The Sun.
London, England, 1864-06-28 00:00:00

and knowledge we have of the facts of the case, express any
opinion whatever upon that most important decision at
which it appears har Majesty's Government have arrived,
viz., in the present state of affairs to remain perfectly pas-
sive. At the commencement :of this session I ventured to
express as strongly as I possibly could the infinite danger
in even the possibility of a war with Germany—that power
with which we have been for so many years associated—
our natural ally, which is or has been, unless modern ag-
gressive principles have too far prevailed, the great con-
servative centre counterpoise to the ambition of the East
and the West—(hear, hear)—our natural ally, which has
been connected with us by many ties, with whom a war
would be productive of the most serious and lamentable
consequences, not only to them, but to ourselves. (Hear,
hear.) But, my lords, what I expressed also was this—my
fear that her Majesty's Government, by the course which
they pursued, have placed us in a position in which we
should be either subjected to the lamentable consequences
of such a war, or to the discredit in which we should be
held—in which, I fear, .we are held—(hear, hear)—by the
whole of Europe, not for having abstained from war now, ,
but from having for a long period of years held out to both
contending parties menaces on the one hand and
encouragement on the other—a course altogether inconsis-
tent with that policy which her Majesty's Government now
professes, and very properly professes—an earnest desire and
determination to maintain unbroken the peace of England,
so far as it can be preserved with honour, (Hear, hear.)
That is a question on which serious discussion must take
place—that is a question the decision upon which will solve
whether, in the opinion of Parliament and the country, her
Majesty's Government have maintained inviolate the hon-
our of the country—(hear, hear)—or whether, on the other
hand, their policy has not been such as to expose them to
the charge of a feeble and vacillating opposition—yielding
at every step where encroachment was threatened—always
anticipattig that that encroachment would be met with
firm resistance, and whenever encroachment took place
yielding and protesting that no further encroachment
should be allowed to take place, (Hear, hear.) That
is the charge against which her Majesty's Goverr-
will hereafter have to defend themselves. Th' -"?'"
..ns is a feeling
country--this is the feeling
which is
.prevalent in the minds of. ',-ne
people of this
Parliament and the cour has taken deep hold of
tion of the course ;
and if I wanted any confirma-
;which her Majesty's Government have
pursued , -and of the course they may be expected to pursue,
I. '.;nould find it in the concluding portion of the noble earl's
speech, in which, alter elaborately discussing all the disad-
vantage and danger of going to war, all the injuries we might
sustain) the loss of commerce, all the consequences which
might arise to a country like England, including even the
contingency of the war leading to a rupture, at some distant
day, with the Northern States of Amei ica--(a laugh)—the
noble earl, to my utter astonishment, concluded by saying,
that while nothing on earth would induce him to go to war
while we should hold ourselves aloof, because our interests
are so vitally concerned, because our commerce is 60 eaten-
sive,because our relations are so various, because our treaties
are so numerous, that England must keep the;peace, and we
appeal to the country to give us credit for maintaining it in
a state of peace and of internal prosperity and wealth—but
the noble earl said, we reserve to ourselves, if further steps
should be taken, the perfect right of altering our coarse, and
sacrificing all those considerations on which he laid so much
stress, and of entering on that war that he so justly and
seriously deprecated, and of altogether departing from the
pfnciples on which he acted for the last two years. (Hear.)
That is exactly what the noble earl and the Government
have been saying for two years. First of all, Germany was
to take into serious consideration the danger of incurring all
the responsibilities of federal execution in Holstein. Then
Denmark was recommended—as this is only a federal exe-
cution, we advise you to submit to it; but if the Germans
should go beyond Holstein, if they should cross the Eider,
if they should only enter Sleswig, if the Diet turn
federal execution into an international question, then the
question will be altogether altered—then her Majesty's go-
vernment may see the necessity of departing from the course
they have hitherto laid down, and in certain contingencies
afford material assistance to you. Again, Sleswig is occu-
pied. We are assured that Sleswig is only taken as a mate-
rial guarantee for the fulfilment of other engagements.
"Oh, if Sleswig is only taken for fulfilling other engage-
ments," says the noble lord, " that alters the question; but
if the occupation is to be a permanent one, that is a thing
which her Majesty's Government cannot tolerate for a
single moment." (Laughter.) Well, Sleswig is perma-
nently occupied. But, says the noble lord, you must never
think of passing into Jutland. (Laughter.) Well, into Jut-
land walk the troops, for strategical reasons, it is alleged.
This the noble earl does not presume to justify; but he says
it is not a sufficient reason for inducing her Majesty's Go-
vernment to depart from their course. Well, my lords, may
I ask what is the contingency which is to override all the
considerations which the noble earl has laid before us ? I

