The New York Herald Newspaper, February 20, 1871, Page 5

ad fallen upon the land, ut by continual disasters, Says the Phronaler = *In sooth the estate of France was then most miserable. There appeared nothing but ‘a horrible face, confusion, poverty, desolation, ‘solitarinesse and feare. The lean and bare Jaborers in the country did terrify even theeves emselves, who had nothing left to them to spoil but the carkasses of these poore, misera- ble creatures, wandering up and down Jike ghostes drawne out of their ea The least farmes and ham- eta were fortified by these robbers—English, ‘Bourguignons and French—every one striving jto do his worst; all men-of-wer were well greed to spoil the countryman and merchant, Even the cattell, accustomed to the larume pel, the signe of the enemy’s approach, would run home of themselves without any guide by accustomed misery.” The English and Burgundians (traitors) had In fine completely conquered and exhausted France, to whom only one important strong- held remained—at Orleans. All the remaining provinces had submitted; the weak French was meditating flight, and the fate of Ire- Jand seemed certain to overtake France as the massed iron veterans of Salisbury and the Burgundian Duke moved on to complete their ‘easy conquest southward. The world knows tho result. The final overthrow and expulsion of the invaders were as signal as the triumphs they had previously wen and the devastation ‘they had wrought. The appearanco of Joan of Arc, in 1429, was but the symbol of reviving France, and, although she ultimately suffered a horrid death, her spirit lived after her, and in twenty years her country was again rising to control in Eurepe, Had it been necessary to multiply these ‘illustrations we might have commenced farther back, with the frightful invasion of Attila and ‘bis Huns, defeated at last in the battle of halons in 451, or we might adduce many allusions in more modern days, from the wars of the Fronde, of Navarre, of the League, Aown to the series of partially triumphant in- vasions (always desolations) by the monarchi- cal allies of Eastern Europe immediately pre- seeding and then following the reign of the first Napoleon. But this were needless. Look at Northern France, sacked, pillaged and bom- >barded in 1792, until the raw recruits of Dumouriez and Keliermann s0 utterly over- threw the flower of tho victory-sated Prussian army, commanded by its warlike king, at Valmy, that even German Goethe, who wit- nessed the battle, said to his friends that evening:—“From this place and from this day forth commences a new era in the world’s history, and you can all say that you were present at its birth.” { That era was signalized by the successes and then the suppression of the republic, the consulate and the empire, during which momentous period Franee bled ai every pore, ‘was overrun, ravaged and laid under contri- bution, in both North and South, at different times, and finally saw her proud capital occu- pied by her exulting allied foes, her last armies defeated, surrendered or dispersed and her great Emperor pinned to a desolate rock dn mid ocean, like another Promotheus who had once aspired to wield the very lightnings of Jove to make her great. The statistics of her practical loss and physical depletion by ‘these wars still appall the calculations of states- men, and yet within less than thirty years after such apparently final prostration she was ‘again seen almost dictating law to Europe. We now behold her again cast down, again half occupied by hostile armies, again laid under tax and tithe by the sternest of con- querors, her still further exhaustion to be con- jectured only by the measure ot her further preposed resistance. Will’ she again arise from her ashes stronger, grander and more commanding than before? The past is the only respendent to whom the future of a nation of forty millions can turn for a logical reply. The Joint High Commission and the Busi- » > ness Before It. ~~ We publish to-day o careful summary of the ‘questions for adjustment between the United States and Great Britain to be deliberated upon by the Joint High Commission which 1s soon to meet at Washington. These ques- tions comprise not only the Alabama claims, ‘but also our relations with the British colonial possessions on our Northern frontier, now known as the ‘‘Dominion by the name of Canada,” the province of Prince Edward Island, the province. of Newfoundland and the province of British Columbia. The latter are classified generally under these heads:—The coast and gulf fisheries of the British North ‘American possessions; the navigation of the St. Lawrence and the canals thereof; the sub- ject of commercial intercourse, embracing a consideration of the bonding system and the transit trade; the political relations of the: provinces and their attitude toward the United States; the claims of Canada for alleged damages and expenses caused by Fenian ‘raids from the United States, and the North- swestern boundary question, affecting the own- ‘ership of the island of San Juan. Each of these important questions which claim the attention of the Joint High Commission is drlofly reyloyed and the history of the cage ‘examined. It is, moreover, clearly set fort that the labors of that Commission will largely depend for success upon the manner in which the British government approaches the subject anderlying, in reality, the whole matter— namely, the universal feeling among public men in Washington, and which is but a reflex of the popular feeling throughout the United States, that no permanent, cordial and friendly relations between America and England cao be established until the British flag shall cease to float as an emblem of power over any por- tion of this Continent. The ultimate removal of the British flag from the American Conti- nent will be the surest pledge of perpetual peace and friendship between the two great English-speaking nations. VIEWS OF THE PAST. FEBRUARY 20, 1870—Steamer Emma burned on the Mississippi river; seventy lives lost 1869—The Austrian frigate I cruising in the Acriatic; crew perished. 1864—The rebels defeated the Union forces tn the battle of Olustee, Fia. 1855—Ship John Rutledge lost, with neariy allon board, by striking un iceberg. cae > ilitary tusurrection occurred at Saragossa, detzky blown up while 340 01 the officers and 1 ; av; " NEW YORK HERALD, MONDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1871.—WITH SUPPLEMENT, it was, to the Loire, and a THE FRENCH GOVERNMENT Herald Special Report from Bordeaux. ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE NEW MINISTRY. Orleanists and Moderate Re- publicans Appointed. Jules Favre at the Head of the Cabinet. SKETCHES OF THE NEW MINISTERS. TELEGRAM TO THE NEW YORK HERALD. Lonpoy, Feb, 19, 1871. Ihave received the following despatch from the New York Heraxp correspondent at Bordeaux dated to-day. Your correspondent telegrams :— M. THIERS GONE TO VERSAILLES. M. Thiers, President of the Freach Govern- ment, left Bordeaux to-day for Versailles. THE NEW MINISTRY. Before departing he announced to the Na- tional Assembly that he had appointed the following named gentlemen members of the new Ministry :— Jules Favre, Minister of Foreign Affairs. Louis Joseph Buffet, President of the Coun- cil. Felix Lambrecht, Minister of Commerce. Louis Jeseph Picard, Minister of the Inte- rior. ; Adolphe Charles Le Flo, Minister of War. Jules Simon, Minister of Public Instruction. Jules Armand Dufaure, Minister of Justice. M. —— De Larcy, Minister of Public Works. Admiral Potthuan, Minister of Marine. INDIGNATION AT SIMON’S APPOINTMENT. Great indignation is expressed among the people here at the appointment ef M. Jules Simon to the important position of Minister of Public Instruction. This is in consequence of his notorious infidelity in religious matters. THE FINANCE MINISTER, The Minister of Finance was not named, though it is understood that he has been ap- pointed, and his name will be made public as soon as he arrives in Bordeaux. THIERS AS SPECIAL MINISTER. Mr. Thiers will undertake the duties of no special ministry, that he may the better apply himself to the superintendence of affairs in general. A ROW. A row about the troops guarding the cham- ber in which the National Assembly holds its session has beeu incited by Rochefort and other radicals, who are left out in the cold. An uneasy feeling prevails among the roughs, but the presence of troops tends to preserve order, THE PEACE QUESTION. The people of Bordeaux are generally op- posed to any peace which includes a cession of territory ; but it is said that a majority of the Ministry and of the Assembly are resolved to make peace upon the best attainable terms. THE NEW FRENCH MINISTRY. Below we give sketches of the new French Min- istry:— Jules Favre, Minister of Foreign Affairs. The new Minister of Foreign Affairs has been so conspicuous in European affairs during the past four months that his previous public career is now known to all our readers. His full name 1s Gabriel Claude Jules Favre. Born at Lyons on the 3ist of March, 1809, he received a fine education, studied law and was admitted to the bar. He