The Sun.
London, England, 1844-03-16 00:00:00

MIRA

TREASURY OF HISTORY.
- Lbizgmari, Londoff;"ll344. - - - - -•-
The author, or rather compiler, of this work is Mr
Maunder, already'favourably known to the public by
his " Literary and Scientific Treasury," which con-
tained a prodigious mass of the most various infor-
mation paolad up' in the smallest possible cpravass.
In the comprehensive volume before us, he exhibits
the same'. scrupulous regard to •sententiouS bre-
vity, and gives us a well-arranged digest of
the history, from the earliest authentic records,
of every • country in the world: These histo-
rical digests must have cost a world of time and
trouble, which, however, will not have been uselessly
expended; for the volume is one that can scarcely fail
to be well received by the public,. being clearly and in
the majority of cases, impartially written, and omitting
no one fact of importance. The History of England, as
might be expected, is the longest and most circum-
stantial in its details ; and we have been pleased with
the uniform tone of moderation that pervades it, and
the singular succinctness and siniplicity of its style.

THE ISLANDS ON THE EASTERN_
- COAST OF AFRICA.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE SUN.
Sin,—The interest that has lately been excited by
what has been termed ".French Aggressions in the
South Seas 7 perhaps be sufficient td induce at-
tention to the following statement, having reference
to a quarter of the world somewhat distant, but not
less important, than the scene of those transactions,
and allied.ineliakacter With them as well from their
nature us • the circumstance of their having been
partially dot-iced" in :some of the articles of in-
telligence which have appeared in your paper.
It is knoWn pretty generally that the semi-bar-
barous nations of "Madagascar, the Comoro Isles, Mo-
zambique, and the .whole of the eastern coast of Africa
extending-from Port Natal to the Straits of Bab-el-
Mandeb, are gradually springing into life and in-
creasingly.becoming the objects of the observation
and commerce of the civilised nations whose ships
and trade approach the neighbourhood. In this state
the progress of those countries is affected both in
kind and degree by the nature of the traffic and in-
tercourse they have with superior nations. It there-
fore becomes a matter of no mean consideration, in a
moral, political, and commercial aspect, that the in-
fluence of Britain should be such as shall sustain her
character and uphold the strength of her power. We
have had our eyes fixed for some time on the opera-
tions of French agents in different parts of the
world, pursuing with avidity the occasions of aggran-
disement that time and circumstances have placed
within their reach, either with the view to the exten-
sion of territorial dominion, or the increase of poli-
tical and commercial advantages for France. It is
regarded by many as the mere unauthorised acts of
individuals, without the sanction or support of their
respective Governments ; but, although to some small
extent this may be the case, as respects the precise
mode of action, it cannot be well admitted or con-
ceived that these proceedings are the spontaneous and
unaided suggestions of the navy officers who become
the operators in the affairs.
Whether this be worthy of consideration or not, the
present position of Britain demands that in every part
of the globe, where her rivals are to be found, she should
give unequivocal demonstration of determination
to pres"rve that position in the eyes of the world, and
secure, in the ever-varying and multiplying transac-
tions of distant regions, the rights and advantages her
commerce demands and deserves. And it is beyond
question that, although the principal motive should
arise from internal and independent considerations,
the rivalry in which she now stands with the
other European nations, and also with ale
Western Continent, should prompt us to pursue with
spirit and alacrity the opportunities of defending
and advancing our political and commercial interests
in parts of the world where they are, with ourselves,
desirous of partaking the benefits resulting from the
progress of civilisation and the increasing intercourse
of nations. These remarks are intended to apply to
the locality first adverted to, namely, • the eastern
coast of Africa, the Comoro, and other small islands
of the Mozambique Channel, Madagascar, &c. ; and, to
the facts that have been commuicated to me by letter
from a gentleman who has lived at the island of
Anjoan (exclusive of two visits to England), seven-
teen years, and who is now on his way hither,
charged with an embassy from the Sultan of that
island,and possessing the most extensive and unequivocal
means of Information on the subjects connected with
the state of those countries, the position they occupy
to each other, and their feelings towards the great
powers whose ships and people visit them, and pursue
the trade their productions and necessities create.
From his statement, it appears that, although the
intelligence that obtained currency here, a short time
since, that the French had taken possession of a port
of Madagascar, was contradicted, they are exceed-
ingly active in extending their power in the whole of
that neighbourhood ; and, whether by consent or
against the will of their respective Governments,
succeded in assuming domination over some of
the islands, and in some the direction of
their international affairs. In this condition
the surrounding islands feel the need of a
protecting Power, and regard with regret the ab-
sence of British influence and authority, to check the
advances made on their liberties and rights by other
Powers. I give you the words in which, at one part, he
speaks of the wishes of the Sultan of Anjouan to culti-
vate the intercourse, and derive the improvement to
his country by the civilised arts of European nations:
" One powerful motive that induces the Sultan of
Anjouan to greatly prefer treating with English mer-
chants rather than with French merchants, is, that
the French having already taken possession, unjustly,
of the neighbouring island of Majotti, appertaining
to the same. Government; he now lives in fear that
the French Government, with its present ideas of
aggrandisement, will take possession of Anjouan, a
a thing that would never be attempted if Englishmen
were interested or located in the place, because, the
Sultan would then place himself under the protection
of the British flag." I will not stay further than to
remark that the productions of those countries, are
known to be considerable, and that coffee, an article
of the East, becoming every day more and more im-
portant a source of this country's supply, is capable
of extensive increase.
That the surrounding interests of Britain...---the
Cape colony—Mauritius, and the Indian territories,
the growing connexions with the countries b*,..the
Red Sea, and the friendly and improving donumons
of Muscat, and that the slave-trade carried cin,against
which the efforts of British cruisers have been directed,
and to which fact attention has lately been drawn by
the publication of Mr. Pascoe Grenfill Hill's pamph-
let of " Fifty days on board a slave-ship," all encou-
rage the cultivation of a good acquaintance with those
countries.
As the matter may before long come before you in
a more direct form, I will not prolong this,
But subscribe myself your obedient servant,
S. HAYNES ANGER.
•
London, March 12, 1844.

