23 NOVEMBER 1844, Page 6

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SPAIN.—An insurrection has broken out in Old Castile, with Martin Zurbano, the old Guerilla chief, for its leader. Zurbano had been quietly living on his property near 1,ogrono, which is said to be worth 5001. a year ; but he heard lately that the Government meant to charge him with being an accomplice in some conspiracy, and be determined to gain a start in the struggle with those who had resolved upon his de- struction. He fled to the "Sierra de Cameros," a mountain-chain be- tween Soria and Rioja, covered with immense forests of pine and cork, and traversed by intricate paths well known to smugglers and to &w- ham Here he formed a band of discarded soldiers and smugglers. The 12th of November, St. Martin's day, was his jour de fête; and he made it the occasion of raising the war-cry for the Constitution of 1837, with "Long life to Isabella the Second, and death to the tyrants !" On the 13th, he marched, with about 50 cavalry and 80 or 90 men on foot, into the village of Najera ; where he levied contributions of fire-arms, horses, and provisions. What he next did is doubtful : some accounts send him back to his mountain-fastnesses ; others make him march on to Burgos, and represent that town as having declared for the new movement. A separate band, under Zurbano's son, had appeared in the country between Zamora and Salamanca. General Concha, the newly-appointed Captain-General of the Basque Provinces, arrived at Vittoria on the 16th, and sent Jaureguy against the rebel.

A conspiracy among the tailors had been discovered at Cadiz. It was to break out on the 3d, at Algesiras and other places; and other trades were invited to join in the movement. It was ostensibly to be a strike for higher wages ; but the authorities saw in it some political mo- tive; and it served at least as a pretext for the issue of the following general order by the Commandant of Cadiz-

" Art. 1. Every military man who, having been excited to treason, shall de- nounce the person who endeavoured to seduce him, shall at once receive the Bum of 640 reals as the price of his fidelity.

Art. 2. The officers who, in a similar case, will act in the same manner, shall have well merited of their country, and will obtain an honourable mention in their favour to the Government ; which will be taken into consideration for their advancement.

" Art. 3. The Council of War, the only tribunal competent to take cogni- zance of the crime of sedition, conspiracy, and revolt, will judge and condemn the criminals, whatever may be their rank or condition ; and the punishment of death, indicated in the most positive manner by article 26 part 8 title X of the 0, dinaucts of the Army, shall be applied without remission, and promptly, not only with regard to the individuals who shall have tried to gain over parti- sans to the revolt, but also to those who, having had it in their power to de- nounce them, have failed to do so."

Prim and his fellow-prisoners were tried again, before a Court-mar- tial, at Madlid, on the 14th instant. The "additional evidence" which the Procurator-fiscal professed to adduce was very trivial. Prim de- fended himself; contrasting his own character with that of A lbenez, his accuser—a wretch once expelled the army for an infamous assault on a woman ; and alluding to his mother and sister, whose support alone made him anxious to live. The bystanders contrasted the look of the two men—Albenez, a young man, pale, mean, and downcast ; Prim, young and younger-looking, nobly-formed, majestic. The result of the Court-martial was not stated.

The troops of the garrison of Madrid were kept under arms during the night of the 11th, in the expectation of a revolt in the Regiment of San Fernando ; which, however, did not take place.

