Chapter 561： Bitter 1 Bitter America

When Palmerston read the entire report with the mentality of eating melons, a touch of anger and helplessness appeared on his face.

The article was sparked by the information received on the weak attitude of the British kingdom towards the United States of America, and the national frenzy, which had just been ignited by Palmerston and had not yet been completely burned, "represented" the citizens of Britain (here refers to the payment of this part of the tax) challenged the British Cabinet.

By questioning why the Kingdom of Britain should compromise with the United States of America, it is derived whether there is a lobby group in Britain that accepts the United States of America dollars and serves the interests of the United States of America.

(Although Palmerston himself did receive a portion of the bribe from the United States of America, he dared to touch his conscience to assure himself that he had done no harm to Britain's interests.)

At the end of the article, The Times called on Palmerston to thoroughly investigate the "traitors", "traitors" and "50w pounds" within the British kingdom, and return a harmonious environment to the British people.

Although every word in the article does not refer to the British Cabinet and Palmerston, every sentence reveals that it is Palmerston who is the protagonist who is acting as a compromise with the United States of America.

Where is this letter written to him, clearly wanting to put him on the fire to roast the torture tool.

Palmerston understood that, after the publication of this article in The Times, he probably could no longer take a step back toward the United States of America.

Once Palmerston chooses to back down from the United States of America, it is bound to set off a wave in the field of newspapers.

Palmerston, who is at the center of the wave, is likely to be completely engulfed by the wave of public opinion. At that time, Palmerston may face the risk of the end of his political life.

Death was not the most terrible thing for Palmerston, but the end of his political life was the hardest thing for him to accept.

In order not to end his political life, Palmerston decided to do something.

Just as Palmerston was about to call his private secretary in front of him, when he gave him an order, his private secretary pushed open the door and walked in.

"Just in time for you!" Palmerston replied to the private secretary.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, what are your orders!" The private secretary hurriedly asked.

"Go to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs immediately and call Earl of Clarendon over!" Palmerston ordered the private secretary: "Just say, I have something to discuss with him! Let him come right away!"

"Your Excellency, Prime Minister, I'm about to report to you!" The private secretary responded to Palmerston without end.

"Report what?" Palmerston looked at the private secretary suspiciously.

"The Earl of Clarendon is waiting outside the door now!" the private secretary explained immediately, before adding: "He said he also had something important to discuss with you!"

"Mod he saw this report in The Times too?" Palmerston muttered subconsciously.

Since the distance between Palmerston and the private secretary is about 5 or 6 meters, and Palmerston's voice was a little low just now, the private secretary did not understand what Palmerston said. He hurriedly asked, "Prime Minister, what did you say?"

"It's nothing!" Palmerston shook his head, then waved at the private secretary: "Go and call Earl Clarendon!"

"Yes!" The private secretary, who heard Palmerston's order, turned and left.

After a while, the Earl of Clarendon, the British foreign secretary, appeared before Palmerston with a document in his hand.

"Prime Minister Palmerston!" The Earl of Clarendon bowed slightly to Palmerston to show respect for the position of Prime Minister.

"Secretary Villiers (name of the Earl of Clarendon), sit down!" Palmerston invited the Earl of Clarendon to sit down.

Then he ordered the private secretary sitting near the gate: "Please bring me two cups of black tea!"

"Yes!" The private secretary who had just sat down had to stand up from his chair and make tea for Palmerston and Villiers.

"Villiers, what is your business with me?" Palmerston asked Earl Clarendon while the private secretary was leaving.

"It's such a Prime Minister!" Earl Clarendon handed the document to Prime Minister Palmerston and explained the contents of the document to Prime Minister Palmerston: "Just last night, our Foreign Office received a letter from Cowley. The ambassador's telegram...the telegram is at the top of the file!"

"Ambassador Cowley?" Palmerston repeated, then asked, "Did something happen to the French Empire?"

"That's right!" The Earl of Clarendon said to Palmerston with a wry smile: "Ambassador Cowley said in his telegram that just last night, the Emperor of France held a gala ball at the Tuileries Palace. ambassadors, politicians and armies.

During the ball, Ambassador Cowley was individually summoned by the Emperor of France.

