New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-07-05
ENcIlVD md AMERICA AGAIN.

The Rev. William Arthur, who continues In
our columns this morning the discussion re-
vived few days ago by Mr. Herbert Spencer,
Is an English dissenting clergyman well known
to many of our cOuntrymen who visited Eng
land during the rebellion. and gratefully re-
membered for his friendship to America In that
trying time. He does not accept Mr.. Spencers
strangely inadequate explanation of the change
of sentiment manifested toward US in Great
Britain as soon as the war began. He finds
number of reasons for the change, the chief OF
which is this that secession, bad as 1t was,
see med to Englishmen lesser evil than civil
war. Hence, although they condemned the
South at first for going out of the Union, they
afterwards condemned us for what seemed to
them hopeless attempt to force the South 10
stay. Mr. Arthur takes great credit TO his
country because, in spite OF strong temptations
and provocatons, il abstained from casting III
it's sword with the South. We certainly are not
ungrateful for the staunch friendship and strict
Justice of the people of En- Gland during the
cotton famine, or for any other of the many
evidences of good feeling we received from
some OF Mr.. Arthur's cOuntrymen at that
period We cannot think that England did any
more than her plain duty in refusing to break
the blockade or in declining TO recognize the
independence of the COnfederacy before 1t had
been secured or in refraining from a declara-
ton of war on account of the Trent affair, when
the prompt action Of the United States Gov
ernment IN that case had made declaration of
| WIZ impossible And as for the question
whether England did or did not :" cast her
sword into the scale" with the South, she
seemed to have answered that herself when she
| paid us fifteen and half millions OF damages.
Many things in Mr. ArthuI's letter only serve to
| confirm the statement so often made by John
Bright, that opinions and sympathics IN Eng
| land turned against US because the privileged
class and the trading class believed it to be for
| then interest that we should not succeed.
The bad feeling on both sides having long
passed away, it is surely not wise to do any
| thing that may call it back even for day but
| there j. one passage. in Mr.. Arthurs letter
winch deserves to be specially remembered.
| He assures us that the false notions of the
character and prospects of the war SO widely
entertained in England were largely attribut-
! able to persistent Misrepresentation made by
Americans in English society. Nor did such
"men." lie adds, "come from slave States
alone; perhaps most of them came from free
States; superior men. quite ready to serve
those States as Legislators, judges, governors,
"or generals, but meanwhile doing all that
| men could do to progresses the ear OF England
lin favor of a partition OF their native
country" Unfortunately this statement Is
| strictly true. We had no more dangerous
| enemies at that time than the Northern Demo
| Gratis, who arrogated to themselves the title of
Conservatives AS they do today-pnd made
reverence for the Constitution a pretext for
attacking the very life of the Nation. They
not only sought to create a prejudice against
their country abroad, but they intrigued
against the Union with the representatives OF
foreign Powers here. The famous dispatch
from Lord Lyons to Earl Russell. published by
the British Foreign Once IN a needle s;