The Sun.
London, England, 1862-05-23 00:00:00

wig and gown 'who could make the demand, at the
bottom of the sea, and till we are better advised, we
hold to the belief we entertained at first, that even
the cleverly overpowered sixteen will be ashamed
to ask of their country to get back the ship, which
they 'allowed the three to take.
What is the law of the case, it is not for us to
decide. Impartial and honourable advisers of the
Crown will do that. We do not deny that the
recapture was an illegal act—but in the same sense
as the act of a man seized by a policeman, who
should succeed in binding the policeman, and escap-
ing from him. The policeman and his prisoner are
fairly pitted against each other. The prisoner ought,
no doabt, to be willing to put himself on his trial
—so a man ought to surrender to a warrant issued
against him. But we never heard that it was held
to be a punishable offence, if the captured man took
leg bail, and if the other deferred his appearance
before the authorities, till his case -was called on
for trial. Of course, all the time subsequent to the
seizure or issue of the warrant, if recognised,he would
be taken. As we understood it, the Emily St. Pierre
is in this very condition. If the Americans found
her at sea and captured her a second time, we fear
the Queen of ENGLAND could not be advised to in-
terfere for her restoration. To us, though of course
we may be in error, the legal right of the Ameri-
cans to demand her of our Government seems quite
another question. Lord STOWELL has definitively
laid down the duty of the captured crew to go
quietly 'with the ship, before the prize court of the
Neutral Power, and rely on the honour of the Prize
Court. But if the crew should happen to think, it
may be unjustly, that American prize courts are not
to be trusted by "the Britishers," whom Americans
lose few opportunities of defying, and deem them-
selves saftest in their own custody, we do not re-
member that by anything he has said, their Go-
vernment is to be answerable for it. We shall soon,
however, know.
Meantime if the Americans are legally justified
in asking reparation for a prize crew of 16 being
overpowered by a fragmentary crew of three—an-
other case has turned up, which a contemporary
fairly enough terms a " Roland for an Oliver."
We have yet, indeed, but an ex parte statement;
still it is the statement of truth-loving Englishmen,
not of Yankees. The details are, moreover, so
clearly and minutely given that there seems no
reasonable fear that anything important can be
alleged to justify the seizure. It seems to be every
way as bad as that of the Trent, with the single
exception, that the vessel in question, the Bermuda,
was not a mail steamer. She might have run the
blockade on former voyages, but that had nothing
to do with the present one. Each voyage must,
answer for itself, and its hazards and liabilitieiter-
minates with its termination. The vessel had on
board, it is true, some contraband of war, that is,
what would have been so, had her destination been
to a port blockaded by the power by whose ships
she was seized. But it was conclusively established
in the case of the Kent that a "hostile destination"
was essential to the very existence of contraband.
If the ship were sailing from a neutral port to a
neutral port, it was unanswerably proved that she
might be full of warlike equipments, or even of sol-
diers, but, the neutrality of the ports of departure,
and of destination, would be conclusive against the
contraband character of the cargo or passengers.
Now, according to all the evidence we yet have, the
Bermuda 'was undeniably sailing first to St.
George's, Bermudas, and thence to Nassau, New
Providence, in the Bahamas, or to some other Wes!
India port.

Now, doubtless, the Americans think they have
good reason to suspect the Bermuda—doubtless
also, Nassau is inconveniently near to the Coast of
Flotida, as a market place for rifled cannon and

ammunition
; but both put together do not alter the
fact that the Bermuda left a British port, sailed to
anotherßritish port, and that while sailing to a third,
being really or almost in British waters, steering
certainly by British landmarks, she was captured
by an American cruiser--of course with the usual
circumstances of Yankee rudeness—such as firing
a shell through her rigging. The courteous infor-
mation was added that the British port was in
truth blockaded by American cruisers, who searched
all merchant vessels, and who were ordered to seize
the Bermuda, and about twenty ships, whose names
were given them, wherever they might find them,
and sailing under whatever flag ! A handsome re-
turn this, certainly, for our allowing Lancashire to
be half starved, and respecting the cotton block-
ade, when we had it so completely in:our power to
help ourselves.

