curious," without any preceding summons or any warning. Musketry fire, cannon-balls, and grape opened a path for the historical revelation. What right had the people to go a walking at such times? They must be saved. In the upper stories they lay flat on the floor: the bullets that crashed into the ceiling above their heads gave them a shrill whistle of significance that they had just been saved.

In this way General Canrobert restored order on December 4. He waited, as a Décembriseur said, till the crowd had become dense, ere he poured desolation into it. But, even at this time, the general retained his self-respect; he would not join in that cry for blood raised by Magnan and St. Arnaud, who desired on the self-same day that the prisons should be cleared at the bayonet's point. He did not rush upon the high offices and grades, or the public treasury. He was disinterested, moderate, and threw all the responsibility on the higher personages, whose commands he was unhappily compelled to execute. He was in the right, for, up to the present hour, he is treated with considerable indulgence even by the numerous enemies of the empire: his melancholy destiny is mourned over, and the Belgian Indépendance quotes him at intervals as the representative of mercy and forgiveness.

Madame K. twisted the cord entirely round her hand. It was said suddenly, but generally, that Canrobert had demanded the end of the dictatorship, the acquittal of the prisoners, and a general amnesty. If the prince does not yield, Canrobert will send in his resignation. The prince sent his harsh Mentor an Arab courser, and he (we mean the courser) supported its character. Canrobert rode on the horse to the Elysée, and renewed his demands. Messrs. Granier de Cassagnac, Mayer, and other paid propagandists replied to the general in newspapers and pamphlets" that he was an extraordinary officer, and reserved for the highest honours."” The courser remained, and Canrobert too. After the vote of December 20, the general considered himself acquitted; but the imprisoned representatives, and the generals, and his "friend" Leflô, too? The foreign papers knew, on the best authority, that Canrobert would resign unless the prince yielded. The prince treated the prisoners we know how, and General Canrobert was rewarded for his virtue by an appointment as adjutant of the prince, and 30,000 fr. pay. After the decree of January 22, Canrobert wrote his resignation, and was on the point of sending it in, when he received a gratification, which he only accepted "lest he might insult the prince."

Soon after, three commissioners were sent into the central and southern departments to revise the labours of the mixed commissions. General Canrobert was one of them. His feeling heart was full of sympathy for the "unhappy victims of our civil dissensions," but with the best will he could only liberate two hundred of them. The great majority, he convinced himself very rapidly, was composed of Communists, Partageux, robbers, and scamps, who were well suited for Cayenne and Lambessa. They were magistrates, advocates, physicians, attorneys, notaries, yeomen, manufacturers, merchants, officers on half pay, workmen, peasants, men, women, and children. The hundred thousand disturbers of the peace, whom M. de Falloux had indicated long before, must be sent out of France. General Canrobert yielded to the inevitable, and even danced at the new court of the prince president with a bleeding heart., Had he retired, the

Indépendance could not have referred every month to the general's "generous prayers" in favour of his friend Leflô.

The official commentary on these "generous prayers was Canrobert's appointment as general of division. He could have had it long before, but declined: he would remain exactly his three years as general of brigade, as the letter of the law lays down. The law gives every brigadiergeneral of three years' standing the possibility, but not the right, of promotion. Only Lamoricière, Changarnier, and Bedeau had been promoted immediately that their time was up. By following their example, Canrobert was elevated equally with them, and the law was not infringed: so cleverly do men calculate in Auvergne! Canrobert remained beyond and above all parties: he ever complained of the "social dissensions;" he lent his sword momentarily to the authorities" to suppress anarchy, merely through a feeling of duty, sine irâ et studio. His fatherland allowed him to advance according to the prescriptions of the regulations: only the thought of his friend Leflô prevented him thoroughly enjoying his brilliant position and fortune. He will never be perfectly happy till the day when the gates of France are thrown widely open to those who are her "glory and her ornament," when the "banished generals " will reassume their place at the head of that army which they so long illustrated.

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The rank of general of division was gained in the streets of Paris; the Eastern war came as if summoned, and held up as its finale the marshal's staff. Canrobert led his division to the East: in his pocket he had a letter. He did his duty at the Alma, and was wounded. When St. Arnaud, undermined by a dangerous illness, sent for General Forey as the eldest general of division, Canrobert once again made his appearance, invoked by Providence, and drew the somewhat crumpled letter from his pocket. Lord Raglan, Canrobert, and Bosquet bade St. Arnaud an eternal adieu, and the difficulties of the command were redoubled.

