The Sun.
London, England, 1863-12-24 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, DECEMBER 24, 1861

BANQUET TO CAPTAIN SPEKE,

On Tuesday night, a banquet in honour of Captain Speke
was given in the Grand Jury-room at the Shire-hall, Taun-
ton. About 15.0 gentlemen sat down, under the presidency
of Captain Scobell, the high sheriff of the county, and among
those present we noticed Captain Speke Lord Taunton, Sir
W, Medlycott, Sir A. Hood, M.P., Sir P. P. Acland, M.P.,
Sir W. Miles, M.P., Colonel Pinny, M.P., Mr. W. G.
Langton, M.P., Mr. A. Mills, M.P., Mr. Denby Seymour,
M.P., Mr. Sergeant Kinglako, M.P., Lieutenant-Colonel
Neville, Lieutenant-Colonel N. Grenville, Captain Raban,
Captain Carew, Captain Evered, Major Hedley, Captain
V ibart, Captain Doveton, Major Warry, &a.
The cloth having been drawn, letters of apology for non-
attendance were read from Lord Portman, Sir A. Elton,
Sir John Lethbridge, Colonel Graham, Mr. Esdale, and M;
Dickinson.

The usual loyal toasts having been given, the toast of
"The Bishop and Clergy" was acknowledged by
The Rev. W. R, CLARK, vicar of St. Mary's, Taunton,
who observed that it was right they should express their
gratitude to Captain Speke for his cervices in the cause of
religion, Christianity, and philanthropy. No class of men
were more interested in the history of Egypt than the clergy
of the Church of England, for it was the cradle of the great
law. giver and the cradle of Christianity. He believed that
Captain Speke had done a great deal towards throwing open
that part of Africa which promised not only to be the basis
of its modern civilization, but also the best sphere for
Christian missions, (Applause.)
Lord TAUNTON proposed the toast of " The Army and
Navy." He hoped the day would be far distant when the
noble qualities inherent in our soldiers and sailors would
be called into action. Those, however, belonging to the
army and navy, he remarked, while professionally inactive,
were finding a vent for their energy and perseverance in
other fields. He need to look no further for an illus-
tration of this than to the gallant gentleman who
was their guest—he had to look no further to
see that the English soldier did not make time of peace
a time of indolence and inactivity, Captain Speke was
only a specimen of what English soldiers were able to carve
out for themselves in times of peace. Captain Spoke had
returned with laurels as nobly won as any upon the battle-
field. No one who had perused his book but would see his
endurance, his sagacity, all his prudence, which had en-
abled him to achieve the peaceful victories of science.
(Applause.) He had felt a privilege and a pleasure to join
with other gentlemen in hailing Captain Speke's return to
his native country and in assuring him that during his
labours his career was watched with the greatest sym-
pathy. If he should continue to go on to fresh efforts in
that field in which he had already been so successful he
could assure him that the best wishes of everybody con-
nected with the county of Somerset would accompany him
in all his labours, and that when he returned they should
only be glad to welcome him again. (Applause.)
Colonel NEVILLE briefly responded for the army, and
Captain SCOBELL for the navy,

The CHAIRMAN then proposed" The Health of Captain
Speke."

