THE ANNEXATION OF SAVOY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XIII, Issue 782, 9 May 1860, Page 3

THE ANNEXATION OF SAVOY.

. / /; (^romthe/ Times'.)* " ' ..-" .''■ .We havei received from Chamtery, under datei o.f the^7th of Eebruary, the i ollovfing^ ' appeal to tlhe Eriglish people against the 'anriexatibn of Savoy to' Prance.1' Itis signbd'by 24i of the leading rtieii of the capital of Savoy:— ; : . , ■-i: v; ;"Sayoy^ to the English People. „.; ,; ; l .'/ During.nearly,,the. jlas.t..six ( njonths gome indiyidual^'ofSa'yoy.wliosepetvtJpns ioiiousls; Have! not succeeded in"'^obtaining :20 'res-' pectable signatures, have formed' the plot to mate oy.er .Constitutional Savoy to the'lmperial Govern-

mentpf France., r ( r-!■,-■■ >..,• ,iV " - >••<* .:i ;!•,•;;- --;-; 'iCournerdes Alpes',' which is their proper tjr and'their orgari, i!ha£; since then," never ceased'tb'prbdhitii'the unariiMorfs adhesion' of Savoy to'those1 desires of annexation, no •';:.:; i ■:<I i'is •■• i; ;:. ■ j.^VAs Jong a&>those.ftssertipn^er^ainejli^thjihjour Jaount'ain. rangei our quiet and'proud population rented ihetn'lrtiKpfethfr ' V/'^ ; A-" V ' '"•Buf'thi3'l?ari9 !;tli6W^ht f ftp td"nia(ke itself tlii ectio'ofi these": falsehoods;!}"the :>■ offlcioiis

accbm^ to lead public'opinion astray,''and tode'ceivel Europe' by announcing a few isolated wishes txn he the, expression.of the sentiments .of;the W;hole of Savoy., "Silence and inaction were no longer, possible;, "On the 29th of January last an important demonstration'war made at Cuamberyi,ithe rcapital of Savoy. Nearly 3,000" citizens" of. every class, raiikj and; profession r- magistrates,; lawyers, officials, doctors, merchants, workmen, nearly all the officers of the National G.uard, responding to the appeal of' tlie patriotic committee constituted by themselves, met on the Champ do Mars, whence, with the national colours flying, they proceeded to the residence, .of the head of the Government, to declare publicly their wish to remain free under the Constitutional Government of VictorEma)iuelll.,the king, the1 honest man* and the first soldier of Italian independence.: ■ : ; ;'.• ! ■ ; ! : .*• In; this, concurrence of citizens, marching in admirable order and manly dignity to the accompli'siim'eht bf a great1 duty, there were, doubtless, many opinions mingled together; but; puttihg aside! the. distinction1 of: private" and political views<:aU', were,; united; in: one' .cpmmqn.; deyption for their country, and for liberty. ! r „ '. " Siicli a nianifestatibh waS of a 1 nature'to'excite the anger dr the Frehcli prdss so compliant- to' authority; and'we behold lately an incredible audacity of; falsehood and calumnies dishonouring the journals ;of, France. . „ . ..'■■ ;'' The demonstration:'of the 29th of January has been most!unwprthily misrepresented; •'"'■■■ '■'■'■ " The English' people, accustomed by the; free exercise of freedom not to allow itself to be taken in, accustomed also by its, well-founded distrust to be on its guard against perfidy and interested ambition, will riot be de'ceivedby such manoeuvres.

"Threatened in her: integrity; in her independence, in her liberties, Savoy.; has counted' upon England^ . t . ,; ... :' ; " Certainlyj we have confidence iti the loyalty and attachment to bur ctfuiitry of Victor EnVariiiel II.; in the- straightforwardness rind "firmness'; of his Government, but iweiare also aware of the;strength which, power misled by error may wield in the world. ' •. • „,,-.■ ■. . „,.., '" '„, . . ' ;'; ... '■ "We come to you; people of England, because! among all people you are1 great iri'liberty; because your powerful voice", encouraging nations struggling for thcirindependence, can protect them by. raising up insurmountable barriers before them. "In tiie^name of those joint interests 1 which unite people, do not 'allow that old iAHobrogia'j which defended its territory and its' rights against the aricient; of the world, to become now the ransom of their ; do not allow a:p.eople, however small'it may beVto be' extinguished, 7 to give1 liberty to a* nation, however great it may become.