was at Paris when the revolution of 1830 broke out, and the active part he took in it brought him prominently before the French people. At this time, in a letter published in the National, he advocated the aboli- tion of the monarchy and the re-establishment of a republic, This was not to be, however, and atter Louis Philippe ascended the throne he entered actively into the practice of his profession, gaining considerable reputation by the independence he dis- played and by his eloquence. In 1431 he defended the workmen charged with forming an tllegal asso ciation. M. Fayre was then in Lyons. The trial was the signal for a sanguinary outbreak, during which the youug lawyer narrowly escaped death from a voliey of musketry directed against him. In 1834 he defended the persons implicated in the attempted revolution of that year, beginning his speech by the bold declaration, “1 am a republican,” and creating a great sensation by the fearlessness with which he assailed the government. By the time the revolution of 1848 broke out Jules Favre was one of the leading champions of French republicanism, and was im- mensely popular with the Parisians, He was eiected a member of the Constituent Assembly from the De- partment of the Loire, and was appointed Secretary General of the Minister of the Interior, and subse- quently held the position of Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs. While holding this latter office he voted for the prosecution of Louis Blanc and Cansi- diére tor their complicity in the attempted revolu- tion of June, 1848; but he refused to vote for the resolution of thanks to General Cavaignac, and was @ strenuous opponent of the expedition to Rome. From the entrance of Louis Napoleon in the poll- tics of France Jules Favre was bis opponent. After the election of Napoleon to the Presidency and the flight ef Ledru Rollin he became the leader of the Montague, and was bitter and unrelenting in his hostility to the new government. The coup d'état of 1861 oniy increased this animosity, and at first he refused to take the oath of allegiance to the new constitution, although be had been elected to the General Council of the Loire-et-Rhone. At a later date, lowever, When chosen to the Corps Législatf he swore allegiance to the Emperor, but never lost an opportunity to oppose him. Indeed, his hostility to Napoleen was always intense. Not a single mea- sure introduced by the government ever met his support. The Crimean war, the war with Ausiria, the invasion of Mexico and the occupation of Rome by the French were alike denounced byhim. Some of his best speeches were made in advocacy of the freedom of the press and against the law of ‘depor- tation.” In 1858 he defended the assassin Orsini, and again created a sensation by the almost reck- less courage he displayed in assalling the govern- ment. With his more recent career the reader is well ac- quainted. The bloodless revolution of last Septem- ber elevated him to the position of Minister for Foreign Affuirs under the provisional government. His subsequent abortive efforts to make a treaty of peace with Germany are also well known. He re- mained tn Paris, taking part in the general defence of the country, until the surrender of Paris, the terms of which he negotiated with Count Bismarok, 4s also the terms of the Armistice Convention, At the recent elections he was chosen a member of the National Assembly by the elections of several departments, Louis Joseph Buffet, President of the Council. ‘This statesman was bern at Mirecourt, in the Vosges, in 1818, At the time of the revolution of February, 1848, he was a lawyer of prominence, and was elected member of the Constituent Assembly from the Department of Vosges. He voted ordina- rily with the supporgera of the expelled dynasty, and strongly opposed the projects of the soctulists. After the election of December 10 he supported the government of Louis Napoleon, who appointed hun Minister of Commerce and Agriculture. But while voting with the party of order he refused to give complete assent to the potitics of the Elysée, and consequently left the Ministry with M. Odilon Barrott, on the sist of October, 1859. Re- elected to the Assembly he figured conspicuously in the legislation of 1850. He was one of the Com- mission charged with M. Baroche to prepare the bill of Electoral Reform. In Aprtl, 1851, he returned to power with M. Faucher, ana faithfully repre- sented the ideas of the majority, On the 14th of October of the same year he resigned, and two weeks later was made Chevalter of the Legion of Honor. After the