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t M ¦ g» f ii»uiaiia^a«Mcg3O iiif a*O Mi...
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Foreign Knlistment Bill. In The House Of...
————————*—^ the precedents of past times , go back to the middle ages , and tell the House of precedents of Indians with their scalping kaives and tomahawks ; tut as civilisation advanced , nations and Governments -were endeavouring to mitigate the painful practices with which war was carried on ; and lie ( Mr . M . Gibson ) maintained that the whole course of public treaties , and municipal law in particular states , had been to utterly condemn the system of carrying on war by paid and hireling mercenaries , who would serve any side , and could not be said to have any interests or sympathy in that particular -war . If it were pointed out that some power , or some foreign nation , was willing to allow its subjects to be enlisted , by this country for the purpose of
making wax with Russia , and yet maintain its neutrality— -which was a principle contended for by somethen he asserted that it was a dangerous principle to lay down . If this was the principle of the bill—if Russia were to hire privateers from the United States ( cheers ) , would they not be told that any country might let out its men and forces without forfeiting its neutrality , and that a British Parliament had laid down this principle ? ( Clieers . ') He had heard it said that a country may lend its troops to carry on war with another country without forfeiting its neutrality , provided there wag some existing treaty antecedent to hostilities , and which had not been , made with reference to the particular war then pending . If this was the case , where was the
country with which this nation had such a treaty that it was entitled to go into that country and raise troops for the war , with Russia ? That country ought to be named , for it could be no secret . It ought not to be difficult to be found . He said that either Government had no treaty with any such country > viucli entitled them to enlist its subjects to carry on the war with Russia , or if there were no such country "vvith which treaties of this kind were in existence , they were about , by this bill , to embark on a course of policy most dangerous to the future interests of England ^—to multiply wars beyond all precedent , and to involve persona who desired to be lieutral , in spite of themselves , in existing hostilities , They might involve
some small neutral State in a war with Russia , and would incur obligations to send troops to defend that small country , and have other duties besides those of defending the Ottoman empire ; or they would have to leave that country to take care of itself , which had brought on it the indignation of the Czar by lending its troops to carry on the war . A case of necessity , no doubt , was endeavoured to be made out by the noble lord who moved the second reading of the bill . He told the House that this country was engaged' in a war with a great military , power , and that it had with it ' a just cause and the sympathy of the world , but that it wanted numbers . The'noble lord appeared to forget that they had a great military ally . The , noble lord forgot to mention
the Ottoman Power , with its immense forces . He ( Mr . Milner Gibson ) could , not believe that two great countries like England and France with the forces of Turkey , were reduced to such a state that tboy wore dependent upon the importation of a diminutive supply of German mercenaries . No member of Government had given a sufficient explanation to the House to justify him in giving his support to the bill . He believed that the measure was unsound in principle , and calculated to be injurious to the permanent interests oC the country , and had come to the deliberate conclusion that it was his duty to record his vote against this bill , and to use every parliamentary means in his power to prevent it passing into law . " ( Cheers from the Opposition benches . ) Mr . J . G . riULT-iaioitE opposed tho bill .
Mr . Sidney-Herbert replied to Mr . Gibson , and justified tho threat of resignation . Lord . Stan-ley thought it absurd that tho population of twenty-six millions could be exhausted by the enlistment of 200 , 000 men . If the British recruits were too young , the Germans—the disbanded soldiers whom the Government hoped to obtain—would be too old , As for the threatened resignation , he wondered at that , from a Government which hail calmly borne tho loss of tho Reform Bill and the Education Bill . The bill was then supported by Sir J . FirzaEnALP . Lord Palmek 9 ton made an elaborate defence .
Mr . DisitAurjc then urged the inutility of the mensure us tho support was not wanted , Tho noble lord appeared to forgot tho alliance with tho greatest military nation in tho world , lie then paid a considerable tribute to tlio French uud to thuir Emperor , and explained that tho English troops did not object to fight with foreigners , but they did object to light with mere mercenaries , lla then rend various extracts from the Duke of Wellington ' s despatches , for tho purpose of showing how useless mere foreign rocruits wore Tho I ? roach hivl a foreign lugion in the Crimea , one moinbor of which deserted to tho enemy , and , by hia Information , occasioned the battle nf Inkciunun . Tho hun . gentleman concluded by saying : —
" yiucii tho expedition njriiiiirtt . SWilly by tho Athoniium , I do not know that them evur wiw un tijqicdition from which bo much waa expected , or mum which no much wiifl Mtulittu . Thuru in , unhappily , in tho coinmonccmont , of both tho . io oxpntlitioiirt , too much similarity . Tho Hcihumoi'H worn arrogant , l > oantnil , and ovorbunirutno . There wore tov many Kouumte in the titeuitin
expedition—there was too little cavalry . There was a winter campaign , and there was no reserve . When gentlemen go into the country in a few days—I understand we are to be absent a month— -there may be moments when the' battue is exhausted , and when there may be a frost ( a laicgh )—I recommend gentlemen to refresh their memory , by turning to the pages of Thucydides . I recommend them to read the despatch of Nicias to the Athenian Assembly , when he says , ' Men of Athens , I know that you do not like to hear the truth , tout understand this—you sent m « out to be a besieger , but , lo ! I am
besieged . ' Now , sir , we know what was the end of the Sicilian expedition . May that Divine Providence that has watched over the inviolate island of the sage and the free , save us from a similar conclusion ! But , at least , let tis do now what the Athenians did even in their proud despair . They sacrificed to the gods , and appealed to the energies of their countrymen . We are at a moment not , I believe , of equal danger—we are in a situation , which I pray may end in triumph , but still a sitnation of doubt , of terrible anxiety , even of anguishwe bring in a bill in order to enlist foreign mercenaries to vindicate the fortunes of England . " ( Laud cheers ?)
