to the crown of Sweden, under the auspices of France,
to haunt the pillows of the Northern potentates.
In Portugal, a new and improved edition of the Charter has been promulgated ; and the Queen and her husband have taken a solemn oath to respect and uphold it. Paper constitutions are of little 'value; it is only such constitutions as have taken possession of the heads and hearts of a people that are eMcacious for good. Various other incidents are reported among the foreign news of the week, which may trouble the repose of Lord Malmesbnry- which at least are likely to be turned to account by Parliamentary frondeurs to annoy him : in particular, the bastinadoing of a couple of Ionians by order of a Turkish officer on the Dardanelles ; the violent suppression of a school kept by an Englishman at Naples ; and the cavalier treatment of the English Consul at Anoona by the Papal Governor. A curious state-paper has been published this week : a secret treaty, which is said to have been concluded on the 20th of last May, and is signed by the Sovereigns of Russia, Austria, and Prussia. It embodies the views respecting the course to be pur- sued by those powers towards France and her present ruler, ex- pressed in a correspondence which came to light a few months ago. The contracting parties bind themselves to uphold the provisions of the treaties of 1815, especially the principle of legitimate here- ditary monarchy : they in short renew "the Holy Alliance," as the Scotch Presbyterians of old used to renew from time to time their "Solemn League and Covenant." The three Monarchs pro- test that they intend no encroachment upon the independence of France ; yet in the same breath declare that indefeasible heredi- tary monarchy is the national law of Europe, that they will not re- cognize any French dynasty except the house of Bourbon, and that they reserve to themselves in case of opportunity the right to aid in the restoration of the representative of the elder branch of that family. This would be a violation of French independence —an interference by foreigners to dictate who is to be the ruler of France. The treaty, however, is but a barren reassertion of the faith of the contracting parties in the principle of legitimacy. Whether it can ever be acted upon will depend upon circumstances not as yet even "looming in the future "—the opportunities that may offer, or the power of the three allies to enforce it. At pre-
sent it is but a piece of written paper, as impotent to endanger the 3. Pilkington independence of France as the treaties of 1815 have been to keep 'IT, s„„ze - Belgium and Holland united, or to maintain the nationality of Dr. Michell 1 - Poland. The only effect it is likely to have is to provoke the B7,T.E. French nation into compliance with any ambitious views their Pre- Crook sident may cherish; and though it is a " secret " treaty, yet as B°81"" such secrets are always sure to transpire, the committing of it to Heathcote . -1 paper is no better than a solemn blunder. BRADFORD "Son Altesse N. le President" has taken unto himself a new limutp Minister, and is—at least so it is confidently asserted—about to take BRECON • unto himself a wife. The new French Minister of Foreign Affairs I C. Morgan 1 - is M. Drouyn de Lhnye ; an appointment which has diffused a BRZTrs.C132eRyE Bailey 1 - sense of relief among the many who feared this important charge BRIDGEWATER. might be conferred upon the rash and fantastic De Persigny. The meTertellett bride is a descendant of the houses of Baden and Vasa. The bare 12 CISNORTH mention of such an alliance is enough to cause visions of the re- if. /21,4!nore -rival of the Confederation of the Rhine, and disputed successions 11
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