Letters and Journals of James, Eighth Earl of Elgin Part 15

From the tone of this speech it will be seen that Lord Elgin had not at this time joined either of the two parties in the State. He was, in truth, still feeling his way through the mazes of home politics to which he had been so long a stranger, and from which, as he himself somewhat regretfully observed, those ancient landmarks of party had been removed, 'which, if not a wholly sufficient guide, are yet some sort of direction to wanderers in the political wilderness.' While he was still thus engaged, events were happening at the other ends of the earth which were destined to divert into quite another channel the current of his life.

[1] Mac Mullen's _History of Canada, p. 527._

[2] It Is a singular fact, as ill.u.s.trating the tenacity and coherence of the Church of Rome, that while all Protestant endowments were thus indiscriminately swept away, no voice was raised against the retention, by the Roman Catholic clergy, of the vast possessions left to them by the old French capitulation.--_Mac Mullen, p. 528._

[3] Despatch of December 18, 1854.

[4] Despatch of August 16,1853

[5] Despatch of December 18, 1854.

[6] Despatch of December 18,1854. The abolition was shortly afterwards, satisfactorily effected.

[7] Vide _supra_, p. 48.

[8] The Rebellion Losses Bill.

[9] Some years afterwards, when speaking of these festivities, the Mayor of Buffalo said: 'Never shall I forget the admiration elicited by Lord Elgin's beautiful speech on that occasion. Upon the American visitors (who, it must be confessed, do not look for the highest order of intellect in the appointees of the Crown) the effect was amusing. A sterling Yankee friend, while the Governor was speaking, sat by my side, who occasionally gave vent to his feelings as the speech progressed, each sentence increasing in beauty and eloquence, by such approving exclamations as "He's a glorious fellow! He ought to be on our side of the line! We would make him mayor of our city!" As some new burst of eloquence breaks from the speaker's lips, my worthy friend exclaims, "How magnificently he talks! Yes, by George, we'd make him governor--governor of the state!" As the n.o.ble Earl, by some brilliant hit, carries the a.s.semblage with a full round of applause, "Ah!" cries my Yankee friend, with a hearty slap on my shoulder, "by Heaven, if he were on our side, we'd make him President--nothing less than President!"'

[10] The report of his words is obviously imperfect, but their substance is probably given with sufficient accuracy.

[11] The great abilities of Sir F. Bruce, and the n.o.bility of his character, fitted him in a singular manner for this post. He died suddenly at Boston, on September 19, 1867, too early for extended fame, but not unrecognised as a public servant of rare value. The _Times_, which announced his death, after commenting on the calamitous fate by which, 'within a period of four years, the nation had lost the services of three members of one family, each endowed with eminent qualifications for the important work to which they severally devoted their lives,' proceeded thus with regard to the youngest of the three brothers. 'The country would have had much.

reason to deplore the death of Sir Frederick Bruce whenever it had happened; but his loss is an especial misfortune at a time when, negotiations of the utmost intricacy and delicacy are pending with a Government which is not always disposed to approach Great Britain in a spirit of generosity and forbearance. Seldom has a citizen of another country visited the United States who possessed so keen an insight into the political working of the Great Republic, and at the same time ingratiated himself so thoroughly with every American who approached Him.... Although naturally somewhat impulsive in temperament, he invariable exhibited entire calmness and self-command when the circ.u.mstances of his position led him into trial.... This imperturbable temperament in all his official relations served him well on many occasions, from the day when he succeeded to the laborious duties relinquished by Lord Lyons; but never was it of greater advantage than in the protracted and difficult controversy concerning the Alabama claims. This discussion it fell to the lot of Sir F. Bruce to conduct on the part of Her Majesty; and we divulge no secret when we state that it was in accordance with the late Minister's repeated advice and exhortations that a wise overture towards a settlement was made by the present Government. He had succeeded in establis.h.i.+ng for himself relations of cordial friends.h.i.+p with Mr. Seward and the President, and probably there are few outside the circle of his own family who will be more shocked at the tidings of his death than the astute and keen-eyed old man with whom he had sustained incessant diplomatic fence.'