After some feehle opposition from Mr . Muntz and Mr . DEEDE 3 , Lord John Rosseli / reviewed , in a somewhat angry manner , the arguments of the Opposition , and complained bitterly of the "ingenious" manner in which Mr . Disraeli had misquoted the Duke of Wellington . He then made more quotations which were intended to counterbalance the opinions of the Duke expressed in the former selection . He then frankly admitted that the Government had been occasionally mistaken , but expressed his conviction of ultimate success . .
The House then- divided , when there appeared , for the -amendment , 202 ; against it , 241 ; majority against it , 39 . The bill was then read a second time , and committee fixed for the following day . The discussion was resumed on Wednesday . Mr . Liddelt ., contrived , at great length , to say nothing which had not been said before against the bill—with the exception that Germans had brought cholera into Liverpool on their way as emigrants to Canada . Mr . Kich liad felt bound to give his vote in favour of the bill , but he must carefully guard himself against being supposed to have supported the measure
merely because it went to the employment of mercenary troops- Had he placed entire confidence in the explanation of the objects of the measure that was given by the Secretary-at-War , he would hardly have been prepared to vote in its favour . He considered that the Government were tongue-tied , but he voted for their measure to show that he had faith . As an instance of having faith , the hoq . gentleman further explained that every military office in the Ministry should be filled by a Minister who had a majority of public support , and that was not the case with a single Minister in any way related to the War Department . He thought every Minister should change his department with a colleague .
Mr . Djidmmond hastened to save Ministers from their friends . He could not help suspecting that the bill was , in Newmarket language , " a dark horse "— - that all was not fair and above board—that some ulterior measure was concealed behind it . He was not opposed to the employment of foreign auxiliaries with the consent of their sovereigns , but he had no faith in the fidelity of men whoso oath of allegiance would be sworn to > a shilling a day . Ho suggested that the measure should be postponed till after the
recess . Sir WiLti . VM Verner and Mr . Ot way opposed the bill . Mr . Wmteside further opposed it in a speech which was characterised by Mr . SmNEV Hhrtjkrt , who replied , as one of those forensic displays with which Mr . Whitosidc knew so well how to create an effect for the moment . Neither arguments contained any new important points . Mr . Cobdbn said" Although I protested against sending out our men to fight tho battles of Europe upon land , although I protested ngainHt tlio objects of our continental policy in fighting those battles , nnd although I think that tho expedition to the Crimea in about tho raahest . of any of which an account is to bo found in our ununls —and that is saying n . groat deal—yot the nation
having willed , that IHf , 000 of our fellow-countrymen whould go iJOOO milofl oil' to invade tho empire of Russia , 1 say ( hat tho nation in bound to a-twirfl . those bravo men in tho Crimea . . Hut if you were to pvit it to our countryinon who are rotting in auch misery on tho heights of Bnlaklavii , what would they Bay of the aid you propono to wend tboin V Would they auk for mundUiant Gormuufl to rescue thorn from thoir prowont difficult icm ? Wo ! they would auk fur their own countrymen , a ^ d I cannot help thinking 1 hut . tliin proposal , among other disudvuntah'uN , will bu nuuupLud an no compliment by tlxmo men whom you aro proponing to worvo . But beyond thie ) , it appoint to ino Unit you nro , in tho face of tho world , holding out . u Hi ^ 'nal of dirtlrcHH , Hulng in JitrmA paupcris , lirocliiiiriing n wort , ol ' national bankruptcy in mon and in couraK ") in proponing , in the llrnt . year of the war , to go and vnlao recruits among IWoijjnoru . "
He thought the measure looked as if ferrour for the war was failing , and asked , if troops were wanted , where was the reserve of which Government talked . " The emigration from Germany to the United States consists generally of grown-up men and women with their families , of communities of labourers carrying with them their clergyman and their doctor , who have booked themselves upon the Rhine for Cincinnati or Buffalo , or some other place in the far West . Can anything be so puerile as to dream of intercepting these people , of stopping them on their way through England , and inducing them to go to Sebastopol ? It appears to me that even if you pass this bill there is no guarantee whatever that
