The Sun.
London, England, 1841-04-14 00:00:00

lONIAN ISLANDS.

REMONSTRANCE OF THE ELECTORS OF
CEPHALONIA.
TO THE RIGHT HON. LORD J. RUSSELL, HER BRITANNIC
MAJESTY'S SECRETARY OF STATE FOR THE COLO-
NIAL DEPARTMENT.
The most valuable privilege of the lonian citizen,
conveyed to him by that Constitution to which the So-
vereign P. otector affixed his sanction, has been violated,
and the c :dersigned electors have been grossly insulted
by the C: .omission appointed to preside over the elec-
toral body of Cephalonia, consisting of the Most Ex-
cellent Si snore Count Camillo della Decima, Regent ;
Signore Spiridione Anino Cavalierato, his Secretary ;
and Signore Dr. Anastasio Fipaldo Xidian, Advocate
Fiscal.
Ought they to submit their grievances to the Senate,
or must r hey wait until the meeting of the Legislative
Assembly, and present their remonstrance to it ? Exist-
ing circumstances do not permit this delay ; availing
themselves, therefore, of the right granted by article
8, section 7, chapter 7, of the Constitutional Charter,
they address you, my Lord, supplicating your Lordship
to lay this representation at the feet of her august Ma-
jesty the Queen, who, magnanimous as she is, will
not disdain to listen to the complaints of respectable
citizens, whose most sacred constitutional rights have
been infringed.
No election of representatives ought to have taken
place, since the legal period had not expired, nor had
the death of any member made an opening for a sub-
stitution ; nevertheless, an occasion for a new election
was to be created. The Count Demetrio dalla Deci-
ma, relieved from his seat as member of the Supreme
Council of Justice, found little difficulty in bringing
about the resignation of the Secretary of the Regency ;
he was the Regent's brother-in-law, and his place was
given to a member of the Assembly. There no .v ex-
isted a necessity for filling up the vacancy thus artfully
created, and for that purpose Count Demetrio della
Decima and Dr. Rocco Pillarino were nominated can-
didates. We pass over in silence, us not necessary to
be here noticed, the it egality of the proceedings on this
occasion, in as far as regards the removal of the legis-
lator and the qualifications end conditions of the nomi-
nated candidates, and will merely speak of the illegal
transactions which occurred at the election.
The election took place on Jan. 15,1841.
The voting had scarcely commenced when several
electors observing many instances of illegality in the
proceedings, and relying on the rights they had ac-
quired by the Constitutional Charter of these islands,
made known the malpractices to the commission ap-
pointed to preside at the Electoral College.
The commission, far from listening to the complaints
of the electors, when verbally stated, or, at least, reject-
ing them as if they had been taken into judicial con-
sideration, always passed them over in the minutes,
and, in open violation of the law, declared that it was
not intended to hear or receive instances of any kind
whatever, either verbal or written, of errors which had
occurred ; thus refusing to pay attention to those pre-
sented by any of the electors. In this way ail were
reduced to silence.
For the wrong thus done to the most respectable
body of the State, from which all authority emanates,
the undersigned solemnly demand redress.
In the hope that your Lordship may be pleased to
obtain for them that redress to which they may be
found to be entitled, the undersigned take the liberty
of submitting the complaints which were made by them
against the said election, and also other illegalities
which occurred in the proceedings.
They observe—l. That according to article 23d of
sec. 1, chap. 3, of the Constitutional Chatter, ever)
operation connected with an election must be decided
upon by the majority of the votes of the assembled
electors, given viva vccc.
2. That according to paragraph 2, article 36, title 2,
of the constitution of 1803, which is maintained .in
force by article 18, cap. 3, section 1, of the present
constitution, in what relates to electoral organisation,
his Excellency Count Camillo della Decima, Regent of
Cephalonia, and brother of one of the candidates,
ought to have resigned the chair of president of the
college to some other person. If this article prohibits
relations of a candidate, to the fourth degree, from
being present at the polling, with much more reason
should any such relation be disqualified from presiding
over the Electoral College.
3. The college ought to be held illegal, since there
had not been posted up, according to custom, the list of
voters, in order that every elector might have the op.
portunity of bringing forward his objections, as the law
has provided, in the case of rights of the electors being
infringed by the insertion in the list of persons not pos-
sessing the requisite legal qualifications.
4. That the number of electors required to form a
legal college should consist of at least one-half of the
totality of the electors, according to Art. 23, chap. 3,
sec. 1, of the Constitutional Charter.
5. That procurations granted for the purpose of en-
abling an elector to vote in the stead of another who
is absent ought not to be admitted, it being enacted by
Art. 23, chap. 3, sec. 1, of the Constitutional Charter,
" That cs ery electoral proceeding shall be decided upon
by the majority of votes given viva voce ;" and the prin-
cipal proceeding in an election being the polling, it is
not possible to maintain that a procuration is then ca•
pable of supplying the place of a viva voce vote.
• Numerous, my Lord, are the illegalities which oc-
curred in the election of Count Demetrio dalla Decima,
besides those already observed ; of 427 voters, there were
absent about 200, regarded, on the authority of medical
certificates, as patients. Thus the extraordinary phe-
nomenon might be supposed to have been exhibited,
that out of 427 electors one-half were sick, as if an epi-
demic disease had prevailed in the country.
May her Majesty the Queen be pleased to order an
inquiry ; and, should it be thought fit to grant this
request, the facts stated will be irrefragably proved by
respectable electors, and persons worthy of entire credit.
Apart from the violation of individual rights, the in-
sult given to the electoral body is a serious offence
against the public, and the undersigned expect signal
redress from the justice of her Majesty.
The signatures follow.)

