The Press. — London, England, 1857-02-07 00:00:00

FEBRUARY 7, 1857. The Emperor of the French responded in a spirit worthy of the occasion, and, instead of seizing the opportunity and calling out a French army to march upon the Rhine, he used his influence to terminate the dissension, and it was term:nated in a way to vindicate the honour of the King of Prussia and to remove a difficulty from the political system of Europe. But all this happened at a dead time of the year. The quastion of Neufchatel would never have become a difficulty had it not been for the Go• vernment of the noble lord, for the moment the Swiss were counselled to adopt a course by France the English authorities counselled a course entirely different. They said to the Swiss, "The eyes of Europe are upon you. The Kiug of Prussia is taking a course that all Europe condemns, and that England sees with dissatisfaction. Reject this pro posal. Rise, and make a stand. Think of your great ancestors—have confidence in the English Go vernment." The Swiss took the advice thus coun sslled. An army of 50,000 or 100,000 men were on the eve of invading Switzerland, which might have led to consequences regarding France of the most important character. But, although the Swiss were distinguished for their patriotism, they were equally remarkable for their prudence, and before the first gem was fired the Swiss determined to ascertain from the Government of the nohle lord what were the nature and degree of assistance on which they might reckon. (A laugh.) They had heard of Neapolitan assassinations and Sicilian insurrec tions—( Hear, hear )—of Paris protocols and speeches lathe House of Commons, of sympathy with free nations and the Liberal cause. So they said, `• What are you going to do for us in the moment of trial? We do not expect that the Guards should be sent to Basle as they were sent to Gallipoli. That is geo gzephically impossible, but there are other means of assisting us besides sending us troops. We are not rich ; we are a republican people, and therefore proverbially satisfied with little. But you are very rich people. Eminent as you are for valour, you are still more celebrated for wealth. You have at this moment extraordinary resources at your command. The golden galleons of Australia crowd your ports. You have other sources of supply which a people will endure from none but a Liberal Government— war taxes in time of peace. ( A laugh, and cheers.) Let a few crumbs fall from the rich man's table." The noble lord was the friend and pupil of Canning, and he proved an admirable councillor and friend on the occasion. " I give you sixpence," said the noble lord ; " I —," and the house knows the rest. (Great laughter.) We live in an age of telegraphs, and the Swiss authorities telegraphed to Paris and accepted the terms offered them by the Emperor. Thus ended the Swiss affair, and that was our Christmas-box. (Laughter.) The whole year during which we were to enjoy that blessing for which we illuminated, that blessing which alone could have justified our great expenditure upon fireworks, passed away, and we heard nothing until Christmas but rumours of wars. During the whole year there was a conviction on the part of the people of this country that they were on the eve of a struggle in Italy, or on the Rhine, or on the Danube ; that those memorable scenes upon which the utmost efforts of human skill and valour had in former times been displayed were again to become the theatre of war ; and with so much at stake, with a future of so much danger, what, they asked, is the use of examining such questions as that of education, or even of secondary putishments ? What is garotting compared with that slaughter which must infallibly take place when there is such a fearful state of things in Europe, not withstanding the sacrifices we made to conclude a peace which we thought would be perpetual? ( Hear, hear.) And all this time the tranquillity of Europe is so profound and complete that even a firebrand Minister cannot disturb it. (Hear, hear.) All the populations of Europe are devoting themselves in a manner unprecedented in history to the toils of industry, the chief Governments of Europe have an anxious desire to develop those industrial instincts, and to assist the:r subjects in arriving at what Governments themselves affirm to be the truest sources of wealth and power. In this state of affairs—which, as any man versed in the study of these matters will tell you, has never, perhaps, been surpassed in the promise it gives of peace—this innocent, suffering, energetic, industrial, commercial, over-taxed people of England are reconciled to their position, and are oven enthusiastic in favour of the noble lord because they think that the burdens they bear are the natural consequences of the enormous dangers surrounding them, and that the noble lord is the only man who can extract them from diffi culties which necessarily result from the condition of Europe. (Cheers.) So much for the rumours of war. Some people may have supposed that the noble lord is such a complete master of his art that he could succeed in distracting the attention of a country from its domestic affairs—that he could resist the progress of internal ameliorations—tbat with his THE