The Press. — London, England, 1856-11-08 00:00:00

1062 LORD PALMERSTON AT MANCHESTER. LORD AND LADY PALMERSTON left town for Manchester on Tuesday, and arrived the same evening at CI aremon t, the seat of Sir Benjamin Heywood, Bart. On Wed nesday the noble lord visited the Exhibition of Art Building, and different factories and public works in the town. On Thursday the presentation of congra tulatory addresses took place. The first presentation took place in the Peel-park, when the mayor and corporation of Salford presented the noble lord with an address from the borough, which expressed " unfeigned admiration and respect" at the voluntary relinquishment by the noble lord "of a hardly earned leisure " to discharge the duties of office, as well as a sense of deep satisfaction and thankfulness at the return of peace. Mr. Bro!herton, M.P., sup • ported the address in a brief speech. He approved of the noble lord's foreign policy. He supported him when attacked in 1850, for, although it had been said that Lord Palmerston was no friend of peace, he would reply that as long as Lord Palmerston held the seals of the Foreign-office he did preserve the peace of Europe, and that by the wisdom of his adminis tration as Prime Minister he had terminated the war by an honourable and satisfactory peace. Lord Palmerston had also been connect3d with every measure of reform that had passed since Mr. Bro therton had been in the house, and he lett sure that the noble lord would continue to pursue that course best adapted to promote the happiness and prospe rity of England. In conclusion, Mr. Brotherton expressed his strongest conviction that the noble lord's name would "go down to posterity among those of the most distinguished statesmen of our time, and as the zealous friend of freedom, progress, and peace." _ _ Lord PALMERSTON,' who was warmly received, replied, expressing his gratification at the reception he had met with in ➢lanchester. Such great com munities as tilanchester represented were especially characteristic of the nature of that system of local self-government so fortunately established, and by which the affairs of the country were carried on with little interference from the Executive, to the satisfac tion of the people, the benefit of the empire, and to the raising the character and reputation of the country. The hon. member for Salford had alluded to his (Lord Palmerston's) foreign policy, and the accusations of 1850 : Those accusations allow me to say were founded on a misconception of the nature of things—( cheers and laughter) —for, depend upon it, that a country this, with great interests at stake and a great reputation to maintain, with our fellow subjects scattered over the whole face of the globe, with our property floating upon every ocean, with commercial transactions extending to the remotest corners of the earth—depend upon it, I say, that a country so circum stanced does well, acts wisely, to guard against the approach of insult and the very appearance of wrong, and that it is easier to stop the beginning of such affairs than to find a remedy when the evil has risen to a great magnitude and when great efforts may bt required to check it. Therefore, my object throughout the transactions to which my hon. friend has made reference was not to bring on war, but to prevent war ; and rely upon it that that is the true policy for this country. It is the policy which has been pursued by all those statesmen of former times who have raised most highly the reputation of this country and most en joyed the confidence of the people ; it is the policy, be assured of it, which all enlightened statesmen will adopt, and which all intelligent people will justify and approve. Upon the point of future reforms, Lord Palmerston said : Progressive improvement is what every man studies to practise in his private affairs, and why should not the nation practise it also? When we look around, we find that every man in his private capacity improves his estate his house, his business, his machinery, his manufactures, Then why should we not endeavour to be perpetually. ameliorating those laws and institutions which, being human, cannot be perfect, but which, according to the progress of society and the change of circumstance, must be continually in need of emendation and extension ? The noble lord then alluded to the effect of moral authority as the hest means of self-defence for a nation, though of course all nations must possess more material means for that purpose, and, after a few compliments to Mr. Brotherton, shortly concluded. The noble lord then took his departure amid the cheers of the assembly. He repaired without delay to the Town hall of Manchester, there to receive the address of the Town Council, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Commercial Association. The building was crowded to excess, and presented a brilliant and animated appearance. The mayor and members of the corporation wore their robes of office. The appearance on the platform of the Premier and Lady Palmerston was the signal for some hearty cheei ing. Three a.ldresses were then read. They were each highly complimentary to the noble lord, ex pressing the utmost confiience in Lord Palmerston and his foreign policy. That from the Chamber of Commerce called the Premier's attention to the pre carious nature of the supply of cotton, and to the THE PRESS. restrictive nature of our system of colonial govern ment. Lord Palmerston, on