The House of Savoy—Its warlike princes—The Green
Count—Prostration of Piedmont—Persecution of the Vaudois—The
Island of Sardinia—Genoa added to Piedmont—The constitution
of 1848—War with Austria—Victor Emmanuel.
I shall not even take up one of the very few pages left at my disposal
by any descriptions of the royal palace, the armoury, the churches, the
houses of parliament, and the various other sights of Turin; neither
do I purpose indulging in any further feminine gossip respecting
its domestic manners. I will rather close these sketches of Italian
life and contemporary history with a brief account of the rise and
development of the Sardinian monarchy, which has proved the nucleus of
Italian independence.
The founder of the House of Savoy, the oldest reigning house in Europe,
was Beroldo, a powerful vassal of the King of Burgundy, who in the
year 1000 was invested with the fief of Maurienne, in Savoy, in the
possession of which he was succeeded by his eldest son, Umberto the
White-handed; so named, it is recorded, from the unspotted honour and
integrity of all his dealings.
It is good for a family, whether royal or otherwise, to have the
example of such an ancestor to emulate; and accordingly, we find
his successors, in an age when the code of Chivalry embodied all
the virtues deemed essential to the well-being of society, proving
themselves good knights and true, and spreading the fame of their
prowess far beyond the narrow limits of their territories. By his
marriage with Adelaide of Susa, a powerful and gifted princess,
who brought as her dowry a considerable portion of the most fertile
parts of Piedmont, the Count Oddone, fourth of his line, established
a footing on the Italian side of the Alps, which secured Turin,
Susa, Pignerol, and the valleys since so famous as the abode of
the Waldenses, together with the title of Marquis of Italy to his
descendants.
Among the most warlike of these princes, we find Amadeus III., who died
in the Second Crusade, and Amadeus V., celebrated as the deliverer of
Rhodes; while the names of two others are too singularly interwoven
with English history to pass unnoticed. Of these, the first was the
Comte Pierre, uncle by marriage to our Henry III., who frequently
visited England, was loaded with favours, and created Earl of Richmond
by that monarch;—the Palace of the Savoy being, moreover, expressly
built for his residence.
His son, Thomas I., enjoyed the same favour, which no doubt contributed
to increase the discontent expressed by the English at their king's
partiality for foreigners, and the expenses he incurred in entertaining
them. One of the flattering distinctions paid to the Count of Savoy
we should, however, in this age consider no wasteful superfluity—the
streets of London, we are expressly told, having been swept in honour
of his arrival. Both these princes possessed a great reputation for
sagacity and moderation, especially the Comte Pierre, who was chosen as
arbitrator in a quarrel between Henry and his prelates; and on another
occasion negotiated peace between France and England.
But the hero of the House of Savoy, on whose fame the chronicles of the
period love to dwell—whose daring and achievements, too, would require
the genius of a Scott to have depicted—is Amadeus VI., commonly known
as the Comte Vert, one of the most renowned princes of the fourteenth
century.
He first displayed his address in arms at a solemn tournament held at
Chambéry, the capital of Savoy, when he was but fourteen years of age,
and presented himself in the lists arrayed in green armour, surrounded
by esquires and pages similarly equipped. It was to commemorate
his success on this occasion, when he obtained the suffrages of the
assembled flower of European Chivalry, that Amadeus adopted green
as his especial colour, from which his surname of the Comte Vert was
derived.