PRESS. experience and authority he could contrive to bring things to the most critical point, and yet to evade the explosion. The noble lord cer tainly understands Europe thoroughly well. He ought to do so. I am satisfied that if he had gone to Paris to negotiate the treaty of peace, Bolgrad would not have been given to Russia. The noble lord thoroughly understands the interests of Europe, because he has had more experience with regard to them than most men. He therefore thinks that with the hand of a master he can always raise a European difficulty, foster it until the right moment, and then evade its conse quences. But the noble lord seems to have for gotten that aspiring votaries and enthusiastic pupils are not sufficient to insure success; and just when the noble lord was winding up his account in antici pation of the meeting of Parliament, just when he had written his four paragraphs respecting the American, the Italian, the Bolgrad, and the Swiss difficulties, just when he was thinking that he might come to Parliament and receive the laurel crowns so lavishly bestowed on him by those people who feel convinced that if it were not for him we should be invaded to-morrow, and have our commerce destroyed, and perhaps our throats cut by those unknown enemies in Europe who seem dying to found banks and construct railroads—(a laugh)— just when the noble lord may have been saying to himself—" Unparalleled as has been my fortune, un rivalled as has been my success, I think I really have outdone myself ; even the blunder of a Claren. don under my magic touch has excited the enthu siasm of a devoted people—(a laugh)—and that which in former days would have destroyed a Government, that which would have for ever stamped a negotiator as the most incapable man ever intrusted with a great office, I have made the basis of a claim to the gratitude and an appeal to the patriotism of England. I have extracted the flower safety from this nettle, danger. I may now meet Parliament with confidence. They may ask me what is my domestic programme? What lam going to do about parliamentary reform ? I will refer them to a late noble colleague of mine. (Great laughter.) They may ask me what lam going to do about administrative reform? I will answer in the words of Richard 11. (I am indebted to the noble lord for the quotation), 'What ! do you want an administrative reformer? I am an administrative reformer!"—(laughter)—just at. that moment when the noble lord would have had no difficulty in evading any disagreeable inquiry he finds that unfortunately Canton is blazing and Persia is invaded. (Cheers.) It seems to me that we have now arrived at a point at which we must ask ourselves whether it is not our duty to inquire into the cause of this perpetually recurring system of difficulties. (Hear, hear.) We now have the Persian difficulty and the Chinese diffi culty—two difficulties which, as it could he easy to show, have not been occasioned by local circum stances of such a commanding character as to justify an appeal to arms, but have rather happened in con sequence of a predetermined policy at home, the consequence of which policy is that, after a year of peace, we are called upon again to forget the first function of a House of Commons, again to neglect the consideration of our domestic condition, and again to forbear making any effort to diminish the burdens of the people. (Cheers.) I confess that I was somewhat surprised when I heard of the Persian war. I thought it was our interest to maintain the existence of Persia, and even if Persia committed any act of folly to view it with forbearance. Our policy respecting Persia has hitherto been to treat her as a vast, poor, weak country that ought to be supported as a barrier between us and the other European power which has predominance in that part of Asia. That policy has always been pursued, and, little as the people of England care for external politics, I believe they have understood it, because they look jealously at anything which may bring us near to Russia. But destroy Persia from apprehen. sion of Russia, and the consequence is that you are nose to nose with Russia—(Hear, hear)—and that collision which might not have happened for years is precipitated by your policy. That is the view which any sensible man would take of a war with Persia. But there is a different view of the question. The case of the Government is that we are not really at war witn Persia, but with Russia in the disguise of Persia—Russia with a long black Persian cap upon her. It is said that we are struggling with a foe who, having been destroyed and disabled from pur suing his long•cherished policy in the Black Sea— who having been so exhausted that he did not attempt to conceal his exhaustion, but was ready to agree to any terms in order to obtain peace—bad yet treasured up untold gold and raised armies from mysterious provinces in order to invade our great Indian empire. I well remember the invasion of Affghanistan and the documents which were placed on the table respecting it. I can only now say that if we have papers laid before us respecting the Persian war, as we were promised by the hon. mover of the 151 Address, although not in the Speech, I shall examine them with considerable suspicion and