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Faexcee,--The proceedings laths Chamber of Depeties /ast week were
enlivened, by ita Asati-Ministmial spew+ by laL. Thiers, and a reply by M. Guizot. The offensive demonstration is significant from the proximity of elections. On Thursday the attack was mode in a discussion on the budget: M. niess. recounted the history a France sinee the Revolution; minntei traced the operations of the existi e Ministry, and administered blame with an waspariug Wald. He renewed his Monarchical confession of faith; and asserted that should the Crowe ever again require his services, he should refase to govern otherwise than after his own convictions. Iu fact, much of hie speech wits directed against the influence exerted, by Louis l'hilippe. Oe the following day, M. Gaiizot made his reply; taking up every allege-, thou which had beau made by M. Thiers, and successfully repelling it, In conclusion he said.- " I have now, I believe, replied to all the points alluded to by K Thiene Coqoettly with the regret which I have felt at so general and sharp an atter* against the Government, I avow I feel a profound sentiment of satisfaction; and for this reason—that at present, when all is cabin and tranquil around, when prosperity prevails at home and security abroad, we may without the slightest Inconvenience subject all the acts of the Government to the most rigid scrutiny. M. Thieve and myself have not always met in our encounters on so serene, so calm a heaven; we have often, in our combats, had far greater difficulties to contend with, nod weapons of very different weight hanging over our heads. I am confident that the policy followed since 184a has much to de with this se- renity, and that the Geveranteat lute contributed to bring about this hawse state of things."
M. Odillon Barrot, with the view of testing the confidence which the Chamber felt in the Ministry, moved as an amendment to a money vote, that the sum be reduced by 10,000 franes. On a division, the amendment was rejected, by a majority of 73; 147 voting in its favour, and 220 against,
In the Chamber of Peers, on Tuesday, the Prince of Moskowa called the hlloistry to account. for the massacre of the French prisoners in the Dealt of Abd-el-Kader, and strongly blamed the Government, when it had so many Arabs in its possession, and lied elevated the Emir to the dignity of Sultan by. the treaty of the Tafine for not having negotiated with him an exchange of prisoners. The Minister for Foreign Aftitirs replied, that, overtures to that effect had been made to. MarshalBugeaud by Abd-al- Kader himself; but that the Marshal was convinced that they were no serious, and communicisted his apprehensions to the Government M. Gisizot, through the French Consul at Tangier, had notified to the Erne perm. of Morocco that French prisoners were detained in his dominions and dennualed their surrender. A regular negotiation was opened; other mamas were employed; money was given to procure the release of the pri- soners; but no result, was arrived at. The catastrophe, which they all de- plored, had occurred at the breaking up of the Delve; but he was happy to say, some of the prisoners had escaped the massacre. M. de Boissy and the Prinee de Moskowa afterwards addressed the House, and the matter dropped.
A letter from Ham, of the 29th May' states that at six o'clock on the morning of the 28th, Dr. Cowman, who aided in the escape of Prince Louis Napoleon, the two keepers, and a labourer, had been removed to Preemie. At Athias they were handcuffed, and conducted to Peronne by gendarmes. The greatest rigour was displayed towards the commander of the fort, bd. Demarle: he was kept under close arrest in the prison, his sword had been taken from him, and an officer of gendarmerie succeeded him in the com- mand of the fort.
The war in 'Africa has, been signalixed by another atrocious massacre; the victims on this occaeion being Frenchmen. Abd-el-Kader had issued an order tq Boa-Haniesli to reeign the commend of the Deira to Mustaphs, Ben Thand, sod to rejoin him immediately with the Beni-Amers. This, order gaye rise to violent dissensione among the leaders of the tribes; and in c,onsequeuce, Muetaplsa Ben latami was unable to comply with a request suluequently made to him that he should remove towards the South with the Deira. As a means, of lessening the difficulty, .A.bd-el-Kader ordered thee the French prisoners of war attached to the Deira, amounting to, about 3Q11 in numlier, should be put to death; and to reader the order of easier execution, a report wee spread abroad that all the Mussulmaa pri- soners heel been put to death in France. It appears from the Oran corre- spondent of a Toulon journal, that the Lietenant-Colonel of the Secetea Basalts, awl some other officers; had escaped.
