The Express.
London, England, 1856-04-24 00:00:00

ITALY.

(MK 0171 Oirn, C01111SPO)DIST.)
NAPLES, arm 17.
Some days have elapsed since I informed you that
on Monday the 14th instant a grand ball was to be
given at the French Legation in honour of the birth
of au Imperial Prince. This important event took
plus three days since, and with the exception of the
royal titan, perhaps it was one of the most brilliant
we have had for many years. His Majesty had been
invited, and the invitation had been accepted, though
many, if sot most, believed that at the :ut moment
some excuse would have been sent. Rarely, if ever,
does the King honour any one with his royal pre-
sence. lie declined en invitation to Sir William
Temple earlier in the year, and it is therefore only
under the pressure of the strongest motives that
a step so unpleasant at all times, and so
mach more so under existing circumstances,
should have been taken. Why, for the last
year, the government of this country—that ab-
solute monarch—has been thwarting, alighting, W-
ending both France and her powerful ally; and now
to pay this dk•inguished mark of respect to the
power of the West must be, indeed, fah of bitterness.
The compliment, however, has been paid, and with
all the honours of a great state onasioa. At two
o'clock on Moodily M. Brenirr sent round a note to
the diplomatic body to the effect that, as his Majesty
had not yet withdrawn his gracious promise to be
precept. he concluded that he should have the honour
of receiving him.
Early in the evening the facade of the French
Legation was brilliantly illuminated. A body of
cavalry and infantry were stationed on either side the
gateway, and inspectors and policemen in Et
numbers were scattered about in all
/ions. The novelty had drawn together a
vast crowd of persona sager to witness the spectacle
in which their adorato 800/11140 was to form so promi-
nent a feature. The royal cortege did not arrive,
until half-past ten o'clock, and a brilliant coup grail
it presented as it drove up the long street which
Jude to the Legation. There were outriders bearing
torches, and pages on horseback in front and on the
side of each carriage, and there were nine royal car-
riages surrounded by the Guardia Nobile—every-
thing, indeed, wan does which could give effect to the
come, or show the deep affection and respect which
the King of Naples entertains for his imperial heo-
the? of France. Mona. le Baron and Madame
Brenier received their royal at the foot al the
staircase, and than acted them to the
teems where the company were assembled.
The ball-room was not opened until their
Majestii a arrived. The royal party consisted
of the King and Queen, the Hereditary Prince and
one of his brother', the Grand Duke and Duchess of
Tuscany and their two sons, the Counts of Syracuse
and Trapani, the brothers of the King, together with
the Spanish Princes MOll4llllOllOO and Sebastian,
sad their royal consorts. His Majesty opened the
ball by dancing a quadrille with Madame Bringer
and most of the other members of the royal party
continued to dance throughout the evening. The
royal gums did not leave until after sapper, which
was on a most abundant and elegant scale, and then
retired about half-past 3 o'clock in the same Etas in
which they had cDme. Their Majesties conversed
freely with those present, and the King especial]
served from room to room receiving, with much
affability, the homage of his subjects. A stranger
wield not fail to have been struck with the
contemptible sycophancy which marked the counte-
nance and manner of many of the seekers after royal
favour. Tall men in the royal livery of the courtier
seemed to have lost theirmanhood,and with expectant
gas sod tremulous lips wilted the approach
of the royal footsteps, and then, half kneeling,
seised and Maud the royal hand. Anything
more disgusting in my life I sever sew,
sad yet it was the necessary effect of that
great cause which produces so many other disastrous
effects in this conntry—each an the loss of all self-
respect, all independence of thought and action, sad
the ten thousand other cionsequesces deriving from
them. Besides the royal party, there were present the
diplomatic body, with the exception of the Prussian
and the Swedish ministers through illness, all the
ministers and great officers of state, the cream of the
nobility, and many distinguished foreigners
at that time in Naples; in short, everyone
of nobs was present at the fits, which was
marked with much political significancy. Thus
ended an entertainment which, as being honoured
with the peewees of Majesty, was certainly a great
diplomatic triumph to Mons. Busier ; or, taking a
larger view of it, a triumph to the Western Powerer—
for so intimately allied are France and England that
jealousy would be but ill placed, and we would rather