coup d'état he was deprived of his public offices, but in 1864 was elected Deputy to the Corps Législatif. In January, 1870, he con- sented to serve in the Cabinet of Napoleon as Minister of Finance, which position he resigned in the month of April following. Since then he bas not been in oftice, Felix Lambrecht, Minister of Commerce. M. Lambrecht was born en the 4th of April, 1819. He first became prominent in French politics in 1863, at which time he was elected to the Corps Législatif for the Fifth Circonscription of the Depart- ment of the North. He voteu generally with the Tiers-parti, and supported the Bonaparte dynasty in its efforts to establish constitutional government, General Adolphe Charles Lo Flo, Minister of War. ‘This Minister was born at ‘'esneren in 1804, and was educated at the military school of St. Oyr He served with distinction in Africa, and his conduct during the slege of Constantine was particularly brilliant. When the revolution of 1848 broke out he retained the rank of general. Elected to the Con- stituent Assembly for the Department of Finisterre, he gave in his adhesion to the republic, and was for some time on a diplomatic mission to St. Petersburg. On his return he ranged himself with the Right in support of tie policy of Napoleon, and after his re-election voted with the majority, hostile to the republic. As soon as the designs of Napoleon became apparent he went into opposition and voted against the projects of the executive power. On the morning of the coup d’ctat he was arrested and expelled from France. He retired to Belgium, where he re- mained until permitted to return. After the over- throw of the Bonaparte dynasty, last year, he was employed by the provisivnal government a3 Minister of War in Parts. Jules Simon, Minister of Public Instruction. M. Simon was born at Lorient in 1814, stadted at the college of his native city, and at that ef Vannes, and at an early age displayed a predilection for philosophy. A disciple of Cousin, he soon distin- guished himself by his philosophical works, which, it must be stated here, are bold tn the expression of sentiments hostile to all religions. Entering into politics on the side of the moucrate opposition, he became a candidate for the Department of Cotes du Nord, but was defeated by the influence of the = clergy. After the revolution of 1848 he was elected for the same de- partment, and in the Assembly voted generally with the moderate republicans, He held under the re- public several subordinate offices, opposed the coup @ état, and on its accomplishment reured tem- porarily into private life. In 1857 he was elected @ member of the Corps Législatif for the Department Lotre Inferieure, and represented that department until the downfall of Napoleon, acting invariably with the republican opposition. After the revolution of last year he became a member of the Provisional government. The philosophical and other works of M. Simon are quite numerous, and have won for him an extensive reputation, Lonis Joseph Picard, Minister of the Loterior. M. Picard was born at Paris in 1821, received a brilliant education, and was admitted to the bar ta 1844, under the auspices of M. Lionvilie, whose son+ in-law he became. He commenced practice at the Paris bar, and son won distinction. In June, 1458, he was elected to the Corps Législatif for the De- partment of the Seine, and was conspicuous in the debates of the Corps. in the session of 1860 he was one of “The Five’ who remained in opposition to Napoleon, and attracted much attention by the keen satire which pervaded his speeches, He was amember of the Corps when the revolution took place last year, and became one of tie members of the { rovisional Government. Jules Armand Dutaure, Minister of Justive. This Minister ‘was born at Saujonu m 1798, and ts a lawyer by profession, He engaged in politics in 1834, a8 a supporter of the Orleans dynasty, and in 1836 was appointed Counsellor of State, which po- sition he resigned a tew months later and went into opposition, Subsequentiy le became Minister of Public Works. After the revolution of 1848 he was elected to the Constituent Assembly, giving his adhesion to the republic, and voted for the banishment of the Orleans family. He op- posed all the measures of the socialists, and supported all laws and measures tend- ing to re-establish order. In 1849 he was ap- pointed Minister of the Interior by Louis Napoleon, but soon after resigned, He went into opposition when the designs ot the President became known, and retired to private life. When nis election to the French