The Sun.
London, England, 1868-07-03 00:00:00

THE CHINESE EMBASSY.

THE FUTURE OF ABYSSINIA.

Some important correspondence with the Com-
mander-in-Chief of the Abyssinian Expedition has
been published to-day. It includes a despatch from
Sir H. Napier to the Secretary of State for India,
received on the 19th ult., dated from the Com-
mander-in-Chief's Office, Political Department,
Camp, Dildee, 30th April. Sir li. Napier, revert-
ing to the events which took place at Magdala, and
in its neighbourhood, writes :
" Anxious as I felt to abstain from further in-
terference in Abyssinian affairs after the object of
the expedition had been attained, yet it was neces-
sary, for the sake of our national credit, that due
consideration should be shown for the large num-
bers whose interests and safety had centred in
Theodore's existence, and who remained dis-
armed and unprotected, and exposed to merciless
plunder and slaughter at the hands of the will
tribes which circumstances had, for the moment,
converted into our allies. The disposal of the
fortress of Magdala first de :landed attention.
This strong position is situated geographically in
the country of the Wollo Gallas, from whom it was
finally wrested by Theodorus about ten years ago.
In his hands it has imposed an effectual check upon
encroachments of the Gallas on Christian Abyssinia.
I desired, in the interests of Christianity, to place
the stronghold in possession of Wagshoom Gobazeh,
the de facto ruler and principal chief of this por-
tion of Abyssinia. But when I had sent for his
lieutenant, the Dajaz Mashashah, the latter ex-
cused himself, in his master's name, from accepting,
the charge, alleging as his reason that it would re-
quire so large a garrison to hold it that it would
be a source of weakness rather than of strength.
Wagshoom Gobazeh himself, notwithstanding his
repeated invitation to u', through Briadier-General
Merewether, C. 8., to COlll3 quickly to his aid,
had removed himself an' his army to a dis-
tant quarter before our arrival, in pursuit
of objects of his own, and it was impos-
sible for me to await a reply to the letter
which I addressed to him on the subject of Mag-
dala. I therefore destroyed the gates of the fort,
burned everything on the mountain that was com-
bustible, and abandoned it. Several claimants for
its possession had, in the meantime, addressed me
regarding it. One of these was the Chief of
Daoout, a small territory lying adjacent to Mag-
dala. I.Verkait, one of the two rival queens of the
Gallas, had also put forward her claims, as likewise
had Masteeat, the other and more powerful of the
Galla queens.
" At the time when the disposal of Magdala was
thus exciting so many hopes and desires, the
widowed Queen of Theodore and her son were
brought down iu safety from the mountain, and
placed within the protection of my camp; the
removal of the disarmed garrison and released
native I risoners was at the same time in progress.
Shortly after the arrival of Werkait's letter solicit-
ing that the fortress 'night be delivered to her, the
lady presented herself at my pickets. Although it