rejoice in any event that reflected honour upon our
friends. It is but a short time sines that the firm
friend of Russia was directly and indirectly, through
the medium of the press, through the insinuations of
the hireling and the ferocities of the pal oemsa. doing
all that could be does to bring the Wesbra Powers
into contempt and disrepute. Now the toe= the u-
pset, and the policy of the government are completely
changed. Fear, abject fear, has brought about what
neither principle nor humanity would ever have
effected. The King his honoured his imperial
brother's minister with a visit in grand state. He
hu sent the Marchese del Vuto to compliment the
Emperor on the happy event of the birth of an
heir. He has set at liberty some of the popolani,
who fur many years have been confined in Vento-
tene and Santo Stefano; he has offered a permission
to many or the foreign ease to return, which, as I
have already informed you, has in many. cases been
refused—firs, because they will not by implication
acknowledge that they are guilty ; secondly, be-
cause they have no guarantees for their security if
they do return. But let no one, forming his judg-
ment after a higher moral standard, imagine that
there is any healthiness or sincerity about these
changes, or rather suspensions of excesses;
they merely indicste the bending of the
reed before the storm ; let that peas away and the
reed: will return to its original position—it is its
nature so to do—it cannot help it. Again and again
I day, from an intimate knowledge of persons and
things, nothing that is good will be initiated here,
and nothing that comes with a diplomatic recom-
mendation simply without any foreign guarantees
will have any permanence, or meet even with serious
attention. I give this as the universal opinion, and
I believe nom are more persuaded of it than our
ordinarily laissez faire commercial men, who see in
the personal character of the highest personage of
the realm, and the want of confidence
which that generates, the rain of the poli-
tical, commercial, and scent condition of this
country. The agitation produced by the notices in
the propositions of Count Cavour is intense; and if
the cup of hope which has thus been raised to the
lips of the Italians should be dashed to the grimed,
the reaction will he terrible. The Marchese del
Vasto has been sent to Paris, to compliment the
Emperor on the birth of the Prince. The Marchese has
been much trusted end employed by this Court.
Thus he has been sent on secret missions to Vienna ;
he was attacked on the Roman frontier some mouthy
since, when en route, it was slid, to the Austrian
Court, and his papers taken from him. Helm been
very instrumental in bringing about that approxi-
mation between the Papal and the Sicilian Courts
which bas led to the recent modifications of the royal
power—in one word, the Marchese del Vasto is a
bigot and a retrogradist.
Signor Gustinelli, captain of engineers, has been
likewise despatched to Vienna. The Prince Castel-
clads, the viceroy of Sicily, is shortly expected from
Sicily. He comes up, I believe, at his own special
request, as it was contrary to his wishes, index d, that
he ever went to Sicily. Probably be will never re-
turn, and possibly a royal prince may—there is an
expectation to that effect in Sicily. Palermo was
very quiet when last I heard, though the tranquil-
ity of a country under an absolute government is
little to be depended on. Storms will burst as
rapidly as they do in the tropics, and all the ele-
ments for them The.,, Les 'wen, it is said,
some little agitation at Messina, though I cannot get
at the precise detail,.

For the present, ;11 commercial speculations seem
to be enepended, and every one is intent on the
storemente of the Western Powers.

CRYSTAL PALACZ-.0111 SHILLING DAT, WEDNES-
DAY, Aram 33.—Adottaioas as osceaeat, 3.670; ditto by
N am tickets, 719, total visitors, 4,289.

FRENCH MILITARY BALL IN THE CRIMEA.

(ILITIAOT 07 ♦ MIMS moat AS 0m03.14 DAT=
0111 k, ♦7BL 6, 1866.)
- - -

• • The Frrtielt ball In the finials's plain
turned oat a very different affair from what was ett-
pected. It was quite evident when the French asked
the English officers and their ladies, they didn't in-
' tend to ask their wires. Indeed it would seem that
the French have not thought that any of the ladies
living with English officers in the field were married
persons. One French woman, the mistress of a colonel
of a Zoom regiment, went in the costume of a High-
lander, and carried out the mares. completely. Of
course the English ladies who did go, very quickly
retired ; and as there were altogether among the
French only twenty or thirty canunif roe, who were
mooopolised, naturally enough, by their owe °films,
the English officers generally were not long in leav-
ing also.

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