The Express. — London, England, 1853-03-31 00:00:00

Alt erantoo. Ti' COUItka3PUNDC4II/1. I Nem! Milks " The Mourn." tuatiuUse -; • was Widnes " Gautls," to br.1:54011 'gory Tood•y Yr.e.sy MO; h• tia• ler POOL LiWI t.AINISt. AMA*. tar "TL /6.lprir." Lcodes Events paw, . .f • at t. ') ...XS% 14 11• . •••ritstrept. by Too ceolusit vs tie MOH WATKR AT LONDON BRIDOIL Tut. D.- —3‘...truair. fl. tea. .Af•rnio.A. "' 31 ' lc.+mum—Mut:gag. Tau 75.. /MOWN!. 71. Cs. LONDON. THURSDAY. MARCH 31. move for Cr .missions to inquire further into corrupt practices in these boroughs respectively, and thin the writs be in each case suspended until a given di • • ue may be afforded for the completion of sue.. ioquisitions. Supposing the House of Com mons to agree to such motions, and the House of Lords to interpose no veto, a certain amount of useful exposure will be doubtless obtained, and possibly a 1 considerable number of delinquents may be struck off the reter of voters. In times of general impu nity for pol itical g crimes, like those we have the for- 1 tune to live in, the smallest contribution to justice may be thankfully received ; but that such a contri- 1 button as that we hare alluded to is of the smallest and most insignificant sort, compared with the mag nitude of the evil requiring to be dealt with, few will venture to deny. Petitions &fleeting the title of more than a fourth of the whole House of Commons were presented last November. Of these not a few were cushioned in limine by the capricious and illegal decisions of the examiner of recognisances. Into any of the facts set forth in these, therefore, no inquiry whatever has been made. The bribed remain unexposed, the bribers sit and vote unpunished, and the House of Commons care for none of these things. Next come whole batches of cases that have been compro mised. There is as little mistake about these as about the former. With equal disregard to right or justice, the latter have been struck out of the list by agreement between the two subterranean Com mittees, presided over by BROWN, COPPOCK, and Co. Nothing more is heard of them. Honest electors overborne by the corrupt—rightful claimants of seats refused a hearing: such is the luck of the lottery held in Pall-mall, and if anybody expostulates, or seeks a reason, he is asked with a sneer, "Why did .you play, if you care so much to lose ?" As for the public interests involved in the matter, they ere not so much as thought of; or if alluded to by some one as yet uninitiated in the plundering arts of the Whig and Tory hazard table, the - :attention oily provokes a stare rand a laugh. The crimps for this game, which the oligarchs play for their own amusement and benefit, know well that all threats of denunciation like those of Mr. DeNeosene, or of exposure like those of Mr. LOCKE KING, arc practically vain. The privileged gamblers are the privileged judges in all cases involving the guilt of gambling. The esprit de corps is strong amongst them, and if there is one point on which they are uniformly unanimous, it is the expediency of getting rid of every case that is possible without the We agreinens of a public investigation. Hence the futi lity of the recent inquiry into the first batch of com promises before the 'Norwich Committee, and hence the effrontery with which a second batch has sqbse quently been announced. Twenty seats impugned in last November for having been obtained by corrupt practices, have thus with barefaced impudence been already bartered away, and how many more will be so before Whitsuntide Messrs. COPPOCK and Belows only know. Verily the constituency must be fit only for disfranchisement which will hereafter, put itself in the hands of such worthies. IT is averred in certain quarters that the Kaffir war is at an end. Some more cautious persons say, more guardedly, " virtual'y at an end." It may be that SANDIII.I. and Niscomo, and Mosnr..su may de- Mat from lighting fur soinc time to come; but what is there in the strte of atfairs represented in the moist recent arrivals from the Car to prove that South Africa is, or is on the eve of, being permanently pacified and tranquillised ? What is . there to prove that the gas eminent of our dependencies there will in future be less a source of embarrassment and expense to the mother country than in time past? The intimation made by the Kaffir chiefs who have been actually engaged in hostilities against us is noire enum4h. SANDILLI and Co. send word to Governor CATHCART that they are dead beat—that they are tired of fighting, and that they have crossed the Kei—the preliminary condition upon which alone he would consent to treat with them. That their atnraunition is exhausted, that their tribes long for repose, is highly prehable. The chiefs therefore wish fur peace at this moment on any terms. But they wish for peace merely to recruit their finances and restore the courage of their followers. What guarantee have we in such dispositions that the periodical "Kaffir war" will not revisit the cutesy after the customary lapse of five or six years, as it has done ever since the first settlement of .Übany ? With the actually belligerent chiefs there has as yet been no arrangement : only an offer on their part to treat. With KitEthr " the eluivocal," on the other hand—the Lord LOVAT of Kaffirland a solemn treaty hal been concluded. We do not recollect at present how many treaties have been concluded with this chief and his predecessors, and violated, or said to have bee n violated, by them. What reason is , 1 there to believe that the present will be more permanently and effectually binding for the pre servation of peace and order than all that have, gone before it? The first article of the treaty is as mouthing a piece of inanity as can well be conceived. It is stipulated, " that the said chief KREILI shall remain in all things true and faithful to his engagements." This vague abstraction means nothing, and can bind to nothing. The other articles are simply the same as those which have again and again been solemnly ratified in former treaties, and found unavailing to preserve peace between the Kaffir and the white man for longer average intervals than five or six years. It is not upon the present disposition of the belli gerent chiefs to desist from fighting ; it is not upon treaties and stipulCions with them, or the more in sidious and dangerous neutrals, that we can reason ably rely for the maintenance of tranquillity in South Africa. It is to the adoption of a sagacious policy by Government, and to tho selection of public servants capable of understanding and car rying into effect such a policy, that we can alone look for so desirable a consummation. A ells pusionate review of the measures which Governor CATHCART proposes to adopt for the maintenance of future tranquillity on the Kaffir frontier does not certainly produce an impression favour able to their adequacy. Forts are to be established along the frontier, each surrounded by settlements of colonists able and willing to use arms for repeliing aggression, and supported by strong bodies of regular troops in the background. The terms offered to the expected settlers of these military fron tier colonies are not likely to prove attractive. They are promised ground for a house and garden each at a moderate . quit rent. The ground is not to ex ceed the sue of a garden, and is to be held during " good behaviour." Leases of moderate allowances of pasture ground are promised, but the terms not precisely announced. And these churlish and petty offers are made subject to a condition that the Imperial Government may upset the whole arrangement upon compensating the settlers. No man above beggary or able to work for the average wages in the colony will accept of such an offer. By making it Governor CATHCART only shows his groan ignorance of the principles of colonisation in general and of the condition and temper of the South African colonists in particular. The feudal frontier militia he dreams of creating will never exist. His forts and regular soldiers can be all he will have to rely upon, and he admits that they.