The Demetian Mirror

the effect that the town of Bey rout had, after a bombardment of nine hours, been reduced to ashes, was a pure fiction. We observed, in our last, that the report had not obtained universal credit in London, it being deemed impossible that the quiet little Town of Beyrout could hold out against a nine-hours bombardment; and on Saturday evening, the London papers published extracts from the Gazette of the preceding day, which contained despatches from Admiral Stop ford, with "official accounts of the landing of the Allied Forces at Beyrout, the capture of that Town, and the occupation of some strong positions adjoining." In these despatches Admiral Stopford declares, that, so far from reducing the town to ashes, he opened a fire upon the Egyptians "taking care to avoid injuring the town;" and after having re- ceived an unsatisfactory answer from Soliman Pacha, he continued his fire in another quar- ter, directing it against the forts only, and principally" against one having mounted guns." Here we will, for the present at all events, take our leaveof the burning of Beyrout, merely stating that according to the "author- ised version" of the affair, the landing of the Allied Forces was effected in a manner highly satisfactory to themselves if not to the rest of the spectators," all parties conducting themselves with "skill and bravery." We last week gave an epitome, under the head of Foreign Intelligence, of a note address- ed by our Foreign Secretary Lord Palmerston, a copy of which his Lordship desired should be transmitted officially to M. Thiers. The French minister's reply was looked for, with an unusual degree of anxiety, by all classes and grades of politicians, though with different motives, each class indulging in such specula- tions as were most agreeable to them. Tues- day night's post brought us the official reply of M. Thiers to Lord Palmerston's note. The reply is dated October 3rd, but it exceeds in length even Lord Palmerston's note, and it is therefore unavoidably prevented from appear- ing in our columns. A Postcript dated 8th of October, we copy below, because it serves to give the opinion of the French Government on the recent proceedings of the Ottoman Porte, it was as follows :— PARIS, OCT. 8. P. S.- While writing this despatch deplorable events have come to day to add to the gravity of the situation. To the conciliatory advances of the Pacha of Egypt they have answered by the most violent hostilities. The Porte, yielding to evil counsels has pronounced his deposition. It is not sought alone to restrain the power of Mehemet Ali; they seek to make it disap- pear from the face of the political world. If such were the serious intentions of the Powers united in the treaty of the 15th of July-if we are to see in what has just happened anything bevond the enkrainement, almost involuntarily, of a false situ- ation, of which the consequences could not be foreseen we might despair of the re-establishment of harmony between the great Powers. In consequence I think it my duty to add to the present communication the subjoined note. "A. THIERS." The following article, which we make no apology to our readers for copying from the Sim, will, with the extracts which it embodies from the reply of M. Thiers, serve to give a tolerably correct idea of the misunderstanding existing between England and France, a mis- understanding which we are happy to learn from M. Thiers it is probable will be obvia- ted and we are indeed happy to find that, on the part of the French Government, he pro- mises that no effort shall be wanting on the part of France to bring about so happy a re- sult. The readers of The Sun will find in another part of this Journal the official reply of M. Thiers, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, to the memoran- dum of Lord Palmerston, dated the 30th of August. This is the first exposition which the French Govern- ment has made of the causes which led to its present state of insulation upon the Eastern question, and we have pleasure in congratulating the French Minister upon the good feeling, the amicable spirit of candour, and the generally clear and enlightened views which pervade the concluding half of this very important document. Were we to assume as incontrovertible the French Minister's relation of the course of the negotiatons—which until we hear all that Lord Pal- merston has to say, we cannot, in justice to the two Cabinets, pretend to do-we should not hesitate to pronounce the conduct of Lord Palmerston towards France as exceedingly precipitate, ill-advised, and every way calculated to wound in the tenderest point, the self-love of a great and friendly nation. If M. Thiers' statements, we repeat, be really correct, Eng- land has been made, to a certain extent, the dupe of Russia; not as regards the Eastern question, as M. Thiers alleges, but in suffering herself to be detached from the French alliance. The French Minister con- tends that what France and England understood by the integrity of the Ottoman empire, immediately after the battle of Nezib, was the keeping the Russians and Egyptians from Constantinople, and that so eager was Lord Palmerston to secure the safety of the Turkish capital, that lie offered, in conjunction with France, to force the Straits of the Dardanelles-that Russia at first refused to join the alliance, and that she was only prompted to join it when she ascertained that by so doing she might detach England from France—that France had no notice given her of the existence of the Treaty of London till after it was signed—and that no final effort was made, as would appear that there had been from the memorandum of Lord Palmerston, to prevail upon France to reunite with England. The words of the French Minister upon this highly important point are so explicit that we deem it of some moment to quote them here France had every right to suppose that so long a negoti- ation would not be terminated without some last explanation that the great and advantageous alliance which had bound her for the last ten years to England would not be broken asunder without a list attempt at coming to some agree- ment. The suggestions which had been made to her, tending to induce her to believe that perhaps the pos- session of Syria for life would be granted to the Viceroy, could not but confirm her in this expectation. All at once, on the 17th of July, Lord Palmerston invites the Ambassador of France to come to the Foreign-office, and informs him that the Treaty had been signed two days before, aud that without acquainting him with the text of the Treaty. The French Cabinet could not but be surprised at this. It was certainly not ignorant that the three continental Courts had concurred in the views of England, and that an arrange- ment between the Four Courts was, consequently, possible without France, but it could not suppose that this arrange- ment would take place without its being previously advised of it, and that the French alliance would be thus promptly sacrificed." The motives which induced Lord Palmerston, or more properly speaking, betrayed his Lordship into the act of thus suddenly and secretly signing the Treaty of London, are thus indicated by the French ministers:- The offer made by the Viceroy to the Sultan in the month of June, to restore the Turkish fleet, which was feared to be the opening for a direct arrangement proposed by us, and the possibility which presented itself at that epoch of effecting an insurrection in Syria, appear to have been the two motives which induced the English Cabinet, after a long state of inac- tion, to come all at once to a sudden resolution. If the Brit- ish Cabinet had chosen td have a last frank explanation with us, the French Cabinet would have been able to prove to it that the offer of sending hack the fleet was not a combination of France in order to bring about a direct arrangement, for she was ignorant of this offer until after it was made and it might have succeeded also in persuading it that the revolt in Syria was a measure which was neither a dignified nor a sure one." M. Thiers thinks the restoration of harmony be- tween France and England not yet impossible and promises that no efforts shall be wanting on the part of France to bring about so happy a result. Not- withstanding the deposition of the Pacha by the Porte, which so materially increases the gravity of events, it appears to us that M. Thiers'memorandum, opens a door to fresh negotiations between France and England which we sincerely trust will terminate in the renewal of the most amicable relations."