The Sun.
London, England, 1852-04-14 00:00:00

we are warranted in asserting that offences have been
perpetrated merely for the sake of ensuring banish-
ment, and that the amount of criminality has been so
nicely graduated as to bring the period of exile to the
shortest term—seven years. It is, however, neces-
sary to do enough to prevent the judge from giving
effect to any possible recommendation of the jury or
allowing the prisoner to remain in the country.
If, then, in the olden time so great an anxiety pre-
vailed among a certain class to get abroad, what
must it be now, that the discoveries of the auriferous
soil at Ballarat and Mount Alexander, at Lake
Bathurst, Geelong, and the Mulwarre Ponds, place
boundless wealth within the reach of any corner ?
There will, of course, be additional inducements to get
out to the land of promise. Enthusiastic youths will
plunder their masters or embezzle property committed
to their charge on the speculation of becoming
rivals of " ,lonte Christo," of discover-
ing tons of gold at the diggings. Such
a feeling should be immediately suppressed ere it has
become productive of the most dangerous conse-
quences, and this can only be achieved by forthwith
changing the destination of our convicts.
The offer just made by Sir JAMES MATHE-
SON, Baronet, M.P., is therefore peculiarly
valuable at the present moment. The Hon. Baronet,
with a laudable anxiety to aid in the solution of the
important problem, has tendered the Island of North
Rona for the acceptance of the Government,
in order that it might be made a con-
vict station. He requires no payment for
the land, which, from the description thereof which
we have extracted from a weekly contemporary into
another part of this day's impression, appears to be
peculiarly fitted for the purpose.
There would, of course, be no temptation to any to
get to a solitary island of small dimensions, such
as that referred to, while the reformatory discipline
may be carried on under the most auspicious cir-
cumstances. The acceptance of the patriotic offer
will free our Australian fellow-subjects from the
nfliction to which they have heretofore been sub-

ected, and induce a better class of emigrants

to cast their future lot in Australia. Sir JAMES
MATHESON has entitled himself to the best thanks of

the community for the proposition, which will leave
Ministers without excuse if they permit matters to
continue much longer in their present objectionable

condition.

THE FRENCH REPUBLIC.

We have received the Paris journals of yesterday
The Aloniteur contains the following " commune
cated" note :—" The Gazette of Prussia has pretended
that the PRINCE PRESIDENT of the Republic has
written an autograph letter to King LEOPOLD, to
express to him the desire that the institutions of
Belgium shall be placed in harmony with those of
France, and that the abuses of the press, and of the
PaTliamentary regime, shall be repressed. This
journal adds, that the KING has replied in such a
way as to render a European war probable. These
assertions rest on no foundation ; the correspondence
mentioned by the Gazette of Prussia is imaginary."
The Prince DE CANINO has arrived in Paris from
Civita Vecchia.
By decree of the PRINCE PRESIDENT of the Re-
public, M. REGNAULT, member of the Institute,
professor of the College de France, has been appointed
director of them anufactory of Sevres, in the room
of M. EBELMEN, deceased. By another decree, M.
BLANCHE, Maitre des Requt'qes of the first class, has
been appointed Secretary-General of the Ministry of
State.
Letters from Turin, of the 10th, state the treaty of
commerce between Piedmont and France was ap-
proved of by the Chamber of Deputies by a majority
of 114 to 23. Count CAVOUR, Minister of Finance,
spoke ably, demonstrating that the treaty in question
was founded on the soundest doctrines of political
economy. As the treaty bad been especially attacked
on the ground that it was detrimental to the interests
of Savoy, he took particular pains to show that all
such objections were unfounded. He then adverted
to machinations of the retrograde party in Savoy,
who had eagerly taken up the treaty before them as
an instrument of slander against the Government, and
worked up the people of that country so as to lead
them to believe that the present Government was sys-
tematically hostile to Savoy, and sought its destruc-
tion, and that the inhabitants would have to pull up
their vines by the roots, or emigrate. The Hon.
Minister, nevertheless, fully admitted the existence of
real grievances in Savoy, and expressed his determi-
nation to do his best to relieve them, but regretted
that his efforts had been hitherto in a great measure
paralysed by party hostility. The whole or nis
speech was conceived in a firm but conciliatory spirit,
and was listened to with profound attention by the
Chamber.

