The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1861-04-05
William Pitt, THE Younger.

place OF PIrT in history has never been settled
to the satisfaction Of the world in general
The same parties that then divided England
and Europe sim exist. By the one he Is still
revered as demi-god; the other reduce him
TO the level of quite an ordinary man. Both,
we think, are wrong, and truth, as usual, lies
in the middle. The man who, at the age of
twenty four, could triumph In the British
Parliament over the most powerful opposition
that had ever banded itself within the walls
OF st. stephens to pull down a Ministry
who could. almost single handed, resist the
united efforts of Fox, BURKE, SHERIDAN, EHs-
KINR, WIxDHAx, GREy, and a host of others,
and resist IL with success--who could re tain
power almost uninterruptedly for the space
of twenty three years, in the face of such a
combination was surely no ordinary man.
On the other side, we see nothing in his life
TO entitle him 10 that lofty praise which his
partizan still con tinue to lavish on him.
That he was great deciaimer we have no
doubt; for O'CoSSBL, who surely was a com.
petent judge, and was certainly not very
friendly one, declared he had never, in all his
life, heard anything like his defamation
That he was skillful financier, his scheme
for the payment of the national debt by
means of the sinking fund, abundantly
proves. But that he was great minister, in
the large sense of that term, may seriously be
doubted. If it be true, as has lately been said.
that he engaged in the long war with France
reluctantly, and at the in tigation of the King
much must be subtracted from the strength of
will, and disinterested devotion to country
for hich he has so largely been credited. If
he entered into it of his own accord as has
been generally supposed, then he was, in our
view, the greatest enemy England ever had
BoSAPARTE himself not excepted. we are
we'll aware of the con tenn ptible subterfuge 10
which his partzans resorted when charged
with bringing on that war. It is true, France
first declared war; but she was forced in to it
by England. A clause in the treaty of LIST,
stipula ted that when either party Withdrew
lis ambassador, with view TO put an end to
diplomatic intercourse, it should be regarded
as ion Of war. England not only
withdrew her own ambassador but refused to
receive one from France. and for that PITT
was responsible. He found the English debt
about $3.50, 100000 II had sweled to four
times that amount before the end of the war
At the close of the American war, the very
period AT which PITT became Prime Minister
the demand for reform had become very gen.
eral in England. People could not fail to see
that that war, with its consequences, the loss
of the thirteen colonies to the crown, and the
dishonor OF the British arms, had arisen from
the defective represen Ia ton in Parliament
These demands, orisina ting not with the poor
and suffering classes of the nation bat with
large and growing country party, We're be-
coming, every year, more important and i'm
Fortunate, when the French Revolution
broke out, to arouse their hopes and stimulate
their exertions. The aspect which France at
hrst presented, was well calculated to fire the
hopes of those in England, who had en- tered
heart and soul into the demand for reform
But the excuses of the dominant party in
France soon produced reaction, COM
mencing with the timid and moderate. and
gradually extending its circle, until it en-
braced the greater part of the nation. who
dreaded that the same scenes which had rem.
dered the French Revolution odious MIGHT
be re-enacted Oh English soil. The domi-
nant party did not fail to take adyan
tage of this recoil in public sentiment.
ana they succeeded in precipitating England,
which boasts of her freedom into a war with
france, with the avowed object of restoring
the grinding tyranny from which she had lust
escaped AT the very time that they were
uhuhs with the continental despotisms, to
put down liberty in France, the English peo-
pie We're taught to believe that they were
waging war for national liberty and the
rights OF mankind. When once engaged in
conflict, reason, of course, became silent in
the roar OF battle. The natiop forgot for what
they were lighting, and looked neither at the
allies by their side, nor the cause which those
allies were asserting. AS time rolled on.
france, instead Of being tramped under foot
with lmpunity, reused herself to furious &C.
ton. She chased her invaders, who had come
Tor the aVowed purpose of riveting her chains
across her frontiers. She did more They
had invaded her soil without the slightest
provocation. Reused to frenzy by the Insult
she retaliated. She pursued her enemies in to
their own countries. She exacted heavy VEN
geanee for the injuries she had received. That
she may have been wrong, in 4 strictly moral
sense, is true enough. But who can blame
her for doing what she did When a nation
is reused by causeIess insult, and injury
without provocation, who has0 right TO pre-
scribe the limits of jer just revenge?
We do not hesitate to say that the war into
which the dominant portion of the English
aristocracy, represented by PITT, precipitated
the English people with France, was the
most atrocious war that was ever waged
against an unoffending people. 1t was nei
ther more nor less than a war of old. estab
hshed abuses, against the increasing know
ledge of mankind. For their own selfish pur-
poses, the ruling aristocreey interfered in the
domestic quarrels of a people struggling to be
free, taking advantage of the moment when
they were in the very commissions of change
from degrading system of despotic govern
ment from which they had been suffering for
ages That was the moment that P1rr. rep
resenting the ruling power of England, chose
for joining league of despots, to put down a
people who We're trying to be free. 1t was
not enough that France was suffering almos.
the pangs OF death, from the excuses of her
revolution. Those very excuses, to her the
greatest OF miserles, were made the pretext by
the despotc governments for leagung against
ner' ana England Joined this league Eng
land, who had always maintained the respon-
siblilty OF rulers to the people England that
had brought one King to the block and ex-
peiled another from the throne, upon this
very principle /; England, that resen ted with
fierce enthusiasm the attempt of Louis XIV.
to restore the SrvARTs to the throne; Eng
land, that had always protested against the
right of any power whatever to interfere
with her perfect independence. The aristoc-
racy of England that Is, the ruling portion of
IT. represented by PITT, were now waging the
bloodiest war of mode1p times. to force upon
France detested fHmily, doing the very
thing which LOUIS had attempted to do, and
for attempting which he nearly lost his
throne, by the arms OF England and her al
lies for though that was not the ostensible.
there can be little doubt that ii was the real,
cause of that war which is called the war of
the succession.