The Express.
London, England, 1851-06-06 00:00:00

by the pastors and congregation of the Swiss church
there. But the whole facts remain yet untold, end
are worthy of recapitulation. It is already known
that in January last, by order of the authorities at
Florence, numbers of persons were formally prohi-
bited, by a document called a preretto, from attending
protestant service at the Swiss church. The Italian
service in that church, usually performed for
the benefit of Italian Swiss, was ordered to be
I suspended; and a large number of persons were
thus deprived of their usual religious ceremonies.
Herr VON ltEcwoter—a Roman catholic himself, by
the way—was consulted by the consistory, in his
character of protector to the Swiss church, and, in
reply, advised the temporary suspension of the ser-
vice. In doing so, he admitted the right of the Tus-
can government to act in direct contradiction to the
constitution sworn to by the Grand Duke, and which
stipulates, amongst other things, complete tolerance
for every creed. As ambassador of the King of
Paused, a protestant, and as representative of a
people the great majority of whom are pro-
testant, it was his duty to protest against
the illegal proceedings of the Tuscan govern-
ment, and support a church which had been
founded under the immediate patronage of the king.
Instead of taking part with a government which
had stopped a relous service by filling a protestant
church with gensdarmes, he should have bees*,
first to protect the religion of his king, practised
under great difficulties and restrictions in a forage
country. In the correspondence between the Prus-
sian minister and the consistory, the latter stigma-
tized the presence of Tuscan policemen at the Swiss
chapel as an insult to the King of PRUSSIA, and
asked permission to have in future the Prussia
arms exhibited over the doors of the chapel. They
uurgged in strong terms the right of a large number
of Italian protestant@ to a religious service in their
own language, and declared their intention to ap-
peal to the king directly, if the minister gave no ear
tidactory reply.
• "The consistory then indulged hopes that their
eonespondence with Herr VON REUMONT would be
submitted to the KING at Berlin, and they were net
mistaken ; but he so mutilated portions of it as to
paralyse its effect. He even suppressed portions of
the correspondence and admitted that he had done so
because he thought it too strongly worded and likely
to do the consistory harm. The real motives of Herr
VON RECMONT cannot it is supposed have been these
given to the consistory, but must have been in view
of supporting a partial and unfair account of the gate-
tion as already placed before the Prussian government
and tending to show that the presence of Italians
at protestant service was essentially a political and
propagandist affair. The hostility of Herr VON Hsu-
MOST is, indeed, evident front the report he drew
up to present to the KING, and communicated to the
consistory on the Bth of May. In this document he
described the steps he had taken with the Tuscan
ministry, in view of obtaining pension= to perform
the Italian service, a boon which he said might be
granted if the consistory consented to admit to the
service by tickets, exclude every Italian, keep the
service private, and let all doors be closed as soon u
proceedings commenced.
" The liberality shown in conceding an Italian ser-
vice, whilst all Italians were shut out, is worthy of
Tuscan diplomacy. Herr VON REUIIONT said these
von the terms which his government had advised
him to adopt, and on the acceptance of which the
cabinet of Florence might shut its eyes to the per-
formance of the service. He further added that the
Pliedea government only considered the Swiss as a
mere legation chapel.
" The consistory refused to give their assent to this
report, and asked for two days to deliberate. At
first this delay was granted, but before its expira-
tion the Prussian minister sent word that he had
been unable to wait, and had sent up his report to
Berlin, adding that if his proposals were not ac-
cepted, he would take no further steps with the
Tuscan government.
" Thus it is, that in a fair and civilised city, in the
year 1851, the celebration of protestant worship has
been stopped on the order of a minister representing
i ordered out
country. The pastor of a flock has been
out of the country, merely because he had
esseeebled some of his congregation after service to
read and explain portions of scripture to them. His
curate has been taken to gaol, torn from his friends,
who were allowed no time to bid him good bye, and
not even allowed to take any articles of dress, even
the most necessary. In this state of body and mind
he has been hurried away and marched between
gensdarmes for seven days like a felon, placed at
night in receptacles where the worst criminals were
confined, and forced to mingle with them ; and thus
made to cross on foot the whole of Pisa, Lucca,
Pictra Santa, Massa (in which state he was ironed),
and Samna. 'His crime was that of assisting in
reading the scriptures for his colleague, who has been
exiled.
"All this takes place too in Italy, the land of
Roman catholics, who in England cry out so lustily
about religious intolerance on the part of the
English government."