The Sun. — London, England, 1870-10-06 00:00:00

SPECIAL EDITION. SUN OFFICE, 7 P.M. LATEST INTELLIGENCE. THE WAR. ADVANCE OF THE FRENCH. S UCCESSFUCATTACKs ON THE GERMANS. TOURS, OCT. 6. General Reyan has made a report to the Govern !Dent, dated Chevilly, yesterday evening. He an 11°Inlees that at five o'clock in the Morning, he advanced towards Toury with three brigades of cavalry and infantry, and three half batteries of artillery. At 7 a.m. he arrived before Chassis. A squadron of hussars surrounded the village, and carried off five Prisoners from the Royal Bavarian regiment. Notwith standing the enemy's artillery, which comprised tell 1 2-pounders, and which dismounted some of the French guns, the movement forward continued, and General Ressayre's brigade turned the village of Toury on the right. The enemy's cavalry, n umbering from 400 to 500, supported by 2,000 i nfantry, were compelled to beat a hasty retreat towards Paris. The French continued the pursuit beyond Toury for three or four hours, and the movement was then stopped, the troops being overcome by fatigue. General Reyan made a thorough reconnaissance of the enemy' strength, and ascertained the presence of the Princes Albert of S axe-Meiningen and Saxe-Altenburg. General Reyan captured from the enemy, a herd °f cattle, including 147 cows and 52 sheep, which h ave been sent on to Arthenay. MOVEMENTS OF THE FRENCH. LILLE, WEDNESDAY NIGHT. 'The Echo du Nord says that the railway service has been reopened to Orleans, and draws the in ference that the Prussians are falling back on Paris. r 11 le Municipal Council of Arras have under conside ration a proposal to appropriate five million francs . 01 " armi ng and equipping all the Garde Nationale 111 the Pas de Calais, who will be immediately called l ilt° active service. The Figaro says that the French Artillery would 111 . ere often fire upon the Prussians, but that the In habitants of Champigny and the surrounding vil lages have been impressed to carry materials and construct works of defence. The Prussians are attempting to remove the debris °f the Nogent Viaduct and rebuild the broken arches, out are constantly interfered with by artillery fire from the forts. The villages of Gentilly, Arcueil, Cachan, and uhatillon are complete deserts. The Journal d'Amiens states that communication b etween Charleville, the Ardennes, and the rest of Pr ance is still open. The garr i son o f T ours , c ava lry and infantry, make daily T distant reconnaissances on the banks of the L oire. Extensive military manceuvres take place every morning in the Champs de Mars, and the troops are exercised in shooting. A manufactory of mitrailleuses is about to be established at Nantes. It is also said that the establishment at Indret has received orders for their ma nufacture. it ,M. G. Masure, editor-in-chief of the Progry du i'!°rd, has been appointed Secretary of -the Delega ef the Government of National Defence at 4-eurs. CHANGE OF GERMAN HEAD QUARTERS. VERSAILLES, OCT. 5. -d ay Ihe Royal headquarters were transferred here to. The King previously inspected the position of the 6th Army Corps. INVASION OF SOUTHERN FRANCE. CARLSRUHE, OCT. 5 (7.20). General Treskow is in command of the army which 4 to advance into Southern France. Delegates from the Carlsruhe Town Council re ort that 500 houses have been destroyed in Stras burg, and at least 10,000 persons are homeless. s ubscriptions for their relief have been opened in all Parts of Germany. UNDERGROUND TELEGRAPH FROM PARIS. BRUSSELS, TUESDAY. The Cologne Gazette and the Inde'pendance Beige are both of opinion that there still exists some underground communication between Paris and the r "inceß, as despatches are daily received from Paris by th e Government delegates at Tours. THE BOHEMIAN DIFFICULTY. VIENNA, OCT. 5 (EVENING). An Imperial Patent has been issued, dated to-day, 0 I : 4 ering direct alterations for the Reichsrath to be hel d immediately in Bohemia in virtue of the seventh valAgrapb of the fundamental law of the Empire. REVIEW OF THE FRENCH NATIONAL GUARD. The Siecle says that a great review of the Nati onal Guard at Marseilles took place on the racecourse on Monday. There were 30,000 men fi nder arms. The acclamations of the people were ent husiastic, and the expulsion of the foreigner was t he thought of every heart. At the conclusion of th e review, M. Argenti sent to M. Esquiros a sum of ,„ 30 ,000 francs to equip a company of citizen S CARCITY OF FOOD OUTSIDE PARIS. T he inhabitants round Paris are suffering severely front the scarcity of provisions. The country was a:,,P t by General Trochu before the Germans and the invaders have completed the spoliation. FRANCE AND RUSSIA. Thiers obtained from the Russian Government ticlear understanding that the French Provisiona, 41 , nis trY, or any other that might replace it "ould be recognised if the National voice pronounced in its favour. To the Emperor .& if"ancler, the French politician explained that : v olution was r i pe i n F ranc e, and that there was e usurpation, and that the Provisional Ministry h t o ltd , ass umed what were really vacant posts in order th prevent the Reds from seizing them. With that p e Czar seemed to agree. But the attempt on the 4rt of M. Thiers to prove that Prussian aggran enaeut was injurious to Russia met with no en liragement c whatever, and was not persevered with. THE PREPARATIONS FOR SHELLING PARIS. BEELIN, OCT. 5. Official alvices from headquarters report that the pre parations f or a regu l ar a tt ac k o n the fortifications an d shelling Paris are completed. The siege r as and mortars have arrived, and are opositi on f or immediate operations. General o °ll , Allech, hitherto military governor of ; _"lenz ) has been appoi n t e d to a similar position at St rasburg. The seat of the Governor-General of Alsace has been removed from Haguenau to Stras burg. A meeting of the Federal Council of the North German Confederation has been held. to-day. There is a break in the negotiations with Bavaria and Wurtemburg. Minister Dellbruck has been summoned anew to headquarters.