The Sun.
London, England, 1858-05-05 00:00:00

said the question was vested with a particular solemnity ;
that it wa. brought before the Congress of Paris, and that
the representatives of the great European Powers were
asked their opinions upon the subject, and gave their com-
• mon assent to it. But the right hon. gentleman forgot to
add that this same Congress was to meet in a few da3 s,
when all these questiaii-iff the commissioners would be
decided. Now, it was at such a time as that heCalled on
the house, not to give instructions to their own Govern-
ment or their own Minister in Paris, but to come to a vote
which would be looked • upon as instructions to the repre-
. sentatives of the Powers of Europe. (Cheers.) The right
hon. gentleman commenced by saying that the house
should bear in mind that these Principalities were inde-
pendent. But for what did they go to war with Russia, or
shed so much blood, and expend so much treasure, but to
maintain the independence of the Turkish Empire? In the
-very preamble to the treaty of peace, it was set forth as
the cause of that war, and one of the most solemn declara-
tions of that treaty was that of the great Powers pledging
theineelves to maintain that independence. To talk of the
Principalities being independent under these circumstances
was simply a mistake. Now, if that were so, let them con-
sider what would be the result of the right hen. gentle-
man's motion. He was one of the Ministers of the Crown
when the war with Russia broke out, and when it. was de-
clared by him as one of the Government, that inasmuch as
they formed an integral part of Turkey, they ought to
theb
e
maintained, and therefore it was that the attempt by Rus-
sia to occupy them was r rsisted. But what did the right
hon. gentleman do that night ? He asserted on
present
occasion that the Principalities were totally independent.
(Cries of " No.") The right hon. gentlemaen Principalitiescertainlen
the clearest manner possible, stated that the
Were independent states.
Mr. GLADSTONE—I never said the words.
Mr. S. FITZGERALD continued—Well, the right hon.
gentleman at least treated them as such. He asserted
their independence when he refused to recognise the
lights of Turkey. Then the right hon. gentleman asked
them to agree to his motion on the ground that it was the
express wish of the people of the Principalities that a
union should take place. Now, on that he was at issue
With him. They had unanimously an opinion for a
union ; but it wan on the'express condition that they were
to be placed under the government of a foreign prince.
The right hon. gentleman put it before'' the house, first,
that the people preferred a union with a foreign prince,
but if that could not be obtained, they would agree to have
a native. Now, if that were the case, there would be some
ground for his motion, but it was the very reverse. In the
first instance the five points were put to -the vote as one
whole, and nothing done could lead 'any one to believe a
wish was expressed in favour of such an opinion. The
population, on the contrary, made an express declaration
that if a union under a foreign prince were insisted on,
they would acquiesce, but that a union under a native
prince, or under an authority named by the Porte, would
not only not alleviate their cvils, but add to them. So far
from saying that, they expressed themselves clearly of
opinion that any union, except under a foreign prince,
Would be the last thing they would desire. (Hear, hear.)
He held in his hand a copy of the report made by the com-
missioners who proceeded to the Principalities; and it is
expressly declared that the rivalries and jealousies of the
native princes were such as to make it impossible for any
Government to exist, except under the control of a foreign
prince connected with some of the royal houses of Europe.
So that, as the right hon. gentleman would see, the last
thing in the world they looked for was a union of the Prin-
cipalities under either a native prince, or a person deputed
by the Porte. If that be the popular opinion in these
Principalities, the right hon. gentleman, as an advocate
for their wishes, was bound to support them.. But, in
point of fact, a union under a foreign prince would make
radically and totally independent and incompatible with
those objects for which they went to war. If that took
place, of what use would their army or fleets be ? For
they could not get there. Diplomatic intervention would
be impossible, moral influence also impossible— to England
at least. It would be impossible, in such an event, to
consider themselves in any position where they could
raise up a barrier against the aggressive policy of Russia.
Well, that was the state of the case. The people of the
Principalities had expressed a wish which was incompatible
with the treaty ; and was the house to be called upon to
support the people of the Principalities met ely because
they expressed a wish for independence ? The right hon.
gentleman was calling upon the house to adopt a course
More dangerous than it had yet been called to enter upon.
