The Express.
London, England, 1859-11-04 00:00:00

EXPRESS FROM PARIS.

(PROD OVR OITN CORRESPONDENT.)

PARIS, THLRSDAY EVININj.
The Stick, having taken time to consider the
Emperor's letter, now gives its deliberate opinion
upon it, by the pen of M. Havin. It thinks—or, at
least, judges it expedient to profess to think—that
although the Emperor of the French remains faith-
ful to the preliminaries of Villafranca, and will cer-
tainly give instructions to his plenipotentiaries in
the coming congress to act in acoordance with his
official -

of the
rights of the deposed sovereigns is essentially sub-
ordinated to the assurance that there is to be no
foreign intervention to restore them. This, in the
view of the Sleek, is the capital point. With re-
gard to the proposal of the latter, that the state of
Modena should transfer itself to the Duchess of
Parma, the Slide holds it to be a very bad arrange-
ment, and would warn the Modenese people against
such a creation of a centre of counter-revo-
lution, bat if they should really be brought
to express their free wishes in accordance with
the Emperor's recommendations—why, then, there
would be nothing to be said. A similar remark
holds good as to Tuscany. The Slide fastens on
an expression in the letter touching the possible
aggrandisement of Tuscany as evidence that the
Emperor has never promised to guarantee the
integrity of the States of the Church. Since Parma
and Piacenza are to be annexed to Piedmont, and
Modena given to the Parmese Bourbons, one does
not, in point of fact, see how the boundaries of
Tuscany san be extended except by taking a slice
of the Romagna'. The Siècle has no rooted objec-
tion to an Italian confederation provided it be one
of a thoroughly national character. It, however,
wisely reserves its opinion as to the particular
scheme in question until it shall be more
fully set forth. It does not understand
why the French Emperor does not propose to
make Verona and Legnano federal fortresses of Italy,
as well OA Mantua and Pesehiera, more particularly
since it would be substantially the same thing for
Austria if, as the Emperor says, the two former
fortresses are in any case to be garrisoned by Italian
troops. On the whole, however, M. Ravin con-
strues the letter as satisfactory to the friends and
defenders of Italian independence, and thinks that
it " repairs as far as possible the perhaps too great
precipitancy of the engagements of Villafrancs."
In the Press. M. Peyrat, agreeing so far with the
holds that the promise that there shall be no
foreign intervention over-rides every other part of
the letter. He does not, however, seem to be
thoroughly satisfied that all idea of such interven-
tion is " really and definitively laid aside." If it
were, Italy would have nothing to fear, and would
Simms the rank as a nation to which she is enti-
tled by her history and geographical position.
The Emperor has declared the cause of Italy
to be ajust and sacred one, and it has " evidently
not ceased to be so because he thought fit in the
interest of France to stop short on the Mincio."
Although he has not realised his programme of
May 3, his intervention, his victories, and his Milan
proclamation, affirmed rights which are as sacred at
Venice as at Turin, at Florence as at Milan. The
Presse therefore looks upon the full solution of the
Italian question as at wont only adjourned. It
stigmatises the modern pretensions of the great
powers to regulate the affairs of lesser states at their
will as the curse of Europe. The principle of nee-
intervention does not, it argues, exclude the idea of
a congress. A congress may very properly meet to
give its sanction to what the Italians have done or
way do of their own free will and accord. The great
question in the eyes of the Presses is, whether the
powers will follow the counsels of England, and so
naderstand the mission of a congress ?
I was too precipitate and too candid yesterday
when I gave credit to the assertion of the Monitor,
that the Dake of Padua had retired from office on
account of the state of his health. I now know that
be left the Ministry of the Interior because he found
that he could not remain there with a due regard to
his personal dignity and the responsibility of a high
officer of state. The immediate cause of his resigns,
tion was this :—A proposition for remodelling the
attributions of the Prefect of Police and the Prefect
of the Seine had been con►idered in a council of

ministers and rejected; the Duke of Padut himself
voting against it. He was immediately after-
wards told that the Emperor nevertheless in-
tended to sign the decree. On Tuesday last,
just as the Emperor was stepping into the rail-
way carriage, on his way to Compi4gne, M.
Fould said to him, " Sire, the Duke of Padua per-
sists in his resignation." The Emperor replied
Oh, yes, I have put M. Billaalt in his place ; have
the change announced in the Mositrur to-morrow."
The order was, of course, complied with, but, as
there was no time to draw up • regular decree,
the unusual circumstance occurred of the Mon deur

announcing the appointment of a new minister two
days running.
The Duke of Padua must be supposed, notwith-
standing his obstinate resignation, still to bask in
the warmest sunshine of imperial favour, for I
see it announced in the Patrie that be is raised to
the dignity of Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour.
lie was only made an officer in August last, and he
now jump, over the grades of commander and grand
officer to attain at once the higest rank in the order.
This is, I believe, an unprecedented event.
M. Havin has received from the King of Sardinia
the cross of Commander of the Order of Bt.
Maurice and St. Lazarus. M. Gueroult, of the
Opinion Rationale, M. Paulin Limayrac, of the
Patrie, M. Trifler, of the Slide, and, I believe,
some other French journalists, are created knights
of the same order.
The Pays says that the Tuscan National Aseem-

bly is convoked for the 7th instant, in order to pre-
pare the way for " a new and solemn expression of
the wishes of the country." In consequence of
doubts alleged to be entertained in Europe of the
value of the resolutions proclaiming annexation to
Piedmont, the provisional government wishes, so says
the Pays, to throw the fullest light upon the subject.
The Pays assumes that there will be new elec-
tions by universal suffrage, and it affirms that
there has been a total misunderstanding on the sub-

ject of annexation, the Tuscans never having meant
for a moment to be annexed in the same complete
and entire sense that Lombardy is.
The Bourse was heavy, with little business doing.
The Rent* fell 1.5 c. for cash and sc. fur account,
closing at 69fr. 85c. and 89fr. 75c. Mobilier fell
3fr. 75c. The (Minns Railway fell 13fr. 75c.;
Lynne, 7fr. 60c.; Southern, sfr.; and tie other hoes
from ltr. 25c. to 2fr. 50c.

M. de Montalembert is again to be prosecuted. A
pamphlet in which he republished the article which
drew down • warning upon the Curresporidasit has
been seized. The grounds stated in the warrant of
seizure are "exciting to hatred and contempt of the
government."
M. Paulin, the manager of the Illustration (the
French Illustrated News) has just died of • liver
complaint. He was one of the tounders of the
National, the leading republican journal which was
suppremed at the time of the coup (taut.