The Sun.
London, England, 1856-02-01 00:00:00

illation which for the last three months has been notorious
all over the world. (A. laugh.) Within that time infor-
mation of the fact, so far as it is a fact —becense unhappily
it is not a fact (laughter) —might he derived from the
colunine of any newspaper. Unhappily it is not a fez'.
" Sebastopol, the great stronghold of Ilassia in the Black
Sea," has not yielded to your valour and to your daring,
whatever that valour and daring may have been. It IS
true that, by unparalleled achievements, you have suc-
ceeded in forcing a portion of that stronghold. -Yoe have
obtained possession of the southern side of Sehastcpel. You
have destroyed the fleet of Russia, or at least she has
destroyed them herself, and has saved you the trouble.
(" Hear," and a laugh.) You have blown up, or you are
blowing up, those splendid docks which were miracles of
art, of perseverance, and of skill, but "the great stroug-
hold of Russia" still holds you at defiance. In front of
that stronghold upon the northern coast, beleaguered
rather than beleaguering, lie your armies at this moment,
while your fleets are floating at a respectful distance from
that stronghold which you declare has yielded to the per-
severing constancy and to the daring bravery cf the ellied
forces. Although, therefore, I am ready to corgratulate
her Majesty, as we are invited to do, upon the success
which has been attained, I must yet say that the first
paragraph of the Speech contains an erroneous statement,
and that the great stronghold of Russia has not yielded to
the daring and valour of your troops, however great tle,t
daring and valour may have been. (doer, hear.) My
lords, I rejoice to learn that the naval and military pre•
paretione for the ensuing year have occupied the mime;
attention of her Majesty's Government. I nine. confess
that, whatever hope of peace I may have entertained, or
may entertain, as the result of these negotiations, I have
not derived any great encouragement to look for a satis-
factory issue from the language which has been held by
my noble friend who opened the debate and by the noble
earl who seconded the address. Both those noble lords ex-
pressed ceneiderable doubt as to the issue of the negotia-
tions which are now in progress, and I counur wish them
that, while we should welt nne, and cordially welcome, iu
the interest of Europe, any peace which would effectually
Attain those objects for which we originally went to war,
it will be a permanent disgrace to this country if we accept
any peace which should fall short of the full accomplish-
ment of those objects. (Cheers.) I rejoice that, while we
are not declining overtures of peace, we are making effec-
tive preparations for war ; and, although I fear that the
noble earl has to a certain degree overrated the state of ex-
haustion and difficulty and distress of our great foe, yet I
believe he has not overrated the amount—the formidable
amount—of the preparations which we are making, and
which my noble friend was somewhat reluctant to see alto-
gether wasted, and not applied in the new campaign of
1851 ; and I am sure he has not overrated the stseefast,
stubborn perseverance which this country will always
display for the attainment of any object which it feels to be
just and necessary to attain. I cannot blame her Majesty's
0-averment for having consented to enter into negotiation?,
although I may entertain considerable doubt with eegaro
to the quarter from which these negotiations proceed, and
I must say, though I do not doubt that the framer of the
paragraph before us lies accurately described the course of
events, yet the language used in that paragraph is by no
means satisfactory to my mind. We are told that " the
Emperor of Austria lately offered to myself and to my
august ally the Emperor of the French to employ his geed
offices with the Emperor of Russia, with a view to en-
deavour to bring about an amicable adjustment of the
matters at issue between the contending Powers." I
doubt not that this is a correct statement of the facts,
and that the Emperor of Austria has applied to the
Emperor of the French and to her 'Majesty for their sanc-
tion to these negotiations with the Eesperor of Russia
in order to the attainment of peace ; but I confess that
it would to me have borne a more gratifying appear.
ance if the Government had been enabled to state that
the Emperor of Austria had applied for the sanction of
the Emperor of Russia to employ his good offices with the
Sovereigns of France and England; from the language of
the Speech— and I doubt not that language was well con-
sidered—the impression in Europe, and I fear it is a cor-
rect impression, will be that, after all, we are.virtually
applicants to Russia for peace, and that Russia in not the
applicant. (" No, no," from the Ministerial benches.)
