1826r] Revolution at Palermo, in the Year 1820. 2-11 



and amongst others several English gentlemen in the inn — menaced the 

 inn-keeper with death, and searched in every direction for my servants 

 in order to kill them ; — that others had broken open the public offices 

 and burnt all the Government papers, and lighted fires in all the streets, 

 in which they were consuming every thing belonging to the Government, 

 and committing excesses of all sorts. Notwithstanding the orders of the 

 viceroy, and the representation of my officers, and of the captain and crew 

 of the gun-boat, I still wished to return to Palermo in the hope of 

 re-establishing order. I, therefore, again wrote to the viceroy, and to 

 various general and other officers to this effect, and with great difficulty 

 prevailed on the same sailor to take my letters to Palermo. The captain 

 of the gun-boat and two sailors accompanied liim on shore, but to our 

 surprise returned, after remaining on shore nearly an hour, accompanied 

 by three other sailors belonging to the crew. The captain related to me 

 that lie had been accused by the people of waiting to embark " un Ca- 

 valiere un Generate" and that perceiving he should be arrested and the 

 boat taken possession of, on three more of his seamen arriving from 

 Palermo, he had hastened into the little boat and rowed off with all 

 speed. My surprise was increased by observing that the crew, without 

 asking me a single question, began to get up their anchor and prepare to 

 put to sea. A discussion ensued between me and the captain and sailors 

 of the gun-boat, b}' whom in this moment I thought myself betrayed: 

 one of the officers gave me to understand that he thought so also ; the 

 other, on the contrary, seemed to approve the conduct of the boat's crew, 

 and said in French that they were right — that as he had been in the 

 town in the morning, he could easily conjecture what had happened 

 afterwards, both from the fury of the populace, and the apathy (or 

 something worse) of the troops ; and that he knew the orders of General 

 Naselli, as he had received them and delivered them to me. In the 

 mean time the boat was under weigh, and the wind strong and fair for 

 Trappani. All my attempts to persuade the captain and crew to return 

 towards Palermo were unavailing — they were deaf to orders, expostu- 

 lations, and threats. I then begged to remain on the coast to receive an 

 answer to the last letters which I had written to the viceroy : I perceived 

 that the sailor to whom I had delivered them was returned on board the 

 gmi-boat; and, on questioning him what he had done with the letters, he 

 seemed confounded, and said that he had delivered them. This was 

 impossible : but as the time had been too short for a communication with 

 Palermo, on my demanding the answers he took out of his pocket three 

 letters, which proved to be the very same which I had myself written. 

 This circumstance seemed fully to confirm the suspicion of treachery : 

 I now lost all command of mj- temper, and reproached the sailor Avith his 

 infamous conduct ; the man, not the least discomposed, answered coolly 

 that his feet were sore and that he could not walk, and then went, to , 

 another part of the vessel. It was now about six o'clock in the evening, 

 the wind strong, and the boat sailing swiftly along the coast. The 

 conviction of being betrayed had now possessed nriy mind ; I expressed 

 my ideas by a glance to my aides-de-camp, and seizing the captain of the 

 boat by the collar, I cried, " Traitors, why give yourselves the trouble to 

 go to sea with us ? I know your intentions ; we are but three ; execute 

 here your perfidious designs — throw us into the sea at once and go no 

 farther — what do you fear?" I concluded this address with a volley of op- 

 probrious epithets, and exhausted by my rage, I sunk down en the seat 



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