The Sun.
London, England, 1859-07-06 00:00:00

CIRCULAR OF COUNT CAVOUR

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The following is another circular of Count de
Cavour to the diplomatic agents of Sardinia:—
TURIN, JUNE 16.
Sir,—By my circular of yesterday I made known
to you that the duchies of Modena and Parma, and
also Lombardy, on being delivered from the pre-
sence of Austrian troops, proclaimed the overthrow
of the Government and their annexation to Pied-
mont—thereby renewing for the house of Savoy
the act they executed 11 years ago.
The exceptional position of this country obliges
me to enter into some details on this subject for the
legations of the King.
It is evident that at the beginning of the war
Piedmont could not have recognised the neutrality
of the duchies, even if it had been formally pro-
claimed ; for the Dukes of Modena and Parma
were bound by special conventions, which, in spite
of general treaties, gave up their territories to
Austrian armies, and consequently established
between Austria and the duchies obligatory rela-
tions incompatible with the duties of a real neu-

trality.
These conventions are known. The treaties of
the 24th December, 1847, and the 4th February,
1848, expressly set forth that the States of H.R.H.
the Duke of Modena and of H.R.H. the Duke of
Parma enter the line of defence of the Italian pro-
vinces of the Emperor of Anstria, and that conse-
quently the latter has the right to send troops into
Modena and Parma, and to occupy fortresses there,
as often as his interests may require, By one of the
clauses of these treaties, which gives the measure
of the foresight of the Auexian Government, the:
Sovereigns of Modena and Parma are bound not to
conclude with any other Power any military con-
vention whatever without the previous consent of
the Imperial Government of Vienna.
These stipulations so clear and precise did not
permit the Duchies to maintain neutrality. The
Dukes of Parma and Modena ought to have de-
nounced them previous to the commencement of
hostilities in order to replace their States in the
conditions required for obtaining the immunities of
neutral States. Now, nothing of the kind took
place ; on the contrary, the Duchies were thrown
open to the Imperial troops which were massed on
the frontier of Piedmont, and they thus became one
of the bases of operations of the enemy. Hostili-
ties were commenced, and Piedmont was invaded
by the frontier of one of those States ; and yet no
protest was made on the part of the Princes, and
they, in point of fact, encouraged the attack.
Courtesy and international duties required, at least,
that some communication should be made to Sar-
dinia for the purpose of giving explanations on the
intentions and conduct of these Governments under
such extraordinary circumstances ; but no commu-
nication on the subject was made to us. Sardinia
was consequently, in law and in fact, in a state of
war with the States which bad become an integral
part of the military system of Austria.
The Governments of Modena and Parma could
not even urge as a pretext their ignorance of the
intentions of Sardinia ; for since 1848 we have not
ceased to protest against the stipulations which
constituted a flagrant violation of the Euro-
pean treaties and a permanent danger to the
security of our frontiers. The Austrian invasion,
effected from the territory of Piacenza, proves too
clearly how well founded our previsions were.
The Duke of Modena, as an Archduke of Austria,
shared the hatred to Piedmont which his family
entertained; his heart, like his crown. was with
the foreigner ; he was destined to share the fate of
the Power with which he had bound up his States.
Her Royal Highness the Duchess of Parma was
not in the same condition ; her birth, and the per-
sonal qualities which honour her, cause very sin-
cere interest to be felt for her. Her Government
ought ta have followed a line of conduct more be-
becoming and more in conformity with its interna-
tional duties. But unfortunately the Cabinet of
Parma has been dragged down the incline on which
it was slipping ; it has refused to abandon the posi-
tion which it had voluntarily accepted towards
Austria. It was on the territory of Parma that the
invasion of Piedmont was prepared; it was from
thence that the Imperial troops came to invade our
provinces. Piacenza became the base of the offen-
sive operations of Count Gyulai.
It has been said that a European treaty con-
ferred on Austria thc.vight of putting a garri-
son in that town. We do not deny the fact ;
but that military servitude had only a defensive
object, as it expressly said in the treaty, and.
the Powers which signed it took care to de-
clare that all the regalian rights of territorial
sovereignty were reserved. Now it is by a special
and voluntary convention between Austria and
Parma that the latter has abdicated the most
essential rights of sovereignty, by leaving the
former full liberty to enter the fortifications of
Piacenza and to construct new ones, by promising
every aid and assistance to Austrian engineers, and
by providing them with workmen and with the
necessary materials (Art. 7 of the Convention of
14th March, 1822). It is also by
a special treaty
freely consented to that the Sovereigns of Parma
have given to Austria the right of penetrating into
their territories as often as she thinks fit. Sardinia
protested against the extension of the fortifications
of Piacenza, which changed the nature and object
of the occupation ; she has protested against the
treaty of the 4th February, 1848. Has the Govern-
ment of Parma ever declared that it only submitted
to the law of the strongest ? Has it, at least, tes-
tified regret at what was taking place under its
eyes ? Everything was prepared at Piacenza for
the invasion of the King's states ; the ultimatum of
Vienna arrived at Turin; the Austrian corps d'armee
moved ; they entered Piedmont ; Voghera and Tor-
tona were occupied ; Alessandria was menaced ;
our communications with Genoa compromised ; and
yet the Cabinet of Parma remained silent—it mani-
fested no concern for the fate of a neighbouring
State with which it maintained friendly relations.
It was not until the plans of the enemy had failed;
it was not until the allied armies of Piedmont and
France, having taken the offensive in their turn,
the Austrians were on the eve of evacuating
the Duchies of Parma and Piacenza—it was not
until then that neutrality and the desire to take
military measures with regard to Parma and
Piccenza were spoken of. But it was too
late. The Cabinet of Parma had, however, not
even the right to make propositions of the kind
referred to, inasmuch as by Art. 4 of the treaty of
1848 it had formally bound itself not to conclude
any military arrangements whatever without the
consent of Austria.
These facts and these reasons, which it is impor-
tant to make known and cause to be appreciated,
explain and justify the conduct of the King's Go-
vernment. Whatever might be the interest it felt
in the Duchess of Parma, it could not make any
distinction between Parma and Modena. The neu-
trality of those duchies was impossible in law and
in fact ; they were bound to share the fate of the
Power to which they had voluntarily confided their
destinies.
The legation of his Majesty will conform the
language to the considerations which precede.
COUNT CAVOUR.