was evening, she was immediately admitted to as
interview, and allowed to represent her claims. She
was geeatly affected in revisiting a locality which
had been associated with so many. misfortunes to her
family and people. She remarked to me,
fought with Theodore as long as we could, and
when his power was too strong for us to resist any
longer, my son submitted to him, on receiving a
promise of good treatment; notwithstanding which
he was inhumanly cut to pieces, and thrown over
the precipice of Magdala ; and now I have come to
see the grave of my euemy Theodore, and the place
where my son fell.'
"At this time the offer of the fortress had been
made to Gobazeh's lieutenant, and his answer had
not yet been received. Mtglala was still the scene
of military operations while our troaps were en-
gaged in destroying Theodore's cannon, and the
exodus of its former inhabitants continued in full
progress. Therefore it was not thought expedient
that Werkait's wish to ascend the mountain
should be indulged at such a time. Altu3st
before her story was conchs lel, ia tiinatian
was received that her rival Masteeat was
also in the neighbourhood, and on her
way to offer her congratalations and submit
her claim. A`, first I hoped to be able to make peace
between these two rival queens ; but when this was
hinted at to Werkait, she said, Witea two persons
are striving for a crown, how can peace be made
between them ? If Masteeat were t 3 make peace
with me to-day, before you, she would betray Ille
to-morrow.' The news of Masteeat's approach
caused great uneasiness amongst Werkait's escort
and adherents; and after a second interview with
me, during which she exhibited symptoms of mach
distress, she took a hasty departure, apprehensive
lest she should be intercepted by her more power-
ful and more fortunate rival ; more fortunate
because her son is alive, and the centre of the hopes
of a large body of the people ; while to poor Wer-
kait there remains only the memory of her son, so
treacherously slain by Theodore. Suitable presents
were made to her, as she took her leave ; and shortly
after her departure, Masteeat arrived with her
y the t o
late our request
king to
could closeLave
all
son, Eman Ahmad, and expressed no small grati-
tude and rejoicing at Theodore's fall. She had re-
sponded very effheecithual
avenues by w
escaped, and thus she came to us in the
re-
quest for the possession of Magdala I was
able to answer that, Gobazeh's lieutenant
cha-
racter of an established ally. To her
having declined to receive it, I would aban-
don the place, after dismantling is and burn-
ing all of it that could be so destroyed, as a mark
of the anger of the British at the ill-treatment of
our countrymen, as well as of our abhorrence of
the cruelties which Theodore had committed there.
To this the Queen replied that indeed nothing but
fire could purify it. On my asking her if she could
make peace with Werkait, she answered that she
would gladly do so, but that it was impossible ;
because if Werkait were to swear friendship on the
Koran itself to-day, she would violate her oath to-
morrow.

