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English: From page i to page 338.
Italian: From page 339 to page 673.
Inglese: Da pagina i a pagina 338.
Italiano: Da pagina 339 a pagina 673.
Why Italy Entered Into
the Great War
Why Italy Entered Into
the Great War
By
Luigi Carnovale
Author of "A Visit to the Artist Andrea Cefaly," "My Mother,"
"The Dream of Francesco," "Journalism of the
Italian Emigrants in America."
/ speak to utter the truth,
Not out of hate nor scorn for others.
— Petrarch.
Italian-American Publishing Company
Chicago, Illinois
United States of America
1917
Copyright, 1917, by Luigi Carnovale.
All rights reserved.
This labor of love written in exile
I dedicate to the memory of
the fallen and
to the sorrows of the survivors
with thoughts reaching out
toward the highest human ideals
to vindicate the honor of the
Italian people
in the minds of those who
are in ignorance
of the truth.
LuiGi Carnovale.
Chicago, Illinois
United States of America
July, 1917
CONTENTS
PAGE
Dedication 5
Introduction — A Question. An Insinuation. A Premise. 19
FIRST PART
I. The beginning of Austria's military violence in Italy.
The stoning of the boy Balilla (1746) 23
II. The dismembering and repartition of Italy in 1815.
The "lion's share" to Austria. The Carbonari. ... 25
III. The Revolutions in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
in 1820. Austria, with the brutal force of her soldiery,
imposes the tyranny of the Bourbons on the Italian
patriots who are fighting for liberty. Persecutions and
condemnations (1821) 27
IV. The Revolution of Piedmont in 1821. Austria, with
the brutal force of her soldiery, imposes the tyranny of
the house of Savoy on the patriots who were fighting for
liberty. Persecutions and condemnations 31
V. Austria, with the brutal force of her soldiery, imposes
her own tyranny on the patriots of Lombardo-Veneto,
who are fighting for liberty. Persecutions and condem-
nations (1820-1821) 33
VI. The Revolutions of the Duchies of Modena and Reggio
and in the Roman State (183 1). Austria, with the brutal
force of her soldiery, imposes the tyranny of one of her
princes and the tyranny of the Pope on the Italian pa-
triots who are fighting for liberty. Persecutions and con-
demnations 35
VII. A new national conscience is formed by the forceful
teachings of Mazzini, Gioberti, and other great Italians,
impelling the people to thought and action. The tyrants,
both big and little, are obliged to concede the benefits of
liberty to the oppressed people. Only Austria, despising
and challenging them, continues to oppress the Italians
of Lombardo-Veneto 37
7
8 CONTENTS
PAGE
VIII. The Revolutions of 1848 in Italy. Milan rises up
against Austrian tyranny and fights epically for five
days. The troops of Field Marshal Radetzky (20,000
men, infantry and cavalry, with sixty field cannon)
slaughter the innocents; burn alive men, women and chil-
dren; nail nursing babes to the walls of houses; they string
infants on stacked bayonets and carry them around as
trophies; outrage women, kill them, cut off and put in
their pockets the ringed hands from the dead bodies; rob,
pollute, massacre, burn; commit numberless and un-
speakable crimes. And the Milanese — heroic and vic-
torious — respond with civil generosity for the evil
which they had received. Venice also rises up, drives
out the Austrian oppressors, and re-establishes the an-
cient Republic of St. Mark 41
IX. The Hymn of Mameli. The first War of Liberation —
The Italians are defeated because of the defection of
Pope Pius IX and of the Bourbon King of the Two Sicilies.
The Austrians are again rulers of Lombardy (1848). . . 50
X. The Austrian soldiers re-enter Milan, giving them-
selves up to rapine and vandalism. Field Marshal Ra-
detzky extorts the extraordinary tax of 20,000,000 lire
from 185 "noble and prominent citizens" (1848). . . 53
XI. The insurrection at Rome. The Papal Prime Min-
ister Pellegrino Rossi is killed. Pius IX flees in the night
to Gaeta. The Roman Republic is proclaimed with Maz-
zini, Saflfi, and Armellini at the head. The second War
of Liberation against Austria. The Italians are defeated
because of their commanders. Carlo Alberto is obliged to
abdicate in favor of his son Victor Emanuel. The Aus-
trians, emboldened, extend their tyranny to Piedmont
(1849) 55
XII. The "Lioness of Italy." At Brescia the Austrian
soldiers "throw the heads of infants, torn from their
bodies, the arms of women and children, and burned
human flesh on the barricades of the citizens as if they
were throwing the remnants of a dinner to dogs, and com-
mit other unbelievable villainies." The tragic revenge
of a young Brescian who was burned alive (1849). 57
XIII. The Austrian soldiers in Tuscany in Bologna, and in
CONTENTS 9
PAGE
Ancona. The tyrants crush the Roman Republic, which
had been so gloriously ruled by Mazzini and defended by
Garibaldi, and re-establish the temporal power of the
Popes (1849) 61
XIV. The Austrian soldiers pursue Garibaldi and Anita
(the loved consort of the Hero) who is pregnant. The
sad ending of the heroine, who is buried nude! "The
abandoned wandering dog" (1849) 63
XV. The Austrians besiege and bombard Venice, continu-
ously, for three months. Field Marshal Radetzky apes
Nero. The Queen of the Adriatic Sea is obliged to sur-
render, because of famine and cholera more than because
of the army of the enemy. The elegy of the poet
(i849).' 67
XVI. Field Marshal Radetzky and his graceless officers
celebrate the birthday of their Emperor (Francis Joseph)
in Milan by hectoring the unarmed people, brutally
charging upon them with cavalry and infantry, beating
patriots and whipping the young boys and girls on their
bare backs (1849) 70
XVII. "The Emperor of Hangmen" (1851-1853). ... 73
XVIII. The Bersaglieri in the Crimean War (1855). Cavour
at the Congress of Paris (1856). The Alliance with
Napoleon III (1858). The memorable words of Victor
Emanuel II at the opening of the Sub-Alpine Parlia-
ment. Austria's ultimatum to Piedmont. The Hymn
of Garibadli. The Austrian soldiers massacre the family
of Cignoli. The papal soldiers massacre the patriots of
Perugia. Pius IX and Cardinal Pecci (later Pope Leo
XIII) praise the assassination. The third War of Libera-
tion won by the Italians with the aid of the French
(1859) 75
XIX. Garibaldi and The Thousand gloriously conquer the
Two Sicilies (i860). Proclamation of the Kingdom of
Italy (1861). The Fourth War of Liberation against
Austria is lost owing to the inefficiency of commanders.
The annexation of Veneto (1866). Villa Glori. The hired
soldiers of Pius IX massacre the Roman heroine Giuditta
Arquati-Tavani with her husband and son. Mentana
10 CONTENTS
PAGE
(1867). The taking of Rome and the final fall of the
temporal power of the Popes (1870). The Nation one
and independent 83
SECOND PART
I. How ancient Rome, during the Republic and also dur-
ing the Empire, conquered and latinized Friuli, Istria,
Trieste, Trentino, Trent and Dalmatia and how she made
of the Adriatic Sea a great Roman Lake. "The Tavola
Clesiana." 91
II. The barbarian invasion into Italy. Attila, flagelhim
Dei, destroys (452 A. D.) the beautiful city of Acquileia,
founded by the Romans in 181-182 B. C. In a mass
meeting, presided over by the Emperor Charlemagne,
the Italians of Istria protest against the Slavic immi-
gration (804 A. D.). The Republic of the Doges liberates
the Adriatic sea from foreign pirates. The marriage of
Venice with the sea. The spontaneous submission of
Dalmatia (999 A. D.) after eight centuries of fidelity.
The "honorable burial" of the standard of St. Mark. 98
III. The Communes. Frederick Barbarossa, Emperor of
Germany, descends upon Italy (1154) massacres, sacks
and burns; captures the celebrated reformer, Arnold
of Brescia, and delivers him into the hands of Adrian IV,
who burns him alive. The subservient Diet of Roncaglia,
Milan, Crema and Piacenza rebels. Barbarossa takes a
frightful revenge, besieges the smallest town, Crema.
But not being able to conquer by force of arms, he takes
children of Crema and Milan whom he holds in hostage,
ties them to movable wooden towers and exposes them
to the shots of the besieged citizens. Love of Country
overcomes paternal love in the Italians. The destruction
of Crema and Milan. The Veronese League. An ener-
getic Pope. The Lomhardian League. The Archbishop
Cristiano of Magonza, plenipotentiary of Barbarossa in
Italy, besieges Ancona and forces the citizens to eat net-
tles and leather. The heroism of the women. The union
of the communes produces the epopee. The Carrocio.
The Covipany of Death. Barbarossa is defeated by the
Italians at Legnano (1176). He is defeated also on the
CONTENTS 11
PAGE
sea by the combined fleets of Venice and Trieste. He
suffers the humiliation of kissing the foot of his enemy
(Pope Alexander III). He sues for peace and leaves
Italy forever without having put it under the yoke. . . 104
IV. The struggle of the Triestians for their municipal
independence and for the maintenance of their Itali-
anity from the Peace of Constance (1183), Against the
Bishop-barons (1295 to 1349). Against Venice (1368
to 1381). "The surrender" to Austria (1382). The
Anti-Austrian party, its rebellions and martyrology.
"The pride of their Roman heritage." Triestine history
from Fifteenth to Eighteenth Century 112
V. The struggle for Italianity sustained with perseverance
by the Triestians, Istrians, Dalmatians and Trentini
against Austria, from the time of the treaty of Vienna
18 15, until the Italian revolutions of 1848 120
VI. The Trentini, the Triestians, the Istrians and the Dal-
matians battle for the Roman Republic, which is under
the leadership of the Triumvirate Mazzini, Saffi and
Armellini, and is defended by Garibaldi against the Pope,
and for the Republic of Venice which is led by Manin and
Tommaseo and is defended by General Guglielmo Pepe
against Austria (1849) 131
VII. The Trentini, Triestians, Istrians and Dalmatians in
defense of their Italianity from 1850 to 1858. Their
filial contribution of blood to the Second War of Libera-
tion of Italy against Austria (1859) 133
VIII. The Trentini, the Triestians, the Istrians in the cam-
paign of The Thousand. Their filial contribution of
blood during the entire War for the Liberation of Southern
and Central Italy (i860). The fierce reaction of the
Austrians. The sums of money gathered from the Istrians
for the national cause. The Triestian women present an
Italian flag to Garibaldi (i860) 138
IX. The struggle for Italianity, sustained with indomitable
pride by the Trentini, Triestians, Istrians, and Dalma-
tians against Austria from 1861 to 1865 145
X. The filial contribution of blood by the Trentini, the
Triestians, the Istrians and Dalmatians, who battle for
12 CONTENTS
PAGE
the independence and unity of Italy against the Austrians
in the war of 1866. Trieste and Istria fight for their
annexation to the Mother Country (1866) 150
XL The filial contributions of blood by the Triestians,
Istri^ns, Trentini and Dalmatians to Italy in the taking
ofRome(i867-i87o) 158
XII. Triestians are found among the Garibaldian volunteers
in defense of France against Prussia in the war of 1870.
Continued demonstrations of Italianity in the Irredentist
regions (1872-1882). The young Triestian William
Oberdan, university student at Rome, ardent apostle of
Italianity, is hanged at Trieste for attempting to take the
life of Francis Joseph. Tremendous Italian demonstra-
tions against Austria (December 1882) 163
XIII. The monument to Dante in the city of Trent (1896).
Manifestations of Italianity at Trieste and Istria (1897-
1903). The elementary and intermediate Italian schools
in Goritz and Gradisca, Trieste, Istria and in Dalmatia.
The eternal lamp placed by the Irredentist Italians at
the tomb of Dante in Ravenna (1908). The Italian
Irredentist students of the University of Vienna assaulted
by the Austrian students of the same University and fired
upon by the police. Tremendous Italian demonstrations
of protest against Austria (1908). The incessant con-
spiracies of Italian Trieste against the Austrian govern-
ment until 1915 176
XIV. A proclamation inciting Italy to war against Austria,
sent by the Triestians to each socialist deputy of the
Italian National Parliament on the day when the new
Legislature opened in Rome, February 1914 188
XV. A proclamation inciting Italy to war against Austria,
sent by the Triestians to each non-socialist deputy of the
Italian National Parliament on the day when the new
legislature opened in Rome, February 1914 190
XVI. A proclamation inciting Italy to war against Austria
by the Italians of the Irredentist provinces of Gradisca,
Goritz, Trieste and Istria (Julian Venice) and the Tren-
tino during the month of April 1914, "for the Unity of
the Patria." 191
CONTENTS 13
PAGE
XVII. The Italian banner is hoisted at Trieste on the tower
of San Giusto and over the harbor of Muggia in Decem-
ber, 1914. Thousands of Irredentist Itahans rush to
offer themselves to the Patria in the present great war
against Austria, 1914-1915 195
XVIII. Gabriele d'Annunzio reaffirms and exalts the Ital-
ianity of Trieste in the garden of the Palace of Andrea
Doria, at Genoa (May 6, 1915), upon receiving a gift in
plaster of the Triestian Lion, the original of which is in the
wall of one of the houses of the Guistiniani 196
XIX. Words spoken by Gabriele d'Annunzio in Genoa,
May 7, 191 5, to the exiles of Dalmatia, upon receiving
from them the gift of a book, printed in Genoa, in which
the Dalmatians affirm, demonstrate and defend the Itali-
anity of Dalmatia 197
THIRD PART
I. The assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand, heir
to the Austro-Hungarian throne, by the Serbian student
Gabrilo Princip on June 28, 1914 201
II. The fatal note — ultimatum of the Austro-Hungarian
government to the government of Serbia (July 23,
1914) 202
III. The partisan attitude of Germany. The conciliatory
attitude of Russia. The beseeching telegram of Prince
Alexander, regent of Serbia, to Czar Nicholas II. An
eloquent telegram from the English Ambassador, Buch-
anan. The obstinacy of the Austro-Hungarian govern-
ment 205
IV. The reply of the Serbian government to the ultimatum
note of the Austro-Hungarian government was given
July 25, 1914 208
V. An eloquent telegram from the English ambassador in
Vienna, Maurice di Bunsen, to Sir Edward Grey (July
27, 1914). An official communication from the Russian
government, pubHshed by the Courrier de la Bourse, of
Petrograd (July 27, 1914), the reply of Czar Nicholas II to
Prince Alexander, regent of Serbia (July 27, 1914). The
14 CONTENTS
PAGE
grateful acknowledgment of Prince Alexander to Czar
Nicholas II 213
VI. The declaration of war by Austro-Hungary against
Serbia (July 27, 1914). The proclamation of the Em-
peror Francis Joseph to his people (July 28th). Czar
Nicholas sends an urgent telegram to the Kaiser, begging
of him to discourage war (July 29th). The reply and
the declaration of war (July 31st) 214
VII. The treaty of the Triple Alliance between the govern-
ments of Italy, Austria, and Germany (1882-1912). The
articles III, IV, and VII of that same treaty 217
VIII. How the government of Austria, in its fatal ultimatum
of July 23, 1914, and the consequent declaration of war
against Serbia, of July 27, 1914, violated the treaty of
the Triple Alliance to the injury of Italy 218
IX. The declaration of Italian neutrality (August 4, 1914). 220
X. The Italian Government, on May 3, 191 5, denounces
the treaty of the Triple Alliance 221
XI. Antonio Salandra, president of the ministerial council
of Italy, in the historical session of the National Italian
parliament in Rome, May 20, 1915, explains the reasons
which forced the Italian government to declare war on
Austria-Hungary 223
XII. Italy declares war against Austria-Hungary (May 23,
1915) 225
XIII. The Emperor Francis Joseph in a proclamation ad-
dressed to his people on May 24, 1915, accuses Victor
Emanuel III, King of Italy, of treachery 226
XIV. The "violent and false" speech of von Bethmann-
Hollweg, the German chancellor, to the Reichstag in
Berlin, against Italy (May 28, 1915) 227
XV. Antonio Salandra, president of the Italian cabinet, in
a solemn and detailed speech delivered in the Campido-
glio of Rome, June 2, 191 5, defends Italy from the accusa-
tions of the Austro-Hungarian Emperor and the German
Chancellor 229
CONTENTS 15
FOURTH PART
PAGE
I. First reason: Patriotism 243
II. Second reason: Irredentism 245
III. Third reason: An unreturned visit. . . . . . . 246
IV. Fourth reason: National cohesion; mihtary efficiency, . 247
V. Fifth reason: Fear of isolation 250
VI. Sixth reason: The right to travel 251
VII. Seventh reason: Human solidarity 253
VIII. The betrayal 278
IX. English and French gold 289
X. Territorial cupidity 301
XI. The Omnipotents 303
Index 307
ILLUSTRATIONS
The "Tavola Clesiana." 96
Map of the unredeemed Italian regions 338-339
Press and individual opinions on the book, Journalism of the
Italian Emigrants in America by Luigi Carnovale . .317
Why Italy Entered Into
the Great War
INTRODUCTION
A Question. An Insinuation. A Premise.
Soon after Victor Emanuel III declared war upon
Francis Joseph, May 23, 1915, I was frequently plied with
questions by thoughtful Americans as to why Italy had
entered into the great European conflict.^ These questions
always carried with them a note of affection and regret that
The beautiful country
Traversed by the Apennines, bounded by the Alps, and bathed
by the sea,
should be imperiled, and it also proves that up to the
above date nothing which has been published regarding
this extraordinary event has been sufficient to give to the
greater part of the American public an exact or even an
approximate explanation of the causes which determined
the intervention of Italy into the butchery which has been
terrorizing and ruining the world.
I therefore believe it to be my duty to set forth in detail,
as succinctly as possible and in a volume (for this cannot be
done by word of mouth, in a simple newspaper article, or
in a pamphlet), the causes for this much discussed inter-
vention. I shall attempt to tell this not in justification nor
condemnation of the Monarchical Government of Savoy, for
this is not the time for redde rationeniy but to reply exhaus-
tively to the questions which have been asked me; and
above all to vindicate truth and justice, which have been
outraged by the charges wrongfully made (pardon my
frankness) by many American friends that a people so
honest, so proud, and so generous as the Italians have been
guilty of infamous treachery in declaring void the treaty of
the Triple Alliance and consequently deserting the side of
Austria and Germany, and have rushed wildly into a war
' Today I could well say: until yesterday, that is, on the eve of the publication
of this volume.
19
20 INTRODUCTION
against the two allied nations, because they (the Italian
people) were bought by English and French gold, and be-
cause they were eager to acquire territory such as Trent
and Trieste, which by hereditary divine right was the pos-
session of the Hapsburgs!^
I wish further to assert and to repudiate, a priori, the
charges that I may be in any way actuated, either selfishly
or militarily, by a spirit of chauvinisme . I adore Italy, the
land of my birth, for her glorious contributions of thought
and of blood, which she has always given, and gives even
now so freely in this ceaseless battle of civilization against
barbarism. But in the meantime I admire other countries
and love as brothers men of all races, and I will defend with
the best forces of my nature the principle of universal peace,
having for its basis equality, liberty, prosperity, and happi-
ness for all of the peoples of the earth.
In the development of my present task, I shall use only
the most positive elements based upon facts which history
^ The World (the well known daily paper of New York) on January 12, 1917,
that is after twenty months of the war between Italy and Austria, commenting
on the terms contained in the reply of the Allies to President Wilson, expressed
itself, in regard to Italy's Irredentist aspirations on the eastern coast of the Adriatic
sea, in the following terms:
In at least two minor respects they [the conditions] are wholly immoral, in that
they contemplate the seizure of territory that never belonged to Italy and Roumania
in order to pay the bribes that those two eminently sordid governments exacted as
their price for entering the war on the side of the Allies.
The Italian papers in the United States and of Italy, and the Government of
Rome itself by means of its ministers, Ruffini and Bissolati, protested against such
statements.
But The World, on January 30, 1917, imperturbably repeated its original state-
ment, publishing in its editorial columns the following article:
Italy's claims. — In spite of the protests of the Italian Commissioner of war against
a recent editorial in The World, we shall continue to think that Italy's motives in this
war are as little defensible as Bulgaria's and Roumania' s.
Minister Bissolati is appalled by the colossal ignorance on the part of The World
which would deny to Italy her right to vindicate the Italian character of Trieste and
which takes no account of Italy's fifty years of heroic resistance against the brutal
Austrian domination.
Austria's domination is neither more nor less brutal than it was during the thirty-
three years in which Italy zvas allied to Austria in the Triple Alliance.
Trieste is no more Italian now than when Italy was availing itself of the benefits
of its alliance with Austria and Germany. Nor is Europe likely to compel another
war by shutting of A us tro- Hungary from the sea in order to give Italy territory, to
which it is no more entitled racially than it is to a third of Switzerland, and to Nice
and to Corsica, which are now held by France.
Many other American newspapers and magazines have repeated and continue
to repeat the same refrain.
INTRODUCTION 21
has already written upon her eternal pages: facts which
the press — that foster-mother and forerunner of history
— has already recognized and verified, and the absolute
truth of which no one can doubt.
Naturally, for logical reasons I must give these facts
with illustrative notes, which must be more or less brief.
But these notes will be only the limited expression of my
own personal judgment and sentiments. A complete ex-
pression of the latter would include the enunciation of those
principles which inspire me to hold as brothers all victims
of social injustice.
The notes which I shall make will give the reasons for
the sentiments which, in the spring of 191 5, irresistibly
pushed the Italians to war against Austria — sentiments
in which vibrated, at the same time, the higher and more
sympathetic note of human solidarity for the humble, the
innocent, and the weak, whose liberty, whose honor, and
substance, and all the sacred rights of whose being have been
cruelly struck by bestial libidinous satraps placed by God
Almighty on the thrones of Europe — satraps who impu-
dently proclaimed themselves Christlike shepherds, while
they were not other than ferocious wolves, whose present
crimes would terrify the troglodytes of a darkest Africa.
The difficulties of this task will be manifold, but I hope
to overcome them.
FIRST PART
I
The beginning of Austria's military violence in Italy.
The stoning of the boy Balilla (1746).
Charles VI, Emperor of Austria (1711-1740), sometime
before his death violated the Salic Law, publishing an
ordinance giving pragmatic sanction to his appointing his
daughter, Maria Theresa, heir to the throne.
The European Powers — France, Spain, Prussia, and
Bavaria — which sustained the Salic Law, did not at that
time oppose this arbitrary and autocratic ruling of the
king. They opposed it only after his death, saying clearly
that Maria Theresa could not and must not usurp a right
belonging to the masculine sex.
The daughter of Charles VI feigned not to understand
her position and continued to execute the will of her
august parent. Then the four powers resorted to extreme
measures: they proclaimed as Emperor of Austria one of
the legitimate pretenders to the throne — Charles Albert, of
Bavaria, who assumed the name of Charles VII — and they
sent him, accompanied by a great army, to Vienna to take
possession of the crown "in the presence of God and the
above mentioned."
With the approach of her rivals, Maria Theresa became
frightened and fled, and took refuge in Hungary. The
Hungarians received her gallantly and off'ered her the armed
support of the Austrians who remained faithful to her in
order to recover the Kingdom. The Hungarians and the
Austrians were soon supported by England and Holland,
and a little later by Charles Emanuel HI of Savoy.
Between the two groups a war was started, which lasted
for some time. After many battles, favorable first to one
23
24 FIRST PART
side and then to the other, the decisive victory finally was
given to the allies of Maria Theresa. The French and Span-
iards, discomfited near Piacenza, could not do other than
leave Italy. The daughter of Charles VI could thus con-
fidently and triumphantly ascend the throne.
The Austrian army, emboldened by such success, made
war upon Genoa to punish it for having taken the part of
the enemy. The city was not in a condition to defend it-
self. Taken thus suddenly and menaced with shot and shell,
she found it prudent to consign the keys of her city to the
assailing army.
The drunken troops, mad for gold and vengeance,
entered, sacking, insulting, committing such crimes as
have never been equaled in history. As if this were not
enough, they demanded twenty-one millions of lire for
war indemnity. The citizens begged for clemency from
the merciless general, who responded that the invaders
merited more than they had received — ^^that they should
have demanded their shirts — adding, "We will leave you
nothing except your eyes with which to weep."
Such persecutions lasted for three months. In the
afternoon of December 5, 1746, while the troops were
dragging some pieces of artillery into the most thickly
populated quarters of Portoria, the street gave way in cer-
tain places under the weight of the great mortars.
Not being able to continue unaided, the infuriated
soldiers commanded the people to help them. This the
citizens refused to do, whereupon the soldiers fell savagely
upon them in a hand-to-hand struggle, beating everyone
regardless of age or sex.
A young boy, — Giovan Battista Perasso, surnamed
Balilla, — furious at having been seriously wounded by a
trooper, seized a stone, exclaiming, "I'll kill you!'* and
threw it at his assailant, felling him to the ground. This
daring act of the youth inspired his elders with new courage,
and in an instant the air was filled with flying missiles aimed
at their enemies.
The bells sounded the tocsin. The citizens, who were
in their homes, understood its meaning. They armed
THE DISMEMBERING OF ITALY 25
themselves, crying, **Viva la Liberta!" and threw them-
selves upon their enemies in a fierce, stubborn and bloody
fight, which lasted five days.
Their oppressors were finally overcome and took flight.
They were pursued and dispersed. Shortly after this an
artisan, Giovanni Carbone, recovered the keys of the city,
and returned them to the Doge and other officials of the
city with the following memorable words:
Gentlemen, here are the keys which you so lightly gave to our
enemies. Guard them well in the future, for they have been
recovered with our blood.
II
The dismembering and repartition of Italy in 1815.
The " lion's share " to Austria. The Carbonari.
After Napoleon was conquered at Waterloo, June i8,
1815, and after the treaty with Vienna, dictated by the
Monarchs of Europe, Italy was dismembered and repar-
titioned in the following manner:
The Kingdom of Sardinia (Sardinia, Piedmont, and
Liguria) to Victor Emanuel I of Savoy;
The State of Lombardo-Veneto (Lombardy, Venice, in-
cluding all of the territory between the Po, Ticino, and the
Adriatic, the ancient Republic of Ragusa, the valleys of
Val Tellina, of Chiavenna and Bormio) to Austria;
The Grand Duchy of Tuscany to the Austrian Prince
Ferdinand III of Lorraine;
The Duchy of Modena and Reggie to the Archduke
Francesco II, cousin of the Emperor of Austria;
The Duchy of Lucca to Maria Louisa of Bourbon;
The Duchies of Parma, Piacenza, and Guastalla, to Maria
Louisa, daughter of the Emperor of Austria and second wife
of Napoleon;
The Roman State to the Pope;
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (Southern Italy) to
Ferdinand I of Bourbon;
26 FIRST PART
The Republic of San Marino, under the protection and
rule of the Pope;
The Canton of Ticino to the Confederation of Switzer-
land;
The Principality of Monaco to the Grimaldi-Montignon,
under the protection of the King of Sardinia;
The Island of Malta to England;
Corsica to France.
Austria, who directly and indirectly demanded the
lion's share, reserved for herself the right to the military
occupation of Ferrara and Comacchio.
One can easily imagine the effect of such dismember-
ment and repartition in the beautiful and unfortunate
peninsula; iniquitous laws, additional taxes, despoliation,
and injustice of every kind; every crime was committed,
as even today is characteristic of Monarchical Government,
which, without scruple, places dynastic interests before
the well-being of its people.
Fortunately, the Italians were not led like sheep as in
the past, but they were roused, their minds having been
awakened and quickened by the ideas propagated by the
French Revolution and the extraordinary events of the
Napoleonic era. Their consciences, which had been dor-
mant because of centuries of servitude, were awakened and
quickened.
In the rugged, kindly, and generous mountain regions
of Calabria and the Abruzzi, there had been for some time
past a secret society known as the Carbonari, consisting
of the ablest men in that part of the country. The
society had for its purposes the defense, the independence,
and the unity of the mother country by any means and at
any sacrifice.
The day before the Congress of Vienna, the Carbonari
had 800,000 members — both men and women. A few
days after the congress, it counted double that number.
Citizens of every class and social condition continued to
be enrolled.
During the first years of the Carbonari it limited it-
self to patient and cautious preparatory training. It was
THE AUSTRIANS IN NAPLES (1821) 27
not until 1820 that the society became formidable, more
because of its harmony and discipline, its moral and intel-
lectual strength, than because of its numbers. It then be-
gan a series of practical and arduous issues which, after
fifty years of heroism and martyrdom, culminated in the
greatest civil conquest of the century; namely, the taking
of Rome and the abolition of the temporal power of the
Popes.
Ill
The Revolutions in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
in 1820. Austria, with the brutal force of her soldiery,
imposes the tyranny of the Bourbons on the ItaUan
patriots who are fighting for liberty. Persecutions and
condemnations (1821).
In the year 1820, the revolution burst out in the Kingdom
of the Two Sicilies, where tyranny reigned, plotting, and
restricting and strangling every breath of liberty. On the
morning of July 2d, a detachment of soldiers with their
officers from Nola and Avellino rose up, crying, "Give us the
Constitution! Long live the Constitution!" (The Car-
bonari had permeated even the ranks of the army.)
This cry of rebellion was taken up and ran like lightning
throughout the entire Kingdom, rousing and electrifying the
people. It seemed like the roar of an angry ocean. On the
evening of July 6th, it was reported that the patriotic,
energetic, and universally esteemed General Guglielmo Pepe
had assumed the leadership of the revolution. This un-
expected news added fuel to the fire. This same night the
leaders of the Carbonari of Naples presented themselves
at the royal palace and daringly demanded the Constitution
in the name of the people and of the army.
The King refused with the typical arrogance of tyrants.
The Carbonari listened to him in silence. When he had
finished, they left his presence in dignified silence. A few
moments later an immense crowd of civilians and soldiers,
flocking together as brothers, ran roaring like lions through
28 FIRST PART
the streets of the city. The Bourbon heard the cry. He
trembled Hke a rabbit. He could not sleep. Before the
dawn he published the following proclamation:
As it has been manifested that it is the general wish of the na-
tion to have a constitutional government, it is our earnest desire to
comply with this, and therefore we promise, in the course of a
week, to publish the basis of it.
But the insurrectionists were not so easily satisfied.
They knew that in 1812 Ferdinand had conceded a Constitu-
tion, and had afterward abrogated it in secret. They de-
manded a more concrete and positive guarantee from him,
namely, to swear on the gospels to give them the constitu-
tion, and to give to General Pepe the command of the entire
military forces of the state; to name a committee, which
should arrange the meeting of the congress.
The Bourbon made a virtue of necessity and yielded.
General Pepe, who was in Monteforte, on July 9th
made his triumphal entrance into Naples. It was in the
evening of the same day that the poet Gabriel Rossetti sang:
At last you have come — you have come,
longed-for day!
Everything around us shines
With new joy;
Redemption of our country
On every brow is written.
This time I do not dream, —
1 dream no more, O Liberty!
On the 13th of the month, in the private chapel of the
royal palace, and in the presence of General Pepe, the pro-
visional commission, ministers, and dignitaries of the court,
Ferdinand swore solemnly to support the Constitution,
which was similar to the Spanish Constitution of 1812. On
that occasion the king emphasized and ended his speech
in the following impressive words:
Omnipotent and all powerful God, who with infinite wisdom
canst read the hearts and the future of finite men, if I lie, or fail
in my oath, thou, at that instant, direct upon my head the light-
ning of thy vengeance!
THE AUSTRIANS IN NAPLES (1821) 29
The scene was deeply impressive. Gabriel Rossetti,
who had sung in verse "The Promised Constitution, " now
saluted "The Sworn Constitution" with a hymn of thirty
strophes of which the following are the most prophetic:
Citizens, we can now rest secure
Under the shade of our gathered laurels,
But with one hand on our dreaded sword
We are guarding our mother country.
The wise, unlike the foolish.
Prepare for war in time of peace.
Yes, peace shines on our faces,
But war, war is brewing in our hearts.
These events, however, had the effect of worrying the
monarchs of Europe. The Emperor of Austria, Francis I,
and his colleagues of Russia and Prussia met in a congress
at Troppau, a city of Silesia, to discuss the grave situation.
They were not long in coming to an agreement, and they
decided to enjoin Ferdinand to abrogate by conciliation the
constitution which he had promulgated. Ferdinand gave
them to understand that this would be impossible by such
means. Then the three monarchs met again in December
at Laibach the capital of Carniola (this time with representa-
tives of the other Powers), "to ameliorate," said Prince
Metternich, Prime Minister of Austria, "the internal con-
dition of the Two Sicilies^
Ferdinand, the Bourbon, secretly wrote to the kings, beg-
ging them to invite him to the congress, when he would ex-
plain his conduct and at the same time suggest the most
efficacious means of suppressing the liberal spirit of the
Neapolitans. He was invited. But the Constitution which
he had promulgated forbade his leaving the Kingdom without
the permission of Parliament; consequently, he was obliged
to swear that if he were permitted to go he would defend
the cause of the people. "I will defend," he said, "the
position taken by us last July. I wish for my Kingdom the
Spanish Constitution, and I will demand peace, because my
conscience and my honor demand it."
