The Press.
London, England, 1856-01-12 00:00:00

I;di3x .:1 rxxig.

LONDON, SATURDAY, JAN. 12, 1856.

POSTSCRIPT.

The Moniteur of yesterday has the following

it :-

A Council of War met to-day at the Tuileries. The
Emperor presided. The Council is composed of the Em-
peror, the Prince Jerome Napoleon, the Duke of Cam-
bridge, Prince Napoleon, Lord Cowley, Sir Edmund Lyons,
Admiral Dundas, Sir Richard Airey, Sir Harry Jones,
General La Marniora, Marshal Valliant, Count \Valewski,
General Canmbert, General Bosquet, General Niel,
General Martinquey, Admiral Hamelin, Admiral Jarier de
la Graviere, and Admiral Penaud.
The Council is not commissioned to arrange the plan of
the approaching campaign, nor to deliberate on the politi-
cal considerations which might cause one plan to be pre-
ferred to another. Its object is to enlighten the allied
Governments as to the various military combinations
which can be adopted, to !brew all eventualities, and to
determine their exigencies. Farmed for the greater part
of experienced generals, who have almost all taken a
glorious part in the operations accomplished in the East
and in the Baltic, the Council of War can only give advice,
which will have been deeply weighed, and furnish pro-
posals, eminently useful for the best employment of the
land and sea forces which the Western powers are pre-
paring.

A despatch from Berlin, Jan. 10, says :
_ Count Nesselrode has declared confidentially to M. de
Seetach that, in his opinion, Russia made, in the circular
of the 22nd of December, the last concessions that she
ought to make.
The following telegraphic despatch is from the
same place with the same date, and communicates
an exactly opposite Russian declaration :
According to the Gazelle de Konigsburg, Russia has de-
clined the mediation of Austria, and accepts that of
Saxony.
It is stated from Vienna that Count Nesselrode has de-
clared that the propositions of the 22nd December pre-
sented no absolute character, and that Russia admitted
modifications.

Baron Sternheild, the Swedish Minister for Foreign
Affairs, has despatched a circular to the various
Swedish Embassies upon the subject of the late
treaty concluded between Sweden end the Western
powers. The Swedish Minister asserts that the
struggle between Russia and the Western powers
gaining in extent, threatened at length to approach
the shores of Sweden, and the Kiag, carefully weigh-
ing the political circumstances, resolved with wise
foresight to apply the lessons of the past to the future
interests of his kingdom :
France and England having proposed to his Majesty a
defensive treaty of alliance, destined to assure the integrity
of the united kingdoms, the King felt that it was his duty
eagerly to accept a guarantee, the utility of which is as
patent as it is incontestable. No one can say what eventual
contingencies are not hidden in the womb of the future,
and in such difficult circumstances as the present it is the
duty of every Sovereign to look after the maintenance of
the independence, and to assure the welthre of the nations
intrusted to his cart by Providence.
'the terms of the treaty, concludes Baron Stern-
heild, are too precise to admit of misinterpretation.
The alliance concluded "is a defensive one." it

Till Fittsg.

will depend upon Envois to prevent its application,
for out declaration of neutrality still subsists and
will continue to be alliered to. The circular is
dated the 18th December.

The Tay, with the Brazil and River Plate mails,
arrived yesterday at Southampton. Her dates are
—Buenos Ayres, Dec. 2; Monte Video, Dec. 5; Rio,
Dec. 15; Pernambuco, Dec. '2l ; St. Vincent, Dec.
q 9; Lisbon, Jan. 7.
At Rio an average amount of business was trans-
acted; money market light, and a material advance
in exchange.
The only new feature in the revolution at Monte
Video was, that Generals Flores and Oribe have
mutually agreed to uphold Bustarnente and his
Government. It is believed Oribe will be chosen in
the coming election.
The Tay brings home bills to the amount of
nearly 700,000/. on London and Liverpool.

Despatches from Rear-Admiral Sir James Sterling,
received at the Admiralty on Thursday, contain full
details of the attack upon pirates at Samchou, near
Hong-Bong, by H.M.S. Rattler, and of similar
operations in the Gull of Leotung, by H.M. sloop
Bittern. The operations in both cases, carried out
with the utmost gallantry and coolness, appear to
have been signally successful, large fleets of piratical
junks having been completely destroyed or captured,
and the pirates dispersed or killed. The Admiralty,
in consideration of their success on these two
occasions, have promoted Commanders Vansittart
and fellowes to the rank of captain, and Lieutenant
Brooker to the rank of commander; at the same
time favorably noticing the gallant conduct of Mr.
Brownadon, the paymaster of the Rattler.

