The Sun.
London, England, 1859-07-25 00:00:00

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EIV GLAND AND EUROPE.

The following article appeared in the literary
columns of the Journal des Debats of Saturday last,
introduced by a few lines respecting the new
"Histoire d'Anglettere," by M. Emile de Bonne-
chose. The article is signed by M. Prevost-Para-
dol

England has just caused a strange surprise not
to Europe only but to those statesmen who fancied
they knew her best, to those among her great
citizens who thought they were perfectly certain to
lead her. For the,first time perhaps in her histor;•
she has allowed a great war to commence and con-
tinue, a re-arrangement of territory to be an-
nounced and accomplished not only without taking
part in it, but with the firm resolution of having
nothing to do with it. She has imposed this reso-
lution on her statesmen ; she has watched
them with. jealous attention, lest they
might be tempted to disobey her ; she has
forbidden them to entertain the slightest inten-
tion of mixing up with this conflict the name
and arms of the English people ; and so well has
she succeeded in this difficult design, that the war
was brought to a close, and peace re-established in
Europe, without England's taking any greater part
in it than Portugal or Denmark.
The Ministers who, true to the tradition of their
country, formed a different idea of her interests and
duties, no more succeeded in moving her than I)on
Quixote did in carrying off that cefeb-rated wooden
horse on which he fancied he could travel through
the vast fields of air. It was in vain they let off
crackers near the ears of the peaceful animal, and
put squibs under his tail ; nothing stirred t.is in-
flexible immobility, and after all this alarum he
found himself' in the same place as at first. But
the question is, whether England finds herself, at
the end of this episode, in the same place as at the
beginning, and whether she comes out of the trial
as intact as Don Quixote's steed.

First of all let us inquire what were the chief
causes of England's taking so new and decided an
attitude in the great crisis we have just passed
through. Above all, it was that increasing disgust
for war, which in the 19th century is both the
glory and thd weakness of civilised communities.
It must be admitted that England never manifested
greater repugnance to war, or greater attachment
to peace, than during the first months of this year.
It is not only, as people are too fond of saying, the
immense development of material interests, that
makes nations, when they have the control of their
own destinies, so slow to have recourse to arms ; it
is a general sentiment of humanity ; it is a greater
respect for human life, a livelier consciousness of
the manifold evils brought about by war, and of the
responsibility attaching to those who let loose such
a scourge upon the world without absolute neces-
sity. If these ideas exercise at the present day a
great influence upon the continent itself, if the
most warlike nation in the world has felt their
constraining power, what action must they not
have upon England laden, as she indeed is, with
the most genial blessings of modern civilisation,
accustomed more and more to internal peace, to
labour, order and liberty, and the peaceful enjoy-
ment of the greatest blessings that nations can de-
sire ?

