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THE DANISH GERMAN QUESTION.…

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THE DANISH GERMAN QUESTION. I •R» Conference has broken up,—it has done no- tIIins towards "re-establishing peace on a solid and per- moommt buis;" the object for which, according to Earl 1. it was assembled and hostilities between the far thousand Danes, and the numerous Austrians, Prus- iins, and Germans, have recommenced. On Monday evening, Earl Russell in one house, and leetf Palmerston in the other,—laid on the tables, the jnfaWs of the Conference; and both noble lords made • statement of what had taken place before that body. TWtefegratnn and the continental papers had previously Wormed us of all the main particulars for although tte ptempotentiaries were pledged to secrecy, and Lord ^Wwtnn refused, on that ground, to answer any qaeations put to him in the House of Commons,—it ncaw the Continental members of the Conference made uobcvitation of communicating what took place to par- ties who published those communications to the world, fiu, the public were really kept acquainted with every. lbivg material that occurred; although, at the time it mw onturally fait, that no reliance could be placed upon the taoatitborUed announcement*. The protocols of the proceeding, drawn up by their srcrwtary, and signed by the plenipotentiaries, are long, aai constitute tedious reading whilst the proceedings SfceMBelves, may be compressed into a very few words. bd k-t as first look into the origin of the dispute. That wfrcng from the attempts of the Danish monarchs to valr aU their subjects with an equal hand, in doing vhtslt, they, no doubt, violated some of the rules of the Gwmv. Confederation. On the other hand, the Fede- ral Diet put forward pretensions, which it was quite ira- pwible that Denmark could grant. One of the chief ow. mitt Earl Russoll, on Monday evening, that the 900,000 people, who were said to be of the German race -wnd even the 50,000 of the Duchy of Lauenburg,— IIInuId have a representation equal in number to the 1>00,000 people of the kingdom of Denmark. This rrileDtly, was so unfair, and so destructive to Dtausfo independence and nationality, that Denmaik eeweqiiently refused to accede to it." Frederick VII., tyit patent issued in March, 1863; and by a coiistitu time which was adopted in the following November, vir. tnffiy incorporating Schleswig and Holstein with Den- mark-had prepared fresh complications for his sucees- M. A dommd was made ou Caristiau IX., soon after fen accession, to revoke both the patent and the consti- istion; and the hesitation evinced by the monarch to flMnply with a demand to which his ministers were op- pmeJ, was mala the pretext for sending troops to Hol- ateitt, to comoel him to do sa. There, it was denied in the Met, that the present King of Denmark was the Ugd heir to the Duchy of Holstein and it was pro- faned, that the Federal troops should hold that territory it "occupation," till that body had decided the question ei aucceBsion; a question which Lord Palmerston af- Srmt, it has no right to entertain. There is nothing," .wi his lordship, in my opinion, in the treaty of 1815, which constituted the Diet, which gave it its birth and aa^iii— there is nothing in that treaty, or in the final Oeaty of 1820, which completed the Diet,—that entitles tfcat body to decide, who shall succeed to any State within the Confederation and I am quite sure, when the Emperor "î Austria resigned, and was succeeded by a member of his family, the Diet did not claim any rifcht to interfere." In this instance, Austria and Prussia did not go with tfo Met: and they moved (we quote Lord Pahuerston's opmch) not that the Federal troops should not enter JMttein, but that the entrance of those troops should kcwfcat is called an exectitiod,' and not an 'occupa- tioa: An "execution," his lordship explained, was mt action of the Diet, according to it* rights, and the Cnraan law, to compel any Sovereign of territory be- ldoging to the Confederation, to adopt legislation to the Snro of the Confederation, if those laws should have tmn broken." The proposal of Austria and Prussia was aactioBed by a majority of the Diet; it was resolved ffcat the entrance of troops into Holstein, should be an aeL of 'execution,' to compel the then reigning Duke to alter the patent, or to revoke it: and such entrance of Falenl troops into Holstein, asameasure of 'execution,' m" our Premier contends, a distinct acknowledg- ment, by the Diet, at that time, that the King of Den- norfc was Duke of Holstein." However, the troops kkring entered, the Prince of Angustenburg was allowed U put forward his claims then Schleswig and Jutland wmv inva-led and then the Conference was proposed lby England, as affording the means of securing a solid -and permanent peace." That it has not done so, appears I& n to be entirely owing to the German Powers. There- is