The Press. — London, England, 1857-10-31 00:00:00

ship is calculated for the " double-shuffle " I interest, which is alarmingly strong in thin equivocating age. The late Earl of HARROWBY was an amiable and most accomplished man, and a most graceful speaker. But ho was a born waverer, and his son, the present Peer, recollects the family motto, " Servata fides cineri." Like his father, Lord HARROWBY is privately conscientious but polktically am biguous. But we have far more faith in the Noble Earl's candour than in his common sense. Thus on Wednesday the candour of the Noble Earl was most edifying. Ho confesses that " we were taken unprepared " in our con test with Russia. Whose fault was that? Did the " modern Chatham" give his colleagues or the public any sound advice on our want of preparation, and was not Lord PALMERSTON deeply to censure for his tardiness in en rolling the Militia while he was Home Secre tary ? Lord HARROWBY forgot while he was speaking at Sandon that the Premier under whom his Lordship serves has a sort of reputation as a War Minister to keep up. Nothing could be more awkward than some of the Lord Privy Seal's confessions. "As soon " as the Russian war was over what was the " course we pursued? ' Get rid of the income " tax, cut down the army, cut down the navy,' " was the cry, and in compliance with that " demand the Government di I reduce the " army, until when this mutiny broke out we " were entirely unprepared for it, and we had " hardly a soldier in the country." Lord HARROWBY evidently supposes that by open confession the Ministry may he absolved from its enormous errors, but Lord PAL MERSTON will probably think that such confes sions ought to be of the auricular kind, ad dressed only to the Ministers in Downing street, and that such a style of discourse could only end in " cutting down " the Cabinet. The veteran Canningito may on this occasion be tempted to quote his old chies famous lines : Give me the avowed, erect, and manly foe, 801 l I can meet, perhaps may turn his blow ; But of all plagues, good Heaven, thy wrath can send, Save—save—oh I save me, from the candid friend. Yet, even in the candour of the Lord Privy Seal there is the taint of wavering. Why (lid he not confess himself about the Persian war ? Even in his intensely conscientious balancing to and fro Lord HARROWBY pauses, ponders, and then refuses to take up a line. The late brilliant orator Mr. WINDHAM was declared to be useless in politics, " because he was always "trying to weigh principles in diamond " scales," and a carat more or less at either side would make him hesitate until the moment of action had gone; and thus WIND HAM only won the fame of being a dazzling speaker, but indecisive politician. So with Lord HARROWBY. He has never realised the great expectations formed of him in early life. At Oxford his talents were the theme of all his friends, and in Lord BROUGHAM'S speech on the Reform Bill there was a warm panegyric on the Lord SANDON of that day, and deservedly so. For the know ledge of Lord HARROWBY is various and wide. He is an incarnate cyclopedia, and he has read inore than he can assimilate or digest. ROBERT HALL said of the learned Dr. KIPP'S, the editor of the Biographia Britannica, that " he "had put so many books on the top of his "brain, that he had lost the faculty of original " thought." And HORACE WALPOLE observed of KIPPIS that " his big book was an apology " for everybody." Lord HARROWBY is the Dr. Kippis of the Cabinet, but he has too much of the " Dominic " in him for statesmanship. Why did he not speak out like a man against the cry for " cutting down the army and navy "? If the Noble Earl had then resigned, what a position he might hold now! But, alas! he trusted his wavering instincts, and they mis led him, and he can now only fall back on his candour, and make a public confession of the want of foresight of the Cabinet. We hope that he will not waver in his peni tential utterances By all means let the Noble Earl stick to his candour, and try whether he can stick in the Cabinet also ! What a lec ture Sir ROBERT PEEL would have read to a junior colleague, who betrayed himself, like rH E PRESS, OCTOBER 31, 1857. Lord HARROWBY, into such unvarnished can dour, and such ludicrously apologetic admis sion of the blunders of his own Primo Mi nister ! A NEW SLAVE TRADE. WE are unfeignedly sorry at the news which has reached us from the coast of Africa. It is impossible to acquit the French Govern- inent of at least culpable negligence in the commencement of this ill-starred business. We are willing as yet to believe that there is no complicity. But there are circumstances connected with the history of these transac tions which render suspicion excusable, and will as certainly demand that the interference of the English Government should be prompt and vigorous as that the explanations of the Imperial Court should be frank and explicit. If, owing to the weight of affairs which he may consider more important, th e French Emperor has placed himself in the hands of untrustworthy agents, let the truth be candidly acknowledged. England will then be satisfied, and the short-lived encouragement unwittingly afforded to a condemned and inhuman traffic be summarily cut short. A few years since, in 1852-3, a report reached the ears of the French Government that a well-known firm at Marseilles was exten sively engaged in the African slave traffic, which the French had pledged themselves to exterminate. In consequence of this rumour the head of the firm was more surprised than pleased by a sudden visit of the Procureur• Imperial, who walked into his counting-house one morning and with scant permission pro ceeded to overhaul his books. After, how ever, a close investigation of his accounts, not a trace of such transactions could be found, and though rumour was not silenced, the law was compelled to be satisfied, and the mcr chant remained unmolested. He