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Tomahawk (1867-1870), 1st May 1869, Edition 1 of 1, Page unpag, No. 104.] LONDON, MA Y 1, 186 9. [Price ...

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    • BELGIUM BE WARE 1
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      The Tomahawk: A Saturday Journal Of Sati...

      THE TOMAHAWK : A SATURDAY JOURNAL OF SATIRE . ; 0 $ irif *& feg % xi \ ux tfgnkttt . o ^—— . —j ^ Lj—^^^^^^^^ % ^ f \ . M — . ^^^^^ VBNHH hH ^^ KMi ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Z ^_^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ BE ^^^^ 2 ^ tfM ^ r " INVITAT CULPAM QUI PECCATUM PRETERIT . "

      No. 104.] London, Ma Y 1, 186 9. [Price ...

      No . 104 . ] LONDON , MA Y 1 , 186 9 . [ Price Twopence .

      Belgium Be Ware 1

      BELGIUM BE WARE 1

      Napoleon The Third Is In Some Respects A...

      Napoleon the Third is in some respects a very unfortunate man . He is possessed with a rabid desire to imitate his great uncle , and the means at his disposal are ridiculously inadequate for his purpose . He succeeds to a certain extent in providing a kind of burlesque imitation , which is as much like the original as a travestie of Hamle t acted by dwarfs would be like the real tragedy . The Mexican Expedition was about as paltry an attempt at foreign conquest as can well be imagined ; the display of valour and ingenuity oh the part of its contriver was small enough j the only great thing about it was the disgrace which resulted from it to the prestige and to the character of the Emperor . The Italian Campaign , to go back a step , was not bad , considering that Louis the Terrible was present in person , and the prizes , Savoy and Nice , were perhaps worth the blood and money expended , at least in the eyes of France . The bid for Luxembourg was a failure ; but the surprising rapidity with which the Emperor yielded to Prussia ' s objections to that little job , almost made Europe forget that it had ever been attempted . The great conqueror apparently does not improve gium with practi is just ce his . To nuttier bully ; but small it must neighb be ouring admitted powers that like there Bel is - something delightfully impudent in the demand addressed to a power upon whose independence the chief European Powers have always laid such stress , that she should give her railways up to France , and so secure for the latter a safe and easy means of transit for her army into Prussian territory in case of war . For this is what Napoleon ' s proposals really the amount Irish to Church . Engrossed , England by seems the immolation to be very of imperfectl that old y offender aware of , the importance of this Belgian difficulty—most people imagining that usual But M , it is . is try Frere a ing mere -Orban to get dispute the and better his about ministry by money very are , unscrupulous in which fortunatel France y means more , as . the wide Emperor -awake , and will if doubtless Belgium , only with maintains his practised her firm courtesy attitude and , pliancy But a , withdraw very different his proposals solution . of the question is possible . last Possible few years , if not , and probable the policy j for which England may ' be s attitude expected during from the the present Ministry—which would indeed lose one of its heads if we went to war—may encourage France to make this quarrel a pretext mi faith ght of be for that open attacking Power to a woul bribe Bel d gium ; interfere neither . It the is for just humanity one possible moment nor that with the Prussia good what

      it might consider its interest . Austria would hardly oppose France , and Russia would probably help her , the ^ prospect of destroying a nationality being always too great a temptation for the gentle Tartar to resist . Our course would be quite plain ; we should remonstrate with France , we should tell her she was very naughty , we might go so far as to threaten that in certain events we should think it necessary to enforce our remonstrances , which means that we should send half-a-dozen gunboats to Margate as a naval " corps of observation "; we should also condole with Belgium , and after France had eaten that unfortunate little kingdom , Lord Russell might be called in to try and scold the Emperor into a fit of indigestion . TMs is about the most serious opposition that could reasonably be expected from England by so astute an observer of passing events as Napoleon III ., so that if he choose to redeem his " prestige , " which is certainly a little out of repair , and remind the French army whose nephew he really is , by making " les braves Beiges " food for their Chassepots , there is nothing to prevent him , as far as we can see . It is as well that the noble consumer of tobacco who presides at the Foreign Office should make up his mind , or rather get the Cabinet to make it up for him , as to how far he intends to proceed in this affair . It is utterly useless offering our mediation between Belgium and France , because , though the former may love us , she cannot trust us ; and the latter neither loves nor fears us . If we are not prepared to support our award with something more than diplomatic correspondence , we had better consider that we have made ourselves quite contemptible enough in the eyes of Europe during the last ten years . Let us trust that if we are to have a Peace at any price policy it may be at any price except ridicule and dishonour . Whether the desperate game that Louis Napoleon has played all his life will end ultimately in an European war we cannot say . If it does we may depend upon it that the war will be a long and a bloody one . It may not affect the price of cotton goods , and British trade may be none the worse for it ; " let them fight , they won't meddle with us if we don't with them , " may be the wisest and best spirit in which to view such a contest . So let us hold our tongues , and watch the hero of Magenta bullying little Belgium with polite indifference . Only if it does come to blows , do not let us pretend that we never could have guessed such a thing would happen , and that " if we had only been prepared , & c , & c . " Perhaps , after all , Belgium will yield this point in dispute without a struggle , and consent to be the high road for the French army to march by into Prussia , feeling comfortably satisfied that they will be marching to certain destruction .

  • Citation
    • Tomahawk (1867-1870), May 1, 1869, page unpag, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/t/issues/ttw_01051869/page/3/