against them. We might have sufficient ground of
justification for such a course, if our object was merely to
show Austria and Prussia that they are vulnerable on
their own ground. But it is the duty of the Government
to show greater attachment to peace than Austria and
Prussia, not to allow the flame to extend all over Europe,
but to endeavour to confine it, as far as possible, within the
narrowest limits. Therefore, it is the opinion of the Govern-
ment that we should maintain the position we held before
the Conference, and that we should be neutral in this war.
I do not mean that contingencies might not arise in which
our position might not be different and our conduct might
be altered. It may be said, " Will you allow the German
Powers, if they should decide to go with their combined
forces to Copenhagen, and declare there that it is their ob-
ject to make Denmark assent to terms destructive to the
independence of Denmark. Would you be entirely indiffe-
rent on that subject F' I can only say upon that question
that I think every Government of this country must retain
a certain liberty, so long as it has the confidence of Parlia-
ment, with regard to the decision which it may be called on
to give. All I can say is that if Government should think
it necessary to come to any fresh decision, if the war should
assume a new character—if new circumstances should arise,
and such a decision have to be taken, it would be our duty,
if Parliament were sitting, undoubtedly to apply to Parlia-
ment, and if Parliament were not sitting immediately to call
Parliament together, that Parliament might judge as to the
conduct which her Majesty's Government should pursue.
In the meantime I have given you an outline of the course
of these negotiations, and of the efforts we have made for
peace, which, like those made by the Government of Lord
Liverpool in 1823, have not been crowned with success. If
any party in Parliament should think as Lord Grey thought
in 1823, that we should ge to war, it will be competent for
them to ask her Majesty to interfere on behalf of Denmark.
If they think that we have in any respect failed in our duty,
it is competent for them to take any line they think proper.
But I say that we have maintained the honour of the country
—we have done all in our power to preserve the peace of
Europe—and although those efforts have failed, nothir --boo
been wanting on our part which was required for.'che honour
and interest of the country, or which it we...,
our duty
to do.
(Cheers )
The Earl of DERBY—My 'Lords, the almost unprece-
dented attendance of your '
lordships on the present occasion
sufficiently indicates
4... net you are deeply sensible of the im-
portance of the st-atement which has just been made by the
noble earl the. Secretary for Foreign Affairs. It is impos-
sible, me;
lords, to overrate the gravity of the matters
v°l° ad in that statement. Interests of such vast ilLportance
are hanging in the balance at the present moment—the
peace of Europe—l do not say the present, but the ultimate
peace of Europe—is fraught with such fearful peril, and
anything that passes in this house may have for good or for
evil so serious an effect, that if I have risen to follow the
noble earl in the statement he has made, it is not for the
purpose of going through the various topics upon which he
has touched, or following him through the different portions
of his speech, but for the purpose of expressing my earnest
and anxious hope that your lordships will see not only the
propriety but the absolute necessity of abstaining on the
present occasion from a partial and consequently an unsa-
tisfactory expression of opinion. The noble earl has entered
at very great length upon three distinct topics, which he
has treated no doubt with great ability and with great clear-
ness. He has entered upon a justification of the course
which the Government have pursued ; he has entered upon
a discussion of what has passed in the Conference, and he
has stated with at least sufficient explicitness for the mo-
ment what is to be the policy of her Majesty's Govern-
ment in the position in which we are now placed. My
lords, of the first part of the noble earl's statement I have
no complaint to make. It was perfectly natural, in laying
upon the table by command of her Majesty the protocols cf
the Conference held in London on the affairs of Denmark,
that he should have brought under your lordships notice
the circumstances under which it was appointed, and the
position in which Europe stood at the period it assembled.
I do not complain of the general statement the noble earl has
made of that position, or of those circumstances, although
no doubt there were some very material facts which he
altogether omitted, and serve circumstances to which per-
haps he gave a colouring with regard to which I cannot con-
cur. But, as I have said, lam not about to discuss the state-
ment of the position in which we are placed, still less (for
that is a more important and totally different question) shall
I discuss to what circumstance, to what conduct upon our
part, as well as on the part of foreign nationa—to what
policy pursued by the Government it was owing that we
were placed, at the period of entering upon the conference,
in the unfortunate position in which we then stood. My
lords, that question may, and probably will, form the sub-
ject of further discussion, if not in this, at all events in the
other House of Parliament, and probably in both houses.
(Opposition cheers.) But upon the present occasion your
lordships will not deem it necessary to enter upon all the
phases through which the Schleswig-Holstein question has
passed since 1862. It is not expedient or desirable to enter,
upon the present occasion, upon a discussion, without any
ulterior or ultimate object, of all the various phases through
which that question, simple in its origin but complicated in
its progress, has passed during these two eventful years.
But I must say that the noble earl has, I think, taken a
course this evening which is not in accordance with the ordi •
nary practice or procedure of the house in giving an ac-
count of the various matters which paes3d in the Confer-
ence, and in reading from papers which are not in the
hanJs of your lordships, and with reference to which we are
bound to accept the statements of the noble earl. My lords,
the most important part of the question which Parliament
has to consider is the course of policy which her Majesty's
Government have pursued—whether they have taken the
course best suited to eff.ct their own objects—namely, to
obtain a aatisfact ry art angement between the different
belligerents, and at the same time to maintain inviolate the
honour of England. While, however, this question is of the
utmost importance, it must have reference to an earlier
period—a period before the commencement of the Confer-
ence—to things which then had taken place, and of which
we now know nothing. For with all respect to those noble
lords and right hon. gentlemen who have stated that as
soon as you could get the plenipotentiaries assembled round
the table you would have no difficulty in coming to a satis-
factory conclusion, and without in the slightest degree dis-
paraging the ability and talent with which the two noble
lords conducted the affairs of England in the Conference, yet
I think I may venture to say that beyond the limits of her Ma-
jesty's government there were few who could anticipate, and
there were many who did not wish, a different conclusion
from that at which the Conference arrived—namely, a signal
and lamentable failure. Well, what were those circum-
stances ? There were at that moment eight parties called to
the Conference, which consisted of 13 gentlemen. Of the
four belligerents three were engaged on one side and one on
the other. There were four neutrals—England, Russia,
France, and Sweden. With regard to the belligerents,
what was the position of affairs which they were invited to
consider ? It is true that with regard to the three belli-
gerents on the one side, their ends, their motives, their ulti•
mate objects were different, but they were all bent on
destroying the Neighbouring kingdom of Denmark. All
three were not agreed as to the ultimate object with which
that spoliation should take place, or the persons who should
profit by a division of the spoil ; but the three were agreed
to carry war and spoliation into the Danish territory. It
was at that moment when, flushed with the triunar h of their
arms, and the glory which had been gained by the enor-
mous numerical superiority of military, materials, munitions
and artillery— flushed with the glory which they thought
they had obtained, and seeing before them nothing but a
feeble and half-vanquished enemy, they consented most re-
luctantly to be arrested in that progress, and yielded to the
pressing solicitations, not of the four neutral powers, but of
England alone—(hear, hear)—for a temporary suspension
of hostilities, although they would not consent to an armis-
tice. 011 the other hand, there was the kingdom of Den-
mark--a small and gallant nation, who were fighting with
de
the utmost
ram. teration and with the courage of despair
on behalf of all that they held most sacred—on behalf of
against ceeereeehnine6
their homes, their constitution, their king, their families—
fighting
odds; seeing themselves
deserted by the whole European community, from which,
whether with or without reason, they had no doubt
rta Pe that they should receive sup-
port. Theyined a
found pressed to the very utmost.
entesanguine
themselves ho
They found that they ware deserted by all, and I say, in
their position, the courage of despair might have induced
118 Pension of hostilities un-
tfahvemeartaobrleefuaste ttoheenmteermupenon a a
moment
to themselves, and to say
" Rather than enter into discreditable and disgraceful terms
let us die in the face of day—let us die in the face of Europe
—to the shame of Europe, that permits us thus to suffer."
(Hear, hear.) These were the circumstances under which
the belligerents came into the Conference—with discordant
views on the one side, and with a feeling on the part of the
smell and weak kingdom of Denmark that they Were made
the subject of oppression and violence. The four neutral
powers entered into the question without the slightest pre-

