The Express.
London, England, 1859-07-25 00:00:00

ENGLAND AND EUROPE.

The following article appeared in the literary
columns of the Journal des Debits of Saturday last,
introduced by a few lines respecting the new "
Hie
toire d'Angieterre," by M. Braila de Botnechose.
The article is signed by M. PreTost-Paradol.
England hem just caused • strange surprise not to Europe
oal hut to those statesmen who fended they knew her beet,
to those among her great citizens who thought they were per-
fectly certain to lead her. Far the first time perhaps in her
history she has allowed a great war to commence and continue,
• re-arrangement of territory to be announced and accom-
plished not only without taking pad la it, but with the firm
resolution of having nothing to do with it. She hes im-
posed this resolution on her statesmen; she has watched
them with jealous atten lest they might be tempted to
disobey her ; the hao iddsa them to entertain the
slightest intention of mixing up with Iles conflict the name
and arms of the Bogllah people • and so well has she suc-
ceeded in this difficult dimign,trio the war was brought to a
close, end piece re-segabid in Europe, without England's
taking any greater part la It than Portugal or Denmark,
The ministers who, true to the tradition of their country,
formed a different idea of hen tutored., and duties, no more
succeeded in moving her than Don Quixote did in carrying
off that celebrated wooden born on which he fancied he
could travel through the vast fields of air. It was in vein
they let off crackers near the ears of the peaceful unmet,
am tout squibs under his tail; nothing stirred
his inflexible Immobility, and after all this *lune, he footed
himself In the same place as at first. But the question is,
whether Ingland Mb herself, at the end of thin episode, in
the emu pleas ea at the tegianing, sad whether she corms
net of thin trial as bind as Don Quixote's steed.
Fleet of all let us inquire what were the chief causes of
liagland's taking as new end decided en attitude is the great
mina we have just passed through. Above all, it was that
increasing disgust for war, which In the nineteenth century
ia both the glory and the weakness of civilised communities.
It moat be admitted that England never manitheted greeter
repuguence to war, or greater attachment to peace, then
during the
re first mouths of this year. It is not only—as
people ere toe fond of saying, the immense development of
materiel interests, that makes maims, when they hare
the contemn of their own destinies,so slow to have
recourse to arms; it is a general sentimentof humanity; it is a
greater respect for human life, • livelier coseciouthees of the
manifold etribe brought about by war. and of the responsibility
attaching to thorn who let loose such • scourge upon the
world without absolute necemity. If these idea, exercise et
the present day) a great influence upon the continent itself, if
the most warbles nation in the world has telt their constrain-
ing power, what action must they not have upon England,
laden, as she indeed in with the most genial blessings of
modern dviHraon, accustomed snore and more to internal
peace, to labour, order and liberty, end the pagoda' enjoy-
ment of the greatest blessings that nations can dente?
Not only ere the English inclined in these days to consider
wee barbarous, bat a considerable part of the English
public, deeply imbued with Christian Area, teem&
ea a sin. They hesitate long, they weigh all
the circumstances before admitting this right of drawing
the sword, which a short time back gave such little trouble
to the conscience of odious or sovereigns. This tolerably
memersaa portion of the public hareem* by degrees to apply
to the conduct of nations those absolute maxima that consti-
tute the ideal of the Christian life. They do not go so far as
to say that the duty of • people, like that of • martyr, is to
suffer lt.elf to be immolated, nor oven to tura the cheek to
the snider ; but they concede to • people nothing beyond the
right of defending its ethitanoe, sod they deny it. right of
raising itself as formerly or maintaining itself by arms amidst
the recurring oonflicta that agitate the world. They have
thus invented • sort of catechism for the use of nations that
yea utterly unknown to Elizabeth, Cromwell, end Pitt, and
which Louis ILLY. and Nepolooo, if they take an interest
about each thins in the other world, must bitterly regretnot
to hare aeon disseminated and put in practice earlier among
the English people.
It would be wrong, however, to attribute solely to the pee-
-1 gems of civilisation and to the influence of Christian send-
mats this attachment of England to pseos—thle altogether
I novel porton for a atria neutrality. Pride end contempt,
mellowest and the diedaio of others, have • large share M it.
Eight or among, the English public has accustomed itself to
regard the greater pars of the contimmtal nations es irre-
vocably devoted to anarchy or slavery, and consequently it
takea less inteety.t in their mists or quarrels so long as Eng-
land's security does not moped to it to be directly threatened.
Elated, moreover, by this progress of her race over every
part of the glote, by the wonderful development of
her new colonies, by the foundation of those dietant empires
where her °adorns, freedom, industry, and all the germs of
her own pennier greetnaae, live again together with bee
language, England has insensibly been led to give to con-
tinental nations a lees coneiderable share in her affair*, and
to sttaeh less importance to the events that change the face
of Europe. She boasted, not long since, of being the first
Mareultuan poser in the world ; she is also a !rest oceanic
power, and she in a great American power, and anticipating
the future in this pert of the globe she refuses to consider
I Europe any looger as the sole arena where at all costs she
must acquire or preserve the first rank. Las concerned
shoat the more.s of her ancient rivals, she is also less
kidous of upholding the balance of their power,
and of watching their mutual escroachments,
I end this turn of rated is the more adyantageom to her since
she finds • pretext therein for sparing hermit' great sacrifices
and vigorous reeolutions.
From all these sentiment,. good or bed, exalted or selfish,
has resulted the conduct of Ragland In the present crisis.
The future alone .ill show whether she bps not erred in her
Instincts and calculations, and whether, hi adoptiog a policy
similar to America's, she has not forgotten that It is not the
oath, but merely the Channel, that separates her from a
continent filled with soldiers. If the pram party (which in
Berland la the dominant party as the war party is with us)
the pow party has been right—if it has actually
revealed to England the admirable roast of pre-
serving her Inflames over Europe without taking part
in Its quarrels, this party has rendered its country en im-
mense service ; U. on the contrary, it bee been mietalon,
in prematurely disunion England from her continental
ties it has deprived her at the sometime too soon of her sup-
ports, It has placed la extreme jeopardy not only the greet-
nem of do country, but its very existence.
In fact, the aspect of Europe moat awoken now very elitist-
rent feelings In the browser • Frenchman end in that of an
Englishman, and may give to the former a many hopes ea
to the latter just soarers of thessinow. England con say
to herself I have never been much liked upon the Conti-
' teat; but I was feared there; now they fear me much less,
and go nnt like Me more 011 that account. I had not long
since before me a nation powerful end jealous, but iodated
and aurrouncird am It were by my ventral allies; sow
I nee in Europe only old enemies who have not pardoned my
thememe, only old friends who attribute to ma their reverses.
I yea eccuwomed to fight against one thou, with the help of
several ; I may have to tight Fennel, and can no kroner do-
ped upon the aid of one. Thou whom I have left to de-
fied [homonym alone would see me without displeasure un-
dergo the same trial, and would calmly represent to me that
it is for the general interest to localise toe war. What boots
it to me tf ehettered by my shire I can defy tbe whole mat-
vane? But it is very expensive to have for the future to
guard them self against the whole universe, and incessantly
to be in expectation of • great day when all will
be saved or lost. Perhaps 1 was net wrong to hero
bad formerly allies in the world, and to have accustomed
them to depend on roe, in order that I myself might depend
on them. I have changed my eystem ; the event will teach
me if I have done right." Oa her side, France can consider
Europe with some security, and even tome hope; she may
say to herself :—. Formerly I could not nisi my erns against
any cue without being induadistely forced to parry the blow
of another; now if I hare any quarrel of this kind to settle,
they will willingly see me at It, and there will be tome to
spplaud me, who formerly would have fought with me.
.E a rare subjectis is really a great maxim, anti I hue derived
great advantages from is. if 1 see en oreesi,u ter necessity
for it, I shell willingly apply thesecond half of the Irene, and
shall thereby plea. everybody. But whatever may happen
here I am surrounded with old *dragons, to whom I
have proved that I poisoned rather the power then the
wish to injure them, sad that I desired has their defeat
than their friendship. Ise us wait and hope.'•
Such is pretty mealy for us and our neighbours the morel
of the fable thet has just been recited to Europe. This labia
is iostructive for every one, mp-cially for the philosopher
and historian, who love to account for the progr..es of human
affairs; it has a certain grandeur term the extent of the
scene and the importance of the interests at stake there ; but
it bas also • comic side, through the ridicule produced by
certain sours. We tend not set to criticise the my Ael low
OrfMintr of our flestioies, if Ming a god prince and liking
sometimm to make us laugh it Owes him to bestow a
pail OD Blight, Cobden, end some other to nuns of
smiler miaius, In the manta that chugs the fon of the
world.

