rty admirers, and
to utter on October 7, 1862, in the course of a general speech, a comment
upon American affairs that was to vex him to the end of his life. Said he:

"We know quite well that the people of the North have not yet drunk
of the cup,--they are still trying to hold it far from their
lips,--which, all the rest of the world see, they, nevertheless, must
drink of. We may have our own opinions about slavery; we may be for
or against the South; but there is no doubt that Jefferson Davis and
other leaders of the South have made an army; they are making, it
appears, a navy; and they have made,--what is more than either,--they
have made a nation. We may anticipate with certainty the success of
the Southern States, so far as their separation from the North is
concerned."

It is difficult to exaggerate the profound sensation that this passage in
Gladstone's speech made in the United Kingdom, on the Continent, and in
the United States. There was no escaping its significance. It meant that
the British Government was on the point of recognizing the independence of
the South, and such an act must have led to war between Great Britain and
the United States. Aware of the sentiment that pervaded the Cabinet,
Minister Adams had sought explicit instructions from the United States
State Department, which instructions had come in unequivocal terms in a
letter from Secretary Seward. Mr. Seward wrote:

"If contrary to our expectations, the British Government, either
alone or in combination with any other Government, should acknowledge
the insurgents, while you are remaining without further instructions
from this Government concerning that event, you will immediately
suspend the exercise of your functions.... I have now, in behalf of
the United States, and by the authority of their Chief Executive
Magistrate, performed an important duty. Its possible consequences
have been weighed and its solemnity is therefore felt and freely
acknowledged. This duty has brought us to meet and confront the
danger of a war with Great Britain and other States allied with the
insurgents who are in arms for the overthrow of the American Union.
You will perceive that we have approached the contemplation of that
crisis with the caution that great reluctance has inspired. But I
trust that you will also have perceived that the crisis ha