This new vow gave to him the wished-for permission to
30 FIRST PART
go, but before going he named his son, Francis, regent to
the throne, with the title of Vicar. When he arrived
at the Congress, however, he explained that the reason why
he had given the Constitution was because it had been
wrested from him by force; that he considered as nothing
his obligations toward the revolutionists, and that military
occupation was the only means of re-establishing and
consolidating the sovereignty of the monarchy.
The anointed of the Lord listened to him and approved,
and February 9th, 1821, they ordered the immediate re-
establishment of the absolute government in Southern Italy
by means of their minister, Metternich, who loved Italians as
one loves smoke in the eyes.
The Neapolitan Parliament replied by preparing for war.
An Austrian army was not long in appearing on the border.
Gabriel Rossetti^ incited Italy to rise up against her invad-
ing enemies in the following lines:
Arise! Why delay?
^ You sleep, Italy! Ah, no!
The aurora of Liberty
Has risen on your hills.
Arise! Bridle the course
Of the invading foe.
O, slave of your slaves.
You were at one time queen.
Unsheath your sabre like a goddess,
Replace your helmet on your brow;
At last the time has come
For your escape from servitude!
But thanks to the treason of the Vicar, that prince
to whom had been ingenuously given the direction of the
war, the Austrian forces did not meet with much resistance.
They easily entered the city on March 13, 1821, and with
great pomp re-consigned the scepter of despotism to Fer-
dinand.
^Gabriel Rossetti, born at Vasto (Abruzzi) in 1783, died in London in 1854;
was the father of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, celebrated English poet and painter,
founder of the pre-Raphaelite school.
THE AUSTRIANS IN PIEDMONT (1821) 31
The perjurer made use of his power by immediately
wreaking his vengeance on the revolutionists. By means of
corrupt judges the best citizens were condemned to death,
to life servitude, and to exile, and their property was con-
fiscated. Then, fearing new military insurrections, he dis-
solved the army and confided the care of his person to sev-
eral battalions of Swiss mercenaries and to 35,000 Austrian
soldiers, who were in the capital. These newly made police
completed the disastrous work of the tyrant by committing
indescribable depredations and brutalities.
Ferdinand retained these protectors in the Kingdom of
Naples until one fine day in 1825 he departed this world, ex-
ecrated by all. His successor, Francis I, who was equally
iniquitous and short-sighted, could not long bear the ex-
pense of their support. They despoiled the people and emp-
tied the public treasury. He consequently sent them away,
comforting himself with the hope that they could be re-
turned if the Carbonari should become troublesome.
IV
The Revolution of Piedmont in 1821. Austria, with
the brutal force of her soldiery, imposes the tyranny of
the House of Savoy on the Itahan patriots who were
fighting for liberty. Persecutions and condemnations.
The example of the Neapolitan Carbonari was followed
by their brothers of Piedmont.
In January, 1821, the students of the University of
Turin placed on their breasts the badge of the Constitution
of Naples, and appeared suddenly in the streets in a demon-
stration exalting liberty.
The police made an assault upon them. All of the
young men were unarmed, and the police beat them, and
forced them to retreat. But such coercion, instead of
restraining, excited them the more. The demonstration
was repeated in Turin and in other cities of Piedmont, and
assumed a character conspicuously revolutionary at Ales-
32 FIRST PART
sandria, where'the citizens and soldiers rose up (March loth)
crying, "Long live Italy! Long live the Constitution!"
Victor Emanuel I, King of Savoy, Sardinia, Piedmont
and Liguria, and "an enemy of liberal ideas," rather than
accede to their demands, preferred to abdicate (March 13th)
in favor of his brother Carlo Felice, who at that moment
was in Modena acting as regent for the cadet Prince Carlo
Alberto of Savoy-Carignano. The latter, that same night
(March 13th), conceded the Constitution, and formed a
provisional ministry at the head of which was Count
Santorre of Santarosa, who was one of the principal leaders
of the revolution and who promised to maintain all of the
concessions which had been made.
But Carlo Felice, bitter enemy of every liberty — even
worse than his brother — as soon as he knew of this, was
enraged, and made an energetic protest in which he declared
void the conceded Constitution. He ordered Carlo Alberto
to resign the regency immediately and go to Novara,
where, under the orders of General Sallier della Torre, the
troops who had remained faithful to the absolute monarchy
would be assembled. The prince obeyed, and the Car-
bonari, who ingenuously expected from him an act of
resistance against the despotic impositions of the king,
cried "Traitor!" to him.
An army of 30,000 men — a majority of whom were
Austrians — invaded Piedmont, defeated the Constitu-
tionalists and re-established the reactionary dynastic gov-
ernment.
Carlo Felice, like the Bourbon of Naples, began to
persecute the Constitutionalists. Two partisan tribunals,
which he especially appointed (one for civilians and one for
the military), condemned more than 1,000 persons to the
extreme penalty of the law. Santorre of Santarosa saved
himself by running away. He died in exile at Sfacteria,
generously fighting for the independence of Greece.
Carlo Alberto went first to Tuscany, and then to Spain,
where he took part against that people, who like the Ital-
ians were fighting to liberate themselves from the yoke of
oppression. He took part in the assault of the Trocadero
THE AUSTRIANS IN LOMBARDY (1821) 33
(with the fall of which fort the Spanish Constitution was
also destroyed). He distinguished himself and thus entered
again into the good graces of Carlo Felice.
The occupation of Piedmont by the Austrians lasted
until September, 1823, and cost the public treasury
18,000,000 lire, besides the over-taxations, extortions, and
humiliations which the depraved troops imposed privately
on the citizens, guilty only of having offered their lives for
their love of country and for liberty.
Austria, with the brutal force of her soldiery, imposes
her own tjrranny on the patriots of Lombardo-Veneto,
who are fighting for liberty. Persecutions and condem-
nations (1820-1821).
If Austria was cruel to the Italians who were governed
and supposedly protected by her, it is easy to imagine her
brutality, after the short-sighted treaty of Vienna had
thrown them into the rapacious claws of the double-headed
eagle.
The Carbonari of Lombardo-Veneto, in the year 1818,
founded a journal called // Conciliatore; the director of
it was Silvio Pellico, a pleasing writer, an educator in the
highest sense of the word, and a patriot, gentle but forceful.
The apparent object of the paper was "to conciliate in
the literary field, not the loyal with the false, but all of the
lovers of truth; the scope of the journal is to point to
Italians the way to redeem their country."
But they counted without their host. The Austrian
Government had, besides an enormous contingent of troops
armed to the teeth, a special service of police in which pre-
dominated, in number, in knavery, and in villainy, secret
agents and spies of every kind.
The Government, however, was not long in discovering
the thing which // Conciliatore was hiding under its literary
discussions. In September, 1819, the publication was pro-
hibited, and then the government began the persecution of
34 FIRST PART
its founders, its editors, its contributors and supporters, and
all those who were suspected of having had any relation with
the suppressed journal.
In the meantime, the Neapolitan Revolution burst out.
The Carbonari of Lombardo-Veneto could not long remain
inactive; the most daring openly expressed their sympathy
for, and solidarity with, their brothers of the south; but
they were quickly overcome by the preponderating and
all-powerful force of the tyrants.
Hundreds of citizens, among whom were Pellico and
many of his friends, were arrested, insulted, condemned to
death, dragged in chains to Spielberg (a remote fortress in
Moravia), thrown into dark and dirty cells, and left in the
custody of ignorant and cruel keepers, who snapped at
them like snarling mastiffs. Others escaped to free and
hospitable countries.
The death sentence, which had been imposed upon those
who were thrown into Spielberg, was commuted to ten,
fifteen, and twenty years each in prison.
The poet Giovanni Berchet, one of the most brilliant
writers on // Conciliatorey and one of the most ardent
conspirators, justly exclaimed from his exile:
Infinite are the griefs of Italy,
Immeasurable are her sorrows!
She longs for liberty; but, foolish.
She believed in her princes, and confided
Her destiny to their promises;
Her princes traduced her.
They surrounded her by perfidy,
They sold her to strangers.
They broke her legions,
And closed the lips of her sages,
And manacled the feet of the just!
The tortures which they suffered were met with heroic
resignation. They were described ** dispassionately" by
Pellico in his admirable book, called My Prisons, which
cost Austria the condemnation of the world, while the
victims of her tyranny were given immortal fame as martyrs
of the Italian Risorgimento.
THE AUSTRIANS IN EMILIA (1831) 35
VI
The Revolutions of the Duchies of Modena and Reggio
and in the Roman State (1831). Austria, with the brutal
force of her soldiery, imposes the tjrranny of one of her
princes and the tyranny of the Pope on the Italian
patriots who are fighting for liberty. Persecutions and
condemnations.
The reaction raged for ten years, but it could not ex-
tinguish the fires of liberty which burned in the volcanic
breasts of the Italians.
The revolution, crushed in the south and north, burst
out in the center of the peninsula. Giro Menotti, a patriot
of noble and determined purpose, led a group of daring and
faithful companions to prepare for the revolution in the
Duchies of Modena and Reggio, w^here the Austrian,
Francis IV, tyrannized barbarously over the people.
History records that he nailed the political prisoners to the
floors of their vile dungeons in fetters, in manacles, and
with collars of iron.
The revolution was to have commenced about the 4th
or 5th of February, 183 1. But, on February 3d, the ducal
police, having been advised by spies, arrested every suspected
person.
Giro Menotti understood that there was no time to
lose; he had to act carefully and energetically. That same
evening, February 3d, he called together the chief con-
spirators to make their final plans. But Francis IV com-
manded eight hundred soldiers and two guns. They sur-
rounded the house and attacked it with shot and shell. The
conspirators defended themselves herocially for a time, but
were finally overcome by force of arms and numbers, and
with his companions. Giro Menotti, wounded and bleeding,
was made a prisoner.
Francis IV, crazed with joy at his victory, the next
morning sent a special courier to the governor of Reggio
with the following letter:
36 FIRST PART
To-night the revolution broke out. Send me the hangman.
Francis.
This laconic cynicism showed the idiotic depravity of
the man whom the potentates of Europe had believed
worthy of governing such a people as the Italians.
In the meantime the revolution burst out also in Bologna.
The populace attacked and destroyed the city hall and the
pontifical coat of arms, substituting in its place the white,
red, and green flag of Italy. They expelled the representa-
tives of the sacred chair, declaring the temporal power of the
popes abolished. They named a provisional commission
whose duty should be to prepare and announce elections and
to form a definite constitutional government.
The vehement impetus given by "learned Bologna"
was followed in a flash by other cities of central Italy.
The Romagna, the Marches, and Umbria proclaimed them-
selves free.
Francis IV trembled — he did not feel safe in Modena —
he fled, accompanied by a swarm of Austrian soldiers and
the hangman, dragging with them Ciro Menotti "as host-
age." He betook himself to Mantua, a city belonging to
the state of Lombardo-Veneto, where he placed himself
under the direct protection of his imperial Austrian cousin.
Toward the first of March, 183 1, great Austrian armies
invaded the Duchies of Modena, Reggio, and the Roman
State. They encountered the Revolutionists, who were
relatively few in numbers, badly disciplined, and poorly
armed, therefore, they were defeated effort, and they fell
again under the power of the tyrants.
Francis IV re-entered his dominions on March 9, 183 1,
determined upon revenge. He immediately created a special
tribunal, charged with the duty of judging all of those
"who were armed, or who with secret conspiracies had taken
part in the revolt."
The first to be condemned to death was Ciro Menotti,
who was executed on the ramparts May 26, 183 1. He bore
the extreme penalty of the law with the stoicism of a great
soul. The same day, Vincenzo Borelli, a lawyer, was also
hanged for having compiled the act which declared the
A NEW NATIONAL CONSCIENCE 37
government of Francis IV overthrown. More than five
hundred patriots, faUing into the hands of the tribunal, were
condemned, some to death and some to the galleys. More
than a thousand saved themselves by taking the sad road
of the exile.
Not less cruel was the fate of the Revolutionists of the
Roman State. Gregory XVI (Mauro Cappellari), irascible
and obstinate, and enemy of every human liberty, "filled
up the prisons with honest citizens and used the gallows
without stint;" and to sustain the tyranny which he repre-
sented, he maintained in the Roman State for seven years
at public expense, several thousand soldiers who did not
fail to commit their usual outrages, even more ferociously
than usual because they were fanatically certain that they
were fighting for worldly honor, for the glory of the vicar
of God on earth, and for an Austrian prince.
Thus Italy fell again, more servile, more abject, and
more divided, under the rule of the tyrants.
Thus the Carbonari brought to an unhappy ending its
active labor, but its glorious cycle of history was not with-
out fruition.
VII
A new national conscience is formed by the forceful
teachings of Mazzini, Gioberti, and other great Italians,
impelling the people to thought and action. The tyrants,
both big and little, are obliged to concede the benefits of
liberty to the oppressed people. Only Austria, despising
and challenging them, continues to oppress the people of
Lombardo-Veneto.
Not in vain was the magic word liberty resounded along
the shores of the Tyrrhenian, the Ionian, and the Adriatic
seas and carried to the heights of the Apennines and the
Alps, reawakening and inspiring the people. Not in vain
had thousands of chosen souls bravely suffered martyrdom
for their country.
From the sacred revolutionary ruins of 1 820-21 and
183 1, there rose up a leader — powerful, austere and serious
38 FIRST PART
Giuseppe Mazzini, founder of Young Italy in Marseilles in
1832, with the prophetic motto: God and the Peophy
Liberty, Equality, Humanity, Independence and Unity!
There also came Vincenzo Gioberti, Alessandro Manzoni,
Cesare Balbo, Massimo D'Azeglio, Francesco Domenico
Guerrazzi, Giovan Battista Niccolini, Terenzio Mamiani,
Antonio Rosmini, Giuseppe Giusti, Gino Capponi, Cesare
Cantii, Niccolo Tommaseo, Giuseppe Montanelli, Federico
Sclopis, Ignazio Petitti, Giacomo Durando, Carlo Cat-
taneo, Giuseppe Ferrari, Daniele Manin, Ruggiero Settimo,
Camillo Benso di Cavour, Alessandro Poerio, Giuseppe Gari-
baldi, and many others — philosophers, poets, scholars,
jurists, economists, statesmen, heroes, — all offering to
their mother country, which they found in a pitiful condition,
the light of their minds and the loving impulses of their
faithful hearts; that devotion which Giacomo Leopardi,
the poet of sorrows, had already seen and engraved with
dazzhng strophes in one of his typical poetical rhapsodies:
country mine, I see thy walls and arches
And columns, and the relics, and the lonely
Towers of our ancestors;
But the glory I do not see:
1 do not see the laurels, and the arms with which our ancient
fathers
Were adorned, now disarmed,
Showing bare their heads and breasts, —
Alas, what bruises!
What pallor! what bloody wounds! Oh! in what state I see
thee,
Majestic creature! I demand of high heaven
And of the world, tell me, tell me,
Who has reduced thee to this? And worse still,
Thine arms have been chained.
Thus, with disheveled hair and naked,
She sits upon the ground, neglected and disconsolate,
Hiding her face
Between her knees, and weeps.
Thou weepest and with good reason, Italy mine,
Born to conquer all
In prosperous and in evil times.
A NEW NATIONAL CONSCIENCE 39
If thine eyes were two living fountains,
Thou couldst not weep enough
For all thy sorrow and all thy shame;
Because once thou wert Queen, but now a miserable slave.
All who speak and write of thee.
Remembering the glory of thy past,
Say, "She was great who now is fallen."
Where, where is thine ancient strength.'*
Where are thine arms, thy valor, thy constancy?
Who has ungirded thy sabre?
Who has traduced thee? By what arts, what works.
Or by what power
Have they been able to despoil thee of thy regal robes?
How hast thou fallen
From such heights to such base depths?
No one to battle for thee? No sons
To defend thee? Give me arms! Give me arms! I alone
Will fight and fall for thee!
Grant, O heaven, that my blood
Shall be as fire in the veins of Italians.
They, the giants just mentioned, notw^ithstanding their
differences in certain fundamental points of their ideals
(Mazzini, for example, w^anted a republic with Rome as the
capital; Gioberti wished a federation of princes with the
Pope as chief; others wanted a monarchy with Carlo Alberto
as king), came with their vigorous and persistent protests
against tyranny, reawakened faith and formed a new na-
tional conscience which forced the tyrants to concede cer-
tain liberal reforms, and hurried the epopee of the Italian
Risorgimento.
In 1846 Giuseppe Giusti, the greatest satirical poet of
the century, synthesized the united desire of all Italians
in the following lines:
We want each son of Adam
To count as one man, without Teutons;
We want Heads with heads; we want
Laws and governments, without Teutons;
We all want
Italy to be Italy, without Teutons;
We want to pay in money and in brains.
But without Teutons.
40 FIRST PART
On June, i6, 1846, Cardinal Giovanni Mastai Ferretti
was elected Pope. He assumed the name of Pius IX and
began his reign by pardoning all condemned political pris-
oners. He named Cardinal Gizzi, a man known to be a
liberal, secretary of state; mitigated the vigor of the cen-
sorship of the press; instituted the office of state council in
which each province had two representatives; permitted the
formation of civic guards; and cried aloud from the Vatican,
"God bless Italy!"
The joy of the patriots was without bounds and was
equaled only by the stupefaction of Austria; and Prince
Metternich was heard muttering, "We had reason to expect
any evil except that of a liberal Pope."
The other rulers were obliged to follow the example of
Rome.
The King of the Two Sicilies, Ferdinand II, — nicknamed
"King Bomba" because of his bigotry, suspicious nature
ferocity and injustice — tried to resist; but there followed a
general revolt of the Sicilians, who constituted a pro-
visional government under the presidency of Ruggiero Set-
timo (January, 1848), as well as a revolt and uprising of
Salerno and Naples, which forced the tyrant to consent to
a representative constitution on February 10.
These Same concessions were repeated by Leopold II,
Grand Duke of Tuscany (February 17th), and by Carlo
Alberto (March 4th), who succeeded to the throne of Carlo
Felice in Piedmont. Even Pius IX, who, truth to tell, did
not intend to compromise himself too much, was obliged also
to concede a constitution (March 14).
It was only the Italians of Lombardo-Veneto who were
not permitted to enjoy the benefits of liberty. They were
treated with even greater oppression than before. The Im-
perial Austrian Government stripped them to their skins by
means of its tax-gatherers, and, with its standing army (there
were almost 100,000), intimidated and hectored them. By
means of spies and police who were chosen from the lowest
class of the underworld, they were plotted against, villified
and put without scruple into the hands of the executioner.
Life in those two unfortunate regions became unbearable.
THE FIVE DAYS (1848) 41
VIII
The Revolutions of 1848 in Italy. Milan rises against
Austrian tyranny and fights epically for five days.
The troops of Field Marshal Radetzky (20,000 men,
infantry and cavalry, with sixty field cannon) slaughter
the innocents; bum alive men, women and children;
nail nursing babes to the walls of houses; they string
infants on stacked bayonets and carry them around as
trophies; outrage women, kill them, cut off and put in
their pockets the ringed hands from the dead bodies;
rob, pollute, massacre, bum; commit numberless and
unspeakable crimes. And the Milanese — heroic and
victorious — respond with civil generosity for the evil
which they had received. Venice also rises up, drives
out the Austrian oppressors, and re-establishes the an-
cient Republic of St. Mark.
On March 17, 1848, some of the citizens of Milan
presented themselves to the Austrian Field Marshal, Josef
Wenceslaus Radetzky, Governor-General of Lombardy, who
had full civil and military powers, to beg of him to treat
the people more humanely; but they were received with
shots, many were killed, many were wounded, and others
were dragged to prison.
The measure was full; was running over. There ran
through the city — which did not contain more than
200,000 inhabitants — a lion-like growl of indignation, the
forerunner of a storm.
Radetzky saw the gathering of the clouds, the lightning
and the darkness which impended. He knitted his brows,
tightened his thin lips, and meditated on what his next step
should be.
He had in Milan twenty-four battalions of infantry, six
squadrons of cavalry (20,000 men in all), and sixty field
cannon. He immediately ordered all of the gates of the city
closed and rigorously watched to prevent the Revolutionists
42 FIRST PART
from receiving re-enforcements from the surrounding country.
He directed a large part of the army against them and placed
the cannons of greatest caliber in the most central and most
restless quarters. He commanded the cavalry to search
obscure places, to prevent the assembling of groups of people
either outside or inside the walls, and frustrated every at-
tempt to make demonstrations. He ordered and disposed
of everything as seemed best to him.
The Milanese on their part did not stand idle. They
worked assiduously and rapidly. First of all, they named
a Committee of War presided over by Carlo Cattaneo, an
ardent follower of Mazzini, a man of intellect and integrity,
educated at the school of the illustrious philosopher Gian
Domenico Romagnosi, whom Austria persecuted in 1821;
then the Milanese, with sticks and stones, vehicles, casks,
barrels and sacks full of sand, with doors, windows, furni-
ture, bales of cotton, and other stuff, in a few hours con-
structed more than 700 barricades. They armed them-
selves with old muskets (the rifles of the newer models
had been sequestered from the citizens by Radetzky),
brandishing sticks and pitchforks, scythes, axes, spits,
knives and forks. At dawn, on the morning of March 18,
1848, they sounded the tocsin. This was immediately
responded to by the boom of cannons.
The saddest feature of war is that it is without doubt
the result of excited passions: it is life for life; it is carnage.
But not always (so history teaches) are the hearts of com-
batants insensible to human impulses. The fight lasted
for five days (from the i8th to the 226. of March, 1848).
The Austrian soldiers committed, or rather repeated with
diabolic voluptuousness (accursed hereditary vices!) the
atrocities of the ancient barbaric hordes. The Milanese,
instead, performed acts of heroism in which hate and fury
were more than once forgotten, to give place to pity toward
the fallen enemy.
On March 18, 1848 (when the hostilities were hardly
begun and the spirits on either side were not yet roused to
a state of excitement), a handful of Austrian cavalry,
skirmishing between Porta Tenaglia and Porta Porcellina,
THE FIVE DAYS (1848) 43
saw three carriages taking away old men, women and chil-
dren, who were attempting to escape the storm which was
beginning to rage in the city. The soldiers rushed upon
them, stopped them, felled them with their sabres, killed
a driver, swore at, maltreated and terrorized them, dragged
them to the castle as if they were "prisoners of war"; threw
them into a deep dungeon, massacred them, and set fire to
their bodies. "I entered to explore with a crowd of people
on the sixth day" (March 23, 1848) — says Salvatore Mazza
— "and there was presented to my eyes in the courtyard a
spectacle which struck me with horror! In a shapeless mass
of ashes and rubbish I saw the remains of carriages, iron
tires and hubs, skulls of horses, human legs and arms, de-
tached from their bodies, which were crushed and burned."
Other Austrian troopers broke into a house in Via Ca-
valchina, put everything in confusion, found a young
book-keeper, who had not had the courage to take part in
the offensive and, with his little family, was timidly hiding
in a room. They killed him by firing several shots at his
head. The wife of the poor fellow, crazed with grief, threw
herself on her knees and sobbingly implored pity at least
for the babe which she pressed to her breast. The cowardly
ruffians laughed contemptuously at her and fired their guns
in the face of the innocent little creature!
Other Austrian troopers broke into the house of the
parish priest of San Bartolomeo, destroying and ruining
everything they touched, insulting and making "prisoners"
of everyone whom they encountered. They found in a
little room, silent and alone, the priest, who was writing a
Lenten sermon for his faithful; they reviled him, swore at
him, seized him by the nape of the neck, shook him,
hurled him to the ground, and with the butt ends of their
rifles and points of their bayonets beat him and left him
half dead!
Other Austrian troopers invaded the silk factories of
Fortis, rummaged about, turning them upside down, spoiled
the machinery, broke the looms; wrested off, dirtied and
tore to pieces the silk, killed the workers. They passed into
the private offices of the proprietors, broke the furniture,
44 FIRST PART
smashed the safes, which were full of money and jewels,
and robbed them of their contents; they killed other per-
sons, went to the wine cellars and bored into the casks and
gorged themselves to drunkenness with the contents. And
when in the evening they abandoned the place, laden with
their booty, and with hands, faces, and clothing covered and
stiff with blood and dust, the robbers and murderers left
behind them a mass of ruins and cadavers!
On March 19th, other Austrian troopers, filled with
rage, broke into a house from which they suspected certain
stones had been hurled at them, and, cursing and roaring
as if possessed, they pulled down the doors, sphntered the
furniture, killed the first innocents whom they encountered,
declared "prisoners" those who had miraculously escaped
death, bound them, insulted them and threw them down
the stairs; they broke down the door of the house of a little
cobbler, jumped on the back of a poor paralytic octogenarian
(the mother of the cobbler) who had fainted from fright,
rolled her on the ground, stamped her underfoot and
reduced her to a rag!
Other Austrian troopers, also outside of Porta Tenaglia,
stopped a diligence which was on its way to Saronno, shot
and killed the horses and the driver, dragged the nine
passengers into a neighboring orchard, and buried them
ahve!
Other Austrian troopers, while committing every sort of
destruction in Sambuco and Scaldasole streets, broke into a
miserable little house, found an invalid, a man, covered him
with blows and kicks, and then crucified him by nailing him
to the wall!
Other Austrian troopers entered a house between the
streets of Porta Comasina and Santa Theresa, where five
women had taken refuge; they plundered and set fire to it.
The three oldest begged for their safety, and for reply they
were brutally pushed into the flames and burned alive; the
soldiers then grasped the two youngest, tied them with their
arms behind them, dragged them to the ramparts, outraged
them, hanged them from a tree, and while thus hanging, they
tormented them with obscene language and derisive laughter,
THE FIVE DAYS (1848) 45
spitting in their faces, and finally riddled them with bullets
amid hoarse hurrahs of triumph!
Other Austrian troopers entered the house of Giovanna
Piazza and also into that of the widow Caravati, and
stabbed the son and the brother of the first and the son
of the second.
Other Austrian troopers entered a courtyard off the
little street called "Stretto Calusca," where many families
of the working people live; threw themselves like wild
beasts on the first persons they met, and without regard for
age or sex, and listening neither to cries nor prayers, kicked,
abused and threw them on the ground. They seized
Giuseppe Gambaroni, fifty-eight years old and married,
Antonio Piatti, twenty-eight years old and unmarried, and
the sixteen-year-old boy Giuseppe Belloni, and dragged
them to a nearby orchard. There the Austrian soldiers
threw them against one another as if they were playing
battledore and shuttlecock with them, pushing them and
receiving them on the points of their swords and bayonets
while the wife of Gambaroni, and the parents and sisters of
Piatti and of Belloni, weeping, begged them in vain for
mercy. Finally, to add to the misery of the unfortunates,
and better to view and enjoy the spectacle, several hussars
dismounted and several infantrymen of the Baumgarten
regiment went in search of straw, returning shortly with
several mattresses which they emptied, throwing the
contents on the three unfortunates and setting fire to them.
And when the agonized victims attempted with their last
strength to free themselves from their torture, the Austrian
soldiers with shouts of joy pushed them into the flames
with the points of their bayonets and forced the relatives
of the victims to watch the horrible scene!
Other Austrian soldiers entered a house, heard the' wail
of a nursing babe, took it out of the cradle, spread its little
arms and hands on the wall and nailed it "as if it were a
bat or some other beast " ; and then with a blow from a bayo-
net theyfelled the mother to the ground, killingher instantly!
Others filed on their stacked bayonets nursing babes,
and carried them around as trophies of war!
46 FIRST PART
Other Austrian troopers cut off the dehcate white hands
of women on which were precious rings and carried them
about in their pockets!
Other Austrian soldiers murdered and burned entire
famiHes of women and children, committing horrible
crimes not only in the city but also in the suburbs.
**The Croatians" — thus runs a narrative, sent on
April lo, 1848, from Milan to Venice — "were more cruel
to the women and children than to the men. In one house
were found murdered thirteen persons, among whom was a
mother with two babes in her arms, one of which was
beheaded and the other with the bayonet driven upward
through the jaw. Another babe was split entirely in two,
lengthwise, and the two halves were nailed on the wall;
another babe was saturated in resin and burned. A little
girl was filed on a bayonet and carried about through the
streets. The heart of a woman was torn from her breast
and roasted. A babe of forty days was cut into small pieces
and also roasted." ^
What a difference on the other side, worthy of the "gentle
Latin blood!" The following episode (one could narrate
many such records, but for reasons of brevity and delicacy
easy to understand one does not wish to continue) I am sure
will be sufficient to give an idea of the generosity with which
the Milanese replied to such inhuman treatment.
The police from the first had worthily assisted the soldiers
in their crimes; but one night, in their central offices, they
"amused" themselves by shooting from their windows and
killing persons as they passed by. They were notified that
the Revolutionists were about to descend upon them strong
and victorious. The scoundrels trembled like rabbits, took
to their heels and fled, and in running forgot to call their
chief — a certain Bolza — who had retired to an inner
room to eat and to sleep.
This Bolza — "the product of the lowest class in society,
short, fat and deformed, who seemed to possess character-
* For an account of these incredible atrocities see the documents conserved in
the archives of Milan, the consular reports, the papers and pamphlets of that
time and The Five Days described by the same Carlo Cattaneo and by other ac-
credited historians.
THE FIVE DAYS (1848) 47
istics of the monkey and the tiger" — had been for several
years one of the most zealous, faithful and fierce bullies
upon whom Austria depended, and as such was the terror
of Lombardy. He had unjustly condemned to death, to
life imprisonment and to exile, hundreds of patriots; he had
thrown into misery and mourning hundreds of families.
The Emperor Francis I for such services bestowed upon him
the title of count. But the people feared and hated him.
The clamor of the insurgents as they invaded the offices
of the police, shouting *'Viva I'ltalia," roused the wretch,
who was dozing. He was startled and turned livid and flac-
cid with fear, but he lost no time. He gathered up and
pocketed the remains of his lunch, which consisted of a
little bread and cheese (such creatures always seem to have
ready the animal-like instincts for their own preservation),
ran and hid himself under a straw-stack. He was quickly
discovered and dragged out. He was filthy. He was wild-
eyed. His teeth chattered. He was muttering. He wailed
"I am to blame!" He begged of them to let him Hve,
promising in exchange for his life to reveal to them secrets
of the greatest importance.
This disgusted the Revolutionists. They roared with
rage, and the most fiery of them wanted to tear their
former tyrant to pieces. The calmer, however, opposed
this. Then for advice, they sent to Carlo Cattaneo, who
responded with the following: "If you kill him you will not
be giving him justice; if you do not kill him, you will be
doing a holy thing." The members of the war council —
Enrico Cernuschi, Giulio Terzaghi, and Giorgio Clerici —
hastened to corroborate the sentence of their magnanimous
president by publishing and spreading abroad the following
proclamation:
Brave Citizens: We will keep our victory clean; we will not
descend to revenge ourselves with the blood of those miserable
satellites which the fugitive powers have left in our hands. It is
true that for thirty years they have been the curse of our fami-
lies. But you are generous as you are valiant. Punish them
with your contempt.
On March 22, 1848, the Austrian troops were defeated
48 FIRST PART
in truth, "carrying as hostage several citizens tied to the
mouths of cannons with the fuses Hghted!"
The humihating tyranny of the barbarians in Italy was
finished. The two hundred bells of the proud metropolis
of Lombardy rang with joy. The national white, red, and
green banner of Italy triumphantly and gloriously floated
from the loggias of the public buildings, from the balconies
and windows of the private houses. The citizens ran through
the streets shouting, laughing, embracing and kissing each
other, crying **Viva la Liberta! Viva ITtalia!"
Soon after this the English vice-consul at Milan, Robert
Campbell, sent a detailed report of the facts to Lord Pal-
merston. This report, after a description of the atroc-
ities committed by the Austrian soldiers and after a
description of the generosity of the Milanese, closed thus:
Up to the present time it is impossible to give in any way
the approximate number of dead and wounded in the battle
of these five days. Here the most perfect quiet reigns because
of the rigorous orders and good system of the Provisional Govern-
ment (this is the title taken by the municipality). As one must
expect, the exuberant joy of the reported victory made the
Milanese almost delirious. But they committed no excesses.
And the Allgemeine Zeitung of April 2, 1848, published
the following letter sent to it by one of its special German
correspondents from Milan, March 28, 1848:
A tremendous cannonading covered the Austrian retreat
which could not be prevented. Then finally it was possible for
me to see with my own eyes the horrors which the troops had
committed. In the suburbs there were found entire families of
the aged, women, children and nursing babes, horribly massacred
and mutilated. Of the citizens, who were imprisoned in the castle
by the Austrians, some were brought as hostages, and others were
shot. Wherever one might look, he saw blood. Everywhere
was devastation and fires. Many of the details of these horrible
crimes I saw with my own eyes — my pen refuses to describe them.