Meanwhile, the Ministry proceeded with their measure of " constitu- tional reform." The general debate on the bill in the Chamber of De- puties closed on the 12th, and on the 13th the Chamber went on to dis- cuss and pass the separate clauses with rapidity; every amendment being rejected by overwhelming majorities. In the course of the dee bates, the Ministers were placed in the very anomalous position of beings obliged to resist such of their own supporters as were bent upon going too far. One Deputy proposed to reestablish a censorship of the press; on which Senor Martinez de la Rosa (who is a party to the bill which deprives the press of trial by jury) affected to be scandalized at a pro- posal to crash its liberty ! But the most remarkable scene was cause& by S. Tejada, the Absolutist Deputy for Logrono, on the 11th. Hts advocated the bill with the most extraordinary arguments— He supported the present reforms because they emanated from the Throne,, and were ordered by the Government. [Up to this point be was much ap- plauded by Ministers.] But he avowed his inclination for the old system, by which the Sovereign was the sole chief, and he regarded the proposed changes as producing a mere state of transition; declaring that in his judgment the people were now wearied out, and had become undeceived, having found that they derived no benefit whatever from the attempts already made to introduce the representative system, for which the country was not prepared. He took a review of the course of events in Spain since the death of Ferdinand the Seventh; and declared that all the evils which Spain had suffered since that period were referable to the prevalence of Revolutionary principles, which, under pretence of founding a constitutional government, led the country into anarchy and confusion. He passed a high eulogium upon the ancient monarchy; and called upon the Government to restore to the noblesse and the clergy the political and social position which they enjoyed under that system. As preliminary to that happy state of things, he demanded the reconstruction of the majorats, and the immediate restitution of the national property to the clergy. He declared that Spain was a monarchical and religious country, which neither required nor wished for a representative government.

This speech, which was delivered with great solemnity, was listened to in silence.

S. Martinez de la Rosa replied with very liberal professions. He de- clared that he and Senor Tejada were separated by a wide abyss ; that he abhorred Absolutism ; and he talked of " consolidating the consti- tution of 1837," and "rallying round it the defenders of the Throne and of liberty "l

The Tiempo publishes a letter from London stating that Lord Aber- deen had directed Mr. Balwer to express regret for the sinking of the Spanish vessel Rayo ; but had at the same time pointed out that the Rayo had violated the sovereignty of the British waters at Gibraltar.

FRANCE.—It is understood that the two Chambers of the Legislature will be convoked on the 26th December.

The Revue des Deer Mondes announces, that the different sections of the Opposition intend to take a more united and moderate course next session, and to avow themselves as much as M. Guizot in favour of the entente cordiale with England ; a purpose which the Revue considers to threaten the Minister with a much more formidable antagonism than he has yet encountered.

JERSEY.—In the Jersey Royal Court, on the 13th instant, the At- torney-General stated that a writ of habeas corpus had been receive& from the Court of Queen's Bench at Westminster, ordering the Gover- nor of Jersey Gaol to deliver up the body of Charles Carus Wilson, a. prisoner for contempt of Court ; and the Attorney-General went on to expound reasons for resisting the execution of the writ— In several charters, granted by various Sovereigns of England, it was ex- pressly stipulated that no summons or order from any of the Courts of West- minster ran in this island. His Majesty George the Third ordered all acts' having force of law in this island to be registered, for the better information of his subjects in these islands. The Habeas Corpus Act had never been sent for registration, until the year 1832, when it was transmitted to both Jersey and Guernsey; but the States, fearing this would encroach on their privileges, sent deputies to London, who made such representations as induced the Government at that period to abandon the subject without pressing for the registration. The charters of Queen Elizabeth and of James the Second assured to the au- thorities of the island of Jersey full power in all judicial matters.

The Judges retired to deliberate ; and at a consultation that laste& for three hours and a quarter, they agreed to a written decision, setting forth reasons similar to those urged by the Attorney-General, and. ordering the gaoler to take no notice of the writ. In the written papers they observed that the defendant could have the judgment against hins revised by presenting a remonstrance, and also he could further appeal against that revised judgment to the Queen in Council. [In the Bail Court, on Thursday last, the Solicitor-General applied for a rule to show cause why the writ of habeas corpus should not be quashed ; urging several technical objections to the issue of that writs Mr. Justice Patteson, who issued the writ, confessed that it had been granted without sufficient consideration ; and the rule was allowed.] AUSTRIA.—The commercial writer in the Morning Post states, that reductions in the Austrian tariff have worked so favourably to the revenue, commerce, and industry of the country, that further reductionst are contemplated- . The import-duties upon several products are, it seems, to be much re. duced ; and many articles yet prohibited are to be admissible on payment of certain duties. Among the latter, may be noted more particularly woollen and cotton fabrics, printed of one or several colours ; with the exception, how- ever, of cloths made entirely out of goat's-hair. Manufactures of sheep's- wool and printed stuffs are only to be importable for consumption under re- strictions ; so that, in the commencement, the derangements which might arise from too strong and sudden a competition may be avoided. Of the na- ture and extent of these restrictions no precise information had transpired."

