The Press.
London, England, 1855-10-06 00:00:00

SPAIN.

Letters from Madrid, of the 29th, state that the
Queen was recovering rapidly from her late mishap.
The Duke de la Victoria had an interview with
her Majesty at the Escurial, and it was reported was
completely satisfied with the result.
The possibility of Spain, observes the correspon-
dent of the Morning Post, adding an army contingent
to the forces of the allies is a rumour, but not with-
out some fomidat4on. '

949

Reports were current of Ministerial changes.
General Prim had been appointed Captain• General
of Granada.

PORTUGAL.
The Iberia arrived at Southampton on Thursday.
The young King of Portugal since his accession has
displayed great activity in personally examining into
the state of the public institutions of the country,
unexpectedly visiting hospitals, barracks, and
rendering himself thoroughly acquainted with every-
thing connected with their regime. The diplomatic
gossip communicated iu a letter is amusing
Two disagreeable incidents occurred at the state dinner
given by the King on the 18th, at the Adjuda Palace. N.
Ozoroff, the Russian Id Mister, could not find the place which
had been destined fur him at the royal table, and being
probably out of temper with news of the fall of Sebastopol,
his excellency took the matter up rather warmly, but was
prevented leaving the room by a Portuguese noble-
man, who gave up his own place. At the same time the
Duke de Sablatiha, in arranging the guests, requested Sir
Sir Richard Pakeuharu to escort Madame Ozoroff; but the
British representative pleaded the impropriety of the de-
mand, as the dinner was a public and state event, and his
conduct would consequently be open to criticism as her Ma-
jesty's envoy. Just as the horns of a very awkward dilemma
were appearing, one of the lords in wuting effected a com-
promise, by suggesting the American Minister as cavalier
to the Russian lady in the room of Sir Richard.

BELcaug.
The Duke and Duchess de Nemours and their
three children arrived on Monday morning at Ant-
werp, and were received by General Prisse, aide de-
camp of the King of the Belgians. The ex-Queen
of the French, accompanied by the Duke and Duchess
of Montpensier and their four children, arrived at
Ostend in the afternoon of Monday. lie: Majesty
and their royal highnesses were received by his
Royal Highness the Duke de Brabant, who arrived
from Brussels in the morning.

ITALY.
Despatches from Turin to the 30th announce that
the health of the King of Sardinia was slowly im-
proving. Seven large English steamers had arrived
at Genoa to embark Sardinian troops for the Crimea.
The Sardinian steamer Corriere di Genova was con-
sumed by fire off Castiglione. Heinforcementswbiai
will amount to about 3,000 men were to be cipspeteUe4
on or before the 10th of October. •

GREECE.
Intelligence from Athens to the 23rd ult. affirms
that the King still insisted on the retirement of
Kalergi. MM. Mercier and Wyse have referred
home for instructions. They demand guarantees
from the King.
EGYPT.
Said Pacha, who on the Bth ult. left in his new
steam-yacht for France, unexpectedly returned on
the 10th. His Highness bad met with a strong foul
wind, had been very sea-sick, and, disgusted with him
condition, gave up at once his visit to Europe, and
returned, vowing that so long as he could possibly
help it he would never again tempt the sea. A mis-
understanding is gradually growing up between Said
Pacha and the Porte. The Sultan wishes to bring
down Egypt to a level with any cf the other pachalics
of the Ottoman empire, such as Beyrouty Damascus,
(Lc.; while Said Pacha is endeavouring to make him-
self too independent of the Porte, and flatters himself
into the belief that, after paying his tribute, Egypt
and its resources ate completely at his command.
AMERICA.
The mail steamer Atlantic arrived on Sunday at
Liverpool, with dates from New York to the 18th ult.
There was little news of any importance. The New
York Herald states that General Houston would suc-
ceed Mr. Buchanan as U. S. Minister at the English
Court.

Dates to the Bth bad been received from Havannab,
and intelligence bad arrived of the assassination of
Mr. G. C. Backhouse, the British Commissioner lit
the Mixed Commission Court for the Suppression of
the Slave Trade. The correspondent of the Neap
York Herald gives the following account of this de-
plorable affair :
JMr. Backhouse was sitting in his room after dinner with
a friend, Mr. Callaghan, with him, on the evening of the
81st of last month, when a gang of negro ruffians, accom-
panied by ten white men, entered the premisee.and secured
the servants of the outer apHotnients. They then burst
into the room where Mr. Blockhouse and his friend were
sitting, seised them, and attempted to gag and bind them.
In the ateuggle which ensned the unfortunate Mr. Back-
house, who attempted to throw his assailant, was stabbed
in the left side, the knife splintering one of his ribs and
passing entirely through his spleen. After this the as.
andante became alarmed and Escaped ; an alarm was raised
and assistance procured, but the unfortunate gentleman
expired in great agony after a few hours. The murder had
created a great sensation in the town, and the funeral was
attended by all the authorities and foreign consuls. The
murderers had been captured and were to undergo trial.