I prefer to describe less than the truth, and pass to the other side,
from which there comes to me a sweet comfort. The conduct of
the Lombardians was noble and generous. The first victories
were won by them without arms. Barehanded they wrenched
THE FIVE DAYS (1848) 49
the weapons from the enemy, and they — the Lombardians —
dared and accompHshed this. All honor to their courage! Their
conduct after the victory was characterized by temperance and
restraint, for it was not blemished by a single actof vengeance. All
of the wounded Austrians were nursed and cared for like brothers
by the Lombardians. All of the prisoners were held in custody,
but were treated with the greatest indulgence; they lacked noth-
ing. The most hated man in Milan, the commissioner of police
Bolza, was taken by the citizens, but they spared his life.
Added to their glory of fearlessness in the face of death, the
Lombardians showed a sublime magnamimity after victory.
History, which passes judgment, will transmit to posterity
the memory of these deeds.
The Venetians also were roused. They already had
presented to the Austrian governor a demand for reforms,
signed by the statesman Daniele Manin and the writer
Niccolo Tommaseo,^ men of rare moral qualities and highly
esteemed by the people. But the governor responded by
having them arrested and thrown into the dark secret dun-
geons of the famous prison, the Piombi, and threatened "the
audacious signers" with the extreme penalty of the law.
The citizens were infuriated; they invaded the arsenal,
provided themselves with arms and ammunition, ran roar-
ing to the jail, tore down the door, took the two illustrious
prisoners, put them on their shoulders, carried them out in
triumph, faced the troops of their oppressors, and forced the
Austrians to fly immediately from the city. They re-estab-
lished (March 22d) the ancient republic of St. Mark, named
as Doge this same Manin, and Tommaseo as Minister of
Public Instruction. Again they, like their brothers of Lom-
bardy, breathed the sweet air of freedom.
^ Niccolo Tommaseo, eminent Italian scholar, critic and educator of Sebemico
(Dalmatia), author of a Dictionary of the Italian Language, a New Dictionary of
Synonyms, a Dictionary of Esthetics, a volume on Education and other works
(1802-1874).
50 FIRST PART
IX
The Hymn of Mameli. The first War of Liberation —
The Italians are defeated because of the defection of
Pope Pius IX and of the Bourbon King of the Two
Sicilies. The Austrians are again rulers of Lombardy
(1848).
Expelled from Milan, from Venice, and from other cities
of Lombardo-Veneto, the Austrians took refuge in the forti-
fications formed by the "Quadrilateral" Verona-Peschiera-
Mantua-Legnago, and there prepared to reconquer them;
that is, they prepared to repress with new violence the poht-
ical spirit of independence and unity which fired the Italians,
but instead they succeeded in increasing the latter's ac-
tivity and power of resistance.
But Carlo Alberto, pressed upon from every side, hurried
with twenty-five thousand men in aid of his brethren, who
were threatened again by powerful outside imperialism.
While crossing the river Ticino (the latter part of March,
1848), he invited the princes of the other states of Italy to
participate with him in this "holy war."
Meanwhile the twenty-one-year-old poet GofFredo Ma-
meli fired souls with the following hymn:
Brothers of Italy,
Italy has wakened;
The helmet of Scipio^
Encircles her brow.
Where now is victory?
Let her advance her crest;
For God created her the servant of Rome.
Let our cohorts stand close,
Ready to face death,
Italy has called us.
We through the centuries,
Downtrodden and scorned,
^ Scipio, the great Roman warrior who conquered Hannibal at Zama
(202 B. C).
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1848 51
Because not one nation,
But scattered, divided:
Now we must rally
Round one flag and one hope;
The hour has come
For our fusion.
Let our cohorts stand close,
Ready to face death,
Italy has called us.
Let us unite!
Union and love
Reveal to the people
The ways of God;
Let us bow to free
Our native land;
If we're united
Who can defeat us?
Let our cohorts stand close,
Ready to face death,
Italy has called us.
From the Alps to Sicily,
Everywhere is Legnano; ^
Every man has the heart
And hand of Ferruccio; ^
The boys of Italy
Are called Balilla;
Every bugle is a call to
"The Vespers." ^
Let our cohorts stand close.
Ready to face death,
Italy has called us.
The hireling swords
Bend like a bulrush;
* The battle of Legnano, in which the Italians surrounding the Carroccio and
crying, "Victory or death!" defeated the armies of Barbarossa, May 29, 1176.
^The defense of the Florentine Republic against the armies of the Emperor
Charles V and Pope Clement VII heroically sustained by Francesco Fer-
ruccio (1530).
' The liberation of Sicily from the insolent tyranny of the French on the evening
of March 31, 1282, has passed into history under the name of The Sicilian
Vespers.
52 FIRST PART
The eagle of Austria
Is stripped of her plumage;
The blood of Italy,
With the blood of Poland,
Which she has drunk with the Cossack,
Has burned to her soul.
Let our cohorts stand close.
Ready to face death,
Italy has called us.
The peninsula became a volcano in eruption. Only one
cry was heard: "Out with the Austrians!"
The Grand Duke Leopold of Tuscany was constrained
by such popular enthusiasm to send 8,000 regulars and
volunteers to the battlefields of the north. Pius IX was
forced to send 10,000. Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies
sent 16,000 under the guidance of the venerable General
Guglielmo Pepe, who had returned to Naples after twenty-
seven years of exile. The minor Italian potentates were
obliged to send in proportion to their dominions. Those
who left for the fields of battle wore the tri-colored badges on
their breasts and sang the hymn of Mameli and other war-
like songs, exalting their Patria and execrating their enemies.
The women scattered flowers before them, and showered
blessings upon them as they departed.
They won the first battles. They won the battle of
Goito (May 3, 1848). The same evening they took the
stronghold of Peschiera. The god of war seemed to smile
on all their efforts. Lombardy and Venice, in the height
of their joy, voted their annexation to Piedmont.
These extraordinary and unforeseen successes dis-
turbed the tyrants. Pius IX hurried to recall his troops
under the pretext that he, in his capacity as head of the
Church, could not participate in a war between Christians.
The king of the Two Sicilies, infuriated against the citizens,
abolished the Constitution and also commanded his soldiers
to return. These cowardly creatures (unfortunately not
a few) obeyed him. The pontifical generals, Giovanni
Durando and Pepe, however, with their men who remained
faithful, went boldly on. But one could foresee that the
AUSTRIAN OPPRESSION IN MILAN (1848) 53
defection of the Pope and the Bourbon would produce a
certain demoraHzation in the rank and file of the liberating
army. Radetzky profited by it, and aided by Generals
Nugent and Welden, arrived on the battlefields of Lom-
bardy with strong re-enforcements, took the ofi^ensive, de-
feated the Italians at Custozza on July 20, 1848, re-entered
as proud conquerors the city of Milan (August 6, 1848),
obliged Carlo Alberto to call an armistice and to recross the
Ticino, and again imposed the yoke of servitude upon the
people.
Venice alone would not yield quickly to such humiliation.
She reconstituted her republic and confided the dogate
again to Manin. General Pepe, with the remnants of the
southern army, entrenched himself inside the confines of
the lagoons, and prepared a glorious defense.
The Viennese, however, after a bloody revolution (Octo-
ber, 1848), forced Emperor Ferdinand I to cede the crown
to his nephew, Francis Joseph.
X
The Austrian soldiers re-enter Milan, giving them-
selves up to rapine and vandalism. Field Marshal
Radetzky extorts the extraordinary tax of 20,000,000 lire
from 185 " noble and prominent citizens" (1848).
Radetzky, at Milan, immediately announced that he had
concentrated all the civil and military powers of adminis-
tration and declared the city in a state of siege; he ordered
all of the prominent patriots who had not already had the
time nor recognized the necessity of escaping from the city
to be beaten and shot; he ordered the women and children to
be whipped; in short, he displayed his usual arrogance and
committed crimes of every sort.
The barbarous marshal "re-established order" in this
manner and afterward left the field free to his troops.
These showed themselves worthy of their high commander.
Officers and soldiers, who were in large part Croatians
54 FIRST PART
and Bohemians, occupied the houses of the fugitives, pref-
erably those of the patricians who were, more distinguished
than the others in the days of the Revolution; they robbed
and destroyed them from cellar to roof; they dug up the
marble floors, smashed the mirrors and vases, threw the
archives into the courtyards; they tore the tapestries, dirtied
the paintings, made kitchens of the art galleries, burned
furniture, books, and parchments of inestimable value,
presented the silk garments and the fine linens of the ladies
to the women of the street and pocketed everything possible.
Sacking, vandalism, and other orgies followed which were
worse than bestial. They were not satisfied with this. They
wanted money. Radetzky thought to extort it by imposing
the extraordinary tax of 20,000,000 lire (burdening the
noble and prominent citizens), after he had exacted from the
people the payment of redoubled tributes and hundreds of
other burdens.
"I have determined," commanded the tyrannical mar-
shal in writing, "that there must be added to this con-
tribution from the members of the former provisional
government, a penalty on the heads of those who took a
principal part in the various committees, — those who were
the leaders of the revolution and who contributed to it by
material or intellectual means."
Those designated numbered 185.
The Austrian military gallantry imposed on a lady —
the Princess of Belgiojoso — the greatest sum: 800,000 lire.
This was followed immediately by a smaller amount from
the Duke of Visconti di Mondrone, the Count Vitaliano
Borromeo, and the Duke Litta. The lowest amount im-
posed upon any of the patricians was 10,000 lire. The
bankers and merchants, such as Milius, Mondolfo, Ponti,
Raymmi, and SeufFerheld, were obliged to pay 50,000 lire
each. Even Maggiore Ospedale (the hospital) had to pay
300,000 lire!
One can imagine the miserable condition into which the
unfortunate metropolis of Lombardy was reduced in the
latter months of 1848.
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1849 55
XI
The insurrection at Rome. The Papal Prime Min-
ister Pellegrino Rossi is killed. Pius IX flees in the
night to Gaeta. The Roman Republic is proclaimed with
Mazzini, Saffi, and Armellini at the head. The second
War of Liberation agamst Austria. The Italians are de-
feated because of their commanders. Carlo Alberto
is obliged to abdicate in favor of his son Victor Emanuel.
The Austrians, emboldened, extend their tyranny to
Piedmont (1849).
But the defeat did not discourage the Italians. It
made them even more daring and more active; it retempered
their strength.
Because Pope Pius IX had betrayed the national cause,
had killed the Prime Minister, Pellegrino Rossi (November
15, 1848), and had planned the arrest and expulsion of well-
know^n patriots, the people of Rome rebelled against his
retrogressive Government and forced him to leave the
capital during the night and repair to Gaeta, where he
found the King of the Tvv^o Sicilies. They then elected a
constitutional assembly which, after long and animated
discussions, approved and published (February 9, 1849)
a decree declaring the papacy "fallen in right and in fact
from the temporal government of the Roman State" and
proclaimed the Republic, with its head a triumvirate
(March, 1849) composed of Mazzini, Aurelio Saffi, and
Carlo Armellini.
In Tuscany the people made repeated redemptionist
demonstrations, forced the Grand Duke Leopold to follow
the Pope to Gaeta, and confided the public affairs to Guer-
razzi, Giuseppe Montanelli and Giuseppe Mazzoni.
In the other parts of the peninsula the people were
equally restless. They clamored for war, war, at any cost,
to the last drop of their blood!
We will fight — we will fight.
While a warrior remains.
56 FIRST PART
Until the rays of the Italian sun
Shall no longer cast a shadow on a stranger.
{Arnaldo Fusinato)
Until not in one corner of the
Mother country will there be a slave,
Until Italy shall be one
From the Alps to the sea.
(Goffredo Mamelx)
On March 12, 1849, Carlo Alberto was obliged to
abandon the truce which he had made with the Austrians
the year before, and he again began hostilities.
The ninety thousand Italians whom he commanded
were strong, brave, and enthusiastic, ready for any sacrifice
for the good of their country. When they encountered the
army of the enemy, they fought with force and resistance;
but they were defeated at Mortara on March 21, and again
on March 23, at Bicocca, near Novara, all because of the
unfitness of this same king and other commanders. It
was a terrible catastrophe.
Carlo Alberto was again forced, as in 1848, to demand an
armistice; but the conditions imposed by the Austrians were
so onerous, so dishonorable, that he could not accept them.
Then he could not do other than abdicate. In the late
evening he gathered about him his sons and his surviving
generals under the walls of the fated city, and there he took
the great step, pronouncing in the silence and with voice
humble and grieved the following words:
I have done everything possible for the cause of Italy. My
greatest sorrow is to see the failure of my hopes. Perhaps my
person is the only obstacle to obtaining an equitable agreement
from the enemy. And as there is no alternative other than to con-
tinue the war, I renounce at this instant the crown, in favor of my
son, Victor Emanuel, in the flattering hope that he may obtain
better pacts and procure a more advantageous peace for the coun-
try.
And at midnight the vanquished king sadly went his
way, accompanied only by one servant. He went incognito
(taking the name of Count de Barge) to Portugal, where
he died four months later in the convent of the Jesuits.
THE LIONESS OF ITALY (1849) 57
The young King, Victor Emanuel II, encountered Ra-
detzky on the battlefield of Vignale. He had to make the
best of a bad bargain, and signed an armistice by which he
was obliged to recognize the right of Austria to the military
occupation of Alessandria and the territory included between
the rivers Po, Sesia, and Ticino. He was compelled to
retire the Piedmontese fleet from the waters of the Adriatic
sea (it had been sent there at the beginning of the war),
which meant the complete abandonment of Venice into the
hands of the enemy. He was obliged to pay — and how ef-
fectively he did pay at the conclusion of peace! — 75,000,000
lire for war indemnity.
The chain of servitude was thus riveted. As the vul-
tures gnawed the heart of the mythological Prometheus,
so the rapacious eagle of the Hapsburgs continued to de-
vour the hearts of ItaHans.
XII
The "Lioness of Italy." At Brescia the Austrian
soldiers "throw the heads of infants, torn from their
bodies, the arms of women and children, and burned
human flesh on the barricades of the citizens as if they
were throwing the remnants of a dinner to dogs, and
commit other unbelievable villainies." The tragic
revenge of a young Brescian who was burned alive
(1849).
The first news which reached Lombardo-Veneto led
the Italians to believe that the Austrians, not the Italians,
were defeated at Novara on March 23, 1849. One can ima-
gine the exultation of the patriots. Those of Brescia armed
themselves, sang praises to the victory, enjoined the soldiers
of the garrison (500 in all; the others had already gone to the
war) no longer to encumber the earth which was not theirs.
The Austrians responded by sending secretly for immediate
aid; then they enclosed themselves in the castle, which over-
looked the city, and which, in anticipation, they had filled
58 FIRST PART
with provisions and munitions, and from the high fortress
they began bombarding the city.
The Brescians were not discouraged; they faced the
fight resolutely and vigorously; they fought with zeal and
valor; they had almost reached victory when there was
hurled from Verona the first aid to the enemies — a column
of troops with numerous artillery in command of General
Nugent. This made them realize immediately that at any
cost the general would force his way into the city. *'It
were better that the rebels should destroy the barricades
erected by them, throw down their arms, and surrender
themselves at discretion." He gave them four hours to
reply, "while with great difficulty he held back his soldiers,
and for compassion made them silence their guns."
At such arrogance, the citizens burned with indignation,
crying tempestuously: "We will resist! Rather than to
cede this we prefer death under the ruins of our homes."
Nugent began the attack. He hoped to crush "the
audacious subjects" in the twinkling of an eye; but, instead,
he himself was crushed, falling dead in the encounter.
General Hayman, a bestial person, was immediately sub-
stituted with other re-enforcements.
The new commander gave more stringent orders and
threats than had his dead colleague. The Brescians replied
stubbornly: "Liberty or death!" Then there burst forth
a tempest of shot and shell, followed by a destruction of
houses nd a slaughter of inhabitants. But the defenders
were not terrified, were not confounded; they felt instead,
rising and vibrating in every fiber of their being, an invin-
cible power; they became as giants; they battered their as-
sailants over and over again; they performed acts of valor
worthy of an epopee. Even the women showed themselves
valiant and daring. Among these were two sisters of good
family who died like Christian martyrs.
This contempt maddened the Austrians. The military
pride with which they were swelled could not tolerate the
proud resistance of the citizens, who were given no more
consideration than a flock of sheep. On the morning of
April I, 1849, they made a furious assault and with great
THE LIONESS OF ITALY (1849) 59
numbers they fought savagely, decisively. The defenders,
although hard pressed for several days, kept their heads;
they disputed every foot of ground, they spent their life's
blood freely; and in the end the opposing forces fell upon one
another in a hand-to-hand conflict. And then, only then,
could the enemy, passing over heaps of the dead, enter the
glorious city of Brescia, which the poet afterwards called
"The Lioness of Italy."
The Austrian troopers, made more ferocious by the
resistance which they met and the losses to which they
were subjected, broke like hungry wolves into the houses
which remained intact after this long bombardment.
They sacked the best and destroyed the remaining, cut the
throats of the sick, the old, women and children. Of the
latter many were nailed to the walls. Little nursing babes
were filed on stacked bayonets. Men and women were killed
in the streets with blows from swords and guns. Others
were dragged to the castle and there thrown into dungeons,
insulted and massacred en masse.
They committed thousands of atrocities and the sight
seemed to turn the heads of the people and freeze the blood in
their veins. To this was added the view of the horrible excesses
committed by the imperial Austrians, because of their blood-
drunkenness or because they were commanded to do so, or because
they were stolidly ferocious; atrocities which seemed to go beyond
the credible and even the imaginable. The imperial Austrians
were not only infuriated against the unarmed, the women, the
children, and the infirm, but they so refined their tortures that
they seemed human wild beasts; they surpassed in ferocity any
wild animal. They lacerated the limbs of the victims; they, the
Imperial Austrians, threw them out of the windows on to the
barricades of the citizens as one throws the remains of a dinner to
the dogs. Heads of tender children torn from their bodies, arms
of women and roasted human flesh rained upon the Brescians, —
outrages before which bombs seemed as nothing. And above
all, these Imperial Austrian cannibals felt a special joy in seeing
the atrocious convulsions of those who were burning to death;
they saturated citizens with resin and set fire to them; and often
they obliged the women of the martyrs to assist them at this
festival; and further to deride the noble Brescian blood which was
60 FIRST PART
boiling with holy wrath, they tied the men tightly, and before
their very eyes outraged their wives and daughters, and then cut
their throats. And sometimes (God forgive us if we do not forget
this fact) the imperial Austrians made the agonized citizens
swallow the torn viscera of their loved ones. Because of this many
died of anguish and many more went mad.^
A citizen by the name of Carlo Zima, who was burned
alive by the Austrian soldiers, was avenged in a tragic man-
ner. He was a fragile young fellow — a hunchback — but
he had fought day and night like an ancient gladiator. Some
soldiers surprised him while he was standing at arms. What
did they do? They threw tar on him and set fire to it.
In a flash the body of the unfortunate boy was in flames.
The soldiers laughed and danced around him like redskins.
Zima, in an impulse of fury and indignation, threw himself
on the leader and inciter of the demoniac gang, clung to
him with a death grip, surrounded him with the same fire
and forced him to die the same death as himself.
But this policy of torture was not enough. The Aus-
trians extorted from the Brescians the sum of 6,000,000 lire.
Such villainies roused all Europe. Some time after, General
Hayman went to London. Some one recognized him in the
streets by his blond mustache. Soon a crowd surrounded
him, throwing missiles and mud at him and crying, "Give
it to him, the old Austrian butcher! Give it to him, the
tiger!
^ See The Ten Days of Brescia, by Caesar Correnti, an eminent writer, author of
various historical works, deputy to the Italian National parliament, twice min-
ister of Public Instruction, and councillor of State.
I
THE AUSTRIANS IN CENTRAL ITALY (1849) 61
XIII
The Austrian soldiers in Tuscany, in Bologna, and in
Ancona. The tyrants crush the Roman Republic, which
had been so gloriously ruled by Mazzini and defended by
Garibaldi, and re-establish the temporal power of the
Popes (1849).
On the first of May, 1849, the Austrian General d'Aspre
at the head of 20,000 soldiers invaded Tuscany; raided towns,
despoiled and abused the populace; then suddenly and
pompously entered Florence (May 25th), and re-established
the power of the Grand Duke. This unscrupulous tyrant,
who served the Hapsburgs, soon abolished the Constitution
and the national flag, and took possession of the government
with the help of the police and the prisons. About the same
time, four different armies (one French, one Austrian, one
Spanish, and one Bourbon) marched against Rome with the
intention of crushing the Republic and re-establishing the
temporal power of the popes.
The first to arrive at the gates of the eternal city were
the French (a few less than 9,000) in command of General
Oudinot. They immediately began the artillery attack,
while the infantry attempted to scale the walls. But
Garibaldi — to whom the triumvirate, Mazzini, Saffi, and
Armellini, had wisely confided the defense of the Republic —
hurled himself, with his volunteers and with those who were
commanded by Dr. Masi and Col. Galletti, on the assailants
and defeated them, inflicting upon them severe losses, taking
hundreds of prisoners, and scattering the others in flight
(April 30, 1849).
The Austrian army on their part arrived at Bologna and
began hostilities by attacking the Porta Galliera. The
Bolognese repulsed the assault. The enemy put in action
guns and mortars, with which they were abundantly pro-
vided and overwhelmed the ** Learned City" with grape-
shot projectiles and explosives. The Bolognese defended
themselves valorously for several days. But by May 16,
62 FIRST PART
1849, their strength was spent; they could no longer resist;
they were obliged to surrender.
One week after, the Austrians attacked the city of
Ancona from sea and land. This younger sister of Venice
fought strenuously for about a month. But in the end she
too capitulated (June 20). The Bourbon army (16,000
men), commanded by King Ferdinand himself, was in
possession of Velletri near Rome. Garibaldi, at the head of
only 3,000 volunteers, a part of whom were mere boys,
rushed to attack it, forced it from the city, dispersed and
pursued it as far as Area (May 12-20).
The Spanish were landed at Fiumicino and Terracina.
General Oudinot, with 40,000 soldiers and 36 cannon, on the
evening of June 2d, recommenced hostilities against Rome.
The Republic had no more than 9,000 volunteers at her
command. But they were cavaliers of high ideals. Their
minds were illuminated with the omnipresent thought of
Mazzini. In their breasts beat the living heart of Gari-
baldi. The fight was long and bitter. It culminated the
night of June 29th in a great battle. The defenders ac-
complished superhuman deeds. Among those who so
nobly fell was the poet GofFredoMameli,the youth of twenty-
two years, who in his patriotic hymns voiced the emotions
of the people and inspired them to fight for their liberties;
and Luciano Manara, who was the first among the first in
the five days of Milan. There fell also Enrico Dandolo,
Emilio Morosini, and hundreds of other heroes. But such
sacrifice was not sufficient to save the Republic.
Garibaldi was obliged to sheath his sword, and on July 3d
he went from j4lma Roma, sad, silent, poverty-stricken (so
poor that for the mere necessities of life he was obliged to
sell his watch), accompanied by his devoted consort, Anita,
seven months advanced in pregnancy, and by about 4,000
other survivors, among whom was the Barnabite preacher
Ugo Bassi and the Roman citizen Angelo Brunetti called
Ciceruacchioy and to whom he had nothing to offer except
hunger, cold, heat, and forced marches.
Mazzini also, and all of the other leaders of the glorious
Republic were driven into exile.
AUSTRIANS PURSUE GARIBALDI (1849) 63
On July 1 2th, Pius IX, escorted by the French and Aus-
trians, re-entered the capital, abrogated the Constitution,
annulled the reforms, filled the prisons with political pris-
oners, and humiliated both souls and bodies, meriting the
judgment of Lord Clarendon, who said, "The government of
priests is an opprobrium for civilized Europe."
XIV
The Austrian soldiers pursue Garibaldi and Anita
(the loved consort of the Hero) who is pregnant. The
sad ending of the heroine, who is buried nude ! " The
abandoned wandering dog" (1849).
Garibaldi, who succeeded in hiding himself and his
army from the enemy which angrily pursued him, arrived
in Tuscany and tried to incite the people to a revolution j
but he found everyone discouraged and fearful. Then he
cried to his volunteers, "There remains only Venice for us to
die in!"
But how to arrive at the Lido was the problem. The
long and fatiguing forced marches under the scorching sun;
the ambushed bloodhounds of the tyrant which were let
loose in every direction, added to hunger, thirst, and sor-
row, reduced the survivors to only 1,500. And those who,
notwithstanding these hardships, were animated by gen-
erous and patriotic sentiments, were not in condition to
face a new Odyssey. Garibaldi led them to the little
republic of San Marino, and there secured an armistice with
the enemy in which he demanded and obtained the right
to send his companions undisturbed to their homes. He,
personally, would not bind himself to any pact with the
Austrians; he preferred to keep the road to which fate had
predestined him. But hundreds more daring and faithful
wished to follow him at any cost. The Hero, who was as
gentle as he was invincible, could not refuse them.
He accepted their offer and with them attempted to es-
cape by way of the sea. But the fragile boat containing the
64 FIRST PART
sacred handful was quickly overtaken by the Austrian
hordes, who were on the lookout. Garibaldi with his coura-
geous Anita jumped into the water, and being a proved
swimmer was not long in reaching the shore, saving himself
and his beloved consort. Ugo Bassi (the Barnabite preacher)
and Angelo Brunetti (Ciceruacchio) and many other Gari-
baldians were captured and executed.
On August 4, 1849 — it was sunset — a little vehicle
with one horse, driven by the Garibaldian captain Leggero,
crept slowly up the road which led from the sea to the
woods of Ravenna. In the rough cart was a young woman
sick with a fever.
"Have courage!" said Garibaldi, who was dressed as a
farmer and was sitting near the woman, caressing her fore-
head and holding above her head an open umbrella to pre-
vent the burning rays of the sun from scorching her. "Cour-
age, my good Anita. In that house yonder we will ask aid."
"0 Giuseppe, I am dying!" murmured the invalid, while
foam covered her burning lips.
The Hero wiped her mouth with a silk handkerchief.
A black cloud closed over his soul. They finally reached
the vicinity of the house. A farm hand looked with surprise
at the strange company.
"In the name of humanity," cried Garibaldi supplicat-
ingly, "save this woman! I ask nothing for myself, every-
thing for her. Give us a glass of water. Let us rest a
moment."
"I am not the master here," responded the rustic, "but
I will call my master, Ravaglia."
A woman servant came out of the house. She, seeing
that Anita was struck with death, was overcome with emo-
tion and exclaimed: "Poor creature! To travel in such a
condition! It is fortunate that we have a physician here."
Dr. Naldini came, looked anxiously at the invalid, and
said sententiously, "This woman is dying." Then looking
fixedly at Garibaldi, continued, "And you, with that face,
with that beard, you are Garibaldi!"
"Silence, for pity's sake!" softly interrupted the Hero.
"You know well that I am hunted to the death and all the
AUSTRIANS PURSUE GARIBALDI (1849) 65
others who assist me are punished. Don't, don't reveal my
name!
At that moment Stefano Ravaglia, the master of the
house, joined them. He told them to take Anita into the
upper chamber where there was a poor Httle bed. With the
greatest tenderness the Hero took the httle creature in his
powerful arms, and went slowly up the stairs. But, after
a few steps, Anita's beautiful head fell back, and she said
feebly: "Giuseppe . . . the children ..." and she
was dead!
The Hero replaced the adored figure on the ground; he
touched it; he bathed it with tears; he covered it with kisses;
he called her by the sweetest and most sacred names; he
cried desperately: **No, no! she is not dead! Take her up-
stairs. It is a fainting spell. She has suffered so much,
poor little creature! She will revive. She is strong. She
is not dead, I say! It is impossible! If it were true, I too
should be dead, because our lives have always been as one.
Look at me, Anita .... open your eyes .... move your
lips .... speak to me!"
All of those present wept. Captain Leggero bowed
respectfully over his leader and whispered in his ear these
supplicating words: "Rise! Save yourself, — for your chil-
dren, — for Italy!"
"I am choking!" responded the Hero. "Give me a
glass of water." He drank it; he arose; he turned and gave
a last look full of infinite love and sorrow at the immobile
form of the martyr, and turned away, sobbing Hke a child.
He went to the door and stopped and offered a ring which he
had taken from the finger of Anita (the only treasure which
he possessed) to Ravaglia to compensate him for his hos-
pitality and as a memento. "No," said the honest farmer,
"keep it, it is sacred to you."
On August II, 1849, an abandoned dog, rummaging
about, discovered a body which was buried in the shallow
sands of Marina, in the parish of Mandriole. The authorities
came and found that it was the body of a pregnant woman
66 FIRST PART
"who had her hair clipped like a Puritan's and wore a
skirt and a mantle." The clothes were removed and were
displayed to help in the identification of the body. And
the brave consort of the Hero of two worlds was reburied
nude in the earth!
A few days after, a man of robust appearance, but with
face pallid and sad, left the country of Modigliana.
That man was Garibaldi. Groups of Austrian soldiers,
growling ostrogothic oaths and swearing vengeance, hunted
him. At one point the Hero found himself in imminent
danger, and took refuge in a near-by tavern. As soon as he
was seated at a table, some Croatian soldiers noisily entered.
'* I am discovered !" he exclaimed to himself. But the Croati-
ans did not recognize him. They went to a table, and or-
dered and drank wine without limit. They were soon drunk.
They gesticulated wildly. They laughed idiotically. They
repeated with drunken voices: "Ah, Garibalda, Garibalduy
we'll find you yet — we'll catch you in a trap! Ha! ha!
ha!"
The Hero jumped like a leopard toward the door,
and fled to the fields. In vain the Croatians attempted to
follow him: their drunken legs would not carry them.
Their bodies fell to the ground and they wallowed like pigs
in mire.
After countless difficulties he arrived finally at Nice, his
native city, embraced his mother, who already had counted
eighty-four years, kissed his children, wept with them for the
loss of Anita, and with broken heart betook himself to exile,
embarking on a ship which was going direct to Tunis. But
the Bey refused to give him shelter, fearing to bring troubles
on his own head. Then the Hero wandered fromMaddalena^
to Gibraltar, from Gibraltar to Tangiers; and finally one
day took ship for New York, where he was given brotherly
care by an Italian, Antonio Meucci, the defrauded inventor
of the telephone which today is called the Bell.
^The largest island in the strait of Bonifacio (Sardinia).
THE AUSTRIANS BOMBARD VENICE (1849) 67
XV
The Austrians besiege and bombard Venice, continu-
ously, for three months. Field Marshal Radetzky apes
Nero. The Queen of the Adriatic Sea is obUged to
surrender, because of famine and cholera more than
because of the army of the enemy. The elegy of the
poet (1849).
Forty thousand Austrians, with 150 pieces of artillery,
besieged Venice by sea and by land. On May 24, 1849,
they began to storm it with bombs and burning rockets.
Field Marshal Radetzky, wishing to ape Emperor Nero,
of execrated memory, invited several archdukes from his
own country to witness the spectacle of the ItaHan city
struck in every part with fire and with death. Puerile old
barbarian!
The Venetians did not lose their courage. On the con-
trary, they felt themselves physically and morally stronger
than before. They were wisely guided by the Doge Daniele
Manin, and the brave General Guglielmo Pepe, who pre-
sented a formidable resistance to the unheard-of cruelty of
the enemy.
The fight lasted long. It was intense, bloody. Victory
smiled several times on the besieged. It would have been
also their final triumph if, aside from the scarcity of arms
and munitions, and of the almost absolute lack of food,
the cholera had not overtaken them. The terrible scourge,
which was not checked by necessary scientific means, and
was favored by little and bad food, began to decimate
the women and children especially.
On August 15th, the Sanitary Bulletin published 402
cases with 272 deaths. One week later the unconquerable
pest, augmented by hunger, which was always on the increase,
and by the Austrian artillery ever more intense, transformed
the charming city of the Doges into a Dante-like inferno.
The defenders, oppressed by sorrow for the miserable ending
of their beloved dead, lost all courage and hope.
68 FIRST PART
During the making of the treaty (August 23, 1849)
Venice was immersed in a sepulchered gloom.
The poet Arnaldo Fusinato, who was made guardian of
the island of the Lazzaretto, wrote with a breaking heart the
following elegiac verses:
The air is gloom,
The heavens are still;
Alone on the terrace,
I mourn, I weep for thee,
Venice mine!
The rays of the dying sun
Disappear
In the broken clouds
Of the West;
And the last sigh
Of the Lagoon
Breathes sadly
In the twilight air.
A gondola from the city passes:
— Ohe! Gondolier,
What news ?
— The pestilence rages,
We lack bread,
On the bridge waves
The white flag!
Venice! thine
Hour has come;
Glorious martyr.
Thou art lost!
The pestilence rages.
We lack bread,
On the bridge waves
The white flag.
But not the cannons
Belching fire,
Nor the crashing thunders
That roll above thee.
