Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1863-09-24
How England Aids the Shareholders Rebellion.
From Senator sumner,s recent snesch.l


From Senator Summers recent speech
But it is not in words only-of speeches,
dispatches or declaratens-that our danger
lies. am sorry to add that there are acts
also with which the British government is too
closely associated. | do not refer to the IN
limited supply of munitions of war, so that
our army at Charleston, like our army at
Nicksburg, is compelled to encounter Arm
strong guns and Blakely guns, with all proper
ammunition from England for the right of
British subjects to sell these articles to rebel
slavemongers was fixed when the latter, by
sudden metamorphosis, were changed from
lawless Migrants of the ocean to lawful bellig-
erents. Nor do | refer to the swarms of swift
steamers, "a pitchy cloud warping on the
eastern wind, always under the British flag
with contributions to rebel slavemongers for
these, too, enjoy kindred immunity OF
course, no royal proclamation can change
wrong into right or make such business 9TH
erwlse than immoral; but the proclamation
may take from it, the character of felony.
But even the royal proclamation gives no
sanction to the preparation in England of
naval expedition against the commerce of
the United States 1t leaves the parliament
tary statute, as well as the general law of ma
tons, in full efficacy to restrain and punish
such an offence. And vet, in the face of this
obvious prohibition, standing forth in the text
of the law, and founded in reason "before
human statute purged the common veal" al
so exemplifed by the national government,
which, from the time of Washington. has al
ways guarded its ports against such outrage.
powerful ships have been launched, equipped,
fitted out and manned in England, with arms
supplied at sea from another English vessel.
and then, assuming that by this insulting
hocus pocus all English liability was avoided.
they have proceeded at once to rob and de-
stroy the commerce of the United States
England has been their naval base from which
were derived the original forces and supplies
which enable them to sail the sea- Several
such ships are now depredating on the ocean,
like Captain Kidd under pretended commits
slons, each in itself a naval expedition. As
England is not at war with the United States,
these ships can be nothing else than pirates
and their conduct is that of pirates. Unable
to provide court for the trial Of prizes, they
revive for every captured ship the barbarous
"ordeal Of fire" Like pirates, they burn all
that they cannot rob. Flying from sea to
sea In lawless piracy, they turn the ocean into
furnace and melting pot of American COM
merce. Of these incendiaries the most fam
Gus Is the alabama, with picked crew of
British sailors; with Grained gunners out of
her Majesty's naval reserve" and with every
thing else from keel to topmast British, which,
after more than year of unlawful havoc, is
still burning the property of our citizens,
without once entering a rebel savemonger
port, but always keeping the umbilical con-
nection with England, out of whose womb
she sprung, and never losing the original ma
tionality stamped upon her by origin, so that
at this day she is British pirate ship-pre-
cisely as native born Englishman, robbing
on the high seas, and never naturalized
abroad is British pirate subject
1t is bad enough that all this should pro-
ceed from England. 1t is hard to bear. Why
IS 1t not stopped at once? One cruiser might,
perhaps, elude watchful government. But
it is difficult to see how this can occur once,
twice, three times; and the cry is still they
sail. Two powerful rams are now announced,
like stars at a theatre. Will they, too, be al
lowed to perform? l wish there were not
too much reason to believe that all these per-
formances are sustained by a prevailing Brit
ish sympathy. A Frenchman, who was acct
IDENTIFY prisoner on board the Alabama at
the destruction of two American ships, de-
scribes British packet in sight whose crowd
ed passengers made the sea resound with
cheers as they witnessed the captured ships
handed over to the flames. The words of
Lucretius were verifed-.Snaye etian 6eW GER
tanaina magma tueri. But these same cheers
were echoed in Parliament as the builder of
the piratical craft gloried in his deed. The
verse which filled the ancient theatre with
glad applause is now given to slavery and its
defenders: Il am an Englshman, and moth
ing of slavery is foreign to me-" According
ly slavery is helped by English arms, English
gold, English ships, English speeches, English
cheers And yet for the honor of England,
let it be known, that there are Englishmen
who have stood firm and mistaken amidst this
painful recreancy. Their names cannot be
forgotten. And still more for the honor of
England, let it be spoken that the working
classes, who were called to suffer the most,
have bravely borne their calamity, without
joining with the enemies Of the Republic
Their cheers have been for freedom and not
for slavery.