The Sun.
London, England, 1853-01-27 00:00:00

LONDON, THURSDAY EVENING, JANUARY 27, 1853.

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jOYAL POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTION.
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fortunate matches, each bringing their contingent to
her territory? Is she ambitious of resembling Aus-
trja, to whom Hymen has been more munificent than
war or policy? Or does she suppose that if such has
been the result in former days, it must be the result
now, and that kingdoms are to be won and worn like a
lady's trousseau; as if there were no greater Disposer
of their destinies, or as if history even within a very
late period had not proved the futility of all such
fond imaginations ? This is the shallowest of all
views. If the French monarchy
has grown to its
present extent of territory from such alliances ; if,
from the time when it scarcely extended south of
the Seine until the accession of the Valais or the
Bourbons, it has been indebted to the marriages of
its princes for its gradual incorporation into one
great empire, does it follow that such incorpora-
tion would not have taken place without the inter-
vention of such causes, or that such results will
happen again by again putting such causes into
operation ? Generally speaking, what has a foreign
alliance done for nations on either side of the Chan-
nel ? It has driven them off from the pursuit of
their true and direct interests to the. pursuit of a
shadow ; instead of developing their real strength;
it has wasted that strength by attempting, through
force or cajolery, to preserve a union unnatural and
impolitic. There are certain limits to all kingdoms
which they cannot transgress, attempt it as often
as they may ; war, marriage, policy, fail alike,
and defeat their purposes. All countries furnish
instances enough of this truth. What have we
gained, in the time of Henry. ,11 by the uribn of
the South. of France with England ? What still
later by the marriage of Henry V. to the heiress of
that kingdom What has France gained by the
Austrian or Spanish affiance in the most brilliant
periods Of her monarchy May not both king-
doms trace a vast amount of their misfortunes to
this phantom of aggrandisement ? Have not th 6
hopes of uniting kingdoms, by language, by insti-
tutions; by geographical limits intended to remain
distinct, been fraught with consequences most fatal
to those kings and that people who ventured to
entertain them ?

