EARLY

ARLY in the year the anxious attention of Parliament and the public had been directed towards the East, where the unjust demands of the Emperor of Russia, that the Protectorate of the Greek Christians in Turkey should be conceded to him by the Ottoman Porte, had given rise to a state of affairs which threatened a most alarming interruption to the longcontinued peace of Europe. The origin, course, and details of the dispute, until the final rupture between the two countries, as well as the declaration of war by Turkey, and the subsequent events, will be found elsewhere. In this chapter we shall trace the progress of the discussions in both Houses of Parliament which, from time to time during the Session, arose out. of the transactions between Russia and Turkey.

On the 25th of April, in the House of Lords, the Earl of Clarendon, in reply to a request for information upon the subject, made a statement respecting the then recent missions of France, Austria, and Russia to Constantinople. He said that the views of the different Governments with whom he had communicated were perfectly in harmony with those of Her Majesty's Government as regarded the maintenance of the independence and integrity of the Turkish Empire; so that Turkey had nothing to fear if the Sultan would be guided by ordinary prudence, and would adopt a more humane policy towards his Christian subjects. Lord Stratford had great authority and long experience in Turkish affairs, and stood in a position more favourable for offering advice likely to be favourably received than any man With respect to Austrian interference in Montene

gro, Lord Clarendon considered that Austria had not infringed international law, nor done anything inconsistent with what was due from one friendly Government to another. The mission of Prince Menschikoff was one to place the matter of the Holy Shrines on a permanent footing; and public rumour had greatly exaggerated the naval and military preparations of Russia. The Emperor of Russia had made no secret of his intentions, and our Government had full reliance on his word. Admiral Dundas exercised a wise discretion in not complying with the request of Colonel Rose to advance the fleet, Colonel Rose not being cog-. nizant of the information possessed by Her Majesty's Government. Lord Clarendon assured the House that the French Government were acting in entire concurrence with the British Government on Eastern affairs; and that the sending of the French fleet to the East had not originated in nor had led to any misunderstanding between the two Governments.

Exaggerated reports had been circulated a few days previously; but a despatch from Lord Stratford, dated the day after his arrival [4th April], stated that he had every reason to expect that the pending questions would be brought to a satisfactory conclusion; and another despatch was received on the day preceding, stating that on the 14th instant all was quiet at Constantinople. In fine, Lord Clarendon assured the House, that as regarded Turkey there was no danger of the peace of Europe being disturbed.

On the 27th of May the subject was brought under notice in both Houses of Parliament, when the Earl of Malmesbury, in the House

of Lords, after adverting to the reassurance the Earl of Clarendon had given the House and the public on the 25th of April, by telling them he (Lord Clarendon) had received the most solemn promise from the Emperor of Russia with respect to his intentions and propositions towards the Porte, observed, that appearances had not justified the promises held out by Lord Clarendon. The House on that occasion had understood that the object of Prince Menschikoff's embassy to Constantinople was principally to settle disputes concerning the Holy Shrines, with the French Government. If that was his only object it was clear that England could have no interest personally in the matter. But it now appeared that the question of the Holy Shrines having been settled, Prince Menschikoff, on the 5th of that month, came forward with a new and different proposition. He demanded that a convention should be signed between the Sultan and Czar, securing to the Greek subjects of Turkey their privileges, and accepting Russia as a guarantee for seeing those privileges perpetually secured. It was evident that if such a treaty was signed, the Czar would become de facto the ruler of a great part of the Sultan's subjects, and the general balance of power in Europe endangered. He therefore asked, "whether the instructions given to Lord Stratford were identical with those given to the French Ambassador at Constantinople; whether those two diplomatists were acting in union upon that matter; and whether, when thus acting under their instructions, they were supporting the courage and independence of the Porte?"

The Earl of Clarendon, in reply,

observed, that a certain reserve on his part while negotiations were pending was necessary for the advantage of the public service. He then said it was true, that on the 5th of May a project of convention was presented to the Porte by Prince Menschikoff; but it was not correct that it was presented as an ultimatum. It was true an answer was required in five days, but the best proof that it was not an ultimatum was, that he believed other notes had since been exchanged. Lord Stratford, upon the 9th instant, stated that he was not able to inform them what answer would be given by the Porte; and that was really the whole of the official information that they had received. Other information had, of course, reached Her Majesty's Government by means of the electric telegraph, because now-adays no small portion of diplomatic business was transacted by means of that discovery. That was a very useful and convenient appliance in some respects, but it was perplexing in others; because, though it announced facts and events, it seldom announced the causes which had led to those events, and it was difficult to act, therefore, with confidence upon the information which it conveyed. Upon the 10th, for instance, they received by the telegraph an announcement that Prince Menschikoff's note had actually been rejected by the Porte; but they did not at all know upon what grounds the step had been taken. They knew, also, that Redschid Pasha was then Minister for Foreign Affairs, and they knew that on the 20th Prince Menschikoff was still at Constantinople; but they did not know whether all negotiations were at an end. He thought he could, therefore, in

these circumstances, appeal to their Lordships whether it would not be in the highest degree improper and impolitic on his part if he was to pretend to give a correct account of the events which had there occurred, and still less to express an opinion upon them.

