The Sun.
London, England, 1861-12-23 00:00:00

AND THE

AFFAIR OF THE TRENT.

IMPORTANT OFFICIAL DESPATCH TO TIIE
FRENCH MINISTER AT WASHINGTON.

The following highly important diplomatic des-
patch has been addressed by the French Minister
of Foreign Affairs to the representative of France
at Washington :

" THE MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS TO THE
FRENCH MINISTER AT WASHINGTON.
" Paris, Dec. 3, 1861

" Monsieur,—The arrest of MM. Mason and
Slidell on board the English packet Trent by an
American cruiser has produced in France, if not
the same emotion as in England, at least great
astonishment and an extreme sensation.

" Public opinion at once inquired, with anxiety
for the consequences, whether such an act could
possibly be legitimate, and there cannot be the
slightest doubt of the general impression. The act
seems to the public so entirely at variance Ns ith the
ordinary rules of international law that it throws
the responsibility exclusively upon the commander
of the San Jacinto.

" We cannot know yet whether this supposition
is w ell founded, and the Emperor's Government hay
therefore felt called upon to consider the question
raised by the capture of the two passengers on
board the Trent. The desire to contribute to pre
vent a conflict,which is, perhaps, imminent, between
two powers towards whom it is animated by equally
friendly sentiments, and the duty of maintaining
with a view to put the rights of its own flag
,beyond the danger of attack—certain princi-
ples essential to the security of neutrals, have, after
[mature reflection, convinced the French Govern-
Iment that it cannot remain completely silent under
I existin g circumstances.

I, If, to our great regret, the Washington Cabinet
should be disposed to approve the conduct of the
commander of the San Jacinto, they must consider
MM. Slidell and Mason either as enemies or as
rebels. In either case there would be an extremely
regrettable forgetfulness of principle, on which we
;have always found the United States agreed with
;us.

" On what ground, in the first supposed case, can'
he American cruiser have arrested MM. Mason

land Slidell ! The United States have admitted,

with us, in treaties concluded between the two

'countries, that the freedom of the flag extends to
persons found on board, even though they be ene-
mies, except in the case of military men actually
in the service of the enemy. MM. Mason and

'Slidell were, therefore, by virtue of this principle,)
;which we have never found any difficulty in getting
;inserted in our treaties of friendship and commerce,l

perfectly free under the neutral flag of England.
" It will not, doubtless, be pretended that they
could be considered as contraband of war. What
'constitutes contraband of war is not, it is true,

precisely settled ; the limits are not absolutely the
same for all powers, but, as far as regards persons,
the stipulations found in treaties relative to mil-

tary persons clearly define the character of the in-
'dividuals who alone are liable to be captured by
belligerents.

" Now it cannot be necessary to demonstrate that
IMM, Mason and Slidell can in no way be assimi.

ated to persons in this eategoiy. There would

therefore, remain no ground to explain their cap•
ure but the pretext that they were bearers of

official despatches front the enemy. But this is the
place to call to mind a circumstance which overrides
the whole case, and shows the conduct of the Ame•'.

rican cruiser to have been unjustifiable.
" The Trent was not bound to a point belonging
to either of the belligerents. It was carrying its
cargo and passengers to a neutral country, and,
moreover, it was at a neutral port it had taken them
lup. If it were admissible that under such circum-
stances the neutral flag did not completely cover the
persons and goods transported under it, the immu-
nity of that flag would be a vain word; the com-
merce and navigation of third powers would be liable
to suffer at any moment for their innocent, or even
indirect, relations with either of the belligerents.
The latter would not only have a right to require
from neutrals the most complete impartiality, and to
interdict him from being mixed up in any way with
acts of hostility, but they would inflict restrictions
upon the liberty of commerce and navigation which
modern international law refuses to acknowledge
as legitimate. There would be a return in a word
to those vexatious practices against which in former
times no power protested more energetically than
the United States.

" If the Washington Cabinet should regard the'

,two persons arrested as rebels, whom it has always'
a right to seize, the question, thougb shifting its
ground, could not be more resolved in a sense,

favourable to the commander of the San Jacinto..
In such a case there would be a contempt of the
(principle in virtue of which a ship is held to be
portion of the territory whose flag it bears, and
there would be a violation of the immunity which
forbids a foreign sovereign to exercise jurisdiction
on that territory. It cannot doubtless be necessary
to call to mind the energy with which the United
States has, on every occasion, defended this immu-
nity, and the right of asylum, which is a conse
quence of it.
" Without wishing to enter upon a more thorough

discussion of the question raised by the capture of
MM. Mason and Slidell, I have said enough, I
think, to show that the Cabinet of Washington can- ;
not, without infringing those principles which all
neutral powers are alike interested in maintaining,
nor without putting itself in contradiction with its
own conduct up to the present time, give its appro-
bation of the conduct of the San Jacinto. In this
-,tate of things the Cabinet of Washington cannot,
in our opinion, hesitate as to the course to be taken.,
" Lord Lyons is already charged to present the
demand for satisfaction which the English Cabinet
is under the necessity of making, and which eon-
, sista in the immediate release of the persons taken
from the Trent, and explanations which shall relieve
the act of the captain of the San Jacinto of his offen-
sive character to the British flag. The Federal Go-
vernment would be inspired by a just and elevated
sentiment in yielding to these demands, It is im-
possible to conceive any object or any interest that
it. could have to run the risk of provoking a rupture •
with Great Britain by assuming a different attitude.
" For ourselves who would see in such a rupture
a complication in every way deplorable of the
difficulties with which the Cabinet at Washington
has already to struggle, and a proceeding calculated
to occasion serious uneasiness to all the powers not
parties to the present conflict, we think we are
giving a testimony of loyal friendship to the cabi-
net of Washington in not concealing from it our
opinion.
" I request you, sir, to take the first opportunit3
gr e franklyit, t
oleave w i thhi
mMar
c.
oFpeywoafrtdh,
sa n d,
os
should o us PI
de adkeisni
—Receive, &c., iOTHOUVENEL."
despatch. if he

CORN EXCHANGE.

IThe country markets held on Saturday were but mode-
rately supplied with Rheat ; nevertheless, the demand was;
in a sluggish state at about stationary prices. In the'
value of spring corn and flour, very little change took place.
The French markets come somewhat heavy; but in,
America the demand for wheat, flour, and maize for ex-
port, has continued active. I
The arrivals of English grain up to our market last
week were very moderate. From abroad we received
72,989 quarters of wheat, 18,504 barley, 83,321 oats, 456
beans, 2,693 peas, 3,167 tares, 2,198 linseed, 584 rapeseed;
15 sundry seeds, 1,277 sacks, and 26,363 barrels of flour.
The funeral of the late Prince Consort having been fixed
for to-day, the Corn Exchange has been closed by order of
the committee. Wednesday, being Christmas-day, there,
will, of course, be no market.