On this page
-
Text (1)
-
.J^f . •• ¦ ..- THE LEADER. '[No. 495. S...
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
-
-
Transcript
-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
Some Memorials Of Eenee ,()F Feance, Duc...
THE ITALIAN CAMPAIGNS OF GENERAL BONA- PARTE IN 1790-7 and 1800 . By George Hooper . With a Map . —Smith , Elder and Co . ' " The present throws such a li «* ht upon the past , that it may now be better _interpreted than it could at any previous _fteriod . -Nay , a few weeks will make a considerable difference in the state of maice a considerable ditterence in . tue state pr opinion . The independence of Italy adopted by France as a cau _^ e advantageous to herself , is now proved to have been not a mere illusion ,. of which the Bonaparte of the time _niigiit take occasion for the benefit of a dynasty , but a real European cause , which , apart from all personal cbnsidera- tions , ' necessarily arrayed the leader of the French armies on the side of freedom . Whatever might be the ambition or character of Napoleon , wlfat- ever his motive or design , however despotic or self-seeking , his part was necessarily , by the law of events and _theControl of inevitable destiny , on the side of Italian liberty and against Austrian predominance . The Napoleon of that time and _this could , and can , only represent Prance , and the cosmical relation in which that country stands towards others . The misconduct of the indivi- dual may delay the issue . But the tendency still progresses towards its destined termination , what- ever may be the _windings or impediments that the stream _mav have to master All this ' was shadowed forth in what has been called the " great design" of Henry IV ., and has since been indicated in the exploits of Napoleon IU . The ultimate form , however , to be assumed may be something very different from that pro- jected by either _; but the spirit of the entire tran- saction will be the same , and the preservation of the balance of power in Europe the prevailing motive . Mr . Hooper ' s book is not altogether enlightened with the experience which is now accumulating , and which brings out the principle above an- nounced in such strong relief ; nevertheless , he writes very sensibly on the general character of the contest : . " The first thing that strikes the observer is that ; the Napoleon of our day has Piedmont for an ally , and not for an enemy . Next , that he has started , not from _Liguria , but from Alessandria and the To . Thirdly , that he has not had to depend at first upon limited and precarious communications , traversing barren rocks and dangerous shores , but that he has had open to him all the roads into Italy , including the silent highway of the sea ; and that he has been able to transport men , materiel , and _atores , to Genoa and to Leghorn , and to send a fleet of war ships into the Adriatic , as well as to march his battalions over the Mont Cenis . Fourthly , one great fact must be noted ; the contending armies are four times as great as they were in 1796 , and more than three as great as they were in 1800 . Nor is this all : new arms have been invented , rifled cannon and rifled muskets ; new appliances , the electric telegraph used in the field , the apparatus of the photographer , above all the railway and the steamship , which have vastly augmented the locomotive power of armies , lessened then : fatigues , and brought them with speed and freshness to the very verge of the field of battle . These are great and important differences . It is true _tnatthebalance in favour of our day over the days ofold is shared by both Sldes , though in an unequal degree , for the _Austnans havq no commanding marine . In 1790 , the people , especially those of Piedmont and the States of Venice were animated by a strong dislike of the French . In 1859 ' there is _hWanltalian except he be a priest , or a noble . highly placed in the service of Austria , or an ignorant peasant besotted with superstition , who is not de- voted to France , because the French chief of 1859 , like his predecessor of 1796 , is regarded as tho " liberator" of Italy . " _ ., « _,, . _, . .. . _,. .. I , .. The following also merits implicit attention : — ' It has been seen that in our day tho French in- vading army has had free access to the plains of Piedmont by tho Alps , the sea , and the Apennines , In crossing the Mont Conis tho infantry were re- _minded of the genius of Napoleon the _Flr _« t ; and tho hwsemon who lately rode along tho Oorniche to tho gates of friendly Genoa , must also have remembered who it was that opened this fine road . On their side , also , the Austrians have made _roada that did not _exietin 1796 . There is tho great railway which links Vienna with Verona , Mantua , and Milan . In addition to tho mountain road through tUo Tyrol that , climbirig % \\ e Brenner * passes by Trent and down the valley of the Adige , they have made another road into the valley of the Adige by tho valley of the Dravo . They have also connected tho _aSSH _^^ _Si 9 _!^ _NS _^ _iJPJKgS ; _iLLu . ' _i'i . u _. . ft ..... . . ¦ ¦ I . ! .- ¦ '' _, ¦ , _r . rI _. ITHI . _mrft-iifti ¦ I _.. H . 1 1 _JWll _|; _r _^ _ml _1 _:-: _¦>^ _r _!^ _M _* _T _^ _fel _<^ _1 _h _t
Some Memorials Of Eenee ,()F Feance, Duc...
