EUROPEAN NEWS. [From the Sydney Morning Herald, April 7.]

Louis Napoleon has struck for the maintenance of his position as President of the French Republic, and up to the present moment has succeeded beyond his most sanguine expectations. Whilst members of the National As- j sembly, who were hostile to his interests, were . deliberating what was best to be done with him, and disputing whether he should be impeached, and hurried off once more to the fortress of Ham — from which he escaped to occupy the highest position in France —he acted, and so quietly and decisively, as completely to turn the tables upon them. Whilst , Generals Changarnier, Cavaignac, Lamoriciere, j and other military chiefs were aiding and abet- j ting the plots of Thiers, Berryer, and other j restless deputies, — each with a view to his own j personal advantage, — the blow was struck which has consigned them to the fortress of Ham, and the prison of Mazas. The shell burst so suddenly, after being fired amongst them, that they had no time to save themselves, or to make good their retreat. They were prisoners ere they had time to turn themselves round, or to make the least attempt at escape. Paris, after four days' struggle, is tranquil. The army has seated Louis Napoleon for a time in the Presidential Chair. The populace is as gay and flaming as ever. The theatres are well attended. But bow long order and quiet will be maintained no one would presume to predict. M. Thiers has been sent off to Germany. A military commission has been named in Paris. It will undertake the preliminary examination of those concerned in the late insurrection. They will then be handed over to a Court Martial. Seventy-three political journals are said to have been suspended up to the present moment. Generals Harispe and Vaillant are promoted by decree to "the dignity of Marshals of France. General Randon is named Governor- General of Algeria, vice General Pelissier. The Elyseans begin already to speculate on the marriage of the President of the French Republic. The rumour is that one or two princesses are thought of, both of whom are nearly allied to the family of the Buonapartes ; the one the Princess Marie Amelie, daughter of the Emperor Don. Pedro of Brazil and the present Duchess of Braganza ; and, the other the Princess Charlotte of Sweden. . The .difficulties between the Emperor of Morocco and the French Government appear to be far from terminated. The Emperor's rejoinder to the demands of Admiral Doubourdieu was

