The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1859-07-31
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| An Italian CONNER elal UNION and the Pope.
In another column we publish an article 90
commercial league of the Italian Confederation,
after the model Of the German Commercial Ua'on
or Zollverein, from which the reader will see
that to this commercial league, formed some
tweaty five years ago, Germany owes it's aeri-
cultural manufacturing aud commercial pros
perity more than to any other cause whatever.
In despite of the political oppression which she
suffers from the combination Of great and petty
tyrapts, who conspired at the Congress- Of Vienna
to place ipsupeTaele barriers in the way Of popu.
lar freedom and political progress, she has pros
pered and become great commercial power in
| Europe. BY one of the articles of the Germauic
Confederation, constitutions were guaranteed to
every State; but faith bias not been kept, and
| this was the cause of the revolutionary ou.-
| breaks 10 Germany in lS4S. The Diet, which
| is the sole interpreter of its own constitution
prince chooses to give his people in the shape of
| constitution, that mockery is to be considered
| constitution In the meaning of the Diet; but
| ifany people propose constitution TO their king
or prince that IL revolutionary, aud the Diet cau.
not permit it. If the people rebel, the federal
army will soon squelcb their patriotism. Nothing
can be changed without the unanimous consent
of all the crowned heads. We hope that gone
better arrangement than this will be made for
| the Ita]ians.
But Notwithstanding this despotic league Ger
many has grown into immense prosperity by Der
| free commercial union. To Prussia the credit OF
this great measure is due. and she has reaped the
benefit Of it more than any other German State
Before the formation OF the Zollverein on every
few miles OF the roads tolls were levied every
canal. every river and every frontier of every
| State, large or small, was lined with custom.
house officers, ard to say nothing Of the eGormou.
| expense Of that system, such were the vexatious
| restrictions that the trade and commerce Of the
whole country were crippled. By league OF
| the States Of Northern and Southwestern Ger
| many these distractions have been swept away,
and between those States trade is now as fcee as
it is between the several States of the American
| Union. One uniform tariff on foreign goods is
| established, and each State receives its fair pro
| portion Of the revenue. This commercial league
| has given Prussia such political prepondersucc
| in Germany that she is no longer second to
| Austria, and has the courage to throw down the
| gauntlet even to France.
similar league in Italy, in which Sardinia the
Northern and vigorous power of the confedera-
ton, would prepopderate, would produce similar
effects upon the Italian States and particularly
| upon Sardinia herself There is no country in
Europe better adapted by nature for agricultural,
manufacturing and commercial pursuits than
Italy, and the sources of vast wealth lie within
| her own bosom and in the numerous harbors Of
| her peninsular coast All she wants for its de-
velopement is peace and repose, and political
| and commercial union which will make her In
ternal trade free, revive and protect her foreign
commerce, and link all her children together in
the bonds of common nationality. Whatever
people may say of Louis Napoleon, if he ba,
done this for Italy, it is more than has been done
for her for thousand years.
So far from aiding her, the other great Powers
Of Europe have done their utmost to keep her
divided and enslaved The tyrants of the treaty of
Vienna, among whom was the came English king
| against whom the American colonies revoted,
took from Italy the freedom she enjoyed in 1914.
| and sent back the Pope and the vulture of the
| House Of Hapsburg to prey upon her yitals
The present difficulty Of Italy is the fruit of the
| Congress Of Vienna.
What stands most in the way of her enjoyment
Of the full benefit of the new organization is tue
continuation, ia part, of ecclesiastical instead of
lay government in the Papal States. Snce 1S49,
owing to the remonstrances and menaces of
Louis Napoleon, the old system OF the hierarchy
of the congregation" has been abolished, and one
halt Of the ministers are now laymen; and all
might be laymen, except the Cardinal Secretary
of State. But as one-half are still prelates or &c
clesiastics there is practically as great obsta-
Gle as ever to civil reform. What is wanted is a
| complete eecuiarization Of the government; for,
| if that were accomplished, then railroads would
be built in the Papal States to connect with
the railroads of the other States, and COM
! plcte network of rapid communication
| all over the country, to facilitate the opera
| tons OF trade and commerce; and there would
| thus be come chance Of the Roman people
becoming prosperous and contented, instead oil
being revolutionary, and ever giving an excuse
for the armed Intervention of foreign Powers to
protect" the Pope.
All Europe owes much to Italy; not only is it
indebted to her for literature and art and law,
but for the principles of freedom, which were de-
veloped amidst the contests Of the Popes with the
German Emperors. From the municipal institu
tons of the medieval republics and free cities of
Central Italy the constitutional liberties of Eu-
rope, and particularly Of England, derived les
sons Of political wisdom. Italy was the first
country to burst the chains of darkness which
held the world after the fall of Rome, and to
raise aloft for mankind the torch of nIpdern CT
vilization, whose rays have reached even to
the New World. illumining the minds of the
great men who laid the foundations of