The Sun.
London, England, 1848-07-17 00:00:00

ITALY.

ROME.
The following is the address of the Chamber of
Deputies of Rome in reply to the speech from the
throne :
" Most Holy Father,--The first duty of your
people, and of all us, who are their representatives,
is to offer to your Holiness the most solemn thanks
for having called us to the exercise of political life—
giveai a reality to our rights—and laid the foundations
of a true, just, and unchangeable liberty—a memo-
rable undertaking, and worthy of your name, to have
made distinct in one sole person the authority of the
Pontiff and the just power of the Sovereign.
" We are well aware, nay, we feel a conscious con -
viceion, that nothing can give more stability to public
institutions than the true spirit of religion, which,
inas much as it engenders, and consolidates lib
read erty.
,
renders it easier for it to gerrnivate and to sp
Hence the love of that faith, of which yotuo
re are
the guardian and the teacher, makes
bus
trbejeon ic
aetubef
that whilst you, an enemy
to tbhe le e vh esupreme s
the
your disposition and by the all
leect of
priesthood, are distributing to the true
celestial treasures of grace, peace, amdl trbut, you
transfer to responsible ministers the
am i administration
of the temporal dominion, which, neverthel, is
yours also.
" Thus our utmost intellectual endeavours shall
the
be
directed to harmonize, as best we may, and
shortest possible thne,t the national unitybs ta—thintial is
the first goal of all our thoughti, and su
aim of every design. Our views are so determined
on that object, that should we feel the necessity of
advising the Government to propose any alteration in
the constitution for the manifest advantage of the
people, we shall always study and endeavour to seal
that unity with laws reciprocally suitable.
" We are satisfied we stand in no need of encourag-
iem-you to establish the Italian League, since it is you
.who first thought of it, would have it, and favoured
• it. We dare to go further still, and we, moreover,
promise ourselves to see it in a short time determined
upon chiefly between the two supports to which Italy
addresses her fervent prayers—the victorious sword of
Charles Albert and the authority of the Pon-
tificate, both of which, less by the transitory
conventions between Prince and Prince, than by
wise and co-ordinate institutions, will render it firm
and perpetual. But as as e see clearly that such
a league could be bound by no other tie than a na-
tional Diet, we express our most fervent wishes that
you. yourself would, in this Rome, become its centre
and commencement ; and we entertain no doubt, that
in conjunction with all the other populations of the
peninsula, the noble and strong Sicily will become a
member of it, and it will prove an addition to her
glory to complete the wished-for unity, having with
her own blood conquered liberty. The present con-
dition of the Neapolitan kingdom seems, indeed, repug-
nant to so noble a cause, since the troops, perversely
called back, after having as much as it lay in their
power resisted the Italian enterprise, have occasioned
perturbation and mischief and scandalous outrages
in our provinces. We do not raide to that people
destinies different from our own, but if it has not
been in the power of your Government to pre-
vent that ignominious abandonment (desertion !),
you will not fail to ask satisfaction for those
outrages from him who gave the ominous command.
We entreat you to recommend to the protection of
King. Charles Albert those of your magnanimous
children who, flushed with a sacred and unrestrained
ardour for the national contest, have been
prompted to fly to_ arms, in order to avenge the Italian
name. It is the sanguine wish of the representatives
of your people that with that illustrious Prince, and
the magnanimous and loyal Tuscan, as well as with
other States, official negotiations may be without
delay entered into, with a view to provide for the
actual necessities of war. It is worthy and honour-
able to the sacerdotal ministry, and most concordant
with your celestial mind, to pronounce amongst belli-
gerents a word of peace (the Italian nationality as
foundation and principle) ; but, although we disdain
any imitation whatsoever of the stipulations of Cam-
poformio, we are however of opinion that your peo-
ple neither ought nor can lay down their arms, and
that, on the contrary, they should try all the means
in their power to re-invigorate the war, until our
common country shall have been recognised in its
natural frontiers.
" The national right established and declared by
every civilised nation, and principally by the learned
and generous Germans, leads us to indulge in the
hope that out own forces will be sufficient to give to
this war a good termination. It is a defensive and just
war, since it is a war solely to re-possess our-
selves of what was taken from us by force. But
should it come to pass that some others were inclined
to wage war in our land against those rights which
he defended in his own house, making himself the
champion of those echo deny to Italy the power of
becoming Italy, and jointly with our chains to rivet
his own,—there would not certainly remain unavail-
able the offers of a spirited and gallant people, who,
aspiring in our days to no unjust and dangerous con-
quests, could be able to repulse the violence of arms,
without polluting this sacred ground with blood.
