The Express.
London, England, 1850-01-19 00:00:00

SPAIN.

MADRID, Juc. 9.

Writs have been issued for elections in different
places on account of deputies having accepted offices
under government.
In the Chamber of Deputies an important occur-
rence took place. The sitting began by the reading
of the report on the election of Pontevcdn ; a report
' which, made by a committee devoted to the ministry,
was of course favourable to the ministerial member.
However, the deputy Malvar rose and protected
against the election, shying that as a debate would be
useless, he would not enter into details. The debate
on Gonzalo Moron's motion was then resumed; and
the deputy Mereto made a prosy speech, which was
very acridly replied to by Gonzalo Moron, after which
the motion was put to the vote and lost by a majority
of 120 votes against 75. The extremely formidable
opposition which has been organised against the
ministry—an opposition which now counts about 80
voter, and which was within an ace of putting the
government in a very embarrassing pcsition the other
day, has alarmed the ministry. The moderados have
been reinforced by the Galilean deputies (22 strong),
who have declared themselves in open opposi-
tion. The debates upon the seven motior.s
to be brought forward with reference to the
estimates also promised nothing very seductive,
the ministry have, therefore taken a sudden resolu-
tion. While the members were still voting upon
Gonzalo Moron's motion, the Minister of Finance,
Bravo Murillo, entered the chamber dress. d in full
uniform, and read a royal decree p-rmitting him to
present a bill authorising the government to make
the estimates according to the report of the committee.
The preamble set forth that there being no less than
seven different motions (votos particulares) to be
brdhgbt forw.srd, much time would be taken up, and
the government could cot remain to long in an
anomalous position. The reading of this bill caused
great excitement, beanie every one saw that it would
soon be followed by the dissolution of the
chambers with which the Minister of the Home
Department threatened the opposition the other day.
The decree was not countersigned by all the ministers,
as is usual when it is an important one, which leads
one to suppose that the cabinet does not choose to
share the respons►bility with the Minister of Finance
in the discussion of the bill. We observed, also, that
the royal decree contained many blots and erasures,
which proves that it had been recently written, and
not copied out fair. The excitement was so great, and
the conversations so general, that the house adjouroed,
after agreeing to send the bill to the sections to be
examined.

GERMANY.

BERLIN, JAN. 16.

The committee of the Second Chamber its rejected
the peerage by 15 votes against 6, and the power to
entail estates by 12 against 9. The High Court
having been previously thrown out, it appears
scarcely possible that any of the leading propositions
fa the King's message should pass in the house.
There exists, unquestionably, in both Chambers, a
readiness to negotiate with the government, which
has been upon former occasions abused, to obtain the
most pernicious concessions to the crown, and which
was no doubt fully taken into calculation when a
string of propositions Bo daring emanated from the
crows. But at the end of the message a sort
of protest has been introduced against the
way of transaction. It is said : "We trust
that here also there will be no driving of bar-
gains on either baud, but that we shall strive in com-
mon for the happiness and glory of our tatheiland."
The expression used is abdingen, which is a term of
contempt for a Jewish mode of bargaining, and
means " beating down," "chaffering." This is a touch
highly characteristic of the king, and reminds one
of his too memorable deprecation that • bit of
pap's, charter to wit, should replace the holy relation
of confidence between him and his subjects. The
holy relation between debtor and creditor would be
no doubt much more agreeable to the former, without
the " bit of paper" witneesing the obligation.. It
would be also highly convenient for governments if
parliaments would accept their propositions as the
people are obliged to buy their monopoly-tobacco,
without bargaining. Toe contempt expressed in
1847 for a contract is expressed in 1850 for
the negotiation which is the indispensable prelimi-
nary of all contracts. In all this the same thought
may be traced the implicit cisayowal of all liability
to restriction, the impatience of all limitation to the
range of will. The same spirit dictates the octroy-
mect of constitutions, disdainful denial of the people's
right to be a source of law.
VIENNA, Tex. 12.

No sooner bad I reported to yon the gentlemanly
behaviour of the officers in the regiment of Nugent
in ()Alicia than I heard of a new military outrage in
the opposite Treater of the monarchy not less re-
markable. Two professors of the University of Padua
presented a memorial to the military authority.
They were sent for on the next day and sentenced to
be flogged. Twenty-fi-e Wows of the cudgel were to
be dealt on each. The beach was all got ready, one
of the victims stretched upon it, and the drum gave
the signal for the barbuouit infliction to begin, when
a general of high rank appeared on the scene at.d
stopped the diseraceful proceedings. Enough, how-
ever, bad already been dune to east the life of the
father of a family, and a scholar; for the poor man
was so heart-struck with the horrible disgrace and
outrage, that he was eels with a fit, and died upon
the spot. Such are the acts by which Italy is to be
reconciled to the rule of Austria: such are the @awl-
, lies of that government which is applauded by the
Amts.

ST. PETEItBBURGIL—From a report presented to
the Emperor by the Mirage), of the Interior, for t►e year
1848, it appears that the bits' number of Itembin subjects
belondepi to (Align communities amoouts to 8,786,719 inch.
viduals or both sszee. More thun half of that number, vie.,
4,911,459, peeks the Christian religion, and the 3,874,260
remaining are Mehometans, Jews, or idolators. The number
of Reiman catholic* is 276,764, with 2,264 churches; that of
Arminian catholic, 20,000, with 44 churches; Oressorien
Armenians, 354,521, with 1,017 churches or chapels; the
protestant religion numbers 1,732,292 ladividusls with 900
churches; the Mahometans comprehend 2,286,963
duals with 6,084 mosques. The relision of Lama numbers
215,209 adherents wi,b 293 houses of prayer. The number
to idolaters amount to 163,343.