think Parliament is bound to have some answer given to
this question. We will not go to war, says the noble earl,
but we may see reason to alter our course. I think the
noble earl went so far as to say that it Copenhagen was
bombarded and blockaded, then possibly, to prevent its
capture—possibly—(laughter)—her Majesty's Government
might consider that the contingency had arisen which
would induce the Government to depart from their resolu-
tion. But short of the capture of Copenhagen, will the noble

lord tell us how far he will consent to Le driven before he
departs from his prudent resolution—for Ido not deny that
it is prudent if it can De maintained with honour. (Hear.)
I hope I may be pardoned for having gone so far as this—
to point out the question to which it will be the duty of her
Majesty's Government hereafter to give a distinct answer,
upon which I hope Pa.liament will insist not wily in having
a distinct answer, but in passing a distinct judgment.
(Hear.) But for the present I confess I should be very
sorry that this discussion should take place now
—perhaps I have gone almost beyond my own intention,
perhaps I have gone beyond what might be desirable—
(hear, hear, from the Ministerial benches)—in the tempta-
tion to follow the noble earl for the purpose of pointing out
not what we aro to discuss now, but what we are to discuss
hereafter. For the present I earnestly hope that neither with
regard to the past nor the more important future, will your
lordships be led upon a partial statement, which is all that
is before us, to enter upon an unprofitable discussion, or to
pledge yourselves individually or collectively to any line, to
pass any confirmation of the past, or to assent or dissent
from the course which has been pursued, (Cheers.)
Earl GRAN VILLE said-4 think there should be a clear
understanding as to the course intended to be pursued, and
that the house should adopt the course recommended by the
noble earl at the beginning, and which he repeated at the end
of his speech, that we should not this evening go into a de-
bate on this great subject without having the necessary
papers in our hands. The noble earl, however, did not adopt
the course he himself suggested, but touched upon all the
points which he considered to be most vulnerable in regard
to the policy of the Government. The noble earl made
statements with regard to the Conference, and used argu-
ments which were applicable to any Conference whatever,
called together to establish peace between aweak and a strong
nation. (Cheers.) We may go on on both aides usieg decla-
matory statements and arguments without any result except
to create popular prejudica, which cannot affect the reason of
the country. (Cheers.) The noble earl went on to put into
the mouth of my noble friend statements which he never
used in the course of the negotiations. (Laughter.) Why
should the noble earl put to us this alternative—either to
declare to Europe and the world that, whether our interests
or honour were concerned, we would not go to war, or pledge
ourselves to what may be a convenient demand on the part
of a member of the Opposition, but what it would be
unjustifiable in those who represented the people in this
house to exact—every possible contingency, without know-
ing the accompanying circumstances, which should induce
us to go to war? (Hear, hear.) The noble earl said he did
not wish to enter into a discussion. If the house is of a
different opinion we are ready to debate the whole question
now; but I hope it will not be discussed in a piecemeal way.
(Cheers.)

