22 JULY 1843, Page 6

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SPAIN.—The news from Spain is more than ever complicated by con- flicting statements, derived from parties of opposing desires, and cross- ing each other at all points. Nothing is more obscure than the actual position of the Regent : the French accounts represent him as actually hurrying from Albacete to Cadiz, and as being last reported at Val de Penas ; others suppose him to have taken that position with a view of commanding the roads from Estremadura, La Mancha, and Madrid; while the Madrid Gazette puts forth the following oracular assurance- " Many persons have been alarmed at the movement executed by the Regent, and account for it in an unfavourable manner. His Highness is not obliged to publish his military combinations, and we may tranquillize our readers by assuring them that the Regent is not marching towards Andalusia, and that in a very short time they will learn and approve his plan." In the mean time, the active contest has extended to Madrid itself. The insurgent General Aspiroz, after crossing the Guadarama without difficulty, arrived on the 11th instant at El Pardo, within a couple of leagues of the city, with a force estimated at 6,000. The garrison of Madrid consisted of only two or three companies of sappers and miners, depots of the regiments which accompanied Espartero, and 100 horse of the regiment of Lusitania. Captain-General San Miguel assembled the commanders of the National Guard; to whom he submitted his plan for the defence of Madrid ; and they all approved his resolution of de- claring it in a state of siege. An advanced guard belonging to Aspiroz approached the gates of the city on the 14th, but it was repulsed by musketry and artillery. It is reported in France that S. Mendizabal and his colleagues had began to capitulate, or had actually capitulated, for the surrender of the capital; but all was quiet up to the 15th. A. private letter of the 11th says, that on the night of the 9th a fatal plot was nearly effected- " Some artillerymen, who were caught endeavouring to escape to Aspiroz,had laid a train to blow up all the powder situated in the Park magazine, overlook- ing the Prado, (1,500 quintals) ; which would certainly have destroyed the ad- joining National Museum of Paintings, the Palace of Buenavista, the British and French Embassies, the old Palace of Buen Retiro, the Grand Hospital of SAn Carlos, and the whole eastern quarter of the city. The design was to seize on the Queen and her sister while the National Guards were occupied in endeavours to extinguish the fires that would inevitably have been caused by the explosion through an extensive district. Two hundred and fourteen cavalry of the Lusitanian Regiment were engaged in this service—now sent oat-Of Madrid. Seven prisoners are in custody.' The Gazette repeats the assurance that the Government had no in- tention of removing the Queen from the capital ; and the Journal des Debate remarks that it is now impossible to do so. There is scarcely less obscurity about the movements of Narvaez than about those of the Regent. He had marched from Valencia, and Dames, to Calataynd, where he arrived on the 9th ; with a secrecy and skill highly praised by the Journal des Debats. The Barcelona papers say, that after reviewing at Calataynd 12,000 infantry and 500 cavalry, he had proceeded on the 10th by forced marches towards Madrid, in order to prevent the removal of the Queen. On the other hand, the Impartial of the 11th declares, that he expected to be before Saragossa on the 11th with 18,000 men : while the Saragossa correspondent of the Times gives altogether a different account ; saying that his force, at the most, only amounted to 4,000 ; that he disgusted the people of Cala- taynd by a forced contribution of 6,000 dollars ; that 500 or 600 of his people subsequently deserted; that when he was at Ateca, near Cala- tayud, he harangued his men, and told them to shout " Viva la Reyna sd a !" but they replied, " Viva la Reyna, la constitucion, y el Regente I" and finally, that he had retreated to Arizas, about eight leagues from Calatayud ; having heard of the defeat of troops under Concha at Ca- hallos by Espartero's troops, and of the fidelity of the troops in Sara- gossa. The writer last quoted' announces the arrival of Zurbano at Sara- gossa, on the 11th, with 10,000 infantry, 800 cavalry, six 24-pounders, and a mountain battery. Before leaving Catalonia, he is said to have offered his officers the option of leaving the Regent's service and taking which side they pleased. They were faithful to a man. His reception at Saragossa was most enthusiastic: a shout of welcome greeted the first sight of the troops- " But to describe the enthusiasm with which the rear-guard was received, which came in at three o'clock in the afternoon, with Zurbano himself at their bead, would he impossible. Men, women, and Children, throneed the road and the streets. Young women, many of the most respectable families of Saragossa, di,tributed, with their own hands, eau-de-vie, wine, bread, and meat to the tired soldiers. A supply of provisions of every kind, in addition to the usual rations, was issued, at the expense of the Ayuntamiento, to the soldiers." The troops marched for Calatayud on the 12th, with a month's pay in advance ; for " money does not seem to be wanting." Zurbano had received 40,0001., by a messenger from Madrid who had evaded Narvaez.