The great event of this reign was the expedition in aid of John
Palæologus, Emperor of the East, who, being sorely pressed by Amurath
at the head of his fierce Ottomans, implored the assistance of
Christendom to prop his tottering throne. His kinsman, the Count of
Savoy, promptly responded to this appeal; and causing a large fleet of
galleys to be fitted out at Venice, repaired thither, across Italy,
with a large force of knights, men-at-arms, archers, and slingers. A
contemporary writer relates how, the day of departure having arrived,
“the noble count, followed by his princes and barons, walking two and
two, attired in surcoats of green velvet, richly embroidered, proceeded
to the place of embarkation. Bands of music, going before, filled the
air with harmony; while the people of Venice, thronging to behold this
goodly spectacle, broke forth into shouts of 'Savoia! Savoia!' amidst
which, and prolonged flourishes of trumpets, the Comte Vert put to sea,
1366 A.D.”
Gallipoli, a stronghold of the Turks, who thus closely menaced the
safety of the imperial capital, was the first object of attack; and
being carried by assault, the white cross of Savoy was displayed upon
its walls. From thence proceeding to Constantinople, the count learned
the disastrous intelligence that the emperor was a prisoner in the
hands of the Bulgarians. Determined to effect his deliverance, he at
once passed the Bosphorus, entered the Black Sea, and landed on the
shores of Bulgaria. Mesembria was taken by storm; and Varna, an opulent
and strongly fortified city, was obliged to capitulate. These rapid
victories compelled the enemy to sue for peace, of which the liberation
of the emperor was the first condition.
Returning in triumph to Constantinople with the monarch whom his
prowess had set free, Amadeus seems to have experienced the proverbial
thanklessness of the Palæologi; for, as the chronicler pithily remarks,
“it was reserved for Italy, by her magnificent reception of the Comte
Vert, to atone to him for the ingratitude of the Greeks.”
A still more remarkable evidence of the estimation in which Amadeus was
held, is given by the fact of his being elected, a few years later, to
decide on the conflicting claims of the rival republics of Genoa and
Venice, between whom many sovereign princes, even the supreme pontiff
himself, had ineffectually attempted to mediate. On an appointed day,
the envoys of the contending States appeared before the Count of Savoy
at Turin, and set forth their respective grievances, which he duly
weighed and pondered over; then himself drawing up solemn articles of
peace, they were sworn to and signed in his presence.
In the reign following that of the renowned Green Count, Nice, and a
portion of the western shores of the Mediterranean, became incorporated
with Piedmont and Savoy, by a nobler triumph than that of conquest,
having petitioned to be united to the dominions of the House of Savoy,
as a guarantee of just and paternal government.
The life of Amadeus VIII., who flourished contemporarily with our
Henry VI. and the disastrous Wars of the Roses, is another romance,
which in the days when that style of composition was popular, would
have furnished materials for half a dozen historical novels. After
considerably extending his possessions in Piedmont, he received from
the Emperor Sigismund of Germany—which country exercised a sort of
suzerainship over Italy, that, with the single exception of the kingdom
of Sardinia, Austria retained up till 1859—the title of Duke, in lieu
of Count of Savoy. Renowned for his wisdom, courage, and political
foresight, Amadeus, when still in the meridian of his glory, abdicated,
and with six of his former companions-in-arms and trusty counsellors,
retired to the hermitage of Ripaille, near the lake of Geneva. The
asceticism here practised does not appear to have been very severe,
since _faire Ripaille_ has passed into a proverb in Switzerland, to
indicate good cheer and easy living; but be this as it may, the duke
was some years afterwards summoned from his retirement, having been
elected pope under the title of Felix V.
For nearly a century following, the prosperity of the duchy was
overcast; feeble princes, alternating with feebler regencies and their
attendant evils, held the reins of government, and Piedmont became
the arena on which the French and Imperialists contended. The Dukes of
Savoy, alternately forced into alliance with Francis I. of France and
the Emperor Charles V., the position of their territories rendering it
impossible for them to preserve neutrality, lost equally from friend
and foe. Far from being able to follow up the cherished policy of their
family, and as the reward of their allegiance obtain “a few leaves of
that artichoke Lombardy,” to the possession of which they had ever
aspired, they saw themselves gradually stripped of their ancestral
dominions, till a single town in Piedmont was all that remained in
their hands.
The singular firmness and energy of character which distinguishes
these Highlanders of Italy, as they are termed, seems but to have
gained strength from these vicissitudes. In the reign of Duke Emmanuel
Philibert, “the Iron-headed,” we find the House of Savoy restored
to more than its pristine lustre, and reinstated in its former
possessions, with the single exception of Geneva, which in the general
turmoil had succeeded in establishing its independence. At a later
period this prince, to strengthen his position in Italy, exchanged
with Henri Quatre, Bourg en Bresse, Val Romey, and Bugey in Savoy,
against the Marquisate of Saluzzo, adjoining Pignerol, at the foot of
the Alps. This province had long been in possession of the French, and
its transfer to Piedmont, though purchased by a sacrifice as respected
extent of territory, was looked upon as a great step towards national
independence, and the adoption of a clearly-defined Italian policy.
