23 DECEMBER 1854, Page 9

intrigu nut Culunial.

FRANCE.—It is stated that the Emperor lately convoked an extraordinary council to debate the question, whether the constitution should be revised so as to give more liberty to the platform and the press. The gravity of the situation, said the Emperor, induced him to ask their frank opinions. M. Troplong led the section opposed to any change; while M. Billault adopted the opposite view. On a division, M. Billault carried with him 9, M. Troplong 5 votes. The Emperor, as usual, gave no indication of the leaning of his opinions.

The French Government has declined offers of money for the wounded soldiers and sailors ; but accepted offers of blankets, linen, lint, &c., things that cannot be supplied in too great quantities.

31. Leon Faucher, the eminent French writer and statesman, died a few days since, at Marseilles, of typhus fever. He was on his way to the Hyeres to recruit a a broken constitution. Leon Faucher was of humble origin. His family resided in the South of France ; and when at school at Toulouse he is said to have predicted that he should one day be a minister of state. Very early in life he showed great aptitudes ; encounter- ed adversity in every form ; but triumphed. He began his career in Paris as tutor Ri the family of M. Dailly, then Postmaster of the capital. He soon became a contributor to the Temps, and afterwards editor of the Courrier Francois, a steady supporter of the Liberal party under the reign of Louis Philippe. But he did not confine himself to journalism : he is known as the author of," Etudes sur l'Angleterre," a work that shows a great love of English literature and institutions; and his essay on the standard of gold and silver led to his election by the Academie des Sciences Morales et Politiques. In 1847 M. Faucher was elected one of the Deputies for Rheims; in 1849, he became one of the Ministers of Louis Napoleon ; but quitted office before the coup d'etat of December 1851, and retired into private life. He refused subsequently to be a Senator ; and he seems never to have recovered from the shock of the coup d'etat. At the funeral, on Tuesday, Berryer, Dufaure, Cousin, Odilon Barret, and other men of note, followed his remains.

Prince Alexander Sehoenburg has been sent to Paris by the Emperor of Austria with the grand cordon of the order of St. Stephen, together with an autograph letter, to the Emperor Napoleon.

GERMANY.—The Prussian Parliament was engaged at the outset in a discussion on the question whether there should be an address in reply to the speech from the Throne. Two addresses were proposed, one by Von Vineke, the other by Bethman-Holweg ; both very liberal in tone, and recommending alliance with the Western Powers. The Committees ap- pointed to examine and report upon them were both adverse ; urging, among other reasons, that an address should not be presented because re- marks on foreign politics and pending negotiations could not possibly be avoided. In opening the debate on the report of the Committee respect- ing Van Vineke's motion, on the 15th instant, Baron Manteuffel main- tained the doctrine of the Committee ; roundly declared that no address was needed ; and advised the Members to say as little as possible. Von Vineke's motion was negatived, by 170 to 112. Then followed a brief debate, opened by Bethman-Hdweg, in support of his address. He Pathetically lamented the isolation of Prussia, which has fallen out of the European pentarehy. The Cabinet had rocked itself in dreams of peace, from which it was suddenly awakened by the conclusion of the treaty of December Z. But he withdrew his motion.

The Second Chamber agreed unanimously, on the 20th, to open the Prussian coasting-trade to English vessels. Baron Von lisedom left Berlin on Tuesday, on a special mission to Eng- land and France. The object of his mission is reported to be, the con- clusion of a special treaty of alliance between Prussia and France, and his Purpose in visiting London is to obtain the good offices of the British Government in the negotiation of that treaty. Count Zichy, who has carried to St. Petersburg the notification of the treaty of alliance of December 2, is an Hungarian : he was Imperial Commissioner to the Russian army in the Hungarian war, and is the hus- band of a Russian lady. He had an interview with Prince Paskiewiteh, at Warsaw ; and the Prince left that city with him for St. Petersburg. So says the Trieste Gazette.

SWEDEN AND NORWAY.—Xing Oscar closed the Swedish Diet on the 5th instant, with a speech of compliments and thanks, especially for the credits voted for the army and navy, and as provision against unforeseen cases.

