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February 2, 1856J THE LEADER. 105
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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Imperial Parliament. The Queen Opened Th...
sadorof the monarch of Haiti caused considerable curiosity among the fair visitors . Her Majesty entered the House leaning on the arm of Prince Albert , and , on the arrival of the Commons , delivered
THE ROYAL SPEECH . " My Lords and Gentlemen , " Since the close of the last session of Parliament , the arms of the Allies have achieved a signal and important success . Sebaafcopol , the great stronghold of Russia in the Black Sea , has yielded to the persevering constancy and to the daring bravery of the allied forces . The naval and military preparations for the ensuing year have necessarily occupied my serious attention ; but while , determined to omit no effort which could give vigour to the operations of the wur , I have deemed it my duty not to decline any overtures which might reasonably afford a prospect of a safe and honourable peace . Accordingly , when the Emperor of Austria lately offered to myself and to my august Ally , the Emperor of the French , to employ his good offices with the Emperor of . Russia , with , a view to endeavour to bring about an amicable adjustment of the matters at issue between the contending Powers , I consented , in concert with my Allies , to accept the offer thus made , and I have the satisfaction to inform you thai certain , conditions have been agreed upon which I hope may prove the foundation of a general Treaty of Peace . " Negotiations for such a Treaty will shortly be opened at Paris . " In conducting those negotiations I shall be careful not to lose sight of the objects for which the war wa 3 undertaken ; and I shall deem it right ini no degree to relax my naval and military preparations until a satisfactory Treaty of Peace shall have bean concluded . " Although the war in whicbi I am engaged was brought on by events in the South of Europe , my attention has not been withdrawn from / the state of things in the North ; and , in conjunction with the Emperor of the French , I have concluded , with the King of Sweden and Norway , a Treaty containing defensive engagements applicable to his dominions , and tending to the preservation of the balance of Power in . that part of Europe . "I have also concluded a Treaty of Friendship , Commerce , and Navigation with the 'Republic of Chili . I have given directions that these Treaties shall be laid before you . " Gentlemen of the House of Commons , . ¦ " The Estimates for the ensuing year will belaid before you . You will find them framed in such , a manner as to provide for the exigencies of War , if Peace should unfortunately not be concluded . " My Lords and Gentlemen , " It is gratifying to me to o"bsoi've that , notwithstanding the pressure _ of the War , and the burthens and sacrifices which it has unavoidably imposed upon my people , the" resources of my Empire remain unimpaired . I rely with confidence on the anauly spirit and enlightened patriotism of my loyal subjects for a continuance of that support which they have so nobly afforded me , aud they may be assured that I shall not call upon them for exertions beyond what may be required by a duo regard for the great interests , the honour , and the dignity of tLe Empire . " There are many subjects connected with internal improvement which I recommend to your attentive consideration . ** The ditference which exists in several important particulars between the Commercial Laws of Scotlaud and thoso of the other parts of the United Kingdom , haa occasioned inconvenience to a lai'ge portion of my subj ects engaged in trade . Measures will bo proposed to you for remedying this evil . " Measures will also be proposed to you for improving the Laws relating to Partnership by simplifying those Laws , aud thus rendering more easy the employment of capital in commerce . " The syBtoin under which tho Merchant Shipping is liable to pay Local Duos aud Passing Tolls , has been the subject of much complaint . Measures will be proposod to you for affoi'dbug relief in regard to thoso matters . * ' Other important measures for improving tho Law ia Great Britain and in Iroltind will bo proposed to you , whioh will , I doubt nob , receive your uttontivo consideration . * ' Upon theso and all other mnttors \ ipon which you may deliberate , 1 fervently pray that the blessing of Divino Providonoo may favour your councils , and guido them to tho promotion of the great object of my unvarying solicitude—tho w-olfru-o and tho happiness of my people . " The House then adjourned till fivo o ' clock . On the reassembling of tho Peers at that hour , the Loud Cmancullok re-read tho Queen ' s Speech , and Lord Gohpoim ) moved TlIM ADDUIfiSB . Ho prefaced his motion by a brief speech , in which he commented on the chief topics which , had just been ollicinHy brought before them j nud ,
