The Press. — London, England, 1857-12-19 00:00:00

THE PRESS, DECEMBER 19, 1857. 1230 TO CORRESPONDENTS. The Editor would feel obliged if .1.A.0. (" Electoral Inequali ties") would favour him with his address. " A CIARGYKAN " is respectfully informed that his letter Is unavoidably postponed until next wee`. On the contrary, reassured by the silence of the Treaty of Paris, they maintain their pretensions more energeti cally than ever, and they do this by a strict blockade, which sounds rather curiously in the neutralised Black Sea. The coasters from Trebizonde learned this very soon to their own cost. For ages there has been a brisk trade carried on between the eastern and southern shores of the Black Sea, long before a Russian set his foot on the soil of the Caucasus. Salt is the chief article of this trade. Russia, which wants to make the Circassians dependent upon her for their provisions of salt, considers the trade as contraband. The Circassians and Turks, who do not recognise the right of Russia to the coast, naturally look at it in a different light, and, having heard of a Treaty of Paris and a neutralisation of the Black Sea, and the con sequent absence of cruisers, continued their trade after the Turks had retired, and num-rotts have been the fights between these coasters and the Russian cruisers, and not less numerous are the claims of Trebizonde merchants for vessels sunk. The fact is, there is only a vague distinc tion between regular trade and contraband, and both sides make, according to circumstances, the most of it; but there is likewise another cause for complications. The Russians insist that vessels should only land on the three points occupied by them, and never touch on any other place along the coast ; they have issued a notification tc that effect, against which, however, France, England, and Turkey have protested as an infraction of the treaty, which establishes the free navigation of the Black Sea. The matter is still pending. These statements are confirmed by the Russian Embassy at Constantinople publish ing, by order of its Government, a notice, which has been communicated to all the embassies, upon the position assumed by Russia with respect to the navigation and commerce of foreign nations in the Black Sea. It is in order to put an end "to all uneasiness on the subject" that the Imperial Go vernment of Russia thinks it its duty to make known to the public, and particularly to foreign traders, that as the Treaty of Paris provides that the commerce of the Black Sea, " free from any impediments," shall be subjected only to quarantine, customs, and police regulations, the Imperial Government, as far as it is concerned, intends to scrupulously adhere to these provisions, and lay down the following regu lations, on the ground that quarantine, customs, and police regulations, however liberal may be the spirit in which they are drawn up, require measures of surveillance, and along the eastern coast of the Black Sea they are doubly necessary in consequence of the internal state of the provinces of the Caucasus : Quarantine and customs establishments exist at Anapa, Soukoum Kale, and Redout Kale. These three points, therefore, alone are for the present open to foreign vessels. If hereafter circumstances shall permit the establishment of customs and quarantine authorities at other points of the coast, where foreign vessels can be admitted, due no tice will be given of the fact. In the meantime the ap proach to the ports, bays, and harbours, with the exception of the three above mentioned, is interdicted to foreign vessels. In order to verify the regularity of their place of destination, foreign vessels will be bound to have their papers signed by the Russian consular agents. The Impe rial Government does not in any way wish to throw ob stacles of any kind in the way of law tut and regular com mercial transactions. It is for the interest of the sanitary state of the coast more than for that of the revenue, and also for the interest of public order, that the Imperial Government should watch over the maintenance of the above-mentioned restrictions. Thus we see that, with the exception only of Anapa, Soukoum Kale and Redout Kale, the whole of the east coast of the Black Sea is hlockaded, and this fact is rendered more plain the traders' perception by the following and concluding paragraph of the Russian circular : Any attempt, therefore, on the part of foreign navi gators to communicate with the coast, except at the above named points of Anapa, Soukoum Kale, and Redout Kale, will lead on the part of the Russian authorities to the ap plication of the measures of repression established against smuggling and contraventions of quarantine regulations. Those who expose themselves to them will only have to thank themselves for the consequences of their conduct. As a curious comment upon