The first foreign speech made by President Johnson is decidedly
favourable to this country. He received the Diplomatic Corps on the 20th April, and Sir F. Bruce expressed with undiplomatic cordiality the hearty good wishes of Her Majesty for the welfare of the Union. Mr. Johnson, in reply, expressed his pleasure at these assurances, and remarked that the constant intercourse between America and Great Britain, their use of the same language, and their devotion to the same pursuits, increased the possibility alike of alliance and misunderstanding. "Each is charged with the development of the progress and liberty of a considerable portion of the American race. Each, in its sphere, is subject to difficulties and trials not participated in by the other. The interests of civilization and of humanity require that the two should be friends." For himself, he had always held that friendship from the United States to Great Britain was enjoined by all considerations of interest and sentiment. Justice consequently will be done in England to President Johnson.
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