EUROPEAN TNIELLIGENCE.

Lyttelton Times, Volume V, Issue 272, 9 June 1855, Page 3

EUROPEAN TNIELLIGENCE.

(From ihe " Sydney Herald" May 9th.) We have European intelligence to1 the 4th of February, via Melbourne, by tbe Frances Henry, arrived at Portland, on the 19th ult. This ship spoke the Walter Hood on the 13th March. The latter vessel had, news to the 7th February. At that time it, was stated that Prussia had joined Russia; that 25,000 Spaniards and 15,000 Sardinians had set out for the Crimea to reinforce the Allied Army; that the intelligence from the Crimea was not of a more cheering character, and that an administration had not been formed. f> *& RES-OVATION OF MINISTERS' W The resignation of ministers was made known ' in the House of Lords on Thursday, the lst of February. „ ' The Earl of Aberdeen said that, after the vote of the' House of Commons on Monday, her Majesty's ministers had at once resolved to " place their resignations in the'hands of the Queen, and her Majesty had been graciously pleased to accept of the same. They therefore only held their office until their successors were appointed. Although her Majesty's ministers had opposed the motion of Mr. Roebuck, as being unconstitutional in itself, it was not their desire to oppose any inquiry into their conduct. He believed that an impartial inquiry would establish those facts—that no indifference to the wants of our army in the Crimea had ever existed in the minds of her Majesty's govern-ment--*_nd that no exertions had been spared to supply the wants and to maintain the efficiency of our troops in the Crimea. He thought that the Duke of Newcastle had met with great injustice. It was impossible for any minister to exceed the noble Duke in assiduity and attention to the duties and the interests of his office. He (the noble Earl) did not complain of the -feeling that generally prevailed in respect to the management of the war. The public saw that the misfortunes which had'occurred were beyond the ordinary calamities of war, and .hey very naturally turned to the government as an object of censure, and it was to them they looked for the "efficiency and protection of our army. The members of the government submitted to the natural consequences, and reS signed their offices. Although the individual sufferings of our army in the Crimea was very great and painful-, he saw no cause for discouragement or dismay in looking at the position of our army in reference to the war. On the contrary, he saw every reason to indulge in the most sanguine hopes of our ultimate success. The noble Earl, in conclusion, expressed a hope that a strong administration would be formed that would carry on the war with vigour and effect, and with a view to the only legitimate end of all war, namely—to the arrival of a speedy and honourable peace. (Hear, hear.) The Duke of Newcastle entered at considerable length into a defence of his proceedings, and strongly complained of the course pursued towards him by Lord John Russell. He had over and ov-_r again offered to resign his position to any of his colleagues, and to give his services in any other capacity than that of Minister of War. It could not, therefore be his desire to retain his office that led to the withdrawal of the noble lord, whose expressions of kindness, while endeavouring to remove him from his position, he could only consider as so much of what the Americans designate " soft sawder." He also said that it was his intention to bave given up the office of Minister of War whether the motion of Mr. Roebuck had been successful or otherwise. The Earl of Derby, after' commenting upon some of the observations of the Duke of Newcastle, stated that he had been sent for by her Majesty, and if he could have seen any hope of success, he would have attempted to form an administration. He thought that in such a crisis every one should sink his personal feelings in order that her Majesty should not be left without a government. He yet felt that in the state of public parties he could not offer to her Majesty the assurance of being able, satisfactorily, to conduct the affairs of the government, and consequently he had at that moment no instructions from her Majesty to form a government. In the Commons, on the same day, the resignation was announced by Lord Palmerston. He said— I rise, sir, in a formal manner, to make a communication to this house which will proba-