Academy was announced to Napoleon the Emperor declared that the choice of the Assembly met his hearty approval, although M. Dufaure was not among the number of lis supporters. In 1862, during the prosecution of Count De Montalambert, he defended the publisher of the Count’s pamphlet, displaying great skill and eloquence. THE PEACE QUESTION. Herald Special Report from Versailles. The Conclusion of a Treaty Re- garded Certain. Prussia Disposed to Modify Her Terms. TELEGRAM TO THE REW YORK HERALD. Lonpon, Feb, 19, 1871. The correspondent of the New York Herarp at Versailles sends me the following despatch, dated today. He says:— PEAOE OERTAIN. Not the slightest doubt is entertained in high quarters since Jules Favre's return re- garding the final conclusion of a treaty of peace. M. Favre expresses the opinion that the National Assembly can be relied upon to make terms. PRUSSIA DISPOSED TO MODERATION, There is an evident disposition on the part of Prussia to yield much, except in the matter of the cession of territory, but even this may undergo some slight modifications, PARIS. Herald Special Report from Paris. Preparations for the Tri- umphal Entry. The Police Searching for Guns and Grenades. PATRIOTIC PROPOSITION OF ST GERMAIN. Napoleon Lampooned on the Stage. War Contributions to be Deducted from the Indemnity, Paris Resuming Her Gayety and Frivolity. TELEGRAMS TO THE NEW YORK HERALD. Lonvon, Feb. 19, 1871. I have received the following despatch from the New York HeErarp correspondent in Paris, dated to-day. He says:— SEAROHING FOR ARMS AND GRENADES, Police agents of this city are searching for arms and grenades in the disturbed districts. The authorities do not anticipate any organ- ized attempt to prevent the entry of the Prus- sians inte Paris, Fears, however, are enter- tained that the turbulent people of tho Belle- ville and Lavillette quarters will make demon- strations hostile to the Emperor of Germany and Count Bismarck, against whom their ex- asperation is intense. The police have already seized a number of grenades, but large num- bers additional, which are known to have been constructed, have not yet been discovered, HOPELESS BELIEF, Some persons here believe that the Prus- sians will abandon their purpose of making a triumphant entry into the city, but those best informed, and particularly the authorities, are certain that, according to the programme already announced, they will march through. A PATRIOTIO PROPOSITION. The old legitimist families of St. Germain constantly wear mourning. They declare that all the houses of Paris should be kept closed, and no inhabitant be seen on:the streets while After they leave, all the pavement, they say, walked over by their enemy should be removed, and nothing left that has been polluted by the hostile tread. the Prussians are there. LAMPOONING NAPOLEON. Last night (February 18) I visited the Café concert in the Quartier Latin, now known as the Café Beuglant. The prinoipal attraction on the stage, with a striking resemblance to the ex-Emperor Napoleon, in all that he said in his song, laughter, manners, gesticulations, twirling of his mustache and his salute he imitated to the life the ex-Emperor. Between some verses, not at all complimentary to the prisoner at Wilhelmshohe, the actor made sixteen gallops around the stage with a long sword dangling between his legs, to the intense delight of the audience, which in- dulged in uproarious shouts of “‘Badinguet, Badinguet!" The excitement was so intense that the Prefect of Police stopped the per- formance. WAR CONTRIBUTIONS AND. THE INDEMNITY. Count Bismarck has replied to an applica- tion from the communes for information on the subject that all sums exacted as war con- tributions up to the conclusion of a treaty of peace will be deducted from the general war indemnity. ALSATIANS AND LORRAINES PROTESTING, The natives of Alsace and Lorraine, now in Paris, have held a meeting and declared it to be the desire of the people of their provinces to remain French. They also protested against the proposed cession as an infamy, PARIS RESUMING HER GAYETY AND FRIVOLITY. Paris is resuming her natural appearance. In a few days we shall have gas. The river boats have commenced running, and traffic on the streets is renewed. Some carts are seen, but scarcely any cabs and carriages. The people are resuming, with almost painful frivolity, their careless gayety. Already preparations are making for reopen- ing the dissolute gardens in the capital, At the present writing the cafés are already thronged with loose characters of both sexes, who seem