Lord Lansdowne made an important speech on Friday week in
answer to Lord Spencer, who bad asked for information on several points, the most important being our relations with Italy and China. The Foreign Secretary explained that we had never had a formal treaty with Italy, but only an under- standing as to common interests in the Mediterranean. In spite of the rapprochement between Italy and France, upon which his Lordship heartily congratulated both States, that understanding still continued, its basis being the British desire that the status quo in the Mediterranean should be preserved. The speech upon this subject has pleased the French, who wish to guide both Italy and Spain with- out making too much concession to either, but it has not equally pleased the Italians, who see in the British desire for the status quo an obstacle to their own desire for the reversion of Tripoli and Barca. They had obtained from M. Delcasse during recent negotiations a promise that their aspirations in this direction should be respected, but Lord Lansdowne, apparently, is not equally friendly. As we have explained elsewhere, we see no adequate reason for this hesitation, for Tripoli must belong one day either to Italy or France, and Italy would be by far the better neighbour to our Egyptian dependency.
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