Noble lords opposite say "No, no." The statement they
make is this—that Austria has applied for your consent to
employ her good offices with Russia towards obtaining the
assent of Russia to certain conditions in which you have
signified your concurrence. Now, if in that case you are
not the party seeking for peace—you having given your
assent to the conditions and applying for the concurrence
of Russia—and if Russia is not the party preserving the
right to!grant these conditions or to refuse them, I confess
I do not understand what is the force of language. (Hear,
hear.) There are in the Speech from the Throne two very
remarkable omissions. The noble earl who seconded the
address has to a certain extent supplied one of them. •He
has done justice to the merits, and to the services, and to
the position of one of our allies—the mostdiinterested, the
most energetic—(cheers)—and the most deserving of our
support and consideration—l mean the King of Sardinia—
(hear, and cheers)—but strange it is that, throughout the
whole course of the Speech, not only is the existence of
the King of Sardinia altogether ignored, not only are the
services he has rendered to the cause totally obliterated
from any mention, but—what is something snore extraor-
dinary still—from first to last in this speech there does not
occur the slightest allusion to the name or the existence of
Turkey. Why, I thought Turkey was the principal in this
war ! (Hear, and a laugh.) I thought you were at war
in defence of the integrity of Turkey. I thought it was
because Turkey boldly and gallantly threw herself into the
breach, and refused to assent to the degrading conditions
which Russia sought to impose upon her, that we came for-
ward as allies to herassistance, hut now, forsooth propositions
of peace are made to Franca and England; they areaccepted
for France:and England ; and having assented to those con-

dit ions' we are—certainly in conjunaion with our allies, as
we find at the close of the paragraph—proceeding to discuss
them as the foundation of a general. treaty. I must say,
that this entire silence with regard to both Turkey and Sar-
dinia is little consistent with the comity of nations, and
the relationship in which those couutries stand to France
and England. My lords, I commented just now on the un-
gracious terms in which her Majesty has been made to refer
to the services of her own troops in that successful and
honourable achievement—the capture of a portion of Sebas-
topol ; and certainly, if such ungracious terms are applied
to those whose efforts have been crowned with such an im-
portant measure of success, it does not surprise me that her
M ejeste's Ministers should have found no terms of commen-
dation to throw away upon others whose sufferings have
been not less unparalleled, whose deeds have been not less
heroic or less distinguished, although' alas ! their efforts
have not been attended with success—it does not surprise
me that the Government should have found no language in
which to record the matchless endurance and indomitable
gallantry of those brave men who, in a distant and deserted
Asiatic town, maintained so well and so nobly the honour
of the English arms, and showed in so signal a manner
what British officers can achieve when in command of foreign
troops. My lords, aro there not those whom a word of praise
and of sympathy might have cheered in the depths of those
prisons to which their gallantry has consigned them—might
have given them fresh courage to support their sufferings
and their misfortunes, and proved to them that their exer-
tions and their hardships had not been undergone in the
service of an ungrateful country? Such words, coming
from their Sovereign in 'the presence of her assembled
Parliament, would carry with them a weight which
can accompany the language of no other individual.
Yet, standing in this place, and feeling that my words
may possibly reach the prisons to which they have been
doomed by a not uugeneroue enemy, I would say to those
gallant spirits—to a Williams, a Teesdale, a Lake, and a
Thompson—" You may rest assured that this house and
the country deeply sympathise with you in your misfor-
tunes"---that " We honour the valour and prize the fame
of the brave defenders of Kars as not below those of the
more fortunate conquerors at Sebastopol." (Hear, hear.)