THE " JOURNAL DES DEBATE " AND ENGLISH
DIVENCES.—In alluding to the recent article iu the Journal
des Debate on the continued meseures of selbdefenes
on the part of England, the Paris correepond-
ent of the Tins., in hie letter of yesterday, rays:
" You may be surprised th.t a j weal en serious,
so moderate, and so superior in every respect ea the billets
should give such on interprets. ion to the me nee of self-de-
feces Wren by England. You will not be earprised, however,
when I give the explanation. The article in question was
wraten by Ise ledividual who bat the ante time • part pro-
prietor of the Dikes and who fills (*rein fune-
tone courecied with the impenal government. Ills connexion
with the Dikes, though not with Ire editonet d. pertinent, en-
ables him occasionally to procure the insertion of an artide even
when in opposition to the views of the regular wrirere for
that p•per. The article, for which they are nit in the least
responeible, and with the views r zpressed in ebich they do
not oaincide, appeared in a pan of the paper which doe. not
usually coutatir the regular articles of the Redaction,
end it was merely signed by the 'Smetana de la Redaction.
The sulk, r, • government functionary, se 1 have said, is the
some person who wrote the Omni story some time elate
about the formidable (artifice. blue of Pennt, In the Rid 806.
A CURIOUS MARRIAGE.—A man, aged 80 years,
and living is the parish of Elliman, was mended, on the
18th Mo., toe young lady only 16 yell?. old. Further, she
be* been blind toe the last ten years. The bridegroom. te-
pid*. being Ito Md. is lame. an,d went go without the aid of a
=tab—internee's Aerreel.
CITY OP LONDON HOSPITAL FOR DISEASES OF THE
CIiVAT,VICTORIA-PARK:Tbe number of patients relieved
at this inatitutton Gering lest week was 1,038, of which 161
were new saw.