—even if assisted and eked out by the militia of his dreams,—will cost enough to keep our frontier expenditure in peace nearly on a level with what it has been during the war. While such visionary schemes are gravely propounded in Govern ment proclamations, and ' , chile men capable of entertaining them hold the reins of government, the prospects of peace and order being permanently established on the eastern frontier of the Cape Colony are extremely faint; the prospects of cackling from a local expenditure in peace as great as in war still more indistinct. Lastly we come to the cases where it is proposed that Commissions should be issued. They are in number exactly five, and this is the net result,—the total gleaning of the wide field of iniquity which has lain for so many weeks before the public eye. The House of Lords are to be asked permission in five cases to have a little more inquiry made upon the spot. They may refuse or they may not. It signifies little. In Canterbury and Cambridge, where the corruption, it is said, was confined to some two or three hundre d: persons, the inquiries may be completed within a reasonable time, the rotten branches cut off, and the honest electors be permitted again to decide upon who shall represent them, but in cases like Maldon and Clitheroe, the pro posed Commissions are no better than a burlesque upon justice. Every one knows that neither the one nor the other has any pretension to the peculiar right of sending members to Parliament. Had Minis ters redeemed their hustings pledge by bringing in a further Reform Bill this session, small and corrupt boroughs like Clitheroe and Malden would ere this have figured in Schedule A,—the only constitutional list in which they deserve to appear. It is little better than mockery to hold a solemn debate upon each, first in the Commons, and then in the Lords, and then in the Painted Chamber, as to whether the , Crown should be requested to authorise a judicial in quiry to be holden in the aforesaid places touching and concerning the number of uncorrupt electors that still may . be found therein. Be the finding of such Commission what it may, the public well know that neither the one nor the other are entitled to enjoy . for a single day longer the responsible privi lege in question; while great sections of the cities and numerous untainted towns remain wholly and altoge ther nnenfranchised. There remains the case of Hull, in which a Commission may do some good, and in which, therefore, we hope it may be issued. But, if it be true, as there is reason to sup pose, that little short of one thousand electors were there tampered with, either in the form of treating or bribery, we should like to knew how it is pos sible to conceive any system much more unsatisfac tory than one whose only result will be to reduce the constituency of a great commercial entreptit at one stroke some twenty or five-and-twenty per cent. Barely, if so great a proportion of the constituency of Hull deserve disfranchisement, at least an equal number of pure and upright voters ought simulta neously to be added to the body. Mere amputation will not do. The electoral numbers are already in most instances too small, and the selfish interests of our Parliamentary oligarchy too obviously lie in their diminution and contraction to render it safe or decent for them to pursue the work of excision, un accompanied by that of more than corresponding addition. We would not retain upon the register • single individual convicted of having been bribed, but we must contend for it, that the duty of prose cuting, convicting, and punishing such an individual does not properly or fitly belong to the Lejsislature. Bribery is either an offence against the public or it is nothing. If it be, why not deal with it as all other offences are dealt with, by the public tribunals of the land? Why not confer jurisdiction in this, as in scores of less harmful ours, upon the subordinate tribunals —as we have often urged there should be, and as we perceive Mr. Pamir intends to suggest, by renewing • Bill for the purpose which was rejected list session ? Let the County Courts be enabled to try actions for penalties for bribery to the extent of the pecuniary jurisdiction, that is to say, to the amount of fifty pounds for each offence—such penalty not to go to the informer, but opening the way for honest politi cians to do, without discredit or imputation, the work of cleansing& constituency from its impure voters. Or, if the concession of this power to such tribunals be ob jected to, why not pass a short act constituting the gift or the receipt of a bribe a common misdemeanor, and rendering it punishable u such? To set the ATTORNEY-GENERAL to prosecute in cases of the kind is not merely absurd—it is abortive. The object ought to be to stigmatise and degrade, not to dignify such offences. But suppose the present Kaffir war--since these border forays of rival cattle stealers are to be called wars—at an end ; are we therefore nearer the pacifica tion of South Africa, and establishment of order there ? Can the troubles with Mosur-sit and other chiefs is the Orange River Sovereignty be regarded se finally terminated? What is to be done in the matter of the insurgent Hottentots? How are the *Amids to be pacified for the tante being process to which they are still subjected, of having a " constitution" held up before their eyes which still slips through their fingers when they attempt to clutch it ? What will be the effect upon men thus kept in a state of permanent excitement and irritation in sight of the concession of inde pendence to the emigrant Boers The truth is that the whole society of South Africa, from the most western point of the Cape Colony to the most eastern of Natal, and from the most southern point of the African con tinent to the most northerly station of missionaries or emigrant Boers, is replete with germs of tria ble. and dissensions, which the heated atmosphere engendered by mother-country mismanagement, sti mulates to a precocious and gigantic development. The Kaffir war, as it is called, is but an insignificant drop in this black and seething ocean. The reckless and unchecked intrigues of local officials defraud the colonists of their constitutional rights, obstruct the legitimate working of Governments, and engender and diffuse disaffection to the mother-country. The concession of independence to the emi rant Boers was palpably made under the influence of panic. The claim of sovereignty ought never to have been expressly made or ex pressly relinquished. The Boers were de facto inde pendent as soon as they crossed our frontier ; but as