I am not surprised that there should rise a blush of shame
on the cheek of the Minister, or that he should hesitate
and be paralysed, when about to inscribe in the Queen's
speech the significant name of Kars !—(hear)—a name
of everlasting triumph and distinction to the valiant souls
who, amid all the horrors of famine and hemmed in on all
sides by an overpowering force, gallantly repulsed their
enemy, on whom they inflicted a loss almost exceeding the
carnage of any battle of modern times ; and who, despite
of every discouragement, maintained their high spirit and
achieved victory after victory, until finally compelled to
yield, not to the overwhelming numbers of the foe, but to
the still mere unconquerable force of sheer famine. The
name Kars, then, will be remembered to the immortal
honour of its defenders ; and let me add, that its name
also confers no slight degree of honour and credit on the
conqueror of those brave men, who, in the generous terms
of capitulation which he granted, showed that he know
how to appreciate an enemy's valour and fortitude, even
when uriaveiling. (Hear, hear.) Fortunate, indeed, was
it for the gallant garrison of Kars that they had to deal
with a Mouravieff, and not with a Coronini. (Hear, heir.)
Fortunate was it for the brave Poles and Hungarians who
formed part of that undaunted garrison that the chivalrous
spirit of their high-minded conqueror suffered them to go
free, without incurring those additional dangers to which,
as other than mere prisoners of war, they might have
been exposed. Well was it for them that he was not one
of those who would seek to stain the law of nations for
the purpose at once of insulting an ally and tramp-
ling on the misfortunes of an exile. Yet, my lords, if
on the conqueror of Kars, and still more on its heroic
defenders, the name of that fortress reflects imperish-
able renown, I must say, with deep regret, that it is
equally a name of eternal reproach and shame to those, be
they who they may, by whom this devoted band was left
without support and without relief, and this important
town allowed to fall unsuccoured, and even uuavonged.
My lords, I know not to what influence we may ascribe
this fatal disaster. But I have heard a rumour which I
I will mention, in order that the Government may, if poi-
sible, meet it with the promptest. fullest, and most ex-
plicit denial. I have heard it whispered abroad that while
my noble friend (Lord Ellenborough) was earnestly press-
ing upon the War Minister the necessity of protecting
Turkey on her Asiatic frontier, warning him, from history
and example, that that was the qu trter from which Con-
stantinople had most cause for apprehension, and remind-
ing him that in the fatal years 1828 and 1629 the disas-
trous treaty of Adrianople was hardly less attributable to
the advance of the Russian troops upon the European side
of Turkey than to the successes of Paskiewitch and Mourn-
vieff at Kars and Erzeroum. While toy noble friend was
urging these considerations upon the attention of Govern.
ment, it is alleged, though I can hardly credit it, that this
important strategical post was neglected and abandoned to
its fate because of some miserable Jealousy between the two
great allies—some paltry fear that we Shollid, be suspected
of seeking, under cover of an expedition to the coast of
but (mown isolated and exclusive interests. IfAsia, to promote, not the conjoint interests of Turkey, and
the allies,
this impression that has gone abroae were in any degree
well founded, I should look, my lords, upon the prospects
of peace for Europe with the utmost alarm and dismay ;
I should see in this circumstance a convincing proof that,
whatever the alliance which I deem so invaluable andeon
which I set such vast store, may be in name, it is nothing
in substance—that there is no real alliance, no cordia 1,
co-operation between the two great Powers the union of
which is indispensable to the wellbeing and tranquillity
of Europe. I should blush, may lords, for my country if
I could believe that under the pretence of advancing the
common cause, any measure could be undertaken by the
British Government, having for its object the separate
and exclusive advantages of England only. On the other
hand, I think it would be unworthy of France, and. wholly
inconsistent with the frank and loyal course which
our illustrious ally has hitherto pursued towards us, for
him to harbour any such dark suspicion against the Go-
vernment of this country. Aethe same time, it would be
still more discreditable for us, from the fear of such a sus-
picion, to relinquish objects essential to the general inte-
rests and to the success of the common cause, because it
might be supposed that their attainment would incidentally.
Contribute also to our separate advantage. Such an un-
worthy and unfounded mistrust would. not only be dis-
graceful both to France and England, but must tend to
paralyse our efforts ; while for us to yield to it would be ,
doubly humiliating and degrading—(hoar, hear)-and, if I
could for one instant believe that there was the slightest
ground for anything so derogatory to the character of both
IlatiOnfe I 419144 Vey then that we were reduced to the