The following particulars of the butchery are given by a soldier named Rallied, whit was fortunate enough te escape-
" On the 271h April, in the afterneon, a letter was received at the Deira from Abd-el-Kader. Three horsemen arrived at the camp where the prisoners were, to fetch the officers in the name of Mestapha Ben Thami. They were taken to the Deira under pretext that they were to be present at a fete at the Kalifs's. At night, the other prisoners were drawn out in a line. We were ordered to bring all our effects with us. When we had been thus collected, the regular infantry arrived, and we were separated to be conveyed to their gourbis. Seven of us were taken by the inhabitants of four gourbis, and we were all made to enter the same gourbi. I told my comrades that something would happen during the night; and not to go to sleep, but for us to be ready to defend ourselves if it was intended to kill us. I had a French knife, which I found on the banks of the Molouia three days previously. On entering the gourba I found a reaping-hook, which I gave to my comrade Daumet. At the slightest noise, I said, I will go out the first, and you will follow me. Towards midnight the soldiers of Abd-el-Kader set up a cry. That was the signal. I went out first, and met a regular, and stabbed him in the breast with a knife. He fell. I then jumped over the enclosure of bushes. which surrounded the camp, and fell to the ground. Whilst I was trying to ex- tricate myself, some soldiers arrived and endeavoured to capture me: my trousers were in a bad state, and remained in their hands. I escaped in my shirt. In a
ravine a hundred - from the camp, a party in ambush fired upon me, and I
optree
was slightly w in the right leg by a ball. I continued to fly; and then mounted a small ill, and sat down to see if any ofirly comrades were able to join me. In turning towards the camp, I heard the cries of the prisoners and of the people of Abd-el-Kader. The musket-firing lasted for more than half an hour. My comrades, to judge from the noise that I heard, must have defended them- selves. To escape from the massacre in the goarbis of the regulars, several pri- soners had taken refuge in our gourbis in the middle of the camp: in order to drive them out, the gonrbis were set on fire, and they were tired upon as tbey came out. Seeing that no person followed me, I crossed the Molonia, and walk4 on for three nights, concealing myself during the day."
The Presse of Monday says that orders have been sent by the French Government to the seosports to send several ships of war to the Gulf of Mexico, to reinforce the squadron on that station, which is to cruise along those shores during the continuance of the war between Mexico and the States. The Courrier Fre:iris asserts that Lord Aberdeen had demanded the- recall of M. Placatory, the French Minister in Greece.
Poasuom..—In our Postscript of last week it was mentioned that an insurrection, on a much more formidable scale than the one recently sup- pressed, had broken out in the Northern provinces. Subsequent accounts enable us to supply an outline of its progress and results. The revolt broke out on the 10th of May, and continued to gain strength with each succeeding conflict with the Queen's troops. It commenced with a large body of women, old and young, variously armed, some with mus- kets, some with spades, assailing the authorities and the troops with des- perate fierceness. A soldier from Oporto writes that he saw his comrade shot dead by a girl not above fifteen years old. The movement differed from all previous ones. There had been no buying of troops; the people had simultaneously and spontaneously risen in the different provinces. Nor was it confined to the peasantry. The farmers and landed gentry generally, without distinction of politics, joined in it; and it was carried on without barbarities or outrages on private persons or property. The causes of this outbreak are traced to unbearable oppressions prac- tised by the Castro Cabral Ministry. In a few days, the Upper Minim, the whole of the Beira Alta, the Tree os Montes, and many dis- tricts of Alenitejo, had declared themselves in opposition to the Go- vernment, and had formed Juntas for the management of their af- fairs. Among the persons of influence who have allied themselves with the movement are several officers on half-pay. At Villa Reale, the Pro- visional Government consists of Don Ferdinand, son of the Count Villa Reale, Vieg,a, of Castel°, and Sebastian Carvalho Montinho. Don Ferdi- nand, in a letter to a relative in Lisbon, states that he was at the head of 10,000 men; a part of which force was armed, the rest demanding arms. The insurgents declared that they would not lay down their arms " till a Ministry composed of honest men be formed, in whom they can have confidence."
After the revolt had gained head, Jose Cabral, the Minister of Justice, was advised by General Vinhaes and another of the Queen's officers to
quit Oporto, as the only means of saving his life. He complied; and on
his arrival at Lisbon, on the 15th May, he proceeded to the civil Governor's, in a state of great perturbation; where his first announcement is said to
have been short and to the purpose—" All is lost." He proceeded next to his brother's; and, before noon, to the Palace accompanied by the latter; when the resignation of Ministers was tendered and acqepted.
