The Aberdare Times

CAPITULATION OF LA FERE. Versailles, Nov. 27. La Fire has capitulated after two days' bombardment. Seventy guns and 2.000 men were taken. In the night of the 26th the southern forts of Paris kept up a severe fire. On the occasion of the reconnoitring skirmishes near Orleans on the 24th two brigades of the 10th Corps fell in with the French 20th Corps, which was advancing. Our troops inflicted a considerable loss upon the enemy, drove him from his position at Ladon and MfizlSres, and took 146 prisoners. Our loss was 200. On the 26th several French companies advanced against the 10th Corps, and were repulsed, leaving 40 killed on the spot. Among the prisoners taken Is a General. Our loss was three officers and 13 men.

DEFEAT OF THE GARIBALDIANS. Dijox, Nov. 27. By yesterday's reconnaissance, Garibaldi was ascertained to have set out from Pasques at dawn. Oar foreposta of the Third Infantry Division being vigorously attacked were suc- coured by the battalion Unger, which repulsed the charge at fíO paces distant. The enemy fled In disorder, throwing away arms and baggage. To-day General Werder attacked with three brigades, and, turning the enemy by way of PlomblSres, came up with his rear at Pasques. The enemy lost between 800 and 400 killed and wounded our loss on both days was about 50. Menotti Garibaldi is reported to have commanded on the 26th.

DEFEAT OF THE ARMY OF THE NORTH. MORNPIL, Nov. 28. Yesterday till after dark a victorious battle was fought by the 1st Army Oorps against the advancing Northern Army of the French. The enemy, though superior In numbers and well armed, was repulsed, with the loss of several thousard men, towards the River Somme and the intrenched position near Amiens. A French battalion of Marines was ridden over by the 9th Hussars. Oar loss is not inconsiderable.

PROCLAMATION AT AMIENS. LILLE, Nov. 23. General Count Goeben, has occupied Amiens. The following proclamation has been issued at Amiens by the Prefect of the Department of the Somme :— Citizens !—The day of trial has arrived. Notwithstand- ing my efforts Amiens is about to fall into the hands of the enemy. A council of war has decided on the retreat of the Army cf the North and on the disarmament of the National Guard. I have to leave you for the present, but hope to return soon. Remain calm and confident, and France will be saved. Lang live France Long live the Republic IILLB, Nov. 29. The following communication has been published from the Prefecture :— "The Commissary for the National Defence segrets to have to announce the following to his fellow-citizens :— "Yesterday (Sunday) the portion of the 22nd Army Corps covering Amiens was attacked on its whole line oy very superior forces. The struggle was long and fierce. At twenty-five minutes past seven General Farre telegraphed —Fight was apparently well commenced and well sustained up to half-past four o'clock. At seven I was obliged to abandon VilIers-Bretoneux before superior forces. The marine infantry soldiers were magnificent. But towards two o'clock In the morning the news arrived that after a council held by the chiefs, retreat was deemed indispensable. Datails are still wanting as regards the main facts of the day and also the number of our losses. We only know that the Mobile battalions did not suffer much. The Commissary for the Defence, A. TMTEEM. "Monday, Nov. 28,1870."

LOOKING THEM UP The Gaulois states that a citizen zealous for the public weal, and, above all, a friend of justice, took the trouble to take a census of three streets in his own arrondissement His object waB to Increase the strength of the Parls garrison and to relieve some husbands and fathers belonging to the National Guard who had been incorporated Into the war companies. He found 63 men who were not enrolled either as sedentarles, mobiles, or regulars. Thirty-four of them were unmarried, and he reported them at the Mayoralty. They will, therefore, be called on for active service, and will enable so many married men to rejoin the sedentary National Guards. The Gaulois recommends others to follow the citizen's example, especially mothers, as the result would be that husbands would be able to remain at their homes. It believes that if these recreants were hunted up they would form a division of 10,000 or 12,COO men.

DOTTING DOWN A FEW INCIDENTS Dr. Horn, of the Cologne Gazette, gives a few incidents attending the advance ot Prince Frederick Charles's H»ad- Quarters from Metz. At Vouleye»He-Cb&teau, his kort, a man nearly 70, remembered the passage of General Blttcher along the same road in 1814. Like all the French, he be- lieved Baziine had sold the army. At Jolnvllle his host insisted that the Emperor, being unable to keep on the throne any longer sold France for a specified sum to the King of Prussia. At Troyes many Prussian soldiers at- tended mass In the Cathedral, forming. Indeed, a msjorlty of the worshippers, for the French churches seemed surpris- ingly empty to Germans. The Bishop walked through the, ranks of those present, blessing them, but on coming to a group ot Prussian soldiers he let his hand tall, and did not raise It again until he eaw French faoes before him. The writer's host at Troyes and his family gave him a very courteous reception. Politics were warmly discussed, and at partlDg the host exclaimed, "What Government Is destined for ua-who can tell? We do not like the Re- public, but still less the Emperor, whose dynasty is an Im- possibility for France. Perhaps, under the pressure of cir- cumstances, we should be inclined to the Orleans dynasty, but there is one thing we desire with all our heart and soul —peace."

BESIEGED FARE. A correspondent of the Food Journal says Cat is eaten and sold openly in Paris and although I never had the pleasure of partaking of a civet of the kind—to my knowledge—I can assure you that cats are relished by a good many people, and are quoted at 6 francs each, while dog Is quoted at 4 franc the half animal. I have, however, doubts about the dog. One Journal declares that more than 24,000 cats have been sold and eaten. A student in medicine sent the following note to a friend Come on Saturday to sty rooms and fat a broiled cat, seasoned with pistachio nuts, olives, gherkins, and pimento, and washed down with Chablin. After dinner we will drink some Rhenish wine to the indivisibility of France." At a good house the other day—the house ot a gourmet-tl3e bill of fare was Met de cheval esealoppet d'anon, plum pudding, à graisse de bceuf.

HAD ENOUGH OF HIS PRIZE On Saturday the German schooner Elid6. Captain Fescher, was brought into Grimsby Roads by a French prtzemaster, M. Bonzo, and a priZ1 crew of five men belonging to the French despatch boat Hcrmitte. The Elide was captured on the 7th, when off the Texel, by the Hermitte. Her crew were made prisoners of war and sent to Dunkirk. She is one of 16 ships that left Bremen together on the 5th or 8 th Inst., and six of these have been taken by the French fleet. Prize- master Bonzo put into the Viie, but the Dutch authorities ordered him to leave. Strange to say, he has been beating about with the Elide in bid weather, heavy seas, and con- trary winds for nearly three weeks. Not being able to make the port of Dunkirk, and baing short of provisions, he was compelled to put into the Grimsby Roads for a supply, and has had quite enough of his prize.

WAR'1i ATTENDANT MISERIES. A Havre paper gives some interesting details of the oc- cupation of Chartres by the Prussians. The first thing they did was, as usual, to "require all the tobacco and cigars in the place. Prince Albert of Prussia, the Prince of Saxony, and General Wittich were there, and in the town, up to the date of the letter, discipline was severe, and no excesses had been committed. As an instance of the discipline enforced it is mentioned that a soldier was shot for stealing a watch. "But In the country," the letter continues, "the farms, villages, and hamlets, there Is dally pillage. Corn In sheaves is given as litter to the horses, sacks of oats are cut open and their contents poured out and squandered, casks of wine are stove in. If some unhappy peasant dares resist, if a Freeshooter comes to his aid, if a shot is heard, the rage of the Prussians knows no bounds, and villages, hamlet, or farm is quickly burnt. A little town, Courville. was completely sacked on thepretext that a Freeshooter had pointed his rifle at a Uhlan;"

YREE TRADE. Passing along the Boulevard de Batignolles I came upon a grocer's shop that had been'sacked. It appears the keeper had hidden a quantity of cheese In his eellar, hoping to set it later at ten time* its value. The fact got spread about In the neighbourhood, and a mob of ronghs broke into the shop. The National Guard, however, soon set matters right. The cheese was unoellared, and sold by auction In front of the shopkeeper's own door This Is free trade with a vengeance. She Government, to avoid the repetition of such scenes, Is about to take stock of the quantity of provisions remaining In the shops.—Pans correspondent of Echo.

A GUERILLA WAR. Herr Wachenhcsan, writing on the 20th, from Dugny, to the Cologne Gazette, says "The guerilla war is now in full progress. This excites much bitterness among our troops. The soldiers say they no longec know with whom they have to deal. They are ordered to treat as soldiers all who have any sort of military uniform. They have the con- sciousness, however, that they have to combat with an armed bourgeoisie. The Franc-Tireur seems of late to have quite disappeared. Even the prisoners in the dark blue woollen blouses and bright blue belts now call thenu elves Mobile Guards, and indeed are so. At bottom it Is quite immaterial whether they exhibit credentials as Franc-Tlreurs or Mobiles. They are not at all to be feared whoever they are. They are simply a lot of the scrapings from all ranks of society in the name of the country, under the name of the Republic. They are not good for anything in the open field It Is only when they stand sheltered up to their necks that they fire their shots, taking to flight as soon as ou young fellows advance. It would, however, be a mistake to suppose that the army opposed to us consists solely of impressed or volunteer citizens, or of raw levies. We have certainly had several marching regiments before us, and still have. At Torcay parts of six different regiments took part in the engagement, all practised seldlers." After mentioning the retreat of the French from Sevonches and La Loupe, and their evident anxiety to avoid a battle, he adds:—" The enemy exhibits a feverish haste, through fear of being sur- r°xiri«ea d la Sedan, for the fate of MacMahon's army is a ■waning to them, and they descry everywhere Moltke s net, to slip out of which is the chief task. They have thus inscribed native qui peut on their banners, and, since Conlnilers, have remained on the running defensive. It will be seen, therefore, that the Grand Duke of Mecklen- burgs division has some diffi uUy in getting at this heroic band. The news of the possibility of a E iropean complica- tion causes us greater anxiety than the enemy before us. The troops long to hear that the bombardment of Paris has begun, I bear that all the guns are in position, and that there is ammunition for ten days, daring which more might he brought up."

