Sir:—I have had the honor to receive your letter of yesterday's date, in reply to mine of the 23d inst., informing me that ‘You [I] must be aware that her Britannic Majesty's Government have decided on observing a strict neutrality, in the present conflict between the
Northern and Southern States; it is therefore incumbent on her Majesty's officers to avoid anything like undue inter.
ference in any questions affecting the interests of either party, which do not concern the
British Government; and though I do not refuse to accede to your request, to deliver the letter to the
Moorish authorities, I think it my duty to signify distinctly to the latter my intention to refrain from expressing an opinion regarding the course to be pursued by Morocco on the subject-matter of your letter.’
Whilst I thank you for the courtesy of delivering my letter, as requested, I must be permitted to express to you my disappointment at the course which you have prescribed to yourself, of refraining from expressing any opinion to the
Moorish Government, of the legality or illegality of its act, lest you should be charged with undue interference.
I had supposed that the ‘
Trent affair,’ of so recent occurrence, had settled, not only the right, but the duty of the civilized nations of the earth to ‘interfere,’ in a friendly manner, to prevent wars between nations.
It cannot have escaped your observation, that the course pursued by
Europe in that affair, is precisely analogous to that which I have requested of you. In that affair a quarrel arose between the
United States, one of the belligerents in the existing war, and
Great Britain, a neutral in that war; and instead of ‘refraining’ from offering advice, all
Europe made haste to volunteer it to both parties.
The
United States were told by
France, by
Russia, by
Spain, and other Powers, that their act was illegal, and that they could, without a sacrifice of honor, grant the reparation demanded by
Great Britain.
Neither the nation giving the advice nor the nation advised, supposed for a moment that there was a breach of neutrality in this proceeding; on the contrary, it was the general verdict of mankind, that the course pursued was not only legal, but eminently humane and proper, as tending to allay excitement, and prevent the effusion of blood.
If you will run a parallel between the
Trent case, and the case in hand, you will find it difficult, I think, to sustain the reason you have assigned for your forbearance.
In that case, the quarrel rel was between a neutral, and a belligerent, as in this case.
In that case, citizens of a belligerent State were unlawfully arrested
