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    May 19, 1SGO.] The Leader and Saturday A...

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    GARIBALDI IN SICTLY. _ a THE events now ...

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    The Lords And The Paper Duty. It Is Very...

    popular power by every means at their disposal . The cheap press will not be a conservative press in their sense of the word . It ¦ mil sympathize with the people , and must do so for its own success- It will . tell the masses very much that the aristocracy would rather they did hot know , and contribute to those changes of opinion which inevitably lead to corresponding changes in political institutions . This is the real ground of the opposition , which , like all proceedings of selfishness , is very shortsighted . The formation of opinion is of all habits that which is most antagonistic to mischievous violence ; and that very power of the press which the old whigs and tories tremble at , is the greatest safeguard we can possess against inconsiderate or ill-advised legislative acts .

    The habit of discussing all questions in newspapers necessarily involves a transfer of power , and reduces the Legislature more and more to a machine for executing the national commands ; but this is a movement of orderly growth and development , and can only occasion alarm to those who desire to do something contrary to the general good . It is in vain to expect that any institutions can escape modification as society progresses , and if the Lords make a fight for privilege , the community will be driven in selfdefence to examine their claims , and ask what they do in return

    for protection in a semi-feudal position , the retention of which has not been permitted to the aristocracy of any other civilized and free country . It will be imprudent for the Peers to reckon upon the continuance of popular apathy , or the lamentable deficiency of talent and patriotism in the existing House of Commons . There are undercurrents of opinion constantly undermining old ideas , and preparing the place for new thoughts which gro \ v ~ silently like the seeds which the farmer sows . We may . be some years from thenext period of agitation , or only removed from it by days or hours , but we may "be sure that the state of quiescence * is only transient ; the character of our people remains the same , and they will , after a certain amount of rest , rouse themselves as of old to make- the political and social world more conformable to the best patterns that they can conceive .

    May 19, 1sgo.] The Leader And Saturday A...

    May 19 , 1 SGO . ] The Leader and Saturday Analyst . 465

    Garibaldi In Sictly. _ A The Events Now ...

    GARIBALDI IN SICTLY . _ a THE events now occurring in Sicily are by no means clearly apprehended by the British public , and it is . greatly to be lamented that since " tile death ' . of the -estimable- 'Lord Dudley Stuaut no Member of Parliament makes a stud y of Continental questions for the laudable-purpose of directing English energies and sympathies in a manner favourable to the progress of constitutional liberty . It would be a slander upon Englishmen to believe that -the selfish and unmanly doctrines of the Manchester School were popularly accepted , and we believe that the

    ftppftrem- ' -M ^ ffpj- <> - »» " - "" d ^ p { it . hy to human , rights in other lands arises out . of the complexity of the circumstances , and the want of any definite object to which , our efforts could be applied with the certainty of leading to a beneficial result . The expedition of the brave and noble . Garibaldi is , like every case that has been presented to us for several years , by no means simple in its details or easy to trace in its probable results . Many prudent lovers of liberty will ask , why did it occur now ? And others will criticise severely the attitude of Count Cavour .

    In reply to the blame that ' may be considered to attach-to a premature movement , we may observe that an isolated outbreak in Sicily was certainly not designed by Gauiualdi , Poereo , Mazzjxi , or Ca-VOUU ; and there is good reason to believe that the movement , being anticipated by the Sicilian Government , was forqed on by circumstances over which the Italian leaders had no control . Such rulers as thoso of " Sicily , backed by such friends as the perjured and unprincipled Emperor of Austria , would have gone on arresting , slaying , and imprisoning every man and

    woman of good character and patriotic views , when ouee its suspicions were aroused , and hence the Sicilians found the risk of a premature rising less than that of quietly suffering assaults that would have made a future revolution impracticable . The King of Sardinia has ' never concealed his wish that all Italy should be free , and his hopes of being able to assist in the great work of emancipation ; but for his own sake , it is obvious he could not desire to precip itate a conflict in one place , while other enslaved portions , of Italy were not ready to take their part .

