Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1901-02-01
BRITISH PLoTTERS AND THE
QUEEN.

of the queen lately published have pointed
out, her majestys personal Intervention
aVerted war between Great Britain and
| the people of the North whose conse-
quences would surely nave included the
| permanent establishment of the Southern
| ConfederaCy as an Independent nation.
The main credit for the toning down OF
| Lord John Russell S harsh despatch to
| Lord Lyons concerning the Trent affair
| must be given to the Queen since hers
was the position of royal responsibility;
yet the future historians will not forget
| to award some measure of applause to
the Queens husband, the prince ConSort,
| with whom her majesty was in thorough
| sympathy, anu upon whom she depended
| largely Tor guidance IN affairs OF state.
| IT is well known that her majesty ana
| the prince sCrutiniZCd in company Lord
| Russell's belicose despatch, and that the
prince drew up the memorandum which
! embodied the crown views as To the
| changes that ought to be made in It's
| language. The queen, however made
some amendments to her husband $ draft
| which was then forwarded to the minis
| try. If We speak with entire accuracy
| the memorandum was the work of hpth
| minds
| The prince cousurt died within "a month
| after the Trent episode, and Victoria was
left alone to carry the burdens OF state,
| which, as the case OF the trent had dem
| unstrated, were often OF immense weight
| even to Il sovereign of modern Britain. II
| was highly fortunate Tor America that
| no crisis OF equal aCutueSs occurred there
| after IN our relations with the Brush
IgoVcrnment, for the Queens ministers,
| Russell ana Palmerston, remained ON the
| watch for an opportunity to interfere IN
/ the struggle between the North ana the
south. Not that the queen would nave
| Deen easily Influenced py those plottcrs
| against the | mon IN America, Yet under
| the mUurntul circumstances OF her stun
| ming domestic bereavement, the loss ui
| the consort saBacluus Counstl ana >"
/ ON, 1t Is highly probable mat inc MINIS
| ters would have had their way mad
| they come to the point OF intervening u
| favor OF the South. Luckily conditions.
/ never favored them after trent affair.
1t was not definitely known in TINS Couu-
| try until recent years that the British
| ministers in our civil war period sought
| an opportunity to smash Inc American
| Union. The secret correspondence he
| tween Russell and Ialmcrston, which is
| now available, proves mat they were AT
| heart hostile to the kcpupuc and its
passion for national unity. Even before
| the Trent affair Lord Russell wrote, ON
| October IL, lN6l, to Lord ralmcrston, con-
| corning the opinion OF the French minis
| ter at Washington, that the hlock'd"
| should be raised by OUTSIDE force
| There is much good sense IN Mrr-
| cicr's observations. But We must wait.
| am persuaded that If We do anything
| it must = ON grand scale. 1t Will not
do for England and france to break
| the blockade for the sake of getting
| cotton. But, in Europe, powers have
| often said to bcligerents, Make up your
| quarrels. We propose to give terms of
pacnicaton which we think fair and
| equitable If you accept them, well ana
g0ood But il your adversary accepts
| them, and ii you refuse them, our media
ton is at an end, ana YOU must expect
to see us your enemies. France would
be quite ready to hold this language win
us. If such policy were To DE adopted
the time for ii would bc the end OF the
year, or Immediately before the meeting
of Parliament
With the letter before us today, We
can more FUZZY understand the curt per
| en- 1tury, bellicose language i'm which lord
Russell about six weeks later c"uchr"
mis- draft OF note To the Brlish mInls''!
At Washington demanding Tn" release OF
Mason and Slluel ana AN apology l"l
their seizure. Lord Russell saw IN the
Trent affair the opportunity To intervene
in the war which he had been already
anticipating in his secret correspondence
with LORD palmcrston. And knowing that
the British cabinet WAS ON tine lookout
at that time for chance To hrlp th'
South. We can the better apprdlsc tho
value of the Queen 5 pacific service ln
rewriting Lord Russells despatch.
Less than year had passed after the
Trent affair and the lamented death of
Albert the Good when her ma Jrsty > min
listers were again plotting for the undo
ing OF America. ON September H. 49,,
the premier this note
My Dear Russell. The detailed ac-
counts given in the Observer of today OF
the battles of August - and 30 between
the confederates and the iederals sho"
that the latter got a very complrlt
smashing; and ii seems not altogether
unlikely that still greater disasters await
them. and that even Washington or Bal
timore may fail into the hands of the
confedcratcS II this should happen
would II not be time for as to consider
81
land and France might not address the
contending parties and recommend an
ARA ngemcnt on the basis of separation
Lord Russell had noted the very Smash
ing defeat, and was prompt To answer: E.
MY Dear Palmerston: Whether the
federal army is destroye- or not, II is
clear that il has made no pro-
gresss in subduing the insurgcut states
Such being the case. ! agree with You
that the time is come for Offering media
ton to the United States governments
with a view to the recognition OF the m
dependence of the coniedtrates, aErGr
further that, in case OF failure, We ought
ourselves to recognize Inc southern states
as an independent state. For the pur-
pose Of taking so important "A step,
think We must have a meeting of the
cabinet. The 23d or 3Uth would suit me
for the meeting. We ought then, If We
to France, and then on me part OF Eng
land and France, to Russia ana other
powers, as measure decided upon by
us. We ought to make ourselves SAFE
in Canada, not by sending more troops
there, but by concentrating those We
have in few defensble posts bei"r"
The whole scheme of finally destroying
the American Union by European inter
British foreign minister as early as sep
TENDER H. 1862. Palmcrston answered the
I'D that he though RUSSELL plan To- Toe
ever, to asking Russia to join in the
offer of mediation because she would
be too favorable to the North
The plotting of her majesty's ministers
was at that point, however, checked by
the failure of the army of northern Eir-
ginia to defeat the forces under Gen. Nc
Clellan at the battle of Antietam, and
the outcome of the next meeting of the
British cabinet was that the ministry de
cided not to move i'm the matter. Nor
did they find another opportunity. The
latter attempt at Intervention, which was
engineered by Louis Napoleon, met a
resulute opponent i'm Russia, whose fleet
was sent to New York i'm 1853 ON "a most
significant mission. NiCksburg and
Gettysburg, also brought the plotters TO
a realization of the utter futilitN of the
whole Intervention program.
The Queen was not without attachment
| for Louis Napoleon, and especially for
his wife, Eugene but there is no evil
dence that she ever displayed interest in,
or even had knowledge of. the interVen-
| ton conspiracy, which her own ministers
| and Napoleon nursed so long and ten
| derby Her record in that entire crisis
was made up in the Trent affair, which
was the turning point in our country's
| foreign relations during the civil war.
The Twentieth Century.
We now stand at the threshold of the
| tuantfath century the nineteenth