The Press.
London, England, 1853-10-29 00:00:00

THE PRESS.

any serious result. On Sunday morning the general
went to the lodgings of the young officer and loaded
him with reproaches. He would listen to no explana-
tion, but, working himself up into a furious passion,
rushed upon him, and laid his cane about his face
till it was red with blood, and stt iped with marks
which they say are ineffaceable. The noise caused
by this scene drew many persons to the door, who
were at first unwilling to interfere, but two neighbour;
of the young man at last determined to enter. At
the moment of placing their hands to the lock, the
retort of two pistols was heard, and, ou rushing in,
the young otticer was found to have killed his
general, by two shots discharged from a brace of
pistols still smoking in his hands. The military
authorities bring immediately informed, the perpe-
trator of this dreadful act Intl arrested and con-
ducted to prison.

liarssEt.s, October 17.
Tut; King will open in person, and with the usual
ceremonies, on November K next, the session of the
Belgian Chambers. Ili* Majesty and the Royal Family
will return for the purpose some days previously from
their visit to the British Court. With the exception
of the debate to which the yet unsettled state of the
Belgian commercial relations with France may give
rise, the session promises to pass ott very quietly.
The differences between the Belgian Government
and the Catholic clergy, and the consequent absten-
tion of the latter from intervening iu the schools of
the middle degree erected by the State, still conti-
nue. Some weeks ago the municipal council of
Antwerp had adopted new regulations for religious
instruction in the municipal schools which seem to
have been favourably received by the Cardinal Arch-
bishop of Mechlin, as they allow the priests a direct
intervention in the choice of the school books ; but
not so by the Ministry,who disapprove of the absence
of any provision for the religious instruction of non-
Catholic pupils. As the archbishop primate makes
this omission a copulitio shoe Dui Hon of his sanction,
it is probable the attempt at conciliation will be a
failure.

Several French refugees have again been expelled
from Belgium, probably in consequence of the reite-
rated demands by the new French minister which I
mentioned in my last letter. The expelled refugees
belong all of them to the class of artisans, and the
measure is justified by their proclaiming too loudly
their doctrines in the beerhouses and cabarets.
. .

Meanwhile the Goverment is overwhelmed with
reclamations from all sides against the public press.
The following anecdote is narrated on the subject:—
Some time ago the Papal nuncio called on the
Minister of Foreign Affairs to remonstrate against the
language used towards the Court of Rome on the
subject of the late Papal aggression in Holland.
Scarcely had he left, when the Dotal envoy appeared
to complain of the attacks from the Catholic
press against Holland on the same occasion. The
minister ran after the nuncio, brought him back to
his closet into the presence of the Dutch represen-
tative, and, after having explained to them the mu-
tual object of their visit, said to the nuncio, "if your
eminence will use your influence on the Catholic
papers, to inspire them with greater moderation of
language towards Holland, I, for toy part, will do my
best to make the liberal press abstain from attacking
your Government; so you will be satisfied both."
The meeting held at Belfast about the factory girls
engaged in the linen manufactory at Flmival, in the
vicinity of Louvain, has created an immense sensation
in Belgium. You are aware that some of these
girls had called on the British Consul at Antwerp, and,
asking to be brought back to their country, had com-
plained of having been illtreated and brutally deceived,
and seduced, by the owners of the mill; one of whom
is M. Eisenstuek, formerly president of the German
National Assembly at Frankfort; the other, a Bel-
gian merchant, and Consul for Hanover, M. Olden-
horn. The Government immediately ordered a
judicial investigation on the spot, which will take
place immediately. Meantime the British Minister
at Brussels has had special inquiries made ; and I
heard from one of the persons engaged on this ser-
vice that the charges brought against the establish-
ment at. Florival have been greatly exaggerated, if
they are not completely unfounded. Must of the
fourteen girls who have left had been sent away on
account of scandalous misbehaviour; those who re-

main declare themselves entirely satisfied with their
condition, earning more than they could in their own
country, and being treated, according to their own
expressions, by Mr. Steele, the English director of
the spanning branch of the establishment, not like
operatives, but like young ladies. Six of them are to
be shortly married to respectable Belgian workmen
in the mill. Another complaint urged at Belfast was
that, the girls being Protestants, all of them were
prevented from performing their religious duties.
Of the thirty women brought over to Belgian► two
only were Protestants, the twenty-eight others Ito-

SATURDAY,

man Catholics. This I believe to be the tenor of
the official report transmitted on the subject to the
British Government by Lord Howard de Walden.
A convention for the establishment of a steam navi-
gation service between Antwerp► and some point on
the United States coast (provisionally New York) was
signed some days ago between the representatives of
an Anglo-Belgian company and the Brussels bank-
ing establishment, the Sucieti Ukneral for encou-
raging national industry.
The Queen of Holland returned on the •26th instant
to the Hague from her stay at Interlaken, in Swit-
zerland, and at Stuttgardt, with her royal father.
Holland sends a fleet of several ships of war to
cruise iu the Ureek archipelago, and watch events in
those waters. The war-frigate Doggersbank, one of
the best ships of the Dutch fleet, has been ordered to
reinforce the squadron, and will sail from Hello-
voetsluys to-morrow.