The Sun.
London, England, 1823-04-17 00:00:00

EA R L GRE Y.

. We were obliged to omit the Speech of this
Noblethan in the Debate of Monday,-but as the
opinions of so experienced a Politician must
a'ways be entitled to' public attention,- we deem
it our duty to insert it this day.
Earl GREY rose, and said the Noble Earl (Liverpool) had
referred to the complaint which he had made on a former occa.
sion as to the course of proceeding which he proposed to follow
ern the 'present occasion ; but from nothing which he had heard
to-night *as he induced to alter the (minims he then expressed :
on the contrary, what he had then anticipated had' now taken
place, and, as he had foreseen, he must be under the necessity
either of submitting thet the Noble Earl's statements should go
forth to the public without objection to the statements of the
views of policylounded on them, (whatever objections he might
entertain to both), or else to sustain the disadvantage of enter-
ing on a. discussion withdut having seen the documents which
tt* Noble Earl had in his possession, and of Which neither he
(Earl Grey) nor the House kneW tray thing but from the state-
ment of the Noble Earl. Under these circumstances he felt
Much embarrassed t impossible as it was to enter into the dis-
cussion of the various topics . which the Noble Earl had intro-
duced into his speech, he still felt it impossible to suffer it to
pots without testifying his dissent to itit general tenour.
.Noble • Earl had clearly told'tho House that he had failed in
averting a war most dangerous to Europe; and from the Noble
Earl's statement it 'appeared to him (Earl (I.) that he had failed
in a great degree, from not having persevertd inthe policy which
had always governed our ancestors. The Noble Earl had most
justly characteriied the attack upon Spain.--e(Hear, hear !)..--as
an attack not justisicd by any thing which Spain had' done; as
iniquitous in its principles; and? as he admitted, dangerous to
the power that made it, ; and not only so, but as the Noble Earl
had not stated, if successful, it struck at the foundation of the
system on which the independence of Europe rested, and was
highly dangerous to the honour and intesests of this country—
Wear, hear transferring to France, in peace, thatin-
fluence in the officers of Spain, which by long wars; and great
sacrifices of blood and treasure, we head long labouectr to
prevent. Such was the character of the war which had
now broken out between France and Spain, in defiance
of our efforts. That these results should have been pro. '
duced without great misconduct on the part of his Majesty's
Ministers, he could not believe ; and in his humble opinion, if
a different policy had been adopted, we Shoeld have experienced
at this moment a different result. If, instead of that policy,
hold and decisive tone had'been adopted at Verona, which the
great interests at stake required—if we had ePoken out boldly
against that act of violence which had now been perpetrated,
and declared our intention to resist it al; in our rower, he.be-
lieved we should be placed in a very different situation from
that in which we now stood, and Europe would not have to
dread all the consequences of this war. Ile was himself con-
vinced, and so was every,man with whom he had conversed on
the subject, that Spain would have been secured. She would
have proceeded as she had done hitherto, calmly and deliber.
ately, to mature and perfect her institutions, and to amend those
defects of which the Noble *Earl complained ; but it,was
possible for a country, not deaf to the calls of homer, to sub-
mit to the arbitrary dtctation of Foreign PoWers. Let it not be
imagined that he would have counselled the use of any threat if
he had not been prepared to put it in practice. No such lan-
guage would he,have held, if it had not been with the firm in-
tention al acting on it. He firmly believed, that a war would
have been avoided ; but, even if war had followed, it would
have been more honourable for us, and with better prospects of
euccesss than any we can now entertain, if we should be ulti-
mately foreed into war. He begged the House to believe that
there was no man more desirous of peace than the humble in-
dividual who .addreased.them ; he knew it' was the interest of
this and of all countries to be at peace, and if ever it were
more peculiarly desirable to this country, it was now,• after
the long anti painful exertions which we had made in order
to restore those resources of which we had been so largely
drained but in this as in all other questions of war and
peace, the dangers diver were.to be balanced against the dun:
gers of peace ; and if it could be shown that the balance and
security of Europe were on the point of being endangered; the
evil was incurred, and great nation must then appeal to
arms. Ile (Eerl Grey)had only stated this generally, because it
was impossible to follow the Noble Earl (Liverpool) through all
the details of this subject ; and on the other hand, it was impbs-
sible for biros (Earl. Grey) not to attest 'his disagreement with
the Noble Earl's general principles. This was a war, not for
any offence alleged on the part of Spain, butt to compel' her tar,
change her Government: and the consequences might be the '
subversion of her Constitution, and the influence of France
established in Spain. I.f this could have been prevented by ne-
/iodation., nobody would have more sincerely rejoiced than
liimself but he (Earl 0 rey) must look eft the other alternative
of negoctations proving ineffectmd ; and doing so, ha must con-
tend, that if thistountry wits ow, prepared to acknowledge that
war could in no case be justified, she was bound ttsassert those
great principles-of conduct upon which her honour, and credit,
and greatness had ever. reposed. He had, at present, nothing
further tosay. It had been, indeed, hisintention to have gone
on, in detail, to answer the Noble Earl (Liverpool); but thus
much of that Noble Earl's speech he could not silently pass
over, evert for this night ; thin much of answer to that Noble
Lord, he could not forbear from offering, in order dial he (Earl
Grey) mightrescue himself from all imputation of having, for
one moment, doubted—of having, for one instant, hesitated
upon the course which the country was called on to pursue, in
a matter .wherein her interests were snore deeply and more
vitally concerned, than in almost any other which had of late
years comae under their Lordships' observation. Their Lord-
ships, however, would undoubtedly enter into a discussion of
the whole of this questions and of all the circumstances arising
out of it, with Much more advaptage, when they should come
prepared to examine them mfflutely and satisfactorily as they
presented themselVes on the face of the papers. before .the
House. An opportunity for doing so would speedily occur,
and he hoped that the discussion would then be brought for-
ward by some one more capable than be was of conducting
it. At present it was not necessary that he should say more than
that he sincerely regretted to find, from the statement of the
Noble Lord, that that course of policy, had not been pursued
by this Government which the interests—the essential interests
(to borrow a phrase from the Noble. Lord himself) of this coun-
try emphatically and imperatively required.—(Hear !)