The Sun.
London, England, 1864-12-12 00:00:00

PRUSSIA.

The German journals discuss at considerable
length, and with much vivacity, the pretended
claims of Prussia to the succession in the Duchies.
The TVanderer of Vienna says :—" There are two
points upon which the semi-official journals of Prus-
sia dwell with remarkable consistency. First, the
recently-discovered pretensions of Prussia to the
Crown of the Duchies, and the mania to submit those
claims to the examination of Prussian jurists ; then
the assertion that not one of the actual claimants
will be capable of clearly proving his claims to
the whole of SchleswgsHolstein, and that at most
each could justify his right to some small portion
of certain parts of that territory. If we rightly
understand these indications, Prussia seems inclined
to lay stress upon these superannuated documents
taken from dusty shelves to lay claim at least to a
portion of the Duchies, and to award the remainder
to as many claimants as possible. Should lite suc.
teed in doing these, either the Duchies would be
cut up into small strips, or the claimants would be
induced, by means of a suitable indemnity, to give
up their claims to one claimant ; and what claimant
could afford to pay such an indemnity P It is nth
difficult to guess, and thus Prussia would finally
attain, by means of a mat oeuvre, perfectly
correct in appearance, the object which she
probably had in view from the very beginning.
We are not aware whether she is counting without
her host or with him—that is to say with or with-
out the concurrence of Austria."
The Boersenhalle has the following :—" The ne-
gotiations between the Cabinets of Vienna and of
Berlin to hasten the decision in the question of the
Duchies have commenced, and we are assured that
the Prussian Government has notified here that it
purposes to make good the claims which the House
of Hohenzollern fancies it can support on a series
of documents already made known. Should this
news prove correct, the solution of this question
will drag on for a long time, despite all the
goodwill of the Vienna Cabinet to terminate it; as,
before coming to a decision upon the fundamental
question of the succession, interminable delibera-
tions would have to take place between the two
great Powers to settle the competency of the autho
rity to pronounce judgment,"
A letter from Berlin, dated the 9th inst., says
"There is a report current that the negotiations
between Prussia and the Duke of Augustenburg
have led to the conclusion of a military conven-
tion, the consequence of which would be the im-
mediate recognition of the Duke by the Prus-
sietn Government. This report is evidently erro-
neous. The Government does not attach a great
importance to a military convention. The conces-
sions which Prussia asks for, in the first place,
from the Duke, are a maritime convention and a
guarantee for a speedy completion of the canal be-
tween the North Sea and the Baltic. These cons
cessions are requisite for the future welfare of a fleet
worthy of Prussia and of Germany.
" If there is any foundation in the rumours, it can
cnly rest upon the basis that the Duke of Augus-
tenburg has offered to conclude a military convention
with Prussia on the condition that the Berlin Go-
vernment should immediately recognise him as
Duke of Schleswig-Holstein. It is needless to add
that such an offer would not be deemed sufficient.
In fact, if the negotiations between the Duke of
Augustenburg and the Prussian Government have
really commenced, which is still open to doubt, it
is evident that they have not as yet led to any pals
pable result.