THE WOUNDED AT VERSAILLES. The North German Gazette gives an account of the mili- tary hospital at Versailles. The wounded are placed in the picture galleries, the large windows of which are opened, so that the air Is kept pure. Every patient has a bed, with one or two mattresses, two blankets, and clean sheets. The body linen and sheets have often. from the nature of the wounds, to be changed dally, and in five weeks 7 9i6 articles have had to be washed, without reckoning a large number ot bandages, and 366 mattresses. The Gallirie des Bat mile 8 is devoted to the medicines, and the thousand other requisites. The food Is prepared in two Jdtchenlln different wings of the place, in order to expedite Its passage to the hospital rooms. Be- sides the usual diet of meat, white bread, and wine, ham, sausages, fruit, champagne, &c., are provided for the severely wounded. The fruit is supplied by the palace gardens, and the champagne Is the gift of the King of Prussia, who dally sends orderlies with newspapers and frequently delicacies. The King and the Crown Prince often visit the patients, making lympathetic inquiries of each, consoling and en- couraging the suffering, and rejoicing with the convalescent. Th ise not confined to their beds can walk out oa the beauti- ful terrace, and even the bedridden are placed there when the weather permits, in order to strengthen body and mind by the splendid prospect Smoking, newspaper reading, and letter writing go on, nor are friendly visits and religious conversation wanting, whileDivlne service is frequently held in the large apartments.

THE LITTLE TOWN THAT LODGED THREE ILLUSTRIOUS MEN How little did the inhabitants of Raucourt, who six months ago were given up to the peaceful occupation of sup- plying France with buckles, anticipate that their little town was destined to acquire the celebrity of having lodged the Emperor Napoleon one night, and the Prince of Prussia and Bismarck the night after. The modest little room in which I am writing is pointed out by my landlady as that in which the great Bismarck slept, so I feel bound to chronicle the event. As long as Bis- marck was In the house no pillaging took plice, although- the landlord only kept aggressors off by threatening them with Bismarck upstairs. But, alas! as socm as Bismarck's back was turned upon Raucourt, in rushed the soldiers, and made free with everything they fancied, espe- cially the wine cellar. As soon as I had given him. Bis- marck, his coffee,' to let the landlady speak for herp-eU, off he went with his three generals and fourteen subordinates. Then, as I was dressing my little boy, came a soldier with a fixed bayonet, which he pointed at me—me, who am so afraid of guns. I made iure he meant to kill us both, and Bed away to the nuns over the way.' "—Newspaper Correspondent.

A "BALLOON CANNON" FOR THE "BALLOON POST The balloon post is threatened with a new enemy. The Cologne Gazette mentions the passage through the town on Saturday of a balloon cannon, constructed by Krupp at Essen. It consists of a platform resting on four wheels, movable in all directions, from the centre of which an iron cylinder 5ft. high rises obliquely. In the upper part of thia fixed cylinder a tolerably short gun Is Inserted, movable In all directions. The arrangement is something like that of Ifti-ge stationary telescopes. The rang of the gpin it 1,300 or 1,500 feet.

THE DAILY EXPENSE OF THE WAR TO GBMANT. The expense of the war to North Germany, aocording to the Cologne Gazette, Is more than a million thalers (a thaler is about 3s.) per day. It has already cost 119,000,000, or, Including the marine, 121,000,000 thalers. A new loan having beoome necessary, the proposal of the Government is that they should have general authority to borrow 100,000,000 thalers, it being contended that it is neither politically nor economically advantageous to depend on foreigners, and that Germans are rich enough to advanoe the necessary finds. Austria, Russia, Italy, and Turkey are cited in proof of the undeslrability of raising a loan abroad.

THE "PIGEON" P03T The Gaulois of the 25th of November announces the arrival in Paris, on the evening of the 23rd, of a pigeon which left Orleans the same morning. The Intelligence con- veyed by that medium was regarded as highly satisfactory, proving, as it did, the French retention of Orleans and the improbability of its reconquest by the Germans. The pigeon expresses hitherto have worked tolerably well, but occa- sional failures are unavoidable. A lofty tower of an hotel in the Rue de Grenelle has been converted into a pigeon- house where the birds are trained for future employment, and there are Blmllar establishmentr; at La Villette, the Fau- bourg St. Denis, Boulevard Mont Parnasse, and Boulevard des Batignolles.

THE ArPEAKANCE OP THE GARIBALDI AN CAMP. Achille B'zsonI, writing from Bourg on the 10th, thus gives his first impression of the Garibaldlan camp :—" We seem here In the midst of a bal masqwZ. Thousands of different costumes are to be seen. Children, at most 16 years old, are camping in the mud of the fields, scarcely covered with a thin blue blouse, like those worn by our carters. The Bretons and French Garibaldians wear low broad-brimmed hats. like those in the opera Dinorah. The Frano-Tlreurs all dress unlike each other. The Mobiles Intermixed with the last remnants of the Line, a few Hussars between the dragoons and Chasseurs d'A'rique who escaped from the Prussians at Sedan ard Metz hospital attendants, with the red cross on a white field, and amid this mass of soldiers, who are not serious but careless, a number of women and children who wander through the field, in order to avoid the terrible enemy,—Buch is the picture whieh presents itself to me,"

AN INTERENCB TO BE DRAWN. Two days sffo (writes the Daily News Correspondent at Tours), I was quite sccidentally witness to a fact, the political Importance of which, if any, I have no means of ap- preciating, but which, possibly, may be very precious to the many spies ol various parties now in Tours. I frefly make them a present of it. At precisely ten minutes to four I saw M. Thiers' hawk. like face peeping out of the window of a brougham which turned Into the court-yard of the Hotel de Bouleaux. I had the curiosity to halt for a moment to see the great old Minister, the author of the Paris fortifications, of which he has now good reason to be proud, as he came out of the carriage. Another person, whom I at first sup- posed to be a secretary, stepped out first, politely held the door, and very cordlallY-M any gentleman enjoying M, Thiers' society would be likely to do—squeezed his hand. The personage who, after giving him a ride In his carriage, thus took leave of M. Thiers was Lord Lyons, the British Ambassador. Now let the powers of the world dsaw their inferences.

GENERAL CAMBRIELS' APPEAL. General Cambriels, now an invalid at Lagrasse (Aude), writes to M. Gambetta, as his natural protector," to com- plain that while passing through the littletown of Lcalgnan, on hLa way from Montpellier, his carriage was surrounded by a mob of men and women, who Insulted and threatened him. The general is aware that the manifestation was owing to certain Journals which have described him as the traitor CambrieIe." He is accused of having abandoned the Veøges passes, which wero easy te defend. His defence Is shortly thit: ne was wounded in the head by a BpHnter from a shell at Sedan. He escaped to Mezleres on September 11 with three oolonels and. IeveJIal officers, who, like himself wer« prisoners of war, and had refused to give their parole. M. Gambetta knows better than anybody how readily ttle instant he arrived in Paris he offered his serviees to the country and the "Republic." He Wall appointed commander- in-chief of the Belfort district, and acoepted it, although his wound was far from cured. Thence he was called by the presence of the enemy In the Yosges, but loon found that with the 10,000 or 11,100 badly-armed troops which he had that It was Impossible to hold the positions against a f( roe of So,C00 men with a good deal of art111ery. A Council of war unanimously agreed in his opinion, that the right course was not to sacrifice the nu- cleus of an important army to a local interest, but to retire to Besanç 1n, collect his scattered troops, and equip and organize them, together with reinforcements. AU this he did. He repulsed two attacks, and. for the flrtt time since the beginning of this war charged the enemy with the bayonet. He left behind him with his aucceslortwo organized divisions, numbering 20,000 men, a reserve of 8,000 and a Mobile column of 6,000. And now he demands a court- martial to justify his conduct. It is remarkable that the name of Garibaldi, with whom General Cambriels was called upon to co-operate before he gave up his oommand, Is not mentioned in his letter.

SPEAKING OUT In the North German Parliament on Saturday the war loan, aa has already been announced by telegraph, was ap- proved, only four members dissenting. One of these, Herr Bebel, excited great uproar by his defence of the present French Government, and hia denunciation of the annexa- tion of Alsace and Lorraine. He commented on the fact that, of the last loan of 100,000,000 thalers, only 68,000,000 had been subscribed as a proof that the much-vaunted patriotism of the people were worth very little where money matters was concerned. The loudest talkers, he said, If ealled on to advance money, waited to see whether the necessary percentage would fall Into their pockets. At this there was a great disturbance, and the President, amid great applause, stated that If the speaker continued to abuse hia own nation in this style he should not allow him to proceed. "I have shown towards you," he remarked, a forbearance and respect without pre- cedent, because you are here In so small a minority." Herr Babel then resumed speaking, amid continuous disturbance. Herr Lasker, who followed him, observed that no assembly iu the world would so long have endured such 2. apeech neither the English nation nor the French, so much praised by Herr Babel, would allow a man to make so anti-national a speech as had Just bean delivered. Another of the minority, Herr Llebknecht, afterwards spoke. He Insisted that the policy af the Government was In no way national, or the German Austrlans would not have been shut out, and that the war was directed against Republicanism. Why, he asked, was nothing done for the Germans in the Baltic provinces? Because Russia was a 4Iespotlc state. Had peace been concluded after the fall of the Empire, Ger- many, he said, would now be one, and in a different way from what was now possible. At this point he was called to order by the President, as ontstepplng the extremest limits, on which he exclaimed—" Thts is the boasted liberty of dlscuseion. The Opposition in Paris were never treated like schoolboys. They were interrupted, indeed, but they were allowed to speak." The President again, amid cheers, called him to order, and Herr Llebknecht went on to argue that the Government contemplated the Emperor's restora- tion, alluding, as a proof of this, to Count Bismarck's un- deniable negotiations with the Empress.

