The Sun.
London, England, 1859-07-16 00:00:00

ITALY.

On the motion for going iia; committee of supply,
Lord ELCHO offered some explanatioons with regard to
the following resolution of which he had given notice, viz.:
—" That, in the opinion of this house, the correspondence
respecting the affairs of Italy, which has recently been laid
before Parliament, shows that the late Governmenthave per-
severingly directed their efforts to the maintenance of peace,
and to the amicable settlement of the differences between the
contending powers ; and that, whilst they have preserved
the strictest neutrality, and conducted these complicated
negotiations with patience and with impartiality, they have
at the same time upheld the honour and the dignity of this
country. That it is further the opinion of this house that
the policy of neutrality and mediation between the contend-
ing powers which has thus been pursued by the late Govern-
ment should be adhered to by her Majesty's present Ad-

visers." The noble lord said that when on Tuesday last,
in answer to the appeal of his noble friend, the Secretary of
State for Foreign Affairs, he agreed to withdraw this motion,

he reserved to himself the right to say a few words in expla.

nation of the reasons which had induced him in the first

place to put it on the paper. and afterwards not to insist on
bringing it before the house. It had been said that he had
turned Derbyite, and had been actuated by a feeling of fac-
tious hostility towards the present administration ; but he
disclaimed any such motive. He entertained for the present
Government no feeling of hostility whatever. He was pre-
pared to do to them what he had done to their predecessors,
namely, to give them his humble support_ when he thought
they were right, and to oppose them when he thought they
were wrong. It was, then, no spirit of hostility towards the
present Government, but a desire to do what he conceived wa s

an act of simple justice to the late Government, which had
induced him to place his resolution on the paper. (Hear,
hear.) He said that it was to do an act of justice, because
it could not be denied that an impression had gone abroad

that the policy of the late Government was not one of strict
neutrality, but one favourable to Austria, and unfavourable
to France and Sardinia. That was stated in the public
journals ; it was stated by the Opposition in that house ;
and there was no doubt that it had materially influenced
the division. He had since, however, heard it stated that
if the blue-book had been published previous to the close
of the debate it would have made a difference of something

like twenty votes. (Loud Conservative cheers.) He did.
not wish to enter into any argument upon the point, but it
was unquestionable that such -an impression had gone
abroad, and that when the blue -book was at last pub-
lished, it produced a feeling that the late Government had
been maligned. (Cheers.) Under these circumstances
it appeared to him to be only right that Parliament should
express an opinion to that effect ; and he was at a loss to
see how it could be regarded as an act of hostility to the
present Government to ask it to take that course. If in pri-
vate life they did a man wrong—if they unwittingly said
something of him which was not true, the first feeling of a
gentleman would be instantly to confess to him, though he
were an enemy, that the allegation was without foundation.
Now, he wanted the house to do as a body what he was
sure every one of them would do as au individual ; he wanted
that house, as the aggregate of English gentlemen, to do an
act of justice to the late Government, which any one of
them would gladly do in his private capacity. (Cheers.) So
much for the former part of his resolution ; the latter part
of it referred to the negotiations of the present Government.
He would not deny that in framing that part of it he was
under an impression that the present Government were not
prepared to follow the policy of strict neutrality. His belief
was, that the feeling of this country was in favour of neu-
trality so long as their honour and interests were not
affected; but he doubted from the antecedents of his two
noble friends, the noble viscount and the Foreign Secretary,
Whether their neutrality would be a strictly impartial one.
He feared that it would be what that of Prussia was said to
be, a "neutralite inguietante" towards Austria—that they
would conduct themselves towards Austria in the same
manner that the late Government was said to have con-

ducted itself towards France. (Cheers.) He believed that
if he had to press the motion, he should have been able to
prove by the speeches and the antecedents of his noble
friends, that in that impression he was not wrong ; and
therefore it was that he felt anxious that the house should

