The

excited more sensation at Rio de Janeiro, than the departure of Mr. Condy Raguet, the chargé des af. faires of the United States in Brazil. This gentleman had frequently made ineffectual remonstrances against the violences of the Brazilian cruisers, and civil authorities. During the progress of a maritime war, the commerce of neutral nations is always liable to occasional vexation and interruption. emperor of Brazil having undertaken to establish and enforce a paper blockade of the harbours of Buenos Ayres, Mr. Raguet was necessarily involved in frequent correspondence with the Brazilian ministry, on the subject of captures and detentions, made either in express violation of undoubted prin. ciples of the law of nations, or at least in violation of those princi. ples of neutral right, which the United States have in all past wars ardently maintained. But Mr. Ra. guet soon found that his representations were frequently disregarded or evaded, and he himself not treated with the deference due to his official situation; and of course, his connexion with the Brazilian government led to a constant suc. cession of little collisions, each adding to the unpleasant feelings which the preceding ones had engendered.

Numerous instances occurred of well founded complaint on the part of citizens of the United

States, urged by Mr. Raguet, where the court of Brazil manifest. ed no disposition to render satis. faction to the injured party. In. dignant, at length, at the uncour. teous conduct of the Brazilian go. vernment in the negotiations occa. sioned by the forcible seizure and illegal detention of the brig Spark, of New-York, Mr. Raguet demanded his passports, in March, and was suffered by the emperor to depart for the United States. Probably Pedro did not believe that Mr. Raguet would persevere in his pur. pose of quitting Rio; thinking he merely assumed a threatening atti tude, for the purpose of intimida. tion, and of thus producing an instant settlement of the business. Mr. Raguet, however, left Rio in April; and a few days in anticipation of his departure, Pedro despatched a special messenger to Mr. Rebello, the Brazilian minister in the United States, in order to give a suitable account of the matter to the government of the latter, so as to prevent the breach from becoming irreparable. Mr. Oliveira, the bearer of the despatches, reached Washington before Mr. Raguet; and in consequence of the representations made by Mr. Rebello, the president, relying upon the emperor's assurance, that on the arri. val of another minister at Rio de Janeiro, a full and adequate indemnity would be promptly made for any injuries which had been com.

mitted on the persons or property of citizens of the United States, consented to appoint a successor to Mr. Raguet. Pedro thus narrowly escaped drawing upon himself the resentment of the United States, at a time, when a war with this country must very speedily have resulted in his total ruin.

Of events in PARAGUAY, and of the proceedings of its singular rulers, during the last years, no authentic information has met our notice. Rengger's lately published historical essay, on the revolution in that country, and on the dictatorial government of Francia, contains, it is true, many curious developements concerning the recent political condition of Paraguay. But his account terminates in the year 1825, so far as it is founded upon his own personal knowledge. Nothing is correctly known of the actual state of affairs, except that the same system, which has hitherto distinguished Francia's govern.

ment, of interdicting communication between Paraguay and the neighbouring provinces, still remains in full vigour. It now appears, that the power which he attained through artifice and treachery, is maintained by the unrelenting policy of sheer military despotism. It further appears, that the statement which has been generally circulated, and generally believed, and which we mentioned in the preceding volume, that Francia had resigned in favour of a certain marquis de Guarany, was the fabrication of a Spanish adventurer, assuming that name, who appeared in Madrid, pretending to be the envoy of the dictator, and invented the story for some private ends of a questionable character. It is probable, therefore, that Francia continues to rule over the citizens of Assumption with a rod of iron, and still plays the petty tyrant in the wilds of Paraguay,

in swearing in the members; and it was not until the 21st, that the king proceeded to the house of peers, and opened the new parlia. ment in person with a speech from the throne, which will be found among the public documents.

Addresses in answer to the speech were carried in both houses, the opposition adopting the occa. sion, as usual, to criticise the expressions of the speech itself, and to condemn the policy and intentions of the ministry as unfolded by it. Nothing of any consequence took place until the 24th of November, when the house hav. ing resolved itself into committee, to take into consideration the corn acts; Mr. Husskisson explained the circumstances which produced the order in council permitting the importation of grain. During the month of August and early in September, the prospect of a failure in the crops of oats, beans, and peas, had been most alarming. The accounts received at that time respecting potatoes, had also excited the most serious apprehensions. Nothing, indeed, but the rains which followed, could have preserved Ireland from the cala. mity of a famine. The appearance of the harvest abroad too, was unpromising. In these difficult circumstances, Mr. Huskisson said, the minister who should have hesitated to advise the admission of foreign grain, would have deserved

neither the favour of the monarch, nor that fair and liberal confidence, which is reposed in the servants of the crown, while parliament is not sitting. No wise and patriotic minister could for an instant hesitate to choose between a breach of the law on the one hand, or the risk, nay, the certainty, of famine on the other. He entered at some length into an exposition of the circumstances connected with the orders, and its effects, and concluded with moving two resolutions, one declaratory of the opinion of the committee, that the parties advising the order in council, and acting under the same, should be indemnified; and the other recommending that the admission of foreign grain be permitted, on payment of the duties specified in the orders. The proposed resolutions experienced no serious opposition from any quarter; and a bill introduced in conformity with them passed both houses, without any particular notice.

Of the few other topics discussed at this session, previous to the consideration of the affairs of Portu gal, the only important one related to the joint stock companies, which had so seriously affected the monied interest of the kingdom. On the 23d of November, the house being about to resolve itself into a committee of supply, Mr. Brogden, who had been chairman of that committee for many years, declin

ed the honour of a re-election at present, in consequence of his character having been publicly assailed, on account of certain transactions of the directors of a company formed for purchasing and working the iron mines of Arig. na. The persons who originated the speculation, and who obtained, the direction of it, had contracted to pay £10,000 for the mines, and charged them to the share-holders as having cost £25,000, thus mak. ing a clear gain of £15,000, which they divided among themselves and their dependants. Mr. Brog. den had suffered his name to be used as one of the directors; and of course, became indirectly impli. cated in these nefarious transac. tions. In the debates upon the address, alderman Waithman took occasion to refer to Mr. Brogden's connexion with these frauds, and expressed a design of opposing his re-election to the chair of the committee, until the affair was ex. plained to the public satisfaction. Mr. Brogden stated at the time, that in fact he never had any actual participation in the concerns of the company, being nominally only one of the directors, and averred his total ignorance of the improper proceedings; in confirmation of which assertions, he referred to the report of a committee of the injured share-holders, who not only fully acquitted him, but declared that he had conducted throughout with

strict honour and integrity. Their opinion had afterwards been ratified, by four or five general meet. ings of the share-holders. But having been assailed by calumnies and aspersions the most unjustifi able and unfounded, and having his conduct even called in question in the house, he felt it his duty to demand an investigation; and until that was over, he would not offer himself to the house as a candidate for the committee's chair.

Alderman Waithman now testified no great readiness to propose the inquiry, which he had threatened. Members complaining of this procedure as unfair, the alderman at last brought forward a motion on the 5th of December, "that a select committee be appointed to inquire into the origin, the manage. ment, and the present state of the joint stock companies, formed during the years 1824, 1825, and 1826, and to report on the same, together with any special matter touching any member of the house." Mr. Brogden himself seconded the motion. Mr. Canning, however, objected to the extent of the proposed inquiry, which would have the ef fect of destroying the very object of the investigation. He therefore moved an amendment, limiting the committee specially to the manage. ment of the Arigna Mining Company. Mr. Huskisson also took part in the debate, for the purpose of vindicating joint stock compa.