scrutiny, and if they do not contain all the information which they ought to contain I shall move that they be referred to a select committee for the purpose of obtaining further in formation. (Hear.) And if it turns out, as I believe it will, that Russia has been more anxious that there should be peace between Persia and England than England has that there should be war between herself and Russia--if turns out that from the very first moment the peace of Paris was signed there have bean no means of conciliation which Russia has not used to obtain a result absolutely necessary to her existence in her present crippled state in that part of the world, and used to such as extent as even to counsel the Sovereign of Persia to yield that great prize, so long coveted, the city of Herat, I should then be tempted to believe that by • some unfortunate policy, which I shall not chars.- tense, it has been deemed a matter of great expe diency that that third campaign in the Crimea--the non-occurrence of which I have often heard deplored by politicians of the noble lord's school—should take place in this Persia which we have now invaded. (Hear, hear.) If that should be the case, I wish the house well to consider the course the noble lord now pursues—the position in which he places this coon. , try, and the effect which all this may have on ono resources, on our commerce, and on that situation we hold in the world. (Hear, hear.) From what I read in the public prints—for on this point I have no other means of information—l think it possible that • the Persian difficulty may be settled, but settled by • the influence and agency of that very power against which every means are used in this country to excite the passions of the people, and to convey to thesis the impression that Russia is the cause of war, in stead of being from the first desirous to prevent it. (Hear, hear.) There remains the Chinese difficulty, whiels,• unfortunately, is not settled. I shall not trouble the house with more than one observation on that affair, because I apprehend that all these are questions which must be decided on their own merits ; and I am alluding to them now to show the necessary con sequences of such a policy. The question of China, however, appears to be in the same category as that. of Persia; and I cannot resist the conviction, that what has taken place in China has not been in con sequence of the alleged pretext, but is, in fact, in consequence of instructions received from home some considerable time ago. (Hear, hear.) If that be the case, I think the time has arrived when this house would not be doinu its duty unless it earnestly considered whether it has any means for checking and controlling a system which, if pursued, will be one, in my mind, fatal to the interests of this country. (Cheers.) Are we always to have in time• of peace difficulties in our foreign relations' (Hear, hear.) No doubt we shall have, with the disposition of the noble lord, a very good chance of finding our selves in that situation, for he has at his command those resources which a generous and spirited people intrusted to him fcr objects of a very different nature. There is a great complaint at the present moment of the burden of taxation and of one peculiar tax. That peculiar tax is intimately connected with the circumstances to which I havecalled the attention of the house to-night after a long separation, comment ing on events only which have occurred in the interval. We must all admit that nothing is more natural than that the people of this country should object to war taxation in time of peace ; but then I am told that it is necessary to endure war taxation in time of peace because our foreign relations are in a state of such excitement, difficulty, and peril. My answer to that is, that these are the very circum stances which make me hesitate as to the propriety of the condition in which our finances are placed. If we were really in times of profound peace, and that certain sacrifices were necessary to be made in order to clear us from the consequences of the old struggle (though I believe that the old struggle was prosecuted w ith a needless expenditure and a lavish and extravagant spirit to be deprecated), I could under. stand that the course which ought to be taken under these circumstances would be of this kind—l could move for a finance committee, and the expenditure of the country could be submitted to its scrutiny ; I could then have these allegations of extravagant and lavish misuse of the public funds examined into. 1 could ascertain by such means what are the necessary wants of the country, and with that information we might be enabled to take the course which circum stances justified. But when a war taxation in time of peace is concurrent with a constant state of semi war—when a time of peace consists in preparation for war, of fitting out expeditions, of sending fleets to different quarters of the globe—then I am obliged to consider whether this war taxation is not required for circumstances and objects far different from those which a time of peace justifies and requires. (Hear, hear.) I think the expenditure of the country ought to be reduced. (Hear, hear.) I should like to know what the cost to the country has been of the blunder