indifferent to the disgrace Paris has undergone and is now undergoing. wonted The Triumptial Entry—Preparing for It— Historical Events-General Ttems—Roche- fort's Fulsehoods. Loxvon, Feb. 19, 1871, I have received the following despatch from the New York HeERatp correspondent at Paris, dated to-day. writes:— THE TRIUMPHAL ENTRY. A strong force of Mobiles are engaged re- moving the barricades and defences of the Avenue Impératrice, which work is doing by order of the Commissioners of Barricades, who are to put the avenue in order for the entry of the Prussians. The enemy has appointed that the Prefect of St. Denis shall exact a contribution of St. 800,000 francs. To prevent a chance of collision on the entry of the Prussians, many battalions of the Na- tional Guard are reauired to deliver up the Your correspondent cartridges in their possession. A report was circulated to-day that there would be no triumphal entry into Paris, HISTORIOAL FACTS, M. Grévy, the President of the Assembly, is the anthor of the celebrated amendment introduced into the Assembly in 1848, which, if adopted, would have prevented the election of Napoleon, and Benoist Dury, tho Vice President, is the same person who presided over the Deputies who met in the town hall of the Sixth Arrondissement, and who advocated a forcible resistance to the coup d'état, GENERAL ITEMS. The Mayor of Chantilly bas been im- prisoned in consequence of the non-payment of 15,000 francs. Trochu gave a farewell dinner to some friends yesterday, and leaves for Bordeaux to-day. The weather {s the finest since the siege, and the Boulevards and the Champs Elysées are crowded to-day. A FALSE STATEMENT. Rochefort’s paper contains a violent letter from Bordeaux, charging all manner of ont- rages and violence by the Prussians on the line of the railways. These statements are contradicted by the experience of all except the author, and it is believed that they are made for the purpose of creating mischief. New Elections to be Held in Paris—Tho French White House—Increasina Feeling in Favor of the Republic—The war Contribu- tons—After the Restoration of Peace the Army to be Reorganized. Panis, Jan. 19, 1871. I am enabled to inform the New York HeRAtp that the official declaration of the result of the elections for the Asse mbly was made on Friday before the Hotel de Ville, in the presence ef a large concourse of people. The names of Thiers, Favre, Vinoy, Cochin, Picard and Simon were badly received; that of General Uhrich was cheered. NEW ELECTIONS will be held in Paris on the Ist and 5th of March, The conservatives are preparing a carefully selected list of candidates. THE REPUBLIO FEELING. The mayor of the Eleventh arrondissement made a speech, expressing the hope that there was @ mutual understanding among the deputies elected to the assembly that France should remain a republic. This was received with cries of ‘Long live the republic!” ‘‘Down with the Orleans.” GAMBETTA FROM STRASBOURG. It is announced that Gambetta has been elected to represent Strasbourg in the Assembly. THE FRENCH WHITE HOUSE. The Palais Royal bas been designated as the future residence of President Thiers, and workmen are busily engaged putting it in order for his reception. PARIS BATISFIED, The appointment of M. Thiers as Chief Executive of the nation is well received in Paris, and the journals generally approve of the election of M. Grevy to the presidency of the Assembly. Rochefort’s and Pyat’s jour- nals alone find fault with these appointments. GENERAL TROCHU will go to Bordeaux to resign his executive functions and take his seat in the Assembly. THE TERMS OF PEACE. Letters have been received from several deputies now at Bordeaux declaring that they desire peace, but, if the conditions are ex- orbitant, they will do their duty, La France has reason to believe that Bismarck has com- municated to Favro the German terms of peace, and that Favre has laid them before his colleagues. The everywhere repel the idea of making any cession of territory, La Liberté says durable peace on such a condition is impossible. La Patrie thinks the prospects of peace are improving. It is said that the armis- tice will be prolonged to the Ist of March, ON THE RESTORATION OF PEACE a bill will be presented in the Assembly organ- izing a provisional army, disbanding the pre- sent armies and proposing a commission to in- quire into and report the best plan for a defi- nitive reorganization of the entire military establishment. Le Peuple Frangais says the pretensions put forward by the Duc d’Aumale and the Prince de Joinville have created