The above document is the masterpiece of the Eastern Question, and it is heartily to be hoped that every success may attend the Turkish arms.

In concluding a resume of Russian diplomacy towards Turkey, it will be useful to append the last words of the English Government through the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Lord Derby :"Foreign Office, April 12, 1877.

"Sir,-The Turkish Ambassador called upon me to-day, and left with me copy of a circular despatch addressed by his Government to their representatives on the subject of the Protocol of the 31st March, and of the declarations by which that instrument was accompanied. Having read this document, I expressed to his Excellency my deep regret at the view which the Porte had taken of a proceeding the principal object of which had been to extricate Turkey from a position of extreme embarrassment and danger. I thought it unnecessary to enter on any further discussion of a step which had been adopted by the Porte after full consideration, and which could not now be retraced. I said, however, that it did not seem to me clear, from the language of the despatch which he had placed in my hands, whether the Porte would or would not consent to send an ambassador to St. Petersburg to treat on the question of mutual disarmament. Musurus Pasha stated that his Government were not prepared to adopt any such measure, and he further expressed an opinion that matters could not be settled in a satisfactory manner unless the Powers consented to annul the Protocol. I pointed out, in reply, that the divergence between the views of our two Governments appeared so wide as to render discussion useless, and I said I did not see what further steps her Majesty's Government could take to avert a war which appeared to have become inevitable. The Turkish Ambassador answered that the attitude of his Government was simply defensive, that they did not desire war, but that they would prefer it to the sacrifice of national independence, which appeared to them to be involved in the acceptance of the Protocol.-I am, &c.,

The time for action having arrived, and all things being ready, Russia threw off the mask, and on the 24th of April declared war against Turkey, commencing operations by simultaneously advancing her armies both in Europe and Asia on behalf of the "Christians of Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Bulgaria," and, as the Emperor Alexander states in the following manifesto to his faithful and beloved subjects, "profoundly convinced of the justice of our cause, and humbly committing ourselves to the grace and help of the Most High."

THE CZAR'S MANIFESTO.

"Our faithful and beloved subjects know the strong interest which we have constantly felt in the destinies of the oppressed Christian population of Turkey. Our desire to ameliorate and

assure their lot has been shared by the whole Russian nation, which now shows itself ready to bear fresh sacrifices to alleviate the position of the Christians in the Balkan peninsula. The blood and the property of our faithful subjects have always been dear to us, and our whole reign attests our constant solicitude to preserve to Russia the benefits of peace. This solicitude never failed to actuate us during the deplorable events which occurred in Herzegovina, Bosnia, and Bulgaria. Our object, before all, was to effect an amelioration in the position of the Christians in the East by means of pacific negotiations, and in concert with the Great European Powers, our allies and friends. For two years we have made incessant efforts to induce the Porte to effect such reforms as would protect the Christians of Bosnia, Herzegovina, and Bulgaria from the arbitrary measures of the local authorities. The accomplishment of these reforms was absolutely stipulated by anterior engagements contracted by the Porte towards the whole of Europe. Our efforts, supported by the diplomatic representations made in common by the other Governments have not, however, attained their object. The Porte remained unshaken in its former refusal of any effective guarantee for the security of its Christian subjects, and rejected the conclusions of the Constantinople Conference. Wishing to essay every possible means of conciliation in order to persuade the Porte, we proposed to the other Cabinets to draw a special Protocol comprising the most essential conditions of the Constantinople Conference, and to invite the Turkish Government to adhere to this international act, which states the extreme limits of our peaceful demands. But our expectation was not fulfilled. The Porte did not defer to this unanimous wish of Christian Europe, and did not adhere to the conclusions of the Protocol. Having exhausted our pacific efforts, we are compelled, by the haughty obstinacy of the Porte, to proceed to more decisive acts. A feeling of equity, and of our own dignity, enjoins it. By her refusal Turkey places us under the necessity of having recourse to arms. Profoundly convinced of the justice of our cause, and humbly committing ourselves to the grace and help of the Most High, we make known to our faithful subjects that the moment foreseen when we pronounced words to which all Russia responded with such complete unanimity has now arrived. We expressed the intention to act independently when we deemed it necessary, and when Russia's honour should demand it. In now invoking the blessing of God upon our valiant armies, we give them the order to cross the Turkish frontier. "ALEXANDER.

"Given at Kischeneff this twelfth day of April (O.S., in the year of grace one thousand eight hundred and seventy-seven, in the twenty-third year of our reign."

Prince Gortschakoff has addressed the following note to Tavfik Bey, the Turkish Chargé d'Affaires, dated St. Petersburg, April 12-24, 1877 :

C

"The earnest negotiations between the Imperial Government and the Porte for a desirable pacification of the East not having led to the desired accord, his Majesty, my august master, sees himself compelled, to his regret, to have recourse to force of arms. Be, therefore, so kind as to inform your Government that from to-day Russia considers herself in a state of war with the Porte. The first consequence of this is the rupture of the diplomatic relations of the two countries. I request you to kindly inform me of the number and rank of the persons of whom the Ottoman Embassy in St. Petersburg is composed, in order that you may be furnished with the necessary passports. As regards the Ottoman subjects living in Russia those who are desirous of leaving the country are at liberty to do so unmolested; those who should prefer to remain may consider themselves assured of the full protection of the laws.