tage , in the prosecution of these negotiations , would accrue from the Parliament of England being in session . Rumours had been current for some time past of the original purpose of the war having been changed . In the last session of Parliament , a noble lord in the other house had said that one of the designs of the war was to vindicate the cause of the oppressed nationalities ; and that noble lord was shortly afterwards invited to take one of the highest places in her Majesty ' s Councils . The nationalities of course assumed that operations were to be made on their behalf ; and considerable misap prehension , both at home and abroad , was the consequence . Mr . Disraeli was glad that the speech from the throne contained assurances that the original objects of the war would be adhered to , and not augmented . Some persons had been f ound to reg ret that the war was not continued for the sake of sustaining or increasing the honour of the arms of England , which , it was thought , had not been sufficiently upheld . But to him ( Mr . Disraeli ) this appeared a very questionable position 5 arid , besides that , he denied that the lustre of our arms had been dimmed . It might be affirmed of the ?? who depreciate the power and achievements of England that tney disbelieve their own assertions , and that , as had . been said of a great sceptic , " they tremble as they sneer . " Of the fall of Kaxs , some explanations must be given . " Let us , " said Mr . Disraeli , " vindicate the conduct of those who , though not crowned with' success , were at least crowned with glory in another place ; and let us make our absent countrymen understand that it is the man who deserves , and not the man who achieves , success who is honoured by us . " Lord Palmerst'on paid a compliment to Messrs . % ng and Baxter , for the eloquence and the argumentative skill they had exhibited in moving and seconding the Address ; and to Mr . Disraeli , for the temperate and becoming course taken by Mm as leader of the Opposition . He agreed with the latter in thinking the presence of Parliament , so far from being an inconvenience at the present crisis , is a great aid . The ; rumours which had been circulated , of an intention 011 the part of Ministers to adjourn , the House for a period , were entirely incorrect . It would not be expedient to enter into any details as regards the negotiations at present 1 but , as soon as any step was actually taken , it would be communicated to the House . Assuredly , it would not be the duty of the Government to urge the country to prosecute a war merely for the sake of glory , if it could be honourably terminated . No doubt the resources of the country were unimpaired , while those of the enemy were rapidly diminishing . No doubt wax-like preparations were being made on a gigantic scale . We should , therefore , be j ustified in expecting that another campaign , should another campaign be forced upon us , would result in successes which might , perhaps , entitle us to require—perhaps enable us to obtain , — even better conditions than those which have been" offered to us , and been accepted , by us . But " the £ Government hoped that the terms now offered would be sufficient to secure the objects for which we drew the sword . The gallantry and devotion of our troops had been most conspicuous and General Williams had exhibited the highest courage and ability in the memorable defence > f liars . At the proper time , the Government would be able to show that no effort on their part had been wanting to ascertain what had led to the catastrophe . They bad taken every means to exchange General Williams and his companions . With regard to tlie estimates , tho Government would lay them on the table in the shape they had been framed with a view to the war going on ; but a vote on . account would be taken for a portion ol the year . „ , ... Mr . Roebuck said he had no confidence in . tue Government of Lord Palmerston , and he believed tho country had none . Wo had been brought imin-ovidently into a great war . We bad beheld that war iucllieiently conducted ; and it became the duty of tlint House to see that the country do not eomo out of the war with disgrace . " It in suid that wo munt ontor into this peaoo boouiiiu our ally , our 15 ro . it ally , our big brother , us ho in oullod , uhur > uor » to loud tho way . Time- bus been when this country bus stood ulono . Time haw boon when England ha ' n roriiutoti the oowiuoring logiona led by tho gro . itortt warrior whom tlio world oversaw . Wo stood ulono aguinMt tho groat Napoloou , and wo conquered him . t-ilmll it bo Haict that now , with nil tho upplmnoon of modern soionoo—with a ileot novor before oqunllod , with un army groator than imy English gonoml ovor :
