The Sun.
London, England, 1862-02-15 00:00:00

THE b SITN, LONDON; SATURDAY EVt.NING, FTifilitT'AßY 1862,

very prominent part in those negotiations that resulted in
the establishment of the independence of Belgium, and
therefore if the Belgian nation were to form an exception
to all national character, and to be inspired by a sense of
gratitude, which I am afraid is not to be expected from
collective bodies, they ought to be anxicus to give to Eng-
land every advantage, equal to or even superior to the ad-
vantages given to other countries. But our great object
was—and we succeeded—to give to Belgium a national
representation, and a free constitution. Now, if you give
to a country a free constitution by which the passions and
the prejudices of the country are actively represented,
yor must lay your account and make up your mind to
endure the inconvenience which national and local pas-
sions and prejudices are sure to entail. That has been the
case not only in Belgium, but in Spain and Portugal, where,
chiefly through the interference of the British Government,
representative institutions have been established. Now,
wo in this country were a long time before we were taught
to believe that freedom of trade was for the advantage of all
parties concerned. We know how long the public mind was
under the impression that protection to native industry was a
benefit. Fortunately we are now entirely undeceived, but
Belgium has not as yet got so far in commerical education,
and the Belgian Government has to overcome great local pre-
judices. The Belgians do us the compliment of being much
more afraid of the competition of English industry than of
French; and therefore they were more easily led to extend
to France an indulgence which they were not disposed to
extend to England. I trust, however, that that is over, and
that we shall in all respects be put on the footing of the
most favoured nation. Then there is the question as to the
Scheldt dues. When the treaty was negotiated by which
the independence of Belgium was acknowledged by the five
Powers, it is well known that Austria, Russia, and
Prussia most reluctantly agreed to that conclusion, and that
they clung step by step, and point by point, throughout
that long negotiation to everything that might be advan-
tageous to Holland, rather than to Belgium, and they made
a point that there should be levied a toll on all vessels pass-
ing through Dutch waters to Antwerp. There was a double
object in that—first, to assert the territorial rights of Hol-
land, and next, to put a check or restraint on the commer-
cial prospects of Belgium. That toll was to be levied at
Carlhuis by the Dutch authorities. It was afterwards
agreed by the Belgian and Dutch Governments that the
tolls should not be levied at Carlhuis, that the vessels
should not be stopped coming up, but that there should be
a commission at Antwerp to levy tolls on vessels coming up
the Scheldt. The Belgian Government, sensible after-
wards that this toll would operate as a discouragement to
vessels coming to Antwerp, procured a law to be passed in
the Belgian chamber, by which the Belgian Government
took upon itself the payment of that toll to the Dutch Go-
vernment, and from that time the vessels were free. That
was a vo untary thing on the part of Belgium, and the law
might be revoked at any time by the Belgian chamber, and
in that event the vessels would have to pay their own tolls,
and the nations to whom those vessels belonged would suffer
the inconvenience, whatever that might be. of the payment
of those tolls. The Belgian Government, in 1851, made a
treaty by which they engaged for ten years to pay the tolls
on English vessels, and it will be a matter for negotiation
after the treaty of commerce is concluded to deal with that
question as between Belgium and Great Britain. But I can
assure my hon. friend that the Belgian Government have
acted throughout with the greatest desire to do all that fair-
ness and justice require towards Great Britain ; but as they
have a popular assembly, and as that popular assembly is
swayed, like all others, by ignorance, prejudice, and pas-
sion, they have had difficulties which might not be felt by
a Government of a more despotic constitution. It is said
that the:Foreign-office is not well constituted to represent
and „to give effect to the commercial interests of the
country. Now, having had the honour for a great length
of time of being in that department, I think I may venture
to assure my hon. friend that he is mistaken in the sup-
position. It is quite true that in regard to information
bearing on the commercial interests of the country the
Foreign-office has recourse to the best authority—the Board
of Trade. And only see what would be the result of the
