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even poets, to celebrate their lasting achievements; like those famous deeds of the Crusades handed down to the wonder and admiration of man, and many of which have been accomplished in the memorable region where these great exploits are occurring. If I may be permitted for a moment to allude to what seems to be a character

efficient carrying on of hostilities, he gave the coalition the fullest and most generous support. As a proof of this absence of all ignoble party feeling, he eloquently seconded the motion of Lord John Russell (December 15, 1854), proposing a vote of thanks to the British forces in the East. No one succeeded better than Mr. Disraeli in the delivery of set, formal orations. His after-istic feature, there is a singular completedinner speeches, his tributes to the memory of distinguished men who had passed into the "eternal silence," the speeches he gave at academy banquets, at the unveiling of statues, and at other similar ceremonies, are among the happiest of his oratorical effusions. He was amusing without flippancy, instructive without boredom, and dignified without pomposity. He said the right thing, and he said it precisely in the right manner. The speech he delivered on this occasion is little known, and will bear being transferred from the pages of Hansard without compression.

"Sir," said the Conservative leader, "there have been occasions in the history of this country when votes similar to these have been proposed to the House, when members have entered into criticisms on the conduct of commanders and the policy of ministers; but I am sure, however much we may venerate parliamentary precedents, that the House must have sympathized with the noble lord (Lord John Russell), when he said that to-night there would be no difference of opinion upon the motion he was about to submit to our notice. The noble lord has treated the theme which he has introduced in a manner so entirely worthy of its interest, that it would be unnecessary and unbecoming in me to enter into any detail of those actions which have recently commanded the admiration of the world. But I feel I am expressing the opinion of all present when

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ness in this the first campaign of the allied armies which has scarcely attracted observation. The campaign opens by the allied troops taking by storm one of the most difficult positions in the world-an almost impregnable position; and it concludes, virtually, two months afterwards, by the same forces defending a similar position from a similar attack by an immense host. Thus we see, both in assault and defence, the same troops exhibiting the same admirable and unequalled qualities. Between these two almost epic events, I ought not to forget that there is a brilliant episodethat fight of Balaclava-that was a feat of chivalry, fiery with consummate courage, and bright with flashing valour; and though I cannot presume, with the authority of the noble lord, to single out the names of great commanders for the applause of the House of Commons, I cannot forget, I cannot refrain from calling to your recollection, that the two commanders on that memorable occasion lately sat among us on these benches, and that they, I am sure, will peculiarly value the sympathy of the colleagues whom they have quitted. Sir, the noble lord has very properly said that it is not for the House to criticise the tactics and strategy of campaigns; but it is open to us to draw some moral conclusions from the great events which are passing around us, and we may at least draw this from the war which has broken out. I think, what has occurred has shown that the arts of peace practised by a free people are not enervating. I think the deeds to which the noble lord has referred, both among the commanders and common soldiers, have shown that education has not a tendency

to diminish, but to refine and raise, the standard of the martial character. In these we may proudly recognize the might and prowess of a free and ancient people, led by their natural and traditionary chiefs. These are all circumstances and conditions which are favourable to our confidence in the progress of civilization, and flatter ing, I hope, to the consciousness of every Englishman.

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There is one point upon which I could have wished that the noble lord had also touched I know there were so many subjects that he could not avoid touching that I share the admiration of the House at the completeness with which he seemed to have mastered all his themes; but when the noble lord recalled to our recollection the deeds of admirable valour and of heroic conduct which have been achieved upon the heights of Alma, of Balaclava, and of Inkermann, I could have wished that he had also publicly recognized that the deeds of heroism in this campaign had not been merely confined to the field of battle. We ought to remember the precious lives given to the pestilence of Varna and to the inhospitable shores of the Black Sea; these men, in my opinion, were animated by as heroic a spirit as those who have yielded up their lives amid the flash of artillery and the triumphant sound of trumpets. No, sir, language cannot do justice to the endurance of our troops under the extreme and terrible privations which circumstances have obliged them to endure. The high spirit of an English gentleman might have sustained him under circumstances which he could not have anticipated to encounter; but the same proud patience has been found among the rank and file. And it is these moral qualities that have contributed as much as others apparently more brilliant to those great victories which we are now acknowledging.

"Sir, the noble lord has taken a wise and gracious course in combining with the thanks which he is about to propose to the British army and navy the thanks also of

the House of Commons to the army of our allies. Sir, that alliance which has now for some time prevailed between the two great countries of France and Britain has in peace been productive of advantage; but it is the test to which it has been put by recent circumstances that, in my opinion, will tend more than any other cause to confirm and consolidate that intimate union. That alliance, sir, is one that does not depend upon dynasties nor diplomacy. It is one which has been sanctioned by names to which we all look up with respect or with feelings even of a higher character. The alliance between France and England was inaugurated by the imperial mind of Elizabeth, and sanctioned by the profound sagacity of Cromwell; it exists now not more from feelings of mutual interest than from feelings of mutual respect, and I believe it will be maintained by a noble spirit of emulation.