ThePairrcE PRESIDENT on Saturday gave a private
audience to M. BAUDOING, deputy of the Legislative
bcdv, M. MAxims GAUSSEN,_member of the inter-
national jury, and MM. BIETRY, Du CROQUET,
HERMANN, and LECLERC, on the subject of the pro-
jected Palace for the Exhibition. LOUIS NAPOLEON
received them with his usual courtesy, and assured
them of his solicitude for the progress and prosperity
of national industry.

The estates of Neuilly and Monceaux, formerly
belonging to the Orleans family, and confiscated to
the state by the decree of January 22, were taken
possession of on Monday by the administration of the
domain of the state. The states mentioned are among
those ordered to be sold by the decree of March 27.!
Both the Danis and the Univers comment on the
decree changing the course of studies in the Univer-
sity. The Debats is an advocate of the philosophical
education which the changes have a tendency to
bring within restraints that are regarded as necessary
for the general purposes and interests of society.
Whilst the censure of the Debats is ostensibly directed
to details, it is pretty evident that there is great dis-
satisfaction as regards the principle. In proportion
as the facilities to young men to become philosophers
in the modern sense, that is to say, reasoners and
reformers, are diminished, the influence of the Univer-
sitarians will cease to absorb some of the powers of

the state ; in proportion as the number of students re
warded with academical honours is reduced, there wil

be a narrower field for an ambition which can only
be partially gratified, and the non-gratification of
which must necessarily augment the number of edu-
cated or rather half-educated persons who, finding no
means of existence in the present constitution of
society, are constantly at work for a change in the in-
stitutions, and consequently the partisans of revolu-
tion ; but by this change in the nature of the studies,
with a view to academic distinctions, there will be
less of modern political philosophy, aud consequently
less chance of political commotion. The partisans of
the University education which has been thus modi-
fied, do not admit that it had the tendency which the
changes that have been ordered seem to imply, and
therefore they do not approve of the modification.
The Univers having been a constant opponent of the
University system as it has hitherto existed, cannot
be other than satisfied at the blow that it is
supposed to have received, as regards the logi-
cal portion of the studies ; but it required something
more ;lit demanded the substitution of the influence
of the clergy for that of the University philosophers,
and, as this has not been granted, it doubts whether
the change that has been prescribed will be successful.
The Univers says :
"It is evident that the intention has been to guard
against the danger of philosophical instruction, such as
it was established:,by the regime of July. But will the
Government attain its object? As long as philosophy
shall not teach that human reason is insufficient in
divine things, as long as it shall not distinguish seriously
and as a matter of dogma the natural order, which is its
own ground, from the supernatural order, which is that
of theology, logic such as it is now constituted, will bo as
fruitful in unbelievers and sceptics as eclectic rational-
ism. It is most clearly evident that the instruction
of religion ought to have a legitimate place in the eyes
of the children to whom the State has instruction given
in t two things— the catechism and the art of
the announcement that
10th of May has been positively fixed on for the
the 1 nstitutionnel confirms
distribution of eagles in the Champ
gran
thinking.
Thebde s these
be and the
of Paris will, says this journal,
.present,
of the French army will be repre-
sentedde Mars. All the regiments composing the garrison
other regiments
,two
and
sth a fete will be given at the
of the Republic,
PRESIDENT
by their colonel and aEceleepleut;itiiiointe.ireOhlyi
the
French army to the
caused some a grand display of fireworks, prepared by
off on the
artil-
lery in
who has accepted the invitation. Previous tothteheball
garrison at Vincennes, will be let
heights
of Chaillot opposite the Champs de Mars.
1 n seen latterly at a soiree
l• —E A. ERSIGNY has been
of the Princess LIEVEN, a circumstance which has
morer, S" as heobserved in conversation with M.
was
kinizoT.
Scarce au Princesensation in the diplomatic world, the
" There is a
favourite bon Louis
NAPOLEON "ithou.Thus tlg3e mot fathered on him.
height of 210 in France has beteuhr,aviiseed
htoadthae
cele-
brated remark of
Prance—there is
only one more }o,rthing chan, ged i❑
attributed to the
jus-
tice,( the following re
Count D'ARTOIS. elvneibman, ' was
CRaaLus Nonteua, at the restora-
tion,little
the RINCE PRESIDENT th, perhaps, quite
Jartee is current]
~,y
whether
he would publish ahim the vice of
smoking. Louis Na putting. downgreata smoker
himself, replied, "FindLEZ,
Madam,who is
decreeT ,---A lady ask...d
a virtue which
:tstributed to
will bring a hundred million' into Treasury, and
the
decree
you
want
sbar s. the
1 be instantly published.

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