GREAT BRITAIN. 



457 



to act justly and fairly by it, he was hampered 

 in his action by some of his colleagues, who did 

 not disguise their hostility to that Government, 

 two only of them (Rt. Hon. T. Milner Gibson, 

 and the late Sir George Cornewall Lewis) en- 

 tertaining similar views to Earl Russell ; and at 

 the same time the Conservative, or Tory party, 

 in Parliament, led by Earl Derby and the able 

 and persevering Benjamin Disraeli, were con- 

 stantly watching for an opportunity to over- 

 throw the administration on this very question. 

 They professed to be in favor of immediate 

 recognition of the Southern Confederacy, and, 

 whenever occasion offered, pressed a resolution 

 to that effect upon the ministers. On the 24th 

 of April, Mr. Cobden came to the relief of the 

 Government in a speech of great eloquence and 

 power in the House of Commons, in which he 

 stated with much clearness the principles which 

 obliged the English Government to act up to 

 the spirit of the Navigation and Foreign Enlist- 

 ment Acts, in prohibiting the furnishing of war 

 vessels to a foreign belligerent power to be 

 used against a nation with whom they were at 

 peace. He reviewed the past intercourse and 

 traditions of the two nations (Great Britain 

 and the United States), and enforced the les- 

 son of friendship and kindness thus inculcated 

 by a vivid picture of the probable results of 

 the opposite course to Great Britain herself. 

 This speech excited a powerful influence in 

 averting the threatened war, and in confirming 

 the ministry in their resolution to refuse all 

 resolutions looking to recognition, and to ad- 

 here to their position of neutrality. 



The case of the Alexandra and her sister ship, 

 two ironclad rams, building in the Mersey by 

 the eminent shipbuilders John Laird & Sons, 

 who had built the Alabama, began to attract 

 attention in May. The American minister had 

 procured evidence which he regarded as con- 

 clusive that these two vessels were intended 

 for the Confederate Government, and he laid 

 this evidence before Earl Russell. The build- 

 ers, on being questioned, professed at first that 

 the vessels were intended for the Emperor of 

 China, and, when this was disproved, that they 

 were for the Viceroy of Egypt ; but the Gov- 

 ernment became satisfied that these statements 

 were mere subterfuges, by a forged report of 

 the Confederate Secretary of War, then believed 

 to be genuine, which acknowledged that these 

 vessels were intended for them. There was some 

 difficulty, however, in securing the requisite 

 proofs to bring the case within the strict letter 

 of the Foreign Enlistment Act, and there was 

 reason to fear that while the Government were 

 engaged in these efforts, the rams would es- 

 cape. This result was finally prevented on the 

 10th of October, by the seizure of the rams by 

 order of the British Government, and their de- 

 tention under strong guard. A suit was pres- 

 ently instituted under the Foreign Enlistment 

 Act, and, being dismisse dby the courts on tech- 

 nical grounds, was carried before the House of 

 Lords on an appeal, but was eventually (since 



the commencement of 1864) dismissed by that 

 body, on the ground that the special case pro- 

 posed at the instance of the chief baron to 

 carry the matter before the court of the ex- 

 chequer chamber, was informally and improp- 

 erly made up. For the correspondence between 

 the Government of the United States and the 

 British ministers on this subject, see DIPLO- 

 MATIC CORRESPONDENCE. 



On the 30th of June, Mr. Roebuck, who had 

 distinguished himself in Parliament since the 

 commencement of the war as the friend and 

 advocate of the Southern Confederacy, moved 

 an address in the House of Commons, praying 

 that negotiations might be entered into with 

 the Great Powers of Europe for the purpose of 

 obtaining their cooperation in the recognition 

 of the independence of the Confederate States ; 

 by the Great Powers he said he meant France, 

 and gave an account of an interview which he 

 said had taken place between the Emperor of 

 France, Mr. Lindsay (another member of Par- 

 liament), and himself, in which the Emperor 

 told him that he had already made an offer, 

 through Baron Gros, to join England in such a 

 measure. Sir George Grey declared that no 

 such communication as that stated by Mr. Roe- 

 buck had ever been made to the Government. 

 The Chancellor of the Exchequer (Mr. Glad- 

 stone), objected to the motion, and said that he 

 was most anxious for the termination of the 

 war, but recognition would only produce reac- 

 tion in the North. Mr. Bright eloquently de- 

 nounced the motion, and demonstrated its in- 

 justice and folly. The debate was adjourned, 

 but when called up again on the 13th of July, 

 Mr. Roebuck himself moved its discharge. So 

 far from accomplishing the design of its mover 

 was the result of this debate, that it materially 

 strengthened the purpose of the Government 

 now fully fofmed to adhere more strictly than 

 before to a firm neutrality. 



"While, however, there were indications of a 

 better state of feeling growing up between the 

 two Governments (to which Earl Russell gave 

 expression in a public speech on the 26th of 

 September, in which he said : " The Govern- 

 ment of America discusses these matters very 

 fairly with the English Government. Some- 

 times we think them quite in the wrong; some- 

 times they say we are quite in the wrong ; but 

 we discuss them fairly, and with regard to the 

 Secretary of State I see no complaint to make. 

 I think he weighs the disadvantages and diffi- 

 culties of our situation in a very fair and equal 

 balance ") there was still a hostility and bit- 

 terness toward the United States on the part of 

 some classes in Great Britain, which manifested 

 itself on every occasion. The masses and a 

 considerable portion of the intelligent middle 

 class, especially of the dissenting bodies, were 

 friendly to the United States, but they were 

 not generally the voters. The efforts of some 

 of our citizens to set the people of England 

 right in the matter were attended with good 

 success. The public addresses delivered in 