General Canrobert had suddenly become the chief of his equals. The comrades of yesterday must now obey; but obedience can be mechanical, and be limited to what is absolutely necessary, or it can sympathetically meet the order half way, especially if emanating from a man of recognised genius. But this genius was entirely absent. Lord Raglan only allowed himself to be half led by St. Arnaud, whose martial attitude seemed now and then imposing to the soldier of Waterloo. With Canrobert it was quite different: here the pedantic caution of the self-doubting chief was joined to the obstinacy of the old invalid. Lord Raglan assumed an oppositional station: the unity of the command suffered, delay became the rule. Lord Raglan and Omar Pasha were both of opinion that the siege of Sebastopol was a foolish piece of business, by which, at the most, only the hide of the Muscovite bear would be singed. Canrobert, strictly inspired from Paris, instantly yielded in the interest of the alliance, and even offered Lord Raglan the supreme command, but, as the story ran, his lordship now proposed such mad schemes that the rupture became nevitable.

In May, 1855, Canrobert sent in his resignation, ascribing it to failing health. The emperor informed the general that, while regretting his weakened health, he accepted his resignation. Still, Canrobert's state of health, as is notorious, did not prevent him remaining at the head of the

second division, and enduring all the fatigues of the war. Two months later he received his marshal's staff. Once again it was not the triumphant warrior who was rewarded, but the faithful servant, the diplomatic general, who gracefully took on himself the necessities of an inevitable position. Perhaps Canrobert's merits were the greater, for his sharper powers of observation enabled him to penetrate the intrigues of the diplomatists better than the fiery St. Arnaud could do. His mission to Stockholm, where he had to complete a species of offensive and defensive alliance, seems, at any rate, to prove that he was rather deeply initiated in those secrets spun round Lord John Russell at Vienna, and through which M. Drouyn de l'Huys for a moment allowed the government helm to slip from his grasp. In such a case, Marshal Canrobert did not discover his real value till too late a date.

In 1858 Marshal Canrobert was appointed to the head of one of the five military divisions of France. His head-quarters were at Nancy, and the ordre du jour he issued on taking the command deserves quotation: "Officers and soldiers of the fourth, fifth, and sixth military divisions, By the will of the emperor, summoned to the exalted honour of commanding you, I feel the value of this appointment the more as I have so long shared the life of that great French army, in whose useful works, noble misfortunes, and glorious battles I have so often been a participator. Hence I entertain the legitimate conviction that, between yourselves and me, a mutual confidence will ever prevail. We will employ it to ensure the strict observance of discipline, obedience to the law, the absolute respect for the constitution of the empire, which emanates from all and protects all. We will continue to offer France and her providential emperor pledges of our unshaken devotion. In meeting you in this glorious scenery of the eastern empire, whose martial inhabitants gave so many noble instances of patriotism at decisive moments, I cannot refrain from a deep feeling of pride and hope-pride, at being the chief of such soldiers as you are; hope, with your aid, and that of your good fellow-citizens, of promoting the fortunes of France, and the renown of that illustrious Napoleonic dynasty which is evolving its great and blessed history."

Such are the effects of a pretty Russian woman's intrigues with a brigadier-general who was seeking a social position. Canrobert's marshal staff has blossomed and put forth fruit. During the Italian war Canrobert was only distinguished by an ignoble dispute, and has, in all probability, been quietly shelved. He has done his dirty work, and may now make room for others who thirst for reward. Well, he has no cause to complain he has achieved a glorious position, and his best plan will be to keep in the background. A nation may forget the extravagances, even cruelty, of men so deeply compromised that they could not withdraw, but it can never forgive the horrifying sang-froid of men who, like Canrobert, waded in blood to their ankles while buttoning their gloves and arranging their flowing locks after the last new fashion.

We wonder, though, during Canrobert's eastern command, whether he followed the plan of Louis XIV.'s ministers, and rigorously forbade the performance of Molière's "Tartufe?"

NEW MONTHLY MAGAZINE.

SICILY.

Fabulous and Heroic Age-A Jar of Honey from Mount Hybla-Greek Colonies Carthaginian Invasions - Syracusan Ascendancy -Roman Domination Saracenic Occupation-The Normans in Sicily-Rule of the Angevins-Sicilian Vespers-Government of the Aragonese-Piedmontese in Sicily-Sicily united to Naples under the Spanish Bourbons-Interference of England in the Cause of Sicilian Liberties-Revolt of 1848-Subjection of the Island by FilangieriArrival of the Liberator Garibaldi-Advance of the Insurgents by Salemi on Calata-Fimi-Garibaldi proclaimed Dictator-Reduction of Palermo.

