The Press.
London, England, 1856-12-27 00:00:00

PRUSSIA AND SWITZERLAND.

The following is the text of the note addressed by
Baron de Manteuffel to the Prussian Ministers at
London, Paris, Vienna, and St. Petersburg, on the
subject of the affair of Neufchatel. It is dated
Berlin, Bth inst.:—
Monsieur le Comte (Baron),—Your Excellency has
already been informed of the refusal by which the Swiss
Federal Council replied to the demand for the release of
the prismers, made by order of the King, through his
Minister, to the Helvetic Confederation. The previous
and unconditional accomplishment of this demand was
laid down by the King as the indispensable corollary of any
ulterior negotiation for the definitive solution of the ques-
tions relative to the situation of the principality of Neuf-
chatel. The forbearance which our august master has dis-
played for many years on the subject of a state of things at
variance with his indisputable rights, and prejudicial to all
the principles of legitimate authority, as well as to the
sanctity of treaties, ought to offer to Switzerland sufficient
guarantees that in eventual negotiations his Majesty would
not depart from that spirit of moderation which has guided
him in his previous attitude. and which the European
powers had on more than one occasion appreciated.
Pressing and almost unanimous counsels were addressed
in this sense to the Helvetic Confederation by all the
Cabinets who signed the Protocol of London, and by the
Germanic Confederation, all of whom strongly supported
the demand of Prussia for the immediate release of the
prisoners of Neufchatel. From these circumstances the.
refusal of the Federal Council acquires increased import-
ance. It is evident that, in a regrettable blindness
to its real interests, the Helvetic Confederation
does not take into any account the international
stipulations, in virtue of which the principality of
Neufchatel was admitted, under the guarantee of Europe,
to become one of the cantons of Switzerland. Priding
itself on a momentary success, and drawing its inspirations
from principles subversive of all order and of all authority,
Switzerland forgets or appears to forget the anterior rights
of the Kings of Prussia, ratified by Arts. 20 and 76 of the
treaty of Vienna. The King, our august master, has
maturely weighed all the obligations imposed on him by
the existing state of things. The recent attitude of the
Federal Council under such serious conjunctures, and in
face of the united efforts of the various powers, has con-
vinced his Majesty that he cannot longer dispense with
measures of a nature to enforce his rights on the princi-
pality of Neufchatel in a manner more effectual than those
purely diplomatic. As to the latter means, the European
powers will, perhaps, continue to occupy themselves with
them; and the King certainly will not refuse to examine
the propositions which may he made to his Majesty as the
result of their concert. But the measures above indicated
do not the less form, at present, one of the principal objects
of the activity of the Royal authorities. They will be pre-
pared and executed without ostentation, but with persever-
ance, and the firm intention to attain the object. The
sacrifices which the country will have to bear it will do
with abnegation and devotedness, because it knows that
his Majesty does not impose them until he had before
exhausted every means of bringing about a solution satis-
factory to all parties. The moderation of which the King
has given so many proofs, is not, moreover, excluded by
the military measures whin his Majesty has ordered to be
prepared. Let Switzerland return to wiser resolutions,
and the ear of the King will not be closed to the voice of
conciliation. The above considerations, and the decisions
resulting from them, cannot but be approved by the Cabi-
nets friends of Prussia. Have the kindness, therefore,
Monsieur le Comte (Baron) to make them known to the
(:abinet of ——, by communicating, by order of the
King, the present despatch to the Minister of Foreign

THE

PRESS.

Affairs of the Emperor of the French (of Austria, of
Russia), and to the principal Secretary of State of her
Majesty the Queen of England.--Accept, &c.,

MiNTEUFFEL.