A "SPEOLLL" ON THB nowL :rOB ITEMS." It was a dull night, starless, and heavy, with the clouds of impending storm and rain. Silence reigned over the streets; the lights of the lamps fallen the shadowless boulevards In unbroken streams; the Houses in long rows lined the thoroughfares noiseless and lifeless. A clock in a church spire struck" One From the quiet of a side street a soli- tary figure emeued and passed the line of leafless trees of the BLue des Reservoirs H halted at the door of an hostelry close to the guieket, where two men snored in unison. By the feeble ray an observer could perceive oa the head ot one a leathern helmet with a bran eaglo In front and a brass spike on the top—on the head of the other a 08p with a peak, like the owquette of PSre Brfgsaud, and if he wette a man of nlUtorjr discrimination he would arrive at the eoneluslou that a Prussian aad a Frenchman were dedlo&Mngthe hour to sleep in sweet Identity of purpose. The solitary does not seesa to discriminate. On the contrary, he pulls at the bell ol the humble hostelry, he knocks at the door with his hand, he kicks with his foot. Silence still; the solitary waxes im- patient and becomes obstreperous. Bchub wakes up, and, rubbing his eyes, looks out of the porte of his guithet ex- elaimlng Wer da ? and Petit, of the Municipals, prepares tor a sortie on the midnight wanderer. Tingle! thump kick At last a light appears in the hostelry, the door is opened, the stranger bounds in, and as the light falls on his face a dark figure glides from under a lamppost, and ex- claims, It Is he!" But the door Is closed, and tho solitary stranger vanishes. The dark figure belongs to an Intrepid special. He has seen the face; it Is that of the British Envoy. He has dogged him from the Bund's-Kanzlal, at the portals ef which he left him at ten o'clock, or a little later in the night. For It Is In the city of Versailles this event takes place; it is Mr. OJo Russell who Is the solitary stranger, and the dark figure belongs to a very active special corre- spondent on the prowl far items. Mr. James would have treated the subject In some such manner—far more artisti- cally, no doubt-the subject being.06 nocMlrnal visit of Mr. Odo Russel to Count Bismarck, and his return to his hotel after midnight, and the first "wee small hour ayont the twal," through the silent desert of VeBiallles.—Times' Correspondent at the Head-Quarters, Versailles.

NOT SO NEAR THEIR LAST DATS AS THE ENEMY THINKS The Temps of the 24th says :—"We are by no means so near our last days as the enemy thinks. Towards the end of August, when a siege had seriously to be prepared for, £ }8n(5?reS W€o2r Provide provisions for two months; 30,000 oxen, 225,000 sheep, 89,600 cows, and 110,000 swine were to be brought into the city, hut when the 19th of Sep- tember arrived and the siege realty began, flJ'OOO oxen and 75,000 sheep were deficient, besides more tCn half toe cows and almost all the swine. Flour and corn however were largelY provided. It was necessary, therefore af'er a short time to rcdnce the meat rations by a half, and then to distribute these only every second or third day. The allowance was at first 200 grammes per day, then 100 per day, then 100 for two days, and now iro far three days. In a few days wo shan have only horseflesh It is not true, as Is asserted, that we shall have salt meat for several weeks. What we possess will in a short time be consumed. Salting has been less resorted 11 than was desired. One paper alleges that we have flsh for tan days. This says much, and the question Is what to believe as to the alleged stores. It ia an exaggeration to say that we could live on the rice, oil, and chosolate for five months. Oil is already be- coming scarce. Sugar and coffee will not fail us, nor wine, though it would by DO means llut us a year. III Is certain that we have bread enough for far into January without need of rationing It. Rice, sugar, coffee, wine, and bread will enable us, if necessary, to prolong the resist- ance, and even maintain our strength. Paris can feed on horseflesh as long as on bread. For the next month there- fore, our food wiU not be materially modified, and ia the following month we shall be tolerably nourished. Two months' siege was the maximum estimated. Paris will double this maximum, and even more, if the safety of the Slate requires it." The Temps adds that if the siege con- tinues, SCO,000 or 600,000 persons must be gratuitously fed, and that an organization for this purpose will be necessary, The municipal canteens, already much frequented, will daily become more important.

ITEMS OF THE WAR. The German editors have been officially cautioned against printing correspondence on military movements. The Gaulois has appeared with an article against M. Gambetta, whom It designates the tyrant of Tours." The new forts of Metz are being completed and armed by Prussian engineers. The officers of the garrison, expecting to remain there, have sent for their families. There are at present in Germany upwards of 25,000 widows and 120,000 fatherless children owing to the losses in the Landwehr corps. It is asserted that a man has contrived to pass through the Prussian lines, and entered Paris on the 15th Inst., bearing 300 letters and a few newspapers. Alsatian Mobiles, prisoners of war, who own real property, are released on signing a document signifying their consent to the confiscation 01 their land if they fight again against Germany. The Paris Figaro of the 18th inst. conjures the Government to dispense with all sorties, convene the National Assembly, and conclude peace, relief having become impossible sinee the retreat of the Loire Army. A message from Cassel of the 21st inst. says:—"The ex- Emperor had a long interview with Bazaine to-day. Tho marshal was summoned from his hotel to a villa which had b=en got ready for him, where the Emperor awaited him." The French papers state that General Karzler, late Com mander-In-Chief ef the Papal army, remains in Rome. Being a Bavarian by birth he was unwilling to return to bis country, where he would be called upon to fight agtiast his late brethren in arms. The Socialist democrats in the German Parliament have resolved to vote against the war expenditure on the ground that the war is now one of conquest against the French Re- public, which is forcibly to be deprived ef Alface and Lorraine against the wishes of the population. The Esperance du peuple hears that among the wouuded soldiers at Cateaudun is a soldller who declares Mtatheisa Russian and not a Prussian. He adds that more than 20,000 Russian regular soldiers are at this moment serving in the Prussian ranks by special permission of the Cur. A correspondent of the New York World has interviewed Count Bismarck. "For me," said the Chanoeller, "the great object of the war never lay on this bank of the Rhine, but on the other side, where I hoped should exist one great country, one great people, and one gNat Emperor." Dr. Bamberg, formerly Prussian Consul-General in Paris and residing at Berlin since the outbreak of the war, has been summoned to the Royal Headquarters to make a report on the question of Alsace and Lorraine. It is stated that M. Roehefort, having persisted in retirlig from the Government, has entered the military service as a gunner in an artillery corps, but intends immediately to resume the publication ol his well known Journal, the Lanternt. The preservers of rats for'the Paris market have a simple way of catching them. They dig holes in the common sewer where these animals most abouud they fill the holes with glutinous matter highly sweetened, the rats run eagerly into the holes, and once there, of course not being able to get out again, are quietly taken. A letter from Ostend of the 26th inst. says that the Lord Warden, from Folkestone, brought over to that part on the previous day a shipment of gold in ingots of the value of 16; millions of francs for the Prussian Government, this being the third arrival of the same character In Ostend within a w ek. These amounts are said to form part of a total of 10 >,000,000fr. The Hestische Slorgen Zeitung says:—"Marshil Bszaine has taken a villa in Cassel til Easter. Madame Bazaine, a handsome lady of about 25 years of age, has brought with her her two children-one three years and the other 18 months old. Bazalne's six officers of ordonnance'—a gene- ral, a colonel, two captains, and two lieutenants—will re- main near him. A Paris correspondent of the Indipendanee Edge states that the authorities in that city have adopted the plan cf issuing rations of salt and fresh meat alternately, so as to economise as far as possible the supplies remaining in the capital It is added that very large contracts have been effected by the Government with grazlers and cattle-dealers outside for the supply of oxen and sheep either in the event of an armhtlce or of a successful sortie. Dr. Guigne, jun., surgeon-major, writes to say that on the 4th November he visited Marshal MacMahon at Pourru-aux- Bois. fib wounds are nearly healed; one of them bas already closed. He can walk a little, and takes drives in a carriage. He will have to be careful for some time, but no doubt is felt that ultimately his cure will be complete and that no 111 effects will arise from the wounds. Le Havre states that "M. AntoineMonard (Paul Gramat), editor of the Avenirde I'Auch, arrived on Sunday at Rouen, after passing through the German army round Paris. M. Monard states that last Tuesday a Bavarian soldier fired at King William between Louveciennes and Bougival. The King was not struck the ball passed within a few inches of his head. The soldier was immediately arrested and shot." A correspondent of the Nord says he has seen M'Mahon's report on the affair of Sedan. The Marshal entirely excul- pates the Emperor, by whom, he states, he was left com- pletely unfettered. Disown intention had been to retreat with the army to Paris, but he yielded at last to precise or- ders of the Empress, which were inspired by MM. Rouher and de Pallkao. The promenaders of the Jardin des Plantes in Parts be- come daily aware of the diminishing number of animals which are exhibited there. The horned animals have nearly all disappeared, and the two young bears presented by Prince Couza have also gone the way of all flesh in Paris other than human-that is, to the restaurant. Birds allo are becoming few, but eagles and other birds of prey, not being suitable for the cuisine, are still to be seen in their accustomed cages. A Ittter from a soldier before Paris, referring to the first fall of snow and M. Gambetta's prebable exultation over the shivering GerMMs, 18Y1. We put another log on the fire and tranquilly read that blankets are already pro- vided for the outposts, that furs are on the way for the sentries, and that fresh presents dally arrive, until every- body will be supplied with warm underclothing. Anxious souls at home need not, therefore, be uneasy. Things are not so bad as they mostly imagine, and nobody can now say that he has to suffer privations, even if he makes no use of the deiirabie things offered by the numerous sutlers esta- bll8hed here." The Gazette de France states that M. Galvez, Minister of Peru, being anxious to quit Paris, requested a safe etncuot from M. de Bismarck, who nftued it. Important affairs and the illness of his wife in London induced M. Galveeto deter- mine to leave Paris at flH ri,b. He therefore quitted the city, and on arriving at the Prussian lines he was at once anested, but, declaring his diplomatic character, he insisted on being allowed to pass. Reference was made to Versailles, whence, two hours later, came an order to allow the diplo- matist to proceed on his Journey. A singular accident befell asergeant of Chasseurs in the ac- tion at Chevilly. While taking aim his gun received a vio- lent shock. No damage was visible at the first glance, but the mechanism seemed Injured and did not work easily. He bad to take it to the workshop for repairs when it was dli- covered that a Prussian ball had lodged In the barrel. A cannon was disabled in this manner at the siege of Rome in 1849, when one of the enemy's balls lodged In the chamber which already contained ihe charge. At Chateauneuf a large party of Germans is billeted In the house of a French lady, who has boldly held her ground, and entertains the enemy with the utmost suavity and dignity, as U she had invited them as her most cherished friends. One night a lieutenant and sixty men who had been engaged In the fight in the wood an hour and a half previously invaded the mansion, and showed their billets for q'larte'. So up the staircase they tramped with bayonets fixed, and boots and clothes solleil and torn by the recent combat, with the hostess, bearing a light, leading the way, and smothering her grief and indignation with a self-control which com- manded the warmest admiration. The German field post transmitted, between the 16th of July and the 15th of Nsvember, 49200,000 letters, being an average of 400,000 letters per day. 16 also conveyed 27,67\C00 thalers for soldiers' psfy and other public pur- poses, 2.7(6,000 thalers to soldiers from their friends, 1,>50,000 thalera from soldiers to their friends, 80,750 parcels on public business, and 400,020 newspapers. The private parcel post, which was opened on the 15th of October, conveyed up to the 18th of November 724,923 parcels, whictl filled 45,062 sacks and required the services of 823 railway trucks and many hundreds ot carts. As an instance of the patriotism with whiclyill classes in France are imbued, I may mention that the President 01 the Civil Tribunal at Morlalx—a man between fifty and tlxty years of .age—has with the aid of his son, formed a company of Francg-tlreurs, and marched them to meet the enemy. The body thus raised consists of smart, active young fellows, the sons of shopkeepers, with a leaveuing of peasants. Each man has found his own kit, and is armed with an old muzzle- loader, which he expects to change for a Cnassepot when he comes to the front"—Correspondent of Daily Telegraph.