"Sir, there is still another point upon which, although with hesitation, I will advert for a moment. I am distrustful of my own ability to deal becomingly with a theme on which the noble lord so well touched; but nevertheless I feel that I must refer to it. I was glad to hear from the noble lord that he intends to propose a vote of condolence with the relatives of those who have fallen in this contest. Sir, we have already felt, even in this chamber of public assemblage, how bitter have been the consequences of this war. We cannot throw our eyes over the accustomed benches, where we miss many a gallant and genial face, without feeling our hearts ache, our spirits sadden, and even our eyes moisten. But if that be our feeling here when we miss the long companions of our public lives and labours, what must be the anguish and desolation which now darken so many hearths! Never, sir, has the youthful blood of this country been so profusely lavished as it has been in this contest-never has a greater sacrifice been made, and for ends which more fully sanctify the sacrifice. But we can hardly hope now, in the

greenness of the wound, that even these placed upon the fidelity of foreign merreflections can serve as a source of solace. cenaries whose political sympathies were Young women who have become widows not engaged, and who were described by almost as soon as they had become wives the duke as so addicted to desertion that -mothers who have lost not only their they were very unfit for our army." The sons, but the brethren of those sons-heads measure would not only be ineffectual, but of families who have seen abruptly close it was impolitic. The inference drawn by all their hopes of a hereditary line these foreigners from this project would be that are pangs which even the consciousness the recruiting power of England was of duty performed, which even the lustre exhausted. The bill was calculated to of glory won, cannot easily or speedily paralyse the power of the government, alleviate and assuage. But let us indulge and to depress the spirit of the country. at least in the hope, in the conviction, that Appeals to the patriotism of the House the time will come when the proceedings of Commons had always been generously of this evening may be to such persons a responded to; why then were the necessary source of consolation-when sorrow for the preparations not made in time? They were memory of those that are departed may be engaged in a great war; let them at least mitigated by the recollection that their have confidence in themselves and in their death is at least associated with imperish- own resources. "I recommend," said Mr. able deeds, with a noble cause, and with a Disraeli in conclusion, "gentlemen to refresh nation's gratitude." 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; but understand this-you sent me 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 sage and the free save us from a similar conclusion! But at least let us 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 at a moment, not, I believe, of equal danger, in a situation which I pray may end in triumph, but still a situation of doubt, of terrible anxiety, even of anguish we bring in a bill in order to enlist foreign mercenaries to vindicate the fortunes of England!"

During the few days before Christmas that parliament had re-assembled, a measure was introduced which caused a good deal of excitement, and encountered no little opposition. It was the enlistment of foreigners' bill-a measure which proposed to raise a force of foreigners, not exceeding 15,000 in number, to be drilled and trained in England.

To this foreign legion Mr. Disraeli objected. He did not concern himself with the constitutional aspect of the case. Whether it was agreeable to the feelings of the country that foreign troops should be enlisted, drilled, and disciplined, and that a large depôt amounting to thousands should be reserved in the country, was a question not for lawyers to decide, but for the nation. He had no objection to see his countrymen as was now the case-fighting by the side of foreigners who were allies; but he did object to their fighting by the side of mercenaries. He proved, by extracts from the correspondence of the Duke of Wellington, that no dependence could be

VOL. I.

Though encountering no little opposition, the bill passed by a majority of thirty-eight. The day before Christmas-eve parliament adjourned to January 23, 1855.

39

CHAPTER XIII.

"PEACE BY NEGOTIATION."

THE Christmas that ensued was one of the dullest and most oppressive of seasons. There was scarcely a family which had not to mourn the loss of some dear relative. Letters and despatches were eagerly awaited, for no wife or sister felt sure that the next post would not bring tidings of the death of him she loved, laid low by Russian bullets or by fever brought on by the inclemency of the weather, and heightened by the privation of the necessaries of life. The winter at home was severe, and men, as they saw themselves surrounded by all the comforts of civilization, could not help thinking sadly of their brethren battling with the Arctic terrors of a Crimean December, and lacking all that was calculated to make such resistance effective. Day after day the newspapers revealed fresh blunders of the government-blunders supported by the testimony of invalided soldiers now safely housed on English soil -which plainly proved, if proof were wanting, how utterly incapable was the administration to deal with the difficulties of a winter campaign. Tents sent out in November had not yet arrived; furs and flannels were still lying packed on the quays awaiting the orders for shipment that were never delivered; stores of all kinds had been despatched to the wrong ports; the medical staff was at its wit's end to attend to the incessant appeals made upon its limited requirements; the hospitals were crowded, and no new shelter was forthcoming; the commissariat system admitted its inability to perform the duties intrusted to it; all was irritating confusion and wasted energy. Meanwhile, the soldiers in the trenches and on the heights before Sebastopol were dying by the score; the

