Governments. But the diplomatic fence which ensued between the Vor-Parlament (as the convention of delegates has since been called) had less reference to mere forms than to the question-of incalculable importance for the future-whether the assembling of a German Parliament should appear to proceed from an expression of the national will, or from a spontaneous concession of the Governments?

A meeting of the Diet was held on the 29th of March, at which a committee of eight was appointed to take part in the deliberations of the Vor-Parlament. Three liberal members of the Diet-Willich, (Bavaria,) Welcker, (Baden,) Jordan, (Electoral Hesse)-appointed since, and in consequence of the revolutionary movements in these States, were placed upon the committee. On the 30th of March the Diet decreed that a Representative Assembly of the whole of Germany should assemble without delay at Frankfurt; that representatives should be elected for every 70,000 souls; and that States whose entire population did not exceed 70,000, should send each one representative. The question in how far the Vor-Parlament could or ought to acquiesce in this assumption of authority on the part of the Diet was keenly debated. On the 2d of April a declaratory motion was submitted to the former body by the delegate Zitz, to the effect that they could not co-operate with the Diet until the "exceptional laws" which had from time to time been passed by it had been rescinded, and the members who supported them ejected. A modification of his motion, so expressed as to avoid a collision with the Governments, was carried; but this did not satisfy the ultra-democrats, who seceded from the Vor-Parlament in consequence. It was next day officially intimated to the Vor-Parlament that the Diet had rescinded the exceptional laws the second day, and that the envoys aimed at in M. Zitz's motion were about to send in their resignation to their respective Governments. The seceding minority were satisfied with this result, and resumed their seats. It was agreed that the mode of election to the first German Parliament should be left to the decision of each Government within its own territories. A motion was brought forward by the ultra-democrats in the Vor-Parlament declaring it permanent till the meeting of the Constituent Assembly. This resolution was so far modified on the motion of Heinrich von Gagern, that the Vor-Parlament declared itself "morally permanent," and appointed a committee of fifty, (to whom were to be added any Prussian and Austrian delegates who might arrive in the interim,) to adopt measures for facilitating the commencement of the Assembly's deliberations. It was agreed that the task of preparing a Constitution should be left to the Assembly.

Members of the German Constituent National Assembly began to appear in Frankfurt about the end of April. They continued to hold preliminary meetings till the 17th of May, when upwards of 300 having arrived, it was resolved formally to constitute the Assembly the next day. This was done with due solemnity; and arrangements made for verifying the mandates of the Deputies. On the 19th of May, the Assembly proceeded to elect an Interim President, and Heinrich von Gagern was chosen by 305 votes out of 397. After the commissions of the Delegates had been verified, it was resolved that a President, two Vice-Presidents, and Secretaries should be elected every month. Von Gagern was again chosen President by a still larger majority, and has been re-elected every month by increasing majorities. On being appointed permanent President, he resigned the office of President of the Darmstadt Cabinet, to devote himself entirely to the business of the National Assembly.

It was soon discovered that the task of preparing a Constitution would involve protracted discussion. In the meantime, the relations of the Constituent Assembly to the Diet, and to the various State Governments of the Confederation were full of jealousy and difficulties. The conviction rapidly gained ground, that, in order to strengthen the hands of the representatives, it was necessary to combine an interim Central Executive with them. Accordingly a law for establishing a Provisional Central Government in Germany was passed on the 28th of June, by a majority of 450 to 100. This law was in substance as follows:

"A Provisional Central Power for regulating the public relations of Germany shall be appointed, till such time as the Constitution is completed. To this Provisional Government shall be confided :—1. The executive authority in everything that concerns the security and prosperity of Confederated Germany. 2. The control of the army of the Confederation, with power to appoint commanders-in-chief. 3. The right to act in the name of Germany, in all questions of international or commercial politics; and, to this end, the appointment of ambassadors and consuls. No voice in the framing of the Constitution is conceded to the Provisional Government. The Provisional Government is empowered to enter into treaties, and to decide on war or peace with Foreign Powers, in concert with the National Assembly. The provisional central authority is to be vested in a Vicar of the Empire, (Reichs-verweser,) elected by the Assembly. The Vicar of the Empire acts by the instrumentality of ministers, whom he appoints, and who are responsible to the Assembly. The Vicar of the Empire is irresponsible, and cannot be a member of Assembly. His ministers have a right to be present at the Assembly's deliberations, and to speak, but not to vote, unless they are members. They are bound to attend and give any explanations required by the Assembly. The existence of, and authority of the Diet ceases and determines as soon

Archduke John's Election.

251

as a Vicar of the Empire is appointed. It is left to the Central Provisional Government to make arrangements with the plenipotentiaries of the Confederated States for the execution of its decrees. As soon as the Constitution has been completed, and has passed into a law, then the authority of the Central Provisional Government ceases and determines."

In conformity with this law, the Assembly proceeded, on the 29th of June, to elect a Vicar of the Empire. Out of 548 votes, 436 were given for the Archduke John of Austria. The dissentients appear to have been influenced in their adverse votes more by a desire to assert a principle,—to take up their ground as a constitutional opposition, than to oppose the election. Twentyseven members declined to vote; 52 voted for Heinrich von Gagern; 32 for Adam von Itzstein; and one peculiar gentleman voted for the Archduke Stephen.