An evil phase in the history of Piedmont is the persecution of the
Waldenses or Vaudois. Established in their sub-alpine valleys and
fastnesses from a very remote period, these sturdy champions of
primitive Christianity were a constant source of umbrage to the papal
see, who incited the princes of Savoy, as loyal servants of the Church,
to extirpate such foul heresy from their States. One of the most
terrible of the ruthless crusades to which they were subjected was that
in 1655, made familiar to most of us by Milton's noble hymn, “Avenge,
O Lord, thy slaughtered saints,” and Cromwell's energetic remonstrance
with the court of Turin in their behalf. It was not till the end of the
seventeenth century that the sword of persecution was finally sheathed,
although considerable restrictions still continued to be imposed upon
the Vaudois, who were, nevertheless, remarkable for their faithful
allegiance to their sovereign, and for their courage and hardihood
as soldiers. The constitution of 1848 finally secured them the right
to exercise their worship in any part of the Sardinian dominions;
and placed them on perfect equality with the Catholic population. A
Waldensian, Signor Malan, sits in the Chamber of Deputies.
Little anticipating the tolerance their successors would one day
exhibit, the heresy, no less than the independence of Geneva, was a
grievous thorn in the flesh to the Dukes of Savoy, who could not easily
forego their former right to its dominion; and in 1602, a formidable
expedition was secretly organized against it by Charles Emmanuel I.,
with the concurrence of the courts of Rome, Paris, and Madrid. Three
hundred volunteers from the main body of the army had actually, in the
dead of the night, succeeded in scaling the walls, when the premature
explosion of a petard, designed to force open the city-gates, gave
the alarm. The inhabitants, some hastily armed, others half-clad as
they sprang from their slumbers, rushed into the streets, and drove
back the invaders with great loss. Finding their retreat cut off by
the destruction of the ladders by which they had ascended, the few
survivors flung themselves from the ramparts into the ditch, and
carried the intelligence of their defeat to the Duke of Savoy, who
was advancing to reap the enjoyment of the triumph he already deemed
secure. The Escalade, as it is termed, is justly celebrated in the
annals of Geneva, which, six months after, concluded a treaty with
Savoy, on terms as flattering to herself as they were mortifying to the
duke, who said in his last illness “that those rebels of Geneva weighed
like lead upon his stomach.”
The opening of the eighteenth century again beheld Piedmont the
theatre of bloody wars, in consequence of the disputed succession
to the crown of Spain. The duke sided with the imperial party, which
England also supported, and saw his States overrun by the French, who
for some time held possession of Turin. The siege and recapture of
his capital—in which Victor Amadeus II. was aided by his cousin, the
celebrated Prince Eugene, Marlborough's colleague—was the turning point
in his fortunes. The latter part of his reign was marked with signal
prosperity. Invested with the title of King of Sardinia, the island of
that name having been transferred from the possession of Spain, and
bestowed on him as some compensation for his losses and sacrifices
in the war, he devoted himself to the embellishment of Turin, the
formation of a standing army, and the restoration of the finances of
the State, leaving behind him a reputation for indomitable energy and
perseverance, on which the historians of Piedmont dwell with pardonable
pride.
His successor steadily pursued his policy, and obtained some part of
the Milanese territory—a few more leaves of the artichoke, towards
which, like every enterprising prince of his line, his political views
were constantly directed.
The outbreak of the first French Revolution again threatened the
House of Savoy with destruction. Almost simultaneously, in 1792,
the territory of Nice, and the whole of Savoy, were invaded, and
occupied by the troops of the Directory; a few years later, Piedmont
was incorporated into the French dominions, and Sardinia was all that
remained to Charles Emmanuel IV., who, in 1796, succeeded to what he
bitterly designated as “a veritable crown of thorns.”
From this utter prostration, this dynasty, with that singular rebound
observable in its annals, was recalled in 1814 to its continental
possessions, with the addition of Genoa, who reluctantly saw herself
degraded from her independent position as a republic, to form part of a
kingdom which had long excited her jealousy and apprehension.
