The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1850-03-21
NO. 1913.

vision of the State into such electoral districts as
TO favor particular monopolists and interests IA
yorable to the Government; have freed the civil
and police officers from the jurisdiction and con-
troll of the courts, except where the Government
has previously oonsented-thus placing the liber-
~ Of every citizen at the discretion Of any con-
stable; have withdrawn from the judges the right
TO examine the constitutionalty Of any law or
royal ordinance have agreed to give the force of
law to royal ordinances until they are repealed
by the Chambers provision which places the
legislative power in the Kings hands, for the
Chamber Of Peers will always support him;
have agreed to the erection Of Star Chamber
Court for political offenders, only providing that
jury to be made up as hereafter agreed to by the
King, shall sit in such cases; have given the
King the right to collect taxes without the pre-
vious consent Of the Chambers and, finally, have
agreed to erect Peerage, or rather allowed the
King to do so, which has no root in the social
condition of Prussia, aud viii act always with the
King against the bourgeoisie
These are the concessions Of the Chambers
What has the King conceded to them2 A cont
crOmiss implies concessions on both sides.
lie binds himself to take the oath to this Con-
stitution. This is the first concession. One would
think il very triaing one, as the Constitution
favors nobody but him and his friends, if we had
not the royal word for it. that it is great sacri
fee of personal feeling for him to consent ITO
limit by scrubbed piece of paper, his means to
s,,rye M, cvan,s, * & e .skes tsoss1 "a
morrow at his palace, before the assembled Cham
bers, and at the same hour anthems OF praise to
God are to be sung in all the churches.
His second concession is, that the mobiles shall
no longer be exempt from taxes on their real eS-
tate leaving the whole burden ofthe Government
on the bourgeoisie. A bill for this purpose was
presented by the ministry, before the vote, to the
Chambers. Since the vote, it has leaked out that
the King expects, quite as matter OF course, a
second bill to be voted with the one proposed
This second provides for the compensation of the
mobiles at the rate of one hundred dollars in cash
for every FIVE dollars annual tax, to be hereafter
paid by them. That is the mobiles consent to sell
at par stock which yields them five per cent. per
annum small portion is to be redeemed for
less The difference, then, between the Kings
concessions and none at all is a tweedled1m an3
tweedledee affair, not worth the mentioning
A third concession Is that the new f{Vuss u
Peers is not to be organized until 1852. This
would be of importa nee, if the King would, in the
mean time consent to the reforms proposed by the
Chambers as at present constituted. But of this
there is no hope.
In short, the bourgeoisie has made worse bar
gain than the famous one of Esou's. 1t has not
secured even a mess of pottage in return for its
birthright.
have spoken above of the refractory members.
The article on the peerage was carried by a vote
of 161 to 49, Thirty-six members were either
absent or refused to vote. Of these, fourteen
were the Polish members, who would not vote for
the King, but agreed to abstain for certain con-
sideration. This is said to be promise by the
King, that the Polish Duchy of Posen shall not
be divided into three parts, as heretofore threat
ened. During the discussion, the ministers made
a liberal use of threats well as of persuasions
The Chambers were given to understand that if
they did not vote according to the wish of his
most gracious and most capricious Majesty that
the Chambers, Constitution, and Bourgeoise,
would be sacrificed to the royal rage.
This MANNED and disfgured Constitution is to
be changed once more The King and his Cabi-
net are authorized to make it conform in all re-
spects to the Federal State Constitution agreed
on by the Parliament at Erfurt. This is to meet
on the Goth Of next month.
Ii ought to be mentioned that the Chambers
rejected entirely one Of the articles proposed by
the King, that provided for the continuance of
trust and entaled estates and the creation of new
ones Without these nobility cannot long ex-
ist. But the King has, in subsequent message,
llv inf ha mhpra at oil
refusal can amount to nothing for he win consid-
er this article rs necessary corollary Of the one
on the peerage, and that he will reserve the right
of providing for as many entailed estates as may
be necessary to sustain the peerage. He will no
doubt do what he says
WAR SYMPTOMS
The people of the United States must be now
pretty well steeled against the alarms SO often
raised on the subject Of general European war.
You well know that this correspondence has not
sought to season itself with such highly favored
condiments. But why reject spicy dish when it is
thrust into ones facet The war alarm is now
higher than ever in Europe. War is to come
this time, not from below, as in ls4s but from
above, from the luxurious cabinets of diplomatists
and the round council tables of Kings. In my capa-
city of faithful chronicler of the times will give
you the views Of the believers in the near approach
of war, guarantying only the facts stated and not
the differences from them. AS yet, incline to
the opinion that the conf gration will not be gen
eral, but confined to Switzerland and Holstein
Schleswig. These local difficulties, however, may
be the sparks which will kindle all Europe into a
blaze. i
The war party holds the following language:
The French Republic cannot coexist with the
absolute Powers of Europe, for it acts as perma-
nent insigator of dsloyslty, rebellion, and social
commissions. Universal suffrage in France lays
powder magazine under every throne. The
northern Powers know this, and have long been
resolved to put it down. Heretofore they have
not been able to act being fully occupied with the
German democracy the Hungarians, and the ltsl-
ians Now, they have restored quiet at home,
and are ready for the struggle Russia has bor
rowed FIVE million pounds sterling of the English
bankers, and filled the Danubian principalites
with troops, and stores of provisions, and arms.
Austria has organized her provinces, recruited
her army and improved its discipline and accu-
INFLATED her best regiments on the Swiss frontier.
Prussia has regulated her internal affairs acquir-
ed the control Of Baden Dessau, the two Meek
lenbnrgs, and Hamburger, and stationed force of
thirty thousand in Baden, within days march
Of Switzerland
"All parties are thus ready to act. But the final
object, to wit the attack on France is not to
be avowed The protection afforded by Switzer-
land to the prescribed republicans and socialists,
those enemies OF family, property and religion
the plots Of the refugees; the incendiary pamph.
lets published by them in Geneva and other
Swiss towns, and sown broadcast over Europe-
these are to be the pretexts for the attack Iouis
Napoleon is to avail himself of the same pretexts
topermit it. How can he refuse, when the allies
prOpoae To do in SWtzerlap6