They might, he did not deny, give them their sympathy,
. and even their moral support, when the proper time came,
but at present they could only be called upon to fulfil
those wishes according to the preponderating interests of
,Zirope. If the' house agreed to this resolution, it would
be entering upon a most dangerous course, and so far from
doing good to the people of the Principalities by a recogni-
tion of their independence from the conferences about to
be held, it would be the last thing for their interests and
for the interests of this country. It was upon these
grounds that he called upon the house not to assent to this
resolution, which invited us, in fact, to be parties to a
dismemberment of 'the Turkish empire. (Cries of " No,
no.") That he maintained was the tendency of the reso-
lution, and it was not for the interests of the very people
whose interests it was the object of the right hon. gentle-
man to promote. (Hear, hear.)
Mr. DEASY thought that the hon. gentleman who had
just sat down had failed to give any answer to the case of
the, right hon. gentleman (Mr. Gladstone). One complaint
he made was as to the time when this resolution was
brought forward, namely, just before the Conferences of
Paris. But it was just because the question was to be
Irrevocably decided by these conferences that the decision
of this house should be asked upon it. If they waited till
after the conferences it would be too late. The house was
called upon to express an opinion for the purpose of in-
structing our own Minister as to the course he should pur-
sue'. The hon. gentleman said they were called up' ea to ,
diamember the Turkish empire ; but these provinces never
Were portions of the Turkish empire. The relation to that
empire was that of treaty. The capitulation of 1460 '
defined the nature of that relationship, and by it the
Wallachian nation was to have the free .enjoyment of
their own liberties. That was the origin of the cm-
election between Turkey and Wallachia. The relation-
shi between the Turkish empire and the province of
Moldavia, originated in a similar way, and its effect
was the same. It was true that these treaties might
have been subsequently modified, and at the Treaty 'of Paris it was considered that all previous treaties were
%I:mulled, but by that treaty they were declared entitled
to the privileges of which they wore then in possession,
and then came the arrangement- by which the Sultan
agreed to convoke the Divans of the two Provinces, for
the purpose of ascertaining the expression of the popular
feeling as to the form. of Government the people would
Prefer. The Conferences were about to assemble to consider
that question. The French Minister had undertaken to
Male the Danubian Provinces independent, and the Eng-
lish Minister had undertaken to support him, and when
such intention was expressed, what said Ali Pacha ? Did
he object that they were a portion of the Turkish Empire?
No ; he only objected that they were about doing a thing
contrary to the wishes of the people of the Principality and j
ulee'n this it was agreed that no conclusion should be come
to until the wishes of the people of the Principalities were I
tseertained, and it was for. that reason that the Porte un-
dertook to convoke full and free assemblies of the repre-
Bentatives of the people. These Conferences at Paris were
abort to be held to determine this question, and that was
lacsetate of the case. In the House of Commons they ought
.to give some support to the wishes of the people of the
rrincipalities. Those wishes had been expressed in full
and free Divans held for that purpose. In the Moldavian
48%91:ab1y 81 out of 81 voted for the union of the Princi-
palities, and only 2against it. In the Wallachian Assam- i
bly 94 out of 100 voted for the union, and only 6 voted
against it. Mr. Johnson, an English traveller then in the
Principalities, bore testimony to the admirable manner in
Which business was conducted in these assemblies. That, .
therefore was the expression of the wishes of the Walla-
Chian and Moldavia' people, and could we, after having
made ourselves parties to the treaty of Paris, refuse to give
effect
,to their wishes. What was it for which they in-
iideed those Conferences but that they should give autho-
rity to those wishes. But it was now proposed to negative
thorn.
