Iftistellantous.
It is understood that the Duke of Cleveland will move the Address in answer to the Queen's Speech in the House of Lords ; Lord Conrtenay, the eldest son of the Earl of Devon, in the House of Commons.
The Earl of Auckland, late Governor-General of India, is expected to take his seat in the House of Lords on the first day of the ensuing ses- sion. The noble Lord has not sat in the House since he has been created an Earl.—Standard Last Tuesday's Gazette contained several announcements : that Mr. George Frere junior is appointed to be Commissioner, Mr. Frederick Richard Surtees to be Arbitrator on the part of the Queen, and Mr. James Robert M`Leay to be Secretary or Registrar, to the Mixed British and Portuguese Commission to be established at the Cape of Good Hope under the treaty concluded at Lisbon on the 3d July 1842, between Great Britain and Portugal, for the suppression of the slave- trade ; that similar appointments are conferred on Mr. David Turnbull, Mr. James Fitzjames, and Mr. Sydney John James, in respect of the Mixed Commission Court at Jamaica ; that Admiral Sir Charles Adam has raised the blockade of San Juan de Nicaragua ; and that Captain Edward Belcher, R.N., has been created a Knight by letters patent. Sir Edward forthwith proceeds to China as commander of the Sama- rang, 28, which is to be employed as a surveying-ship.
We are glad to state that the Postage convention between France and England has been signed and exchanged in London.—Morning Chronicle.
Viscount Melbourne is going on so favourably that his Lordship is now able to receive company. His Lordship is at length able to use his left hand, of which he had lost the use by his late severe attack of s paralysis.— Times.
Admiral Sir George Cockburn, who burst a blood-vessel in the lungs, (not in the neck, as was stated,) last week, is getting better. A false report has been circulated that he had a relapse.
The death of Viscount Ferrard occurred rather suddenly, last week, at Farnham, the seat of Lord Farnham. He transfers his title and estates to his eldest son, Viscount Massareene. The present Lord Ferrard is Lord O'Neill in the British Peerage, and Viscount Ferrard and Massareene in the Peerage of Ireland.
Mr. John Abel Smith was violently assaulted on Friday seunight, by Mr.Forbes M'Neill, with a horsewhip ; and a mention of the occur- rence in the papers has led to the publication of much correspondence on the subject, of rather an unusual kind. From this correspondence it appears, that Mr. Smith, in conversation with a Mr. Wilson. had ap- plied the term "swindler" to Mr. M'Neill; alluding to some commer- cial transaction by which the banking-house of which he is a partner lost a considerable sum of money. Mr. M'Neill called upon Mr. Smith for an explanation, by letter ; and also, not receiving a reply, through his "Mend," Mr. H. havenshaw. Mr. Smith, when repeatenly urged by Mr. Ravenshaw, refused to retract the expression ; though he said that it dropped from him hastily, and he had no desire to give unnecessary pain ; but if it were not for the lapse of time the transaction in question would have afforded grounds for a criminal proceeding against Mr. M'Neill. To Mr. Ravenshaw's hint, that he should recommend a cer- tain "line of conduct" to Mr. M'Neill if Mr. Smith refused "to nomi- nate a friend," Mr. Smith replied through his solicitors, that he should refer all such measures to the Police ; but he offered to satisfy Mr. Raven- shaw that Mr. M'Neill had forfeited the privileges of agentleman. Mr. Smith was, then, as we have stated, struck by Mr. M'Neill with a horsewhip ; and Mr. Ravenshaw afterwards admitted that it was by his advice ; Mr. Smith having now authorized a "friend," Sir Duncan M`Dougall, to obtain explanation from Mr. Ravenshaw himself. Mr. Ravenshaw appointed a "friend," Colonel Edward Stopford ; who opened negotiations with Sir Duncan; but after considerable delays, Mr. Ravenshaw denied that Mr. Smith had a right to expect satisfac- tion at his bands, especially as he had hinted that the question must be decided by the Police. Colonel Stopford, who had before avowed his impression that Mr. Ravenshaw must either sign an apology or procure another "friend," now said that his mission was at an end; and Sir Duncan M'Dougall declared that Mr. Smith was precluded from taking any further step ; his proceedings throughout the transaction having been strictly consonant with the conduct becoming a highminded gentleman.
