The Press.
London, England, 1854-10-21 00:00:00

986

The experience of contending nations has
taught them that they cannot be at one and
the same time upon terms of commercial
amity and deadly strife. After war was de-
clared, our Government, although recognising
to an unprscedented extent the rights .Of
neutrals, seemed reselveci to maintain tilt, es-
tablished rule of the law of nations respecting
commercial intercourse with the enemy. On
the 12th of April last Lord CLABENDO!4 in
reply to a comninnication addressed to him obi
the subject, stated officially that all trade with
Russia, whether direct or indirect, was illegal.
Three days afterwards an order in Council ap-
peared authorising to any extent the importa-
tion of Russian produce in neutral vessels.
We remarked at the time that, had that order
issued from St. Petersburg instead of Windsor,
it could not have more effectually promoted
the interests of the Czar. Experience has
already shown that we did not exaggerate the
truth.
If, therefore, we really desire to cripple the
• resources of our gigantic enemy, the order in
• Council of the 15th of April must be forthwith
repealed. Until this is done, our Baltic block-
ade is a farce. We merely shut up one outlet
of Russian commerce, while we open up an-
. other ; and we complain of the fraudulent
neutrality of Prussia, instead of the incompe-
tence of our own bewildered rulers, who are
really responsible for the frauds of which we
hear so much. We need hardly add that the
repeal of this order, through which Russian
property of every description is freely admitted
into England, would not at all affect the pre-
vious royal declaration, which proclaims the
security of the neutral flag in the present war :
that is entirely a separate question, although
the two are often confounded. To acknow-
ledge to their fullest extent the commercial
rights of neutral nations may be justifiable
under certain circumstances ; but by what
process of reasoning are we to arrive at the
conclusion that it is wise to encourage the
trade of an enemy, and thereby to add to his
• wealth and strength? The only possible reply
to this question is, that by shutting out his
commerce we may inflict greater injury upon
ourselves than upon him. But this extrava-
gant assumption is contradicted by the coin.
mon consent of nations. It is contradicted
more especially by the history of our former
war with Russia herself in 1801, which was
brought to a successful termination in the
course of a few months, by the simple expe-
dient of annihilating her commerce.
But this is not the only novelty of the pre-
sent war. The noble Premier, in his recent
, address to the good people of Aberdeen, took
credit to himself for bringing about another
•• most important change. "We have," he said,
" by our example, put an end to privateering—
" a most dreadful relic of a barbarous age."
What did his Lordship mean by giving utter-
ance to such a boast? Has he forgotten that,
in reply to the French and British declarations
' of the 28th of March, the Emperor of RUSSIA
was wholly and ominously silent on the sub-
ject of privateerino Did he not by that
silence reserve to himself the unquestionable
right of issuing letters of marque, should he
see fit to do so ? Possibly Lord ABERDEEN
may have overlooked this little incident; but
he cannot have forgotten the utter failure of
his negotiations with the Government of the
United States upon the same subject. He
cannot have forgotten that, in reply to his pro-
posal for a total suppression of privateering,
' Mr. MARCY, in a despatch of the 15th of April
last, addressed to the Minister of the United
States in London, distinctly stated that his
Government "is not prepared to listen to any
" proposition for the total suppression of priva-
" Wring. It would not enter into any convention
" whereby it would preclude itself from re-
" sorting to the merchant marine of the coun-
' " try in case it should become a belligerent
• " party." Surely, therefore, Lord ABERDEEN
overstepped the bounds of common decency
in eliciting a cheer from the provost and
bailies of Aberdeen, under the egregiously
I false pretence of putting down this " most
dreadful relic of a barbarous age," which it is
evident both Russia and the United States are
ready to revive whenever it may suit their
purposes to do so.

_ _Alba