for you the maritime power of Russia, you are indifferent to our
friendship.

'I know nothing myself as to the merits of the Canal. I distrust Lesseps
and everything that he undertakes. He has much talent and too much
activity, but they only lead him and his friends into scrapes. I daresay
that the Canal is one, and that it will ruin its shareholders; but as I
am anxious we should not quarrel with England, I am most anxious that
this silly subject of dispute should be removed.'

'Louis Napoleon,' he continued, 'professed to wish that you should allow
the Sultan to give his consent; but I doubt whether he is sincere. I am
not sure that he is not pleased at seeing the Parisians occupied by
something besides his own doings, especially as it promotes the national
dislike of England. Now that the war is over we want an object. He tries
to give us one by launching us into enormous speculations. He is trying
to make us English; to give us a taste for great and hazardous
undertakings, leading to great gains, great losses, profuse expenditure,
and sudden fortunes and failures. Such things suit _you_; they do not
suit _us_. Our habits are economical and prudent, perhaps timid. We like
the petty commerce of commission and detail, we prefer domestic
manufactures to factories, we like to grow moderately rich by small
profits, small expenditure, and constant accumulation. We hate the
_nouveaux riches_, and scarcely wish to be among them. The progress for
which we wish is political progress--not within, for there we are
satisfied to oscillate, and shall be most happy if in 1860 we find
ourselves where we were in 1820--but without. I believe that our master's
_sortie_ against Belgium was a pilot balloon. He wished to see what
amount of opposition he had to fear from you, and from Belgium, and how
far we should support him. He has found the two former greater than he
expected. I am not sure that he is dissatisfied with the last.'

I spent the morning at H.'s. He too attacked me about the Canal.

'Do entreat,' he said, 'your public men to overrule their ill-conditioned
colleague. I told you a year ago, the mischief that you were doing, but I
do not think that you believed me. You may find too late that I was
right.'

I repeated to him Ellice's opinion that the commerce of England would not
use the canal.

'I have heard that,' he said, 'from Ellice himself, but I differ from
him. I agree with him, indeed, that your sailing vessels