estrangement between them and the Count de Paris, the sole rightful claimant of the throne of France, and this may lead to a rupture unless powerful in- fluences are exerted to prevent it. WAR CONTRIBUTIONS. The total war contributions required by the Germans from the city of Peris has been ad- vanced by the Bank of France. COMMEROIAL AFFALRS, The Constitutionnel says commercial affairs are recovering from the effect of the enforced seclusion of the city, and within the last few days trade has been very active. PUBLIO WORKS, The government has approved a credit of three million francs for public works, NEWS FROM DIEPPE, Advices from Dieppe February 18 says that it is reported that at an interview on Wednes- day last Bismarck admitted to Favre that it was only allowable to exact during the armis- tice contributions levied prior to the 28th of January. Dieppe, therefore, hopes that the amquats exacted from her may be refunded. French newspapers GERMAN HEADQUARTERS, Herald Special Report from Versailles, Coming Grand Review on the Champ de Mars. Preparations Made to Evacuate France. THE HEALTH OF THE EMPEROR (MPROVING. Present Strength of the French Armies, TELEGRAM TO THE NEW YORK HERALD, Lonpon, Feb, 19, 1871, From the New York Herap correspondent at Versailles [ have received the following despatch :— A GRAND RRVIEW. After the triumphant entry of the Emperor of Germany into Paris he will review five corps of the German army on the Champ de Mass. PREPARATIONS TO EVACUATE FRANCE, Preparations bave been made to evacuate France with all possible promptitude, as soom ag practicable, after the French have given sufficient guarantees for the payment of the indemnity, which has been fixed.at one hun- dred and fifty millions of pounds sterling (750,000,000). THE EMPEROR'S HEALTH. The health of the Emperor of Gesmany is better. He drove out to-day. A PETITION FROM ROUEN. The Archbishop of Rouen has arrived here with a petition to Count Bismarck for a.veduc- tion of the war contribution on Rouen. STRENGTH OF THE FRENCH ARMIES. Information received here gives the follow- ing as the strength of the French forces now in the field :— The Army of the Loire, commanded by General Chanzy, at 120,000 men, well equipped and armed; the Army of the South at 135,000 men; the army of the North, under General Faidherbe, 70,000 men; the troops at Cherbourg and Havre at 40,000 men, in bad condition. PRUSSIANS IN SWITZERLAND. Two hundred Prussian infantry recently crossed the Swiss frontier in pursuit of the French military chest. tered by the forces of the Swiss government and commanded to lay down their arma, Fifty complied with the order, but the rest refused and succeeded in making their escape. They were encoun- PRINCE ALBRECHT CONVALESOENOT. Prince Albrecht, commanding the German cavalry, who has been quite ill, is convae lescent. SPAIN AND THB UNITED STATES Herald Special Report from London. Important Despatches from Madrid for Washington. King Amadeus to Settle the Ameri- can Claims on Cuba. TELEGRAM TO THE NEW YORK HERALD. Lonpon, Feb, 19, 1871. I am enabled to inform the HeraLp spe- cially by cable telegram that Mr. A. A. Adee, Secretary of Legation to the United States Embassy in Madrid, who arrived in this city.a few days since from the Spanish capital, took his departure from England yesterday. (Satur- day), the 18th inst., on board the Cunard mail steamer bound to New York. Mr. Adee will proceed from. New York direct to Washington. He goes as bearer of special despatches addressed by Major General Sickles, United States Minister at the court of King Amadeus, to President Grant. It is understood that the state papers which he carries contain official information of the entire and satisfactory settlement by the Spanish government of all American claims against the kingdom arising from eircum- stances connected with the insurreetionary war in Cuba, as also of all international con~ troversies now existing between the Spaniards and the American people relating directly thereto or which may have arisen inferentially from the same cause. Lam informed that the question of the purv chase of the island of Cuba by the United States is not mooted in the documents to which I refer; but I am, at the same time, assured that Spain is better disposed at the present moment to treat with the Executive in Washington on that subject considerately and with patience than at any time heretofore. Tiffany & Coy Union square. STERLING SILVER TABLE SPOONS, FORKS, £0. ‘New patterns of our own make nt close prices. 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