creation in the Foreign-office of a second department to ful-
fil the same duties as those now fulfilled by the Board of
Trade. But the Board of Trade was in constant communi-
cation with all the trading interests of the country. It is
the depository of a vast mass of information bearing on
those subjects; and if there was a trade department in the
Foreign-office merely to give the same information, the con-
sequence would be that there would be two departments
doing the same duty. But the opinion of foreign nations is
not at all that which has been stated this evening. The
hon. gentleman thinks that the commercial interests of
this country are neglected by the Foreign-office ; but the
reproach cast upon us by continental nations is that our
negotiations are conducted only to further the commercial
interests of this country. They look upon England as a
selfish power, thinking only of trading advantages. And
now with regard to the Zollverein. It is quite true that
the duties of the Zollverein are very hearty. The feeling of
Germany has been that England was advocating the prin-
ciples of free trade for the purpose of ruining Germany—of
inundating Germany with British commodities. Foreign
nations have an idea that we give our commodities without
taking anything in exchange, that we overwhelm them with
presents. They forget that they can take nothing from us
without giving us something of equal value, and that the
consequence of admitting the products of this country to
supply the wants of their consumers is that they impose on
themselves the necessity of creating commodities of some
kind or other by which they can pay for ours, and therefore
their notion is most chimerical. I trust that that fear is
now being dissipated. It is being dissipated gradually, and
the French treaty will have a material effect in disabusing
their minds on this subject. My hon. friend has paid a
very deserved compliment to the member for Rochdale—l
may name him as commissioner on that occasion, not as a
member of this house—Mr. Cobden—(cheers)—for his in-
valuable services in the negotiation of that treaty. (Cheers.)
I am glad to take this opportunity of saying— I may say
almost in justification of her Majesty's Government—that
it is not our fault, but it arises from what I think the over-
strained and too refined delicacy of mind of Mr. Cobden that
he has not received for his services on that occasion some
signal mark of the favour of the Crown. (Cheers.) Honours
were offered to him, which he declined from motives which
do him high credit. Nevertheless that refusal is certainly
a matter of great regret to myself. (Hear.) I assure my
hon. friend that blindness or neglect of the commercial in-
terests of the country is not a fault that her Majesty's Go-
vernment have fallen into. My hon. friend the member
for Warwickshire lamented the fate of the Coventry ribbon
makers, and ascribed the distress which they have suffered
to the French treaty. I believe my hon. friend is mistaken
as to the cause of that distress. It arose, not from any
inundation of French ribbons, but from a change of fashion
in this country. The manufacturers of this country are not
in ono respect, in the condition that is well described in a
well-known prologue—
" Hard is their fate who here by fortune placed
Must watch the wild vicissitudes of taste."
Well, it is the vicissitudes of taste that from time to time
lead to an increased demand, or a cessation of demand, for
particular manufactures. Ladies, who exercise so great a
sway in all human affairs—(laughter)—may, by changing
their style of dress, inflict distress on one set of manufac-
turers and give abundant occupation to others. The Co-
ventry ribbon makers aro suffering from the absence of rib-
bons on ladies' dresses, while the steel manufacturers of
Sheffield are driving a flourishing trade in those implements
of destruction—(laughter)—which now form so important a
part of ladies' attire. (More laughter.) They have left off
the manufacture of things of one kind dangerous to human
life, and have taken to making things which unfortunately,
though not in an equal degree, have been instrumental in
the loss of life in another way. (Hear, hear.) Therefore it
is not the French treaty that is the cause of distress in Co-
ventry, but it arises from the laws of human nature, by
which those persons who manufacture articles of luxury,
have, as the exigency of the moment determines, greater
or less employment in the manufacture of one article than
another. I hope, sir, I have been able to answer the ques-
tion of my hon. friend, and I can assure him that the com-
mercial interests of the country have not been neglected by
her Majesty's Government. (Hear, hear.)