The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1855-03-31

Washington Men have their eyes on Fernando
Wood.
Mr.. souie and that .Curlous Mission,-Che-
waller Wikofr's Extinguisher-.A Call on
Chevalier Webb.
We publish this morning very interesting
and conclusive manifesto from Cheyalier Wi
koff, in reference to that curious mission"
projected by Louis Napoleon to the United
States, as disclosed in the official diplomatic
correspondence of Mr.. Soule from Madrid.
Mr.. Soule in his despatch to Mr.. Marcy, bear
ing date December %, 1853, charges that
shortly before the coup d'etat" of 1851, Louis
Napoleon had contrived secret mission to
this country, of the most treacherous and
hostile character, and had applied to Prince
Napoleon son Of Jerome, to carry it out; but
that the Prince, falling back upon his republi-
can principles had indignantly declined it.
The Chevalier Wikof makes short and deci
sive work Of this horrible plot. He shows,
with the clearness of the MONDAY sun, that it
was a fiction, Barnum humbug, q French
canard, imposed upon our too credulous Minis
terby some inventive genius of the Steele clique;
Dudley Mann, now Assistant Secretary Of
State. Hemay be the man. During his resi-
dence in Paris he was one of the reddest of the
red republicans, and full Of the boldest
devices for concocting war between France
and the United States. The confidential
political correspondence Of Mr.. Mann,
written from Paris in the spring of 1852,
and recently brought to light through the
columns of this journal, furnishes strong cir
cumstantial evidence against him as the inven-
tor Of this ''curious mission" At all events,
there can be 10 question that MIR. Soule gath
cred up his French diplomacy en- route for
Madrid, from the same ultra montana circles
as the flibusteriDg righthand man of Secretary
Marcy.
Thus we see that while our late Minister to
Spain was betrayed by the President and
victimized by Marcy, he was deluded by the
flaming inventions Of the Partisan socialists,
and humbugged, most probably, by the vapor-
ing fancies and filibustering facts, views and
speculations of Dudley Mann-all of which is
very much to be regretted.
The real mission of the Prince Napoleon
Bonaparte shortly before the coup d'ftat,"
may be surmised from the letter of the Prince
on the oath October, 1851, furnished in the
communication which we publish to-day. It
was mission in behalf Of the Prince, and the
Chevalier Wikoff was his ambassador. It was
an American mission, and a peace mission of
the most emphatic and fascinating character.
It involved the projft Of o treaty Of peace,
friendship aud commerce, the most binding,
conclusive and satisfactory known to ancient
or modern diplomacy.
The Chevslier Wikoff projected it. 1t is his
capital-it was in his peculiar line. The Prince
Napoleon naively confesses to his ambassador
that the idea was Wikoff's. But what was it
Nothing more nor less than treaty of alliance,
offensive and defensive, between France and
the United States, through the diplomacy of
Wikoff, in the attractive form of marriage
between the Prince Napoleon Bonaparte aud
Miss Lawrence, daughter Of the American
Minister at that time to the Court of St. James.
Such was this ''curious mission" SO strangely
twisted into the most odious of all hostile mis-
sions by our belligerent Minister to Madrid.
Thus the Chevalier WikOff with the facts,
dates, and documentary proof, steps in to vim
dictate Louis Napoleon, his American policy,
and the truth Of history.
Prince Napoleon says cheeringly to his en-
voy extraordinary, Il hope you will not return
to Paris alone" Jespere bien que uous ne
rersendres pas seui d Paris In other words,
the Prince hoped his envoy would return with
Miss Gamble. "Et que tout mdrche scion Dos
raur."-"And that all may 60 on as you de-
sire'-meaning the negotiations proposed in
behalf of that international alliance between
the Prince and Miss Lawrence. But they fail
ed. Wikof did return alone; and to that little
mshap may, perhaps, be traced the Anglo
French alliance, the Russian war, the defeat of
Soule's mission, and all the subsequent entan.
glemen is of the Cuban imbroglo
The Cbevalier Wikoff having thus furnished
us the proofs, in black and white, Of his Anne
rican diplomacy in Paris, we call upon the
Chevalier Webb for the evidence touching his
late amateur diplomatic services at London.
He has given it out that be procured the re-
vocation of the Calais interdict against Soule;
that Lord Clarendon has officially denied the
violent construction put upon his "happy ac-
cord" between England and France by Gen.
Cass--that the noble Lord did surely give the
Chevalier Webb so to understand at his lord
ships dinner table; but we have no proofs of
these achievements. We call upon the Cheva-
lier to produce them, or else Webb is fairly
eclipsed by Wikof We shall not be very ex-
acting We shall not require the letters Of
Clarendon, said to be on Marcy's fles--(Mar-
cy may consider them priva.e)-we shall not
insist upon the affidavit of his lordship-a copy
or two Of an invitation to the Chevales Webb,
date and place, to dine with Lord Clarendon,
will suffice. II the Chevalier can show by
documentary proofs that he was invited to
dine with The Rritiah Cnnrataru ON Enrninn Ale.