while expressing his participation in the nation ' s I disappointment in having to forego hostilities after J the vast preparations that had been made , conceived that it was our duty to conclude a peace upon satisfactory terms . The address was seconded by Lord Abingdon , who spoke to the same general effect . Lord Derby declared , in bis own name , and in that of his party , that no attempts would be made to prevent the address being carried up to the throne . The Royal Speech he described as the least satisfactory he had ever heard . It was bald and meagre beyond all precedent , containing no information on the trade and finance of the country ; making no mention of India ; saying nothing of our colonial possessions ; omitting any warm and hearty acknowledgment of the services and heroism of the navy and army ; not even alluding to the gallant defence of Kars ( the fall of which must be investigated , so that the true culprit might be punished , though Lord Derby did not believe that Lord Stratford de Redcliffe was to blame ) ; and passing over in entire silence the actions of Sardinia , an ally , and of Turkey , a principal ^ in the present war . He hoped the peace negotiations would not cause any inderinite suspension of hostilities by an armistice , which musi . be more advantageous to Russia than to England . Another omission in the Royal Speech , much to be regretted , was that of any reference to our relations with the United States—an omission which he hoped would not be regarded by the Americans as a contemptuous sileuce . Moreover , we had uot been informed of the state of our relations with Persia . Such , he conceived , were the objections to the speech ; but his party would not throw obstacles in the way of pursuing the negotiations for peace to a ' just and honourable termination . His Lordship concluded by referring to the recent creation of a peerage for life in the case of Lord Wensleydale , which he thought an unusual exercise of the prerogative , and in connexion with which he suggested that the new peer ' s patent should be laid on the table before he took the oaths , and that tlie question should be discussed without party feeling . Lord Clarendon commenced by referring to the disagreement with America , of the history of which he gave a sketch , and , while denyiag that Mr . Cranipton ever intended or committed a viola- [ ti n of the American laws , expressed a hope that the quarrel would be settled by the good sense of both people . Of the peace negotiations , he said : — " The plan proposed now to be adopted is , that the terms accepted by Russia shall be agreed to by the representatives of the Allies at Vienna—that they gliall there sign a short protocol—that an armistice shall be signed agreeing that preliminaries shall be signed at Paris—and that the provisions of the treaty shall l > e considered and acted upon . " The armistice , he agreed with Lord Derby in thinking , should be as short as possible . He bad himself " accepted the post of negotiator at Paris . The Emperor of Russia had exhibited great moral courage in accepting the Austrian propositions , which were in no respect disgraceful to Russia , whose honour should be regarded . After a few words from Earl Granvilue , with reference to the new life peerage ( which he defended ) , and from Lord Campbell on tlie same subject , the House adjourned at a few minutes after eight o ' clock . In the House of Commons , the Address was moved by Mr . Byng , who reviewed the achievements of the war , paid a tribute to the memory of Lord Raglan and to tho services of Sir James Simpson , and congratulated the country on tho heroism exhibited by our countrymen and our allies . He trusted that no impediments would bo thrown in the way of the ratification of peace ; but , should tlieir efforts fail , the country might rely with confidence on the future achievements of our arms . The assurances in the Royal Speech with respect to law and other reforms were highly satisfactory . Mr . W . E . Bakteh seconded the address Mr . DisitABLi said be did not feel himself nt liberty at present to sittempt to enter into any criticism on the conditions which i \ re referred to in the Itoyal Speech . Tho Home was _ in possession of no information which would justify such criticism , Ho iliil not impugn the conduct of tho Government m not ninUing any disclosures ; but ho trusted the House , while refraining from wlmteyor would cmlmrrnss tho Ministry , would wntoh with tho utmost vigilance —ho would not say suspicion —tine coiu-do of tlieir proceedings . No httlo lulvan-
February 2, 1856j The Leader. 105
February 2 , 1856 J THE LEADER . 105
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Feb. 2, 1856, page 9, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_02021856/page/9/
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