The Sun.
London, England, 1851-11-13 00:00:00

THE SUN

KOSSUTH AT BIRMLNGHAM

Kossuth left Manchester at 11 35 A.M. on Wed-
nesday. About 200 of the principal merchants of
the town and neighbourhood were invited by Mr.
Henry to meet him at a thjeliner, and to hear him in
a short address explain some of his views. Kossuth
is stated, in the course of his speech on that occasion,
to have in the most energetic manner denied all or
any participation in the opinions of Socialists or
Communists. He did not understand Socialism, for
every one differed in his definition. lie ridiculed the
peculiar dogmata of the then social and political
quacks, and in a much applauded speech reiterated
sentiments which have been rendered familiar to the
public in the reports of his previous orations. His
course to Birmingham was marked by the same
tokens of popular favour that have attended him in
his visit to the manufacturing districts. At all the
stations crowds of people, varrying in size with the
populations of the adjoining towns, were assembled for
the arrival of the train. The railway officials, police-
men, signal men, drivers, guards, stokers, and porters,
were all animated by the same spirit, and cheered,
shouted, and waved their bats as the carriage passed.
The moment the train stopped a number of men
ran up and flattened themselves against the panels,
struggling who should first shake his hand, 'and
wringing it one after the other till the repetition of the
process almost deprived his fingers of sense or feel-
ing ; indeed, Kossuth has suffered very considerably
in this way, arid it is a wonder how he undergoes
such personal suffering so readily. At Stafford he
was obliged by the clamours of his admirers to get
out of the carriage, and draw himself up in review for
the people. Flags floated from several of the stations
—cannon or muskets were fired at some. The ser-
vants of the company, however, only partook of the
feeling of their superiors, who had offered to Kossuth
the use of one of the royal carriages to and from
Manchester free of expense. He, however, refused
the offer, and preferred travelling by the ordinary
train. He was accompanied by Lord Dudley Stuart,
Mr. Massingberd, M. Paisley, M. Hajnik, &c. Mr.
Henry, M.P., and Mr. Bright, M.P., saw him off and
bade him farewell at the station, where several hun-
dreds of people were collected, who gave him a few
parting cheers with great enthusiasm. Delayed by
shaking of hands, by compliments, and public gratu-
lation—even the women who were not able to get
through the crowd begging most persuasively that
some one would lift them up to the carriage to touch
his fingers, and in some cases succeeding so far as to
touch some big policeman's or able- bodied porter's
breast to take them in his arms and carry them bodily
up to the carriage window—the train did not arrive
at Birmingham till 3 35 o'clock.
A number of persons were waiting on the platform
at the station at Birmingham when Kossuth arrived,
and by them he was loudly cheered. After a short
interval for rest he proceeded, amidst the cheers of
the people in the streets, to the Town-hall, where a
number of gentlemen had assembled to present him
with the addresses which had been voted to him from
various towns. As the dinner hour had almost ar-
rived, it was arranged that the addresses should not
be read. Mr. Scholefield, M.P., presented the address
agreed to by the inhabitants of Birmingham ; it was
followed by one from French residents in Birming-
ham. The Rev. Mr. Lillie presented one from inha-
bitants of Coventry; Mr. Alderman Moss one from
inhabitants of Derby ; the Mayor of Northampton
presented an address from inhabitants of that town,
the Mayor of Worcester and a deputation an address
from the Town Council of Worcester, the Mayor of
Wakefield an address from inhabitants of that place,
and the Rev. Mr. Gibson, and a deputation, an ad-
dress from inhabitants of Kidderminster.
Kossuth said a few words in acknowledgment,
promising a written answer to the addresses, and
referring the parties also to the observations which
he hoped to make in the course of the evening in
the hall.
The great hall in which the banquet was spread—a
noble apartment—was quite full, with the exception,
perhaps, of the side galleries, in which there appeared

. .
to be some spare room. The entertainment was given,
not by the corporation, but by inhabitants of the
town associated for the occasion. The hall was ap-
propriately decorated. On the panels of the galleries
were emblazoned the names of Count Batthyany,
Count Louis Batthyany, Bern, Dembinski, and
various eminent Hungarians. Along the front of the
principal gallery was inscribed, in large letters,
" Welcome Kossuth !"
At half-past five o'clock Kossuth entered the
hall, and was received with enthusiastic cheering. He
was conducted to the principal table by Mr. Geach,
M.P. There were also at this table Lord D. Stuart,
M.P., Mr. Muntz, M.P., Mr. G. Dawson, M.
Pulzky, General Vitter, M. Hajnik, Mr. Massingberd,
and some few other gentlemen. The chair was occu-
pied by Mr. Scholetield, M.P.
The Bev. Mr. VAUGHAN said grace at unusual
length. As well as we could hear, he offered
thanksgiving for the possession of freedom, and a
prayer on behalf of the guest of the evening.
It was understood that the proceeds of the dinner
would be appropriated to the Hungarian refugees.
The tickets were 11. each, and about 850 sat down to
dinner; and if the surplus over the actual cost of the
entertainment is to swell the funds of the refugees
there can be no doubt but they will make a very
handsome sum out of it.