understood to be unfavourable, as immediately afterwards the French Consul General, the employes under him, and a number of residents of both sexes, embarkeJ on board of the four war steamers lying in the Bay. A number of Jews also left for Gibraltar, those persons who remained placing themselves under the protection of the Sardinian Consul. The French war steamer Sane subsequently left with passengers, and landed them at Gibraltar, after which she started for Toulon with despatches. Further hostilities, therefore, seemed imminent. Resignation of Lord Palm erston.— - The Times of the 24th December has the following announcement : — A few days ago, after the departure of all the Ministers from London, and at the near approach of Christmas, a Cabinet Council was unexpectedly summoned, although no assignable cause of public interest had occurred to explain this sudden requisition. This Cabinet was held on Monday, the 22nd inst., and it was remarked with surprise that Lord Palmerston, one of the most assiduous members of the Government, was not present. From these circumstances suspicion was excited, and surmise became rife. We have it now in our power to remove all further uncertainty on the subject, for we are enabled to announce, that from the day on which that Cabinet was held Viscount Palmerston ceased to hold the office of Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs or to be a member of her Majesty's Government. It would not be easy to overrate the importance of such an event both to the stability of the Ministry and to the foreign intercourse of this nation at a time critical in the affairs of Europe. But on both these grounds we believe that when the motives of this decisive measure are more fully before the country, they will be found to be such that the dignity of the Queen's advij sers and the best interests of the State rendered, it indispensable. Difficulties had arisen, not only in the conduct of affairs with Foreign States, but in the transaction of business connected with our foreign policy at home, which had shaken the confidence of Ministers in the Secretary for Foreign Affairs, and had weakened the control which the First Minister is bound to exercise over every department of the Government. These difficulties are not of yesterday, though they may seem heightened by some recent official expressions of sentiment which have been received with irritation abroad, and with astonishment at home. Her Majesty's Government -could, not be indifferent to the fact that, from one reason or another, the administration of our foreign affairs by Lord Palmerston had apparently left him without an ally in Europe, and, as some think, without a friend. That undoubtedly is not the natural or proper position of England, or of an English Minister, especially at a time when our sole interest and object should be to cultivate amicable and pacific relations with all foreign States, and when, in fact, those amicable relations are established every where but with the Foreign Office. The Daily News puts forward several novel statements as to the cause of the rupture. Lord Palmerston considered a French Imperial cabinet an ally that might be usefully played against the new Holy Alliance, but the Court of Wiudsor or of Buckingham Palace took an opposite view; disapproved of Lord Palmerstou's language to the Finsbury deputation, as insulting to Austrian and Russian connexion, and equally deprecated any close or even insincere alliance with the new ruler of France against the leagued absolutism of the continent. Earl Grey participated in these feelings, and became their exponent in the Cabinet. The Morning Chronicle, in au article uf considerable length, broaches one or two subjects untouched by its contemporaries. The rumour that a confederacy, headed by Austria and Russia, have demanded that British hospitality shall no ionger be accorded to political refugees of all nations and all classes, was referred to : — " It may be a strong observation to hazard," says the Chronicle, " but the solitary, if compelled, secession of Lord Palmerston from the Whig Cabinet, in the present curiously complicated condition of our affairs, foreign and domestic, will be viewed by many as a national ! humiliation ;J; J while it must be condemned, as !at the best an extremely perilous manoeuvre as respects the existence of the. Government itself." The Globe says that Earl Granville succeeds the noble lord. The English markets were thus quoted on the 27th December :—": — " The opening price of Consols on Monday was 97 to *- ex. div, being I i in advance of the closing quotations on the | preceeding week. A f ter receding to 96f , the ! telegraphic wire reported an advance of 1% per I cent, on the French Rentes, causing consols to close firmly at 97|. Upon the secession of Lord Palmerston from the Ministry on Wednesday, Consols reached to 96|, but the Government broker, purchasing on behalf of the Sinking Fund, afforded support to the market, and 96 ex. div. has since been quoted." The company of John Campbell & Co., London, have failed ; their total liabilities are estimated from £250,000. Their foreign connections tfre larger, and the loss from their stoppage would be widely - An English resident in Paris, Mr. Flynton, by his will had left the celebrated countess of Bocarme the whole of his fortune. Cavaignac was set at liberty on Tuesday. He was married ,to Mdlle. Odier on Thursday ; and was afterwards* -to leave France with his young wife for Holland, of which country her mother is a native. It is said that Louis Napoleon has written a letter to the General, in which he expresses regret that his detention should have put him to inconvenience ; and explains that measure by declaring that "it was necessary in consequence of the gravity of the circumstances and for the safety of the state." The number of prisoners at Ham is consequently reduced to six, namely, Generals Changamier, Leflo, Bedeau, and deLamoriciere, with M.M. Baze and Miot. M. Victor Hugo has had his passport sent him by the government, and is in Holland. One- half of the members of the Mountain are now in Brussels. Louis Napoleon was elected President for ten years, by a majority of nine to one, the number being — ' Yes 6,011,000 No '"/.* 709,000 Having secured his seat for so long a period, it is announced that his Highness intends to form a matrimonial alliance with one of the

