The Stourbridge Observer, Cradley Heath, Halesowen & District Chronicle.
Stourbridge, West Midlands, England, 1870-12-10 00:00:00

(Our Nonbon torrtsponbint

/We nem it -'ght to state that we do not et all tin.
if !entity oursol—s milk our correspondent's opiuionel

Private enterprise having given to the British
public what the Government thought fit to with-
hold from them—doubtless for very weighty reasons—
Prince Gortschakeff's rejoinder to Eerl Granville's
reply has become a leading topic of the day. Without
attempting to discuss at length this important des-
patch, I may briefly remark that, though far
from what we might have hop d it would
have been, it is cer'ainly far alio from what
we might have feared. and the reader who may have
read lengthy leaders on the sul jrct will have found a
difficulty perhaps in arriving at a more definite cons
cltv,ion. While on the one hand the Prim e boldly
avows th. t boo foul her posi• ion to be "mire
and more intolerable," and asserts that "the national
sentiment protests" against certain obligations of the
treaty of ISA, he repudiates the claims being
regarded as a menace to peace, and asserts that Russia
"is ready to come to 1113 agreement with the signatory
Powers of that treaty, titter to confirm its general
stipulations, or to sever them, or to substitute for them
any other ignitable arrangement." Puttin , t
statements together with the fact that Prussia, . i
England, Italy, and Turkey have agreed to a o :der •

_
on the au' jct, to meet in London, and ti..l!
adhepion of France is fully anticipatod, it mu

admitted that "the Eutern qu9it:un iano
nearly so threatening as it was a week co
While we are all hoping that a peaceful solution .

difficulty may be arrived at, renewed interest is
felt in the diewtrons war in Frames, owing te
the deeperete efforts ard the partial *excises of the
French. Fearer, as Lord Byron said of Greece,
is "though fallen, great," and elle is evidently making
mighty efforts to free herself from her inert fere The
war news you will give in another part of this pal er
will be of special interest, but, as the campaign has
reached a most critic el stage, and any moment may
brie g decisive news, the intellieence you will communi-
cate wi be far more valuable than c anineets on events
which are passing as! write.
The visit which her Majesty recently paid to the ex
Empress of the French at Chielehurst, must have met
with almost universal approbation. The Queen,
throughout the Franco-Prussian war, has doubtless
hal her opinions and her ay mpat des, as most of UP
have Lad, and it does not require any profound sagacity
to arrive at the cetclusien in which directions the re
sympathies have tended, but at all events her Maj eta'
has preeerved a fair and honourable neutralcy, and the
II ,yel visit was in no way °repeated to this ; it se.es
merely a 'deftly and gracious feet of personals} rivet hy,
and the ex-Eruprees no doubt received it in this way.
Trial by jury is a glorious institution, no doubt, and
"twelve men in a box' are now, as they always have
been, a guarantee to a considerable extent of the main-
tenance of our liberties ; but imperfection attaches to
all earthly thing', and even a jury cannot be certain
of arriving at the truth. A curious instance of the
difficulties wbieh juries have in arriving at the facts of
a case is the recent acti n in the Court of Common
new. 11 nintiff says that his wife was waiting for a
train, that it arrived, and "two guards" had an alter.
cation about a het, and paid no attention to her ; that
as she was getting in the train moved on and jerked
her from side to side ; that she would have fallen, but
that a guard took her round the waist awl threw her
Into the carriage, consequent on which she was seriously
hurt, The defendants, the London, Chatham, and
Dover Railway, had a very different tale to tell —that
the lady stepped in just as the train was moving ; that
her son-ic-law inside caught hold of her awl helped her
In, and that the gland merely "put his hand round
her wrist, lifted her is, and shirt the door ;" and more-
over that the injuries from which she was cuff ering were
canned by two enlist fieent falls, N, w when such con-
tradictory statemen'a as these are severally made the
meet of by clever counsel on either aide, how can
"twelve men in a box" be expected to arrive at a
unanimous conclusion? Why two or three of us talks
lag over the matter would most likely d ffer ; and PO
did this jury. After a conference of an hour and a
quarter they found they could not agree. Then came
the pezzling question, would the counsel consent to the
verdict of the majority ? "Tell us what the opinion of
the maj nity iv," counsel might have said to the Lord
Chief Justice, "and we'll let you know r it was a
lottery, and conned for defendants said he had Almost
determined, when he was for a defendant, never to
accept the verdict of the m ijerity. Lucky for his
clients that in this cue he did not quite det. rmine on
such a course, fir the verdict of the mojority turned
out to be in fercur of the company. The result is sug-
gestive. Why should not the verdict of a mei irity,
may n it leas than three f snrths, be a legal decition ?
Fair arced unanimity seems rather a hard condition to
impose upon poor human nature.
Not altogether of merely local interest are the en-
croachments on Hyde Park which Mr. Ayrton, the
Chief Commissioner of %Forks is proceedieg to carry
out without the sanction of Parliament. Bath Hyde
Park and Kensington Carders are to be to some Extent
sacrificed to the Albert Hall of Arts and Sciences, and
Rotte n Erw, that world-renowned drive, is to be
beamed. Quite an agita'ion on the subject is spring-
in,g we and we stall have some animateil diecuscions
on the matter when Parliami nt meek. By the way
next PeVioll will be more productive., according to
present appearances, of private till legislation, than
any 8,B3:011 for a leng time pest. Bills for railway
extensions, &c., for tremways, canals, aniother peblics
private obj-cts, :es they may be termed, ele mud, and
parliamentary age nte, counsel, m's, law-stationere
and many ether classes, will at all events reap cm-
eidereble profit, whoever else may suffer. The expenses
connected with these priests bids are enormous, and
many of them *holly unteceesary, hot precedent is
all-ponerful. And so complicated, tedious, and heavy
are the proceedines in private committees, that they
do mech towards retarding the public [mimesis of
Parliament. We shall have a reform in the matter
perhaps--some day.
Some very unpleasant fasts, on which I will not
dwell, are officially stated, the chief fact being that
daring the month of November 12 tons 9 cwt. of had
fish have teen seized at Biilingsgate and Columbia
markets. Wtat about the bad fish that has not been
se,z-d ? Well, it is to be hoped that the Inspectors are
so sharp and tl eir management eci good that all bad
fish cerning to the Linden rcarleta is seized. The hope
Is consolatory at all events., big perhaps the subject
would not bear very full inquiry.
It will have been observed with general pleasure that
Oxford has challenged Csmtridge, and that the
*University eight-oared race will take place next year.
At the early part of the present year there yea con-
siderable doubt whether the great annual contest for
the "blue riband of the Thames" would teke place,
Cambridge having been defeated, if my memory serves
me, six times euceeesively, but, happily, it did come
off, and, happily, Cambridge won by a length-and-a-
half, much to the delight of the public generally, and
of the ladies in particular, lovely woman's sympathy
being usually aroused by misfortune ! There in •
pleasant rumour, too, that Harvard University means
to challenge Cambridge to row on the Thames, but it
would be only fair that they should first challenge
Oxford to row on the Hudson. Tuese University
matshes deservedly excite great public interest, for it
Is felt that they are honourably conducted, seed that
the gentlemen row simply for the honour of winning.
May there great aquatic coatis: ta never be lowered to
the level of other contents for money privet.
Partly owing to the fact that the Queen and the
Prince of Wales are exhibitors at the Smithfield Club
Cattle Show, and partly owing to the prevailing im-
pression that the exhibition would be a very peel one
this year, an unusually arge number of people has
flecked up to London, ranch to the delight of our
tradesmen, many of whom do a fine stroke of business
during the Cattle Show week.