The Count of Villa Reale was then commissioned by the queen to form a Ministry,—a mere subterfuge, it was thought, for retaining the Cabrals in power, under another name. The stratagem, however, did not succeed; and the Duke of Palmella was sent for on the evening of the 20th, and requested to undertake the task. His first movement made a bad impres- sion, as it involved the employment of the Duke of Terceira, one of the odious Cabral Ministry. In the mean time, the Cabrals continued virtu- ally to exercise the functions of the Government, and did not scruple to convert them to their own purposes. The two brothers took up their quarters in the Police Department; where furious articles were prepared for the press, the military were harangued, and an address was got up by the officers to the Queen intended to coerce her Majesty into the dismissal of the Duke of Palmella. On the evening of the 21st, an attempt to get up an emente in the streets was made; but it failed through the teMperate conduct of the people and the discreet bearing of the officers of the Queen's troops. On the 22d, the Queen issued a proclamation promising a redress of grievances, and restoring the liberty of the press. The Cabrals, after taking refuge for some days with the Police, and sub- sequently in the house of the Minister of Spain Sefior Gonzales Bravo, went on board a French brig-of-war; and from thence, on the 25th, at a convenient distance from the capital, they were taken on board the English steam-packet Pacha, bound for Cadiz and Gibraltar. They were accom- panied by the head Police P. py of Lisbon, a man of infamous character, of the name of Furragento. The departure of the Cabrals was made compul- sory. The Spanish Minister countenanced and supported them to the last. So long as they were in his house, he hoisted the Spanish flag over it; and he accompanied them, with much parade, to the mouth of the river. The conduct of the French Ambassador presented a striking contrast: he remonstrated against the discarded Ministers being allowed to remain in the country. They have gone to Cadiz.
-On the 24th, a communication from the Peers and members of the Chamber of Deputies or the minority, but of different political opinions was made to the Duke of Palmella, transmitting a representation addressed to 'the Queen, signed by the most influential men in the country. The address to the Duke laments the difficulties which had delayed the formation of his Ministry; and the representation to the Queen calls for a real national representation, the immediate suspension of unpopular laws, and the trans- fer of public and military power into the hands of honest men. This move- ment on the part of the Peers and Deputies led to the dismissal of the Duke of Terceira, and the recomposition of the Ministry. As it stood on the 30th, the Duke of Palmella was President of the Council, and Minister of Finance; the Count of Lavradio, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Seiler Mousinho d'Albuquerque, Minister of the Interior; Marquis of Saldanha, (absent,) Minister of War; Seiior George Loureiro, Minister of Marine, and ad interim of War; and Seilor Some, Minister of Justice.
Several acceptable appointments have been made to the governorships of towns; among which is that of Don Ferdinand, son of the Count Villa Reale, to be ad interim Governor of Villa Reale. The law of health and the new tributary system have actually been abolished. An amnesty has been granted to the persons engaged in the revolt of Almeida, and the independence of the Judges is restored. A decree for the dissolution of the Cortes, and new elections for a Par- liament to meet in September, was published on the 25th. Nearly all the grievances complained of have thus been removed; but the continuance of the most determined partisans of the late Ministers in the command of the Army and Police, and the Castle of St. George, has shaken confidence. The consequence is, that the people refuse to lay down their arms, retain possession of all the towns and strongholds from which they had driven out the troops, and rise in their demands. [A subsequent account states that the Count of Mites has displaced the Count of Santa Maria, (a Cabralist partisan,) in the command of the garrison of Lisbon.] There was a run on the Bank of Lisbon from the 17th to the 24th; which led to the issuing of a royal decree, authorizing the Bank to suspend the general payment of its notes for three months, and declaring such notes a legal tender in private and public transactions during that term, with the exception of payments of bills of exchange held on foreign countries. The Commercial Union Company sustains its credit. The Confianza Company has suspended payment of its promissory bills for three months. SPAIN.—The news of the Portuguese insurrectlou had excited great sen- sation at Madrid, and caused a slight depression in the public funds.
Brigadier Calonge had left Salamanca for Ciudad Rodrigo, to watch the progress of events; and the regiment of the Asturias had been directed to occupy certain points along the frontier.