(Front the Anylo-Awn:can Timeg)
This mission has excited great interest in the
United States. They are ambassadors from a na-
tion embracing a third of the human race; one with
whom the United States on its Pacific shores will
be allied as neighbours, interchanging commodities,
and acting and re-acting on each other to an ex-
tent perhaps now little appreciated. The fact that
Anson Burlingame, himself an American, has been
selected as head of an Embassy to represent abroad
the most exclusive, prejudiced, and conceited of all
peoples, is a high compliment to the Republic. He
was born in New Berlin, New York, on the 14th
of November, 1822. When quite young, he accom-
panied his father to the " Western Reserve," Ohio,
and afterward to Michigan, before its admission to
the sisterhood of States. From the Branch Univer-
sity, of which he entered the Harvard University
Law School, under Justice Story, where he took the
degree of LL.B., and coannenced the practice
of law at the Old State House, Boston, in
partnership with Mr. Briggs, son of the late
Governor Briggs of Massachusetts. In 1848 Mr.
Burlingame entered the political arena in sup-
port of the Free Soil movement, and afterward
became identified with the Republican party. Soon
after taking his degrees at the Law School he be-
came a member of the Senate of Massachusetts, and
was chairman of the committee appointed to accom-
pany Kossuth in his New England tour. He was
afterwards a delegate, from the town of North-
boro', to the Constitutional Convention, together
with Governor Boutwell, Charles Sumner, and R.
11. Dana, junior. In 1853 he was elected to the
National House of Representatives, and served six
years as a representative of Boston and Cambridge.
His celebrated speech denouncing the assault pon
Charles Sumner brought him prominently before
the public as a champion of the Anti-Slavery move-
ment. He was rendered still more conspicuous by
the affair with Preston S. Brooks, of South Caro-
lina, whose challenge he accepted, and chose the
rifle as his weapon. Mr. Burlingame was skilled
in the use of that instrument of destruction, but
Lai no opportunity of exhibiting his prowess, as
the challenger failed to insist upon the combat. Mr.
Burlingame was very active in the political cam-
paign of 1856 to 1860, and shortly after the inaugu-
ration of Mr. Uncoils the latter tendered hint the
mission to Austria. The Government of Austria de-
clined to receive him, in consequence of his action
in behalf of the doctrine of the "Unification of
Italy," and Mr. Burlingame was appointed to repre-
sent the United States in China, a mission that he
has fulfilled to the satisfaction of both Governments.
The Embassy arrived at the Metropolitan Hotel,
Washington, June 1, and flung out to the breez
the immense Chinese flag, pennant-shaped, bear-
ing a huge dragon, with Chinese characters in
black upon a white ground, presented by the Emperor
as the special colours of the Embassy. After
delivering the Emperor's letter to the President
the Embassy visited the Hall of the Representatives,
Mr. Burlingame responding to the Speaker's ad-
dress of wel ome, as follows :—" Mr. Speaker, on
behalf of my associates and myself, I thank you fur
this warns and unusual reception. It transcends
all personal compliments. It is the greeting of
one great people by another. It is the Oc-
cident and the Orient, for the first time in that
electric contact whose touch 'makes the whole world
kin.' It is tit? meeting of two civilizations, which
have hitherto revolved in separate spheres. It is
a mighty revolution. Let us hope, sir, that it will
go on without those convulsions which are too
apt to mark great changes in human affairs. Let
us hope that it will be achieved without the shed-
ding of one drop of human blood. We are for
peace. We come not with the beat of the drum,
nor martial tread, though representing the latent
power of 80,000,000 of fighting men. We are the
heralds of good will. We ask for China that equa-
lity without which nations and men are degraded.
We seek not only the good of China, but seek your
good and the good of all mankind. We do this in
no sentimental sense. We woul lbe practical, as
the toiling millions whom we represent. We vite
you to broader trade ; we invite you to a more inti-
mate examination of the structure of Chinese civili-
zation ; we invite you to a better appreciation of
the manners of that people, their temperance, their
patience, their habits of scholarship, their competitive
examinations, their high culture of tea acrd silk ;
and we shall ask fur them,!from you, modern science,
which has taken its great development within the
memory of man and the holy doctrine of our Chris-
tian faith. It is for the West to say what our re-
ception shall be. It is for the West to say whether
or not it was sincere when it continued for a long
time to invite China to more intimate relations
with it. It is for the West to say whether it is for
a fair and open policy, or for one founded on
prejudice and on that assumption of superi-
ority which is justified neither by physical
ability nor by moral elevation. The people of
the United States have responded through their
Executive, and through this House, and through
their Speaker, with an unanimity and a nobility of
sentiment which makes me proud of the civilization
in which I was reared and glad to see it passed in
review by the scholars and statesmen of China. I
trust, sir, that the American people will abide by
that sentiment, and hope that it is but an earnest
of that which will meet us on the shores of the dis-
tant seas and on the banks of the beautiful rivers
which you, sir, have named. Thanking the House
for this reception, and you, sir, for the felicitous and
able manner in which you. have expressed its
welcome, we wait such further action as the pro-
prieties of the occasion may require. (Applause
and clapping of hands by the members on the floor
and by the spectators in the galleries."