Russian generals, Janvier and Fevrier, had no reason to complain of the manner in which the work of decimation was being carried on. Whilst such terrible events were taking place on the shores of the Black Sea, society at home was not in the mood to trouble itself as to festivities and hospitalities, in which it had no heart. It was more disposed to pray than to play. The churches were crowded, whilst the places of amusement were comparatively deserted.

On the meeting of parliament, the anxiety of the nation was not allowed to pass unheeded. In both Houses notices of motion were announced with the object of criticising the conduct of the government as to its supervision of military details. In the Upper Chamber Lord Lyndhurst moved, "That in the opinion of this House the expedition to the Crimea was undertaken. by Her Majesty's government with very inadequate means, and without due caution or sufficient inquiry into the nature and extent of the resistance to be expected from the enemy; and that the neglect and mismanagement of the government in the conduct of the enterprise have led to the most disastrous results." In the Lower House Mr. Roebuck demanded a strict inquiry into the whole administration of the war, and moved, "That a select committee be appointed to inquire into the condition of our army before Sebastopol, and into the conduct of those departments of the government whose duty it has been to minister to the wants of that army." Whilst these two motions were hanging over the heads of ministers, an event occurred which ultimately led to the establishment of what Mr. Disraeli called

THE EARL OF BEACONSFIELD AND HIS TIMES.

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blame upon the Duke of Newcastle, he had desired that to Lord Palmerston should have been intrusted the seals of the war department; but the prime minister had declined to concur in the suggestion. He would have tendered his resignation before this, only he had been dissuaded by Lord Palmerston, and had reluctantly consented to continue a member of the cabinet. But the motion of Mr. Roebuck compelled him to return to his original resolve. He could not now fairly and honestly say, "It is true evils do exist, but such arrangements have been made that all deficiencies and abuses will be

a "re-burnished" cabinet. Lord John Russell had long disapproved of the war department being intrusted to the control of the Duke of Newcastle, and he had more than once brought his objections before the attention of the cabinet. His views, however, failed to impress the prime minister with the necessity for change, and the secretary for war still continued in office. Lord John felt that the conduct of the government was to blame, that there were just grounds for the inquiry demanded by Mr. Roebuck, and that under the circumstances he considered it due to his sense of political honour to retire from the administration in which he had occupied so immediately remedied." He was not prominent a position. He tendered his satisfied with the arrangements as to the resignation, and announced to a full and future. Therefore, he considered he could excited House of Commons the reasons which come to only one conclusion-that as he had induced him to take that course. was unable to give the only answer that frankly admitted that the evils complained would stop inquiry, it was his duty not of by the Opposition called for parlia- to remain a member of the government. mentary inquiry. The condition of the army Accordingly he had placed his resignation before Sebastopol was most melancholy. in the hands of Lord Aberdeen, which Her The accounts which arrived from that Majesty had been graciously pleased to quarter were not only painful, but horrible accept. and heart-rending. "And, sir," continued this candid friend, "I must say that there is something that, with all the official knowledge to which I had access, is to me inexplicable in the state of that army. If you had been told as a reason against the expedition to the Crimea last year that your troops would be seven miles from the sea-seven miles from a secure port, which at that time, in contemplation of the expedition, we hardly hoped to possess, and that at seven miles' distance they should be in want of food, of clothes, and of shelter, to such a degree that they should perish at the rate of from ninety to one hundred a day—I should have considered such a prediction as utterly preposterous, such an objection as fanciful and unjust. But now we are forced to confess the notoriety of that state of circumstances." He had, he confessed, never been satisfied with the administration of the war departments. Without wishing to throw any

This move on the part of Lord John Russell did not meet with general approval. It was considered as a desertion of his colleagues at a moment when a highminded man would have done all in his power to rally round them and strengthen their cause. He might have resigned before, but under no circumstances should he have resigned whilst a vote of censure was pending. It was like a general quitting the staff on the eve of battle. "You will have the appearance," wrote Lord Palmerston to him when informed of Lord John's intention, "of having remained in office, aiding in carrying on a system of which you disapprove until driven out by Roebuck's announced notice; and the government will have the appearance of self-condemnation by flying from a discussion which they dare not face; while as regards the country, the action of the executive will be paralyzed for a time in a critical moment of a great war, with an impending negotiation, and

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