rising to reply, was received with most hearty cheers. Alluding to the impulse given by free trade to the productive industry and accumulated wealth of the country, as the best argument to induce continental countries to follow our example, the noble lord observed : When they see how, by freedom of intercourse, the wealth and prosperity of this country have increased they cannot but think that the narrow principles upon which their policy has hitherto been founded must be erroneous ; and nation after nation, Government after Government, are insensibly falling into our track. And I trust that if peace shall continue in Europe—which I hope and believe it will—the principle of freedom of commercial intercourse is destined to take a great and rapid development ; and that we shall find even those countries which we have least hoped to see adopt it, tardily perhaps, but surely, imitate our example. It is, however, amusing sometimes to see the manner in which those who found their practice upon different principles deal with those of a contrary school. It was the cry in Germany when England fol. lowed the restrictive system that England, by its prohibi tions and duties, wanted to ruin Germany; that we wished to sell without buying—a problem somewhat difficult to realise—( laughter )—that we wished to inundate the Conti nent with our manufactures, and to take nothing in return —a most generous and disinterested course, if it had been pursued—(applause)—and that our restrictive system was, in short, to be the ruin of continental industry. Well, but now a different, an opposite complaint is made. They say, " See the deep designs of those perfidious English men. (Laughter.) They have abolished all their re strictions; they have allowed our corn to come in ; they buy our corn out of our mouths, and the consumption of foreign corn in England is raising the price of every article of life upon the Continent." (Cheers and laughter.) Well, gentlemen, I say that whatever Government shall henceforward rule the destinies of this country, they must found their policy upon this principle of freedom of trade, and they must endeavour, by example, by argument, and by all other means, to induce other countries to adopt it in their turn. (Hear, hear.) The noble lord then alluded to the difficulties of his position on taking office, and attributed the result of his endeavours to bring the war to a successful ter mination to the confidence and support of the Queen, the spirit of the people, the heroic courage and en durance of our troops, the fidelity of our allies, and the justice of our cause. Peace was now concluded : he hoped it might be lasting : Its duration (observed Lord Palmerston) must depend upon the honour and fidelity with which its conditions al • fulfilled. 3 trust that that power which brought upon itself the hostility, either active or moral, of all Europe, by a forgetfulness of international rights and duties-1 trust that that power, having concluded a treaty, will observe that treaty, and fulfil it with faithfulness, and then, no doubt, peace will be of long duration. With respect to reforms, progressive improvement was the law of our moral nature, and it would of course be the object of the Government to occupy themselves in carrying out permanent improvements. Lord Palmerston then alluded to a reference made to the protection of British subjects abroad : Gentlemen, it has been observed—and I am much flat- tered by the observation—that in the course of my admi nistration of the foreign affairs of the country I was careful of the interests of her subjects in foreign parts. (Ap. plause.) In that respect I have felt that I was only the organ of the British nation. I felt that any Government that did not extend the strong arm of protection to all those who are in the right, in any part of the world, would not be the faithful organs of the people whom they were appointed to govern ; and there is this to be remarked about that—that the difficulties that may arise in regard to the protection of individuals from wrong are difficulties which generally arise in weak and small States. Larger powers are above these things. The men who govern them have a regard for the honour of their country ; they are men whose personal feelings teach them to discern right and wrong; and therefore, with the larger powers— either of Europe or the United States—we have little difficulty in protecting subjects, because there we find a sense of right and wrong that, when appealed to, is sure to obtain justice and redress. (Hear, hear.) It is among the smaller States, where, from various circumstances which I don't wish now to go into, the principles of right and wrong are not quite so steadily kept in view— (laughter)—it is there that we are most frequently called upon to interfere. And then, when we do interfere, people say, "Ah ! you attack the weak." Why, those countries abuse their weakness; they make their weakness the pre tence for doing evil, trusting that you will overlook their delinquencies, merely because you are able to obtain re dress for yourselves. In conclusion, Lord Palmerston promised that the serious attention of the Government should be given to the cotton supply question, and resumed his seat amidst hearty cheers. The noble lord then visited the Exchange and other parts of the city, and in the course of the evening attended a meeting of the Mechanics' Institute in the Free trade Hall. Mr. HtTwoon having addressed