The Express.
London, England, 1868-10-29 00:00:00

THIS REVOLUTION IN SPAIN.

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MADRID, Oar. Pl.
The situation of affairs here remains unchanged,
and to all outward appearance unchanging. The
little show of progress whit% is made is begin
to irritate the more impatient spirits, and Lear.
people every de y eating why the ministry do not
act, why they do not do something to settle the
permanent form of government, and especial)
why they do not ix the day for the assembling of
the Cortex, and publish the regulations under
which the elections are to take plaoe. Those
complaints are, I cannot help thinking, a
little unreasonable. In the first place, a month
has not yet elapsed since the accomplishment
of the revolution; and in the second, the provi-
sional government, which it should be borne in
mind wee not and could not be immediately con-
stituted, has, since it came into existence, done a
great deal of important and very valuable work.
Much time must have been consumed, and much
labour absorbed, in the mere re-organisation of
official staffs, so as to get rid of the men who were
wedded to the old corrupt regime and make room
for those who would apply themselves aealonsly to
the carrying out of the new system. But besides
this, there is hardly a department of the State
from which have not emanated one or more decrees
introducing great changes of principle ; conferring
upon the Spanish people some new liberty, or re-
establishing some- old right. Religion and edu-
cation have been liberated from the State control,
monastic institutions have been practically
abolished, the press has been freed, and some steps
have been taken towards the liberation of com-
merce by the removal of oppressive and burden-
some octroi duties. All these things, as well as
many minor reforms, have been accomplished
since the provisional government came into office.
At the same time, the juntas or revolutionary
committees have been quietly got rid of, end the
regular organs of administration restored through-
out Spain. All this required a good deal of time
and much labour to accomplish ; and I believe
that the members of the government have, since
their appointment, worked night and day at
the performance of the several tasks allotted to
them. They have enjoyed the advantage of acting
together in perfect harmony, and have spared no
pains and no labour to complete the work which
was commenced at Cadiz. For the delay in the
elections—if indeed it can be called a delay—many
at all events plausible reasons may be assigned.
Some persons who are not altogether friendly to
the members of the provisional government, not-
ably the exponents of extreme democratic or
republican opinions, do not hesitate to allege that
they are postponing the appeal to universal
suffrage until they shall have so arranged the
local administration of affairs all over Spain that

they may be able effectually to control its result,
and to ensure the return to the Cortes of the men
who will carry out the policy to which they arc
assumed, and probably not unjustly assumed, to in-
cline. The letters addressed by Prim and Serrano to
some of the French journals—the Gasiluis and the
LiberV—leave no room for doubt that in their
opinion the best form of government for Spain
would be a constitutional monarchy, and as little
question that they will do all that they can by fair
and legitimate means to establish such a system.
Prim's letter has especially excited the anger of
the extreme republicans, who maintain that as a
member of the provisional government he has no
right to express—some would seem to go so far as
to maintain that he has no right even to hold—
any opinion as to what shall be the nature of the
future institutions of the country. I have no charge
to defend the conduct of Prim, and as a general
principle I believe that the wont thing that a man
who holds a high official post can do is to
engage in newspaper correspondence ; but
at the same time I must say tli.annot sympa-
thise with the angry feelings which have been
aroused by his epistle to the editor of the Gautoia.
At no period of this revolutionary movement has
Prim, as far as I know, made any profession of re-
publican sentiments. From the very outset he
has declared that he was warring against the
dynasty of the Bourbons, and not against the in-
stitution of monarchy; while in Catalonia. he, as
I informed you at the time, refused on that very
ground to remove the crown from his military cap;
and I cannot see that much harm was done, or any
propriety outraged, by his expressing se a member
of the provisional government the opinions to which
he had pledged himself as a revolutionary general.
This preference for a constitutional monarchy is
shared by Serrano, Topete, and every member of
the government, and outside the government,
even by Olozaga himself ; but it by no means
follows that, as some people insinuate, the elec-
tions are being delayed in order to ensure
the return of a majority of deputin in
favour of these opinions. Apart from the
consideration that it might on many
grounds have been imprudent to allow the
elections to take place while the revolutionary
ferment and excitement was in full force ; and
that a Cortes elected under those circum-
stances might not have faithfully repre-
sented the settled and mature opinions of the
country; there were other reasons why the
people could not very well at once proceed
to the poll. Even when the appeal is to
universal suffrage, and when therefore there is no
preliminary registration to be got through, many
tints must be made before an election can
take p ; and it is the duty of the provisional
government to make all provisions and to take all
precautions which may ensure the full, free, and
complete expression of the feelings and opinions
of the people. The moat important of these is
the arrangement of the constituencies. It is im-
possible that every one, even the smallest village,
should send representatives to Madrid, and yet it
is desirable that the inhabitants of every part of
the country should in a Constituent Cortes be
directly represented. That result would not be
obtained by merely taking the towns and districts
which were represented, if representation it could
be called, under the old system, and allowing them
to send to Madrid deputies chosen by a now suf-
frage. Some rearrangement of constituencies
must be, something even approaching to the
creation of electoral districts may be, required;
and it must be obvious that such a scheme, if it is
even to approach to completeness or perfection—
absolutely complete or perfect it cannot be ex-
pected to bo—must recpure some time for its pre-
paration. Possibly this is one and not the least
important of the reasons which prevent the govern-
ment from " issuing the writs ' for the elections,
and until they are in a position to take that definite
step it would be of no use merely to fix the date
at which they shall take place.
The Gazette of this morning contains a long
address from the members of the government to
the nation—an interesting, although not a very
definite State paper, in which the results of the
revolution are described in the involved and mag-
niloquent phrases in which Spaniards delight,
and promises, couched in similar terms,
are outhaVtal as to the future. Of the past you are
alremb, sufficiently informed, and there can be no
occasion for me to repeat the story. As to the
future, the most important points are the
system of government and the policy which is
to be pursued with reference to matters
of trade and Amnon As to these points,
the language of the manifesto is not it
clear or gratin. Upon the face of it tt
appears to mean a great deal, and will probably be
construed by every one according to his own
opinions and predilections ; but when closely exa-
mined it will be seen that there are plenty of
loopholes and reservations by means of which the
ministry can, if convenient, escape from the full
consequences of their professions. Thus we are

