The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1854-02-07 00:00:00

Etberpool

FROM OUR LONDON. CORRESPONDENT.

MONDAY MORNING,

IT is now no longer a question of peace or war, but one
of how long will the latter continue ? Peaceful relations
with Russia have ceased; the representative of the CZAR,
though amongst ui yesterday, has terminated his diplo-
matic functions, and has paid a few visits in cog as a pri-
vate member of that society in the upper circles of which
he had, for fifteen years, been one of the greatest ornaments.
Baron Barisow has received at his residence many visits
from his countrymen, holding rank under the EMPEROR,
and also from members of the mercantile community—
Russian merchants. In a few days there will not be one
of the former m this country ; and of the latter scarcely
one but has already made arrangements which will enable
leave to be taken at a short notice. A pretty state of
affairs truly ! Probably England never engaged in hos-
tilities under such circumstances ; it really puts one in
mind of combatants in the " Prize Ring," if the vulgar
comparison be permitted. Pugilists, we are told, by the
recorders of the actions of these worthies, always shake
hands before setting to. Surely such a shaking of hands
was never witnessed as has taken place within the last
two or three days,—BßrNow and CLARENDON, BRUNOW
and PALMERSTON; nor have the ladies been forgotten by
the Russian, with them Bnrsiow was a great favourite.
At the Tower and the Ordnance office all is activity; at
the ancient fortress used chiefly as a depot for military
stores—arms and clothing—these are being furbished and
aired; and at the latter place Lord RAGLAN, Lord Bun-
ortEnsar, and Colonel Mauls, the chiefs, are in daily and
constant attendance. These dry facts speak for them-
selves, and require the expression of no speculative opi-
nions ; the time has gone by for such. It has been stated
that the army tailors and accoutrement people are all busy
making up. I know nothing of this ; nor do I believe that
there is any occasion for making such a stir. There is
plenty of the "munitions of war" ready for use. It may
be asked what is the opinion of soldiers and statesmen of
the present juncture ? how long the war is to continue ?
will it be general ? These are curious questions ; they are
in everybody's month. In the best-informed quarters,—
take the office referred to, for example, and there could
hardly be a better, it is considered that matters will very
soon be settled,—that it will he but the war of a month.
Meantime not a syllable is allowed to be uttered by the
officials in Downing-street offices ; these are usually open
to a number of gentlemen connected with the press of this
great country, who are always received with the greatest
courtesy by Ministers ; by none more so than by
PALMERSTON, who jokes with the greatest freedom ;
you will have seen probably how silent the Sunday
government press is on the res gestce. The fact is,
I believe that there is nothing to communicate beyond
what is stated in this article. When I tell you that I
passed the best part of eight hours—dinner included—
with a government official on Saturday, employed in a
department of all others worked hard at present, you will
easily credit my statements. The Cabinet Council on Sa-
turday sat in deliberation until after dark, when a mes-
senger with a despatch-box was sent to the QUEEN, and
this is all we know, if I be allowed to judge from what I
gleaned in the evening, and from the character of certain
extracts—voluminous ones—which were ordered to be pre_
pared for ministers. I firmly believe that in a battle in
the House of Peers, between that rather stiff customer—
once ambassador at St. Petersburg, and the pupil and son-
in-law of one GEORGE CANNING —LortICLA.NniciRDE,—
more than fighting between Turk and Russ occupied the
attention of the Cabinet. The Noble Marquis (CLAN-
ICCARDE) has given notice of a motion for this evening,
which may be condensed into the two ominous words with
which I began this paragraph—" Peace or war." Their
Lordships have been summoned for the debate. The cabinet
ministers only parted company in Downing-street to meet
each other with their chosen friends and supporters, at eight
o'clock. They all had " business dinners." So also the
opposition—DEßßY and DISRAELI. Baron BRUNOW, who
used to be like the late Duke of WELLINGTON on Saturday
night,—going to half-a-dozen parties—was not seen.
The papers on the Eastern question have all been
delivered to members of the Legislature, and those entitled
to them; the documents comprise two huge volumes of
nearly one thousand pages. They do not contain one
sentence which the people of this country had not known
before. Fraught with evidences of delay, and proofs now
unfortunately too glaring of its fatal policy. Here and
there throughout the drowsy detail, is to be found a gleam
of something like spirit on the part of our ambassador at
Constantinople, but every paper bears the strongest evi-
dence that he was in the leading strings of Downing-
street—bolstering up the cause of Russia, and cajoling the
Porte, and almost,—nay altogether desiring him to be
quiet. Look at his letter, dated on Guy Fawkes' day,
last sth November—says the representative of England
to Lord CLARENDON, " I have succeeded in dissuading
the PoRTE from sending a detachment of line-of-
battle-ships and sailing frigates into the Black Sea
at this moment, &c." But why should I enter-
tain your readers with such rubbish ? Our sailors,
officers, and men, Turkish sailors, officers, and men, were
intent on a very different game. Some time ago, I told
you what a British admiral said to me—one who knew
