GREAT BPJTAIX. 



34? 



On the 29th of April, in answer to some in- 

 quiries made by Lord Malmesbury, in the House 

 of Lords, Lord Wodehouse stated on behalf of 

 the Government, that her Majesty's Govern- 

 ment, after a mature deliberation, had decided 

 not to obtrude advice or counsel on the Gov- 

 ernment of the United States ; and Lord Lyons 

 had been instructed to give no advice unless 

 asked for by the contending parties, but at the 

 same time, to express on every fitting occasion 

 the earnest desire entertained by her Majesty's 

 Government, that the differences between the 

 North and the South might be peacefully ar- 

 ranged. 



It became, with each succeeding month, more 

 and more evident, not only that the manufac- 

 turing interests of Great Britain were destined 

 to suffer from the want of a supply of cotton, 

 consequent upon the condition of affairs in the 

 United States, but also, that in a variety of 

 ways the country would be involved in difficul- 

 ties in connection with it. 



The Cotton Supply Association, which had 

 been established in 1857, in consequence of the 

 partial failure of the American cotton crop of 

 that year, for the purpose of encouraging the cul- 

 tivation of cotton in other countries, and espe- 

 cially in India, but which had been nearly par- 

 alyzed in its action by the Indian mutiny and 

 war of 1859, was now stimulated to the highest 

 activity. Large quantities of cotton-seed were 

 forwarded to India, Ceylon, South Africa, 

 Egypt, Turkey, various African ports, Austra- 

 lia, the Phillippine Islands, New Zealand, the 

 Mauritius, and the South American States, and 

 measures for the encouragement of the cultiva- 

 tion by securing the tenure of the land to the 

 cultivator, by improving the facilities of trans- 

 portation, offering bounties, furnishing cotton- 

 gins, fec., were urgently and, in general, success- 

 fully pressed on the Colonial Governments. In 

 June, the Secretary of the Association sailed 

 for India, where he remained for some months, 

 superintending measures for a more extended 

 cultivation of cotton there for the succeeding 

 year. (See COTTON.) 



On the 13th of May, the Queen issued a proc- 

 lamation, declaring her determination to main- 

 tain a strict neutrality between the two con- 

 tending parties, to both of which the rights of 

 belligerents were to be accorded, and warning 

 her subjects against aiding or assisting either 

 party, as they would thereby throw themselves 

 out of the pale of British protection, and on 

 conviction of such offence would be punished 

 by fine and imprisonment. 



A blockade of the ports in the seceded States 

 having been declared by the U. S. Government, 

 and it being evident that strenuous efforts were 

 put forth to make it effectual, the British Gov- 

 ernment, though strongly solicited to do so, 

 declared that it could not, in accordance with 

 the principles it had hitherto avowed, make 

 any attempt to break the blockade, or encour- 

 age or approve of the efforts of its subjects to 

 do so. 



In the early part of the year, the cotton of the 

 crop of 1860 had come forward in large quan- 

 tities, the receipts of the year from the United 

 States being about 1,750,000 bales, which, 

 though less than usual, was, with the increased 

 receipts from other countries, sufficient to sup- 

 ply the manufacturers for a time ; but in the 

 summer and early autumn it became evident 

 that little of the crop of 1861 would reach 

 British ports, and in consequence there was a 

 strong manifestation of hostility towards the 

 U. S. Government on the part of the public 

 prints, with a few honorable exceptions, and on 

 the part of a considerable number of members 

 of parliament and men of wealth and position, 

 and reiterated demands were made for the 

 recognition of the Confederate States. These 

 demands were coupled with gross abuse and 

 misrepresentation of the position of the Presi- 

 dent and Cabinet of the United States, and it 

 was asserted, not without probability, that sev- 

 eral of the leading papers of London were in the 

 pay of the Southern Confederacy. 



The British Government, however, remained 

 firm against these demands, and though at 

 times indicating a spirit not wholly friendly, 

 yet abstained from any manifestation of sym- 

 pathy with the hostile disposition of a portion 

 of the press and people. 



Matters were in this condition, when two 

 circumstances occurred, which at first seemed 

 likely to precipitate the two countries into an 

 immediate war; these were, the taking, by 

 Com. Wilkes, of the U. S. frigate San Jacinto, 

 of Messrs. Mason and Slidell and their secre- 

 taries, from the British mail steamer Trent, in 

 the Bahama Channel, on the 8th of November, 

 and the countenance and assistance given about 

 the same time, it was said by order of the Brit- 

 ish Government, to the Confederate privateer 

 steamer Nashville, which had entered South- 

 ampton harbor for repairs and supplies, after 

 capturing and burning the American merchant 

 ship Harvey Birch. Against this assistance and 

 protection the American Minister protested ; 

 and the American steam-frigate Tuscarora, sta- 

 tioned off the harbor, awaited her coming out, 

 to attack her, but was compelled by British 

 war vessels to give her the advantage of 

 twenty -four hours' start, which, as she was a 

 remarkably swift sailer, of course precluded all 

 hope of her capture. 



The capture of Messrs. Mason and Slidell, 

 (see TEEXT and DIPLOMATIC CORRESPONDENCE,) 

 was regarded by the British Government as 

 equivalent to an invasion of her soil ; and 

 though that Government had on previous occa- 

 sions committed precisely the same offence 

 against vessels of other nations, and notably 

 against those of the United States, it now 

 took the opportunity of demanding the restora- 

 tion of the parties captured, and an apology for 

 the act. The course pursued by the Govern- 

 ment was unquestionably influenced, to some 

 extent, by the clamors of the opposition, who 

 thought they had found in the event an oppor- 



