Weekly national intelligencer. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1841-1869, 1851-12-20
NOTE BY THE EDITORS.

Mr. Ex-Secretary WALKER, besides his other
personal claims upon us to friendly regard, Gncud-
ing among them his absence from the United States,
is now our townsman, and we would not, for thou
sands upon thousands, do him the least injustice.
We cheerfully give place, therefore, to the above
Communication.
The main complaint Of "a Citizen" seems to be
that the passage quoted by US from his Southampton
Speech does not bear out our construction of it, We
will not argue the point with our correspondent.
The readiest way to do justice at the time to
Mr. WALKER and to ourselves appears to us to be to
insert that Speech in our columns entire. So here
it is:
SPEECH OF THE Hon. ROBERT r. WALKER,
SECRETARY AsfsnIcAr rR ESsUnr,
At the Banquet yuer By the Mayor and Municipal authorities
of Southampton M LoUrs KossUrH, late Governor of
Hungary, the 28h day Of October, 1851, IN reply by
request) to toast IN faror Of the Constitutional Govern
raents of England and the United States.
The Hon r. }. WALKER 0ate Secretary Of the
American Treasury rose amid loud plaudits, and
said
The agreeable duty was assigned him Of answering
the just given but he had been long engaged
figures Of finance rather than in figures Of rhetoric that
he must throw himself their ndugent Kindness
ing them that his heart with them however feeble his
efforts might be to express his sentiments He rejoiced
however in being selected to speak to British audience
fathers The panorama Of centuries unrolled itself in
pd review before him. thousand recollections Of the
past rushing upon his memory; thousand remem-
brances of the kindred glories which united his country
with their filled his heart OVERCOMING and left him
without language to express his emotions He rejOced
only in being selected address Englishmen upon
English soil, but also that the rising commercial city Of
Southampton the place where this privilege had been
SO kindly rendered him. Hear, hears] The name Of
Southampton stranger in America. Cheers 1t
there that fgate bearing the flag of his country
4 L..
and cordial twas there that Of the great steam
ferries united their port with the commercial emporium Of
country 1t there that the voice Of the people Of
England first heard, in patriotic addresses to their
ministry in favor Of their friendly Intervention with the
Sultan of Turkey TO obtain the release of the lustrous
Kossuth Cheers It there, too, that he had been
first received in this country and with welcome so cor
He reoiced also that therillustrous guest should have
first landed at Southampton on his way to America 1t
appropriate mark Of his respect and gratitude to
noble and generous CITY, for her first and efficient inter-
ference in his behalf It proper ALSO that he should
take England his way America that he might return
his thanks for the prompt and successful interference Of
her Government in procuring his liberation from the Sui
tan of Turkey without which interference Sustained as
it by the American Government and the presence Of
British feet in the Dardanees prepared to uphold the
Ottoman Porte against the threats Of Austria and Russia
the heroic Kossuth have remained captive per-
haps have sealed with his blood escaod Of an Aus
TRAN tyrant his devotion to liberty and to hs country
Hear hear. This the first joint Intervention of
England and America in favor Of freedom. HE hoped it
would not be the last IL suspicious of future
similar triumphs It proved that England and America
combined need scarcely negotiate from the mouths Of their
cannon but that their united moral force in the of
liberty could arrest the march of despots. He was per-
suaded that jealousy would be fn the United States
growing out of the fact that Louis Kossuth his way to
America had visited England there to plead the of
his country and his thanks for the magnanimous
interference of England in obtaining his release from bon
dage loud cheers] God be thanked, the shackes were
now stricken from his limbs, and he stood upon soil which
polluted by the tread of despot and where
| their power could never reach him. [Cheers.l
But he fhr Walker) found himself rambling from the
duty assigned him. in responding to the toast in favor Of
the constitutional Governments of England and Of the
United States By constitution England meant and the
United States meant permanent form Of Government,
established by the voice Of the nation The constitution Of
England wss reformed in this way upon the overthrow Of
the yrannous dynasty Of the Stuars and IL contained
many vital principles Of free Government Among these
port with engagements
of the people in the House Of Commons; the immediate
change OF and ministry resulting from their
their command the and taxes Of hs country
an independent Judiciary the trial By jury the Habeas
Corpus Act; the Magma Char the liberty Of speech and
Of the press Henr, heart He might enumerate Others
but these would suffice To show that many fundamental
principles Of free embodied in the
stuton Of England Many of thess principles enlarged
and expanded, were adopted In forming the constitution
of the United States, That Instrument formed BY