The Sun.
London, England, 1864-08-06 00:00:00

The Duke of Beaufort and Mr. Rolt, M. P„
on the Late Vote of No Confidence,

At the annual dinner of the Gloucestershire So-
ciety, which was held on Thursday night at the
White Lion Hotel, Bristol, the Duke of Beaufort
and Mr. Rolt, M.P. for West Gloucestershire, seized
the opportunity of coming out strongly against the
Government.
The Duke of BEAUFORT, in returning thanks for
the manner in which his name had been received,
said that was a very ancient society, and he was
sorry it was not more supported by the landed pro-
prietors of that cone ty. (Cheers.) One thing had
militated against it, and that was it was hardly un-
derstood whether it was a political society or
whether it was not a political society. It was este.
blished, decidedly, as a political society, originating
in a number of gentlemen who wished to bring
about the restoration of the king; and for many
years, until it was thought fit, in the wisdom of
Parliament, to do away with the colours, it was a
true blue society. (Cheers,) He did not know how
it had gone on of late years, but charity had always
gone hand in hand with true blue politics; and he
might say in the city of Bristol that the yellow had
also done much, perhaps as much as the others.
(Cheers.) However, theirs had always been a true
blue society. (Cheers.) That was the first opportu-
nity, as their high steward, he had had of coming
into the city of Bristol since very important politi-
cal events had taken place, and he might therefore
be pardoned for saying a few words upon the state
of affairs at present. There was hardly a man in
that room but read the Times, and that paper had
represented the position of the Conservative
party at this time in the most unfair manner.
(Cheers,) He would make a broad assertion
that whatever the limee sought to prove,
it did not hesitate to lie to prove. (Loud cheers.)
A great deal of abuse had been lavished upon the
Conservatives of both Houses of Parliament for their
conduct during the present session, and they were
told that, having done nothing until the last moment
almost of the Conference held in London, they came
forward, and without proposing a policy of their
own, tried to displace her Majesty's Government.
He would tell them what the real truth of the mat-
ter was. (Cheers.) When, in the beginning of the
spring—they might also say the end of the winter
—the allied armies of Germany invaded the then
possessions of the King of Denmark, their friends
in both Houses of Parliament were prepared to take
the sense of the house and the sense of the country
upon the conduct of the Foreign Minister. But it
was said to them, " You must not say a word ; ne-
gotiations are going on, and if you say anything
you will upset all the negotiations." The hands of
the leaders of their party were tied; but he thought
if they had been in office the hands of the Whigs
would not have been tied—(cries of " Shame")—but
for the sake of upsetting their party, they (the
Whigs) would, without hesitation, have
,pat em-
barrassing questions, and made motions in both
Honees of Parliament. (Hear.) But the Conservative
leaders in both Houses of Parliament declined to
put the present Government in that embarrassing
position. A few private individuals got up and asked
questions, but they were always put down with the
same answer. (Laughter.) Matters went on till the
middle of summer, and then came the Conference,
and almost every day some one asked, " What is
going on in the Conference ?" but the answer was,
"We do not know anything." The foreign news-
papers had the details first, but her Majesty's
Ministers could not tell anything. (A laugh.) It was
thought proper to show the feelings of the Conser-
vative party as to the conduct of her Majesty's
Ministers. If the Foreign Minister had said at
once to Denmark " You must take your own line;
we wish you success; that is all the good we can
do for yon ; we cannot fight for you ; we cannot say
that 40,000 men shall be landed in the Baltic if the
Prussians cross the Schlei"—that would have
been what they ought to have done.—
(Cheers.) Bue Lord Russell contented him-
self with checking both parties--(hear and laugh-
ter)—and they treated him with contempt. Whenit
came to the end of the Conference their (the Con.
liervative) party were obliged to take the sense of the
country and both houses as to the conduct of Lord
Russell; but it was useless their going and enuncia-
ting a policy, and saying, "We will help Denmark
with material aid; we will send a fleet and an army,
if we come into power." It was useless their saying
that because the war would be over before they
could come into office. (Hear, hear.) It was evi-
dent to thinking men that before the Ccnservatives
could take office the whole mutter would be over. It
was not as if the Prussians had taken the Danne-
werke and the island of Alsen, and passed the Schlei.
(Hear, hear.) After those events the war was really
over, What they read in the limes was not all
gospel truth. They had not a majority in the House
of Commons in consequence of the defection of some
of their people—in consequence of various combina-
tions. Until there was a general election there was
no chance of their having a majority. Now, for the
last two or three years, three out of four vacancies
had been filled by Conservatives. Even that very
day the city of Exeter had returned another Con-
servative. (Hear, hear, and load cheers.) And
though one was sorry to see the manner in which
every bishopric and lord-lieutenancy, every office of
state, was filled by the present Uovernment, if per-
sons would stick together the great Conservative
party must come into power. Having said that much
he must et the same time make one observation—
though he was an uncompromising Conservative—
(hear, hear)—yet many of his most intimate friends
with whom he associated were men on entirely the
opposite side of politics. He thought his sentiments
were as exactly as possible the sentiments of the
Gloucestershire Society. (Cheers.) Though he was
an uncompromising Conservative—by which he
meant that if his brother was a candidate for a seat,
and he was of the opposite politics, he (his grace)
would vote against him if he had a vote—he did not
allow private friendship to be interfered with by his
political sentiments. (Cheers.) It would afford him
great pleasure to take the chair at their next yearly
meeting ; and before he sat down hewpoorulspdeprriotypotsoe
to them the toast of the evening—,, ,
that ancient and very excellent society.
The healths of the members for the county having
been drunk,