the above, there has just appeared from Circassia a declaration, signed by the Prince Sefer Pasha and many other chiefs of the Circassian nation, and transmitted to the represen tatives of all the Governments which were parties to the Treaty of Paris : Mazga Kale, 3rd Rebil Evel, 1274 (Oct. 21,1857). At the period of the Treaty of Adrianople, the Emperor of Russia demanded from the Sultan the Circassian coasts on the Black Sea. The Russians had no right to claim this coast, nor had the Sultan any right to grant it, since the Purte possessed only a religious suzerainty over Cir cassia. We Circassians have not acknowledged this arbitrary cession, and now, after a thirty years' war, all that Russia holds is a few points upon our coast. When the war broke out in 18 7 4 between her and the Porte, and the allied fleets entered the Bosphorus, the Russians destroyed the fortifications at those points and retreated to their own territory. But now, in defiance of the Peace of Paris, the treaty of which declared the Black Sea to be neutral, the Russian Government prevents vessels from approaching our ooast, and assigns as the reasons for this mamma that we Cir. caimans will not UllibltiliSl the requisite police and soul. , tag regulations. Now the l lth and 12th articles of that Parisian treaty forbid all hostilities in the Black Sea, and declared that trade shall be free at every harbour and for every nation. For this reason we beg your Excellency tp adopt suitalile measures, to the end that Russia may observe the Pari sian treaty of peace, and that our poor country may not continue to be devastated. _ As for the organisation of a naval police, and a sanitary office, we engage to organise and maintain the same as they are in Europe. Lastly, we beg your Excellency to send to us a consul to facilitate the traffic of his own countrymen, and to instruct us, to the end that we may attain the same grade of civi lisation as has been reached by other peoples. Submitting now these our complaints to your Excellency, and entreating justice, we remain, &c., REFER PASHA, Reigning Prince of Circassia (and others). We commend this subject and its curious details to the attention of our readers. tt LONDON. SATURDAY, DEC. 19, 1857. POSTSCRIPT. THE BANK OF FRANCE. PARIS, Friday. The Bank of France bas lowered the rate of dis count to six per cent. on all bills. Three per Cents Intelligence has been received from Constantinople to the Bth. M. I'elissier, French Commissioner for settling the frontiers on the Asiatic side, was about to return to France ; Sir Henry Bulwer, English Commissioner at Bucharest, was also preparing to take his departure. The commercial crisis was con tinuing at Constantinople. The meeting of the Spanish Cortes is postponed to the 10th of January, when the Queen will open the session in person. THE WEST INDIA MAILS. SourtiamProN, Friday Morning. The Royal Mail Company's steam•ship Parana, Captain Bevis, with the West India mails, has arrived. The St. Lucia Legislative Council was in session. The country round Mexico, particularly towards Vera Cruz, was in a very unsettled state. News from Granada contained little of interest, the expected reappearance of General Walker being the principal topic of conversation. The official paper of Granada publishes a declara tion of war against Costa Rica, for the purpose of pressing its rights to the whole line of transit from San Juan del Norte to San Juan del Sul, as well as the district. of Juanacosta. The same paper names the Provisional Government during the time that General Maratines and Xeres take charge of the army. The commercial distress at New York was being felt at Colon and Panama. The United States steamers Wabash at Colon, and Saratoga at Greytown. At Callao the National Convention had been dis solved. THE INDIA AND CHINA MAILS. (By Electric Telegraph.) SOUTHAMPTON, Friday. The Peninsular and Oriental Company's steamer Nemesis, Captain Black, has just arrived in the river (10.30 a.m.). The despatches not yet ashore. — Second edition of the Times. A Supplementary Report, signed by the Right Hon. Edward Ellice, M.P., Lieut.-General Winyard. and Major-General Bentinck, upon the question of purchase in the army, has been published. The report is in the shape of a protest against that published some months since, and signed by General Evans and the rest of the commissioners, recom mending the abolition of purchase in the a► my. The present protest points out that the system of pur chase is incompatible with an amended system of education in the army, and that if it is to be abolished we ought to begin at the first step instead of the last in regimental promotion. The protest points out with great force the hardships that would be inflicted by the abolition of purchase on the officers of certain regiments who, after a long period of foreign service, might