bly be anticipated, and which communication j would have been made on Tuesday if it hadSiot | been for the accidental circumstance of their > Lordships in another place having adjourned, namely, to state that, in consequence of what , passed in this House on Monday night, her Majesty's government thought it their duty to ten- ' der to her Majesty the resignation of their-of- ■ fices,and that that resignation was most gracious- | ly accepted, and that they now only hold office until their successors are appointed. Under these circumstances, the house will naturally - feel that it would be highly inconvenient to proceed with the despatch of any public business, and I therefore propose that this house at its rising do adjourn until to-morrow, Friday. My reason for not moving the adjournment for a longer period, which might have been very .naturally expected, is that I have learned from you, sir, that the honourable and gallant member for Westminster (General Sir de Lacy Lvans) has intimated to you that he will take his seat in this house to-morrow evening. (Cheers.) lam quite sure that I should be doing violence to the feeling of this house if I proposed by any ' longer adjournment to deprive hon. members of* the earliest opportunity of .testifying to that honourable and gallant member their sense of. his brilliant and distinguished services. (Hear, hear, and cheers.) There is also a bill which my right hon. friend the Secretary for the Colonies introduced last night, for the purpose of carrying into effect a treaty with the United Slates, which it is proposed to submit, and if thefe should be no disposition, on the second reading of that bill, to enter upon a discussion, it will be very advisable to allow that bill to pass through the second reading to-morrow. (Hear.) The Speaker put the motion, and it was | agreed to. On the question that the House do now ad-, journ, Lord Ebrington said that he could not allow the house to adjourn without expressing his regret that nothing had been said in reference to the Government which was to replace that which had just resigned.' ':« •>- Generai. ; Sir 'De Isoy Evans, The house met again on the following day, Friday, February the 2nd, when LieutenantGenerahSir De Lacy Evans entered the house in full military uniform, and was received by 1 the members present standing and uncovered. The Speaker, addressing Sir De Lacy in the name of the Commons ofthe United Kingdom, conveyed to him, in graceful terms, their unanimous thanks for his zeal, intrepidity, and distinguished exertions in the several actions with the enemy in the Crimea. When adverting to the undaunted courage and chivalrous generosity which the gallant General had displayed on the heights of lnkermann, and which, the right hon. gentleman observed, had called forth the admiration of the country, the house broke into enthusiastic cheering. Sir de Lacy Evans, in returning bis acknowledgements, bestowed some strictures upon the speech of Lord John' Russell in moving the vote of thanks, of which he thought the division he commanded, as well as himself, had some reason to complain. Lord Palmerston moved that the speech of the Speaker, and so much of what had fallen from Sir De Lacy Evahs as expressed his thanks be printed in the votes of the house. Mr. Walpole seconded the motion, which was agreed to nem. con.

The ministerial movements are of a most unsatisfactory character. The gossip of the London journals is summed up in the Sunday Times of the 4th February, and is given as follows :— " The majority against ministers on Monday night was followed by a cabinet council on Tuesday morning, attended by all the ministers with tbe exception of Sir James Graham (indisposed). The Council sat for an hour, and then the Earl of Aberdeen left town for Windsor Castle, to have an audience with the Queen. All was bustle in the several cabinet departments. The Chancellor of the Exchequer, Sir William Molesworth, and Mr. Sydney Herbert, had interviews with the Earl of Aberdeen. " Mr. Sydney Herbert had an interview with the Duke of Newcastle, prior to which he had a lengthened consultation with Lord Palmerston at his residence, Carilon Gardens. " The Marquis of Lansdowne received Sir

