The Express.
London, England, 1860-05-31 00:00:00

LEITER FROM PALERMO.

The following letter, received tilt Malta, is from
the correspondent who described Garibaldi's land-
ing in our columns :

PALERMO, May 15.
Before this reaches you a struggle will have taken place
for Palermo. At this moment the fires of the inamgenta
are to be seen on the surrounding hills. It is said that
Garibaldi will attack the town of Monrmle to-morrow ; it
is certain he is advancing as rapidly as circumstances will
permit at the head of a body variously estimated at from
fifteen to twisty thousand men. I hanlly think it pro-
bable, however, that he can be so near as Monreale by to-
morrow, considering the time of the departure from MarKtia,
or that he can be prepared to make any serious attack
until be has organised, in some degree at least, the large
bodies of insurgents who are flocking to his standanL
Of the ultimate fall of Palermo, ►nd indeed dell Sicily,
I no one here entertains • doubt—the authorities the least
of all. Several steamers have already left with the wives
of officers and soldiers and their baggage ; and to-day se-
veral thousands of muskets were removed fromthe fort and
despatched to Naples to prevent them falling into the hands
of the rebels. So little confidence have they in the courage
or the fidelity of the troops that, as an inducement to
fight, they have been promised forty-eight hours' pillage of
Palermo if they succeed in beating off Garibaldi. This
report, infamous as it is, I firmly believe to be true ; but
it does not create so much alarm as it otherwise might,
owing to the almost universal conviction of Garibaldi'
success ; yet it shows forcibly enough the paternal chin
meter of the government, and may be very fairly taken
as a measure of the truth of all the assertions which have
been so constantly made as to the peace and tranquillity of
the city of Palermo since the 4th of April, when the rave.
lution commenced.

Proclamations declaring Palermo in a state of siege are at
this moment being posted about the streets. As is usual in
such cases, death is the only punishment for all offences,
death for being out after 7 p.m., death for assembling in
groups, &c. ; and from the state of terror the authorities are
in, there is little doubt of it. provisions being carried out
with the strictest severity of martial law. Surely this may
be taken as a specimen of the confidence of the King in his
Sicilian subject].
Prints Castelcicala, the Viceroy, very quietly left Palermo
last night for Naples. No doubt he will have a very en-
couraging account of his stewardship to render to the King,
After the 4th of April there was a most barefaced attempt
to implicate the English, and again the authorities are en-
deavouring to make it appear that Garibaldi owes his suc-
cess to English assistance. Upon the receipt of the news
of his successful landing at Marsala, the infamous Mariam.
leo stated positively that the insurgents had been aided by
the English ahips of war, which, he said, had purposely
placed themselves in such positions that the frigate and
steamers could not fire upon them.
Her Majesty's ship Argus arrived hem this morning from
Marsala, and from her we learn that the Intrepid was for
some time between the insurgent steamers and the Neapo-
litans, but that this could not be the result of design, seeing
that the English vessels were at anchor for some
time before the insurgent force made its appear.
ance at all, and they assert that it was really
astonishing to witness the pertinacity with which the King's
ships kept " hanging on," apparently with no other object
than that of keeping the Intrepid between themselves and
any fire the insurgents might have been disposed to favour
them with. It appears that the Neapolitan officer made
some absurd request, that an English boat might accompany
one of his to go in and demand the surrender of Garibaldi
and his men, which woe of course declined, and he was also
informed that several English officers were on shore ; but I
am certain from my knowledge of the place, and from the
position of the several vessels, that by a little skill and
energy, immense mischief might have been done to the in-
surgents without the slightest risk of damage to English
ships, or officers, or factories. The charge of English com-
plicity is therefore nothing more than an excuse for grow
neglect of duty or cowardice. Indeed I have spoken to a
gentleman myself, who said that Garibaldi expressed great
surprise at the supineness of the Neapolitans. Garibabli's
words are said to have been, " That man is either a traitor
or a coward," at the same time he smilingly expressed his
obligations for so much forbearance.
A great many of the gates leading into the city are being
blocked up with nand-bags, and several of the streets have
ditches dug across them and barricades of sand-bags for the
protection of the soldiers. Another significant symptom is
that the police agents (against whom there is a very bitter
feeling) are beginning to disappear one by one.