rE NAVY.

tion, a fine
Another French prize was carried into Malta on
the 22d of June, bound for Marseilles for adjudica
Palinuro, Capt. Tribusson, from Hull, with a cargo
Austrian brig of 236 tons, called the
of coals for the Austrian Lloyd's, bound for Con-
stantinople ; and also th;) Danube, captured in the
waters
frigate. of Andros by the Solon, French steam

Rear-Admiral Mandy left Malta to join the
other ships in the offing on the 29th of June, in the
Hannibal.

The new screw steamship Greyhound, 17, in
charge of Mr. Paul, Assistant-Master Attendant,
into
Hamoaze. towed on Monday from Plymouth Sound
Hamoaze. She will be dismantled, receive her
machinery, and be placed in the steam reserve.
The hired transport Octavia, which arrived at
Plymouth on Friday, with invalids from Calcutta,
left on Sunday for Chatham.
Captain Moorsonl, C. 8., of the Diadem, is ap-
pointed to the Caesar, 91, in place of Captain C.
Frederick, who mtw forms one of the Board of
Admiralty.
The gunboat Grappler was commissioned at
Plymouth on Monday by Lieut. A. P. H. Helby.
The Forward is ordered to be put into commission ;
each is to have a complement of 40 men.

[ADvErriEmtrrr.]-1-lollows.y's Ointment and Pills.—
Heart Affection—Melancholy.—The nervous and vascular
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body, whose functions, when irregularly performed, dis-
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many of mans distressing diseases. The functions of
heart, lungs, stomach,
Hol-
loway's purifying preparations that they seem to conquer
co.mles
all affections of those organs,
spirits generally attending
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.wness
ofan d at the same time remove
regular, and the circulation normal;
thus dispelling the sudden flushes and anxious breathing 6°
deraonstrativo of heart complaints.
the
heart'saction
overpoweringc e