The Press.
London, England, 1855-04-07 00:00:00

SATURDAY,

neither surprised nor alarmed at the obstacles, the delays,
and the turnings of the road. Success in great designs is
always more difficult and more dearly purchased than the
imagination of man dreams of; and (jo!, who promises
everything to those who ask it of Him with wisdom, does
not give them a dispensation from suffering and combat.
Let us in particular hasten to abandon the path into which
the revolutionary spirit has thrown us—it will always lead
to the same abysses.

There can, we believe, be but one opinion
as to the profundity of these views, and as to
the remarkable eloquence with which they
are expressed; they are du Guizot of his hap.
piest moments, and in his best manner. But
we confess that we could have wished the
" hopes " to have been a little less general,
and a little less vague. As Englishmen we
like the practical, especially in politics.

History of Modern Italy. From the First
French Revolution to the Year 1850. By
Richard Heber Wrightson. London :
Bentley.
Ma. WRIGHTSON in this volume has given us a
very concise and clear sketch of the several
political events which have taken place in the
various States of modern Italy from the time
of the first French revolution to the year 1850.
It requires a writer of no ordinary intelligence
to comprehend the tactics of the different par-
ties which exist in Italy, and, moreover, to
possess a very intimate acquaintance with
their political literature, before he can
hope to delineate the real feelings and senti-
ments of the Italians. Mr. Wrightson appears
to possess all these attributes. He has stu-
died the people, road their literature, examined
their political condition, and, while unravelling
and exposing to us the intrigues and plots of
the "Young Italy " and democratic party, does
not [fail to raise his voice against the real
grievances of the country, the cruel oppres-
sions of Austrian intervention, and the utter
extinction of all freedom, crushed by the
stifling weight of her military occupation.
The history of modern Italy from the peace of
1815 to 1850 is simply the history of repression
and revolt. Any attempt at a detailed narra-
tive of the complications of events which have
occurred for the last forty years in Italy would
be far beyond the limits of our space or the
patience of our readers; but we may endea-
vour to give a slight sketch of some of the
leading characteristics of Mr. Wiightson's
book, which treats of the various occurrences
which have taken place since 1815, with a
view, as he remarks in his preface, of pre-
senting such " a retrospect of the past as
" may be useful in estimating the hopes
" and probabilities of the future," and to de-
precate, rather than recommend, any inter-
ference by foreign sympathisers in questions
"which can only be brought to a satisfactory
" solution by the intelligence and fortitude of
" the people whom they concern." The
secret machinations of the democratic party,
the military occupation of the country by
Austria, the fatal misrule of the States of
the Church, and the envy, hatred, and malice
which characterise tile conduct of the various
petty Governments one towards another, aro
the reasons Mr. Wrightson assigns for the
present condition of the country. In Italy
there have always existed, more or less, from
times immemorial, secret associations for
political purposes : and it would not be an
uninteresting subject for an author to trace
the origin and progress of the various secret
societies which have at all times of political
agitation so seriously affected the course of
events in Italy. In the days of the first French
revolution these fraternities were revived from
the languor into which they had sunk, first in
Naples by the persecutions which were inflicted
by the Government upon the suspected Repub-
licans, and finally over all the Italian States,
from the intolerable oppression of the French
imperial rule. The Carbonari—such was their
name—hating equally all kings, gradually in
creased in number and power, until, in 1815,
rival sects were formed by the restored Courts
of Rome and Naples— the Sanfedieti and
Calderari, who engaged to defend the in-
terests of Government against the Republi-
cans. To the existence of these hostile fac-
tions Mr. Wrightson lays all the multiplied
sufferings and miseries of modern Italy.
They have perpetually proved a continual