—Daily News Tele gram. GERMAN REPULSE AT CHAILLY. FONTAINEBLEAV; OCT. 4. The Francs-tireurs have driven back to Chailly. a numerous detachment of Prussian cavalry and in fantry, which was marching on Fontainebleau. Sixty of the enemy were put hors de combat. CHARTRES, OCT 5 (MORNING.) The enemy occupied Epernon last night, after a sharp engagement, in which the Francs-tireurs and National Guard Mobile fought valiantly until the evening against superior forces. Our loss is inconsiderable. TOURS, OCT 5 0.35 r.m.) A decree has been issued, dated the 3rd instant, entrusting M. Cremieux with the duties of Minister of War ad interim, in consequence of the resignation of Admiral Fourichon. Another decree orders that the postponement of the period for meeting bills, allowed by the laws of the 13th of August and the 10th September, will not be applicable to commercial bills drawn after the 14th October. GERMAN OCCUPATION OF BEAUVAIS. TOURS, OcT. 4. The vote for the Constituent Assembly will occupy only one day. There will be no second ballot and the result will be known the same evening. The electors will vote in the chief place of each canton. The place of meeting of the Assembly has not been decided upon ; but it is believed that the Assembly will meet wherever the seat of Govern ment is. The Prussia - ns took possession of Beauvais on Friday night, entering the town from various direc tions with such promptitude that a watchman stationed on the tower of the cathedral had uo time to give the alarm to the municipality, who were assembled to deliberate in which direction the enemy's advance should be opposed. The Prussians immediately placed a guard at the Hotel de Ville, where the arms of the Garde Nationale were deposited by order of the commanding General. At the request of the Prefect, thirty of the National Guard were allowed to retain their arms, to maintain order in the town. The Prussian Commander stated that he intended making Beauvais a victualling centre, from whence detachments would be sent to make requisitions upon the surrounding country. At the same time he requested the inhabitants to keep open their markets, as the troops had received orders to pay for all provisions taken. Pursuit of Rotten. this very 1:1-cvard P. Lintance of rprise, and 1863 that id his first a " daily Irtun ate in published there had nts of the :llsns"1 ,wer of the ie man of humourist ack-boots. I became :entricities rk, whose allowed s speed to 1, as de 'he book n of in the Old the New. age ; and he adven han repay tr, and are `ical. By Co. :cially the ly through Honduras d by Don Minister ; in Great ye history -ell-known r. Squi“.b, tes in the lmissioner the book, formation " vast re b less than ieves that e for the ret utterly aust6ted. 3 of Fairy eminently disputable itelligence her secre rcildonne. as nothing attempt iar merits particular 1 graceful, ating and favourite ct IPuck , and vivid and of old " Indus' ;ardens of 3rest pass very keen 'ery land. he neigh describing lands, but %ll events, Portugal agitating ere fairly Le October CP disgrace ell-known e again, ; in a vretehedy Le disen- author's L The ;s as the is favour- Le looking er, when right for lalph the Moggs, )e reflects face the his own, ;gs, how- a speech, [on. The )mewards ce of the a "foul, and with which m that f " John entitled umber of lities as marked in her rambled ultimate ers with y unjust 'our " are an, IIUITI - X." We any light lions on revision it of La subjects he late of Che was an nplished l of apo- Lad gone elation. a com iduatrial it Hon. Among Captain lderman Alder i-Mayor L letter onverts, pendant . to have hese got friends. Mowing peon : Roman yamen •er sixty various ; their grenous Aced on Las been ;t that till in [ - Lt these [are not driven ed over rl aged 5r small r indig- Cold lion has zette re 'a which nd by 3 d cocoa, 3licatelY doctors' only in opathi FRESH COMBINATIONS. BERLIN, OCT. 5. The Royal head-quarters are to be removed to-day from Yerribres to Versailles. The semi-official Provincial Correspondence says that the troops who are now disposable by the fall of Strasburg, and the 4th Division of Reserve, which has assembled near Freiburg, will be entrusted with the duty of occupying Upper Alsace together with Mulhouse and Colmar, and will surround or capture Belfort, Schelstadt, and Neu-Breisach. As soon as this duty has been per formed—and it will be done as speedily as possible— the troops will be able to push on into the interior of France. Along the line of the German advance, from east to west, there has not been found up to the present any signs of fresh forces being brought into the field by France. Every day renders the in: tended organization of two new French armies more doubtful. It is confirmed that Herr Delbruck will shortly proceed to the Prussian head-quarters, in order to concert the necessary steps for further negotiations upon the question of the reconstitution of Germany. The semi-official Provincial Correspondence of this evening also affirms that M. Thiers has no prospect of success in his mission to St. Petersburg ; and in proof it states that the Russian Government has re cently given assurances in Berlin of its peaceful in tentions in every direction. THE SIEGE OF PARIS . TOURS, OCT. 5. A. commission, appointed by the Government of National Defence, composed of Jules Etimon, Jules Ferry, M. Gambetta, E. Picard, E. Arago, M. Magnin, M. Cernuschi, and M. Sauvage, hold sittings daily at the Hotel de Ville, at Paris, to concert measures to control the means of subsistence of the inhabitants. The Government has under consideration a pro posal of M. Gambetta, authorising the director of the Mont de Pit to return gratuitously all articles of clothing and linen upon which the ad vances do not exceed 15f. The proposal, if adopted, will involve an expense of 3,000,000 f. to the Government. An official decree has been issued, that the gates of Paris be opened at seven a.m. and closed at seven p.m., from the Ist October. A large nnmber of peasants have been set to work by the Prussians, in erecting works of defence on the Terrace of Meudon. THE INVESTMENT OF METZ. ESCH, OCT. 5. There was another sortie from Metz against the Eighth Corps, posted at Jouey, at noon on the 3rd inst. Six French wounded were left in the hands of the Germans. The German loss was nine. The French carried of! their dead. The attack was supported by Fort Queleu. These recent diversions seem rather aimless, especialy this southward one, except as means of discipline. The Metz troops are still told they were victorious in August, and are becaming impatient for active proofs. This attack had no strategic result whatever. Several brigades were engaged on both sides.