arly enough, a great number of
Romans are found, fighting against us, contrary to the _expressed_
will of their prince,"--such were the excuses for invasions of the
Pontifical dominions, and the robbery and insult by which they were
accompanied. Such invasions, it was said, made his Holiness very
indignant; he remonstrated against these; but we find no word of
remonstrance against the tyranny of the king of Naples,--no word
of sympathy for the victims of Lombardy, the sufferings of Verona,
Vicenza, Padua, Mantua, Venice.

In the affairs of Europe there are continued signs of the plan of the
retrograde party to effect similar demonstrations in different places
at the same hour. The 15th of May was one of these marked days.
On that day the king of Naples made use of the insurrection he had
contrived to excite, to massacre his people, and find an excuse for
recalling his troops from Lombardy. The same day a similar crisis was
hoped in Rome from the declarations of the Pope, but that did not work
at the moment exactly as the foes of enfranchisement hoped.

However, the wounds were cruel enough. The Roman volunteers received
the astounding news that they were not to expect protection or
countenance from their prince; all the army stood aghast, that they
were no longer to fight in the name of Pio. It had been so dear,
so sweet, to love and really reverence the head of their Church,
so inspiring to find their religion for once in accordance with the
aspirations of the soul! They were to be deprived, too, of the aid of
the disciplined Neapolitan troops and their artillery, on which they
had counted. How cunningly all this was contrived to cause dissension
and dismay may easily be seen.

The Neapolitan General Pepe nobly refused to obey, and called on the
troops to remain with him. They wavered; but they are a pampered army,
personally much attached to the king, who pays them well and indulges
them at the expense of his people, that they may be his support
against that people when in a throe of nature it rises and striven
for its rights. For the same reason, the sentiment of patriotism was
little diffused among them in comparison with the other troops. And
the alternative presented was one in which it required a very clear
sense of higher duty to act against habit. Generally, after wavering
awhile, they obeyed and returned. The Roman States, which had received
them with so many testimonials of affection and honor, on their
r