The Sun.
London, England, 1860-01-25 00:00:00

THE ADDRESS.

The LORD CHANCELLOR having road her Majesty's
Speech, as follows :
MY LORDS AND GENTLEMEN,—•
It is with great satisfaction that I again meet
you in Parliament, and have recourse to your
assignee and advice.
My relations with Foreign Powers continue to
be on a friendly and satisfactory footing.
, At the close of the last Session I informed yott
that overtures had been made to me to. ascertain
whether, if a Conference should be held by the
Great Powers of Europe, for the purpose of settling
arrangements connected with the present state and
future condition of Italy, a Plenipotentiary would
be sent by me to assist at such a Conference. 1
have since received a formal invitation from the
Emperor of Austria and from the Emperor of the
French to snd a Plenipotentiary to a Con-
gress to consist of the Representatives of
the eight PoWers who were parties to AT
Treaties of Vienna of 1815 ; the objects of such
Congress being stated to be, to receive communica-
tion of the treaties concluded at Zurich; and to de-
liberate, tzssociating with the above-mentioned
Powers the Courts of Rome, of Sardinia, and of the
Two Sicilies, on the means best adapted for the
pacification Of Italy and for placing its prosperity
on a solid and durable basis.
Desirous, at all times, to concur in proceedings
having for their object the maintenance of peace
I accepted the invitation, but, at the same time, I
made known that, in such a Congress I should
steadfastly maintain the principle that no external
force should be employed to impose upon the people
of Italy any particular Government or Constitution.
Circumstances have arisen which have led to a
postponement of the Congress, without any day
having been fixed for its meeting; but whether in
Congress or in separate negotiation, I shall endea-
vour to obtain for the people of Italy freedom from
foreign interference by force of arms in their inter-
nal concerns, and I trust that the affairs of the
Italian Peninsula may be peacefully and satisfac-
torily settled.
Papers on this subject will soon be laid before you.
I am in communication with the Emperor of the
French with a view to extend the commercial inter-
course between the two countries, and thus to draw
still closer the bonds of friendly alliance between
them.

A dispute having arisen between Spain and
Morocco, I endeavoured, by friendly means, to pre-
vent a rupture ; but, I regret to say, without success.
I will direct papers on this subject to be laid
before you.
My Plenipotentiary and the Plenipotentiary of
the Emperor of the French having, in obedience to
their instructions, proceeded to the mouth of the
Peiho river, in 'order to repair to Pekin to exchange
in that city the ratifications of the Treaty of Tien-
tsin, in pursuance of the IX.lth Article of that
Treaty, their further progress was opposed by force,
and .a conflict'took place between the Chinese forts
at the mouth of the river, and the naval forces by
which the Plenipotentiaries were escorted.
The allied forces displayed on this occasion their
usual bravery, but, after sustaining a severe loss,
were 'compelled to retire.
I am preparing, in concert and co-operation
with the Emperor of the French, an expedition,
intended to obtain redress and a fulfilment of the
stipulations of the Treaty of Tien-tsiu.
It will be, gratifying to me, if the prompt acquies-
cence of the Emperor of China in the moderate
demands which will bemade by the Plenipotentiaries
shall obviate the necessity for the employment of
force.

I have directed that papers on this subject shall
be laid before you.
An unauthorised proceeding by an officer of the
United States in regard to the Island of San Juan,
between Vancouver's Island and the mainland,
might have led to a serious collision between my
forces and those of the United States. Such colli-
sion, however, has been prevented by the judicious
forbearance of my naval and civil officers on the
spot, and by the equitable and conciliatory provi-
sional arrangement proposed on this matter by the
Government of the United States.

I trust that the question of Boundary out of
which this affair has arisen may be amicably settled
in a manner conformable with the just rights of the
two countries, as defined by the First Article of
the Treaty of 184 G.

The last embers of disturbance in my East Indian
dominions have been extinguished ; my Viceroy has
mado a peaceful prigress through the districts
which had bean the principal sctne of disorder,
and, by a judicious combination of firmness and
generosity, my authority has ben everywhere
solidly and, I trust, permanently established. I
have received from my Viceroy the most gratify-
ing accounts of the loyalt3 of my Indian subjects,
and of the good feeling evinced by the native
Chiefs and the great landowners of the country. The
attention of the Government in India has been
directed to the development of the internal resources
of the country; and I am glad to inform you that
an improvement has taken place in its financial
prospects. _ _ _