was not, however, as it seemed, equally satisfied himself. His character, he professed, had been blasted —his mercantile reputation injured—and he would no longer continue in a position which had subjected him to a surveillance which he might not escape from so easily a second time. Whether it arose from just indignation at the past, or equally just apprehensions for the future, we cannot, of course, determine, and have no right to conjecture, bat M. REGIS retired from business; bequeathing, however, the use of his name to his successors, who continued to carry on the firm under the old title. A proof, we should think, that M. REGIS'S imputed connection with the slave trade had not in any way diminished the profits of his business. It is now, we suppose, about a year ago since it occurred to the French Government to try the experiment of African labour on their unproductive %Vest India colonies The plan they adopted for giving effect to their intentions is that which has now borne such evil fruit, and which gave birth to Lord BROUGHAM'S celebrated speech in July last. They entered into a contract with a mercan tile house engaged in the West Indian trade for a supply of 10,000 Africans. These were to be put to compulsory labour for ten years, at the expiration of which time they would have their choice either of returning to Africa or renewing their period of service. Now, the good or the evil of this scheme lay entirely in the way the negroes were to be obtained at first. If they came willingly, there was no more harm in binding themselves to compul sory labour than in a soldier binding himself to compulsory service. But, considering the condition of Africa at the present moment, 1051 and that the embers of the old slave trade were still fully alive, and required but the faintest breath of encouragement from a Euro pean power to burst into a flame, it is clear that the most stringent provisions on this head should have been introduced into the contract. Provisions which ahould have ren dered the compulsory deportation of Africans impossible. Perhaps, to have declared the payment of money to any African chiefs, in re turn for the production of " labourers," a vio lation of the contract, if not a heavy crime, would have gone far to effect this desirable end. But simply to require that a certain number of negroes should be forthcoming within a certain time, and to leave the means of procuring them entirely to the discretion of others, is conduct which, under existing cir cumstances, is very mildly described by the epithet of gross carelessness. Had the Government, however, so far taken precautions against the abuse of their policy as to intrust its execution to hands that were above suspicion —had they displayed any soli citude that their contractor should be a man of such standing as would warrant his absti nence from foully disgraceful gains they might have escaped any worse charge than that of neglectfulness. But of all other firms in the world, which should be that selected by the Imperial Government but our old acquaint ances at Marseilles the house which still carried on business, and still continued to be suspected, under the name of Regis ! These are facts which lead us to the brink of very painful conclusions. A contract is drawn up for the execution of a design which, though not in itself unlawful, would naturally be brought into such close contact actions that are so, as to make it very foresee with what difficulty they w , kept distinct. No provisions are int into the contract for the more effect servation of this difference, and its . is confided to hands which, it' invetera, picions be not totally groundless, are likely to break them down than them. Here we pause for the present. The quences that might have been foreseen followed. Slaves are purchased unbly The slave trade has again raised i. The chiefs are everywhere hunting down their unhappy subjects, and making war on each other for the sake of captives. A flourishing settlement of free Africans under British pro tection has been well-nigh broken up, and a promising branch of British commerce nipped in the bud. What will Lord PALMERSTON do ? We anxiously await the information, ith trans- 1 , easy to would be itroduced tual pre- excution erate sue- are more maintain 0 • 'he conse- een have • lushingly. its head. A • ; e • joreign earrtsgonttutt. PARIS, October 29. THE principal question for discussion at the ap proaching reunion here of the plenipotentiaries in congress will, in all probability, turn on the best way for carrying out the spirit of the Treaty of Paris with regard to the Danubian principalities. The particular views of each power will be duly weighed, and the decision come to will not be to satisfy the pretensions of any one party, but the interest of all. Even the wishes of the Rouman Divans, although unquestionably they will have great weight, will not bias beyond a certain extent the votes of the plenipo tentiaries. The great point to be maintained in view, is the equilibrium of European power, and the perma nent preservation of peace. Austria may desire that no impediments shall be offered to her free naviga tion of the Danube, that no ungovernable new king. dom on her frontiers should endanger her inward tranquillity. England may support Austria, and Turkey may speak loudly of her sovereignty; but all this, which will be discussed and examined, will not decide the question. Much has been said about the position France is likely to take in this important matter, and it has been reported in many quarters that the opinion of the Emperor has lately undergone a great change. This is not the fact. The policy of the Emperor has always been to carry out the wishes of the people, legally and loyally expressed, so long as the accom plishment of such views does not interfere with the general welfare and tranquillity of Europe. The Rou man Divans have expressed the desire to be governed