settlement extended their stations would have been surrounded by those of the colonists, and had the colony been well governed, the Boers would gradu ally have re-entered the society from which they broke loom. A braggadocio asserticn of a right of sovereignty over them, which could not be enforced at a time when the British authorities thought them selves strong, followed by the surrender of the claim in a moment of panic, has spread through the whole of South Africa a persuasion of the weak ness of the British Government as against its inha bitants that may encourage the colonists to assert for themselves the independence conceded to the emi grant Boers. Lastly, the Hottentot insurrection is the commencement of a war of races, for the renewal and perpetuation of which ample materials will long exist throughout the whole of that wide region of South Africa within which European settlement has already struck root. They who imagine they see in the present state of affairs on the eastern frontier of the Cape Colony a termination of the embarrassing and costly South African question are of the short sighted race who "cry peace, peace, when there is no peace." A N 1.1111,1 of notices of =oleo, regarding elee tions, a! taut on the becks of tl.e 116 usu nl Common..., for di3-..ursi,m after the holidays. 1 he the various Committees, who th e me l abers f o r Canterbury, Clitheroc, M by don, Cambridge, and Hull, have already been unser.cd, have undettaktn to LARG e ROBBERY.—A robbery which shows how far is age from always bringing discretion was effected on Mon day last in the City. A Mr. Gale, of Somers-town, for merly captain of a merchant ship, and now a shipowner, was in the City about the middle of the day, with 2161. in his possession, principally in Bank of England notes, which he had just received. He was accosted by a well dressed plausible man, who made himself so agreeable that a visit to a tavern was proposed and accepted. Wine was called for, and after shipping, emigration, and other sub jects had been introduced, another fellow, a confederate of the first comer, made his appearance, and joined their company. Captain Gale made known to his companions that he was possessed of plenty of money, of which no doubt they were well acquainted before, and the time passed very agreeably until another of the gang came in, and had re course to the well-worn expedient of boasting that he had lately become possessed of a good deal of money by the death of a very wealthy relative, to which he added that he intended to give 1001. to the poor of any parish in England and would entrust Captain Gale with the distribution of the charitable gift, if he could produce su ffi cient money to convinellbini he was a respectable man. The bait took, and Captain Gale displayed his cash, upon which one of the sharpers advised him to be very cautious, and said them were a gnat many rogues in London, and that it was very dangerous to display money: a truism of which the Cap tain was afterwards fully made sensible. One of the fellows, under the pretence of wrapping up the money and stowing it safely away in the Oiptain's pocket, substituted flash notes. Soon afterwards the foolish man found himself alone, his agreeable companions haying disappeared one by one. The police of the II division have been in search of the sharpers, of whom they have not yet discovered any trace, and there is no doubt Captain Gale's money is irrecoverably lost. ELECT:ON FOR VESTRY CLERK, CLERKLNWELL.— Yesterday this ticction was carried on with great ,picit, and the following were the numbers at the close of the poll —Wakeling, 498 ; March, 43.5 ; majority for Wakeling, 63. The poll will not open to-day, but will be resumed on Friday and Saturday. THE EXPRESS, THURSDAY EVENING, MARCH 31, 1853. FRANCE. PARIS, WIDNRBDAY EVENING. A telegraphic despatch from Berlin, dated the 29th of March, states that forty persona have been ar rested, and domiciliary visits made to the houses of eighty persons suspected of participation in a conspi racy. Arms and ammunition were discovered and secured by the police. The Emperor of Russia has issued an ukase prohi biting Jews from representing Christian houses of trade. Children of traders of the third chum are also prohibited from entering schools established for the children of traders of the first and second classes. The Emperor yesterday gave an audience at the Tuileries to a deputation of the English company for the junction of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. The deputation consisted of the following gentlemen, of whom the three first have obtained a concession of the enterprise : Sir C. Fox, Hart., head of the firm Fox, Henderson, and Co.; Mr. T. Brassey, contractor for the works; Dr. Cullen, who discovered the route adopted; Mr. Gisborne, chief engineer of the company; Mr. Forde, assistant-engineer ; Mr. Brownell, merchant of Liverpool; Mr. W. Ha milton, ex-M.P., and member of th e R oya l Geogra phical Society ; Captain Mackinnon, R.N.; M. de Ri vero Charge d'Affaires of l'eru in F rance; M.R o j as, Cha;ge d'Affairs of New Grenada in France; Mr. J. R. Crampton, engineer of the submarine telegraph; Mr. C. S. Stokes, director of the Western Railway' in France; Mr. Melville Wilson, merchant of Lon don ; and Dr. Black, secretary of the con•pany.—Sir C. Fox, president of the deputation, adiressed the Emperor as follows : Sire,—ln approaching your august throne, my first duty is to tender to your Imperial Majesty the cordial expression of the respecttul gratitude of the directors of the Atlantic and Pacifi.z. Junction Company, for the prompt kindness with which your Majesty has condescended to grant an audience to their deputation. The rapid increase of commer cial navigation round Cope Horn has now for some years attracted the practical attention of men of business to that which bad previously been considered& merely speculative object of scientific inquiry, -1 mean the stecesefty for a direct passage for ships between the Atlantic sad Pacific. Oceans amuse the Isthmus which unites North and South America. In the year 18.51 my attention was directed by Dr. Callen, who had himself traversed the Isthmus, to the route across Darien, between Port Emus and San Mi guel, which his experience had led him to consider the best. On examining the Admiralty charts, which, es your Impe rial Majesty is well aware, are very detailed and accurate, I was able to ascertain that the line proposed to me was the only one which could enjoy the advantage of a sufficient natural harbour at each end—that the length of the passage would not exceed 60 kilometres, and that the only questieu to be decided was whether the engineering difficulties of the ground were such as to prevent, within the limits of a reasonable expenditure the construction a &chancel of suffi cient width and depth to satisfy the requirements of all cations. In conjunction, therefore, with Mr. Brassey and several friends I commissioned Mr. Gisborne and Mr. Fade, civil engineers, to examine the Isthmus, and I have had the satisfaction to ascertain from their report that it is perfectly possible to cut a channel, 160 feet wide and i 0 feet deep, without locks, between the two harbours which I have mentioned, at an expense by no means out of proportion to tho object to be attained and to the revenue which may rea sonably be expected. We have accordingly