We need not, therefore, this laboured justifica-
tion of the marriage of the Emperor Napoleon 111.
with a lady who has no kingdom for her dowry,
either in reversion or even in expectation. So
painful a demonstration rather argues a doubt in
those who attempt it. For ourselves, we look upon
it as a strange hankering in the writers that use
it, not altogether unworthy of notice. A species
of judgment is fallen upon them for the ridicule
which they have heretofore thrown upon the
older Governments of Europe, and 'upon that spirit
of feudalism which not long since they scouted
as gross and unworthy. They have returned
to that which they professed to reject.' What
is this appeal to the ancient line of their Monarchs,
and this attempt to derive from the actions of those
monarchs, but a justification of the marriage of the
Emperor, and a wish to identify him with them ?
They compare him, who is the newly-elected of the
people, with their ancient and hereditary sove-
reigns ; they:inscribe him in the list ; they appeal to
those times of the ancient monarchy as authorita-
tive, thus acknowledging that those times carry
with them a dignity and a sanction which they
would gladly derive to their present ruler. If so,
what a strange testimony is here to the value of an
established line of princes, and to the excellence of
hereditary descent ! They prophesy undesignedly;
and the men who were once the foremost in con-
demning royalty, with all its forms, are now among '
the unconscious, unsuspected, and foremost adhe-
rents to its necessity and its use.
Whether in this matter they speak only for them-
selves, or express the sentiments of others—of
those perhaps who are higher than themselves, is of
little use to determine. Whether they wish to
find a sanction for this marriage, as if they enter-
tained any doubt about it, or wished to remove the
doubts of others, is of little consequence either way.
The mode of justification adopted by them is not
the Wisest. It is neither so frank as that which the
Emperor has himself put forward, nor by any
means so convincing. Why should they not at
once affirm, as he does, that he is a parvenu—a royal
one, it is true, and the ruler of many millions of
active, industrious, and intelligent subjects ? Why
not at once take the bull by the horns, and declare
that the novelty of his position is aAtliiiikt de-
ote to
asha oNgEipd; to be proud of, An
partur*frolif ancient rules and ancient policy ; and
that he who is not prepared to break through such
trammels according to the necessities and demands
of his position is unfit to hold it. No acces-
sion of dignity, nor of legitimacy, nor of strength,
can accrue to Napoleon 111. by following the
maxims of the ancient monarchy. No one would
respect him the more for attempting to blind the
world to the real origin of his exaltation, and
_placing his bust, alive or dead, with the crowd of
the ancient Legitimates. This was the one great
weakness of his uncle. Emperor of the French he
might have been, and he was ; but, not content
with this, he would be an Emperor of old tradi-
tions and of the ancient stamp : he Ivould adopt
some worn-out image which men had read of in
books ; as if he dreaded the reality of his power
and his title, or as if men would be blinded into
the belief that a gentleman from Corsica was the
descendant and heir of the Holy Roman empire.
Really great, he aspired to be greater, after a
theory, and lost the reality for the shadow. Into
the same weakness do the French journalists now
run, of themselves,
we suspect, and not because
they are interpreters of the mind of Napoleon 111.
Such language can certainly gain them no credit
in this country. England, at least, is indifferent
whether the descendants of Merovig carried them-
selves in such delicate matters " With an eye to the
main chance ;" whether they followed in their con-
nubial designs " the impulsion of their hearts or
their personal interests ; and if they were guided
solely by such motives, we cannot see that they are
to be exempted from'the rebuke which' attaches to
private peOple, as well as to kings, who violate the
sanctity of marriage for selfish and unworthy pur-
poses. But we are interested in the question
whether all this research into history is intended
to exculpate what these writers condemn, or secretly
feel liable to condemnation—whether they are at-
tempting to glorify an act in their Sovereign of
which they .feel secretly ashamed—whether, pro-
fessing to stand in a position in which no kingdom
ever as yet stood, and boasting of that position,
they are in heart disowning it ? The language of
their Emperor is plain and intelligible enough.
We can respect it, whether we agree in it or not.
He claims the inalienable right of all men to marry
where he has fixed his affections, and where the in-
terests of his own people, and the past and present
life of the lady herself offer no obstacle to the just
fulfilment of his wishes. What other kings may
havefor
L hereafter concerns not him,
ion in which no' other King
o
may do
before. When his apolo-
gists Monarchsr of the same genus, then
rEh
canme donetear n
findo
stands
o rs e
v in
ea
may they refer to precedents to countenance the
marriage of their Emperor. Till then he stands
and rules alone, himself the only precedent and
the only law to himself. Maiims of ancient dy-
nasties cannot reach him, and perhaps it is well
they should not. He has a great and mighty
work to accomplish, only possible to him who can
rise
te superiorwho can discern
what
position require, and
emergencieso f formalisms,hs
has energy and resolution enough to accomplish it.
to

POSITION OF THE PLANETS DURING
TILE PAST AUTUMN QUARTER.

TO THE TlißSuic
Sin,—lnreference long-prevailing gales
DItToOR OF
theblowing from the Equator, with heavy falls of rain
in November, the planet Venus was passing through
the equinoctial Libra, on the Equator—Mercury,
Mars, and Jupiter, all of them in the southern he-
misphere, causing a pressure from the south of a
strong current of air, and at times accompanied
with an electrical discharge rather unusual at that
period of the year. The late hurricane which swept
over the British Isles from the S.S.W., causing
immense damage and loss of life on various parts of
the coast, the Moon being at the full, and the Sun
in perigee with the Earth, the former in the tropic
of Cancer, the latter in Capricorn, when the Moon
is on the Equator, whether in Aries or Libra ; she
will be in Aries on the 15th and 16th of January,
and Libra 29th and 30th ; in Aries on the 11th and
12th of February, and Libra 25th and 26th • in
Aries on the 10th and 11th 'of March, and Libra
24th and 25th. During those days strong winds
will prevail, with rain or snow, according to the
temperature. From observations for many years
past, I do not expect a permanent change of wind
until the 2d of February, when a hyperborean
wind, with showers of snow at times, the air acting
with inclement action for some nights following, the
Lent winds being from the north-east. I hope I
shall not be intruding on your columns for the in-
sertion of this, for the benefit of our English
sailors and others.—l am, (h.,
W. SALTER.