[12] It certainly was not without truth, that one of the local papers most opposed to him remarked that 'Lord Elgin had, beyond all doubt, a remarkable faculty of turning enemies into friends.'

[13] Spencerwood, the Governor's private residence.

[14] Sir Edmund Head, who succeeded Lord Elgin as Governor-General of Canada in 1854, had examined him for a Merton Fellows.h.i.+p in 1833.

Those who knew him will recognise how singularly appropriate, in their full force, are the terms in which he is here spoken of.

CHAPTER VII.

FIRST MISSION TO CHINA.--PRELIMINARIES.

ORIGIN OF THE MISSION--APPOINTMENT OF LORD ELGIN--MALTA--EGYPT--CEYLON-- NEWS OF THE INDIAN MUTINY--PENANG--SINGAPORE--DIVERSION OF TROOPS TO INDIA --ON BOARD THE 'SHANNON'--HONG-KONG--CHANGE OF PLANS--CALCUTTA AND LORD CANNING--RETURN TO CHINA--PERPLEXITIES--CAPRICES OF CLIMATE--ARRIVAL OF BARON GROS--PREPARATION FOR ACTION.

'The earlier incidents of the political rupture with the Chinese Commissioner Yeh, which occurred at Canton during the autumn of 1856, and which led to the appointment of a Special Mission to China, were too thoroughly canva.s.sed at the time to render it necessary to renew here any discussion on their merits, or recall at length their details. As the "Arrow" case derived its interest then from the debates to which it gave rise, and its effects on parties at home, rather than from any intrinsic value of its own, so does it now mainly owe its importance to the accidental circ.u.mstance, that it was the remote and insignificant cause which led to a total revolution in the foreign policy of the Celestial Empire, and to the demolition of most of those barriers which, while they were designed to restrict all intercourse from without, furnished the nations of the West with fruitful sources of quarrel and perpetual grievances.'

These words form the preface to the 'Narrative of the Earl of Elgin's Mission to China and j.a.pan,' by Laurence Oliphant, then private secretary to Lord Elgin. To that work we must refer our readers for a full and complete, as well as authentic, account of the occurrences which gave occasion to the following letters. A brief sketch only will here be given.

[Sidenote: Origin of the Mission.]

On October 8, 1856, a _lorcha_ named 'Arrow,' registered as a British vessel, and carrying a British flag, was boarded by the authorities of Canton, the flag torn down, and the crew carried away as prisoners. Such was the English account. The Chinese denied that any flag was flying at the time of the capture: the British owners.h.i.+p of the vessel, they maintained, was never more than colourable, and had expired a month before: the crew were all their own subjects, apprehended on a charge of piracy.

The English authorities refused to listen to this. They insisted on a written apology for the insult to their flag, and the formal rest.i.tution of the captured sailors. And when these demands were refused, or incompletely fulfilled, they summoned the fleet, in the hope that a moderate amount of pressure would lead to the required concessions. Shortly after, finding arms in their hands, they thought it a good opportunity to enforce the fulfilment of certain 'long-evaded treaty obligations,' including the right for all foreign representatives of free access to the authorities and the city of Canton. With this view, fort after fort, suburb after suburb, was taken or demolished. But the Chinese, after their manner, would neither yield nor fight; and contented themselves with offering large rewards for the head of every Englishman.

When this state of matters was reported to England, it was brought before the House of Commons on a motion by Mr. Cobden, condemnatory of 'the violent measures resorted to at Canton in the late affair of the "Arrow."'