George Grey, and had a lengthened consultation with him. Just before Sir George left. Earl Granville was admitted to an interview, and remained with the noble marquis some time after Sir George Grey's departure. It was generally anticipated- that the Marquis of Lansdowne would be sent for by her Majesty. a On Wednesday morning, the Queen came up from Windsor, and the Earl of Derby who had been summoned on the previous evening, had an interview with her Majesty at half-past 11 o'clock, and continued in consultation for nearly two hours ; after which he drove to Lord Palmerston's house, with whom be remained about an hour; and immediately after returned to Buckingham Palace, where his lordship was entrusted by her Majesty with the formation of a new cabinet. He 'then returned to his residence in St. James's-square, where he gave audience lo several of his political supporters. " No other cabinet minister, or cabinet minister expectant, visited her Majesty during her short stay in town. The various members of the Aberdeen Cabinet transacted business at the-offices of their departments, as usual, during tbe day. " On Thursday morning, the rumours current in the clubs were that Lord Derby had consented to undertake the formation of a Government, provided Lord Palmerston would accept the office of Minister of War; and that be had consented to form an ■ alliance with the Peelite portion of the late cabinet, giving to Mr. Gladstone the Chancellorship of the Exchequer, to Mr. Sydney Herbert the Secretaryship of War, with an office to the Duke of Newcastle. In order that this arrangement might be carried into effect, Mr. Disraeli was said to have consented to take the Secretaryship of Stale for Foreign affairs. " At ten o'clock in the morning, the Earl of Derby left his residence, and called upon Mr. Disraeli, at Grosvenor Gate. ~ After remaining with the right hon. gentleman a few minutes, his lordship proceeded to the Great Western Railway, and thence by special train to Windsor. After the noble earl's departure to Windsor, Mr, Disraeli had communications with Sir J. Pakiogton, and several- others of his political friends. The Earl of Derby returned to town at 3 o'clock, and communicated with several members of the Conservative party. It was soon" known that he had given up his task in despair, and in the evening he stated the fact in the House of Lords—- ' Feeling deeply grateful to her Majesty for the confidence with which she has honoured me (said the noble earl) —feeling deeply conscious of my own inability to discharge the duty which it would impose on me—feeling, at the same time that the difficulties with which the country is surrounded, -would be an additional inducement to any one of- honour and character not to leave her Majesty without a Government to grapple with these difficulties-—I yet feel that in the present state of parties, especially in the condition of the House of Commons, I was not able to offer to her Majesty that assurance of being ablejsatisfactorily to conduct the affairs of the country which would induce me at the present period to accept the task which her Majesty was pleased to confide to me, and, consequently, at this time I have no charge to effect the construction ot a Government in the place of that which has been destroyed.' ♦'The Morning Herald is, of course, much moved by Lord Derby's failure, and lays all the blame of it at Lord PalmeTSton's door— It was bad enough that Lord Derby felt himself coerced by the emergency of the crisis to seek the aid of one who has for two lonjc years been the coadjutor, if not the counsellor, of the men whose terrible times have occasioned tbe present condition of the empire. * * _ * But what are we to think of the conduct of the individual to whom such an opportunity had been afforded of exhibiting the highest patriotism, if he dared to turn it to the purpose of giving obstruction to the endeavours which an invincible sense of duty alone could have induced Lord Derby to make, by dragging again into the councils of our Queen persons who, within a very few days, have been speedily ejected from them by the overpowering force of public opinion. • * • The nobleman, whom rumour'asserts to have acted as we _aye described, is Lord Palmerston. The individuals belonging to the Peelite section, whom he i s said to have wished to attach to himself, for th c purpose of—disguise it as he might, such wa s the fact —weakening Lord Derby's administration, were Mr. Gladstone and Mr. Sidney Her-

