The Sun.
London, England, 1865-01-05 00:00:00

in the public press, but he is responsible to the law. Censor-
ship and other preventive measures are abolished for ever.

Article 90 and following sanction all public meetings of
unarmed citizens. The police have a right to be-present.
Monster open--air meetings may be prohibited if likely to
lead to disturbance. In case of a riot the armed force may
not interfere until the Riot Act has been read and the
crowd called upon three times to disperse."
The other Articles refer to measures of local
interest.

Despatch of Herr Von Bismark.

BERLIN, Jan. 3.

The following is the text of an important note
forwarded by Herr von Bismark to the King's Am-
bassador in Munich on the 13th ult., in which the
Prussian Premier rejects the attempts of the Middle
States to extend the competence of the Federal
Diet. It will be seen that Herr von Bismark, while
claiming perfect freedom of action for Prussia,
distinctly refuses to submit to the decision of the
majority

" BERLIN, Dec. 13,

" The results of the sitting of the Federal Diet on the
sth are laiown to your excellency. By the acceptance of
the. Austro-Prussian motion of the Ist December the Fede-
ral Diet has admitted that it also considers the execution
in the Duchies of Holstein and Lauenburg as terminated,
and has thereby confirmed the circumstance upon which
the King's Government based its demands to the Cabinets
of Dresden and Hanover. By its simultaneous request to
the two Governments for the withdrawal of their troops,
the Diet has drawn the conclusion necessarily resulting
from this fact, and has enabled the Government of the King
• to await the decision that might be come to in Dresden.

" We determined upon this course in a friendly frame
of mind, in order to avert the danger of a more serious
complication which could not fail to have arisen out of a
continued refusal of Saxony to execute the prescriptions of
the order for execution ; and we hail with satisfaction this
result of the moderation and conciliatory spirit we pre-
served to the last moment.
" But we are also unable to conceal from ourselves that
even in the sitting of the Federal Diet alluded to this re-
sult was accompanied by circumstances calculated to call
forth justifiable and serious doubts—doubts to which we
feel it our duty to direct the attention of the other Go-
vernments.

" We could not indeed refrain from feeling surprise that
upon a subject, in which the notorious facts and the plain
letter, as well as the spirit of Federal right, so unequivo-
cally pointed out what the decision ought to be, the votes
of the minority could display a marked difference in the
views of the members of the Confederation.
_ Although it was certainly intelligible to us that the
Saxon Government, when it received our summons,desired
in its motion of Nov. 29 to call forth a declaration of the
Diet upon the fact of the termination of the execution, we
find it difficult to understand how a number of German
Governments could be in doubt as to this declaration itself,
and could vote against the simple expression of opinion as
to the execution being concluded. The motives and expla-
nations with which they accompanied their votes could
only increase their apprehension for the future of the Ger-
manic Confederation, which we entertain at every mis-
apprehension of its character.

" The declaration made by the Bavarian Government
when voting upon the Ist December has already been
published, but for easier reference I annex a copy. It en-
tirely overlooks the character of the occupation hitherto
maintained of Holstein and Lauenburg as a measure of
execution, and regards it as an actual taking possession of
the two Duchies, to be kept up until the latter could be
given over to the legitimate ruler. It endeavours at the
same time to show that King Christian IX.. was unable to
cede any right's to the two great German Powers;. because
he himself,possessed none ; and while it entirely forgets
that the extent of these rights has not yet been in any man-
ner examined, either by the Diet or by any other autho-
rity, but has been reserved with all the other claims 'for
future decision, it goes so far as not even to consider valid
the formal and tempOrary state of possession, which un-
doubtedly existed on the .Ist of December last year, and
which, if not ceded to Prussia and AuStria, might have
been restored.by fulfilling the requirements of the resolu-
tion for Federal execution. It is evident that the Bavarian
Government, by thus entirely ignoring the:character of the
execution, places itself in open contradiction to those reso-
lutions of the Diet, upon the basis of which the troops and
commissioners were present in Holstein.. We can only
ascribe this ignoring to the correct feeling that.no argument
would be adduced for the continuance of the execution ; but
the Bavarian,Government has equally omitted to adduce
any argument for the substitution it attempts of an occupa-
tion and simultaneous sequestration of the Duchieeln place
of the execution,. which would, indeed, have been difficult
within the very positive limits of Federal ' competence.
Equally little has it endeaVoured to bring forward a title,
whether in the letter of Federal right or in the spirit of the
international institution of the Diet, for the simple asser-
tion-that the Duchy of Holstein is now alone,in legal .pos-
session of the Federal Diet. It thus completely contradicts
Federal treaties, and especially Article 3 of the Federal act
alluded to in the Bavarian declaration, which could at least
have been appealed to by the former possessor of the
Duchies, in order to be temporarily protected in possessorio
—contradicts them so fully, that we could rather designate
every claim of the Federal Diet only to the possession of
the Duchies as entirely illegal. The Diet has only just
the rights given to it by treaties, and we know of no article
in such by which it can sequestrate. or occupy a country
the succession of which is in dispute.
" Were this difference of view purely theoretical in ,cha-
racter we might have contented ourselves with stating our
opinion. But we must not conceal that we see in it a great
practical danger, to which we consider it our duty to call
attention.

