The Brussels correspondent of the Times writes:—The conflict between France and Siam has been going on for some years and it wae in the hope of averting its consequences that Prince Damrong visited Lon-non and Paris two years ago, The Court of Bangkok had already manifested its uneasiness, for France was dreaded, on account of her territorial ambition and her rivalry with England, It was known that she aimed at extending her authority over all the portion of Indo-China not under El control; while England, mindful of her own rights In Burma and' of her commercial relations with China, was opposed to the spread of French influence. Prince Dam-rong's mission was successful in so far that he obtained " promise from the Kuglish Government not to act upon any suggestions for the partition of Siam by France or for annexation, The French Cabinet, on the contrary, while reiterating the assurance that its intentions were pacific, would not pledge itself to disavow the policy conquest pursued by its emissaries, or even to fix a limit to French elvis At Cairo Prince Damrong stopped on his homeward journey in the spring of Inst year, and here he met M. RolinJacquemyus, at present the confidential counsellor of his brother, the King. The acquaintance sprang froma chance meeting at lunch at the house of " friend sojourning in Egypt for his health.
M. Roun Jacquemyns, who had previously filled for six years the post of Minister of the Interior in the last Liberal Cabinet of M. Frire Orban, had gone to Bgypt in the hope of obtaining either the Directorship vf the College of Law, which it was proposed to found at Cairo, or place in the Hgyption judicial administration, Founder of the Justitut de Droit International, director of the review which for many years has served as the organ of that well-known institution, he was esteemed as a jurist of the highest order by all who interest themselves in questions of interuational law. Unhappily for him, he was driven to seek a position out of his own country by the total loss of his fortune. As president ofa joint-stock company which executed important contracts in Canada, Portugal, Italy, and Greece, under the direct control of his younger brother, in whom be had absolute confidence, he sacrificed to the enterprise the whole of his personal for-
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.