A VISIT TO AMIENS. The following narrative is from a Correspondent 01 the Standard :— Thinking there might, from all accounts, be some possibility of an encounter, I took the first train in the morning from Amiens. It was so crowded with troops going to the front that I could only get a seat in a third-class carriage. I had no reason to regret it. I never met with greater courtesy and kindness. You can guess my astonishment at being addressed in un- deniable English by a soldier in the uniform of a chaaeeur j a thick-set, bull-necked, squarely-built fellow, with a bright eye and clear healthy complexion. My friend was no less than a quondam London prize- fighter, who not finding of late yeais sufficient scope in England for his art had travelled for eighteen months on the Continent as a gentleman's servant, but immediately the war broke out lid undying en- thusiasm for the noble art, on a grand scale, as he described it, induced him to enlist against the Pius- sians. His science made him at once the terror and delight of his regiment. He was evidently a great favoarite, and his popularity axoie from a victorious eceounVei with a champion wrestler, known as the BLtck Bear of Normandy; and after some outpost skirmishing near Orleans, he was seen returning with two gigantic Uhlans, whom he had singly captured— in what manner no one exactly knew—for with all his prowess he was no braggart, and the story was told me with the most supreme satisfaction by his sous ojlicier. The curious part was that he had been Blightly wounded in the lip, later on, and taken prisoner. On my arrival at Amiens I found the utmost excite- ment prevailing, but not the remotest symptoms of fear. The s«ldiers_ literally swarmed in the strtets, and I was credibly informed that there were, at leaat, 30,000 troops within and in the immediate vicinity of the city. Taking one lock at the grand old cathedral, I started at once, though in opposition to the advice of a colonel of the line to whom I had been speaking, for the camp, about a mile or two from Amiens. Barri- cades of really practical value, and calculated to do good service, were thrown up at the end of those streets leading ia the direction of the Prussians while huge heaps of stones and pavements collected from vari- rious roads and unfinished buildings, lay ready at hand for further meaus of defence. 1 found that there weue really five or six camps, some two miles from each other, or more properly speaking, barracks built completely of wood. The officers'quarters were distinguished from the rest by the rudeet attempts at windows and panes of glass, while in the men's huts the light was only admitted by the open doom at either end. Howevtr, they seemed thoroughly comfortable and excellently ventilated. Along the road facing the first camp I came to WHe several vivandiercs, seated at their several stalls, with abundance of wine, brandy, bread, fruit, cigars, &c,, for sale. Round the different building, quite in the open, the men were buHlly en gaged at the camp fires on their own and the officers' cuisine. Hearing on all sides that the Prussians were but a few miles distant, I could not resist the temptation to go further on into the country, in the hope of catching a sightof some of their advanced outpoetp. I arrived at the last French battery mounting twoguns, and manned by a company of Chasseurs a Pied. I was at once surrounded and placed under arrest. I produced my assport, but the officer in command l ad evidently never before seen a similar document, and immediately sent me, guarded by sixchasseursand a corporal, to headquarters at the nearest camp, I underwent a formal and somewhat strict examination in the pre- sence of-four or five (officers-none of whom understood a word of English. They, again, were unabie to com- prehend the meaning of my passport, but were most courteous and gentle, and after an hour or so liberated me. After my release I went to the cathedral to witness the last service of the Triduum. The light of the oil lamps gave an impression of still greater siza to the cathedral, and seemed to increase its massive propor- tions fourfold. What conveyed to me a most perfect idea of the immense space was the distant effect of the huge bell. It took some time to realise that it was in the btlcry of the church, and not at the other end of the [ town. Suddenly an opening was made in the crowd, and the people drew tenderly and almost reverently back, as the wounded Boldier3, who were just able to move, crept feebly in. Three of them were mere boys, certainly not above 18 or 20. One had lestboth his arms, another was barely supported by crutches, and the third, the youngest looking of all, was half carried in the arms of bis father, a hopeless cripple for life. Nothing touched me more than the womanly devotion of their comrades to these poor sufferers, and the pains they took to place them in comfortable positions. A deep hush fell upon the people as the venerable archbishop, pre- ceded by over one hundred priests, deacons and sub- deacons, commenced the procession. Each held a large lighted caudle, which threw a singular glare through the long cathedral shadows on the groined roof. I was particulary struck with the little choristers. They were all dressed in pure white, and never in my life have I looked on more beautiful faces than some of them. They were more like quaint pictures by old masters. They sang wonderfully sweetly and with admirable precision, and showed the evidence of perfect training. But the best effect was the voices of the one hundred priests, singing in unison the grand Gregorian Miserere and Parce Domine," and when the immense number of human beings in the cathedral responded every alternate verse it was like a'massive wave of music surging through the church, creating at first a sensation of halt bewilder- ment followed by a feeling of pure delight. Once, when the procession knelt before an altar, and there was a pause of universal silence, the sharp nhrill blast of a trumpet calling to arms was heard with startling significance. Every one felt that something unusual had occurred, but I was surprised to see that no one left the church. When the procession was ended, a canon said a few words to the congregation, but I was unable to hear, owing to my extreme distance from the pulpit. And then followed the "Saint" and the solemn blessing of the archbishop the procession, still singing "ParceDomine" went slowly down the long aisle and disappeared in the sacristy; the people slowly left the church, and the Triduum was over.

AN EXTRAORDINARY AND INCOMPRE- HENSIBLE PRACTICE. Our readers (says the London Standard) will not have forgotten Count Bismarck's recent allusion to the extraordinary and incomprehensible practice of the French in firing from the forts round Paris." His affliction at such a waste of metal and gunpowder on the part of the French was thought at the time to be suspicious by some who mistrusted his frankness and good nature. As a sequel to the count's mild and dis- interested remonstrance, we extract the following from the "Surgical Notes of the Galio-German War, by Student":— After the battle of October 21, near Paris, I proceeded to the battle-field to tender my services to the wouuded there I found that the number of shell wounds was enormous; the French guns from Fort Valcrien had committed fearful di- vastatlon In the German ranks. Men had been mowed down as If by a scythe in many places they were lying stretched out In fRn shape, with their feet towards a common centre the mutilation their bodies had undergone beggars descrip- tion. The night was bitterly cold, and many of the poor fellows lay on the wet ground the whole night through, thus qHenching th? last spark of life left In them." Dr. Cormack also makes the following observations on "the extraordinary and incomprehensible prac- tice ":— Hontretout is invaluable to the Prussians; but as it is within range of the are of Mont Valerlen. it is not permanently tenable by them. Though Mont Valerien has several times destroyed the Prussian batteries at Montretout, the French have never been able to dislodge them permanently. This arises from a crest of wooded hill Intercepting the view of Montretout from the fort of Mont Valerien. They have to fire over this crest, and can only from other points learn the result of their fire. The bearings are now so accurately as- certained, that the Mont Valerlen artillery ij alv; ays able by six or eight shots to destroy the Prussian batteries and send the Prussians tkedaddllog from the best part of the position.