Lowestoft, Jan. 3, 1853.
[This conununication was omitted, by accident,
or it would have appeared ear]ier.--ED, Sukt.i

AMERICA.

By the Royal mail steam-ship Asia, Lott com-
mander, we have advices from New York to the
14th inst. She has 200,000 dollars in specie on
freight.
The Asia sailed from her dock shortly after noon
on the 12th, but afterwards came to anchor, and
remained till the 14th, at 8 a.m., when she pro-
ceeded on her voyage. She has brought papers to
the latter date.
The steam-ship America, with the mails of the
25th .ult., from Liverpool, arrived at Boston on
the 10th inst.
The United States mail-steamer Baltic, which
left Liverpool on the 29th ult., arrived at New
York on the 11th instant.
The new Cunard steamer Arabia, which sailed
from Liverpool on the Ist, put into Halifax on the
13th inst., short of coals.
The United States mail-steamer Humboldt,
which sailed from Cowes on the 25th ult., arrived
at New York on the 10th inst.
Her Majesty's sloop-of-war Amphitrite was at
Acapulco on the 30th of December, andas to sail
immdiately with 800,000 dollars f.id'specie for
England.
The caloric ship Ericsson had had another trial
trip, with a large party of scientific gentlemen on
board. The trip was m every way satisfactory.
She went a distance of 18 miles, with and against
the tide, in two hours and a half, the engines only
"working at half speeck,,‘,..—__
New'rOrk, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and a large
section of the United States, had been visited by
very severe snowstorms, and, in some places,. snow
had fallen to the depth of several feet. The de-
tention of the mails and steamers was vbry general,
many of which were considerably overdue at the
Idifferent ports.
The United States Senate had been occupied
with the discussion of the Clayton and Bulwer
treaty. The President was requested to transmit
all correspondence between Mr. Lawrence, late
Minister at the Court of St. James's, and the
British Government in regard to Central America,
and particularly any correspondence relating to the
claims of Great Britain to the Mosquito Coast, or
arty portion of the territory of Honduras or
Yucatan.

The Kaine extradition case had again been before
the United States Supreme Court. Attorney-
' General Crittenden stated that he had examined
the law applicable to the case, and had come to
the conclusion to take no active part in it, con-
sidering that the duty of the Executive only com-
menced when the criminality of the accused was
legally established and the warrant issued. Mr.
Busteed appeared for Kaine, and, no counsel ap-
pearing for the defence, he asked the advice of the
Court what course to pursue. Chief Justice Taney
said the Court would leave it to the discretion of
counsel to take such course as they deemed proper.
Mr. Busteed said that, in order that the Court
might have the case fairly before theni, in the
absence of counsel for the defence, he would put
the Court in possession of all the arguments which
had been adduced on the opposite side, which he
did, and then proceeded with his argument for
Kaine. Mr.. Brady followed, concluding the case
for Kaine.

The Panama Herald of December 25 contains
the following interesting information relative to one
of the expeditions sent in search of Sir John Frank-
lin, for the safety of which considerable anxiety
was beginning to be felt, as no intelligence had been
received of it for a considerable time :
" The friends of Captain Collinson, of her Britannic
Majesty's ship Enterprise, will be delighted to hear that
he has been seen by some American whalers. This offi-
cer, it will be recollected, went in search of Sir John
Franklin and his party, and was supposed to have been
lost, as he had not been heard of for nearly two years."
There were 100 whalers at Honolulu, of which
only one was English.
A telegraphic dispatch from Baltimore states that
New Orleans papers were received there on the
13th, containing the details of the news received
from Tampico to the 27th ult. :
" Among the leading officers of the regular Mexican
army who had pronounced in favour of the revolutionists,
were Colonels Casanova, Cruz, and Tenorio.
" The papers are filled with accounts of pronuncia-
miatos, and El Tantaulipeco confidently pronounces the
Government of Arista doomed.
“Junn Jose de la Garza, Provisional Governor of
Tamaulipas, publishes an address in which he justifies
the revolution.

