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 IX THE WAR AGAINST RUSSIA. 77 which carefully distinj^aiislied the posture of chap. France and England from that of the four Powers. 1_ The Queen was advised to say : ' I have continued ' of the French ; and my endeavours in conjunc- ' tion with my Allies to preserve and to restore ' peace between the contending parties, although ' hitherto unsuccesrsful, have been unremitting.' Like the similar paragraph which had marked The erring 111 /.I T Jiolicy which the Royal Speech at the close of the preceding it indicated, 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 West- ern 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 so closely were her views approved by Prussia, Austria that althouoh for several months France and Eng- approval of 11111 • • 1-1 i''"ussia)to land had been pressing forward in a way which n<i the r o J Principali- seemed to endanger the coherence of the quad- ties of ^ _ ^ Russian ruple union, still even this dangerous course had troops. 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 Eng- land was be^innins to love the thoufjht of war for
 * to act in cordial co-operation with the Emperor