O❑ the 9th a great State dinner was given them
at the White House, but Mr. Sumner did not attend,
though chairman of the Senate Committee of Foreign
Affairs, and formally invited by his dear friend
Andrew Johnson, but Reverdy Johnson one of the
committee did, and General Banks, Chairman of
the House Committee, was among the guests.
On the 10th the Chinese visited Mount Vernon,
under the guidance of Mr. M'Cnlloch, who ordered
a revenue steamer to be fitted up, and invited a
party to meet them. They spent some hours in
wandering about the grounds in the old mansion
and at the tomb, and returned after a day all the

" A list of the principal political prisoners
liberated by us on our occupation of M igdala is
appended. An opportunity was taken of receiving
all of them who desired an interview with me, and
advice suitable to their several circumstances was
then tendered to them. Booroo Gooshoo, the
Prince of Godjam, was- the first who was intro-

more enjoyed, from the surprising knowledge they
displayed of the great military operations which
have made the name of the Potomac renowned in
story, as well as an intimate acquaintance with the
life of the patriot. Nor was this lessened by
copious libations, as they have shown the fascina-
tion champagne has for the celestials, who solemnly
toss off the lively, dancing, sparkling wine. They take
much interest in mechanical and scientific iiven•
tions, and devote a portion of their time to a grave
study of the subject, though their curiosity some-
times betrays them into a forgetfulness of their
impassive dignity. One of the questions brought
Officially to their attention is the feasibility as well
as desirability of introducing China into the inter-
national system of coinage. Considering that ex-
change is there transacted by weight of metal, and
not by stamped coin, no great difficulty could be
experienced, particularly as foreign barter is con-
fined almq,:t wholly to a very limited and wealthy
class. One of the first visits of the Embassy
will be to Cuba, to inquire into the traffic
in coolies, which from time to time has excited
public attention by the horrible catastrophes to
which it has given rise. It is absolutely necessary
for a Mandarin of rank and authority to have the
power of investigating cases of kidnapping in Peru,
in Chili, in Cuba, and in Brazil. The deception
an.] the force by which the coolies are often dragged
from their homes, and the cruel treatment to which

duced. He bore in his enfabled frame the marks o

14 years spent in captivity. It is probable that God

jam, which has generally formed a separate princi-
pality, will now become subject to this chief. The
Prince of Enderta, who is the maternal uncle of the

present ruler of Tigreb, was next presented to me
He left the following day for the court of his rela.

tive, Djastnaj Kassa. Wagshoona Tiferri, who is
_ _

said by some to be in reality- the hereditary Princ3
of Wag, was then introduced, and afterwards other
_ _

chiefs of lesser note. The widow of Theodora and
her numerous attendants still remain, as it were,

the guests of our camp, and will probably
travel with us far as the nearest point in

our route to the lady's native district of

Semien. 11.3 r severe illness during the past ten
days has prevented my seeing her ;
.but I trust she
is now recovering under the care of the medical

officer attached to my B,aff, who 1133 been detailed

by me to provide for her comfort.

Translation is

appended of a proclamation which I have thought

it right to issue to the chiefs and
people of this
portion of Abyssinia at the present time."

William B. Ogden, Esq., late of Chicago, con-
templates erecting 400 houses in Hudson City, New Jer-
sey, at an average cost—including ground—of $lO,OOO
each. Ile owns property ou the main avenue worth about
$750,000.

they are afterwards subjected render this traffic
lit.le better than the trade in slaves ; and, as the
dominant power in America, we feel sure that such
an ambassador would carry into his investigations
the authority conveyed by the countenance and
:,upport of the Washington Government.

ADVERTISEMENT.] —Holloway's Pills. —Nervous Irrita-
bility.—The very perfection of the human body renders it
like a complex machine, very liable to be thrown out of
order, a state that is at once made manifest by the nerves.
Ho:loway's pills are always the seasonable and reasonable
remedy ; they relieve every ailment which is not mortal
in the human system. As alteratives, stomachics, tonics,
and aperients these pills occupy a proud pre-eminence,
from which no other medicine can dislodge them; they
restore health end strength which nervous and dyspeptic
sufferers have failed to procure elsewhere. During sum-
mer and in malarious situations, when the nervous tone is
more particularly assailed, Holloway's medicine braces up
the system, keeps the head clear and the intellect un-
clouded.

All receive with satisfaction the announcement, that iu
consequence of the Reduction in Duty, liornimads Pure
Teas are sold Bd. per pound Cheaper. 2,500 Authorised
Agents—Confectioners in London and Chemists in the
provinces—supply florniman's Tea only in Pude,la.

TkIE SUN, LO N C ON, FRIDAY EVENING, JULY 3, 1865,

TILE JVAR IN PARAGUAY:

" SI,ANG IVA NGING."