A DOCTOR'S STORY OF THE WAR. Dr. J. Marion Sims, who has resided eight years in France and recently returned to the United States, has been" interviewed by a reporter of the New York TirMI, and in answering his inquiries made the follow- ing statements, which we give in a connected shape without the questions put. The doctor aaid s- I was surgeon-iti-chlef of tho Anglo-Amerloan Ambu- lance Corps,' composed of eight American and eight English- men. We went out from Paris under a French organisation. They gave us tents, and waggons, and instrument", and everything necessary to make an ambulance corps complete —everything for giving aid to the wounded on the field of battle. There were 11 French ambulances besides tills one sent from Paris. I am glad to aaywe were the most fortunate of the 12, arrived in the right time at the right place, while the others were driving through the country on the look out. We left Paris on the 28th of August, and arrived at Sedan on the 30th. There we found that a barrack, con- taining two hundred and sixty odd beds, had already been converted into a hospital, which the French authorities very gladly gave U3. Before we got possession of the hos- pital the hattle of the 31st began, and at night we went to the field af battle, which was between Balan and Bu;eUles, just outside the walls o! S jdan, and there we attended to the wouuded, and trausfened many of them to the hospital In Sedan, leaving many others at B dan in cottages, where we established a branch of our ambulance. Fighting began early on the first of September, and during that and the fol- lowing days the wounded were brought in streams, as it were, to the hospital in Sedan. The 360 odd bed were filled on the 2nd. "The wounds made by modern Implements of war are truly terrific. Yet I have seen extraordinary cases of re- covery of mfln shot through and through the breast and abdomen. There is not so much bleading; the bullet in its passage seems to lacerate the puts so as to close the bleeding vesle/s. We saw wounds of every form and variety, made by the bursting of bombs and by the needle gnns, the chasse- pots and the mitrailleuse. This is a dreadful weapon, and must become aa essential arm of the service. Its effects are terrific, and the noise It makes is something dreadful; that of musketry and cannon is music compared with it, I could not describe the effect produced by it. In regard to the killed and wounded at Sedan I must ob- serve that it was not so bloody all the battle of Gravelotte. Of the French there was less than 15,000 killed and wounded at Sedan, while the Germans suffored much wore severely The Germans do not state falsehoods in their bulletins, but they cover up their own tosses and without mentioning the names of German doctors I may state I learnt from medical men who had a perfect knowledge of the facts that tbe Bavarian and Wurtemberg legions occupying the centre of tbe Prussian lines went into battle 60,000 strong, and lost 120 officers and upwards of 2,000 men killed, the wounded making up 15,000, or one fourth of the whole amount hors de combat. A great number of French batteries of artlllery-l cannot state the ex*.ct number, but they covered quite an acre of ground—came in from the battle of the 1st of Sep tember to the hospital yards so early as one o'clock In the day, and on inquiring why they left the field of battle they told us they were out of ammunition, and were only In the way. We were under the Prussian fire for 14 hours. The Prussian batteries were about two miles from us. Our hospital was on the heights of Sedan, only 30 or 40 steps from the outer wall. The French army was In our rear, the German left In our front, and the Germans were firing over us all day. If we had been a quarter of a mile nearer to the Prussian batteries we would not have been In any dangor. As It was, bombs were bursting arcund us all the time. Fortunately our hospital was bombproof. It was 300ft long, two stories high, and had 18 large windows on the side exposed to the nre each window opened into a ward containing 2i wounded soldiers, betides doctors and nurses. The building was struck several times. One bomb struck about 10 cr 15 feet above one of the upper windows. The Prussian artillery continued for 14 hours firing across the town at the French. It was a regular artillery battle for two days. In the hos- pital yards six men were struck by exploding bombs from the Prussian batteries, and others were struck outside it. Many were killed 60 yards on tho other side of the hospital. We had two of our servants (nurses) killed in the hospital yard, also a demoralized French soldier who retreated from the army. I can state that the Marines fought unflinchingly, also the ( Zouaves and Turcos, but I am sorry to'say that the men of the Line-I do not know how many regiments, but a great many —were demoralized and retreated after nring.once or twice, in spite of the Imprecations and commands of their officers. A great many of these retired within the walls and around the hospital. It was Impossible for the French to do other- wise than surrender. The Emperor was not to be blamed it was simply an act of humanity to surrender. When the Emperor had an Interview with the King, and talked of capitulation, Geueral Wimpffen said he couldn't sign the articles; but Bismarck showed him how the forces were situatod, the French hemmed in and without ammu- nition or provision, and no way of escape, so that there was nothing for it but to suirender. Then General WimriTen, seeing he was surrounded by three times his own strength and was powerless, had to sign the articles, however ul1p1ea- sant it must have been, after being but a few honra in com- mand. The town Wall not provisioned the army had com- paratively nothing to eat; even in the hospital we were on short rations, and could not get what we wanted for the sick and wounded. I was the only doctor out of 16 who WM not sick, and all because they hadn't proper food to eat. It was a most revolting sight to see soldiers skinning the bodies of horses and eating the raw flesh, they were so hungry. The KrtJpp cannon fires with wonderful accuracy. It will shoot a mile further than the French cannon, and the Prus- sian bombs are exploded by percussion, and do not burst until they strike some object but the French bombs were fired by fuses, and burst sometimes in the air, and often fell short of their aim. But of the great number of the Prus- sian bomb-shells that fell in the yard and around the hos- pital at Sedan we found only two that had not exploded. As an arm the chassepot is superior to the needle-gun. It will carry further; but I do not think that Is such an enor- mous advantage, for great masses of men do not fire at each other under 600 yards, and the needle-gun Is all effective as the other at thnt distance. The Prul8fan artillery fired with wonderful sc^uracy. Their officers are gentlemen and educated. The physique of the Germans Is superior to that of the French. 1 could not help making tho comparison as the 80,000 French prisoners passed along the Prussian lines. I may add here a fact that may interest some every French and German soldier smokes and it WM ludicrolls to see a whoie German regiment moving along smokL!g, French and German smoke to a man, and, contrary to some theories with the most perfect impunity. It is wortby of note that subsequent t) the surrender typhus was very prevalent among the Germars, while taere was none among the French. I do not account for it. Among the French wounded In the hospital at Sedan were 20 officers, and they all said t.'t they lackod was a General; that it WM want of generalship demoralized the soldiers, beca118c they had DO confidence In their leaders. The Freneh officers were all burning with a desire for revenge. My own belief Is that if they changed Generals they would cbaogo tho issue of the contest. I do not think the Enperor ever looked better in health than on the day of his surrender. Tin a great mistake to suppose he is a decrepit old man. Dis Intellect was never more vigorous, and his physical health is perfect, with the exception of some mere infirmities. He Is occasionally subject to sciatica, but to no disease that threatens life. It is said the Prince Imperial is a scrofulous boy that is another great mistake, lis Is strong and rosy. III perfect health, anil very Intelll- f ent—a splendid boy, take him all in all a) d \\hl1n he was ill a few yeara PRO, and was reported scrofulous, 110 simply had an abscess, the result of pressure in taking horse-riding lesRons- nothirJg connected ill the least with disease (f the bones or joint?. I resigned my position on tho 34th of September, and Dr. Thos. T. Pratt is now In command of the ambulance. I have no doubt of the future usefulness of the An^lo-American ambulances under Dr. Pratt. They are liberally supplied with all they require from Colonel Lindsay, the chief of the English society. I do not know what wonld have become of the sick 8ml wounded at Sedan were It not ror these voluntellf ambulances. Almost the whole or the French sick and woulldea were attended by volunteer am- bulances AS to French army surgeons, I state a fact, and you can mention it if YOIl think fit. There were 40 or 60 army surgeons at Sedan after the surrender and Dr, M'Connick. Dr. Pratt, and others told me thoee surgeons were walking about the streets with their hands in their pockets and cigars In their moutbs, Stitt did not a single thing for their own sick They did not even go down to the place where the 80,000 prisoners were starving and in sickness. It may be asked what would be wanted on the field of battle ? It is thisWater, brandy, essence of beef, chloral chloroform, and morphine, besides lint and bandages rhe greatest relief was given In hundreds of cases by a sub- cutaneous injection of morphine. On the field of battle very Little more s needed than these few articles." Being asked about reports of inhumanity to French prisoners, Dr. Sims said :— The newspaper reports were not in the least exaggerated' The particulars are not fit for publication of what the pri- soners suffered. Some 80,000 French marched from Sedan, before the Prussian lines, to the little peninsula formed by the river, where they were halted after the capitulation. I was there and saw the peasants come In and sell bread to the poor fellows at 25 cents a slice. It was the saddest day in my life when I followed the poor French prisoner", and if I lived a hundred years I ceuld never forget what I saw them endure. They were several days thereon that piece of land, absolutely dying of sickness and starvation."

SYMPATHISING WITH THE FRENCH. On Monday afternoon, a preliminary meeting con- vened by circular was held at the Cannon-street Hotel, London, to take into consideration the relative position of the belligerents at present, with the view, if possible, to the speedy restoration of peace on a basis honourable to both. I The meeting, or conference as it was called, was as- sembled by a circular signed by!Mr. A. C. Crane, acting as the honorary secretary of a committee sitting at the same hotel, in which it was stated that a number of gentlemen had for some time past observed with regret "the change by Prussia from a defensive to an aggres- sive policy, and felt that the opinion of the City of London, as the centre of the British metropolis should be expressed in favour of a speedy and honourable peace." The circular also stated that I it was not intended that the conference, or any subsequent proceedings which might be taken under its sanction, should be directed against the Govern- ment, and care would also be taken that both the initial and subsequent proceedings should not be turned to the uses of any political or other party. It added that in the interest of an honourable peace it was hoped that men of all parties would loyally and earnestly co-operate. Nearly 100 persons assembled on the occasion, and the chair was occupied by Mr. • Merriman, who, it may be remembered, was at the head of a deputation not long ago to the Provisional Government of France, who desired to express their sympathy with the French people in relation to the disastrous turn which the war had taken with respect to them. The chairman said, although the meeting was small, yet, viewed in the light of its representative character, it was one of the most important ever held in England. The object in convening it was to give expression to the latent forces of opinion, which he believed to be now almost entirely in favour of France. It was a meeting almost entirely composed of men who usually take no part in any agitation in this country. They were men usually engaged in business in the City, and were there to express their opinions in rela- tion to this great crisis. One object of the conference was, if possible, to convene a mass meeting in the Guildhall, with the consent of the Lord Mayor, in order to afford the citizens at large a suitable opportunity of expressing their opinions on the general subject. The feeling of the English people was unmistakably in favour of Prussia before the battle of Sedan, but, after that, the moral as well as the political aspect changed, and the opinion of the country ceased to be on the side of Prussia. It was a monstrous iniquity for Prussia to insist on the possession of Alsace and Lorraine, and the English Government should boldly and distinctly de- clare that Prussia should no more have those provinces than the Czar should be allowed to violate a still more recent treaty. Dr. Charles Mackay moved a resolution :— That the war in France having ceased on the part of Prussia to be a war of defence, and become a war of aggression, this meeting is of opinion that Prussia In thus acting has forfeited the sympathy and Incurred the repro- bation of the British and of all other free nations." TlJe motion was seconded by Mr. Marriott, a member of the Bar, who argued that it might be confi- dently asserted that at present the sympathies of the great majority of Englishmen were really with France. The Rev. G. M. Murphy moved an amendment to the effect that in the opinion of the meeting the time had not come for the British Government to interfere in the quarrel between France and Prussia. The amendment was seconded by the Rev. W. Tyler, and supported by Mr. Henry Kimber. Mr. Cremer demurred to the meeting being called a meeting of citizens of London, contending that it was an open conference. The meeting by vote decided not to hear him. Mr. Mottershead presented himself to speak, but was similarly opposed by the chairman, and he re- sumed his seat, declaring that was liberty with a vengeance. Eventually Dr. Mackay's resolution was put and carried by a large majority, 11 hands being held up for Mr. Murphy's amendment. The Rev. Newman Hall moved an amendment to the effect that, without offering any opinion on the comparative merits of the belligerents, the meeting desired to express its deep sympathy with the people of both countries, and to urge upon the Government to continue its exertions in favour of establishing a just and permanent peace. The amendment was seconded by Mr. Cunnington. Mr. Edmond Beales said he felt the strongest sym- pathy with the French people, and would do anything reasonably withiu his power to put an end to this horrible war. He thought the resolution proposed by the Rev. Newman Hall was the one that came nearest the object they had all at heart. Dr. Kenealy, Q.C., urged that time was now of the very essence of the question, for unless some speedy means were used to restore peace. France, he feared, would disappear from the face of Europe. Could any- body doubt that if France now disappeared as a nation Russia and Prussia would eventually direct the entire policy of Europe, and if they combined together, as he believed they intended to do, against the general march of civilization and freedom, what part of Europe could offer them any effectual resistance? The amendment of the Rev. Newman Hall was eventually put and negatived, and Dr. Mackay's reso- lution was carried by a large majority amid much cheering1. M. W. de Fonvielle, editor of the Liberti, then pre- sented himself to speak, and was greeted with cheers. He was introduced by the chairman, who called at- tention to his letter in The Times of that morning. He was very thankful for the resolution they had carried. He could say that he was at that moment in a sense a representative of the whole of France, and that his countrymen would be proud to know how cordially and sympathetically their position was appre- ciated in this noble metropolis of England. He had good ground for saying that at present the Parisians were quite justified in the position they had assumed, because from day to day without cessation they were busily engaged in fabricating arms, in exercising or marshalling their soldiers, ia making guns and new kinds of powder; and when they issued from behind their walls it would be to achieve the victory of re- venge. They would count their soldiers by hundreds of thousands, and not many days would elapse before that was done. The meeting was brought to a close by a vote of thanks to the chairman, and with three cheers for France.

