The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1856-04-26 00:00:00

THE CONGRESS.

SENTIMENTS OF THE PRESIDENT

COUNT WALEWSKI

•
The interest attaching to the proceedings of the
Peace
the Congress
in Paris, will not have subsided by
;le Publication of the text of the treaty, which our
8° "las yesterday conveyed to the public. The
impetus
already observed, has served as an.
'Petus to enquiry, and hence we feel satisfac-
ttra°ll being enabled to present to our readers the
berg importantiMportant review taken by Count Walewski,
"itla reference to many topics of vital importance
to. Europe. On the Bth instant, after some formal
,
•
llslness had been disposed of by the Congress,
Count .Walewski rose and said : He thought it
was desirable that, before they separated, the
•
plenipotentiaries should exchange their ideas upon
v •
tilinus subjects which called for solution, and
R•hi
ah it might be useful to take into consideration,
With
- a view to prevent future complications.
Although they had assembled for the . special
1)1111)08e of arranging the Eartern question, the
0 engress might, in his opinion, have to reproach
it Self it were not to take advantage of 'the cir
c ..urnstances which had brought together so many
rPresentatives of the principal powers of Europe,
~`°..elucidate certain questions, lay down certain prin-
nples, and give utterance to certain sentiments-
-411 with the sole object of assuring the tranquility
...et the world by dispelling, while yet they were not
threatening, the clouds which might already
4.e Been lowering in the political horizon.
11 Could not, he said, be denied that Greece was
an abnormal situation.- The anarchy to which
pt country had been abandoned had compelled
„,,,ranee and England to send troops to the Piroeus,
"d that at a time when their armies had no lack
(4, ereployment elsewhere. The Congress latew
Ztutt was the state of Greece at that moment.
tereoVer, Congress could not be ignorant that
„tie condition of that country was far from satis-
lactory at the present time. It would not there-
fl,°43 be a proceeding without its utility if the powers
!Presented in the Congress were to manifest
desire to see the three protecting courts take
11to their mature consideration the deplorable
situation of the kingdom which they had created,
and ,
devise means to apply a remedy. Count
would did not doubt that Lord Clarendon
vnuld concur with him in declaring that the two
tttrnments were most anxiously looking forward
tn- (no moment when they might safely put an end
th" their occupation of Greece ; but this they felt
,23'-eould not do, so long as serious modifications
Greece.
not made in the present state of things in
4.",reece. His Excellency reminded the Congress
nlat the Pontifical States were alSo in an abnormal
Ituation. The necessity of not leaving those States
aw Prey to anarchy had determined France as
ell as Austria to respond to the request of the
Vly See in occupying Rome with her troops while
Austria occupied the Legations. France had a
double motive: in deferring without hesitation to
ae desires of the Holy-See—ist, as a catholic ;
.1111 cl 2nd, as an European power. As the " eldest
Was" ild of the church," a title of which the Emperor
tmost proud, his. Majesty had made it a duty
give his aid to the Sovereign Pontiff. But,
further, the tranquility of the Roman States,
11
1/°ll which depended the tranquility of all
ttalY, was much too closely connected with
e maintenance. of order in Europe for France
not to have an interest of the highest kind
'3 assist, by all the means in her power, in the
preservation
,of order in the Pope's dominions. He
the
how much there was that.was abnormal in
e situation of a power which had need of the sun-
Port of foreign troops in Order to maintain
he authority. He did not hesitate to declare, and
.1-Le hoped that Count Buol would say as much
on the part of Austria, that France was not
.2nlY ready to withdraw her troops from Rome,
,u,nt she desired with. all her heart that the
tltne when she might do so without compromising
intoresta Of . the Pontifieal gnvermnont, in
which the Emperor took so lively an interest,
might not be indefinitely postponed. It was
most desirable, in the interest of the equilibrium of
•NUrope, that the French forces should be enabled
,safely to evacuate the Roman States. He did not
doubt that the frank expression of these senti-
ments on the part of France and Austria would do
treat good, and produce a favourable impression.
Count Walewski felt prompted to enquire
Whether it was not to he wished that certain govern-
ine,nts in the Italian Peninsula should by acts of
well considered clemency conciliate such of their
subjects as were not perverted though they had
!eine astray, and should thus put an end to
'',B3rEitera which operated directly contrary to its
Object, a system which instead of restraining the
enemies of order had for its effect to weaken the
ftnVernments that acted upon it, and to augment
"number of the partisans of demogogy? In his
°Pinion it would be to render a signal service to the
government of the Two Sicilies as well as to the
cause of order in the Peninsula to enlighten that
Pvernment on the subjectof the wrong course which
it Was pursuing. He thought that a warning con-
ceived in this spirit, and coming from the Congress
Would be well received by the Neapolitan govern-
which could not possibly entertain any
suspicion of the, motives of advice coming from
such a quarter. Count Walewski next called the at.
tention of the Congress to a subjec(which, although
slating
,„ more immediately to France, was, never-
"leless, One of real interest to all European
Powers. It was well known that in Belgium
Publications
were printed every day which. con-
lined the most hostile ana insulting attacks upon
'ranee and her government, and that in these
Publications 'revolt and assassination were openly
advocated. Very recently some Belgian journals
pronounced an elogium on the " Marianne," a
secret society whose tendencies and objects were
lintorious. All these publications were so many
implements of war directed against the internal
tranquility
of France by the enemies of social
°lle'', who, strong in. the impunity which they
?Neared under the shelter of Belgian legisla.
"en, cherish the hope of succeeding in their guilty
pro•
jects. He protested that the sincere desire of
tl.4e Emperor was to maintain the best rela-
nns with Belgium, and he- hastened to add that
his
Majesty's government had every reason to be
satisfied with the cabinet of Brussels, which had
a
:°ne its best to mitigate a state of things which it
,was not in its power to change, because the laws of
Belgium did not empower it to repress the excesses
of the press nor to take the initiative of a reform
which had become absolutely indispensable. We
should regret (the French plenipotentiary con-
tinued) to be placed under the obligation of
urselves making Belgium to understand. that •
!t is imperatively necessary
is to modify a legis-
lation which . not compatible with the
fulfilment- by her government of the first of
international duties---namely, that of not tolera-
ting intrigws, having for their avowed object to
disturb the tranquility of neighbouring states.
Any remonstrances on the part of a stronger power
Would so much resemble a threat, that we naturally
,endeavour, by every. possible means, to avoid
'laving recourse to them. If the representatives
Of the great powers, appreciating this necessity
'Tint the same point of view as ourselves,
should think fit to express their opinion on the
subject, it is probable that the Belgian government,
relying upon the great majority of the country,
Would find itself in a position to put an end
e a state of things which cannot fail, sooner or
later, to produce difficulties and even dangers,
ivnich it is for the interest of Belgium to avert.
nil Conclusion, the Count proposed that the Con-
gress should crown its labours by a declaration
Which would constitute a real progress in inter-
national jurisprudence, and would be gratefully
'▪ eeeptecl by the entire world. The . Con-
gress
.of Westphalia had declared for liberty.
tt;f. Conscience ; the Congress of Vienna for
Lin abolition of the slave trade, and the
f
navigation of rivers. It would be worthy of
the Congress of Paris to put an end to long stand-
111R dissensions by laying down the bases of an
tniforrn maritime code in time of war. The four
ft
()Hewing principles would completely attain this
°l:lient The abolition of La Course. 2. That
neutral merchandise covers enemy's merchandise,
neept contraband of war. 3. That neutral mer-
chandise, except contraband of war, cannot be
it• ed, even under an enemy's flag. That a block-
') is only obligatory so far as it is real.