4 MARCH 1871, Page 3

Mr. Frank Noel's father has published (with Messrs. William saud

Norgate) his son's letters to himself concerning the proceedings in relation to the Marathon captives and their murder, and the subsequent attempts to fasten a charge upon him of having acted rather in the interest of the brigands than in the interest of the captives. No one who reads these letters will feel any sort of doubt of the utter falsehood of this bit of Greek intrigue or revenge. The Greek Government was pretty certain to try and lay the blame on the only unofficial Englishman who had given help to the captives, and we are not surprised that Mr. Frank Noel is paying dear for his disinterested efforts. We are some- what surprised at the tone of half-suspicion adopted by Mr. Cook- son, the legal adviser of Mr. Erskiue, the English Minister, in the letter quoted near the end of this correspondence. Mr. Cookson seems in it to imply that there is something that may be called a "chain of evidence" tending to "inculpate" Mr. Frank Noel. The chain of evidence appears to consist of the statements of per- sons whose authority is worth rather less than nothing, and the only explanation we can see of Mr. Cookson's tone is that Mr. Frank Noel had not thought it right to follow the advice given him by Mr. Cookson to come to Athens at once and before his appeal to the higher Court came on,—a course which Mr. Noel, will; has heavy business at Chalcis to attend to, did not find it convenient to pursue.