giort tlgututu.

Two Cabinet Councils have been held this week. One was the ordi- nary sitting on Monday ; which lasted three hours. The other was-an extraordinary sitting, yesterday ; which lasted upwards of two hours, Both were well attended.

Mr. Cobden has-submitted to the public, in along letter to Mr. Baines of Leeds, " some considerations-of grave moment-relative to the state of our army as connected with the policy of the present war." The grave- considerations touch chiefly on the question of recruitment. The argu- ment implied in the letter appears-to be, that if "the war were as popular as has been alleged)" the reinforeements to the Army would nothe so "insufficient in number and defective in quality" as they are. Mr. Cobden charges the press with concealing from the people the greatest and most urgent of all our wants—men; which has "prepared for us the ignominious dilemma to which boastful professions and abortive per- formance have consigned us." He quotes statistics from the appendix to the report of Mr. Roebuck's Committee, to show that much of the sick- ness and its attendant mortality endured by the Army last winter arose from a want of men. It was only from the people-that the chasms could be filled up ; yet he remarks, "that while our sick and wounded, ex- elusive of killed, averaged for the four months, October, November; De- cember, and January, nearly 18,000 a month, the recruiting was going- on at the rate of only 6100 a month." He remarks also, that the re- cruits fell short of the number voted by Parliament, by 40,000 ; yet that' all this time "our War journals and orators were assuring us that the people were far more eager for the war than the Government or Parlia- ment." Mr. Cobden shows, by a series of quotations, that the recruits were "thoughtless" boys—" gristle" instead of " bone and muscle" ; and be quotes the Times to show that the attack on the Redan failed because the soldiers wanted that coolness and nerve which "age and age alone can give." How is it, he asks, that while these facts were known, the newspapers have teemed with attacks on the Government, on Parliament, aristocracy, military commanders, and with fulsome laudation of the people of England ? " How then do you propose to bring the bone, muscat!, and manhood of England, into the field ?"

"There are two methods, equally successful, by which regular armies are raised in foreign countries. The one is by a conscription, as in France, where a certain number of men of a prescribed age are taken every year by lot from among all classes; and where the unlucky person who draws the fatal number from the balloting urn, be he peer or peasant, must either serve himself, or find an approved substitute, at an expense varying from 801. to 2001. according-to circumstances. The other is the plan of tlie-United States, where the Legislature votes the number of the army, and-voluntary enlistment supplies the men : this mode has never been found to fail. On the breaking out of the war with- Mexico, five times as-many men offered their services, in many parts-of the Union, as were required. All ranks and professions pressed forward : the newspaper editor exchanged the pen for the sword, the lawyer threw up his brief, the doctor abandoned his patients, and the farmer his land—all to enlist into the ranks. The present President of the United States, then of mature age, and with a leading practice as a bar- rister, gave up family and profession, and volunteered into the ranks. The plan is, in fact, our own, with this material difference in its working, that in America the popularity of a war is proved by the willingness of the people to take part in it There is still a third system Whieh has been recommend- ed for adoption in this country—that of increasing the bounty until you tempt men from other pursuits into the army. But it is liable to the abjec- tion, that in these days of cheap locomotion you will not be sure of keeping your recruit after he had pocketed the bribe. We find;' says Lord Hard- Inge, 'that the more you raise thehounty the greater the number of deser- tions; they make a trade of it.' " We must not expect from him, Mr. Cobden says,an opinion as to which of these plans should be adopted. True he is an opponent of this war- " more rash, unnecessary, and aimless, than any in our history " ; but " opposition to a war by no means separates from its consequences." He points out that our " War party " has attained the opposite end to that at which they almed—the maintenance of our prestige. He magnifies the difficulties we shall have to encounter on Russian soil—every step taken must be " over earthworks and at the point of the bayonet" " For the Russians have never fought great battles with an enemy on their own soil without the defensive aid of redoubts and intrenchmente This is the work of men, and not of the'qhoughtless boys' who are at pre- sent kidnapped by the recruiting-sergeant. There is nothing for it but an appeal to the manhood of England. To this end the press and the orators and leaders of the party opposed to peace, who tell us they have all England at their back, must now address themselves. If, as we have been told, this war, in defence of the liberty and civilization' of a Continent which does not think it necessary to defend itself, is the people's war there will be a response to the appeal : if, on the contrary, it be a war of diplomatists and .nowspapersit will fail." He paints the Allies as the "aggressive party." Nothing we-canin- fliet on Russia will "have any permanent effects to compensate for' the losses, miserieasand obvious dangers to ourselves from the indefinite mus traction of the war." And who prolongs the war ? Except those in office, is there "a statesman of trust," "is there a commanding intellect," not " in lis■heart in favour of peace, on terms believed to be now practi- cable ? " Mr.-Cobden closes with an attack upon those who look upon war as the:beneficent antidote to the selfishness of a mercantile age ; and on those who are "so wanting in moral continence that they abandon themselves to every popular emotion or plirensy of the hour—who when all hearts exulted at- the signs of international peace declaimed-of the horrors of war—who now that the dtemon of carnage-has sway for a- sea- son Bing of the 'canker- of peace,' and who would be ready to mop and mow with madmen-tomorrow if Bedlam-could be but one day in' the ascendant."

A little pocket text-book of Ballot arguments, by a veteran hand, the author of the "'Catechism on the Corn-laws," has been published by the Ballot Society, Under the title of "Fallacies against the Ballot, with the Answers." The-plan of the work is simple and effective. The fallacies, taken from different quarters, some from' the Edinburgh Review, many from Sidney Smith's article on the Ballot, stand in one column, and the answers opposite-them in another, and both on the same page. The exe- cution of the work shows that the racy vigour of General Thompson has lost nothing by the lapse of time, and that his keenness in detecting a fallacy is as great as ever. From this the reader will collect that the pamphlet is amusing as well as instructive.