Eater Isiniss.—The overland mail arrived in London on Wednesday; bringing accounts from Bombay to the 1st of May, from Calcutta to the 21st of April, and from Madras to the 22d of April. The following sum- mary from the Times embraces all that is of interest in the way of news— '
" The Governor-General and the Commander-in-chief had reached Simla; where they intended to remain during the hot and rainy seasons. The troops ' had taken up their stations for the same period in the newly-acquired districts along the Bess, and also in Lahore. The Sikh soldiers were tranquil, but not satisfied. The Governments of Lahore and Jamoo were engaged in tracing out the frontiers between them. Gholab Singh is not popular with the Sikhs; who accuse him of having sacrificed their country to gratify his personal ambition. Dhost Mahommed, who was delighted on hearing of the invasion of the British dominions by the Sikhs, has since resumed a pacific policy; for the rapidity of the British conquests had not allowed him time for any offensive operations against Peshawur, although some preparations for that purpose -appear to have been made at Jellelabad by his son and Wuzeer, the notonous Akhbar Khan. It is evident from the position of the different Rajahs and their adherents, as well at Lahore as in the neighbouring states, that the present cessation of hostilities is kept up rather as a temporary armistice than a lasting peace. The division of the spoils of Runjeet Singh's kingdom is not satisfactory to them; and it is highly probable that before 1846 expires there will be other conflicts. "In the mean time, the British are not idle either in consolidating their new provinces or in weakening their enemies. Amongst the materiel of war sue- rendered by the Sikhs, were specially enumerated the guns which had been pointed against the British Indian army. Those guns, to the number of 256, have reached Delhi; and they are to be taken with all the pomp of a military procession from that city even as far as Calcutta.. This procession, of nearly a thousand miles, will not fail to produce a powerful impression in India, where men judge from what they see. The mighty power of the British Government will therefrom be recognized by even the Mahommedan fatalists. It will resemble one of the triumphs in ancient Roms.
"The Governor-General bad issued a general order, that all soldiers engaged in protecting the camps, &c., during the late battles, shall receive the decorations as. - if engaged in them.
" Seinde is tranquil. Sir Charles Napier arrived at Kurraehee on the 15th of April, in good health, notwithstanding the extreme fatigues of his late rapid march to Lahore. The invalids and wounded men from the battle of Moodkee had passed down the Indus, and arrived at Bombay; twelve had died on the way, amongst whom was Colonel Ryan, of her Majesty's Fiftieth Regiment. Prepara- tions were making at Bombay, at the time of the departure of the steamer, for sending those invalids on to Europe in the best transports that could be procured. "As all the foreign officers have been obliged to quit the service of Lahore, Colonel Mouton, a Frenchman, and Captain Huron de Alcantara, a Spaniard, (by - whose skill in engineering the powerful fortifications at Ferozeshah and Sobmon were constructed,) had come down to Bombay at the same time as the wounded Europeans. Prince Waldemar of Prussia, with his attendants,-had arrived there on the 18th of April, and had come on to Europe by the steamer with the mails. This Prince has gained no small experience from the late campaign on the Sutlej; ' as he was continually in the company of the Governor-General, and witnessed
the battles. c•
"Several changes had taken race in the Seeretariiis of the Bombay Governments:, and in the CotinciL Mr. J. H. Crawford had retired from the Council; and had ; been succeeded by Mr. J. P. Willoughby; who was succeeded as Chief Secretary by Mr. R. K. Pringle.,
"The health of the Governor, Sir George Arthur, was in such a bad state as to - give a colouring to a rumour current of his intention to resign his important post within a few days, and to come to Europe. His complaint is described as of an apoplectic tendency. "It was rumoured, that in consequence of the apprehension of an American war, the harbour of Bombay, which is capable of strong defence, was to be im- mediately fortified. "Great complaints prevailed of the scarcity of water in many districts in which the cholera was raging. Hopes were, however, entertained of an early monsoon."
CAI% OF GOOD HOPE.—Papers to the 4th April arrived on Sunday, communicating the important fact of the declaration of war by the Gover- nor, Sir P. Maitland, against the chiefs Sandilla, Botwan, and Tola, and their tribes, for outrages on the settlers and their property. The event has caused much excitement on the frontier, where preparations had been already commenced to carry out this design. These were the chiefs who for a while resisted the authority of the Lieutenant-Governor to erect a military outpost in the neighbourhood of their territoy, but subsequently apologized for their conduct; not, however, before they had displayed a warlike bearing. Since this affair' they are accused of refusing to deliver up to justice some Caffre.s involved in a charge of murder.
The South African says--" The Fingoes residing in Graham's Town are now being armed; and the Town Commissioners have been informed by the Governor, that 500 stand of arms, with ammunition, &c. will be placed at their disposal for distribution to the inhabitants of Graham's Town. All the military posts are being put in the most efficient state. Detachment.* of the Twenty-seventh Regiment and of the Second Dragoon Guards have been removed to Fort Peddle, Cawood's Post, and Bathurst; and it is understood that the Fingoes at the former place will be put immediately in the most efficient state for active service."
"The Lieutenant-Governor has acquainted the Town Commissioners that it is his fixed determination to chastise the Caffres most severely; that the period for explanation is past, and that the time has arrived for striking such a blow as may effectually secure the colony against a recurrence of those acts of violence which for a long period the Caffres have Leen contin- ually committing within our boundary."