The Express.
London, England, 1867-04-29 00:00:00

THE LONDON CONFERENCE..

The success with which the efforts of the media-
ting powers have been crowned is due, the Times says, to
none more than to England, and the mediators ought to
be inspired with good confidence for further achievements,
—such as the revision of the treaties of 1814. Indeed. so
confident is the Times that the London conference will
have a feasible, however difficult, enterprise before them,
that it almost feels inclined to extend their sphere of
action, and ask whether they could not only patch up a
speedy peace, but also build up a permanent one ; not only
induce the would-be belligerents to" kiss and make friends,"
but aho to put up their weapons. The desideratum of the
present day is general disarmament, and it is reasonable to
expect that the conference will not separate without set-
tling the terms upon which this great object may become
attainable.

Amidst the various announcements which since Satur-
day last have changed the face of Europe to something like
confidence, the Daily News selects as facts, the accept-
ance at Paris and Berlin of the arbitration, and the forth-
coming conference at London, but it takes leave to doubt
the story that Lord Stanley, of all foreign secretaries in
the world, hoe by declaring the right of the King of Hol-
land secretly to sell to another state a population of 200,000
souls—decided in advance in favour of the intending ag-
gressor. It also finds it impossible to suppose that her
Majesty can have committed to writing in the form of •
letter destined to publicity, not merely an invocation in
behalf of peace, which everybody would approve of,
but sentiments with respect to Prussian policy
and the reputed opinion of " all England." Re-
joicing at the concili►tory spirit manifested by the ca-
binet of Berlin, the Daily News adds that that cabinet
would not submit its claims to a conference which had pre-
judged the question. That is more than can reasonably
be expected even by those who are willing to forget that
this Luxemburg question is due entirely to the King of
Holland's want of pocket money. and to the Emperor
Napoleon's want of glory, to cover his discomfiture in
Mexico, his miscalculation of last year's events in Ger-
m►ny, his need of a diversion to public spirit at home,
and his dread of universal suffrage in 1869.
The Post congratulates Lord Stanley on the success of
his foreign policy not only in the Luxemburg dispute, but
in Spain and in the East. With regard to the conference,
it can only hope it will prove more satisfactory in It. re-
sults than that which, under the presidency of Earl Rua-
sell, assembled in 1864 with the view of saving the Danish
kingdom from dismemberment.

The Standard informs it. readers that we owe in a very
great degree to the wise and decided action taken by the
English government the fact that the peril, which looked
so imminent a day or two ago, has been staved off, perhaps
to disappear altogether. The Standard, however, looks
with apprehension to the state of public feeling in
Germany.

The Star protests against any interference whatever of
England in the Luxemburg question. If Prussia yields to
our urgency any point which otherwise she would have
maintained, it will only be because she thinks we might
join with France against her, and she is not prepared to
fight half Europe. In other words, she will regard us as •
dangerous enemy, or she will treat us with mere indif-
ference and contempt. That is the plain English of the
affair. That is what English intervention in such a way
must mean. Thus if the aspect of aL►irs looks better for
Europe than it did last week, it looks rather worse so far
as England is alone concerned.