The delicate position in which the Government
of Italy still feels itself to be, in the presence of
Europe, has been significantly indicated of late by
one or two very curious and even at the first blush,
as one may say, almost incomprehensible proceed-
ings. An incident that has just occurred in the
extreme North, and another, and a very different
incident, that has just occurred (almost simultane-
ously) in the extreme South, have—each in turn—
served to demonstrate the fact, that the policy still
being carried out at Turin is a policy at least as
prudent as ostensibly it is simply audacious!
"Easy does it," might, in literal truth, be taken
RS the motto to be inscribed upon the national
tricolor, upon the standard of the Re Galantuomo
_is Mustseeino "as the Neapolitans have recently
called him in one of their whimsical terms of endear-
ment. Or, if the favourite language of heraldry
must Reeds be clung to here again—the Italians
might proclaim, in the tongue of their Roman
ancestors, the pace at which they are advancing in
the road to independence (borrowing the familiar
phrase from the escutcheon of the PLUNKETTS) by
adopting as their device FeBtina lente ! Instance—
that almost bewildering circumstance which has
just startled some of VICTOR EMMANUEL'S lieges at
Naples during his MAJESTY'S State visit to the
capital of the South : the ineffectual attempt to get
up there and then a demonstration in favour of
t a
erg am of 650
GARIBALDI ! Instance, again—that more impor-
tantseizure
"patriots" at Milan, Brescia,
and
,beeause of their presumed complicity
with a cons piracy understood to be just
afoot for
the
.traisingetr
of the Tyrolese in insurrection against
the
ian Government. Ammunition and arms
have been seized, as well
bearing them. And
as the Italian volunteers
with the arms and the ammu-
nition—thousands:of the red shirts far-famed all over
Christendom as the GARIBALDI
jackets. Looking
superficially there, to the right and to the left, it
would almost seem as though the Hero of Italy
were under a taboo from the Government
aroafhwilyltichhe
he is the main-stay, as well as being
cow
first and the greatest of all her Soldiers. But__
looking, upon "second thoughts," a little below
the surface—is it not obvious, at a glance, that
RATAZZI'S Ministry is wise in its genera-
;ol) " All in good time," is its homely
Wait—no hurry—no unnecessary
precipitation : that, for the time being, is its plain
and manly dictum. And so—in this frank and re-
solute spirit—it hushes the superfluous ovation of a
Great Name at Naples, it seizes as rash and hot-
headed, as precipitate and thoroughly indiscreet en-
thusiasts, the volunteers found ready with their arms,
and their red jackets, and their ammunition, "ready,
aye ready," at Milan, at Brescia, and at Bergamo.

argument.

At the same time, while the Government at Turin
is acting thus cautiously, and as men of the world,
will not hesitate to add also upon the instant thus
wisely and determinedly—GAßlßALDl himself, with
his soldier-heart, with his own ever-burning
enthusiasm, has his full and warmest sympathy
for those who have only erred in his regard
by showing themselves in their true colours as his
ardent followers.

About GARIBALDI'S sympathy with the men just
taken there can be no mistake whatever. He him-
self has said it. And not once, but three times. He
has written in the Pungolo as follows :

Some persons have wrongly interpreted my protest,
published in the Diritto. As an Italian soldier, I could
never have entertained the intention of insulting the Italian
army, the glory and the hope of the nation. I desired to
say that soldiers ought to combat the enemies of the
country, not to massacre and wound unarmed citizens. If
the Commandant of Brescia had been free to act according
to the dictates of his heart, we should not now have to
lament victims among the people. The post of generals is
upon the frontier and the field of battle, nowhere else."
According to the Unita italiana he has thus
addressed himself to the young men taken at Ber-
gamo :

Trescorre, May 15, 1862.

My dear Friends,—l advise you to let yourselves be leJ,
and I authorise you to say that you have been called to
Bergamo by me. The nation, I have no doubt, will be
grateful to you for your patriotic impulse and your abnega-
tion. I salute you all, and am, with affection, yours for life,
GARIBALDI.

In the Vilma Gazette he has solemnly avowed—
In consequence of Colonel IsTraLA's arrest yesterday at
Palazzolo, I consider it my duty to declare that that brave
officer had gone and acted exactly in conformity to my
orders.
G. GARIBALDI.
So that as to the veritable character of this move-
ment in the north, there cannot—supposing the
documents hero quoted to bo, in truth, as they cer-
tainly affect to be, authentic—there cannot, we say,
possibly be any even momentary misapprehension.
All the while, the Government and GARIBALDI being
of one accord: with this simple difference—that
the latter is eager for action, and that instantly;
whereas the former is still in favour of a little fur-
ther delay.

