The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-15 00:00:00

CORRESPONDENCE FROM PARIS.

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)
PARIS, Wednesday Evening.
It is seldom that the Paris papers are so destitute
of news or miscellaneous articles of interest to the

English reader as they are to-day. Much of their
space continues to be occupied with matters con-
r.ected with the elections to the General Councils.

The official candidates have obtained a great success.
A letter from Florence, dated Aug. 9, says--" The
discussion upon the law relative to ecclesiastical

property proceeds in the Senate with appropriate

calmness and gravity. The principle of the suppres-
sion of mainmortes is accepted even by the Senators
connected with the Catholic party. The latter con-
tent themselves with demanding that liberty shall
be rendered to the Church.

" In Lombardy the clergy profit by the advantages
of the treaty of Zurich to sell their property. Seve-

ral communities are mentioned who are said to have

signed important contracts. No doubt the congre

gations hope by these sales to escape from the tax
of 30 per cent. imposed upon the totality of the

clergy. It is the opinion of many lawyers that as
these sales were consented to before the promulga-

tion of the law, they cannot be rendered void.
Should the law be agreed to by the Senate, the Pre-
sident of the Council has decided to put up for sale
all the property of the clergy which is within the
jurisdiction of the State. As this property repre-
sents a total value of 400 millions, it is hoped that
the purchasers will present themselves en masse, as
this would facilitate the issue of the bonds for the

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loan of 400 millions. These securities will be issued

according to the wants of the Treasury—an excel-
lent precaution, which will prevent the depreciation
of their value. The panic upon the subject has

ceased."

Each day of the trial of the woman Frigard for
the murder of the woman Mertens, near Fontaine-
bleau, brings to light some fresh atrocity or immo-
rality. The prisoner exhibits great indifference at
the facts alleged against her, and she is insolent in
tone and manner towards the President. When
anything tells against her, like Midshipman Easy,
she is disposed to " argue the point." She admitted
with perfect coolness that within three years she
has purchased three revolver pistols. When asked
if she had tried them, she replied, " Certainly ;
you must try pistols to see if you can make good
use of them." Among other qualities of which she

pretends to be in possession, she said she employed
somnambulism to discover hidden treasures. One
witness stated that when the prisoner's husband
became a bankrupt she threatened to stab the
offieial assignee if he did not try to make things
pleasant with the creditors. When an inventory
of the property was taken she contrived to con-
ceal articles to the value of 7or 8,000 francs. One
witness, a very old man, appeared to be fatigued,
on which the prisoner appealed to the President,
and said she should consider it a personal favour if
he would allow the witness to be seated. This deli-
catea nwho n
attention
ann to increase
i on the nart
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oft her
im tn
prisonerna r
y evidence
vtowardsidenca
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against her made the judge, and even the counsel
for the defendant, laugh. The agent who nego-
tiated the sale of the hotel to the prisoner was asked
what brought the deceased to his office. He re-
plied that she wanted to see if he could procure a
husband for her. President—You arrange marriages
then also? Witness--No, not marriages, but we
receive applications of all sorts. President—Admir-
able. Kelly, anlEnglishman,was examined through
an interpreter. It appears that he is the individual
spoken of as " Williams." He was described as a
sort of advocate who did not plead, and a proprietor
without any fixed residence. At present he lived at
Boulogne. When asked by the interpreter
whether he did not marry the widow 'Mertens
on the 2d of February, 1862, the witness replied
that ho was not sure about the date, but
he thought yes. He left his wife on the very day
of his marriage, because he received several anony-
mous letters, which informed him of some dis-
agreeable things about her. She left for England,
and he went to Italy. A witness said that the
prisoner received a good many witnesses where she
lodged. Prisoner —" There is no mystery about
that. I gave sittings of mesmerism and spirit-rap-
ping. These are not things to make a noise about
over the house-tops." When the President asked
the prisoner what she did with a bank-note for
2001 r., she replied," I have told you twenty times."
President—" Tell us, then, for the twenty-first
time." In answer to some questions about the
deceased, the prisoner said that at the time in ques-
tion the latter had gone to stop at an establishment
in Paris where girls went in order to procure abor-
tion. One witness stated that the deceased at one
time had great confidence in the prisoner, but that
latterly he seemed to mistrust her, and was careful
in concealing her money from her. The evidence
given ii very voluminous.
The official itinerary of the route which will be
pursued by the Emperor and Emperor in their en-
suing journey to the north of France is as follows :
—Departure from Paris on the 26. h inst., at six
o'clock in the morning. Stoppage of an hour and
a half at Arras and Douai. Arrival at Lille for the
grand fetes, which I have described, at four o'clock
in the afternoon. 27th, stay at Lille ; 28th, visit
to Dunkerque ; 29th, visits to Roubaix and Tour-
coing ; return to Paris at nine. in the evening.
The police continue to make active researches
respecting the jewel robbery at the Swedish portion
of the Exhibition. Five persons—one of them a
won-An—bave been arrested, and there is a clue to