FRANCE.—A great Republican demonstration "in favour of Ireland" took place at Paris on Friday the 14th instant, anniversary of the cap- ture of the Bastile. Besides sixty Republican electors of the capital, there were present sundry officers of the National Guard, Magistrates of Paris, Members of the Institute, and the principal writers of the press, together with deputations frost the Republicans of Rouen and Orleans. The Deputies of the Extreme Left were invited ; and most of them attended, including MM. Arago, Carnot, Ledrn-Rollin, (now or formerly editor of the Republican Droit,) De Courtais, Legendre, Gamier-Pages, &c.; in all above one hundred persons sat down t table: M. Arago was in the chair ; but being troubled with a sole

throat, M. Legendre spoke for him. The first toast was—" To the 14th July 1789; To the Triumph of Democracy in France and in Europe ; and to our two Revolutions ; " the next was "To Ireland, and France, the enemy of all oppressors." This was given by M. Ledru-Rollin ; who warmly advocated the Repeal Rent-

" Let a vast subscription be opened ; let it be organized over the whole surface of France ; let her pour into the Repeal coffers abundant succour, so long as it shall suit the great politician and powerful orator of Ireland to maintain her calm and on the defensive. But let, also, England know, the moment she shall attempt to prevail by violence over so many legitimate rights, that France has been able to supply nations, in their decisive struggles, with tried heads, resolute hearts, and valorous arms ; and that the independence of the New -World was proclaimed by private citizens and brave volunteers, who bad sailed from her harbours at their own expense, long before her Government officially acknowledged it."

Among other toasts were, " The Extreme Left," and " The French Canadians, long victims, like the Irish, of English oppression." M. Ledru-Rollin was commissioned to proceed to Ireland to convey to the Repealers the assurance of the deep interest which "Democratic France" took in the struggle.

In the Chamber of Peers, on Tuesday, the whole budget of receipts was voted. Various questions respecting foreign affairs were put to M. Guizot ; and some points in his replies are interesting to the Eng- lish reader— France carefully abstained from exercising any influence, any direct or in- direct interference, in the internal dissensions of Spain. The exiled Generals who lately returned to their country quitted France without any connivance or connexion with the Government. No arms had been supplied by France ; leave to export arms to Spain had been refused to a commercial house ; and everything stated and printed in Madrid, London, and Paris, for the purpose of involving the King's Government in passing events at the other side of the Pyrenees, was false and calumnious. As to Ireland, he did not conceive him- self justified in saying a word upon the subject. He sincerely desired the per- fect tranquillity of the United Kingdom, and he felt confident that it would be everywhere maintained or reestablished. During the last twenty years, the English Government had done a great deal for the welfare of Ireland. " The chiefs of the present Administration gave emancipation to the Catholics of that country ; and I have every confidence--and I here speak as a mere spectator of human occurrences—that they will reconcile, in the management of this great affair, what is due to the dignity and unity of England, with what behoves the country and the benevolence which a good and wise Government owes to all its subjects." France; in conjunction with England, was endeavouring to reestablish peace in La Plata. With re- gard to New Zealand, the affair presented three delicate questions,—one of so- vereignty over a portion of the territory of New Zealand ; another of private and civil right for the French colonists who had been conveyed thither ; and, finally, a question between the King, Government, and the Nantes and Bor- deaux Company, interested in the undertaking. " None of those three questions has as yet been definitively settled. I cannot accordingly enter into any ex- planation on the subject : but I can affirm that every measure calculated to maintain the rights of France, and protect the interests of the very few colo- nists settled in that island, has been adopted by the King's Government."

UNITED STATES.—Intelligence has been received from New York to the 1st instant. Several more meetings had been held in favour of Irish Repeal ; at one of which, a son of Mr. President Tyler delivered an ad- dress. At some of the latest meetings, however, resolutions against Repeal were carried. The journals announce the sadden death of Mr. Legere, the Attorney-General ; which event had excited deep regret among all classes.

Much anxiety has been felt about the steamer Columbia, long over- due at Liverpool; especially as it was known that the steamer had not arrived at Halifax when a sailing-vessel left that port on the 4th instant. The arrival of the ship Themis, however, at Liverpool, cleared up the matter. We somewhat abridge the account in the Standard— Captain Browne, of the Themia, sailed from St. John's, New Brunswick, on the 3d instant; and on the 4th, at about three o'clock in the afternoon, he saw the Columbia steamer ashore on the rocks close to Seal Island, then about half her passage between Boston and Halifax ; from which place it is distant 140 miles. The Themis could not go near her, not having seen her until she bad passed that part of the point where the steamer had grounded; the wind being light, and assistance not appearing to be at all wanted. Captain Browne describes the water as being quite smooth where the steamer was lying; there was very little wind blowing at the time, and this was from the southward. When the Themis saw her, the Columbia had evidently been trying to back off the shore, as her steam was then blowing off; but as the tide had somewhat receded the Captain of the Themis is of opinion that she would not get off that tide. There were numbers of fishing-boats at anchor around the ship : these had evidently been in communication with her ; although the Captain says, her situation with regard to the shore, and the perfect calmness of the sea, rendered no such aid or assistance at all necessary. The Themis spoke a fishing-boat then not far off; the people on board of which reported that they bad seen the steamer there ashore on the 3d. It is supposed that the steamer must wait for the next spring-tide to get off—eight or ten days more.

The other mail-steamer Hibernia, which will be due at Liverpool to- wards the end of next week, will probably bring the Columbia's pas- sengers.

CANADA.—The Montreal Herald puts forth reports of a discovery that the French Canadians were organizing another rebellion ; but the story received no credit. People account for its origin in the drilling of some French Canadians for the purposes of a festive procession.

WEST INDIES.—The West Indian mail-steamer Tweed, left St. Thomas's on the 24th June, and brings Jamaica papers to the 17th. The islands were generally healthy. The Countess of Elgin died on the 4th, in giving birth to a daughter, who also died. The sympathy with the Governor in his affliction appears to be universal. Lady Elgin was the daughter of Major Cumming Bruce : she had been in ill- health ever since her arrivaL