The Express.
London, England, 1857-12-15 00:00:00

THE PAPAL STATES.

ENGLISH TRAVELLERS AND ROMAN BRIGANDS.

(711011 OUR OW CO ZZ 7ZZ ONDISNI.)

ROME, Dr.c.s.

The brigands in the neighbourhood of the Eter-
nal City have just resumed their periodical practice
of epoliating such incautious travellers as take more
money with them than is necessary for their own
wants or less than will suffice to pacify the earl
sacra fames of highway assailants. On Monday
evening at seven o clock a vetturino carriage was
plodding its weary way from Cis ita Vecchia towards
Rome, and had reached a spot four miles on this side
of Palo, when its farther progress was opposed by
seven bandits armed with bludgeons, pistols, and
daggers, who stopped the vehicle and proceeded to
rifle the passengers, consisting of Dr. Conolley, Roman
Catholic bishop of Halifax, on his way to Home
te pay homage to the supreme head of the Church,
Mr. Blake, and Mr. and Mrs. Harper. The Bishop
was eased of 1401., besides his episcopal chain and
arose, and the pastoral ring, a fine emerald, which
he wore according to custom. Mr. Blake, feeling
greatly averse to submitting to spoliation, in his turn
manfully resisted the outlaws' invitation to stand
asd deliver, but he was finally overpowered by num-
bers, after being severely beaten and having had a
pinto! presented at his head, which fortunately
missed fire. Mr. and Mrs. Harper were robbed of
their watches, chains, and purses ; an l altogether the
plunder realised by the marauders may be valued at
about a thousand wadi, or over 2001.

At any rate this inconvenience, which always
threatens travellers to and from Civita Vecchia and
Rome, will disappear so soon u the railway, which
is promised for next July, is actually opened to the
public.
Our principal subject of interest just now is the
arrest of the Marquis Campana, ditector of the
Monte di l'icta, for a deficit in his administration,
amounting to upwards of half a million of acudi,
which sum, it appears, he was hoping to replace by
the sale of his celebrated museum of objects of art,
which is unrivalled in that branch devoted to
Etruscan antiquities, and has long formed one of
the principal lions of Rome, having been invariably
open to the visits of strangers through the courtesy
of its owner. The government is pushing on his
trial with a degree of severity the leas approved of
by the public, as it js affirmed that it was not without
some ministerial authorisation that the marquis
made use of the funds of the Monte di Pies, which
he had frequently but rowed and replaced
with the due rate of interest. Esf modes
is rebus, however, and, perhaps, the amount to
which the deficit had risen appeared tb the govern-
ment to endanger the establishment. At any rate
the marquis was arrested on Saturday morning, at the
Monte, in spite of the privileges of his rank and the
sacred immunities of the loatlity, and on the follow-
ing Monday an official announcement was issued to
re-assure persons having funds vested in the esta-
bliilimeat, their capital being fully guaranteed by
the government. Great excitement was caused by
the news of the marquis's arrest, as he has always
been a good friend to the poor, as well as a liberal
patron of art, and military precautions were deemed
necessary to ensure the safety of the prison of San
Michele, where he was placed in confinement.
Reports are in circulation that the Marchese Cam-
pana's acknowledged influence with the Emperor
of the French will produce some good offices in
favour of her husband from his Imperial Majesty.

THE CRISIS AT HAMBURG.

PARIS, Dec. It.

The financial crisis at Hamburg is terrible.
The 30,000,000, appropriated by the Senate to the
partial alleviatioa of the distress, will barely suffice
to assist some insolvent firms, whose ruin must have
pallid 11101n1 a multitude of small Maders.—Pod.