The Sun.
London, England, 1839-12-31 00:00:00

SOUTH AMERICA.

Extract of a letter from authority that may be relied
upon from the Rio Plata :
" The French have landed 600 men, and garrisoned
the town of Monte Video, and, in conjunction with the
Government of that place, are carrying on most activh
measures against the Buenos Ayreaus. The French
have now in the river 86 vessels of war, including barges
and launches.
" Our merchants are complaining most bitterly in
Buenos Ayres. Thotisands of pounds' worth of pro-
perty are lying rotting on account of the blockade. In
Monte Video no shops are allowed to be opened until a
gun is fired, which is sometimes at six, sometimes at
ten, in the morning, and all shops and warehouses are
obliged to be closed at sunset. These are the orders
of the French, and an end is thereby put to trade. In-
deed, our commerce in the River Plata is now entirely
dormant, in consequence of the unpunished insolence of
these rascally Frenchmen.
" It is really heartrending to se© the destruction of
British property—vessels having on board cargoes
valued at 30,0001. lying for nearly 18 months at
Monte Video, and their return cargoes rotting in the
warehouses and skin-yards ; and our own ships of war,
the few that come here, being perfectly quiescent. and
apparently quite indifferent to all these proceedings of
the French, whilst the latter are thus ruining our most
important commerce in South America ; and I shall
not be surprised if, ere long, they ended by securing
the monopoly of it for themselves."
Extract of another letter equally authentic :
" The French, who are now co-operating with the
Monte Videans, have landed 600 or 700 men here, and
have absolutely now possession of the place (Monte Vi-
deo) ; and, having thus obtained a foot►ng on the soil of
South America, it is impossible, under existing circum-
stances, to foresee how far they may go, or to what pe-
riod they may extend such occupancy, for their own
advantage and to our detriment."

The Mediterraneo of Malta, in its account from
Ourlac, has the following- The Castor, Daphne,
and Dido, with the Zebra as umpire, have had an ex-
perimental cruise of ten days, to try their rates of s iil-
ing, the result of which places them, as regards their
respective sailing qualities, in the order in which they
are above named. On the 2d inst., at a court-martial
on board the Rodney, composed of Commodore Parker,
President, and thirteen Post-Captains, Jchn Brown, a
seaman of the Powerful, was tried for using mutinous
language to, and striking, the master-at-arms of that
vessel. The Court, after deliberating for two hours,
declared the charges fully proved, and sentenced the
prisoner to be hung, but recommended him to mercy,
in consequence of his having received an injury in the
head whilst serviug in the Naiad frigate, which had per-
haps in some manner affected his brain."
" The Archbishop of Albaracin," says the
Memorial of Pau, " died recently at Madrid. No
example of the state of distress to which many of the
Spanish clergy are reduced can be more striking than
the case of this prelate. He was in such destitution
that it was found necessary to have recourse to public
charity to defray the expenses of his interment ; and
the civil authorities had sequestered his pontifical habits
to pay for some debts which he had been forced to con-
tract in order to support himself."
INTERDICT.-It will be recollected that the
Aberdeen Presbytery unanimously granted an ex cain-
bion is the case of Nigg, in virtue of which the majority
of the heritors of the parish were to convert the house
of Tullos into a manse for the Rev. Mr. Thom. Mr.
Muir of Loirston protested against this decision, and
applied to the Court of Session for suspension and in-
terdict, which have been obtained and served upon the
parties. This question will now bring out the point
which involves the civil status of the quoad sacra
Ministers, Mr. Leslie of Fintray having dissented snd
protested, on the ground that they were not legal)}' en-
titled to vote in this case.—Edinburgh Courant.