    It is honourable to the Italians tluit all partios have united for the common cause . The King and the Republicans go hand in hand , together' with the aristocratic minister and the popular chief . VICTOR Emmanuel , Cavovr , Massssiki , and Gartbalui all agree in love for their country and native land ; and now that a King has been found who has proved himself worthy of his oil too , he enjoys the suffrages of democracy as well as the support of thoso who arc most thoroughly imbued with monarchical ideas . If European diplomacy were not an essentially immoral and fraudulent thins , the position of such a sovereign

    would have few international difficulties ; but a strong pressure is brought to bear upon him by the rulers of this country as well as by Imperial France , which helps to give an untruthful aspect to the conduct of his cabinet . This is well known in Turin * where our minister , who understands and respects the Italians , is constantly hampered by pusillanimous counsels and halfhearted instructions from his superiors at home . The King of Sardinia ought , so far as our moral power can assist him , to be rendered independent of false conventionalities , and enabled , through his ministers , to speak the plain truth . As a man and an Italian , it is his duty to sympathize with the wrongs of Sicily and Venice , aud to deelare at all times his earnest desire that

    they may be free . Not only during the whole course of his life , but up to the latest hour , he has witnessed the criminal intervention of Austria in the Italian States ; and while during every week FitAXcis Joseph has despatched to Ancona Austrian soldiers disbanded from his own army , and re-enlisted by his orders in the service of the Pope or the King of Naples , Victor Emmanuel- ought not to be forced by the craft of diplomacy into the slightest appearance of discountenancing- the arrangements of Garibaldi to secure his countrymen fair play . A weak but well-meaning contemporary asserts that our Government cannot act in this matter . AYe wish the Government felt

    that impossibility whenever it was indisposed to do right ; but we deny the theory altogether , and protest against the severance of moral obligation from diplomatic procedure . A British minister ought to avow his sympathy with every good cause , and the necessity for resorting to arms will become more rare when any Government is enlightened enough and honest enough to appeal to the moral consciousness of nations on behalf of justice and human right .

    A feiv days . will , we trust , bring information of the success of Gakibaldi ' s hazardous but not unhopeful descent upon Sicily , which may prove an isolated movement , merely . leading to the annexation " . of the island to Sardinia , or may bring tho latter country into collision with the Pope , the King—of Naples , and the Austrian oppressors of Venetia . Lamo-riciere is believed to be impatient to wield his recreant sword in the cause of his new masters ; and thereris little doubt that the success of the Sicilian insurrection would be followed by commotions'in the

    Papal States . If , unhappily , . Garibaldi should fail , the . position of . the Sardinian Government will be " most critical , as the Italians will look only to those measures it has taken against its own convictions , and out of deference to that , m iserable diplomacy which the Palmelts'roN * cabinet has not the courage to repudiate . It is . natural that the French Empire should obstruot a simple and truthful course , because truth is poison to a despot ; but England should once more set an example , as she did in the days of Cromwell , and show to the world . the-moral power of speaking bolcllyln favour of ~ flle ~ Tte ; lTir : —VYtrTjmmotrbTrsnr--prised at the sense of uneasiness which the commencing clash of

    arms has produced , for Europe very much resembles a long powder-train , and when sparks ily about , no one knows what explosions may take place . It' a new Italian war arises , what is to become of Austria ? what of Hungary ? what of Serviawhich ' must be protected from llussia , either by a free Hungary or a regenerate Austria , unless it is to fall a prey to the ambition of the Czar , it is not for the love of religion or of freedom that the Court ¦ of St . Petersburg ; 'has again discovered that the Christians , of Turkey are oppressed . The best way of helping those Christians would be by sufferin"' AS uldo- \ Vallachiu and Servia to coalesce , and form

    the nucleus aud commencement of a new Christian power ; but that is exactly what Kussiu wishes to prevent , unlcss _ it be accomplished by their absorption in her own unwieldy dominions . The movements of ltussia are by no means free from suspicion . Prussia , prepares to fight--not for liberty , because her miserable court is afraid of it , —not for ( Jennan unity , because her ruler has no higher ambition than that of taking- snuff with legitimate kings . Our . inscrutable neighbour is always armed like a porcupine , and though he may not have officially told Lord Cowlky that any further aggrnndisonuint of Sardinia will require to be compensated by a further ratification of the boundaries of

    France , the French pcoplo are studiously led to expect a further gratification of national vanity , or some more " fighting for an idea , " niul perhaps their master does not k now much more than the rest of the world w ' hut . sort of iin " idea" it may be . That he designs to quarrel with us we do not yet believe j but his scribos are again engaged in provoking a , hostile feeling , by discussing the methods of avenging ' Waterloo . We havo , however , in the midst of our alarms , some consolation in knowing that army patronage is distributed us honestly as Mr , Pollen a i ; it administered the funds to the Union Jiunk— - the Honourable Ciiahl . es Uuey has obtained a colonelcy for valiant services on the carpets of Buckingham Palace . Many an old

• Citation
  • Leader (1850-1860), May 19, 1860, page 5, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/cld_19051860/page/5/