" May your the faithful exponent of your sovereign orders, inform'the;world that Sayoy, having; become, your ward in the hour of supreme dangefj siialt not be giyenup and sacriflced! "' The deferice of our liberties, is also th'edeferice of the liberties of the world; which to-morrow,-perhaps, inay>be compromised by anambitiqn vrhieh a first, success >yould render stronger and more exa'ctirigr ',';'-..■. ." ■ ■'..'.. '■'..'. '

" And; shbuld ever a' danger threaten the free soil of England, the ardent jatid* mature devotion of the people : prptected, and: saved by you, by, England, would afford .you a,,secret .and, powerful support, whichV joined to the patriotic energy of.-your cliil.dreri, would render you' invincible." '

[Hef6 followthesignatures.J;

ovoin the ' Times,'). I The impendirig annexation of Savoy arid Nice to France is itccburiteiifd^ in two ways, Privately' it is'whimpered—and!nobody seems- to' contradict the assertion—that before the Wai-' of last year, before Lord Cowley's mission to "\jiennav a' secret ■ agreer ment.had,-been; entered;.i.n,to.< between, the, Jioyal Families; of Er^nce : and Sardinia, by which the Empe^dr undertook to. transfer to the King: two ; Italian prbvinces of,his good friend and' brother thY Mrtipevdi' of. Austria',- arid th 6 King undertook, in"6brisideration of the said'ltalian provinces;' duly conquered' andl delivered1 to him; to give up'; to France his;bereditary dominions; of Savoy and the county, of-, NiceJ1 Were, this a kind of transaction which:was .likely■ ; to be ■., frequently repeated;. had; the example, anything, of .contagion in it, we might have.thought; it necessary to devote some space to a critical examination of such a contract.. But, as we verily1 believe there is not otic aniong all; the sovereigns of Europe"; varying from each other as they do just as much in personal merit as in territorial dominion^ who would have bartered away the cradle of his dynasty,and the most ancient and faith-, ful proyince of his dominions for :the; richest inheritance of his neighbour, we deem the tasjc of criticism entirely superfluous. It is quite a'family, affair; a slight £tlteratibniii the colour of the map, a little change in the system of government; and' the thing is done, Savoy having really as little to say inthe affair' as the hbrse thatis sold in market overt with no questions [asked as to the manner in which he-is obtained. Whether the bargain is a good .or bad one, how many,acres of mpuntain are equal to how many acre's of plain, what is the nature of the title, and what the conditions" of sale, hdw far the dismantling; of the " Quadrilateral"' was' of the essence of the i contract,- and whether any >. amount of; Tuscany,;Parma, ( ;and Modena is equal to the loss of Yenetia, are questions we must ;leay,e to these Imper'iaV and Royal tuyers and - selievs; of m ; en, who transfer a province with as much indiffererifce^as oi'din^r'y mortals .dispose' of a railway debenture." We gladly:turn1 fi'bm' this part of the subject; lii such transactions we &cc rid reason to make oui'r selves unhappy,' though both parties rise from the Stable: losers.;; ;■' ..;'-.;'•.-....■. ;■ .-. .r -.•■...■; . : ■■■.■-, ■ ■-.'