formed a com pany to earry out this object. At the outset of our investi gations, and an soon as we had obtained the necessary concession from the local authority of New Granada, we deemed it right, as a matter of courtesy, to offer to the I.lnited States a share in the undertaking. We have throughout received the cordial approlation of her Britannic Majesty's government. Our next sfep is, with the full consent of that government, to solicit the patronage and support of your Imperial Majesty. France, as one of the great maritime powers has an evident Interest in this groat question of a junction between the two Oceans. France, who owes so much to your Imperial Maje-ty will, we believe, be grateful to you, Sire, for granting your Im perial countenance and support to our undertaking. And in the name of this deputation and of the company whom we have the honour to represent, I venture to hope for this support with perfect confidence, because we know that your Imperial Majesty, not only as the chief of tl.is great nation, but also by your personal knowledge of the subject, is pre eminently qualified to appreciate the object which we have in view, and the means which we have adopted. The Emperor replied in English as follows: Gentlemen—l received with the liveliest interest the in telligence of the formation of a great company for the junction of the two oceans. I have no doubt that you will succeed in an undertaking which must render so im portant a service to the commerce of the whole world, since such eminent men are placed at the head of your com pany. I have long appreciated all the advantages of a junction between the two seas ; and, when I was in England I endeavoured to draw the attention of scientific men to this subject. You may, therefore, rest assured, gentlemen, that you will meet with all the support from me, which such noble efforts deserve. The company's reports, plans, and maps, were then laid before the Emperor, VLho examined them with particular attention. Sir Charles Fox presented the member, of the deputation, and his Majesty addressed to each of them the most gracious expressions. When the deputation withdrew, the Emperor said : I am happy to have seen your honourable deputation the very day after having received the one which, on the part of the merchants of Loudon, expressed to mo the most friendly sentiments in favour of peace—sentimonts with which my own feelings have always beon in complete accord. The letters brought from Constantinople by the Egyptus are not expected to be delivered till late this evening. The assertion made yesterday that she has brought no news appear, to be founded only noon this, that no intelligence of any importance biaring upon the Turkish question is known to have been received either by the French government or the Ottoman embassy. Ooe of the rumours from the east that have been circulated to-day, in the absence of any positive news, is that Persia has broken off diplomatic intercourse with England, and implored the protection of Russia. Closing prices at the Bourse.—For cash : Three per Cents, 79f. 23c.; Four-and-a-Half per Cents., 103 t For the account: Three per Cents., 79f. 30c.• Four-and-a-Half per Cents., 103 f. 10c. Bank Sto ck, 2,335. Latest qUtitions received to-day by telegraph— ' Frankfort : Loan, Austrian Five per Cents, 97 ; Ditto Four-and-a-Half per Cents, 77/; Ditto Three per Cents, 521; Bank, 1,544 ; Spanish Three per Cents, 431; Belgian Bank Four-and-a-Half per Cents, 991. l ifienna : New Loan, 941; Loan 1851, 107 ; Lom bardo-Venetian, 1001 ; Bank, 1,420. Amsterdam : I llipanish Three per Cont. Int., 43 15-16 ; Amos nat, 5 15-16. Berlin: Loan, Five per Cent, 1011; Oblig. Three-and-u Half per Cents, 92/ ; Bank, 1081; Russian Four-and-a-Half per Cents, twit. PARIS, TUESDAY ETZNING. The government journals continue to glory in the 'face of the budget being presented with a surplits, the credit of which wonderful achievement they justly attribute to a strong e ff ort of the Emperor's will. It will, however, be impossible, until and unless the Corps Legialatif shall seriously and publicly dis ease the composition of the budget, to know how far it ean be relied upon u a fair index of the financial situation. A schoolboy, when he wants a fine day a holiday, often screws up the barometer to " set fair," but the weather unfortunately remains unaf fected by the operation. The Siecle ventures upon the following mild criticism of the P.rposf des notsla : We have already gives proofs that we are not pessimists; we patriotically rejoice at the undoubted improvements which have taken place of late years, and we hope that they will continue. But when we see a budget presented to us in equilibria we wish to see figure as a surplus a reasonable amount to meet probable eventualities, and the financial accidents which may escape the prevision of the most expe rienced men. We thought, in oar simplicity, that the Council of State, not confining itself to present results so mathematical—we did not say so rigorously mathematical— would have made known to the country the examinations it had entered into in order to arrive at a better and more equitable division of the taxes in order to reduce the charges which particularly weigh on the poorer classes. Imam& of a work which, if it had not immediately realised the hopes of political economists, would at least have indicated for the fu ture a better state of things for the taxpayers; instead of those reports in which the greatest questions of the progress of civilisation were presented, frequently with extraordinary talent by the political men of the parliamentary regime, the dispose ilea motifs of the Council of State is a kind of debtor and creditor account which may be summed up as follows : —The variable receipts of 18.52-53 amounted to 821,288,000 f. To this sum may be added for 1854, without fear of mis take, 15 millions for the proportional increase of the indi rect taxes. This makes 836,286,0001., which, with the other receipts, forms a credit of 1,520,639,5721. The expenses are calculated at 1,519,250,9421. Surplus of receipts, 1,388,630 f. Now, let than who entertained any fears as to our financial situation tranqui ll ise themselves; the budget is Ss In order to be completely just towards the exposé des motifs, we must mention a diminution of receipts of from 80,000 f. to 100,0001.0 n the patentee of manufacturers working at their own houses. The Council of State has devoted a third part of its document to the justification of this alleviation granted to a very interesting class of workmen. We think that it might have been less reirrved on the different savings, which it announces in a too general manner, atil, which we should have been Savoy •o have seen pointed or„. we, however, airolau I a mensere o Lich appears to us per fectly cquitabk, since it waists small manufacturers and workmen vrbo work together as companions. Wo do not well understand how a reduction of 50,000 men in the effectivq strength of the army ocly products a laving of 22 millions, neither do we se* the utility of an army of 70,800 Infantry sad 14,675 cavalry for the simple occupation of Algeria, which has now completely sulUoitted. We hear vague mention made of expeditions into Is their utility incontestable ? We think, and we have dens so for many years, that war is not the best means of civilimation, and that