—Daily News Telegram. THE EMPEROR NAPOLEON'S MANIFESTO. [OFFICIAL GERMAN DESPATCH.] FERRIERES, OCT. 4. The manifesto, dated September 26, alleged to have been issued by the Emperor Napoleon, and communicated to La Situation by General Castelnau, is entirely unknown here, and is probably apocryphal. THE PAPAL CIVIL LIST. ROME, OCT. 4. Signor Sella has sent to the Pope 50,000 crowns, the amount of the Papal Civil List for the present mouth. The Pope has accepted the money. DESTRUCTIVE FIRE IN CORK. CORK, Thursday, 10 a.m.—At five o'clock this morning a fire was discovered in the large soap and candle mann f actory of Messrs. Clark and Son, tobacconists, Cork. On account of the combustible nature of the materials stored in the building, the flames spread with remarkable rapidity, and for some time threatened the destruction of the adjoining buildings, of which the Blind Asylum stood the most in danger. The efforts to confine the fire t) Messrs. Clarke's premises were ultimately successful, although by nine o'clock these were totally destroyed. The amount of property consumed is immense, and it is impossible at present to estimate the damage. SUN, LONDO,N, THE - RSDA Y, OCTOBER 6, 187. SPORTING INTELLIGENCE. FIGHTING AROUND PARIS. . The Paris correspondent of the Standard, writing from Rouen on tire 4th instant, remarks :—Before laying before you the latest news from Paris, which, oddly enough, seems to reach Rouen before it gets to Tours, you must permit me to draw your attention to an extraordinary statement which figures conspicuously in a telegram from Calais, October 1, which I find in the London papers of the 3rd. It is therein stated, not as an on dit, or a rumour, but as a positive fact, about which there can be no doubt, that there was brilliant skirmishing near Rouen on the 30th. The statement is wholly and ab lutely untrue. There was some skirmishing on Friday at a place called Maule, about six miles' and a quarter to the south-east of Mantes, between Mocquard's Franc-tireurs and a large body of Prussians. From the statements of some of these irregulars, who have returned to Rouen, I gather that they succeeded in effecting their retreat to some woods in the neighbourhood, ann escaped during the night. They add that next morning the Prussians shelled the wood at long range, an6l • must have been wofully disappointed when they found their enemy had vanished. There appears also to have been a brush on Sunday be tween some of the Rouen volunteers, the 3rd Regiment of Hussars, and the advanced guard of a Prussian corps between Gournay and Gisors—with what result does not seem clear. Gournay is about 35 miles from this. The result of this engagement is not known, but the affair at Maule on Friday was decidedly unfavour able. Friday was an unlucky day for the French round Paris as well as before Mantes. There is no material discrepancy; between the telegrams from LEICESTER RACES.—THis DAY. (BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH.) SCURRY STAKES. Outpost Skipper Bruce ...... . 1 2 3 Seven ran. LEICESTERSHIRE HANDICAP. Miss Ilervine Ventnor Eugenie colt ,••rrr • • • • ••• _2 Five ran. •• GOPSAL PARK SAKES. Balquidhar ••• 666666 Furley Penske .... .... •••• Four ran. BELVOIIt PLATE. Frederick Charles sealskin , Prude . . 3 Nine ran. Winner objected io for being in a training stable. COUNTY CUP, Fervacques... IV.O, EDINBURGH RACES—THis D. AMATEUR HANDICAP. Harmony Kelvin Grove . Glengyle ..... ......... 2 Seven ran. SPORTSMAN'S NURSERY. ocral rochu and those from the Prussian headquarters. Both represent the French to have made a vigorous attack on the Prussian positions at Thiais and Choisy-le-Roi. They appear to have ad vanced from Villejuif to Chevilly, and then advanced to Thiais and Choisy-le-Roi.. But both these pleasant villages (which command the passage of the Seine) were held in force by the Prussians. There was a brisk engagement, which resulted in the French .being driven back. General Trochu states that they effected their retreat in a most orderly manner, and that the Mobiles—whom I persist in considering the most reliable portion of the French infantry just now—behaved with -great gallantry. The French admit heavy losses. There is no doubt that this affair was a serious defeat for • the French, and it is not very easy to understand what was the motive for the attack on two villages which form a strong defensive position, and which a mere sortie was not likely to drive the Prussians from. En revanche detailed accounts reach us of a smart affair between a French gunboat and Prussian bat teries at St. Cloud. The suspension bridge at Suresnes having been ( very unnecessarily) • blown up, the two gunboats La Claymore and Le Sabre were ordered to drop down the river and tow a bridge of boats to the spot . and moor it across the stream. They started from Point de Jour at five p.m., and reached Suresnes at nightfall; they were suffered to pass St. Cloud unmolested. After nightfall the two gunboats, in pursuance of their orders, steamed back again to their station, but near Sevres the Claymore was assailed by a shower of bullets, one of which disabled the man at the wheel, and the current 'im mediately drifted her to the left bank of the river, where she grounded ; the Prussians plied her hotly with musketry and grape, and the iron plates of which her armour consists were drilled through and through like a cullender. The unfortunate Claymore hung on for a quarter of an hour, but at length was warped off, and as soon as her head could be got round she opened with her 30-pounder on the Prussians, and fired 'several volleys of grape, which silenced their fire with magical promptitude, and the Claymore regained her moorings. It is not stated what loss she suffered. The other gunboat had of course opened fire on 'the enemy as soon as she perceived the plight of her consort, but her fire does not seem to have (.1. , :ie . much execution. Chick. ..... Christopher Sly Orator.... 1 2 Sixteen ran. • CITY BETTING—This DAY. OESAREWITCH. 