The Sun.
London, England, 1862-05-10 00:00:00

TEE ELECTIONS 1N PRUSSIA.

A letter from Berlin, dated May 7, says :—" The
elections of deputies that took place yesterday, and
the results of which are as yet but partially known
in Berlin, were deprived of much of their interest
by the closeness with which the elections of voters
that occurred eight days previously had been
scanned. In quieter times it is possible there would
have been no such searching investigation as should
determine, within a few votes, when once the wail.
manner were chosen, the respective strength of
parties in the ensuing Chamber. But on this occa-
sion political feeling has run so high, and the
energy and activity displayed by the Prussian Libe-
rals have been so exemplary, that nothing seems to
have been left for to morrow that could have been
done to-day, and the issue of yesterday's elections
was beforehand an ascertained fact. How great
and general the interest felt has been in Berlin is
shown by the statistics of the primary elections.
From these, as published by several journals of this
capital, it appears that the total number of ur.
wahler, or original voters, is 94,630 civilians and
5,020 military, together 99,650. Of these, 62,578
exercised their right of voting, being nearly 63
per cent. Last year little more than 41 per cent.
voted. Various other circumstances relating to the
Berlin elections are interesting, as showing the
strong Liberal feeling prevalent here, and the good
organisation of that party. The nine deputies are
all of the Fortschritt. The return of six of these, to
be elected in the 2d, 3d, and 4th districts, was quite
certain, and the same might be said of that of Tad-
del and Tweston, two of the three to be chosen for
the Ist district, the most considerable for wealth
and influence in all Prussia, and to the elections for
which as much weight is here given as in England
to those for the city of London or for any first-class
county. The three meetings of wahlmanner, held in
the course of lest week, left no reasonable doubt how
things would go in that district ; but still the mode-
rate Liberals put forward Kuhne, and seemed not
to have lost all hope. Yesterday the elections of
Twesten and Taddel were first proceeded with. The
first-named had 412 votes out of 514 voters ; the
latter, 403 out of 503. Kuhne had 95 votes, and a
lieutenant-general 7to 8. The third Fortschritt
candidate, when the poll opened, was Waldeck,
whose election at Bielefeld, where he was also put
up, was considered doubtful, and whose political
friends would not risk his exclusion from the
Chamber. But, early in the afternoon, news came
that he was returned for Bielefeld by 293 against
244 votes, and thereupon the word was passed to vote
for Von Hennig in his stead. It speaks well for the
organisation and discipline of the Liberal party
that this sudden change at the eleventh hour caused
no confusion, nor any important weakening of the
majority. M. von Hennig obtained 394 votes,
against 102 given to M. Kuhne—one of the leading
and most highly-prized members of the Constitu-
tional, or moderate party. In the three other dis-
tricts
of Berlin the majorities obtained were even
greater than in the first; thus, in the fourth, 1)r.
withn 2
Luning had 429 votes, and Major Steinhardt (re-
tired list) 401; and the next man to each of them
was
In short, it was
our of the Liberals,
who distanced all opponents. In the provinces, so
everywhere Count
a Schwerin,
aollo w thing
ig in 8
fay.
fur es is yet known, 'the expectations founded on
the primary elections were yesterday fully realised.
The Fortschritt party have gained seats, and their
candidates, when successful, have generally won by
overpoweringly large majorities, showing how
decided the Liberul tendency is in Prussia. We
must wait a few days before arriving at an exact
classification of the new Chamber; meanwhile, some
of the papers attempt this, so far as the returns are
received, and, as is natural, with slight discrepan-
cies between the lists. As regards members of the
last Chamber who have now been re-elected, there
is little difficulty, but some of the new men are
claimed by different shades of political opinion.
These shades are pretty numerous. The Fort-
schritt party divides itself into two, between
which, however, there are no important differences;
then collies the Bockum-Dolffs fraction, which
may also be expected to go with the Fortschritt in
a general way; then we get to the Grabowites or
Constitutionals, moderate Liberals, some few
of
whom joined the advanced party in its vote for the
Hagen motion, while others who supported the last
Ministry because it compriseciSchwerin,Patow, and
other men to whom they gave their confidence, will
most decidedly vote cgainst the present one, which
insnircs them with none. Then we arrive at the
Cenfre, composed of the Catholic party, and, on its
right, to the Conservatives, with whom it often
votes. The Poles form an independent fraction,
voting capriciously, often making a factious opposi-
tion, cherishing ideas of nationality, and looking to
local interests of race rather than to the general ones
of the nation in which they have been absorbed.
They will be weak in the coming Chamber, having
been beaten in some of their strongholds, by the
German element. Besides the different sections
above enumerated, it is the custom here to reckon
another (a small one) in which are placed what are
called Wilde (savages or irregulars) deputies whose
mind is not known (perhaps not even to themselves,
and on suffrages no party permanently reckons. By
analysis of a list of 125 returns (not including Berlin)