Northern Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1859-02-15 00:00:00

THE NORTHERN TIMES TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 15, 1859

stronger reinforcements were expected. Then
there is Sardii2ia, with whom France has lately
entered into the ciosest alliance, obtaining autho:
city' from the Chambers for a heavy war loan ; and
her Minister declaring at ibe .same time, that it is
needed because-AUstria has taken a menacing atti-
tude towards them. " Austria," he said, !." has
increased its military forces at' Pacenza,--4 has
collected very large forces at • our frontiers ; and
therefore the necesiiitY: arises for us to look for
means for the defence of the-- State." And
then, after . briefly' stating the case, of Italy,
as likely to furnish the casus bel/i—alluding to the
Austrian Go.vernment as "those who wish to con-
demn, the Italians to eternal servitude"7—declaring,
that though "the policy of Sardinia is not defiant,"
and they "will not excite to war," yet adding,
" neither will we lower our voice when Austria
arms herself and threatens us," which is just what,
in -the same bieath, they complain that Austria is
actually.doing! And there is no doubt that Austria
is arming herself —is pouring into Italy immense
armies, which cannot possibly be required there,

except for war

The Sardinian Minister, again, has just addresspd
a circular to his diplomatic agents at foreign Courts,
which has a warlike tone. "The state of Daly,"
it says, "has not been , modified. The preponde-
rating influence, wh;ch Austrib, there exercises
beyond the limits that treaties have assigned to
her, a.id which constitutes & constant menace for

Sardinia, has rather augmegted than diminished

Still, it asserts, the attitude of Sardinia

has been

pacific

But now," it-othinouslr adds—

now that

it kas got so powerful an ally in Frame

extraordinary military measures which the Cabinet
of Vienna has just taken, and which are evidently

directed against Sardinia, whose military forces

ire-relatively-very weak, if compared-to-these of

Austria, force the King's Government to prepare

itself against a danger which may become immi-

and therefore it is, that "the Ministry

decided to call into Piedmont, the garrisons esta-
blished in Sarclinia.and beyond.the Alps, and has

asked the Chambers for the sanction to contract a

That is to sciy, to be ready 'to niake war in

resistance 'of.Austria, backed, it is of course, under
the recently fanned alliance, toile take for granted,

by the armies of France

Such, then, appear to be the, facts of the case.

This is what is being done, in contradistinction to

much that is-being said.; and we all-know that

actions speak louder than words

The Sardinian Minister, in the Legislative Cham-

hers, took occasion, in the debate on the project of
the new loan, to say that "Lord DERBY will ..not
tarnish his glory by.making himself an accomplice
of those who wish to condemn the Italians to
eternal servitude.' But neither will Lord DERBY,
we are persuaded, " tarnish his glory," by doing
anything to saitoticin wai= from that or any

other motive. Lord DERBY, be it remembered,
on the first night of the Session, did
not hesitate to condemn the course which

Sardinia is pursuing, —a course which he showed
would only afford proof that free institutions
tended not to the-promotion of internal prosperity,

but to the encouragement of the warlike propensi-

ties of the Sovereign —to aggressive attacks upon
neighbours, on the plea of apprehension that they
were about to be attacked by their neighbours.

This is the iiresetit pogtion 'of Sardinik—backed
by France. And Lord DERBY. gave emphatic
assurance that her Majesty's Government regarded
it with disapprobation. "I can truly: say,". were
his words, " that it is from the sincerest friendship
for Sardinia, andlfroni. the 'deep interest: we T. have:
taken, in her real welfare and well-doing, that we
have looked with great anxiety, and expressed
the anxiety we felt, on the course she is taking,
which we believe to be inconsistent With the duty
she owes to society at large, and which will

destroy the sympathy and regard her late conduct
obtained. ,from the whole civilised world." This
conrse, there is only too much reason to fear,
Sardinia has 'been emboldened to take by her
alliance with 75ance, and her, expectations of
co-operation on the part of the French army.
Lord DERBY might well style .it "a dangerous
course" which the Emperor of the' French would
thereby enter upon,—at the same time, it Is true,
that he said he could not believe it, after the
reiterated 'profession of " L'_Empire estsla paix "
a policy to which he owed the success and the
stability of his dynasty. " But if," said •- our
Premier, "he, is about to depart from this course,
if he is leading Europe to believe that his
sentiments have undergone an alteratiOn, if We are
to understand that the new Empire is but a
return to that lust of universal dominion which

eha.racterisel.the old,_if Europe ..has reason to
suspect , that there is a design to place upon the
different thrones of Italy subordinate sovereigns

connected to the Empire by family alliances, and
a general introduction of that system which led to
the fall of the great NAPOLEON, then the Emperor
will have shaken the confidence of Europe and
injured the interests of France." Such considera-
tion's as these, it is, that will furnish, we are
persuaded, the most powerful restraining influ-
ences. Still one cannot shut one's eyes to the
facts which still betoken hostilities beyond the
Alps; and hostilities in which Louis NAPOLEON
is evidently prepared to participate. We earnestly
hope and pray that Europe may be "spared the
infliction of such a scourge. But the loomings of
war, it cannot be denied, are still too decided for
all apprehensions to be dispel lod on the subject.

desired, can never be conducive to the true
interests of a nation. And such is precisely the
state of the case in France. The French people
are being made familiar with the idea of their
country, going to war—with somebody, and for
some object, but they really don't- know whom or
what. -They are being impressed with the notion
that they are to'fight with iome enemy or other,
And for some.canor other, and that their doing
salwill at Irastigain thenvg/gy 4, • - It is by such a
device, evidently, that Loins N.APOLECON: carries
his point with them. M. GILURDIN, the present
pamphleteer, writes, it is true, in an independent
sort of style; althoUgh lie does *rite under
szirveillaiare, and has no doubt had to submit to
some degre-e ~of revision of his"Wiockure.
He is permitted to differ from the Imperial
pamphlet, Napoleon 111. et l' Italie, as respects
the particular war which is there set forth a
expedient:- It is -not- Austria- he would have the'

and combat, or for