affirm the policy of neutrality. Five minutes afterhe (Lord
Elcho) gave his notice, his noble friend at the head of tho
Government stated that he intended to " walk in the path
which had been chalked out for them by his predecessors."
For himself, he (Lord Riche) was perfectly ready to take
that statement. He believed that it had been made with
no Pf.""^r, In 4 thit the noble lord 'lid in fact intend
to follow that policy of strict neutrality. Nevertheless,
he should have asked the house to agree to the latter part
of the resolution, because it seemed to him that in the
position of the house, nicely balanced as it was, and doubt-
ful as it was whether the gentlemen behind him were
very cordial supporters of the Government—(hear,
hear)—it would be desirable to strengthen the
hands of the government by a unanimous declaration of the
house in favour of the principle of neutrality. (Cheers.)
Such were the motives which had actuated him in proposing
to move the resolution. He had hoped that the member for
Sheffield or the member for Surrey would have taken up the
matter ; but those hon. gentlemen both declined the task,
although they said it ought to be done ; and the hon. member
for Surrey strongly urged him (Lord Elcho) to do it himself.
- (Hear.) Now for the ground upon which he had with-
rawn the motion. It was not because of the existing com-
plications, for he was not prepared to admit that the house
ought at all times, when the affairs of the continent were
in a momentous position, to be debarred from expressing its
opinions. On the contrary, he humbly ventured to think
that in times of crisis, the opinion of what might be the
only free assembly of free men in Europe (for they did not
yet know what had become of the Sardinian constitution)
was likely not only not to prove prejudicial, but to exercise
a great and beneficial influence on the continent. (Cheers.)
If the house was not to discuss foreign politics at such a
moment, then the expression of English opinion would be
left to the public press. Now he wished to speak with the
I greatest possible respect of the press of this country. Ho
hold it to be, on the whole, the most honest and the most
able press in the world ; but they must not forget that the
.daily press, written for daily circulation, was apt to take its
colour from passing events ; and they had occasionally seen
what was wrong in January became right in Juneunder the
magic influence of success. He thought it most desirable,
therefore, that the house should discuss foreign policy ;
but even before the appeal was made to him by his noble
friend on Monday night he had determined not to press his
motion, because he well knew that many members would take
advantage of the existing state of things, and of the with-
drawal of a somewhat similar motion by a noble lord in
another place, to vote against it, and would thus defeat his
(Lord Elcho's) object, which was to obtain, if possible, a una -
nimous and certainly a distipct expression of the opinion of
the house. He regretted to withdraw the motion, because as
ho had said he was anxious to do what he considered to be
only an act of justice to her Majesty's late Government.
• (Rear.) Although the announcement of the peace had
been received by the house with acclamation, he could not
but think that there were many by whom it would not be
viewed with entire satisfaction. Those gentlemen who,
regardless of treaties, regardless of right, and forgetful of
Ireland and Canada, were favourable to the armed inter-
vention of one power in the country of its neighbour, and
who supported the propaganda of nationalities, would be
profoundly dissatisfied with it. (Hear.) He doubted
whether it would be received with much delight by those
who dwelt in the neighbourhood of Leicester-square, (A
laugh.) He doubted whether any sort of thanksgiving
would issue from the platform of Exeter Hall on account
of a peace the grand feature of which was the exaltation
of the Pope. (Hear, hear.) It might be sceptical on
his part, but he was inclined even to doubt whether the
circumstances and the terms of this peace would
meet with ony very cordial approval from the
authorities in Downing-street, whose sanction and
whose counsels, so far as the public knew, had not
been sought. (Laughter.) With regard to his noble friend
the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, one must really feel quite
disposed to condole with him in the position which he now
occupied, suddenly and unexpectedly deprived, as he had
been, of the opportunity to redeem his character as a nego •
tiator—(laughter)—and to establish in Italy that model con-
stitution which he no doubt had in the red box before bim.
(Laughter and cheers.) But if they condoled with the noble
lord, there was no member in that house—there was no man
who.possessed the smallest feeling of compassion—that
would not condolc) still more 941 A .P.:18 noble friend at the

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