ADDRESSES OF MAJOR LACEY 331 



1 'Bank of the Holy Ghost," so called to give it an odor 

 of sanctity, and secure large deposits. 



Some idea of the holy character of this alliance may be 

 obtained from the secret treaty of Verona, signed in 

 1822, made by Austria, France, Prussia, and Russia, Eng- 

 land having withdrawn. I quote from it : 



The high contracting powers being convinced that the system 

 of representative government is equally incompatible with the 

 monarchical principles as the maxim of the sovereignity of the 

 people with the divine right, engage mutually, in the most 

 solemn manner, to use all their efforts to put an end to the sys- 

 tem of representative governments, in whatever country it may 

 exist in Europe, and to prevent its being introduced in those 

 countries where it is not yet known. 



As it cannot be doubted that the liberty of the press is the most 

 powerful means used by the pretended supporters of the rights 

 of nations, to the detriment of those Princes, the high contract- 

 ing parties promise reciprocally to adopt all proper measures to 

 suppress it, not only in their own states, but also, in the rest of 

 Europe. 



It became an unholy Alliance against the liberties of the 

 world. Metternich was the schemer who organized and 

 held it together. He represented the old order of things, 

 and so wedded was he to existing abuses that he did not 

 even view with pleasure the attempts of Greece to get 

 back her place in the ranks of civilization. Mettternich 

 was for the existing privileges, whether Austrian or Turk. 



The progressive spirit of Great Britain led to her 

 withdrawal from this alliance. Spain, when she de- 

 stroyed the civilization of Mexico and Peru, and de- 

 troyed the lives of the gentle inhabitants of the West 

 Indies, divided South America with Portugal, and held 

 much of the fairest portion of North America. Genera- 

 tions of misrule drove the Spanish colonies to revolt 

 against the mother country. The colonies maintained 