reigning houses, and then — for an Imperial Crown. Mr. Henry B. Jackson, late acting male, and Mr. James Edmonston, late acting assistant surgeon, both of her Majesty's sloop Fly, just returned from the New Zealand station, were on Saturday last tried by court martial at Hamoaze, on board the Impregnable, 104, for desertion.- The former was sentenced to three months' imprisonment at Exeter, and to be dis • missed the service of her Majesty. The latter was dismissed the service. The same court passed a sentence of six months imprisonment on William Goldiug, ordinary seaman, for desertion from the Havannah, Captain Erskine,> on the 6th October, 1848. — Times. The New Law in Prussia, inderdicting the public at executions, was put in force recently for the first time at an execution at Bonn. Upwards of 1000 poor persons and children of the Ragged Schools were entertained on Christmas day, in the metropolis, in Leicester Square. Another frightful colliery explosion, attended by immense loss of life, took place near Rotherham, Yorkshire, on the 20th December, about forty miners were either killed or wounded. Extensive combinations among the working classes were forming throughout England; and a general turn out was threatened by the mechanics in Lancashire. Fifteen hundred subscribers presented a sum of 400 guineas to the Mayor of Southampton. Lord John Russell has declared himself in favour of universal suffrage, and promises to support the measure if his colleagues consent to it. The Morning Chronicle stated on Wednesday, that were it not for the coup d' etat of the French President, it would have been their duty to have announced the resignation of the Russell Ministry. This statement has received some credence. The letters from Berlin mention that the Prussian Railway Loan of £2,000.000 is likely soon to be contracted, but that it will be at home, and not, as was reported, in the English market. Disaffection existed in the Italian army. Arrests continued to be made of suspected persons. The ecclesiastical authorities are extremely uneasy at finding that the republicans have so many partizans here. Three young men were beheaded at Marcerala on the 15th of December. They were accused of having been the originators of an attempt to assassinate a priest in the year 1849, and by inserting the words " through party spirit," their judges sentenced them to death. A considerable sum of money which had been sent to Hungary for revolutionary purposes by the London democrats has fallen into the hands of the Austrian Government. Prussia. — Letters from Berlin communicate the arrival of a special mission from Louis Napoleon, and add "that a Statement is in preparation at Elysee Bourbon, tobe communicated to all the the Courts of Europe, explaining the necessity of the coup d'etat, abjuring all pretensions to an imperial throne, and giving assurances of a desire in the President to preserve peace with all nations." To the King of Prussia such an assurance, if reliable, would no doubt be very welcome, as the loss of his Rhenish Provinces would be the first effect of a war with France. A late letter from Paris states that, " Some modifications in the ministry are in contemplation. M. de Morny is going on a special mission to St. Petersburgh. The alliance with Russia is at this moment thicker than ever. The post of Foreign Affairs is destined for M. Walewski, the French Ambassador in London. You are perhaps aware that this diplomatist passes for an illegitimate son of the Emperor. The Marquis de Lavalette has been recalled from Constantinople, where he will be replaced by the Duke de Guiche. After the result of the poll is known and published, it is said that Changarnier, and the remaining prisoners at Ham, will be liberated. M. Victor Hugo, who was closely pursued by the police, made his escape into Belgium by means of a false passport. Madame Hugo and her daughter quitted their hotel in the Rue de la Tour d'Auvergne yesterday morning to join him at Brussels. The two sons are still confined in the prison of the Conciergene, in consequence of the verdict of the jury which convicted them of having published seditious libels in the Evenement. The ex-representatives, M. M. Cremieux, Leo de Labode, and Creton, have been set at liberty. The following have been transferred from Vincennes to the prison of St. Pelagie — M. M. Duvergier de Hauranne, Bixio, Foret, Paulin, Durieu Teilirad, and General Laydet. The Australian merchants have addressed a stirring letter to the London Times of the 19th December, on the subject of postal communication between these colonies and England. The} strongly animadvert on the apathy of the j British Government, and express their determination to look elsewhere for indispensable aid, denied at home. The Mining Journal, of the- 25th, mentions an attempt to form a company in London for working the gold mines in Australia; but states that the project was abandoned, as no share or stock broker of high standing would allow his name to be used in the formation of any company, where there was not a bonafide grant of land. The London Times of the 24th Dec, in a leading article, endeavours to account for the British apathy on the matter of Australian emigration, in consequence of the high price of Crown Land. The Queen of Spain gave birth to an infant princess on the 24th December. The Pope has addressed a letter to his Nuncio in Paris, in which he expresses " his entire approbation " of the acts of Louis Napoleon, which have " saved society and religion." The Daily News correspondent, writing on December 20, says :—": — " The last exterminating blow has just been given to the monetary system of the Republican Government of Rome, by a decree prohibiting the circulation of cop.per money bearing the insignia of the Roman Eagle and the inscription of Dio c Popolo." The Austrian Ambassador to the Court of St. James's being at Brussels, received orders to repair immediately to his post. The Austrian legation has given notice to the

