The Express.
London, England, 1847-11-01 00:00:00

expected to be presented on the 27th or 28th. A
report was prevalent at Berne, that at a secret session
of the grand council of Neufchatel and Bile-ville, it
was decided that these cantons would co-operate with
the majority to enforce the dissolution of the Sander-
bund. In that case the majority would be 14 whole
cantons and 2 half ones against 7.
La Prase states that three agents of the federal
govantiient had left Berne for Frankfort to open ix-
foliations for the loan voted by the diet. The same
journal reproduces the report of a settlement of the
difference by the mediation of the government of
Bileville, the question of the expulsion of the Jesuits
being waived, but does not claim much credit for it.
We have received the Berne journals of the 28th,
but they add nothing material to the above intel-
ligence.

BERNE, OCT. 26.
I wrote to TOII yesterday morning from Bile, giving
a general outline of the social elements engaged in
this straggle, and the relative attitude of the cantons.
To get into the thick of the fight, I left that peaceful
and thoughtful locality,taking the direction of Soleure.
Here the order of the diet for marshalling the whole
posse emit atus Ras everywhere in active execution.
The road offered groups of peasants hastening to head-
quarters, firelock on shoulder and pipe in mouth. At
cottage doors along the route were to be witnessed
parting scenes between mothers, sisters, and sweet-
s hearts, with the wailing of children ; farther up the
I mountains, in the midst of a snow-storm, stern faces
could be seen confronting the tempest and grasping
their weapons, bent onwards ; military waggons
moved briskly along. The storm subsiding, up rose
the moon, but still it glittered on masses of muskets
in motion ; and from every Bast-li4 on the roadside
throughout the night, lights gleamed, and the sound
of patriotic songs broke in rough chorus on the ear of
the traveller.

Soleure is a strictly Roman catholic canton, and, I
pray you mark this feature in the business, that your
readers may understand the fallacy of thinking it a
religious quarrel. Jesuits are a mere pretext : the
real question at issue
.is the dismemberment or the
consolidation of their common country, and no por-
tion of the anti-separatists are so earnestly opposed to
the league of Lucerne as the Homan catholic' loyal
to the national diet.

On arriving hire this morning, I find that, yes-
terday, the diet had held a sitting with closed doors;
and, from what I can gather, most energetic measures
had been determined on. Six generals of division have
been commissioned, and as many camps organised at
the various points of simultaneous attack—viz., from
Soleure, Argau, Appenzell, Tessin°, Berne, and urich.
Lucerne will have to meet this combined movement
from every point of the compass. That canton can
raise 27,000 front its whole population, and expects
about 20,000 allies from the aggregate of the moun-
tain sovereignties ; but there are scarce 7,000 regular
troops among the whole, and little or no cavalry or
artillery. The forces of Friburg cannot join, as they
are effectually cut off by the intervening powers. So
they will have to fight it out against about 60,000
men rallied for the diet, of which near 20,000 are
marching regiments, and supported by a strong park
of guns from the arsenal of Berne.
The task of diplomacy is at an end. The European
powers can no longer meddle with this family quarrel, 1
and the Swiss themselves of every party have made
up their minds that nothing will do but phlebotomy.
It will be a short and decisive affair, when it comes
off; for these sturdy folks are not like your Por-
tuguese or Spaniards, who keep manmuvring for
months looking at each other, and never coming to
the scratch. I shall look into Friburg to-morrow,
and see what is going on in the camp of the
separatists.
I said that diplomacy's game is up. Indeed, how
the great powers seriously intended to combine their
efforts for quiet issue of the matter is a riddle : their
various representatives keep aloof from each other,
not in metaphor or sentimentality, but actually and
geographically. Austria has, in a fit of dudgeon,
withdrawn the seat of its diplomatic operations to
Zurich, no doubt to be nearer Vienna. Prussia has
gone thither also in the person of its envoy. Sar-
dinia keeps its ambassador at Lausanne southwards,
and the Pope, by ancient usage, has his resident
nuncio at Lucerne, France, and England, being here
on the spot, but not for that the nearer in joint opera-
tion—rather the reverse. The French view of the
question, as expounded in the Daats, is now com-
pletely at variance with what it was a few years ago.
Then it insisted on making the objectionable residence
of Louis Bonaparte in Thurgau a federal question,
and got his expulsion ordered by the diet. New, it
says that the residence of the Jesuits in Lucerne, far
more objectionable, does not concern or depend on the
diet's will at all !

