The Express.
London, England, 1847-10-12 00:00:00

the followiag letter, which the latter bodyhu remitted
circularly to all the eantons :
Lticanna, OCT. I.—Tbe avoyer and council of state of the
canton of Lucerne to the federal directory at Berne : The
decision taken on the 3rd ult., by the diet, with regard to
the Jesuits, was forwarded to us by circular, in order to have
it put into immediate execution. We shall merely give our
reply on the subject in the following words. We contest the
right whisk any majority or minority whatever may arrogate
to itself, of interfering with the affairs of religion in any can-
ton, and consequently in that of the canton of Lucerne, and
we shall never either acknowledge or execute any decision
or disposition implying such interference. The authorities
of the canton of Lucerne have called the Jesuits to Lucerne
u professors in theology to the seminary ; and the
people, by the veto, 'base given their consent to this
nomination, in virtue of a right of sovereignty inherent
to the state of Lucerne. It belongs to the state of Lucerne
alone to increase or diminish this right. A decision of 12 and
a half states, which annuls this right, being both incompe-
tent and unjust, is, consequently, not obligatory for the state
of Lucerne ; and it behoves the authorities not to conform to
the demand to acknowledge such a decision, and to renounce
this right. To this declaration, made openly, we join the
Amirante of our perfect respect.
It must be admitted, even by those who most de-
sire to uphold the authority of the federal , govern-
ment, that the decision respecting the Jesuits was
most inexpedient, attacking as it did, at least in
appearance, the full liberty of worship and public
instruction which the individual cantons do and ought
to possess, especially in a confederation the elements
of which differ in language, religion, manners, and
even in race.

The Augsburg Gazette under the date of Rome,
27th ult., says that letters received in that city from
Lucca affirm that a deputation had been appointed to
wait upon the Grand Duke of Tuscany, to invite him
to assume the regency of the Duchy of Lucca. Such
a measure is rendered the more natural and probable,
inasmuch as according to the existing treaties the
present prince of Lucca only holds the duchy during
the life of Maria Louisa, Duchess of Parma and.
Piacenza. Oa her demise the latter principality falls
to the present princes of Lucca, and the Duchy of
Lucca will then be annexed to the Grand Duchy of
Tuscany.