Bert • whilst another, whom we cannot suppose our readers have not already recoguised from our description, is the conciliating, the practicable, and successful administrator, Eail Grey, who, in the Home Office as a saboidinate, in the War and Colouial Department where he was dominant, accumulated an unparalled amount of mismanagement and disasters upon every transaction iv which it was his £fo.tune to be engaged, We assert that without the aid of any one of the individuals we have 'alluded* to, 'Lord Derby has the most ample means within his grasp offorming "an administration^powerful,* able, united, and capable of commanding thoroughly the aid of a sufficient .number of members to set faction.at. defiance, even -in tbe present House of-Commons, relying, as-be may do, upontheundoubted fact that, if driven to a dissolution, he will receive the hearty support of the nation in-carrying on the-people's'war. "*lt is understood that as soon as Lord Derby had communicated-to the Queen his inability to form a Ministry, her Majesty -. at ouce commanded the attendance of the Marquis of Lansdowne, who proceeded forthwith to -Windsor, where he arrived at 7>o'clock in theevening, and remained in consultation with ber Majesty until ten. . On Friday morning- the -'Marquis of Lansdowne's conference "with her Majesty was re-newed-^—and 'on* his return to town he sent for Mr/Gladstone. The-right hon. gentleman remained im consultation with-the .noble marquis for about half an-hour„ and then proceeded to the residence of Mr: Sidney Herbert, in Ber--1 keley-square,-where he, was joined by the noble marquis, and alMhree were conferring till near-ly-one o'clock,"when-the ,noble -marquis proceeded to, the residence of Lord John Russell, in Chesham-place, with .whom <he remained in consultation until 'two o'clock, and on leaving Lord Palmerston'hesproceeded to Buckingham Palace, where he-had an audience of the Queen who came up from Windsor in the morning for the special purpose of assisting in the formation of the"administration. "Iff the evening it was stated that-her Majesty 'had commanded the attendance of the Earl of Clarendon, at'Buckingnam Palace, in the course of the afternoon; "and it was very generally rumoured in the House of Commons that the noble earl had been entrusted with the task of forming an administration. " The Standard states, that at ten-minutes after four in the afternoon,' Lord John Russell proceeded to Buckingham Palace, where he had an audience of ber Majesty, which-lasted ■ till half past fire, when the noble lord drove directly to ,the' House of Commons." * f " We"have thus given all-the, facts and gossip known up to the time at which the edition goes to press. We shall note the progress made in our later editions/ "We are-happy to be able to state that the First Lord of the Admiralty, whose -state ofhealth gave serious apprehensions to his friends was last evening considerably better. The right hon. gentleman during the day received numeious visits, but the rumour which prevailed in tbe metropolisHhat the Earl of Derby was one of the number is not correct."

We observe that the Queen has been pleased to appoint Captain Sir Charles Hotham, R. N., X.C.8., now" Lieutenant-Governor of the Colony of Victoria, to be Captain-General and Governor in Chief in and over that Colony. Her Majesty has been pleased to appoint Valentine Fleming, Esq.; to be Chief Justice of the Colony of Van Diemen's Land. Sir Charles Napier s Speech There is a mighty buzz, over all tbe metropolis about the speech of Sir Charles Napier at the Mansionhouse. In the midst of war and peril it is* undoubtedly a most atrocious production. It is treason to the state; a breach of confidence of the public service. It encourages—it informs the enemy. The best apology for it is that made by the blue-water orator's friends, that he is "really—in short, not quite the thing—a good deal older than he was, and getting a little, to say the least of it, eccentric." In fact, Admirals Chads and Seymour were, by the Baltic fleet called his "wet nurses"—and we know of letters by superior officers, written home many months ago, in which they stated-that Sveaborg and Helsingfors could have been certainly and T"nf; Sl-yi taf en .'and tl,at everybody laLhed * °ld T ? ha„ le> f or his caution in the wrong place. The French naval officers were too well bred to say what they -thought of this mi_-

