The Sun.
London, England, 1849-04-11 00:00:00

FRANKFORT.

The note of the Frankfort deputation on the refusal
of the Imperial Crown by the King of PRUSSIA. has
been published. The following is the only portion of
importance :
Ihe reply of his Majesty makes the Constitution
promulgated by the Assembly of the German Empire
a simple project, subject to the deliberation of the
different Governments, and consequently to a decision
of those Governments taken by the majority or
unanimously. It is not within the mission of
the deputation to notice the political or other rea-
sons in support of the views of the Assembly, so dif-
ferent to that of his Majesty; but it thinks right without
delay, and before its return to Frankfort, to protest
against a misunderstanding which may cause subse•
quent errors. It seems to us that the idea which his
Majesty has of the act of Frankfort does not permit his
Majesty to accept or even simply not to decline the in-
vitation which has been addressed to him. His Majesty
was invited to accept on the bases of the Constitution the
election which fell on him. This invitation must be con-
sidered as declined from the moment at which his
Majesty caused it to be understood, that in his opinion
the Constitution accepted after a double reading by the
National Assembly had no legal and obligatory existence,
and that it will not possess that character until after a
common decision of the German Governments. By this
system the Constitution would serve as a bases of the
ulterior deliberations of the Governments, but not of the
legal Government of the chief of the Empire."
The text of the reply of the Prussian Government
was as follows :
" We have received the honoured note addressed to us
by the deputation of the National Assembly. The de-
putation will be kind enough without doubt to admit
that we cannot enter into discussion with it on the con-
tents of this note, but that we must wait for the reso-
lutions which the National Assembly will be called in to
take in consequence of the reply of the King."
The German Gazette of Frankfort announces that
M. CAMPUAUSEN, the Prussian Plenipotentiary to
the Central Government, had been summoned to
Berlin, and that M. BUNSEN had resigned the post of
Plenipotentiary of the Empire at London.

DENMARK AND THE DUCHIES.
We have received Hamburgh papers and corre-
spondence of the Bth instant. We learn from them
that on the Bth instant two skirmishes took place in
the Sundewitt between the Germans and the Danes,
though without a definitive result for either party.
The following additional details of the engagement
at Eckernfiirde, and the loss of the Christian VIII.
and the Gefion are taken from official sources :

"On the sth inst. the Christian VIII. of 86 guns, and
the Gefion frigate of 46, with a brig and two
steamers, opened fire upon the Eckernforde :batteries
and threo more vessels lay off the entrance
of the barbour. The officer in command of the batteries
returned their fire, and a cannonade ensued, which lasted
till two o'clock, P.M. Upon the combat being continued,
after a short truce, one of the steamers got winged, her
paddle being broke by a shot, and she was forthwith
towed out of the harbour by the other steamers. The
cannonade was so violent, and the two batteries of 10 guns
had such a hot shower of bombs, round balls, and grape
poured upon them that they were literally covered with
shot marks. The colours of the batteries were shot
down ; they were hoisted again by the two officers in
command. A suspensive of ilessiliiies ensued, Which

lasted till five o'clock P. 31., and during which our party
put the guns that had been damaged into working order,
while the Danes attempted to quit the harbour, but
did not succeed, owing to the east wind. The combat was
resumed at five o'clock and the Christian VIII. struck
two hours afterwards. he surrender of the Christian
VIII. was followed by that of the Gefion, but while the
Danish sailors of the former vessel were being saved, the
Christian VIII. exploded with about 400 men on hoard.
The loss on our side is two killed and eight wounded.
One of our non-commissioned officers who had gone on
board the Christian VIII. to remove the Danish sea-
men from the burning vessel, perished in the explosion.
In the course of the combat the Christian VIII. fired
sixty-eight broadsides of 42 shots each."