The Sun.
London, England, 1853-01-21 00:00:00

THE FRENCH EMPIRE.

The marriage of the Emperor with the Countess
of Theba is still the all-engrossing topic of conver-
sation in every circle.
Whatev( r may be the effect in a political sense,
at home or abroad, of the alliance formed by Louis
Napoleon, it is not doubted that it is the result of
attachment; and it has been long since remarked
that the Countess of Theba was not an object of in-
difference to him. It appears it was on Monday
last, on returning from a promenade in the Bois de
Boulogne that the Emperor informed the Council
of Ministers, of his matrimonial projects, and
his resolution was announced as definitively and
irrevocably taken. He is said to have, at the same
time, declared that in compliance with the advice
of his Ministers he sought an alliance with a foreign
Princess belonging to some Sovereign Family in
Europe—that his efforts were in vain—that he was
determined not to expose himself to anything like a
humiliation—and teat, he had no intention of being
a suitor for the hand of one petty German Princess
after another—that he was anxious to have a do-

Ines tic circle of his own free choice, and in which he
hoped tofind more happiness than in a merely politi-
cal alliance, which had not always turned out the
happiest. He declared that the lady of his choice
was one who had all hissympathy, and was in every
respect worthy of the honour which was about to
be conferred on her ; and he ended by declaring
that the lady in question was the Countess-Duchess
of Theba, daughter of the late Count of Montijos.
The effect produced by this announcement was very
great, though from the moment the Emperor de-
clared that he was about to form a matrimonial
alliance every one guessed who the lady was.
An amnesty on a large scale is spoken of as one
of the first things after the marriage, which will be
solemnised at Notre Dame on Saturday, the 29th
instant. It is reported that a dowry of 5,000,000
will be demanded for the Empress. The Minister
of State (M. Fould) is, I am informed, the most
sanguine of all as to the change that will take
place in public opinion in favour of the Countess
of Theba, who is said to be of extremely liberal
opinions ; and it is calculated that the democratic

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party may be conciliated by the Emperor selecting
his bride not from Royal houses. Time can only
prove all this to be correct.
With the exception of an article in the Siecle, in
reply to remarks in some of the London journals
on the intention of establishing a service of French
Transatlantic steamers, there is nothing in the ori-
ginal columns of the Paris journals of yesterday
worthy of extract. The Siecle says :
" The English journals, and in particular, the Times
and the Morning Chronicle, appear much alarmed at the
project for placing the Transatlantic packet service at
Cherbourg. That measure, which they are premature,
in our opinion, in considering to be decided by the French
Government, appears to them quite an act of hostility
against Great Britain. If Cherbourg has been selected,'
say they, it is because it is only at six hours' distance
from the Isle of Wight, and that a day may come
when they will consider themselves fortunate in pos-
sessing large steamers each capable of carrying heavy
artillery and two thousand soldiers. These terrors
are affected ;, these declamations are not serious ;
they merely manifest a considerable amount of dis-
pleasure, perfectly in conformity with the instincts
of the English policy, and it may be expected that our
neighbours should not behold, without some annoyance,
a rival e3tablishment destined to take part in the mono-
poly which they have so long possessed, of the inter-
course between Europe and the two Americas. That
consideration cannot turn France from the object towards
which her national instincts urge her, and which she has
been pursuing since 1840 ; it will not make her renounce
the benefit of her admirable geographical situation, which
allows her to export the produce of her soil and her
manufactures, and to keep regular and direct relations
with the -New World, without having to recur eternally
to the humiliating intervention of a foreign flag. Why
should it not in its turn have these twenty-one trans-
atlantic packets which cause so much annoyance to the
English journals, when North America counts just as
many, and when England already possesses upwards of
fifty ? Why should it refrain from training up,' as
they say, a greater number of seamen capable of work-
ing large vessels ?' No ! you evoke in vain the phan-
tom of French invasion ; the point is not for us to
create vessels to carry artillery and regiments to
your coasts ? but to have fast-sailing vessels of
large size for our commercial purposes ; to be cer-
tain of regularity, promptitude, and safety in our
commercial transactions with distant countries.
We well remember the unfortunate attempts of 1846,
and we should not have applauded a project, the
first merit of which would not have been to satisfy,
above all, general interests, as well as those, so long
sacrificed, of French commerce. But, it is asked, why
is the French Government disposed to pay so large a
subvention to encourage a ptirely commercial undertak-
ing ? Do our contemporaries on the other side of the
channel forget what is taking place amongst themselves ?
We look on their transatlantic packet services as purely
commercial undertakings ; and yet we are not by any
means surprised to find the English Government accord-
ing a subvention of 6,720,000 fr. to the line to the West

In-dies, one of 4, 500, to that starting from Liver-
pool, and a still greater one to the line to the Brazils.
We see in all that, on the contrary, the proof that Eng-
land with good reason esteems the general interest of her
commerce and of her manufactures to be closely united
with the prosperity of these establishments. When also
it is found quite natural for the State to come forward
every day to give assistance to the means of internal
communication by subventions and guarantees of inte-
rest, how deny it tite right to accord nn equal protection
to services so considerable and so national as those now
about to be established."

