EUROPEAN INTELLIGENCE. London, 20th July 1555.

Otago Witness, Issue 207, 10 November 1855, Page 3

EUROPEAN INTELLIGENCE. London, 20th July 1555.

On the 16th July, 1855, the Royal Assent was given, by commission, to the New South Wales Government Bill, to the Victoria Government Bill, and to the Australian Waste Lands' Act Repeal Bill. The colony of New South Wales, therefore, have de facto a constitution.

On the same evening, Lord John Russell rose to announce the fact of his resignation, and to place before the house an account of his recent transactions in Vienna. He ably defended himself from the charges made against him, but his lordship has suddenly become most unpopular, and the people view the proceedings if without a prejudiced eye, most assuredly in a plain, common sense point of view. They have harboured the thought that Lord John, in thought, if not in wish, turned an apostate against his country ,- and his colleagues and nearly the whole of the London Press, have denounced his conduct in unmeasured terms. But whether his lordship be right or wrong in his arguments, and in hi& past conduct, this much is certain, that he has beea obliged to resign office, which he now only holds until his successor b? appointed Thus miserably and ignominiously ends the famous Vienna Conference affair. The British diplomatist, from whom so much was expected, performed his part so ill that he has beon little else than expelled from the government of his country.

TmmedL.tely alter his lordship's speech, Sir Edward Buluer Lytton rose to bring forward his motion, " That the conduct of our Minister in the recent negotiations at Vienna Ins, in the opinion of this House, shaken the confidence of this counriy in those to whom its afiiiiis are entrusted." The retirement of Lord John took out the point of the motion, and Sir Edward withdrew it, after a speech of some length, refencd with much eloquence to the subject.

Mr. Bouverie followed with a personal explanation of the part he had taken in the "transaction," which Lad driven his noble friend from office.

Lord Ptihnerslon lvplied to Sir E. B. Lj [ton's eh irge against the Government of disunion and insinceiitv.

Yesterday, Mr. Roebuck moved his resolution of sweeping reprehension on every member of the late Aberdeen cabinet, of being the first and chief cause of the . suffering ai>d disasters of the army, during the winter campiign in the Crimea. The debate lasted four d:ns, .md terminated in favour of the Ministry by a nnjoiity of 107.

No one has been appointed to the vacant office of Colonial Secretary, but Sir William Molesworth is spoken of as <i likely man. If " the right man in

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