Intelligence from Switzerland states the Charges
d'Affaires of America and England at Berne had
endeavoured to bring about a good understandig
between Switzerland and Prussia, hut not being sup
ported by the representatives of other powers, they
had failed. No change has taken place in the war
preparations of the Prussian Government or the
Federal Council. General Dufour is engaged with a
war committee in organising the various military
depots, and preparing the points of defence. There
seems to be but one feeling in Switzerland, and that
is to resist. The permanent Swiss Council of War is
composed of Generals Dufour, Zeigler, Eglott, Kurz,
Bourgeois, Voilloy, Salis, Fisher, Stheliy, Dolaragoaz,
and Linden. Swiss from all parts of Europe were
arriving at their homes daily; in addition, a number
of foreigners had written to the Federal Government
offering their services.

At a public dinner given at Geneva, General
Dufour and General Klapka were present. Various
toasts were drank, after which General Dufour rose
and spoke at great length. Alluding pointedly to
the state of affairs, he observed

I have worn the uniform of an officer for half a century
and have served as a Federal officer for the last forty
years; and in a time like this my heart grows young, in
spite of the weight of years. I am old and weak, but,
should my country call on me, I shall not hesitate to take
the field with my fellow•brethren. Perhaps we shall meet
on the field of battle.

After speaking of the dangers which menace the
Confederation, and the provocations it had received,
he continued :

But we must not be discouraged by these dangers; we
must confront them. I have faith in the Federal troops—
in their patriotic spirit and martial qualities ; and I rely
on the population of Switzerland. I feel, for my own
part, that the close cf my career is approaching, but I am
entirely at the orders of my fellow•citizens, and at the
disposal of my country.

The committee appointed some time ago in the
affair of the fortifications of Stockholm, have, it is
said, sent in their estimate of cost of the plan,
which, if carried out, will amount to between
3,000,000 and 4,000,000; besides this, the arming
of the works of defence will require a further sum
of between 1,500,000 and 2,000,000 more.

A despatch of the 25th from Naples announces
that the explosion of the powder magazine near the
King's palace was the result of a plot.

A letter from Munich announces that the King of
Bavaria intends making an excursion to Naples and
Madrid in the spring.

A letter from Milan of the 20th, in the Opinion
of Turin, states that none of those who have re-
ceived a full pardon from the Emperor of Austria
had up to that date been set at liberty, and that it
was believed they would not be until after the de-
parture of the Emperor.

M. CASIMIR3KY, a Pole, who has been emplo;3d for
some time in the Archives Department of the French
Foreign-office, and who is said to he well acquainted
with the Persian language and customs, is to be sent
to Marseilles to meet and accompany to Paris the
Persian Ambassador, who is soon expected from
Constantinople. M. Casimirsky was employed in
the mission sent to Persia by the French Govern-
ment in 1839.

HER MAJESTY, having determined to confer the
Military Grand Cross of the Bath upon his Royal
Highness the Prince of Prussia, on the completion
of his fiftieth year of military service, Sir Cohn
Campbell has been selected for the honour of invest •
ing the Prince with the insignia of the order. The
gallant Lieutenant• General will leave town for Berlin
at once.

LORD AND LADY COWLEY gave a grand banquet on
Thursday evening to the elite of English society in
Paris. Lord and Lady Holland and Mr. and Mrs.
Disraeli were among the guests.
THE WEST INDIA STEAMER Dee, Captain Wool.
cott, come home for repairs, arrived at Southampton
yestet day at noon. She brings a small mail from St.
Thomas, which she left on the 6th inst., but has no
news, passengers, or cargo.
LORD HENNEKER was yesterday morning returned
at Ipswich for the Eastern Division of Suffolk with-
out opposition.
SIR GEORGE GREY baying made inquiries respect-
ing Lerigo, the young man by whose instrumentality
Marley, the murderer, was arrested, and finding him
to be a man of good character and intelligence, has
appointed him to be the messenger at the 13ow•street
Police-court.

-

] 237

elution ittelligentr.