inhabitants of Rome that jn future no work o f literature or art can be dedicated to the Emperor of Austria without permission previously

given by the legation. The Australian Royal Mail Stenm Naviga r tion Company (provisionally registered, to- be incorporated by Royal Charter, whereby the liability will be limited to the amount of the shares) inform the public that they have obtained the contract for the conveyance of Her Majesty's mails via the Cape to the Australian colonies. Prospectuses of the above Company will be issued in the course of a few days, pending which any information may be received at the office of the brokers, Messrs. Sheppard and Sons, 28, Threadneedle-street. — Proposed capital £500,000, in 50,000 shares of £10 each ; to be increased as may be required to £1,000,000. — Wilson, Harrison, and Bristow, 1, Copthall-buildings, Solicitors. — Times. Field-marshal Radetzky is said to be failing fast, and Gen. Haynau is wandering about like a restless spirit from one place to the other, in a state of the most confirmed ill health. He is now at Laibach. The Emperor of Austria having learned that Field Marshal Radetzky intended to purchase the estate of Einner Thun, in Carinthia, has ordered the States of the Province to buy it, and to allow the Marshal and his wife to enjoy it during their lives, Lieut. Silemens, inventor of the electro-mag-netic telegraph apparatus employed in Germany, has set out for St. Petersburghby desire of the Czar, He is ordered to suspend a line, in the first instance, between the capital and Moscow, and afterwards another connecting both with Warsaw and Odessa. Other lines will extend to the Caucasus, to the Ural, and the principal seaports. It was understood that the Government have accepted the tender of Mr. Walton for a mail to Australia every alternate month, via the Cape of Good Hope, at an annual payment of £26,000. The ports to be visited are the Cape, King George's Sound, Port Phillip, and Sydney. The vessels, it is presumed, have yet to be built. — Times. The Irish Catholic Defence Association had elected Mr. Wilberforce, brother to the Bishop of Oxford, a member of the English Bar, and a recent convert, as its secretary, at a salaiy of £300 per annum. There were 14 candidates for the office, and the deposition of Mr. James Burke, the indefatigable honorary secretary, had given considerable dissatisfaction.

New Penal Colonies, — The anticipations we expressed in a recent article on the subject of transportation, that steps would be taken with a view to the formation of penal settlements and coaling stations for steamers in the Southern Pacific, are, it appears, about to be speedily realised. We now understand that the Lords of the Admiralty have given directions for the immediate equipment of two vessels to proceed on an exploratory expedition among the South Sea Islands, including New Caledonia and the Fejees, with a view to ascertain the capabilities they respectively present for the purpose in question. We also learn that her Majesty's ships Herald and Arrow are destined for this service, and that the Board of Admiralty, with a laudable appreciation of the professional talents and public services of Capt. Mangles Denham, have appointed him to command the intended expedition. In this instance, at least, it is admitted that their lordships, by their selection of such an officer, have exercised a sound discrimination, and performed an act of justice to a meritorious public servant. It is likewise stated, upon the best authority, that H.M. steamer Pluto is about to be despatched to the coast of Africa to commence the survey of the Bight of Biafra from the point at which Capt. Denham concluded his operations in H.M.S. Avon, a few years ago. The present period is considered most propitious for resuming this survey, as the obstacles which have heretofore opposed its progress from the hostile attitude of the native chiefs engaged in the slave trade are now removed by the almost total cessation of that nefarious traffic. It becomes therefore necessary, with a view to the encouragement of mercantile enterprise and the safety of our shipping, that the navigation of a portion of the African coast, now so little understood, should be defined as early as possible, more particularly as it seems that those who up to a late period were engaged in a lawless pursuit are, in its paralysis, now anxious to embrace the opportunity of establishing mercantile intercourse with this country upon a friendly footing. Liverpool Albion.