Captain J. H. SPEKE, who was received with vociferous
cheers, spoke as follows :—You may depend upon it, gen-
tlemen, that it was the pride both of my county and of my
country that carried me through my undertaking. (Ap-
plause.) Wherever I was I thought of home and worked
accordingly. (Applause.) You all know, gentlemen, that
in 1858 I hit the Nile upon its head, and that in 1863 I
drove it into the Mediterranean Sea. (Hear, hear, and a
laugh.) But, gentlemen, while you are doing me this great
honour, and while you are complimenting me as you have
done on the success of my late career, I must not omit to
do justice to those who went before me, and by whose im-
mediate instrumentality the work commenced. I have been
accused in the public press of being ungenerous. It has
been said that I have not remembered Beke, who proclaimed
to the world that he imagined the source of the Nile to lie
in the position in which I found it. All this, gentlemen, I
grant; but I assure you that it was not on account of his
hypothesis that this work was commenced. It was
two missionaries, named Rebmann and Edhardt, who
first commenced the work. They heard from the natives of
Africa that in the interior of the continent there was, as
they imagined, an enormous piece of water, extending from
the equator over the 14th degree of the south latitude, and
being about 300 milts in breadth. This occurred about the
time of the Crimean war. One of these missionaries made
a map of the country, and taking it to the Geographical
Society of England, proposed to examine this piece of water
and see exactly in what position it lay, lle also proposed to
ascertain, I believe, whether it had any outlets, and whether
it formed the headquarters of any rivers. The Geographical
Society was then at the height of its prosperity, and was
very desirous that Some measure should be taken to open up
that part of Africa, and especially the locality in which this
great hypothetical lake was situated. Captain Burton, hap-
pening to be in the company of Admiral Sir George Back,
was accosted by him on this subject. Having heard of Capt.
Burton, Admiral Sir George Back preferred him to the mis-
sionaries,
with thinking that the duties of the latter would inter-
fere their labours in a geographical point of view. I
was a necessity to Captain But ton, for I had formerlyserved
with him in Africa, and had learnt the use of surveying in-
struments. We went together from Zenzitar Lo Kingam,
where I first heard from the natives that the Nyanza lay
immediately to its northward, and that it was the largest
piece of water in the country. They informed us that there
were three lakes—viz., the Victoria Nyanza, the Tangan-
zika, and the N'esa. Capt. Burton expressed his intention
of going to the Tanganzika lake. I went there with him,
and we navigated the lake, but our stores became exhausted
and it was necessary that we should send for a fresh
supply or return. I proposed the former alternative, but
that was negatived. I pointed out that we had done
nothing, that the people of England would expect some-
thing from us, and that we should return only as far as
Kingam; but my companion was ill, or doubtless he would
have gone with me. At that time I had discovered the
southern end of the Victoria Nyanza, and had preyed that
it was the source of the Nile, and as no one had anything
to do with the discovery except the two missionaries,
Capt. Burton, and Capt. Grant, who went with me on my
last journey, I think, having said this much, I have done
justice to all parties. Your worthy chairman has hinted at
my future prospects in Africa, but it could not be expected
that he should know what I have in view. My object is
nothing less than the regeneration of Africa. (Applause.)
I believe—and I say I believe because I have only been
across the tract once—that I have discovered a zone of won-
derful fertility in Africa. It stretches in a line with the
equator from east to west, and its fertility perfectly asto-
nished me. 1 have shown that the altitude of the country
is between 3,000 and 4,000 feet, that in the very heart of
the country is a great mountain group, which are the rain.
