The Sun.
London, England, 1866-08-08 00:00:00

FRANCE.

PARIS, August 7.—Two o'clock.—The market
is, if possible, in a still more deplorable state than
yesterday. New disasters are being constantly re-
ported, and distress and anxiety pervade all men's
minds. What little business was transacted was at
lower prices. French Threes were done at 68f. 90c.,
or 25c. lower. Italian Fives at 52f. 65c., or a fall
of 20c. Mobilier, 642 f. 50c., or a loss of 7f. 50c.
Paris Gas, Credit Foncier, and Comptoir d'Escompte
are unvaried at 1,550 f., 1,307 f. 50c., and 870 f. re-
spectively. The quotations in the Railway Market
are without any changes of moment.

Three o'clock.—The market has closed as fol-

lows:—

41 per Cents 9B
Do. and month
3 per Cents. Go
Do. end month 6B 90
Credit Ilobilier
Do. end month
Credit Foncier 1300
Do. end month 1305 —.
UAIL'

Bank Shares 3550
Italian Loan 52 35
Do. end month 52 05
Mexican Loan 3O 75
Do. Bonds 177 50
Spanish Threes
Home Debt —
Deferred
LYS.

For Account.
Orleans
Northern 4....... 1130
Lyons and Mediterranean ......... . 872 50
Southern 527 50
Western 557 50
Eastern
Sardinian
Austrian
Lombard 387 50
North of Spain lOO
Saragossa 123 75
Ditto to Barcelona
Roman

The French Press on the King of,Prussia's
Speech.

The Debats of yesterday, commenting on the King
of Parliament,
of Prussia's speech on the opening

says :

The language is that of a sovereign proud of having
brought a most difficult enterprise to a successful termina-
tion, but who is not so inflated by victory as to assume the
tone of a master. We now know the real meaning of the
constitutional conflict in Prussia which, in the entire igno-
rance in which people were kept of the projects of the King
and his Minister, presented the appearance of a gratuitous
and meditated attempt to establish a personal Government
on the ruins of a national representation. These projects
evidently were too much in the nature of a conspiracy to
allow of their being proclaimed in the face of Parliament.
Count Bismarck required a numerous and well-organised
army to carry out his designs, and when the Chamber,
with that persistency which is characteristic of Germans,
refused him the means, yearafteryear, he could not tell them
what he wanted that army for. It is doubtlePs to this situa-
tion that King _William refers in that passage of his speech
where he represents the conduct of the Government as an
absolute necessity demanded by the interest of the State.
We have no intention of justifying such conduct. We are
satisfied with finding the historical explanation of it. It
is certain that Count Bismarck and his master embarked
without consulting the nation in a most perilous enterprise.
It succeeded, but it might have failed, and in that case a
fearful responsibility would have fallen on those who pro-
jected it. Success, however, makes people forget and par-
don many things, and it is not likely that the Chamber
will show itself intractable in the presence of accomplished
facts which have so much contributed to the aggrandise-
ment of Prussia. The Government, on its side, having no
longer anything to conceal and no design to carry out with-
out the co-operation of Parliament, has no longer any
reason for renewing internal conflicts which would alienate
a large portion of the people. On the contrary, its inte-
rests would lead it to satisfy the liberal aspirations of the
peoples whom it is about to annex ; and the best way of
doing this is to show that it is liberal at home. Every-
thing leads to the belief that the struggle for influence in
Germany will take place on liberal principles, and that the
eyes of the people will be turned in that direction from
which they think the good for which they long will pro-
ceed. This even appears to be felt in Austria, where those
journals who have still some freedom of opinion left con-
sider that the establishment of constitutional and parlia-
mentary government is an indispensable condition of the
regeneration of the Empire.
The Siecle says :
It is already of good augury to see the chief of a great
State on the morning after a great victory bowing
before
the sovereignty of the nation and soliciting a bill of in-
demnity for illegal acts accomplished without the antece-
dent consent of the nation.

The Temps says :
The speech has produced a general feeling of dissatisfac-
tion. It is of the ultra-Prussian type of stiffness, more re-
markable for what it leaves to be inferred than what it
announces, and in which we look in vain for a trace of
liberal sentiment. We know not what effect it may pro-
duce in Germany, but we do not hazard too much when
we say that it will not enlist the sympathies of Europe on
the side of Prussia.

The Avenir National says :
What first strikes us in the speech is the complete
silence which it keeps on the subject of the French media-
tion. It seems to ue that some sentences, though merely
of simple politeness, would not have been out of place
under the circumstances. Perhaps his Majesty of Prussia
is only waiting for the official signature of the treaty of
peace to express his gratitude to the Cabinet of the Tuileries
for the result of its mediation. The speech contains a
singular confession, namely, thst the King has governed
for three years against the law, and he now asks the cham-
ber to put au end to this kind of dictatorship by granting a
bill of indemnity. It is not likely that this will be refused,
for error admitted is already half pardoned.

ST. PETERSBURG, August 6.—Great enthusiasm
prevails in reference to tho approaching visit of the Ame-
rican squadron. The Russian fleet has gone to Ifeising-
fors to meet it.