The Sun.
London, England, 1859-05-05 00:00:00

IRELAND.

BELFAST, MONDAY EVENING.
At the re-election of Sir H. Cairns, the English
Solicitor-General, in conjunction with Mr. Davison,
to-day, the learned and hon. gentleman, in the
course of his address, made some interesting allusion
to foreign matters, After the usual formalities had
been gone through, and the two gentlemen declared
re-elected,
Sir. H. CAIRNS addressed the electors. He cor-
dially thanked them for having returned him a
fourth time to the House of Commons as a repre-
sentative of his native town. He then contradicted
a rumour that he had an intention of accepting a
seat in another place ; and declared that as long as
the electors of Belfast chose to elect him he would
sit for Belfast. He then said,—You will not be
disappointed if I refer for a little to the state of
our foreign relations; and I fear that we can no
longer believe that war has not actually broken
out. I fear we are about to see again the
realization of that which the historian of
Italy has so eloquently described when he said
" Italy has seen her harvests trodden down by the
horses of the stranger, and the blood of her children
washed in quarrels not always her own." But the
important question for us is this, what will be our
policy? And on that subject I unhesitatingly
declare my opinion—vhich I believe to be also the
unhesitating opinion of the Government—that our
policy should be this, and this only—a strict and
undeviating pacific neutrality. (Hear, hear, and
cheers.) There are, at least, two reasons why that
policy should be accepted by you and every consti-
tuency in the country. The reason is this—you all
know the warning we have received, and from the
highest and holiest word, against meddling with
strife which does not belong to us. But there is
another reason independent of this. Of those who
are now engaged, I fear, as combatants, I do not
think there is one nation which we can acquit
entirely from blame, or to which we can unhesi-
tatingly give our adhesion. Let us take Sardinia
in the first case. We all know how long and how
enthusiastically we have admired her constitutional
history in past years. She was the first to plant
in Italy the standard of constitutional government.
She has adopted our institutions, our constitution,
our Parliament. She has been a little light amid
the gloom of Italy by which we trusted the whole
country would be regenerated. We had hoped that
all the other seats of Government of Italy would
adopt a like form of government, and advance in a
constitutional progress. But, gentlemen, when we
see Sardinia raising herself into a military Power,
entertaining, I fear, hopes of territorial aggrandise-
ment, in seeking the development of her internal
resources u order to encourage and lead the van of
Italy, I fear our hopes of Sardinia are somewhat
overclouded, and that she is pursuing a course
which is most calculated to retard her own ad-
vancement. (Hear.) But Sardinia is now in co-
operation with France. Now, with regard to forms
of government, if the inhabitants of any nation
choose to adopt any particular regime, I believe
we have nothing to do with that ; we are not to
express any opinion upon it, but we all know
that that form of government is an absolute
one ; that the liberty of the press is sus-
pended ; that public opinion has no legiti-
mate mode of expression ; and, therefore, when
we find France, under the guise of promoting civi-
lisation and liberty, advancing to the support of
Sardinia, we are impelled to ask ourselves this
question—Do we believe that the real end of a
French invasion of Italy would be the freedom of
that country ? Now, you have all heard the fable
of the venerable author, of " The Stag, the Horse,
and the Man." The stag began to butt the horse
with his horns, and the horse applied to the man to
assist him against the stag. The man put a saddle on
the horse, and they son drove the stag off the pas-
time, when the horse said to the man, "I am very
much obliged to you, but now take the .saddle off
me, and I-wish you good morning." But the man
said—" Oh, I think you are a little premature there
—(a laugh)—l found the saddle on you to be so
good and you so serviceable in enabling me to keep
this pasturage for myself, I must prefer to occupy
my seat on your back, and preserve my dominion
here." (A laugh.) Now, Austria is the stag, Sar-
dinia is the horse, and France is the man..
(Laughter.) I will say no more on this matter
except this—that I hope the stag will not be al-
lowed to injure the horse; but I hope that when
the horse succeeds in repelling the assaults of the
stag, he will not be made the subject of the man.
(Loud cheering and laughter.) Now, let us turn to
Austria. Can we feel any sympathy with that
Power ? It is also a Government of the most abso-
lute kind; liberty, civil and religious, is utterly
unknown there. Austria's domination exists
in her more immediate territory, and supports in
other places the despotism which is so repugnant at
home. To Austria, then, we can afford no sympathy
—no aid ; and the conclusion to which I must
arrive on the whole of the case is this—we as a
nation should, in addition to the sound policy of
not meddling with strifes which do not belong to us,
also look to the additional reason that there is not
one of those Powers which is not subject to some
blame, and at the present time there is not one of
them which can command our entire support.