NICHOLAS well, and the consequences of the policy of
English ministers—Ntenoaes was not to be trusted, and
ministers might, like the construction of their cabinet, go
half-and-half—but war would be the result. Even so.
Still we are all disappointed—or, at least, Lord ABER-
-DERN, JAMIE GRAHAM, and two or three more, dread no
immediate damage to themselves, and the ministry may
gasp on till after Easter. The mode of operation laid
down, like the old unwieldly metal on board our ships
fifty years since, cannot be brought to bear without loss
of much time—DISRAELI, for example, will not be able
to touch his financial question for some time, simply be-
cause the clerks require weeks to be prepared for him.
I think I was the first to intimate that Sir FITZROY
KELLY—something more than a Conservative—had been
chosen to make the framework of the new Reform Bill.
Sir FITZROY has done so, audit will be before the house in
a short time. No, it won't. The bill as sent in is Sir FITZ-
ROY BELLY'S bill. Lord Jon RUSSELL may gulp it
down : Sir Wm. MoLEswoßTg, who, like the whale, may
be thought to have a " larger swallow" than the noble
Whigling, has, in reality, a narrower, more confined poli-
tical larynx,—the Radical baronet dare not swallow the
learned knight's bill, because it will not please the South-
warkians ; and Sir WILLIAM knows that he had better
take care of his seat for the borough, all redolent as it is
of pipes and tobacco. They are worthy and 'cute people
there, and the Hamadryad of the Woods and Forests has
not been among them lately. Sir WILLIAM MOLES-
WORTII, I know you are a Latinist—Cave tu!
England is loyal ! Who doubted it ? Since the days
of my hot youth —let me change the somewhat musty
quotation—when the Fourth GEORGE opened his first
parliament, carrying on his shoulders a velvet mantle
weighing half a hundred weight, and having on his head
an auburn wig, made of women's hair, falling far down on
the aforesaid velvet in screw ringlets—the wig cost the
country £l5O, though it was worn only two hours ! Since
then, I was about to say, I have seen all the openings of
parliament down to last Tuesday's, and that too. What
I give in description thereof is from the true avouch of my
own senses, for I have not read a line of the newspapers
thereanent. There cannot be a doubt that the illustrious,
the accomplished PRINCE CONSORT has been assailed for
some time past for alleged underhand interference with
political subjects—foreign chiefly. And it was said, in
consequence, that the "royal progress" to and from the
house on Tuesday might be disturbed by some vulgar out-
burst of popular feeling. I know that, on the night pre-
vious, at Buckingham Palace, the SOVEREIGN, in contem-
plation of the following day's proceedings, shed tears ;
further, that Her MAJESTY wept in the morning of Tues-
day. I know, also, that in the chief thoroughfare of the
metropolis, at the dead hour of two o'clock in the morning,
not a public protector was to be found, and in lieu filthy
thieves, and worse, were at work unscared by police—that
force being nearly all taken off to add to the guard and
safety necessary for the opening of parliament. The sub-
- urban police were also called to the metropolis. Matters
went on much as usual, with these differences, that there
were double the number of soldiers, double the number
of police, and twice double the number of people out on
the occasion. The cannons boomed—straightway the
quaint-looking turreted tops of the state coach were seen
nodding in the distance. The QUEEN and the PRINCE
were there—she pensive, as she always is in proceeding to
parliament ; the PRINCE bowed much to the public—the
So vEREIGN likewise. The Duchess of SUTHERLAND,
sitting opposite, looked wistfully about. Here and there
a hiss
was heard—then a groan, prolonged and rising to
a howl ; but all was absorbed—swallowed up—in the
lusty and loyal roars of the majority. One hissed limdly
at the Horse Guards, just as the QUEEN was passing out ;
the party received a gentle touch from a bystander, and
Claude os tuum was the result. There were manifestations
of disrespect—disloyalty (?) from Buckingham Palace to
the house ; but, as I have said, these unseemly demonstra-
tions were lost in the bursts of applause, though these
were neither so hearty nor so continuous as on former
occasions. The Turkish Ambassador was loudly cheered
all the way from the Embassy to the new Palace at West-
minster and back ; on his return the cheers were abso-
. The SOVEREIGN takes about ten
lately deafening'
minutes in the robing-room—quite sufficient to admit to
one's place in the house, after seeing the proceedings out-
side. Glorious was the interior. There were more by
many—and they much more brilliant—of peeresses and
their daughters than I have ever seen.. They came to
support their QUEEN ;—the peers, bishops, and ambassa-
dors also came in great numbers. The silver trumpets
sounded—the house rose and gave marked demonstrations
of loyalty and attachment to the Crown. The QUEEN
looked well pleased. She laughed as old LANSDOWNE
tottered up with the imperial crown on its regal cushion,
all On one side, and like to fall off. She then bade the
Peers be
Tioated• and never read tepid speech in more ardent
manner.
In the evening, both houses presented a most animated
appearance—probably,___am never surpassed in the history
of
the British
lighting andrvaernur eunt. The arrangements for well-
very
effective. Ttaereb g the apartments appeared to be
was another feature, so to speak,
which characterised the proceedings,ner
In the emory of the
oldest frequenter of the houses,
seem-
ing unanimity eabibit4This way in
pas so much
te the