it is time to confide to a high civil power the ad ministration of our great and important conquest. _ _ It may be remembered that in 184 i Count Mor tier, at that time ambassador of France at Turin, was, by order of the authorities, arrested at his hotel and lodged in a lunatic asylum, on the allegation that he was insane; but that, after an investigation made by the Court of Appeal of Paris into all the circumstances alleged against him, he was in 1849 declared to be perfectly sane. After this, the Count, not being restored to diplomatic employ ment, demanded of the Minister of Foreign Affairs payment of the arrears of the salary usually allowed to diplomatists not in active service, toge ther with the regular payment of the salary for the future. Tho Minister agreed to pay him B,ooof. a year, and arrears calculated at the rate of 8,000. A bill was presented to the National Assembly for carrying this arrangement into effect, but it wae re jected on the ground that a decree of the 22nd May, 1833, required that salaries to unemployed ambassa dors should be fixed immediately on the ambassadors going into inactive service. Count Mortier subse quently applied to the Minister to reverse this deci sion, but he declined to do so. Thereupon the Count appealed to the Council of State, and the matter was heard yesterday. The Council, however, rejected the appeal, on the ground that the case did not tall within its jurisdiction. SPAIN. The Spanish Senate, on the 24th, was again occu pied with the report of the committee on the affair of General Narvaez. The only points of interest which presented themselves in the course of the de bate were—first, a declaration made by the Minister of Marine that there was nothing derogatory to the general in the order given by the government to go to Vienna, to study the organisation of the Austrian army; and next, a statement by the President of the Council, to the effect that the ministers had purposely kept back for twenty days the address of the general to the Queen, because they had proposed to give him some additional mission, but that the publication of the address had prevented this. The Senate then, by 106 votes to 64, rejected the resolutions proposed by the majority of the committee, and which were favourable to General Narvaez. " Amongst the minority," says a letter, " were a certain number of public functionaries, army inspectors, members of the royal council, &e. Some of the ministers at first thought of dismissing these gentlemen ; but this idea led to a very animated discussion in the cabinet." A vague impression prevailed at the Bourse to- day that foreign intelligence of an unfavourable cha racter bad been received, but I have not been able to trace it to any authentic source. ITALY . Letters from Turin of the 26th inst. state that the reply returned by Austria to Count de Revel, on the case of the despoiled emigrants, not having satisfiedl the Sardinian Cabinet, AI. do Cavour had despatched Colonel Actis to Vienna, with detailed instructions for Count Revel, providing for every contingency. The correspondent of the IhMosts alleges that on two of the eventualities contemplated, the Sardinian am bassador was to demand his passports. The government continued to expel the political refugees with extreme rigour. No mercy was shown to the Hungarians. The Lombards and other Italians were less harshly treated, unless they were incorri gible demagogues. The Monitore Toseono of the 22nd announces that the treaty of commerce between France and Tuscany is to receive its execution on and from the 10th of April next. MOROCCO. Intelligence has been received at Madrid of the deplorable state of the Emperor's health. His death, it is feared, will be the signal of a terrible crisis. GREECE. The Bessarabia steamer arrived at Athens on the 12th, having on board tho Russian Admiral Korsoleff. INDIA. THE OVERLAND MAIL. DESTRUCTION OF RANGOON BY FIRE. By electric telegraph from Marseilles we learn that the Overland India Mail contains despatches from China, Feb. 10; Rangoon, Feb. 14 ; Calcutta, Feb.l9; and Bombay, March 1. Rangoon has been almost destroyed by conflagra tion. Exchange, 2s. old. China 221 Rs. per hundred dollars. AMERICA. ARRIVAL OF THE PACIFIC. (HT ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.) LIVERPOOL, THURSDAY MORNING. The United States Mail steamer Pacific, Captain Nye, arrived in the Mersey this morning, at three o'clock, from New York direct, and brings four days' later news than that brought by the Cambria. The Pacific left New York on the 19th inst., and has brought about 93 passengers and the usual mails, but no s pe cie. The Royal Mail steamer Canada arrived out at Halifax on the 18th inst. Since the sailing of the last steamer business had been good. Discount stocks were in very moderate demand, and prices weak. The large provision house of Cesare, of Baltimore, bad failed. The discussion on the subject of British aggression in Central America was still going on in the Senate. No appointments have yet been made by the President. The New Orleans papers publish some corres pondence from Belize, dated the 24th of Febru ary, which confirms the previous conjecture, that the Devastation had taken possession of Trnzillo. The governor had submitted through fear of a bombard ment. There are current rumours to the effect that the government of the United States had demanded from the English minister explanations respecting the occurrences at Honduras. Intelligence from Havannak to the 13th had been received at New York. The British mail steamer Dee was at that port, arrived from Mexico. The Mexican Commission sent to invite Santa Anna to return to Mexico, were waiting at Havannah, where he was expected. The 3,700,000 dears of gold reported by the last steamer as on its way to the United States from Ca lifornia, had arrived. GREAT EARTHQUAKE IN THE LNDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. The Singapore Pree Press, of the 4th of February Let, quotes from the Java Bode :ke following account of a terrible commotion of nature, which commenced on the 16th, or probably the 26th, of November, and lasted until the 22nd of December last : . . On the 16th of November, about 20 minutes to 8 in the morning, a heavy vertical oscillation of the grotind was felt at Banda Nein', which soon changed into a rapidly in creasing undulation from the N.E. to the S.E., which lasted for more than five minutes. Every one left his house, to remain standing was impossible; people were obliged to take a firm hold of something, or throw themselvce on the ground. In the morning a slight shower of rain fell, but otherwise the weather was not unfavourable. At the first shack erarly all the houses were thrown down or very much shattered. The government buildings, the church, the officers' houses iu the encampment, and the warehouses suffered the greatest injury; the Chinese quar ter was a heap of ruins—the native village on the Zonnegat was laid waste. The Pupenberg fell partly in, Red two bamboo houses upon it disappeared, and on Great Ihnda the houses of the park-keepers, their out-houtes and smok ing-houses for the nutmegs underwent the same fate ; everything there was also thrown down, or greatly injured ; nothing is visible of the village Lonthoir but a heap of ruins. Sera was terribly shattered, while detached pieces of rock lay everywhere scattered