16 MARCH 1878, Page 2

Lord Robert Montagu in his speech gave vent to a

feeling which is, we believe, very prevalent in this country, and may heavily weight the Greeks in their advance towards a reasonable amount of territory. He broke out furiously at the mere thought of them. "The Greeks to rule a great Empire ! When were they ever fit for anything but toeheat and to slander through the great towns of Europe ?" In France, ' Greek ' is the synonym for' pickpocket and swindler." It was an "iniquitous dream" to adopt the Greek and put him in the place of the -Slay. Those who repeat all this nonsense repeated the same nonsense about Italy before 1860, when " Italian " was with many men the syno- nym for "treacherous assassin." The Greeks are cunning and over- diplomatic, but races deformed by those vices, and not possessing their good qualities, have often built up great States,—indeed, the

objection, however tree or false, does not lie in Tory months. Their incessant argument is that Russians are tricky, that they sever speak the truth, that their treaties do not bind them, and that therefore they have built the most formidable Power in the world. Which do they mean,—that guile is a source of weakness, or of strength ?