swishes. They should be careful how they acted, for
e provinces they had a special interest. There they
laige commercial interest. Upon them we depended
fora considerable supply of food. They had, therefore; a
solid interest in maintaining their independence, sad he
believedat that a nation numbering five millions of people on
~ bank of the Datiubevrould be the best barrier against
'a?! aggressions of Russia. He contended the house should
tlee wishes of a people hitherto oppressed, but he hoped
De so no loager. If the Conferences decided against
government they would be bound by force to establish a form of
opposed to the express will of the people, and
, gainst the adoption of that policy he protested. It had
been tried before, after the former treaty of Paris, in the
!irie of Belgium and other countries; but the result was,
that those Governments, so forced upon the people, were
_terminated by forcible disruptioes. If they now forced
!Iyon the Principalities a Government contrary to the
wishes of the' people, it would be terminated by one of
those revolutionary convulsions to which he had alluded,
and establish a form of Government like that which they
now asked to obtain,
then be ? They would and
in what a position would they
, sveehto resort to a Russian or an
Austrian occupation,
tornnit to have this treaty, to
which they had assented,
that
shbefore their faces.
Ile trusted, for these reasonsl,ll
counter to the wishes of the people. Alelythweould not run
counter
establish on the banks of the Danube was Governmentaywereas e
which they had already instituted on the banks of the
Nile—a course which, he maintained, would be for the
benefit of the Turkish empire, and, he believed, also for
the interests of humanity. (Hear, hear.)
Lord IL CECIL had listened with attention to the argu-
132_8:atm of his right hon. friend in support of his motion,
!!ille considered those arguments most forcible; while,
n the other hand, he regarded those of the hon. gentle-
man the Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs were
Title, and of a nature calculated only to defend a bad
e and bad cases. The hon. gentleman, for instance,
stated that should the house assent to the motion of Mr.
Gladstone, they would be abandoning all that they went
to War for. Now, what did theygo to war for ? They went
to War to maintain in all its expansion, integrity, and in-
iduespaesnideuenecfe,Rtule,,esisT;uhruktiswh4ririnpire against the designs and
the Principalities, the didregard to the independence of
In subjugating them toy
te notgo to war to aid any power
ld
suggest to the hon. gentlemanm isn
parallelion Turkey.case. He eu
Suppose,
for instance, that any should seise upon one of
the lonian islands, wee ther
gentlemen say that
that was an invasion of the Brijini; empire ? But in
,re-
scuing the Danubian Principalities f°
Russis, it was not contemplated to liatfnTthe aggressi n of
themcey. The hon.
over, as en-
slaved appendages to the rapacity of
Foreignur Affairs, gentleman the Under Secretary
re-
ferred to certain papers, as illustrative of the
upon which the Principalities were to remain
Erurli3l:l.ciples
Turkey ; but those papers were not laid on the table,
eantcci
the'house, therefore, had no means of knowing the con-
tents of those papers. Ho (Lord R. Cecil) would, how-
ever, quote, from the resolutions of the Divan, certain as.sages which showed the principles upon which' Turkey pro-
posedp to bind the Principalities to her, and to give her
complete dominion over them. The noble lord here read
an abstract of the resolutions, which laid it down as a
krinciple that the Danubian provinces shot,! be bound to
f.uliceY by a bond of union, binding them inseparably,
afilnbjecting the provinces to entire Turkish dominion.
re°Need the motion of his right hon. friend would be
that the
to by the house, and he was satisfied, should it not,.
proVhe effect of its rejection would be very serious on the
nces. It was necessary for this house to interpose,
jaungdairexperess the opinion of the British nation, respect-
heir
tli:hvresarnV
theca fromi in relation to the Principalities, as to save
handed over to the rapacity of Turkey.
hothouse, that in consulting the feelings and
er European nations with regard to the
tettitiicey! and 8' the were ursuing a uestionable
as in the case of co their nductvery toqwards other
traeubil„us hoped their course towards the people of the
effect,. 1 reeeprovinces would not be professions without
Mr e)„l4,_ r hear.)
foreigne-rrUCK said the interference of England with
caußece_ t ies had seldom proved advantageous to the ,zee:,Zeth_se nations in whose behalf her interference was
"1 di and -Whose objects she endeavoured to support.