An imperial decree of the 15th raises the salary
of the Archbishop of Paris from the Ist instant to
50,000 fr. • that of the archbishops of other dioceses
to 20,000 fr., and that of the bishops to 12,000 fr.
Another decree of the Irth accepts the resignation
given on the 26th November last by the Bishop of
Chartres. M. Regnault, who, by decree of August
14, 1851, was named coadjutor to the bishop, will
succeed him.

The Constitutionnel says :

"We are assured that the Minister of War has de-
cided that the numerical order in which the officers pro-
posed for promotion stand shall be henceforth invariably
followed. In fact, the classification by order of merit,
established by the inspecting-generals, after a conscien-
tious examination of the services and the claims of the
candidates, presents the surest and the most serious
guarantees of an impartial choice. This decision, which
is, it is said, inspired by a high and equitable will, has
been received in the army with the deepest gratitude.
There will be no longer seen, as under preceding Govern-
ments, an officer of admitted merit, and placed at the
head of the list for promotion, named long after those
who had been considered as less meritorious, and some-

times even forgotten altogether. On the other hand,
the Minister, in adopting this principle of impartiality
and justice, will be exempted from importunate recom-
mendations and solicitations."

The Emperor on Wednesday drove in an open
carriage to the Rue'du Sentier to pay a visit to M.
Veillard, who has just been attacked with a serious
illness. An immense crowd assembled in the street,
and when his Majesty left the house he proceeded
at a foot pace, amidst enthusiastic shouts.
The Memorial Bordelai,s states that a violent
hurricane, accompanied by thunder, lightning, and
a torrent of rain, commenced at Bordeaux on the
evening of the 16th, and continued to rage with
great violence until the following morning. Many
of the streets were rendered impassable by the
water, and shutters and chimney pots were flying
about in all directions. Just as the storm was
commencing, a boat, rowed by one man, and carry-
ing several women, was swamped, and all on board
were drowned. Another boat was driven with
such violence against a vessel that her side was
stove in, and the man who was in her saved with
great difficulty by the crew of the vessel. The
steeple of the church of Bastide was first unroofed,
and the woodwork afterwards blown down, and
scattered to some distance. A small house in the
course of building near the railway station was also
blown down. The hurricane was also felt with
great violence in the neighbourhood ; the road
from Angouleme to Bordeaux was covered with
trees, which had been torn up by the roots, and
at Libourne a child had its shoulder fractured by
the fall of a flower pot from a window.
Notice has been given that the electric telegraph
is open from Nantes to
2Vannes, and that the
charge for this distancfe (27 leagues) leaagnudesf)ofrorevaediryspatch
of 20 words, will be 9
addi-
tional ten words 2f. 40c. Several more foreign
offices, for dispatches
opened—viz.,
by electric telegraph have
open
also beenbyto Bcelhgeimnium,tzforor2Oßwieosrsads
from the French fro,
17f. 50c., and by Baadnedn,bly2fß.
asdOecn. ;
10f.; to
atyc-,rmeuatihiabie
Belgium 17f. 50c.,
, to Empgioulim,
Baden,-2f. 50c.; to Tamines or
or Charleroy by Bel
or Pesica by Belgium, 33f.°
Namur, sf. -
gebondi and Prato b
34c., and by
25f.8 84c.; to Pistoja or Pog-
etlgium, 35f. 84c., and by
fu_...c.; to irion
eadera .13,. Belgium, 34f.
84c., and bynnaßaldoefnc2o3rrf.
BaTdhene
Tribunal
Correctional Police of Versailles
tried two days ago a man,
repre-
senting himself to have bnEanirinuendn!
7afillooTman to
waited
of Brazil, for
permission
. on the Mayor
Charles X, and Don Pisesdlr,o
swindling. In July, 'he
tn againste
of St. Cloud, and obtained his istsoiorn to give a
fete in the Park, in which men were
horses ; and he then went to restaurant, coffee-
house, and public-house keepers, and obtained from different sums to cover his expenses , om
repre-
senting to them that his fete would attract .a
crreeia tnumber of strangers. To excite their confidence
exhibited a bill, in which he declared that, in 182;
and 1828 he had run three times round the Champ-
de-Mars in 15 minutes, and went from Paris to
Versailles and back in 75 minutes I But after
obtaining their contributions he disappeared, and
no, was of course given. Nothing was seen of
him till the Ist of this month when he was dis-
covered, and arrested in a lodging-house in the
Rue de l'llotel-deNille, at Paris. The Tribunal

Condemned him to three months' imprisonment,
and 25f. fine.

The Bourse recovered yesterday in some mea-
sure from the panic of Wednesday. The Three
per Cents., opened at '7Bf. 50c., and closed at 78f.
90c. for the end of the month, being a rise of lf.
as compared with the closing price of yester-
day ; the Four-and-a-Half per Cents. closed at
104 f. 55c. ; Orleans Railway Shares, 980 f. ;
Rouen, 975 f. ; Havre, 490 f ; Great Northern,
812f.50c; Blle, 335 f. • Paris and Strasburg, 740 f.;
Paris and Lyons, 840 f. ; Lyons to the Medi-
terranean, 705 f.; Western of France, 665 f. ; Bor-
deaux to Cate, 547 f. 50c.; Caen to Cherbourg,
580 f. ; Shares of the Bank of Credit Mobilier
(issued at 500 f.), 655 f.