Between this period and 1848 the history of Piedmont offers little
of interest. The quiet development of its internal resources, the
accumulating wealth of its exchequer, the minute care bestowed on its
army, being less conspicuous to a general observer, than the severity
of its police, the rigour with which all political freedom of speech or
writing was proscribed, and the especial protection which the Jesuits
enjoyed. As before remarked, the Sardinian Government was looked
upon as one of the most despotic of Europe, and its king as the most
priest-ridden of princes.
Even the example of Pius IX. did not at first produce any perceptible
results; and for more than a year after the famous amnesty to the
Romans not a change in the existing system at Turin foreshadowed the
coming reforms.
The year 1848 is memorable for Piedmont. At its opening came the royal
gift, the long yearned-for Constitution, embodying alike the freedom
of the press, religious toleration, parliamentary institutions, a
political amnesty, the formation of the National Guard, and the removal
of numerous legal and administrative abuses.
Austria's suspicions were aroused, and she remonstrated. But in
vain. The time had come; the mask of years was thrown aside, and
Charles Albert stood forth the avowed champion of Italian unity and
independence. Three men to whom Italy is under lasting obligations,
Gioberti, Count Balbo, and the Marquis Massimo d'Azeglio, by their
writings had introduced an unwonted unity of action and moderation of
aims amongst their countrymen. They taught them to substitute for the
republican theories, which had been the bane of Italian patriots, those
aspirations for constitutional monarchy, and for deliverance from the
yoke of Austria, which in Charles Albert found their impersonation and
their instrument. Everywhere hailed with enthusiasm as the appointed
regenerator of Italy, the fulfilment of the destinies of his house now
seemed within his grasp; and the poetical veneration he had always
borne to the memory of his ancestor the Green Count, whose device,
“J'attends mon astre,” he had long before adopted, acquired greater
force and significance.
At the invitation of the insurgent Milanese, he threw down the gauntlet
against Austria, and with his two gallant sons, the Dukes of Savoy
and Genoa, marched at the head of his army into Lombardy. But he was
not suffered to reap where he had sown. To Charles Albert it was only
given to lay the foundation of the edifice his son is raising to such
loftiness. When, after two disastrous campaigns, and witnessing the
total overthrow of his forces on the bloody field of Novara in March,
1849, he died in self-imposed exile at Oporto, there was little in the
aspect of affairs in Piedmont to give grounds for sanguine previsions
for the future.
Dangers of no ordinary description hung over the kingdom he had
resigned; or, to speak more correctly, the institutions he had
inaugurated. The situation of the young king might well be termed
desperate. A victorious enemy on his borders, a shattered army, an
exhausted treasury, his clergy and nobility disaffected to the new
order of things; to crown all, absolutism triumphant all over Italy,
and the certainty that Austria was only watching for a pretext for a
fresh invasion. It needed but for him to have annulled his father's
concessions, to propitiate a large number of his subjects, disarm the
hostility of his powerful neighbour and her satellites, and possess
himself of those privileges of which his predecessor had stripped the
crown. It will be registered in the grateful hearts of millions yet
unborn, that Victor Emmanuel was proof alike to warnings, entreaties,
and blandishments. Through evil and good report, kinglike and manfully
did he uphold the constitution to which he had sworn, till he met his
reward in the wondrous confidence and enthusiasm of which he is now the
object.
It is not a sudden impulse, this love of the Italians for Victor
Emmanuel. On the contrary, when he mounted the throne, so great was
the universal hatred for kings, generated by the perfidy of their own
princes, that few reposed belief in his assurances. It was only when
he was seen firmly contending with Rome against her encroachments
and intolerance; throwing open his States to the political refugee
without regard to his opinions, equally sheltering constitutionalist or
republican; unflinching in maintaining the liberty of the press and the
dignity of the country, despite the menaces of Austria, and ever eager
in promoting national prosperity and enterprise; that the prejudice
against monarchy was overcome, and the Italians, from Venice to Etna,
bestowed upon him the surname of the “_Rè galantuomo_.”
