The Express.
London, England, 1861-03-15 00:00:00

POLAND.

past • 002111201 DINT.)
WARSAW, Liven 2.
You have doubtless already formed an idea from
my former letter of the date of Warsaw, and the
true character of those events which may have
permanent effect on the future of our country. It
was a struggle between brute strength and moral
force, in which the provocation came from the
authorities, and the opposition—in some measure a
lawful one, for it was based on a feeling of the
necessity for preserving order at any cod—from
the people. To preserve this character of modera-
tion to the end, in the face of all right-thinking
men, of public opinion, and other governments—to
leave with the authorities the whole disgrace of
this abominable outrage were objects on which
were concentrated all the efforts of the leaders
of public opinion. The government, on the other
hand, took the same view of the question, per-
ceiving that the preservation of order and
tranquillity, notwithstanding the excesses of the
troops and police, and in spite of the excitement
in the town, caused by a series of utterly unjusti-
fiable murders, would defeat all their projects, and
at the same time give the world the highest pos-
sible proof of our fitness to govern ourselves.
Hence arose a secret struggle, without a precedent
in history, between a government stirring up its
people to revolution, and an organised centraliza-
tion acting in the spirit of order and the public
good. The government became the representative
of anarchy • the whole population, even to the
lowest classes, understood all the importance of
retaining their attitude of dignified and mute
appeal • and the students, converted into a national
guard, 'arrested several government emissaries, who
were caught distributing arms to some people of
the lowest class. The issue of this abnormal struggle
was to be finally decided on the day of the funeral
of five of the victims of the 27th February. Both
sides were well aware that the whole population of
Warsaw would be present on this occasion ; and
the government thought that if 100,000 men
assembled round the grave, and the higher authori-
ties, without provocation or warning, were to order
the soldiers to fire upon the unarmed multitude, a
burst of irrepressible feeling, or a shot from one of
the muskets distributed by overnmeut among some
of the inhabitants, would give some shadow of a
pretext for a massacre. The inhabitants knew the
snare that .vas being prepared for them, and exerted
all their strength and energy to make that memor-
able day an indubitable proof to all the world that
a feeling of patriotism carried to the highest pitch
of exaltation may, under tie high impulse of duty,
manifest itself not only by a sacrifice of human
blood, but by a higher sacrifice, the suppression in
the heart of the deepest feelings of hatred and
revenge.

On the Ist March, as early as six o'clock in
the morning, numberless crowds in deep mourning
gathered round the church of the Holy Cross. At
seven the church was full, and the circulation of
carriages in,the streets through which the procession
was to pass was stopped. There was not a single
policemen in the whole town, and the preservation
of order was entrusted to 1300 students and 400
citizens, distinguished by mourning scarfs and in-
scriptions on their hats. The cottage was led by
Archbishop Fialkowski, who was closely followed
by Count Andrew Zamojski. After the hearse
came Protestant clergymen and rabbis with the
Ten Commandments on a tablet. The military
had sent a deputation to the committee which
was charged with the management of the funeral,
declaring their readiness to take part in the gene-
ral grief by sending to the funeral twenty officers
in dress military uniform ; but the committee
refused the application, on the ground that
the people were too much excited to
bear the sight of a uniform. For this reason
a guard of students in three ranks was stationed
before the barracks, in order to protect, if neces-
sary, the soldiery from the attacks of the people.
But this caution was an unnecessary one. The
minds of all were strung to such a pitch of enthu-
siasm that the project was not entertained for a
moment. None but a bystander could form an
idea of the high solemnity of that day. Upwards
of 100,000 people in deep mourning passed through
the streets so silently that a blindfolded man would
think he was in a solitude. All the shops were shut,
all the balconies were covered with crape, ladies
of the highest position went to the cemetery on
foot, and the sun shone brilliantly on this, the
day of our greatest national ceremony.

At the cemetery all was soon over; the coffins of
those who bad fallen on the 270, viz., Charles
Brendel, the locksmith ; Areichiewicr, 7Alzislaw
Rutkowski, Marcel Karesewski, and Adam Kleiner,
the smith, were laid in one common grave. The
coffins were covered with palm-leaves, the symbols
of martyrdom. There was no speech. I heard a
poor workman explain to those around him that it
could not be otherwise, for it would be impossible
for any one to express even a portion of what we
all feel.

When the ceremony was over the people were
requested to go to their homes. The request was
instantly complied with. Whenever • group more
numerous than usual assembled by accident in the
street, a young student with a scarf worked his way
in amongst them, and at his summons all were dia-
pered as with a magic wand. Emotion was visible
on every face. Tears were seen in the eyes of men
who had forgotten to weep these twenty years.
This day will form an important epoch in our his-
tory. We havegained • decisive victory, and its fruits
are the universal conviction of our moral fore
and of our not having passed so many years
through the school of adversity in vain. We now
stand in a different position with reference to our.
selves and strangers, who looked upon us as the
representatives of anarchy.
On Monday evening, the 4th instant, the care of
the town will be given up to the authorities, and
the city guard will be disbanded. It is difficult to
foresee what will happen next, if an unfavourable
answer is returned to the address, for in that came
the resignation of all the employis in the whole
kingdom is certain.

HUNGARY.

General Turr hen addressed to the Communal
Council of Kccakemet (Hungary) the following
letter :