The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-03-21

BERLIN, March z, 1909.
The War Question and the Money Narkst-Austrian Scu
rifles in Prussian Hands-Iternal REFORMS in Piusss-
7he Young Prince, DC.
The money market is still in very depressed cond-
tion The hopes raised by Lord Cowleys mission to vi
enna, and by the proposed evacuation of the Papal
territory by the French and Austrian troops have
suced occasion any pcrceItblc revival Of confidence
and If the funds rally day il is only to descend
lower depth the next An Of Austrian
securities is owned by Prussah capitalists and the
porabe state Of Affairs at Vienna cannot but most
unfavorably on the Berlin market. The Austrian
finances evidently in erhcn,is the I'm
per!al Bank has nominally resumed specie payments
but the mapouvres resoted to such make this
pretended resumption entirely usory, ard the failure OF
the loan they attempted 10 contract in England has
dered their situation hopeless. Nothing Is left them
to issue paper money dd lb; and this, OF course, vii
have the effect Of still further deprecatng their notes.
which are already at tremendous discount Austrian
metaques have dropped here CS and falling every
day. As yet Prussian stock has kept pretty rm but IT,
there reason TO expect orders should be given b.
motse the army--n other words to place II on the
Establishments complete panic will ensue, and the
sequences cannot fail 10 be DISASTROUS.
The new Prussan ministry appear to have woke up
from the state Of somnolency into which they had sunk
the commencement Of the parliamentary session. and,
if suddenly galvanized into life, surprising tho public
with display of activity almost without parallel in the
annals Of German legislation No have they crap
pied with one tcklish question by the introduction of
law relating to the institution of civil marriage than they
take another and far savage bill by the horns In the
shape Of the land tax difficulty, which for the last fifty
years has formed stumbling block in the path of the
various governments despoc and constitutional that the
country has been blessed with during that period With.
out pretending to give full erpost of this intricate affair
rbi. toO nf Ia
and scarcely prove very interesting to ysur readers
will suffice to observe that whereas in the western parts
Of the kingdom, where the old feuda rights were cxtn
gushed by the French revolution the nobility subecto
the mposts their possessions the holders of
estate in towns and villages the andhoders in the cast
in the provinces Of Branderburg ami Ponerana and the
duchy ofPrussa, properly called great measure
exempt from these burthcns, claiming In virtue Of their
descent from the ancient Teutonic knights 10 DO absolute
masters Of the soil which their forefahers wra.ed from
the Pagan aborisnes will readily be imagined that the
western propreors regard these privileges of their east
efn brethren with no favorable eye they have repeated
y and very naturally insisted the usce of throwing
all the burthens required by the Of the State upon
their shoulders while the others escaped scot free and
demanded loudly for equalization Of these taxes re-
ducing those that levied their lands which in
many instances are stated to be excessively onerous
making up the deficiency In the government by
aottpg due proportion Of them 10 the eastern landhod
eTs who have long enjoyed enviable immunity from
nature broached than tho chivaous descendants Of the
Teutcn knghts get up lugubrious howl they declared
society menaced. and denounced Ali stte,pts ss insr
terence with their vested rights emanang from iaco
bins, deists socialists, Jewelers. and revolution
SITS OF the worst description. It enacted indeed by
an article OF the constitution that every citizen should be
liable TO bear his proper share Of the public burhens
that all mmunes enjoyed by certain privileged classes
shall cease but the late ministry, who had a sneaxing
Kindness for time honorcd abuses and whose Chief sup
rorers were drawn from the ranks OF the Banderburgb
au M nov
carry out this clause Of the constitution than they did
many othorss and Notwithstanding the murmurs or the
estern provinces and the efforts Of ner representatives
~ the Chambers, the land tax remained in afa quo an
the anohoders Prussn continued in the unds
turbed possession of their ancient rights ready 10 shed
their blood for their country and displaying tho most
generous sedenlel in monopoZng the best Offices and
pockeipg any amount Of salary that might be offered
them by grateful nation In return for their valuable ser
vices but confcientously refusing to contribute dcncr
The remedy for this naous state of things submit
ted TO the Chambers by the present administration partakes
largely OF the nature Of compromise, and such is not
likely to give entire satisfaction 70 either party II pro
poses do away with tho exemption from the land Lax
enjoyed by the eastern Provinces and 10 establish an
equal rate throughout the Kingdom avoiding however
pcunary indemnity 10 all those who required u give
up their ancient prerogavts and bow their ncc 20 the
new burihen imposed upon them. Such landhoders ss
government duties legally granted them or their ances
tos are TO be allowed Gum equal 10 twenty times the
amount ol The ratio which will BIO oxacted OF them In r
ture, who such have written records 70 produce.
but have merely prescrptve claim TO the possession
their privileges, will receive thirteen and third
times the value Of tho same for which bonds will be
issued TO them, pay able by annual nstaments Ia urged
as motive tor granting this indemnity, that many Of the
ropreoIs have their estates higher raies
in consideration of their being free: thai in rasny
money on mortgage this circumstance has always been
taken into and influenced the valuation Of Tho
nrd and that would expose the 10 severe losses
ihey were to be suddenly deprived these advantages
shd facilities without adequate compensation but never
ihelefs appears little unreasonable that people sh ,n
he indsmnhcd for having the a btss extended 70
them which her fellow citzeps have been suh,eoa ~
from time immemoral compensation s tho order of tnc