Note 223 — Chapter XV

The motion was as follows:—“That an humble address be presented to her Majesty, praying that she will be graciously pleased to enter into negotiations with the Emperor of the French with the view of making a Treaty for the reciprocal abrogation of all discriminating duties levied upon the vessels and their cargoes of either of the two nations in the ports of the other; and for procuring such alterations in the Navigation Laws of France as may tend to facilitate the commercial intercourse, and strengthen the friendly relations between England and France.”—See ‘Hansard’s Reports’ (March 29, 1860), vol. clvii. pp. 1528 to 1553.

Having prepared and carried this resolution, I had frequently occasion to correspond and converse with Mr. Cobden on the subject, who said that the labour in connection with the Commercial Treaty was so immense, that it would have been impossible to embrace the question of navigation. Indeed, he observed that he, alone, never could have got through with its numerous details, had it not been for the valuable assistance rendered by Mr. (now Sir Lewis) Mallet, who, at that time attached to the Board of Trade, accompanied him on his mission. I can also state of my own knowledge that the services of Mr. Mallet during the subsequent inquiry into the French Navigation Laws were of the greatest importance. With regard to the Commercial Treaty itself, there can be no doubt that, if the Legislatures of England and France, of their own free will, had adopted measures to allow the people of the respective countries to exchange their produce and manufactures free from all duties, except such as were required for the revenue, it would have been much preferable to the system of “bargaining” which Treaties invariably entail; but, unfortunately, all nations do not yet see that, if a principle is sound, it must be beneficial wherever it is applied, and, as they are still prone to set up their own laws in opposition to the laws of nature, no step in advance could have been made at that time, so far as France was concerned, without a Treaty. On the other hand, I have frequently heard objections raised to the Treaty because France was the larger gainer; its opponents said, to use a homely phrase, that the French people got 9d., while we got only 3d. out of the shilling. I offer no opinion on this point, but even if such were the case, we are 3d. better off than we should have been had no Treaty been made, and why therefore should we cavil against it?