The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1853-02-22 00:00:00

THE PEACE-MONGERS.

Iv is a gratifying sign of an improvement in the
tone of public opinion, that the absurd dogmas of
Messrs. COBDEN and Buicirr, about international
arbitration, and their ravings about the blessings of
universal peace, are received with the contempt
they merit, by all but their poor dupes at Man-
chester. There was a time, and not long since,
when these men were hailed with enthusiasm as
-the champions of commercial freedom. The vapid
declamation of Mr. CosuEr,—in which the con-
fidence he had acquired on "the road" as a com-
mercial traveller, compensated for his ignorance,—
was dignified as " unadorned eloquence," and he
realised the story of the ambitious frog in the fable.
It was, perhaps, the most melancholy feature in
recent political agitation, that a man of such poor
pretensions and shallow conceits should have been
elevated into the position of a popular idol. Justice
and common sense have now, however, been
amply avenged. Believing himself to be wise, he
became a fool, and he is at present a laughing-stock
for all parties, and the theme of-sorry jests even for
those political organs which formerly were the most
forward in his praise. In the 'Free-trade com-
memoration at Manchester, which preceded the
opening of the present Parliament, he talked in
loud-sounding phrases of what he should do, as
though he were perpetual dictator, but his peace
agitation folly has shut up his mouth, and, for-
tunately for the character of the 'British Senate,
his struggles to keep himself from falling back into
his native obscurity have been confined to his
correspondence about his absurd wager. This
wholesome change in the direction of public
opinion is so far gratifying, that there is now some
chance of the National Defences being placed in a
proper state of efficiency, without being met by the
insane proposition which was the favourite theme
of the Financial Reformers—that the -votes for the
Army, Navy, and Ordnance should be reduced to
the limit•of 1835, when our ships were•dismantled,
every regiment deficient of its complement, and
our dockyards cleared of stores in order -to make
up a deficient revenue. There may, or may not be,
grounds for apprehension as to the safety of the
country, arising out of the immense military
resources of the French EMPEROR, the uncertainty
of his position, and the known predilections of the
French people for military conquest, especially
against their ancient foes, the English, upon whom
they have many recollections of humiliating defeats
to efface. In either case, however, we owe a duty
to ourselves to provide against such a fearful con-
tingency, as far as practicable, and none ought to
presume to doubt the axiom which all experience
confirms, that the surest guarantee for the pre-
servation of peace is to ise fully prepared to resist
any unprovoked aggression..
The present Administration, fortunately for the
country, seem animated by the same spirit which
characterised their predecessors, although the
additional expenditure at present required is not to
an extent to alarm the economisers. The number
of men voted before Christmas is to be adhered to,
and the increase in the supplies voted on Friday is
only £399,905 over those of last year, so that we
may reasonably anticipate the British Navy will be
placed on a footing to enable us to preserve that
dominion over the seas which was never, perhaps,
more necessary than at the present moment, when
it forms the highway for so many of our fellow-
countrymen to and from our gold producing
colonies in Australia. The navy is essentially the
most popular and important branch of our defen-
sive service, for so long as we maintain our
maritime supremacy, we have little to apprehend
from the military preparations of the Continental
nations. We could have wished to see the
administration of it in better and more faithful
hands than those of Sir JAMES GRAHAM; but
even in such hands it will tend, in a great measure,
to uphold public confidence to know that the peace
preachings of the COBDEN party are treated with
utter contempt, and that all parties, with this
solitary exception, are agreed as to the necessity of
rendering the British Navy, in men and metal,
fully competent to cope with all that may be
brought against it.

[ADVERTISEMENT.]
ALLEGED FRAUDS ON THE CUSTOMS.

When we inform the public that the first intimation
which we had of the intention of the customs authorities
to take any proceedings against us for alleged frauds on
the revenue was our being taken into custody late on Sa-
turday last (notwithstanding we were at our place of bu-
siness all the day), and that we were kept in custody until
nearly five o'clock on Monday afternoon, and no one per-
mitted to have access to us without a justice's order until
the case was brought before the magistrates on Monday
afternoon, and that our counsel could not obtain a post-
ponement
of the hearing beyond twelve o'clock on the
following day, we hope the public will feel it an act of jus-
tice to us to suspend their judgment until an investiga-
tion has taken place before a jury.
FLETCHER AND FIRTH.
4, Temple-court, Feb, 16, 18.53.