, 1877-06-06
THE DANUBE

rot;c. IS arrived from Ga'atz that the
CrloWaudrr Of the Russian Army las
prohibited the navigation Of the Lower
Uauube moan 0rsoya iownwardS, and that
a term VIII lie given 10 the steamers there
TO clear cur tom those waters This
seems a father grave measure. 1t was,
decd, %noluruI tIut The navigation would
be like Y to be impedcd by The course Of
the war. aud that, ut any rat, the Ships
going thar way would in some way DO so
at their own risk aud peril. In anticipa-
lion Of his, as you know, the Austrian
Danube Steam Navigation Company,
which Las almost q monopoly Of traffic
as lar us Galatz, has made arrangements
70 bring up its ships to Turn SEVERN.
where it las II large DEPOT; but, in the
meantime, its ships have continued 10
run down as far as Rustthuk. The free
dom OF the haIig atom OF the Danube is
noto'icusly o SIT %uIation OF the Treaty
OF Palis, aad by prohibition the r So an
commander raises, tIstore, tie ques-
ten once more Of the va idity OF this
Treaty. Like so many other points has
this one also been abolished by The Rus.
sian Dec a,alion OF War Can Russia
claim It light Of blockade a aloug the
course OF the Lower Danube, excluding
the nrutral flags? The question may be
n delicate AMI complicated one, but it
will u'so have 10 h. grapp'ed with.
There is Tie European Danube Comnis.
siou sill IN exist nee, NuI IN operation
il GnIuiz. as Il visible sign tbat ths
Danube il regarded by Europe as su iu-
lerhatiOnGl rive.
On the her hand we hear that bs.
Sides some gpnboats, eight 1t is said,
which were to have been brought down
in pieces and put together on some poins
OF the p nth or Da ube, the Russian tc,s
is ready NJ n c%o'aieff, aud will eventually
come down to the mouth Of the Donu64
and assist Tie Russian Army in its pSs~
sage Of The Da vie -Iimcs.
The TIA Ks are raising difficulties noout
the u ulr@lty Of tie European DapGbs
Commission, as stipulated by Article 81
If ile PMS CouteIcLcs Of 1865, which
T o'opgcd he activity Of that Commission,
AMI they obj Ct 10 ,dse themselves to
respect it IN all circum.tanceS, shOuld
military cJnsj l%,rAtions deman otherwise.
The objections doubtless ref to tho Staff
OF TIE European Commission, or the es-
tabIishmtnts en- shore and the works
thrm>el, es, on The maintenaaee Of which
in heir present state the navigation OF the
SuIioa lrar ch mainly depends. 1t is "a"
thor difficult in this ms ance, as in 20
may o;hcrS, 10 follow tue turns OF the
O.ieutal mind, AM to guess what might
be he motive Of the Turks in obiectlng
to pledge themselves to respect the ueU'
tta'ity OF thu works executed by tbs Eu-
ropeal Commission g: the mouths OF tbs
Danube. These works have been entirely
to The advantage Of the Turks, and will
remain so as lo,g as they have the naval
superiority in the Black Sra. II IS owing
to these works that they have been hither-
to able, aud mey he SO in the future. to
send up the Danub', not only small river
monitors, but even larger ones, such as
the one whic!. has been biowa up ut
Ibraila. The Russians may succeed IN
bowing up others also, and even, by
mea - OF shore batteries, gun-boats. and
torpedoes. altogether get the better OF tbs
Turkish fotilla. Yet, as it seems meat
improbable that the Russians should &c.
tabIish their naval superiority in tbs
3 ack Sea, the Turks in their own inte.
vast n,Ol,k ~ 10 RhoiW ,fm0at 70 u Oon this