At the close of the Diet, the Marshal of the Nobility and the President of the Burgesses both delivered speeches in reply to the Royal address;

and both declared, with reference to the war, that as7 ciate the blessings of peace, they would not recoil f "s4A posed by necessity. The war must exercise a pow u1çingxs•future condition of the North, said the Marshal of '. 'blets.1

result from the course of events, that Sweden, " untisortsfoyg past," will not look on with indifference.

The Norwegian journals are full of expressions of sympathy for the Western Powers, and hints of warlike preparations at Stockholm. We are assured that Norway is quite ready to cooperate with the Western Powers, if the King cannot maintain neutrality, and the future is secured. "Even here, as in Sweden, the people will enthusiastically unite with the Western Powers in war against Russia."

lICSSIA.—When the Allied fleets left the Gulf of Finland, the Civil Governor and Generals left Helsingfors for St. Petersburg, to give an ac- count of the administration ; and while in the capital, it is said, plans were agreed to at councils of war for the defence of the coasts and har- bours next year. There is to be an intrenched camp close to each for- tress, sufficiently spacious to hold the number of troops deemed necessary. The pilots who fled rather than guide our ships among the Aland Islands have been rewarded with an order and silver medals.

"I can assure you," says a letter from St. Petersburg' "that people about the Court affirm that neither the Imperial family nor the great officers of state have the least desire to accept the conditions insisted upon by the Western Powers. As to Austria, the Court is furious against her since the receipt of Prince Gortschakoff's last despatch. A lady of high rank, [said to be Madame Liprandi] declared aloud in a drawingroom, the other day—' We will never forget Austria's perfidy. I will furnish a hundred serfs to the new regiment of Chasseurs.' Three days afterwards this lady's daughter was appointed maid of honour to the Empress. But the Emperor, at the same time, caused it to be notified to her mother, that his Majesty did not approve of talking politics in the presence of Austrian attachés.'

Tnz CRIXEA.—The regular correspondence from the seat of war extends from the 25th November to the 2d December—the contents of two mails; the letters from Balaklava having been delayed, purposely as the corre- spondents t hink. In the main, this batch of correspondence is devoted to complaints and the more dismal realities of the war. The weather had been anything but cheering ; storms of wind and almost constant rain had been experienced in the camp ; so that the roads were bottomless, the floors of the tents much in the same condition, the tents themselves serv- ing only as strainers for the rain. Just before the mail came away, some portions of the army suffered greatly from want of provisions, not be- cause there were none in store at Balaklava, but because the roads were all but impassable. For nine days there had been no issue of tea, coffee, or sugar; some of the divisions received half, some one-third, some no ration of meat whatever on the 30th November, biscuit being their only food. Nevertheless, the men, as usual, behaved well; knowing that the state of the roads only prevented a full supply. It is said that the Com- missariat had previously suggested that magazines should be formed near head-quarters, but that the horses and mules had been taken to work in the trenches, and so the magazines that would have been so useful were never formed. Balaklava is described as everything that is horrible,— dirty, fcetid, and loathsome; - half full of dead and dying Turks, and all abominations. On the let December, the Turks were set to mend the roads and to hand and pile on shore shot and shell. The horses of the cavalry were expected on the 2d, to be housed and cared for,—we should say the survivors of the horses of the cavalry, for what with the direful condition of the ground where they had been picketed, and the want of such simple things as nose-bags many of them had perished.

But a still more fearful outbreak of death is chronicled—the outbreak of cholera in Balaklava, and the dying of 60 men per day, according to the special correspondent of the Times. Mr. Augustus Stafford, who had been staying on board the Sanspareil, visited the camp on the 30th, and inspected the huts and tents. Next day he paid a visit to the hospitals, listened to the talk of the men, and wrote letters for them.

The soldiers had begun to hut themselves as best they could. We are told of large quantities of wood, the drift of the wrecks, as well as quan- tities of pressed hay, being allowed to float and rot at pleasure in Balak- lava bay; while the soldiers were starving with cold and wet for want of wood, and the horses dying for want of forage. The arrangement, or ra- ther the want of arrangement for the shipping in the harbour, is greatly blamed by the correspondents. The Marines on the cliffs alone, had made some use of the wood.