New Zealand Company. — On Friday, an adjourned annual meeting of the shareholders in this Company took place at the Company's house, Old Broad- street, for the transaction of general business. The chair was occupied by Mr. Aglionby, M.P., Chairman of the Board of Directors. The Chairman stated that an arrangement had been come to by which they expected shortly to be able to pay off Baron Goldsmid's claim of £10,000. The Union Bank of Australia was willing to let its claim of £15,000 stand over for a year, upon receiving collateral security. , The Canterbury Association had not yet sold sufficient land to enable them to liquidate the £25,000 which this company had advanced. It was not due till the end of December. The Association would pay from time to time the sums they had agreed towards its liquidation ; and the other sums mentioned in the act, arising from the sales of land, would be paid to the Government, and by them paid to the Company. As yet, they had no official statement from the Government of the quantity of land sold. Application had been made to the Company by the Government to deliver up their seal and charter; but the application was not pressed. Acting on counsel's opinion they had refused to deliver them up. "With reference to the Government propositions the chairman said they were aware, that under the recent Act of Parliament, their principal of £268,000, with 3| per cent, interest thereon, was secured upon the proceeds of the land sales ; and he had always been sanguine that those sales would go on, bo as to enable them to pay all expenses, and that by and by, as the colony progressed, there would be money coming in. " The chairman, in answer to questions, said they were trying to let the house now held by the Company, and they had reduced their establishment to two clerks and a messenger. The directors were unanimously re-elect-ed.—Globe, Dec. 1. James Mallard "William Turner, Esq., R.A., died on the 19th December, aged- seventy-six years.

The Army. — Orders have been, received by the depot of the 67th regiment, stationed at the Isle of Wight, to hold themselves in readiness to proceed on the Ist of January to Dover to relieve the first battalion of the rifles, ordered to the Cape of Good H,ope. The depot of the 67th, comprises 12 officers, 440 rank and file, with about 100 women and children. In addition to the rifle brigade, now under orders for the Cape of Good Hope, it is said that the 85th foot will also be sent. At present there are, exclusive of the local force, eight regiments of the line and one of Lancers in that colony, and the 43rd was shortly expected. The Cape Corps will, in all probability, be converted into a white regiment. Humour adds that Lord Harris will shortly proceed to the (Jape to supersede Sir Harry Smith in the civil government. The choice of such a man as Lord Harris, would, it is believed, be popular in the colony. It is related that in consequence of the recent augmentations to the forces of the Cape of Good Hope, an increase of not less than 5000 men will be required early next year, to enable the military authorities to carry out the system of reliefs. The only appointment vacated by the brevet which has yet been decided and that prospectively, is the inspector-general-ship of cavalry. Major-General the Duke of Cambridge succeeds Lieut.-General Brotherton but will not assume the appointment until next spring. The Hon. David Plunker, Master of the Court of Common Pleas, has retired, and is succeeded by Mr. Grundy Burke, M.P. for the county of Galway, Ireland. The same company which executed the submarine telegraph between the French and the English shores, has offered the British Government to complete a similar one in a very limited period between Kingstown and HolyHead. The Illustrated London News was stopped at the Paris post office, on the 20th December, much to the inconvenience of the English subscribers.

