The Sun.
London, England, 1867-08-17 00:00:00

TILE CANDIAN INSURRECTION.

potism, from which the sufferers have no appeal
or resource. They have no representatives in the
National Assembly, they have in the case of the
North Carolinians no State Legislature, and in the
other States their local authorities are displaced or
suspended according to every caprice of the military
commanders, so that they have no one to apply
to for redress against their opp-gssors. The

(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENT.)
PARIS, Thursday Evening,
There was a Cabinet Council yesterday at the
Tuileries, at which the Emperor presided.
The Emperor has conferred the dignity of
Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour upon
Prince de la Tour d'Auvergne, French Ambassa-
dor in London. There is a report in Paris that
the Prince is about to leave London, to assume
another diplomatic post.
On the occasion of the Emperor's fete to-day
his Majesty has pardoned or commuted the term
of imprisonment of two or three hundred persons
confined in the colonies, the hulks, or prisons.
A similar act of grace has been awarded to
many soldiers and sailors condemned by military
I and naval tribunals.
The evening Noniteur, reviewing foreign affairs,
says :
" The Federal Council, established by virtue of
the new Constitution of Northern Germany, is
to meet on the 15th (to-day). It is announced
that the Prussian Budget of 1866 is balanced, in
spite of the war, with an excess of receipts of
nearly a million of dollars, and that the Budget
for the current year will, in all probability, pre-
sent a similar excess. For the next year, there-
fore, there will be no new taxes, or increase in those
which now exist.
" A great many political exiles have returned
to llungary. The assemblies of the Comitats
approve of the policy adopted by the Ministry over
which Count Andrassy presides, and the Hunga-
rian nation considers it a point of honour to jus-
tify the confidence which the Emperor King has
placed in it.
" A committee, which is now sitting at Vienna
during the adjOurnment of the sessions of the
Reichsrath, is occupied with the project of a penal
code, which has been drawn up by the most enlight-
ened juris-consults. Anxious to give his Empire
laws most in harmony with the progress of social
science, the Emperor Francis Joseph made an ap-
peal to the most distinguished professors of law in
the German Universities, and the Minister of Jus-
tice is present at all the sittings of the committee,
in r
wh
ehd earristo take e
respectpianrgt ein h
every
r yt
article
l r
tiecal
er noefdt
hde i snceuws si o leans
pro-
jectv iocfe-lAawdmallud
iraldede
Grandiere has taken posses-
sion, in the name of the Emperor, of three western
provinces of Lower Cochin China, three of which,
those of Bien-Hoa, Saigon, and Mitho, have
belonged to France since 1862. The country in
question is composed of six provinces, and the whole
of Lower Cochin China is now under the dominion
of France. The three new provinces now acquired
by France were only left in the possession of the
Sovereign of Annam because he undertook to main-
tain tranquillity Uteri, and particularly not to allow
them to become the refuge of bands of robbers.
These promises, however, were not fulfilled, and
France was determined to take possession of them.
The annexation was affected without force of arms.
The jury have found Madame Frigard guilty of
the murder of the widow Mertens, and of the other
charges laid in the indictment, that is to say, for-
gery and robbery from the person after death, but
" without premeditation," so she escapes the punish-
ment of death, and is sentenced to hard labour for
life. Considering that the forgeries were committed
at long intervals, it seems somewhat curious that
the jury thought there was no " premeditation."
Another strange thing in this strange trial was the
defence of the prisoner's counsel, M. Lachaud.
After an elaborate argument, to show that the evi-
dence did not prove the commission of the murder
by the prisoner, he argued that there was no murder
at all. The deceased might have died from indi—
gestion. The food was not digested, as the analysis
of the contents of the stomach showed, and there
was no trace of any poison. This sort of argu-
ment reminds one involuntarily of the defenca set
up in America, in a case where damage was claimed I
for injury done to a copper, which the defendant
had borrowed. The first plea was that the copper
was not injured. Secondly, that it was worked
before the plaintiff lent it to the defendant.
Thirdly, that the defendant never had the
toWis a imaginarylliaams, La-
copperehaud caotnteanldle.d As
lie
was
being, a shadow. In regard to the disguises of
" knew
Williams,vi y
Csaoidurttiol learned
another English-
bmeaanr ,d a
d
a Ir .a
fHoard,re Nsvh wgwho
ne
I forgot to mention that one of the witnesses
gravely told me that out of ten Englishmen who
ery dayreference w
to or
Williams,V a
fresh
came to his hotel six were named 'Williams. On
learning strange things about England in France,
M. Lachaud's argument in regard to the forgery
was equally novel. Ile said it was possible that the
alleged forged receipts were, in fact, signed by the
deceased, or she alight have availed herself of
forged documents to obtain the money lodged in

