NEWS OF THE WEEK.
ON Tuesday, Lord Rosebery stated the net result of Siam's acceptance " of two different sets of terms at two different times." France is to have (1), the left bank of the Mekong and the islands, subject to an agreement for a. neutral zone signed with England ; (2), various indemnities, for which 3,000,000 fr. are to be paid on account, or in default "the farming of the taxes of Siemrep and Battambong ;" (3), the occupation of the port and river of Chantaboon, pending evacuation of left bank of the Mekong; (4), the right to forbid Siamese troops coming within twenty-five kilometres of Mekong, and to prevent Siam having armed vessels on the Toulesap Lake ; (5), the right to establish Consulates at Nadu and Korat. Lord Rose- bery, in the conversation that followed this announcement, showed himself an adept at avoiding the snares of the heckler. He told Lord Lamington that he put a question to him " as he would put a penny in the slot." When Lord Dudley asked a question based on a statement in the Daily News, his answer was still happier :—" As regards the general scope of the information in the Daily News, I have so many responsibilities upon me that I am not willing to incur any more. I notice that in the paragraph in the Daily News to which the noble Earl has referred, the last item states that the attitude of Captain Jones, the British Minister, remains sphinx-like. Obviously, I cannot either 'corroborate or deny that."