Have had the power
To stifle thy liberty.
THE AUSTRIANS BOMBARD VENICE (1849) 69
Long live Venice!
She dies only from starvation.
history! register
On thy pages
The iniquities of thine enemy,
And the glories of our Patria;
And cry to posterity —
Be three times cursed he
Who would see Venice
Die of starvation!
Long live Venice !
Her ancient virtues
Have been roused
By the ire of the enemy;
But the pestilence rages.
And she lacks bread,
On the bridge waves
The white flag.
And now this my lyre,
Which is as yet free,
I break here
On the stones.
And to thee, Venice,
My last song.
My last kiss,
My last tear!
1 go wandering
In strange lands.
But thou, Venice, wilt live
In my thought;
Thou wilt live
Here in my heart
As the image
Of my first love.
But the wind whistles.
Dark are the waves;
Nature
Is all in obscurity;
70 FIRST PART
The chords scream.
The voice is spent.
On the bridge waves
The white flag.
On August 24, 1849, the holocaust was complete. The
glorious Queen of the Adriatic was again in the clutch of the
rapacious two-headed eagle. Manin, Tommaseo, Guglielmo
Pepe, and other prominent patriots were obliged to take
English and French ships and, like Mazzini, to follow the
sad road of exile.
XVI
Field Marshal Radetzky and his graceless officers
celebrate the birthday of their Emperor (Francis Joseph)
in Milan by hectoring the unarmed people, brutally
charging upon them with cavalry and infantry, beating
patriots and whipping the young boys and girls on their
bare backs (1849).
While Venice agonized, Radetzky committed new
infamies in Milan. He provoked the citizens in order that
he might afterward punish them.
It will suffice, however, to give the following episodes:
August 18, 1849, was the nineteenth birthday of the Em-
peror Francis Joseph and the old marshal, wishing to cele-
brate it with noisy demonstrations, ordered the firing of
several volleys of guns at dawn; the decoration of the bal-
conies, of the windows, of the public squares, and of the
streets with festoons of Austrian colors; a solemn religious
ceremony with the singing of the Te Deum in the Duomo; a
pompous military parade and, for the evening, "a spontane-
ous illumination under threat of judicial prosecution against
the recalcitrants."
Now, what happened in spite of the astuteness of the
all-powerful Austrian officialdom which was organized for
provocations?
At that time in the square of the Duomo was the Cafe
AUSTRIAN ATROCITIES IN MILAN (1849) 71
Mazza, one of the most frequented in the city. Opposite it
lived a certain woman of bad repute, a favorite of many-
Austrian officials who met day and night in front of the
cafe and also inside to feast and revel and to insult peace-
ful citizens as they passed by. At the order of some of
her devoted officer-friends, the woman had prepared a
great drapery with the imperial colors and the emblem of
Austria embroidered on it and on the anniversary hung it
from the balcony of her house.
The Austrian officials — drinking, smoking, chattering
before the Cafe Mazza, congratulated the woman, who re-
mained boldly on the balcony, making all sorts of obscene
grimaces to her which she mistook for gracious smiles, while
at the same time with certain characteristic laughs they
ridiculed and provoked the passersby.
In a flash, the square of the Duomo was full of people.
Someone whistled, a hundred whistled, there was a cry, a
hundred cried out indignant imprecations, then showering
her with tri-colored rosettes they forced the woman to re-
enter her house, taking with her the hated drapery.
The Austrian officers seemed to be expecting nothing
less than this. They jumped into the street, grinding their
teeth. They opened a way for themselves with lashes from
their switches, they called the woman to the balcony, they
invited her to replace the drapery, and when she complied
the ruffians broke into frantic applause. The indignation
and fury of the crowd increased.
Then a squadron of cavalry arrived with drawn sabres
and a corps of infantry with fixed bayonets. They charged
upon the unarmed crowd without regard for the old men,
women or children.
The officers planted themselves on the sidewalks bran-
dishing switches above their heads, threatening and howling
like so many obsessed demons, forced the fugitives to
take off their hats and to salute the drapery; then they
snatched the woman up, took her along with the drapery in
a carriage, and carried her in triumph through the city.
As if this were not enough, they made numberless arrests of
both men and women, accusing them of anti-political and
72 FIRST PART
scandalous demonstrations, and of insults to the emblem of
His Majesty^ etc.
On August 22d, in the Y\2ltl2. Castello, fifteen patriots
(students, property owners, merchants, shopkeepers, and
simple workmen) from 2i to 50 years of age, were subjected
to the humiliation of a public whipping. They were tied
with their breasts to planks, bare from their heads to their
waists and received on their backs, some thirty, some forty,
and some fifty strokes from switches.
Three youths (Luciano Ferrandi, 17 years old, book-
binder; Giacomo Trezzi, 17 years old, tanner; Giacobbe
Colombo, 19 years old, jeweler), who were not considered
strong enough by the army physician to endure the beat-
ing, received, the first thirty lashes, and the other two
forty lashes each. The victims were given over to a soldier
who was in charge of the galleys.
Two young girls, Maria Conti, a Florentine, 18 years of
age, and Ernesta GalH, from Cremona, 20 years old, whose
honor the profligate Austrian officers had many times in
vain tried to corrupt, privately endured atrocious punish-
ment, receiving on their bare backs, the first, thirty and the
second, forty strokes from the whips. ^
Fourteen other patriots were thrown into prison in irons,
and fed only on bread and water. A few days later the
Austrian director of the castle had the insolence to send a
bill to the city council "for the expense incurred in buying
canes and switches, vinegar and ice used on the bodies of
the victims, and demanded to be reimbursed."
It was thus that the despicable Radetzky celebrated in
Italy the birthday of his master the Emperor Francis Joseph!
Such opprobrium shook the whole of Europe. The
journals, especially the London TimeSy published fiery
articles against the Austrian government. And the poet
Francesco Dall'Ongaro wrote:
Lombardians, Venetians, Italians all, forget your glories, your
hopes, your disillusions, your political errors; but remember, re-
^ The switches, cut from filbert trees, were as thick as the thumb and werebound
to the wrist by a leather thong in order to give greater force to the blows. One
of these switches may be seen in the Museum of the Risorgimento in Milan.
THE EMPEROR OF HANGMEN 73
member this day, write it on the walls of your houses, in the public
squares, in the churches, on the covers of your books, everywhere.
Whoever could forget it is a coward! Through the thirty-four
martyrs Italy herself was beaten, was shamed, was dishonored.
And Italy knows this well.
XVII
"The Emperor of Hangmen" (1851-1853).
Lombardo-Veneto again fell into the claws of the Aus-
trians, and the people paid for their patriotism by having im-
posed upon them tributes, hectorings and torments. But no
force, however militarily brutal, could repress in the Italians
their innate, traditional, and ever-growing desire for liberty.
Giuseppe Mazzini from London, aided by Saffi and other
eminent exiles, incited a new struggle for their oppressed
brothers. In consequence, there sprang up everywhere
secret and revolutionary societies and committees.
Naturally, the Austrian police were on the alert; they
spied upon the societies, discovered and punished them.
In 1 85 1 for example, they arrested a Milanese workman,
Antonio Sciesa on the charge of having conspired with num-
erous other patriots against the dominating government.
The accused was invited with flattering unctuousness
to reveal the names of his accomplices. He rejected the
invitation. He was threatened; he was maltreated; he was
subjected to the "third degree." He endured every bar-
barity with heroic patience. He was condemned to death.
He listened to the sentence with firm and dignified de-
meanor. He was offered grace if he would confess. He re-
fused it. He was conducted in chains to the neighborhood
of his own home in the hope that the sight of his family
would weaken him, would make him cling to life, would in-
duce him to talk. He said only two simple dialect words:
"Pull on!" He was dragged to the gallows, where he faced
quietly and unflinchingly the extreme penalty of the law.
During 1852 and 1853, on the bastions of Belfiore
(Mantua) the Austrian gibbet cut short the lives of other
74 FIRST PART
patriots: Enrico Tazzoli and Giovanni Grioli, priests;
Carlo Poma, physician; Giovanni Zambelli, artist; the Vene-
tian, Angelo Scartellini; the writer, Bernardo De Canal, the
Brescian Tito Speri, scholar and poet; Bartolomeo Grazioli,
priest; Count Carlo Montanari from Verona; Pietro Dome-
nico Frattini from Legnano; Col. Pietro FortunatoCalvi from
Briana of Modale (Venice).
The indignation resulting from such injustice was be-
yond bounds. The Emperor Francis Joseph received the
ugly pseudonym of "The Emperor of Hangmen," and even
to this day the Italians repeat it with maledictions and hate.
Not less cruel were the smaller tyrants who were obedient
to Austria. It suffices to say that Charles III, who suc-
ceeded Charles II in the Duchy of Parma, caused three
hundred citizens to be beaten to death in only four months.
In the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies such well-known and
esteemed patriots as the scholar, Luigi Settembrini; the
philosopher, Raffaele Conforti, the economist, Antonio
Scialoia, the jurist, Giuseppe Pisanelli; the statesman, Silvio
Spaventa, Carlo Poerio, Nicola Nisco, Pironti, Saliceti and
others, were treated so villainously as to move the whole of
Europe to scorn. It was just at that time that Gladstone
characterized the Bourbon government in Italy as "The
negation of God constructed into a system."
In short, from the snowy Alps to the Island of the Sun,
one could see nothing but a people anxious for liberty mar-
tyrized by Austria and by arrogant, avid and sanguinary
little despots whom Austria counseled, incited and protected.
A similar state of things continued for many years. It
might have lasted an interminable time, if unlooked-for
events had not supervened to moderate it and to hurry, at
the same time, the unity of the nation and the independence
for which the Italians had fought and suffered for centuries.
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1859 75
XVIII
The Bersaglieri in the Crimean War (1855). Cavour at
the Congress of Paris (1856). The Alliance with Napo-
leon III (1858). The memorable words of Victor
Emanuel II at the opening of the Sub-Alpine Parlia-
ment. Austria's ultimattun to Piedmont. The Hymn
of Garibaldi. The Austrian soldiers massacre the
family of Cignoli. The papal soldiers massacre the
patriots of Perugia. Pius IX and Cardinal Pecci (later
Pope Leo XIII) praise the assassination. The third
War of Liberation won by the Italians with the aid of the
French (1859).
Nicholas I of Russia, in 1854, pretending to liberate the
Christian people of the Danube from Ottoman domination,
made war upon Turkey.
But France and England, who knew well the secret ends
of the Czar, which were to conquer Constantinople, believed
that it was necessary for the protection of their military
and commercial interests, to oppose the desired conquest;
therefore, they defended the Turk.
Camillo Benso di Cavour, with his rare political dis-
cernment, foresaw in the above events a fortunate opportu-
nity for Italy; foresaw a benefit which might come to the
Italians if they were to enter into the war of the Orient;
he took advantage of the occasion; he did everything possible
to accord with the Allies, and sent to the Crimea an army
of 15,000 men in the greater part made up of Bersagheri,
commanded by General Alfonso Lamarmora.
At Cernaia the Italian soldiers did honor to themselves.
Among other things, on August 16, 1855, they saved the
armies of the allies from a dangerous surprise, resisting an
attack from 60,000 Russian soldiers. And on Septem-
ber 8th they covered themselves with glory, fighting
under the rain of the enemies' fire while taking the
tower of MalakofF, which was the principal bulwark of
Sebastopol.
76 FIRST PART
The Russians were beaten. In the congress held in
Paris some time afterward, Cavour was able to command a
hearing as an official representative of Piedmont, notwith-
standing the opposition and intrigues of Austria. At the
memorable meeting of March 30, 1856, the sagacious min-
ister of Victor Emanuel II brought before them for dis-
cussion the "Itahan Question," denouncing with frank and
ringing words the preponderance of Austrians in Italy, which
was the cause of so much evil, and insisting that it was the
duty of the Great Powers who were arbitrating the destiny
of Europe, to take the part of a people who asked for noth-
ing but their own national unity and freedom from any
outside tyranny. The Austrian representative, puffing up
and turning red as a turkey, made his protest. The other
representatives, however, expressed their sympathy for the
cause defended by Cavour, and notwithstanding the fact
that the Congress dissolved without formulating any con-
crete resolution regarding Italy, France and England, it
did not fail to criticize and advise Austria and the tyrants
of Italy whom she protected — such as the Pope, the Bour-
bon King, and the other minor ones — that it demanded the
betterment of conditions which the leaders of liberal ideas
considered indispensable to their well-being.
More than this, Napoleon III began to think on his own
account of putting down Austria. It seemed to him that
the Italian people might contribute to such a plan. Ac-
cordingly, during the summer of 1858, he had a secret meet-
ing with Cavour at Plombieres in the Vosges, and there they
formulated a plan for a Franco-Piedmontese alliance in
which the allies pledged themselves to combine against
Austria if she provoked them to war and in case of victory
to annex Lombardo-Veneto to Piedmont.
After the military victories in Russia, this diplomatic
success reawakened hope and joy in the hearts of Italians.
The eyes of the nation turned anxiously toward the Pied-
montese government. The leaders of the patriots incited Pied-
mont to action by means of the press and public and private
exhortations. Francis Joseph could not endure this. He
commanded Victor Emanuel II to bridle the press and the
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1859 77
tongues of the orators. The humble King of Piedmont, coun-
seled by Cavour, refused to obey the command of the power-
ful Emperor of Austria. Not only that, but in the solemn
opening of the Sub-Alpine parliament (January, 1859) dur-
ing the pragmatic speech of the crown, he orofFered the fol-
lowing historic and significant words:
Our Country, small in territory, has acquired importance in
the councils of Europe, because of the greatness of the ideas which
she represents and for the sympathy which she inspires. This
condition, however, is not free from danger, because while we
respect the treaties we are not insensible to the cries of suffering
which come to us from every part of Italy. We look forward to
harmony for we are confident of our own rights, and we will await
prudently and patiently the decree of Divine Providence.
The assembly burst into frantic applause. An en-
thusiasm for war ran through the entire peninsula. Men
of all ages and from every social condition eagerly enlisted
in the regular Piedmontese army, or under Garibaldi, who was
again in Italy and was authorized by the government of
Victor Emanuel II to form and command a corps of volun-
teers called The Alpine Hunters.
Austria, fuming with rage, imposed on Piedmont a
menacing dilemma: to disarm the soldiers and send the
volunteers to their homes within three days, or — WAR.
The Piedmontese did not hesitate in their decision.
They chose WAR. A divine exultation seemed to spread
among the people from the mountains to the sea; it trans-
formed and almost reshaped the national conscience, it
hardened and made steel-like their wrists, and everywhere
under the beautiful sky of the new-born spring could be heard
the martial strains of the Hymn of Garibaldi, written by
the poet Luigi Mercantini, and set to music by the maestro
Alessio Olivieri:
Garibaldi's War Hymn*
To arms, men! To arms, men!
The graves loose their captives; arise our departed;
Our martyrs come forth, all our heroes great-hearted,
^ By permission of Oliver Ditson Company.
78 FIRST PART
With sabre in hand, and their brows crown'd with laurel,
The fame and the name of Italia their star!
Make haste, oh, make haste! Forward, gallant battalions!
Fling out to the winds flags for all, ye Italians,
Rise, all with youV weapons! Rise, all fire-impassion'd!
Rise, all fire-impassion'd, Italians ye are!
Depart from our homeland. Depart, O ye strangers!
This hour gives the signal; betake you afar.
The land famed for flowers, for poets, for singing.
Once more be a land where the sword blows are ringing!
Our hands may be bound with a hundred harsh fetters
But still they can brandish Legnano's^ bright swords.
The Austrian staff no Italian belabors;
The race born of Rome do not jest with their sabres;
No longer will Italy put up with her tyrants;
Too many long years have we harbor'd their hordes!
Depart from our homeland. Depart, O ye strangers!
This hour gives the signal; betake you afar.
For us are the dwellings of Italy fashion'd,
While yours on the Danube must henceforth be station'd.
You've ravaged our fields, aye, our bread you have stolen;
Our sons for ourselves we desire to enroll.
The Alps with the two seas mark Italy's borders;
Our fire blazing chariots shall mow down the warders;
All signs of the former frontiers shall be cancell'd!
One banner alone let us raise o'er the whole!
Depart from our homeland, Depart, O ye strangers!
This hour gives the signal; betake you afar.
Let voices be silent, let each arm be ready!
Let's face to the foe, let us march firm and steady!
And then in a moment the Austrian will flee us.
One thought in our hearts for our homeland shall flame!
Our eyes are not fix'd upon barbarous plunder;
Great princes from robbers no jealousies sunder;
The natives of Italy form but one nation;
Her famed hundred cities are one but in name!
Depart from our homeland. Depart, O ye strangers!
This hour gives the signal; betake you afar.^
^ A celebrated victory of the Lombard League over Barbarossa, May 29, 1 176.
* I do not repeat here the last four strophes of the Hymn of Garibaldi because
they were written by Mercantini in i860, following the events of Sicily and Naples,
which will be briefly narrated in the next chapter.
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1859 79
On April 29, 1859, a great Austrian army invaded
Lombardy and Novarese, which the Italian army had
abandoned for strategic reasons. After the usual brigand-
like violence had been committed against the property
owners and unarmed people, the Austrian army advanced
toward Vercellese, with the intention of occupying Turin,
after which they expected to push on to Mont Cenis Pass to
stop the advance of the French. But the Italian trenches
constructed near the river Dora arrested the march of the
enemy; their plans were turned upside down, and the French
were thus able to go on without meeting the slightest
obstacle, not only from Mont Cenis, but also from Mongi-
nevro and from Genoa.
The war now entered into a new phase. The Italians,
under the absolute command of Victor Emanuel II, had in all
80,000 men. The French, under the command of Napoleon
III, had 200,000. And the Austrians, under the command of
Marshal Guilay, had 300,000.
At Montebello, on the right bank of the Po, to the east
of Voghera, was the first notable encounter between 22,000
allies and 30,000 Austrians. The latter were defeated and
obliged to retire to the opposite bank of the river (May 20,
1859).
The same day they revenged themselves by massacring
an entire Italian family. Cavour, in a special circular,
which he sent to all parts of the country, narrates this out-
rage as follows:
The 20th of May, 1859, several Austrian troops camped on the
hill of Torricella, a little city of the Vogherese. A group of these
arrested the custodian of the court house, whom they encountered
on the way, and compelled him to lead them. They entered the
house of a farmer named Cignoli. After searching about in every
part of the house, they discovered a little flask containing some bird-
shot, and for this they drove every member of the family out, and
also some farmers who happened to be in the house. They were
taken to the Austrian commander who was on his horse. After
he had exchanged some words with a corporal, he ordered the pris-
oners (there were nine) to go down into a little by-way, which
ran parallel to the wider road. The poor unfortunates had taken
but a few steps when the commander gave the signal to the
80 FIRST PART
soldiers to shoot them. Eight fell dead; old Cignoli was mor-
tally wounded. Then the Austrians continued on their way in the
direction of Casteggio; and the commander turned to the custodian
of the court house, released him and gave him as a reward for his
services a safe conduct on which was signed the name of Lieu-
te^iant-Marshal Urban. Old Cignoli died five days after in the
hospital of Voghera. Such enormities have no need of comment.
They are too atrocious, too cowardly, and worthy only of bar-
barians and savages!
The indignation in Italy was great,
Guerrazzi wrote:
Let the tomb of the Cignoli be of stone, high and wide as a
pyramid, of a single piece of granite. Let it be placed exactly on
the spot where the Cignoli were so atrociously and cowardly
murdered. Let their ashes be gathered under it. On the western
side, let there be placed this inscription: Tomh of the Cignoli!
On the east side: An entire family massacred by a whole people,
here vengeance cries to a just God against the Austrian assassins!
On the north side let there be cut the names and ages
of the victims. On the south side let there be placed this in-
scription: Between Italians and Austrians, through all time and in
every place, let there be a pact of the grave and a truce of death.
And Niccolini wrote a sonnet, in which he said among
other things to the Emperor Francis Joseph:
When you were born the sun hid his face.
Every benignant light on earth was extinguished.
The Danube and other streams ran blood,
Every mother strained her child to her breast.
When you die — the sun will be brighter.
Mothers and wives will dance alternately
On the tombs of these cowardly flagellants.
Garibaldi, however, with his sturdy volunteers, defeated
the Austrians at Arona, at Varese, at Como, and in several
other places (May 25th, 26th, and 27th). The regular
Italian army, assisted by the French, defeated them at
Palestro, on May 29th.
About the first of June, there was fought on the plains
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1859 81
of Magenta one of the most obstinate and bloody battles
of the campaign. The French, commanded by General
MacMahon, were 125,000 strong. The Italians were few
(having only some divisions). The Austrians, commanded
by Guilay, were superior in numbers to the alHes. The
battle began at five in the morning and ended at seven
o'clock on the evening of June 4th. The Austrians were
beaten and obliged to fly precipitately, leaving on the ground
12,000 wounded and dead, and losing 6,000 prisoners.
Garibaldi, on his own account, carried victory before
him to the shores of Lake Garda.
The city of Milan, evacuated by her hated oppressors,
as was the rest of Lombardy, again proclaimed her annexa-
tion to Piedmont. And Victor Emanuel II, with Napoleon
III and the army of the allies, triumphantly entered the
superb metropolis (June 8th).
Umbria and the Marches, then under the papal rule,
rebelled in order to unite in the national movement. But
they were overcome by the papal army, which was composed
of a mass of strangers, bigots and reactionaries, com-
manded by General Lamoriciere, who was an exile from
France. At Perugia the Italian patriots had formed a
provisional government. The papal soldiers prepared
themselves to crush it. The members of the provision-
al government presented themselves to the archbishop
of the city. Cardinal Gioacchino Pecci (later Pope Leo
XIII) and begged of him to interpose his influence to
prevent further bloodshed. But Cardinal Pecci would
not listen to the supplications of the Italian patriots.
Consequently, General Schmid, a commander of the papal
soldiers, could massacre without distinction and at
his convenience, men, women, old people and children.
Pope Pius IX promoted Schmid to a generalship; and Car-
dinal Pecci (later Pope Leo XIII) oflfered to God a solemn
high mass in honor and in memory of the papal soldiers
fallen in that battle of brigands.
For such infamies Cavour sent a protest to all of the
governments of Europe.
The enemy was reduced to a pitiful condition. Marshal
82 FIRST PART
Guilay was removed from his command and General Hess
was substituted in his place. Francis Joseph himself went
to the field of battle to restore by his presence the morale
of his demoralized troops.
On June 24, 1859, the Austrians (200,000 strong and with
700 cannon) boldly occupied the hills of San Martino and
Solferino, near Mantua, and determined to regain their
lost ground.
The allies, ready to face them, were not more than
160,000 in all. The French army were to take their position
against Solferino and the Italians against San Martino. The
engagement took place at seven in the morning. They
fought with savage fury and stubbornness until nine o'clock
in the evening. The Austrians were defeated. More than
20,000 fell.
It was the beginning of the end for the tyrants. It was
the aurora of redemption for the oppressed Italians. They
sang hymns to victory. They fraternized with the French.
They exalted the gentle Latin blood.
But suddenly Napoleon III, who had hitherto showed
himself so daring and generous, changed his ideas for per-
sonal and political reasons. He accepted the proposal of an
armistice, and met Francis Joseph at Villafranca (July 11-12,
1859). There the two Emperors agreed upon the pre-
liminaries of peace, which were solemnly ratified at Zurich,
November loth. Its basis was that Francis Joseph should
cede Lombardy to Napoleon, and Napoleon on his part
should cede it to Victor Emanuel II (what hypocritical for-
mality!). Venice should be left to Austria. The deposed
princes could return each to his own dominion. But they
might be recalled by a vote of the people and without the
armed intervention of strangers. The peninsula, including
Venice, must be made a confederation with the Pope as its
head.
One can imagine the sorrowful effect produced by this
ignominious action of Napoleon III, who was even accused
of treason.
But hope was not entirely lost. The fortunate clause,
however, of the non-intervention of strangers put into the
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1866 83
hands of the Itahans themselves the unity of their country.
The regions of Emilia and Tuscany were not tardy in pro-
fiting by it, declaring by popular vote their annexation to
Piedmont, which thus became a Kingdom of 12,000,000
souls.
The government of Victor Emanuel II was obliged to
cede Savoy and Nice to France; Nice, a most Italian city,
the birthplace of Garibaldi.
XIX
Garibaldi and The Thousand gloriously conquer the
Two Sicilies (1860). Proclamation of the Kingdom of
Italy. (1861). The Fourth War of Liberation against
Austria is lost owing to the inefficiency of conunanders.
The annexation of Veneto (1866) . Villa Glori. The hired
soldiers of Pius IX massacre the Roman heroine Giuditta
Arquati-Tavani with her husband and son. Mentana
(1867). The taking of Rome and the final fall of the
temporal power of the Popes (1870). The Nation one
and independent.
The events which took place in Northern Italy were
repeated in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, where the
tyranny of the Bourbon, Francis II, raged. He was weak-
minded and almost idiotic, was called Franceschiello} He
was allied and related to the dynasty of Austria. (Francis II
married Maria Sophia of Bavaria, sister of the Empress
Elizabeth, wife of Francis Joseph). He was opposed to the
independence of Italy and was a fierce persecutor of the
liberals.
Palermo rose up against him (April i, i860). The alarm
was sounded in the hope that all of Sicily would rise. In-
stead, the troops intervened and repressed with Bourbon
violence the revolution in the city. The news of the in-
surrection quickly reached Genoa and reawakened the
spirits of the patriots of the south who had taken refuge
* Francis the Little.
84 FIRST PART
there. A wave of sympathy for their brothers, who had
risen up in rebelUon in Sicily, animated them. They de-
termined to fly to their rescue as soon as possible.
On May 6, i860, two ships, the Lomhardo and the
Piedmont, having on board the thousand argonauts of liber-
ty, led by Giuseppe Garibaldi, weighed anchor from the rocks
of Quarto, the smiling little village on the shore of Liguria.
They landed at Marsala on May nth. The captain im-
mediately invited the Sicilians to arm themselves against
the Bourbon oppressors and to fight for the unity and in-
dependence of their country.
The cry of the Hero was received with the greatest en-
thusiasm by the ardent islanders, and The Thousand was
quickly increased.
On May 15th, the Garibaldians encountered the Bourbon
army on the hills of Calatafimi and engaged in a fierce battle
with them. At a certain point it seemed that the volunteers
must be routed by their enemies, who were greatly superior
in numbers. Nino Bixio (the first ofiicer of The Thousand
after Garibaldi), who commanded the right wing, came to
Garibaldi and said: "It would be better to retreat."
"What are you saying, Bixio .^" Garibaldi responded
energetically. "Here we must confirm the unity of Italy
or die!" And rushing to the front with his sword on high,
he commanded: "To your bayonets!"
The enemy was dispersed.*
From Calatafimi Garibaldi marched on to Palermo and
entered the city as Dictator (May 26-29, i860).
On July 27th, the enemy was defeated also at Milazzo
in a terrible encounter in which this same Garibaldi fought
hand to hand with the enemy.
In less than three months the Bourbon troops were
obliged to abandon Sicily.
At dawn on August 20th, Garibaldi landed in Calabria
with his volunteers, rushed upon Reggio and again defeated
the enemy.
^ "Calatafimi! What remains after one hundred battles: if when my last
hour comes my friends see me smile with pride, it will be because I am reminded of
thee: because I do not recall a more glorious day of my lifel" Thus Garibaldi
wrote in his Memoirs.
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1866 85
So many victories produced a delirium of enthusiasm
and love for the Hero and impelled the sturdy Calabrians
also to rise in rebellion against the royalists.
After a time, on the hills of Soveria, near Catanzaro,
Garibaldi gave to history the following memorable words:
"Say to the world that with a few hundreds of my
valiant Calabrians, I made twelve thousand Bourbons lay
down their arms."
Francis II, terrorized by what had befallen, fled from
Naples on September 6th, and repaired to Gaeta, while the
greater number of his troops who remained faithful to him
took refuge in Capua.
The day after (September yth), Garibaldi triumphantly
re-entered the city of Naples and on October 2d, he again
defeated the Bourbon army of 55,000 men near the river
Volturno.
Umbria and the Marches also rebelled, proclaiming their
annexation to Piedmont. The papal government in every
way thwarted the will of the people who were still under its
subjection. They offered themselves to Victor Emanuel II
with a goodly number of troops and defeated the papal
soldiers all along the line (September, i860).
Soon after, the son of Carlo Alberto continued on his
way to Naples to take possession of the kingdom which had
been conquered by the Hero of two worlds.
On October 26th, Garibaldi and Victor Emanuel II, both
on horseback, met on the road to Teano. An eye-witness
to the scene attests to the fact that the Hero, giving Victor
Emanuel II the military salute, shouted, **My salutation to
the first king of Italy!"
It is certain that Victor Emanuel II, when he reached
Naples, was greeted with great honor.
The Hero, on his part, after he had "presented an un-
expected realm to the king" returned poorer than ever to
his little island of Caprera.
After the annexation of the Two Sicilies, of Umbria and
the Marches, the Sub-Alpine Parliament was dissolved, and
there was a new general election in which all parts of Italy
were included, except Veneto, which as yet remained under
86 FIRST PART
the dominion of Austria, and the city of Rome which still
remained under the dominion of the Pope.
The first Italian Parliament was solemnly opened at
Turin in the month of February 1861. There the formation
of the Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed, conferring upon
Victor Emanuel II the right to assume for himself and for
his successors the title of King of Italy and expressing there-
by the hope that "Rome should again be restored as the
capital of Italy."
In 1866 Austria and Prussia disputed between themselves
as to which should have the supremacy in Germany. As
they could not arrive at a pacific conclusion by good means,
they had recourse to arms.
Victor Emanuel II made a secret alliance, both offensive
and defensive, with Prussia with the intention of acquiring
Venice.
Prussia, conforming to the stipulated treaty, was the
first to open hostilities against Austria by invading Holstein.
Victor Emanuel II followed, declaring war against the
common enemy, June 19, 1866, and on the 21st he took his
departure for the field of battle.
On June 24th, he went to battle against the Austrians
at Custozza. The Italians fought with their usual fury; but
they lost the battle owing to the incapacity of their com-
manders.
They suffered a harder blow at sea. Near Lissa — a
little island in the Adriatic — the Italian fleet engaged in a
sharp battle against the Austrians. The Italian crews fought
valiantly. The captains, Foa di Bruno and Alfredo Cap-
pellini, commanders of the battleships Re d' Italia and PalestrOy
went stoically to the bottom with their ships. But their
heroic sacrifice was not sufficient to save the situation. The
stupidity and cowardice of Admiral Persano gave the victory
to the Austrians (July 20, 1866).
Garibaldi, who had advanced to Trentino, conquering
every foe on his way, was prepared to assault and to take
the city of Trent. On July 25th, he suddenly received the
following telegram from the government of Victor Emanuel
II: "Armistice signed. Evacuate Trentino."
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1866 87
Evacuate Trentino after it had been bathed in the blood
of 3,400 Garibaldians ! After the populace had rallied around
the flaming red shirts with manifestations of joy! After
the disaster of Custozza! After the shame of Lissa!
From the camps there went up a roar of protest. The
wounded tore ofF their bandages, crying that they preferred
death to retreat. The volunteers remained in columns
breaking their swords and bayonets; others rolled on the
ground in their fury and desperation, weeping and cursing.
The victorious Hero said nothing. He telegraphed to
the King of Italy only one word "Obbedisco" (I obey).
But what eloquence, what grief, and what self-abnegation in
that word!
Austria had been terribly defeated by the Prussians
at Sadowa on July 3, 1866, and had lost every hope of
predominance over Germany.
Francis Joseph was constrained to cede Veneto, but not
directly to Italy, which he hated. He gave it to Napoleon
III who in turn gave it to Italy; the repetition of the
farce of 1859.
Thus, on November ist, Veneto, after long years of
wicked Austrian domination, was officially annexed to the
Kingdom of Italy, with her boundaries limited on one side
by the Isonzo River.
After the annexation of Veneto, the Italians were more
than ever determined to retake Rome.
Garibaldi was the luminous center from which radiated
and on which converged the national agitation for Rome.
He pondered long on the means for liberating the Eternal
City: liberation which was opposed by the government of
Napoleon III and also by the Government of Victor
Emanuel IL
In a trip through Italy the Hero was greeted with accla-
mation everywhere. He exhorted the people to the supreme
necessity of liberating Rome. While he was on his way to
the boundaries of the papal states (September 23, 1867) he
was "arrested" by order of the Government of Savoy and
conducted to Alessandria (Piedmont).
Great was the indignation of the Itahans. To placate
88 FIRST PART
them, the Government of Savoy was obliged to bring
the Hero back to Caprera ** nominally free, but the island
was under the surveillance of various battleships."
After a few days. Garibaldi, with miraculous daring, was
able to escape and went directly toward the Agro Romano,
where his gallant volunteers had begun the war against the
Pope.