bearers for fertilising the country, and the consequence is
that throughout the whole duration of the twelvemonths
there is a fall of rain on an average of two to three inches
each day. There is a temperature as mild as that of this
country in summer, and with the moisture, heat, and a
rich roil combined you can imagine what the result must
be. And although the climate is so temperate it is the
most healthy of all the regions in which I have travelled.
It may be said that I am to some extent acclimatised, but I
don't judge from the effect of the climate upon myself alone.
Tbere are Arab merchants and others who say that there
is no place so healthy as the equatorial regions. (Hear.)
Now, gentlemen, as this country is so pro:ific, as its cli-
mate is so genial, as all facts tend to show that, properly de-
veloped, it is as fertile as any country in the world, I think,
instead of devoting our attention to places more distant from
the equator, where these are great rains, great droughts,
and fearful famines, we should look to it. If means were
taken to colonise it, there would, I am sure, be ample re-
payment. (Hear.) And if missionaries should again enter
Africa, I would say tb.at this region is especia:ly the spot
to which they should direct their attention—(hear, hear)—
and if ever they should do so they will meet there a people
who are not purely heathen, but who, having emanated
from the Abyssinian stock, have the germ of Chris-
tianity within them. (Hear, hear.) I wish particu-
larly to draw the attention of clergy men to these
people. I am certain that it the kings who rule the country
could be visited by our missionaries they would heartily re-
ceive them, for they told me so. (Hear, hear, and applause.)
When I spoke to them of the power of knowledge they
wished that I should educate their children—bat I was fear-
ful that if those children were brought to this country they
would not desire to return to their homes. I therefore told
them that I would send missionaries to them, and, as they
all accepted the view which I then expressed, I feel certain
that they are now expecting their arrival. (Applause.) You
have read, doubtless, of the number of lives which are sacri-
ficed in the kingdom of Uganda alone each year. It is
really very fearful—but it is not only of those who are exe-
cuted, but those also who are carried off by slavery, that
cause that country to be in so turbulent and as excited
a state. Really something ought to be done to put a stop
to this. (Hear, hear.) I would willingly go myself and
lead the way. (Applause.) But I would prefer that to the
regions there should go certain missionaries under such an
able guide as Dr. Livingstone. (Hear, hear.) There should
also be employed in the work negru clergymen, of whom
many are to be found on the western coast. Of course,there
could be as many young bloods as would like to go, being
careful to ascertain that they are constituted for it, bearing
in mind that in Africa the climate is during the whole year
of an equal temperature. In England we enjoyed better
health, because we were accustomed to the change, and we
can never thrive so well elsewhere until we have been there
a certain time, and have got acclimatized. But,gentlemen,
in addition to the clergy there ought to be ambassadors to
4fris,a--men with authority emanating from our Govern-
ment, and who,trading with the kings, would be able to put
a atop to the diabolical system of the slave trade—(hear,hear,
which I have gone' I
sod apple'ase)—which is ruining the country,and more espe-
cially tbe Be semi-Christians inhabiting the district through
Christianity, but t is sttilltlrue that
in At the same time
those vile traders who, hat these people forget their
instaeateanotfutrheehmas.in
the ivory with
Beads take many more bullets than') anythings else, and shoot
down the natives or steal them away, and rob them of their
cattle, have rendered the country so insecure that no one
ofoarrceeas)ztiohroutosatnhdast
ocafuthteranvaetlivt,ehrroaucgesh.
maintainnleea thathas
w
upon thousands of pounds in a fruitless manner incur efforts
to stop the slave-trade there. Hitherto, we have directed
our etp,rts principally to running down slavers instead of,

