Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1853-1862, 1861-06-06
England ana France and the Lincoln


government
The Philadelphia Press declares that the decla-
"ration, in Queen victoriss Proclamation, that the
British Government. shall observe neutrality be.
tween the conending parties, in the present civil
''war, is, in itself, recognition Of the Southern
Confederation, with Mr.. DAVIS as its head This
is the position assumed by all the leading LINCOLN
papers in his Government. This proclamation has
taken them down very considerably, and they do
not fail to show their disappointment thereat. A
leading German Republican paper Of New York
declares that under this proclamation, England
would recognise the blockade of a Northern port
BY one of DAVIS vessels just as it recognises a
blockade of the rebel ports by the Federal feet,n
and that the following points. among other,
also established by the proclamation
4" Every Englishman residing in the United
States who in any manner, even as a bearer of de-
spatches, performs service for the lawful Govern
ment, makes himself thereby liable to punishment
under the law OF his native land, not to mention
that he will thereby bring upon himself the 'sove
reign dispieasure' of Queen Victoria.
e No English steamer can take as freight for the
lawful Government of the United States, arms, am-
munition, or any thing that JEFF Davis NAV declare
to be contraband of war.
No mandatory of arms in England can execute
orders for the Government Of the United States
out bringing upon itself that sovereign dispeasure
which every English manufacturer will desire to
avoid"
Accepting this Interpretation, the Philadelphia
Press exclaims: /" If This be Neutrality we are dis
posed to say, Away with the transparent deluson
we VIII have none of it," This as we read it,,
continues the Press, gives material aid and assist
ance to the South.n
1t is remarkable the sudden change that has
| come over our Northern contemporaries with re-
gard to the position European nations will occupy
toward their Government and ours. Only few
days since they had positive assurance the South
ern Confederaey would receive no countenance
whatever from England or France, or any other
European Government. Now these assurances
have been dssipated by the proclamation of the
British Queen and the unmistakable indications
from France. The New York Times says: "The
"obvious intention of those European Powers
'o sohOm friendly relations desirable, is to apply
to the United States principles of international law
"invented or reuie,oed for the occasion.
Setting circumlocution aside, England
'and France acknowledge the Confederate
| Government" And the Times thinks 'lhey
must have some weighty reason to Offer
| mankind for thus acknowledging the in
dependence of the Southern Confederacy. Per
| haps the New York World correctly interprets Eng
lands "weghty reason when it says in its issue
| the 31st ult: By the arrival of the America a
" Halifax we have an account of an intersellatior
" in the House of Lords on the 10Th inst, respecting
" our blockade. The reply made by Lord GRANVILLE
to the Earl of ELLENBoRoUGHs question is so framed
as to leave the British Government at liberty II
/ IL a.
| " uieao it shah hereafter take of its interests"
These gathered fragments show how distastefu
is the present position of England and France to th'
LINCOLN organs. The following article from thu
Brooklyn IN. " Eagle, rather moderate support
err of the LINCOLN Government, is further confrma
ton that all hope of bullying England into refusa
1 to recognize the Southern Confsderacy has beer
| abandoned:
From the Brooklyn Eagle, Maya
SHALL WE HAVE WAR WITH GREAT BRITAN?-The
news by the America at Halifax is the most inipor
tant that has yet come across the Atlantic in
nection with American affairs and foreign rela
tionships. The debate In Parliament on privateer-
ing and the blockade Of the Southern ports is moi
only indicative of the determination of Great Britain
to have continued supply of cotton at all hazards
| if it can be had by fair means or foul but the
debate is accompanied by the significant fact that
cotton has suffered decline and the market closed
dull and irregular. Thisdecline is proof that the
dealers in cotton and the manufacturers of the
article understand or at least expect that the Gov
eminent will take to prevent the interruption
| of the supply of the material which the
blockade is intended to effect There is Disgusting
the tone and spirit of the debate IN the House OF
Lords on this subject indeed the literal meaning
of the declarations there made. The Earl Of
Ellenbore asked the Government whether the term
"lawfu blockade" used in the recent proclamation
was to be interpreted literally or with qualifea-
tioRs. as, according to the strict meaning of the
| Paris agreement it was impossible to maintain an
effective blockade. By the Paris agreement
England, France and Russia came to q common
understanding in regard to all the questions our
civil war now presents to foreign governments, and
it quite likely that they will act In harmony now
/ IN dealing with the issues raised The Earl OF
| Granville replied, that lawful blockade must be
obtained by sufficient force but it was not ALSO
| lutely necessary to render all iDgress egress
| impossible but TO render it extremely difficult.
The difference between impossibility and ex,,
IRENE difficulty will be solved by the necessities of
| Great Britain. On the other hand Lord Broughman
declared that such force must be maintained to
| make the passage absolutely impossible, and this
| he said very difficult. Indeed the general
1 opinion seemed to be that to establish blockade
which it is impossible to evade is itself impOssi-
| bility. But Lord Derby still more decided. He
said there I" were two points which 1t was desi-
rable that the Government should come to under
standing with the United States. They proclaim a
had not the force to maintain. Although they could
lawfully blockade certain ports it not desirable
that they should proclaim universal blockade, but
| only maintain partial one. The Northern States
also declare that they should treat priUdteers pirates
but they could not do so by the ldo Of nations, and it
1rdS desirable that. notwithstanding the proclamation
that should be declared that such penalty on British
subjects WOULD NOT BIS VIEWED WITH INDIFFERENCE BY
ENGLAND"
Lord Joha Russell, the present foreign secretary
| has hpnn almost dppIdpd q the above
speakers but Lord Derby is the leader of the oppO
| sltiOn to the present government and he and his
party evidently are determined to keep the Palmer
stoniau ministry up to the mark, or in case of any
shrinking the Tories will drive the present minis
try from power and trust to the selfshne' % the
nation to place themselves more at the helm.
| And there is hardly doubt that such contest
would result in the realization of the Tory aspra
| tons. So that England seems to have taken her
place deliberately by the side of the Southern
Confederacy. But the declarations with regard
to piracy and privateering are of still more
Importance. Lord Derby in the above extract
plainly ntimstes that although British subjects
forbidden by Her Msjesty's proclamation, to take
part in the Southern privsteering enterprise, and
that if they do not heed the warning their blood
will be upon their own heads yet the treatment by
the government of this country of any Brtishers
caught in the act pirates will not be viewed with
Indifference, which in plain language means the
British Government will interfere in their behalf
And Lord Campbell one of the highest law officers
of the crown, stated that subject of another
power, holding letters of msrque, was not guilty
of piracy. Lord KmgdOwn said that the Northern
States might consider the people of the Southern
States rebels and guilty of high treason but that
this would not apply to the subjects of other pow
ers, becoming privateers.
This is direct incentive to British subject to fit
out privateers against Northern commerce. and is
calculated if not intended, to neutralize whatever
effect Her Majestys proclamation might have in
lettering them.
If the spirit at present displayed by Parliament,
by the leading journals of England, and apparently
snirnatiDg the whole commercial interest which ID
the real ruling power of the nation, continues to
display itself, and is carried into action, we can
hardly see how this government can avoid a sus-
pension of diplomatic relationship with that coun
try, which will be prelude to war, without sub
uniting to humiliation 70 which the spirit of the