timed prudence; but their politeness only made our bluejackets the more ashamed of our want of enterprise. It will be seen that Jjotd Cardigan represented the Army at the civic banquet with great judgment, good taste, and chivalrous feeling. We have here a true Paladin. He supplies, too, a new fact of that wondrous charge at Balaklava. When he and his remnant of demigods, after having forced bakeries and .routed, ridden through and ridden down 5,200 Kussian horse, they came back again through the awful hell of shot and musketry—and when they gathered themselves together at last on the height, cut off the fire, and saw*the mere l handful that weie left, why even then, comrades and commanders, horses aud riders gone, themselves smeared, all over, with the .clots of Russian .butchery,' they yet, with their grim iron hearts, raised the awe-striking thunder of the British cheer, as if they were even then only gathering to sweep into action. Every incident' of this true romance makesrit more^Ossianic. — Weekly Dispatch. Memorandum.—Horse Guards, Dec. 9. — The Queen has .been i pleased to command-that as a mark of her Majesty's recognition of the meritorious services of-the* non-commissioned officers, of tho army under, tbe command of .Field-Marshal Lord Raglan, in the recent brilliant operations in'the Crimea, the, field-mar-shal shall submit, through the general commanding in chief, the name of one sergeant of each regiment of cavalry, ofthe three battalions of Foot Guards, aud of eveiy regiment of Infantry of the Line, to be promoted to a cornetcy or ensigncy, for her 'Majesty's approval; and, with,a view to render immediately available.the services of these meritorious men, her Majesty has directed that .the field-marshal do appoint, provisionally, and pending her Majesty's pleasure, the sergeants* so recommended, to regiments in the army under his command; and her Majesty has been further graciously pleased* to signify her intention that, on the several recommendations receiving her Majesty's, approval, the commission shall, in each case, bear date the sth Not ember, -,1654. Out of 18 Custom-house officers at Gravesend and under the age of 40, who voluntarily 'offered to accede to the proposition of the Government to proceed to Balaklava for the purpose of assisting in .the Commissariat Department there, 12 have been selected as the quota to be drawn from the Giavesend Custom-house establishment for such purpose. , They are to receive as pay 7s. 6d. a day and rations, and be ' still bdrne-on the Customs books for promotion, as if they had continued in performance of their official duty at home. An English Army Rifle.- The following is a description ofthe English rifle, now being manufactured by thousands for the troops: —in almost every important respect it is a vastly superior weapon to the Russian musket. It is considerably longer, very much lighter, easier to clean and to handle, and of superior workmanship. The way in which,the barrel and stock are connected, is noyel and ingenious. The ban el is encircled and bound fast to tbe stock by thiee irou rings, or clips, of great strength, which are kept in their places by as many spring catches: and the barrel could be unshipped in less th;tn three minutes, simply,by pressing these springs. The lamrod, a neatly turned piece of steel, with cup and sciew,is incomparablj superior to that of the Russian gun. Ihe bayonet is the lightest we hate seen, of finely tempered steel, and the mode of securing it in its place is exceedingly good. The sight is hinged, and lies horizontally on the barrel; it is thrown up to a vertical position by a spiing, and then represents a slit between two pillars, up and down which slides a small piece of metal forming the sight. It is graduated, but rather widely, theie being only four marked points on the scale. Ou the whole the sight piece of the Russian musket seems piefeiable, as more easily used, and less liable to get out of order. In eveiy other respect the English piece beats that of Liege hollow. Here are a few of the relative dimensions and weights:

£__£ °1 °li T skets isah°ut the same length, so that the lock is about the same dis- £?*« IDeai Ch fr,° m, the butt end 5 f>"t the difthe £ enl?i c"% h „f l. he bairels is •onridembte, the British rifle having a barr.l Stfin. longer

