The New Orleans daily Democrat. [volume] (New Orleans, La.) 1877-1880, 1878-07-06
TIE PEACE CONGRESS.
THE END NOT YET.
England Opposes the Cesss0n of BatOum
and Files Her Protest.

LONDON, July 5.-Private intelligence re-
ceived during the last twenty-four hours
from Berl lin, COnstantinOple and st. Peters
burg tends strongly to increase feeling Of
uneasiness and apprehension caused by the
tone OF the newspaper dispatches In certain
well advised quarters. There are serious
fears that the work of the congress will be
frustrated, and that war will follow its
adjournment.
There are extraordinary rumors concern
ing the relations between the Porte and the
Turkish representatives at Berlin. 1t is
limited at Constantinople that the representa-
ttves have betrayed Turkey for the price paid
to them by Austria but, most strangely,
there is q report from Paris that it is at CON
stantinople that the corruption has been ef-
feCted, and that the representatives at Berlin
have been ordered by the Porte to make con-
cessions which they otherwise would have re-
sisted, and which might have been gxacted
from them.
1t seems to be certain that for one reason
or the other there Is lack of accord between
the Porte and its representatives at Berlin,
and 1t is believed that there is danger that
either the representatives will refuse TO sign
the final treaty or the Porte will order them
not to sign 1t, 1t is said that discussions In
the congress and In private conversations of
the members respecting Batoum have been
long and warm. The British delegates have
produced memorial addressed to Queen
Victoria, signed by nearly 10000 Georgians
and Laz, inhabitants OF Bat0um, imploring
her to save them from the hands of Russia
and preserve their honor and religion from
the marauding COssacks. The memorial Is
written In very strong language, and the
signers declare their intention to resist the
Russian domination.
When Earl BeaconsfieId laid the memo
rial before the congress he accompanied 1t
with some earnest remarks He said he ur-
derSto0d that Russia has set her heart upon
the acquisition of Batoum in order to develop
her plans Of commercial and military aggran-
disement In Asia, but it was impossible for
England, and should be impossible for Eu-
rope, to consent to q step that would certain
ly be followed by scenes of terrible blOOdshed
and misery. The inhabitants Of Batoum had
thrown themselves upon Englan for proteC-
tiOn, and she could not abandon them. Lord
Salisbury then pointed out that Russia was
asking altogether too much in requesting
that BatOum should be handed over to her.
She wishes TO construct q railroad from
Batoum to the Tifiis beyond the low lands Of
POti or the passing on to the Caspian Sea-.
She will be master of the trade of all Central
Asia and Of Persia, besides. While the congress
might say that BatOum should be given to
Russia, the inhabitants of the place would be
sure to resist. 1t can be approached only by
three routes, each of which can be defended
by few hundred men against an army of
thousands.
Russia would attempt to seize her prize by
bombarding and destroying the CITY, and the
first fruit OF the peace congress would be q
horrible massacre.
Prince Bismarck, it is said, at this stage of
the discussion proposed a compromise. Let
Batoum, he said, be converted into q free
city Let her freedom be guaranteed by the
powe s, with the understanding that pri-
vate Russian capitalists might build an
other road to the Persian frontier, with q
branch to the valley of the Euphrates, and
another to Asia Minor.
Count Sehouvaloff said joint protectorate
of the Porte might probably solve the diff
Guilty, but the matter is not yet settled.