In the meantime, the Roman people planned another
uprising; but they were without arms. The Cairoli brothers
and other generous souls (seventy-five in all) planned to
carry munitions to the patriots.
On October 20, 1867, they passed the boundaries of the
Roman state, and took boat on the Tiber, carrying with
them rifles, swords and munitions. But they were in-
formed on the way that the insurrection of the day before
had resulted badly. Enrico Cairoli, head of the daring ex-
pedition, led his men into the dairy farm of Villa Glori,
situated at a little distance from Porta del Popolo. There
they were assailed in a short time by 500 papal soldiers.
The battle was a bitter hand to hand conflict, the volunteers
crying, "Long live Garibaldi! Long live Rome!" They
fought like true heroes. Enrico Cairoli fell, covered with
wounds. Other brave heroes also fell. But the papal
soldiers were defeated (October 23).
The Roman patriots, notwithstanding all of their ad-
versities and the lack of arms, persisted in their determina-
tion to make every eflPort to liberate their city from papal
tyranny. The same day, October 23d, forty of them met
secretly in Giulio Ajani's woolen shop, situated in Trastevere,
and there took council together and made new plans for
the revolution.
The Signora Giuditta Arquati-Tavani, whose son and
husband were among the forty, wished to remain with them
on the pretext of overseeing their food. She was still young,
with a majestic beauty like that of the ancient Roman ma-
trons.
While the patriots were meeting and making their plans,
suddenly a company of gendarmes on horseback and a battal-
ion of pontifical zouaves appeared running toward the shop.
THE AUSTRO-ITALIAN WAR OF 1866 89
The patriots quickly closed the doors and prepared to
defend themselves. Then the first shots were heard. The
papal soldiers better to take the offensive, went into a nearby
convent and from the windows and from the high bell tower
began to batter the shop. The Roman patriots responded
from every window and opening of the house. Giuditta
Arquati-Tavani ran from one room to the other carrying
ammunition to the combatants, encouraging them and
helping the wounded. The patriots, comforted by her calm
heroism, regained their courage.
The 300 papal soldiers, who had made the first attack,
were defeated after two hours of fighting. They had almost
decided to abandon the fight when 300 other papal rein-
forcements arrived. The battle recommenced with greater
force. The brave Giuditta pressed her husband's hand and
kissed the hair of her boy, while handing them the rifles
which she herself had loaded. She filled everyone with
courage, exclaiming, "Long live Italy! Long live Rome!"
"Don't let us yield to these assassins!" The patriots,
exalted by the bravery of this wonderful woman, held at
bay these 600 troopers as they had held the first 300, and
more than once repulsed them.
But other papal reinforcements came, while the patriots
were rapidly spending their munitions. Then the firing of
the defenders stopped. The zouaves battered down the
doors and rushed in. They fought on the stairs, on the
loggias and in the halls. But the fight was too unequal.
It could not continue long. The papal mercenaries massa-
cred the patriots, *'by crushing their heads, breaking their
bones and throwing their bodies out into the courtyard."
Giuditta fell wounded by several rifle shots, but she
dragged herself a little distance to where her husband and son
lay wounded. Under the eyes of this invincible woman the
soldiers transfixed them both one after the other with such
violence that the bayonets passed through the bodies of the
two men and were driven into the wall and the floor. Then
attacking the heroine (who w'as six months advanced in
pregnancy) they beat her to death with their rifles.
Finally, satiated with blood, they seated themselves
90 FIRST PART
at the table which Gluditta Arquati-Tavani had prepared
for her unfortunate companions, gorged themselves with food,
and drank themselves stupid with wine.
Two days after (October 25, 1867), Garibaldi avenged
these martyrs of Ajani's woolen shop by defeating the papal
mercenaries at Monte Rotondo. But on November 3d,
the Hero was overpowered by an extraordinary number of
papal and French soldiers at Mentana, near Rome, after a
titanic battle, and was obliged to retreat. Only a strategist
of highest order could have accomplished such a retreat,
and the defeat of Mentana has been judged more glorious
than all of the victories won by Garibaldi during his ad-
venturous career.
There arose in Mentana the shame of the centuries
From the wicked embrace of Peter^ and Caesar'^:
You, Garibaldi, in Mentana
On Peter and Caesar have planted your feet.
(Carducci)
On September 20, 1870, the Italian soldiers under the
command of General RafFaeleCadorna assaulted Rome, made
a breach in the wall between Porta Pia and Porta Salaria,
and entered the city.
Thus after more than a thousand years the power of the
Popes crumbled.^
The first daughter of the Latin world (become again an
united and independent nation) once more has Rome for
her capital.
The martyrdom of a whole people — and what a people!
— has yielded fruit.
The dream of so many thinkers and apostles — from
Dante to Mazzini — is at last a reality, a living reality.
1 Pius IX. 2 Napoleon III.
' Pipin the Short, KiriR of the French in 752 and afterward also King of Italy,
after he had. aided Pope Stephen II in the war against Astolfo, King of the Longo-
bardians, gave to the Church of Rome the Italian penlapolis comprising the cities
of Rimini, Pesaro, Fano, Sinigaglia and Ancona. From this gift the temporal
power of the Popes originates.
SECOND PART
I
How ancient Rome, during the Republic and also dur-
ing the Empire, conquered and latinized Friuli, Istria,
Trieste, Trentino, Trent and Dalmatia and how she made
of the Adriatic Sea a great Roman Lake. " The Tavola
Clesiana".
Friuli. About the year 185 B. C, when some trans-
Alpine tribes "in crossing difficult passes and through dense
forests" (Cadore, Carnia, Carinthia, Carso) made their way
into Italy, the Roman Senate ordered them to " return immedi-
ately to the country from which they came and to remember
that the Alps were the natural and insuperable boundary
placed between Italy and foreign lands"; thus Livy
narrates in his 29th book.
Friuli — the part which includes the Italian province
of Udine and the part where Goritz, Aquileia (or rather
the ruins of Aquileia), Grado, Gradisca, Monfalcone and
Cervignano rise — -at that time was a wild region inha-
bited by aggressive barbarians. It took on civilization
only after it was conquered by the Romans. These, wise
colonizers as they were invincible warriors, as soon as they
had the new territory in their hands, began immediately
to give an impulse to agriculture and commerce. They
taught the people their language, spread abroad their laws,
beautified many little towns, changing them into cities,
founded Aquileia (182-181 B. C.) on the western shores of
the Isonzo River in a low but fertile plain, and fortified it
"to defend it against the barbarians who lived further up."
{Opus Romanorum est Aquileia munitum adversus supra
illam hahitantes barbaros).
In the time of Augustus, Aquileia was surrounded by 22
91
92 SECOND PART
kilometers of solid wall. It had a campidoglio (municipal
building), a temple to Jupiter Optimus Maximus and temples
to Juno, Apollo, the god Isonzo and the god Beleno; an aque-
duct and forums, baths, circuses, and theatres, and had
more than 200,000 inhabitants (some historians say 500,000).
It was in direct communication with Rome by means of the
Emilian Way (a continuation of the Flaminian way) and
communicated with the Adriatic Sea by means of canals, and
its port was at Grado. It was the military base of the
Romans against the bellicose peoples of the north and east,
so much so that this same Emperor Augustus established his
general headquarters there in the wars against the Pannoni,
Germans and the Illirici, while Julius Caesar drew soldiers
from there in his wars against the Rhaetians and the Helve-
tians, as he himself has stated in his Commentaries. It was a
commercial center of the highest rank where every day there
flocked from all parts of the world sailors, merchants, slaves,
with grain, oil, wine, pelts, metals and other important prod-
ucts. It was the seat of one of the three treasuries of
Italy where the imperial gold money was stamped {Aquileiae
percussae et signatae.) This was a privilege which Aquileia
(rich in gold, amber, and precious stones) enjoyed second
only to Rome. It was the emporium and the bulwark of the
Latin race, curbing the grasping cupidity of the barbarians
who were behind the Alps. It was also an attractive summer
resort where people came from every country, including even
Africa. Augustus and his wife Livia, and afterwards the
Emperors Tiberius, Marcus Aurelius, and Diocletian did
not scorn to pass their summers there. Augustus in
12 B. C. received Herod, king of Judea there; and in 307
A. D., Constantine the Great married Fausta, daughter of
Maximian and sister of Maxentius.
IsTRiA AND Trieste. The Romans in Istria (the penin-
sula which pushes out into the Adriatic at the extreme north
and which extends from the mouth of the Isonzo to the small
bay of the gulf of Quarnero) were not less active and prodigal
than those in Friuli. They conquered Istria, 177-178 B. C.^
^Of the first immigrants from Asia to Europe, generically known as the
Pelasgi, great numbers went to the land which today is called Istria, and
THE ANCIENT ROMAN ORIGIN 93
There they estabhshed shipyards, piers and fortifica-
tions, made shores and mountain highways leading even to
the heart of the Carnic Alps. They re-erected several cities
whose buildings were of Roman architecture. At Pola they
built a solid wall surrounding the city, a temple to Diana,
a temple to Augustus with colonnades, an arch of the Sergii,
many tombs, a superb granite amphitheatre, noted for its
majestic beauty and judged inferior in size only to the Coli-
seum of Rome (the interior in its eUiptical form measured
140 metres in length and no wide, and could accommodate
25,000 persons); they enlarged and fortified the port, making
it a naval base of the first order.^
At Parenzo {Parenthium) the Romans erected a campi-
doglio, a forum, temples to Mars and Neptune and an en-
closure for public meetings.
But at Trieste {Tergeste) they wished especially to spend
lavishly the treasures and influence of which Rome was
never sparing with the people who were faithful to her.
They constructed an aqueduct, a surrounding wall, a cam-
pidoglio, public baths, an amphitheatre, a temple to Jove,
and a magnificent military port, the most important on the
Adriatic Sea, and a base for their commercial communication
and for their wars with Central Europe;^ finally they united
especially to that part which extends to the shores of Trieste. Later the
Pelasgi were superseded by Etruscans. Finally toward the year 508 B. C. a
great tribe came from Thrace, from the mouth of the Istro (as at that time the
Danube was called), and drove off the first settlers, and called the place Istria from
the name of the river from which they emigrated. This is the tradition. Later,
Strabo and Pliny teach that the people who inhabited Istria before the Roman
occupation were the Celts, Liburni, the Carnii and Siapidi, with a preponderance
of the Celts, and therefore, it is certain that the first inhabitants of Istria were ethno-
graphically formed as the other people of Italy, from various races united more or
less by affinity, common interests, and by their common needs.
Trieste existed before the Roman conquest.
^ In the rivalry between Caesar and Pompey the city of Pola sided with Pompey.
Caesar, furious, wished to destroy it; but he was dissuaded by his gentle daughter
Julia. In memory and recognition of this act, Pola was for a long time called
Pietas Juliae.
^ In the Trojan column in Rome among the many bas-reliefs there are two which
represent Roman Trieste, surrounded by solid walls, with the shores guarded
and with the port divided in two parts by a beautiful pier at the end of which rose a
round tower surmounted by a lighthouse; in the part of the bas-relief which
represents the port of Trieste, one sees also the Emperor Trajan embarking for
home on his return from one of his victories against the Dacians (related to the
German race).
94 SECOND PART
the city to the tribes of Papinia, considering it a continua-
tion of the province of Veneto; they invested it with the
same rights as Rome, "thus permitting the Triestians to
participate, as did the Romans, in the elections of magis-
trates of the Repubhc and afterward of the Empire, to
be electors and to vote for laws." In other words the Ro-
mans made Trieste the culminating expression of their con-
structive energies in Istria, radiating its fecund life to
vast zones. ^
When emperor Augustus divided Italy into eleven regions,
Trieste, Istria and Venice formed the tenth Italian region:
X Regio Italica it was called. The Triestian militia were
included in the tenth Apollinare region. Just then the city,
thankful to have been raised by the victorious Roman eagles
to the apogee of riches, culture and civilization, proud to
have been and to be an integral part of the strongest and
most enlightened race which has dominated the world, en-
graved on its coat of arms, on a purple field, the iron halbert
which it received from Rome, the halbert symbolizing the
Alma Mater in its Latin power and splendor.
Trentino. Trentino is the charming mountainous reg-
ion lying between Veneto and Lombardy, dividing along its
length the two Italian provinces for more than lOO kilome-
ters.^ Its boundaries extend for 452 kilometers, of which 136
divided it from the German Tyrol, 138 from Lombardy, 178
from Veneto. From Botzen to Riva (on Lake Garda) run
the Adige, the rapid and impetuous river of which Dante
and Virgil sang and from whose shores Trent {Tridentum)
the most important city of the Trentino, rises.
The first inhabitants of this region were the Etruscans;
then came the Gauls; then the Romans. From the fusion
of the Quirites with the Gallic race was born the properly
called Italian race. The Romans, after they had subjugated
^ Julius Caesar, who many times conquered the Teutonic hordes who rushed
down upon the Romans from the Alps and always forced them back to their sterile
plains, extended the confines of Italy to Arsia on the gulf of Quarnero. This chain
of mountains which enclosed Istria at the north, took his name and was called the
"Julian Alps."
^ In the treaty of 1815, Austria united the administration of Trentino to the
German Tyrol and from that time Austria called it the Tyrol.
THE ANCIENT ROMAN ORIGIN 95
the Trentino in the times of Augustus, began to colonize it
with great diHgence until they brought it to an economic
and civil condition worthy of their name. These facts
have been proved historically, but notwithstanding this,
the Roman origin of Trentino has always been placed in
doubt by the enemies of the national rights of Italy in the
Trentino.
But every doubt must disappear in the face of an un-
expected discovery during the past century.
On April 29, 1869, two Italian peasants digging in a
field near Cles in the Trentino found a bronze tablet in
perfect condition upon which was inscribed a decree written
in Latin by which the Roman Emperor Claudius in the year
49 A. D. settled the dispute that had lasted so long con-
cerning the nationality of the inhabitants of the valley on
the extreme north of the province of Trent.
The following is a translation of the Latin tablet dis-
covered at Cles:
Marcus Junius Silanus and Quintus Sulpicius Camerinus,
Consuls.
At Baia on the 15th of March, in an edict of Tiberius Claudius
Caesar Augustus Germanicus, the following was proposed:
Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus, Pontifex Maximus, with
power of Tribune for the sixth time. Emperor for the eleventh
time, Consul appointed for the fourth time, father of the country,
says:
Considering that, even under the rule of Tiberius Caesar, my
uncle, Pinarius Apollinaris was sent to regulate the old contro-
versies, of which my memory retains only that between the
Commensi and the Bergalei; and that said Pinarius Apollinaris,
on account of the absence of my uncle from Rome and also after-
ward under the rule of Caius (Caligula), neglected to report, as
nobody asked him to do so; and having subsequently been told
by Camurius Statutus that the greater part of the lands and forests
are in my right, I sent my friend Julius Planta to settle this
question, who, with the help of my procurators, the above men-
tioned peoples, and those of the neighboring territory, was to in-
vestigate all things and report carefully to me, as he has reported
to me, in the memorial prepared by him; and I gave him authority
to investigate and settle the remaining matters.
96 SECOND PART
As to the legal condition of the Nauni, TuHassi, and Sinduni,
a part of them are united with the Tridentini, while another
part is not united. Although the origin of these last is not clear
enough to determine whether they have Roman citizenship, "yet,
in view of the fact that they are so mixed with the Tridentini and
have enjoyed the right of citizenship for a long time, and that they
could not be separated from that splendid municipality without
great damage to it, I permit that they remain in possession of the
right that they have for a long time believed themselves to possess,
and this I do willingly, as I have heard that the majority of those
people have been soldiers in my bodyguard, that others have
been leaders of troops, or, as members of juries, have taken part
in trials at Rome. These rights I give them so that all they have
done as Roman citizens among themselves and with the Tridentini, or
elsewhere, be considered legal, and that they may retain the names
which they had previously adopted as Roman citizens.
This precious document was soon baptized with the
name of Tavola Clesiana and filled the hearts of Tren-
tinians and Italians with joy. It interested scholars in
every part of the world. Only from Germany and Austria
came words of incredulity and scorn, but this did not move
the bronze tablet containing the truth, and finally from the
authors of these words of scorn themselves, came a recogni-
tion of the authenticity of the Tavola Clesiana. In the mean-
time, however, it was insinuated that the place where it was
found had always been inhabited by people of the Teutonic
race gnd never by the Romans.
The Trentini continued their excavations and came
upon large quantities of human bones and skulls, together
with lances, swords, javelins, coins, etc.
Theodore Mommsen, the famous German historian and
archaeologist, hastened to Cles to investigate. He was
followed by other German professors to see if by means of
later objects they could destroy the proof brought to light
by the Tavola Clesiana.
After a minute examination it was clearly shov/n that the
bones and skulls, lances, swords, javelins, and coins be-
longed without a doubt to people of pure Latin and not of
Teutonic race.
Theodore Mommsen, who probably knew more about
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THE "TAVOLA CI. ESI ANA"
THE ANCIENT ROMAN ORIGIN 97
Roman history than any man of his generation, in a pam-
phlet which he pubhshed on the result of his investigation,
declared that all the facts proved that the region of "Trent
is Italian and belongs to Roman Italy."
Thus the insinuators were obliged to swallow the pill
and close their mouths.
Dalmatia.^ a controversy between the Dalmatians
and some other people (Lissani and Daorsi), allies of Rome,
provoked for the first time the intervention of Rome in the
affairs of Dalmatia. A strong army commanded by the
Roman consul Marcio Figulo arrived in that region in 156
B. C, besieged the capital, then Dalminio, which they
wiped out, and forced the Dalmatians to an onerous peace.
Much later Rome was able definitely to subjugate Dal-
matia, however proud she had been of her own freedom,
and induced her to change from a barbaric to a civilized
country.
On her coast, ports like that of Zara, Salona near Spalato,
Ragusa, Antivari, received a wonderful impulse, and to-
gether with the ports of Fiume, Trieste, Pola, Aquileia,
Ravenna, Rimini, Ancona, Bari, Brindisi and Durazzo, all
being very important cities, made of the Adriatic Sea a
great Roman lake flourishing with life and with commerce.
In short, the Romanization of Dalmatia was so deeply
rooted that the Emperor Diocletian, when he abdicated
the Empire (305 A. D.), tired in both mind and body because
of the great cares of state and also because of physical in-
disposition, preferred to return to Salona in Dalmatia where
he engaged in nothing more serious than the artistic cultiva-
tion of his garden until he died (313 a.d.).
And the Emperor Julius Nepos (the father of Romulus
Augustulus), who was removed by Orestes in 476, could not
do better than to take refuge in Dalmatia, the last outpost
of Roman influence.
Thus the dominion of Rome, at first feared and treated
with hostility, finished by becoming (thanks to the wisdom
which it exercised) the golden age for the populations of
^ The region on the east shore of the Adriatic Sea.
98 SECOND PART
Istria, Trent, Trieste and Dalmatia, and for all of the
people who today dwell on the north-eastern boundaries of
Italy.
And the sacred name of Urbs (Rome), generator of light
and heat like the sun, however stained by the evils of
tyrants, was by them blessed, loved, defended, and glori-
ously engraved on the pages of their history.
II
The barbarian invasion into Italy. Attila, flagellum
Dei, destroys (452 A. D.) the beautiful city of Aquileia,
founded by the Romans in 181-182 B. C. In a mass
meeting, presided over by the Emperor Charlemagne,
the Italians of Istria protest against the Slavic immi-
gration (804 A. D.). The Republic of the Doges liberates
the Adriatic sea from foreign pirates. The marriage
of Venice with the sea. The spontaneous submission
of Dalmatia (999 A. D.) after eight centuries of fidelity.
The " honorable burial " of the standard of St. Mark.
After the death of the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius
at Vindobona (Vienna) in the year i8o, the golden era
passed forever from these north eastern boundaries of Italy.
The Roman Empire fell into the hands of soldiers blinded
by the lowest and most unbridled and degenerate passions;
it lost its ancient vigor, its ancient prestige and its ancient
splendor. It fell. And then the barbarians (Goths, Van-
dals, Suevi, Burgundians, Huns), with their heads adorned
with bulls' horns, their shoulders and chests covered with
skins of wild animals — tribes the powerful Roman gladius
had kept in subjection for centuries — descended upon Italy
like an avalanche from the Alps, thirsting for revenge, avid
for spoils and dominion; destroying fields, cities and people,
taking away the strength of the country; degrading it; sub-
jecting it to most humiliating servitude. And Italy sank
to that deepest abyss of darkness which was called the
medieval age.
BARBARIAN INVASION 99
The first fury of the barbarians naturally struck the
eastern regions of Italy, viz.: Trentino, FriuH, Istria,
Dalmatia. But these were not easily swallowed up.
They opposed the ferocious invaders; they defended
their Italianity with the daring and heroism which
was the first germ of the present Irredentist movement
and which, with other causes, determined the intervention
of Italy (May, 191 5) in the great conflict of the nations,
thus repeating with the everlasting fatal and alternat-
ing recurrence of human events, the tragedies which took
place in the past, among the same people and in the same
Alps.
It is enough to recall to mind Aquileia besieged by the
Huns. Aquileia fought strenuously against her enemies,
repulsing them many times. To punish her for her extraor-
dinary defense Attila, flagellum Dei, after he had taken
the city by a furious assault, massacred the citizens, the
aged, the women, and children; sacked; burned; wiped the
metropolis from the face of the earth (452 A. D.) as if a
torrent of lava had covered it — the metropolis, full of strength
and beauty which the Romans had erected with such wis-
dom and such love.^
The survivors of Aquileia and those of the other cities
in the confines destroyed by Attila, took refuge in the small
islands in the neighborhood of the Po estuary, and there
developed by degrees, the city which afterwards, because
of its superior government, became theQueen of the Adriatic:
Venice.
When the Italians of the northeastern boundaries could
not maintain their nationality by military means, they used
other methods. It will suffice to remember that in the year
^ Later Aquileia revived and again became powerful, thanks to her patriarchate,
which was one of the greatest theocratic and military principalities of medieval
times. Her church, established by the council as early as 38, was, after that of
Rome, the most famous of the Christian religion; her court was the most splendid
and most celebrated of that age. The patriarchs were independent. They
paid only a simple feudal homage to the emperor. The thirteenth century touched
the acme of patriarchal power.
In 1420 Venice became absolute mistress of Friuli and suppressed that theocratic
and military power. The Bishop of Venice obtained from Rome the title of Patriarch
of Aquileia, with jurisdiction over that diocese.
100 SECOND PART
568 the Longobardians (Germans of the north) began to des-
cend upon Italy, commanded by their King Alboin. These
new barbarians, Hke the former, did httle but destroy and
kill.
The Italians on the eastern boundaries were compelled
to abandon the interior of their own country because they
were continually subjected to onslaughts by savage invaders,
and were obliged to take refuge on the sea coast, which
opened to them their only way of escape, where they de-
voted themselves to navigation and fishing.
But the Emperor Charlemagne drove the Longobardians
from Italy, and with the intention, perhaps praiseworthy, of
repopulating the interior of Istria which the Italians had
deserted, he committed the error of calling some tribes of
Slavs, who for long years had coveted it.
The Istrians did not take kindly to such action. They
believed it to be dangerous to their ethnical compages, and
to the reconstitution of their future political unification.
Therefore, they were greatly agitated and protested in a
solemn mass meeting held on the banks of the river Risano,
and presided over by Charlemagne (804 A. D.); they suc-
ceeded in convincing the powerful Emperor of the Franks
of the error which he had committed. He immediately
suspended the Slavic immigration into Istria and instead re-
vived the most useful Roman institutions, adapting them
to the changed condition of the times.
When the Italians of the northeastern boundaries — who
had never willingly tolerated the domination of the barbari-
ans — saw that Venice followed the traditions of Rome
better than the other contemporaneous Italian republics, it
did not hesitate to pass under the protection of the winged
lion of St. Mark.
It will suffice to recall Dalmatia. The Narentine,
Slavic, and Croatian pirates infested the Adriatic for a long
time, assaulting, killing and plundering. And not con-
tent with this, they demanded great tributes from the terror-
stricken inhabitants of the Dalmatian coasts, and even from
the Venetians.
BARBARIAN INVASION 101
The Dalmatians implored the aid of the Republic, which
at other times had defended them against the tyranny of
strangers. Fortunately there was a doge in power at that
time who was extraordinarily strong, resolute and courageous
and who was the dynamic and vibrating amalgamation of
all the Venetian energies: Peter Orseolo II, son of that fa-
mous Peter Orseolo who was canonized by the Church, who
began at his own expense and brought to a high point the
construction of the magnificent cathedral of St. Mark.
Orseolo listened to and comforted the Dalmatian ambas-
sador and declared to the Venetians in firm accents that, in
order to wipe out the ignominy to which the Republic had
been subjected for so long, and again to give security to their
brothers, who were continually tyrannized over by the
corsairs, they must have war!
The Venetians were so moved that they consented and
gave full liberty of action to their doge.
On Ascension Day of the year 999 A. D., a fleet, for-
midably armed, weighed anchor from Venice under command
of Peter Orseolo II.
The pirates, however, insisted more than ever on the
collection of the usual tribute.
The doge responded that he himself would take it to
them.
In fact, he went immediately. But instead of a pecuni-
ary tribute, he took the brute force of the winged lion of
St. Mark.
Great naval battles were fought, especially at Curzola
and Lagosta. The Slavic pirates from the Gulf of Narente
made a furious resistance. But this availed them nothing.
Their fleet was burned by the Venetians. And those not
killed were pursued to the continent and a lin repulsed and
dispersed outside of its confines.
The Adriatic was thus finally freed froi piracy and from
the terrors of barbarians.
The Venetians received the conquerinj doge in triumph;
they conferred upon him the title of C ke of Dalmatia;
they further ordered that at the annua feast of the As-
cension the great achievement should also \ e commemorated.
102 SECOND PART
celebrating the symbolic marriage of Venice with the sea
(the doge embarked with other magistrates of the Republic on
the golden Bucintoro, magnificently ornamented, where
he threw a ring into the sea pronouncing these significant
words: Desponsamus teytnare nostro,tnsignumveriperpetuique
dominii; in memory of the true and perpetual dominion that
the Republic had acquired over the Adriatic sea which was
thenceforth called the Gulf of Venice. Y
Dalmatia — exulting and grateful — rewarded the
sister liberator, by offering spontaneous homage of subjection
to her, swearing ''eternal" obedience and fidelity to her.
Dalmatia, in fact, remained under the merciful government
of Venice, first for four entire centuries; then, after a brief
and involuntary interruption, for another 377 years (al-
together about eight centuries!). She would have remained
"eternally" in reality if the treaty of Campoformio, drawn
on October 16, 1795, between Napoleon I and Francis II,
Emperor of Austria, had not treacherously struck a death
blow to the Republic of the Doges, sacrificing it to the insa-
tiable cupidity of the Hapsburgs.
One can well imagine the sorrow of the Dalmatians in
consequence of this.
At Zara, the capital of Dalmatia, the Venetian flag was
placed on the great altar of the church and there, first the
officers, then the soldiers, then the people, kissed it "and so
covered it with their tears that it was entirely wet."
At Perasto, the standard of St. Mark, like a sacred relic,
was placed under the great altar of the church, while the
commander, in the presence of the people, spoke these touch-
ing words in the soft Venetian dialect: "For 377 years we
have defended thee with our faith and our valor on tbe sea
when thy enemies have called us. For 377 years our sub-
stance, our blood and our lives have at all times been de-
dicated to thee, and in this until now we have found our
greatest happiness. Thou with us, we with thee, have
always been victorous, always illustrious. Since there is
nothing more we can do for thee, let our hearts be thy
^The celebration of the marriage of Venice with the sea for centJuries was
observed on Ascension Day.
BARBARIAN INVASION 103
honored tomb; let our tears be thy greatest and truest
eulogy!"
Also the islands of Quarnero/ conquered by the Doge
Peter Orseolo II, always remained under the dominion of
Venice, except in the period between 1378 to 1409 in which
they, with Dalmatia, were temporarily ceded to Hungary.
They remained under Venice until the end of the Republic,
when as a result of the treaty of Campoformio, which was
confirmed, as we have seen, by the the congress of Vienna
of 1815, they were consigned with Venice itself to Austria.
^The Gulf of Quarnero is that wide arm of the Adriatic Sea which insinuates it-
self between the eastern coast of the Istrian peninsula and the Croatian shore.
From the curve of Porto Re to the heights of Meia and Tersato, finishing at Fiume,
is Italy, and marks the geographic confines of Italy. Its islands were also in the
power of the Romans, and in the time of Julius Caesar were added to Liburnia,
this latter being a part of Illyria.
104 SECOND PART
III
The Communes. Frederick Barbarossa, Emperor of
Germany, descends upon Italy (1154) massacres, sacks
and burns; captures the celebrated reformer, Arnold
of Brescia, and delivers him into the hands of Adrian IV,
who bums him alive. The subservient Diet of Roncaglia,
Milan, Crema and Piacenza rebels. Barbarossa takes a
frightful revenge, besieges the smallest town, Crema.
But not being able to conquer by force of arms, he takes
children of Crema and Milan whom he holds in hostage,
ties them to movable wooden towers and exposes them
to the shots of the besieged citizens. Love of Country
overcomes paternal love in the Italians. The destruction
of Crema and Milan. The Veronese League. An ener-
getic Pope. The Lombardian League. The Archbishop
Cristiano of Magonza, plenipotentiary of Barbarossa in
Italy, besieges Ancona and forces the citizens to eat net-
tles and leather. The heroism of the women. The union
of the communes produces the epopee. The Carroccio.
The Company of Death. Barbarossa is defeated by the
Italians at Legnano (1176). He is defeated also on the
sea by the combined fleets of Venice and Trieste. He
suffers the humiUation of kissing the foot of his enemy
(Pope Alexander III). He sues for peace and leaves
Italy forever without having put it under the yoke.
When the Communes of Italy attempted to re-establish
the unity and independence of the Patria, which again had
been invaded and devastated by the Teutons, the regions of
the eastern confines did not limit themselves simply to an
exhibition of a purely spiritual solidarity, but they threw
themselves with faith and zeal into the field of action, where
danger was the greatest, giving their contribution of thought
and of blood to the national cause. In this connection one
has only to recall Trieste.
It is well known that on the ruins of the old feudal
edifice in Italy arose the communal autonomy, or free gov-
. THE COMMUNES AND BARBAROSSA 105
ernment of cities, with a supreme magistracy of three, six, or
twelve consuls; with a minor magistracy of notables called
Credenza, who deliberated upon ordinary affairs; with a gen-
eral assembly of all of the citizens who also deliberated upon
the more important things (made laws, stipulated treaties of
alliance, declared wars and concluded peace, coined money,
etc.).
Frederick Barbarossa, Emperor of Germany, decided to
reduce Italy to its ancientTeutonic servitude, and invaded it
(1154) with a great army; devastated fields; fired villages
and cities, among them Chieri and Asti; he then besieged
Tortona, and ordered that it should immediately break its
alliance with Milan. The noble little city refused to obey
the dishonoring command. Barbarossa, however, assaulted
it, and after two months of bitter fighting took the city,
sacked and destroyed it. After he had achieved such brave
ends, he went to Pavia, where he crowned himself King of
Italy. Afterward, invited expressly by Pope Adrian IV,
he betook himself to southern Italy with the intention of
extending his dominion and, at the same time, capturing
and delivering to the aforesaid pontificate the bitterest enemy,
which at that time the Church had: Arnold of Brescia.
He was a monk with an inspired and serious mind, who
dreamed of and desired above all things the religious and
political elevation of mankind, having for its basis truth
and morality in a positive and sane sense. He would not
recognize the doctrine of infant baptism, prayers for the
dead, or the sacrament of the host. Preaching thus with
ardent and unbridled impetuosity against the temporal
power of the popes and against the corrupt customs of the
ecclesiastics, he was able to gain the confidence and love of
the people, and to drive out successively the Popes Lucius II
and Eugenius III, and to found in Rome a democratic re-
public with a senate. But after ten years of power, Adrian
IV — an astute Pope, audacious and unscrupulous — at-
tacked Arnold of Brescia; defamed him; excommunicated
him, together with those who supported him; filled the city
of Rome with such terror that the brave reformer was re-
pudiated, expelled and persecuted.
106 SECOND PART
Barbarossa found him a refugee in a castle of Campania.
He dragged him from the hands of those who had given him
hospitahty; he dragged him in chains to the feet of Adrian
IV in Rome and this good vicar of Christ — in the height of
his joy — condemned him to the stake; he had his ashes
thrown into the river Tiber; he rewarded Barbarossa for
his service to the Church by placing on his head the imperial
crown with great pomp in the Vatican.
The Roman people, roused by such infamous treatment,
forced Barbarossa to leave suddenly for Germany.
The tyrant revenged himself for such humiliation by fir-
ing and destroying the innocent city of Spoleto.
