The Sun.
London, England, 1861-12-11 00:00:00

to have been made with great firmness ; and the
second is, that it is said to be couched in terms the
most conciliatory, so as to give the American Go-
vernment every possible opening to recede with
honour, and not imposing upon them the slightest
humiliation. (Hear, hear.) I believe that the pro-
ceedings of the Government have been approved of
from one end of the kingdom to the other, and I
believe it is the consciousness of the people that the
right course has been pursued and steadily per-
sisted in that has produced the calm which pervades
the whole community. (Hear.) After some remarks
on the interest which the people of this country
must naturally feel, and the injury which the
manufacturers must suffer from the blockade,
the hon. member went on to say—So far as our
interests and sympathies are concerned they would
go with the South. But when the war first broke
out all our sympathies were ready to enlist them-
selves with the North, because we believed the
cause of the North was that of emancipation ;
and it was only when we found that they were
ready to compound with slavery, to perpetuate
slavery, to combine all the profits of slavery with
all the advantages of professed abolition, that the
reaction took place, and that the English public
determined to observe that strict neutrality which
to this moment has never been departed from. And
now let me say, although I cannot deny that there
are some causes of sympathy drawing us towards
the South, that there is that gulf placed between us,
between the English nation and any community
that subsists by slavery, that makes it impossible
that we can ally ourselves either by sympathy,
community of feeling, or affection with any nation
that exists upon that_which I can call nothing else
but a disgrace to mankind. And there is also
this to be said, that even in the event of war, there
is great danger of our alliance with the South, in-
asmuch as whether we wished it or not we could not
help being occasionally participators in much of
what we should disapprove, and that we might do
something without intending it to strengthen an
institution against which the heart of every Eng-
lishman revolts. (Hear.) I have said that we have
observed neutrality; I believe that is understating
the case. I know not any man worth the name of
Englishman who would not make great sacrifices to
help Amer*, both North and South, out of their
difficulty. (Hear.) One sympathy I have—the
warmest and strongest—one partisanship I am
ready to avow—it is a partisanship in which you
will all be ready to engage—that in this cruel, pur-
poseless, and wicked war my sympathies go with
the party that is most moderate, and the most
ready for the conclusion of an early peace. (Cheers.)
There is one plea the force of which we must all
admit. It has been said " Remember the weak-
ness of America—see what a difficulty she is in,
She has one arm tied up. Is the magnanimity and
the generosity of England to press upon a power
when she is comparatively powerless ?" Now, if
we look at the two countries, it is a remarkable
fact that there never was a period when the North
was so weak; there never was a period since the
peace of 1815 when England was strong. But
we must remember that the weakness of the
North is not admitted ; on the contrary, they are
ready to push at the South, dispose of England, aiid
help themselves to Canada. (Laughter.) There is
this also to be considered, that while concession may
be right, we must take care that no concession is
made that may give rise to mischievous misrepre-
sentations and misconstructions. We must look to
some extent to what has taken place. We must
remember that the abuse of England—the menacing,
of England, has not only been a habit but a profit-
able trade in America. The newspapers are sold by
it, the members of Congress get their elections by it,
the Secretaries of State are raised to office by it, the
Presidents mount the highest steps in the ladder by
it. It is the whole political capital on which men
thrive—perpetually reviling and challenging Eng-
land. We have disregarded it as we could well afford
to do, but in the interests of America itself—in the
interests of Europe, there must come a time when
this must be checked. America has been treated by
England like a great headstrong schoolboy, who has
never travelled more than 10 miles from home, and
who has been so petted and pampered that he has
become a nuisance to the household around him.
America has passed the age of pupilage. Her ma-
jority is attained. It is our duty, in the interests of
America, as well as in the interests of Europe, to see
that she is brought to her senses, and we must teach
her that if she wishes to be respected that respect
must be founded on her own regard for international
obligations, her own respect for civilised law, and
that she is not to be respected in proportion to her
own menacing and bluster. (Cheers.) There is a
general apprehension of war, and everybody is ask-
ing what is to be the upshot of these proceedings.
I will tell you what I hope and believe will be the
upshot. It is my ardent and sincere belief that there
will be no war. I will give you the reasons for that
belief. In the first place, it is not the interest of the
Northern States to go to war. lam not saying any-
thing disrespectful of America or the Northern
States when I say that interest is an ingredient
which the American is too smart an individual to
lose sight of in his warlike and peaceful arrange-
ments. What are they to do if they go to war ? At
present they are occupied altogether in the South.