around. There were no deaths, however, to lament, end only some persons were slightly bruised or wounded. But the misfortune did ant stop here. About eight o'clock a disturbance of the sea (Zee-boring) occurred, which filled every heart with fear and dismay, and caused every one to fly to the highest ground. In quick succes sion the bay filled and emptied, and at times it appeared to be only a little river. The ship Atiat-al-Rachman, laden with rice, lying in the roads, twice touched the ground, after—like H.M.'s brig De Haai, which had anchored the day previous — having been driven backwards and forwards a number of times ; but this sea quake increased in a frightful manner, I and thrice overwhelmed Great Banda and Neira with the largest rollers; on the last place they reached several feet I high in the houses, and burst the doors open. These huge waves formed in the Zounegat end in the channel of Lonthoir, and ran so high that they beat over Fort Nassau, and reached the foot of the hill on which Fort Belgica is built, carrying everything with them in their rcfiux, but at the same time leaving behind a quantity of fishes. The graham in the roads were driven amongst and against each other, and carried to and trom the shore. They foun dered, or drove in the Zonnegat, where they struck on the shore; only a few could save themselves by flight. These prahus belonged to the Saru and Key Islands and Ceram, and a part of their crews finding themselves on shore, sought shelter is one of the sheds ou the old pier, but they could not withstand the force of the rollers, and iu a moment they were torn out of their place of shelter and driven seawards, there miserably to perish. It is estimated that sixty men lost their lives in this way. Miserable was the condition of the inhabitants, who saw the waves twenty-six feet high, rolling so irresistably towards them, threatening to engulf them ; the ground continually rucking under their feet; the iitmophere echoing with loud reports like cannon shots, filling their hearts with fear, and this all-destructive, indescribable state of things, lasted not merely for five minutes, —an hour—a day—but fur successive days ; for these frightful natural phenomena only ceased on the 22nd De cetuber, while all that time scarcely an hour passed that the ground did not heave and shake, now in the heaviest man ner, and then lighter, but always so that distrust and fear remained imprinted in the hearts of the inhabitants, who partly or wholly ruined, without habitations, shelte ring in light bamboo huts, look forward to the gloomiest future, and will perhaps never be able to recover the blow which they have received. During these earth and sea quakes, which last, however, did not extend beyond the north side of Neira and to the south side of Great Bandits, Gunong Api was quiescent, and no alteration was observed in the smoke proceeding from it. The accounts from the islands Itosengein and Ai were even more tragical, and the destruction there no less great. The spice parks Retie and Noorwegen on Great Banda, the last which remained standing, also at length fell in, and at present there are not more than two habitable houses in Neira. The residency house has suffered much. Rock and earth slips from the Papenberg occurred there for a length of time. Ihe same disastrous accounts had been received from Ceram. An earth and sea quake bad also occurred there on the 26th November, and caused great damage. The heavy rollers of the sea had swept away the houses on the beach, and thrown more than a hundred prahus on shore, of which a number had been destroyed, while many per sons fell victim, to this terrible commotion of nature. _ From Amboyna we also learn that on the morning of the 26th November, about half-pest 8, the earthquake was felt in a direction from N.M. to W.S.W., with a duration of about five minutes. This was preceded or the 19th by some slight shocks. The disturbance of the sea also took place, but not to such a destructive and heavy extent as at Banda, althouF hon the same day. Very little damage was caused. The accounts from the islands near Amboy'sa are not so favourable. Nearly all experiences the extraor dinary commotion bith o . sea and land. The houses at &pants and many native bests were seriously injured, and very heavy loss has been caused. At Ternate as well as Bachian two heavy shocks of earth quake were felt on the 26th November ut 8 in the morning, and at the last place they were repeated for some (lays afterwards, but without doing any damage at either place. The weather was generally calm, and although the moun tain of Teraate did not give out more smoke than usual, a I subterranean noise was heard in it, but sot very loud. The earthquake which occurred at Batavia and Buiten zorg on the night of the 20th December was also felt in the residencies of Krawang, Magelang, Bantam Banyumaas, Tagal, and Pekalongan, and in the Lampong districts. Cholera had broken out at Padang, and a number of per sons had died. THE BALL OF THE LEGISLATIVE BODY. The grand fete offered by the members of the Legistive body to the Emperor and the Empress took place on Monday night with great magnificence. The per sona invited began to arrive at 9 o'clock, and from that hour until half-put 12 o'clock, an uninterrupted stream of carri ages was to be seen advancing towards the scene of festi vity on each aide of the river. Three entrances were opened for tho guests; the princi pal one, that by the Court of Honour of the palace from the Place de Bourgogne, was reserved for the carriages of the imperial party, of the ambassadors, and of a few privileged personages; • second entrance was by the avenue of the hotel of.the President of the Legislative body, and the third on the other side of the pa'nee, was by the steps in front of the Pout de la Concorde. To make this arrangement avail able, it was necessary to unite together the hotel of the Presidenee with the Palace of the Legislative body, and this was effected by means of • temporary construction erected over the whole length of the garden lying between the two buildings. The building thus raised, and which formed the very centre of the fete, consisted first of a vast jardit. d'Aieer ; next, of an immense ball-room; and lastly, of • supper-room, capable of accommodating 250 persons at • time. The first-named of these constructions was sepa rated throaghout its whole length, into three distinct galle ries communicating with each ether by means of wide ar cades, and all most tastefully arranged with flowers, ever greens, statues, fountains of falling water, mirrors, long lines of chandeliers from the ceiling, and thousands of lights along the walls. At half-past ten the carriages of the imperial party en tered the courtyard of the Legislative Palace. Iheir Ma jesties were received at the foot of the steps by M. Billault, the President, at the head of the members composing the bureau of the Chamber, and the deputies appointed to act as stewards of the fees. Their Majesties were then con ducted through the Salle des Armures, which they stopped • moment to admire, to the Salle du Trone, where the other members of the imperial family and the ministers had already arrived. Almost im mediately after, their Majesties, accompanied by a most numerous suite, proceeded to the Salle des Pas Perdu., and took their seats on the chain of state prepared