56 THE TREATY OF WASHINGTON. 



gland, whether in Parliament or in the Press, was un 

 seasonable or indiscreet; much of it factious toward 

 the British Government itself; much of it disrespect 

 ful to the American Government ; but none of it of 

 any ultimate importance or consequence in regard to 

 either Government, for the following reasons : 



1. Both Governments sincerely desired peace. Great 

 Britain could never have retreated from the Arbitra 

 tion in violation of the Treaty, whatever the Press 

 might say, and whoever should be in power as Min 

 ister. 



2. Freedom of debate is essential to freedom of in 

 stitutions. To be sure, the Pi-ess in Great Britain, 

 and somewhat, but less so, in the United States, is 

 prone to take upon itself rather lofty airs, and to 

 speak of public affairs quite absolutely, as if it were 

 the Government. But nobody is deceived by this, 

 not even the Press itself. We, the English-speaking 

 nations, thank heaven, possess the capability of living 

 in the atmosphere of oral and written debate. It was 

 safe to predict that howmuchsoever Mr. Gladstone 

 and Lord Granville might feel annoyed by the din 

 of words around them, it would not induce them to 

 break faith with the United States. 



3. It was not the voice of the English Press w r hich 

 could seriously affect us. We looked rather to the 

 state of opinion in the French, German, and Italian 

 speaking countries of Europe, which, on the whole, 

 though differing as to the legal right of the United 

 States to recover on the national claims, yet decisive 

 ly agreed with us in affirming that those claims were 