7to 1 agst Wheatear (offered-15 to 2 taken) Bto 1 agst Hawthornden (offered) 100 to 8 agst Ethus (offered—take 100 to 7) 100 to 6 agst Rattlepate (taken and offered-3600 to 200 taken) 100 to 6 agst Typhoeus (taken and offered) 20 to 1 agst Cardinal York (taken and offered) 20 to 1 agst Flibustier (offered) 20 to 1 agst Falkland (offered) 25 to 1 agst Barford (offered) 1000 to 33 agst Sister to Cherie (offered) 1000 to 30 agst Indian Ocean (offered) 1000 to 30 agst Annie Wood (offered) 33 to 1 agst Adonis (offered) 50 to 1 agst Not Out (offered) 1000 to 20 agst Pompeii (offered) 1000 to 10 agst Tabernacle (taken and offered) CAMBRIDGESHIRE. 100 to 8 agst Queen of Hearts (offered) 15 to 1 agst Frivolity (offered) 1000 to 60 agst Ethus (offered) 1000 to 40 agst Adonis (offered) 25 to 1 agst Pax (offered) 1000 to 30 agst Albany (offered) 2000 to 40 agst L'Oise (taken) 1000 to 20 agst Barfotd (offered) 1000 to 20 agst Not Out (offered) MONEY MARKET. 01T A! , Two o'CLocx. On the Stock Exchange to-day there was all improve ment in prices, and business was better. Consols are now 924 to, 92a for money and 921 to 921 for November. Foreign Securities Italian and Lombardo-Venetian are / higher ; and Spanish and Turkish I. The prices are : Italian of 1861, 541 to 55 ; Lombardo-Venetian, 14/ to 141 ; Spanish of 1867, 21 to 284; ditto of 1869, 271 to 27i; Turkish Five per Cents., 421 t 0424 ; ditto of 1869, ag to 51 ; Peruvian 871 to 88 . ; and Egyptian 76/ to 76g. Telegrams from - Marseilles quote French ilentess4, and Italian 54k. The loan of £.100,000 for the city of Mat seines had not as yet been fully subscribed. Only about one-third had been taken. It is intimated that the reductions which have at various times been made in the fares on the Metro politan Railway have proved so satisfactory that the directors have decided to make another impor tant move in that direction, to commence on the Ist of next month. From • the statistics obtained there can be little doubt that the receipts will ultimately benefit largely by the intended measure, but it is possible the public may not at first fully appreciate the benefit conferred, and that there may be for the first week or two even a slight diminution in the receipts—a point to be borne in mind to prevent any hasty disappointment or im provident action on their publication. At the weekly meeting of directors of the Chartered Bank of India, Australia, and China, it was re solved not to recommend any dividend for the half year ended the 30th of June last. The ordinary general meeting of the San Paulo (Bra zilian) Railway Company (Limited) will be held on the 14th October to declare a dividend. The half-yearly meeting of the Demerara Railway Company is called for the 26th instant. A decision of Judge Strong, of the United States' Supreme Court, in a case regarding ,the payment of in come tax on dividends of the Reading Railroad since the Ist of January last, invalidates the tax during that period, and decides that any payments made should be refunded. As this would apply to all similar companies, such as the Illinois Centraland other railways, the amount of revenue involved is about £1,200,000, and an appea 1 will therefore be made by the officials of the United States' Treasury Department to the full Bench of the Supreme Court. POLICE INTELLIGENCE.--This DAY. DESPERATE ATTEMPTS AT SUICIDE.—Henry Highfiell a labourer, was charged on remand, at the Westminster Police-court, with attempting to commit suicide by taking laudanum at York-street, Westminster, and again by cutting his throat at Westminster Hospital. Mr. M a y, the house physician, proved that the prisoner was brought to the hospital suffering from the effects of some narcotic which by the ,odour turned out to be laudanum; it had become thoroughly absorbed in the system, and there wits a tendency to sleep ; by exercises galvanism, and other restoratives the effects were entirely worked off, and then the prisOner lapsed into a state of temporary insanity of a violent kind, declared he was the Saviour, and was in communication with the angels ; this again passed off, and he then attempted to cut his throat, severing the tissues, but not inflicting any serious injury. Prisoner expressed his deep regret, and the chaplain at the gaol gave him a good character, and thought he would repent of the rash act. His son, who was a teetotaller, offered to take him home, and let him share the savings of his sobriety. Mr. Woolrych dis charged him with a suitable admonition. DRUNKENNESS ON RAILWAYS.—Henry Lichfield, aged 46 years, of No. 3, Spencer-street, St. George-in-the- East, was charged before Mr. Paget, at the Thames Police-court,- with.. being drunk and disorderly and tearing the uniform coat of a ticket collector named Wainwright, at the Limehouse Station of the Great Eastern Railway Company on their Blackwall line. The case was fully made out. Mr. Paget said this was a very proper proceeding on the part of the Great Eastern Railway Company. Every one must have observed in travelling on all railways in the kingdom, and particularly those in and near London, the great proportion of drunkenness in rail way carriages, and the annoyance and trouble they gave sober and'respectable people. No drunken man or woman should he allowed to enter a railway carriage on any pre tence whatever. The prisoner was very properly pre vented travelling on the line and removed, and for the assault on the officer in the proper execution of his duty he fined him 10s. The penalty was paid [CENTRAL PRESS TELEGRAM.] THE MINERS' CONFERENCE AT HANLEY. The Miners' Amalgamated Association resumed its con ference yesterday ; and the Mines' Regulation Bill was under discussion. Resolutions were adopted suggesting and authorising the Ekecutive to use its influence to obtain several alterations in the measure. The first of these proposed improvements was the appointment of numerous practical sub-inspectors, who would, it was urged, have mere thorough survellance, and prevent more surely the acts of carelessness and false economy, which now so frequently lead to accidents. For the same .end, it was recommended that it should be com pulsory for the Chief Inspector to attend every inquest on persons killed in mines, and that juries should be composed half of miners. The " truck system " was also discussed, and unanimously condemned ; the adoption of weekly payments was proposed as the remedy for it. The compromise of daily reports from the pits to inspectors, instead of the appointment of sub-inspectors, was unfavourably received. METROPOLITAN BOARD OF EDUCATION.