Mr. Ravenshaw has sent to the papers a kind of supplemental letter,
repeating some things already understood, and adding, that he was cognizant of the facts of the original transaction, and had satisfied him- self, "that so far from Mr. M'Neill having done anything to justify the application to him of such language as Mr. Smith made use of, he (Mr. M'Neill) appeared to me to have acted throughout as an honourable and highminded man, and even to have stepped beyond doing his duty in order to protect the interests of Messrs. Smith, Payne, and Smiths" To have accepted Mr. Smith's challenge to himself, Mr. Ravenshaw considers, would have been a tacit acknowledgment that Mr. M'Neill was beyond the pale of gentlemanly society. In another letter, Mr. Forbes M'Neill complains that discoloured statements have been made to his brother, Sir John M'Neill, to induce him to countenance Mr. Smith's hostility ; the object of that hostility being, to force Mr. M'Neill's family "to come forward, and, by the payment of money, to retrieve the negligence of Mr. John Abel Smith and his solicitor."
In the French Chamber of Peers on Friday, Baron Pasquier read the draft of the Address in reply to the King's Speech, of which it was a mere echo. M. de Boissy, M. de Segur Lamoignon, and M. Scipion Perrier, spoke in strong terms against the treaties of 1831 and 1833. They were defended by M. d'Alton Shee. All the leaders of the Liberal party under the restoration, he said—Lafayette, Benjamin Con- tent, Odillon Barrot, and himself—had strongly advocated the conces- sion, as the most efficacious means of suppressing an infamous traffic— Until 1837, no complaint had been made ; and it was only in that year, when the relations between France and England became somewhat impaired, that, in compliance with some illegal instructions forwarded to the English cruisers by Lord Palmerston, who was doing every thing in his power to excite a feeling of irritation between the two countries, the first vexatory act was committed by the English against a French vessel. Since that time, and whilst the Whigs remained in power, those acts had become frequent ; but ever since the accession of the Tories, when those illegal instructions were repealed, no ether vexatious acts had been committed.
Nor could Great Britain grant the concessions demanded by France— The action of the Parliament was as strong in England as it was in France. The latter, besides, would be wrong to require any modification in these treaties. It was her interest to remain at the head of the second-rate naval Powers of Europe : by withdrawing from the treaty, France would leave at the mercy of England Powers which were accustomed to look up to France for protection. Baron Charles Dupin spoke in vehement language against the treaties. He said that Benjamin Constant regarded the right of search as threat- ening the liberty of the French navy ; and he reminded the Chamber, that that statesman could not have taken part in the treaty of 1831, since he died in 1830. M. Dupla stated, that for the last twelve years not a French vessel had been engaged in the slave-trade ; yet vessels carrying on lawful trade, which could in no respect be mistaken for slavers, were visited. M. Guizot, begging to postpone the considera- tion of the right of search, took a review of foreign affairs to show that the influence of France had not diminished— In Egypt, the position of France was more favourable than before 1840: the Pasha had adopted the advice of France, and confined himself to the inter- nal administration of affairs ; he had secured the hereditary possession of Egypt ; and the trade of the two countries had increased from 14,000,000 francs value in 1838, 10,000,000 in 1840, to 24,000,000 in 1841. In Syria, France had resumed her ascendancy ; Omar Pasha, the oppressive Governor, having been recalled. In Constantinople,France again occupied her high sta- tion; her sole policy being to strengthen the independence and security of the Ottoman empire. With regard to Spain, her relations were not hostile, and no act had justified the charge of usurpation which had been brought against the Regent. No power keeps so attentive an eye on Spain as France does. " We know very well that our national interests and our honour are bound up in Spain with the throne of Isabella, and the maintenance of the House of Bourbon on that glorious throne." In Barcelona, where there had been a cry of "Down with the French!" there had been a reaction in favour of the French. As respected the other Powers of Europe, the situation of France was what it ought to be—perfectly regular. She courted the intimacy of none, but main- tained a good understanding with all. On