The military operations had been confined to Russian sorties on the French lines. It is recorded that on the night of the 26th November, the French followed the repulsed Russians into their works, and spiked five guns. The Russian army in front of Balaklava had retired towards Tehorgoun. On the 30th November, St. Andrew's day, (St. Andrew is a great saint in Russia,) a general officer said to be the Grand Duke Michael, made a long reconnamance of the British lines, peering through a huge telescope propped upon piled muskets and bayonets. After this inspec- tion, the Russian cavalry retired up the heights, where the infantry were stationed. The defences on the right of the British position are not only strong for defence, but, it is stated, command the road from Inkerman to Sebastopol as well as the head of the harbour, so as to cut off all commu- nication with the place except on the North ride.

The latest despatches from the Crimea reach to the 13th vid St. Petersburg, and the 12th via Paris. Admiral Hamelin sends this message— "Bay of Kansiesch, Dec. 12.—Four thousand three hundred men arrived on the 10th, with ammunition. A brisk cannonade has been kept up for the last two days. The enemy has made some vigorous sorties on our own and on the English lines. They were driven back by our musketry, and in some instances at the point of the bayonet, after a fierce resistance."

The St. Petersburg despatch is dated Wednesday-

" Nothing of importance had occurred before Sebastopol up to the 13th of December. Some small sorties have been made with success. In one the Russians captured in the trenches of the Allies some small mortars, and spiked some others of larger dimensions. The fire of the Allies was feeble, and the Russian loss very slight."

TURSEY.—A telegraphic despatch from Bucharest, dated 7th December, says- " Muses Pasha starts on Monday or Tuesday. Thirty or forty thousand Turks, and a hundred guns, are to be embarked at Varna, or Baltchik, under his superintendence. Next week Omar Pasha, too, will start for the Crimea. The troops will most probably be disembarked at Eupatoria. The prospect of entering on a campaign at this season is not very pleasant ; but, taking it for all in all, it is pleasanter for me than this stupid life at Bu-

*barest. I have no doubt Omar Pasha's army will redeem the character of the Turks. Under his eye they are ready for anything ; which !thews what they would be were they generally well officered."

The hospital obituary at Scutari includes the following more resent deaths— Lieutenant Thislethwayte, Scots Fusilier Guards, of fever. Nov. 26. Surgeon Brown' Ninety-fifth Regiment, remittent fever, Nov. 28. Ensign Raiford, Twenty-eighth Regiment, acute laryngitis, Nov. 28. Chief Apothecary Reade, acute diarrhcea, Nov. 28.

Major Champion, Ninety-fifth Regiment, wounds, Nov. 30. Lieutenant Thialethwayte and Major Champion distinguished them- selves conspicuously at Alma - the former by the daring way in which he carried the colours ; the fatter by the prompt and gallant leading of the Ninety-fifth, in the final charge, after its Colonel had been wounded. The number of privates buried between the 24th November and 8th December was 168.

ITALY.—The great solemnities at Rome attending the promulgation of the bull concerning "the immaculate conception" took place on the 8th instant, and full details are before us. The Cardinal Vicar published a notification on the 4th, to enlighten the minds of the Romans on the subject, informing them that the Church, by a venerable and august decree, was about "to point out a precious gem which already ornamented the diadem of Mary," and to confirm by its "infallible oracle," as a dogma of faith, "the ancient, universal, and most pious belief in the immaculate conception of the Virgin Mary " ; to doubt of, or to speak against which, would consequently, in future, render any one so acting liable to be treated as a heretic, and thrust out of the Catholic fold. For five days preceding the ceremony, by express command of his Holiness, the relics of the holyface, the lance, the cross, the inscription of the cross, the cradle of our Saviour, and the chains of St. Peter, were ex- hibited to the veneration of the faithful, with due advantages of indul- gences attached, and triduos and fasts prepared the way for the great event. On the morning of the 8th, a crowd assembled in St. Peter's, so great that its " unfillable vastness" never appeared so full before. From the halls of the Vatican came into the church a procession of fifty-five Cardinals, forty-three Archbishops, one Patriarch, and one hundred and three Bishops ; followed by the Pope on foot and uncrowned. The bull was promulgated by the Pope during high mass ; and so affected was the Holy Father at some passages, that he stopped to dry his tears with a handkerchief. High mass being over, led by the grand procession of dignitaries, the Pope entered the Cardinal's Chapel, and mounting a crimson platform, performed the ceremony of crowning the Madonna. In the evening, the cupola of St. Peter's, and the facades of most of the other churches, as well as public buildings and private residences, were abundantly illuminated; and Cardinal Wiseman wound up the proceed- ings by delivering an oration on the Immaculate Conception before the .Arcadian Academicians, at a solemn meeting of that body, in the great hall of the Capitol.