The news from the Brazils and the River Plate
via Bordeaux, per Guienne, gives some further de-
tails of the very disturbed state of these. countries.
The war in Paraguay still continued, although, ac-
cording to Brazilian accounts, Marshal Lopez has
celled out the women to serve as soldiers. We hear
that several very heavy engagements have taken
place in the Chaco. The Brazilians have, after a
most sanguinary and desperate fight, protected by
their fleet, been able to take a redoubt in the Chaco,
in which over one thousand on both sides
have been put hors de coinsat, and the whole
of the foreign legion of the Argentine Confedera-
tion, with few exceptions, have been cut to pieces
by the Paraguayans. General barrios was coming
up at the last moment with a force estimated at
from 5,000 to 7,000 men. All this does not look
as if Lopez required to call out his patriotic coun-
trywomen, who had really offered their services to
their President. llumaita is reporte 1 to be now
entirely invested by the Allies, but is so well
provided that the garrison of that fortress is
well prepared to stand a long siege. The Buenos
Ayres Standard of May 12th says :—" It is
to be expected that the Commander-in-Chief,
Marshal Caxias, will not waste months and years in
trying to starve out a garrison which should only
get an hour's time to surrender. The Allied army
numbers close on 40,000 strong, and is aided by
the finest fleet of ironclads ever known in these
waters. Against such a powerful force is opposed
a garrison of from 2,000 to 3,000 men, or at most
5,000. The place is now fully invested, and the
public has a right to demand that the attack will,
without further delay, be at once ordered. The
fall of llnunaita must be the termination of this
prolonged war. The Allies cannot attempt to fol-
low Lopez into the interior, or measure swords
with a pack of women cruelly marched out to fight.
We trust that mediation or intervention, by the
Foreign Powers, will be afforded so as to bring the
hostilities in the River Plate to a summary con-
clusion. In the absence of mediation or interven-
tion the struggle seems hopeless, and none can at-
tempt to place a limit on the duration of this ill-
starred campaign. As lately the reinforcements
from Brazil to the seat of war have very
much fallen off, the assertions of the Standard,
based on past experience, seem to be correct. It
may be interesting to our readers to hear that all
the British subjects in Paraguay arc alive and
well. The interior of the Argentine provinces
are still given up to revolution and bloodshed,
and a general break up of the Confederation
was expected under the pretext of the Presi-
dential election. General Urquiza bas again been
elected Governor of Enter Rios, awl is the fore-
most candidate for the Presidency, but stoutly
opposed by the Buenos Ayres carnarilla of President
.
Mari! and his proti'jj. Elisalde. Tire news horn
Montevideo is in every respect highly unsatisfac-
tory. A monetary crisis was hourly expected,
which, it was feared, would force several of the
banks to susp,,a 1. Gal I was at 16 per cant. pre-
mium. It was very much doubted that the banks
would return specie payment on the Ist Jane as de-
creed by law, and in the meantime were issuing
paper money ad To ad I to this disturbed
state of the commercial world another revolution
had broken out, and a chief of the Colorado
party, Colonel Maximo Perez, was actually march-
ing at the head of over 1,000 men against Monte-
video. Some of the local papers accuse Brazil to
be at the bottom of all this. From Rio de Janeiro
we have news up to June 1. Exchange on England
had again fallen to 17d., which does not look as if
any favourable news had been received from Para-
guay. The Emperor's speech deplores that the
war in Paraguay is not yet finished, that the
American mediation was not accepted, that the
servile element has been the subject of assiduous
study, and at the proper time (when?) the Govern-
ment would submit a suitable proposition. The
report of the Alinister of Finance shows a deficit
of $74,000,000.