(Hear.) I believe that in this conclusion I am an-
nouncing not merely the policy of the Government,
but that which accords with the feeling in the com-
munity, and if
.I qualify that statement, it is that I
may state my own opinion with respect to a matter
which I have seen. I say, then, that I have seen—
and have seen_with regret—in the organ which is
regarded as the organ of the Opposition to the Go-
vernment in England—the Times—and repeated
more than once, that though we are bound in this
quarrel to be neutral, yet that it must be understood
that the first cannon which France is to fire in
Europe is to be the knell of the Anglo-French alli-
ance. Now, I remember the course which public
opinion has taken with regard to that alliance, and
I remember hearing in the House of Commons a
living statesman—a Cabinet. Minister under the
Government *of Lord Aberdeen—speaking of that
alliance in a manner which would hardly be cour-
teous in any communication or arrangement between
one man and another. I recollect that notice was
taken of the matter in the Commons, and that the
unanimous expression of the Conservative party at
the time was, the alliance between England and
France was the natural alliance through which the
civilisation of Europe was likely to flow. (Hear.)
That was the course of flit Conservative party then.
But while we announce our policy of -neutrality,
we will not be observing it if we say to Wrance--

" If you take a particular line, and fire cannon in a
certain place, then our alliance is at an end." Gen-
tlemen, I repudiate any such language, and I hope
and believe it will not be adopted by the Govern-
ment. (Hear.) It is a satisfaction, though a melan-
choly one, that every exertion has been made by our
Government to avert and prevent war. Ido not
here stop to answer statements I have seen in vari-
ous quarters. Ido not stop to comment on objections
which have been made, that if the Government had
done this, and not done that, peace would have been
preserved. I believe that what the Government did
was the best that could be done, and that was, not
to show any favour to one side or the other. When
Sardinia asked too much, England called on her to
reduce her demands. When Austria asked too
much, England asked her to reduce them. To each
and every Power England acted with impartiality.
The other day it was stated in a paper that our
Government had lent the greatest weight to the
Austrian proposals, and had thereby provoked
France; but in the same paper, just turning over
a leaf, I found the counter-statement, from an
Austrian source, that England had lent the greatest
weight 'to France against Austria. (A laugh.)
Now, when I find these both saying that England
lent the other the greater assistance or encourage-
ment—that England leant too hardly on Austria,
and France saying that England leant too hardly
on her, I think that the fair conclusion to come to
is that there was an impartial mediation between
both. (Hear, hear.) With regard to foreign
affairs, at all times I hold it to be the cardinal po-
licy of the Conservative party not to interfere in
foreign war unless there is an absolute necessity.
(Hear, hear.) I hold with the statesman who de-
clared " when war ceases to be a necessity it be-
comes a crime." (Hear.) That is my opinion.
(Hear, hear.) I believe that this country, guarded
by its insular position, dependent on the arts of
peace for its material advancement, is .bound to
show that her national honour has been insulted,
or her national interests have been imperilled,
before she should embark in war. (Cheers.) lam
happy to think that, though the Government have
held office not more than a year, they have given
to the country the strongest pledges that this was
their policy. For instance, if we go to the begin-
ning of last year, we found a serious cause of quarrel
with the King of Naples. Sardinia was also en-
gaged in that quarrel, and had a right to complain,
as we also had, of the conduct of the King of
Naples. I remember a gentlemen saying in the
House of Commons, " Why don't you send Admiral
Lord Lyons with two or three line-of-battle ships to
Naples to bring the King to his senses ?" Now,
that would have been very easy to do, but had we
done it we should have inevitably have brought on
a war in which we must have taken a part. The
King of Naples had two English engineers in his
dungeons; and we said to him, " You are a rational
man ; here are our reasons why you should not
imprison these people—consider them and leave the
matter toarbitration." What was the consequence?
The King felt himself to be dealt with in a way
probably ususual to him, and he said, " I give up
the contest ; I release your men, and, further, I
will pay them £3,000, and, as to the Sardinian
ship, I will give her to you that you may re-
store her to Sardinia." (Hear, hear.) Thus we
preserved our national honour, and we had no war.
The Solicitor-General next referred to the dispute
with America as to the slave trade and right of
search, which, by England making similar pacific
proposals, ended in an adjustment of the difference.
He also referred to the dispute with France as to
the Newfoundland fisheries, which also was sub-
mitted to arbitration, and ended in a satisfactory
settlement. He next alluded to the Charles et
Georges affair with Portugal ; that also was settled
by amicable proposals; and only the other day, a
senator of Portugal, wo had at first thought that
England had in that case deserted its ally,Portugal,
had openly stated that, having read all the papers
on the subject, he felt bound to declare that the
charges of want of good faith towards Portugal, on
the part of England, was made in ignorance of the
true facts of the case, and he withdrew what he
had previously said on the matter. (Hear, hear.)
The matter was debated in the House of Commons
at great length, and Sir James Graham, who was
present, did not think it necessary to say a word on
the subject; but the other day, when before the
electors of Carlisle, he found it a good electioneer-
ing trick to bring the matter up and charge Gover-
nment with a dereliction of duty. But of course it
was always desirable to make a telling speech
whenever there was no one to answer it. (Laughter.)
