The Sun.
London, England, 1861-09-25 00:00:00

BADEN.

Some of the German papers, referring to the
trial of the student Becker, for his attempt to shoot
the King of Prussia, deny that the criminal is a
German. They assert that he is a Russian, being
the son of M. Paul Adam Becker, Director of the
Lyceum of Odessa, and Conseiller d'Etat of the Em-
peror of Russia. His son was born at Odessa in
June, 1839, and only entered the University of
Leipsic in 1859. His chief employment during his
residence in that city was translating Russian
works into German.

SCENE BETWEEN THE POPE AND THE

DUC DE GRAMONT.

The Nazione of Florence of the 21st contains, in

its Roman correspondence, the following account
of a scene between the Pope and the Due de Gra-
mont, occasioned by the order given to a Signor
Venture]li, a Sicilian naturalised in France, to leave
' Rome within a fortnight :
" The arbitrary acts committed by the Papal
Government are so numerous that it would be
easier to count the sands of the sea ; and these acts
are perpetrated not only on its own unhappy sub-
jects, but likewise on the subjects of other govern-
ments. I now record one which has excited consi-
derable attention iu Rome, having been committed
against a certain Signor Venturelli, the secretary of
the Salamanca Company for the Roman railways.
This Signor Venturelli is a Sicilian, who has be-
come naturalised in France, where he married and
brought up a family. It is true that in 1848 this
• gentleman took part in the Sicilian revolution, but
that he afterwards became naturalised in France,
and wholly abandoned politics, confining his atten-
tion to commerce. He formed a connection with
Signor Salamanca, was his agent in several of his
undertakings, and possessed his entire confidence.
In Rome his prudence was such as to create the
belief that he had completely forgotten that he
was an Italian and a Sicilian, so that he was even
taxed with too great servility towards the Papal
Government. All at once the police gave notice
to Signor Venturelli that he must leave Rome and
the Roman States within 15 days, and this on
account of the express command of his Holiness.
Venturelli was thunderstruck, and asked some ex-
planation about the most holy decision of the most
Holy Father, but the only answer he could get
was, that the Holy Father is the sole judge of what
is right, and gives no reason for his actions ; that
he does everything by Divine inspiration, and is
infallible. As Venturelli is almost indispensable
to the Salamanca Company in Rome, all the rail-
way grandees were in motion ; some of their peo?le
attached to the Court were also busy about this
matter, but the Pope remained unmoved, and, in-
sisting that Venturelli was his own personal enemy,
repeated that ho must take his departure without
delay. Even the Spanish general, Cordova, who
interested himself in Venturelli's behalf, returned
from his audience with the Pope in a perfect fury,
protesting that the stories about the 'kind heart of
the angelic Pius' were mere humbug. All that
could be obtained, not from the Pope, but from
the head of the police, Monsignore Matteucci, was
a delay of a few days. At length the Deus ex ma-
ciina likewise made his appearance in the person
of the Due de Gramont, ex-Ambassador of France
at the Holy See. On the facts being made known
to him, and on his learning that the matter regarded
one who by naturalisation had become a French
subject, the Due de Gramont exclaimed, 'But this
is my business ; I will act in the matter ; I will look
to it ; I will speak to the Pope.' .ro the Pope he
accordingly went and spoke, but got no satisfaction
from his Holiness, nothing except an expression of
surprise at his having taken any trouble at all in
the matter. Holy Father,' replied the Duke,
I mast trouble myself about the matter, for not
only is Signor Venturelli a French subject,
but he has even been specially recommended to me
by a letter from the private cabinet of the Empe-
ror.' • lam really very sorry for it,' replied the
meek Pius,' but &lust's nobis notis, SignorV enturelli
must leave.' But'—' there is me) but in the matter'

—‘/ pray you, Holy Father, to consider that I
s')all be obliged to make a report on the subject to
my Government.' By all means make your re-
port.' And that I shall be compelled to demand
a large sum as a compensation for Signor Ventu-
relli.' Demand it, by all means.' And that the
Government of your Holiness will be obliged to
pay it.' That remains to be seen.' So the Deus
ex machine returned from the interview with a
flea in his ear, and a moral box on it besides to the
French nation, which keeps thousands of soldiers

and its flag flying at Rome to enable the Papal
Government to kick the posteriors of French sub-
jects whenever it feels inclined. The real cause of
the order given to Venturelli to leave Rome is the
following :—The Count of Trapani and the ex-King
of Naples, having it no longer in their power to
tyrannise where they would, still tyrannise where
they can ; and the obstinacy of the Pope is ascribed
to his having given his word to the es-King to send
Venturelli off. The Bourbonists have been stirred
up in the matter by Monsignore de Merode and his
friends, for no political reason whatever, but on
account of little railway jealousies, in which M.
Oudry, the former engineer of the Civita Vecchia
line, and a Count de Maguelonne, the correspon-
dent, in former days, of the Univers, play a promi-
nent part. But it is not my object to enter into
the details of these wretched little intrigues. I
have communicated the facts, because they illus-
trate the unceremonious manner in which the Papal
Government treats the representations and the re-
monstrances of France."