Mr. J. BOLT, Q,C,, responded, and said that
they had not done much in Parliament that session,
and it was wise that the institutions of the country
should be interfered with as little as possible. They
had not meddled much that year—(laughter)—
they had passed some measures of minor import-
ance. With regard to the question of Denmark,
the hon. member said that he had looked through
all the papers on the subject up to Easter, and any-
thing more humiliating than the disclosures re-
specting this country could not be imagined. Our
boasting braggadocio, leaving Denmark at the last
alone was one of the most humiliating things this
country had suffered. (Hear, hear.)

SOUTHERN NOTIONS OF THE NORTH,--The pri.
sonars taken by us (the Federals) in the late ad-
vance upon Baltimore look healthy, arc well clothed, and
say that they have had plenty to eat for the last year. They
seem to be in good spirits, and confident of final success,
and were a good deal interested to know if Old Abe or Fre-
mcnt was to be the next President. They have a very poor
opinion of Grant as a military commander, but entertain
considerable respect for Meade and Hancock. If it had not
been for those two Generals they are confident that they
would have demolished Grant's army before he crossed the
James River. They represent the slaughter of Grant's
forces at Spottsylvania and the Wilderness as being most
dreadful, and say that he time and again threw large
masses of men against works that were almost impreg-
nable, and only desisted when remonstrated with by his
subordinate offic rs. They seem to entertain considera-
ble respect for the Western troops, but declare that the
regiments fzom tho New England States and the large
cities will not fight when they have the slightest show for
running.—. New York IVoral.

THE POISONING OF SEAMEN.—Another telegram
from Spain, which has arrived in Sunderland, an-
nounces that the cook of the ship Ouse, who was charged
with wilfully causing
the death of three of the crew of that
vessel by putting poison into their rations, has been ac-
quitted by the authorities of San Roque, as the men had
been accidentally poisoned. The message did not mention
how the poison got into their food, but there is no doubt
that very bad meat is often put on board ship in the northern
ports for the use of the crew. The inspector of meat at
Sunderland has recently died at that place, of fever, pro-
duced by the effluvium from casks of provisions which he
seized before they could be got on board a vessel,