710 



RUSSIA. 



Porte because he feared the discomfiture of the 

 Servian army might be followed by atrocities. 

 The Porte had, by a series of manoeuvres, frus- 

 trated all attempts at pacification. The pres- 

 ent state of things was intolerable. Unless 

 Europe was prepared to act firmly and ener- 

 getically, he would be obliged to act alone. 



MONUMENT AT INKEUMAN. 



He regretted to see that inveterate suspicion 

 and continual fear of Russian aggression still 

 existed in England. The Czar reminded Lord 

 Loftus that he had on several occasions given 

 most solemn assurances that he desired no con- 

 quest. He had not the smallest wish or inten- 

 tion to acquire Constantinople. Such an ac- 

 quisition would be amisfortune for Russia. In 

 reference to the rumors that Servia and Rou- 

 mania demanded that they should be erected 

 into independent kingdoms, the Czar said that 

 there was no intention of establishing any such 

 kingdoms, and such a course would be folly. 

 He had permitted officers to go to Servia, pro- 

 vided they left the Russian service, in the hope 

 of calming the agitation in Russia. 



This dispatch was verified by Prince Gor- 

 tchakoff previous to its transmission to Lord 

 Derby, and was approved by him as correctly 

 representing the views expressed by the Czar. 

 In a subsequent dispatch, November 7th, Prince 

 Gortchakoff explained the necessity arising 

 from the failure of diplomacy to subordinate 

 the integrity of Turkey "to the guarantees 

 which were demanded by the interests of hu- 

 manity and the peace of Europe," and denied 

 that Russia entertained after-thoughts respect- 

 ing Constantinople. On the 13th of November 

 the Journal de St.-Petersbourg published a cir- 

 cular of the chancellor, Prince Gortchakoff, 

 which declared that, while the Czar did not de- 

 sire war, but would do his best to prevent it, 

 he would not cease his efforts till the humane 

 and necessary principles for the establishment 

 of which he contended were completely at- 

 tained. A grand review of troops was held on 



the Field of Mars, in St. Petersburg, November . 

 15th, at which the Czar expressed a wish for 

 the success of the commander-in-chief, who 

 had gone to Kischinev, in the Crimea, to his 

 command. On the 19th of November Prince 

 Gortchakoff sent a dispatch to Count Shou- 

 valoff, in London, in answer to a previous dis- 

 patch from Lord Derby of October 30th. 

 Since August of the previous year, the dis- 

 patch said, Russia had tried to obtain a will- 

 ing hearing from England. Russia had ob- 

 served with regret that England's support of 

 the Andrassy note had been neutralized by ita 

 refusal to sign the Berlin note ; that it had 

 failed to cooperate in the naval demonstrations, 

 and that it had opposed the Russian policy in 

 the matter of the six months' armistice without 

 giving Russia previous notice of its intention 

 to do so, whereby the esteem of the Porte foi 

 the unity of Europe had been greatly depre< 

 ciated. Nevertheless, there was now, at length, 

 accord between Russia and Europe. Russia 

 had with pleasure seen Lord Derby take the 

 first step toward calling a conference, and had 

 cooperated in this object. Both powers were 

 agreed as to the necessity of guaranteeing re- 

 forms and prosecuting them; they were not 

 agreed upon means. England was seeking to 

 bring into effect the stipulations of an earlier 

 time, without thinking of the unfortunate re- 

 sults which they had produced, or to what weak- 

 ness the action of Europe in respect to Turkey 

 had been condemned by the treaty of 1856. 

 Europe had been obliged several times to deny 



COSSACK MAN AND WOMAN. 



those stipulations, and they were to-day, as 

 was shown by incontrovertible facts, the causes 

 of evils which had been pointed out by Russia 

 as threatened by them for twenty years. The 

 powers must act, and present conditions to tho 

 Porte, which had broken the treaty of 1856. 