for them. The Princess Mathilde occupied the seat on the right of the Emperor, whilst Prince Jerome and Prince Napoleon were on the left of the Empress. The Emperor was in the uniform of a general officer, with high boots and white inexpressible., and wore the Grand Cordon of the Legion of Honour. He appeared in excellent health and spirits. The Empress excited as usual, universal admira tion, the male portion of the spectators exclaiming " How lovely!" and the ladies crying out "What a charming dress !" Her Majesty wore a pale pink satin robe, with magnificent point lace, and trimmed with white roses, sur rounded with their green leaves. Her hair was worn off the forehead, tho back of the head bearing a quantity of flowers sprinkled with diamonds. On her neck was a neck lace of diamonds and emeralds of great value, and her Ma jesty wore, en sautok. the cordon of the order lately sent to her by the Queen of Spain. After their Majesties had gra ciously saluted several persons whom they recognised in the crowd before them, and had conversed with some of the am bassadors the imperial quadrille was formed to open the ball. The. Empress danced with M. Billault, President of the Legislative Body, and the Emperor with Mdlle. Billault, daughter of that functionary. The other persons in the quadrille were the Princess Mathilde, who had M. Foald, the Minister of State, for her most of the military services of Europe were to be seen there, the scarlet of the English army being p re t ty nume rously represented. Some English court dresses were also to be seen worn, it is said, by some of the gectlenten who had in the morning presented the peace address to the Emperor. The number of gentlemen in ordieary ball dress, namely, the plain black c sat, amounted perhap s t o a b out a ' fourth part of the male guests present. It is calculated that about 0,000 persons passed through the rooms in the coarse of the night. About three o'clock the company began to thin, but dancing was kept up . with great sp:rit until half-past four in the morning.—Ga!tyrivit. COMMERCIAL INTELLIGENCH. In the market for breadstuffs but little had been doing, and prices had receded slightly. Western Canal flour fetched 4 dole. 621 c. to 4 dole. 73c. per brl.; Gennemee wheat, 1 dol. 18c. to 1 dol. 20c. Indian corn, northern, rosnd 64c. to 66c. stea d y; Indian meal, Jersey yellow, 3 dots. 25c. to 3 dol e. 37tc. The cotton market at New York is reported brisk, with a good average business doing. Prices have slightly ad vanced, as will be seen from the following quotations, owing to the animation in the Southern markets : New Orleans and Mobile, mid. fair to fair, 1l c. to 121 c. per lb. ; Up lands, mid. to fair, 11c. to lla. Provisions were in improved demand, and prices were firmer. partner, and their vii-d-ris being M. Rogier, the Minister 1 The inquest on the body of John Jackson, who was killed of Belgium, and the Countess de Ilateeldt, wife of the by the late bailer explosion at Messrs. Fernley and Prussian Minister. As soon as the quadrille had eon- I Bradley's, at Stockport, was resumed on Monday afternoon. eluded, their Majesties resumed their seats, and conversed I It had been adjourned in order to procure the opinion of for some time with the persons around them. The Em- 1 Mr. Nasmyth, as to the cause of the explosion ; but that peror also descended from his place to speak to others. gentleman being from home, the coroner had called in Mr. Their Majesties then walked through the rooms, and appeared Roberta, of the late firm of Sharpe and Roberts, of Dia -1 1 struck with the taste displayed in the decorations. They cheater, who had made a careful examination of the boiler. then withdrew to the Salle du Prone, where they remained Mr. Roberts said some weights taken from the safety valve conversing for some time with the persons admitted to their I of the exploded boiler together with the spindle and valve, THE WEST INDIA MAILS.—The followin ,, coin- presence, and about half-put eleven proceeded to the Salle would cause a pressure of 4411 b. to the inch, and with these municetion from the Admiralty was received on Wednes- des Conferences, which was fitted up as a supper-room, ; weietsonthesatetyvalve would blowoffat a pressure 0f441h. day lest, by Robert Barnes, Esq., mayor of Manchester:— tables being set out round three sides of it, and capable of ,to 401 b., and no less. He thought the cause of the explosion " Admiralty, 29th March, 18.53.—Sir,—With reference toe allowing 309 persons to partake of refreshment at the same was a want of sufficient water in the boiler. lie Was 01 petition from the merchants, ship-owners, &c., connected time. After partaking of some slight refection, their Ma- opinion that the boiler was quite safe at a pressure of 43115., with, and trading ho, the West Indies, respecting the instil- jesties returned for a few minutes to the Salle do Teene, and that it would not have burst at double that pressure if , t iency with which the Royal West India Mail Company and then took their departure at about twelve o'clock, the the flues were covered with water. The coroner, in sum - I performed their contract with the government for the con- Emperor expressing to M. llilinult his entire satisfaction at ming up, remarked on the unsatisfactory nature of the, vey,inee of the mails to and from that place—l am coin- the admirable mann. rin which the Ate bad been conducted. evidence, as to the man n er i n w hich the safety-salve ha d m 'iota by my Lards Commas...into r. of the A lmiralty .0 Looking generally at t!: • • t; !.:, the gnome vcc unanimous hoen weighted, and also ro i e t e d . a t there l:Ilion:a no:ore inf o rm you that immediate attention hos Even paid to this In declaring it to he one , r the Must smee*sful si. oin Fatls of the evidence ui Mr. ll.4ereft and Mr. ITibert.. :.5 to tio memorial, and that the board have referred it to th e corn - o f late roars. The number of beautiful women present was explosion being caused by a scarcity of water is the boiler. mittee sitting on packet service, before whom the entire extraordinary, and the display of diamonds unusually fine. The jury found a verdict of " Acc i dental death," and that subject has been brought. I am, sir, your most obedient The vast variety of official costumes imparted a peculiar ap. the accident had been caused by it scarcity of wattt in the humble savant, B. Osnossix.--11teldayor of lilanchester." pearancc of animation to the scene; and the uniforms of boiler. Exchange on London WAS at 109 to 1091. with a quiet market; on Paris, 5.13 to 5.15 ; on hamburg, 361 to ; on Bremen, 73 to 791. VW emit% WINDSOR, M..nc;t 3). The following had the honour of dining with her Majesty yesterday :—The Duchess of Kent, Princes., .%4,. laide of Ilohenlohe, the Lady in Waning to the Bache.. of Kent, the Baroness de Speth, Earl Granville, and c o b :ad the Hon. C. 11. Phipps. The Queen and Prince drove out in an open rulings yesterday afternoon, and again to-day. Colonel 11 , .usitte and Captain lion. Dudley de Itos were in attendance on horseback. Lord Watcrpark has succeeded Lord C.imoys, and Colonel lion. Robert Boyle Major-Gen. Berkeley Drummond, as Lord and 6 room in Waiting to her Majesty. Hui Granville left the Castle this forenoon for London. Sir James Graham has beau invited and is expected this afternoon. Mr. E. M. Anchi'xtla, Attorn4.oeneralof Newfoundland, had an interview with the Duke of Newcastle yesterday at the Colonial-odiee.