-It iS stated that Viscount Midleton, Sir Thomas Tilson, and Mr. Charles Few will be brought forward as candidates for the district of Lambeth ; Mr. James Bevington and Mr. Alfred Lafone being proposed for Southwark. AFFAIRS IN PARIS Among the papers received in Rouen is a number of the Caulois, of the 26th ult. ;. it is printed on very thin p:tper ; but it contains nothing , or any interest respecting statc of affairs in Paris. It describes, however, with a gaod deal of raciness a "reconnaissance" effected by one of its reporters in the direction of Montrouge. This gentleman leil; Paris by the Orleans road, and found his progress very slow, being, called upon at every successive outpost to produce his pass. All the houses within range of the enceinte were do wn, and even the walls surrounding the ceme tery of Montrouge had been levelled, the tombstones and "monuments," however, were left standing. Further on in the direction of Areueil the houses had not been de molished, but had evidently been broken into and plun dered. Shutters, windows, and doors were smashed ; the houses entirely gutted ; broken bottles strewed the ground in abundanCe, and the wine - which could not be consumed had evidently been poured out in that spirit of wanton wastefulness which characterises ill- disciplined soldiery. The National Guard were busy throw ing up barricades all along the road, with earth and paving stones. The writer says that the skill displayed in the construction of these imprcmptu fortifications falls but little short of genius. On arriving at the foot of Montrouge, lie found that a recon nuisance of linesmen and sailors, supported by one gun, had just left it, and were forming on the crest of the heights above Bagneux. The candle manufactory, about 900 metres in front of the foot of Montrouge, was occupied by sailors, and was loopholed. The houses of Bagneux, right opposite, and divided from the manufac tory by a piece of waste ground, were also loopholed, and held by the Prussians, and a brisk ex change of shots was taking, place. The Prussians on no ticing the reconnaissance, advanced towardsitsposition, and Sustained its fire without returning it. When they were quite close the French fell back, and the enemy then opened fire, wounding two men ; but two shells from the Fort of Vanvres induced them to withdraw, carrying away with them two men killed and five wounded. The reporter also talks, but vaguely, of another engagement on the 25th, in which the Prussians were driven back to the woods of Bourg-la-Reine, with a loss of fifteen hun dred men hors de combat, and from four to five hundred prisoners, but he fails to see that if the Prussians had been forced back to Bourg la-Reine he could not on the same day have seen them at Bagneux. I learn that General Trochu had towards .the close of last month issued a i eport, in which he stated that the enemy did not appear to be preparing an attack in any one direc tion ; nevertheless, the general opinion in Paris is that the storm which is impending over the capital will burst from the hills of Sevres and St. Cloud. By the way, what can be the meaning of that extraordinary , misstatement in a Ferrires telegram, that the Prussians had not occupied St. Cloud ? It is evident from a letter in yesterday's Times that they were in pos session of the Palace, and that they were either constructing batteries or digging trenches on the platform of the " Lanterne" more than a week ago. It is evident that they will not make an attack on Paris till they get up their monster siege guns, and if they can get them up to the Lanterns the position of the south-west of Paris will become critical. From the Lanterne to the towers of Notre Dame (the spot, I may inform your readers unlearned in such matters, from which all distances from Paris are cal culated) is exactly five miles as the crow flies. From this you can infer what would be the consequence of a battery of Krupp's monster ordnance beine• planted on this platform. As regards the state of Paris, I hear from a private source that the apparent inaction of the enemy was making people feel very nervous, and that there was very little of _ that feeling which enabled the Athenians of old to celebrate the Olympian games whilst the Persians were but at three days' distance. The absence of any news from abroad was felt to be more irksome than the cutting off - of even those luxuries which to Parisians are dearer than the necessaries of life. Gavarni's well know motto--it n'y a de necessaire que to superflu, though written for a very different occasion, is but too applicable just now to the great city he knew so well. That favourite meal of Parisians of every age, sex, and degree, cafe au Tait, has become impossible, there being 'no milk to be had for love or money. Eggs fetch the absurd price of 10d. (If. each), and butter is in demand at 3L a pound. By a curious anomaly meat is, owing to the Government having prescribed a tax, cheaper that; it was in time of peace ; but unless some means are found to introduce cattle this state of things-must change. At the horsedealing establishment at Beaujou, which is knowit as the " Tattersall's Francais," horses worth from 1,500 f. to 2,000 f. barely find buyers at from 40f. to 100 f. The gilded cupola of the Invalides is about to be covered by a tarpaulin, under the impression that the gilding would make it a target, and the windows of the Louvre are being protected by sandbags. On the Boulevards most cafés shut at nine o'clock, and. by ten the streets and boulevards are empty and silent. It is amusing , to find papers like the Figaro and Gaulot%s describing this awful state of things as "a great change for the better." Better, no doubt, in one sense, for it calls forth on the part of some portion at least of the population virtues such as manliness and self-sacrifice, which there was not much room for in the days when Paris was merely the rendezvous- of the votaries of 'pleasure from all part's of the world ; but that this ehasio i,s an agrcQablu or an acceptable one fot the immense majority 91 Parisians is what I utterly disbelieve. All that made life