After alfew words from Lord BROUGHAM, which were in-
audible in consequence of the noise created by peers leaving
the house, the subject dropped.
_ . _

Their lordships adjourned at a quarter to eight.

HOUSE OF COMMONS--Last Evening,
The SPEAKER took the chair at four o'clock.
PRIVATE BUSINESS.

The following bills were read a third time and passed :
The Belfast Central Railway, and the Kilkenny Junction
Railway.

OPEN SPACES FOR PUBLIC RECREATION, &c.
Sir J. SHELLEY presented petitions from different
parts of the metropolis, praying that the space already
occupied for the enjoyment and recreation of the commu-
nity should not be infringed by the ground of the same
being let for building or other purposes. (Hear, hear.)
THE ACCIDENT AT EGHAM.
Sir R. BULKELEY asked the President of the Board
of Trade whether his attention bad been drawn to the evi-
dence given at the inquest on the sufferers by the late rail-
Way accident at Eghare, by Mr. Robert A. Scott, traffic
manager of the South Western Railway, in which he says
" Ordinarily, I think, there would not be the slightest
dagger in starting them (the trains) at an interval of five
minutes, allowing the first train to make a first stoppage at a
distance of eight miles. It is quite an ordinary working
of the trains. Some lines allow only three minutes :" also
to the evidence of Thomas Gibbard, office-porter at Egham,
whose duty was to note the arrival and departure of the
trains, and who stated " That the Royal train (containing
their Royal Highnesses the Prince and Princess
of Wales) passed through Egham in the morning
at 12.51, and that Lee passed through at 12.47 :"
Whether the President of the Board of Trade would in-
form the house on what lines trains were started at intervals
of three minutes only : whether starting trains on the same
line at intervals of three minutes Was done with the know-
ledge and sanction of the Board of Trade : and, whether he
considered the safety of their Royal Highnesses was suffi-
ciently protected in allowing a heavy passenger train to
precede them by four minutes only ?

vious agreement between themselves either as to what he
should ask, recommend, or insist upon. The eight different
interests were collected together at the Conference in the
middle of the excitement of a war, without any previous
basis of negotiation being agreed upon, or anything being
settled, except that memorable basis which the noble lord
at the head of the Government is reported to have stated,
namely, that the basis of the Conference was to procure the
peace of Europe. Upon that basis they met, without any
previous communication or agreement or understanding,
and yet you profess to be astonished that that Conference,
_ . _ _

so inaugurated, has led to nothing but a confirmation of
the divers opinions entertained in it. (Hear, hear.) There-
fore, although we have not the papers, that is a matter of
Comparative indifference. The noble lords charged with the
interest of England at the conference may have conducted
its affairs with more or less ability, and with perfect since-
rity, I have no doubt, to maintain the peace of Europe ;
Prussia and Austria may have been more or leas unreason-
able ; Denmark may have been more or less firm the Diet
may have plated itself more or less in opposition to the pre-
vious declarations of the proper parties to that conference ;
but with respect to all this it makes no difference, because
from the time it began to sit it was in my judgment a doomed
conference, irons which it was impossible to hope that any
beneficial results could arise. Therefore the absence of the
protocols does not place us under any disadvantage in judg-
ing of the policy which has brought the country into its
present position. Still, I will not now, upon the imperfect
statement just made, and with the imperfect information

Mr. M. GIBSON explained that the Board of Trade
had no power in the matter.

THE CONFERENCE.
APPEARANCE OF THE HOUSE.