- I have concluded a treaty with the Tycoon of
Japan, and a treaty regarding boundaries with the
Republic of Guatemala. I have directed that these
treaties shall be laid before you.
GENTLEMEN OF TIIE HOUSE OF COMMONS,
I have directed the Estimates for the ensuing
year to be laid before you. They have been pre-
pared with a view to place the military and naval
services, and the defences of the country, upon an
efficient footing.
I am glad to be able to inform yoit that the pub-
lic revenue is in a satisfactory condition.
Mr LORDS AND GENTLEMEN,
I have accepted, with gratification and pride,
the extensive offers of voluntary service which 1
have received from my subjects. This manifesta-
tion of public spirit has added an important ele-
ment to our system of National Defence.
Measures will be laid before you for amending
the laws which regulate the Representation of the
people in Parliament, and for placing that Repre-
sentation upon a broader and firmer basis.
I earnestly recommend you to resume your
labours for the improvement of our Jurisprudence,
and particularly in regard to Bankruptcy, the
Transfer of Land, the Consolidation of the Statutes,
and such a further fusion of Law and Equity as
may be necessary to insure that, in every suit, the
rin'? thts of the parties may be satisfactorily deter-
mined by the Court in which the suit is commenced.
I am deeply gratified to observe that the great
interests or. the country are generally in a sound
and thriving condition ; that pauperism and crime
have diminislxn,l; and that., throughout the whole
of my Empire, both in the United Kingdom and in
my Colonies and Possessions beyond sea, there
reigns a spirit of loyalty, of contentment, of order,
and of obedience to the law.

With heartfelt gratitude to the Almighty Ruler
of Nations for these inestimable blessing's, I fer-
vently pray that his beneficent power may guide
your deliberations for the advancement and con-
solidation of the welfare and happiness of my
people.

Earl FITZ WILLIAM rose to move a humble
address to her Majesty in answer to her most gra-
cious Speech from the Throne. The noble lord
said in moving the address, he did so with great diffidence,
and begged the indulgence of their lordships while he
acquitted himself of his duty, the more so as he saw around
him so many noble lords better qualified than ho was
for such an honour. The noble lord then pro-
ceeded to comment upon the principal topics in
the
Royal Speech, but in such a low tone of voice that scarcely
a word was audible in the gallery. He concluded by read-
ing the Address, which, as usual, was merely an echo of her
Majesty's Speech.
On the motion being put by the Loan CHANCELLOR,
Lord TRURO said ho rose to second the motion. He
thought it must be highly satisfactory to their lordships to
hear that her Majesty continued in friendly relations with
all the great foreign powers. The noble lord then
referred to Italian affairs, and said that what-
ever circumstances had led to the postponement of the
Congress for the settlement of one thing, he felt assured that
the greatest efforts would be made by this country to obtain
for the people of Italy freedom from all foreign interference.
Another source of satisfaction was the course that had
lately been adopted by the Emperor of the French in sub-
stituting a more enlightened commercial policy for the sys •
tern of protection which had hitherto existed. The circum-
stances that had occurred inC hina were greatly to be regretted,
but, although we had no doubt sustained a temporary re-
verse, he was 501144 that the ruattgr would not 1? oallowcd

