The Press.
London, England, 1856-12-06 00:00:00

AMERICA.

No political intelligence of any importance arrived
by the last mail.
_ _

Mr. Buchanan had expressed himself in favour of
a railway to the Pacific.
Nicaraguan advices confirm Walker's victory over
the Costa Ricans at Massaya and Granada. Walker
was preparing to push his advantages.
The completion of the Grand Trunk Railway of
Canada, from Montreal to Toronto, and the great
system of railway communication extending from the
State of Maine to Canada West, a distance of more
than eight hundred miles, was celebrated on Thurs-
day, Nov. 13th, by a grand banquet at Montreal, at
which five thousand persons, consisting of the lead-
ing men of the province, the military, merchants and
farmers, and a number of invited guests from the
United States, sat down to a table extending over a
mile and a half. The festival is described as having
been a very grand affair. At two o'clock, p.m., the
Governor-General, Sir E. Head, arrived, with a
guard of honour. The chair was taken by Mr. H.
Starnes, the Mayor of Montreal. At the right hand
of the Mayor sat his Excellency, and on his left sat
Sir William Eyre, Commander of the Forces.
Amongst the other distinguished guest were—Judge
Day, of the Superior Court, the Lord Bishop of

THE PRESS.

Montreal, Colonel Tache, the Canadian Premier,
Senator Wilson, of Massachusetts, and Hon. John
Rose, President of the Grand Trunk Railway.

INDIA AND CHINA.
THE EXPEDITION TO PERSIA.
Orders for the immediate despatch of the expe-
dition reached Bombay on the 23rd ult. The force
consists of 5,000 men. The fleet, under the command
of Sir Henry Leeke, and numbering forty sail, was
expected to leave Bombaylon the 10th of November
for Bassadoro and Karrack. Operations would be
first commenced against Bushire. The Times Bom-
bay correspondent writes with reference to the
future :

It is probable that with all practicable despatch Bushire
will be summoned to surrender, and in the event of a re-
fusal will have its defences shattered by the gunboats of
the fleet and be taken forcible possession of. Earthworks
or other fortifications of a more scientific character than
those they replace will then be thrown up, and the place
will be occupied by the troops, pending the submission or
defiance of the Shah. Should the spirit of that sovereign
not give way at the first blow, operations in the interior
will be necessary, and for this purpose the small force
about to be despatched from Bombay will he totally inade-
quate. Even already rumours are abroad of troops to be
sent to the westward through one or both of the famous
passes whose names were so well known throughout Eng-
land fifteen years ago—the Khyber and the Bolan. Such
reports, though as I believe unfounded at present, are never
theless not unlikely to be renewed with form and consis-
tency hereafter. In the direction of the latter of the two
above-named mountain gorges more than one British officer
has already proceeded from Calcutta or Bombay, presum-
ably with the view of arranging with our ally the Kahn of
Khelat for the formation of a contingent force in his terri-
tories, which lie exposed to the Shah, should Southern
Atfghanistan fall into his hands.

The Persians were extending towards Ghirisk and
Candahar, and causing some alarm to the Khan of
Khelat.

Colonel Cavenagh is said to have lately left Cal-
cutta for Cabul on a political mission. His object,
it is believed, is to arrange with Dost Mohammed to
support Esa Kahn at. Herat.
From China, we learn that, by treaty just concluded
with Russia, the Emperor has granted to the Czar
3,000 acres of land, and a harbour on the west coast
of Chusan.