as I think we ought to do, teaching the negroes to stand up
for themselves. (Hear, hear.) The African is a very in-
telligent creature. I have travelled with many of them,
who, although formerly, when in slavery considered them-
selves the property of their masters, because they had been
purchased, and would neither kill nor desert them, now
declare that the degradation of their countrymen who are
transported into slavery have so excited them that if a good
spirit were infused into them they would rise to a man and
help one another to keep down the traffic. (Hear, hear.)
The more direct plan of doing this would be by organizing
an expedition in the following way. In the first place let
there be negro depots along the east and west coasts of
Africa assisting emancipated slaves; let these be trained as
sailors and taught the English language, so that they may
Resist our own navigators; let the natives after being drilled
be taken across the continent of Africa, and shown the posi-
tions in which the trade chiefly ramifies, and then prevent the
merchants conveying slaves to the ports. By this an organi-
zation would be created which would tend to the entire sup-
pression of the slave trade. I would engage in it myself if
the Government felt inclined to support me in it. After the
depots had been formed, I would take in the aggregate 500
men, a few from each station, and I would then commence
from the east coast of Africa and march across along the
equator to the west coast. I would, at the same
time, show those spots which are most advantageous to
us in a mercantile point of view, and whichiwould pave
the way for a system of—l won't say colonization—but
civilisation, and colonisation will necessarily follow. (Hear,
hear.) That is a matter which we need not doubt for one
moment, for the fact is the negro cannot govern his own
land, and the land is such that it will be the subject of con-
tention before long. Austria has already her eye upon it.
An Austrian gentleman has gone out there, and his object
cannot be to discover the source of the Nile, because it is
settled. (Hear, hear.) He may have gone out to certify to
the truth of my statements, but they have been corrobo-
rated by my companion Captain Grant. (Hear, hear.)
Captain Speke concluded by proposing the health of Captain
Grant, and also the Geographical Society.
The toast was very warmly drunk..