EARL GRANVILLE'S REPLY TO PRINCE
GORTSCHAKOFFE SECOND CIRCULAR.
The following is Toed Granville's reply to the second
Note of Prince Gortachakoff

RANVILLE TO SIR A. DUCIIANAN.

" Foreign °Moe, Nov. 23.
"Str,—The Russian Ambassador has read sod glven to roe
a copy of a despatch of Prince Gortschakoff of the date of
3 2hh November.

"It Is not necereary for Her Majesty's Government to
recur to the Important question of international law raised
by the Circular of Prince Gortschakrif, as they have nothing
to add to the declaration on that subject which they have
already made.

His Excellency has been good enough to appeal to mr
Irnowleige .1 facts which his Excelency states prevaived
that con•mltatem ant agreement with other parties to the
Treaty which ltwola ',Ad.: have profaned.
•• -

..
I am aware that suggestions for Contreestes to settle
Other European questions have been made and ma adopted.
" It has also been stated to me that intimation, have been
givets to some of my predecessors that, In the case of certain
cantiogencies, which, however, have never occurred, such
sa the poression of the PtiLlCipill ion by Austria, Russia
would feel bound to call In question some of the prov:slons
of the treaty of 1t,513. lint 1 an Ignosant of any occasion
on which Eustis, the t arty scat inter, stet!, has proposed in
any way to this country that a relaxation of the Trenty
should be taken Into consideratic a.

I cannot therefore mina that the Imperial flovernment
can justify this proceeding by the failure of tlf,rts which
have never been made
"The courteous language in which Prince GortschakofTs
itop,,tch is written, his a. meshes., t.f the in inner in whids
to, w,L 11, vv._ .' • nomi this ouPstion, and his de-
ration of the strct g r a coon, motion of good
.I Atone between thp • puticularly Importaut at
Nt•tjentt't Government In the ballet
! to Midi 1,11t1i1..11s will ha removed.
-v °Wm..- that hi, Excellency descrihes the &dart.
oi• has Ls mot made ri Russia as an abrogation of a
,rincirtle wltho,.t fumed ate application. If
rus ..ro to Ise constv--, Into an announcement th
vim opinion of her rights,
onformity with it without
v, they go for to close the
. ..trnments have been en-
,.l no objection to accept
Ade by Prussi to a Con.
it illatsemhled with, ut
, t r,nnit,. In such on. Tier
.10 011;01 to consider with neatct
re.re,:t di, I a grett and friendly Power,
o • _l, k: may have to make.

I

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ich to. Lot

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the -11-it

itht,h
the ta

tesd and gives copy of Me deepsich to Prince
dertechak.d. " I am, ,
e•lgned)

6-iitiVILLZ."