The Express.
London, England, 1855-10-10 00:00:00

THE STATE OF NAPLES.

(nom ova own cows/minium.)
NAPLIS, oar. 3.
Any oes comparing the public spirit of Naples after
the event of the capture of Sebastopol with what it
had been a few days before would have been mightily
surprised. To this great change the surprise of the
Neapolitan government lent its assistance; as also
' the incessant armaments, the continued tall of the ex-
change, and the dejection into which the most fero-
cious agents of the police seemed to have fallen.
Strange, too, were the rumours which circulated
through the city, of ministerial changes, of threaten-
ing mites tram the Allied Powers, and, immediately
alter, of diffieultirs adjusted by Austrian mediation,
and other things suggested by the hopes of the one or
the tears of the other party. I return to the peat by
way of showing of what immense importance was
our recent success. It has given us a moral victory
without firing a shot, and whatever concessions
have been or are to be made, either to the
s or the people, may be fairly attributed to that
uue blow. There was undoubtedly an impression
here that Russia was invincible : the sweet illusion
has been destroyed by the fall of Sebastopol. The
roes now is tl at a new set of ministers will try and
organise the attain of this kingdom, and that Pi-
langieri will be at the bead, whilst Deloaretto, pro-
Tided a general reform be allowed him, will under-
take the ministry of police. I have little faith,
however, in s.ch reports. The government of this
country seems to me likes heated courser, which has
.0 long been cl +(sending the bill that it has neither
power to .top nor to recede ; so that men only, not
measures, u,ay be changed. That Filangieri has
been consulted I do not believe, for it has been proved
almost officially that such ban not been the fact. Nor
is it more true, perhaps, that grave demands
have been made by the Western Powers. Diplomatic
correspondence has been confini d to the two facts of
the insult offered to Mr. Fagan and to the French flag.
With regard to the. first, the history is this:—The
British Minister demanded an immediate satisfaction,
and received from the Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Sig. Carafe, an evasive reply, to the effect that all
that had been done was to restore to its former
vigour an old regulation which forbade the entrance
of any one into the b.ix of the Soprantendeote. This
was denied by Sir W. Temple, and an immediate
reparation was demanded; on which Carafe asserted
that Mr. Fagan had.not been insulted by Mazza, and
that his Majesty hrd been always in the habit of re-
specting the representatives of foreign powers. The
long and short of it, however, is, that some satisfac-
tion has been given ; Mazza has been dismissed,
though with a very bad gram; and that, from fear of
the Western Powers, this government affects to put
its house in order.

Weak in judgment and badly counselled, his Ma-
jesty, during the whole of the recent misunderstand-
ings, has done nothing more than increase the general
hatred against him, and if now he has averted imme-
diate danger, it has been with a bad grace and under
the influence of fear. The Lazzironi had been all
armed, and by aprals to their loyalty and the distri-
bution of money had been urged on to muider. The
very words of Campagna are known, who threatened
at every foot to unchain his bloodhounds; it is also
well known that, in order to restrain somewhat those
ferocious hordes, it was necessary to assemble them in
two congregations, those of St. Rocco, and those ot St.
Damiano, thus attempting to moderate them by the
very power which in the moment of action would
have lent fresh fury to their zeal. In one of those
localities is the centre of Piazza Merest°, Mazza
harangued the people on Sunday, the 16th of Septem-
ber, declaring that he had not fallen. that he was
always present at the councils of the king,
and that they should be ever ready to
defend their " assoluto Padrene"—or in other
words, to prepare a conflagration similar to
that of 1799. We know for a fact that the public
tear was such that sone of the first persons in Naples
presented remons•rances to the English and French
embassies, begging their co-operation to guard the
capital against so horrible a scourge; we know, too,
that these diplomatists held a conference, and came to
a resolution to throw on the government the responsi-
bility of the horrible events watch were in the course
of preparation.
Nor even in the very midst of the recent diplo-
matio difficulties has this government abstained from
insults to the British embassy. Every one has read
the article in the Univers, wherein Mr. Fagan is
accused of having attempted to seduce the Swiss from
their allegiance to the King. The writer of that
article, and of similar calumnies inserted in that red-
hot Catholic journal, is Cesare Politi, an employe of
this government, and a worthy defender ot his
Sovereign. With regard to the accusation itself,
I must explain that lately urgent applications have
been made by numerous Swiss who were desirous
of going to the Crimea. Mr. Fagan, however,
invariably refused to listen to such applications,
replying that be had no instructions on the subject.
We may remind the moat pions defender of
his Sicilian Majesty that France, too, does not for-
get that in the Swiss regiments in the pay of Naples
are enrolled many French soldiers under a false
name, urged to desertion by Neapolitan agents at a
' time when for a moment a recruiting office was
established at Besancon. These are facts which are
undeniable, which the Univers will do well to re-
member before it dares to calumniate others, and
whitt, no doubt, the French government has not
forgotten. The fact is that Mr. Fagan is hated by
the Neapolitan government, because of his well-
known firmness, and of his long and perfect acquaint-
ance with this kingdom. This young and distin-
guished diplomatist is regarded therefore as a per-
petual testimony to its old abominations.
An English friend has recently been in the neigh-
bourhood of Montesardrio, the prison-house of Poerio
and his friends. The presence of this gentleman
at such a time awakened a general consternation on
the spot. A general inquiry as to the object of his
visit was instituted, and the guards were all on the
alert; but es it was impossible, from the situation of
the castle, for any one to approach it, no fear might
have been entertained ; and my friend, for the same
reason, could learn little of what was going on. lie
reports, however, that their position is less severe;
that they are permitted to write twice a week to
their friends, under ilium ; and that they walk
out every day within the enclosure.