Mr. DANBY SEYMOUR, M.P., responded on behalf of the
Geographical Society, and other toasts followed, after which
the meeting broke up. _ _

The ball took place at the London Hotel. Among those
/ Lord Taunton, Lady
CaptainPTreattuenntotnw,ethneotMieeisdses
Mr. H. D. Seymer,
M.P., Colonel Penney, M.P., Sir A. Hood, M.P., Sir P.
LabouchereSpek e ( 3 ) ,
Acland, Sir William and Miss Medlycott, Capt, Scobell,
R.N., Mrs. Barton Scobell, Sir W. Miles, M.P., Mr. W.
H. P. Langton, M.P, and Lady Anna Gore Langton, the
Hon. Mrs. Elton, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Elton, the Hon.
Miss Chetwynd, the Hon. E. J. Chetwynd, Co,

do with the act which you committed, the Court has deter-
mined to sentence you to a short imprisonment, and to
substitute a fine for the remainder of the sentence which it
is proper to impose upon you. Of course, the fine must be
of a substantial character, rather with reference to your
position as an estated man than with reference exclusively
to the consideration of the offence for which you have been
properly advised to plead guilty. Under all the circum-
stances of the case the judgment of the Court upon you is,
that you be imprisoned in the common gaol of this county
for one calendar month, and that you pay to our lady the
Queen a fine of £3OO, and be further imprisoned until that
fine be paid.
The prisoner was then taken below.

SOUTMWALES CIRCUIT.—CARDIPF, Dec. 21.

(Before Mr. Justice Crompton.)

Sarah Lancastell was indicted for the wilful murder of
her child at Llandaff.

Mr. Thomas Allen appeared for the prosecution; the pri-
soner was undefended.

There was no doubt from the depositions that this unfor-
tunate woman was not in a sound state of mind at the time
of the murder, and in consequence of what Mr. Payne, the
surgeon of the gaol, said, a jury was empannelled to try
whether she was in a fit state of mind.

In answer to the questions put to him by the Court, Mr.
Payne said that she was, in his opinion, in such a state as
to render her unable to give an answer to any questions put
to her, and that he was afraid it was not a temporary but a
lasting case of insanity. - '
The unfortunate woman, it appears, met with some great
domestic affliction about a year ago, and when the child
whose death was the subject of the present charge was born
she had a very bad confinement, and in a fit of insanity, de-
scribed by the doctor as puerperal mania, she forced her
hand down the child's throat—labouring under the impres-
sion, as she said, that there was a fire inside it—causing al-
most immediate death. The jury at once found that the pri-
soner was not in a fit state to plead, his Lordship remark-
ing that the effect would be that she would be placed in an
asylum, and that the circumstances of this sad case were
such that in the event of her recovery he would give a cer-
tificate, if applied to, to render it necessary that she should
undergo the formality of a trial.
William Williams was charged with maliciously setting
fire to a stack of hay, the property of Lewis Lewis, of Lan-
vaboll.

Mr. T. Allen appeared for the prosecution.
The prisimer was seen in the neighbourhood just before
the fire, and soon after he went to the police-station and
gave himself up, saying at the time that ho was induced to
do i 4 because he could not get work and was " hard up."
The jury having found him guilty, he was sentenced to
six years' penal servitude, his Lordship remarking at the
time upon the enormity of the offence and the necessity of
passing a severe sentence, as it was a crime much on the
increase, he having sentenced no less than 11 persons for
the same offence last week at Welshpool, is Montgomery-
shire.