UNITED STATES.—Congress assembled on the 4th instant, and received the President's Message. There were present 37 Senators and 197 Representatives. The Message maintains the old repute of such docu- ments in point of length, and treats of every variety of topic; in great part, however, of American rather than European interest. The message begins by alluding to the interruptions to domestic pros- perity,—disease prevalent to a greater extent than usual, unparalleled sacri- fices of life through casualties by sea and land, and crops nearly cut off in some portions of the country : but the pestilence has swept by' and, if less bountiful than in former seasons, the crops are still abundant for domestic wants, with a large surplus for exportation. The next topic is the neutral policy of the United States Government. The President complains, that notwithstanding the clearly-defined and well- sustained course of action of the Federal Government, increasing disposition has been manifested by some European Powers to supervise and direct its foreign policy. They presume to take the independent Powers of the Ameri- can continent into account in their plans for adjusting the balance of power among themselves; - and show a jealous distrust of America because she refuses to be brought within their peculiar system. The policy of the United States is essentially pacific. Ready to repel invasion, it provides no permanent means of foreign aggression. Its commerce takes the widest range, while it abstains from entangling alliances with distant nations. The territorial expansion of the United States results from the legitimate exer- cise of sovereign rights ; and powers that have absorbed ancient kingdoms and planted their standards on every continent could hardly have been expected to regard, as they have regarded, the territorial expansion of the United States with concern.

Having premised thus much, and stated that the commerce of the United States has reached a magnitude and extent nearly equal to that of the first maritime power of the earth, the President proceeds to narrate the steps taken to obtain a recognition of the doctrine that free ships make free goods ; and to state that it has been recognized by France and Great Britain, not, however, as an international right, but as a concession for the time being." On the part of the United States, he had renewed the efforts made by pre- ceding Governments to make the doctrine hi question a principle of interna- tional law, and had submitted a proposition to the Governments of Europe, embracing, not only the doctrine that free ships make free goods, ",but also the less contested one that neutral property other than contraband, though on board enemies' ships, shall be exempt from confiscation." Russia prompt- ly acted in the matter; and a convention was concluded providing for the observance of those principles, not only between Russia and the United States, but between all other nations who shall enter into like stipulations. The Ring of the Two Sicilies has expressed his readiness to eoacur. None of the other Powers have taken final action on the subject : indeed the prin- ciples are acknowledged to be essential to the security of commerce. The only apparent obstacle to their general adoption is in the possibility that it may be encumbered with inadmissible conditions.

The Bing of Prussia entirely approved of the project of a treaty to the same effect, but proposes an additional article providing for the renunciation of privateering. At some length the President argues this question; and declines to accede to it, because the large commerce and small navy of the United States would in the event of a war expose her to injuries tenfold greater than she could inflict ; and he argues that the country could only be extricated from its unequal condition with a great maritime foe by de- parting from its present peaceful policy and becoming a great naval power. But " ehould the leading Powers of Europe concur in proposing, as a rule of international law, to exempt private property upon the ocean from seizure by public armed cruisers as well as by privateers, the United States will readily inset them upon that broad ground." The President reports to Congress the ratification of the reciprocity treaty with Canada. He notices that there is a difference of opinion as to the boundary-line between the territory of Washington and the adjoining British

possessions on the Pacific' also regarding the possessory right& of the Hudson's Bay Company and the Puget's Sound Agricultural Company, which have given rise to serious disputes; and he recommends commissions for their amicable settlement.