The Emperor told him that negotiations between the French Empire and the United States of America had broken down. "

"What?" Palmers was surprised, and hurriedly asked, "How did the negotiation break down!"

"This ambassador Cowley did not discuss in detail in the telegram! However, the French emperor's attitude towards the United States of America is very tough!" Earl Clarendon said to Palmerston.

"So the French Empire wants our help?" Palmerston asked the Earl of Clarendon.

"The French Empire hopes that we can stand with them and boycott the United States of America!" Count Clarendon replied.

"Boycott the United States of America?" Palmerston repeated, his expression slightly unnatural.

"That's right!" Earl Clarendon replied to Palmerston, nodding suspiciously.

"This is really a coincidence!" Palmerston said to himself with a stunned expression.

"Your Excellency, what is the coincidence? I can't understand a word!" Earl Clarendon asked Palmerston.

"Look at this!" Palmerston put The Times in front of Clarendon and said to Clarendon, "Just look at the front page content!"

Clarendon picked up the newspaper and immersed himself in reading it. After a while, he raised his head again and responded to Palmerston: "This is too coincidental!"

"I'm right!" Palmerston talked back to Clarendon.

"Your Excellency Prime Minister, in my opinion, the Times and the French Empire may seem to have some tricks and troubles..." Clarendon offered his opinion to Palmerston.

"It's not ruled out!" Palmerston nodded in agreement with Clarendon's guess, and then added: "However, it also doesn't rule out that The Times got it through some money-seeking guys within us. This news!"

As the big brother of the British newspaper industry, how can The Times not have any secret channels.

According to Palmerston's knowledge of The Times and British politics, there are many public officials in the government who are on good terms with the editor-in-chief of The Times. They provide The Times with high-quality contacts, and the Times needs to pay them a generous sum of money. remuneration.

In this "win-win" mode, The Times got news faster than him, the prime minister.

After all, the characteristic of bureaucracy is that it is passed down level by level, and by the time the news reaches him, he does not know how much time has passed.

[PS: During the Crimean War in history, The Times relied on professional war correspondents and perfect information channels, so that they could always get news half a step from the government.

This also led to the state, number and mental outlook of the Kingdom of Britain on the Crimean Peninsula, all of which were shaken by The Times, and Nicholas I, who was far away in St. strategy, so much so that Commander Raglan scolded The Times for "treason". 】

"However, this is not the time to discuss where The Times got this news! Whether it's to appease the British citizens, or to win over the French Empire! In short, we must act!" Palmerston said. The Earl of Clarendon dropped by.

"Your Excellency, what do you mean?" Clarendon asked.

"Reject the request of the United States of America! At the same time urge the United States of America to strictly observe neutrality!" Palmerston said to the Earl of Clarendon.

"What if the United States of America is unwilling to accept it?" asked the Earl of Clarendon.

"Trust me! They'll take it!" Palmerston responded confidently to the Earl of Clarendon, who knew the Americans too well.

"Yes!" Clarendon obeyed Palmerston's order.

...

When the Earl of Clarendon returned to the Foreign Office, he immediately summoned James Buchanan, the ambassador of the Kingdom of Great Britain to the United States of America, and the future fifteenth President of the United States of America. condition!"

"Your Excellency Count I remember you told me a few days ago that as long as we can strictly abide by the neutrality treaty, your country will not seize our ships. It has only been a few days, you guys Why did you suddenly continue to change your mind!" James Buchanan asked Earl Clarendon loudly.

Even an Anglophile, he was incensed by Britain's fickle foreign policy.

On the front foot, he assured Washington that the problem would be solved as soon as possible, and on the back foot, the British Kingdom gave him a wave of backstabs.

"Mr. Ambassador, I didn't give you a clear promise, and we didn't sign any agreement. I said it was possible!" Clarendon emphasized, and then defended: "The international situation itself is more complicated and changeable. Sometimes we have to take into account the interests of other countries!"

"Your Excellency Count, did you mean the French Empire when talking about other countries!" The American ambassador asked Count Clarendon again.

"Forgive me for not being able to answer this question!" Earl Clarendon refused to answer James Buchanan.