.. But .' though, this be the real ,n attire,, of the threatened annexation of Savoy and Nice,,it. is not the side of thef transaction which' it pleases' the French Gbvernme'nti or at least the French press, to1 pre'serit1 to the'eyes of Europe. Bittle" as' there is to' admire ;iri the actual reality of the affair, it! is in the' highest degree respectable when compared: withvthe, principles under which, it is sought jtpi defend -it. <_„The. .particular: transfer .is single: and transitory, the .princip.les ]vhich ifc, ( is, fought, to defend;that' transfer.^ in theiif ap'pHcaiiion'.: 'We are tofdHhjat>'Savoy is 'to be- transferred* to;;FrStice b'ecailse'' ics inhabitants5 speak*the FreWch- language,1 'because it 'hMs only a geographical frontier]!because'.1 a: derhonstrationrjhas" been got up'which the; French< press is pleasedjjto; consider: as evidence of,the, national will,; and. a"n'y ( attempt: to ,put.,'c(awh'. .which, tl'ie Fre;nch\ press pronpunces an , act or hostility to prance. It these, ,bY tne. conditions' of'future ■ annexation in Europe, #'6' are1 'indeed; standing ori the th'iteshbld: of evil •tinfei/N;otKing Twill:be'e_a'siei 4 than tibisive" these1 doctrines extensive application to oEngland herself;Thenconquestnof Eijglapd by Norman_dy ; has,:ahf nexe<^Q,pur ; Crpwn <^ nearer to^ the coast of,^ance., than tp,.that.pf i England,' spealung the French' language, arid'.possessthg. in*niany respects, French institutions: .^e 'should tli'ftk' i'h4t anion^tße am^phib1 idus' pb^latibri: bf St. Btelier's 5 or StVPeter-Porfc, it might riot'be difficttlt to get up a in: favour. ;6f ;a^ re-union with.France. -WeTnight;pfbbablyrelyonl;h.e;Em- rpefcor's: ownjsubjects Residing, for, po]itical '.reasons in these islands ,^unimarily tp., p,ut, . such movement; but if once the(atte mpjfi is made, the mis;chief : is done, the denibnsti;ahoir is,'corn|»le!te, and any "attempt' to cbu^eract. it would only aerye to bffehd the Government of France!,1 aM leave the ground of annexation ;;wholl.V untonchedi; :For aught we;iknow, the: same,)thing might ;ibe ; done with p6rfe6t;,silc.cefis in ; ,the, Maurit|us, ( in, : .Low,ey Canada, „or eyen..in r .Leicester .squtjre..itself, . w;e have met : wis 'top dqcile a. scholar. The first iclea o'rih'e Emperor of the; French wa's to rest'oVe »4:Ke: 'Grand: !>(&&, arid fbrde upon Italy ! ajfed^ation which''fndb'ody s'eera'ed• to ; exce|)t hiiriself; Etigla'nc! proiieste'd in the namoibf the .people,'arid claimedrforithetn itHe rightito disposeiofithemselYes according to their own will and pleasure,/ ; Tire

lilmperor -fiaß^djni'ttecl' the claim, and,is anxious to apply thif rißwly-learnt principle as widelY '«« pbgi-' siblo; "Wo^dnly urged ifc in;fayour of subjects in actual and successful revolt against their Soverfiign. I'he Emporor lias reached a higher generalization, and rejects tills1 qualification as pedantic and xinhecessavy.' In. his view,;the t body politic:is, like the human body,,perpetually in a course,of decomposition■; and.renovation. NeW elements are' $&• petually taken injwllile old ones a,re giVen off, accor.dmg to some hidden law, of chemical,attraction. Savoy is disintegrated to-day; Belgjum may probably feel tire'influence of'this:hiddenslaw of affinity to-morrow:;j the Rhine, provinces, which; f already* enjoy, the; Code Napoleon, may naturally wish to enjoy Napoleon himself; and vvoe to th'o Grpvernment that ventures' to ' oppose the new; law of development andi affinityj arid to check that, unr bounded liberty of choice which is the inherent tight of eVery nationality nbt United ;tb Fx'dncei ' ' We" sincerely wish'that tHe^Soyiereigh: by thesemirofficial, organs, of whose. Government these monstrous doctrines, are put forward would, "awake while it is' yet time to d'true1 sense of the siispiciohj restlessness,; arid apprehension i which i such claims are. bvinging: on his Government. It is vain, to spealc of'restoring corindericearid cultivating the arts of peace while at the same time principles are! enunciated; which seem to summon all mankind.to anarchy, rebellion, and to war. tVKatever strength tlie dynasty of the Emperor may receive by the acquisition ■of Savoy and Nice must be purchased afc a ruinous price, if he is to give in exchange for, ithis reputation for disiriterestedness and theebn- ! fiderice which all Europe desires to feel ih!his'pru-; dence and: moderation; but. if the union; must take, place, and the power which forbids the access of honest remonstrance to the ears df absolute Sbvereigns is! not to be bvercomei let the Emperor at any rate take, his spoil as the reward of conquest and the result of treaty, and above alt tilings let him beware' 6f (iom'mrttmg himself to: principles which are not the less odious because; they-attempt to cloak ; the real nature of a questionable transaction, nor the less dangerous because they'Hayb in them a certain travestied likeness to the noble docirines of'freedpra and,self-goyernment.