structed in p _* art above the limits of the eternal snows is a marvellous work of engineering . It _traverses ravines on bridges , it dives under hills , and descends in steep _gradients abrupt precipices . ' It is regarded as ' a strong line of military communicatio n with Como and Milan , because it may be easily defended ; but i ] t may be questioned whefeher , with an msurrec- Valtcline , it would be of great service in & cam ai _beyond _^ ecuring a i ine Sf retreat , easily closed to a , pursuing force , or in serving as a route along which a corps might be sent to vex and threaten the rear of an army fronting the Miricio . Then there is a road over the Mont Tonale which connects one of the affluents of the Adige with head waters of the Oglio , and joins the great Lombard highway between Milan and Brescia . The road over the lofty Tonale is connected witlr a road ex- tending westward to the basin of the kttle _lakeLake _™™> and passing down the eastern shore of the lake _^^^^^^ _HS'ihe _' _bSl o ° f the \ Ike _o _^^ A _^ the _^ V s _^ T _^^ a _^ tt purpose ofgiving Austrian troops a flank _aecessmto the plains of Lombardy . They may be turned against her by a daring chief , who with a sufficient force should carry on a . partisan war in the hills and deep glens so suitable for that kind of fighting , because they give access to the Tyrol and the flank of the Austrian line of communication by the valley of the Adigo , as well as access to _JLom- _bardy . " It will not be expected that we should present any analysis of this work , which obviously contains a popular exposition of a story only too often written , and generally known . Of _coiu'se , the author has endeavoured to throw in new light , and to redistribute the events to serve his own peculiar purpose . The tale is told with great spirit . Mr . Hooper ' s style is good ; his descriptions are graphic , and the course of action proceeds -with rapidity and Bonapartean vigour , The author ' s manner is appropriate to the stirring nature of his argument . — — A LITTLE TOUR IN IRELAND ; being a visit to Dub- lin _. Gahvay , Connamara _. _Atlilone , Limerick , Killarncy , Glengarriff , Cork , & c ., & c ., & c . By an Oxonian . With Illustrations by John Leech . —Bradbury & Evans . W _^ E the Oxonians work other tW it Is , Leech ' s illustrations would go far to make this w . "; , r T + _^ _o _*~ a _? _U _i _. _« + _1 . o _™ r ., W _/ , _Vm b ° ok P <> P ular - I * professes to be the production of a fast undergraduate , who writes satirically enough on current topics . Fox-hunting and lovemaking were among his foibles . His life was an everlasting dream of fair women . His attach- ments were fierce but fugitive . He was upwards of six feet high . His thoughts are not always equally elevated . His opinions on places , per- sonS ) and things in Ireland are of the running order * Touch and cro- touch and " _-o Touch and go , touch and O o . Nevertheless , among these touches , are touches of sincerity , e . g . — « The Chapel of Trinity College , like some in our English Universities , is more suggestive of . sleop than suppUcation , gioomy without being solemn , and the light dim without being religious . There was a sacrifice of two inverted hassocks upon the altar bllt the idol ofrthe p ] ace a giffantic pulpit , indignantly turned his back on them 7 and I was not eiow to follow his example , with a sigh for * " ? 