From an early hour both the floor of the house and the
galleries were crowded to excess, and the proceedings

THE SUN, LONDON, TUESDAY EVENING, JUNE 28, 1864.

were invested with that animation which only arises
from great political etcitement. The strangers' gallery
was full to overflowing, and that portion of it reserved
for distinguished foreigners was occupied by the leading
diplomatic representatives of the principal European Atate.s.
Lord PALMERSTON—Sir, I rise to mote alai these
papers be printed, and, in doinee go, i am quite aware there
never was an occasion possibly upon which a Minister of
the Crown had to make a statement—short and simple as
I inhaled to make it—to this House of Parliament, and
through it to the public, upon which the feelings of the
country, the sympathies of the cottletty, the aspirations,
I may say the ansietaen of the country, were more
deeply engaged than'on the question with regard to which it
is my duty during a short time to detain the House. For the
sympathy which the British nation has felt in the cause of
Denmark will do honour to them in all times. t stand here.,
however, not to excite those sympathies, Or to profit by
them. I stand here on this 7naBloll simply to communi-
cate to the House, in a short els tract, the substance of those
proceedings at the Conferenm which are recorded in detail
in the papers now laid upon the table. And I may say
that, although on Friday I ebubted whether the record of
the proceedings of Saturday would be sufficiently ready to
be laid in conjunction with tie preceding papers upon the
table, I am now able to say teat they will be delivered to-
mcrrow morning equallY Wiie the other papers relating
to the Conference. (Flea', hear.) And among them
will be found an abstract of the proceedings of the
Conference), drawn up by ale of the plenipotehtiatdes,
which will greatly assist holourable members in making
themselves masters of the pore detailed contents of the
protocols. But to explain mot; fully; and to Lattice the Hein
understand completely the nftnre of the ieeetions treated
of in the Conference, it will hi— netcarstary for me to go a little
farther back, and to make tot
1852, out of which tb ae remarks upon the Treaty of
The
e subequent controversy originated.
House, —h°77 _sever, is sufficently familiar with that trans.moreV -
action and its arigin to rake it unnecessary for me to do
..an give a general outine of the transactions to which
allude. The Treaty of 132 was, I should say, a treaty
negotiated by myself ; by Loll Granville who succeeded me;
and concluded by Lord Malaesbury, who succeeded him.
So far, therefore, as the poliy of that Treaty is concerned,
all parties in this country ae equally bound up. (Hear,
hear.) It was founded upon European considerations; it
did not originate simply wth England—(hear, hear)—it
was an arrangement dictated by European interests. The
state of the matter was this. The law of succession in Den-
mark admitted the succession of females ; the law of succes-
sion in Holstein confined the succession to males. If,
therefore, any case should arise in which there was any
default of issue male in Denmark, it was clear that by the
operation of those conflietiog laws Denmark and Holstein
would be separated. But the late King of Denmark, ad-
vanced in years, had no offspring, and the Prince who would
have been his immediate successor, had he outlived the King
his uncle, had no offspring either ; and therefore the Powers
of Europe thought it necessary to take into consideration
the means of preventing the splitting up of the Danish
monarchy, which they felt to be inconsistent with the gene-
ral interests of Europe and the balance of power in the
North. For this purpose it was necessary to assimilate the
laws of succession in the two parts of the Danish monarchy.
To alter the law of succession in Holstein was impossible,
because it formed part of the law of the Germanic Confede-
ration. The other expedient was adopted, and it was deter-
mined that the lex regia of Denmark should be altered, and
that males only should succeed to the Danish crown. It was
also provided that the King of Denmark should have the
power of naming his successor to the crown of Denmark;
and an arrangement should be made by which his successor
should also succeed to the Dachy of Holstein. These arrange-
ments were the objects of the Treaty of 1852. The King
of Denmark chose as his successor Prince Christian of
Glucksburg, and there being a question of the rights of the
House of Augustenburg to the Duchy of Holstein, that
right was commuted fora pecuniary indemnity. The Duke
of Augustenburg, having been in rebellion against the King
of Denmark upon a former occasion and his estates having
been confiscated, the value of those estates was given to
him on condition of his renouncing for himself and his suc-
cessors all claims to the duchy of Holstein. The Treaty of
1852, therefore, provided, so far as the powers of foresight
of the parties could go for maintaining the integrities of the
Danish monarchy, as it was then constituted, by the poses-
sion, on the part of Denmark, of the duchies of Schleswig
and Holstein. That treaty was greatly approved of by all
parties concerned in it. A. question, however, arose whe-
ther, as Holstein was affected by that treaty, it should be
submitted to the concurrence of the Diet at Frankfort. The
asking for that accession was objected to at first by all the
parties concerned-- by Germany, Russia, Sweden, and Den-
mark. My noble friend, Lord Granville, who then held
the seals of the Foreign-office, did, however, propose that
that treaty, before it was concluded, should be submitted to
the Federal Diet. On the mtrary. it would be seen by the
papers on the table that some parties expressed dismay at
the proposal. their dismay arising from the delay that
would attend such an application ; and a different mode was
adopted, namely, that whercas the Diet consists only of re•
prescntatives of the different Germanic Powers, application
should be made to those Powers themselves to accede to the
treaty which had been concluded. That application was
made, and several of the Pavers agreed to it; but it is right
to say that some other Powers, including Bavaria and
Baden, declined to assent to the treaty, in consequence of
feelings connected with Gerean opinion as bearing on the
duchies of Schleswig and lolstein. Well, sr, that treaty
was preceded by certain Oplomatic communications be-
tween Germany and Dcneark which led to various ar-
rangements; but the materai part of the communication
was this, that whereas, onone part, the great object of
Denmark had always been b incorporate Schleswig a ith
Denmark; and whereas, on ho other hand,
the great object
for which the Germans hadaiways contended was the poli
tical and administrative mesa of Schleswig with Holstein,
both should
of Denmark,
give
up
on theirh easpc ctive pretensions; that the
King
me hand, should agree not to
incorporate Schleswig witl Denmark, and, on the other
t
hand, that the Germans shbld agree no longer to recognise
with Holstein. Such was
the political union of Schlewig