The Arctic Expedition. — The Admiralty determined not to send another expedition in search of Sir John Franklin by way of Bebring's Strait. The Plover is to be communicated with each year by a man-of-war — the AmpMtrite is the next. The arrival of the news brought by the Dadalus, that the Plover had not been able to get nortb, decided the question, and despatches were sent by the mail to the Pacific, saying what was to be done in future. Letters have been received from Lieutenant Pirn, dated December 11. Ke arrived at St. Petersburg on the 6th, and was dwelling at the British embassy till such time as he could obtain the Emperor's approbation of, and consent to, his expedition. Intimation had been made to Mr. Pirn that he was to have the honour of an audience with his Imperial Majesty. The following interesting letter from Captain Penny has been published. It will undoubtedly have the effect of feeding our hopes that Franklin is yet alive: " I have lately been at Peierhead (my native place), and have learnt a very important fact, which I am sure you will think of sufficient interest to make known to the public, from my old acquaintance Captain Martin, who when commanding the whaler Enterprise in 1845, was the last person to communicate with Sir John Franklin. The Enterprise was alongside the Erebus in Melville Bay, and Sir John invited Captain Martin to dine with him, which the latter declined doing as the wind was fair to go south. Sir John, while conversing with Captain Martin, told him that he had five years provisions, which he could make last seven, and his people were busily engaged in salting down birds, of which they had several casks full already, and twelve men were out shooting more. To see such determination and foresight at that early period, is really wonderful, and must give us the greatest hopes. I asked Captain Martin why he bad not mentioned this before. He said that be did not think it of any importance, and that when Lady Franklin was atPeterhead about two years ago he did not like to intrude upon her ladyship, not having the honour of knowing her during her short stay. He is a man of the strictest integrity, whose word I can depend upon. He has an independent fortune, which he got by the fishing. As you have done me the favour to publish a former communication, I hope you will give this a place in your columns, as I am sure it will give general satisfaction. Your most obedient servant, Wra. Penny. Abeideen, December 20."

Five Hundred Persons destroyed by a Water Spout. — The London Morning Chronicle, of December 15, states that intelligence had just been received at Lloyds', dated Malta, the Bth of that month, of a most awful occurrence at the Island of Sicily, which had been swept by two enormous water-spouts, accompanied by a terrific hurricane. Those who witnessed the phenomenon describe the waterspouts as two immense spherical bodies of water Teaching from the clouds, their cones nearly touching the earth, and, as far as could be judged, at a quarter of a mile apart, travelling with immense velocity. They passed over the island near Marsala. In their progress houses were uuroofed, trees uprooted, men and women, horses, cattle, and sheep were raised up, drawn into their vortex, and borne on to destruction ; during their passage rain descended in cataracts, accompanied with hailstones of enormous size and masses of ice. Going over Castellmare, sear Stabia, it destroyed half the town, and washed 200 of the inhabitants into the sea, who all perisaed. Upwards of 500 persons have been destroyed by this terrible visitation, and an immense amount of property, the country being laid waste for miles. The snipping in the harboar suffered severely, many vessels being destroyed, and their crews drowned. After the occurrence, numbers of dead human bodies were picked up, all frightfully mutilated and swollen.

-. Troops for Australia. — The Times, 4ih December,, reports, that the 71st regiment, Ist .Battalion, stationed at Newry, (North of Ireland),, and the 89th, at Clonmel, are UDder orders for Australia.

Death ob Priessnitz. — Priessnitz, the celebrated founder of hydropathy, died at Gutenberg on the 26th of November, at the age of 52. -In the morning of that day Preissniiz, was up, and stirring about at an early hour and complained of the cold, and had wood brought in to make ,:a large fire. His friends bad for some time believed him to be suffering from dropsy in the chest, and at their earnest entreaty he consented to take

a little medicine, exclaiming all the while, "it is no use." He would see no physician, but remained to the last true to his profession. About four o'clock in the afternoon of the 26th he asked to be carried to bed, and upon being laid down he expired. — Atlas, December 13.