The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-03-16 00:00:00

ITALY.

TURIN, MARCH 10.
A question to the Minister of War by M. Casa-
retto, a deputy of Genoa, and a member of the
extreme Left which has excited some curiosity,
was put to day in the Chamber of Daputies here.
The facts of the case are as follows

By a Royal decree of the 15th of April, 184 S,
dated from Volta (in Lombards), King Charles
Albert ordaino-1 that the tricoloured flag, with the
cross of Savoy, which had already been adopted
for the land forces, should also he the flag of
the Royal and mercantile navy You are aware
that, previously to 1818, the ensign of the House
of Savoy was blue, and this colour had been
preserved by a special article of the patent
promulgated in March, 1818 But when Charles
Albert engaged in the war for the independence
of Italy, he gave up the colours of his family
for the Italian national flag, and distributed
tricoloured ensigns to his army at the passage
of the Ticino. His Majesty at that time still held
all power in his own person, and was therefore at
liberty to make what change he thought fit. The
decree of the 15th of April spoke of the tricoloured
flag with the white cross, without any further
description ; it made no mention of a border or
field of blue; but on the 28-h of April, 1848,
another decree, issued by Prince Carignano, who
was Regent during the absence of the King, giving
the tricoloured flag to the National Guard, estab.
lisped that it should have a bine border.

The mercantile navy had adopted the tricoloured
flag, but without the border, and a circular from
the Minister of War and Marine of the year 1851
drew attention to this irregularity, and required
that it should be put a stop to. From some cause
or other, however, the merchant captains continued
to use the tricoloured flag, with the cross, but
without the blue border, and in the beginning of
February last some observations from .Sardinian
Consuls abroad drew the attention of General
della Marmora to the subject again. Under these
circumstances the Minister appears to have
thoughtit his duty to prohibit this diversity of flags
between the Royal and merchant services, and to
this end sent a 'resh circular to all the Captains of
Ports of the Kingdom. This circular was duly
published at Genoa, but did not meet with much
attention from the person for whom it was in-
tended (Genoa is not the most obedient town in
the liing.lom to the orders of the Government),
and on the 22d of February the Captain of the
Port sent an armed boat round to all the merchant
vessels and confiscated those flags which were not
in accordance with regulations

M. Casaretto denounced this proceeding as
altogether illegal. It was the wients of authority,
he said, who had transgressed the law, because the
decree of the 15th of April, 1848, said nothing
about a blue border, and the captains had acted
according to law, and were quite right to resist.
He complained also that the seizure of the flags
had been mafje in a very harsh and arbitrary
manner.

General della Marmora had little difficulty in
proving that the decree of the 28th of April, 1848,
was an an explanation of that of the 18th of the
same month, and that it was ridiculous to suppose
that the constituted authority wished to establish
two different fiass within a few days. He spoke
also of other violations of the law, and said that he
had himself seen in the East a vessel which
had an ensign without the white cross even,
and ho added that he had received a letter
from the Sardinian Consul at Valparaiso, men-
tioning three Sardinian vessels that had each
different flags.

Count Cavour said said there could be no doubt
about the legality of the colours, but if there had
been, it ought to be set at rest by adopting one
single standard. It was concord and unity that
was desired, and it would never do for different
classes of citizens to have different flags. The
blue carries with it the glorious traditions of the
house of Savoy, and these traditions should be
allied with the new hopes of the tricoloured flag
—the hopes, ke would say, of the liberty and inde-
pendence of Italy.
M. de Revel (who was in the council of the
King when the colours were changed) said that it

-LIVERPOOL, MON DAY

certainly never was his Majesty's intention, nor
that of any of his Ministers; to establish two
Hags; that the blue was sanctified by the traditions
of the Monarchy, and the three colours by the
a-
,inries and misfortunes of the War of Indepen
deuce ; and that they could not be separated.
He then proposed the order of the day pure and
_ a

M. Valerie deplored diScussions of this kind, but
wished the House to adopt an order of the day
calculated to set the matter at rest. Notwithstand-
ing this, however, and several other observations
and oppositiOns from Members of the Left, the
Chamber adopted M. de Revel's motion by a large
mpjority._

The Minister of War declared that, with regard
to the offending captains a proper distinction had
been made, and that inddlgeucc would be shown
ig
norance,
but those who had disobeyed through
but that the prosecutions would be carried on in
the case of those who had wilfully altered the
national flag.
The Chamber afterwards resumed the discussion
on the bill for enfranchising the interest on loans.
Count Cavour made another remarkably good
speech on the subject, which gained the victory.
After this Epeech the Chamber negatived an
amendment propoed by M. Deviry, which had for
object a very lirnited enlargement of the present
restrictiOns, and passed the first &Anse, containing
the principle of she bill, by a large majority. This
is a vote_ which does great honour to the wisdom
and bold prudence of the Sardinian Parliament.
The cause of liberty will be a great gainer by it,
and so will also labour and agriculture, which will
the more readily find the assistance of capital if
the bill passes into law.

SPAIN.

MADRID, MARCH O.

The Gazette contains various appointments and
promotions in the department of Grace and Justice,
and, among several decrees of no general interest,
one authorising the formation of the Company of
the Railways from Seville to Xerez and from Puerto
Real to Cadiz, of which 30 per cent of the capital
has been paid up, and which is bound to com-
mence its operations within one month of the date
of the decree

General Crespo, Captain General of the Philip-
pineS tinder the Progresista GovOnment, has ar-
tied in Piiroj)S.
The Governor of -Madrid, Senor Marlon, 16
making strong efforts to check gambling—A vice '
Which is carried to a prodigious extent in this
capital. 1.1,y his orders a ntiuiber of getting houses
have been closed, and the rouge et noir table,
Which used to open daily towards midnight at the
principal club here, is no longer permitted.
The mansion of the Duke of Medina Celi, de-
scribed hy,Ford as looking like. ten houses taken
oiit of Baker street, and which was considerably
damaged in July last year by General Serrano's
cannonade, is now nearly repaired. The papers give
an account of a magnificent electric clock that is to
surmount it, having several faces, one of which,
fronting the salon, or chief promenade on the Prarlo,
will show, besides the hour, the day and mouth,
and the changes of the moon. There is to be a
carillon, or peal of bells wh ch will play an air as
often as the hour strikes. The airs are to be sixteen
in number, selected from those Spanish melodies
most popular in the provinces where the Duke has
estates—that is to say, in nearly every pro Vince of
The projected expedition against Mexico assumes
an aspect of some importance, Considerable pre-
parations aro making. General Pezuela is spoken
of for the chief command. The choice of the
Government is said to lie between him and Gene-
ral Lersundi the present Minister of Marine.
The Palace is dissatisfied with Senor Nocedal,
on account of the number of Polacos whose can-
didature at the elections he admits and favours.
The dislike entertained in the highest quarters
for that political clique can only be explained by a
lingering and painful recollection of the revolution
to which its tyranny and misgovernment led, and
which placed the Queen, her Crown, and her
mother in real danger, averted only by the efforts
and popularity of Esportero.