The Sun.
London, England, 1849-03-22 00:00:00

NORTH OF ITALY.

The Earl of ABERDEEN rose to draw the attention
of their Lordships to the state of affairs in the North of
Italy. Ile had long feared, from the attitude assumed
by the Sardinian Government, that the war would be
renewed, but he bad abstained from drawing
their Lordships' attention to the subject so long
as any chance remained of peace being preserved,
or of the Brussells congress, taking place. lie moved for
the production of any correspondence which had taken
place between her Majesty's Government and any other
"'ewers with a view to the preservation of peace. lle dis-
approved of the course of policy punned by
our Government in the north and south of
Italy. It was now just twelve months since
the King of Sardinia had with perfidy
unparalleled, invaded the terriitores of Austria in Italy
without a declaration of war, and without the allegation
of any grievffnce or injury. Ile would, before going
further, allude to the position of her Majesty's Govern-
ment between the contending parties. Last year two
dispatches from Prince Metternich, dated 2d Au-

gust, 1847, declaring that the Emperor of
Austria had no object in view in his proceeding
but to secure the observance of the treaty of 1815, and
the answer of Lord Palmerston recalled the attention of
Prince Metternich to the rig ht which the Independent
States possessed of introducing reforms in the internal
administrations. Hor Majesty's Government, entertain-
ing an idea that the Austrian Government entertained
ambitious views of aggression and encroachment
in Italy, instructed the Minister at Vienna
to represent to the Austrian Government the
hope that Austria did -not entertain views of aggression
on Sardinia or the Pope, and reminding the Austrian
Government of the alliances existing between this coun-
try and Sardinia, and that it could not look with indif-
ference on any aggression by Austria against the King
of Sardinia. Six months after, in the month of August,
on the motion of his Noble and Learned Friend, the
answer to the dispatch was produced, in which Prince
Metternich assented to the justice of the principle hid
down of non-interference in the internal affairs of the
Italian states, and declaring the readiness of Austria to
1,1 ice herself by the side of Great Britain in order to
d,feri Sardinia against foreign aggression. The Go-
vernment had been in possession of this answer twelve
months before they laid it before the House. How, then,
while in possession of such an answer could the Govern-
ment take credit for having stopped Austrian aggres-
sion. That answer ought to have been produced at the
same time with the other dispatches, and the non-
preduction of it could not but excite feelings
of indignation in the Austrian Government. It
was a suppression of the truth amounting in
fact to an assertion of that which was actually false. He
aceuitted the Noble Marquis of all, blame in this
transaction, to which he would not have lent him-
self had he. been aware of the nature of it.
He (the Earl of Aberdeen) had asked if similar re-
presentations h.al Leeu made to the Court of Turin, and
the Noble Marquk had stated that representations bad
be a mode
but 11,. thoughtvwrhiiethai e I
clad had the effeceof retarding the war,
~old show from the pap, rs moved by
his Noble that great remissness had been sheen
in doing any thing, and that that little could not have
produced any
et?, ct. The fist in-
timation made toPn3thbaleSrdinian Government was
in March, 1848, expressingws,wantche satisfaction of the
Government at tkoweuld
not interfere
ot
ef e
eat
rhede
either CourtCourt
in
Turin, that they
the affairs of France or in those of Italy,nthe 27th
March the King of Sardinia and theSaurdiocianparrmy
crossed the frontier, and the Ildarcinis
t o entered
assistto
declared to the British Minister that Sardainnida
into the war to di ice Martini from Italy,
the Provisional Government of Lombardy, ‘ebere.
upon the British Minister sins instructed to remind
the Sardinian Goverement that the war in which theyhad
entered was one of doubtful issue. It was true advice
was given to the King of Sardinia not to go to war with
Austria. The advice might have ben given had the war
been just, but- he found no remonstrance against the in-
justice of the war, no protest against the violation of
treaties on the part of the King of Sardinia.

(LEFT SITTING.)