see officers by selection placed over their heads. THE TREATY OF PARIS, AND CIRCASSIA. THE time appears to be approaching when the neglect of our Government to insist on the freedom of the eastern coast of the Black Sea, at the period of the conclusion of the Treaty of Paris, will be pro nounced one "of the greatest blunders " ever com mitted by a British Ministry. The Constantinople o ircespondent of the Times, of Tuesday, writes to say that instead of rebuilding and reoccupying their former chain of forts on the eastern coast of the Black Sea, the Russians have only reoccupied three—namely, Rebut Ealeh, Suchum Xaloh, and Anapa. " But," he adds, " you must not imagine from these new arrangements that the Russians have given up their claims on the Circassian coast ": k 111 h• election 3nitiligtnct. NORTH NORTHAMPTONSHIRE Mr. G. W. Hunt has been returned by a majority of 320 over Mr. Fitz patrick Vernon. Connected with this election is a curious correspondence between Lord Lilford and Mr. G. W. Hunt. The correspondence commences by a letter from G. W. Hunt to Lord Lilford, ex pressing a hope that Lord Lilford would not preju dice Mr. Hunt's canvass amongst his tenantry, and repudiating any intention to solicit his lordship's support. Lord Lilford replies : te), Marine-parade, Brighton, Nov. 23. My dear Sir,—You cannot of course be surprised, hold ing the opinions which I do, that 1 can offer you no as sistance in your proposed intention of offering yourself as a candidate for the representation of the north division of the county of Northamptonshire. You will also, I feel sure, forgive me for saying that, neither in property or position in the county, should I think you qualified to represent it in Parliament. Holding these opinions, without any per sonal disrespect towards yourself, I must request that my tenantry may not be canvassed fur their votes in your favour.—l am, &c., LI LFORD. Knapston, Dec 1. My dear Lord,—T beg to accept in the spirit in which it is offered your disclaimer of personal disrespect to myself contained in your lordship's letter of the '.:3rd ult., and in return to send you a copy of a circular I have addressed to your tenantry in consequence.-1 am, Sze., G. W.HUNT. (Inclosure.) To Messrs. —, Tenants on the Lilford Estate. Gentletnen,—Having been requested by your landlord not to solicit your suffrages, I feel bound as a Conservative to do so, in order to maintain a constitutional right. I fear that time. will not allow me to canvass in person any other electors but yourselves. I beg to assure you that, though I intend to ask each of you for your vote, I do not wish any one to prejudice his own interests by recording it in my favour, being fully satisfied of your goodwill towards myself as a neighbour, and, generally speaking, of your political sympathy.—l am, &c., Brighton, Dec. 2, 1857. My dear Sir,—l have to acknowledge the favour of your note of yesterday, inclosing a printed circular to my tenants. I have to thank you for the expression "of your acceptance in the spirit in which it was intended of my disclaimer of personal disrespect." I can, of course, have no right to dispute your perfect liberty to canvass my tenants as " a Conservative, for the maintenance of a con- stitutional right." I think, however, had I been requested as a personal fawr to waive that privilege, at least for a time, that I should have complied with that request in a similar spirit.—lours, LILYOIID. v. Wadenhoe-house, Dec. 4, 1857. Dear Sir,—Having yesterday received a courteous noto from Lord Lilford, admitting my nght to solicit the suf frages of his tenants, I beg to intimate to them through you that I am satisfied with that admission, and do not now intend to canvass them in person.—l am, yours dm., G. W. HUNT. Mr. T. Selby, Steward to Lord Lilford. SCARDOROIIOII.—The election for this borough in the room of Lord Mulgrave has resulted in the return of Mr. Dent, a gentleman who believes Lord Pal merston " to possess the sympathies of the country," and " knows no man who was so well prepared to carry out the wishes of the people." BUCKINGHAMSHIRE.—The Hon. C. C. Cavendish having announced his retirement from the repre sentation of this county in consequence of his eleva tion to the peerage as Baron Latimer, a vacancy has occurred, and there are already two candidates in the field, Mr. W. G. Cavendish, the son of the retiring member, in the Whig interest, and Captain C. J. B. Hamilton, who was formerly member of the borough of Aylesbury, in the Conservative cause. Mr. Cavendish's address announces bis intention of giving an energetic support to Lord Palmerston's Government, and a requisition numerously signed has been presented to Captain Hamilton, who hag signified his intention of corning forward. WurrituAm.—Mr. G. M. Butt is mentioned 84 the probable enceessor of Mr. liihlyardt a MI