the state of matters at the ()Delusion of that treaty ; and if
all parties had been equallyanimated by that spirit of con-
it would have been batter
efoilriabtiootnh,. anld
almmnaoyt saaywoafriji,
that any serious complication
could have arisen. But Nag the ten years which elapsed
eethat treaty and the death of the
late between
King of Denmark conclusion
a sf
kies of mutual complaiats arose.
bn the o
The Germans concluded, thcl I am afraid not without some
reason—(hear, hear, fromtbe benches behind Ministers)—
that the Danish Governneut had not acted fairly in their
treatment of the Garman population in Schleswig ; that in
their extreme anxiety to ixtend Danish power they had in
some degree interfered with the free exercise by the German
population of Schleswig of those privileges which belonged
to the subjects of every tree State. Also it is to be borne
in mind that there was, ite March of last year, a patent—
that is, a constitution—proclaimed by the late King of
Denmark for Holstein, which the Germanic Confederation
declared in its details to be at variance with the general laws
of the Confederation; mil; moreover, in November last, a
constitution was passed at Copenhagen for Denmark and
Schleswig, which the Germans contended was at variance
with the engagement entered into in 1851 and 1852 by
Denmark, not to incorporate Schleswig with Denmark.
The late King of Denmark died while those questions were
under discussion in Germany and Denmark, the patent of
March remained in force; and the present King found it
necessary, upon considerations connected with internal
matters arising from his recent succession to the throne, to
give his sanction to that constitution of November, which
at that time had not received the royal assent. Germany
remonstrated against both these arrangements. In
October the Diet had passed a resolution that Fe-
deral troops should eater Holstein, for the purpose of
compelling the Duke:of Holstein, the King of Denmark, to
revoke the patent of Match. I will deal with that question
first. Her Majesty's Government, thinking that there were
grounds for the German objections to that patent, urged the
Danish Government to revoke, and to place themselves in
the right thereby. (Hear, hear, from the benches behind
Ministers). The Danish Government did so. (Counter
cries of Hear, hear, frotn the Opposition benches.) But the
Diet came to change its ground. Instead of contenting it-
self, as it had done at the death of the late King, with dis-
puting the right of the Duke of Holstein to give that con-
stitution, which they considered was at variance with the
general law, they took another ground, and contended that
the question had fairly arisen who should be Duke of Hol-
stein. A proposal was then brought forward in the Diet
that Holstein should be occupied by Federal troops until
that question had been decided. They denied that the pre-
sent King of Denmark bad succeeded legally to the duchy
of Holstein, and a proposal was made to the Diet to occupy
Holstein until the question had been decided by the Diet,
It is my opinion the Diet had no right, and has no right, to
consider and decide that question. (Hear, hear.) There is
nothing, in my opinion, either in the treaty of 1815 which
constituted the Diet, which save it its birth and origin—
there is nothing in that treaty, and there is nothing in the
final Act of 1820, which completed the arrangements which
entitled the Diet to determine who should succeed to any
State within the Confederation. (Hear, hear.) And lam
quite sure that when the Emperor of Austria resigned, and
was succeeded by a member of his family, the Diet did not
claim any right to sa3 who should succeed him : but Aus-
tria and Prussia moved in the Diet, not that the Federal
troops should not enter Holstein, but that the entrance of
those troops should be what is called an execution, and not

an occupation. Now, by "execution" is meant the action
of the Diet, in accordance with the rights of the Diet and
with German laws, to compel any sovereign of territory
belonging to the Confederation to adapt legislation to the
laws of the Confederation, if those laws should have been
broken. Austria and Prussia carried that proposal, and