pleasent in Paris has ceased to exist. Business is at a standstill. The streets not being watered, there is a heavy pall of dust hovering above the city—and drilling, the rattle of the drum, and the , booming of distant cannon are the only sounds that disturb the strange silence of the great city. All honour to the courage that endures these evils, all honour to those who cheerfully submit to mental and physical suffering- but it is an insult to common sense to pretend that they like it. A private letter from a friend of mine to his wife (dated the 25th), which I have been petillitted to see, puts this very vividly. The writer dwells on the horrible feeling of being immured in the city without means of knowing where those who are dear to him may be—holv they are—what they are doing—and describes this enforced want of news as by far the greatest trial he has to endure, and at the time he wrote the blockade had not lasted a week ! Standard Correspondent. FRANCE DISORGANISED. 11l a letter, dated the 26th September, purporting to be from its special correspondent in Paris, the Tc/crp-aph gives the following :—"lt is hourly becoming more apparent that discipline is at present an unknown quality among the so-called regiments of France. Paris is being defended by an armed mob. A night or two since a step Was taken by General Trochu which for the first tame gave some indication that Paris is now in a state of siege. A ukase appeared, enjoining that every caf6 and estaminet should be closed at half-past ten p.m. lam happy to add that on the 19th many officers, revelling in uniforms heavy with gold-lace, and rejoicing in the clank ing of their sabres, were hustled and insulted at the Caf6 Richo by the Gardes Mobiles, because they were taking their pleasure, some of them in company with frail members of the demi-monde sisterhood who have hitherto escaped banishment. These Bobadils were singing the " 111 arseillaise," and sipping their i-cg Anzericain—an awful compound, in which all manner of hetero geneous liquors are brought into harmony by the • infiltra tion of unlimited quantities of sugar—as the stout mot/tots trooped by to take their nightly share of duty. It . might be imagined that, in the present condition of Pari and of France, whatever there may be of earnest ness and seriousness in the composition of a Frenchman would be brought to the surface. I regret to be compelled to state that I meet officers every day who have no other thought than so to comport themselyes as to attract tl e admiring gaze of the largest possible num ber of passers-by, especially of the female genders I hesitate to state the opinion which the expe rience of this present war has compelled me to form as to the character and temper of Frenchmen. Observing .of what stuff they are made, I am more than ever lost in ad miration of the marvellous genius for war displayed at the beginning of this century by the First Napoleon. That \ she should have been able out of such materials to create the mighty engine of offence which won Aus terlitz, Jena, and Wagram, and so nearly drove back the English army at Waterloo, is to me a never failing source of wonder and surprise. It is in vain that I importune every friend who has long resided in yaris, mid beg him to spew me a Frenchman in any line of life who is a man of business. Brave, passionate, chivalrous men, capable of impulsive and melodramatic acts of self-devo tion, we have in abundance ; but it is as true to-day as it was when Napoleon the Great said it, that men who, had what he called "two o'clock in the morning courage" there was but one specimen in France—to wit, himself alone. During the present warßazaine is the only. Frenchman who has given any evidence of his possession of this calm, unruffled, serene presence of mind when the hour of action comes. If Paris holds out, her triumph will be due to the fact that, impulsive, fiery, in consequent, and irrational as Frenchmen are when called on to act, many of them possess a patience and tenacity. when called on to suffer and to wait, deserving of very high commendation, and especially adapted for de fending towns. THE Sig6'E" OF PARIS. The great mischief, or, I might add, danger, of our position in Paris is that, however stout may be the defence offered by the French capital, it is impossible to give any silencing answer to those pestilent querists who will persist in asking you, " Granted a heroic defence, what next ?" The provisions stored in Paris will last, some say for one, some tor two, some for three months. My own private impression is, that before three weeks have flown we shall not lack very distinct intima tions from Belleville, Aubervilliers, and La Batignolles, that famine is upon us. Be it not forgotten that labour tad its concomitant wages are dead in this metropolis. rho peer are poorer than ever, for those who live by hanest toll can find no work to do, and e who, like Autolycus, pick up the...thousand a reconsidered trifles or perform the numberless )1d jobs of a great capital, are at their wits' end. Chill penury and coercive hunger loom up daily before us like a grim Frankenstein, with which neither the Gardes Mobiles, nor the Gardes Na tionaux, nor the Provisional Government, nor General Trochu can successfully cope. Even if Paris hold stoutly out, after the fashion of 'foul and Strasburg, what hope has she of being able to resist M. Bismarck's terms when aunger lays her at the conqueror's feet ? As for la province, "la province se " the rest of France is rising like one man." This has been the cry of Paris ever since that fatal 6th of August which witnessed the defeats of Forbach and Woerth, but I must fairly confess that I have no longer the slightest faith in its truth, or even in its probability. The id htl army of Lyons is now said to have dwindled to two or three regifnents ; and an American friend, who has re cently returned from the headquarters of the Crown Prince of Saxony, assures me that another large German army has entered, or is about to enter, France, in order to look after the putative forces which our southern cities may throw into the field. You will probably be better informed in England than we are as to what is taking place in Touraine, and if the army of the Loire has any other existence than that which is accorded to it by the imaginative brain of Parisian journalists. But inasmuch as there are two Frenchmen here v. h o have come from Toulouse, and who have entered into a mighty contract with the Provisional Government to supply the South with guns, I shall not be suspected of half-heartedness towards Fiance if I deny the probability of any army being formed and organised to the south of the Loire which is in the least likely to exercise any influence upon the siege of Paris. I can come to no other conclusion than that Paris will have to fight the battle out for and by herself. If. as I fully expect, the Prussians are satisfied to close every avenue leading into or out of the doomed city, what matters it whether we are three weeks or three months in learning that we have no choice, but, sooner or later, to accept Count Bismarck's terms ?