Thomas Phillips was charged on the coroner's warrant
with feloniously killing and slaying one Griffith Phillips.
Mr. Bowen appeared for the prosecution ; the prisoner,
who was very much affected, was not defended.
The circumstances of this case were very sad, and were
shortly these :—The prisoner, who was a,hardworking, in-
dustrious man, and bore the best possible character as an
affectionate husband and father, went home to his dinner
one day, when, unfortunately, a somewhat angry discussion
took place between him and his wife about the children not
having sufficient meat for dinner, upon which she left the
room, the prisoner taking up a small piece of iron and
throwing it over his shoulder after her. The deceased, who
was one of their children, aged nine years, was unfortunately
behind him, and the piece of iron struck him on the fore-
head. A witness who called at prisoner's house soon after
saw both him and his wife treating the child with the greatest
care. A doctor was subsequently called in, and found a
small wound on the forehead, and attended the child until
his death, which took place in about a week, A post
mortal.; examination being made, a fracture of the skull was
found immediately underneath the wound, causing inflam-
mation of the brain, which was the cause of death.
His Lordship, in summing up, impressed upon the jury
the necessity of finding the prisoner guilty if the death was
caused by any illegal act of the prisoner, whether directed
against the deceased or another, or by any wilful and cal•
pable negligence; but that if they thought it was possibly
the effect of an accident they would be warranted in acquit-
ting him.

The jury immediately found a verdict of not guilty.

SPIRIT OF THE PUBLIC JOURNALS.

TIMES.—It is now nearly 26 years since the Go-
vernment of New Zealand was engaged in its first
great war with the natives. The contest was long,
and, for a colonial war, bloody. hostilities began in
1844, and the islands were not wholly tranquillised
till 1848. In that time the British troops inflicted on
the Maories many severe ;defeats, but it is doubt-
ful whether they did not leave them more skilful
warriors and resolute enemies than they were at the
beginning. The native fortification of the "pah"
yielded everywhere sooner or later to the courage of
our troops, but the Maories have never been con-
vinced that it is impossible for them to hold the
country except by alliance with the English. They
have never even been persuaded that it is out of
their power to ruin the colonial settlements and re-
cover the lands of the white man for themselves,
For years past the settlers hale found themselves
in presence of a race which cherishes a belief in
its superiority and future good fortune. There
are Maories who are hostile, and others who are
friendly ; but, whether hostile or friendly, they have
been encouraged by events, and perhaps by the
action of our Home Government, to consider them-
selves a powerful and independent race, able to deal
on at least equal terms with the English who are
their neighbours. There is every reason to suppose
that the outbreak which has lately occurred is the
result of a long prevalent feeling. Naturally
clever and learning something year after year of
the qualities and weaknesses of the settlers, the
Maori has fancied that he has come to be a match
for them and the handful of regular troops which
ordinarily occupies NewZeaian d. He has his gun and
his ammunition, sometimes his horse and cart; he
has learnt by contact with civilization the art of
combining with secrecy and forming able schemes.
The war which has broken out in the neigh-
bourhood of Auckland would probably have been
the most formidable in which tee Government has
been engaged, if it had not been for the promptitude
of the colonial authorities, the courage of the settlers,
and the generous help that had been received from
the Australian mainland: The deadly nature of the
strife may be understood from the despatch of Gen.
Cameron, just published in the Gazette. The mur-
der of Mr. Armitage, who has lived several years
among the natives, shows the determination of the
enemy, and their power to bring ruin on isolated
settlements. This gentleman was appointed super-
intendent of a small depot of stores at a place called
Camerontown, and friendly natives inhabited a pah
near the spot. The pah was suddenly attacked by
a large body of the enemy, the friendly natives
were driven out, Mr. Armitage was killed, and the
stores were destroyed. A more conspicuous in-
stance, however, of the courage and strength of
the enemy is the attack on Captain Swift's party.
This officer, on hearing the fate of Mr. Armitage,
went out with 50 men to scour the bush, and was
mortally wounded in the fight with the natives which
ensued. These events appear to have thoroughly
roused the authorities, and, though they will not
imitate the cruelty of the enemy; there is little doubt
that the latter will receive a lesson which will put
an end for ever to designs of massacre and plunder.
The fault has been so s holly with them this time,
the atrocity of their conduct has been so undeniable,
the danger to the white population has been so
threatening, that even the ordinary spokesmen and
defenders of the native have been unable to say a
word for him. The clergy, who have ever stood
between the Maories and the white man, are now
ready to admit that the Government and the colo-
nists must lose no time in putting down the revolt
and punishing its instigators. A letter we pub-
lished some days since gave a description of the
scene of war, and a narrative of events up to the last
days of October. The natives have betaken them-
selves to massacre, and do not scruple to shoot down
unsuspecting settlers, and even young boys. But
these crimes have aroused the spirit of all clasees.
The slow operations of former wars are likely to be
abandoned for more summary tactics. Auckland,
which the natives thought to surprise, or at any rate
to besiege, is so effectually garrisoned that General
Cameron, even with an insufficient force, has been
able to disregard the swarms of natives on his flank
and rear, and keep the field on the banks of the
Waikato. To meet the Maories in their own mode
of warfare must be the tactics of the British Com-
mander. It is said that the troops have become skit-
fui in bush fighting, and that flying columns will be
organised to scour the bush and destroy detached
and marauding parties of the enemy. More
attempts to bring such bands of plunderers to a
general action must generally end in failure.. Gen.
Cameron, for instance, has been encamped for some
time opposite Mere-mere, a native stronghold on
the Waikato. This place is supposed to be defended
by a great number of Maories, and is probably well
worth the trouble of taking. But the general fear
Seems to be that the enemy will steal away, and
make the capture comparatively useless, inasmuch
as the Maori is formidable, not only from the posi-
tions he may occupy, but from his activity, cunning,
and marauding propensities. Hence, if the natives
evacuate the place, and, forming themselves into
straggling parties, carry on the war, little will
have been gained by theirlexpulsion from a single
position. position. The military authorities seem to 10
enter-
alive to the necessity of adopting a more„
Ba_s
prising kind of warfare. " A conviction,
our correspondent, o is gaining ground that it 0
ur
troops are to subdue the natives they
must learn
to meet them in the bush in their own fashion.''
troops are becoming accustomed to this Luna of

