The Express.
London, England, 1852-01-21 00:00:00

GERMANY.

7.
The enemies of the constitutionM areULLIN indefatig lable.
The result of the late debate is regarded as maw
encouraging than otherwise, and new projects ft
revision atilt( ar every day. A pamphlet is to-day
circulating among the members of the find chamber,
tending to show that the future composition of the
first chamber, half elective and half hereditary, bath
as the constitution has organised it, and such as it
will, in the ordinary course of things, exist is Aitgubt,
52, cannot respond to the end proposed for attain-
ment. The author argues in favour of the fuming.
Lion of the entire body by the King. A Silt:shut
journal states that it has been seriously delaitcd
iq
the ministry whether or not the government should
propose the abolition of Articles 6,71 to be
of the constitution treating of the first eliamber.
In the New Prweamt Gazette I find a petition sigind
by one hundred country squires, urging the Own-
ber to call down its own annihilation. The cote.t.i.
tution, it is argued, was the frtsr gift of the King.
Ile therefore will not revoke it without being ea.
pressly prayed to do so by his penitent people. The
nation then declares that having seen the fallacy of
constitutional institutions, and tieing mind by bard
experience of its folly, it prays the chamber to under.
take an essential modification of the constitution,
such as will bring back Prussia to its old sys-
tem of representation by estates, and after-
wards ask the sane lion of the King to
the arrangement. Another petition is signed
by 100 members of rural communes, and concludes
with the prayer that his Majesty will deign to *lee,
himself and alone, the reins of government, and only
take the consultative ad% ice of his faithful estates
when this shall appear necessary. To such a pitch
has this anti-constitutional mania attained in the
high tory party, that even the ultra New Ptowia4
GaZeite finds it necessary to come forward in defence
of the Chambers. It says:
We hear it esccrtcol that for the restoration of the
monarchy nothing is necessary but the al.litien ./1 lire
chambers. It is said the King must again goyim aleue,
Certainly, we wish it alas; but, as the. King cannot reign
alone everywhere, the question is another—namely, with
whom and through whom is he to govern WWI
the chambers and officials, or by the officials alone ?
We are not able, unfortunately, to write in eulogy of
the Prussian official class and its political conduct in gine.
rub, and feel no particular desire to sum.niler at discres
Lion to the domination of the bureaucracy. Were the
chamber, much worse than they are, we vivid not give
them up for this pawn, that they form a counter-balance
to the all-powerful bureaucracy ; and if the chamlars
passed yet worse laws than they have dune, we must yet
declare that every law has come out of the ehamlkr much
better than it went in, and we should have Men much
worse off had the laws, as drawn op by the re-
ceived the royal sanction without the interposition of the
legislature. Faulty as is the composition of the chambers,
yet we must recogiese them at this ex the best pos.
bible representation of the country, and we have not yet
seen any practical plan proposed how they are to be im-
proved. To throw away what we have before we get any.
thing better is not a policy to be recommended, especially as
the crown, at this time, should cherish and sjun:c n.ithiag
su much as those institutions through which it as brought
into living connexion with the people.

VIENNA, Jay. 13.
The customs congress is understood to be ac•irely
deliberating. The Prussian minister, Jet. Arnim, has
applied officially to be allowed to watch the proceed.
ings, and a promise has been given to keep him in-
tortned of the current deliberations of that body.
The congress is to continuo sitting six weeks.
Rather more unity and good feeling is mid to pre-
vail among the members than was expected, and
Prince Seftwarzenberg has conciliated opposing in-
terests and the jealousies of the petty states with
good deal of tact and ability.
The nominal object of the congress, to effect a
treaty with the Zollecrein which may eventually
lead to a general customs*union, is perfectly German,
and• suited to the people he is dealing with, and their
way of doing business. If the cabinet of Vienna had
proposed at once to effect the bold measure of $
general union it would have hardly found a sup-
porter. The Austrian press complains loudly of tho
hostile tone of the newspapers in Prussia towards the
objects of the congress.
The German fleet may he considered as no longer
existing. Prussia has agreed to support it for a
month longer to see if any arrangement can be come
to res;,ecting it, and then will probably take entire
possession of the ships as having the greatest lien en
them for advances.

The Statthalter of Lombardy. has published a
notice, that all kreuxer coins bearing the date lhlfl
or 1848 will be refused at the government offices;
but they are still to be allowed a circulation in pri-
vate transactions up to the end of the present year.
The loss on these coins will be about 2.000,000 florins
to the public.
The ministry of agriculture and mining has•given
orders that several of the imperial forests shall be al-
lowed to grow undisturbed for a series of years to
furnish materials for the naval department of the
public service, which is just now looked upon with
more attention than it deserves from Austria, which
newer can expect to become a maritime power.
'flute men-of-war have just been bought of 'turkey
by this government.
There appears to be a very hostile feeling growing
up between Austria and America, and there is a
report about certain despatches of a very cunous
nature having been recently sent from the govern-
ment of the United Staters to Vienna. This feeling
is worth mentioning, beeause it has only arisen
lately. But a few months ago very friendly relations
were existing, and one of the Austrian archdukes
actually set to out on a voyage to New York, and
was only delayed by a violent fever which seized
him at Trieste.
It appears that of the diplomatic notes sent by tho
absolutist governments to London, demanding the ex-
pulsion of the refugees, only those of Russia and
Austria were actually delivered, the Prussian note
having been held back in anticipation of a minis-
terial crisis, and nu the retirement of Lord Palmer*
ton a telegraphic despatch was immediately for-
warded from Berlin to London, instructing the
Chevalier Bunsen not to deliver the note of Prussia.

A letter from Berlin announces that 31. Arnim
Heinriehsdorf, Prussian minister at this court, is
about to be recalled by his government.
A very angry feeling is stated to have been occa-
sioned in Hungary by a project of the Minister of
the Interior to establish a renal colon• there. The
resentment of the Hungarians, however, dues not
seem to have had any c&ct in averting the
threatened indignity. The colony. is to be esta-
blished on the same footing as one in Holland, and
guarded by a cordon of invalided soldiers.
By an order recently issued, the civil officers of
government are no longer obliged to wear their uni-
form off duty. For all officers in the army or navy,
however, the regulations are to continue as strict as
ever.

Government have purchased twelve powerful loco-
motives of the English house of John Cockerill and
Co., at Scruing.
Prince Metternich appeared the other evening
(for tho first time in public) at the Cu-ilk-Al bail
given by the Arch• Duchess Sophia, mother of the
Emperor.