The Japanese are certainly making the most of
their time amongst us. Notebook and sketchbook
.n hand they are going hither and thither in quest
of information. And it is pleasant to know at once,
in their regard, that it is for them, beyond all doubt,
anything rather than a Pursuit of Knowledge under
Difficulties. As welcome as flowers in May are
their excellencies and their attendants wherever
they go. If it be a Government establishment or
the hospitable mansion of one of our Chiefs of
Society—if it be a commercial speculation that is
inquired into, a public school or a public hospital_.
anywhere, everywhere, they are received with eager
interest, and with a cordial reciprocation of curiosity
on the part of visitors and visited.
Already we have followed them respectfully,
through our previous comments in these columns,
in regard to several of their earlier peregrinations.
Since then they have shown unflagging industry.
Now they have gone down the river to our English
lnvalides—the refuge, not of our old soldiers, but
of our old sailors, down at Greenwich. There,
in that beautiful old palace, their Japanese
Eicellencies have looked and admired and examined
to their hearts' content. They have tasted the beer
in the brewhouse, and the bread in the bakehouse—
to find both excellent. They have scrutinized with
heartily expressed admiration the pictures in the
Painted Gallery—among them that famous one of
Lord NELSON, then CommOdore NELSON in his full
dress uniform, white silk stockings and white cash •
mere breeches, boarding the San Josef sword in
hand, in the midst of the tremendous seafight off
Cape St. Vincent. The Japanese taking notes there
(aa uoual with them ovor7whoro Olmoot) of ghat
caused them the greatest surprise or elicited their
liveliest approbation. Afterwards they dine at the
famous white bait hotel (unfortunately before the
white bait season) and enjoy with gusto after dinner
at the hotel balcony a scramble for silver and bronze
coin (we can no longer say " coppers") among the
dirty little street boys assembled there in an extem-
pore mob, to look at them. Afterwards—steaming
down the river—they inspect that modern wonder
of the world, The Thames Tunnel—utterly useless,
it is true, but still, for all that, very wonderful.
They revisit King's College Hospital, where seated
at leisure in the operating theatre they witness
some awfully dexterous operations performed by
such perfect masters of their craft as Mr, BOWMAN,
the great oculist, and Mr. FERGusoN, the
great surgeon, and perhaps the greatest opera-
tor now living. From that scene of beneficent
bloodshed, the Japanese take as they do from other
scenes of a less excruciating kind pleasant souvenirs
such as carte de visites of the famous men whom
they have jast met with. As a contrast in every-
thing bat name, one of the very next scenes wit-
nessed by the Japanese Envoys is—not again the
hospital of King's College, but King's College itself.
Where they receive an ovation from the scholars
in return for the half-holiday given in honour of
their eastern excellencies—an ovation in the way
of three times three ringing cheers and one cheer
more from the assembled schoolboys. Another
locality visited by these twist sagaciously inquiring
strangers was conspicuous among our Schools for
the Blind—whence the Japanese take away with
them books with the raised letters, from which the
blind students read with their fingers, the Ja-
panese dropping there themselves in return
(through their interpreter, of course, Mr. Mac-
donald) the surprising intimation (apropos to the
numerous cases of blindness before them, caused by
small-pox) the certainly startling intimation that,
during the last 10 years, vaccination has been com-
pulsory throughout Japan ! At a large cutlery
establishment here in London, again, their Excellen-
cies have had great delight in watching the process
of making razors, &c., displaying their own costly
sword-blades to the English workmen by way of a
nreotuunrenedc compliment—sword-blades tc-o:wpeotredn-tb
jlauddegseismomfesd ciahtwelyarpertoo-
be equal in beauty and value to the blue wavy-
veined or grained lithe and, as ono might say,
sinewy blades of your genuine Damascus

