I have heard men express preferences. They have made mention of whom they desire to rule over them if the worst should come upon us nationally. Some are rampant after American associations; some are enamoured of the English; some would have the Germans, others the French. Personally I indulge no such predilections. They argue an abandonment of hope; they display a lack of vitality; they are an absolute admission of incapacity and of failure. For my part I am a _Liberian_ first and last and my desire is that Liberia should endure till the heavens fall, that this country be controlled by Liberians for Liberians. But I also desire that these Liberians be tolerant; that they be prescient; that they be energetic, industrious, and public-spirited; that they be courageous in shouldering their national responsibilities; that they be liberal and that they become a great and glorious people, unanimous in sentiment, united in action, abounding in all the virtues which make a nation powerful, perpetual and enduring.--E. BARCLAY. BOUNDARY QUESTIONS. The most pressing and ever urgent question which the Republic has to face is the protection of its frontier against aggression; Liberia has two powerful neighbors, both of which are land-hungry and are continually pressing upon her borders; she has already lost large slices of her territory and is still menaced with further loss. FIRST BRITISH AGGRESSION. Shortly after his election to the presidency of the Republic, President J. J. Roberts visited Europe. He was well received both in England and France. On one occasion, in 1848, when he was dining in London with the Prussian Ambassador, the conversation dealt with the difficulties which the Liberian settlers had with the native chiefs along the Gallinhas River; these hostilities were kept alive by slave traders who had their trading stations near the river’s mouth; these difficulties had generally been incited and directed by a chief named Mano. Among the guests who were present at the dinner were Lord Ashley and Mr. Gurney; it was suggested that an end might be put to these difficulties and the anti-slavery cause advanced, if Liberia would purchase this territory; considerable interest was aroused by the suggestion, and through Lord Ashley’s effort the necessary money was raised for consummating the purchase. On his return to Liberia, President Roberts entered into negotiations which extended from 1849 to 1856, by which the land was gradually acquired; the area secured stretched from the Mano River to the Sewa and Sherbro Island on the west. Through the annexation of this territory, Liberia’s domain extended from Cape Lahon to the eastward of Cape Palmas, west to the border of Sierra Leone, a distance of 600 miles. This acquisition of territory was attended with considerable difficulty; the influence of traders, of slavers, and even of England herself was thrown in the way of the negotiations--so Commodore Foote tells us.