" Colonels Mejia and Vega had joined the revolution-
ists, and within a few days a force of 1,500 men would
be organised under the command of those chiefs, which
would march to occupy San. Luis and other States of the
interior."
The New York Herald contains the following, in
relation to the island of Cuba and the flourishing
condition of the slave trade there :
"In the district of Cienfuegos, in the island of Cuba,
the sugar crop of 1846 was 12,673 tons, with 1,667,000
gallons of molasses. The crop of 1852 has been 27,243
tons, with 2,300,000 gallons of molasses. Will it be
said that there was no increase to the slave population
of the district during the intervening seven years ? If
there was, whence was it derived, as we are well assured
it was not from natural increase ? The actual net rea-
lised profits •of one estate in Cienfuegos, owned by an
American (absentee) gentleman, last year (crop of 1852),
was upwards of 116,000 dole., about 24,0001. sterling,
drawn from the labour of 420 people, young and old.
Will any man show us how to make free labour as pro-
•ductive ?"
From Kingston, Jamaica, we have advices to the
7th inst. There is no news of importance to com-
municate. The House of Assembly was to meet
on the 26th.
The news received from England, to the 4th of
_December, has been very discouraging, especially
about the budget of the British Governmerit and
the sugar duties. The Jamaica markets were in-
active, consequent upon the Christmas holidays.
From Ecuador we learn that the ship of war Seis
de Marzo, with 14 political offenders under sentence
of transportation, was lost on the Bank of Guas-
c,ama, which projects about six miles from ale coast,
and 68 persons altogether are supposed to have
perished. Among the number are two officers—
Valverde and 011arvide.

The steamers Northern Light and Illinois had
arrived at New York from California, with dates to
the 16th of December, and 2,015,543 dols. in gold
dust on freight.

The news from California is interesting. Pro-
visions were very scarce and dear generally through-
out California. The roads between the mines and
the river towns, where supplies are generally pro-
cured, were in a wretched condition, and transit
necessarily slow. The consequence is that freight
has risen, and with it the price of provisions in
the mines. Common articles of subsistence are
nearly as high as in the winter of '49, though
the chances of rich returns to the miner are
not so general as then. A person writing from
Moquelumne-hill says that provisions are very
high, and the stocks in the stores of the
traders not sufficient to supply the wants of
the town a fortnight. Flour was selling
at Sonora at 65 dols. to 70 dols. a barrel. He also
states that, owing to the rains, the yield of gold in
Calaveras county will be immense this winter. The
mining interest in and around Jamestown, at Kin-
caid Flats, French Gulch, Sullivan's Creek, and
generally around Columbia, is in a prosperous con-
dition. The miners about Nevada begin to come
plain of too much water ; the streams and ditches
are surfeited, and all they now desire is fair wea-
ther, when they expect a rich gold harvest. In
Tuolumne county the miners are all doing well.
The late rains have, in fact, given an impetus to
the workmen in dry diggings all over the country.
Miss Catherine Hayes was singing in San Fran-
cisco. Her concerts wore giving great satisfaction,
and she was nightly realising large sums of money.
The auction system was adopted for the disposal of
tickets. The first choice of a seat at her third con-
cert in San Francisco was bid off at 1,100 dols., by
Empire Engine Company No. 1, and was occupied
by the foreman of the company. The second choice
was knocked down to California Engine Company,
for 25 dols. A diamond cross, valued at 1,300 dols.,
which was to be raffled for in San Francisco, it was
designed should be given by the winner to Miss
Catherine Hayes.
A Spaniard, named Jose Forner y Brugada, had
been hung in San Francisco for a murder a short
.time previous. After admitting that he killed the
man, but only in self-defence, he made the following
confession :
" I was born in Valencia, Spain, in the month of May,
1820, of highly respectable parents. My uncle is Alcalde
of Valencia ; and all my family, with but few exceptions,
hold office under the Spanish Government. I am worth,
in Valencia, from 4,000 to 5,000 dols. in real estate. At
the age of 16 years I went to learn the trade of confec-
tioner with my uncle ; served with him five years. From
there I went to Barcelona • was three years in the sr
vice,of Don Juan Costa, Thence I went with letterseof-
introduction to the brother of my last employer, Don
Juan Costa, at Havannah, Cuba ; worked there two
years ; then went to my native place, a
Valen • ; from
there to Madrid ; thence to Barcelona ; then again to
Havannah ; was there three or four months, in the house
of Dominican ; thence to Vera Cruz, Meiico ; thence to