ever remembering one's origin, by preserving one's own character,
and by adopting frankly in presence of Europe tlhe position
of parvenu—a glorious title when one obtains it by the free
suffrages of a great people. Thus, obliged to depart from
precedents followed to the present day, my marriage became a
private affair, and there remained only the choice of the person.

"She who has been the object of my preference is of
distinguished birth. French in heart, by education, by the
recollection of the blood shed by her father in the cause of the
empire, she has, as a Spaniard, the advantage of not having in
France a family to whom it might be necessary to give honours
and fortune. Endowed with all the qualities of the mind, she
will be the ornament of the throne; in the day of danger she
would be one of its courageous supporters. A Catholic, she will
address to Heaven the same prayers with me for the happiness of
France. In fine, by her grace and her goodness she will, I have
the firm hope, endeavour to revive in the same position the
virtues of the Empress Josephine.

"I come, then, Messieurs, to announce to France that I have
preferred the woman whom I love and whom I respect, to one
who is unknown, and whose alliance would have had advantages
mixed with sacrifices. Without disdaining any one I yet yield
to my inclinations, but after having taken counsel from my
reason and my convictions. In fine, by placing the independence,
the qualities of the heart, domestic happiness, above dynastic
prejudices and the calculations of ambition, I shall not be less
strong because I shall be more free.

"Soon proceeding to Notre Dame I shall present the Empress
to the people and to the army; the confidence they have in me
assures me of their sympathy, and you. Messieurs, on learning
better to appreciate her whom I have chosen, will allow that
on this occasion also I have been inspired by Providence."

The future Empress is Eugenia de Montijos, Countess-
Duchess of Teba, a Spanish lady of about twenty-six
years of age, who, under her mother's protection, has
been for some time making a brilliant figure in the highest
Parisian society, and has been distinguished by the
Emperor's particular attention. Her mother, Dona
Maria Manuela Kirk-Patrick, of Closeburn (in Scotland,)
Countess Dowager of Montijos, Countess of Miranda,
and Duchess of Penaconda, is the widow of the Count
de Montijos, who was an officer of rank in the Spanish
army; her father of a Scotch family had been English
Consul at Malaga. When she married, it appeared
from certificates produced from Scotland that she
belonged to the family of Kirk-Patrick of Closeburn (not
Glasburn), and that her ancestor had been created a
Baron by Alexander ??. of Scotland. Her great grandfather
died on the scaffold in 1745, in consequence of
the part he took in the rebellion in favour of Charles
Edward. His son emigrated, and the family settled in
Spain. The Countess's late husband belonged to one of
the most ancient of the noble houses of Spain, and was
related to the family of the Duke of Frias, the
representative of the ancient Admirals of Castile, the Duke of
Hijar, and others of the highest rank; and the house
claims relationship with the descendants of the ancient
kings of Aragon. The mother of the future Empress
is First Lady of Honour to the Queen of Spain, and is a
member of the Royal order of Noble Ladies of Maria
Louisa, to which most of the females of the Spanish
aristocracy of the highest class belong. The Countess of
Montijos' eldest daughter is married to the Duke of
Alba and Berwick, who has also inherited the Ducal title
of Linares and is descended from Marshal Berwick, the
victor of Almanza, in the war of succession undertaken
to establish the rule of the first Bourbon who reigned in
Spain. Marshal Berwick was the illegitimate son of
James ??. by Arabella Churchill; and the son-in-law of
the Countess of Montijos is allied, consequently, to the
noble French family of Fitz James. He signs his name
James Stuart, Duke of Berwick y Alba y Linares, and
quarters the Royal arms of England. The Empress-
elect is described as possessing considerable personal
attractions, but more in the style of English than of
Spanish beauty. Her complexion is transparently fair,
her features regular and yet full of expression. She is of
middle stature, or a little above it, with manners
extremely winning; and her education is superior to that
received generally by Spanish women who do not travel.
Her mother, the Countess of Montijos has for years
been at the head of the haut ton of Madrid; and her
receptions comprised all that was most distinguished in
Spanish society. The English, particularly, were always
made welcome at her house, and for the last 14 or 15
years few English gentlemen who have visited Madrid
will have forgotten these receptions. The family have
spent the last three winters, or the greater portion of
them, in Paris. It appears that, some days before the
above-mentioned public announcement, the Emperor
had communicated his intentions to his Council of
Ministers. They were astounded, and some of them
ventured to remonstrate; particularly M. de Persigny,
who is reported to have observed that since the Emperor
had abandoned his efforts with reference to the princely
families of Europe, he would do better, and please the
French people more, by espousing a young lady of the
Institution of St. Denis, where the daughters of officers
of the Legion of Honour, but dowerless, are educated.
The Minister of War is also said to have manifested the
same opposition as M. de Persigny. The Emperor
listened to all in silence, but gave no sign of changing
his resolution; and the Council of Ministers separated
withot perceiving any such indication. The Ministers
met subsequently on three occasions. The same silence,
the same coldness on the part of Louis Napoleon, and
the only remark he made was that he was determined to
contribute to his own happiness, as he did by the choice
he had made. The Countess of Montijos and her
daughter quitted their hotel in the Place Vendôme
immediately after the Emperor had delivered the address
—and took up their abode in the Palace of the Elysée,
where they remain till the solemnisation of the marriage
on the 30th inst. They prefer remaining apart from all
except the intimate friends of the family until the
celebration of the marriage. The ministers of the principal
European powers, and of the United States, have
presented their credentials. The peculiar terms of the
Emperor of Russia's letter, caused at first some hesitation
as to its reception. It commenced with the words
"Mon cher ami," and not "Mon bon frère" according
to the usual form, nor was any allusion made to the
Emperor as being "Napoleon the Third."—There has
been an alarming depressure in the French funds,
notwithstanding immense efforts to keep them up by
means of large purchases with public money.

A gross outrage has been committed at Vienna on the
correspondent of the Morning Chronicle. On the
10th of December he was suddenly seized by the police,
imprisoned, stripped naked, and searched; thrust into
a foul dungeon, first with malefactors, afterwards with
a Hungarian who had been there ten months for some
political offence and never brought to trial; detained
nearly twenty hours, and then liberated; only to be
conducted home to his lodgings to witness the seizure
and sealing of all his papers, public and private. The
charge brought against him was, that in his communications
to the Morning Chronicle he showed hostility
to the Austrian government, and misstated facts. He
complained to the English Embassy; who first condoled
with him, and then complained to Count Buol; and he
referred the matter to General Kempen, the military
Governor who had ordered the arrest. After waiting
from the 12th to the 25th, the injured man had his
papers restored to him with the seals broken; and a
receipt was demanded from him, stating that nothing
had been kept back. Count Buol and General Kempen,
it appears, have since expressed to the British ambassador
their extreme regret at the occurrence. It was,
they say, "all a mistake." The correspondent was
told that he was arrested on suspicion of keeping up a
treasonable correspondence with foreign refugees (not
named), and that his imprisonment was the result of a
misunderstanding between General Kempen and some
officer under him, who, in consequence of overacting
his part, has been severely reprimanded and punished.
The correspondent has expressed his sense of the
courtesy of Lord Westmorland, and of the gentlemen
attached to the Legation, who interested themselves so
promptly in his behalf.

Hungary is almost in a state of anarchy, caused by
the numerous bands of men compelled by their outlawed
condition—having taken a national part in the late civil
war—to live in the forests and mountains, and lead a
Robin Hood kind of life at the expense of their
neighbours. Courts martial and executions are powerless
against this evil; the gend'armes are harassed to despair,
and never encounter the outlaws without having to