To the influence of Azeglio and Cavour, one or other of whom has rarely
been absent from his councils since his accession, much is no doubt
due; but while fully acknowledging their obligations to the patriotism,
courage, and intrepidity of these ministers, as well as to the host
of eminent men they have gathered round them from all parts of the
peninsula, the Italians never forget to give the chief glory to Victor
Emmanuel. Without his stedfast adherence to the Constitution, as to
a trust bequeathed him by his father, Italy would not now be looking
forward to assuming her place among the nations.
THE END.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] The term Marches of Ancona (in Italian La Marca, or Le Marche) is
derived from _Marchesato_, or Marquisate.
[2] The estimate here given is at the rate of five dollars to the pound
sterling, but it varies according to the exchange, which is sometimes
4s. 2d. to the dollar.
[3] “Signorina” is not invariably used in Central and Southern Italy
in addressing a young lady, though she is always spoken of as such.
The Christian name, with the prefix of Signora, is often applied in
conversation.
[4] Rossi is an abbreviation of _Repubblicani rossi_—red republicans.
[5] Meaning literally a piece of antique furniture.
[6] The tone now assumed by the British Government relative to Italian
affairs,—I mean since the liberal ministry came into office in the
summer of 1859,—gives great delight to all who hold progressive
opinions, and has regained England's prestige in the Peninsula.
[7] As before remarked, the anger against the luke-warmness of England,
which was so general amongst Italian liberals, has given way since the
firm attitude she has assumed on the question of leaving them free
to choose their own form of government, unmolested by foreign armed
intervention.
[8] La Cattolica, the boundary between the Romagne and the province of
Pesaro, is a small village, about ten miles to the south of Rimini.
[9] See the State Papers and Documents in the Marquis Gualterio's
_Rivolgimenti Italiani_, to which work, as full of research and
reliable information, I can conscientiously refer the reader.
[10] Notification of Cardinal Bernetti, Secretary of State, April 2,
1831.
[11] Note to Count de St Aulaire, French Ambassador at Rome, Sept. 7,
1832.
[12] I can only remember one, that of Monsignor de Medici Spada, who
relinquished the purple stockings for the hand of a beautiful Pole; and
yet my acquaintance with Italian ecclesiastics is very extensive.
[13] Massimo d'Azeglio's letter of September, 1859.—What he says of the
Roman States was applicable to the whole of Italy. Proofs have been
discovered, in all the centres of agitation during the Revolution of
1848, of the presence of Austro-Jesuit emissaries, foremost in every
seditious movement. At Milan, a certain Urbino, one of Mazzini's most
violent partisans, was conspicuous as the leader of the rabble in
the disgraceful opposition to the annexation of Lombardy to Piedmont,
and in the hostile demonstrations against the king, which furnished
plausible arguments to those who inveighed against the fickleness and
disunion of the Italians. He is now known to have been all along a
paid Austrian spy. In Tuscany, about the same period, an individual of
infamous reputation, the author of a number of libels against Charles
Albert, was clearly convicted of exciting revolutionary tumults, and
thrown into prison. But the Austrian ambassador interfered promptly
on his behalf (a proceeding the more extraordinary as the man was a
Piedmontese subject), procured his liberation, sent him out of the
country, and discharged all his debts.—Gualterio, _Le Riforme_, Vol.
I., p. 553, with documents, &c.
[14] Asses of the Marches.
[15] In 1262, the number of students congregated in Bologna amounted to
10,000. It was the first medical school where dissection of the human
body was practised; and claims the discovery of Galvanism.
[16] So calmly did they anticipate this _dénouement_, that they
provided themselves with an appropriate token of gratitude to their
future deliverer. The ring with the inscription, “From the exiles of
Ancona,” which they presented to the excellent and gallant Captain
Nicholas Vansittart, of H.M.S. _Frolic_, on their taking leave of him
at Corfu, had been made beforehand by a jeweller in Ancona.
[17] The people nicknamed him _Cardinal_ Oudinot, a pleasantry which
stung him to the quick.
[18] 18th June. This city had also declared for the protectorate of
Victor Emmanuel, and a participation in the war of independence.
