The Sun.
London, England, 1868-09-07 00:00:00

1?0,11A1V AFFAIRS.

(Fran the Correspondent of the Westminster Gazette.)
ROCCA DI PAPA, Aug. 29.
In spite of the moderate and unostentatious
line of conduct adopted by Cardinal de Reisach
in entering the usurped portion of the Roman
State to take possession of his see, the Italian
Government has nevertheless resolved to molest

him. A process has been commenced against
him for so-called " usurpation" of his title, and
for coming to take possession of his cathedral
church (part of the Roman territory) without
the exequatur of the Government which has
usurped it. He had been appointed by the
Pope to the See of Sabina, and had no choice
but to take possession of it in the Cathedral of
Magliano ; but, to give no unnecessary offence,
he refused all public demonstrations at his
entry, and decided to make it by night. It
is true numbers of people gathered round him,
and some went out to meet him outside the

town, but while he could not repress such
evidences of cordial goodwill, he allowed no-
thing which could be construed into an appear-
ance of triumph or bravado. It does not ap-
pear that this is likely to weigh with those
who are bent on opposing him.
The 4th of September is named for the
audience in which M. de Sartiges will take his
farewell of the Pope. His successor is M. de
Banneville, in spite of the assurance in the
Independanee Belge that M. de Persigny has
been intriguing for the post, and is expected to
replace him by the end of next week. But I
have not heard from Paris the date of his
leaving, as the inundations in Switzerland and
Savoy have caused vexatious detentions of let-

tern and papers.
One of the acts of the last Consistory, which
I think I failed to note at the time, was to
create Mgr. Namenowsky Vicar-Apostolic-
General of the Prussian army, with the title
of Bishop of Agatopolis in partibus, the effect
of which will be to give Berlin a resident
Catholic bishop. The parish church of S.
Michael will serve as the pro-Cathedral.
The Italian papers continue to harp upon
two notes. The first, how to find out some
means of inducing the Emperor to withdraw
his troops from Civita Vecchia, a discovery
towards which they seem to have made no ap-
proach as yet, but still their orders are to con-
tinue writing it up ; and the second to argue
what may be hoped of the popular assemblies,
for deliberating on the state of the country, to
be held shortly in various towns, and notably
at Naples, where Garibaldi has been invited to
take part. One of them had gone so far as to
assert that the Florence Parliament will be
dissolved, in order to leave the deputies free
scope to act each in their respective centres.
The Perseverauza affirms that the first act of
the Naples Assembly will be to declare Rome
the capital of Italy ; of course the second and
the third and all the remainder will be to de-

vise means for getting possession of it. Mean
time the satisfaction of the Roman people with
their own Government, and their determination
to have nothing to do with any attempt at
change, continues to offer a striking com-
mentary on the nature of that which it is
sought to foist upon them.
The Gazette d' Italia occasionally enlivens its
readers with manifestoes, purporting to ema-
nate from a " Roman democratic association:"
They are frantic appeals to the Romans to join
the revolution. The latest of them is worth
notice, for, in the first place, it is fain to confess
that though dated " Rome," they are really
written in Florence ! Further, the terms of
the appeal are a fresh acknowledgment of the
utter abstention of the people of Rome from
the commotions of last autumn. "The last
attempt was the work of imported Garibaldians,
and a few shopkeepers. Hence the bitter
defeat, the disillusions, the painful conse-
quences, the thankless relinquishment, making
us the scapegoat of the affair. The majority
of the Roman people held themselves aloof, not
only from all participation in the act itself, but,
even in any antecedent demonstration." And
then it discloses the disunion reigning between
the various sections of the democratic party,
and their readiness to throw discredit on each
other, the insignificant fraction of the Roman
people which was mixed up in it, was made
the instrument of the iniquitous policy of the
National Committee, which shamefully deceived,
defrauded, and betrayed it.
The weather continues intensely hot in the
daytime, with a sudden lowering of tempera-
ture, accompanied by heavy dews in the nights.
If this continues, it will not be possible to keep
the troops here so long as was talked of last
week. I saw a third Zouave funeral to-day ;
but I am not sure that the weather has to bear
the blame of all three losses. Still, anyhow,
the general health is certainly not so good
as it was a little while ago, and every day I see
several sent up to Rome to go to hospital. If
there is one respect in which I should like to
see our army better provided, it would be with
ambulance waggons. There seems to me a
lamentable deficiency in this respect. The sick
who have passed my windows lately have been
conveyed in the common ice-carts of the coun-
try, and the discomfort of this mode of trans-
port is distressing to witness. But it would
be more serious if it came to be wounded men
who had to be so conveyed. I have often had
occasion to enlarge upon the praiseworthy
economy of the administration, as well as upon
the general attention to the wellbeing of the
men, and I am persuaded nothing but defici-
ency of means would have occasioned the ab-
sence of such necessary appliances. And yet
it is not a great sum that is required, and
not more than one or two individuals might
readily put together. I sincerely wish that the
spirit which rendered such ready and abundant
assistance to the men inlthe Crimea, as soon
as their wants and sufferings were made known
at home, would inspire some charitable hearts
to hasten to provide our devoted soldiers here
with so desirable an assistance, bearing in mind
that great as are the general powers of endur-
ance of our countrymen, for going through hard
work and fatigue of various kinds better than
most, changes of temperature tell upon them
sooner than upon others, and in sending such
help at this moment, it is specially on them the
boon would be conferred.
The spirit of the troops is all the same—
in excellent condition. They have been all the
week occupied with preparations for a day of
athletic sports, which came off with great suc-
cess on Thursday ; a brighter day could not
have been. Although the games were not to
begin till three in the afternoon, crowds of
persons of every degree, in carriages and carts
on horseback, donkey-back, and on foot, came'
flocking in all day from an early hour in the
morning from all the neighbouring villages, as
well as from Frascati and Albano, and from
Rome itself no less. The piece of ground
allotted for the games was that contiguous to
the platform, put up on the occasion of the
Pope's visits, and when he sat to receive the
homage of the various colleges when they were
admitted to the baciD del piede. It was on
this occasion fitted with seats for the ladies,
and commanded an excellent view of the sports.
Here Princess Orsini, Prince and Princess Sar-
sana, Prince and Princess Lancelotti, Marchese
Serlupi, Prince Borghese and his sons, Prince
and Princess Barberini, Mgri. Pacca and Casali,
as well as a host of less illustrious Romans and
the sprinkling of foreigners who are always to
be found hanging about Rome even in August,
found place, and here ices, etc., were liberally
served throughout.
The programme included many trials of skill,
but regard had been had chiefly to general
amusement in the selection. In front of the
ladies' stand was a table on which the prizes
were arranged. They comprised a silver race-
cup bearing the inscription, " Corse ai Campi
d'Annibale, 27 Agosto, 1868." Three watches,
one of which was given by Lieut. Franquinet,
who subsequently won the cup ; pipes, riding-
whips, portemonnaies, packets of cigars, &c.,
and a beautifully embroidered blue velvet ban-
ner.

The more laborious sports completed, the
next amusement was theatricals, given at a