DUELL

'RAN CE

(From Dr. Millingen's History of Duelling.)
France may be considered the classic ground of
duelling, the field of single combat par excellence
whence, from the Duchy of Normandy, as we have al-
ready seen, it was introduced into the British isles. If
we arc indebted to our neighbours for this practice, it
is also to t hem that we owe the various codes and re-
gulations drawn out to equalise, as far as possible, the
chances of victory, and to prevent any unfair advan-
tages being obtained to the prejudice of the opposite
party. Of these various documents, possibly the rules
given by Brantome may De considered the most curious.
In the first instance, he says :—" On no account what-
ever let an infidel be brought out as a second or a
witness : it is not proper that an unbeliever should
witness the shedding of Christian blood, which would
delight him ; and it is moreover abominable that such
a wretch should be allowed such an honorable pastime.
The combatants must be carefully examined and felt, to
ascertain that they have no particular drugs,
witchcraft, or charms about thcm.*lt is allowed to wear
on such occasions some relics of Our Lady of Loretto,
and other holy objects ; yet is is not clearly decided
what is to be done when both parties have not these
as no advantage should be allowed to one com-
batant more than to another. It is idle to dwell upon
courtesies—the man who steps into the field must have
made up his mind to conquer or die, but, above all
things, never to surrender ; for the conqueror may treat
the vanquished as he thinks proper—drag him round the
ground, hang him, burn him, keep him a prisoner ; in
short, do with him whatever he pleases. The Danes
and Lombards in this imitated Achilles, who, after his
combat with Hector, dragged him three times round the
walls at the tail of his triumphant car. Every gallant
knight must maintain the honour of ladies, whether
they may have forfeited it or not ; if it can be said
that a gentille dame can have forfeited her honour by
kindless to her servant and her lover. A soldier may
tight his captain, provided he has been two years upon
actual service, and he quits his company. If a father
accuses a son of any crime that may tend to dishonour
him, the son may demand satisfaction of his father :
since he has done him more injury by dishonouring him,
than he had bestowed advantage by giving him life."
" Notwithstanding Brantome's authority, the right of
a soldier to call out his Captain has been a questionable
point ; and La Beraudiere, and Basnage, and Alciat,
have discussed the point very minutely. The last au-
thor came to the conclusion that such a meeting could
only be tolerated when both parties were off duty,—
post jitnetionern sceus. The same learned writer main-
tains that you can only refuse to fight a bastard ; and
he therefore strongly recommends all noblemen to legi-
time t!ze their son:, that they may be rendered worthy
of the honour of knighthood and of duelling : and he

further declares, that all challenges from a roturier, a
mere citizen, or a man in business, must be considered
as null and void.

