THE KING’S TENDERNESS FOR THE WOUNDED

sure you do not push forward too rapidly ? We must be patient and moderate.’

But ail the clergy were not opposed to Victor Emmanuel. When at Ancona he paid a visit to the Holy House of Loreto, and greatly edified the community by his reverential bearing. The canons invited the royal visitor to lunch, and he accepted. Subsequently * he went to visit the Jesuits’ college, converted into a temporary hospital after the battle of Castelfidardo. Victor Emmanuel's tenderness for the sick soldiers had done much to endear him to the army. He was a constant visitor to the hospitals, cheering the invalids by his kind encouraging words, by présents of cigars, and varions little favours — the value of which chiefly consisted in the fact that they came directly from the royal hand. Many anecdotes the volunteers tell of his bonhomie, his gentleness, his sympathy for suffering. His génial prcserice brought light and animation to the pale faces of the sick and wounded soldiers.

‘ Your wound is slight.^ ’ asked the king of a youth whose bright smiling face attracted him. ‘ Not verj»^, your majesty,’ was the reply, as he lifted from under the covering a bandaged stump. He was promised promotion. Those whose familles were in bad circumstances had money given them. When the king came to a poor fellow whose head was ail bandaged up he asked, ‘ Are you wounded severely "i ’

‘ Your majesty, I hâve lost my eyes,’ replied the patient. The king bent his head sadly. No money nor promotion could heal such a wound as this ; but he made

the young man feel his sympathy. Inquiring about his family, he leamed that he had a mother who was very dear to him : and Victor Emmanuel took a medal ofîf his own breast and put it into the hand of the blind soldier with a kindly pressure, telling him to send it to his mother as a proof of how well he had served his country.

After the battle of Castelfidardo the wounded prisoners of the Pope’s army were housed with the royal troops, so that the king, in visiting his own soldiers, was obliged to pass by the beds of his enemies. Some of them saluted him courteousiy, and spoke to him in French ; ail looked at him with much curiosity, with the exception of a Belgian, who covered his face .with the sheet to shut out the hateful sight of the sacrilegious monster. The king retumed the salutations, and replied affably to any question or remark addressed to him by the prisoners.

‘ What handsome people ! ’ he said on coming out of the hospital. ‘ What a pity that they will fight against us when we are at peace with their countries.’

The officers of Lamoricière’s army were almost ail French, and most of the men Irish. As soon as their wounds permitted, they, with their general, were put on board the ship Conte di Cavour, and conveyed to Marseilles.

Meantime Garibaldi, after some hésitation, and a hard contest with his evil advisers, allowed his nobler nature to conquer, and submitted to the decision of what we may now call the National Parliament, since it