NEWSPAPER

....t,, - 4f.f= :•:;-4;,-,,0-\,.A.r,
\,.A.r,
. • • , •ti---40-5
~,.
.1_,," tt:.,.,,:
u‘.....„
to rest until we had received volu a' ei . .-;
redress. He begged to apologis - ;
41i•-f
r
imperfect manner in which he h
- le
ships, but he trusted the novelty o tlitaitualth sysld
plead a sufficient excuse. (The noble lorT,7uririgThis Fad
address, was as inaudible in the gallery as his predecessor.)
Earl GREY—It appears to me that there is no part of
the Address to which any of your lordships are likely to
object; on the contrary, that the greater part of it, as of the
Speechof which it is the echo. must have been heard by your
lordships with very high satisfaetoin. We must all rejoice
that her Majesty is able to congratulate us upon the gene-
rally prosperous condition of her people, and upon the well-
being of our fellow-countrymen, as shown by the diminu-
tion of pauperism and the state of trade ; upon the fact that
the last embers of rebellion have boon extinguished in India;
and upon the circumstance that the dispute with the United
States respecting the island of San Juan is likely to be set-
tled amicably. (Hear, hear.) Above all, wa must have
heard with great satisfaction—because upon thatpoint some
of us might have entertained misgivings which are thus
removed—the paragraph relating to Italian affairs and to
the proposed congress. (Hear, hear.) I, for one, at least
heartily thank her Majesty's Ministers for having advised
her to inform us that she is determined to maintain the
principle that no external force shall be ema loyed to im-
pose upon the people of Italy any particular government or
constitution. (Hear, hear.) I rejoice to find that the Bri-
tisn Government is to be no party to any scheme for cutting
and carving the territory of Italy according to the real or
supposed interest of other Powers or of foreign princes, but
that the right of the Italians themselves to settle to what
farm of Government they shall submit is to be thus recog-
nised by her Majesty. I trust that, taking their stand upon
this great principle, her Majesty's Government may suc-
ceed in conducting theso affairs to a satisfactory conclusion,
and that we may have the happiness of seeing established
in lialy a powerful, independent, gad free State. (Hear.)
That I am certain is the conclusion which is most desirable
for the Italians themselves, and which is also best calcu-
lated to promote the general welfare of Europe and that of
this country. (Hear, hear.) One paragraph of the speech
relating to a topic of foreign policy I have not, I confess,
heard with so much satisfaction. I allude to the passage
in which. her Majesty informs us that she is "in commu-
hlritiOn With the Malperor of the French witra view to
extend the commercial intercourse between the two coun-
tries, and thus to draw still closer the bonds of friendly
alliance between them." No man can desire more earnestly
than myself that every obstacle to freer commercial inter-
course between England and France should be removed. It
is greatly to be regretted that two great nations so well
calculated to promote each other's welfare should have so
little commercial intercourse, and that by artificial restric-
tions mutual trade, which might be so beneficial to both,
should be restricted within such narrow limits. But, my
lords, although I am most anxious to see an increase of
commercial intercourse between the two countries, yet, if
this passage in the Speech is meant to announce to us, as
we are led to believe, that a treaty is to be entered into by
which France and England shall mutually stipulate to lower
their duties upon each other's productions, that, I think,
will be an unfortunate step backward in our financial and
commercial policy. To commercial treaties within their pro-
per limits there is no objection; but those limits are very
narrow ones. Beyond providing that each nation shall treat
the other with as much favour as it extends to any other
nation, and a few ordinary stipulations of that kind, I knew
of nothing which can properly be introduced into a com-
mercial treaty. When you stipulate as to the duties which
each is to levy upon the productions of the other, you make
a very great mistake indeed. I cannot forget that at the
conclusion of the great revolutionary war it was I believe
the opinion of almost every statesman of note that it would
be a common benefit to the civilised world if all nations
would remove the obstructions which arbitrary legislation
opposed to their commercial intercourse with, each other.
Unfortunately, with that opinion there prevailed this other
—that in the removal of commercial restrictions the gain
rested with the nation whose produce was admitted into
the dominions of another, and that the maintenance of high
import duties was beneficial to a people, provided their ex-
ports were not unduly taxed by their neighbours. Entering
upon diplomatic intercourse with that notion, the various
countries of Europe for more than a quarter of a century
went on trying, with much fruitless expenditure of labour
and ingenuity, to remove the restrictions which they had
mutually imposed upon each other's trade. The spirit in
which these negotiations were carried on was that which is
so well described in Mr. Canning's well-known rhyming
despatch :

