The Express.
London, England, 1866-05-31 00:00:00

[STAMPED, id. ADDITIONAL.]

ITALY.
.-.- •

(1011 OUR OWN COUNOPONDENT.)

FLORENCE, MAY 27.

In the columns of one of your contemporaries I
find it written that "at Florence no one believes

the Italian army will be able to cope with
Austria alone." Now, this is so remarkably the
reverse of the truth, and is so evidently dictated by
thatill-humourwhich hasbeen aroused againstltaly,
because her determination to fight for the recovery
of Venice threatens to disturb the tranquillity

which is agreeable and naeful to England, that it

is worth while to contradict it emphatically.

Florence everybody—every Italian at least—be-
lieves most devoutly that the Italian army will be
able alone to cope with Austria, if it should so turn
out that the necessity for doing so shall arise. It
may be that this confidence is felt in a higher
degree than the facts on which an opinion on the
subject should be formed may justify. But the
opinion, you may trust me, is all but universal.
There has been to-day a slightly increased ten-
dency to believe in the possibility of war being
averted. The contrary opinion is by very far the
more previlent one. But there are a certain num-
ber of usually well-informed persons who begin to

think that a conference will succeed in getting

itself together, and, having accomplished that
much, may possibly further succeed in arranging
the subjects of dispute before the cannon has
spoken. It is difficult, however, to see how this
can be. And it is clear that any conference which
could have any chance of achieving such a result
must do its spiriting at a very much quicker pace
than that at which such diplomacy is usually in the
habit of moving. In order to prevent war, not only
must Venice be ceded, but it must be ceded very
quickly. No people can be kept long in the state
of fever in which the Italians now are. The news
to-day is that the main corps d'a mac has moved
forward to within seven miles of Mantua, a proxi-

mity very dangerous to the chances of maintain-

ing peace.

I have heard, in a manner which loaves me in no
doubt as to the accuracy of the statement, that the
Emperor of Austria is to the highest degree
irritated against Louis Napoleon (as he well may
be)—that he considers himself to have been de-
ceived, fooled, and betrayed by the French Em-
peror—and that his anger against him finds vent in
the most energetic, and not altogether royally
worded, abuse. Your readers will probably re-
member a mot, which was attributed to the Em-
peror of the French, in the papers the other day
with reference to the Princess do Metternich
" Because she can sing the sapeur,' " said the
Emperor, according to these anecdote mongers,
" she thinks she can govern Europe." Now this
met seems to carry with it an explanation of an
important part of the present situation. May not the
Imperial utterance be thus interpreted :—Because
the Austrian ambassador and his wife have been
the object of much social consideration at my court,
they conceive that they have political influence.
In this belief they have written home, and per-
suaded the Austrian Emperor that France was
' with him—that French sympathies were all with
Austria, and that they could answer for it Austria
might show a bold front towards her foes, secure
of the neutrality of France. Suppose that Aux.,
tria, duped by these representations, has advanced
into a position of considerable danger—a position
from which it is extremely difficult for her
to draw back—and that then France turns
round and says, "Yea, I will be neutral in
a quarrel between you and Prussia, but
observe, I never said that I would be neutral as
between you and Italy ;" and suppose that France
knew perfectly well, all the time she was talking of
neutrality, that the case in which she did not in-
tend to be neutral was a case which was assuredly
about to arise—then, and under these circum-
stances, ono can understand that the Kaiser may
feel himself to have been befooled and betrayed,
and may be angry accordingly.
Not only does everybody here believe in the
power of Italy to cope with Austria—the great
majority believe also that, supposing the projected
conference to meet and to sit, there is no possi-
bility that it should attain any other result
than that of in some sort legitimising the war
that must follow. The only immediate difficulty
which troubles us here is an embarraa de rticAeese in
the article of war force. When the lists for the
enrollment of volunteers were first opened several
days ago the enlistments proceeded at the rate of
five, six, or seven hundred a day. The process of
enrollment was then suspended for a while. Yes-
terday the lists were again opened " for three
days." The result of the first day's operations
here in Florence was the enlistment of two thou-
sand three hundred men. And telegraphic ac-
counts from all parts of the country show that the
entire produce of yesterday's work was upwards of
fifty thousand. And if the acceptance of all able-
bodied corners continue for the other promised
two days this number will be at least
trebled. The government was startled at the
prospect. What is to be done with an army of
something like two hundred thousand volunteers!
The consequence was that this morning in Florence
the enrollment was again suspended. But the
numbers presenting themselves as candidates for
admission into the Garibaldian ranks was so great,
and the discontent at the disappointment of their
hopes so loud, that the last account is that the
prefect told the people to be tranquil and patient,
and all should be enrolled.
The English papers have been telling their
readers that Garibaldi was here, or there. At
Ancona, one usually well-informed journal says :
" The fact is that Garibaldi has not left Caprera.
He will place himself at the head of the volunteer
army when it shall be completely formed—being
wisely desirous that the government, and not he,
should be the active agent in the business of calling
out the volunteers."
With regard to the nature of the attempt which
it is supposed the Conference will make for the
arrangement of all the pending difficulties, it is
almost a case of " quot homines, tot sententite.''
There is one thing only that no living creature
believes, and that is the disinterestedness of
France. France has made up her book to
win. Nobody doubts that. But if we
could only tell what the nature of her
hedging has been, which horse she really means to
back, and what it is she stands to win, the
European future would not be so inscrutably dark
as it is. My belief is that Austria is to go to the
wall,—not in the matter of Venice only,—not in
the question of the Duchies only,—not in the
question of the Principalities only,—but in other