The Sun.
London, England, 1861-10-12 00:00:00

THE SUN, LONDO `, SATURDAY E VENING, OCTOBER 12, 1861.

probably it will be the first thing he asks for when
he gets out of the waves. It is pre-
cisely so with the North. Slavery has
tumbled them into the waves of civil war ;
but, should they be landed again in the old Union
—the very first thing would be to secure the rights
of slavehold.ers, and perhaps, by compromises, to
pave the way for their return to power. Indeed,
at this moment, were all the States reunited, the
slaveholders would be omnipotent in the more
powerful of the American Houses—the Senate•

While, therefore, England cannot sympathise at
all with the South, and cannot help sympathising
somewhat with those who have no slaves actually
among them; yet that sympathy is chilled, is ren-
dered painfully small, by the pro-slavery policy of
the North. We look upon the Northerns, in fact, as
moral cowards. They affirm that slavery is a crime,
but want the courage to treat it as such. To this
hour they reject the aid of the negro in the
struggle ; they refuse to make it a struggle for
liberty ; they declare in every way they can that it
shall not be a Holy War ! Like the Eastern despots
of old, they invite the slaveholders back to the
Union, with the promise that they will give them
anything they ask even to the half of their
_Kingdom. Nor is this hyperbole. " Welcome, says
Mr. LINCOLN, to half the United States—welcome
to catch your slaves all over the other half—only
turn back and honour us in the eyes of the world,
by making us together its biggest empire !" A bad
South and not much better North, is the fact which
keeps the heart of England somewhat cold in re-
gard to the American Civil war. Let as hope the
North will awake in time—let her proclaim justice
to the coloured men, and she will have in Rug-
land an ally as enthusiastic as she could wish.

Nothing could well be more admirably to the
purpose than our Foreign Secretary's Letter
in relation to the state of affairs in Mexico.
The communication, we mean, published in our im-
pression of Thursday evening. Brief though it
was, it said everything that really needed to be
said, under the circumstances. It was the answer
—as will have been remarked—vouchsafed by
Earl RUSSELL to the Memorial recently presented
to him on behalf of the commercial community.
" You have described," says the noble lord to the
memorialists, and his lordship is constrained to
add, "truly, the evils which afflict Mexico." Lord
RUSSELL then enumerates the chief of those evils,
in the words here following—" the robbery and the
bloodshed, the impunity of crime (meaning of its
perpetrators!), and the absence of any controlling
authority in what is called the Government."
Before taking into account the prayer of the
petition presented by the memorialists, the
Foreign Secretary goes on very explicitly to re-
mark that—" Her MAJESTY'S Government have a
right by treaty, and by all the laws which govern
international relations, to require security for the
persons and property of British subjects, and the
I performance of specific engagements on the part
of Mexico." Earl RUSSELL observes quite plainly
thereupon—" Her Majesty's Government will exer-
cise this right." There it is, however, that the
noble lord hastens at once and without any fur-
ther preamble to the particular request submitted
to his consideration as Foreign Secretary by the
mercantile memorialists, who are naturally enough
so especially desirous of witnessing the re-esta-
blishment of order throughout Mexico. It mat-
ters little to them, of course, by what means this
may be effected, so that it is effected. To that
end—they frankly suggest the intervention, the
armed intervention, of her Britannic MAJESTY'S
Government. The mere suggestion affords Earl
RUSSELL a very tempting opportunity for vindi-
cating the great principle of non-intervention now
regulating the Foreign Policy not only of Eng-
land, but very generally the Great Powers of
Christendom. And—grasping somewhat eagerly
at this opportunity—most effectively does the
noble lord avail himself of it. Having specified the
particular right secured by treaty to this country
in reference to the state of things in Mexico—the
right, that is, of requiring the security there of
British subjects and British property; and having,
moreover, thereupon added, as we have seen, quite
unmistakeably, " Her MAJESTY'S Government will
exercise this right"—Earl RUSSELL immediately
adds, " But—her MAJESTY'S Government cannot
think it wise to interfere in the internal govern-
ment of Mexico. You seem to think," his lordship
writes, "that a protecting force thrown into Mexico
for the simple purpose of maintaining public tran-
quillity would succeed in attaining that object, and
that even a small force might suffice for the pur-
pose. lam sorry to say that I think a very large
force would be insufficient to restore public tran-
quillity." And he observes significantly, " This is
a task which the Mexicans must accomplish for
themselves." Advancing from particularities to
generalities, the Foreign Secretary remarks at this
part of his communication—" There are very few
cases in which foreign interference can be benefi-
cial, and in those few cases there must be a large
and numerous party in the country prepared to
avail itself of foreign aid." That is unques-
tionably a sine qua non as a preliminary to
any such interposition. And we can none of us be
surprised to find Lord RUSSELL observing at this
point—" I am concerned to say I see no proof of
the existence of such a party in Mexico. Her
MAJESTY'S Government, therefore," he writes, in
conclusion, " must confine their action to the clear
and legitimate purpose of demanding from the de
facto Government of Mexico, however constituted,
respect for the persons and property of British
subjects, and the fulfilment of recorded obliga-
tions." It is a lesson altogether that the memo-
rialists have called down upon themselves. And it
is one we can hardly imagine that they will be
disposed either to forget or to resent.
Looking at the deplorable state of things in the
unfortunate land referred to, it is almost to be re-
gretted that the notion could not somehow have
been realised—that pointed towards the re-estab-
lishment of order in Mexico under the auspices of
Don JUAN DE BOURBON. If only his Royal High-
ness—it was thought by certain daydreamers—if
only H.R.H. could be induced to consent to waive
his claim to the crown now worn by Queen
ISABELLA, and to accept the responsibility (either
as Monarch or as Elective President) of re-
establishing order in Mexico—a land where
anarchy alone has for so long reigned
supreme ! Unhappily for those who in-
dulged in this pleasant anticipation, both
for the preservation of tranquillity in Spain, and
for the restoration of it to Mexico—unhappily
for them and their cherished day-dream, Don
JUAN himself was the one who evinced the most
eager solicitude to dissipate it. Ho at least is
not impressed with the wisdom of the old adage,
declaring one bird in the hand to be worth two
in the bush. Here was a tempting morsel enough
proffered to his lips—but no, he is still snapping
vine mthl ye a ther e mAilnags f
oyre t
tmh
eorjeutempting
oshadow
theseo
poor exiled Princes in search—not like JAPHET,
of a Father—not like CRUIRSRANR'S eccentric
gentleman,
of a Horse-,not like Cm
but like ah! so many Wife—not like Dr. SYNTAX, of LEBS, of a
the Picturesque—
of those poor little baubles