himself. As the advisers upon whom he depended were removed by death, the absence of military capacity which his habitual reticence had concealed was manifested by his extraordinary ignorance of the weakness of the force which he had at his disposal, and the utter rottenness of its organization. Meanwhile Italian assassins warned Louis's advisers of the desperate insecurity of the tenure by which they held their own position, and of the necessity of distracting the attention of the restless spirits who made it their business to inquire into their master's title. Within a year, therefore, of the execution of Orsini and his friend, a quarrel was fastened on the Austrian ambassador, which reminded us of the first Emperor's insult to our own Lord Whitworth, and the Imperial word went forth that Italy was to be freed "from the Alps to the Adriatic."[1] Although Louis was unable to accomplish this programme, he was enabled by great good fortune, the aid of Sardinia, the execrably bad generalship of the Austrians, and the military prestige which still attached to the French name, to pave the way for this result; and Austria was not only humbled, but had moreover to surrender Venetia to Sardinia. No sooner was the war over, than Louis was suspected of casting longing eyes at the territories of his brave little ally,[2] and in A Scene from the New Pantomime, he figures as clown, holding a revolver in his hand, with a goose marked "Italy" in his capacious pocket, as-
- ↑ Louis was fond of these theatrical announcements, which answered the purpose he designed, of attracting the sympathy of the impressionable French people. The following is a short summary of the mode in which Italy was really freed "from the Alps to the Adriatic":—Lombardy was surrendered to Sardinia nth July, 1859; the treaty ceding Savoy and Nice to France was signed 24th March, and approved by the Sardinian Parliament 29th May, 1860. The French troops retired from Italy the same month. Garibaldi landed at Marsala 11th May, 1860, and entered Naples on the 18th of August. The kingdom of Italy was recognised by Great Britain 315! March, 1861. In 1864 Florence was declared the capital of Italy The French troops left Rome in November, 1865. Venetia was ceded to France by Austria 3rd July, 1866. They retired from the Quadrilateral in October, 1866; Venice was annexed to Italy the same month; the Italian troops entered Rome in September, 1870, when Napoleon III. was no longer able to interpose, and it was incorporated in the Italian kingdom in October.
- ↑ See previous note.
