half of Mussulmans and half of Christians, and elected by the inhabitants of the Province in accordance with a scheme to be settled by the Sublime Porte. I have now set forth the measures, the application of which to the revolted Provinces must be obtained to enable one to entertain a well-grounded hope of pacification. These measures are as follows:- A law to guarantee that the product of the direct taxation of Bosnia and Herzegovina shall be employed for the immediate interests of the Province, under the control of bodies constituted in the sense of the Firman of December 12; The institution of a Special Commission, composed of an equal number of Mussulmans and Christians, to superintend the execution of the reforms proposed by the Powers, as well as of those proclaimed in the Iradé of October 2 and Firman of December 12; Lastly, the amelioration of the condition of the rural populations. The first four points could and should be immediately carried out by the Sublime Porte; the fifth by degrees, as soon as possible. If, independently of these concessions, which appear to us the most essential, Bosnia and Herzegovina obtain in addition the following reforms indicated in the recent Firman, a Provincial Council and tribunals freely elected by the inhabitants, irremovability of judges, secular justice, individual liberty, security against ill-treatment, the reorganization of the police, whose conduct has excited so many complaints, the abandonment of the abuses to which the levies for public works give rise, an equitable reduction in the tax for exemption from military service, security for proprietary rights,-if all these reforms, the communication of which we claim from the Porte, in order to take formal note thereof, are applied in the insurgent Provinces, which, to judge by the text of the Firman, would not appear as yet to be in a position to benefit by them, one may hope to see peace restored in these desolated districts. To resume. The indefinite promises of the Iradé of October 2 and Firman of December 12 can only excite aspirations without satisfying them. On the other hand, it is clear that the Turkish arms have not succeeded in putting down the insurrection. Winter has suspended action, spring will see it revive. The conviction is general among the Christians that, spring once come, fresh elements will strengthen the proceedings; that Bulgaria, the Cretans, &c. will come to swell the movement. Be this as it may, it is to be foreseen that the Governments of Servia and Montenegro, who already, up to this time, have had great difficulty in holding aloof from the movement, will be powerless to resist the current, and for the future, under the influence of events and of public opinion in their countries, they appear to have accustomed themselves to the idea of taking part in the struggle on the melting of the snows. In this situation the task of the Powers, who in the interest of the general peace desire to stave off ulterior complications, becomes very difficult. Austria-Hungary and the two other Imperial Courts, after a confidential exchange of ideas, are all agreed that, were one merely to await the effect of the principles enunciated by the last Firman-principles which, moreover, according to the intentions of the Porte, do not appear to be intended to be immediately applied to the revolted countries— the only result would be to see the conflict widely extended at the termination of the winter. The three Cabinets then think that the only chance to avoid fresh complications is in a manifestation emanating from the Powers, and making clear their firm resolution to arrest the movement which menaces to involve the East. Now this end cannot be attained by the simple method of an injunction addressed to the Governments of the Principalities and to the Christian populations subjects of the Sultan. To give this action, very difficult in itself, a chance of success, it is absolutely necessary that the Powers should be in a position to appeal to acts, clear, indisputable, practicable, and specially suited for the improvement of the situation of Herzegovina and Bosnia-in one word, that their action may be grounded on facts and not on programmes. It is only by these means that the Cabinets will find themselves in a position to turn to a proper account their pacific counsels. There is another difficulty—and it is the greatest-which must, at all hazards, be overcome if one hopes to be able to reckon on any sort of a favourable result. This difficulty is the deeplyrooted distrust that every promise of the Porte's encounters at the hands of the Christians. One of the principal causes of this mistrust is discoverable in the fact that more than one measure announced in the Sultan's latest rescripts has already been announced in former Hatti-Chérifs, without causing any appreciable amelioration of the lot of the Christians. The Cabinets think it therefore absolutely necessary to obtain from the Sultan's Government, by means of an official Commission, the confirmation of his intentions with regard to the whole Empire, set forth in the Iradé of October 2 and Firman of December 12, and his notification to the Powers of his acceptance of the points specified above, the special object of which is the pacification of the revolted Provinces. Undoubtedly