" In the attempt to set the occupation and sequestration
of the Duchies in the place of execution, and, to justify
their occupation and administration by the Diet until the
moment.of definitive decision upon their future, there lies
a tendency to extend the competence of the Diet which
finds no basis in treaties, and which we cannot therefore
avoid characterising as dangerous to the existence of the
Diet itself. The existence of the Diet is founded upon the
respect of all its members for the very carefully drawn
limits of this competence ; every attempt at their arbitrary
enlargement touches and shakes the foundations of the Diet
itself. A rule of majorities, which would substitute an
arbitrary principle for the aforesaid respect, and claim to
exercise a binding influence upon our policy beyond the
stipulations of Federal treaties, could not be endured by
us. We are, Only members of that Confederation, whose
fundamental laws are laid down in Federal treaties. The
measure of the attributes inherent in the general body
with regard to the individual member is apportioned by
these treaties, and the excess of the competence thereby
conferred would be coincident with the dissolution of the
Confederation. Every Government which attaches value to
the advantages and security afforded it by the continuance
of the Confederation should therefore be carefully upon
its guard against violations of competence by which the
common bond 'may be torn asunder. We have no inten-
tion of allowing our political independence to be sha4led
beyond the measure of our evident Federal duties, but the
endeavour to do so would have become a fact if only two
other votes hid joined the six votes of the minority on the
sth. In face of the wrongly passed resolution we should then
have been placed in the necessity of making full use, for
tho protection of our rights, of the increased freedom of
action afforded us by the violation of the treaties. We can
only wish that the Saxon Government may entertain no
doubts of our resolution how to act in similar cases, and I
have therefore not considered it superfluous to revert to
the principles called in question, even after the present
case has been settled by the vote of the sth inst.
"I request your Excellency to read this despatch to the
Bavarian Minister for Foreign Affairs, and empower you
to leave with him ,a copy of the same.
(Signed) " VON BISMARK."

The New York correspondent of the Boston
Journal writes that "A company of gentlemen in this city
has fitted up a fast sailing clipper ship in elegant style,
placed on board, every conceivable luxury, manned her
completely with, a fine crew, put her in charge of one of
our ablest captains, and tendered her to General George B.
31‘Clellan for one year, to sail where he will with his
family and friends—the entire expense to be borne by the
gentlemen."

SOUTH EASTERN RAILWAY.—On Tuesday some
experiments were made by the engineers and con-
tractors now engaged in constructing the railway bridge
over the Thames for the extension to Cannon-street, with
a view to test the strength and solidity of the land piers
and abutments on the Surrey side. They were loaded with
an extra weight of 1,500 tons without any appreciable
sinking or subsidence, and to far the results were consi-
dered very satisfactory. The bridge, which will be similar
in style and structure to the railway bridge at Charing-
cross, is being constructed with five' spans, the two on the
Surrey side being now completed. Out of the 16 cylinders
for the piers 12 have been successfully sunk,.- and on
Tuesday operations were commenced for submerging the
remaining four. The spans at the abutments are 135 ft.,
and those of the others 167 ft. each, with a headway of 25ft.
above Trinity high-Water mark.

The Nov. Gazette of Verona, of the 29th ult.,
states that on the previous day there fell into the hands of
the police authorities 13 Orsini bombs, which, added to
those before seized, bring up the total to 70.
THE INCENDIARY FIRES IN YORKSHIRE.—At the
East Riding Sessions on Tuesday, Colonel Layard, the
chief constable, stated that out of the 11 fires that had oc-
curred during the quarter six were. certainly incendiary.
For these one man was now undergoing penal servitude
for 10 years. *At the time great excitement was caused in
the district by the receipt of numerous threatening; letters
to the farmers, of which 12 had come into the hands of the
police. They had been posted in London, Sheffield, &c.,
and, in conjunction with Sir Richard Mayne, it had been
ascertained that these letters emanated from a lunatic. The
employment adetectives seems to have had a good effect,
as no fires have taken place duce tne 28th of Xeverubor.