—The Rev. Mr. So!ly had also an inter view with his Grace yesterday. Mr. Hamilton Lindsay and Mr. Henry Wise, the chair man and managing director of the Eastern Aram, elago Company, had an interview with the Eatt of Clarendon at the Foreign-office yesterday. The Prussian Minister had an interview with the Right lion. Edward Cardwell yesterday at the Board of Trade. Earl Granville, Lord President, returucd to town yester des from Windsor Cit Ale. Despatches were received yesterday at the Colonial-office from the Governors of the Cape of 6 , ,0d Hope, the Mauri tius, and St. Helena. LETTERS FOR THE ARCTIC EXPEDITIIPV.—LetterS for any of the officers, seamen, and marines serving in any of the ships now in the Arctic Seas, will be forwarded by H.I.S. Phoenix, if sent to the Admiralty on or before the ! Ith of April. The Peninsular and Oriental Company (says a cor respondent) seriously contemplate giving up their mail contracts. Mr. Chisholm Anstcy, late M.P., has been ap pointed one of the Commissioners to revise the statutes. The first meeting of the Commissioners will be held to-morrow. The result cf the medical examination :IS to the state of mind of the convict Charles San Alers Oct being deemed by Lord Palmerston of a nature to justify his lord• ship in recommending her Majesty to exercise the royal prerogative in his behalf, the law takes its eourse.—Glebe. LORD DERBY'S ADMIRALTY BOARD AND TUE ILL I)OCKYARD PATRONAGE. Two parliamentary papers relating to this subject were made public yesterday. The first consists of copies of Admiralty circulars, issued in 1847 and 11449, relating to dockyard promotions, and the correspondence between Sir Baldwin Walker, the Surveyor of the Navy, and the Ad miralty, in reference to the resignation of his °dice by that gallant officer last year. The circular of 1849 provided that all vacancies in the dockyards should be tilled up through the surveyor's department—candidates being chosen for their skill and fitness, and nut from political motives. The Admiralty Board of Lord Derby's government thought proper to change this arrangement, whereupon Sir Baldwin wrote the following letters : Somerset house, 21st April, 1852. Sir,—You having been pleased to inform use that great dissatisfaction existed among your political friends at the manner in which the promotions, &c., were made in the dockyards, and that it was your intention, in conse quence, to cancel their lordships' circular of the g9th Sep tember, 1849, which directs that all papers respecting va cancics and promotions should be sent through the sur veyor to their lordships; and as the cancelling of this cir cular is the only step taken to remedy the evil you were pleased to state existed, it can bear no other construction than that of a censure on my conduct. 1 must therefore beg to tender to their lordships my resignation ; for I can no longer continue to bold the appointment of Surveyor of the Navy with such an imputation on my character as that of allowing political motives to infiuenee my submissions to the board.—l h►ve, "(Signed) B. W. WALKER. Augustus Stafford, Esq., M.P., ftc., &c., &c., Secretary of the Admiralty. Somerset House, May 10, 1552. My Lord Duke,—l feel that I should be neglecting my duty were I not to point out to your grace tha evil system which hse been pursued of late, not only with respect to my position as Surveyor of the Navy, but also with refer ence to the appointments and promotions in the dockyards. Your grace is aware that the Secretary of the Admiralty thought proper to cancel, without the knowledge of the board, their lordships' circular of 20th September, 1519, which directs that all papers respecting promotions and vacancies in the dockyards should be sent through the sur veyor to their lordships ; this order of 1819 was only re verting to a system which had always been in force prior to 1543, and which was then discontinued, 1 have reason to believe, on personal grounds. The abolition of a system which was found to work well fur upwards of three years, causing an annual savinz of 130,0001. an the wages of the artificers of the dockyards in dependent of upwards of 60,0001. in the steam factories, without impairing the e ffi ciency of those establishmen ts, must be prejudicial to the public interest, and has tended much to lower the position of the surveyor. Now there is no one to control the establishments, 4cd the annoyer can no longer be held responsible for the estimates not being exceeded, or can he be auswerable for the efficiency of those establiehments ; for the board's ad mirable circular of February, 1847, which directs that all advancement in the dockyards shalt be for merit alone, has been virtually thrown aside ; vacancies have been filled up which were not necessary, and men advanced, not for merit, but by political influence; and in one instance a person has been promoted who is not competent to fill the situation to which he has been appointed ; and that was done without any reference having been made to the superintendent of the yard. Having stated thus much, I think it right to inform your grace that I attribute the inconsiderate manner in which I have been put aside by the Secretary of the Admiralty to my unqualified refusal to depart from their lordships' cir cular of February, 1847, by lending myself to reeommend men for advancement on political grounds. In conclusion, I beg to assure you, my lord duke, that I have made this statement from no personal motives, my only wish being the public good, and that your grace's ad ministration should not be tarnished. 1 have, &c. (Signed) B. W. WALKER. Hie Grace the Duke of Northumberland, &c. Admiralty. These letters were not to be found at the Admiralty, and as regards the former one it was not brought before the board at all. Coder these circumstances, Sir Baldwin Walker supplied copies. The other paper consists of a lengthy correspondence re lative to the appointment of Mr. James Wells to the office of muter smith at Portsmouth Dockyard. Being recom mended by Sir Baldwin Walker, he was appointed to the office on the 10th of September last, but on the Ist of Octo ber his appointment was cancelled, cad the master smith at Chatham promoted in his place, for reasons which the re turns do net disclose. Mr. Wells has been reinstated by the present Admiralty board. A more decided expos,' of tory jobbing at the Admi ralty has perhaps never occurred before. It goes far to complete the scandal which attached to the Derbyite admi nistration of our naval affairs by Lord Northumberland and his political secretary, Mr. Stafford. TWO HUNDRED FAMILIES PAUPERISED. MORE POLICE INTERFERENCE. Yesterday an extraordinary scene presented itself at St. Pancras Workhouse, nearly 200 families demand ing admission to the workhouse. It appears that tho paving board of the south-western district resolved to carry out the powers of their act of parliament and cause the re moval of all the stalls which have for the last quarter of a century occupied the western side of Tottenham.court road. The requisite notice to the stallkeepers having ex pired, they wen removed on Monday. The entire staff of relieving-officers were engaged the whole day in affordia; temporary relief pending inquiry into the cases. TIIE FATAL BOILER EXPLOSION AT STOCKPORL-