Monday, three amendments were moved, by M. de Brigode, con- gratulating the King on the refusal to ratify the treaty of 1841, and by the Prince de Moskowa and M. de Turgot, both directed to the abroga- tion of the treaties of 1831 and 1833. M. Guizot defended those treaties, begging the Chamber to have regard to the facts— The treaties existed, and bound France towards England. They bound her not only towards England, but also towards other Powers, which she had soli- cited to concur in them. Thus, France had advised and obtained the adhesion of Denmark in 1834, of Sweden and Sardinia in 1936, of the Bann Towns and Tuscany in 1837, and Naples in 1838. Negotiations to the same effect had been likewise opened by her with the Cabinets of Madrid, Lisbon, and Rio Janeiro. In making those overtures, France invariably i assured the Powers that the concessions required of them were conformable to the real principles of the maritime laws, which France had always defended. It was, he repeated, at the suggestion of France that the Powers had adhered to the treaty; and the motive of the latter for being so pressing was, that England should not ar- rogate to herself alone the right of visiting the vessels of other nations. These treaties had existed during ten years without any serious objection being raised against them. In that interval only twelve complaints were made.Several were found groundless, two had obtained satisfaction, and three remained un- adjusted. Had it not been for the treaty of the 15th July 1841, the conven- tions of 1831 and 1833 would never have been thought of. The object for which they were concluded still existed: it was notorious that French, Spanish, and Portuguese vessels were still engaged in the slave-trade. The moment, on the other hand, was not favourable to propose the opening of a fresh negotiation, owing to the state of irritation which that question had created between the two nations.
To show that England would not consent to the concessions now de- manded, M. Guizot cited communications which had taken place be- tween M. de St. Aulaire and Lord Aberdeen, in February last, in which Lord Aberdeen declared that England could not consent to modifications of the treaty of 1841, because the spirit of those modifications was too evident in the offensive language used towards England in the Chamber. He turned against his opponents an argument which he had used against an English Minister— Be told Lord Palmerston, in 1840, "My Lord, you sacrifice /a grande poll- tigue a /apetite—the existence of good relations between France and England are worth more than Syria " : he would say to the Chamber, " You sacrifice the grande poligigue a la petite—the existence of good relations between France and England, politically and morally speaking, are far preferable to the abro- gation of the conventions of 1831 and 1833." M. de Turgot's amendment, for which the two other movers voted, wee rejected on Tuesday by 118 to 67. After a powerful speech from IL de Broglie, the adddress was carried, on Wednesday, by 117 to 33.
The draft of the address of the Deputies was read in the Chamber of Deputies on Tuesday. It is for the most part an echo of the speech ; but the following paragraph on the right of search was introduced-
" United by feelings of humanity, the Powers apply themselves to the sup- pression of the infamous traffic in black slaves. We have seen with satisfaction, that, in continuing to lend to this just aim the support of France, the Govern- ment of your Majesty has refused its assent to an extension of existing treaties. For the strict and faithful execution of these treaties, as long as they exist, we repose on the vigilance and firmness of your Government. But, struck with the inconveniences, revealed by experience, and even in the interest of that good understanding so necessary to the accomplishment of the common teak, we look forward with the strongest hope to the moment when our commerce shall be replaced under the exclusive surveillance of our own flag."
In another paragraph, "France recalls to Europe the rights of Polish nationality." Another hints the expectation that in opening new markets for French produce "Government will maintain the protection which is due to the national productions." During the last few weeks, ten priests of the Foreign Missiouary Society have set out on various destinations. Two are gone to India ; two as Directors of the General Missionary College established at Palo Pinang; two are to endeavour to penetrate into Cochin-China; one is to go to Siam and the other to Macao, preparatory to joining the mis- sionaries in China.—Galignanis Messenger.
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