However, one thing is very plain, viz., that the great
powers are either too timid or too much afraid of one
another to take any serious step in the pacification of
Switzerland. The fact of their ambassadors living so
far apart is conclusive of their repugnance to act in
concert, and looks as bad in the eyes of the world as
the arrangement so much deprecated by John Gilpin
in the case of his wife :

Lord' how the folks would stare,
If I phonic' dime at Edmonton,
And she should dine at Ware I
Onr own envoy, young Peel, has given general
satisfaction by the straightforward advocacy of the
Diet's supremacy, and though the 71tnes thunders on
the other aide, for reasons well understood, the people
of England see the matter pretty clearly. That the
rights of conscience have nothing to do with the
fostering of Austrian influence and intrigue is very
plain; and that no nation can go ahead, unless there
exist a central controlling power to impel it forwards,
in spite of all retrograde efforts exerted internally to
retard and impede its progress.

CONSTANTINOPLE, 0rr.13.

The note addressed to the Greek government by the
Emperor of Russia, condemning the line of conduct they
have pursued in the difference which exists between them
and the l'orte, is merely intended to cajole the Turks into a
belief in the sincerity of his professions of friendship ; for it
is a proceeding entirely superfluous as far as regards the
ministry of King Otho. Matters bad already been prepared
is Greece ; the Russian party had came into power ; and, as
I informed you in a former letter, had addressed themselves
to the government of the Emperor, praying his intervention.
Palamedes, the only man in the new Greek ministry not de-
voted to Russia, has been dismissed ; and Metaxa, the
chief of the Rug= party, had been appointed ?resident of
the council. The influence of France fell with Coletti.
Austria from being disregarded is now despised for haring
failed in its negotiation for the arrangement of the Turco-
' Greek question ; and England is hated for the part she has
taken in the events of the last six months. It is therefore
evident that Ramie is the only power in a position to under-
take the settlement of the present question. It is for this
that Russia has waited, and that now she comes forward to
reap the fruit' of her tortuous policy.
In 1843 when Sir Stratford Canning, aided by Baron de
Bourqueney, obtained the abolition of the law which con-
demned relapsed renegades to death, it was stipulated thst
for the future, in all questions of conversion from the
Christian to the Mussulman faith, the ambassadors of
England and France should, if they thought proper, have
a right to interfere. Lately at Damascus, a Christian girl
of great beauty fell in love with a Turk. As a difference of
religion prevented their union, the girl consented to embrace
Islamism ; for a like act on the part of her loser, were he so
inclined, would be punished with haunt death. The
mother of the young Christian, who was adverse to her
daughter abandoning her faith, reported the case to the
English consul at Damascus, who took up the case so warmly
that he induced the Pecha to withhold his consent from the
ceremony of the recantation till instructions should be
received from Constantinople. Lord Cowley, on receiving
the report of the consul, laid the circumstance before the
Porte. The girl being of tender years, the British minister
contended that she could not form an opinion upon such a
matter as a change of religion, and that she ought to act in
conformity with the wishes of her mother, her natural
guardian. The Turkish government refused to admit Lord
Cowley's view of the case, but Ponsented to summon all the
pvties concerned to Constantinok;!e. The same finnan
which recalled Kismil Paths, the late governor of Syria,
ordered him to bring the girl with him k the capital. On
her arrival she was placed in the harem of Em: Effendi, the
first dragoman of the Porte, upon whose too susceptible
heart it appears her beauty made such an impression that
the affair was very near becoming much more complicated.
The virtuous zeal of the British minister, however, prevented
any tender catastrophe, for before the fair Christian Gould
rivet the chains she had flung over the Effendi, she was
summoned to the Porte, to account for her actions
in love and religion. M. Pisani, the venerable Brat
dragoman of the British embassy, attended on the
part of Lord Cowley, to see the examination con-
ducted with fairness. His presenoe, however, was opposed
bethe minister of foreign affairs, on the plea that, as the
was a rsyah, no foreign representative bad a right to
terfere. M. Piaui, however, not only succeeded in mist-
ing at the examination, but also rescued the girl from the
hands of the unbelievers, sidled her in triumph to Theremis,
where she now resides in quiet with her mother. It was
only when Lord Cowley threatened to take the case before
the Sultan that the Porte consented to have the girl brought
before them.
Lady Cowley and her ladyship's children leave this on the
17th nut, for Paris