19 NOVEMBER 1870, Page 3

Mr. Grant Duff made his annual speech to his constituents

on the 15th inst. He is very German in his sympathies, believing that vtheir victories are due to intellectual training, Geist, in short ; a training in which the French Army was hopelessly deficient. -Study was actually discouraged as fit only for pekins, and diplo- matists often knew little more than soldiers. One diplomatist on whom rests much of the responsibility of this fearful business -did not even know German. The whole transaction shows that nations require able eyes and ears more, instead of less, than ever. Mr. Duff utterly disbelieves in any danger to be apprehended from ',Germany, as we have no anti-German interest, and she will be occu- pied for years in settling her relation to the German provinces of Austria. He thinks Prussia will disappear in Germany, and hopes -for a grand disarmament. Mr. Grant Duff, among many admit.- -able verbal points, made two which we must quote. One was -that "Napoleon tried to prevent the chemical union of Germany -by mechanical means "; and the other, that Prussia has the supreme military advantage of an aristocracy barbarous enough to think ,arms the only profession for a gentleman, and enlightened enough to know that success in arms can only be obtained by the same bard work that makes a successful citizen. That is the lesson our Army has to learn.