The following is the text of a proclamation issued to the inhabitants of Roumania by the Grand Duke Nicholas, Commanderin-Chief of the Russian army :

"By order of the Emperor Alexander, the army under my command, which is destined to combat the Turks, enters your territory, which has before joyfully received the Russian armies. I declare to you that we come as friends, desirous only of furthering your welfare, and hoping to find among you the same noble sentiments as your ancestors displayed towards the Russian armies in former wars against the Turks. Acting in conformity with the order of the Emperor, I notify to you the passage of the Russian army through your territory, which will occupy but a short time, and ought not to inspire you with any apprehension, as the Roumanian Government is regarded by us as a friend. I invite you to pursue your usual avocations, and to provide our army with the means necessary to satisfy their requirements. I have taken the necessary measures to enable the military treasury to pay without delay for all purchases made for the army. You know the discipline of the Imperial army, and I am sure that it will, when it is in your midst, preserve its honour unimpaired. The Russian army will nowhere disturb your tranquillity, and will respect your laws, customs, and property. Roumans-Our ancestors shed their blood for your liberty, and I believe that we have a right to require your support for the army which is traversing your territory for the sole purpose of helping the unhappy Christians of Turkey, whose distress has aroused the pity of Russia and all Europe."

The Circular Note addressed by Prince Gortschakoff to the Russian Ambassadors in Berlin, Vienna, Paris, London, and Rome is as follows:

"The Imperial Cabinet has, since the commencement of the

Eastern crisis, exhausted all the means in its power in order to bring about with the co-operation of the Great Powers a lasting pacification of Turkey. All proposals made successively to the Porte in consequence of the understanding established between the Cabinets of the Powers have, however, met with insurmountable resistance from the Porte. The Protocol signed in London on the 19th (31st) March was the last expression of the united will of Europe. The Imperial Cabinet had in signing it offered its hand as its last attempt at conciliation. By a declaration attached to the Protocol it had from that day marked out the conditions which, if loyally and sincerely accepted and carried out by the Turkish Government, were calculated to bring about the re-establishment and strengthening of peace. The Porte has answered it by a fresh refusal. This eventuality was not provided for in the London Protocol. Europe, in framing its wishes and resolutions, had confined itself to stipulating that the Great Powers, if they should see themselves disappointed in their hopes of seeing the Porte carry out with energy the measures for the improvement of the position of the Christian population, and unanimously considered as indispensable for the peace of Europe, reserved to themselves the right to point out in common the means which they should think proper to secure the welfare of the population and the interests of the general peace. Thus the Cabinets had foreseen the contingency that the Porte would not fulfil the promises which it would make, but not that the Porte would reject the demands of Europe. At the same time it has been established by the declaration which Lord Derby made as an addition to the Protocol, that since the Government of Her Majesty the Queen of England had only consented to the signature of the Protocol in view of the interests of general peace, it was to be understood from the outset that, in the event of this object-namely, the mutual disarmament and peace between Russia and Turkey-not being obtained, the Protocol should be regarded as null and void. The rejection of the Protocol by the Porte, and the motives upon which it is based, leave no hope that the Porte will accede to the wishes and counsels of Europe, and exclude also every guarantee for the execution of the projected reforms for the improvement of the lot of the Christian population. They also render peace with Montenegro and the execution of the conditions impossible by which disarmament and pacification could be brought about. Under these circumstances, the success of any attempt at compromise is excluded, and there remains only the alternative either to allow the state of things to continue which the Powers have declared incompatible with their interests and those of Europe, or to try by coercive measures to obtain that which the unanimous efforts of the Powers did not succeed in obtaining from the Porte by means of an understanding. My exalted master has resolved to undertake that which his Majesty has invited the Great Powers to do in common with him. His Majesty has given his armies the

order to cross the frontier of Turkey. You will bring this resolution to the cognisance of the Government to which you are accredited. My exalted master, in taking this step, is fulfilling a duty which is imposed upon him by the interests of Russia, whose peaceable development is impeded by the constant troubles in the East. His Majesty has the conviction that he at the same time responds to the views of Europe.

The die having thus been cast, there only remains to conclude the official documents, with the following rejoinder of Turkey, and thus complete the written evidence by which the reader can satisfy his mind with whom rests the blame for a war the end of which no one can foresee.

THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TO THE OTTOMAN EMBASSY IN LONDON.

The Russian Chargé d'Affaires has just sent to the Sublime Porte a declaration, stating that Russia has exhausted all conciliatory means for re-establishing a durable peace in the East, by an understanding with the Great Powers and the Porte; that the successive rejection by the Ottoman Government of the propositions made to it, and the refusal it had just given to the 1.ondon Protocol, no longer leave any hope of an understanding based on the goodwill of the Porte, to offer the guarantees called for in the name of the general peace, and that in consequence His Majesty the Emperor of Russia has ordered his ambassador to break off diplomatic relations; and that at the same time the Porte has made itself subject to the grave responsibility which would weigh upon it if the safety of the Russian nationalities, as well as that of all the Christians, whether subjects of the Sultan or foreigners, were compromised in any part whatever of the Ottoman Empire.

After this declaration, the diplomatic and consular personnel having quitted the territory, it is evident that the peaceful relations of the two States, which latterly have been so greatly troubled by the Russian armaments, are on the point of being replaced by open hostility.

In this condition of affairs, the Sublime Porte is forced to ask itself what are the motives which can justify such a serious determination on the part of the Russian Government, on the point of declaring war against the Ottoman Empire.

Russia has not been able to allege, and, in fact, she has not alleged any direct violation of her rights, or any of those causes, which, according to international law, authorise an appeal to arms. The existing treaties between the two States have been scrupulously observed by the Ottoman Government; nowhere more than in Turkey have the moral and material interests of Russian subjects been the objects of such wide and efficacious protection; Russian commerce and navigation have met with no hindrances in the States