" Slaugwanging" is usually supplemented by
fisticuffs ; and as " slangwanging" has bcoms:
quite the fashion in England, fisticuffs is now ex-
tensively practised. Mr. Douneley is a represen-
tative in the former art, and General Butler has
few equals—but there is here also an establishment
which turns out first-rate professors, and if
they continue to progress so favourably, Colum-
bia will have no advantage in this respect
over cousin Britannia. The House of Commons
is becoming a bear-garden, an example other
assemblies have not been slow to follow. ' In Guild-
hall, on Monday, the Lord Mayor presided over a
meeting called to enable the citizens to state their
opinions upon the Dis-establisment of the Irish
Church Bill. The room was densely crowded, and
the way the people took of expressing their senti-
ments was by howling, hooting, cheering, and hiss-
ing. A resolution was offered and an amendment
moved, but nothing could be heard in the uproar.
A placard with the word Amendment printed on it
was handed to Alderman Sir William Rose, who
placed it on his hat, when some one snatched at it,
which Sir William resisted, and resulted. A (I,:s-
-perate struggle ensued, and the platform became
the scene of a free fight. The war raged around
the Lord Mayor, who received a heavy blow in
the stomach. Then was seen the extraordinary
spectacle of Churchmen assembled to express
an opinion on a Church question, hitting
wildly out right and left, and a show even more
curious in a body of London aldermen pitching.
into each other in a ring or platform surrounded by
their fellow citizens. The heavy blow on the sto-
mach appears, as might well have been expected, to
have doubled the Lord Mayor up, the stomach of
that dignified functionary being perhaps less adapted
than those of ordinary morta's for such experi-
ments. Aldermen are known to strain their diges-
tive powers to the utmost ; and a citadel thus as-
sailed within, cannot be expected to bear an outside
attack. A punch is all very well when administered
as a liquid to a Lord Mayor after turtle soup, but a
punch as thus administered must have been resented
in the highest degree in the interior. Sir Wm. Rose
received two blows in the chest, but there an alder-
man is comparatively secure, the vulnerable place
not being searched out with the malignity exhibited
towards his lordship. The alderman who got tapped
on the head showed great powers of endurance, for
the Board is known to be solid in that locality.
From this truly Christian scene we may carry our
readers to the banks of the Thames, where the Vo-
lunteers in wild confusion were endeavouring to
cross the bridge at Datchet. General Lindsay or-
dered the 19th Middlesex Rifles to deploy a com-
pany across the path to stop the rush, but the path
of the gallant Volunteers was not thus to bs barred,
so the company was set upon, and Colonel Hughes,
who tried to restore order, was threatened with
being pulled from his horse. General Lindsay, who
rode up, was hissed and hooted, and driven pell
meal off the field for rating the men, while Colonel
Wright, the Deputy-Inspector of Reserve Forces,
was pushed into the river. At Aldershott an officer
of the CarabLueers, according to the Army and
Navy Gazette, amused himself last week by knock-
ing out four of the teeth of a brother officer, beat-
ing his nose flat on his face, and destroying the
sight of one of his eyes, at the very moment, too,
when the artiste who undertakes to repair such
damages and t o make people " beautiful for ever"
had been conunitted for trial. The Pall Mall
Gazette, in noticing this affair, makes a greater
mistake than au American paper in discussing
the 33rd Regiment. It speaks of the Carabineers
as having been :made fatuous by the courts-martial
at Mhow and Aldershott, whereas it was the
Inniskilling Dragoons. The Pall Mall is perhaps
not aware that thse Gth Dragoon Guards arc the
Carabineers, who had no more to do with the court-
martial at Mb ow than the Pall Mall had ; and the
6th Dragooyas are the Inniskillings, the num-
ber being flap.: same, but the regiments wholly dif-
ferent. Thi New I orlo Citizen alluded to the 33d
as the Irish _Regiment which did the whole fighting
in Abyssinia,. We never heard of the 33d as an Irish
regiment, nos • did they ever themselves, although
there may NI a good many Irishmen in it.
But the Li:Acuff:llg does not seem to be confined to