The Sun.
London, England, 1853-02-08 00:00:00

FRANCE AND ENGLAND.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE MORNING ADVERTISER.
Sir,—Considering you as the most effective
medium in this country for conveying information
to the masses of our
.countrymen, I forward to you copy, with translations, of extracts from the
Gazette de France of Saturday last, the organ of
the Legitimist and Catholic party in France,
which have been this day forwarded to me by
correspondent abroad, as containing matter to
which serious attention ought to be directed in
England. The subject is the work entitled Lettres
Franques, which has already been noticed by the
English press.
As an old out-port man, I should be ashamed if
I did not know, that there is a just medium be-
tween overcharged alarm and neglecting fair
warnings given ; to which may be added, that
nothing is more common than for an enemy to
avow his intentions, for the very purpose of accus-
toming to the cry of " wolf." At all events,
here is a journal telling you in plain terms what a
party abroad desire and expect to accomplish ; for
men do not compromise themselves by declarations
of this kind without a certain degree of confidence
in the event. One thing the writers are evidently
bent on demonstrating—that the French Govern-
ment does not discountenance " provocaaons
directes" to a descent on England.
I am, Sir, your obedient servant,

- - - T. PERRONET THOMPSON.
Blackheath, Feb. 7, 1853.

INDICATIONS OF THE MINISTERIAL POLICY. - Sir
Charles Wood, at a public dinner at Halifax on Thurs-
day night last, enunciated the only tangible idea of an
extension of the franchise which has yet been expressed
by any member of the Cabinet, or which might be taken
as indicative of the Ministerial policy on that subject.
He said he did not hold that there was any virtue in a
101. house, but some criterion was necessary for the pur-
poses of registration. The Government was prepared to
extend the franchise so as to embrace the most intelli-
gent of the classes below those now enfranchised by
pecuniary qualification. This is a most important de-
claration, coming from one so habitually cautious as the
present President of the Board of Control, and must
have received the sanction of the Cabinet, of which he
is so prominent a member, before he ventured to en-
dorse it.

THE SUSPECTED MURDER IN THE REGENT'S CANAL.—
Yesterday Mr. Wakley, coroner for the western dis-
tricts of Middlesex, who has so long, but up to this
period in vain, endeavoured to secure to prisoners
charged with murder a right of confronting their ac-
cusers by being present during the inquiry before the
coroner, waited upon Lord Palmerston, the Home Se-
cretary, for the purpose of having Mackell, now under
remand for the murder of Mamba Lea, whom he is ac-
cused of having thrown into the Regent's Canal,
brought before him (the coroner) at the inquest, which
he will held this week on the deceased. Lord Palmer-
ston listened most attentively to the arguments used by
the worthy coroner in favour of the accused's right to
be present at the inquiry, and would willingly have con-
ceded, but for the precedents to the contrary laid down
by his lordship's predecessors. His lordship, however,
promised Mr. Wakley, that he would give the subject
every attention, and would, if possible, comply with his
(Mr. Wakley's) request, by having the accused in at-
tendance at the inquest. The general opinion is, that
Mr. Wakley will succeed in his humane and constitu-
tional object.

HOSTILE OCCUPATION OF THE ROMAN STATES BY THE
AUSTRIAN AND FRENCH TROOPS.—Last night, a public
meeting, promoted by the Society of the Friends of Italy,
was held at the St. Pancras Vestry-hall, King's-road,
for the purpose of taking into consideration a notice of
motion put upon the books of the House of Commons
by T. S. Duncombe, Esq., M.P., to the effect that her
Majesty be prayed to use her good offices in order
to put an end to the present occupation of the
Roman States by the troops of Austria and France.
Professor Newman was called to the chair. Mr.
Anstey moved the first resolution, to the effect. that
the meeting contemplated with feelings of horror and dis-
gust the bigoted and cruel oppression of Chiistian men in
the dominions of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, for the pro-
fession of religious belief, but that the meeting recorded
its conviction that religious liberty is impossible without
the existence of civil freedom, of which it is a certain
consequence ; and that, so believing, the meeting was
further of opinion, looking to the relation of civil and
ecclesiastical government in the Italian States at the
present time, that the complete political freedom and
independence or Italy would be the best guarantee of
rereligious liberty in Tuscany, and an incalculable gain to
te cause of religious liberty over the world. The mo-
tion was seconded by Mr. Taylor, in a speech of great
power, taking to pieces the crotchets of the Peace Con-
gress, and carried unanimously. Lord Dudley Stuart,
M.P., next addressed the meeting. Mr. Masson then
moved, and Mr. Petty seconded, the adoption of a peti-
tion to Parliament in support of Mr. Duncombe's motion.
The proceedings then terminated with a vote of thanks
to the chairman.
FATAL COLLIERY ACCIDENT.—On Thursday last an
inquest was held at the Rose, Barrord, upon the body of
a man named John Aram, who had met with his death
under the following melancholy circumstances. It ap-
pear that the deceased and another collier were at work
at Cinder-hill coal-pit, near Nottingham, when suddenly,
and without a moment's warning, they were overwhelmed
by a mass of the roof of the pit. I nstanrut Aram
neousasdsiisetd-
ance was procured and the men got out,
an hour after the accident. The jury returned a verdict
of Accidental Death.
RAILWAY COMMUNICATION BETWEEN EDINBURGH AND
DUMFRIES.—The Dumfries Courier says that it is pre-
posed to construct alainilewaoyf,
ahutou
railway,
mileshichwilltostathret
from the
Caledonian
north of Lockerby, and, coming down by the head of
the Tinwald-hills, enter Dumfries near St. Mary's church.
This line would be little more than 14 miles in length,
and would bring Dumfries by direct railway communica-
tion within 84 miles of Edinburgh.