The daily exchange. [volume] (Baltimore, Md.) 1858-1861, 1859-06-30

Now that Lord PALMERs TON has succeeded the
Earl of DERBY as Prime Minister of England, the
organ of the late Government, the London Herald
raises the cry of 'wolf" and the cry is caught up
and repeated by the Herald in New York. On the
strength of a despatch from Berlin stating that
Prussia is mobilizing her army, our English con-
temporary emphatically and half trumphantly re-
marks 'of course this means war;" and at once
goes on boldly to assert that the advent of Lord
PALMERsToN to power has driven Prussia to join
Austria in the struggle against France. The New
York Herald takes up the same strain, and speaks
oft as confirmation of the statements it had pre-
viousy published from one of its European cores
pondents. 1t also pronounces the intelligence
to be Important" and, giving credence to the
rumors that Prussia had asked Bavaria and Saxony
to permit her troops pass through their terri
tories, asserts that the in Italy, $50 far from
'beng nearly ended, is hardly begun" 1t is,
of course, very difficult to say how long a war is
destined to last which has been commenced by two
of the greatest military Powers in Europe. The
London Times, however, whose judgment
has been sharpened of late by the at
triton of rough facts that would not be thrust
tNSNNI >NiiiN
that expressed by the New York Herald But
whether the war be long or short, a greater alb
surdity could not possibly be imagined, than that
Prussia on finding her neutral policy materially
strengthened by change in the British Ministry,
should suddenly face about and provoke general
war by rushing to the rescue of her ancient rival
Austria. If any new complications had arisen,
which forced her to take this step, it would not
have been possible for her to have kept them Sc
cret, from the necessity she would have been
under of justifying so extraordinary change in
her avowed policy by proclaiming to the world
the causes by which her new course had been de-
termined But the story, confidently as it has
been put forth by the organ of Lord DERBY, has
not even the merit of plausibility. If Prussia
were to declare in favor of Austria, she would not
fly to the assistance of the latter by marching her
armies into Italy, but by creating a diversion in
her favor on the frontiers of the Rhine; and the
very fact which the New York Herald relies upon to
establish its position, viz that LOUIS NAPOLEON in
anticipation of this alliance between the two great
German Powers is calling for large reinforcements
from France goes to provehow little the French En-
peror has to fear from any hostile demonstration in
that quarter. Even in the Diet at Frankfort there
was not among the most ardent supporters of Aus
tria single voice raised in favor of sustaining the
latter by sending the contngents of the Confedera-
ton across the Alps into Italy. The proposition
which met with most acceptance, came from the mi
nor States of Southern Germany and that only de-
manded the concentration of an army of obserya-
ton on the banks of the Rhine; whilst the Aucs-
burg Gazette, which may be said to reflect the
predominant sentiment of Bavaria looked forward
beyond the Rhine to march upon Paris. 1t has
never been denied, moreover, by the warmest par
tisan of the House of Hapsburg that by the 46th
Article of the Treaty of Confederation it is ex-
pressly declared that the non-German possessions
of the States which parties to that instrument
extra-federal, and that therefore, with respect
to them the sovereigns to whom they belong can
not claim, in the event of war, the armed support
of the Bund AS Prussia was the power which
most vehemently protested during the session of
the Diet at Frankfort, against giving France any
cause for offence by stationing a force upon the
Rhine, and as she also, with equal earnestness adj
vocated the observance of strict neutrality with
regard to the in Italy, it is manifest that the
mobilization other army more indicates a deter
mination her part to violate her avoweo neutral
ity than the organization of rife corps in England
indicates fixed resolution on the part of the Bril-
fish Government to take sides with one or the
other of the belligerents. Now that the neutrality
of England is doubly assured by the result of
the recent elections, it becomes still more i'm
perative upon Prussia to maintain the position
she had previously assumed. After a pro-
tracted struggle with the Austrian faction,
she has been invested with full powers to
take the initiative whenever the indepen-
dence of Germany proper is menaced. The re-
sponsibility therefore of commencing hostilities
and of provoking thereby general war, rests
wholly upon her, and warned as she has
been, In common with the other German
States, that any assistance rendered to Austria
in Italy, will be the signal for Russia to take the
field, it is evident that her interposition-
which would necessarily drag the whole of Ger
many into the war-would infict more injury
upon Austria than if the latter left, as at pre-
sent to fight her battles single handed. From the
diplomatic correspondence relative to the affairs of
Italy, which has recently been published by the
English government, the fact is made apparent
that Austria in issuing her peremptory summons
W "iuna W uisafih her Tree corps WITHIN three
Gays, and in thus precpitating a war which per-
maps she felt to be inevitable fully calculated upon
receiving the support of some at least Of the
MINOR principalities of Germany. She GER
tainiy could have commanded, at one time
majority of the votes in the Federal Diet.
but the more prudent counsels of Prussia
the formal declaration Of neutrality by England,
and the latitude Of expectancy assumed .by
Russia bafied all her preconceived plans and left