RETURN OF. THE HUDSON'S BAY COM-
PANY'S EXPEDITION IN SEARCH OF
FRANKLIN.
THE return of the Hudson's Bay Company's Arctic
expedition, which left their station, Fort Resolution,
a port on the Great Slave Lake, on the 22nd of
June last, brings corroboration of Dr. Rae's pre-
vious report that a party of whites travelling from
the northward towards the Arctic coast had been
seen by the Esquimaux ; that they made the land
near the north of Back's Great Fisher River, and
there perished from starvation. Upon the reception
of Dr. Rae's intelligence in the summer of 1851, the
Government, through Sir James Simpson, inti-
mated its desire that a new expedition, the or-
ganisation and management being left entirely in the
hands of the Hudson's Bay Company's officers,
should at once proceed to follow out Dr. Rae's
track up the Fish River to Montreal Island and the
Arctic Sea. Under the active superintendence of
Sir James Simpson, the party was soon organised,
consisting of two officers and fourteen men, and
leaving Fort Resolution on the 22nd of June last in
three canoes, achieved the passage of the Great
Fish River in safety ; and, reaching the mouth of
the river on the 30th of July, skirted its eastern shore
as far as Point Beaufort, and from thence crossed
over to Montreal Island and Point Pechell, where they
devoted the first ten days of August to the most
minute search of the island and careful examination
of the opposite western coast. Having collected all
possible information from the Esquimaux, and
undoubted proof in support of Dr. Rae's statements,
the expedition set out on its return, and reached
Fort Resolution in safety on the 16th of September.
The results of the expedition Mr. Anderson, the
chief factor in charger details in few words. The
second party of Esquimaux was met on the 30th of
July at the Rapids, below Lake Franklin :
Here (writes Mr. Anderson) in their tents were found
various articles belonging to a boat, such as tent-poles and
kayack paddies made out of ash oars, pieces of mahogany,
elm, oak and pine ; also copper and sheet iron boilers, tin
soup tureens, pieces of instruments, a letter-nip with the
date 1843, a broken handsaw, chisels, Stc. Only one man
was at the lodges, but the women, who were very intelli-
gent, made us understand by words and signs that these
articles came from a boat, and the white men belonging to
it had died of starvation. We, of course, by showing them
books and written papers, endeavoured to ascertain if they
possessed any papers, offering to give them plenty of the
goods we had with us for them ; but, though they evidently
understood us, they said they had none. They did not
scruple to show us all their hidden treasures.
Upon examining Montreal Island :
On a high ridge of rocks at the southeast point of the
island a number of Esquimau: caches were found, and,
besides seal oil, various articles were found belonging to a
boat or ship ; such as chain hooks, chisels, blacksmith's
shovel and cold chisel, tin oval boiler, a bar of unwrought
iron about three feet long, one and a half inch broad, and a
quarter of an inch thick; small pieces of rope, bunting,
and a number of sticks strung together, on one of which
was cut " Mr. Stanley" (surgeon of Erebus). A little
lower down was a large quantity of chips, shavings, and
ends of planks of pine, elm, ash, oak, and mahogany,
evidently sawed by unskilful hands; every chip was turned
over, and on one of them was found the word " Terror "
carved. It was evident that this was the spot where the
boat had been cut tit by the Esrimatd. rot even aWO

SAtuAtat

of paper could be discovered, and though rewards were
offered, and the most minute search made over the whole
island, not a vestige of the remains of our unfortunate
countrymen could be discovered.
At Point Ogle, opposite Maconochie's Island, a pie( 8
of striped cotton and ',time cost-line were found,
but no other vestige of the missing party :
It may seem strange (writes Mr. Anderson in conclusion)
that the remains of so large a party could not be disci..
vered. It is my opinion that a party in a starving condition
would have chosen a low spot, where they could haul their
boat up and have had some shelter; and that, if they
perished there, their bones have been long since covered
by sand or gravel forced up by the ice. Any books ( r
papers left open would be destroyed by the perpetual win a
and rain in this quarter in a very short space of time. No
party could winter tn this coast. In the first place theta
is not enough fuel ; and, secondly, no deer pus. About a
hundred deer, mostly bucks, were seen on Adelaide Penin-
sula on our way to Point Ogle, but not one on our way bark;
Their tracks were all seen going to the south. On the
eastern coast only five deer were seen. It would also be a
matter of immense difficulty to get sufficient supplies down
Fish River for even a small party.

From an account in the St. Phil's Times,
the Esquimaux appear to have reached the Wand
just as the last man of Franklin's party died :

The Esquimaux stated that they reached the spot just
in time to see the last man die of hunger, who was leaning
against some object when d'scovered. He was too far
gone to be saved. The wolves were very thick there, and
no traces of the bones of the men could be seen, supposed
to have been eaten by the wolves. The Esquimau' state
that it is four years ago since the crew perished. It was
on the coast opposite Montreal Island. Their bones lie
buried in the sand within an extent of twelve miles. This
is the fifth winter since they perished, and the drifting
sands of that barren region, being in lat. 138 deg. north,
have piled in successive layers on the bones of those
noble and ill-fated men. Mr. Stewart describes the region
as dreary in the extreme—not a blade of grass, nor a stick
of timber, met the eye. No game of any kind could be
found. The Esquimaux, from whom their information
was obtained by signs, pressed their fingers into their
cheeks, and placing their hands on their stomachs, endea-
vonred to indicate the manner of their horrible death.
They were charged with killing them, but merely an-
swered with their sighs.
The Esquimaux flu they reported that Indians far
to the north of them, who had seen and visited
the ships of Franklin's party, stated that they had
both been crushed between the icebergs.
It would appear now almost certain that the two
ships, Erebus and Terror, were lost in the ice, and
that, at least, a portion of time crews of the expedi-
tion had with difficulty reached Montreal Island some
time in 1850, and there perished miserably from
starvation.