the foreman of the jury, on the question being pus
by the President, rose with great solemnity, and
placing his hand upon his heart, said in a faltering
tone,
" On my honour and my conscience, before
God and before men, the reply of the jury is, upon
the first question (assassination of Madame Sidonie
Mertens), " Yes ; the accused is guilty. (A feel-
ing of horror pervaded the court at this announce-
ment.) The answer of the jury is affirmative on
all the questions relative to the forgeries. The ver-
dict is mitigated by the admission of extenuating
circumstances."
In France a prisoner is not present when the
verdict is delivered, as in England, but on his return
to court the judge informs him what there is in
store for his advantage. The president ordered
that Madame Frigard should b e brought back into
court. She looked very pale, but heard the reading
of the verdict with perfect indifference. She turned
towards her counsel, and with a sad and melan-
choly look, thanked him for the exertions he had
made to save her. The president told the prisoner
that, in consequence of the verdict of the jury, she
was condemned to hard labour for life. 'lhe pri-
soner was conducted to her cell, and the persons in
court departed, evidently in deep emotion.
One strange thing is that Mme. 'Mertens hal y
admirers. Even two of the young men who many
adinircrs. Even two of the young men who were
witnesses went so far as to openly express their
admiration of her. Although so well known a con-
test has arisen as to the colour of her hair, some
brunette. This knotty point has been settled
speaking of her as a blonde and others as a
somewhat in the same way as the dispute be-
tween the true travellers as to the colour of the
cameleon. Doctor Leblanc, who dissected the
body, speaks almost in the same tone of adoration
as the two witnesses just mentioned, He says "the
head of the deceased was ornamented with luxurious
blonde (fair) hair." Bets, it appears, were made as
to the colour of the widow's hair. Fortunately (or
unfortunately, however, as the case may be) a per-
son, who says he saw the body of the victim twice,
said she wore a wig ! As to Kelly or Williams—
the myth or Mr. Harris—or the imaginary being,
as the prisoner's counsel called him, he really was
at Melun in person during the whole of the trial,
but this husband for a day left the town immedi-
ately upon its conclusion.
A person employed at the Hotel at Fontainebleau,
where the two ladies slept, told a traveller that his
master was afraid the murder might cause injury to
his establishment. So far from this being the case,
however, the hotel has become quite a card for
tourists, who go and visit it as one of the curiosities
of the locality. The coachmen and guides of the
forest do not fail to take travellers to the spot where
the body of the victim lay for five days before it was
discovered. Nor is this all, for there is no want of
persons who go to sleep in No. 11 and No. 12 at the
hotel, the rooms occupied by the murderess and her
victim, on the night previous to the murder. The
remains of Sidonie Mertens were interred in a grave
at the cemetery of Fontainebleau with becoming
respect, but in that portion of it which is devoted to
the burial of the poor. She was of course very poor
at her death, for " her friend" had robbed her of all
money, although " without premeditation." The
effect, however, was As
Ahes to
m same. cc Who steals my
otrhteu
" good name" of the
purse
victim, stealsthattrash."butno, de
is.
Count de la Bedoyere, Senator, whose death I
mentioned, was born in 1814, and was consequently
53 years old. He was the son of the unfortunate
Bedoyere who in 1815 paid for his attachment to
the Imperial cause with his life. The deceased was
one of the Emperor's chamberlains.
More meetings of sovereigns are announced.
The King of Prussia was to meet the King of
Sweden and Norway yesterday at Cassel, after
which he would immediately return to Berlin.
Some writers always attribute political objects to
these Royal meetings, but it would be almost too
much to imagine that Prussia wants to do anything
in the annexation line with Sweden. Perhaps she
only follows, the advice of Earl Russell, who said
when you lose the friendship of one Power, " we
must make other alliances."
Ira Aldridge, the black tragedian who played
Othello at Varseilles a short time ago without paint-
ing, died recently. He was on his way to St.
Petersburg. Alexandre Dumas wrote a work about
him a short time ago.
The iron-clad French 'Mediterranean squadron,
under the command of Vice-Admiral Count de
Gueydon, is at sea before Bastin., and in the course
of a month will be joined by three naval divisions
in the roads of Ajaccio. The squadron is constantly
occupied with various new and important naval
evolutions. The squadron will not leave the coast
of Ajaccio till September.
According to the Memorial DiplmnatiTte, M. de
Beust is very desirous to announce to the Cham-
ber that the negotiations with the Holy See for the
revision of the Concordat are likely to lead to prac-
tical results-. With a view to accelerate the pro-
gresr, of the negociations, the Minister has thought
it right to concentrate them at Vienna, and Baron
de Hubner, Ambassador from Austria to the Holy
See, will come from Rome to the former city, in
order to take part in them. Baron de Hubner has
conferred with the Pope upon the subject, and there
is every reason to believe that his holiness is pre-
pared to make any reasonable concession in order
to arrive at a satisfactory solution of the difficulties
with which this important mater is environed.
The heat has returned. It has been stormy and
showery like April. About three o' clock in the
afternoon the rain fell for ten minutes in what may
be truly described as torrents. The sun then again
shone with intensity. There is every indication of
a tempest ; indeed, there was a slight admixture
of thunder with the heavy rain.
A letter from Brussels states that the Empress

TRIESTE, Aug. 17.
Intelligence received here from Athens to the
10th of August states that the Cretan Insurrec-
tionary Government have notified the foreign
Consuls of its intention to issue letters of marque
for the equipment of privateers. The Cretan pri-
vateers were to carry a white flag, with a red raven,
and the motto " Crete." The removal of the Cretan
families from the island by French, Russian, and
Italian vessels continued. The insurgents still held
out, and the Turks had withdrawn front Sphakia.
Omar Paella was greatly dissatisfied at the removal
of the Cretan families, and had asked permission to
leave the island and return to Constantinople.

AUSTRIA.

VIENNA, Aug. 16 (Evening'

The Emperor leaves to-day for Ischl, whence, ac-
companied by the Empress and a large retinue, he
will take his departure for Salzburg, arriving there
on the evening of the 17th. The Emperor and
Empress of the French will arrive on the evening
of the 18th.

A telegram feom Salzburg states that the com-
mon council of that town have resolved to con-
sider the visit of the Emperor Napoleon as strictly
private, and to avoid any political demonstration.
Baron von Beust leaves for Salzburg to-morrow.
Ho received yesterday Baron Ilulmer, who has
arrived here from Rome.

VIENNA, Aug. 17

Baron Von Beust has given instructions to Baron
von Ilubner, the Austrian Minister at Rome, in
reference to the demand made by Austria for the
revision of the Concordat. The Council of Minis-
ters took this question into consideration yester-
day.
Further liberal concessions by the Austrian Go-
vernment to the Protestants are expected.