The Sun.
London, England, 1856-05-22 00:00:00

THE LIVER PLA7'E.

The following, received by the last mail, gives
the latest particulars of the condition of affairs in
the River Plate. In Monte Video the influence of
Oribe seems again' to threaten continued misgo-
vernment ; but it is satisfactory to find that an
arrangement has at length been enforced of the
loug-pending claims of English merchants, althougft
it still falls-short of what the dignity of this country
should have demanded. At Buenos Ayres a re-
newal of hostilities with Urquiza is apprehended as
a not remote possibility. The news of the tertni7

nation of the Russian war came unexpectedly, and
will cause losses in tallow. Nothing is said with
regard to the proposals of the Buenos Ayreaa
Government for the settlement of their foreign
debt :

" Some attempts have been made to introduces

the reforms alluded to in my last, but the uncon-
stitutional and domineering influence of Oribe and
Flores render good government next to impossible.
Everybody gives the new President (Pereira) credit
for the best intentions, and probably he does his
best, but his power is limited. In defiance of law,
General Dias, Colonel Tagis, and some others have

been sent out of the country on suspicion of intrigu-
ing to overthrow the Government. Louis Lamas, a
senator, and one of the best men in the country,
finding himself obnoxious, and possibly considering
himself in danger from military influences, has soli-
cited his passport, and intends, it is said, to leave the
republic next week. .Senor Lamas had manfully ex-
posed in the Senate some of the late abominable abuses

of military domination, by which the public revenue
has been anticipated for some time. Dr. Ellauri
is no longer Minister for Foreign Affairs. His
tenure of office was short"; he has been succeeded
by Don Joaquin Requena. The office of General
. .

des Armas, wThich was abolished, has been re esta-
blished. It was stated in my last that the Govern-
ment intended selling half of the Customs duties,
with the privilege of administration. This privi-
lege, I added, had been demanded by Mr. Thorn-
ton, her :Majesty's Charge d'Affaires, on behalf of the
merchants, who granted a loan to this Government
under the guarantee of the British and French Ple-
nipotentiaries, in 1845, on that express condition
and, on the 2dinst., he concluded'an arrangement by
which the loan contractors are to take possession and
administer the Custom-house department until they'
are paid the amount due to them by retaining au
eighth of the net product of the revenue. This
arrangement has the sanction of the contractor;
residing here, who feared that if they let this op-
portunity pass, they might have to Wait a few'
more years before they touched a portion of the
heavy sum duo to them ; but they do not consider.
the arrangement a just one. The account was made
up to the end of the past month, and from tha t
date all interest ceases. By the January agree-
ment of which I wrote last month as having been
cancelled iu consequence of this Government not
having complied with it by paying the first instal-
ment, the account was made up on the same princip!e
as the present, and interest at the rate of 6 per cent.
per annum was to be paid periodically. Why Mr.
Thornton should not have exacted the interest
after the Government had acknowledged it to be
due ono is unable to understand. The contractou s

are entitled to it, or they are not. lf they
are not entitled to it, how cam© Mr. Thornton to
demand it ? I have said the contractors here have
sanctioned the arrangement, but they have not
done so willingly, and they doubt whether it will
meet with the approbation of their confreres in
England, who own about half the amount of the
loan ; they entertain some hopes that Lord Claren-
don will insist upon the interest, which, for this
country, is low.
" The news of Russia's acceptance of the condi-
tions of peace has taken everybody by surprise,
and the dealers in tallow will, no doubt, sustain
heavy losses. In Monte Video, however, we shall
not suffer so much as on the other side of the river,
whence shipments have been large. Exchange 41d.
" Buenos Ayres struggles on. They talk of
lighting the city with gas the latter end of nest
mouth. The elections have just terminated, nc t,.
however, without loss of life. The treaty enters 4
into with the Argentine Confederation has not
been ratified by Urquiza,. It is feared hostiliti es
will commence before the year is out. It is Is-
ported the Indians desire peace, but, until tb ey
have been punished, it is difficult to believe e Lis
when they have had their own way. The Gover-
nor is somewhere in the country, but his who: to
al outs not exactly known. All the Estancieros
the borders have sent their cattle to market, to
preference to running the risk of having it &total
by the Indians.
" The province of Santa Fe, the moat thinly
populated in the Argentine Confederation, is (WI
assuming more importance. Houses have :been
erected in considerable numbers, and land; bas
greatly advanced in value. The difficulties be'
tween Paraguay and Brazil are said to be se,ttled
amicably ; but that republic is likely to have / :tore
serious difficulties with France, in consequent., e of
the ill-treatment of some French immigrants."

THE SYSTEM OF ,CORRUPTION IN

FRANCA

[By the Paris Correspondent of the Manchester'
Guardian.]
Before I go further, let me open a parenthesis,
and tell you an anecdote, too illustrative of thin
resolute system of denial-4nd bc lief in the e 13i02"
ciousness.of falsehood, to be passed by. Just .after
the Emparor's marriage, a grocer, possessed of it verf
handsome house at Versailles, in which Ma etalne
de Montijo and her daughter had occupied the fife,,
floor for some weeks, very innocently went a bct";
saying to every one he met :—" Only think ;'f
INt.demo,selle de Montijo beinrf the Emp erer6
wife ; see lodged in my house, and I saw her go in
and out every day." No great harm, you wll. l Flt
But the grocer was sent for to the prefecture, and
thus addressed :—" So and so, :you say the nil"
press lodged in your house?" " Yes, sir, with her
mother, at such a date." "So and .so, the Emp 40-7
never lodged at your house--" "But, sii -1!
assure you--" "I tell you her Majesty ne vie
set her foot in your houso ; nor did you ever see.
her. You had best become quite convinced oft bos
fact ; for if you should ever again repeat your 01;1.
invention it will be much the• worse for you.
Upon this the grocer, frightened out of his life,
retreated, and with visions of Cayenne in his h eadig
went about Versailles swearing gratuitously %.hat
he never saw the Empress in all his life. The thfa,
got about, and I know men in my own persot
acquaintance who used to delight in invading the
wretched grocer's shop, and saying to him—" You
don't remember me, but I used to visit constant
the Mesdames de Montijo, when they lodged in t be
first floor." The agonised grocer would go into f iW
of terror, declare that the ladies in question nes, er
lodged there, et cetera, and sometimes end by (
claiming—" For God's sake, don't betray me--I
undone if you do." Now, this is merely au alto-
. tration of Louis Napoleon's belief that a fact tsuffi#
ciently well denied ceases to have ever existed.
What harm, in the first place, was there in Mdlle.
de Montijo's having lodged in a very handsorie
house, the proprietor whereof was a grocer ? At id
next—how, when a whole town, like Versailles,
could witness the thing, was it to be effaced frc as
public memory ? Still, the use of the denial w.i
so thoroughly admitted, that the denial was asse rOci
and maintained. This little anecdote, for whiolt ,
and many, many others, can vouch, just shows the
spirit of this government on some points, and th ere-
icre I relate it.

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