:he Diet resolved, not that the entrance of the troops

should bear the character of. an occupation to hold the
duchy of Holstein until the rightful heir should be deter.
mined, but that entrance should be an act of execution to
compel the then existing Duke to alter the patent or revoke

it, and make it in accordance with German legislation. The

entrance, therefore, of the Federal troops into Holstein as a
measure of execution was a distinct acknowledgement by
the Diet at the time that the King of Denmark was Duke of
Holstein, and it was to compel the King of Denmark to re-
voke the patent of March that that execution took place.
(Hear.) There is also this to be remembered that, whereas
it would have been perfectly legitimate for that execution

cenam,nded the good offices of a friendly Power, and that

to take place if the King of Denmark had persisted in re-
voking the patent, in point of fact that patent had been re-
voked before the troops entered Holstein, and consequently
that entrance was nniest ir. itself, teltliongh foesncled on a
elm enhiele, if that plea had held, would have rendered it a
justifiable act. (Hear.) Well, those troops having entered
upon the distinct understanding to compel the King of Den-
mark to revoke the patent, those proceedings took place
which led to the supercession of the King of Penmark and
a deelaration fn feteenr bf the Diike of Augustenbierg. Then
ez..me the question of the constitution of November, uniting
to a certain degree, as we were campelled to admit, Schles-
wig with Denmark. Her Majesty's Government felt all
the evils arising from that occupation, J should say the
Germans contended that, although the Government of Den-
t:clerk had engaged
,to alit on the entegeetion of Pnglantl, and
Believe of other Fowers, to take the earliest means con-
stitutionally possible to revoke that constitution—the Ger-
mans determined to enter into and take possession of
Schleswig as a material guarantee for the performance of
that engagement, We proposed that some diplomatictrans-
action, some engagement on the part of Denmark, taken in
the presence of the other Powers parties to the treaty,
should he ac'eepteed by the V erruans as a su.cient security
that the engagement should be fulfilled. But this was not
accepted, and the German troops entered Schleswig. When
the Federal troops entered Holstein, the Danish Govern-
ment, partly from advice and partly from considerations of
prndenem refrained irom offering any resistance to
the entrance of the Federal troops, and there
was no war arising out of that occupation. When
the German troops entered Schleswig the feelings of the
Danish nation were too strong to admit of a similar COttre9
being pursued, and resistance—an obstinate and heroic re-
sistance—was made against the very superior numbers
which Germany brought to bear on that occasion. Up to
that time all the parties who had signed tho Treaty of 1852
continued to admit its validity and to be bound by its en-
gagements as far as they related to the acknowledgment of
the right of the King of Denmark, and that all the terri-
tories held by the King should be maintained. Up to that
time even Prussia did not dispute the binding nature of
that treaty, But it is fair to say that she intimated that if
resistance should arise, and different events should take
place, then possibly the German Powers might have to
reconsider the engagements of the 'Treaty of 1852. Well,
now, sir, not to trouble the house with the recital of mili-
tary operations, with which all are familiar, the course of
the war led to the occupation by the Germans of the whole
of Schleswig, and such parts of Jutland as they thought fit
to occupy. In that state of things it occurred to the Powers
who were parties to the treaty, and who were not engaged
in that war, that it was desirable that a Conference should
assemble of the plenipotentiaries of the belligerents and the
four neutral Powers, England, France, Russia, and Sweden,
to consider the means of re-establishing peace upon a solid
and permanent footing. That proposal was agreed to, and
on the 25th of April the Conference met. It continued ha
labours until last Saturday. The first proposal made in
the Conference was for a suspension of hostilities, because
it was felt by what I shall now and henceforward call the
neutral Powers, that until fighting should cease there was
no fair prospect of coming to an amicable conclusion. We
had wished suspension of arms should precede the Confer-
ence, but that it was found impossible to obtain. Well, after
some delay and a good deal of discussion, a suspension of
hostilities was agreed to, to take place on the 12th of May
and last for a month. The next thing was that the belligerent
Powers were asked upon what condition they were respect
ively willing to put an end to the war and come to a mutual
agreement. The German s,of course, were the parties to whom
that question was addressed. There was some delay in ex-
tracting from the German powers what their conditions were
They first proposed that, still maintaining the principles of
integrity of the Danish monarchy as defined by treaty of
1852—at least not departing from it in words—they pro-
posed, or in substance were thought to do so, that there
should be a political and legislative union between Schles-
wig and Holsmin, and that the connection of that united
duchy with Denmark should be the link simply of the crown.
But they coupled that with another condition, that this
arrangement should be reserved for the approbation of the
Diet, and there was some lesson to suppose that under the
reservation it was intended to give a discretionary power to
the Diet to determine whether Schleswig should continue
to be united to Denmark, or whether the claims of some
other Pretender should be set up. Well, that proposal was
rejected by the Danish Government. They then proposed
a different mode, but one still objectionable, namely, that
Schleswig and Holstein should be separated from the Danish
monarchy. Of course the D Ines could not agree to that.
The neutral Powers conferred among themselves, and saw
that Schleswig, and Holstein were in possession of an over-
poe sting force—that it did not meet the views of France or
Russia to take any steps to dislodge them. Denmark alone
was unable ; and I need not say that England was not wil-