A SKETCH FROM BOULOGNE. I was in Boulogne on Monday and Tuesday, the first two days of the Triduum, and one and all, from morning till night, the churches were thronged to overflowing, writes the (Correspondent of the London Standard). Not only in Boulogne itself, but for miles around, the country people flocked in crowds from every village and hamlet. Even from far off Portel the renowned fisherwomencame to their favourite little church on the heights above the port. For myself I visited chiefly the old church in the market-place—St. Nicholas—not that it is by any means as handsome a building as the cathedral, nor on aconnt of any ex- treme antiquity but it is charmingly situated, and has a picturesque appearance that is wanting in the other?. The ceremony commenced with a grand High Mass, and then one of the curk, a man of Viry dis- tinguished appearance, preached one of the most eloquent and appropriate sermons I have ever listened to. It produced a great effect, and was the subject of frequent conversation during the day. His history is not without a touch of romance. Be- longing to a noble family, he devoted himself to the bar, and when quite young had rapidly attained to eminence in his profession, and was about to be mar- ried to a young lady of considerable fortune and belonging to the ancicnne noblesse. Suddenly, to the amazement of his friends, he threw up his profession where the highest honours could only be a matter of time, renounced his intended marriage, and enrolled himself in the ranks of the priesthood. He possesses a happy facility of expression, is clear and distinct, and his voice, without being loud, can be easily heard in every comer of the church. All day long and far into the night services were con- tinued at intervals, and the people kept flocking in crowds from one church to another; so much so that it gave one the impression of a huge pilgrimage, and for the first time since that fatal Sunday, when the telegram came from Sedan the roads were alive with people, so that one might have fancied it was a great fSte day, but for the expression on the people's facss. It was the same on all—sad, but with a half-defiant hopefulness that anticipated and would not brook compassion. Some had a weary look that was infinitely painful to see. A sure sign of how the Boulonnais have suffered from the war is the immense number of people that are in mourning. One regiment alone has three times marched from Boulogne, only to be cut to pieces, and three times has it come back to recruit. Indeed, without looking at the mourning, you can read in the faces of the people how they have suffered. I spoke to one old fiaherwoman on the steps of the cathedral. My notice was attracted by her son, a splendid young fellow of 18 or 20, on whose arm she was leaning. Her story was one that can only be heard in a war like the present. She had five sons. Four of them had been taken from her one by one, and one by one they htd been shot down by the Prussians and now her youngest and last in the uniform of the 20th Chasseurs à. Pied, was leaving her that night for Amiens, bound for tbe advanced outpoata ot the Army c,)! the Loire. I had intended BtayiDg at Boulogne till the close of the Triduum. But on Tuesday, about midnight, whilst we were deep in a rubber in the smoking-room of my hotel, there came a heavy tramp down the Grande Rue, and the roll of drums. We rashed to the gate, and there we saw the 20 h ChafBenrfi—that same gallant regiment that had been mowed down three times— marching for the fourth time to the front. A telegram had arrived at eleven o'clock from head qnrriers, order- in » them without an instant's delay, to Amiens, with instructions to keep their Chassepots loaded in the train. The Prussians were reported to be but six miles from tho town and some Uhlans had been captured that morn- ing. It was very sad to look at the poor fellows and listen to them singing as they went down the Grand Rue knowing how well they knew that for the majority of them they were marching to a swift and certain death. They were wonderfully liked in Bou- logne. They bad the reputation of being singularly intelligent; their pluck had been three times only too fatally proved and their extreme gentleness com- pletely won the hearts of the people. The ranks were tilled with gentlemen, and to hear them singing irre- sistibly recalled Browning's— "Marching along, fifty score strong, Great-hearted gentlemen singing this song." We shouted out three English ^'hurrahs," wblob at irst startled them not a little, but had the effect of producing a shower of responsive "Vive la France," 'Vive l'Angleterre," and "Mort aux Prussiens." Some rushed across and shook hands with us, among ¡hem the fieberwoman's son, who was going possibly to rejoin his four dead brothers. They were full of the expectation of meeting the enemy about sun- rise. Tliey bade us adieu—some with a doubtful smile iu revoir, and passed on; their "vivas" and songs ?rew gradually fainter in the distance, and then died iway.

FROM PARIS IN A BALLOON. The following interesting narrative of a balloon journey from Paris, has been sent to The Times for publication, by M. De Fonvielle. Editor of the Liberti, writing from Provence Hotel, Leicester-square, Lon- ion, Nov. 26 :— The wind having conducted my balloon to Belgium, as I desired for certain purposes of mine, I have to go round the Prussian lines in order to call at Tours, the end of my expe- dition. Having sent my balloon by rail, under the care of my lieutenant, I thought it was my duty to come to London, where Prussian emissaries, Bonapartist agents, and Orleanist pretenders are working together against our young and glorious Republic. Up to that moment I had not gone really into the field, my exertions being confined to several aeronautical experimeuts necessary for obtaining certain ends of mine. Even now I am not regularly enlisted in the French service, having conducted in some respects a trade- balloon, carrying principally private passengers and not many official messages but I have sent telegrams to the Tours Government notifying my landing, and offering my balloon Egalite, the largest in existence, and I trust the best for the war service. The Prussians of late had taken many balloons, owing to the utter inexperience of the aeronauts, or the bad con- struction of aerial shipping; and, taking advantage ot these failures, Prussian spies had circulated among our Parisian papers that no more ascents would be made in the daytime, that henceforth aeronauts would ascend after sunset and before sunrise. Aeronauts are so far from being understood by our learned men that several balloons were sent in so ridiculous a manner. I did protest in the Liberti, a paper with which I am connected, and declared that I conld pass the Prussian lines in open day without fearing anything from their ridiculous shooting. Consequently I a-cended last Thursday, at 20 minutes to eleven, before many thousands of peoole, and crossed the whole of Paris at a height of about 1,800 yards, when I saw that my balloon was on the Prussian avant pOitt. I ordered a couple of sandbars to be thrown out, and I reached in safety the level of 2,609 yards, when Prussian music was heard in a most impotent manner. These fools, below being deceived by the diameter of my balloon, believed I waa near them, and were using their powder to no purpose. I was very merry indeed, and quoted to my passengers the famous B18marck note wherein that great stateman reports to Trochu the wasting of his ammuni- tion round Paris forts. The firing continued up to the vicinity ot Soissons, but showed intervals of recrudescence, very likely when we were passing over Prussian encamp- ments. 1 carefully noted these places on the maps, for giving Information to military authorities, taking advantage of Prussian firing range. Firing did not prevent tha balloon continuing its way, and ascending to 3,500 yards, whea firing ceased. Railway trains were seen running; social life was restored it was not necessary to go further. Prussians had not set their feet in these quarters. But a true aeronaut is always disappointed when obliged to put an end to an ascent; the spectacle Is so magnificent over clouds. I resolved to land only in Belgium, and I did, as was reported by telegram. Wind was very 8trong, as we travelled 240 kilometres (180 miles) in about three hours and a half. The descent was not dangerous, as I had chosen a large plain, but rather long, and almost all of us were slightly hurt—one of the passengers in the head, and another in the back, my lieutenant in the foot, and myself in the hand, &Ie. Nothing of the kind would have happened it the balloon had been completed, but I was so anxious to put in execution the aerial plan that I ascended without my rope being in order. I was aware that I was incurring some risks, but I was certain that there was no real danger, and, at all events, I was resolved not to stay a single day longer. Lieutenant Bunel having been sent with due instructions for repairing the balloon, and prep" ring different apparatus for warlike purposes, I have a few days to spare in London, and I shall be must happy to give any information in my power respecting the state of things in Paris. I am a friend of truth and liberty, as well as a strong Republican, and 1 will answer any questions put to me in an explicit and frank manner. I consider myself as being in a witness-box on that great Republican trial where we have to deal with German batchers and Imperial traitors.