fighting, and habit gives confidence : they believe
they can beat the natives, and " the natives are
coming round to a similar opinion." It is to this
kind of warfare that we must look for an early end
of the war. Flying columns, penetrating into the
districts occupied by the enemy, and operating
boldly and suddenly, will strike greater fear than
the march of a whole brigade to attack a stockade
or a " pah," which the Maeries have built to be be-
seiged, and can generally retire from whenever they
please. Why should not Englishmen be as active in
the bush as any native ? At home they are accus-
tomed to walk and run and climb, and what
is there but the restraints of conventional
discipline to prevent them doing so when an
enemy has to be pursued ? The small bodies of
men whom the General is sending out in various
directions will probably harass the enemy more,
and give him a more disheartening notion of the
übiquity and power of the British force, than if ten
thousand men were drawn up in order of battle
before Auckland. There may be something re-
volting to European notions in the ambuscades
which are a feature in this kind of warfare, but the
ferocity of the natives and the danger which arises
from allowing bodies of them to lurk in the neigh-
bourhood of the settlers must be the excuse for
any departure from the usual practice of armies.
As to the conduct of the settlers themselves, it is
worthy of all commendation, and the same may be
said of the people of New South Wales and Victoria,
who have given all the help in their power to their
threatened brethren. The New Zealand Govern-
ment has promised grants of land to military set-
tlers who will serve three years, and a volunteer
force of 2,000 men has been organised in Australia,
of whom nearly half have been contributed by the
colony of Victoria. This force is independent of a
considerable body of men raised in New Zealand,
where in one way or another the whole population
of the country about Auckland is in arms. It is
from the co-operation of these large forces with the
small body of regular troops that we hope for the
speedy suppression of the disturbances. The time
has come when the Australian colonies are popu-
lous enough to carry on their own local wars, and
we hope that tranquillity will be restored without
furthendemands on the Home Government. But
when that has been done, both the British and Co-
lonial authorities will have the scarcely less ar-
duous duties of peace to perform. A correspon-
dent, whose letter we publish to-day, points out
the faults of our administration, and it certainly
seems that there has been a strange mixture of
weakness and false security. The Government
has left the natives so much to themselves that
they have come to look upon their tribes as inde-
pendent; while the white man with his habitual
disregard of a lower race's self esteem, has done
much to put enmity between himself and the Maori.
It is the history of the North American Indian over
again. The two races, if left to themselves, would
probably carry on desultory warfare for a genera-
tion or two, till the Maori would disappear like the
red men east of the Mississippi. Bat the Govern-
ment owes protection to the natives at the same
time that it has a right to exact obedience. It is
said that many of them desire a stronger and more
active administration, which will really make the
Governor their chief. When reduced to submission,
they may easily be retained in it and made useful
subjects by a truly vigorous and paternal rule.
HERALD.—It is with feelings:of regret and shame
—feelings which will, we believe, be shared by every
Englishman to whom the honour of England is more
dear than the interest of a domestic faction or a
foreign belligerent—that we call the attention of
our readers to that part of the Message of the Pre
sident of the Confederate States which deals with
the foreign relations of his Government. That
Message places on record before the world, for the
information of our latest posterity, the conduct of
the British Government during this American con-
test; and in its simple narrative of facts are con-
veyed reproaches which must sting the heart of
every honest Englishman—reproaches too bitter to
be endured, and too just to be resented. It is not
now that we have to learn what a miserable thing
it is to be represented by Lord Russell. When his
lordship intrigued in Greece and Italy, England
bore the blame ; when he betrayed and menaced
Denmark, " British faith" was the theme of con-
temptuous sarcasm throughout the Continent ;
when he insulted Brazil, England was taunted with
wanton insolence ; when he hectored Russia, and
inveigled Poland into delusive hopes and fatal ob-
stinacy, England received the harsh words which
her Minister had deserved. And now the disgrace
falls not on him. but on the country by whose ill-
fortune it is rendered possible that her honour
should be in the keeping of John Earl Russell. He
has talked in Parliament about neutrality ; he has
pretended to observe an honest and impartial indif-
ference in a quarrel which is none of ours ; and
Parliament has been weak and ignorant enough to
believe him. What language has he held in his
correspondence with his friends, and England's
bitter enemies, at Washington ? What has been
the bent and purpose of his arrangements for en-
forcing his boasted "non-intervention ?" How has
he treated the Government and representatives of a
nation anxious to cultivate the friendship and good-
will on England ? Let him speak for himself. In
May, 1861, he pleaded with Mr. Seward that her
Majesty's Government had only allowed to the
South a sort of intermediate position, and that
the sympathies of England were with the North.
Then he interdicted our ports to prizes taken by
either nation—a measure for which Mr. Seward
