The Sun.
London, England, 1864-04-18 00:00:00

LATEST INTELLIGENCE.

[REUTER'S TELEGRAMS.]

FRANCE.

LETTER OF THE EMPEROR TO M, FOULD,
PARIS, APRIL 18.

The Emperor has addressed the following letter,
dated the 15th inst., to the Minister of Finance :
" The happy solution of the Mexican affair creates
its. me a desire to see the country profit by the
first repayment of the expenses of the war by
diminishing the taxes on landed property.
" Be good enough, therefore, to see if it be not
possible to eact the immediate suppression of the
second decime registration fee, only preserving of
the general law prepared by the Council of State
those arrangements which may be strictly neces-
sary for balancing the budget. This measure, to-
gether with the hopes of peace, which every day
become more certain, will contribute I trust to the
development of pubic prosperity."
The illoniteur of this morning publishes the fol.
lowing telegram t
VERA CRUZ, MARCH 29.
There is no military news. The army of Juarez
no longer exists, Juarez himself being a fugitive.
His whereabouts is unknown.

There are only some bands of plunderers wander-
ing about the country.

THE NEW MEXICAN LOAN.
PARIS, APRIL 18.
The subscriptions to the new Mexican Loan
are already very large.
The scrip is quoted 14 per cent premium.

FINE ARTS.
Institute of Painters in Water Colours,

(Tins DAY.)

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The Thirtieth Annual Exhibition of the New
Society of Painters in Water Colours—the Society
founded in 1831, under the patronage of her Most
Gracious Msjesty the Queen, and rechristened a
season or two back as the Institute of Painters in
Water Colours—opened this morning to the general
public; the private view of the Gallery having
been duly afforded to the critics and the privileged
few on Saturday. Against the effect of the pictures
at the private view, tha gloomy atmosphere of
Saturday militated very considerably. While it
did so, however, it had something of compensation
in the fact of its also thinning the customary throng
in attendance. The seasonable transformation of the
weather to-day has had, of course, a totally contrary
result in each particular. The effect of the collection
is enlivened by the brilliant influence of the change
of weather, while the genial spring air and the
April sunshine have tempted into the Gallery of the
Society during this afternoon a crowd of- visitors,
eager to inspect the works there displayed upon
the walls by the competing contributors. From
what could be seen of the collection, through the
gloom of Saturday and through the throng of to-
day, it is manifest that the Exhibition for the pre-
sent season may vie in many respects with the most
successful of its predecessors. There are not many,
though there unquesionably are some, among the
pictures init his collection of the very highest merit
as works of art—works achieved through this exqui-
site medium, that is, through the medium of water
colours, handled as those water colours are in the
select instance referred to, by some of the most
skilled and gifted among our living water
colourists. While, however, there are but
very few in this highest class of water colour pic-
tures—there are fewer this season than usual of
those more mediocre and insignificant contributions,
ordinarily making up the bulk of our annual art
exhibitions. The few more conspicuous pictures
in the gallery this year we can alone now find
either leisure or space to particularise. Among the
foremost of them, by reason of its ambitious character,
is Mr. Henry Tidey's " Night of the Betrayal" (No.
253), an inepoit int work, in three compartments,
suggested probably by Paul de la Itlehe's renowned
Good Friday pictures. Mr. Louis Highe's two
pictures this year, for he has only two pictures in
the exhibition, Nos. 33 end 83, are worthy of him :
the former representing " Torquato Tasso Seskiog
an Asylum in the Convent of St. Onofrio, at Rome,"
the latter a splendid production, the interior of
" £he Cathedral of Munster." No. 100 in the
catalogue will—trite though its theme—the por-
trait-painting in the Vicar of Wakefield"—be
turned to with interest and from with reluctance,
it being a sufficiently favourable specimen of Mr.
Sohn Absolon. As for No. 282, knowing what is
the subject and who the painter (the former a scene
from Tennyson's " Morte d'Arthur," the latter, Mr.
Corbould), the visitor to the Gallery will not marvel
at the difficulty he has in obtaining anything like a
satisfactory peep at it. Another favourite painter,
Mr. Augustus Bouvier, attracts more nume-
rous admirers than usual this Edson—to
one of his contributions especially, meaning
No. 184. Where the lovely Maids of Honour sung
of by Alexander Pope—radiant butterflies, not
mere houseflies, congealed in the are bar of his verse
—the coquettish Bellenden and her gay compeeresses
are portrayed a brush oi bewitching grace and
fascination. -Mr. Carl Werner has, according to his
wont, a number of resplendent Oriental sketches.
Mrs. Margetts, with her plums, in No. 92, touches
our sense of taste almost through the palate, and
with her lilacs and laburnums, in No. 26, almost one
might venture to say, gratifies our sense of taste
through the nostrils—so blooming are the spring
flowers there in their efflorescence. Mr. Aaron
Feeley dazzles us, in No. 29 (hard by the lilacs),
with a radiant sunset at Windermere; and Mr.
Whymper makes us long for a stroll through the
meadows by a glance at his (No, 257) Haymaking.
Altogether ( we are tempted to repeat) the contents
of the gallery at 53, Pall Mall, this season are in
the highest degree satisfactory. It should be obs
served, however, is justice to ourselves, that we
have restricted our remarks to-day to the merest
pick from among the more meritorious contributions
to the walls of the Exhibition.

GENERAL GARIBALDI AT MELAZZO.—A picture,
painted by the celebrated Italian artist, Signor
Panebianco, is now on view at Messrs. Moore and
Macqueen's gallery i❑ Fenchurch-street, represent-
ing General Garibaldi at the battle of Melazza. The
General is represented leading the attack, and
although the incident is depicted with spirit, there
is evidence of hurry in the execution of the work
which detracts somewhat from its general appear-
ance. The picture, notwithstanding, will be sure
to attract crowds of visitors.

Mr. Jerry Barrett's Drawing. Room picture was
privately exhibited on Saturday at 28, New Bond-
street. It represents a scene at Buckingham Palace,
and in the portraiture of the celebrities Mr. Barrett
has been peculiarly happy. The harmony of colour
is very beautiful, and a more interesting specimen
of fine art has not been presented to the public for
a long time.

AN AFTERNOON AT HAT,IPTON COURT.—This is
the title of a picture, painted by Mr, Lucy, now on
view at the Egyptian Hall. It represents the Lord
Protector, Oiivcr Cromwell, surrounded by his
family. The chief figures are well executed, and the
minute details are carefutly fiaished. The painting
is a work of real excellence.

The number of visitors at the :crystal Palace
on Saturday was as follows :—Admissions on payment,
16,884; ditto by season tickets, 7,407—t0ta1, 24,291.
MASSACRE OF POLES.—A Warsaw letter says:
—" A terrible but authentic piece of news has come
to hand. In the western portion of the Government of
Warsaw are three villages almost exclusively inhabited by
Russian peasants, only a few families of Poles remaining
there. An official report states that all these latter have
been massacred without exception by the Russian peasants,
who also set fire to the houses of their victims. The cure
of the Catholic church, the only ono remaining in the three
villages, shared the fate of his parishioners, having been
thrown into the flames by tie liustjans.".