the meeting at some length, the noble lord rose, and, characterising the two distinctive features of the age as the princi ple of co-operation for common things and the diffu sion of knowledge, proceeded to point out the advan tages of education and information. He was opposed SATURDAY, to the old saying, that a little knowledge was a dangerous thing : A little knowledge is better than no knowledge at all. The more knowledge a man has the better, but if his time and the means at his disposal do not permit of his acquiring deep and accurate knowledge, let him have as much as he can, and, depend upon it, he will he all the better fur ii—kuulittuueLl appittubt.:)--ituu, although he may not be able to drink deeply of that spring, if his lips have once tasted it he will go back to the same delicious waters whenever he has an oppor. tunity; and his draughts, be they great or small, wil refresh his fancy, invigorate his intellect, raise hira in the scale of civilisation, contribute to his individual happiness, and make him a more useful and honourable member of society. And why should not a life of labour be now and then cheered by the cultivation of the imaginative faculties? Why should not a day of fatigue be relieved in the evening by the occasional indulgence in the pleasura of poetry, and in that delightful enjoyment which t,e best works of fiction impart? Such occasional recreations, though they ought not to be the sole object of reading, are nevertheless useful, by giving buoyancy to the intellect and inspiring the mind with noble sentiments and feelings which deserve to be culti. vated. You cannot expect that a working man having but a small portion of time to devote to pursuits of this description should become an historian, but why should he not, by books well adapted fur the purpose, gain a general knowledge of the history of this country, learn something of the rise, decay, and fall of empires, and judge of the causes which contribute to national prosperity and to national ruin ? It is clear, therefore, that institutions which promote such desirable objects are eminently deserving of the support of the people; they are peculiarly congenial to the habits of the British nation, and they are singularly in accordance with the spirit of the British constitution. They tend to bring together the different classes of society, combining them in the bonds of good fellowship, alloying their jealousies, mitigating their asperities, and causing them to work together in harmonious action for the general benefit of tie commonwealth. (Cheers.) Professor SCOTT and Dr. VAUGHAN also addressed the meeting at some length, and the proceedings terminated at ten o'clock. Yesterday the noble lord visited Liverpool. THE EBINBURGH CRIMEAN BANQUET. THE banquet to the Crimean soldiers in Edinburgh took place in the Corn Exchange there yesterday week, and was a most brilliant and successful demonstration. The hall was profusely decorated with military trophies, consisting in great part of spoils taken from the Russians, over which waved the flags of the gallant regiments invited to the banquet. Surmounting the whole was emblazoned the significant scroll, " Vicicome to Auld Reekie." Flags, banners, emblematic figures, illuminations, and armorial devices surrounded the hall, and what with the brilliant uniforms of the guests, the orna ments of the tables, and the bright dresses of the ladies, the scene was one hitherto unequalled in the old city. The number of troops and guests present con siderably exceeded 2,000. The galleries on three sides of the hall were occupied by nearly 500 ladies, exhibiting a most brilliitnt array of beauty and fashion. The chairman's table was placed across the upper end of the hall, and from it ten tables extended to the bottom. Each table accommodated about 140. The chair was occupied by the Right Hon. the Lord Provost, Lord Lieutenant of the city. On his right sat the Earl of Elgin and Kincardine, K.T., Viscount Melville, commanding in North Britain ; Captain Ramsay, R.N., C. 8., late of the Bitinheim. On his lordship's left were Lord Gray of Kinfauns, Lieutenant• Colonel M'Mahon, sth Dragoon Guards ; Captain W. H. Hall, C. 8., late of the Ilecla ; Lieutenant-Colonel Hamley, R.A., Sir John M'Neill, G.C.B. The guests were provided with a good and sub stantial dinner, with a quart of pale ale and a pint of wine each. The toast of " The Queen " was received with the warmest enthusiasm by the whole company, as was Rico that of " The Prince Consort and the Royal Family." The Earl of DALKEITB having proposed the next toast, " The Navy," Captain RAMSAY, C. 8., replied, and referred to the impracticable nature of the service in the Baltic and Black Sea, so far as bringing the Russians out to action. The spirit of our men was always up to the fighting point, and in illustration of this Captain ltamsay alluded to a small circumstance that oc curred up the Baltic, which showed their readiness and enthusiasm At the commencement of the siege of Bomarsund, the four line•of battle ships which were more specially em ployed in that service, a little after four in the morning, had landed large parties of men to drag the guns up to a position from which they might take the enemy's forte. These men had got their breakfasts at four in the morn ing, and were employed in dragging up their guns till half-past three in the afternoon, when they had arrived at the position in which they were to remain for the night. g