The President briefly relates that Mr. Soule had been refused a passage through France, but that the French Government had unequivocally dis. avowed any intention ef denying the Minister of the United States the right of transit, and that he had actually returned through Prance to Spain, With regard to Spain, he thinks thepresent Government more inclined than the preceding to comply with the jut demands of the Federal Govern- ment. A large section of the message is devoted to an official explanation of the affair at Greytown. That city is described as "a marauding establishment, a resort of outlaws, a camp of savages depredating on emigrant-trains or caravans and the frontiers of civilized states " ; and the exploit of Captain Rollins is held to be perfectly justified by the outrages committed by the in- habitants. Their insulting deportment tewardsthe United States provoked chastisement, and frustrated mild measures for obtaining satisfaction. The transaction, says the President, has been characterized by some Foreign Powers with more harshness than justice ; but if comparisons were insti- tuted, repeated instances of greater severity towards far less ofFending and defenceless communities might easily be presented. The revenue for the last fiscal year was 73,649,706 dollars; the expendi- ture exclusive of payments in redemption of the public debt, 61,018,249 dollars. The paymenin in redemption of the debt were 24,336,380 dollars - the balance of outstanding debt is now 44,975,456 dollars, redeemable within fourteen years at different periods. It is estimated that the revenue of the current year will exceed the expenditure by 16,000,000 dollars. A reduc- tion of the import duties is recommended. As there is no law requiring the records and papers of a public character to be left for the use of the suceemors of public officers and as by false entries the revenue has been defrauded., it is recommended revenue laws shall be revised to prevent similar frauds in future.

The President recommends an augmentation of the army by two regiments of infantry and two of cavalry ; and the improvement and augmentation of the navy. He also suggests that the artillery should be formed into a corps; and the laws relating to discipline at sea revised with a view to saving life and punishing neglect. He discountenances the grant of lauds for railway purposes, because it promotes unhealthy speculation. Popular sentiment with regard to the war is divided between the merits of the Allies and Russia. Some journals, reputed to be Joni-official, are decidedly Russian ; but many popular journals rebuke them with severity.

INDIA.—The fuller despatches contain little matter of novelty. It ap- pears that the remains of Lord Frederick Fitzdarence were received in Bombay on the lath November with much pomp; a far-off imitation of the funeral of Wellington costing money which the public journals seem to have grudged very much.

The most interesting news relates to a hurricane on the 1st of Novem- ber; one of those periodical storms which afflict Bombay in November, coming once in seven, ten, or at most seventeen years.

"The tempest," says one. of the aocounts, "burst upon us about mid- night, from last and by South, veering round Southerly, and slackening at South, redoubling its fury from the Westward for about an hour at day- break, and at six o'clock passing suddenly away ; beautifully serene weather almost immediately succeeding. The hurricane was one of those well-de- fined whirling storms known by the name of cyclones. It seems to have originated five or six hundred miles to the Southward of us, and to have proceeded about 100 Northerly. Its diameter was from 120 to 170 mike, and its centre, which travelled at the rate of from twelve to fifteen miles an hour, passed some ten miles to Westward of us." The pressure of the-wind at the worst moment of the storm was 36 pounds to the foot—so that nothing living on open ground could stand against it. There was great lose of life, three or four hundred persons it is calculated ; and great loss of property, variously estimated between 1,000,0001. and 300,0001. sterling. Five large ships and some 150 small ones were lost in the hurricane.

The papers comment with some expressions of pleasure on the progress of internal improvement ; and Mr. Halliday's administration of Bengal is highly extolled.

Jere-N.—A report has arrived, 'rid Hongkong, that Sir James Stirling had concluded a treaty with the Emperor of Japan, by which the ports of that country are to be closed against Russian men of war or privateers; while Nagasaki and Hakodadi axe to be opened to British ships. It is stated that Sir dames endeavoured to obtain equal terms for the French, and did not succeed ; but it is believed that the same terms will be granted whenever an ambassador is sent from France.