ling to enter singly into that undertaking—(cheers from the
Ministerial side)—the neutrals agreed to propose to Den-
mark the separation of Holstein from the Danish ground,
together with such a partition of the southern part of
Schleswig as might be agreed upon. The line proposed by
the neutral Powers was a line running from the Schlei to
Frederickstadt. Well, that proposal, coupled with other
conditions which I shall not trouble the house with, was
accepted by Demet; lc. Denmark said, however reluctant
to make a territorial concession, she was willing to
agree to that. (Cheers from both sides of the house.)
She felt all the inconvenience of the perpetual disputes
between Denmark and Germany. She wished to be quit
of all interference by the Diet with her affairs, and, pro-
vided she had assigned to her a frontier which in a military
and commercial point of view was consistent with her
interests, she was willing to adopt and agree to that sug-
gestion, and to separate Schleswig and part of Holstein
from Denmark. The Germans objected to that arrange-
ment. They said that line would not include a sufficient
number of the German population, that there would still
be a large number of the German population under Danish
rule, and they wished that the great bulk of the German
population should be associated with Holstein. New, the
fact with regard to bchleswig I believe co be, that the ex-
treme northern part is entirely Danish, and the extreme
southern is mostly German. Between the two is a district
of large extent, in which the population are mixed not only
by villages, but even by streets in those villages, so that it
is absolutely impossible to draw any line in the centre of
Schleswig that shall entirely separate the German popula-
tion from the Danish. Consequently the ground taken by
the Danish Government appeared to be a fair one, that the
line should be drawn—it being impossible that the line
could be drawn with reference to nationality—should be
drawn so as to give Denmark such a frontier as should be
suseeptilA of military defence, and secure her those c one
mercial advantages which she claimed. (Hear, hear.) The
Danish Government, I say, accepted the line from the
Schlei to Fredericestadt. The German plenipotentiaries
having handsomely liven up—at least having given up—
(laughter)—the whole of Schleswig, they consented to a
partition drawn from Apenrade to Tondern, a place on the
west coast. Between those two lines lay a district of very
considerable extent, as compared with the extent of Schles-
wig—of course in a commercial, though not in a European,
point of view, a district of great importance to Denmark.
In the course of these negotiations the Prussian Plenipoten-
tiary, Count Bernstorff, stated on his own autherity that,
seeing the wide difference between the parties, he would
undertake to represent to his Government to depart from
the northern line at Apenrade, and to take a line to the
south, from Flensburg to the western coast. That recom-
mendation was not aecepted, and he was obliged to disavow
it, and say that his Government and the Austrian Govern-
ment adhered to the line originally proposed, from Apenrade
to Tondern. But meanwhile, time pressing, the neutral
plenipotentiaries urged upon the parties a prolongation of
the armistice—a suspension of hostilities. I will not say
armistice; because a distinction is drawn between armistice
and suspension of hostilities. That was to expire on the
10th of June, and, by great difficulty, the Danes were per-
suaded to agree to an extension of that time. The German
Powers were willing, as might not unnaturally be expected,
to extend the armistice until the beginning of winter. (Hear,
and laughter.) The Danes, on the other hand, begrudged
every fortnight of the summer that was withdrawn from
their naval operations, and therefore they said they would
not prolong the armistice beyond a fortnight, unless in the
meantime some arrangement should be come to which
would lead them to suppose that the negotiations would
end in a peaceful manner. The suspension was, therefore,
extended for a fortnight, which ended yesterday. I may
say in the whole course of these negotiations, as will be
shown by the protocols laid on the table, there was perfect
unanimity between the neutral Powers—between Eng-
land, France, Russia, and Sweden—(hear, hear)—and,
although my noble friend, Lerd Russell, was chosen by
the Conference at the outset as president of the Conference,
and although it may have fallen to hire to make several
proposals that were made, those must bo considered as the
proposals of the neutral Powers, because they were the
neutral Powers before the proposals were made in the Con-
ference. (Cheers.) That is a very important matter. (Hear,
hear.) Well then, sir, it appearing that there was no pos-
sibility of bringing the Germans and Danes to agree upon
any middle line between the two lines which they respec-
tively stood upon—the Schlei and Frederickstadt on the
one hand, and the Apenrade and Tondern by the Germans
—a last attempt was made by the neutral Powers to induce
the belligerents to agree to refer the question in dispute to
arbitration. The dispute had really been narrowed to a
comparatively small end, It was no longer whether Hol-
stein should be governed in a peculiar manner; it was no
longer whether Schleswig should bepelitically and adminis-
tratively united with Holstein under the crown of Denmark.
The Danes had consented to an alienation of territory; the
Germans would be content with that arrangement; and the
only question was whether that arrangement should be
carried out by dividing Sehlesn ig in one pert or by dividing
it in another; and it appeared to the neutral Powers that
the territory lying between those two lines was not so im-
portant to either party as to justify the resumption of war,
and that they might fairly, in accordance with the
recommendation of the Conference, submit the question to
tht arbitration of a neutral Power. (Cheers.) Accordingly
say noble friend, as the organ of neutral Powers, did pro-
pose that arrangement to the plenipotentiaries. Each:par ty
naturally took time to refer that question to his respective
Government, and on Friday the answers were communi-
cated, The answer of the German Powers was that they
looked to the words of the Conference at Paris, which re-