Without pursuing the Japanese Envoys and their
suite of gentlemen diplomatists and liveried atten-
dants much further at this present writing without
tracking their movements that other flue morning
when they rode delightfullyin open carriages along
the suburban roads and green country lanes, skirted
by so many pretty villas in their picturesque gar-
dens, through Twickenham, past Isleworth, up to
the top of Richmond Hill—without loitering beside
them in fancy as they obtain upon the instant a
panoramic notionof a fertile English landscape from
that famous belle view balcony at the Star and
Garter, whence all the world and his wife, their
children,
friends, and relations, have been so long
in tho habit of looking out upon the sylvan loveli-
nessa of that veritable
Riche-mondo—wo do
certainly feel tempted to throw out one
very alluring suggestion
If only one of our
Embassy from the Japanese.
gret
pub
snhinrgeghaordusestowotuhlids
same remarkable
take measures to secure the copyright of an autho-
rised translation of the
()mei al. report about to be
prepared a little later on for th • e information of the
ItipAnee Government—An allthQn •
fiecl translation

- (say by Mr) MACDONALD)—of the jottings down
by their Excellencies in notebook and in sketch.
book during their wanderings and pouderings here
in this (to them) strange land of England ! We
would very confidently predict for such a work as
that, a success far beyond any ever attained by
any recent traveller—even, we will venture to
assert, the brilliant success achieved last season
by M. DU CHAILLU'S record of his rovings among
the Gorillas. The interest with which we should
all take a wonderfully novel view of ourselves as
we appear when looked at through Japanese
spectacles !

New Orleans was not captured without trouble
after all. No defences of importance had been con-
structed near the city. Forts Jackson and Philip,
and a fleet of gunboats, such as they were, were
the reliance of the Confederates, The city itself is
as unfortified as London, and for a very good
reason, since if the Mississippi could be entered
by even a small hostile fleet, no works the embank-
ments could bear would save it from destruction by
the shells of the enemy firing over them. But at
the river forts, which should have stopped the ad.
vance of the fleet, the battle was bravely fought—that
is by the garrison of the fort, for the Confederate
naval force appears to have incurred the undisguised
contempt of the commander of the garrison. The
officers of the fleet gave, indeed, a signal proof of
their treachery as well as their inefficiency, for
while the commander of the garrison was engaged
in the Federal commander's ship, under a flag of
truce, these men actually sent down a floating bat-
tery on fire, intending she should explode and
destroy the ship. Lieut. HIGGINs, the Confederate
officer, would acknowledge no connection with the
ships, which ho spoke of with the utmost eon tempt,
and Commander PORTER therefore continued the
negotiations, merely observing—"We can stand the
fire and be blown up, if you can." The guns of
the burning battery soon went off, but she luckily
blew up at some distance from the ships, killing,
however, one man of the Confederate garrison.
Excepting, as we have said, their navy, the Con-
federates fought well. The Federal commanders,
who thought the crews of the ships ought to be
detained as prisoners of war till the end of the war,
on account of their treachery, give high praise to
the gunners and their officers, and seemed pleased
to accept their surrender with the usual honours.
The attack on the forts was indeed a fierce one—it
lasted six days from the 18th to the 24th, and it
was said that not fewer than 1,800 shells fell and
burst within the works of Fort Jackson, to which
the chief attentions of the confederates were paid.
Two singular and half contradictory effects fol-
lowed. Though so much was destroyed, yet the
fire of the forts was little diminished. But, on the
other hand, though the forts were still able to rain
a " hurricane of shot and shell," the gunboats were
able to pass through it all, to get above them, and
to steam on to capture New Orleans, while the ports
were watched by the remainder of the fleet. Ships
clearly beat forts, and forts placed to great advan

tage, and the ships but wooden ones. The same
ships took two other forts higher up the river,
though they could approach them only by sustain.

ing a raking firo for two miles. Indeed, when a'

facts of the captures of ports made by gunboats

in this war are before us, we shall have a fresh and

valuable series of actual experiments in war, for
which common prudence requires us to wait.
As to the Confederate fleet, that of the Federals
seems almost to have treated it with scorn. Every
thing seems to have been taken, burnt, or sunk ;
the battery of 18 guns blew itself up, intending to
have performed a kind of Sampson's last feat. The

potent Manassas, which was to have rivalled the
Merrimac, turned aside from the Mississippi, and
was sent to the bottom by a broadside from her.
Probably the naval architecture was very bad of
these Southern boats, or they must have been most
wretchedly handled, as when once the forts was
passed) under whose cover they did some service,
the Federal ships made very quick work with them.