A DECISION OF INTEREST TO DIS- SENTING MINISTER!* In the Bail Ceurt in London, last week, the cause of "Smith (appellant) II. Burnett (re3pondent)" was heard, and which was a case of coneiderable importance to dissenting ministers. The appellant was a minister of the Primitive Methodist connection. The authorities of the body appoint their ministers to certain quarterly circuits, giving them a printed form filled up with the places and days where they are to minister. The appellant was appointed to a circuit of 13 parishes or places, and he had to preach on three Sundays at Filking, in Gloucestershire. 08 Sunday, the 6th March, the appellant was on his way to that place in a vehiVe, and when about to pass through the respondent's gate the collecter demanded toll. He claimed his txemp. tion, produced his circuit paper and a copy of the general turnpike act., on the ground that he was about to attend his usual place of worship. He refused to p»y, and he was afterwards summoned before the justices, who convieted-bim, and it was against that conviction he now appealed. The act provided that all persons going to or from his or her proper parochial church or chapel should be exempt from toll, and that every person going to or returning from their usual place of religious worship tolerated by law, on Sundays or any other day when Divine service was, by authority of the body to be celebrated, should also be exempt from toll. Mr. Pinder (for the appellant) contended that the words usual place of worship, in reference to dissen- ters, must not be read in the narrow and limited manner which the words applicable to the Established Church were used. The appellant was going to preach according to the authorities of the religious body to which he belonged, and was therefore going to his usual place of worship. He was not moving from place to place from caprice or curiosity. Mr. Justice Blackburn said he thought then when it appeared a dissenting minister was attending a chapel, as directed by the authorities of that body, he might be fairly considered to be attending his usual place of worship. Mr. Justice Mellor concurred. Conviction quashed.

G. F. TRAIN IMPRISONED. We (London Standard) have received the following, whloh speaks for itself :— "TO THE EDITOR OF THE 'STANDARD,' LONDON. Please deny the report of Mr. Train's supposed assassination, arising from his mysterious disappearance. Discovered him in Lyons Bastile, secretly incarcerated by government, without accusation or explanation. No communication with outer world allowed him. "GEO. P. BEMIR, ,t n „ Private Secretary to Geo. Francis Train. "Grand Hotel de Lyon, Lyons, France Nov. 23, 1870."

GARDENING OPERATIONS FOR THE WEEK. ("From the Gardener's Magazine.) [An excellent weekly journal, containing much valuable Information for amateur and professional gardeners.] KITCHEN GARDEf. It is at this time of year we can best Judge if the gardener thoroughly understands his business. Daring summer there is such a luxuriant growth that the most carelessly planted crops oftentimes put on an appearance that wins for their possessor much more prahe than he deserves but Nature is no longer ia such a friendly and lenient mood, and where the work la badly done, the aspects of the place will now reveal it. We expect to see in every kitchen gsrden at this time of year an abundance of winter greens of kindllsuttable to keep up the supply till the spring is considerably lid- vanced and among these plots there ought not to be found a single withered leaf. The ground not under crops we expect to be clean and in ridges as if freshly dug, and, what- ever the nature of the soil, we expect a dry hard path to walk upon, and a breath of wholesome air to keep us cheer- ful. It we scent the odour of rotten cabbage-stumps and heaps of other such rubbish, we call the gardener a sloven, for he ought to cover all putrefying substances with a few inches of mould, to absorb the gasss that otherwise escape to poison him and other people. If the place la not clean and tidy, now is the time to make it so by cutting in over- grown fences, rooting up useless trees and shrubs that inter- cept tbe light and exhaust the soil, and olearing the soU of all decaying rubbish, both to economize all such stuff for manure, and avoid loading the atmosphere with gases that render it destructive to human life. Many a village has boen half poisoned by a dahlia-grower leaving a heap of green stems on the ground for weeks and weeks to rot; many a gardener has to pay a dootor's bill through making his ground into a brewery of stinks; and at leaat nine-tenths of the diseases in the country arise through the diffusion in the atmosphere of pernicious gases exhaled from stagnant water, foul ditches, and putrefj ing animal and vegetable substances. "Cleanliness is nrxtto godliness "in the garden qu- te as much as in the house, and we may be ture that thi first of gardeners would not have attained to the age he did unlMs he had paid more attention to cleanliness than a good many of his successors, who, in the present day, seem to think that dirt is essential to happiness. Pctatoes for planting In frames may now be brought cut from the store, and placed in shallow baiketson dry moss or hay, and the baskets put in the lull daylight, in a position where frost cannot touch them. They wUl loon green over. and when they begin to sprout the sprouts will be short, hard, plump, purple, and not liable to Inap off in tbe process of planting. We never had such crops as by this method, and we always plant when the sprouts are a quarter of an inch long; by thistirte the season will be sufficiently ad- vanced to render the planting a safe operation. The baskets should not be put in a warm place, as there is nothing gained by forcing them into growth, unless they are early sorts to be grown in frames. FRUIT GARDEN. Bush fruits should be planted, potted, praned, and ma- nured. Burn the pruniugs, and If the ashes are nlot wanted for any partleular purpose, throw them round the roots of trees; they are powerfully fertilizing. Gooseberries and currants may be lightly forked between to mix the manure with the soli, but: a<pberries should t ave three or four inches of dung, not very rotten, laid over the piece, and the soli between them should not be dug at all Orchard-house trees may be pruned at onco, and washed with a solution of eight ounces of Gishurst to a gallon of soft water. The pruning of standard trees should consist chiefly of opening out tho head and regulating the growth, without severe measures of any kind. Where large boughs require removal, it is a proof of neglect of some kind in times gone by and if many large branches are dead or dying, depend upon it the tree is in a bad state at the roots most probab'y tho surface roots are gone altogether. In small gardens, old fruit-trees are fre- quently killed by ra'slng the soli about them, and to year by year removing their raots farther and farther from the at- mosphere. FLOWER GARDEN. Bulbs not yet planted must be got ir, and as they are un- usually flue this season, purchase* may yet be nude; and if planted immediately thay will bloom very soou altur thosa planted a month or >ix weeks ag«. Plant large bulbs six inches deep, small enei thiee or fo'ir inches deep. If tho posi'ion iti damp, pu!. s Wor-aand undtr and around all bulbs of any value. Wealwiyi advise l ar)y pnrchising and early p.autiog Lut If we wi-uld ever excuse delay it )s now, the stock beiug iu such prime condition that the bloom is sure to bj satisfactory, though the after growth may beweakthrough their remaining out of the ground tjo long. Evergreen shrubs planted now must be heavily mulched with dung to keep frost from their roots. Ranunculus and Anemone of common kinds of showy masses may be planted now, but choice and valuable kinds must be kept in the drawers till the beginning of February, and in the moantime get the beds ready by deep trenching and layii g up the earth in ridgea. FORCING, Vines breaking to have a gradual rise of temperature, beginning at an average of 55 d-g., with a ripe < f 10 dog. during 8ulIshme. As the vines acquire a vigorou8 growth, raise the heat so as to average 65 dfg. by day, and 00 deg. at night, when they come Into bloom. Too sudden a rise will make long joints and weakly growth, independent of the injury to the crop. A warm dry border will do as much as the best management of the temperature of the home. Cucumbers to be started now for the ftrst batch to plant out next month. Sow in pots singly, and grow them on liberally, without running them up two or three together in a pot, 8.S If they had been wiredrawn. A aung-bed is the best place for the seed-pota, and the soil in tli3 pots half-rotted turf, well chopped up with half-sweet leaf-mould. Fruiting plants must be thinned if the plants are more than moderately fruitful, or they will fall to give a succession when the fruit may be most desired. Mushrooms to be kepi as near 6) de?. as possible, and hay plenty of atmospheric moisture. A steady temperature will greatly prolong the bearing of the bed.«, but if they are nearly at the end of their productiveness, make up fresll beds at once for succession. At this time of the year it will be necessary to make a new bed every m*nth to ensure a constant supply. Forced Pe2s,-Tom Thumb is the best of all peas for forcing sown now, and grown in pots with French beans. it will give a good return. Those who force for Covent Garden sow in Oztober and November. This pea is of dwaif branch- ing habit, and of very little use for outdoor work, being tender in constitution. PLANT HOUSES. Greenhovse.— Azaleas and Camellias claim attention now that we have little else to depend upon to keep the conserva- tory gay. A) ittle p-Lins besto wed in training and disbudding will repay, and Camelias are so heavily set with buds that, generally speaking, it would be most unwise to aUow all to remain. We have seen lately bushel3 of buds removed in some places where a moderate show of fine flowers is preferred to a mass of indifferent ones, the profusion of which will weaken the plants. Azaleas to bloom early to have moderate bottom- heat, and be syringed daily. Those still at rest to have a rather dry air. Cornelias will not stand so much heat at Azaleas. As you can get time, clean the foliage of specimen plants. Climbers in greenhouses may now have special at- tention to reduce their dimensions. Lay in wood for next summer's bloom, and clear the walls and trellises. Pelar- goniums must have a little fire-heat if the house Is damp, and the temperature should be kept nearly at an average of 45 degrees. Nice work now, when the weather stops outdoor movements, to traln them into form forI looming, andstirtbe lurface of the soil in the pots, and make the pots 805 clean all 11 they had Just come from the kiln. The plants will enjoy to be put in Sunday clothen that way. When pots containing plants are washed, pnt them to drain and dry in a place free 11 om draught, all the rapid evaporation trom the outside ofthe pots causes a chill to the roots. Cllceobrias for specimens may now want a shift; they must on no account get pot-bound, or they wUl bloom prematurely. Water on fine mornings and fesware of green-fly and mildew. Cinerarias for exhibition to have a shift now into their blooming pots, or they will bloom prematurely through getting pot-bound. Give tkem the fullest possible amount of light, and keep them a good dis- tance apart, placed on inverted pots, and they will thus have a free circulation of air about them, which will keep them strong and stocky. They will want plenty of air to prevei t mildew. Choose bright mornings to water, and get their leaves dry before shhtting up. See that lpeclmen plants are in good shape, and peg out the leaves If necessary. Orchid-house.—In collections where there are now only a few orchids in a growing state, the forcing pit may be turned to account to receive them, so as to allow of the cooltng down of the orchid-house, and securing thereby a complete state of repose for the plants, which Is scarcely possible if there happen to be a few fine specimens pushing into bloom or in an active state of growth. It is at this time of year we see the full value of divisions which can be respeotively devoted to orchids from different climates and requiring now different temperatures.