Not only are the English inclined in these days
to consider war barbarous, but a considerable part
of the English public, deeply imbued with Christian
ideas, regards it as a sin. They hesitate long, they
weigh all the circumstances before admitting this
right of drawing the sword, which a short time back
gave such little trouble to the conscience of nations
or sovereigns. This tolerably numerous portion of
the public have come by degrees to apply to the
conduct of nations those absolute maxims that con-
stitute the ideal of the Christian life. They do not
go so far as to say that the duty of a people, like
that 'of a martyr, is to. suffer itself to be immolated,
nor even to turn the cheek to the smiter ; but they
concede to a people nothing beyond the right of
defending its existence, and they deny its right of
raising itself as formerly or maintaining itself by
arms amidst the recurring conflicts that agitate the
world. They have thus invented a sort of cate-
chism for the use of nations that was utterly un-
known to Elizabeth, Cromwell, and Pitt, and which
Louis XIV. hnd Napoleon, if they take an interest
about such things in the other world, must bitterly
regret not. to have seen disseminated and put in
practice earlier among the English people.
It would be wrong, however, to attribute solely
to the progress of civilisation and to the influence
of Christian sentiments this attachment of England
to peace—this altogether novel passion for a strict
neutrality. Pride and contempt, self-esteem and
the disdain of others, have a large share in it.
Right or wrong, the English public has accustomed
itself to regard the greater'part of the continental
nations as irrevocably devoted to anarchy or
slavery, and consequently it takes less interest
in their trials or quarrels so long as England's
security does not appear to it to be directly
threatened.. Elated, moreover, by the progress of
her race over eve y part of the globe, by the won-
derful development of her new colonies, by the
foundation of those distant empires where her
customs, freedom, industry, and all the germs of
her own peculiar greatness, live again together
with her language, England has insensibly been
led to give to continental nations a less considerable
share in her affairs, and to attach less import-
ance to the events that change the face of Europe.
She boasted, not long since, of being the first
Mussulman power in the world ; she is also a great
oceanic power, and she is a great American power,
and anticipating the future in this part of the
globe she refuses to consider Europe any longer as
the sole arena where at all costs she must acquire
or preserve the first rank. Less concerned about
the progress of her ancient rivals, she is also less
jealous of upholding the balance of their power,
and of wet:ling their mutual encroachments, and
this turn of mind is the more advantageous to her
since she finds a pretext therein for sparing her-
self great sacrifices and vigorous resolutions.
• From all these sentiments, good or bad, exalted
or selfish, has resulted the conduct. of England in
the present crisis. The future alone will slow
whether she has not erred in her instincts and cal-
culations, and whether, in adopting a policy similar
to America's, she has not forgotten it is not the
ocean, but merely the Channel, that separates her
from a continent filled with soldiers. If the peace
party (which in England is the dominant party as
the war party is with us)—if the peace party has
been right—if it has actually revealed to England
the admirable secret of preserving her influence
over Europe without taking part in its quarrels,
this party has rendered its country an immense
service; if, on the contrary, it has been mistaken,
if in prematurely disengaging England from her
continental ties it has deprived her at the same
time too soon of her supports, it has placed in ex-
treme jeopardy not only the greatness of its
country, but its very existence.
In fact, the aspect.of Europe must awaken now
very different feelings in the breast of a French-
man and in that of an Englishman, and may give
to the former as many hopes as to the latter just
sources of uneasiness. England can say to her-
self—" I have never been much liked upon the
Continent; but I was feared there; now they fear
me much less, and do not like me more on that
account. I had not long since before me a
nation powerful and jealous, but isolated and
surrounded as it were by my natural allies; now
I see in Europe only old enemies who have not
pardoned my successes, only old friends who at-
tribute to me their reverses. I was accustomed to
fight against one alone, with the help of several;'
I may have to fight several, and can no longer
de-
pend 111)011 the aid of one. Those whom IhaNe
left to defend themselves alone would see me with-
out disp'easure undergo the same trial, and would
calmly represent to me that it is for the general in-
terest to localise the war. What boots it me if
sheltered by my. ships I can defy the whole uni-
verse ? But it is very expensive to have for the
future to guard one's self against the whole uni-
verse, and incessantly to be in expectation of a
great day when all will be saved or lost. Perhaps
I was not wrong to have had formerly allies in the
world, and to have accustomed them to depend on
me, in order that I myself might depend on them.
I have changed my. system ; the event will teach
me if I have done right." On her side, France can
consider Europe with some security, and even sonic
hope ; she may say to herself Formerly I could
not raise my arm against any one without being
immediately forced to parry the blow of another ;
now, if I have any quarrel of this kind to settle,
they willingly see me at it, and there will be some
to applaud me, who formerly would have fought
with me. Parcere subjectis is really a great maxim,
and I have derived great advantages from it. If I
see an occasion of necessity for it, I shall willingly
apply the second half of the verse, and shall there-
by please everybody. But whatever may happen
here I am surrounded with old adversaries, to whom
I have proved that I possessed rather the power
than the wish to injure them, and that I desired
less their defeat than their friendship. Let us wait
-and. hope."
Such is pretty nearly for us and our neighbours