ITALY.—Among the inundations that seem to have visited all quarters of Italy, the Tiber has overflowed its banks, and great part of the Roman country is under water. The Po has also flooded the plains

i through which t flows.

The damage at Florence is roughly estimated at several millions of piastres—a piastre being about 4s. 6d. Most generous efforts had been made to relieve the sufferers. The Grand Duke set the example: he was recognized under the hood of a Brother of Mercy, giving active help in the hour of peril ; went to the Customhouse, and seeing the danger in which the goods were, issued a decree on the spot, authorizing their re- moval without payment of duty ; he suspended the octroi at the city- gates ; and he provided a great number of beds for the poor. The bankers had agreed that two months' time should be allowed to debtors to make good their engagements. A public subscription had been opened, and in three days about 6,5001. had been subscribed.

GREECE.—Letters from Athens, of the 31st October, announce an important decision pronounced by the Greek Legislature five dart earlier. The refugees from certain provinces still belonging to Turkey,

who resided in Greece, had returned Members to the Legislature ; and the elected persons assumed the title of Representatives of those pro- vinces. The Caudiot refugees, among others, had chosen for their De- puty one of their countrymen named Emanuel Antonides ; who had taken his seat. The Ottoman Government protested against the pre- tensions of these refugees ; declaring that all intercourse should be in- terrupted between Greece and such provinces, should the election of the Deputies chosen by its fugitive subjects be ratified. The Turkish Envoy had, it appears, renewed that declaration the day before the powers of the so-called Member for Candle came under consideration ; notifying to Coletti, that the moment Antonides was admitted to sit in the House, his Government would immediately dismiss the Consuls and Vice-Consuls of Greece accredited in that island. This menace of the Turkish Minister had produced the desired effect ; for on the 25th, the Chamber, after hearing long speeches from Antonides and his sup- porters, voted his exclusion by a considerable majority.

AUSTRALIA.—Sydney papers of the 30th July announce that the Local Legislature had rejected the Government measure for establishing District Councils ; there being a general feeling against such an instru- ment of local taxation.

WEST INDIES —The mail-steamer Clyde, which left St. Thomas's on the 31st October, brings papers from Jamaica to the 24th, and from the other colonies of corresponding dates. The season in the Archipelago generally had been unusually hot, and much sickness and mortality were the consequence. The Jamaica House of Assembly was opened by Lord Elgin on the 15th; and immigration was the immediate subject of deliberation. Af- ter a long discussion, the House agreed to provide funds for the intro- duction of 2,000 Hill Coolies from India : Government had recom- mended the introduction of 5,000; hut the Local Legislature plead an untoward state of finances for at once assuming so large a liability.

The Demerara papers mention, that on the 16th October, a confla- gration, assumed to be the work of incendiaries, broke out in the planta- tion Ditkomst, the property of Mr. C. J. Visser, a resident planter ; and it continued when the accounts closed. By that time it had extended to four other estates,—Java, De Kinderen, Mon Bijou, and Two Bro- thers; and the Vreed-en-Frindithap was threatened.

By late advices from Havannah, we have the gratifying intelligence that the Captain-General has issued a proclamation, notifying that, on and after the 1st January next, all vessels, under whatever flag, arriving at any of the ports of Cuba with slaves, will be confiscated. By all ac- counts both from Cuba and the old country, never was the Captain- General in greater favour than he is at present ; while the promptitude with which he put down the late attempt at insurrection has been made the theme of praise among men of all parties.—Jamaica Times.

TARITL—Some provincial papers mention recent accounts from the Society Islands, received by way of the United States, which record a new engagement, with much slaughter of the natives by the French. The English frigate Fishguard had conveyed Queen Poniard to the island of Bola-bola.