assured that the credit of the country is to be
restored, that commerce is to be freed from the
restrictions which encumber it, and that the mast
perfect economy is to be carried out in all branches
of the public service ; but all these promise* are
dogged with a condition that due regard is to be
had to existing interests, a sentence which may mean
anything or may mean nothing. I have heard it
suggesteffitisat these words were inserted in order
to avoid alarming or offending the people of Csts-
lonia,, who are more than the inhabitants of any
other part of Spain interested in the maintenance
of protective duties. How, then, imposts are to
be got rid of without interference with what the
manufacture regard as their existing in4reste I
cannot imagine ; but possibly our clever Finance
Minister may find a way to reconcile this seeming
contradiction. Ido not suppose that these sen-
tences have been constructed with any intention
to deceive. I look upon them as the
natural expression of the uncertainty
and indecision of a merely provisional government.
The passage which relates to the future constitu-
tion of the country is necessarily indefinite and
general in its language; but while studious) y dis-
claiming on the part of the government any de**
to control, or indeed materially to influence, the
national will, it allow, it plamly to be perceived
what are the opinions of the administration, and
how decidedly they are convinced that the bust, if
not the only, system of government passible in
Spain is a constitutional monarchy. In this sense
it has considerable importance and significance,
and will I doubt not have great influence
with the country. If there was anything
like a real candidate for the throne, a
man whose claims any party could press upon the
people with the certainty that he would accept the
crown when it should be offered to him, the ques-
tion might be regarded as settled ; but the advo-
cates of a republic unquestionably derive great ad-
vantage from the absence of all active competi-
tors, and the apparent difficulty of finding a
sovereigntoadmimsterthe constitutional monarchy
if it shall be resolved upon.
Great satisfaction is felt here at the recognition
of the provisional government by France, Eng-
land, Portugal, and Prussia, which has taken
place, or is to take place, to-day.
We had another triumphal entry into Madrid
yesterday, that of Professor Castellon, who
has in his time done good service to the liberal
cause in Spain, and was, I believe, exiled under
the late government. As the day was fine there
was a great crowd at the station, and the professor
was most enthusiastically received, not only by the
students of the university, who attended almost to
a man, but by a very large crowd of the general
public. He was carried in procession to the uni-
versity, and when he arrived there he delivered a
speech, in which ho recommended to the people
order and union, and the submission of all ques-
tions affecting the public interests to the decision
of universal suffrage.