The Empire County argus., 1856-04-12


America, holds the following sensible language res
pectng the hostilities between the United States
and England:
The more cautiously we ourselves abstain in Or
binary times from pronouncing on the course of our
national policy the more we feel bound in this SOL
emn moment to appeal to the true feeling and
sedate understanding of our readers on both sides
OF the Atlantic against the evity, the pride in
capacity which would urge the two nations into
war
War with the United States The idea of such
war is incredible. If there be in the catalogue
of moral calamities ''worse than civil war;" it is
such conflict as might arise between America and
England. civil war has generally some basis in |
reason. Some grand principle is at stake. The
sword is drawn in defense of freedom-in defense
of property-in defense of religion, AS in our own
civil war, certain degree of romance, of chvalry,
and of intellectual activity, often springs from the
conflict and fourishes after its close--the blossom
| and fruit of splendid and deadly contest But |
war against America would have no single redeem
ing point There is not--and there never ought to
be--any real ground of quarrel with the United
States. The interests of the two countries are
identical. Their moral principles the same.
They have neither a language to separate, nor a
religion to estrange them. The same blood flows
in the veins of their people. They have common
history--a common iterature--a common tradi-
ton. They possess the Bible. They read
the same Shakespeare and the same Milton. Blake
| conquered and Cromwell ruled for both. They
have equal interest in Raleigh, in Vane, and in
Penn.
Nay, their present state is as inseparable as their
past They still live by the light of the same old
Saxon laws. They still drink at the same ntellec-
tual fountains, regardless whether the springs lie
on the eastern western shores of the Atlantic
Irving Bryant, Bancroft, Hawthorne and Longfe-
low are admired with as warm an affection in Eng
land as are Ihackeray, Tennyson, Dickens Jerrold,
and Macauley in America. A war between Eng
land and America would be war of brothers,
war of friend against friend. 1t would be war
against the afhnities of race against the unity of
religion, against the interchanges of trade. 1t
would be war in favor of barbarism, piracy, re-
strictiona war against the bounties of nature, the
enterprises of genius the advances of civilization
Such war would bring sorrow into every Anglo
Saxon home in Europe and America, and feeling
of shame and humiliation in every Anglo-Saxon
heart, in whatever quarter of the globe it beats
Such war would close the gospel for nearly half
the Christian world
We say nothing about material interests They
60 for much but the moral interests far outweigh
them, The interchange of thought is more impor-
tant than the interchange of cotton. And for
what are we threatened with an interruption of
friendly relations with American kindred Is
any principle at issue! Are our liberties threat
ened-is our property unsafe! Not in the least
degree Only three slight and miserable causes for
quarrel appear-a dispute about the construction
Of treaty regarding that interesting savage the
king of Mosquto-a dispute about some wretched
sandbanks lying off Balize-and q dispute about
the attempt to enlist troops for the Crimea The
two first are quite insignificant We might as we'll
go to war about the sovereignty of Eel Pie island
We may be right or we may be wrong in our inter-
pretation and the Americans think we are wrong.
There is much to be said on both sides; and we all
know that when private persons disagree about tr-
| Hns a nd i1;otor
the cause of quarrel.
About the third pont-the attempt to enlist in
the Republican terrtory-we are unquestonably
in the wrong. In neither case is our honor engag-
ed; in neither case does any principle which ourht
to be maintained stand behind the formal terms of
the disagreement-t presenting true ground of
quarrel, as in the Russian war, which the genius
of the nation can seize and accept Our statesmen
mlght--and must-fnd in the resources of diplo-
macy means of satisfying all interests without an
insane appeal to the sword. Where we are clearly
wrong, we should at once and fully admit our error
making whatever reparation is fairly due 1t is
said that the Washington cabinet requires the
withdrawal of Mr.. Champion. Surely this is no
extreme or revolutionary request Personal unpop-
ularity has always been considered sufficient rea-
son for requiring the withdrawal of an ambassador
We could give hundred instances in which sover-
eign powers have exercised this right
Under such circumstances withdrawal does not
imply censure. 1t merely implies that the personal
relations of the ruler and the minister have become
such as to impede the transaction of public bust
ness. We were wrong in attempting to recruit
within the Union. Mr. Champion was the instru-
ment of the wrong He had thereby rendered
himself an object of suspicion at Washington His
withdrawal, therefore, at the request of the Amer
ican Cabinet, would be in accordance with usage,
and would be sure pledge of the sincerity of our
acknowledgment of the original error Strong
nations can afford to be graceful in their conces-
sons.
The other points are less clear. Yet, if a proper
spirit of conciliaton presdes at the discussion, we
have no reason to fear permanent disagreement
We have right to expect that our diplomists and
public writers will approach the discussion in
pacific mood. Above all things we deprecate
menacing tone. We cannot read without indigna-
ton the elaborate display of our naval and military
powers which some of our journals have thought
proper to make Every Englishman feels that he
would not be put down by such parade and we
must not forget that our descendants in America
are just as naughty ourselves They have our
blood, our passions, acute sense of personal
honor Against ourselves the threat of force is the
one argument that is sure, under all circumstances
to fail. Nor will the American be cowcd by me
mace of the Baltic fleet. We must argue our point
as if no fleets We're in existence and take our Stand
on the ground of history and reason.
| LEAP YEAR DEVELOPMENTS An Eastern paper
| siyes account of a Lean Year Rail