Washington Telegraph

The Manchester Guardian, one of the ablest of English provincial journals, has an interesting article on "War and its effects upon trade," which we copy. It will be seen that the Guardian does not apprehend that a war with Russia will very seriously affect English trade and commerce.

"We are afraid it would be to hope against all probabilities to anticipate that war can now be avoided. The Western powers have done their utmost to maintain peace and the Sultan and his advisers, even during the time when their arms were crowned with victory, and when they appeared to be making rapid strides, both in Asia and in the Principalities, have never failed to listen, with dignity and respect, to the counsels of the great European powers, whose desire it was to maintain peace, and to acquiesce in every proposal which was consistent with the honor and independence of Turkey, with a view to attain that end. It, therefore, we are to have war, there can be no misunderstanding as to who shall be held responsible in the eyes of the world and of posterity. The responsibility which will rest on the head of the Russian Emperor will be greater than any one sovereign since Napoleon has dared to assume. He acts in direct opposition to the advice of all his allies, and even of those whose feelings and interests are most identified with those of Russia. Prussia as well as England, Austria as well as France, all equally condemn the course which Russia appears determined, at all hazards, to pursue. The butchery at Sinope has obviously brought the question of peace or war to the necessity of an immediate decision. The French Government has authoritatively published to the world the orders for the combined fleets to enter the Black Sea, consequent upon that event. The electric telegraph has already announced the fact, that, at this moment, the combined fleets of England and France occupy what the Czar has stated he regards as a Russian lake. The object of this step has been openly avowed by France and England to the Russian Court, to be nothing less or more than to keep the Russian ships within their own ports, and prevent another disaster such as that which occurred at Sinope. Russia has already declared that she would regard such a movement as a declaration of war—as an active interference in the hostilities which are at this moment existing between that power and Turkey, and we must own that we cannot see how any other construction can be placed upon it. If two States are at open war with each other, it is impossible to make a distinction between operations by land and operations by sea. And if other States take part in the latter, it would follow that they are immediately implicated as partisans in the common hostilities. It remains yet to be seen what reply the Emperor of Russia will return to the notification of France and England thus made but in both Paris and London it is fully expected that the Ambassadors of Russia will be withdrawn and open rupture proclaimed. If there remained any doubt of these consequences following from that cause, there seems to be none with respect to the treatment which the note sent by the four powers from Vienna will receive at the hands of the Russian Government.

If, then, war be inevitable, the first and the most important question to this neighbourhood is the effect which is likely to be produced upon the commerce of the country. It would be a great error to judge of the present times by the past. The impression which the experience of half a century ago has left upon the trade of the country, would be a very imperfect criterion of what is to be expected now. At that time a continental war was synonymous with the closing of the continental trade. At that time our ships could not sail to any part of the world except in fleets under convoy. It is true that these circumstances were as much the result of the character of the war as of the existence of the war itself But in both these respects, a war now undertaken by England and France against Russia will differ widely as possible from those which affected the war fifty years ago. All the rest of Europe is now with us. The United States must sympathise if not co-operate with us in the struggle against Russia. The Black Sea and the Baltic will be the only portions of the ocean where our ships may not, during such a war, pass with as little interruption as they do now. In the Black Sea even, the only port which Russia could hold for a week after the commencement of hostilities will be that of Sebastopol, where no trade whatever is carried on. Odessa, on the contrary, the great trading port, would be in possession of the combined fleets on our first approach. We shall have as free ingress and egress for our merchant ships as at present. In the Baltic we shall have equal access, as at present, to every port except those of Russia, which will be effectually blockaded. Whatever naval force, therefore, Russia can muster, will be as much confined to her own ports as if they formed a part of her terra firma. Beyond the blockading lines in front of Sebastopol in the Black Sea, and on the Russian coast in the Baltic, English ships may trade as freely as they do now. So far, then the only portion of our commerce that can possibly be affected will be that with Russia.

But even with Russia, in the event of war, it will be difficult, if not impossible, to impede any part of our trade. The seaports may be closed, but the enormous land frontier will be open. Already the high tariff of Russia causes a large share of the British manufactures consumed in that country, to be smuggled across the land frontier from Germany. Any further impediment thrown in the way of trade, by the blockade of the seaports, would only increase that channel of supply. So doubt the cost may be increased, and the demand may be correspondingly diminished, but those will be evils which will chiefly fall upon the subjects of Russia. Again, so far as regards the supply of the raw produce which we require from Russia—in the first place the Odessa will be open to us. But even independent of that, we have little fear that the produce of Russia will not find its way across the land frontier, into the neighboring provinces, and that by means of canal and river navigation, and by aid of the cheap continental railways, it will reach our shores in nearly the ordinary quantities.

Still, so far as regards the great trading interests of the country, no war could be undertaken which could possibly interfere so little with them. Our great American trade, north and south, our colonial trade throughout the world—our Australian Indian, and China trade, and even our trade with the whole continent of Europe, that of Russia only partially excepted,—may go on exactly as heretofore, without the slightest impediment, and without the slightest increased risk, while every port belonging to Russia will be hermetically sealed, and every ship she possesses within them. No doubt Russia may grant letters of marque, but it will be difficult to find those who will be daring enough to make use of them under the circumstances we have described.

On the whole, therefore, while we deeply deplore the stern necessity which appears to have come upon us at last, that we must take up arms in earnest defence of rights common to the whole of Europe, we are yet satisfied that we have comparatively little to apprehend that will be injurious to our trade, in comparison with the importance of such an event."