424 



ITALY. 



into the shade by the insecurity of life and 

 property in some parts of the country. The 

 chronic lawlessness of Sicily showed some ex- 

 tremely acute symptoms. In Palermo, the 

 great Government pawnbroldng establishment, 

 the Monte di Pieta, was undermined by a reg- 

 ular series of engineering operations. The 

 predatory engineers were discovered and ar- 

 rested. When the day arrived for their trial, 

 it was evident from the appearance of the 

 streets that plans were being concerted to ef- 

 fect a rescue. The fact was telegraphed to the 

 Minister of the Interior at Rome. A couple 

 of hours brought the reply that the prisoners 

 should be at once embarked for Northern Italy, 

 and that the trial would take place in some 

 town of Piedmont. Indeed, the administra- 

 tion of criminal justice had become hopeless in 

 the island. On the first three days of the last 

 Palermo assizes, not a single citizen summoned 

 to serve as juryman had answered to the call 

 so completely were all quiet, respectable citi- 

 zens intimidated by the maffia, or organized 

 bands of Sicilian cut-purses and cut-throats. 

 The local journalists, writing with the fear of 

 the stiletto and revolver before their eyes, cry 

 out against the Government for dragging free 

 Sicilian citizens to the region of Monte, and 

 declare the act to be a coup d'etat. The town 

 of Ravenna had in the course of the last few 

 years acquired a terrible notoriety all through 

 Italy. Numerous assassinations were perpe- 

 trated in open daylight, and in very few cases 

 were the murderers brought to justice. It 

 came to be known that there was established 

 a secret society of assassins. The executive 

 did not dare to interfere. Some persons, 

 indeed, attempted to bring the assassins to 

 trial, and, wherever they were successful, a 

 speedy vengeance was taken. At length, one 

 of the gang, who feared that his accomplices 

 would regard him as a spy, and murder him, 

 revealed the entire scheme to the prefect of 

 a neighboring city, and the whole gang was 

 brought to trial. In October, Mgr. Teodoli, 

 one of the three Oamerlingos of the Basilica 

 of the Vatican, while traveling to Trisalti, near 

 Frosinone, was captured by a band of brigands, 

 who demanded and received a ransom of 50,000 

 francs. A rich proprietor of the environs of 

 Palermo, M. Sajali, was carried off by a band 

 of those malefactors. His brother, who is a 

 priest, and possessor of a considerable fortune, 

 received notice to the effect that the prisoner 

 would be given up for a sum of 127,000 francs 

 paid down. Reports received from Palermo 

 stated that two or three troops of bandits were 

 traversing the country and extorting sums of 

 money from the rural population. 



Colonel Angus Oroll, chairman of the Anglo- 

 Sicilian Giona Sulphur Company, published 

 some correspondence which he had received 

 from the Earl of Derby, with reference to be- 

 ing outraged in Sicily, respecting which he had 

 made some representations to the noble earl. 

 The subject was brought by the Foreign Office 



under the notice of the Italian Minister of the 

 Interior, who, while promising that these 

 complaints should receive due consideration, 

 stated that a new organization of the service 

 for the repression of brigandage was about to 

 be put into execution in the whole of Sicily, 

 by means of a considerable development of the 

 military force, and with unity of purpose and 

 of action. The state of Sicily, during the last 

 three months of the year may be conjectured 

 from the report, published in the Military 

 Gazette, of the doings of the carabineers. In 

 all Italy they arrested in three months 17,955 

 persons, of whom 628 were for murder, 223 

 attempted murder, 509 robbery with violence, 

 3,025 cutting and maiming, etc. Of the mur- 

 ders, 160 go to the account of Palermo, or the 

 perpetrators of them were arrested by the 

 " Legion of Palermo ; " and by the same legion 

 were arrested 166 persons guilty of grassazions, 

 robbery with violence. 



General Garibaldi having become involved 

 in financial difficulties, the directors of several 

 Italian newspapers held a meeting, at which 

 it was proposed to raise a sum of money which 

 would yield an annual income of 50,000 francs, 

 to be presented to the general as a national 

 offering. In the Chamber of Deputies, on 

 December 1st, several proposals were read, 

 in favor of bestowing an annual income upon 

 Garibaldi. Signor Minghetti agreed to a dis- 

 cussion of these plans, and added that the Gov- 

 ernment also desired to bring forward a bill 

 for the same object, and would reserve its 

 right to submit the measure to the committee. 

 Garibaldi's difficulties arose, as was reported, 

 from his son Riciotti, who has made a love- 

 match in England, drawing bills upon him to 

 pay certain expenses. The general had no 

 means of paying these bills save by the sale of 

 the yacht presented to him by the Duke of 

 Sutherland, which he sent to London for sale. 

 King Victor Emmanuel bought it for 80,000 

 francs, and the general intrusted a Genoese 

 broker with the money to lodge in the bank. 

 This broker took it into his head to take the 

 money to America, and the general mortgaged 

 his island of Caprera to the Naples Bank for 

 the needful funds. The island is not nearly 

 worth the amount advanced, and it seems that 

 some Americans assisted the general. 



The fifth General Assembly of the Free 

 Christian Churches of Italy was held at Pisa, 

 January 6th to 9th. Prof. Paolo de Michelis 

 presided. The representatives of twenty-five 

 churches were present. Among the more im- 

 portant subjects which came under the con- 

 sideration of the Assembly were various plans 

 for promoting and developing self-help and 

 self-support among the churches and newly- 

 organized societies. An address on this sub- 

 ject, prepared by the Rev. W. S. Alexander, 

 of Boston (United States), was read. Prof, 

 de Michelis, the Rev. J. R. McDougall, Signor 

 Enrico Jahier, and Signori Gavazzi, Lagomar- 

 sino, Conti, and Bergia, were chosen as mem- 



