3 NOVEMBER 1849, Page 1

The "Peace party" has held a meeting at Exeter Hall,

at which the most remarkable adherents of the movement were not present. The Archbishop of Paris and M. Coquerel appeared only by letter. So did M.di Lamartine; who pleaded a rheumatic affection—not, as "Raphael" might have done in younger days, the detainer of a platonic affection. M. Emile de Girardin' who has so ably and so recently spoken' for peace Mid written for War, also, pleaded the more urgent duties of praotical

statesmanship. - - t =

The doctrine enunciated at the meeting was not altogether consistent with itself. Mr. Samuel Gurney placed his reliance on " the Christian principle," and the blessing sure to attend upon an implicit trust in God. Mr. Cobden could not join in that absolute reliance, but thought Mr. Gurney's previous declaration, that war will drown the Governments of Europe in irretrievable insolvency, likely to be a great deal more impres- sive. This conflicting view is characteristic of the men ; but it betrays divided councils among the Peace party. Mr. Gurney is more right than his antagonist-colleague; for religions faith is an unquestionable and a potent inflnencein.the world; and it is very properly exercised in favour of peace : in Christian countries, that has always been among the best offices of a clergy. But amen is.of a mixed nature, he is amenable to two great classes of compulsion, the' moral and the physical; in order, therefore, to understand man and to govern him, you must study and duly employ both. Mr. Gurney chooses to ignore the one ;•• and persons like him, of a quasi7clerical turn, may harmlessly, nay beneficially, employ their whole energy in promoting a purely moral or religious influence. Mr. Cobden ignores both kinds, religious influence and physical force, and relies wholly on money;' an idea limited to the day and country— almost to his own class of society. The results of which the Peace missionaries had to boast at this meet- ing were, that France and England are friendly ; and that the Austrian loan has been, not stopped, but somewhat cramped in its market. It seems to be imagined that France and England are friendly because the English members of the Peace Congress went over and sat in Paris. But surely the Governments of France and England had been friendly before that, for some time : Lord Palmerston may at least claim that credit. As to the influence of adverse stockjobbing which Mr. Cobden has brought to bear upon the Austrian loan, it may have the effect of screw- ing additional taxes out of the Austrian subjects to pay a larger discount; but that it has no effect in stopping such loans, is proved by the new ap- pearance of Russia in the money-market.

Is that all the result ? Then why this frequent gathering of Peace missionaries ? M. Bastiat supplies the clue to an answer. He re- minds us that the-same men furnished contingents to the Anti-Slavery Association, 'and to the Anti-Corn-laW League, who now furnish the main body of the Peace movement : and such is indeed the genealogy of the new fraternity. The Anti-Corn-law League is functus officio; the Anti-Slavery body has sunk into oblivion, while the experiment into

which it hurried the Legislature is still in a precarious state, and the slave-trade is as bail as ever. But there is a standing demand for excite- ment to engage well-meaning folks of a serious turn, whose playhouse is- Exeter Hall : to that alone can they go for the equivalent of the melo- drama or farce which entertains profaner classes ; and it is well when they have an entertainment so moral as this Peace agitation, or so use- ful 'ai the Anti-Corn-law, Manchester agitators must also be " keep- ing up the steam." Mr. -Cobden was at Eider Hall in a special capa- city,' for he is not of the trim Pesee,party stamp: He naturally feels an allegiance to' his sovereign the Free-trade public, and is diligent in doing suit and service for his position ; but it is not so easy to hit out a new crusade so he has' taken -up with this Peace project ; having passed from Covent Garden Theatre, as even Mr. Macready might in untoward times, to the Strand.

• The adhesion which the movement receives appears to be of a very limited kind. Mr. Gurney represents that very small section of the banking interest which! wears the broad-brimmed hat ; but he is there quil.;Quaker, not banker. Even =Mr: Cobden cannot draw many Man- chester Sehool•Members of Parliament. The general body of the meeting is simply one of the Exeter.Halt 'audiences, under a new denomination, with a reinforcement froth the unemployed condottiere band of organized agitators. Mr. Cobden has placed the Peace Association at issue with the whole of the press. This lie has done by the very belligerent temper in which he advocates peace: he talks of crumpling up Russia,—which is surely not the way to draw that power into the arbitration plan ; he is unstinted in his braving of "the enemy,"—a military abstraction which represents thosolrom whom he differs, all and sundry ; and he rates the journals for want of " modesty." The Post retorts, that modesty will never be learned:of him ; the Times and Chronicle quiz him ; even the reputed special organ of the Manchester School has let slip the avowal that it is not very solicitous about this Peace business. In this part of the affair Mr. Cobden has made one of his frequent mistakes : lie puts the whole of the press on' the other sidi„and makes the Peace Association a sort of Exeter Hall Cain.

The signs of any influence which the Association may be gaining are null ; and it will have no influence while the true mission indicated by Mr. Gurney is confounded with Mr. Cobden's worldly-interest mancenvre, or the futile attempt to make the_nations lay down their arms at "re- quest of Friends." -