THE changing fortunes of Sicily, the beauty and variety of its scenery, the splendour of its climate, the magnificence of its contrasted configurations, the interesting and often striking relics of old, the mixed architecture of the middle ages- Saracenic, Norman, Gothic-all commemorative of a changing dominion, and the ever-recurring combination of historical and poetical reminiscences, have long attached the deepest interest to an island the very name of which is cherished by all cultivated minds. Its insular position, the want of good inns and roads, and the never-ending political disturbances brought about by a despotic bigotry, have all contributed to drive the mass of travellers from its shores. For thousands who down upon Rome and Naples, there are not, perhaps, as many pour dozens who cross the Faro of Messina. Yet there are certain charms peculiar to this the largest and most beautiful island in the Mediterranean, of which even Italy herself cannot boast. One of these is to be found in the exquisite blending of Grecian ruins with scenery, such as we see the relics of Greece and Rome associated with in Asia Minor alone; another, in the peculiar architecture of the Normans unlike anything elsewhere existing, in which the Byzantine and Saracenic styles are so curiously intermingled; and to those who care but little about temples or cathedrals, the phenomena of Etna, the most famous volcano in Europe, cannot but prove an attractive subject of contemplation.

Nor is the interest of Sicily wholly confined to its ancient architecture or natural beauties. The commercial and political state of the island are alike interesting to the English. Of the trade of Sicily we already enjoy the largest share. A large extent of the Marsalian vineyards are farmed by English capital, and were the trade freed from despotic and protectionist restrictions, and the resources of the island developed by a better government, it would be increased proportionably. And in regard to political associations, it should not be forgotten, even at the present crisis, that England has already interfered in maintaining that ancient constitutional government, to enjoy which the Sicilians have never forJuly-VOL. CXIX. NO. CCCCLXXV.

S

feited their rights nor renounced their hopes. The aspirations of Sicily, liberated in the present day, would be towards forming part of a United Italy, and Victor Emmanuel would gladly concede to the islanders their ancient privileges, if voluntarily passing under his rule. If such a thing were possible as a United Italy, there cannot be a doubt that the existence of such a powerful kingdom would be advantageous in many ways; it would facilitate communication by doing away with passport and customs prohibitions and annoyances, it would cement jarring elements into harmony, and it would conduce to the peace of Europe by consolidating a sixth first-rate power. It is the facility of conquest presented by inferiority that tempts interference and war. United Italy could treat upon terms of equality with either France or Austria, and such a result is, therefore, agreeable to neither. If it happens otherwise, and out of the Bourbon ashes there arises another Napoleonic phoenix, or anarchy is succeeded by some worse than anarchical state of things, England may again be compelled to preserve her old allied island friends from decimation, devastation, or ruin. He is a bold prophet who, seeing the longrestrained passions of mankind let loose, shall say what the final results may be.

Sicily is the classical land of mythology. Its first inhabitants were gods. Jupiter reigned on Mount Etna, and crushed the most powerful of all the giants who conspired against him-Enceladus, son of Titan and Terra-under Mount Etna. According to the poets, the flames were his breath, and as often as he turned his weary side the whole island felt the motion, and shook to its very foundations. Ceres was the principal divinity of the island. Her daughter Proserpina, as also Diana and Minerva, spent their early years on the plain of Enna. It was thence that Pluto carried her off. Venus used often to visit the summits of the Eryx. The beautiful Daphnis, son of Mercury by a Sicilian nymph, invented pastoral poetry to conciliate Diana. Alpheus pursued there the nymph Arethusa. Vulcan wrought the thunders in the forges of Etna, aided by the hideous Cyclops. The loves of Galatea and Acis, and the revengeful jealousy of the Cyclopean king Polyphemus, has been [a favourite theme with poets down to the most recent times.

How pleasantly could Leigh Hunt babble of Sicily and of Sicilian pastorals? A jar of Sicilian honey had caught his eye in the window of

Fortnum and Mason.

"Sicilian honey." We had no sooner read those words, than Theocritus rose before us, with all his poetry.

Then Sicily arose the whole island-particularly Mount Etna. Then Mount Hybla, with all its bees.

Then Rucellai (the Italian poet of the bees) and his predecessor Virgil, and Acis and Galatea, and Polyphemus, a pagan ufreet, but mild-mitigated by love, as Theocritus has painted him.

Then the Odyssey, with the giant in his fiercer days, before he had sown his wild rocks; and the Sirens, and Scylla and Charybdis; and Ovid, and Alpheus and Arethusa, and Proserpina, and the Vale of Enna-names which bring before us whatever is blue in skies, and beautiful in flowers or in fiction.

Then Pindar and Plato, and Archimedes (who made enchantments real) and Cicero (who discovered his tomb), and the Arabs with their architecture, and the Normans with their gentlemen, who were to found a sovereignty, and the

* A Jar of Honey from Mount Hybla. Ainsworth's Magazine, vols. v. and vi.