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which carefully distinguished the posture of chap. France and England from that of the four Powers. The Queen was advised to say : 'I have continued to act in cordial co-operation with the Emperor of the French; and my endeavours in conjunction with my Allies to preserve and to restore peace between the contending parties, although hitherto unsuccesrsful, have been unremitting.'

The erring policy which it indicated. Like the similar paragraph which had marked the Royal Speech at the close of the preceding session, this phrase, strange as it was, gave a true though somewhat dim glimpse of the policy which was leading England astray. In principle she was marching along with all the rest of the four Powers, and yet all the while she was engaged with the French Emperor in a separate course of action. If the aims of Austria and Prussia had been seriously at variance with those of the Western Powers, this difference might have been a good reason for separate action on the part of France and England. But the contrary was true. So deep was the interest of Austria in the cause, and Unswerving resolve of Austria approval of Purissa) to rid the Principalities of Russian troops. so closely were her views approved by Prussia, that although for several months France and England had been pressing forward in a way which seemed to endanger the coherence of the quadruple union, still even this dangerous course had hitherto failed to destroy the unanimity of the four Powers. If the French Emperor sought to use his alliance with England as a means of strengthening his hold over France, and if England was beginning to love the thought of war for