Semi-weekly standard. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1853-18??, 1863-03-13
ENGLAND aud the Confederate States.

We make the following interesting, and, in all
probability truthful extract from speech delivered
in the House of Representatives on the 9th OF last
February, by the Hon. w. G. Swan OF Tennessee,
a copy of which in pamphlet form he was kind
enough to send us:
"If we look closely into the matter we may see
that England has far greater interest-eVen Pecu,
pary and material interest-in the prOlongatlon OIL
the war than she can have in peace with its unln-
terrupted supply of cotton. The war is removing
from her path great commercial rival: She is fast
regaining the carrying trade of the world, which
three years ago she was fast losing. Not single
Confederate cruiser burns q Yankee ship without
raising nc war risks upon American shipping IN
the offices of all the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS. securing
a greater and constantly increasing preference Tor
British vessels in the minds of shippers IN all ports
What England loses in her cotton industry, she
more than compensates by recovering her maritime
supremacy; and if it be true that portion OF the
workers in cotton are suffering restitution, the
ruling classes of England feel it but little. Ihey
endure with becoming eeuanimity the sutferings oil
the poor and, as firmly believe, would prefer to
to sustain the idle operatives two years 10 come,
upon the public taxes, rather than see the war ter
minated before the chief object of British policy
shall have been gained-the total destruction of
both North and South for that ambitious and lar
seeing Power has more than a mere commerclal OF
pecuniary interest in prolonglng our STRIFE 10 our
utter ruin. She has still greater and deeper Po-
itical interest and that consists in seeing the dan
gerous example of political liberty and selEgovern-
ment removed from before the eyes of her swarm
ing masses already pressing hard upon the ancient
oligarchy by their clamor for reform The United
States in the past have been with their institutions
the model and exempar Of the reformers, the horror
and bug bear of the ariStocracy let the war out
last two years longer, and they hope that absolute
anarchy will prevail; that the war; now raging,
will be complicated with half dozen or more civil
wars, both North and South; that the republican
institutions, which have so long been their terror,
will sink in an ocean Of blood, disappearing forever
from earth and that military. dictators will drill
the once proud citizens into Subjects and cover the
land from the lakes to the gulf with penarchy or
heptarchy of monarchles. Then, as th'Se willy aud
subtle statesmen hope, Americans, instead OF an
example, will have become warning to Europe, SO
that if reform should become rampant again, they
will only have to point across the Atlantic, with
mocking finger and say: behold the model of free
government; there is the end Of your: universal
suffrage; be content with Your government, We
loyal Englishmen, honor the King; fear God and
thank Him that you have House of Lords!
say, sir, such it seems are the cogent interests,
both pecuniary and political, which prevent Eng
land from moving hand or voice in our behalf which
might even Indirectly tend to bring bloody
struggle to q close; and if we are permitted TO
build vessels in her dorkS let it not be Supposed
that 1t is with any view to accomplish by her con-
nivance our deiverance, but rather that Yankee
ships may be- destroyed. Two years more would
also go far to stop the gap in her cotton sup
ply by creating new fields OF production in her own
colonial douGnions; and herein is her interest in
destroying slave labor, and to that extent sympa
thizing with our abolition enemy-and then she
could without single drawback to disturb her
satisfaction contemplate the total disastrous over
throw of the Institution she so much abhOrs."