The Express.
London, England, 1868-08-04 00:00:00

FOREIGY-01710E AGESCIES.

According to a parliamentary paper, issued this
morning, there appears to be some difference of opinion
between the Foreign-office and the Treasury with respect
to the claims of the Foreign-office agents. The Lords of
the Treasury did not concur in the views expressed by
Lord Stanley, that those agents would have a
just claim to compensation if the system of agency
were abolished, and therefore it became necessary for his
lordship to determine what steps it might be possible to
take with a view to the eventual abolition of that system.
Lord Stanley, however, is still of opinion that a system
which for more than three quarters of a century has, after
repeated and full inquiry been sanctioned by sue-
oeesive secretaries of state, and which was ex-
plained in the most complete detail to two com-
mittees of the Rouse of Commons, one of which
absolutely refused a proposal for its abolition, while the
other did not see occasion to call in question by their re-
port the propriety of its being maintained, and which,
moreover, has been recognised by her Majesty's diplomatic
and consular servants, almost without exception, as con-
ducive to their convenience and advantage, must be
held to have acquired such a degree of admitted
permanency as to entitle those clerks who have
been engaged in carrying it on, to look upon it
as a recognised source of emolument, and to expect com-
pensation if on public grounds it should be decided to
put an end to it. Under existing circumstances his lord-
ship does not seem to be prepared to direct an abso-
lute and immediate prohibition of the system, but lays
down the following rules for its abolition, when the in-
terests which have grown up under it shall have been ex-
tinguished. First, that no clerk or other person
connected with the Foreign-office, except such as are, at
the date of this minute (June 24, 1868), acting as agents,
shall hereafter, directly or indirectly, undertake to act as
such for any of her Majesty's diplomatic or consular
agents ; secondly, that, looking to the possibility of some
arrangement being hereafter made for abolishing agencies
on a grant of compensation, the emoluments derived by
an agent from any person who should enter the
service after the date of this minute should not be
taken into account in estimating the amount of compen-
sation to be granted to an agent on a general abolition of
the system.

Lord Stanley, however, reminds the diplomatic body
that there is no obligation on them, if otherwise willing to
dispense with such services u are usually rendered to
them by their agents, to employ as an agent • clerk in
the Foreign-office for any purpose whatever, and, speci-
fically not for obtaining payment of their salaries or any
other allowances.

The es-King of Naples, being deprived this
summer of the society of his queen and of several mem-
bers of his family, in consequence of the recent royal
marriages, has organised an economical and salubrious
rilkggiatura at the village of Rocca di Papa, where he
has engaged a small suite of rooms in order to be in the
immediate neighbourhood of the camp. His Majesty,
with a very limited court, took possession of his rustic
residence a week ago, and will remain there till the end
of August, during which time his principal amusement
and occupation will be to participate in the military
manoeuvres of the brigade in camp.
Jouasouf Karam, the Maronite Eniir of the Le-
banon, is enjoying his pension in travelling about Europe,
and is taking hie " otium cum dignitate" in the Maronite
Convent, near the Colosseum, Rome, while seeing the
wonders of the Eternal City.