THE KING OF PRUSSIA AND MRS.

FRY.

It may arise from his besetting uncharitableness of
heart, but Punch was never in love with the King of
Prussia. When his Majesty, under the auspices of good
Mrs. Fry, went to Newgate, and when in the female pri-
soners' ward, his pious Majesty dropped upon his
knees and prayed, we thought the ing of
Prussia, as the lawyers say, proved too much.
The humility, if true, was too good to last.
And so it has proved ; for though his Majesty
was so very good a Christian whilst in Newgate, he can,
it appears, play the Nicholas in little on the Prussian
throne. Sweet and touching is it to contemplate a
mighty potentate of earth down upon his knees, with
Bet Sly, Suke Tagrag, Moll Flashly, and twenty other
forlorn birds of Newgate, "in trouble" for felony and
misdeameanor ; beautiful, indeed, is the humility t The
matron wonders, and the turnkeys cry, "Bless us what
a pious cretur." The story is read and told at melting tea-
parties ; and the King of Prussia, Mrs. Fry's pet, is
received into the large and tender bosom of female
philanthropy, He is a king of comfits—a king of
sugar-candy! His Majesty returns to Prussia, and with
almost the gloss of his Newgate benevolence upon
him, he becomes Jack-of-all-work to the Emperor of
Russia. He is Nicholas' most humble servant,-a tool,
a scourge, a Prussian knout in the band of the
Imperial executioner. A number of Poles, dignified
by misfortune ennobled by suffering patriotism—
take refuge in Prussia from the bloody fangs
of the Russian bear. They are—in a holiday
mood, it seems, of the Prussian monarch—permitted by
him to find a home in Posen. Their country destroyed
to them, their fortunes shattered by as wild and merci-
less a tyrant as Heaven ever permitted to
scourge humanity—they are allowed to find a
resting-place, in Prussia. They become planted in
the soil ; when, lot Nicholas has ugly dreams about
them—they disturb his cheerful thoughts—and, as be can-
not have them back, first for the knout, and then for Si-
beria, why—he begs of his brother Prussidto banish them,
accursed from the land. Whereupon Mrs. Fry's pet
shows• himself obedient to the greater sod of mischief,
and, whether or no, the Poles must pack. The soil
of Prussia is not favourable to virtuous misery.
Strange are the sympathies of Kings. His Majesty
of Prussia could feel for and pray with illegal.
pawning, with highway robbery, with embezzlement,
with felony in its many shapes ; but for defeated valour,
• heroic suffering, patriotism in all its glorious and glori-
fying aspirations—all such are nought, and must not
vfindas
ahacrhbrolusrtiainn P;
Novsheant.
aln
pityN e
twhga at t
he tshh
it to act journeyman despot at home.—Punch.
eourCiltinhgaovfe Prussia

VENERABLE BEEF.—At the Lamb and Swan ordi-
naries, at Honiton, on Saturday last, there was a rump of beef
dressed from a cow teat was fed by Mr. Dommett, of Churchatan.
ton, and sold last Churchington fair. This beast was known to
have been let in a dairy thirty-one years ago, and was thirty-eight
years old when slaughtered. Notwitstanding her mature age, the
deliciouslyat h
tene dneer.verAatgeramzioerre, wdehioicdioiuneedheattcolewtoefatheti
hbeeoufses*,as tellsus that
EnsOnd Conservative.