Barbarossa, always thirsting for blood and power,
again hurled himself on Italy three years later, and took the
city of Brescia; then with an army of 100,000 infantry
and 15,000 cavalry marched on Milan, to punish it for hav-
ing rebuilt Tortona, and to punish it above all for the spirit
of rebellion which it too stubbornly showed against the
Teutonic suzerainty.
The metropolis of Lombardy defended itself like a lioness
so long as it had provisions, and when these failed it sur-
rendered; but it was not an unconditional surrender, it was
an honorable pact (1158).
Barbarossa, however, called a subservient Diet at Ron-
caglia in the Piacentino and determined that the free com-
munes must depend administratively and judicially on an
imperial representative called the Podestd.
Milan, Crema, and Piacenza chafed, protested, and said
clearly that they would never submit to such humiliation.
Barbarossa arose in fury. The most cruel spirit of re-
venge raged in his proud soul; he hurled himself with a pow-
erful army against Crema, which was the weakest of the
communes. But he was repulsed. Then he had recourse
to a stratagem. He caused several movable wooden towers
to be erected; in the inside of these he posted his most fero-
cious soldiers armed to the teeth; on the outside were bound
the little children of Crema and of Milan, whom he held as
hostages. Thus loaded, he ordered the towers taken to the
walls of the city, hoping that the besieged citizens, in order
THE COMMUNES AND BARBAROSSA 107
to save their own children, would no longer hold off. Instead
the opposite occurred. The citizens, especially the fathers,
continued their defense and stormed at the same time the
hated enemy and their own little ones, crying with the faith
of neophytes, *' Happy are those who die for their country!'*
For six months — from July 1159, to January 1160 —
the tragic battle lasted. Finally, because of the cutting
of the aqueducts, the lack of food, and the flower of her
citizens being wasted, Crema was constrained to yield The
Teuton, thus prizing it for the heroism which it exhibited,
sacked and burned it!
Nothwithstanding the slaughter of Crema, Milan per-
sisted in her rebellious attitude. Barbarossa, who had
already received reinforcements from Germany, assaulted
it with savage force. But without avail. He attacked it
more than once, but his attempts were always broken like
the waves of the sea against the rocks. Then he understood
that only through starvation could he conquer the Milanese.
He called for other reinforcements. They came. He be-
sieged the city. It resisted for two long years. Then
pressed by increasing numbers of their enemies, and ex-
hausted by the absolute lack of food, it surrendered
(March, 1 162). The Teuton treated them savagely; he
destroyed the entire city and covered it with salt, a sign
that it should never rise again!
He then returned to Germany to receive and enjoy the
honors of his triumph.
But the destruction of Milan greatly impressed the other
cities of Italy; they became thoughtful and were convinced
that for their common safety they must immediately and
solidly combine.
The first who united — after they had driven out from
their respective places the garrisons and imperial ministers
— were Verona, Vicenza, Padua and Treviso." The Veronese
League.
Barbarossa fell upon Verona like a falcon, but he found
it no easy task; indeed it proved to be so difficult that he
deemed it prudent to return to Germany for reinforcements
(1164).
108 SECOND PART
Meanwhile in 1159 Pope Adrian IV died. Barbarossa,
by corrupting, threatening and intimidating, forced his
cardinals to elect an anti-Pope, who would serve him (Vittore
IV), and after the death of the latter he caused Pasquale III
to be elected, — as vile and servile a soul as his predecessor.
The independent cardinals, however, voted for Ban-
dinelli of Siena (Alexander III), a sagacious and energetic
man who sympathized with the cause of the Communes.
This Pope from Anagni excommunicated Barbarossa and
afterward prepared to combat him to the last drop of blood,
joining with Venice, Bergamo, Brescia, Mantua and Fer-
rara, the Veronese League, which after that time was called
the Lombard League.
The representatives of the allied cities — uniting with
the fugitive Milanese — met with them on April 7, 1176, in
the convent of Pontida, situated between Bergamo and
Lecco. There they clasped hands; looked into each others
eyes, read one another's hearts, fused their wills into a single
will, swearing by fraternal pacts to defend the liberty of the
Patria which had been trampled upon and villified by outside
barbaric tyranny.
At this memorable assembly the representatives of
Trieste participated in the proceedings with the same faith
and zeal as the others. In the progress of time Piacenza,
Parma, Modena, Bologna, Reggio, Novara, Vercelli, Como,
Asti, Tortona, Ravenna, Rimini, Imola and Forli joined
the Lombard League.
The League immediately began to rebuild Milan in spite
of the prohibition of Barbarossa; then — in contraposition
to Pavia and the Marquis of Monferrato who remained parti-
sans of the tyrant — they founded a city between the rivers
Tenaro and Bormide, which they named Alessandria in
honor of Alexander III, the Pope who gave them sustained
help and directed the League.
Meanwhile the Archbishop Cristiano of Magonza,
Envoy Plenipotentiary of Barbarossa in Italy, attempted to
subjugate Ancona, which had rebelled against the Teuton
yoke. The noble city of the Adriatic was besieged by land
and sea; was attacked from every side by night and day;
THE COMMUNES AND BARBAROSSA 109
but it defended itself with sublime heroism even when its
sons were so reduced by the cruelty of the enemy that they
were obhged to feed themselves on boiled nettles and shoe-
leather cooked in vinegar.
Some episodes may be given.
A young mother, with a child at her breast, saw a warrior
near the wall on the ground gasping from starvation; she
approached him and said: *'I have not eaten for several
days; I have no more milk, not even for my little one; but
if a drop yet remains, take it, it is yours!" These words
had a marvelous effect. The warrior revived; arose; smiled
at the generous creature; ran where the fighting was thick-
est, and courageously faced death.
A most violent attack threatened to overthrow the city.
The defenders fought with their usual valor, but they
recognized the extreme peril which faced them. Then an
aged woman by the name of Stamura grasped a burning
brand, and flung it into a pile of projectiles, firing and des-
troying the machines of the enemy.
The Lombardians and Romagnese came to the aid of
the city. The Teutons were obliged to fly, and Ancona
saved her freedom (1174).
Barbarossa, disgusted at the turn things in Italy had
taken against him, put himself at the head of another
colossal army and marched toward Mont Cenis, determined
to finish for all time the hope of the Italians for unity and
liberty.
He first burned Susa; then he subjugated Turin and
Asti; then marched against Alessandria. This latter city,
although having nothing but primitive fortifications of
earth and straw, resisted the assaults of the enemy for four
months. Finally the besieged citizens learned that help
from the allies was near. Full of exultation they made a
sortie in the night; they attacked the enemy, killed them in
great numbers and forced the others to retreat in disorder
(1175)-
Barbarossa became worried. He understood that the
enterprise which he was undertaking presented grave diffi-
culties; he attempted to make pacts with The League^ but the
110 SECOND PART
negotiations failed entirely. Then he waited for rein-
forcements from Germany, and as soon as they came, he
moved resolutely on Milan.
The Italians of The League did not permit him to finish
his journey; they went to meet him on the way followed by
the Carroccio}
This was a chariot which, according to the description
given by Lodovico Antonio Muratori, in his Annals of Italy y
had four wheels built higher than usual with a much
broader platform than that of a common car and was
painted a flaming red. In the middle arose an altar covered
by a rich red rug of such dimensions that it fell from the
sides and touched the wheels. In the center of the altar
rose a flagstaff, to which was attached a huge crucifix and a
bell which rang in warning.
The car was drawn by four pairs of great oxen, all of the
same size and color, caparisoned with rich drapery, red for
those on the right and white for those on the left. From
this center the orders were given. Around the car the in-
fantry formed a compact guard against the enemy's cavalry.
It was believed if the Carroccio fell that war and honor
would be lost.
The Milanese formed, for the extra protection of this
their sacred shield, two companies of chosen young men
(one of 300 and the other of 900) armed with neck guards,
battle axes and daggers. The one of 900, commanded by
Alberto da Giussano — who wore the breastplate and carried
the sword with the gilded leather presented to him by the
people, so says tradition — was called the Company of Deathy
for these young warriors had sworn to conquer or die. The
300 also had sworn to protect the Carroccio with their lives.
On May 29, 1176, the army of Barbarossa and that of
the Lombard League found themselves face to face near
the castle of Legnano between the two rivers Olona and
Ticino, about twenty miles from Milan.
In the first encounter the Milanese cavalry was re-
pulsed. The Teuton cavalry galloped toward the chariot.
^This car was designed and put into use by Ariberto da Intimiano, bishop of
Milan and supreme magistrate of the Commune, in 1039.
THE COMMUNES AND BARBAROSSA 111
The defenders threw themselves on their knees; they
invoked God and St. Ambrose.^ In a flash they were on
their feet. They planted themselves like giants. They
stolidly received the blows of the enemy. They fought
as one man. They split open the heads of horses and
horsemen. They were on the point of defeat because of
the superior number of the enemy. The Carroccio — symbol
of Patria, of Liberty, of Glory — was in danger.
Then the Company of Death cried again, "We conquer
or die ! " and hurled themselves into the thickest of the fight.
They butchered every Teutonwhom they encountered. They
threw the imperial standard to the ground. They terrified
and put to flight the entire army of the enemy. While they
were fighting, they were reinforced by the cavalry of The
League which gave the final blow, pursuing the enemy with
swords at their backs for a good eight miles.
Barbarossa, who had personally fought in the first line
of battle, remained buried with his horse under a mountain
of corpses.^ He was believed to be dead. But two days
later he appeared at Pavia, alone, without his helmet, with-
out his sword, covered with dust and blood, pale, silent and
sullen.
The battle of Legnano was the strongest afllirmation of
Italianity which the Italians made in the medieval era.
The city of Trieste — faithful to the oath proffered
by its representatives at Pontida — not only contributed the
blood of its own sons, but it did more: it united with Venice
to combat the enemy on the sea. In fact, on Ascension
Day the combined fleets of the Venetians and Triestians,
composed of fifty vessels commanded by the Doge Se-
bastiano Ziani, encountered near Salvore (a promontory a
short distance from Trieste) the imperial fleet composed of
75 vessels, and they defeated it and even captured the flag-
ship to which Otto, son of Barbarossa, was assigned
TheTeuton tyrant hastened to kiss the feet of Pope Alex-
ander III. Only thus could he obtain from The League an
armistice of six years, signed at Venice during the year 1 177.
* Protector of Milan.
^ Some historians say that he fled in a cowardly manner.
112 SECOND PART
He attempted too late (the wolf may lose his hair, but
never his vices) with every art, with every effort, to revenge
the humiliation which he had suffered. But his efforts
were in vain. For example: by an edict in 1 182 he com-
manded the city of Trent, which was governed as a Com-
mune, never again to elect her magistrate council; to put
a stop to any act of sovereignty; to submit itself to an
imperial vicar. But Trent refused to obey. It continued
with its independent government.
Losing thus every hope of subjugating Italy, Barbarossa,
as soon as the accorded armistice expired, was forced to
conclude a definite peace with the Italians, signed at
Constance (a city of Germany) in the year 1183.
IV
The struggle of the Triestians for their municipal
independence and for the maintenance of their Itali-
anity from the Peace of Constance (1183). Against the
Bishop-barons (1295 to 1349). Against Venice (1368
to 1381). The " dedition " to Austria (1382). The
Anti-Austrian party, its rebellions and martyrology.
The pride of their Roman heritage. Triestine history
from Fifteenth to Eighteenth Centtuy.
In the vicissitudes which followed the war against
Barbarossa the regions of the eastern boundaries continued
to fight for their Italian liberty. It is sufficient to remember
Trieste, in which, more than in any other Irredentist city,
centers most of the historical, traditional, and political ideals
of this region.
When Trieste entered into the Lombard League, it was
governed by a Bishop-baron dependent on the Patriarchate
of Aquileia. But with the treaty of Constance in 1183, it
obtained (as did the other cities of the Lombard League) the
autonomy of its own administration, the right to elect its
own magistrates and the right to make alliances, to declare
war and to treat for peace.
TRIESTE FROM 1183 TO 1800 113
Notwithstanding this, only in 1295 was Trieste emanci-
pated. And this is how it came about. The Bishop-Baron
Brisa was in great need of money to pay his debts. The
Triestians who were rich, profited by this. They offered the
Bishop-Baron the means of his release from his debts.
The offer was accepted. The notaries were called in.
They drew up a deed by which the Bishop-Baron Brisa ceded
*' for himself and all of his ancestors " all rights of sovereignty
over Trieste. From that moment the sovereign power of
the city passed into the hands of the citizens. The first
Podestd elected as the head of the "free state of Trieste"
was Enrico della Torre, belonging to the Torriani family of
Milan who long before had settled in Istria.
Delia Torre immediately promulgated statutes similar
to those of the communes of Italy; built solid walls around
the city to prevent outside attacks; systematized internal
affairs; encouraged every good enterprise; constructed many
buildings; organized literary circles and colleges for fine
arts and trade. Civic virtue increased.
Such rapid moral and material development naturally
gave rise to envy and cupidity among the city's enemies.
In 13 13, the former majordomo of the Bishop Marco
Ranfo conspired to overthrow the municipal government of
Trieste and to re-establish the baronial government of the
Bishops. But the plot was discovered in time. The Tries-
tians armed themselves at the sound of the tocsin, assaulted
the house of Ranfo, razed it to the ground and executed the
traitor and his accomplices.
In 1349 Bishop Antonio Negri, a creature of Charles IV,
a quarrelsome and violent man, reopened the question and
claimed the baronial domination of the city. The Triestians
responded to this by arming themselves. The Bishop ex-
communicated them. The Triestians replied by declaring
a sort of boycott against him and against the whole body of
the clergy of the cathedral; they then had recourse to ar-
bitration. This gave a decision in favor of the Commune.
In the summer of 1368 a Venetian galley, anchored in the
port of Trieste, captured a Triestian merchant ship, which
had refused to pay the tax of free passage into the Adriatic
114 SECOND PART
"which was the property of the Republic of St. Mark,"
TheTriestians assaulted the galley and massacred the captain
and crew.
Venice immediately sent a fleet and an army to avenge
the offense. "After a long drawn out siege," Trieste was
obliged to surrender. But a year later she again revolted.
The Venetians renewed the siege.
The Triestians, not knowing to what saint to apply to
save their freedom, invoked the assistance of Leopold III,
duke of Austria. He rushed to their aid with an army of
12,000 men, but was overwhelmingly defeated. As with
superior force he prepared to revenge himself, the Venetians
calmed him by giving him 75,000 sequins of gold (about
1,000,000 lire) "for the inconvenience of the voyage and for
the ships seized."
Trieste was thus left to her fate.
She attempted five years later with the help of the Geno-
ese, and in 1379 with the help of the Commune of Udine,
and again in 1380 with the help of the Genoese, to liberate
herself from the domination of the "Serenissima" (the
Republic of Venice). But in this she did not succeed.
Finally the Duke of Savoy, Amedeo VI, called Conte
Verde, mediated between the two belligerent cities. And
from this a decision resulted August 24, 1 381, which affirmed
among other things, in order to avoid further controversies,
that Venice must renounce every pretension to the City of
Trieste "and her dependencies." Venice renounced it.
But such a solution, however favorable, did not calm
the Triestians.
They thought to forestall any future danger by assuring
themselves of the protection of a potentate who would be
able to defend them effectively against any who might again
attempt to interfere with their municipal independence.
And they were not wrong, considering that Trieste had never
had peace during that entire century. They turned first
to the Italian republics, to meet only refusal. Then they
were constrained to look to foreigners. Had not other
Italian Communes done likewise.'' They looked about and
deemed it wise to select one who was near at hand. At the
TRIESTE FROM 1183 TO 1800 115
north of the territory of Trieste were the boundary Hnes of
the Dukes of Austria. These more than others would be
interested in Trieste, because they could easily direct the
current of commerce to the interior of their country. This
consideration especially induced the Triestians to take the
memorable step which afterward was called by the enemies of
Italian national unity "the spontaneous dedition to Austria."
In 1382 the Triestians sent ambassadors to Gratz to
offer the Commune to Duke Leopold in exchange for his
"protection and tutelage." The Duke did not require much
urging and accepted it. But he was obliged to swear "for
himself and for his successors" to respect the municipal
government of Trieste and all their rights of sovereignty
acquired by the people (especially those which declared
war and concluded peace) and not to surrender the city to
feudal tenure or sell it to any one.
The "spontaneous dedition" was limited, as one can
see. The city proved this later by the sentences which the
magistrates of the Commune inflicted on the citizens who
went into the military service of Austria, and on those who
had recourse to imperial authority against the municipal
judges, and on those who conspired in favor of the Emperor.
This was proved above all by the anti-Austrian party which
rose up in Trieste after the "spontaneous dedition," not-
withstanding the rights which the city had reserved; a
party which also had its martyrs. In fact in 1424 Donato
Scorpion and Nicolo Urigio were hanged (other Triestians,
among whom wasGiulio Orefice, were condemned to prison)
because they were found guilty of having stirred up the
people against the sovereignty of Austria. In 1443 the
Triestian, Giulio Cancellieri, leader of another revolt against
Austria, was first tied to the tail of a horse and dragged
through the streets of the city, then hanged in the presence
of his relatives.^
But all of this bloody persecution and coercion did noth-
ing save increase the anti-Austrian party and strengthen its
^ These conditions were further shown in the first volume of the Statutes revised
in 1550 by Ferdinand I. (brother of Charles V), King of the Romans, in which book
the city of Trieste is officially mentioned as a Republic.
116 SECOND PART
political power. This party in fact, under the leadership
of Antonio Bonomo, in 1467 succeeded in conquering the
communal administration and driving the mixed population
from the city, and the city then returned to its former
freedom.
The Emperor Frederick III, duke of Austria, would not
endure this and sent one of his vicars immediately, a certain
Lusgar (some historians call him Luogar),with one thousand
Teuton mercenaries to restore the former conditions.
Lusgar and his troops stole into Trieste during the night;
assaulted and sacked homes, made prisoners of the best
citizens, and shut them up in the castle of Duino. Then,
by means of every sort of violence, he forcibly secured a
letter directed to the Emperor, signed by several citizens of
Trieste, *'in which they declared their renunciation of the
rights guaranteed to the city by the pact of their *spontane-
ous dedition.'"
But on August 15, 1467, suddenly the tocsin was
sounded. This was the signal which had been decided upon.
The people, once more led by Antonio Bonomo, rose up;
put to flight the commissioner and his mercenaries ; hanged on
the battlements of the city hall fifteen magistrates who had
burned the dwellings of the imperialistic patricians and
solemnly reproclaimed the independence of Trieste!
The Emperor in a state of fury ground his teeth; wrung
his hands and immediately sent another army to this same
Lusgar and ordered him to punish every one within the
rebellious city.
Bonomo and the people defended themselves desperately,
but in the end the Teuton troops, well practiced in arms,
overcame them; they burst in upon the city; they sacked it
for three days; then they burned it. Many citizens fled
(among whom was Bonomo), some to Istria and others to
Venice. Those who could not escape were imprisoned,
tortured or hanged.
Thus the order of the Emperor was obeyed to the limit
of cruelty and destruction, so well obeyed that the chronicles
registered that year "as the year of the destruction of
Trieste" (1468).
TRIESTE FROM 1183 TO 1800 117
With all of this his majesty — when afterward (1470) he
deigned to officially visit the city which he had so subjug-
ated — thought it prudent to send into exile 300 other citi-
zens and to confiscate their goods.
The anti-imperial party was thus reduced to the lowest
numbers and in fact was almost entirely destroyed. But
it rose little by little, and there were frequent altercations
between the citizens and the milites theutonic. To the or-
dinary corporal punishments were added that of pecuniary
impositions against the citizens who *' spoke ill of the Aus-
trian sovereignty."
In 1485, Frederick III more than once attempted to annex
Trieste to the Empire. The Triestians always forcibly
resisted, "remembering that their city was Italian."
In 1508, at a public mass meeting, while an old man
harangued a crowd of citizens, urging that it would be much
better for Trieste to pass under the domination of the
government of Venice, the citizens pulled down the
imperial colors "into the mud of the ditch near the
walls."
Also, after Charles V had given the city over to his
brother Ferdinand in 1522, the Triestians never once forgot
to feel and to re-assert themselves Italian. For example:
the Imperial Chancellery in 1523 sent to the Commune of
Trieste an act written in German. The Commune returned
it to him writing with simple pride: Cum latini simus lin-
guam ignoramus theutonicam. In 1 524 the Imperial Chan-
cellery "renewed this same offense." The Commune again
rejected the act repeating with Italian pride: Quia civitas
Tergestina est in finibus et limitibus Italiae, omnes civis et
ibidem oriundi habent proprium sermonem et idioma Italicum.
It was the evidence of their proud Italianity, but it was the
last of the strong communal spirit. Trieste fell from her
high estate, together with the other communes of Italy.
Only two things the Triestians conserved with tenacious
jealousy: pride in their Roman origin, and the traditions of
their communal autonomy. From every emperor they
insisted on the confirmation of their ancient privileges. In
1564 they refused to accept the changes in the municipal
118 SECOND PART
statutes, as the Archduke Charles wished. In 1660 they re-
ceived as a guest, not as a ruler, the Emperor Leopold I,
who had come to Trieste; on this occasion they thus desig-
nated themselves in Roman phrase as Senatus Populusque
Tergestimis. Ughelli, who visited Trieste in the 17th cen-
tury, observed that the Triestians "prided themselves on
their Roman origin." And the historian Scussa, if he re-
minds us that the Commune of Trieste had kept records of
the events; if he reminds us that the chief official of the city
was presented with a baton as evidence of his command; if
he calls to mind that in certain games they gave cross-bows
as prizes to the winners, always adds that they used these
things "as the Romans used them, of whom the Triestians
considered themselves the descendants, and as of the same
blood." In 1688 the Commune of Trieste collected in the
great public square the relics of ancient Rome because they
would testify with honor to the origin of the city. In
1694 the Commune decreed that the History of Trieste, by
Ireneo della Croce — a stirring exaltation of the Romanism
of Trieste — should be printed. And not a few of the
aristocratic families of Trieste at that time used on their
coat of arms the phrase de stirpe quirita to magnify the as-
sumption of their Roman origin. Even up to 1727 — that
is, 10 years after Charles VI, emperor of Austria, had de-
clared Trieste to be a free port, profiting by the decadence
of Venice — the Triestian patricians, sending an act to the
imperial government, boasted of having been the descend-
ants plurimis ex equestri patricio ac consulari ordine familiis
ad has extremas oras ex Urbe emigratis.
In 17 17 Trieste was declared a free port. She was con-
nected with the lands behind her by commercial roads.
She revived her traffic and was not long in becoming a teem-
ing center of immigration. Thousands of Italians flocked
there, especially from the north of Italy. But at the
same time, thousands of Teutons, Illyrians, Greeks, and
Jews came in; and they were so audacious, intriguing,
and impertinent that, aided and protected by the Austrian
government, they soon arrogated to themselves the right to
combat the Italianity of the city with the end in view to
TRIESTE FROM 1183 TO 1800 119
change, even to destroy the city's traditions, its spirit, its
physiognomy, and even to alter its name.
Trieste resisted valorously. She was constrained, for
example, after long opposition to accept the imperial nomi-
nation of one of her judges. She sent a protest to the
emperor: "All that now remains for the city to do is to de-
plore forever her disgrace because of the non-observance of
her laws."
Thus the latter part of the eighteenth century found
Trieste full of strangers, it is true, immersed in business, sunk
into a bourgeois opulence and without political pride; but
above everything else one found it Italian. Italians were in
the city councils, the schools, the academies, the theaters, the
clubs, in every public place. The best citizens were Italian.
In the field of letters, it is enough to remember Gian
Rinaldo Carli, native of Capodistria but Triestian by adop-
tion, author of the celebrated letter. The Patria of Italians^
which with his appeal "We must become Italians or cease
to be men" expressed for the first time — at the end of the
second half of this same century — the concrete affirmation
of the unity of Italy. In the field of action, one recalls the
Triestian family Piatti, who were sacrificed at Naples for the
glory of that Partenopean Republic which was one of the
first and most brilliant episodes of the Risorgimento Ita-
liano. Peter, father of the family Piatti, and his son An-
tonio died like heroes on the gallows. The mother Andreana
Prosdocimi and the daughter Elizabeth were thrown into
the prison of Santa Maria Apparente. The son Giuseppe,
accorded grace on account of his youth, was locked' up in
the prison of Favignana. The son Pietro escaped and died
of a broken heart in exile after a few days. These were
the first martyrs, the first sacred witnesses of the new-born
soul of Trieste.
120 SECOND PART
The struggle for Itallanity sustained with perseverance
by the Triestians, Istrians, Dalmatians and Trentini
against Austria, from the time of the treaty of Vienna
1815, until the ItaUan revolutions of 1848.
After the treaty of Vienna in 1815, the regions of the
eastern boundaries of Italy — notwithstanding the poHtical
domination of Austria and the efforts made by the Austrian
Government to destroy their national character — always
maintained themselves Italian, and during the uprising their
sons with filial love gave a splendid contribution of thought,
of money and of blood to the struggles for the Patria.
In 1821, for example, not a few Neapolitan liberals took
refuge in Trieste.
After 1 82 1 the Vendite carboniche (committees of the Car-
bonari) worked zealously at Trieste and Istria, and with such
fervor that the Carbonari counted proselytes even among
the clergy. Indeed a decree of the Austrian government
of August 20, 1823, placed upon the clergy the responsibility
"of the political transgressions of the Istrian people."
In 1829 the Triestian Domenico Rossetti, poet, historian,
archaeologist with the soul of a proud patrician, of the
ancient Italian Communes, founded an Italian paper en-
titled U Archeografo Triestino and in it censured the
Emperor of Austria for the non-observance of the pacts; he
accused the government of Austria of trying to denationalize
the Italianity of Trieste. He encouraged the protests of the
Triestians against the abuses of the government.
Pietro Kandler made an inquiry into the traditions of
the Roman nobility of Trieste, the Roman magnificence of
Pola, the surviving Roman palimpsests of Parenzo, the
evidences of Roman power of the X Italic Region; the Ro-
man palisades of the extreme eastern boundaries of Italy
from the passes of Postumia to Fiume; and with the severe
eloquence of history he proved to outsiders the deep Italian-
ity of the region situated between the Julian Alps and the sea.
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1815 TO 1848 121
At Trieste, in 1833, a sea-captain, Giuseppe Sgarzolo was
arrested on the charge of having had secret meetings with
Itahan conspirators on board his ship Spartano, and of
having plotted against the Hfe of Metternich.
Between 1834-36 a group of capitaHsts — a great part
of whom were ItaHans — founded the Lloyd-Austro-Hun-
garian}
About this time Dr. A. Madonizza of Capodistria and
Giovanni Orlandini, a bookseller of Trieste, founded an-
other Italian newspaper called La Favilla which soon be-
came a mouthpiece of their Italianity.^
In 1843 hundreds of Triestini went to Venice to take
part in the opening of the railroads and the congresses;
they even participated in the scientific ones and transformed
them into ardent manifestations of Italianity.
In 1843, at Trieste, Verdi's operas NabuccOy Lomhardiy
and in 1844, Ernani (all of deep patriotic significance) were
presented, provoking frantic demonstrations of Itahanity.
In 1844 the propaganda of the society Young Italy at
Trieste in Istria, was very active; so much so that the Aus-
trian police hunted out four zealous leaders of the society,
G. Berardi, F. Orioli, R. Carbonis, and G. Grozet, under the
accusation of traveling "under different pretexts, for com-
merce and literature."
Also in 1844 the brothers Attilio and Emilio Bandiera,
officers of the Austrian marine, deserted and went to
^ The first ship of this company sailed for Constantinople on May i6, 1837.
From that Azy ihthistoxy oi the Lloyd-Austro-Hungarianvizs a series of ever grow-
ing successes. Their ships traversed every sea in the world; from the Mediterran-
ean to the Pacific^ from the Red Sea to the Atlantic.
The Lloyd-Austro-Hungarian has always remained an Italian institution. The
names of their steamships were Italian; their governing board was Italian; their
sailors were Italian; their arsenals were Italian.
The office building of the Lloyd-Austro-Hungarian is one of the most sumptuous
in Trieste, and every one attests to the Italianity of this institution.
'^The first issue of this paper was published on July 31, 1836, with the
motto, "Poca favilla gran fiamma seconda" (a great fire follows a small spark).
For collaborators on the paper were the poet Francesco Dall' Ongaro, a priest of
Mansue (Oderzo) ; the poet Antonio Gazzoletti of Nago, near Riva, in the Trentino,
and the poet Antonio Summa (the noted librettist of Verdi) of Carnia; the jour-
nalist Pacifico Valussi; the painter Giovanni Kandler; the novelist Caterina
Percoto of Friuli, and Graziadio Ascoli of Goritz.
Ascoli became a glottologist, phonetician and philologist of worldwide fame. He
was senator of the Kingdom of Italy (1829-1907).
122 SECOND PART
Calabria — because Mazzini, whom they adored, advised
them to go— for the purpose of arousing the people to the
national cause. But they were betrayed, taken and were
shot by the Bourbon soldiers in Cosenza. Trieste, even, at
that time, offered a martyr: Giulio Canal, who was arrested
by the Austrians as an accomplice, and died in 1845 in prison,
on account of the moral and physical tortures to which he
had been subjected.
In 1846 another great opera of Verdi, Attila, was pre-
sented at Trieste; it was of undoubted patriotic significance,
and provoked new and frantic demonstrations of Italianity.
Trieste, as soon as she knew that Ferdinand II (Bourbon)
on February loth, 1848 had promulgated the Constitution
in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies — a Constitution fol-
lowed by those of the Grand Duke of Tuscany, of Carlo
Alberto and Pius IX and by the revolutionary movements
in Vienna — gave herself up to enthusiastic manifestations
of Italianity. The crowd, led by Leone Fortis, a Triestian
journalist and dramatist, and Federico Seismit-Doda^ ran
jubilantly through the streets of the city singing hymns
to liberty, burning the effigy of Metternich, the Austrian
minister, and obliging the Teuton Bruck to spit on his
effigy and to salute the Italian colors. In the Communal
Theatre the people frantically recalled the artists who pre-
sented themselves on the stage wearing the tri-colored badges
on their breasts, and waving a great Italian flag. In the
chamber of commerce the crowd, during the night, decreed
that the following day (March 17th) should be a national
festival and closed the stores, government offices and the
board of trade. They changed the names of places of public
resort. For example: the Theatre Philodramatic was called
the Teatro Costitutionale; the Hotel Metternich was called
Albergo Nazionale; the Caffe Stella Polare was called Caff's
Gioberti; the Caffe Tommasi was called Caffe Tom-
maseo.
A national guard was organized. A group of patriots
asked for and received a ship from the Lloyd Austro-
* Federico Seismit-Doda of Ragusa (Dalmatia) was twice minister of finance of
the kingdom of Italy (1825-1893).
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1815 TO 1848 123
Hungariany and with it went to Venice to bring the joyful
news of the Constitution to their brothers of the op-
posite shore. In a mass meeting they declared as "in-
famous" the annexation of 1815. A provisional municipal
assembly protested against the Diet of Frankfort which had
planned the annexation of Trieste to the German Con-
federation, affirming that Trieste was Italian; sent an ad-
dress of sympathy to the Revolutionary Constituents in
Vienna; made a programme in which they demanded Italian
schools and the recognition of the Italian language in the
government offices; and the creation, if not of an entire
University, at least of an ItaHan Faculty of Law. And the
Association of Triestians asked to have the pacts of 1382
restored by which Trieste should be annexed to Italy, or
that it might at least be declared independent of the other
provinces which were subject to Austria, and also that it
should have its own statutes, its own judiciary and all of
the privileges of an autonomous and perfectly free city.
The same society moreover rejected a proposal of homage to
the Emperor and vowed to burn the Austrian ships anchored
in the port.
Meanwhile Lombard o-Veneto rose up in revolution.
At the five days of Milan and in the siege of Venice,
Irredentist Italians were not lacking. It is enough to recall
Giuseppe Revere from Trieste, a well known poet and
dramatist, one of the collaborators of the journal Italia del
Popolo of Mazzini, in whose columns Garibaldi published
his first appeal to the youth of Italy.
Also it is sufficient to recall the following episode:
The Austrian governor, Pallfly, was driven out of Venice
and fled toward Trieste. In crossing, the ship on which he
was sailing encountered the one on which Seismit-Doda
was saiHng to Venice. The following episode was narrated
by this same Seismit-Doda in a page vibrant with Itali-
anity:
The ships neared each other; as soon as the voice could be
heard, we demanded, What nezvs from Venice? They responded
with a single word. Republic! I had strength to cry, Viva
San Marco! Viva la Republica! but the sailors did not have this
124 SECOND PART
same force. They fell on their faces crying and lifting up their
hands to heaven in gratitude for such news. The greater part of
these were Dalmatians. Viva San Marco! Viva la Repuhlica!
and these cries stabbed the hearts of those who heard them on the
other ship and who had witnessed the frenzy of our holy en-
thusiasm.