EAST KENT.-Sir Edward Dering, one of the
members for East Kent, has issued an address to his
constituents. He sass

It is with feelings of sincere regret that I have to in-
form you that the state of my health will prevent me from
attending to my parliamentary duties during the early part
of the approaching session. My medical advisers have re-
commended me to seek a warmer climate until the cold
winds of spring have passed away, and I am, therefore, on
the point of embarking for Egypt.
The Kentish Gazette, adverting to this address, ob-
serves that—

All those who have lately seen Sir Edward have been
struck with his altered appearance. He is suffering
from an attack in his windpipe and throat, and his
medical men recommend his visiting a warmer climate
until the spring. One of Sir Edward's friends will ac-
company him, and we are quite sure that the electors
of East Kent will readily accept the apology he offers
for his temporary absence from his parliamentary duties,
and will rejoice to see him return with renewed health
and strength.
GREENWICH.-A deputation, composed of electors
of this borough, headed by Mr. A. R. Bristow,
attended at the town residence of Lieutenant General
Sir W. Codrington ,in Eaton-square, on Tuesday, and
presented him with a requisition, numerously signed by
all classes of the constituency resident in Greenwich,
Woolwich, and Deptford, to allow himself to be put
in nomination as a candidate for the seat in the re-
presentation recently vacated by the retirement of
Mr. Peter Rolt. The gallant general promptly re-
sponded to the invitation, and immediately issue.l
the following address :
A deputation has this day presented me with a requisition,
signed by a large number of electors, offering to put me in
nomination for your borough. I sincerely value the
honour of your offer, and, trusting that the electors are in
earnest in their wishes as the expressions of the deputation
led me to believe, I readily consent. Facilities for a com-
mercial marine, of which England had reason to feel proud
during the last war, and the national establishments within
your borough for the navy and army of England, must give
you the strongest local and personal feelings towards those
services; but they cannot exceed the pride and attachment
which I feel towards them from the long service of those of
my name in the navy and from my own more immediate
connection with the army. To the principles of reform, to
the principles of free trade—which became its liberal and
successful consequence, I have been always strongly attached
both from the education and example of years gone by,
when reform was uphill work, and from the consideration
of the results in late years of those important measures.
The determined maintenance of civil and religious liberty
by the people of England has been one main cause of the
prosperity and power of our country, and all measures ne-
cessary to carry out those great principles must have the
support of any one belonging to the Liberal party. Should
I be returned as your representative, I need scarcely add
my assurance that your local interests shall receive my
earnest support and attention. I purpose to attend a public
meeting of the electors in each of the three great towns
constituting your borough, and (as far as the limited time
and vast number of the constituency will permit) to cell
personally upon each elector, for the purpose of stating more
in detail my political sentiments.

TEWKESBURY.—The Honourable F. Lygon and Mr.
E. W. Scott, Conservatives, have announced their
intention to come forward for this borough at the
next election.

SOUTHAMPTON.—A general meeting of Mr. Wegne-
lin's supporters was held at the Victoria•rooms on
Wednesday, when Mr. Weguelin and his friends
addressed the meeting at great length, and resolu-
tions to support him were carried by large majori-
ties, though a considerable number of dissentients
were present.

THE EMPEROR AND EMPRESS OF THE FRENCH last
Saturday afternoon is reported to have suddenly made
an afternoon call upon Baron James Rothschild, at
the house, Rue Laffitte, N 0.17, in which M. Salomon
de Rothschild lately died. This handsome house was
formerly occupied by the Queen Hortense, and Louis
Napoleon was born in it. Many of the rooms in the
house are still furnished in the style of the period when
Napoleon lIL was born, and some of the chimney-
pieces are yet ornamented with the initials of the
Queen of Holland. The Baron and Baroness Roths-
child showed their Majesties over the house, and it
is said that the Emperor manifested much emotion
at visiting the scenes of his earliest childhood.

A MILLIARD, says 'the Assemblie Nationale, is not
clearly understood by mast people. A 'milliard in
silver (1,000,000,000 frs.) weighs five millions of
kilo4rammes; it would take 2,000 carts, drawn by
four horses each, to transport it by land. By
water, it would require a vessel like Noah's ark,
viz :-309 cubits by 50, with a depth of 30 cubits.
A single line formed by a milliard of franc
pieces would be twenty three millions of inches in
length, or 750 leagues more than the circumference
of the earth. Lastly, had the milliard, at the time of
the birth of Jesus Christ, been inclosed in a machine
so constructed as to cast out one franc piece per
minute, this machine would still have to be kept
a-going for about sixty-two years longer, in order to
exhaust the milliard.


