Upon Cavour’s return to Turin, he received not only the approval of the King and Parliament, but also congratulations from all parts of Italy.  His position had gained immensely in strength, both at home and abroad.  Yet the power of the Clerical party in Piedmont was still such that, in the elections of 1857—­the first that had taken place since the legislation affecting the Church—­they obtained seventy seats out of a total of two hundred.  Cavour did not conceal his alarm.  What if eight years’ labour were thrown away, and the movement of the State turned backward?  ‘Never,’ he said, ’would he advise a coup d’etat, nor would his master resort to one; but if the King abdicated, what then?’ Victor Emmanuel said to his Prime Minister:  ’Let us do our duty; stand firm, and we shall see!’ He often declared that, sooner than beat a retreat from the path he had entered on, he would go to America and become plain Monsu Savoia; but he never lost faith in the predominating patriotism and good sense of his subjects; and at this time, as at others, he proved to be right.  The crisis was surmounted.  On the one hand, some elections were invalidated where the priests had exercised undue influence; and, on the other, Rattazzi, who was especially obnoxious to the Clerical party, retired from office.  Cavour thus found himself still able to command the Chamber.

CHAPTER XI

PREMONITIONS OF THE STORM

1857-1858

Pisacane’s Landing—­Orsini’s Attempt—­The Compact of
Plombieres—­Cavour’s Triumph.

In spite of the accusation of favouring political assassination which was frequently launched against the Italian secret societies, only one of the faithless Italian princes came to a violent death, and his murder had no connection with politics.  Charles III., Duke of Parma, was mortally stabbed in March 1854; some said that the assassin was a groom whom he had struck with a riding-whip; others, that he was the father or brother of one of the victims of the Duke’s dissolute habits.  The Duchess, a daughter of the Duke de Berry, assumed the Regency on behalf of her son, who was a child.  She began by initiating many reforms; but a street disturbance in July gave Austria the desired excuse for meddling in the government, when all progress was, of course, arrested.

In December 1856, a soldier named Ageslao Milano attempted to assassinate the King of the Two Sicilies at a review.  He belonged to no sect, but he had long premeditated the act.  A few days later an earthquake occurred in the kingdom of Naples, by which over ten thousand persons lost their lives.  Ferdinand II. grew morose, and shut himself up in the royal palace of Caserta.  The constant lectures of France and England annoyed him without persuading him to take the means to put a stop to them.  Not till 1859 did he open the doors of the prisons in which Poerio, Settembrini and their companions were confined.  Many plans were made, meanwhile, for their liberation, and English friends even provided a ship by which they were to escape; but the ship foundered:  perhaps fortunately, as Garibaldi, with characteristic disinterestedness, had agreed to direct the enterprise, which could not have been otherwise than perilous, and was not unlikely to end in the loss of all concerned.