no doubt, that whatever may be said of Hol- sk-in and the South of Schleswig, that the northern part of the latter Duchy is essentially Danish. For the sake If perooo, Christian IX, at the suggestion of his neutral hml), consented reluctantly, but with perfect good bath, we are assured, to give up Holstein for a part of fthkowig but there arose the question of boundary The Germans proposed a line running from Apenrade to ToKleru-a line most unsatisfactory to Denmark, as it wwtfd give her a perfectly indefensible frontier. The antral plenipotentiaries proposed a line more to the moth, which would include the Dannewerke, and range ilf-l- the Schlei, by Frederickstadt to the opposite coast. The Danes agreed to accept this line, but the Germans leCitml. Then it was proposed to submit the boundary to the arbitration of a friendly power, in conformity wiah the treaty of Paris, of 1856. The German powers "aeoepted the reference, provided they were to reserve dwir decision, as to whether they would accept or reject tfcr line whieh that friendly power might lay down." their answer, says Lord Paluierston, would have been some f: aak and candid if they had simply declined the jMpoual, than have accepted it, with a reservation, which rendered it null and void." Denmark refused to 8111mit the question to arbitration altogether, as she fad accepted the line of the Schlei, and would not go my further north. Then the French Ambassador pro- paed that the population which lays between the two fens should be appealed to,—to say whetherthey wished teeootmue o tbe allied to Denmark, or transferred to Ctomany. Only the plenipotentiaries of Prussia sup- ported this proposition, which was the last; and all the CMrference did, beside considering these proposals? and aiming to the suspension of hostilities, was to sign the fcrmal protocols, detailing what had taken place. The Premier and the Foreign Secretary stated the onmw the Government means to pursue. Both used pnt circumlocution; but the simple fact is, that at prmat,-Ruagia and France not thinking proper to in- terfere on behalf of Denmark—England will also remain mwtral. But, added Earl Ruamell, if the German ppwm, contrary to their professions, and contrary to vnry duty which they have to perform, should go at once with a combined force to Copenhagen, and declare ■hot it was their object to make the Danes assent to farm destructive of their independence; -if, as Lord fUmeraton suggested, we should see at Copenhagen, or horrors of a town taken by assault, the destruction of property, the sacrifice of the lives, not only of its Jnftiirlf n, but of its peaceful inhabitants, the confisca- tiow which would ariae-the capture of the sovereign as a r of war,"—then the position of this country mm possibly be a subject for reconsideration and the Cpmwnment-as "every Government must do," says Mb the Premier and the Foreign Secretary,—" retains a liberty," to revoke its declaration of neutrality, :wA V to war if it pleases. In that case, a communica- tm would be made to Parliament, were it in session; it were net, it would be immediately summoned to re- ige iL Earl of Derby, in the Lords, and Mr. Disraeli in "'■Winona, made afew strong observations on the statement; and whilst both agreed not to raise a debate on the subject, till the papers were in the hards of the memhers,-the former expressed a hope that the course which the ministers had pursued would be considered at an early period; and the latter said it was his intention at aii early-even the earliest- occa- sion, to ask the opinion of the house upon the conduct of her Majesty's Government. Those statesmen deem that Government to have acted very inconsistently, and very unsatisfactorily; threatening before acts had been committed or encroachments made; but withdrawing the threats when it was time for action. Both the no- ble Earl and the l'i;.¡ht honourable gentleman consider that we have lost every friend in Europe; but Earl Russell affirms, that he was most cordially and firmly supported by the neutral powers in the Conference; and that although certain proposals are said to have been m uh> "by England," because he brought them forward as President of the Conference,—yet, that no resolution was so proposed, but what had been considered at a previous private meeting of the neutral plenipotentiaries and agreed to by them. On all points, his loi-tisiiii) said, those plenipotentiaries were unanimous; and he spoke highly of the conduct of France. No doubt the threatened debate wlil produce fresh disclosures; and we shall be in a better position to judge of the actual position, and to form an opinion as to the probability of war or peace. We heartily wish it may be possible to preserve the latter, with honour; but we say with the Earl of Derby,—war rather than disgrace.

'OPPOSITION TO THE GOVERNMENTI…

THE EBBW VALE COMPANY. I

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