you are going to get the men whom you want to enlist ; but I join with the hon . gentlemen who oppose this measure upon moral grounds , even if you do succeed in carrying it into effect . What is it ? The opinion of most people would sanctify the practice of war , and make the profession of arms one of the most honourable pxirsuits of man . What is the reason of this ? Why , it is assrumed that men fight for a cause , that they are actuated by love of home , devotion to the country , or attachment to a sovereign ; these are the sentiments that hallow the ptirsuit of arms . But what motive have these men whom you endeavour to hire out of the back slums of the towns of Germany ? They can have ho pretentions to fighting from any moral motive whatever :
they are deprived of every ground upon which you can justify war , and , as they want tlie motives which I have described , there is just the difference between them and an ordinary soldier fighting for his country that there is between a hero and a cut-throat . It is wholesale assassination to employ them . Not to go over the arguments which have been Used so abundantly by other people , I will only ask whether you are really going to fight the Emperor of Russia , with his 800 , 000 armed men , upon his own shores , when you say you arc obliged to scelc help from abroad before you have hardly got into the fray ? I Oiink , the moment you have landed an armed force in an empire like Russia , 3000 miles off , you must be assured that , unless you are
prepared to put forth energy such as this country never put forth before , you must have taken a step which will lead inevitably to disaster and disgrace . Was it a light thing to land such a force upon the shores of an empire like Russia ? There is no other country the territory of which it would' be so difficult to invade and occupy permanently . I once used a phrase which' has been a good deal abused , and has caused much amusement , and 1 dare say will do so again . I was speaking at a public meeting in 1849 of those who threatened us with an attack from Russia , and my words were these : —If Russia were to attack England of the United States , ox any other great maritime Power , they would fall upon her like a thunderbolt , and crumple her up in her own
dominions by means of their shipping . Have wo not done so by means of our shipping ? The moment our ships appeared did not the fleets of Russia disappear ? But if you attempt to fight Russia on land , you must be prepared for a very different state of tilings from that which you contemplated , and it is reducing your efforts to a most disproportionate proportion—it is utring the strength of a dwarf for doing the work of ten giunts—to peddle over your Foreign Enlistment Bill to enable you to go abroad and get aid to carry on the war . This House is in danger of losing its character for independence , and for being tho real great council of the
nation , if it porrnits itself to be sent back without one word having been said with regard to the prospects and the conduct of tho war . If 1 may judge from tho communications I get from Sebastopol , you oannot be doing a greater act of kindness to tho army than entering into <» discussion of that question , and , at all events , they will have tlio gratification which , from , the course our debutes have hitherto taken , they can hardly Imve now , of knowing that tho representatives of Kngland liave not separated without giving some attention to tho unparalleled miseries under which they are now litornlly rotting . "
Lord John XIusseix , was very much surprised that tho same arguments , which had been so often disproved , should still bo urgcicl in opposition to the bill . He repeated that many measures hud been taken besides tho contemplated Foreign Enlistment " Sinco tlio landing in tho Crimea , 11 , 500 more mon had been sent ns reinforcements . Other regiments in Mediterranean garrisons would follow , and thoir place woidd bo supplied by militia . Lord 0 . Hamilton said , tho objection was , not tliat this waa tho only measure proposed by tho Government , but that it should liavo been concealed till the last moment , Mr . Dandy Wkymouk naked ,
" Whilo thoy wuro b ^ io ^ ing , or rullier only hulf besieging , flobnHtonol , what wan thin fled , of llfly-foiir » lnpn-of-war doing which ennvwyud their ftvmy auroea the won , and which wm . i pi'uuouiKed one of the groateBt navnl ammnientH that , ovur appeared ujioii the -wnvtw ? At thin vury nmuiwut Mioro vru * every Kind of produce going in and out of ovcry Uu-mian port In tlui Wlnok Sun , except that , kind which we wanted , vl / .., broadstuflU lie Iwl boon informed >> . V Kntf litih gontloiiwu who had < -n ( ulilirtliintintrt nt . ju » rl .-t in tli « ' Uhuik fc >« a that vwgwit wvru gylntf out uf Uuw jwIh , tual that iu rutum
T M ¦ G» F Ii»Uiaiia^A«Mcg3o Iiif A*O Mi...
t M ¦ g » f ii » uiaiia ^ a « Mcg 3 O iiif a * O Mi December 23 , 1854 . ] THE LEADER 1203
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Citation
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Leader (1850-1860), Dec. 23, 1854, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse2.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_23121854/page/3/
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