" There is a passage in Brantome which singularly
applies to modern France, as regards the multiplicity
of decorations of honour, and their various button-hole
badges ; distinctions which, from the facility with
which they are obtained, he • does not consider as
qualifying the wearer to fight a gentleman. If these
people were attended to,' hesays,' onccould no longer fight
a proper duel : such numbers of them pullulate in every
direction, that we see nothing but knights of St. Mi-
chael and of the Saint Esprit ; to such an extent were
these orders abused during our civil laws, to win over
and retain lollowers being no longer the meed of
valour or of merit."fo tear off a decoration, or even
to touch it, was considered an unpardonable insult ; and
we have seen in more modern times an example of the
respect to which such attributes of distinction are en-
titled. In August 1833, Colonel Gallois, an officer in
the service of Poland, felt himself offended by an
article in the Figaro, a paper conducted by Nestor
Roqueplan ; and, having met him, tore off his riband
of the Legion of Honour. The patties met in the
wood of Meudon, when Roqueplan received three
wounds, and Gallois one in the knee : the two seconds
of Gallois at the same lime had thrown off their coats,
and challenged the seconds of Roqueplan, who very
wisely declined any participation in the fight ; when one
of Gallois's party insisted upon satisfaction from Mr.
Leon Plllet, a friend of Roqueplan, with whom he was
on intimate tern's, and, to urge his suit, requested that
he might be allowed to take the badge of the Legion
elf his coat, to overcome his apparent repugnance ;
adding, that he entertained too much friendship and
esteem towards him to offend him in any other manner.
There was no refusing so polite a request.
" The colours of a lady, in a knot of ribands worn
by her admirer, and called an emprise, were equally
sacred ; and, when a brave of those chivalric days was
anxious for a combat, he exerted himself to find some
daring desperado who would put his finger on the badge
of love. in Ireland to this day, in many of its wild
districts, a pugnacious ruffian will drag his jacket after
him, end fight unto death any spalpeen who ventures to
touch it.
" Choice of arms was a matter of great importance
in these meetings, indeed of a vital nature ; since, if a
weapon was broken in the hands of one of the parties,
he was considered vanquished, and at the discretion of
his conqueror—such an accident being looked upon as
a decision of Providence : a mis-fire at the present day
is considered a shot, although on a less religious prin-
ciple. Pisti Is were introduced in the reign of Henry
H. ; and, being considered as affording a more equal
chance to both combatants, this arm has been gene-
rally selected in modern duels, more especially in Eng-
land. On the Continent the small-sword and the
sabre were more frequently resorted to ; and we shall
shortly see the regulations regarding their employ-
ment, which in France form a regular code. Some
of the ancient modes of fighting were most singu-
lar and whimsical. Brantome relates a story of
two Corsicans who had fixed short sharp-pointed
daggers in the front of their helmets, being covered
with a suit of mail called a jacque' over their
shirts, although the weather was remarkably cold ; such
an arrangement having been proposed by the offended,
who had the right to select and name the mode of
combat, and who was fearful of his antagonists' renown
for his power and dexterity in wrestling. Both were
armed with swords, and they fought for some time with
such equality of skill that neither was wounded ; at
length they rushed upon each other, and wrestling com-
menced. It was during this struggle that the daggers
came into play, each butting in his antagonist's face,
and neck, and arms, until blood was streaming in every
direction, and in such profusion that they were sepa-
rated one of them only lived a month ;in consequence
of which the survivor was well nigh dying of tristesse
and ennui, as they had become friends, and expected
that they both should have died—Notwithstanding
this valorous disposition, it appears that the choice of
arms and appointments was frequently made a subter-
fuge to gain time, or cause much trouble and expense ;
and Brantome relates that, in the fatal duel between
Jarnac and Chasteneraye, the former proposed no less
than thirty different weapons to be used on horseback
and on foot, and had also specified various horses,
Spanish, Turkish, Barbes, with different kinds of
saddles ; in consequence of which our chronicler adds,
that if his uncle bad not been a man of some independ-
ence, and moreover assisted by his royal master, he
could not have maintained the challenge; and he very
truly observed, when receiving it, " This man wants to
fight both my valour and my purse." This privilege of
the offended to choose their arms and regulate the na-
ture of the combat, however capriciously, afforded con-
siderable advantages ; since the art of fencing taught
many secret tricks, the knowledge of which gave great
reputation to professors. So secret, indeed, were these
instructions, that not only was the pupil solemnly
sworn never to reveal the mysterious practice, but in-
structions were given in private, after having examined
every part of the room, the furniture, and the very
walls, to ascertain that no third person could have been
concealed to witness the deadly lesson. To this day in
France such cuts and thrusts are called coups de
maitre, and by the lower classes coups de matins.
" A curious case is recorded of a knight, who,
having been taught invariably to strike the region of
the heart, insisted upon fighting in a suit of
armour, with an opening in each cuirass of the breadth
of the hand over the heart ; the result, of course,
was immediately fatal to his antagonist.
" The cunning' of armourers was also frequently
resorted to to obtain unfair advantages. A skilful
workman in Milan had carried his mode of tempering
steel to such a point of perfection, that the solidity of
the sword and dagger depended entirely on the manner
in which they were handled : in the hands of the inex-
perieuced the weapons flew into shivers ; whereas, in
the grasp of a skiltrtt.l combatant, they were as rusty as
the most approved I oledan blade. Nor were these va-
liant knights very particular as to odds. It is related
of two French gentlemen, La Villutte and the Baron
de Salligny, who fought a duel with two Gaseous of
the names of Ma!ecolom and Esparezat, that Malecolom
having speedily killed his antagonist Salligny, and per-
ceiving that his companion Esparezat was a long time
despatching Villatte, went to his assistance. When
Villatte, thus unfairly pressed by two antagonists, re-
monstrated ags,inst the treachery, Malecolom very coolly
replied, I have killed my adversary ; and if you
kill yours, there may be a chance that you may also kill
me ; therefore, here goes!'
" More punctilious, however, were some of these
persons in points of honour. We read in Brantome of
two Piedmontese officers, intimate friends, who, having
gone out to fight, one of the patties received a wound
that was supposed to be mortal, when his opponent, In-.
hitwur,gaesosnis.ted hire '
wounded man, do not be generous by halves !—let .
offex
exclaimed
ine(l ground,the
t
and say that I hit you
to conduct him to a
sntoetadboefst:liedsptalticahtinlg fell without inflicting a wound : so,
pray wear your arm in a scarf,
ere I succumbed,' His friend generously acceded to
and, having smeared a bandage in his
theta
blood,
e
proposalLe
wrapped it round his area, publishing abroad
ha ;
been wounded ere his brave companion re-
ceived his mortal thrust. The wound, however, not
proving fatal, an everlasting friendship, cemented by
gratitude, ever after prevailed between them."
DUELS BETWEEN FRENCH WOMEN.
That women, who can mostly get silly people to fight