expressed his gratitude, as giving a death-blow
to Southern privateering. In June, 1861, Mc.
Adams had the impudence—we can call it nothing
else—to complain of the reception of the Southern
commissioners, and to threaten that the United
States would regard it as an act of a hostile charac-
ter, and take action accordingly. A man of spirit
would have administered a severe rebuke to this
impertinence ; an honest English Minister would
have reminded the Federal Ambassador that, ex-
cept as regards the formality of recognition, the
Confederate and the United States were on an
equal footing before the world, and that it was his
duty to receive the envoys of either party, not
indeed with the same formalities, but with equal
courtesy. What did Lord Russell ? He actually
apologised to Mr. Adams, and assured him that he
had no expectation of seeing the Southern commis-
sioners again ! We waste no words on this act of
gratuitous self-degradation and meanness, but pass
on to another instance. In October, 1861, Mr.
Adams again complained, this time that, in accor-
dance with every rule of international law, the Con-
federates were purchasing munitions of war in the
Bahamas. Of course they had a right to do this;
and at the same time the Federal agents were
avowedly making large purchases of arms in Eng-
land. Did Lord Russell state to Mr. Adams that
the Confederates had a perfect right to buy what
and where they pleased? Not he. He obtained a
denial of the fact from the authorities of Nassau,
and forwarded it to Mr. Adams, to satisfy him that
" the unwarrantable act" alleged bad not taken
place. In pursuance of the same policy he has re-
peatedly caused seizures to be made of vessels which
he thought might be sold to the Confederates, and
might be armed and equipped by them elsewhere
than in British ports; straining and perverting the
Foreign Enlistment Act to this end, while to his
knowledge thousands of Irishmen are carried over
in British ships-to recruit the Federal army. These
charges are every one of them not merely sustained,
but proved beyond denial, by the language of Lord
Russell's own despatches; and they involve an
amount of treachery towards the Confederate
States, servility towards the North, and disloyalty
to England, sufficient to condemn to perpetual
infamy even a man of character previously stainless.
But Lord Russell pleads guilty to them all without
hesitation—pleads guilty, do we say ? He boasts
of his guilt. He points out to Mr. Seward that the
course of her Majesty's Government "has been ex-
ceedingly advantageous to the cause of the more
powerful of the two contending parties." After
this, Lord Russell's panegyrists had better throw
down their briefs. For, if they say that our neu-
trality has been honest and impartial they give the
lie to their client's own assertion that it has been
" extremely advantageous to the stronger party ;"
and if they admit that he spoke the truth therein,
they convict him of a dishonest and unneutral
policy. We have spoken out, more than once, the
shameful truth on the subject of the pretended
blockade of the Confederate coast. We need do no
more, on this occasion. then call attention to the
masterly statement of the ease by President Davis.
When that blockade was proclaimed it extended
over 3,000 miles of coast, and the navy that was to
enforce it numbered 24 ships of war. Therefere,
under the work and most violent precedents c.)f.., the
worst times of old, the blockade was invalid
international law, and Lord Russell.
bfiamesteto the
tdhilts w
more than one occasion, pointed out
with them
Federal Government, and tookt
deeresegation to the
fur having acknowledged it,
honour and in contempt of the interestsh blockade
Greatk
before
been a d e
Britain. Subsequently,
which would render it
acquired a degree of
valid under the law that prevailed lBse,
eforcaenno_esdvoustatrde
But, in the raeant.m
e_
,s
Government,
had
introduced. Her sel,s '3l con-
'ntly with
jot that of trance, had asked and ob-
tained of the
tained the adherence Confederate States to
three last articlese Paris
the of th Convention on
maritime law. Two of these 1 artic' es were purely
for the advantage of neutrals •
strictly observed by the C and have
been
The third was of mutual • onfederate cruisers.
interest to the weaker
maritime belligerent d
de-
clared that 6i a to neutral powers; it
o,e and
ekade to be binding must be main-
tained by a force
to the coast sufficient really to prevent access
ast of the enemy." When called upon to
clrry out this article Lord itugell pleads that it wee

--- _
intended only to preclude paper blockades, enforced
" by a man-of'.war appearing now and then in the
offing." Of course this le not true; the words of
the article are clear, definite, and susceptible of no
such interpretation. Utlllappily we must go further,
and say that Lord Russell knows that it is not true.
For in 1856 he took the words of the article in their
natur.al sense, and, in so doing, justly and forcibly
denounced it as a foolish, imprudent, and unsatis-
factory arrangement—terms wholly inapplicable to
the interpretatioo
which he now puts upon the
clause. On his own evidence, therefore, he stands
convicted of a flagrant ich
of the blockade; of an attemp,!
to cover that breach
of faith by prevarication ; and of a wilful and sys-
tematic perversion of neutrality
in the interest of
the Northern States.

COUNTRY MARKETS.

.1,

LYNN—TUESDAY.
The weather during the past week has been fine and mild,
with south-west winds. At to-day's market there was a
fair attendance of the tr. de, with a small supply of wheat.
The demand was active, and the prices of last week were
fully supported. Malting barley at late rates, and grinding
sorts dull. Oats and Leans were slow.
White ..44s to 46s / Barley 36s to 378
Red..
Beans .438 to 44s 1 Oats..
New