The CHAIRMAN rose, and said that letters had been
received from the following gentlemen, apologizing
for their absence :—The Mayor of Birmingham, Mr.
W. S. Landor, the Recorder of Birmingham, Lord
Hatherton, Lord Leigh, Mr. Newdegate, M.P., Mr.
Sidney, .P., Mr. Collins, M.P., Mr. Benbow, M.P.,
and Mr. Foley, M.P.
The CHAIRMAN then proposed " The Queen," on
whose high office, personal character, and career he
pronounced a high eulogium. The organ played
" God save the Queen," and the company sang it
with great devotion and fervour, and at the close ho-
noured the toast with " three times three" cheers.
After " The Health of Prince Albert"—(Loud ap-
plause)—Mr. Geach, 111. P., who was obliged by popular
excitement to get on the table, to gratify those at the
end of the room, gave, in a few words, " the Sultan of
Turkey and the President of the United States," in
connexion with the part they had taken in the resto-
ration of Kossuth to liberty.
General WALBRIDGE returned thanks for the
United States, and stated that in the darkest hour of
Hungarian independence, when their illustrious guest
was struggling against hope, he had the honour to
propose in a large assembly at New York, that the
American Government should recognise the inde-
pendence of Hungary.—(Cheers.) The Americans
had sometimes been charged with excesses, because
youth was the period for excess ; but when they
wanted wisdom they came back to their fatherland,
fir they were of the number of those who believed
that it was

" Praise enough
To fill the breast of any private man,
That Chatham's language was his mother tongue,
And Wolfe's great name compatriot with his own."
But there was no excess in their recognition of Hun-
garian independence, for when Kossuth sent forth his
invocation to European nations to assist the cause of
Hungarian, which had become the cause of European
freedom, he (General Walbridge) told the citizens
of New York that much more ought that invocation
to be listened to in America. But before the Ameri-
can Government had time to act, the Hungarian
banner was trailing in the dust.—(Hear, hear.) He
eulogised the conduct of the British people since the
landing of Kossuth on their shores, and said their con-
duct was a demonstration that when the final struggle
between despotism and liberty came, the men of Eng-
land would stand arm in arm and shoulder to shoulder
with the men of America, not in defence of unconsti-
tutional, but of constitutional and well-regulated
liberty.—(Loud cheers, and waving of handkerchiefs.)
Such he understood to be the feeling and the wish of
their illustrious guest. But they had a maxim in his
country that when a Government failed to secure the
liberty and the happiness of its subjects, it was the
duty of the people to abolish it.—(Cheers.) He con-
cluded by presenting to Kossuth, amid the cheers of
the company, a copy of the American Constitution.
The CHAIRMAN then proposed the toast of the
evening. They had witnessed forty-eight hours ago
the most sublime spectacle of popular sympathy it
had ever been their lot to bestow. For whom ?
Not the friend of monarchs, or one of high blood
and birth. If so, the aristocracy would not have
withheld that support which they, he re-
gretted to say, had, with one exception.—(" Name,
name !")--Lord Dudley Stuart—(Loud cheers)—
withheld from this exiled patriot. No matter. They
had a noble and patriotic people with hearts to feel for
the exile. He venerated their monarchy, but there
was no higher power, save that of the people; and it
was that which must determine the form of govern-
ment. There was yet a future for Hungary, in
which England must take part for good or evil. He
hated and detested war, but he would not be a party
to
a policy which arrested war today only for the
purpose of insuring it more certainly for to morrow.
sought a clear stage and no favour for all nations.
They would not interfere themselves, but they should
not allow the intervention of
others. Had they acted
up to this policy who
now ?—(Cheers ) would have been King of Hun-
gary
Where would have been the
Pope of Rome ?—(Cheers.) had they arrested war
by their timorous policye believed there never
was a time when it would bI l
be more difficult to avert
war than now. Give the
absolute monarchs of
Europe a few months' moresw
;anadndanwa rhcoh the
result of tyranny, must burst li:ogse
say it would not reach our ota
In conclusion, he proposed, with all
shores ?—(Cheers.)
all the honours and
muster, all the enthusiasm they could
"Our illus-
triousyc'ould
guest, Louis Kossuth."
KossuTß then rose to address the meeting. The
moment he was upon his legs every person in the room
stood up and hailed with a h s out which must have been