for them, should not fight themselves is natural, but
there are instances on record in which ladies have shown
their determination to avenge their own wrongs. Ma-
dame de Viilechen mentions a duel fought with swords
by Henriette Sylvie of Moliere with another wo-
man, both in male attire. In the letters of Madame
Dunoyer, a case is mentioned of a lady of Beaucaire
and a young lady of rank, who fought with swords
in their garden, and would have killed each other
'had they not been separated ; this meeting had been
preceded by a regular challenge. De la Colombiere
mentions a duel that took place on the Boulevard St.
Antoine, between two ladies of doubtful virtue, in
which they inflicted on each other's face and bosom
several wounds, two points at which female jealousy
would naturally aim. St. Foix relates the tale of Ma-
demoiselle Durieux, who in the open street fought her
lover of the name of Antinotti. But the most cele-
brated female duellist was the actress Maupin, one of
the performers at the Opera. Seraae, the famous
fencing-master, was one of her lovers, and from him
she received many valuable lessons. Being insulted
one day by an actor of the name of Dumeny,
she called him out; but as he refused to give her sa-
tisfaction, she carried away his watch and his snuff-
box as the trophies of her victory. Another
performer having presumed to offend her, on his declin-
ing a meeting was obliged to kneel down before her and
implore her forgiveness. One evening at a ball, having
behaved in a very rude manner to a lady, she was re-
quested to leave the room, which she did on the condi-
tion that those gentlemen who had warmly espoused the
offended lady's cause should accompany her. To this
proposal they agreed ; when, after a hard combat, she
killed them all, and quietly returned to the ball-room.
Louis XIV. granted her a pardon, and she withdrew to
Brussels, where she became the mistress of the Elector
of Bavaria. However, she soon afterwards returned
to the Parisian opera, and died in 1707, at the age of
thirty-seven.
Under the regency a pistol meeting took place be-
tween the Marquise de Nesle and the Countess Polig-
nac for the possession of the Duc de Richelieu ; and in
more modern times, so late, indeed, as 1827, a Madame
B-- at St. Rambert, received a challenge to fight
with pistols ; and about the same period a lady of
Chateauroux, whose husband had received a slap in the
face without resenting the insult, called out the offender,
and fighting him with swords severely wounded him.
" In 1828 a dual took place between a young girl
and a garde du corps. She had been betrayed by the
gallant soldier, and insisted upon satisfaction, selecting
her own weapons by the right of an offended party.
Two shots were exchanged, but without any result, as
the seconds very wisely had not loaded with ball. The
pining lady, however, ignorant of this precaution, fired
first, and received the fire of her adversary with the
utmost coolness, when, to try her courage, after taking
a long and deliberate aim, he fired in the air, and thus
terminated the meeting, which no doubt led to many
others of a less hostile nature.
In the same month, as a striking instance of the
contagion of this practice, a duel was fought near Stras-
bourg between a French woman and a German lady,
both of whom were in love with a painter. The parties
met on the ground armed with pistols, with seconds of
their own sex. the German damsel wanted to fire
across a pocket-handkerchief, but the French lady and
her seconds insisted upon a distance of 25 paces. They
both fired without effect, when the exasperated Gernsau
insisted that they should carry on the contest until one
of the parties fell. This determination, however, was
controlled by the seconds, who put a stop to further
proceedings, but were unable, to bring about a recon-
ciliation.—History of Duelling.