—Special Paris Correspondent of the Telegraph. THE _FOREIGN SECRETARY. hart Uranville returned from Walmer Castle yesterday afternoon ; and afterwards received his Excellency the Duke of Saldanha, the new Portuguese Minister, at the Foreign Office. THE BISHOPRIC OF WELLINGTON.—The bishop ric of Wellington, New Zealand, vacant by the resignation of the Right Rev. Dr. C. J. Abraham, has been conferred upon the Venerable Archdeacon Hadfield. SERIOUS ILLNESS OF MR. REBOW, M.P.—Yes terday the senior member for Colchester was reported to be dangerously ill, a relapse of a former complaint being supplemented by an attack of diptheria. His physician, Dr. Williams, had remained with him all night, and Dr. Garrad, who had been telegraphed for, arrived from Lon don. Mr. Rebow, who is 71 years of age, has contested the borough four times—once unsuccessfully. His only son is an officer in the Life Guards- CRYSTAL PALACE.—One shilling day, Wednesday, sth, 1870.—Admission by season tickets, 2,026 ; do. on payment, 2,824. Total visitors, 4,850. - BREAKING THE PAROLE.—The other day we drew attention, in a statement communicated from the head-quarters of King William, to a breach of faith charged against General Ducrot, who, having given his word to surrender at Pont-h-Mousson in order to be in terned in Germany, broke his parole and escaped to Paris, where he has fought against the German troops. It would seem that this case of -breach of faith —against which, the German semi-officials state, the sen tence of shooting has been pronounced—is not the only in stance of easy interpretation of parole on the part of French officers. We believe that not a few who surren reridered at Sedan, or on other occasions during the earlier disasters of the campaign, and were released on con dition that they should not serve against Ger many during the present war, have returned to France—have exchanged into regiments now sta tioned in Algeria—and so liberated for service against Germany other officers, to whom they have now transferred the conditions of their parole. The annoyance and distrust which this conduct has occasioned at the Prussian head-quarters are, it would seem, likely to infuse into the relations between the two belligerents a new element of suspicion and bitterness, which honourable men on both sides must cruelly regret. —Telegraph. ... 1 OUP, 001'11;IVIPORAT.-tIPi.3---This Lic. THE BALANCE OF POWER. The Times owns that jealousy of the military - power and growth of Germany is the . motive on which M. Thiers has based his appeals to England, to Austria, and to Russia, as jealousy of the strength of neighbours has been the leading idea of his foreign policy throughout his life. it is on this same passion of jealousy that the members of the Provisional Government rely when they claim the assistance of neutrals against the demands of Prussia, and by so doing drive us to the conclusion that they are them selves animated by. it, or that they believe it to be a main-spring of our international conduct. They are mistaken, to which ever motive their error may be due. Any manifestation of jealousy on the part of the Ministers of France nips the growth of sympathy for the misfortunes of her people. There was a time when it was believed that the best way to Ip.• crease our own trade was to destroy the trade of oureneighbours. Wars were made on this principle. Treaties of. peace were aimed at the restriction of the commerce of rivals. We now know that there is no surer way to the increase of our commercial greatness than through the increase of. the commercial activity of othera. What is true in economic is true in political science. We look with hope for ourselves to the free and healthy growth of our neighbours. This is the secret of the policy that has been stigmatized as leading to the alienation of our colonies and the disintegration of the Empire. It is the principle of the foreign policy of tle. present generation. FRANCE AND GERMANY. Tho maxim that nothing is probable but the unantica. gated, . remarks the Daily News, expresses the . true philosophy of future history. The uncertain rules, and it rules especially in war time. In this fact is the solitary gleam of hope for French statesmanship and French armies. Two months ago anyone who had predicted that events would have taken the course which we have had from clay to day to chronicle might not indeed have been shut up as a mad man, but he would have been disregarded as a fooL The sue ssful resistance of Paris now, and the 'gradual witArawal of the German armies from before the French capital, and step by step through the wasted provinces of Champagne, Lorraine, and Alsace, across the Rhine, would not excite more astonishment than their onward march has aroused. The surprise would, indeed, be more reasonable. The forecast of Europe was deceiv6d a couple of months ago because the general impression was utterly wrong as to the relative strength and organisation of the French and the German armies, the skill of their generals, and the Spirit and purpose of the two peoples. It was a blunder of ignorance. We now know what are the forces and causes in operation. While they are what they are events must go on as they have done. This statement errs, indeed by exhibiting the matter in a light too favourable for the less fortunate belligerent. Day by day the relative powers of Prussia increase, and those of her antagonist decline. France is the worse by the loss of a hundred and fifty