Yesterday the Yorkshire Union of Mechanics'
Institutes held their twenty-third anniversary at 01ley, in
Wharfedale. Mr. Baines, M.P., presided at the meeting.
Amongst the visitors present were Lord Ashburton, Mr.
Monckton Milees, M.P., Mr. Dent, M.P., Mr. Greenwood,
M.P., and some local gentlemen.
THE SPIRITS AT TEE Tummies —When we in-
serted the article on " Spiritualism at the Tuileries," we
took care to have our facie from one of the four persona
present, and we gave his name, and we again vouch fee the
truth of the narrative; and we affirm that a hand dill appear
before the Emperor, the Empress, the Duchess de Monte-
bello, and Mr. Home, and did take up a pen and write the
word " Napoleon" in the autograph of the Emperor, and
that such writing is still in the possession of the Emperor
Louis Napoleon. We will give PunrA another fact about
the Emperor. Our readers are familiar with the autographs
and other writings obtained through the mediumship of
the Baron Goldenstabbe, consisting of a series of the names
of kings, queens, and princes of the royal houses of France
and of other eminent person!. These were obtained by
placing blank pieces of paper on their tombs or statues.
The Emperor sent for the baron sonic time ago, and gave
him a private audience of an hour, during which he exa-
mined these writings, and afterwards compared them with
the real autographs in the royal archive., and found them
to be foe ! He also granted to the Baron access to
the archives, and he, too, has made the comparison with
the same result. The priests at St. Denis will not allow
the baron to deposit his paper there, because they say
"if dixturbe the joule of the departed." We have seen re.
neatly the whole series of these wonderful writings.—The
Spirdual Magazine for June.
MORTAR PRACTlCE.—Yestorday afternoon the
3rd battery Ist brigade Garrison Artillery, in command of
Lieut.-Col. and Brevet-Col. De Riney, assembled in the
mortar battery park, adjoining the Royal Artillery barracks,
Woolwich, and fired four rounds of neuter practice, the
target being, as usual, a flagstaff about 30 feet high bearing
a union jack, erected on Woolwich-oommon, over a range of
100 yards. The barrack field forming a portion of the in-
tervening space between the battery and the flagstaff was
occupied by squads
_of recruits belonging to the depot and
men of the 4th brigade under drill, and other portions of the
field were taken up with various parties of officers and
soldiers engaged in the game of cricket. The review-ground
near the flagstaff Wad onuverted into& drill -groutul for pitching
and striking tents, under rehearsal of that part of the pro-
endings intended to be carried out on Dartford-heath on
Friday next, and had the appearance of a bivouac of troops
on the march. The whole available battalion of the Royal
Marines, in command of Colonel Stmnsliani, were also on the
ground under a course of summer drill and rifle practice.
Woolwich was unusually crowded with holiday folks, and
great numbers were attracted to the locality by the firing
and other circumstances, necessitating reloulde.l caution on
the part of the provosts and sentries to keep the ground free
within a certain distance of the flagstaff, marked oufr as
dangerous to the approach of visitors, the mortar shells
whizzing through the air with great velocity, and falling
from 10 to 40 and 50 yards in every direction from and
about the target. In the third round the firing was ex-
ceedingly precise, the fifth shell from the mortar glancing
along apparently within a hairsbreadth of the mark. The
next shot, fired with a 10-inch shell, struck the flagstaff
about a foot below the flag, shivering it in splinters and
bringing the flag to the ground, the shell being found buried
about three feet beneath the shingle twelve feet beyond.
A loud shout of applause and clapping of hands thereupon
ensued, and the flagstaff having been Limbed up and re-
placed, the firing continued with fair remits.
DS/WATCH or AMERICAN AND CANADIAN Mang.
—Yesterday (Wednesday) the Quebec and Montreal mail
steamer North Briton sailed from Liverpool for Quebec)
with the United States and Canadian mails and 58 cabin
passengers. Yesterday also the Liverpool, New York, and
Philadelphia Company's steamer Vigo was despatched from
Liverpool to New York with mails and passengers for
the United Stake. On Saturday next the British and
North American royal mail steamer Niagara will leave the
Mersey for Boston with the United States and North Ape-
rican mails. The box at the Liverpeol poet-office will be
open on that day for the receipt of letters, &c., till 8 a.m.,
and rid Queenstown until 9.30 p.m.