than that in use io the Russian army. We need not dwejl -upon ,the aggregate of jthis, greater length of barrel in a rifle, for giving greater steadiness and certainty of direction to the ball. Another'advantage is, that'the 1 Russian piece has only, two' rifled grooves; the British piece has three. A New CzAR.- r _From the Daily Newt.]— Boundless as, was ,the ambition of the' late Emperor, and relentless as was his will,' he was less formidable as au individual than as part of ,the Muscovite system of government. Though he has gone 4o his account, the spirits of«Peter^ the Great and Catherine 11. continute to animate ' the cabinet of St. Petersburgh. ■ .The Muscovite ' party headed by Menschikoff, Siniavin, and the Patriarch of Moscow, which* overpowered the remonstances of Nesselrode, and goaded on the Czar himself to his aggression on Turkey, survives with undiminished strength and unaltered principles, The death of the sovereign cannot hut give a momentary pause to the operations of the Russian Government. The Muscovite $nd German parties may possibly try their, strength in a preliminary struggle to decide who is'to, be Emperor. Constantine, the second son is the favourite ofthe former ; Alexander, the eldest, ofthe latter. From what is known of the feelings and , wishes of Nicholas, it is very, unlikely thathe , will be found to have nominated, like his predecessor, the younger brother heir to the ciown, in preference to the elder. But in Russia a preponderating patty would not shrink from the fabrication of spurious documents ; and the milder Alexandei may be obliged to make way for the, ingrained' Russian Constantine. Until it is known for certain who is Emperor of Russia, and by what councillors he is surrounded, it would be rash,in the Western Powers to' assume .that there will beany immediate change in their relations.to Russia. On the contrary, the doubt and hesitation which the death of Nicholas cannot but' instil into.the councils of the Russian generals in the Cmnea, will present a favouiable oppjrtunity for a home blow at the Muscovite power .in, that peninsula. ' '' l-% The balance of parties in Russia is understood to be somewhat as follows ; —There, is among its .influential statesman what is called the German party, of which Count Nesselrode may be considered the leader and "representative man." This party inclines to act upon those principles of international law which are recognised by tbe other European powers, and to aim at the .assimilation of Russia to the rest of Europe. Opposed to this party is the Russian or Sclavonic party, of'which, as we have said, .Menschikoff, Siniavin, and the Patriarch of Moscow, I may be considered as the leaders and '' reprei sentative men." This party is animated by a desire to preserve and strengthen all the peculiar characteristics of the Russian people, and > to extend the conquests of the empire, and the ascendancy of tlie national faith. , i Except among the nobles of the Baltic proi vinces, and the ineichants of St. Petersburg and Odessa," the German party has few retainers in the body of the people. The Russian party possesses thp sympathies of the Russian,iaci*"in &<> far as they ever tiouble their heads about public matters. Nesselrode, the only man of note or ability among the Germans, possesses consideiable tact and'skill in diplomatic intrigue, but has been alwa)s too much of a courtier to say " No" to any will of his master. The Russian party is more turbulent and selfwilled, and is undeistood to have goaded on the late Czar to attempt the fulfilment of the ambitious projects of Peter and Catherine more pie--1 cipitately than Nicholas himself desiied. Menschikoff is a mere soldier, but of a strong will. , Siniavin, the pupU of Nesselrode, rivals his i mastei in his tact and talent for intrigue, but is | a bigoted Sclavonian. From the peculiar feelings cherished by tho Russians towards their priesthood, it is difficult to conjecture what is the exact character or amount of the influence of the Patriarch. The power of tbe Russian paity appears to have predominated during the latter yeais of the reign of Nicholas. Its influence, based as il is' upon national piejudice, .will probably be increased during the earlier years of a new reign. If Alexander ascends the throne, he will be its leluctant instrument; if Constantine, he will be its willing instrument aud leader. The imme-, diate policy of the Russian Government wjll'depend, in a great measure, upon tbe extent to which the pressuie of the war has begun to be felt. If the merchants are embarrasted in their

circumstances, if the nobles feel their luxuries | curtailed, if -the people" have become sore, and irritable under the conscription, their policy will be temporising. " < But, temporising or audacious, the objects of tlie Russian Government, to thwart and bafle and for which the Western Powers are now in arms, will not be relinquished.'

Tpn-rti, ~c ', . Britiih. Russian. With bayonet fixed 6ft. lin.- ,5ft. sin. Weight of musket alone.... 81b. 6oz. 101b. Ooz I Weight of bayonet........ oib. 10o_. "b 14o_! TH'° f7, ket.4b^ Bt 91b- °°^ 11 lb. Hoz.