1 _' ? V _^ O ? ( _J old days , when _noug-ht of rich or rare , _^ _tS _^ _iS _& S _^^^^ _^ . Indeed , I felt much more impressed and inclined to take off * my hat in the Examination and _Dining- Halls , as I stood in the pictured presence of Irish worthies , and thought of thorn , and of others not there ,, pourtrayed , in all their young power and pro- miso . ' I thought of Archbishop _CJsslttr _, who , a boy of eighteen , contended with tho Jesuit , _Fittf- _Symonda , and was designated by hia opponent as " acatholicorum dootissimus . " I thought of Swift , as well I might , having recently read , for the third time , that most touching _oasay on his life and gonius from tho master hand of Thackeray . * I could cry over that lecture any time ; there ia so much noble sympathy in it of one groat gonius with andthor _^ - such a tender yearning not to condemn , and , all the while , such a grand , honest resolution to take side with what is right and true . I thought of Swift , " wild and witty , " in tho happiost days of his uu- happy life , getting his degree , " speoiali gratid" ( as a most particular favour ) , und going forth into the world to ho a disappointed , miserable man— -to fight against weapons which Wmself had welded , a _hopa- - _"V _M » _S »» '"» _nour , 8 ta 0 ftho oig htooutU _. c » tury _^ ¦ ¦ _!^ _r _. _OCT _^ _n _;^ _' _^^ _^ _. _•" _: ' _r"" '' . ti i ' lt T _" ' ' !? _' _!; i : '; , ' 'i l _' . ' . ' . ' . 'vr , _> ,. _. ' _. _"""' _t 1 _-, ;' 1 , _"'"H 1 , rT , ' . iJ ; 'T < ""' i ' _. ' .
Some Memorials Of Eenee ,()F Feance, Duc...
less , maddening fight . All must pity , as Johnson and Thackeray pity , but who can love ? He put on the surplice for mere earthly views , and it was to him as the shirt of Hercules I And next ( could two men differ more ? - ) Of Goldsmith . I thought of him shy and silent ( for he was a dull boy , we read , and never learned the art of conversation ) , chaffed by his fellow-students and saluted by them , doubtless , in the exuberance of their playful wit , as Demosthenes , Cicero , & c & c until he might have felt himself , like _his ' own ' '" Traveller , " " Remote , unfriended ,. melancholy , slow ' . , . . v _. Q _~ , + t , _q _«~ f _« 1 i- ,, \ _^ _^^^^^^^^ _' _' _^^ _^ t _^^ He _^ Lc _^ i _^^ _hU _^* 1 _?* _- _^^ _Jance _* _£ _™ J _g _™ T _A ' as _^ tTJ a _S It § _« _£ _, _£ and for gentlem m n _Jj _£ _V _^ _lTZtel h _' igl ? ter > esence * £ « sweet gi _£ e radua ? es with the ! r golden hair ?») " and took _tlJbox Sis £ _*> much ta _^ s hea _^^ that he packed up his all , I _^™ ; _* , _^ _J _*^^? * _HSl o pro _^ . l y ' _^ _^ t _appeared from-college * _Iloraco Walpolc speaks of him as _^' an inspired idiot , ' and Gamck describes llim as one » _r who wrote like an angel , and _tSmSor p 0 _* » ' but I take leave to think that " the Deserted Village , " a tale told by this idiot , will be read when Walpole is ib'gotten ; and T believe the author to nave Been as _aetp as _uamLs . Other thoughts follow on these— -reminiscencies and associations without number , indicating that the Oxonian , fast , as lie might be , was not altogether unread , though not overburthened with _, such reading as destroys human wit , and makes a man respectable and dull . AVc regret to say , that in more than one instance , the undergraduate gives _reason to doubt of his thorough respectability ; that he is never _dulL we are willing to state with more readiness . The style is , to us , somewhat remarkable , and we detect in it the juice of the lemon . Sometimes , the author indulges in verse . Here is a specimen . T 1 IE BELLE OF THE SHANNON . ! x vn . - With swate se ' _nsashuns ; Her hair ' s the brightest , A _| _S _KJ _, _$ K & . _ISSulWiSK--Which 1 thrill me through ! Ah me . those fate ! Here hi Limerick ; city You need not tell a-Qf malden 8 prett _^ -bout Ciudere la , a tendorditty ; Forh c _,-s ex ce _^ a- & 111 chant to you . _° y > with maid andmano » , With look the purest , A' Btamer ran on . That ever tourist , Where silver Shannon From eyes _azurcst , _sh _^ _fM _^ crB I me * C wB _& ff , He bates to Shivers , As I went _rushino-, Rowling majestic m _^ _' c _^ bin _^ llr 0 _" 11 _Tlus king o ' Stramea jho _civum anui . m - ,.,. ' i ' _? ' » ,, _^ _smiiBd There , blandly baming , The wh 8 . 1 r l ( f SUt an _* 8 ' Qoh M ' V 8 e ? dramfnc _^/ On _lug-ffa _^ ' piled there , J : I first did note , She mo _bog-uiled , —ne ' er i u 8 c _£ * 8 ; V ** S _J" _^ ' A _. tdTbeg in _' to ' _&" «« _, _Comnoac _' e « nto Did \ _X noliT * On _lNunk _' _a »> oHmAntoaU , xv . Whereon _bW wit . Her very bonnet . x . j _^ _fKKo _' _onit Whnt ° uSlii _oftfory , A " f rd U th tfm ° o _* ' _Knfiht"JramifentiW ; B _H t _somothinL _fidror , For lovo hnvo _wroua tt . And dear , and rarer , But ne ' er w « r _) duel , in _coorso , the wearer , Nor torture cruoi Shall have my rhyme . ™ u _«™< _$ * _$£ _,..,., „ v . xt w . d h _S 0 7 , ? _^ ' tVr 0 o 0 a > For her voice ia _swntosr , _WlUol _» niBy Uato your » , ' H _^ r slmpo tiio nntest , Great Vanus , fair i And ni _> u compintt . > 8 t I'll no _' _cr forgot hur , a ° i while 1 " hfttrivor , o _»/ wiuif Sin 5 . fi hottnr _« _tliBHulltrht nuivor , _% K _& Pn _« aK } oi » _SUrfe _noli _nivor VI Her _nquui dud . Her darllnt face Is _" xn ; . mittd Boyond all pmlaoa , ? l rotl > i ? lll i c , « . » 0 _hl'urtc _< l , A S , < J * J _# » _^ _AWiko Ami _disoonmirio _. l ,-aij other _laaHoa A oim too low i she Just _BurimBsoB , An < 1 ., B T J i # tlll " _ii-hii _° > boyB , Aa wlno _moinasoH , ir , ° r iwmiiii in whi _^ oy , w fl ' Umou i ) IKu - _jjoforo wo go . _ , ___ . , _, , . _.,.., roft ( lors will , Enough . With these examples ou h _. ul , . bo satisfied , and for tho rest win , oi < w "' > * chase the volume itself . - m —¦ — I < _riw _tlSKnd metro aro _BunwoBfodfby Maiiony 1 _* 1 _""* _muutoai _vorsoe in _nraiso of _ThaMin < _tf _M " ll "' 0 ' ! :. ld ivom «» I Thi » lueura / _ro inoludud a ! onK lVJ" ' _, ° w i mo to Vimo _n _> _» _" *• tS _^ _T _^ l _^^ _^^ £ _^^^{ _ff ]» * ¦ " \ ' ' . "' _.. ' * " , : ¦ ' ; ' •" ¦ *' ¦ -+ _$ , ' _- '¦ - ' ¦<• ' _¦><• - •*¦ , " ¦;; : ''' ¦ '' ; _¦;¦ ' ' ¦ ¦ ¦ _t , _^^^ _tttk
.J^F . •• ¦ ..- The Leader. '[No. 495. S...
_. J _^ _f . •• _¦ _..- THE LEADER . '[ No . 495 . Sept . 17 , 1859 .
-
-
Citation
-
Leader (1850-1860), Sept. 17, 1859, page 20, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse-os.kdl.kcl.ac.uk/periodicals/l/issues/sldr_17091859/page/20/
-