Then the ship directed its course toward Trieste, retook its
way, slowly and silently like a funeral ship; when the two ships,
symbolizing life and death, were separating, a shot from a rifle
on our ship was the first to salute the Republic of Venice. After
fifty years the flag of St. Mark again waved on the Adriatic, and
hurrahs resounded in the air. That shot, Venetians, came from
a Dalmatian rifle; it was fired by a Dalmatian! A never-to-be-
forgotten event, if w^e remember that the last shots of salutation
to the dying republic of St. Mark fifty years ago were fired by
the Dalmatians on the Piazzetta, when Venice was obliged to
send them away by force, weeping, because she did not wish use-
lessly to sacrifice them in her last desperate defense against
Austria. Venetians, as we were brothers in the days of your
glory, thus are we today, now that the new era promises greater
glories to us all.
The Dalmatians, in exchange for this, will give to you their
undying love. Because, for fifty years — you must know this
publicly — for fifty years in a little unknown church of Dalmatia
areburied the flags of the Republicof St.Markto whichDalmatian
tears rendered funeral honors in 1797. The earth was the altar
of the flags; but our hearts are the altars of our aff"ection for you.
I feel myself an Italian, even though born in Dalmatia. In
the affections which you have shown to my great compatriot and
master — Niccolo Tommaseo — I see the proof of the indis-
soluble union of Italy and Dalmatia.
Hagenaer, deputy from Trieste to the Assembly of
Vienna, exclaimed, 'T am the deputy from Italy."
A Teuton journalist — all this was in 1848 — alluding
to the geographic form of Italy, malignantly asserted that
he did not know how a boot was made. La Gazzetta di
Trieste taught him this in a pungent article, in which the
writer showed, among other things, that **Istria is in fact
the pulling strap of the Italian boot, as Metternich well
understood — he, in fact, in order to pull up such a boot, had
first made sure of the strap."
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1815 TO 1848 125
And after Curtatone^ and Montanara, the Journal oj
Trieste ventured to write:
To placate the spirits of the dead of Curtatone and Montanara
we can do nothing but push on toward the Italian rainbow.
From the River Ticino to the Mincio; from the River Piave to
the Isonzo, as far as the smile of the Italian skies sends its last
ray of light!
The same paper of Trieste, expressing the deepest
sentiments of the Triestians, added:
The only enemy that Italy has today [1848] is the Teuton.
I am not speaking of individuals nor of people, but of that atti-
tude which ancient interests and modern ambitions have per-
suaded the Teutons to assume. But of what importance is it
that Germany does not want Italy to be victorious? Who
cares about this? The Italians want it; the Italians have sworn
to conquer, and that settles it. Germany protests; the Bavarian
peasants can put on their backs the military uniform of the
Austrians, and pass over the Alps. Italy will at least give them
also a pious burial!
And the Triestian journal II Cosittuzionaley the
liberal organ of Trieste (this still in 1848), turned to the
Triestians with the following appeal:
If we would wish to be different from that which God made
us — that is, Italians — it would be a crime in the face of this
same God; a crime in the face of our sacred dead, who thought
that they had lived and died Italians; a crime, O people! to our
sons, whom we must leave with an added heritage, such as we
received when we were born. If any other country has had, or
now has more misfortunes, no other land under the sun has ever
borne a better name, has had a more glorious, a more majestic
past than this your land, linked to Italy by chains formed by the
hand of God.
There were many other manifestations — led by Nicolo
di Rin of Capodistria' and Costantino Cumano of Trieste,
^ At Curtatone (province of Mantua), on May 29, 1848, 40,000 Austrian
soldiers commanded by Radetzky encountered 6,500 Italian students, the greater
part of whom were Tuscans, Neapolitans, Modenese and Reggians and among
whom were not a few Triestians and Trentini. After a combat which lasted six
hours, the students, who fought like young lions, were overcome by numbers and
made prisoners, leaving on the ground many dead and wounded.
126 SECOND PART
men of tenacious faith, and proudly averse to Austrian
domination; and by the young Francesco Hermet, an
ardent patriot, and the journalist Giulio Solitro — which
demonstrated the Italian sentiments of Trieste in 1848.
There was a sharp hand to hand struggle between the
Mazzinians or liberals and "the policy mixed with the foreign
mercenaries," and many were wounded and killed. Some
Triestians even attempted to raise the Italian flag on the
castle. Others, arriving in boats from Venice to Trieste,
landed, crying, "Long live the Republic of Venice and
Trieste!"
Thus the national movement was always on the in-
crease in the Italian region governed by Austria. The
Austrian government was harassed. To combat this
movement, it hurried to "import" other strangers "famished
and faithful as dogs." The government sent more than
15,000 Teutons and Slavs to take up residence in Trieste
alone in 1848, and gave to them every sort of protection and
confided to them, with astounding insolence, the most im-
portant and lucrative local employments.
A city journal greeted these strangers with the fol-
lowing ingenuous but significant words:
Long live everybody! But bear in mind that this [the city
of Trieste] is Italian ground; Italian is the smiling sea which
washes its shores; Italian are our souls. You hold in your hearts
the treasure of love for your native land which we respect and
admire. But you meanwhile must respect our love for Italy,
because we are, and always will be Italians.
But // Costituzionale was more explicit; it accused the
Austrian government of favoring and defending Slavism in
Trieste after having favored Germanism.
La Gazzetta di Trieste corroborated the accusation,
writing bitterly:
What remains to us citizens? The public offices and schools
have been invaded by others; thought has been dominated by
another tongue; the Triestians must nourish themselves on the
odors which come from the kitchens of others, and they alone —
the Triestians — are the only strangers in their own city! Addio,
gentlemen, to whom we have given hospitality; whom our fathers
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1815 TO 1848 127
received with so much, with too much faith. Promise us, gentle-
men, that at least we may have a little spot in our own cemetery.
What a solid basis of truth the affirmations of the Tri-
estian newspaper had in 1858 was shown by two posthumous
documents, the memorial sent in the name of Trieste in
1859 to the Congress at Paris, and the pamphlet by Valussi
and Costantino Ressmann (another Triestian and later
Italian Ambassador to Constantinople and Paris), published
in 1 861 and diffused throughout Europe.
The first said:
Austria, with the intrusion of the Germans and other strangers
in Trieste, placing them in all important positions, even to seating
them in our municipal councils; ordering and undoing at their
own pleasure our interests according to her own ends; and with
German schools and Slavic priests, employees of every race, is
attempting to corrupt and make us forget our Italian nationality
The second said:
In 1848 and also after, seeing that Nature had taught the
Triestians to be Italians, the Austrian Government brought every
effort to bear against anything that was ItaHan. It spent im-
mense sums to corrupt the populace, making use of the lowest
classes to persecute all those whom they thought were in sym-
pathy with Italy. Denunciations, perquisitions, personal per-
secutions, imprisonments, law-suits, arbitrary expulsions, viola-
tions of every sort against Italian sentiments, form the history
of these latter thirteen years.
But not only in Trieste, in 1848, did the fight forltalianity
assume vast proportions. In some cities of Dalmatia a
civic guard was formed. At Spalato the people liberated
from prison Antonio Baiamonti and Pietro Savo, two
ardent defenders of the Italian cause.
The people of Trent, on March 19, 1848, boldly raised
the Italian tri-color, defied the shots of the Austrian pickets,
destroyed the office of finance, then ran to the city hall and
demanded that a commission be sent at once to Vienna to
ask the immediate separation of Trentino from the German
Tyrol and its annexation to Lombardo-Veneto. The
following day, March 20, 1848, the municipality of Trent
128 SECOND PART
established the national guard and sent a patriotic appeal
to the citizens in which they expressed the wish that the ex-
ample of Trent should be followed by all of Trentino. In
fact at Ala, Rovereto, Riva, and other cities and in the
valleys, the inhabitants of Trentino hoisted the Italian flag
and decorated their breasts with the tri-colored cockade.
On April 4, 1848, Tommaseo sent a patriotic mani-
festo to the people in which he incited them to fight and to
conquer in the name of Italy.
On the 6th of the same month, from Brescia, General
Allemandi sent a proclamation to the brothers of Trentino
in which he urged them to unite with his volunteers to drive
the foreigner from Italy.
And the young Trentini, organizing a Treritino Legion,
a corps of Franchi Cacciatori (hunters) and another of
Guide del Tirolo (Tyrol guides), went to the defense of the
Patria singing a hymn which the Trentian poet Antonio
Gazzoletti wrote for the occasion.
The trumpets sound,
The muskets are ready,
Our dear Patria
Calls us to arms.
We follow the files
Of Carlo Alberto.
Death to the Austrians!
Long live the king!
Meanwhile the Austrian government proclaimed martial
law in Trent, commanding the citizens to bring their arms to
the Castle under penalty of death, prohibiting all gatherings
of more than two persons on the street, abolishing the
national guard, arresting the most prominent patriots,
among whom were Gaetano Manci, Matteo Thum, Giuseppe
Testi, Pietro Sizzo.
In answer to this, Gazzoletti, Angelo Ducati, Sigismondo
Manci, Giovanni Danielli, Lorenzo Festi and Giambattista Ze-
nelli, all Trentini, went to Valleggio and presented an ad-
dress to Carlo Alberto in which the Trentino solemnly
consented to be annexed to Piedmont. An identical de-
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1815 TO 1848 129
mand was presented to Carlo Alberto by the Trentini Vittore
Ricci and Giovanni Rizzi.
On April 15, 1848, there was a skirmish at the Castle
Toblino between Italians and Austrians. Twenty-one
Italian volunteers, all young men, remained prisoners of
the Austrians. They were conducted to Trent and were
presented to the Austrian commander of the garrison. Col.
Zobel, who told them to prepare for death without delay.
These young fellows passed the night in the open air in the
moat of the castle on some hay. Two Franciscan monks com-
forted them. At the roll of the drums, a squadron of Austrian
soldiers appeared at the opening of the moat. The victims were
divided into two groups. Then the execution began. In the
presence of their comrades the young men of the first group were
blindfolded; but they tore off" the bandages and threw them
away crying, Long live Italy! There was a volley. After a few
minutes, a second volley, and all was over!
The prisoners taken by the Austrians on May 29,
1848, in the battles of Curtatone and Montanara were sent
across Trentino as above mentioned to the opposite side of
the Alps. The inhabitants did everything to minimize
their sufferings during the stops on their way. From the
windows of the houses of Trent — which were filled with
weeping citizens crying "Addio, Italian brothers!" — they were
showered with money and bread. Along the streets they
were given wine, brandy, tobacco, sausages and cheese.
There was a'truly fraternal demonstration of patriotism which
was all the more audacious because it was made in the pres-
ence of the Austrian soldiers who were trembling with rage.
At Botzen the prisoners were given a cordial reception.
This was repeated at Bressanone and continued up to
Brenner Pass, the highest peak of the Rhaetian Alps (2,022
meters).
At that point — thus says Tarugi, one of the prisoners —
there was a boundary stone; on this everyone wrote his name.
We kissed it with enthusiasm, as if to say good bye to Italy
the moment we placed our feet on foreign soil; or because we felt
in our hearts the hope that the day would come in which our
country would regain its natural boundary.
130 SECOND PART
In the same month (May 1848) the Trentini were
invited by the Austrian Government to participate in the
discussions of the Diet of Tyrol. They energetically refused,
believing that their participation would be dangerous to the
Italians of Tyrol, and in open contradiction to their rights
of nationality and language which the constitution had
guaranteed to them. On the contrary they sent deputies
to the German parliament to demonstrate the rights of
Italians in that assembly. Particularly courageous and
characteristic was the speech of the deputy from Siessen,
who threw a last free lance in favor of Italianity in the meet-
ing of June 31, 1848:
The following is a part of his speech;
I wish I could know — said the orator — if the Italian Tyrol
is called Italian Tyrol because it is inhabited by Germans! I wish
I might know if the four German cooks, innkeepers and employees
who live there could be called the German element! If you wish
to make an enumeration, I can assure you that you will find at
Milan and Rome a larger German element than there is inRovereto.
And why in this case don't you annex also Rome and Milan to
the German confederation.?
It has been said to us, moreover, gentlemen, that the Italian
Tyrolese deputies with their participation in this assembly have
recognized that they belong to Germany. Certainly they recog-
nize the fact of this union; but they have wished to break our right
to this union, and to obtain this result they should have come here.
If they had refused to elect their deputies, who would have come
here to defend the rights of their nationality? You have heard
that the orator Prato has expressed himself with difficulty. Now,
I ask you, if the Italians of the southern Tyrol had been able to
select a person who could have spoken the German language
correctly, would they not have chosen him? The fact is they had
no one, and they could not find anyone, simply because they are
Italians. It has been said to us that this national assembly must
be German and not Italian. Let it be. But if the assembly is
to be German, do not oblige the Italians to send to it Italian
deputies. Let them send their deputies elsewhere to an Italian
Diet or whenever their Patria calls them.
Finally the Trentini sent their deputies to Vienna with
instructions to insist upon the separation of Trentino from
IRREDENTISTS IN 1849 131
the Tyrol, and at the same time they sent a petition to the
constituency with 46,000 names, in which they asked that
"the administration and padiamentary separation of the
districts of Trent and Rovereto from the German part of
the province of Tyrol should be established, and that all of
the powers based upon the new system of nationality should
be equally distributed among them."
VI
The Trentini, the Triestians, the Istrians and the
Dalmatians battle for the Roman Republic, which is
under the leadership of the Triumvirate, Mazzini, Saffi
and Armellini, and is defended by Garibaldi against the
Pope, and for the Republic of Venice, which is led by
Manin and Tommaseo and is defended by General
Guglielmo Pepe against Austria (1849).
Numerous were the Trentini, Triestians, Istrians, and
Dalmatians who went to the defense of Rome in 1849, *'to
seal with their blood" — so says Guerrazzi — **the pact of
family which binds all Italians to the Eternal City." It
will suffice to say that of the 400 defenders who fell in the
memorable battle of June 29, 1849 (the last in which Gari-
baldi fought for the life and honor of the Roman Republic)
50 were Trentini and Triestians.
After the epic fight and the glorious defeat, the majority
of the volunteers who followed the Hero to his unhappy
retreat were Triestians, Trentini, Istrians, and Dalmatians.
The Trentini were: Edoardo Negri, Francesco Mattedi,
Pietro Bertelli, Achille Bevilacqua, Pietro Cavali, Don
Pietro Casanova, Carlo Marzari, the engineer Domenico
Dicio, the brothers Pilade and Narciso Bronzetti.^ Among
the Triestians were the poet Giuseppe Revere,^ Filippo
^ For the complete' list see The Trentini in the Risorgimento (uprising), by
Dr. Levio Marchetti.
^ He was the last — with Dr. Saglioso, Francesco DaH'Ongaro and Aurelio
Saffi — to leave Rome.
132 SECOND PART
Zamboni,' Giacomo Venezian,^Sansoni Levi (intimate friend
of Garibaldi), and Giovanni BrufFel.
Still more numerous were the Trentini, Triestians,
Istrians and Dalmatians who, after the fall of the Roman
Republic, hastened to the defense of the Republic of Venice
under the leadership of Manin and Tommaseo. For that
occasion they even formed a special legion called the Dal-
mato-Istriana.
And from every shore — thus wrote the young Triestian
Attilio Tamaro — were brought tributes of life and genius; of
energy and of heroism to the resuscitated Republic of St. Mark.
No episode has incarnated — in a line so simple and representative
— that flocking of the Adriatic people toward the reborn splendor
of St. Mark, so well as the following, which I myself heard told
with profound emotion:
As soon as the struggle began between the Republic and
Radetzky, two young Dalmatians presented themselves to the
Doge Daniele Manin, and one of them said to him in pure Venetian
dialect:
Our father has sent us to defend St. Mark. He said to us that
he had heard that the Lion of St. Mark has reawakened, and of his
three sons he sends two to defend him. He said to us — ''''Salute the
Doge, and say to him that if your father were not so old he also would
have come to kiss his hand, to defend him."
These two young men took part in the siege, showing
great valor.
Among the Trentini were: Captain Federico Martini,
Giovan Battista Adami, Domenico Bonetti, Bartolomeo
Malfatti and Tommaso Sar (these two latter were re-
membered in the documents of that epoch for the valor
which they showed in the "most dangerous moments").
The following were Triestians: the journalist and
dramatist Leone Fortis, Giovanni Orlandini (the old editor
^ Zamboni and Piero Fieri were the last on the battle field saving the flag, which
they consigned to the city of Rome, capital of Italy after 1870. (laribaldi wrote to
Zamboni: "You saved the flag of the Italian youths at the risk of your precious
life."
* Venezian fought heroically at Rome and was seriously wounded. He breathed
his last on July 2, 1849, in the arms of his friend and fellow citizen, the poet Revere.
His mother hurried to him but found him dead, and shortly afterward she died of
grief.
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1850 TO 1859 133
of the journal La Favilla and chief magistrate of the pro-
visional government of Venice), FiHppo Coen, Francesco
Erberti, Costantino Cumano, Samuele Romanin (teacher of
Venetian history in the chair founded by the new RepubHc),
Francesco Poropat, Arturo Zanetti, Pietro Romano, Francesco
Herbert and the painter GiuseppeGattesi. The Istrians were
Nicolo Vergottini, Captain Marcantonio Borisi who, in a bold
sortie from Mestre, took several cannon from the Austrians,
Alessandro Almerigotti, Alessandro Godina, Giuseppe Dra-
gicchio, Giuseppe Rubinisch, Pietro Scarboncich, Luigi
Ritozzo, the brothers Giovanni and Lodovico Almerigotti,
Giovanni Bevilacqua (the latter fought like a lion under
the fortress of Montedoro, and three times at Campalto,
and more than twenty times from rafts). Of the Dalmatians
it will suffice to call to mind Seismit-Doda, and that most
illustrious of all, Niccolo Tommaseo, who was minister of
pubhc instruction in the Republic of St. Mark.
VII
The Trentini, Triestians, Istrians and Dalmatians in
defense of their Italianity from 1850 to 1858. Their
filial contribution of blood to the Second War of Liberation
of Italy against Austria (1859).
The struggle for Italianity, after 1849, continued with
the same zeal as at first in Trentino, at Trieste, in Istria
and in Dalmatia, notwithstanding the severe preventive and
repressive measures of the Austrian police.
On August 20, 1850, for example, Giuseppe Verdi went
to Trieste, and the great master was received by the citizens
with rejoicings.
In the same year the Emperor Francis Joseph went there.
** But the reception which he received " — thus wrote the Sar-
dinian Consul to his Government — *'was very cool; indeed it
was glacial; one did not hear an Evviva during the whole day.'*
On August 30, 1 85 1, the imperial and royal representa-
tives of the Austrian government in Goritz, irritated by the
134 SECOND PART
appearance of the characteristic clothes of the Italians,
pubHshed the following "notification" which is a choice
sample of their petty tyranny:
The wearing of clothes which by their singularity distinguishes
them in a surprising manner from the other inhabitants of the
country, and which, in this singularity, carries with them a certain
sign of arrogance, is not to be tolerated. One also sees among
those thus dressed the wide brimmed brown hat, which for some
time has been in great fashion in this section of the empire com-
bined with clothes of the same color. We are thoroughly con-
vinced that the inhabitants of the united countries of Goritz
and Gradisca wear these clothes solely for the purpose of showing
sympathy and imitating others, and for this reason we wish you
to put aside anything which would cast suspicion upon your
motives. We recommend therefore that the inhabitants of
Goritz and Gradisca discontinue the use of such clothes and other
distinctive signs. We wish you to regard this suggestion as a
friendly admonition, otherwise we shall be obliged to impute to
the violators of this a perverse tendency, which we will suppress
with vigor and punish without pity.
The most ardent patriots, tiring of such harassments, de-
cided to start a revolutionary movement which was to burst
out in Trieste on March i, 1853, and from there was to
spread to the other Irredentist cities. The Austrian Govern-
ment discovered the plot and hastened to prepare for it,
increasing the number of spies, augmenting the garrisons,
portioning out soldiers to the barracks, doubling the guards,
and increasing the patrol in every direction, besides ordering
perquisitions and arrests. The young Dalmatian Carlo
Boscowich was exiled and took refuge in Piedmont; among
the newspapers suppressed "for political reasons" was
the Journal of Goritz, founded by Carlo Favetti, and UEco
delVIsonzo of Gradisca, directed by the distinguished citizen
Federico Comelli; prominent citizens were condemned to
hard labor; and Guiseppe Grioli was sentenced to twelve
years imprisonment "for the liberal propaganda which he
directed in Dalmatia."
In 1856, Antonio Gazzoletti and many others thought
to call the attention of the coming Congress of Paris to
Trentino, and by means of Cavour to obtain its separation
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1850 TO 1859 135
from the German federation. One of the Irredentists went
especially to Turin to confer with the minister. This latter
expressed his sympathy for the Trentini, assuring them that
he would not let an occasion pass when he could speak in favor
of their national aspirations. Demetrio Livaditi founded
the paper called La Ciarla at Trieste where // Pungolo and
another called Quel che si vede e quel che non si vede were al-
ready published. Among those who wrote for these were
the poet Arnaldo Fusinato and Leone Fortis. The Aus-
trian government ordered the arrest of Fortis and suppressed
the journals. In Istria, // Popolano d'lstria was published
by Michele Facchinetti, author of a national prayer which
was committed to memory and which finished thus : **0 God !
make me love my native land, but make my love and re-
spect for her enlarge my sympathies toward others, in order
that all may be linked together in a chain of peace and
happiness." Tommaseo wrote letters and volumes showing
how the hearts of Dalmatia always beat for Italy.
Thus we reach the year 1859. Austria attacked little
Piedmont, which allied itself to France. At the onset of the
war other volunteers gathered from Trieste, from Istria,*
from Friuli — and the flower of Trentino youths ran to the
defense of the Patria, notwithstanding the fact that the
Austrian bayonets were massed on the frontiers; notwith-
standing the fact that dangers of every sort awaited them.
The Austrian Government, on June 7, 1859, in vain de-
creed, in the name of the emperor, that the country of Trent,
on the second conscription, must furnish one thousand men.
The young men eluded this by flocking under the banners
of Victor Emanuel II and Garibaldi.
Besides this, a Trentian deputation presented to Victor
Emanuel II on the battlefield the following address:
Now that at the side of your generous ally, the Emperor of
France, on a road sown at every step with victories and blessings,
you advance toward the Italian provinces redeemed in your name,
permit, O Sire, that the Italians of the province of Trent present
^ Professor Antonio Coiz, native of Faedils (Friuli), who was teaching in Istria»
gathered his pupils together and they all enrolled themselves under the Italian
leaders. At Turin the wealthy Goritzian Francesco Verzegnasse placed himself
and all his wealth at the disposal of the volunteers.
136 SECOND PART
themselves to you by means of us, to repeat that the cross of
Savoy is not less worshipped in their mountains than in other
parts of upper Italy; that in the province of Trent you are also
awaited and yearned for as their Liberator and King. We fully
realize, O Sire, the gravity of the exceptional circumstances in
which our country finds itself in the face of your glorious enter-
prise. But precisely because we are monstrously chained to Ger-
many, we feel with greater fervor that we are Italians, and we
wish to be more closely bound to the cause of our brothers whom
you defended with such loyalty and valor. Heaven, O Sire,
will not cease for an instant to make your arms victorious; but
may the triumph and glory — that will come after the accom-
plishment of the great enterprise — not be saddened by the
cries of Italians still bent under a foreign yoke.
In this same year, 1859, the M^omen of Istria sent the
flag of the 37th infantry to Victor Emanuel II Vi^ith an
address in which they said among other things:
We, the women of Istria, send and offer this flag to you as a
pledge of our tears. This standard brings good fortune. We
remember that Istria has always been Italian from the time in
which ancient Rome confided to it the guardianship of the most
envied pass into Italy.
In the victorious campaigns the volunteers of the
Irredentist Italian regions covered themselves with glory.
The Trentian lieutenant, Leopold© Martini, fell at San
Martino, June 24, 1859, while fearlessly guiding his company
of Bersaglieri to an assault.
The Trentian Narciso Bronzetti, captain of the third
company of the first regiment of Alpine Hunters, fought
valorously at the side of Garibaldi at Varese and San
Fermo. Near Seriate, on June 8, 1859, with only ninety-
four volunteers, he put to flight fifteen hundred Austrian
soldiers. "With men of such heroism, " Garibaldi said,
"one can attempt anything; Italy must always remember
them."
In the battle of Treponti (June 15, 1859) Bronzetti per-
formed acts worthy of an epopee. A first Austrian ball
wounded his right arm, causing his sword to fall from his
hands. 'The brave fellow caught it up with his left hand
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1850 TO 1859 137
and shook it on high crying, "Go on!" and he continued to
fight and to cry, ** Forward!" as long as he could.
Forward! Forward!
The hero cried; and, the right arm broken
By a ball, with the other he raised his sword,
And forward! Another ball broke even the
Left arm, and forward! And thus all bloody
He ran against the enemy!
Finally a third ball struck him in the side and mortally
wounded him.
Until a third ball
Penetrated his side, and even then he took two steps,
And forward, forward always!
He cried to his followers, falling.
He was then taken to Brescia to the house of his friend.
Basilic MafFezzoli, where Major Ferrari carried to him the
silver medal of military bravery. "Garibaldi," he said to
him, "has sent you this medal of honor for the battle of
Seriate. He wishes worthily to reward you for that act of
yesterday." The dying hero kissed the medal and breathed
his last, smiling, while Major Ferrari was reading the letter
to him which Garibaldi had sent:
Dearest Bronzetti, — You are certainly beyond any eulogy, and
you have justly merited the title of "Hero of Heroes" of our col-
umn. Your courage surpasses the gravity of your wounds, and
you will yet be returned to your companions at arms. \
Receive a brotherly embrace from,
Your friend,
Giuseppe Garibaldi.
The military cross of Savoy and the title of Major were
awarded to the memory of Bronzetti.
At the end of the war Garibaldi, in an address to the
Trentini, tried to interpret the national sentiments toward
those generous ones, writing:
There were hundreds and hundreds of the fellow citizens of
Bronzetti who distinguished themselves in the sacred war, and
not one word has been said to give them recognition of national
138 SECOND PART
gratitude! I trust my feeble words may be able to supply in
part this involuntary forgetfulness, and to make us remember
some of the most noble and generous Italian families, who have
never failed to assist us in our expectations of redemption.
And the Trentini responded to Garibaldi:
As much as an Italian country oppressed by strangers can
exult, the Trentini rejoice in the words you have spoken in its
praise; and it thanks and blesses you from the depths of its mis-
fortunes. Its blood has been poured out, and the bitter disil-
lusions, all of the grief it has suffered, it can endure more easily
now that we have received your encomiums and commendations.
The council of Trent, the councils of the other important
cities of Trentino (Rovereto, Ala, Tione, Condino, Levico,
Strigno) claimed from Vienna their annexation to Veneto,
"annexation urged because of the national sentiments of
Trentino and also because of its needs and its interests."
With this demand the Trentini hoped to share the status of
Venetia "when this province should be united to Italy."
In December, 1859, the Trentini also drew^ up a me-
morial (which was presented afterward to the European con-
gress) in which they asked that Trieste, whose liberty was
imperiled, be declared a free city, and part of the Italian
confederation, "as it seemed to them that Veneto might
be."
VIII
The Trentini, the Triestians, the Istrians in the
campaign of The Thousand. Their filial contribution
of blood during the entire War for the Liberation of
Southern and Central Italy ( 1 860) . The fierce reaction of
the Austrians. The sums of money gathered from the
Istrians for the national cause. The Triestian women
present an Italian flag to Garibaldi (1860).
Garibaldi, in preparing the expedition of The Thousandy
opened a national subscription for a million rifles. At
Trieste, in Trentino, in eastern Friuli, in Istria, as in every
other part of Italy, this news awakened an extraordinary en-
IRREDENTISTS IN 1860 139
thusiasm. In the cafes, in the public places and in private
nothing else was talked of. In many towns in Istria the
Italian flag was seen flying. On the walls appeared pla-
cards exalting Garibaldi and Victor Emanuel II and denoun-
cing the Austrian government and its spies.
The police recommenced perquisitions and repressions.
At Trieste, for instance, they sequestered more than three
thousand rifles in the house of a certain Brul and violently
repressed an anti-Austrian demonstration. At Goritz, to
prevent the Italians from making demonstrations, the police
prohibited the daily promenade on the Corso. Martial
law was declared in many cities. The goods of the Tren-
tini and Istrians who had emigrated to Italy were confis-
cated. An imperial decree ordered the sentinels of patrol
to "exercise the greatest freedom in the use of arms" against
persons who attempted to pass the frontiers.
But notwithstanding this, the Trentini succeeded in
expressing their sentiments in a plebiscitary document
abridged into the following formula: "The undersigned
declare their desire for the annexation of their country to
the constitutional Kingdom of Victor Emanuel II." In
Istria a bit of popular poetry went the rounds in which the
Bourbon and the court of Vienna were placed in ridicule.
Not a few guns were sent to Italy.
On the morning of May 6, i860, on the ships Piedmont
and Lombardy, which were sailing from the fatal rock of
Quarto with Garibaldi and The Thousand, there were among
the Trentini: Antonio Armani, Oreste Baratieri, Ergisto
Bezzi, Tomaso Bolcego, Domenico Toller called Giacomo
Costa, Giovanni Dalla Costa, Antonio Fattori, Giuseppe
Fontana, Enrico Isnenghi, Giuseppe Leonardi, Filippo
Manci, Quirino Moiola, Pietro Martori, Anselmo Sterchele,
Filippo Tranquillini, Camillo Zancani and Attilio Zanotti
(Enoch Bezzi, brother of Ergisto, Count Francesco Martini
and Luigi Marcabruni, who were not in time to embark at
Quarto, rejoined Garibaldi at Milazzo), Francesco Bidischini
of Friuli Goritzian, Marziano Ciotti of Gradisca and others.
At Trieste an entire enrollment committee was captured.
Many Triestians could not join the glorious expedition of
140 SECOND PART
The Thousand because of the great rigor of the Austrian
government.
Giuseppe Fontana and Camillo Zancani were the first
of their company (the fifth) to cHmb the memorable hill of
Calatafimi and at their left were Filippo Manci, Filippo
Tranquillini and Ergisto Bezzi, called the Three Musketeers.
These three were also the first at the assault of Palermo.
And Enrico Isnenghi and Giuseppe Leonardi, notwith-
standing their wounds, continued to fight on the barricades
of that city.
Giuseppe Caesar Abba^ in few words gives a graphic
picture of these, his Trentini military fellow soldiers.
For example here is Zancani: "With his temples already
whitening and the deep wrinkles from the nose to the angles
of his mouth showing that he had known sorrow for a long
time, he carried an almost cheerful air and seemed to talk
continually about himself; cheerful and always seeming to
say, forward!"
Zanotti: "Always young and beautiful, always gener-
ous-hearted."
Isnenghi: "Simple as the water from the highest spring,
humble as a little monk in everything, as those to whom
St. Francis said his gentle words as he traveled."
Tranquillini: "Blossom of joy and of courtesy worthy
to be in an epic poem."
Manci: "So virginal was the refinement of his face that
had it not been for the vigor of his body it would have been
said that he was a girl in a Garibaldian uniform; and he so
courted danger that if there were a contest as to who should
take a risk, he was capable of fighting his best friend in
order to win it."
Ergisto Bezzi: "He seemed tobeFerruccio detached from
a sixteenth century painting, coming back to life to see what
we were doing after we had sung with Mameli that our
hearts and our hands were like his (Ferruccio's). Cusiana
' Abba was one of the most heroic of The Thousand. Afterward he became the
incomparable illustrator of the famous expedition, author of several other historical
works, and a great educator. Silent and modest, he lived in dignified poverty,
not showing pride or ostentation in the service that he had rendered his Country.
He was named senator of the kingdom of Italy in 1910, five months before his death
(1838-1910).
IRREDENTISTS IN 1860 141
in Trent, his native village, should be sacred ground if
only for his deeds, and worthy to be annexed to Italy."
Many other Trentini rejoined Garibaldi in Sicily and
followed him to southern Italy, and in all of his campaigns
up to the time that the Bourbon was completely defeated.
It will suffice to call to mind Pilade Bronzetti, brother of
Narciso, the Hero of Heroes. At Milazzo (July 20, i860),
in a bloody hand-to-hand struggle between the Garibaldians
and the Bourbons, Pilade Bronzetti, who had the rank of
major, took three pieces of artillery from the enemy. And
later, at Castle Morone with only 270 men, for eleven con-
tinuous hours he kept back the assault of 4,000 Bourbons,
until he was wounded by a bayonet and struck by a ball in
the chest and fell with his brandishing sword, never to rise
again.
Disdaining
Any surrender — a new Leonidas —
Waving aloft the sword of his brother.
He hurled himself to death on the heap
Of his dead comrades.
