The oppressed and persecuted Christians of the north-western portion of the Balkan peninsula had watched the steady progress and constant development of their brethren in Croatia, Servia, and Montenegro with curious eyes, whilst they themselves were still groaning under the heavy Ottoman yoke. Nor, indeed, was this feeling of despair and exasperation confined to the Christian inhabitants alone, for the Bosnian Mohammedans, who had hitherto fought for the Sultan and whose ancestors, in order to retain their possessions, had embraced Islam, now joined the Christian insurgents in aiming at the separation of Bosnia and Herzegowina from the Ottoman Empire. The secret debates in the Servian Skuptschina resulted in the presentation of two addresses to Prince Milan, one advocating the proclamation of peace to be published, the other offering him 3,000,000 ducats and an army of 40,000 men to support the rebellion--to be kept secret. Montenegro was only waiting for a signal from Servia before commencing open hostilities. The manifesto of the insurgents demanded the autonomy of Bosnia and Herzegowina under a Christian ruler; in return for this they pledged themselves to recognise the suzerainty of the Porte and to pay tribute in the same way as the other vassal States of the Ottoman Empire. An attempt by the Great Powers to maintain peace through the mediation of their consuls failed owing to the insurgents refusing to place any confidence in the execution of the reforms promised by the Porte. _To_ PRINCE CHARLES ANTHONY, _October 3rd, 1875_. "The disturbances in the Balkan peninsula, though apparently quieted for the moment, are still far from settlement. The insurrection is making great secret progress and gathering force like an avalanche. As the original motive was neither a political nor a national one, but merely a rebellion against oppressive taxation from which the Christian peasant hoped to free himself by force of arms, peace will not be restored until radical reforms put an end to the misrule of the Pachas. Oriental Christians are thoroughly tired of Turkish misgovernment, and but for the _entente_ of the Northern Powers serious complications would long ago have arisen. As it is, they are only delayed; they certainly are not entirely done away with. Diplomacy is incapable of solving the Eastern Question; the East alone can solve it on the field of battle by a combination of the nations directly interested! Our present policy is to await the advantage of events; the financial ruin of Turkey will then aid us further.