A circular issued by the Admiralty in 1876, which gave instructions to the captains of H.M. ships as to the treatment of slaves who took refuge on board in the territorial waters of slave-holding states. These instructions were held to be inconsistent with the principle that there could be no slavery under the British Flag, and a strong feeling was aroused in the matter. Eventually a committee was appointed to examine the legal aspects of the question, with the result that a modified circular was issued. Fugitive Slave Law. A law forming part of the Compromise Act, passed by Congress in 1850, under which fugitive slaves could be arrested in the free-labour states, while it was made a felony under certain conditions to harbour or aid in the escape of such slaves. Fum the Fourth. A nickname of George IV. Furies de la Guillotine. _See_ Tricoteuses. Fürstenbund. A league of the German Princes, formed under the auspices of Frederick the Great in 1785, to uphold the Peace of Teschen. The cause of its formation was an attempt of the Emperor, Joseph II, to obtain possession of Bavaria, by exchanging for it the Austrian Netherlands. Fusillades. The wholesale massacres in Lyons, after the surrender of that city to the Revolutionary troops in 1792 were so called. G G.O.M. The Grand Old Man, the sobriquet of Mr. Gladstone. Gabelle. A tax on salt, imposed at various periods of French history. Towards the latter part of the eighteenth century it was a most burdensome impost and its incidence was most irregular. It was abolished in 1791. Gachupin. The name given in Central and South America to Spaniards and Spanish partizans during the war of independence. Gadesden Purchase. A purchase from Mexico by the United States for ten million dollars of a large tract of land now included in Arizona and New Mexico. The purchase was negotiated by James Gadesden, while United States’ Minister to Mexico in 1853. Gafol-land. In Anglo-Saxon times folcland which was let out on rent was so called. Gafol means tribute. Galleons, The Spanish. The treasure ships, which sailed once a year from the New World, bringing the tribute of the Colonies to Spain. They were frequently captured by the English gentlemen adventurers and by the buccaneers during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Gallican Confession. The profession of faith of the French Reformed Church, adopted at the Synod of La Rochelle in 1571. Gallowglasses. _See_ Kerns. Gamelle. The nickname applied to the Duc d’Orléans, when he applied to be allowed to do his term of service as a private in the French Army, saying that he would be proud to eat his dinner out of the _gamelle_ (mess tin) like any other Frenchman. Gandamak, Treaty of.