[19] The possession of revolutionary emblems, such as tri-coloured
cockades, scarfs, &c., was punishable, or rather _is_ punishable,
with from three to five years in the galleys. Private families were
enjoined, under a penalty of ten dollars _for the first offence_, to
report to the police the arrival of any guest from abroad (the nearest
town was comprised in this designation), with a statement of his
purpose in coming, his station in life, &c.
[20] I am acquainted with a large landed proprietor in the Marche,
who, debarred by peculiar circumstances from taking an open part in the
liberal movement, passed his time last summer in assisting the flight
of the Anconitan refugees. He told me the number who had been forced to
expatriate themselves was immense, and yet many are in prison.
[21] The _kilomètre_ is about two-thirds of an English mile.
[22] Apropos of this, I cannot help citing the witticism of a Genoese,
not a convert, more just than flattering to his townspeople. “I do not
believe these charges of bribery,” he said, “not from partiality to the
_Valdese_, but because, if they paid people for going to their church,
half Genoa would be with them.”
[23] An Englishwoman by birth.
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“A work of singular interest, which can never fail to
charm.”—_Illustrated News._
21. ADELE. By JULIA KAVANAGH.
“'Adele' is the best work we have read by Miss Kavanagh; it is a
charming story full of delicate character-painting.”—_Athenæum._
22. STUDIES FROM LIFE.
BY THE AUTHOR OF “JOHN HALIFAX, GENTLEMAN.”
“These 'Studies from Life' are remarkable for graphic power and
observation. The book will not diminish the reputation of the
accomplished author.”—_Saturday Review._
23. GRANDMOTHER'S MONEY.
“We commend 'Grandmother's Money' to readers in search of a good
novel The characters are true to human nature, and the story is
interesting.”—_Athenæum._
24. A BOOK ABOUT DOCTORS.
BY J. C. JEAFFRESON.
“A delightful book.”—_Athenæum._ “A book to be read and re-read; fit
for the study as well as the drawing-room table and the circulating
library.”—_Lancet._
25. NO CHURCH.
“We advise all who have the opportunity to read this book.”—_Athenæum._
26. MISTRESS AND MAID.
BY THE AUTHOR OF “JOHN HALIFAX, GENTLEMAN.”
“A good wholesome book, gracefully written, and as pleasant to
read as it is instructive.”—_Athenæum._ “A charming tale charmingly
told.”—_Standard._
27. LOST AND SAVED. By HON. MRS. NORTON.
“'Lost and Saved' will be read with eager interest. It is a vigorous
novel.”—_Times._
“A novel of rare excellence. It is Mrs. Norton's best prose
work.”—_Examiner._
28. LES MISERABLES. By VICTOR HUGO.
AUTHORISED COPYRIGHT ENGLISH TRANSLATION.
“The merits of 'Les Miserables' do not merely consist in the
conception of it as a whole; it abounds with details of unequalled
beauty. M. Victor Hugo has stamped upon every page the hall-mark of
genius.”—_Quarterly Review._
29. BARBARA'S HISTORY. By AMELIA B. EDWARDS.
“It is not often that we light upon a novel of so much merit and
interest as 'Barbara's History.' It is a work conspicuous for taste
and literary culture. It is a very graceful and charming book, with a
well-managed story, clearly-cut characters, and sentiments expressed
with an exquisite elocution. It is a book which the world will
like.”—_Times._
30. LIFE OF THE REV. EDWARD IRVING.
BY MRS. OLIPHANT.
“A good book on a most interesting theme.”—_Times._
“A truly interesting and most affecting memoir. Irving's Life ought
to have a niche in every gallery of religious biography. There
are few lives that will be fuller of instruction, interest, and
consolation.”—_Saturday Review._
31. ST. OLAVE'S.
“This charming novel is the work of one who possesses a great
talent for writing, as well as experience and knowledge of the
world.”—_Athenæum._
32. SAM SLICK'S AMERICAN HUMOUR.
“Dip where you will into this lottery of fun, you are sure to draw out
a prize.”—_Post._
33. CHRISTIAN'S MISTAKE.
BY THE AUTHOR OF “JOHN HALIFAX, GENTLEMAN.”
