The Sun.
London, England, 1861-01-28 00:00:00

GAETA.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the King of
the Two Sicilies has addressed the following circular
to the diplomatic agents of his Sovereign at foreign
Courts :

" GAETA, JAN. 18.

" Monsieur le : The admiral of:the imperial squadron
proposed to the King, in the name of the Emperor of the
French, an armistice which, commencing on the 9th, was to
last to the 19th. The admiral declared that if this proposi-
tion were not accepted the squadron would withdraw in a
week ; and if accepted it would remain until sunset of the
above day, when hostilities would recommence, and the
Sardinian squadron would be at liberty to bombard Gaeta
This alternative was a sad one, because either involved the
departure of the fleet and the interruption to all communi-
cation with the rest of the world. The armistice in itself
was unfavourable to us, because our defences could not be
increased, and the Sardinians required time to complete
their means pf attack. Nevertheless, his Majesty accepted
it not only from considerations of humanity, but because it
was the desire of the Emperor of the French. This is
why the Governor of Gaeta accepted all the articles pro-
posed ; but the proposal that a French officer should
be present to see that no works were carried on by either
party was refused by General Cialdini, a refusal which was
afterwards confirmed by his Sovereign. We, however,
did not refuse to observe the truce, and, although
we heard every hour of the progress of the enemy's works
we respected the conditions, and we cannot be accused of
not having been faithful to this indirect armistice. From
to-morrow the port of Gaeta will be blockaded and open to
attack by sea ; from to-morrow the very vessels of his
Majesty, delivered over by the most infamous treason
to the King of Sardinia, will come and throw their shells
on disarmed families who have sought refuge here, and
on the legitimate King and Queen of the Two Sicilies. It
cannot be believed that Europe will any longer remain im•
passable at the spectacle of a King recognised by all the
Powers despoiled of his States by the most iniquitous
aggressions, a prey to all the horrors of a long bombard-
ment, without any other crime than the courage of bravely
defending the last bulwark of the monarchy against a
cowardly invasion. The King is resolved to meet to the
end all the perils of his position. Blocked in and attacked
at the same time by sea and land, he may fall under the
ruins of the place, or be made prisoner by his enemies.
Whatever may be his 'fate, his Majesty is ready to meet
it with that greatness of soul and that firmness of
which he has given such constant proofs during the
last five months. Against what has happened and
what may take place it is useless to protest. The
moral feeling of every right minded man will do so, and
if Europe abandons the King, his Majesty will not abandon
himself, but will do his duty as a Sovereign to the end. You
have seen by the journals what is the true state of the king-
dom of Naples and of unfortunate Sicily—mistrust, absence
of security, and ruin. The inhabitants in every part rise
spontaneously, and protest in favour of their legitimate
Sovereign against foreign domination. Under these cir-
cumstances the King, wishing not to save his own person
which he exposes every day to the greatest dangers, but
to secure against humiliation and insult the royal dignity
which he represents, has a right to hope that in the unequal
struggle which is about to continue, the Powers of Europe
will declare, yes or no, whether they recognise the blockade
which is about to be established without any declaration of
war by the squadron now in the power of Sardinia. And
if this blockade be not recognised his Majesty has at least
the confidence that a collective summons willbe sent to the
King of Sardinia to guarantee the liberty of our Sovereign
if the arm of a desperate siege should spare his life, and to
secure against outrage the person of the young Queen, who
with a magnanimity worthy of her heart, and insensible to
all personal peril, has resisted the most incessant prayers,
to devote herself in the hospitals to the care of the wounded.
You are authorised, Monsieur le —, to read this despatch,
and to deliver a copy of it. " CASELLA."

The will'of Major-General Frederick Blundell,
C. 8., of her Majesty's Indian Army, was proved in
the principal registry in London on the 18th of the
present month, by his relict, the acting executrix in
this country, probate having been first granted in
the supreme Court of Judicature in Madras, on the
26th of October last, to William Arbuthnot, Esq.,
merchant, Adyar, in that Presidency, who is the
lawfully appointed attorney of Major John Debii-
sey Mein, of the Indian Army, one other of the
executors, the testator having been possessed of
property in India and in England. The General
died on the sth of July, 1860, at Cheltenham, in
Gloucestershire. His will bears date the 27th of
March, 1857. The General has bequeathed all his
money, Indian securities, Government paper, and
all other investments to his wife for her life, and
has also bequeathed to her the rest of his personal
property absolutely, and upon her decease he directs
the invested property to be divided equally amongst
his four daughters, share and share alike. To his
executor, Major Mein, he has left a legacy of 1,000
rupees,—lllustrated London Nom