The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-05-13 00:00:00

counter. For these reasons it has been custom-
ary with SPanisteGovernments to appoint to this
Office men politically identified with them, and on
whom they could, on that aemount, fully &Pend.
In the present instance, the ease is different.
General Leinery was always considered it, most.
decided Progresista. He never -took much
part in politics, but 'he accompanied
Eapartero into exile, and they 1.-et-tuned to
Spain 'together ; his oldest 'friends are Progre-
sistas, and by marline@ he is clOselrronnected
with the venerable Senator and former Minister
of the Interior, 'Ferrer, and with Juan Sebane
both of them men who have beeO a great deal
in England, and who are atanelt Liberals ' iti'
politics. But -fernery, on his return -from exile,
made a resolution not to meddle in polities, but to
~
occupy himet if solely with- hiaprofession. -Thus it
is that he has been natively employed under Ge-
vernments of various political shades., and whether
his command was in the eßalearie, Isiande, or in
Antigen, nr in Port i Rico, he has invariably given
satisfaction to all, -lieverthelessi suclie,ise the
force of custom, and so strong'the fee Eng,.that the
military command of the metropdlitatl. province
Could not he safey entinsted by the: Ateettey ttY
any save one of their own. 'pai z ical partisatoe thet
many persona could • notehe brought to believe in
the reality of fernery's appointment, which was
.known yesterday, and made no seerei of inn-offieiel
quarters, until they saw it in the Giizette- this
Morning. It is 'universally approved, excepting,
do abiless, by those Carpet ;warriors, wild much prefer
to see political influence andintrigue (not military
merit) the pass Port to high contunated. It must
a'so be coasidered a tacit but severe reproof to
those Generals who, under the colours of patriotism
and loyalty, but, as has since been'proVed, for the
most part with personal aims, have tit various timed
raised the banner of rebellion, and stirred shah
soldiers to revolt. General Letnery'S: Political
sympathies, which are well known to be liberal,
will certainly not prevent his doing his duty to the
established Government. of -his 'country, whoever
maybe the men the t compose it. -The appeiat-'
ment is very creditable to the Stievaez Cabinet:- ' .
With reference to the account I yesterday gave.
yoti of the intrigue discovered by Queen' Christina
for the fission of theaivolines of Spanish BoUrbone,
I have a few wet-4s tdadd. The affair iS a curious
illustration of " Things of Spain," and at first may
appear almost incredible to threigtiers, but there
can be no doubt of' the correctness of the main
facts comnannicated to ' you: ' The participation of
the'King in a plan to make his own wife abdicate
will doubtless Seem the most inconceivable part of
the business but it is 'perfectly explicable. His
mother, the Princess Carlota, Was th4' chief mover
of Ferdinand VII, to annul the Salic law. It was
she who; when he rejecnted of hating : done so,
burnt the. new 'will he Made., and prevailed with
him to resotte his former intention. Seized with
remorse before her death, she left a letter to her
children, adjuring them in the most solenin and
impressive ternas, and as they regarded the repose
of her soul 3 to do all 'in their ' power 'to re-
pair the evil she had dete. This letter and
other doeuments Were delivered to the present
King Consort, in the year 1836, by the Cardinal
Archbishop of Toledo, lately deceased.' The
hripression it in hie oe the th.)hle and bigoq ed
mind of Don Francisco (1.0. Assis was strong ,and
lasting; and to' it may be traced his partiei pation
in the recent plot. The intention of the plotters
was, le, to bring about the union of 'the two,
branches of the family ; 2,: to get the Queen to
abdicate; ' and, 3, to marry ' the Princess,
of A.sturias 'to a- son of Don jean, - the
Ibrother of the Count de Montepaolin. The'rneans.
referred to in the ' King's letters, by the
employment of which ho confidently expected td'
jmake the Queen abdicate, are certain letters re-
lating to the birth of the Princess of the Asturias,
Which he is said, and generally believed, to have
in his possession, and, to have employed more than
once as an instrument of intimidation to obtain his
wifel3 consent to objects of his own. Although the
partieulars of the plot discovered, and of the cir•
entnstances to which its discovery gave rise in
Madrid, have not yet -transpired, rumour begins to
busy herself with them,'and 'it was reported 'here,
two or three days ago, that the King was under
arrest. This is not' true ; that step was not taken,
; and it was thought advisable to intimidate, not to
pon'sh, the royal conspirator. It is well known
here that this is not the: first time that he has mixed
himself up in dangerous Carlist plots,

FORTIP.:E TELLING IN THE NINETEENTH

CENTURY.'

