Representative British Orations Volume 4 (of 4): With Introductions and Explanatory Notes
History
Representative British Orations Volume 4 (of 4): With Introductions and Explanatory Notes
Speeches, addresses, etc., English
The Right Honorable Baronet, the Member for Ripon, has insinuated that
the Marquess of Normandy, in the period immediately preceding the
events of February, 1848, had been in too intimate connection with
some of the persons whom he describes as the parties who overthrew the
throne of France. I know not whom he means, but this I know, that the
person with whom the Marquess of Normandy was perhaps in the most
frequent communication, because he was an old and intimate friend, was
Count Mole; and I have yet to learn that he is a man who was likely
to do anything to overthrow, either intentionally or unintentionally,
the monarchy of France. But, if that insinuation was meant to convey
an imputation that the Marquess of Normandy had done anything, or had
held any intercourse inconsistent with his position as the ambassador
of a friendly Power, then I say that imputation is totally and entirely
unfounded.
Well, sir, I leave the sunny plains of Castile, and the gay vineyards
of France, and now I am taken to the mountains of Switzerland, as the
place where I am to render a stricter account.[20]
* * * * *
With regard to our policy with respect to Italy, I utterly deny the
charges that have been brought against us of having been the advocates,
supporters, and encouragers of revolution. It has always been the fate
of advocates of temperate reform and of constitutional improvement to
be run at as the fomenters of revolution. It is the easiest mode of
putting them down; it is the received formula. It is the established
practice of those who are the advocates of arbitrary government to say,
“Never mind real revolutionists; we know how to deal with them; your
dangerous man is the moderate reformer; he is such a plausible man; the
only way of getting rid of him is to set the world at him by calling
him a revolutionist.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account