the Christians would not, by this method, obtain the form of guarantee they appear to demand at this moment, but they would find a relative security in the very fact that the reforms accorded would be recognized as indispensable by the Powers, and that the Porte would have pledged itself to Europe to carry them into execution. Such is the firm conviction resulting from a preliminary ex-change of ideas between the Cabinets of Austria, Hungary, Russia, and Germany. Your Excellency is directed to bring this view of the case to the knowledge of the Court of St. James, and to obtain its concurrence in the work of peace, the success of which our efforts tend to assure. If, as I hope, the views of the English Government accord. with our own, we should propose, out of consideration for the dignity and independence of the Porte, not to address our advice to the latter in the form of a collective note, but to confine ourselves to inviting our Representatives at Constantinople to act conjointly and in an identic manner towards the Sultan's Government in the sense of what we have set forth. You will be so good, M. le Comte, as to read the present despatch to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, and to leave him a copy of it, and I should be glad to know as soon as possible the impression it has made on his Excellency. Receive, &c. APPENDIX B. MANIFESTO OF THE INSURGENT CHIEFS ISSUED TO THE OFFICIAL COMMUNICATION OF THE ANDRASSY NOTE. PRIOR Insurgent Camp, Sutorina, Feb. 26. WE wish to express ourselves simply and without any disguise. We wish to reply to certain correspondences and programmesto our enemies as well as to our friends; to those who are sympathetic as well as to those who are antipathetic. We Herzegovinians belong to a nation oppressed—a nation enslaved for five centuries, a nation which has been, nevertheless, the source from which has sprung the noblest and purest Serbian blood. All Europe knows that this is the truth. But when the sabre of the Osmans had conquered us in a heroic combat at Kossovo, we ourselves bound our liberty with a heavy chain. Let us say that it was the will of God that the glory of Mahomet should shine out, and that the cross of Jesus should shed tears. But we have not complained to Europe, nor do we do so now; it was the fortune of the Turkish arms and the effect of our discords which, as it seems, still exist among us (in some branches of our nation), and we may, without fear or shame, say that this discord touches our relation Servia. It is very painful for us to say it, although we must recognize it, that, if there were on the throne a descendant of the immortal Kara George, or a direct descendant of Milosch, he could not hear the cries of our martyrs without being touched. In truth, the noble spirit of the dead Prince Milosch-if we were as happy to have it as we are unhappy with not having it— would not have counted by feet the depth of the sea nor the height of the heaven in a critical moment. He would not have looked about him to the right and to the left, but would have taken the direct road to poor Bosnia and Herzegovina. But, alas! . . . On the other side we hear, but understand nothing of all these projects of reform that some European Cabinets have formed, in order that the oppressed Christians of Turkey should obtain equality with Mussulmans. For it is not only uncertain, but impracticable. In these projects of reform there is not a word said as to real liberty-liberty, independent and securely guaranteed by the Powers of Europe. That is the project of reform we need. Such reforms suit us; if not, give us the tomb which will bury us, and where we may go down, quitting the world. The friends of our country, whether they are such or seem as much so as possible, think that they have a reason or a right to hear and support the barbarous savages from Asia who have conquered us, have caused our discords, and who, among the other nations, are only as leprous sheep in a healthy flock. We repeat-only true liberty can disarm us, and to crush us there is need of more numerous arms than those of the Osmans; and then the women will remain after us to avenge us, receiving from our hands arms for our children that they may, even in dying, defend the liberty and rights of our people. All the more that the hand of the stranger is on us, we beg the friends and defenders of our country to aid and to avenge us. Aid us! hear us! now or never! . .... Austria, in its position of neighbouring State, did and still does good to our children, our old men and our women. Eternal gratitude to her from our chiefs and from our nation! The immortal Liberator, Italy's crown of glory, Garibaldi, assists us energetically, and shows himself the protecting father of our oppressed people. Blessed be he by us and our descend ants. Powerful England, the greatest friend of the Turkish Empire, held it in her arms believing that she held a worthy child, which would grow into a honest man, magnanimous and useful to other nations. But she has opened her eyes and perceives that, instead of a man, she has supported a venomous serpent, which, grown great and strong, and for the sorrow of humanity, endeavoured to poison and devour it, and at last even would have bitten the hand that had given it to eat. This powerful kingdom has |