At the Birkenhead police court, yesterday, before W.
Jackson, M.P., and R. Beyans, Esq., a good—looking
woman, named Ann Brannon, 22 years of age, with a babe
at her breast, was charged with fortune telling, at Higher
Tranmere. It appeared, by the evidence of county con-
stable Stanley, that the prisoner, as a cloak, hawked about,
skewers and meat stands, and when she saw a good
opportunity would get into conversation with servant
girls, and ultimately propose to tell their fortunes. He
had received information to that effect, . and he
watched the prisoner to thu house of the lady who now
appeared to support the charge. Mrs. Elizabeth Pechul
then stepped forward, and upon being sworn made the
following extraordinary statement :—I live at. the Park,
in Higher Tranmere. On Friday last the *prisoner
came to my house, offering skewers, &c., for sale.
I went to the door with my servant, and purchased
an iron stand. While making the purchase, I overheard
the prisoner ask my servant if she would have her fortune
told. She declined, saying she did not believe in fortune-
telling, but asked her what her charge was. Prisoner
replied, sixpence, and at the same time said she should
like to tell my fortune also. After a little persuasion I
consented, and asked the prisoner into the parlour. Pri-
soner then looked at' me, and commenced talking.
Amongst other things she said my husband had formed an
improper connexion with another woman, but just then
she could not tell me the woman's name. She then pulled
out a dirty pack of cards, and after a deal of shuffling and
cutting, she turned up the queen of diamonds, and said
that the complexion of the queen of diamonds was that of
the woman my husband had become intimate with. She
then said she must give me a charm to perform,
;which was that I should tie two knots in, my pocket
handkerchief, then roll it up and place it under my pillow,
which 'I did, but she did not say what it would do. She
also told me to get a wine glass of water, and put a little
salt into it, which I was to place en something at the head
of my bed, and that the next morning I was to look into
it when I should see the complexion, colour of the hair,
&c., of the woman my husband was with.. I asked her
her charge ; she replied 6d, which I gave her, and she went
away, promising to call again next day. On the following
day, my servant met her coming towards the house, and
told her not to call that day as my husband was at home.
bat to come on the Monday. Accordingly she came
about a quarter past one o'clock. She asked to look at
the wine glass, and when she had done so, she said it had
not acted, nor would it until she had in her possession two
or three large articles of dress belonging to myself. S
also said she had found out the name of the woman my
husband was with, and that it was Elizabeth Duncan. I
then went and brought a dress and cloak. which I gave
the prisoner, who said she mast take them away to per-
form a charm on them, and she would then re; urn them
next day. I asked her what I had to pay, she replied
noshing this time, but it would be 6d when she brought
the things back, and was going on to tell me other things
when the constable came in. The lady's statement was
confirmed by the servant girl. Stanley stated in addition
that he was about ten minutes in the lobby before he went
into the parlour, and waited until he beard Mrs. Pechul
ask the prisoner if she could foresee things, who replied
that she could, when he walked in and asked her,
if that was the case, how was it that she
did not foresee he was in the lobby. Making no reply,
he took her into custody and brought her to bridewell.
The complainant is a pretty little woman, about 2! years
of age with pleasing manners, and did not at all se an
abashed by the exposure, but could not refrain from
laughing while giving her dvidence. The worthy magis-
trate, Mr. Jackson, adressing' her, said he could hardly
have believed that a per,ou of her respectable appearance
would have lent an ear to such nonsense; it was quite
disgraceful, and he only wished that the law allowed him
to punish her in the same way as he intended doing to
the prisoner. Many women bad made their homes
miserable by imbibing a. jealous feeling, but to believe in
fortune-telling was a thousand times worse. He hoped
that it would be a lesson to her, for he had never
listened to a more disgraceful affair in his life. However,
a stop must be put to such women as the prisoner, and
she must go to the House of Correction for two calendar
months.

THE DEATH OF ADMIRAL LORD RADSTOCK.—The papers
announce the death of this nobleman after a short iliness.
THE MEDICAL DEPARTMENT or THE ARMY.—Dr. Balfour,
of the Royal Military Asylum, bas been selected to be
Secretary of the Royal Commission.
DAMAbCUS, April 24.—A dispute has arisen between the
Drnses of the Nauvan and the people of the plain. The
latter had already appealed to the Arabs for protection,
and it is to be feared that, in spite of the efforts of the
Turkish authorities, this disunion may last a long time.