The motion, supported by Mr. Gladstone in one of his splendid bursts of rhetoric, was carried against the Government by a majority of sixteen, in a full and excited house, on the morning of February 26, 1857. But Lord Palmerston refused to accept the adverse vote as expressing the will of the people. He appealed to the const.i.tuencies, candidly telling the House that, pending that appeal, 'there would be no change, and could be no change, in the policy of the Government with respect to events in China.' At the same time he intimated that a special Envoy would be sent out to supersede the local authorities, armed with full powers to settle the relations between England and China on a broad and solid basis.

[Sidenote: Appointment of Lord Elgin.]

But where was the man who, at a juncture so critical, in face of an adverse vote of the House of Commons, on the chance of its being rescinded by the country, could be trusted with so delicate a mission; who could be relied on, in the conduct of such an expedition against a foe alike stubborn and weak, to go far enough, and yet not too far--to carry his point, by diplomatic skill and force of character, with the least possible infringement of the laws of humanity; a man with the ability and resolution to insure success, and the native strength that can afford to be merciful?

After 'anxious deliberation,' the choice of the Government fell upon Lord Elgin.

How, on the voyage to China, he was met half-way by the news of the Indian Mutiny; how promptly and magnanimously he took on himself the responsibility of sacrificing the success of his own expedition by diverting the troops from China to India; how, after many weary months of enforced inactivity, the expedition was resumed, and carried through numberless thwartings to a successful issue--these are matters of history with which every reader must be acquainted. But those who are most familiar with the events may find an interest in the following extracts from private letters, written at the time by the chief actor in the drama. They are taken almost exclusively from a Journal, in which his first thoughts and impressions on every pa.s.sing occurrence were hurriedly noted down, from day to day, for transmission to Lady Elgin.

[Sidenote: Malta.]

_H.M.S. 'Caradoc'--May 2nd._--I have just returned to my s.h.i.+p after spending a few hours on sh.o.r.e and visiting Lord Lyons in his magnificent Prince Albert.... How beautiful Malta is with its narrow streets, gorgeous churches, and impregnable fortifications. I landed at about six, and walked up to the Palace, and wrote my name in the Governor's book, who resides out of town. I then took a turn through the town, and went to the inn to breakfast....

[Sidenote: Chance meetings.]

By way of conversation with the waiter, I asked who were in the house: 'Only two families, one of them Lord Balgonie[1] and his sisters.' I saw the ladies first, and, at a later hour, their brother, in his bed.

Poor fellow! the hand of death is only too visibly upon him. There he lay; his arm, absolutely fleshless, stretched out: his large eyes gleaming from his pale face. I could not dare to offer to his broken- hearted sisters a word of comfort. These poor girls! how I felt for them; alone! with their brother in such a state. They go to Ma.r.s.eilles by the next opportunity, probably by the packet which will convey to you this letter, and they hope that their mother will meet them there.

What a tragedy! ... I had been _incog_. at the hotel till Sir W.

Reid[2] found me there. When the innkeeper learned who I was, he was in despair at my having been put into so small a room, and informed me that he was the son of an old servant at Broomhall, Hood by name, and that he had often played with me at cricket! How curious are these strange _rencontres_ in life! They put me in mind of Heber's image, who says that we are like travellers journeying through a dense wood intersected by innumerable paths: we are constantly meeting in unexpected places, and plunging into the forest again!

[Sidenote: Alexandria.]

