
rough soldiers around army headIuar-
terra, and have taken wonderful pains
to propitiate England and keep her out
Of The fight. They have several times
gone 20 the verge OF humiliation in their
Efforts to avoid war till the Gar was
ready, and there is no dOub: that the En-.
glish public in general have been put into
a position that entities them to sueer a.
Russian courage several times during
the last three mouths, so ample
and obsequious have been The
Russian official explanations Of lin.
official sights imagined by England
That true.bIue British organ, Punch,
which generally represents the dominant
party in England as faithfully as the
Inns itself, has given expression to this
feeling in several cartoons, wherein J ohm
Bull, big and fearless, appears 10 be look.
ing down on the contest between Russia
and Turkey as man might look down
on a fight between two small boys in the
street, conscious Of his own ability to set.
tie it whenever he chooses, and slightly
contcmptuous Of both parties. Al the
beginning OF the war it must be confessed
that this attitude was iustifable, for at
that time the active Intervention OF Eng
land against Russia must have rendered
the chances Of the Car nearly hopeless.
The events OF three months, however,
have changed the relative positions Of
the parties so much that there is little
chance now tor British interference, if
anything more than the mere salvation Of
single city is attempted.
AT the same, the latest ncw5 shows that
England has at last resolved on an overt
act, and unless the news should turn out
to be entirely false, it is probable that
the next two weeks will plunge her into
the war, prepared or not. The intelli-
gence that the British gunboAts Flamiu-
20 and Condor are 10 proceed TO the
mouth Of the Danube ITO protect British
interests and assert Great Britain's
treaty right to maintain two gunboats on
the Danube" is OF itself ominous. Such
admission, at such time, with active hos
tiliIies in progress across the river, is
mere provocltiou OF trouble. When it il
further announced that these gunboats
are TO be accompanied by the ironclads
Shannon ard Agincourt, the expedition
becomes still more menacing, and the
retention Of the British fleet at Beslka
Bay, within call OF Constantinople, shows
that intervention, when it Is attempted,
Is to be prompt and as effective as all the
British force can make it.
Meantime, the struggle between the
Danube and Balkans may decide the
question for both partica quicker than we
can at present imagine. With n plan Of
campaign good on the whole, the Rus-
SLAMS have committed many minor blum
ders in the conduct OF detachments, which
h3'C VIZ lIlNSu Nncul Vi eOIIle OF Inc ADJ
vantoges of their central position at Tir.
nova. The deCisives battles Of tue eau.
paign are now in progress; and il, as the
chances indicate, the Turks are finally
defeated, their cause will probably col.
lapse 40 quickly that England will have
no time to intervene effectively, II, on
the other hand, the Russians are serious.
Iy checked at Tirnova, "a they have been
ut Plevns; the chances OF English inter.
vention are excellent, for the Turks will
be able to hold their ground long enough
to start an expedition towards the mouth
Of the Danube which shall cut all The
Russian communications at one blow,
aud compel has,y evacuation Of BuIgs.
ria, and possibly Roumania. In t6is
connection, the departure Of the British
gunboaS and irorclads to the mouth d
the Danube is very significant 1t is the
only place at which British intervention
could be made really dangerous to Rus
STA.