MURDER OF A GERMAN GENTLEMAN IN LIVERPOOL. A moat diabolical and fatal outrage has been com- mitted upon a well-known German resident of Liver- pool, Mr. Christian Flueck, who was in extensive practice as a teacher of languages, and has a large school at 4, Dinglehill, a fashionable quarter of the town, where he resides. During the absence of his wife on Friday evening in last week, Mr. Flueck was in his parlour alone, and it is supposed, from the successful nature of the assault committed upon him, must have fallen asleep on the sofa, as he was found about six o'clock in the evening in a frightfully injured and unconscious state. He had been suddenly attacked by some one with a heavy door hinge, which has been found, and with which the assailant inflicted the most deadly gashes upon the head of his victim, through one of which the brain protruded. Tie unfortunate gentleman«remained utterly uncon- scious, and died on Sunday.

At the Liverpool Police-court, on Monday, Richard Edsvard Howchin was charged with the murder of Mr. Christian Flueck. Detective Superintendent Kehoe said that the pri- soner was in the service of the deceased as tutor. On Friday* evening, between five and six o'clock, Mr. Fiueck was found to have been greviously assaulted in his own sitting-room and he had since ditd. There was a considerable body of evidence to be brought forward in the case, but it was not in such a state that it could be gone into that day. Under the circum- stances, he asked that the prisoner might be remanded for seven days, and Mr. Cobb, who appeared for the prisoner, raising no objection, the application was at once granted. The following details have been ascertained :— Mr. Flaeck had returned home, after a short absence, about half-past five o'clock on Friday evening, and retired to his customary sitting-room over the kitchen of the house, where his servants were attk» time taking their tea. Shortly after their master's return they heard a heavy fall on the floor above, but mppoling it to result from the romping of some of the pupils they did not investigate tbe cause Mrs. Fiueck was absent at the time, but on returning home she at once repaired to the sitting-room referred te, and dis- covorei her husband lying on the floor la front of the Are utterly inseneible. Supposing his ailment, to be a tem- porary fit, she immediately procured cold water for the purpose (t bathing his face, but on a closer examination she found that his head was covered with blood. Ou a closer examination it was ascertained that his skull was fractured in several places, and a portion of the brain was protruding. Medical hid was immediately procured, and the extensive injuries demonstrated a'once that they had been inflicted with an iron bar or staple which lay close to the victim. Dr. Barratt and Messrs. Bickersteth and Hodson were promptly convened for consultation, and pronounced tbe caso to be of Lbe moat perilous character. Suspicion attaching to Mr. Howchin, the tutor, he was apprehended. It is stated that Mr. Fiueck had given him notice to leave at Christmas, and there is some- thing said about his refusing to give Mr. Howchin a cha- rac'-er, or such an one as he desired. It is also reported that there had been some ditferenee between them during the week. The schoolroom Is on the same floor as Mr. Fiueck's sitting-room, The fall on the floor was heard shortly before six o'clock. Mr. lIowchln left the schoolroom-so it ls laid —for about ten minutes between half-past five and six. When Mrs. Flueck substquelltiy raised the alarm Howchin and others went to the sitting room, and he was the urst to go for meùlcai aid, Ills hat was notieed on the table curing his absence, but It was afterwards accounted for by his having placed it therd before going out. A handkerchief belonging to Mr. Howchin was found marked with blood. AI, however, he had assisted in lifting Mr. Flueck from the fl Jor the state of the handkerchief may be accounted lor In a simple manner. He is quit J a young mau, very intelligent, about 6ft. 5:n. in height, and of a form not at all suggestive of grex.t strength.

THE INVESTMENT OF PARIS. As the real magnitude of the present Investment of Paris is perhaps not generally understood, the follow- ing letter, which has been sent to The Times for publi- cation, will interest and also perhaps instruct many of our readers :— One of the most remarkable elements of the present siege of Paris Is Ihe unprtjcedented disparity that exists between tho numerical strength of the besiegers and that of the besieged, especially considered with reference to the immense circumference of tbe circuit of investment. The ciroumference of this circuit of investment Is usually much underrated. Two of your contemporaries st1ll speak of it as "from SO to 36 miles" only; whereas the actual circuit of the Innermost line of investment is 50! miles, and that of the Head Quarters of the army corps of the two in- vesting armies at least 66 miles. As one of your correspondents has remarked, the inner- most line of investment is in the form of a triangle. The south-eastern angle of this triangle is at Ormesson, a plateau S22 fest in height, situated on the left bank of the Marne, at the south-eastern extremity of the poniusula of St. Maur (which is formed by the bend of the Marne eppestte the south-eastern corner of the Bois de Vlncennas), and dominat- illg that peninsula. The south-western angle cf the triangle is at Bougival, on the left bank of the Seine, three miles south-east of the St. Germain Railway Station, and the apex. or northern angle, of the titangle, Is a redoubt on a height called Richebourg, immediately east of Montimagny, and It miles due north of the double Couronne du Nord of St. Deals, and the same dis- tance from the Fort de la lirlche. The length of each of the three sides of this triangle, moa- sured along the line of Prussian posts, is as followsThe south side, or base of the triangle, from its eastern ex- tremity at Ormesson, through Mont Meli (:212ft.), through Choiiy-le-Rol (where the Prussians havo a battery to hold Villejuif in check), through Thiais and La Hay, through Bagnenx, through the Height of Chatillon (battery), Clamart (battery), Meudon (battery), Bellevue (battery), Sevres (battery), St. Cloud (battery), Montretout (battery), Ghuahes (battery), to Bougival, the western extremity of the base, where there is also a battery, the distance is SI,000 metres, or 21 miles 193 yards. The nerth-western side of the triangle, from Bougival across the Selne, and then09 along its right bank through Chatou, Carrieres St. Denis, Houiiles (where there is a Prussian battery), Besons (also a battery), Argenteuil (on the heights b6hind tills village and towards r."nnois, the PrmlllalJs have established a battery), and thence by Mont Orgamont, half way b6twoen ArgentenU aed F,pIU8Y (crowned by another Pru8sian redoubt), to tho apex of toe triangle at the redoubt of R\chebourg (or Montimagny), the distance is 20,700metref, or 12 miles, five furlongs, and 176 yards. The north-eastern side of the triangle—from the apex at Montimagny, throush Le Bourget (lately captured and re- captured), through Rancy (whsro the Prussians have re- cently established a battoiy, opposite to the French forts of Rosny aud Noisy, through Neullly-sur-Marne, Noity- le-Grand (opposite Fort Nogent), and through La Loade (a ttitlon ou the Paris and Mulhuuse Railway, immediately opporhe the Redoute de la Fa!landerie), rothe south-eastern angie of the triaugle at Ormesson, the distance is 26,600 metres, or 16 miles, four furlongs, and 80 yards. The aggregatatength of the three sides of the triangle 19, therefore, zomewhat over 50} miles, and this ia the mini. mum circuit of the innermost line of Prussian posts, which are everwhere wlthlu easy rifle range of the French out- osts. The length of the outer circuit of investment, measured through the Head-Quarters of the various corps d'armie con- stituting the two armies investing PariR, is as follows The Crown Prince of Saxony's army furnishes the investment from Sartronville, situated cn the right bank of the Seine, 4j miles north east ot St. Germain, to Cheiles, a station ou the Paris and Strasburg Railway, 5 miles due east of Fort Rosny. The let gth of this portion of tbe outer line of invest- ment is as follows:—From Sartronville to Soisy-sous-Enghein, situated a mile west of Montmorency and the Head-Quarters of the 4th Army Corp»,Genf-ral Alverslebev.; through UoneBSO, 5 miles north-east of St. Denis, and Ileal Quarters of the Garde Corps, General the Prince of Whrtemberg; through Le Vert G;vlant, 9J miles fait of St. Denis, and about a mile esst of the Sevrtn ration of the Koissons Railway, the Head- Quirters of thf) lithli >jal Saxon Army Corps, GeneralPrince George of SLJ,1;ony, to Cheiles, wliere the Crown Prince of Prussia's army takes up the running agaia a distance of 2i mlies The Crown Prince of Tumia's army completes the circuit of investment from Clielles, due east of Pa'is, round the south-east, south, and west to Sartronvill»>, 81 miles due west of St. Denis. The several po itions of the Head-quarters of the varbun corps d'armte of this portion of the investing force have been fo.newhat varied since the commencement of the invest- ment, but the minimum lei g;h of this portion of the outer circuit of Investment may be stated as follows ;— From Chelles through Boissy St. Leger, 2; mllel south of th* eastern extremity of the St. Maur penitssnla, through VilUueuva l" R-->i, thence iu II straLht line t i Versailles (Head Quarters), thence direct to St. Germain, thence along the left hank or the Seine to the Maisons sur-Seine station ot the Paris and Roueu Railway, and thence across the flelne to SwtroDville the distance Is 42 miles, thus making the aggregate length of the outer circuit of investment, as mea- sured along straight lines connecting the Head-Quarters of the various corps of the investing armies, at least 66 miles.— I am, &C., HENRY CONi BEARE.

A HINT TO THE FAT AKD LEAN !—Dr. Hall thinks there is some rink in attempting to reduce rr add to one's weight. After instancing a fat man. in good health, who succeeded in reducing his hulk a number ofpounda, but was soon after attacked with a painful and dangerous malady, he says, if a man can sleep soundly, has a good appetite, with no unpleasant reminders after meals, the bodily habits being regular every day, he had better let himself al me, whether he is asbig as a hogshead or as thin and dry as a fence- rail.