But, in answer to Lord Malmesbury's question, whether the policy to which he alluded in answer to the speech of the noble Marquess near him some weeks ago was still the policy of this country, he conceived it was hardly necessary for him to say that the policy of the Government had undergone no change; that they looked upon it as the true policy, as to the manifest advantage of this country, as due not only to their own interests, but to the best interests of Europe, and as necessary to its tranquillity, to uphold the independence of the Turkish Empire. As to the Ambassadors of France and England at the Porte, he had no hesitation in stating that they took the same view of the question; that they acted in concert in the matter, and so far were carrying out the wishes and intentions of their respective Governments, between whom there existed a complete identity of feeling on that subject, and a cordial concert in action. ("Hear, hear!")

The Earl of Hardwick felt that the reply of Lord Clarendon would not be satisfactory to the public at large. All who considered the subject must have been astonished at the mode in which this special mission to Turkey, on the part of Russia, had been conducted. Not only had an exalted Prince of the empire been sent to Constantinople with an enormous retinue-not only had one of the generals of the Russian advanced army been annexed to that retinue, but officers

and functionaries in the Russian service had actually been despatched to various parts of the Turkish dominions to ascertain the feelings of the population with regard to their rulers and with regard to Russia. With such an emergency impending, what had this country done to extend security to our ancient ally? Where was that active determination which, heretofore, we had manifested to uphold the independence and integrity of the Ottoman empire? Russia must entertain very different ideas with regard to us from those which, in former years-so late as 1819-we impressed upon her, when, to meet emergencies of a less menacing nature, we despatched a naval force, not merely into the Greek Archipelago, but into the Dardanelles. Had vigour of the same character been manifested by the British Government in the present instance, it was his belief that this extraordinary mission to Constantinople would never have been heard of. It appeared to him that the wide-spread and anxious interest on this subject was in the highest degree natural, when he considered with what facility a march upon Constantinople might be effected by the Russian forces, and how immense the difficulty would be of displacing those forces when once they had obtained possession of that capital. ("Hear!") Of all the great Powers, England was assuredly not the least interested in the contingency that Russia might become possessor of the large and important maritime district now under Turkish sway, of the Greek islands, and their race of seamen, among the best in the world.

Lord Beaumont was disposed to concur with Lord Hardwick, that

if, at an early period, they, in concert with France, had made a decided demonstration, they might have prevented the difficulties which had arisen; at the same time he had firm confidence in Lord Clarendon. As to the resources of the Porte, he believed, from information upon which he relied, that Turkey was at that time much stronger than she had been for many years past; and that if a struggle was commenced by Russia, she would find the struggle on the part of Turkey much more arduous and protracted than she anticipated.

Lord Brougham suggested the propriety and convenience of closing the discussion, which was accordingly done.

In the House of Commons, Mr. Disraeli put similar questions to Lord John Russell, after a prefatory statement to the same purport as that of Lord Malmesbury In reply,

Lord J. Russell, correcting some of Mr. Disraeli's details, said, "The English Government had been informed by that of Russia that the Emperor had thought it necessary to send a special ambassador to Constantinople to obtain a confirmation of certain concessions heretofore made by the Porte to the Greek Church with reference to the Holy Places at Jerusalem, and some security that those concessions should not be withdrawn; the nature of the securities not being stated. On the arrival of the Russian Ambassador at Constantinople, circumstances occurred which created apprehension in the mind of the Grand Vizier, who applied to Colonel Rose, acting in the absence of Lord Stratford, our ambassador at the Porte, to procure the presence of an English

fleet in the Dardanelles, and Colonel Rose sent a steamer with a despatch to Admiral Dundas at Malta, who forwarded the despatch to England, determining to wait the orders of Her Majesty's Government. In the meanwhile Colonel Rose was informed by the Grand Vizier that there was no necessity for the English fleet to leave Malta. The negotiations proceeded: Lord Stratford lent his assistance to enable Prince Menschikoff to obtain from the Turkish Government declarations and acts which were considered sufficient, and it was hoped that the matter was settled, and that the mission of Prince Menschikoff would terminate favourably. But it appeared that further proposals were made by the Prince, which, although in the estimation of the Russian Government were no more than necessary to secure the fulfilment of the declarations made by the Porte, in the opinion of the Turkish Government, as well as in the opinion of Her Majesty's Ambassador and that of the Ambassador of the Emperor of the French, were of such a nature as to endanger the independence of the Porte.