"In matters ofcommerce the fault of the Dutch .
Is giving too little, and asking too much."
That was the spirit in which each nation received the pro-
posal of its rival. All thought that too much was asked
with respect to their admission of the produce of other coun-
tries, and that too little was conceded with respect to the
admission of their own by othernations, and the consequence
was that they were all disposed to act upon the principle
laid down by Mr. Canning at the end of his despatch :
" Nous frapperous Feick with twenty per cent."
(A laugh.) These negotiations continued, as I have said,
for nearly a quarter of a century, and ended by leaving the
commercial intercererse of Europe more fettered, if possible,
than it was at the beginning of that period. At length, my
lords, this country adopted a wiser policy. (Hear, hear.) It
came to the conclusion that it was contrary to common
sense that we should punish ourselves because other nations
refused to admit our productions to their markets ; that the
wiser course for us would be to regulate our own duties ac-
cording to our commercial and financial interests, and to
leave other nations to follow our example, or not, as they
pleased, being convinced t hat if we opened our ports to
foreign produce, it would, in some way or other be paid
for, and the general prosperity of the country would be in-
creased. This policy was adopted at first with some timidity,
but afterwards with greater Wildness, and was at length
carried into complete effect by the repeal of the old Naviga-
tion Laws in 18f9. We know that this great experiment
has been attended with a sneesss which has exceeded even
the sang line expectations of its supporters. We have seen
trade, manufactures, and every branch of the industry of
the country improve with unexampled rapidity. We have
seen 10 millions of duties repealed, while the revenue de-
rived from the Customs has not diminished. We have seen
the welfare and general comfort of the people marvellously
increase; and, lastly, we have seen other nations gradually
begin, though with slow and hesitating steps, to follow our
example. Those who are conversant with the commercial
tariffs of Europe are aware that almost all nations have
made some considerable improvement in their systems since
we ceased to make their concessions preliminary to the im-
provement of our own legislation. Unhappily France is
not aniong those nations. The tariff of France is to this
day highly restrictive; but though I most earnestly desire
that its tariff should be amended, I contend that it is a step
backward—a departure from the wise and sound policy which
we have for several years pursued, if in the commercial
treaty with France there are any stipulations binding us to
reduce the duties upon French produce in consideration of
similar reductions in the duties upon British productions
introduced into France. If there are any duties upon French
produce which, consistently with our financial exigencies,
we can afford to reduce, let them be reduced at once, and
without stipulations. lam persuaded that this, as it is the
most generous, is by far the best and wisest policy. Let
any duties of that kind which you can afford to reduce be
diminished, and with the least possible delay ; but, on the
other hand, at the present moment, when the financial exi-
gencies of the country are likely to prove not a little oner-
ous, and not a little difficult to meet, I utterly protest
against any reduction of duties upon French produce,
which is not expedient and prudent with reference to our
own financial condition, with the view and in the hope of
obtaining relaxations of the commercial tariff of France. If
France likes to maintain a restrictive tariff, she, and not
we, will be the principal sufferer, and I am convinced that,
though she may for a time defer the adoption of a wiser
policy, it is utterly impossible that fhe should long continue
to do so. She cannot do so without seeing herself out-
stripped in the race of improvement by every nation in
Europe, and finding herself far behind the comparative pro-
sperity of those countries which are wise enough to adopt
a system of commercial freedom. Knowing, as I do, the
intelligence of the French people, I am persuaded it is im-
possible that they can long witness the effects of their pre-
sent system without discovering the prudence of changing
it. lam aware it has been sagthat, though general policy
is opposed to,commercial treaties, still it is expedient to de-
part from it in the case of France, because in that country
there is so strong a feeling in favour of protection that even
the great power of the Emperor is unable to carry out an
improvement of its commercial system unless the people
can be reconciled to it by gaining some immediate advan-
tage in return. My lords, that reasoning seems to be
based on:an entire mistake. I firmly believe that in France,
ts g
I°l de
equivalentt
lal
under its present or any other form of Government, public
o
opinion will in the end prevail in regard to legislation of
this kind ; and I am convinced that public opinion is far
less likely to be enlisted in favour of a sound commercial
system if it is put to the people that they are to consent
to the introduction of certain foreign goods, and to the
admission of competition in respect to certain' articles,o
for the sake of securing some corresponding benefits
themselves. It will be represented, and very tnilYha
ke their
repre-
sented to France, that what she can gain by any
be so
which we may make in our financial policy,ow
in the
trifling compared with the effect of any real reform
French tariff as to be totally toinadequatP.compensate
her for her concessions. This is the
people if you attempt
leykv swe orlt
will
theirere
matter will be put before the French
to
the
beli
of their import
light in which the
to induce them to agree to the reduction
other English com-
modities, on coal, iron, cotton twist
simple calculation, which the
a'te able to make, will suffice
modifies, by the hope that we
France
A anrdemaslhreaneiri
cylihauni matter ofps.tipu stipulation you will
are te real obstacle to an
manufacturersw inemoreiee
freely.
to show them how very 8
ob-
tain for what they asked_
fore, that by making. t
increase those jealousies
But
effectual improvementt. f ,t.my lords, though I could not
permit this opporttunuil/ceoinno question which occu-
pies so prominent the Speech to pass, I am happy
a.tl
to acknowledge that passage which relates to it is so
guardedly expressed and so carefully avoids committing
the house to my opinion beforehand, that I have no diffi-
culty whatever in concurring in the Address as it stands.
But there is another portion of the Speech with respect to
which I regret to say I cannot adopt the same course. In
the paragraph which refers to the late catastrophe in China,
and to the moasutes which her Majesty's Ministers have
taken in consequence, there is undoubtedly manifested a
very laudable desire on the part of the Government not pre-
maturely to pledge the house to any opinion on some most
important points. They do not, as my noble friend who
seconded the Address observed, ask us to express any opie
nion as to the conduct of the Chinese, or as to their having
been guilty of any treachery of which we have a right to
complain. They have no doubt purposely and studiously
refrained from doing that. But there is ono respect in
which it appears to me that the passage does commit the
house to an admission which it ought not to make. We are
asked to thank her Majesty for having informed us of what
has happened, and of the preparations which are making for
the sending out of an expedition to China. My lords, by so
thankingher Majesty, and taking no notice ofthe delay which
has occurred in bringing this subject under the consideration.
of Parliament, the house does clearly admit that it has no
right to complain of that delay. I for one cannot consent to
make such an admission, even by inference, because I believe
that by acknowledging her
Majesty's
Government are not to
blame for having failed to bring this question at an earlier
period under the notice of Parliament the house would sur-
render one of its most important rights end privileges, To
the crown it beluga by the Goileitutioa to conduct the rola-