INDIA AND CHINA.
The letters and papers of the overland mail, with
dates from Bombay of the 20th August, and Cal9ut*
`,42nd, arrived on Tae=day

950

The Santal insurrection still continued. As we
anticipated some weeks since, the insurgents, in
number 100,000, had retreated to the jungles, and
defied the troops. Several skirmishes had occurred,
and the troops were collected in the plains. Some
overtures had been made from the rebels, who on
one occasion offered to surrender their leaders and
disperse if the rent of their lands would be lowered.
Mr. Elliott, the Commissioner, would grant no terms
short of unconditional surrender, and the proposers
returned to their jungle. The pacification of the
district appears likely to give the Government no
small trouble. It is fruitless to attempt to attack
them in their fortresses, and it is highly desirable to
relieve the troops from their present positions, as the
district is extremely unhealthy, and in a short period
the rains will set in.

A religious war was raging in Oude, which gave
rise to many speculations upon the ultimate fate of
that kingdom. The Bombay Timis observes :
In Oude events are taking place which point to the ab-
sorption, at no distant time, of that decrepit State into the
Anglo•lndian empire, and to the completion of one more
step towards realising the prediction of the old Lion of the
Punjab, that the map of India would soon be coloured red
throughout.
The war bad arisen between the Mahomedans and
Hindoos, relative to the former repairing a mosque
which was in ruins, and unfortunately close to a
Hindoo temple. The Hindoos opposed this pro-
ject:—

After various threatening appearances, the storm broke
out on the 28th of July, when great numbers of the Maho-
medans, armed and prepared for resistance, flocked to the
temple and profaned its sacred precincts. The Hindoos,
3,000 or 4,000 in number, attacked them fiercely, and a
desperate engagement followed, ending in the total rout of
the Mahomedans, of whom 113 were killed, with a loss to
the Hindoos of only seventeen. The excitement spread
rapidly throughout the country. The measures of the
Prime Minister were marked by firmness and temper, and
all might have ended well but for the fanatical obstinacy of
the King. Instead cf an arbiter between the rival parties,
at once and with equal hand redressing grievances and re-
pressing violence, the debauched and worthless tyrant has,
by the last accounts from Lucknow, announced his inten-
tion of coming forward as a partisan, and heading the
faithful in a religious war. Troops were ordered to march
upon Fyzabad, raze the temple to the ground, and erect a
mosque upon its ruins. The British Resident, Colonel
Outram, threw the great weight of his personal influence
and high character into the scale of justice and prudence,
but without effect, and at present the interference of the
British Government and the deposition of the King appear
almost inevitable.

The Bombay Times further reports that Burmah
was tranquil, and the north-west frontier quiet, but
that a rising was expected among the warlike states
of Rajpootana. Sir Henry Lawrence, the Resident
at Ajmere, had requested the Deese Brigade to be
completed to its full field strength, on the chance
of its being wanted for a campaign in the cold
weather.

From Cabul news to the 15th of July had reached
Bombay, and vague reports were circulated of the
progress of the Russians and Persians in Khiva.
There iv no doubt that the Persians are gradually
advancing in that quarter, and that they are closely
alliediwith the Russian agents.
The want of rain was severely felt at Bombay.

From China dates reach to the 10th of August.
Canton was quiet, and the rebels and royal troops
were resting on their arms. A severe check had
been given to piracy by a gallantly-conducted expe-
dition under Captain Fellowes, of H.M.S. Rattler,
assisted by the boats of U.S. steam-frigate Powhatan,
in which ten pirate junks were destroyed, and up-
wards of five hundred pirates killed. The details
will be found elsewhere in our columns.

The escaped Russian fleet from Petropaulowski
had been sighted, partially engaged, and allowed to
escape in another fog. A correspondent from Hong-
Kong writes :

Her Majesty's brig Bittern had arrived there on the 22nd
of July, with intelligence of the Russian fleet having been
sighted in the Gulf of Tattary on the 20th of May, by the
British ship Sybille, steamer Hornet, and brig Bittern. The
Russians, six in number, and supposed to be the Aurora,
50, Admiral Pontiatine, steamer Vostock, storeship Men:•
chikoff, two corvettes, and a brigantine, were at anchor in
1)e Castris Bay, lat. 50.30, and although so superior in force
could not be brought to action. Long shots were ineflec•
tually exchanged, and Commodore Elliott then despatched
the Bittern to Hakodadi for reinforcements. She arrived
there in five days, when Admiral Stirling bent sails and
proct eded northward, waiting at the Straits of La Perouse,
where he was joined by her Majesty's ship Spartan. Thirty
days had elapsed before they reached 1)e Castris Bay, and,
meanwhile the Russians had made their escape during a
heavy fog, and were nowhere to be found. It is supposed
that they passed up to the Amoor by a deep but narrow
channel not marked on the English charts. Commodore
Elliott was despatched with a squadron to the Sea of Ock•
hotsk, and Admiral Stirling returned to Hakodadi.

WEST INDIES AND MEXICO.

The steam-ship Magdalena arrived at Southampton
on Tuesday with the West Indian, Mexican, and
Pacific mails. In the West Indies matters were
generally quiet i the weather, on) the Wholes was