The Universal Gazette of Berlin says :—" The
honour of Prussia and even the personal honour of the
King have been greatly wounded by the Government of
Hesse. Our envoy-extraordinary was received in an un-
heard of manner. The details will be published in a few
days. General Willisen has declared that if the offender
had not been a sovereign Prince he would have challenged
him to a duel."

FATAL ACCIDENT ON THE LONDON, CHAT-
HAM', AND DOVER RAILWAY.--Yesterday an inquest was
held at St. Thomas's Hospital, by Mr. Wm. Payne, the
coroner for the city of London and Southwark, into the
circumstances of the death of Willkm Pennell, age 23,
who was killed at Hensford, in Kent, on the Lond
Chatham, and Dover Railway, by being run over by seve-
ral trucks laden with ballast. The jury returned a verdict
of " Accidental Death."
The Ost-Deutscie Post of Vienna states that the
Empress was attacked, about a fortnight since, with a rheu-
matic affection in her feet, but up to the present time it has
not exceeded the limits of a simple indisposition.
The cantata composed by Verdi for the Inter-
national Exhibition, and rejected by the commissi-ners on
the alleged ground that the score was not delivered in time,
is to be performed at Mrs. Anderson's Concert in her Ma-
jesty's Theatre on Friday next, the solo part by Mdlle.
Titiens, with a chorus of 250 voices; and that the grand
march composed by Auber for the same occasion is likewise
to be performed at that concert.
A formal demand has been made at Rome for the
expulsion, in as gentle a manner as possible, of the King of
Naples. The French troops—so the ultimatum says, are
sufficient to protect the Holy Father, but not sufficient to
put down brigandage in the Neapolitan States.
The advices from Buenos Ayres by the French
mail yesterday are dated the 13th of April, and state that
no occurrence of importance had taken place since the de-
parture of the Southampton packet, on the 27th of March.
The elections for deputies to the National Congress were
about to commence immediately, and opinions were much
divided with respect to the all-important question of the
permanent capital of the republic. It was thought pro-
bable that the feeling would be to leave the decision of it
to time, fixing for the present the residence of the autho-
rities at Buenos Ayres merely as a temporary measure
until the conviction of its benefits shall have become
general.

THE LATE POACHING AFFRAY NEAR NOTTING-
HAM.—A few days ago there appeared in The Sun a brief
account of a poaching affray which tea place on the fish-
ing preserves of the Hon. Captain Byron, of Thrumpton,
Notts. It was then supposed that one of the poachers was
drowned in the Trent, he and another of the gang having
jumped into the river to escape from the pursuit of the
keepers. Since then one of them has made hisappearance at
Thrumpton, and he says that although he heard his com-
rade jump into the river he never perceived him land on
the opposite side, and, not having been since seen, it is con-
cluded that he was drowned shortly after the affray took
place. His name is John Hayes, and up to the tune of the
occurrence he lived with his parents at Loughborough (ten
miles from Thrumpton). Yesterday (Thursday) morning
dragging was commenced for the body, but at 4 o'clock in
the afternoon it had not been discovered.
GREAT PERIL OF HER MAJESTY'S MAIL AND
NARROW ESCAPE OF THE POSTMAN.—On. Wednesday
evening, about high water (eight o'clock), the bridge over
the entrance of the St, Katharine Docks having been kept
open for a considerable time beyond that permitted or re-
quired, the postman, with a bag of the evening mail, con-
taining important and valuable letters for the Irish and
Scotch wharves, &c., attempting to cross the lock by pass-
ing over the barges as they were being moval into the
deck, unfortunately slipped his foot and fell into the water,
then 24 fe:_t deep. Providentially this active officer proved
an expert swimmer, and thus saved both the mail and his
own life. Notwithstanding- the drenching he proceeded to
deliver the letters, which were saturated with dock water.
This was the second accident the same title. It i 3 very
desirable that some provision should be made for the foot
passengers during the time this bridge is open—frequently
three-quarters of an hour, this loss of time causing serious
inconvenience. We understand it is the intention of the
wharfingers and others to make a substantial acknowledg-
ment to the postman for his active endeavour to deliver
their letters without loss of time.

HONOURABLE ARTILLERY COMPANY.-011 Wed-
nesday evening the members of this well-known volunteer
regiment gave the concluding dramatic performance for the
present season, at their head-quarters, Finsbury, and it
yym mwaexously Itua sl444ionaNY attvaclech