thousand men, prisoners in Germany ; by tens upon tens of thousands of soldiers slain ; by troops undrilled and unofficered, or distrusting their officers ; by social disorganisation, military demoralisation, and the infinite discouragement of which .these things are at once the effect and the cause. Germany is the better not merely by its enemy's weak ness and decrepitude, and by its own positive gain in corresponding particulars. We must add the minus of France to the plus of Prussia and her allies in order to estimate the added strength of the one and the accumulated weakness of the other. Every success which the victor has gained has multiplied the chances of future and more complete victories. THE CONSTITUENT ASSEMBLY, The Telegraph considers the resolution of the Provi sional Government to convoke the Chamber at this crisis appears almost a confession of weakness. In the Assembly, to be elected on Saturday week, the capital and the whole North-east of France must r ecessarily be unrepresented. The Rump Parliament, which is to meet in Tours, a Bordeaux, or Montpellier, or in whatever place may be deemed beyond the reach of flying Prus sian columns, can hardly speak in the name of the French nation. Its appeals to popular sentiment are not likely to be successful in exciting an enthusiasm which the spectacle of the invasion of France and the siege of Paris have failed to evoke. There is one thing only, as far as the Telegraph can see, which the provincial gathering could do to influence the course of events; its meeting might facilitate the negotiations for peace. If the Chambers were to pass a resolution, proposing direct correspondence with Prussia, and admitting the possibility of territorial ces signs as a basis of peace, the Provisional Government might had in such a step the means of escap ing from an untenable position. Supposing M. Favre and his colleagues to be of opinion that the war cannot be carried on much longer, and yet to shrink from the responsibility of opening negotiations with Prussia on such terms as they know she would accept, it is natural enough that they should desire to transfer the burden of making the first overtures to a reprdseutative Assembly. THE OPINION OF THE BRITISH CABINET. The Standard criticises the remarks of Mr. Bruce, who, the journal observes, apparently represents the mind of the Cabinet. And what is that mind ? the Standard asks. A sorry and stupid satisfaction at the crushing disasters sustained by France, on the ground that the destruction of French power to do mischief complacently assumed by these statesman to be complete and definite—secures England against all danger of invasion. When France was a great military and naval Power England, says Mr. Bruce, ran a certain amount of danger. Now that she is not a great Power either way, in his assumption, she is not to be feared ; and as for Prussia, we need not trouble &Mut her, because she cannot find the means of transporting her armies to our coast. Is this opinion of the great Liberal party, appreciating it altogether apart from the absurdities and the brutalities with which it has been accompanied, a sound one ? Is it even worthy of consideration by any man who knows anything of the true character of the nations now in Conflict or of the conditions under which the. fight is being waged? Certainly not. Take it whicheoer way the supporters of the Government like, the position is made more perilous for England ; the interests she has most at heart are most gravely preju diced. We will say nothing about a possible French triumph of a French agreement with Germany at the expense of others. Both these contingencies our states men and the Liberals, as well philosophic as vulgar who support them, put out of the question. We will discuss only the consequences of that Prussian triumph which Mr. Bruce expects, and from which he and his colleagues assume that England can henceforth dispense with both army and navy ? We will grant, although the admission is, perhaps, an unwise one, that the Germans will never propose to invade England in order to civilise the English barbarians, and teach them that philosophy of history which Mr. Bruce, mangling some Liberal "leader," declares to have been the study, and the successful study, of the German nation. No doubt Count Bismarck and the King do not dream of any such exploit, but we are promised by Mr. Bruce and his friends in the press that as a consequence of this war Germany is to be free as was as united, and that public opinion is to triumph. Well, the public opinion of Germady has an appetite of the most portentous kind, and if we may be lieve its accredited organs it would like nothing better than to see Count Bernstorff installed as Prefect of London, and sending communiques to all the London papers, instead of, as now, only to our Liberal contemporaries. How ever, we need not fear invasion, although that inability to find transport, which comforts poor Mr. Bruce, is a very small security. The danger of that excessive aggrandise ment of Germany, of that growth of a spirit of world domination now apparent, is not of a kind to frighten the good folks of Kent or Essex. It cannot cost us more than the sacrifice of all those interests which we have the utmost importance to pro tect. Judging dispassionately, we may save shires by abandoning our pretensions co the rauk of a great Power. TIIE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. - The Fungus Show at the Royal Horticultural Society yesterday, proved very attractive. Notwithstanding the drought, a great many fine and curious specimens were exhibited, and as there was no collection in the first-class, which was confined to edible fungi, the prizes were awarded to Mr. G. Worthington Smith and Mr. James English, whose collections were considered of equal merit, while the second prize was given to Mr. Hoyle. Lord Londes borough exhibited a fine form of Dendrobium Chrysotis in great perfection, and there were many other objects of interest. W. Wilson Saunders, Esq., F.R.S., presided at a general meeting held at three o'clock, and the follow ing candidates were elected Fellows of the Society, viz. :--Aniold. de B. Baruchson, Rev. Arthur . R. 'Cole, M.A., Major J. Grant Crosse, Airs. Darbishire, Edward W. Green, Thomas Laurence Read, &c. g f 1