_Alexandria.--May 6th.--_I made up my letter last night, not knowing how short the time of my sojourn at Alexandria might be. But at about one in the morning I received a letter from Frederick,[3] telling me that the steamer due at Suez had not yet arrived, that an official reception was to be given me, and that I had better not land too early.... Notwithstanding which, was.h.i.+ng decks, the morning gun, and a bright sun, broke my slumbers at an early hour, and I got up and dressed soon after daybreak. At about 6.30 A.M. a boat of the Pacha's, with a dignitary (who turned out to be a very gentleman-like Frenchman), arrived, and from him I learnt that the Governor of Alexandria, with a cortege of dignitaries and a carriage and four, was already at the sh.o.r.e awaiting my arrival; but Frederick did not come till about half-past nine, and it was nearly ten before I landed. I was then conducted by the authorities to the palace in which I am now writing, consisting of suites of very handsome rooms, and commanding a magnificent view of the sea. About a dozen attendants are loitering about and watching every movement, not curiously, but in order to supply any possible want. At this very moment a mild-looking Turk is peeping into my bed-room where I am writing this letter, and supposing that I may wish to be undisturbed, has drawn a red cloth _portiere_ across the open doorway. This palace, which is set apart for the reception of distinguished strangers, is situated in the Turkish quarter of the town, and all the houses around are inhabited by Mussulmans. The windows are all covered with latticed wooden shutters, through which the wretched women may, I suppose, peer as they do through the grating at the House of Commons, but which are at least as impermeable to the mortal eye from without. The streets are very empty, as it is the Ramadan, during which devout Turks fast and sleep throughout the day, and indemnify themselves by eating, drinking, and amusing themselves all night.

_Cairo.--May 7th._--Most of yesterday afternoon was spent in drinking coffee and smoking long pipes, two ladies partaking of the latter enjoyment after dinner at Mr. Green's. One of them told me that she had dined with the Princess (the Pacha's wife) a few days ago. She went at seven and left at half-past twelve, and with the exception of a half hour of dinner, all the rest of the time was spent in smoking and drinking coffee. After dinner, the mother of the Pacha's only child came in and joined the party. She was treated with a certain consideration as being the mother of this child, although she was not given a pipe. The Princess seemed on very good terms with her. This child (a boy three years old) has an English nurse, and this nurse has persuaded the Pacha to allow her to take the child to England on a visit. The mother, who has picked up a little English from the nurse, said to Mrs. Green, 'I am very unhappy; _young Pacha_' (her boy) 'is going away.' The mother is no more thought of in this arrangement than I am. What a strange system it is!... We pa.s.sed through the wonderful Delta to-day, and certainly the people looked more comfortable than those of Alexandria. The beasts too, camels, oxen, donkeys, showed signs of the fertility of the soil in their sleekness. What might not be made of this country if it were wisely guided!

[Sidenote: Crossing the Desert.]

_Steamer 'Bentinck.'--Sunday, May 10th._--I write to you from the neighbourhood of Mount Sinai, which we pa.s.sed at an early hour this morning, gliding through a sea of most transparent gla.s.s, with so little motion that there is hardly an excuse for bad writing.... I must, however, take you back to Cairo. We began to move at a very early hour, about three, on Sat.u.r.day (yesterday) morning. We were actually in the railway carriages at half-past four. I was placed in a _coupe_ before the engine, in order that I might see the road; and in this somewhat formidable position ran over about forty miles of the Desert in about an hour and a half. It is a wonderful sight this strange barren expanse of stone and gravel, with here and there a small encampment of railway labourers, after pa.s.sing through the luxuriant Valley of the Nile, teeming with production and life, animal and vegetable. In the morning air there was a healthy freshness, which was very delightful. At the end of our hour and a half we reached the termination of the part of the railway which is already completed, and embarked in two-wheeled four-horse vans (such as you see in the _Ill.u.s.trated News_), to pa.s.s over about five miles of trackless desert, lying between the said terminus and a station on the regular road across the Desert, at which we were to breakfast. This part of our journey was rough work, and took us some time to execute. Our station was really a very nice building; and while we were there a caravan of pilgrims to Mecca, some women in front and the men following, all mounted on their patient camels, pa.s.sed by. After we were refreshed we started for Suez; and you will hardly believe me when I tell you, that we travelled forty-seven miles over the Desert in a carriage as capacious and commodious as a London town coach, in four hours and a half, including seven changes of horses and a stoppage of half an hour. In short, we got over the ground in about three hours and three-fourths. We had six horses to our carriage, and a swarthy Nubian, with a capital seat on horseback, rode by us all the way, occasionally reminding our horses that it was intended they should go at a gallop.