1238

'itcraturt.

Letters of James Boswell, addressed to the Rev.
W. J. Temple. Now first Published from

the Original MSS. With an Introduction

and Notes. London : Bentley.
THERE is not recorded in literary annals a
more singular incident than that which re-
bites the discovery of the MSS. of these
letters. We quote the story us it appears in
the preface to this volume :

A few years ago a clergyman having occasion to buy
some small articles at the shop of Maclaine Noel, at
Boulogne, observed that the paper in which they were
wrapped was the fragment of an English letter. Upon in-
spection, a date and some names were discovered ; and
further investigation proved that the piece of paper in
question was part of a correspondence, carried on nearly a
century before, between the biographer of Dr. Samuel
Jonnson and his early friend, the Rev. William Johnson
Temple. On making inquiry, it was ascertained that this
piece of paper had been taken from a large parcel recently
purchased from a hawker, who was in the habit of passing
through Boulogne once or twice a year for the purpose of
supplying the different shops with paper. Beyond this no
further information could be obtained. The whole con-
tents of the parcel were immediately secured. The majority
of the letters bear the London and Devon postmarks, and
are franked by well-known names of that period. Besides
those written by Boswell which are here published, were
found several from Mr. Nicholls, Mr. Claxton, and other
persons alluded to in the followin pages, as well as a few
unfinished sermons and essays by Mr. Temple.
At the death of the purchaser of these letters they
passed into the hands of a nephew, from whom the editor
obtained them ; and in the present form they are now
submitted to the public.

Now, though we hold it impossible for any
one to doubt the perfect genuineness of these
letters, yet we think that in all such cases it
is only due to the public that the facts of dis-
covery should he most precisely stated, and
that the MSS. themselves should be sub-
mitted to the inspection of literary men. In
the statement quoted, the name of the clergy-
man who recovered the letters should have
been given, and also the date of his visit to
Boulogne and of his purchase. The story is
in itself so extremely improbable, or rather so
like an invention, that we are strongly dis-
posed to doubt its truth without in the least
questioning the authenticity of the letters. We
think, in short, that they may have come into
the hands of their editor, or original proprie-
tor, in some manner different from what is
here set forth.
Having said so much on the preface to this
volume, we must express our conviction that
the letters themselves are among the most
curious productions ever given to the world.
In his correspondence wi►h his friend Temple,
Boswell reveals every movement of his mind,
every quality of his character. He shows
himself mean and extravagant, open and
ounning, feeling and heartless, virtuous and
♦icious. All those baser elements of humanity
which men who are conscious of their pre
sence endeavour to shut up closely in their
breasts, Boswell delighted in relating trumpet-
tongued to his friend. We wonder, as we
read his confessions, that so great a fool
should ever have been allowed to walk the
earth at liberty ; but a closer scrutiny of his
actions satisfies us that he differed from
other people rather in the openness of his
nature, and in the extreme candour of his
revelations, than in the motives which
animated him. In these " Letters," more
even than in his celebrated life, Boswell
seems to have been incapable of the slighest
disguise or distortion of truth. Whatever he
said, or whatever he felt, he seems to have
been compelled to set down without the
slightest colouring. If truth be emphati-
cally—as we believe it is—the reflection in
outward utterance and action of inward im-
pressions and emotions, then Boswell was one
of the most truthful men who ever lived in
the world. The ridicule which has been
heaped upon him, and which the publication
of these " Letters" is likely immeasurably to
increase, is due even more to the extreme
openness with which he relates his follies,
than to the follies themselves. He was in a
most extraordinary manner free from all that
concealment which the training of the world
in general renders a part of our nature. We
deride Boswell, as Parisian fasbione deride the
pude,