A TOUR OF INQUIRY THROUGH FRANCE AND ITALY, ILLUSTRATING THEIR PRESENT SOCIAL, POLITICAL, AND BY EDMUND SPENCER, ESQ., AUTHOR OF TRAVELS IN EUROPEAN TURKEY,' TRAVELS IN CIRCASSIA," &c. IN TWO VOLUMES. VOL. I. LONDON: HURST AND BLACKETT, PUBLISHERS, SUCCESSORS TO HENRY COLBURN, 13, GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET. 1853. PREFACE. "BOAST not thyself of to-morrow, for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth." How peculiarly applicable are these inspired words to the political events of our day. A new era has dawned on the world, a spirit of innovation-or rather let us say of social and religious improvement-has arisen, and it were as vain to attempt to arrest its progress, as to reverse the order of the seasons. Unhappily, however, for mankind, systems |