[Sidenote: Retrospect of Egypt.]

[Sidenote: Egyptian ladies.]

_May 11th_.--I am glad to have had two days in Egypt. It gave one an idea at least of that country; in some degree a painful one. I suppose that France and England, by their mutual jealousies, will be the means of perpetuating the abominations of the system under which that magnificent country is ruled. They say that the Pacha's revenue is about 4,000,000_l_., and his expenses about 2,000,000_l_.; so that he has about 2,000,000_l_. of pocket-money. Yet I suppose that the Fellahs, owing to their own industry, and the incomparable fertility of the country, are not badly off as compared with the peasantry elsewhere. We pa.s.sed, at one of our stopping-places between Cairo and Suez, part of a Turkish regiment on their way to Jeddah. These men were dressed in a somewhat European costume, some of them with the Queen's medal on their b.r.e.a.s.t.s. There was a hareem, in a sort of omnibus, with them, containing the establishment of one of the officers. One of the ladies dropped her veil for a moment, and I saw rather a pretty face; almost the only Mahommedan female face I have seen since I have reached this continent. They are much more rigorous, it appears, with the ladies in Egypt than at Constantinople. There they wear a veil which is quite transparent and go about shopping: but in Egypt they seem to go very little out, and their veil completely hides everything but the eyes. In the palace which I visited near Cairo (and which the Pacha offered, if we had chosen to take it), I looked through some of the grated windows allowed in the hareems, and I suppose that it must require a good deal of practice to see comfortably out of them. It appears that the persons who ascend to the top of the minarets to call to prayer at the appointed hours are blind men, and that the blind are selected for this office, lest they should be able to look down into the hareems. That is certainly carrying caution very far.

[Sidenote: Aden.]

_Steams.h.i.+p 'Bentinck,' off Socotra.--May 19th_.--I left my last letter at Aden. We landed there at about four P.M., under a salute from an Indian man-of-war sloop and the fort, to which latter place I was conveyed in a carriage which the Governor sent for me. It was most fearfully hot. The hills are rugged and grand, but wholly barren; not a sign of vegetation, and the vertical rays of a tropical sun beating upon them. The whole place is comprised in a drive around the hills of some three or four miles, beyond which the inhabitants cannot stray without the risk of being seized by the Arabs. I cannot conceive a more dreary spot to dwell in, though the Governor a.s.sured me that the troops are healthy. He received me very civilly, and insisted that I should remain with him until the steamer sailed, which involved leaving his abode (the cantonment) at about half-past three in the morning. He took me to see some most extraordinary tanks which he has recently discovered, and which must have been constructed with great care and at great expense, at some remote period, in order to collect the rain-water which falls at rare intervals in torrents. These tanks are so constructed that the overflow of the upper one fills the lower, and in this way, when the fall is considerable, a great quant.i.ty can be gathered. They were all filled with rubbish, and it is very possible that there may be many besides these which have been already discovered, but when they are cleared out they are in perfect preservation. Some of them are of great capacity, and it is difficult to understand how they come to have been filled up so completely. The Governor told me that he had, a few months before, driven in his gig over the largest, which I went with him to see. At that time he had no idea of its existence.

[Sidenote: Gloomy prospects.]

_May 22nd_.--As each of these wearisome days pa.s.ses, I cannot help being more and more determined that, in so far as it rests with me, this voyage shall not have been made for nothing. However, the issues are in higher hands.

_Sunday, 24th_.--We are now told we shall reach Ceylon in two days....

I have got dear Bruce's[4] large speaking eyes beside me while I am writing, and mine (ought I to confess it) are very dim, while all these thoughts of home crowd upon me. There is nothing congenial to me in my present life. I have no elasticity of spirits to keep up with the younger people around me. It may be better when the work begins; but I cannot be sanguine even as to that, for the more I read of the blue-books and papers with which I have been furnished, the more embarra.s.sing the questions with which I have to deal appear.