But they say, "We 'are dealing with the South.
We may lose territory there, but we shall compen-
sate ourselves by taking Canada." But what do the
Canadians say to that ? They say they live in too
great a proximity to the great republic, and have
formed a very correct notion of the value of its con-
nection. They think the English monarchy is far
more respectable ; and there is another argument.
If the Americans are unwise enough to show them-
selves over the frontiers of Canada, they may pro-
bably meet with rather a hot reception, and they
will find some difference between a war with Canada
and a war with the SOuthern States. After an en-
gagement with Canadian regiments, when the
Northern heroes run away they will be followed
over the frontier, and instead of the States annexing
Canada, it may happen that Canada may annex a
goodly portion of the States themselves. (Cheers.)
Well, then, what are they to do by sea ? In the last
war the American privateer was a very dangerous
element to be considered, and people gay you will

have the American privateers again. But where
are they to sail from ? The whole south seaboard
of the States, which were their great harbours of
exit and refuge, will be closed against them. No
Northern privateers can sail from these harbours,
and if one enters it will be captured. The whole of
the ports of the European Powers are closed against
privateers, and there are only two or three harbours
which the Americans have, which can be easily
blockaded, so that any attempt at prisrateering
would be checkmated. (Hear.) I believe, when it
is not the interest of America to go to war with us,
it may also be shown to them that it is con-
sistent with their character and honour to re-
main at peace. (Hear.) I believe that these two
motives combined will make them ready to meet
half way the judicious concessions asked by Eng-
land. Whether there is peace or war in America, I
hold the disruption of the Union to be an accom-
plished fact. Only two questions then remain to be
asked. First, what should be the effect of the divi-
sion of the Union on slavery. My belief is that it
must be the death blow of slavery, because I hold it
to be impossible that the slave and the free states
can co-exist side by side unless the legislation of the
one assists the institutions of the other. It is said
the North will be weakened by losing one half of
the Union. At the end of the last century it was
said that if we allowed the American colonies to de-
part the glory of England was gone. But the colo-
nies broke away, and what was considered a great
calamity to England has turned out its greatest
blessing; so it will be with the North. The North
will be emancipated from the stain of slavery, but
while they are connected with it they cannot be
safe and prosperous. The separation will give
strength to the Northern States. They will start
up a new empire. The disasters of the present day
having opened their eyes to the unsafe parts of the
constitution, they will form a stronger Government
when the law will be not the American law but the
old English law; when the few will govern and the
many obey, instead of every man governing and
no man obeying. (Hear.) When they have reverted
to principles of government more sound and rational
you will then see a new empire start forth with a
new future before it—with a higher intelligence,
with a sounder morality, with a purer patriotism—
and then if old England is fallen or decayed she
may still live again in the blood and the sinews of
a young Anglo Saxon giant, who inherits her
energies and perpetuates her language, her civili-
sation, and religion to nations and ages yet unborn.
(Cheers.) I trust this is not too sanguine a pic-
ture I have drawn of the termination of this
unhappy crisis. I trust that what is for the
future of America will be seen by the statesmen
of England, and that to England and all the
world they will prove themselves worthy of a higher
character and nobler future. But this we must feel,
that if unhappily the reverse is to be the case, if
war is to decide these painful and unhappy difficul-
ties, there never was a time when England was in
such a condition as to make the results of that war
both brief and certain. Commercially our position
is sound. Financially it is so good, that while other
nations are endeavouring to extricate themselves
from the prospect of ',bankruptcy, the only quarrel
with the House of Commons is whether the Chan•
cellor of the Exchequer shall put on or take off ano-
ther million of taxes. Practically speaking, our
people are the most loyal on the face of the whole
earth. If we go into the war there is not a man in
England who will not regard the commencement of
it with great reluctance and with great pain—there
is not one who would not hail its termination with
joy. All we can pray is, that if this war is to take
place it may be as brief as possible—as bloodless as
possible, and that while it may give safety to Eng-
land it may also be a blessing, from the lesson it
teaches and the high inducements it holds out, to
America herself. (Loud cheers.)
Mr. STANTON moved a resolution thanking Mr.
Horsmau for attending, and for his readiness at all
times to appear before his constituents and court in-
quiry into his conduct, and expressing its pleasure
at hearing his opinions on the various topics of pub-
lic interest which he had touched upon.
The resolution was agreed to and the proceedings
terminated.