Intimation of his election was immediately transmitted by a deputation of seven members of the Assembly, selected from the different parties, to the Archduke John at Vienna. He frankly accepted it, with the express sanction of his Court. On his way to Frankfurt, he visited several Courts, among others, those of Saxony and Prussia, who expressed their acquiescence in, and approbation of his election. Soon after his arrival in Frankfurt, envoys with addresses of recognition and congratulation appeared from several other German Governments. On the 12th of July, the President and members of the Diet present in Frankfurt solemnly resigned their functions to the Vicar of the Empire, and declared their Council finally dissolved. He was presented on the same day to the Assembly, and solemnly vowed obedience to the law under which he had been appointed. His election was confirmed and acquiesced in by the German Governments; but it was made independently of them by the representatives of the German people in the Assembly. As if to render this fact more apparent, seventy-two members entered an explanation on the protocol of the meeting, that they took part in the election solely in the hope that the Governments would acquiesce in it. This expression of submission to the Governments placed all who did not sign it in the position of men who declared that they proceeded to the election in utter indifference to the light in which it might be viewed by the Governments.

The Archduke lost no time in completing the organization of his Government. Previous engagements at Vienna prevented him from immediately taking up his abode at Frankfurt; but on the 15th July, he announced to the Assembly the nomination of a Minister of Home and Foreign Affairs, and Ministers of Justice and of War. The completion of his Cabinet, by the appointment of a President, the distribution of the Home and Foreign depart

ments between two Ministers, and the appointment of Ministers of Finance and Commerce was notified on the 10th of August. On the 21st of that month, the Minister of Foreign Affairs communicated to the Assembly the fact, that ambassadors had been appointed to the French Government, the Court of St. James', and some secondary States of Europe. The Minister of the Interior announced that the King of Hanover, the only German sovereign who had hesitated to recognise without reserve the authority of the Central Power, had intimated his submission. The following note had been received from M. von Bothmer :-" As plenipotentiary of the Hanoverian Government, I have been authorized to acknowledge, without reservation, the authority of the Central Power, and the law by which it has been instituted." The same Minis

ter adverted to the progress made in fitting out a German fleet; an undertaking commenced under the auspices of the Committee of Fifty. The Minister of War reported the progress made in augmenting and completing the organization of the army of the Confederation. The Minister of Finance could only promise to report on the state of the Exchequer of the Confederation on an early day: this promise, however, he fulfilled on the 25th. The German Governments having recognised the Central Government as the legitimate successor of the Council of the Confederation, (Bundesversammlung,) it of course inherits the means and liabilities of that body. The income consists of annual contributions from the different Governments incorporated in the Confederation in proportion to their means, and a separate fund for meeting the costs of the Record Department, (Bundescanzleicasse,) raised by equal contributions from the seventeen votes in the Standing Committee of the Diet. The expenditure of the Diet embraced salaries and pensions, travelling-expenses, expenses of commissions, &c.; but the main outlay was devoted to the maintenance of the fortresses of the Confederation. The funds transferred to the new Ministers of Finance amounted to nearly three millions of florins. Of this, however, considerably more than two millions and a half were in deposit (upon interest) with the house of Rothschild and Sons, and appropriated to the maintenance of the fortresses. The whole amount of cash in hand did not exceed 63,825 florins in the general treasury, and 16,872 in the special treasury of the Record Department. There were arrears due from some of the Governments, but of inconsiderable amount. These, it was subsequently reported, had been promptly and cheerfully paid up. The interim-government could, of course, only raise funds in the manner prescribed by the decrees of the Diet; and the Minister of Finance did not conceal from the Assembly that the expenditure of the Central Power must considerably exceed that of the Diet. In point of fact, the

Weakness of the Central Government.

253

cost of the previously existing shadow of a Central Government, and of diplomatic intercourse with foreign nations, had hitherto been borne by the Governments. These would now fall to be disbursed from the Central Treasury; and, in addition to these, the indispensable outlay of the National Assembly. A budget of Ways and Means for the last four months of 1848 was promised for an early day, and a confident hope expressed, that the increased cost of the Central Government might be amply compensated by simplification and reduction of expenditure in each of the Confederate Governments.

In itself, this new central Government of Germany is unquestionably weak. Its pecuniary resources are limited to the revenue which it has inherited from the Diet, and this is obviously inadequate to meet its ordinary expenditure. Whence, then, could it derive means to defray the expense of reducing to submission a refractory Government or Governments? The Assembly might vote an augmented revenue, but the concurrence of the plenipotentiaries of the different German Governments at Frankfurt would be required to give its vote validity, and the active concurrence of the Governments themselves to carry it into execution. Again, the army of the Central Power is not only raised in contingents by the several Governments from among their own subjects, but each contingent is paid by the Government which raises it. The army of the Central Power is, moreover, only a small part of the troops kept permanently on foot by the Governments. The fortresses are nominally in the hands of the central Government, but they are garrisoned by troops in the equivocal position we have pointed out. The expense they entail is certain; the strength they bestow dubious; nor are they all immediately in the hands of the central power. Landau is directly administered and maintained by Bavaria. The Central Government can only act by and through the State Governments; and is dependent upon their continued goodwill for the power of enforcing its decrees. Its interim character necessarily adds to its weakness. Foreign Governments cannot be expected to negotiate with it, instead of the separate States of the Confederation, until time, and the visible appearance of confirmed strength, afford them a guarantee that it can compel the whole of Germany to fulfil its engagements. The doubts of foreigners will re-act upon public opinion at home, and enfeeble it there also. The central power is very weak; and without an efficient executive Government to uphold and defend it, a legislative assembly is but a name.

On the other hand, the State Governments of Germany are equally weak, if not more so. The central Government is the creation quite as much of the Governments as the people of