MALTA, Ocr. 4.
After the arrival here of the report that a case of
cholera had appeared on board the Peninsular and
Oriental Company's steamer Sultan, on her voyage
from Trebisonde to Constantinople, and had termi-
nated fatally, our board of health held a consultation
as to the propriety of extending the period of quaran-
tine against arrivals from the Black Sea. After a
deliberation of two whole days the board came to a
decision, as it is reported, not to alter the present re-
gulations until such time as a case of cholera should
actually occur on board of a vessel coming to, or ac-
tually within, the quarantine harbour. This decision
has caused no little fear that we shall be shut out
from Sicily, and lose our supplies, especially as
affairs are at the present moment existing
in that country. Genoa and Leghorn have, indivi-
dually, extended the period of quarantine against all
arrivals from the Levant to fifteen days. This,
allowing for the greater length of the voyage to those
ports than to Malta, is equal to twenty-five days. The
Icing of Naples has closed the ports of the Two
Sicilies in toto, against all arrivals from the same
quarter. It is not, therefore, within the bounds of
probability that Malta will be permitted to remain in
pratique with those powers unless the termer quaran-
Ise be extended. All the quarantine in the world, in
its moat rigid form, will never keep out a disease that
comes with a current of air: that, as we saw
here in 1836, will attack one town, pass by another
oa the verge of its track, and then fly off at a tangent
to depopulate another. Situated as we are, iu Malta,
dependent as we are upon other countries for the
primary necessities of life, it behoves our government
to fall in with, and give way to, any little weaknesses
that less intelligent governments may show in respect
to sanitary regulations, especially when by doing so
' no one is injured, and by not doing so the island may
be placed in quarantine, and hundreds ruined. I
hope, before I close the letter, to hear that the board
has reconsidered the matter, and increased the
quarantine to ten days at the least.
Our winter visitors are beginning to drop in upon
us. Lady Duncan and family came on the 27th ult.,
and several families are expected by the steamer of
the 2nd. The Peninsular and Oriental Company's
steamer Tiger waited until Sunday morning, the 26th,
for the arrival of the Flamer, with the Corfu mails.
As she did not make her appearance, the Tiger left
for Gibraltar at 6 a.m. The Flamer came in
on Monday morning, with only
.one engine work-
ing, one of her boilers having burst a few
hours after she left Corfu. Her mails will
remain until the 4th, and then be sent on in
the French steamer. It is really disgraceful to
the British navy, that such old worn-out tubs as the
Flamer, Volcano, &c. should be allowed to run upon
any line; and the more especially upon that to Mar-
seilles, where they are continually beaten by hours,
by days, by the French steamers. If the Peninsular
and Oriental Company is to have the line, let them
have it at ones ; if not, the government should send
oat some new boats capable of doing the work, and
able to save the credit of our service. The Flamer is
under repair ; she will be ready for the mid-mail of
October ; her last trip to Marseilles took 108 hours ; aa
her boilers are still farther patched, I give hernext time
120. The Panama French steam-frigate,which has been
lying so long in our harbour, sailed on the 27th alt.
for Naples. A large French government steamer
came into port on the 29th from Algiers, in five days,
having on board 120 hadji, or pilgrims, bound for a
pilgrimage to the shrine of Mehemet. The steamer
will start for Alexandria in a few days. Since Admiral
Parker returned, we have been enabled to shake off a
little of the ennui which was fast creeping over us.
Balls and soirees are all the rage. The admiral has
set the example. On the sth the Hibernia gives a
ball, then the Trafalgar, next the Superb, and so on.
The first intelligence of the unfortunate end of Mr.
Jones, late of the 67th, was first known here
through the Daily News. His father. Col. Jones,
is commandant of artillery here. Major Mitford,
our town major, is his son-in-law. The colonel would
not at first credit the account. He has since been
assured of it, for he and his daughters are in deep
mourning. Colonel Jones is a worthy man, and
universally esteemed by all who know him. There
is, consequently, great sympathy for his bereavement.
Messrs. Winthrop and Lock are prosecuting their
searches amongst some tumuli near the place of
their former labours. Some ancient tombs are in
process of excavation. On the Ist inst., the English
brig Navy arrived in the quarantine harbour, from
Alexandria, with a cargo of beans. A few hours
after her arrival, the master and his wife came
ashore in the ship's boat, walked into the city,
made some purchases at various shops, and were
net discovered until they walked into the
office of a ship-handler, Mr. 'Morris, who having
seen the captain in the morning in the quarantine,
naturally stared to see him, apparently in pratique,
and before him. Mr. Morris immediately reported the
affair to the marine police : the Board of Health met,
and declared the island of Malta in quarantine for
fourteen days. This will be very seriously felt by
the masters and owners of those vessels which were
on the point of sailing, and which must now remain
until clean bills of health are again issued. This case
of negligence on the part of the fiaarantine authori-
ties, in not having placed a guardian on board as is
usual, deserves the severest punishment. This
establishment, like many others over which
Englishmen have no control, requires a thorough
cleansing. The merchants and other sufferers here
have every right to proceed against the government
few any loss or damage sustained through the miacon-
duet or inattention of any of its officials. It is to be
hoped that they will. It will mark their opinion of
the present system of government. The Peninsular
and Oriental Company's steamer Hindostan came in
on the Ist from Southampton. She brought twenty
passengers for Malta, and upwards of a hundred for
India. The Ardent came in during the night of the
2nd from Marseilles, with the overland mail of the
24th. She remained here to take up the next Bombay
mail, expected on the 13th, and the Locust proceeded
on the 3rd to the lonian Islands and Patras
with the mails. It is really amusing to
read the accounts in the continental papers that
the English line-of-battle ships are at Ancona. They
were, as year naval columns have shown, in Phalerim
Bay, near Athens. The P. and 0. C. steamer Sultan
arrived on the 4th from Constantinople, and proceeded
on to Gibraltar and Southampton the same day.
There is a horrid story abroad respecting certain oc-
currences which are said to have happened in the
Jesuit school at Citta Vecchia. I cannot relate it ;at
least, not at present. Nearly all the boys have left.
The government ought to investigate the affair;
but, alas ! the government is the camarilla, and the