The Express.
London, England, 1864-04-12 00:00:00

DENMARK AND GERMANY.

Lord CAMPBELL rose to adl the attention of the 1,
house 14 the eorreepoodence upon Denmark and Germany
which has been presented to parliament ; and to move that
in the opinion of this home, if the demand toads by Den-
mark for ninliation, according to the principle laid down in 4
the protocol of Paris, 1856, had been more decidedly sup- I
ported by her Majesty's government, the bloodshed and ;
the other evils already occasioned by the war in Denmark I
might have been prevented, and there would bay, been less
dung r than there now is of a more extensive disturbance in I
the pc.oe of Europe. That, in the opioioa of this house,
a cm! ,rence upon the Danish question, in order to teed to
• practical result. ought to be accompanied by such steps as
may ‘urince the powers of Europe that her Majesty's
government adhere to the treaties in which the Duchy of
Shawl: has bean guaranteed to Denmark be Great
Britaiu. The noble lord stated that before proceedieg to
discuss the points alluded to in the despatches, he would
congratulate the noble earl at the head of the Foreign-office
on his having declined to be • party to any further obstacle
to a parliamentary discussion of the affairs of Denmark and
Germany. If ever there was a time when, with • view to
practi;:al results, such a discussion might be justified, this
was, it. In the papers which had been published it I
did not appear that her Majesty's government tied at-
tempted to enforce the observance of the protocol of 1856
which would place the present difficulties under arbitration.
He would Mk the house to affirm the proposition that • •
conference had no elements of • practical result unless
further steps towards that end were adopted. The first
question which presented itself was what great power was
to be relied upon as is any manner likely to support Great
Britain at the conference. They could not coast on the
support of Russia. became the kussian government had
declared that a concert now existed between that govern.
scent and the powers of Germany. It most be clear to
every oce that the avowed objects of the Russian government
coiacided with those of the German powers in regard to the
Polish insurrection. and that they did Pot coincide with
those of Great Britain. Thu as to France. The papers
lai.l on the table abounded with evidence epos the subject,
and showed that the French government distrusted the effi-
cacy and disbelieved in the power of a conference to bring
about pacification. Still less oould the government of Great
/Intel 3 look to Prussia or Austria as destined to act with
them, since all the indications that had come from those
govatrocuts showed that a oonterecce could not start from
any cammiti basis. No doubt the government of
her Majesty might rely on Sweden, bat would the weight
and power of Swedes be sufficient ° But ba would admit
that they would he sufficient if there were a general cos-
vidion somegst the great European powers that Great
Britain was loyally and devotedly attached to the treaty
engagements by which Sleswig became a part of, and was
guaranteed to the monarchy of Denmark. But no Man
who looked abroad could believe that such faith existed.
That it did not exist was shown in the speech of the 15th
February and in the despatch of the 19th of
February of the noble earl at the head of the
Foreisn-oftice, in both of which that noble earl held
that the language of Prussia and Austria might cover
aggrenion and outrage, no matter how unsupportable, so
long as it was accompanied with a disclaimer of any ultimate
design . upon Denmark. A great and heavy blow
was given to the Danish monarchy by the re-
fusal of the British government to join the
°ea.:fess proposed by the Emperor of the French.
The Oiject of the confereems would be the objects of Den-
mark and of Grut Britain, but the power most interested
in the 4uccees of the contemner. was Denmark; but be
could not beln thinking that their lordships would agree
that the conference abounded in elements of failore, and if
it did fail, the war would goat, and the result might be the
dismemberment of Denmark, which would produce a dis-
turbance of the balance of power in Europe, whereby new
elsomet: would be produced for discussion. But if the war
should be put an god to by the intervention of France,
Russia. and Great Britain, those governments would be
drawn into the vortex. He would again venture to main-
tain that the only condition upon which the conference
coon eucteel was that Great Britain should inspire
faith in other powers that the guarantees which
bound her towards Denmark should be supported.
The presence of the noble lord at the Foreign-office must be
a fatal bar to the success of the expediecta which bad bees
proposed. The noble lord had been associated with the
despatch to which be bad referred—to the despatch of 1864
—with the refusal of the congress proposed by France, and
with • further despatch, in which he reprobated the consti-
tution of February. He wished to guard hinveU against a
geoeml 'concurrence in the language which had been used,
both in that home and elsewhere, respecting the presence of
ao Eoglisb fleet in the Baltic. It had been suggested that •
British fleet should appear in the Baltic, with a view to the
protecnonof Soederburg and Flensburg, and also to watch
the A ustri in and Prussian men-of-war and control their
operations. He *might the presence of • British fleet in
the Little Belt would be useful to protect the island of
Funen. A far more guarded, and at the name time more
effective, step world he the occupation of fCiel pending the
deliberations of the coatereoce. If it were once made known
that Kiel was not destined to fall under the sway of Prussia,
that power would cease to be more anxious than Austria for
the further prosecuting of the present war of aggres-
sion against Lienmark. No one who looked at the
position of affairs at the other side of the Atlantic'
would desire to propose a courts which seemed
likely to bring tins country into hostility with any
part of Europe—and be believed that the course he bad
indicated had no such tendency. But supposing Flensburg
and Kid should be occupied by the German navy, treatise,
policy, and interest would prevent Great Britain from ac-
quiescing in that occupation, and war would be necessary to
terminete it. If the German powers were entitled to take
material posseseion of land io pursuit of a shadowy and
doubtful nght, surely Great Britain was entitled to take
material possession of the waters, in discharge of en um
doubted obligation which abe had contracted by treaty.
The effect of stationing a British fleet in those waters
would he to give this country a diplomatic locus
which she had not at present. With our fleet in the Baltic
Great Britain would be able to make her voice heard. Bat
eras if the house thought it inexcedieet to affirm the
proposition that oar fleet should be sent to the Baltic,
lie (intended there could he no objection to declaring
that the 000 Terence was not likely to be successful unless
Europe were previously ecovioced that England was deter-
mined to guarantee the integrity of Lhe Danish mooarchy.
Without that pledge he believed the conference was only
calculated to bring on Denmark further wrongs, on Great
Britain sew humiliation, and on the cultism% of Europe
clouds still more dark than those which menaced its horizon
at the present moment. The noble lord concluded by
moving the resolutions of which he had given notice.

The Doke of ARGYLL said it was a great mistake to
suppose that it was the desire, or wish, or interest of any.
government to interfere with parliamentary discussion on
questious like the present. It was at all times in the
power of the government, without the consent of parlia-
ment, to commit the honour and credit of the country,
both is poem and war, and parliament was jealous of say
attempt to divest them of that responsibility. Oa the dna