are still very disproportionate to the immeasurable advantages that are to be acquired in Asia. By such a course, her power towards the East would be checked. If Constantinople were even taken, still its possession must be maintained by constant wars, and by extension to the eastern and southern coasts of the Mediterranean, where England, ·France, and Austria would follow every step, and might wage war for each important point. But Russia would augment her power and her dominion, under much more favouring circumstances, if she were to apply her exertions in the direct route to India. Here no European power can follow her, and, once arrived at the goal, it 'would only be necessary to engage England in a war, the issue of which could not be doubtful, in order to place the entire destinies of the world in the Emperor's hands, and the commerce of the world in the hands of the Russian nation. bay might as well be in the possession of Russia without the necessity of its causing a division in the empire, as it is at present in the possession of England, without injury to the national unity of Great Britain. But the possession of Constantinople would threaten Moscow and St. Petersburgh with a southern Greek empire. In the Bom * What must be Russia's appreciation of European intellect, when she can presume to put forth such contemptible fallacies! south, Russia's influence would be continually secured by the affection of the Greek Catholic population, and would thereby support the conquests to be made in Asia. The means assigned as specially necessary to the proposed end are the undisputed possession of the coasts of the Caspian, and the passes and mountains of the Caucasus, a preponderating influence in Persia, and the emigration of the Christian populations of Central Asia into the Russian provinces, acquired by conquest from Persia and Turkey.* A nerve of Russian power must be thereby formed in Central Asia, and thence in due time applied to the conquest of India. This new turn of Russia's policy is of infinitely more scientific importance, and it elucidates many appearances in her most recent diplomacy. The Porte appears already to have some anticipation of it, and looks with anxious regards to her Asiatic possessions, which cannot be defended at a critical moment, like European Turkey, by her oldest allies. Probably the Turkish ambassador, who is returning from Teheran, will be able to communicate to the Sultan further details of the plan laid down by Russia. D. C. * These are but the preparatives of Russia-means to the acquisition of India, which will promptly be made use of after the occupation of Constantinople.-ED. - ON THE RELATION OF FRANCE TOWARDS THE GERMAN CUSTOMS' UNION. (FROM THE GERMAN OF DR. NEBENIUS.) We rejoice to see many enlightened friends of freedom of trade, in that country which is bordered by the long extent of the Customs' Union, participating in our views on the union of the German states. "Germany is concentrating itself: Germany feels the necessity of unanimity through a powerful tie it unites many hitherto independent members in one and the same bond: this bond is freedom of trade: it borrows from our revolution the means of peace it works the fall of its internal tolls-the animated and universal watchfulness which this mercantile alliance stirs up shows clearly that it is one of the greatest events of our epoch: it is, in our eyes, one of the brightest symptoms of the new era which has commenced for Europe."-Thus does a Frenchman greet the Union, in which he can perceive nothing that can occasion the slightest uneasiness to France. Without doubt the relations of France and Great Britain to the Union are, in many respects, essentially dissimilar. The trade hitherto between France and Germany, and particularly the interests of French manufacturing industry, are by no means affected in the same degree as the British trade and manufacturing interests by the Union Tariff. The relations of the products of the German countries, and those of their western neighbours, are of that kind, that, notwithstanding the circumscribing laws of France, the value of the mutual imports of products and all sorts of goods, taken as a whole, is, since that time, much more nearly equalized; and, besides, an understanding upon mutual facilitation is rendered much easier. Both parties have no unimportant trading interests in common, the powerful furtherance of which becomes possible through the Union-so far from the fa vourable position which Germany attains with regard to other countries being injurious to France, it is to be expected, on the It is matter of infinite astonishment to us that this remarkable work has not been hitherto translated into English or French. contrary, that, in all the advantages which Germany will acquire in its commerce with other countries, France will at least have a direct share. We shall endeavour to demonstrate this still more clearly: but, first, we must be allowed to examine the lists of French imports and exports, in order to form an opinion of the importance of the German market in general to France. In the year 1832, France exported to all parts of the world, including her colonies, in foreign and home goods, to the value of In fine metals In French goods Produce Manufactured goods 696,282,132 Frcs. 100,878,999 On the whole, the exports, including the foreign goods drawn from the entrepots, but not including the fine metals, amounted, To Prussia, to The Hanse towns 10,681,054 Frcs. 16,688,515 49,552,925 76,922,484 Frcs. Hence it is clear, that the exports to Germany, with the exception of Austria (which, with Lombardy and Venice, stands under a separate head in the official returns), amount to about one-ninth of the total export trade of France to all parts of the world. Perhaps a larger proportion appears in the export of French goods, of which are exported The imports into Germany, of French goods, were therefore on the whole, of the value of 65,742,368 Frcs., rather more than oneeighth, and less than one-seventh of the total exports of French goods. Of all countries, Germany, next to Great Britain, took the largest quantity of raw materials, and, next to the United States, the most French manufactured goods: while Great Britain received to the value of 34,258,570 Frcs. of the former, and the United States, to that of 47,650,992 Frcs. of the latter. If we compare the total value of French goods which are sent to Germany (with the exception of Austria) with the exports to other countries, we shall find that Germany stands first after Great Britain, which, with Gibraltar, Malta, and the Ionian Islands, receives to the value of 67,430,482 Frcs., therefore not much more than Germany. From the German fairs, it is true, French manufactured goods are sent to foreign countries, and of what is furnished to the Hanse towns a part only reaches the internal market of Germany: but Austria and Russia are for the most part closed against French manufactures, and what finds its way thither, and to the distant countries of the south east, may be amply compensated by the supplies obtained by Germany directly through Belgium and Switzerland. In fact, these two countries, and particularly Switzerland, appear to receive such considerable imports in proportion to their population, that we are fully justified in this supposition. We find, namely, in the year 1832, the total exports to Switzerland of French and foreign goods amount to 55,871,769 Frcs.; to Belgium, 50,048,593 Frcs.; the exports of home raw materials to Switzerland, 9,443,567 Frcs.; to Belgium, 13,688,428 Fres.; and in French manufactures to Switzerland, 25,537,385 Frcs.; to Belgium, 27,188,994 Frcs. It is from the amount of the consumption of French manufactures, in particular, that we may determine with certainty that a considerable part of them reach the German markets through the medium of Switzerland. The total imports or value of all foreign goods imported into France was, in 1832, exclusive of the precious metals The import of precious metals Import for home consumption especially 652,872,341 Frcs. 133,174,800 505,093,488 280,988,356 |