"It would prove that man very indifferently ac-
quainted with public business who presumptuously
ventured to answer for peace, order, and internal
liberty, after examining with little care the external
relations of the state. But, although we consider this
matter of the highest importance, we have no less at
heart our internal affairs, to which the Government
ought to have already applied such provisions, and we
expect that it will in a short time lay before us by
what means it proposes to re-organize the trea-
sury, to restore credit,' and to heal every part of the
public administration. These are no small evils ;
but by cutting off the excess of the expenses and the
multiplicity of offices, by reducing the pensions, by a
better distribution of taxation, by the available pro-
duction of the national property, and by taking off
the restrictions on commerce, we do not despair to be
enabled to surmount our present difficulties.
" We also confidently expect that our police shall
be reformed in accordance with the present civilisa-
tion, and become the guarantee of order and security,
nor longer busy itself with the scrutiny of the
thoughts, with injurious suspicions, and with
other hindrances to personal liberty. The tears
of deserted families shall no longer be profitable to
a wretched race, which boasted of protecting the
Government, whilst it was only conniving to devour
it, and so destroy all the means which might prove
instrumental to civil improvements.
"We also hope and promise ourselves much from
the impartial administration of justice. We expect
laws and tribunals better and not dissimilar from
• those of other Italian states—public trials, and in
our own tongue—and a public ministry to preside over
it—reduced fete—in law trials of common right no
privilege of fir .c--;,o offences of the press a jury—
no more confiscation, no more pain of death. Des-
potism shall be impossible—all kind of rights firmer
and sacred.
" After honour and life we require that all pro-
perties shall be sacred, and we will not spare our la-
bour that, byremoving all useless burdens, the interest
of supporting property may always be on the increase.
But, as it clearly appears to us that ignorance is the
foremost cause of false opinions, and of the loose
manner of living,' it would bring much mischief
on the people, and no less blame on us, if to public
instruction and to civil education we were not careful
to apply ourselves in a manner corresponding with
the progressive institutions of the state, and of the
growing civilization.
" We shall bestow the same attention to the pro-
vincial as to the municipal regulations, which
will greatly contribute to improve the condition of
the people, when a new form of elections, based on a
- large scale, shall have returned to them the public
confidence—when the income and the jurisdiction of
the municipalities, shall be separated from those of the
state—when a more equitable separation of territories
shall secure in the municipal liberty the first foun-
• . dation of political life.
"If the difficulty of the undertaking can be sur-
passed by the desire, we are heartily. disposed to lend
you our support in every social improvement; we
will make ourselves a study to eradicate the roots
of guilt and misery. What would it avail us to have
new laws, were stupid or wicked executors still to
administer them ? What would prisons avail, if,
instead of correcting the guilty, the reciprocal tuition
in all kinds of vice were still suffered in them ?
Our principal attention is directed to that portion of
the people whose labour supports our life ; we will
procure them help ; we will remove obstacles to the
industrious workman, to the honest farmer, that his
- bread be gained by the sweat of his brow, but no
longer moistened with tears.
" For all these reforms you had prepared yourself
an invincible bulwark in the Civic Guard, to the
faith of which you have intrusted their keeping and
their defence. The people, aware of the obligations
which bind them to this courageous militia—aware of
the narrowly-escaped dangers, of that order it has
preserved—the !more confidently intrust to it their
infant liberty, the more heartily bless and thank you,
who have bestowed on them so great and permanent
benefit.
" We will do all our endeavours, Most Holy
Father to begin this great labour without delay. We
feel, and we respect too much in ourselves the rights
of the people whom we represent, not to know how
to proceed in it with courage and moderation. We
are proud to comply with the noble duty of raising
• in union with you and your Government the glorious
statue of liberty, ready, as we are, to defend it from
those who might still dream of reviving past times, no
less than from those who, thirsting for peculation,
prefer abuses and corruptions to a well-regulated
society.
" It was with the sacerdotal word of peace and
union that 3rou commenced and proclaimed our rege-
neration. We shall, we feel, strictly adhere to your