STATE PAPERS. 



645 



sire to Russia, to the German em- 

 pire, and to France herself ; it im- 

 pairs tlie good iMulerstandiiig which 

 she declares her wish to preserve, 

 hut the effects whereof Russia has 

 not hitherto perceived. We live 

 no longer in those barbarous times 

 Mhen every cotintry regarded only 

 her immediate interest ; modern po- 

 lit)', founded upon the law of na- 

 tions, has introduced certain princi- 

 ples respecting the interest of the 

 whole community of states. No 

 statex;ould view Avitli indifference the 

 event already mentioned, which 

 gave such a dreadful blow to the in- 

 dependence and security of nafions. 

 By the peace of Teschen, Russia un- 

 dertook to guarantee and mediate 

 for the German empire ; in this qua- 

 lity his imperial majesty ^^z.i not 

 merely justilied in raising his voice 

 on this occa'iion, but was absolutely 

 bound to do it. The French go- 

 vernment, bearing a similar quality, 

 takes the liberty of violating the 

 neutrality of Germany, and to 

 act arbitrarily on that territory. It 

 is dilficuU to conceive how his impe- 

 rial majesty should be incompetent 

 to stand up for the German empire, 

 the security and independence of 

 which he has guaranteed. — It would 

 be in vain to attem[)t to explain 

 otherwise the conduct of Russia, 

 Mhosc motives are so evident, or to 

 discover therein the influence of the 

 enemies of France ; its sole motive is 

 the wretched condition to which the 

 French government, by its inliuencc, 

 has-reduced Europe. Should Rus- 

 sia [iropose to establish a coalition, 

 for the j)Urpose of renc^wing the war 

 on the continent, it would not at all 

 be recpiired to seek any unfounded 

 cause for it. The French govern- 

 ment has long given too much and 

 too just cause for breaking the bands 



of harmony, which the emperor has 

 preserved merely by his moderation, 

 and which he desired to preserve for 

 ever. ?io person, and the French 

 government least of all, can mistake 

 the views of the cabinet of St. Pe- 

 tersburgh, since his imperial majesty 

 so explicitly declared, even before 

 the present v.-ar, how necessary it 

 was to labour for the consolidation 

 of peace ; to prevent new revolutions 

 in Europe, to avoid carefully every 

 cause for mistrust, and to let every 

 stnte quietly enjoy its independence. 

 At the same time, Russia disclosed 

 to the French cabinet, how much 

 she desired that this latter power 

 might contribute to consolidate the 

 present order o.' things ; that it 

 should, by its moderation and disin- 

 terestedness, give a hope to the 

 other states of Europe, that every 

 government could at last (after the 

 inihappy war, which cost so much 

 Wood) dero-j itself, with safety and 

 quiet, to the happiness of the pt-aple 

 eniiiisted to it. Far from desiring 

 to rckindli; the flames of war on the 

 continent, his Russian majesty most 

 ardently wishes to stifle those flames 

 evtTy where; but his majesty har- 

 bours this particular wish, that the 

 French government, as it pretends to 

 the s.;nie desire, would let (hose na- 

 tions alone, who wish nothing more 

 fervently than (a avoid taking a j)art 

 in the present tr.)uble-. — This was 

 the only (though unfortunately for 

 the cause of humanity, it proved an 

 iucflectual) wish of Russia, which 

 never deviated from those principles; 

 every step she took with the French 

 government, which she constantly 

 referred to treaties already con- 

 cluded, had no other view. Upon 

 the same ■^round she proposed to act 

 as a mediator betweju Fra ue and 

 England, but was not accepted. — 

 T t 3 Since 