The Marquis of Lansdowne had an audience of the Emperor of the French on the' 2d- instant.

The Duchess of Inverness has been suffering from indisposition at Ken- sington Palma during the last fortnight.

Mr. Locke M.P. has met with a serious accident near Rouen. While in-

Lcting the tunnel of a railway there, a platform having given way, Mr. cke fell a depth of twelve feet, and one of his lege was broken below the knee. He was conveyed to Paris for surgical aid.

A lamentable accident has occurred to the Archduke Ferdinand at Trieste. He was driving in the vicinity of the city, when his horses took fright and overpowered him; after maintaining his seat for some time, he jumped out ofthe carriage, but pitched upon his head, with very serious and perhaps dangerous consequences. The Emperor, on receipt of the sad. intelligence, immediately left Vienna for Trieste.

Prince-Nicholas of Sweden, Duke of Daleearlia, son of the King Osear, was on board' the steamer Genthiod, which carried General Canrobert from Lubeck to Stockholin.

According to the orders of the King of Prussia, Prince Frederic William, son of the Prince of Prussia, is henceforth to take part in the sitting& ofetise Council of State and also in the business at the different ministries, in ceder to become initiated in-public affairs.

Count Tolstoy, Aide-de-camp to the Emperor of Russia, has artivati at Berlin from St. Petersburg.

The- Queen intends to revive- theatrical performances at 'Windsor Castle this season : the first will- take place on-the 22d instant. The theatre will be erected in St. George's Halt, instead of the Rubens Room ; and Mr. Grieve is preparing splendid scenery.

The Government intend-to hold a Wiy Assize; for gaol delivery, in the more important of the English counties

The Anglo-Italian Legion, under t direction of Colonel Read, is now said'to be rapidly advancing, men coming in from all parts.

The postage of letters to Victoria has been again changed : it is now six- pence when not exceeding half an ounce; it can be prepaid or not atthe option of the sender.

Itis stated that a work written by air. Smith O'Brien, and entitled "The Principles of Government, or Meditations in Exile," will shortly appear.

Sergeant Peirce, of the Scots Fusilier Guards, a Crimean soldier, has les- lined on " the War," at Highgate Institution, to the Militiamen- of the Royal Middlesex Regiment, quartered there. The advantages of the Insti- tution generally have been freely granted to the Militiamen.

Although 600 tons of new copper coin was lately issued to the public, the supply has-proved inadequate ; and 250 tone more will be struck.

Honest cabmen are to be found. The other day, a clerk of Twinings left, in a cab, a bag containing 300 half-sovereigns. A short time after, the cab- man discovered the treasure, and hastened to restore itto the bank : he Was rewarded with 101., afterwartie increased-to 201: A man who had been admitted to a hospital at Newcastle-for a-rheumatio affection was dismissed as incurable ; he wished to return home to Haverton Hill—fifty miles away ; both from lack of funds and from the mode oftran- sit being-the easiest to the ptient, hie strong and willing wife carried- hini on her back the fifty miles, in fourteen hours, resting once at Durham!

The colossal horse for the monument- or Washington, designed by Mr. Crawford, has been cast at Munich, in the Royal Foundry. It was a vast undertaking, as fifteen tone of bronze had to be melted and kept in a fluid state : the casting appears to have been successfully performed.

At Toulouse, at a concert attended by 1700 persons, for the benefit of wounded soldiers, a great sensation was excited by the singing of "God save the Queen.' in Wish. The entire audience rose to do honour' to Queen Victoria.

When the Arrogant attacked Wyborg in the summer, it may be recollected that an explosion caused-tlieswamping of a boat, and that among the suffer- ers by the acoident was Story, a-midshipman. It is now stated, that when the Russians found his body, they buried it with-military honours, railed his grave round, and placed at each end a handsome head and foot stone.

The Austrian Government has not been able to find sites and money to erect -markets in Vienna, which have been greatly needed for many- years ; but they have just completed two fine barracks, at the cost of a- million donnas A bigoted eadi of Damascus having substituted " damned" for " dead" ina losument relative to a deceased Christian—alleging that only Tuna&

could be said to be " dead "—the Sultan has published an ordinance order-- ink that Christians and Jews shall be treated in public acts as Turks.

The St. Abbe, bound from London to Bombay, struck on a coral reef off the island of St. Jean Nova to the North-east of Madagascar, on the night of the 14th June. The captain could not prevail on the passengers and crew to trust to the boats, and they remained on the wreck. On the third night the hull broke up. The master, a passenger and four seamen, got on to the island ; five passengers—gentlemen , lemen cadets--and nineteen seamen, perished. The master attributes the loss of his ship to the island being inaccurately mist' ked on the charts.

The Bengal Hurkaru reports the breaking down of "Balliaghatta Bridge," by which one hundred persons of all ranks, including English ladies and gentlemen, were killed or hurt. The British settlement of Hongkong has been much benefited by the dis- turbances in China, which have driven numbers of Chinese to the island as a place of security. There are computed to be now 56,000 Chinese in Hongkong.

Nine Chinese black-tea manufacturers have been despatched by Mr. For- tune from China to the Government tea-plantations in the North-west pro- vinces-of India.

It is stated that since February last no ffiwer than 70,000 rebels have been executed at Canton, and-27,000 at Shauking•Fu. These numbers seem in ; yet there is a-specific statement that one day recently 500 rebels were slaughtered at Canton, and 700 on another day.

Garrett, the noted malefactor, who was engaged in a bank robbery at Bal- larat, has been convicted at Melbourne, and sentenced to be hanged.

Caysvu PALACB.—Return of admissions for six. days ending Friday November 9, 1866, including season-ticket-holders, 8807.