The Solicitor-General next referred to the allega-
tions that there were treaties, offensive and defen-
sive, between France and Russia, and between
France and Denmark, Now, as to the former, the
Government had the assurance that there was a
written convention—which he should prefer not to
exist—between France and Russia ; but they had
the strong assurance of the Russian Minister (Prince
Gortschakoff) that there was nothing in it that
could affect the friendly relations of either country
with Great Britain. (Hear, hear.) As to the treaty
between France and Denmark, he had authority to
state that this was a fable altogether. There was
no such a treaty of that description. The Solicitor-
General next referred to some domestic matters, and
commented on the Palmerston and Russell policy
which had led to the dissolution. If Lord John
Russell's £5 franchise were to be put in ope-
ration in Belfast it would add 120 per cent.
to the electoral body, that is, for every 10 electors
now there would be 12 added ; or 22 instead of 10.
What would be the effect ? The right to vote would
be taken from those who now had it, and it would
be transferred to those who never. held it. The
new electors would completely outvote the old.
This would not be reform, it would be revolution.
[A Voice—" Manslaughter."] (A laugh.) He
would not admit the working classes in a rush, he
would admit them gradually. He extolled the
proposed savings bank franchise, and after advert-
ing to some other matters passed on to the new
Government of India, which he said had been trans-
ferred quietly and so harmoniously from the East
India Company to the Queen that the officials
scarcely believed in the fact. This was owing in a
great measure to the courtesy of the new Minister
for India, Lord Stanley. (Hear, hear.) He then
referred to the state of our army and navy.
The former had been increased without one shilling
of expenses, and the navy had been more than
doubled. Nay, more, some reductions had taken
, place in taxation, notwithstanding the great im-
provement which had taken place in naval and
military affairs. We now knew our shores were not
left defenceless. He need not refer to the general
measures of the Government, but he might instance
the case of the Post-office clerks, who, with others
in public departments, were, it was said, treated
niggardly, and when unfit for service were turned
out unbefriended. Now, these people did not pos-
sess votes; yet the Government had passed the
Superannuation Bill, under which any one who
had served 10 years (or sooner in cases of accident)
would be entitled to a retiring allowance in pro-
portion to his salary. Then, with regard to the
removal of the Irish poor from England or Scotland
to Ireland, the late President of the Poor Law
Board, Mr. Estcourt, took the matter up. He was
told that he would have two-thirds of the House of
Commons against him ; but he said if he could only
get at the facts he would take the risk of proposing
a bill. A committee had been appointed, and the
facts were now being prepared upon which Mr.
Estcourt would found a bill. Then, as to the Gal-
way packet line, the Government had ordered the
payment of an annual sum for the postal service.
The. English and Scotch members said the
Irish should pay for a packet station if they wanted
one, as it was not an Imperial question ; but when
a packet station was wanted for England then the
question was an Imperial one. (Hear, hear.) Now,
the Irish would have the Americans landing on
their own shores, and making their purchases here,
probably. not going over to England at all. (A
laugh.) Next, as to the municipal affairs of Belfast.
Bills had been sought for, but the Government sent
down a commission to report on the whole case.
They found out what the real facts were, and then
the Government laid the report on the table of the
House of Commons. Afterwards they prepared a
bill, and when it was fully considered it would be
referred to a committee, so that at length a sore
removed
to whichn. Fie then
l long
gmarred the
prosperityb
e of h
for his re-election, t nd also forthanked
associatinghe
t
electors would
with him his valued friend, Mr. Davison. (Cheers.)
He next referred to the threatened opposition on
the Liberal side, and then said he had no pledges
to offer except those based on his previous conduct.
He was for reform, not revolution, and, above all,
for the maintenance of our Protestant institutions.
(Great applause, and the Kentish fire.) [A Voice
—" Three cheers for Derry, Aughrim, and the
Boyne !"] (Cheers.) He maintained these as being
the precious jewel of our constitution, as they alone
conduced to the prosperity, the happiness, and the
contentment of the country. (Cheers.)

PRICE OF GOLD.—The quotation of gold at Paris
is about at par, and the shortexchangeon London is 25.06
per £1 sterling. On comparing these rates ;with the Eng-
lish Mint price of £3 17s. lOid. per ounce for standard gold,
it appears that gold is nearly 5-10ths per cent: dearer in
-Paris than in London. By advices from Hamburg the
price of gold is 424 per mark, and the short exchange on
London is 13 per £1 sterling. Standard gold at the
English Mint price is therefore about 2 per cent.
dearer in Hamburg than in London. The course of ex-
change at New York on London for bills at 60 days' sight
is about 109/ 10 per cent., which, when compared with the
Mint par between the two countries, shows that the ex-
change is slightly in favour of England ;and, after making
allowance,for charges of transport and difference of inte-
rest, the present rate leaves a trifling profit on the impor
tation of gold from the United States,