The Week.

their predecessors had taken , besides the special offences and refractoriness of which they had themselves been guilty , and declared that the King must renounce for the present the hope of a reconciliation between tbe House ancl the Government . In replying to the address presented by the Legislative Body , the Emperor Napoleon told his attentive and submissive legislators that their debates had not been useless , although

they had lasted three months . They had served to refute the accusations levelled against the Government , which had now a more compact and devoted majority . France required stability , and liberty must not he used as a weapon wherewith to overthrow governments . Such ameliorations as might he possible must be expected from time and concord ; and meanwhile let

the members of the Legislative Body ' ' enlighten and control the progress of the Government , " while the Emperor " takes the initiative in all that may promote the prosperity of France . " Accounts of a horrible and unparalleled catastrophe at Santiago , in Chili , have been brought by the West India mail steamer Atrato . On the evening of the 8 th December , ou the occasion

of the Feast of the Immaculate Conception , the church of La Campana was filled hy a congregation composed , besides some hundreds of men , of more than 3 , 000 ladies , most of whom were ¦ young , and -members of the wealthier families of tho Chilian capital . The church was hung with drapery , and was lighted hy 20 , 000 lights , arranged in festoons . Hardly had Divine

service begun when the lights near tbe Virgin ' s image over the high altar set fire to the drapery , and the flames spread quickly over the building . The congregation rushed to the doors , which were blocked by the multitude outside , and though most of the men escaped , the ladies were trampled down on all sides , while flakes of fire fell on them from the roof . Within a quarter of an hour , as we are told , ' more than 2 , 000 ladies perished ; ancl

when all was over more than 200 cartloads of bunted corpses were removed from the ruins . AJIEBICA . —There is not much intelligence of military interest in the American advices brought by the Africa or London , though the news is to the 23 rd ult . There was a rumour , of which the foundation is altogether uncertain , that the Confederates under General Longstreet had been reinforced by two

divisions from General Lee's army , and were advancing to attack Knoxville . General Gilmore and a portion of the Federal troops had left Charleston for Hilton Head ; and the siege operations had been suspended , excepting that the Federal batteries on Morris Island continued to throw shells into the city of Charleston , in the hope of destroying the buildings .

It was supposed that the troops withdrawn by General Gilmore from Charleston were intended to undertake some expedition against the Confederate coast , but nothing was known as to their destination . General Banks had issued a proclamation declaring that more than one tenth of the population of Louisiana desired to return to the "Union , abrogating the state laws

concerning shivery , and ordering that a convention shall revise the state constitution , and that members of Congress shall be elected . It was asserted that some Confederates had assembled at Point Pelee , in Canada , for the purpose of rescuing the Confederate prisoners confined on Johnson ' s Island , . in Lake Erie , ancl that a detachment of British troops had been sent to

watch their movements . The enormous volume of diplomatic correspondence laid before Congress contained some 700 pages of communications between tho British and Federal governments . In one letter Secretary Seward declared that the Federal Cabinet must persist in maintaining that England is responsible for the losses sustained by American citizens by the Alabama ' s depredations , and in urging consequent claims for compensation . In complaining of the outfit of " iron-clad

The Week.

rams" in British harbours , he said that those " rams" must be expected to assail some of the great American ports , and that the Navy Department had not a sufficient number of disposable vessels to protect all . In the event of such an attack , " a retaliatory war would be inevitable . " After Earl Russell's intimation that orders had been given for the seizure of the

" rams" at Liverpool , Secretary Seward directed Mr . Adams to inform tho English Cabinet that " the Federal Government will hereafter hold itself obliged with even more cause than heretofore to endeavour to conduct its intercourse with England so that the civil war , when terminated , will leave to neither nation any permanent cause for discontent . "

A Singapore despatch , received hy Mr . Ueuter , contains the news that the Confederate steamer Alabama , after sailing from that port on the 2 ith ult ., bad burned in the Straits of Malacca the ships Sonora , Highlander , and Martaban . The most remarkable part of the intelligence , however , is a statement that , of the three ships thus destroyed hy Captain Semmes , only two ,

the Sonora aud Highlander , were American vessels , and that the third , the Martaban , was a British ship bound from Moulmein . It remains to he seen whether this account of the Martaban's nationality is correct , ancl whether , iu the event of its correctness , she was laden with coal or other supplies for the Federal Government ' s cruisers . It can hardly be supposed that Captain

Semmes , who has hitherto been very cautious and courteous in his treatment of the English merchantmen which he has encountered , and who must be presumed to care for the safety of his ship and himself , can have ventured to burn a ship under British colours , unless he was satisfied that he could show her not to be entitled to bear those colours , or could otherwise offer

a justification which would suffice to prevent the English Government from ordering its men-of-war to pursue the Alabama , or from seizing her if she should be compelled to enter a British port .

To Correspondents.

TO CORRESPONDENTS .

S . D . —We are not aware whether the "British , Irish , and Colonial Calendar and Pocket Book , " for 1863 , has yet been published . We will make inquiries . P . M . ' 101-. —We have not failed to notice what a disgracefully emasculated production the English Calendar is this year . Amatewv editors are wot always the best , and the publication now before us is a proof that too many cooks spoil the

broth . M . BESOIT is quite right . We shall not publish his communication , even though it should appear in other papers . BEO . SHAW has omitted to send us No . 5 of his communication , which is consequently held over . BBO . R . P . G ., Shanghai , shall hear from us by the next mail .

III . —1 . By the Junior Warden . 2 . " Uniformly from W . M . to I . G . 3 . By the Immediate P . M . 4 . A lodge having been opened in the three degrees , may he resumed at the pleasure of the Master in the first . 5 . Scotch and Irish P . M . 's are not eligible for the Master ' s chair in an English lodge , without first serving the office of Warden . C . A Scotch Companion may wear his Scotch Jewel in an English Chapter , and

the same rule applies to an English Companion in a Scotch . Chapter . 7 . There is no rule for the separate admittance of candidates . 8 . A lodge being formed in a remote district of our colonies or abroad , could no doubt obtain a dispensation for the installation taking place without a full Board of Past Masters . Should the brother appointed as W . M . have been installed before , the ceremony might he dispensed with altogether . EEEATA . —In Bro . Purion Cooper's communication , page 3 of the present volume , for "letters of the two books , " read "titles of the two hooks ; " and for "Amore " read " Andre-