Peace was signed at Prague on the 23rd August, the
conditions being almost exactly the same as those of the preliminaries agreed upon at Nikolsburg, with a rather odd and cautiously worded article, however, as to the cession of Venetia, inserted, it is said, "at the request of Italy." It runs thus :—" In fulfilment of Article 6 of the Nikolsburg preliminaries of peace, and in accord- ance with the declaration of the French Emperor, made through his ambassador at Nikolsburg on the 29th July last, that as far as the French Government was concerned Venetia was acquired for Italy, and would be handed over to her upon the conclusion of peace, the Emperor of Austria agreeing to this declaration, consents to, the union of the Kingdom of Lombardo-Venetia with the Kingdom of Italy, without any more onerous conditions than the payment by the Italian Government of the debts which shall be recognized as the share of the ceded territories, in conformity with the precedent of the Treaty of Zurich." This seems to be a sort of compromise between the direct cession to Italy and the indirect cession yid France, but it admits that Venetia was " acquired " by France, and ostentatiously puts for- ward that it is only by the permission of France that Italy acquires it. In other respects Austria seems at last anxious to conciliate the good-will of a power which ought in future to be jeer ally in checking French ambition.