“A more charming story has rarely been written. Even if tried by the
standard of the Archbishop of York, we should expect that even he would
pronounce 'Christian's Mistake' a novel without a fault.”—_Times._
34. ALEC FORBES OF HOWGLEN.
BY GEORGE MAC DONALD, LL.D.
“No account of this story would give any idea of the profound interest
that pervades the work from the first page to the last.”—_Athenæum._
35. AGNES. By MRS. OLIPHANT.
“'Agnes' is a novel superior to any of Mrs. Oliphant's former
works.”—_Athenæum._
“A story whose pathetic beauty will appeal irresistibly to all
readers.”—_Post._
36. A NOBLE LIFE.
BY THE AUTHOR OF “JOHN HALIFAX, GENTLEMAN.”
“This is one of those pleasant tales in which the author of 'John
Halifax' speaks out of a generous heart the purest truths of
life.”—_Examiner._
37. NEW AMERICA. By HEPWORTH DIXON.
“A very interesting book. Mr. Dixon has written thoughtfully and
well.”—_Times._
“We recommend every one who feels any interest in human nature to read
Mr. Dixon's very interesting book.”—_Saturday Review._
38. ROBERT FALCONER.
BY GEORGE MAC DONALD, LL.D.
“'Robert Falconer' is a work brimful of life and humour and of the
deepest human interest. It is a book to be returned to again and again
for the deep and searching knowledge it evinces of human thoughts and
feelings.”—_Athenæum._
39. THE WOMAN'S KINGDOM.
BY THE AUTHOR OF “JOHN HALIFAX, GENTLEMAN.”
“'The Woman's Kingdom' sustains the author's reputation as a writer of
the purest and noblest kind of domestic stories.”—_Athenæum._
40. ANNALS OF AN EVENTFUL LIFE.
BY GEORGE WEBBE DASENT, D.C.L.
“A racy, well-written, and original novel. The interest never flags.
The whole work sparkles with wit and humour.”—_Quarterly Review._
41. DAVID ELGINBROD. By GEORGE MAC DONALD.
“The work of a man of genius. It will attract the highest class of
readers.”—_Times._
42. A BRAVE LADY.
BY THE AUTHOR OF “JOHN HALIFAX, GENTLEMAN.”
“A very good novel; a thoughtful, well-written book, showing a
tender sympathy with human nature, and permeated by a pure and noble
spirit.”—_Examiner._
43. HANNAH.
BY THE AUTHOR OF “JOHN HALIFAX, GENTLEMAN.”
“A very pleasant, healthy story, well and artistically told. The book
is sure of a wide circle of readers. The character of Hannah is one of
rare beauty.”—_Standard._
44. SAM SLICK'S AMERICANS AT HOME.
“This is one of the most amusing books that we ever read.”—_Standard._
45. THE UNKIND WORD.
BY THE AUTHOR OF “JOHN HALIFAX, GENTLEMAN.”
“The author of 'John Halifax' has written many fascinating stories, but
we can call to mind nothing from her pen that has a more enduring charm
than the graceful sketches in this work.”—_United Service Magazine._
46. A ROSE IN JUNE. By MRS. OLIPHANT.
“'A Rose in June' is as pretty as its title. The story is one of
the best and most touching which we owe to the industry and talent
of Mrs. Oliphant, and may hold its own with even 'The Chronicles of
Carlingford.'”—_Times._
47. MY LITTLE LADY. By E. F. POYNTER.
“There is a great deal of fascination about this book. The author
writes in a clear, unaffected style; she has a decided gift for
depicting character, while the descriptions of scenery convey a
distinct pictorial impression to the reader.”—_Times._
48. PHŒBE, JUNIOR. By MRS. OLIPHANT.
“This novel shows great knowledge of human nature. The interest goes on
growing to the end. Phœbe is excellently drawn.”—_Times._
49. LIFE OF MARIE ANTOINETTE.
BY PROFESSOR CHARLES DUKE YONGE.
“A work of remarkable merit and interest, which will, we
doubt not, become the most popular English history of Marie
Antoinette.”—_Spectator._
“This book is well written, and of thrilling interest.”—_Academy._
Transcriber's Notes
Original spelling and punctuation have been preserved as much as
possible. Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note.
End of Project Gutenberg's The Englishwoman in Italy, by A. L. V. Gretton