Garibaldi, announcing the fact in the order of the day,
to his legion, said:
At Castle Morone, Pilade Bronzetti, emulating his brother,
repeated a deed which history will certainly place side by side
with those accomplished by Leonidas and Fabius.
And in his Memoirs Garibaldi added:
Near the immortal families of the Cairoli and De Benedetti
are many others for whom Italy mourns, and among these we
must place the family of the Bronzetti. The eldest brother fell
fighting against the Austrians at Treponti; the second fell not less
heroically at Castle Morone. There remains a third for the
venerable parents, and this one, with their consent, is ready to
give his life to Italy.
In the liberation of Ancona, Leopoldo Tonini and Captain
Venturi were not a little distinguished. The latter also did
much to promote an insurrection in the pontifical state.
In fact in i860 the Trentini fought everywhere: in the
Piedmontesearmyaswellasin the armyof Central and South-
142 SECOND PART
ern Italy. There was not a brigade complete without its
quota of Trentini. For example: we find 22 in the Modena
brigade; 29 in theReggio brigade; loi in the Bologna brigade;
almost 100 in the Vignola battalion and 120 in the southern
army — about 500 in all. There were very few of the
Italian provinces which gave an equal number. Taking as
a base the proportion of ordinary conscription, which in
Italy was then twenty-five for every thousand, the Trentino
with a population of 330,000, would have furnished 825
soldiers. It, however, furnished 500; that is, two thirds of
the ordinary quota. In addition to this, one must remember
that Trentino was forced to support the burden of the
Austrian conscription.
Also the quota furnished by Trentino to the heroic
legion of The Thousand was altogether flattering. In the
proportion of 1,000 to 25,000,000 inhabitants (thus Italy
was counted in i860) Trentino, in proportion to its popula-
tion, should have given only about 13 men. It gave how-
ever, 17.
Although in lesser numbers, the Triestians and Istrians
hastened to enroll themselves under the Italian flag in i860
and distinguished themselves by their heroism equally with
their other Irredentist brothers. In the assault upon Perugia,
for instance, a company composed entirely of Triestians and
Istrians captured the papal garrison of not less than 8,000
Irish mercenaries (September 18, i860).
Moreover large sums of money were collected and con-
tinued to be collected from the people of the Irredentist
regions to carry on the war. The Triestian committee for
the aid of Garibaldi wrote to the committee of Milan:
Trieste was the generous victim in 1849 at Rome; and this
year (1860) it has its sons in the army of the magnanimous Re
Galantuomo (so Victor Emanuel II was and is called) and under
the flag of the invincible Garibaldi. But it will not cease in its
eff"orts to do everything possible to elude the restless vigilance
of the satraps of Austria.
And what vigilance, truly, it was! Michele Buono, or-
ganizer of a secret committee of enrollment in Trieste, was
condemned to death (this was changed afterward to 20
IRREDENTISTS IN 1860 143
years of hard labor). A sailor of Pola, who in the public
square had shouted *'''Viva L' Italia!" was immediately killed
with a blow from the sabre of an Austrian officer. At Pirano
a laborer by the name of Mistare was shot by an Austrian
sentinel for an expression of his sympathy with Italy. The
families of deserters were tormented in every way. The
Austrian government obliged them even to "reimburse it"
for the price of the deserters' uniforms. And it promised a
fat price in money to any soldier who would reveal the names
of those who incited to desertion and who criticized the gov-
ernment. In Trentino, the Austrian Commissary, Count
Hohenwarth, sent out a circular in which he ordered the
officers of the Government to "energetically oppose the ideas
of separation of Trentino from the Tyrol, which were so
deeply rooted in the region." To Gaetano Manci, Podesta
of Trent, Count Hohenwarth says "it has been decided
to vigorously repress all demonstrations of Italianity from
whatever source they may come"; and then the Podesta
was deposed; and the Podesta of Rovereto and those of
many other Communes were also deposed and officers faith-
ful to the government were substituted. At last the Aus-
trian count made the usual perquisitions for arms. Per-
secutions, proscriptions, public whippings and law suits en-
sued, followed by the confiscation of goods, etc. Many pro-
minent citizens, such as the octogenarian Tito De Bassetti,
Giovanni De Pretis and Antonio Marsili were arrested,
maltreated and exiled at the whim of the Austrians.
But nothing could repress the smoldering sentiments of
Italianity which animated the population of the eastern
boundaries of Italy.
The National Committee of Istria, sending to Milan
(in i860) a sum of money gathered for the national cause,
wrote :
Istria, poor in everything except m generous feeling and ten-
derest love for the common Mother, Italy, can offer but a small
sum; however, it comforts itself with the thought that Italy will
understand that, better than the offering, was the courage with
which this their subscription was gathered from the people
despite threats of the Austrian police, and they will consider the
144 SECOND PART
heart with which Istria brings this little gift to the altar of the
Patria. Say to the brave Garibaldi, that Istria never has hesi-
tated and never will hesitate to make sacrifices for the glorious
national cause. But also say to him that on that day when he
can plant the Italian flag on the shores of the Adriatic, Istria will
rise in exultation and reinforce the army and navy of the Patria
with its most courageous sons. Then the sister provinces will
see that Istria — which Austria has so oppressed as to take her
language from her and to attempt to wipe out her national sent-
iment, if this were possible — will not be unworthy of her. Now
only in her secret soul and in the midst of torment can the adored
names of Italy, .Victor Emanuel II, and Garibaldi be spoken;
but this secret voice — in the exaltation of hundreds of thousands
of hearts — will change into a loud shout which will extend from
our hills, and will reach to the sea as far as the opposite shore of
the Adriatic Gulf.
And to Garibaldi, the Triestian w^omen sent a flag made
by themselves and wrote to him:
Austrian despotism, for its own advantage, has ameliorated
the material conditions of Trieste by opening the city to immi-
grants and to commerce and lauds itself for the prerogatives given;
but it has hidden a deadly poison for the "spontaneous dedition."
Notwithstanding the most solemn pacts, it has for years and years
used every art of violence to crush out her natural aspirations for
civil and moral progress, and has tried to destroy her customs and
language. It will not even respect its honor, and calls it most
faithful, now. This is a lie, General! because neither the abuses
of the dominators nor aulic decrees nor the cowardice of the
degenerate patricians have been able to denationalize our people
who have remained Italian; and who today more than ever have
the consciousness of their imprescriptible right to belong to the
Italian family. And this flag, which we women of Trieste present
to you, O General! let it be a token of the national sentiment which
reanimates our husbands and sons. Accept this flag, O General!
and accord to it the honor of being held by one of your intrepid
legions, in the future battles for the common independence and
common liberty, who shall cry, Fiva V Italia! Viva Victor Emanuel
111
The Triestino-Istrian committee made a sort of state-
ment at the end of i860, with a proclamation in which it
said:
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1861 TO 1865 145
Many of our sons have shed their blood on the glorious fields
of Calatafimi and Castelfidardo; many others groan in Austrian
prisons or are in exile.
And Carlo Ferrari wrote, a short time after:
Trieste a envoye des sommes considerables au comite Garibaldien.
Une bonne pariie de ses enfants etait avec les vainquers de Palerme
et de Milazzo. Les dames Triestines out brode des drapeaux, envoye
des addresses aux soldats de V independence italienne.
Finally the Triestian journalist Pacifico Valussi, records
one of many episodes which show the spirit of Italianity
that animated the population of the eastern boundaries in
i860.
Once upon a time — thus wrote Valussi — a worthy Goritzian
brought a sum of money to me which his compatriots wished to
spend for the Italian Patria. It was the time when the Bourbon
fleet was captured by Garibaldi, and he entrusted it to Admiral
Persano, but the ship was abandoned by the sailors. When this
occurred some Triestians, Istrians, and Friulians collected a fund
to attract sailors of Istria, Veneto, and Dalmatia to equip the
new Italian fleet; and they succeeded. Cavour accepted the
gift, for he well understood the double advantage of taking
sailors from Austria and making Italians of them. Now I say
to the Gorzitian patriots that that sum, deposited so confidently
in my hands, went to augment that equipment fund.
IX
The struggle for Italianity, sustained with indomitable
pride by the Trentini, Triestians, Istrians, and Dalma-
tians against Austria from 1861 to 1865.
Cavour died June 6, 1861. The population within the
boundaries of eastern Italy manifested their grief by clos-
ing the shops, by abstaining from theaters and holiday
rejoicings and in a hundred diflPerent ways, notwithstand-
ing the ferocity of the Austrian police who attempted to
smother such demonstrations.
From 1861 to 1865 there was a suspension of arms in
146 SECOND PART
Italy, but no suspension of fighting for the national cause.
The Trentini would not resign themselves to being an-
nexed to the Teuton Tyrol. When in 1861 there was an
election for the Diet of Innsbruck, at Trent, only one
citizen and twenty-seven employees of the government
voted; at Rovereto only seven citizens and seventy em-
ployees; at Riva only two citizens and sixteen employees.
In other places the employees did not trouble themselves
to go to the polls. In the meantime the electors of Trent
signed a declaration to refrain from the election, "in the
certainty of thus expressing the general sentiments of the
country." Similar declarations were signed by voters in
several other places. Two of the elected deputies went to
the Diet and proposed the separation of Trentino from Tyrol.
The other deputies present said that ''their general
silence must be more eloquent than words and the solemn
manifestation of the popular will must no longer be mis-
understood."
It was in the elections of 1861 that the Italian liberal
party of Trieste won with a majority in all the public offices
(Municipal Council and Provincial Diet). And from that
time to this they have always held them **as the result of
their wise patriotic administration."
In the same year, 1861, the Diet of Istria, invited by the
Austrian Government to elect its representatives to the
parliament of Vienna, wrote on their ballots the single
word Nessuno [no one] and placed them in the ballot-box.
After a year the Austrian Government again called
the voters of Trentino for the elections. The electoral body
this time went to vote en masse and succeeded in making
the heads of the Italian autonomous party victorious. These
newly elected leaders hastened to send a memorial to the
Diet, in which they declared they would not attend the ses-
sion; and they sent another memorial to the council of the
empire requesting the separation of Trentino from the Tyrol.
On June 8, 1862, the Triestian and Istrian emigrants
sent a gift to Garibaldi consisting of several geographic and
eidographic maps of the Adriatic Sea and of its eastern shore,
and wrote to him:
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1861 TO 1865 147
General! Istria and Trieste earnestly wish to be released
from the Austrian yoke. God grant that this little gift which the
sons of Istria and Trieste offer to you may be useful to you in
helping to gratify their desires.
And Garibaldi on June lo, 1862, responded:
I know that Istria and Trieste long to break the chain with
which they have been tied to the hated foreign sovereignty. I
know that they are impatient to be restored to the mother country.
I have faith to believe that the day is not far distant when com-
plete national redemption will be effected.
On August 16, 1862, the populations of Trentino and
Trieste and Istria sent a considerable sum of money to the
central Venetian committee toward the erection of a monu-
ment to Cavour in Turin, writing:
We send to your excellencies this offering as a pledge of
patriotic sentiment which animates the Italian people who still
live in a land that, as yet, is foreign soil, but who have aspirations
to become a part in the great Italian family, and who, after many
centuries of misfortune, wish to be gathered in unity under the
constitutional scepter of Victor Emanuel II.
On November 11, 1862, after a clamorous trial of the
journal // Tempo of Trieste, which showed how intelligent,
intense and daring was the Italian propaganda that year
among the Triestians, Professor Paolo Tedeschi and Antonio
Antonaz, who had been the editors of the foregoing paper,
were condemned to severe penalties.
In the first part of the year 1863 the gentle Veronese poet,
Aleardo Aleardi, who, in 1848, had been entrusted by Manin
as ambassador from the Republicof Veniceto Paris, presented
Victor Emanuel II with an album which the Istrian, Trentini
and Venetian women had sent to Maria Pia, his daughter,
who was about to marry Louis I, King of Portugal. In
presenting the gift, the poet said, among others, these words:
They know (the women in Istria, Trentino and Veneto) that
when God, in the battles of the past, diverted the bullets from
your heroic breast, he did this to save you for this splendid mission
of uniting Italy. And when our flag shall wave from the Italian
hills of Trent and Pola, and shall be mirrored in the waters of our
Adriatic, then O Sire! you will be able to say to your son with
148 SECOND PART
supreme pride: Humbert, I have wrought for thee the most beautiful
crozvn of Europe.
The King graciously received the gift and the good wishes.
About the first of the year 1863, the Austrian Govern-
ment refused the demand to separate Trentino from the
Tyrol and notified the Irredentist deputies that if at the
end of a week they still refused to accept and to exercise
the mandate which they had received from the voters, a
new election would be necessary. The deputies did not
even disturb themselves enough to reply to the imperial
notification. And at the new election all were re-elected.
Then all sent their resignations to the Diet, declaring them-
selves ^'pleased to have been able to offer again to their fellow
countrymen the opportunity to express to the legislative
powers of the State in a legal and constitutional manner
what the tendency of public opinion was and what was the
will of the country." The successive elections were always
followed by the same results.
On February 17, 1863, at a masquerade in a theater of
Goritz, sixteen young men and girls, all Goritzians, came
dressed as Garibaldians. The Austrian police arrested
them and condemned the leaders to hard labor. Among
them were Nepomuceno Favetti and Clemente Riaviz,
who had indulged in the amusement of saluting one another
with these words: "One, two, three! Garibaldi our King!"
And a second reason for their punishment was that Riaviz
compelled one of the Austrians to kiss the picture of Gari-
baldi.
On May 14, 1863, the Austrian government dissolved the
Common Council of Pisino, because it sent representatives to
the centennial festival of Florence.
In 1864, inspired by Mazzini and with the encourage-
ment of Garibaldi, a military action was instigated against
Austria in Trentino. The leader of it was the Garibaldian
Ergisto Bezzi, who gathered around him his co-religionists
and fellow-soldiers of The Thousand (Fontana, Manci, Tran-
quillini, Zancani, and all the others) and organized a central
committee at Trent and sub-committees in smaller places.
But the Austrian Government learned of his plot and had
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1861 TO 1865 149
the leaders (about forty) arrested and dragged to Innsbruck
where there was a special military tribunal; and there they
were condemned for high treason, a part of them to nine
years, others to seven, to five, to three, and to two years, of
hard labor.
Mazzini, who had suffered so much because of the failure
of the enterprise, wrote to Bezzi:
Only a special line to say to you that I admire and love you
more than ever. I know that you have done all that it was in
the power of anyone to do. God knows how much I suffer for
your present condition; but you are young and the future will
give justice to you and to your faith. Ask anything of me in
which you believe that I can be useful to you, freely, as brother
to brother.
Even Garibaldi wrote to Bezzi, saying:
You have done your duty nobly. Until all Italians will follow
the example of men like you, they will deserve to remain under
the lash, and will merit universal contempt. To your brave
companions in prison I send a salutation from my soul.
In 1864 a conservative Italian senator imprudently de-
clared in open Assembly that ''Trieste was not within the
aspirations of the Italian government." From Trieste a
protest was quickly signed and sent by the most prominent
citizens and by hundreds of patriots. The Austrian Govern-
ment hoped that on the first occasion the municipal council
of Trieste would declare this protest false. In January, 1865,
the Council met: the Podesta, faithful to Austria, pro-
posed to negate the importance of the protest, and carefully
considered making unanimous an act of homage to the
Emperor Francis Joseph. But the members of the council,
enlightened and guided by the patriot De Rin, proudly re-
jected the proposal. Naturally the Council was dissolved.
But the Triestians had the satisfaction of seeing published,
in the Official Gazette of the Kingdom of Italy^ a declaration
of the Italian Government contradicting the assertion of
the conservative senator and affirming that not only was
Trieste Italian and for that reason within the aspiration
of the mother country, but having rejected the proposal of
150 SECOND PART
homage to Francis Joseph, it more than ever merited the
recognition of Italy.
In the meantime there were many books pubHshed prov-
ing the ItaHanity and the aspirations of Trentino, Trieste,
and Istria.
NiccoloTommaseo through his untiring writings defended
the ItaHanity of Dalmatia, affirming among other things
that the ItaHan language had always been maintained in
its purest form in Dalmatia, and it was used there in a
"much better manner than that used by Cavour himself in
speaking and writing."
X
The filial contribution of blood by the Trentini, the
Triestians, the Istrians and Dalmatians, who battle for
the independence and unity of Italy against the Austrians
in the war of 1866. Trieste and Istria fight for their
annexation to the Mother Country (1866).
The year i866 passed like a whirlwind. As soon as it
was known that Prussia and Italy were to be allied against
Austria, the emigration committee of Trieste and Istria
immediately pleaded the cause of the unredeemed regions,
sending addresses to Victor Emanuel II and to the members
of his government.
Alfonso Lamarmora, then President of the Ministry,
replied:
The past rivalry between Trieste and Venice is an old story
and can be placed side by side with that of Florence and Pisa;
Venice and Genoa; and between hundreds of other Italian cities.
The regions on the other side of the Isonzo river are Italian,
exactly as are any other provinces within the borders of the great
peninsula; that these regions feel themselves to be Italian and
that they have decided that they wish to be Italians is proved by a
series of courageous and clamorous manifestations which have
followed one another for so long in their principal centers.
The repeated dissolutions of the municipal councils of Trieste,
Goritz, Pisino and Capodistria; the dissolving of the provincial
IRREDENTISTS IN 1866 151
Diets of Trieste and of Istria (Parenzo) because they did not wish
to send any one to the Reichsrath of Vienna; the martial law of
1848-1859; the trials instituted and the political convictions at
that time and after; the prohibitions even of geographic maps,
the historic and diplomatic articles which treated calmly of those
regions; finally the banishments, arrests, and suspensions of per-
sonal liberty which even now are perpetrated, are facts which
cannot be destroyed with the usual phrase: Oh, they are a jew
seditious husybodies of Piedmont!
The Austrian Government responded to this by holding
as hostages and incarcerating in its fortresses many of the
most prominent citizens of Trieste and Istria; such as
Martino Zucchi, Gioacchino Lovisoni, Hermet, Hortis, Ma-
donizza, Rismondo and others.
But the patriots v^ere not discouraged by these harass-
ments. Instead, on June i8, i866, these exiles sent to
Victor Emanuel II, who was on his way to the battlefield,
the greeting of their oppressed brothers:
We [the Triestians and Istrians] will be the guardians of the
Julian Alps; of those Alps which many times have been infringed
upon by foreigners and are the necessary boundary and security
of national territory. We will give into your hands that Pola
which was an Italian naval port from the time of ancient Rome,
Austria has converted it into a menace to all of our Adriatic
shore. We will give to you that Trieste which Austria would
malignantly make the world believe is of German origin. It is
the vox populi which calls you to those regions; it is a cry of sor-
row and hope which bursts forth from the hearts of Italians who
invoke you as their liberator and salute you as their king.
The young Triestians, Istrians, Dalmatians and Tren-
tini hastened to place themselves under the flag of the
Patria (in the regular army and with Garibaldi). And
they fought with ardor against Austria.
At Custozza, June 24, 1866, for instance, Lieutenant
Leonardo D'Andri of Capodistria fell while he was fighting at
the head of his company, which had lost its captain. He had
run to the aid of the grenadiers of Sardinia, who were sorely
tried at M(5nte Croce; he impetuously assaulted that hill, re-
took it from the Austrians, and at the same time recaptured
152 SECOND PART
the prisoners and cannon which they had seized on taking
the mountain. For this act D'Andri was given the gold
medal for heroism.
In this same battle Claudio Zambelli, a Trentian, fell.
And not less distinguished for their valor were the Tries-
tians, Adolfo Sartori, R. Donaggio, Davide Milla, Giovanni
Druffel, Eugenio Popovich, Gustavo Buchler and Enrico
Ferolli;] the Istrians Girolamo Gravisi, Giovanni Vascon,
Michele Gallo, Carlo Depaugher, Domenico Grio, Domenico
Vidacowich, Pietro Madonizza, the Goritzian Angelo Maz-
zini, the Trentian Professor Alberto Eccher and others of
every state and social condition, all united with a single
thought: Italy.
On July 3, 1866, Garibaldi made an assault upon the
Austrians, who were superior in numbers, better armed, and
in a more favorable position at Monte Suello, and defeated
them. Among those, who contributed not a little by their
valor to this victory were: Bezzi, Tranquillini, Ciotti, Fon-
tana, Manci, Zancani, Leonardi, Zanolla and other Garibal-
dian Irredentists.^
The news of this brilliant feat of arms, coupled with the
fact that General Medici had come with his men to within a
few miles of Trent and that General Cadorna at the extreme
right was marching upon Trieste, did much to relieve the
minds of Italians, who were greatly disturbed by the dis-
aster at Custozza.
On July 9th, the Irredentists sent an address to King
Victor Emanuel II, repeating with fervor:
Italian soil must be rid of foreigners and the whole circle of
the Alps, our natural boundaries, must be in our power.
On July i6th, after a bitter fight against the Austrians
in the Trentino, Garibaldi occupied Condino. This victory
cost the Garibaldians much blood. Among those who fell
in this battle were the Triestians, Giuseppe Fenali, Giuseppe
Donati, Fillipo Faienz, Pietro Chiozza, Capria and Walfer.
Garibaldi, who in the last few days had freed a large part
of the Trentino from the Austrians, issued (July i8th),
the following proclamation to the people:
^ Garibaldi was wounded in the thigh at the battle of Monte Suello.
IRREDENTISTS IN 1866 153
Trentini: Your hopes and the hopes of all Italians are on the
eve of fulfillment. The war song of our musketry brings to you
the first echo of liberty; it brings to you a fraternal salutation.
You understand both. We will fight together for the liberty and
unity of Italy, and here on these your mountains, which are a
formidable defense for free men, clasping each others' hands we
will swear together to fight for the Finis Austriae; the end of for-
eign rule.
On July 20th, in a naval battle fought at Lissa between
the Italians and Austrians, an officer of the marine, Giovanni
Ivancich, a Dalmatian, fell with the name of Italy on his lips.
And on July 21st, the Garibaldians fought at Bezzecca the
greatest battle of the campaign, which lasted for more
than twelve hours. This victory cost the Hero 1,522 vol-
unteers, many of whom were from the Irredentist regions.
On July 25th, Garibaldi received from the government
of the King of Italy the famous telegram : "Armistice signed.
Evacuate Trentino.'* To which the Hero respondedwith the
more famous: "I obey!"
Then (at the end of July, 1866), in the liberated towns
(Storo, Darzo, Lodrone, Magaza, Dondone, Condino,
Cimego, Dono, Bersone, Upper and Lower Tiarno, Drione,
Strada, Bezzecca, Pieve of Ledro, Mezzolago, Molina and
Barcesina, Legos, Pie of Ledro, Biacesa, Concei, Locca,
Eugenise and Leusumo) the municipal councils and the
clergy signed and sent to Victor Emanuel II the following
address:
Now that the greatest sacrifices have been made; now that
Austria is crumbling in every direction, here comes 'diplomacy' as
an obstacle between us and our rights; and the voices of peace
become so insistent that we fear them, whereas a few days ago
we had so much hope in them. In this our distress we turn to
you, who have never been deaf to the cry of sorrow of your people;
and we say to you that we are yours, because we are part of the
Italian nation, and we are ready to give our substance and our
lives for her.
Numerous Trentian families in the war of 1866 gave each
two brothers to the Italian army; as, for example, the
Brescian family of Riva, the family De Pretis of Cagno,
the Ducati and the Molinari of Trent, the Eccheli of Ala,
154 SECOND PART
the Tavernini family of Dro, the Weiss family of Strigno.
The family of Count Sizzode Norisof Trent gave three. And
other families, like the Eccheli of Brentonico, the Jagher of
Trent and Martini of Riva, gave as many as four each.
Among those who earned the silver medal for valor was
the Triestian Enrico Ferolli, who was seriously wounded at
Cimego. Honorable mention was given to the Triestian,
Rodolfo Donaggio; medal and mention to the Trentini,
Carlo Chimelli, Virgilio Inama, Giovanni Jagher, Alessandro
Zinis, Carlo De Pretis, Ferdinando Rinaldi, Virgilio Covi and
Filippo Tranquillini. The cross of officer of the military
order of Savoy was offered to Ergisto Bezzi for his extraor-
dinary service during the entire campaign, but he refused
it as at other times he had refused the cross of cavalier.
In the Garibaldian legions the following greatly dis-
tinguished themselves: the Trentian, Oreste Bronzetti,
brother of the two fallen heroes Narciso and Pilade; the
Trentian lieutenant, Pietro Montanari, and Carlo Tivaroni.
Some volunteers were recent deserters from Austria, and
consequently they put their lives at a double risk. Such
were, for instance, the lieutenant Paolo Cortella of Storo,
Cernio Battorchi of Tione, and Isidoro Canella of Riva.
About August I, 1866, some Trentian patriots, led by
the Garibaldian captains, Francesco Martini and Filippo
Manci, attempted a revolutionary movement in Trentino
which had for its object the annexation to Italy (as soon as
peace should be declared), at least of the Trentino territory
occupied by the soldiers of Garibaldi. The attempt failed.
On August nth, the Triestians sent an appeal in which
they said:
In order that Italy may be a guarantee of the peace of Europe,
she should be placed in the political family as a unit. Lacking
that, and, consequently discontented and longing for affiliation,
she would have within herself the reason for new dissensions and
new conflicts.
Now the Alps, which form the eternal and natural boundary
of the Italian peninsula, rise back of Istria, just as they do behind
Piedmont, Lombardy and Veneto, properly so called. The Isonzo
River has its source in the Tricorno, one of the giant mountains of
the Alps, and distributes its waters to the regions of Drava,
IRREDENTISTS IN 1866 155
Sava, and Culpa, and also to those of the Adriatic Sea, through the
regions which send their quota of waters to the plains of the
Danube, and thence to the Black Sea and also to the declivities
of the Italian continent. Nature, therefore, was not uncertain
on the eastern limits of Italy in raising up such a notable barrier
to separate countries that diflPer so radically in every respect; so
much so that one can easily see even in the color and temperature
of the air, and by the vegetation, how they are separated by
unalterable laws.
The Isonzo River, the aulic boundary of Italy imposed by
Vienna, would have remained almost unknown if a little back of
its right bank, Austria had not created a separate administration
for the imperial lieutenancy of Venice. Even when the counts of
Goritz and the Archduke of Austria ruled over the Isonzo River
opposite the republic of Venice, its whole course was not all of
the boundary of the two dominions, but other minor waters and
moats, and other evidences of private estates beyond on the low-
lands and in the mountains of Friuli were the boundaries.
Those, however, who have learned to limit Venice on the
east to the margin of a little stream, should (to show coherence
in their historical reminiscences) cede to Austria that part on the
right bank of the Isonzo already conceded to it by the hasty adjust-
ments made at the time of the Napoleonic kingdom in Italy, in
face of the fact that Istria was annexing itself to that kingdom.
Stop, therefore, such notions of the geography of Italy as have
no foundation other than the insidious ambition of the Austrian
chancellery. The geography of our Patria we learn from nature,
and not as Austria would have us learn it, in order to preserve her
illusions of a new conquest.
To recognize and to protect our own is our firS*t duty; and
civilized nations cannot do other than recognize that such duty
is also our right.
The Istrians with the Triestians published another
memorial directing it to Visconti Venosta, foreign minister
of Italy. Here are the most salient points:
Istria is a point facing the Lagoon, and it is attached to the
mainland by means of little islands and the swamps of Grado,
Marano and Aquileia; Istria is a portion of land detached from
our Alps and slipped down into our sea; it is to us almost a harbor.
It is a necessar)^ stopping place for us. The Roman and Venetian
fleets wintered at Pola, which, following the changes of centuries.
156 SECOND PART
was a branch of Aquileia, of Ravenna and of Venice. The
Venetian galleys equipped themselves at the port of Quieto.
Large and small ships which are on the way to Venice are obliged
to stop at Quieto, at Umago and at Pirano. One cannot go to
Venice without touching the coast of Istria. No boat, not a
steamer, could venture into the upper Adriatic without danger
from the cannons of Pola.
Istria, on her part, is Italian by origin, but is Venetian by
spontaneous surrender. She fell with Venice in 1797 after the
ill-advised peace of Campoformio; it is right and it is necessary
that with Venice she shall rise again; otherwise not only Istria
would suffer, but Venice with her.
Istria formed a part of the first Kingdom of Italy from 1805
to 1810, and when it fell again into the hands of Austria, the
latter promised to annex it to the other provinces of Venice; but
such promises — Austrian promises — were as usual not fulfilled.
In 1848 and in 1859 Istria — at the demand of the people and
by means of its municipal council — demanded and re-demanded
to be united to Venice, but always in vain, because Austria re-
mained mistress of the situation.
With the new order of things into which Europe must neces-
sarily enter, it is in the interests of civilization that there shall be
a satisfied and a strong Italy. But that Italy will never be, with-
out the frontiers of the Rhaetian, Carnic and Julian Alps, and
without the ports which nature offers on the coast of Istria in
compensation for those ports which nature has denied her on the
remaining Adriatic coast from Otranto to Grado.
The Italian nation has her eyes turned to the army and navy;
she thinks that a rapid and daring action would give those lands
into our possession, would facilitate the work of diplomacy, would
offer to the Istrian population the longed for opportunity to
disprove with facts the doubts which from some quarters are
still circulating about them.
In repeating therefore the high confidence which we have in
you, in the entire council of ministers, and in its illustrious head,
we do not hide the hope of the Italian Government, which the
memory of the great Cavour inspires, for the command of land
nnd sea, and we must be in readiness, in concord, with vigorous
decisions which are necessary for the interest and honor of Italy
who waits, but feels a sense of life in her whole being. She wishes
to be a whole and not simply to exist, but to occupy the position
with her peers, which she expects finally to hold in Europe.
In fact, in Istria there is not a village that shows even a little
IRREDENTISTS IN 1860 157
civic life which is not purely Italian. The national character is
conspicuously Italian in all of its exterior manifestations.
Its manner of dressing, its customs, traditions, legends, songs,
proverbs, are Italian. The architecture, from the humblest
cottage to the city hall, is Italian. The brush and chisel, which
decorate the temples and the public buildings, are Italian. Italian
are the laws of the Communes, of which they have striking ex-
amples in the municipal statutes as far back as the year 1200,
fashioned after those of the Romans, and such statutes regulated
the civic life of the Istrian regions during the time that in many
other parts of Italy there were only feudal lords and plebs ignorant
of their past, their present or their future. Istria has illustrious
names, which stand among the greatest of Italy. Who does not
know the names of Vergerio and Flaccio, celebrated in the history
of the Reformation; Sartorio, a leader in medical science; Muzio,
competitor of Davanzati; Carli, the economist; Carpaccioand his
paintings; the music of Tortini, not to mention the hundreds of
others from Istria who reached the highest and most honored
seats in the universities of Padua, Pisa, Bologna and Rome.?
Under Rome, the province of Istria was always the most
jealously guarded region of Italy, as the military monuments
prove, of which we today admire the numerous remains and
which Roman genius erected along the frontier against the nations
on the opposite side of the Alps. And when those nations con-
quered the Roman Empire and irrupted on them and plundered
and made Italy servile, it was the people of Istria and the people
of the sea coast of Venice who, more than any other, saved the
name of Italy, forming themselves into a government of free Com-
munes (the first Italian Communes of the medieval age) under the
nominal sovereignty of Byzantium.
Afterward, Istria continued to fight against foreigners (Longo-
bardians, Slavs, Mongolians, Huns, Avars, Saracens); and we
know that from that period the honor of the Venetian flag, or, as
they said, the "Beatified Mark," was confided to the allied
galleys and arms of the Istrians.
Butalldemandswereinvain. In the treaty of peace signed
at Prague, August 24, 1866, the just pretensions of Italy to
the unredeemed regions and to that part of the Trentino
acquired by Garibaldi v^ere not recognized by conquering
Prussia nor by the mediator, France. Thus the Govern-
ment of Victor Emanuel II, by virtue of the treaty of peace
158 SECOND PART
signed at Vienna, October 3, 1866, had to remain content
with Venice only, ceded by Francis Joseph to Napoleon III,
and by him given to Italy.
What sorrow this produced in the hearts of the people
of the unredeemed regions can well be imagined especially
if one consider that the Triestian, Pietro Brambilla, was in-
formed by the Minister Visconti-Venosta, that Trieste was
the objective point of the Italian military operations; and
that Hortis and Carlo Combi, Triestians, were named vice
commissioners of the Italian Government; one for Trieste
and the other for Istria; and Carlo Boggio, a lawyer, who
died in the naval battle of Lissa, had in his pocket the decree
with which he was nominated royal commissioner of Trieste.
On November 14, 1866, Victor Emanuel II in traveling,
stopped at Udine. In the procession of citizens there were
more than 3,000 Goritzians, Triestians and Istrians. A
Garibaldian of The Thousand^ a native of Trieste, carried an
Italian flag draped with crepe. On the following day they
(the 3,000) presented the draped flag to the mayor of Udine
with a considerable sum of money as a contribution from the
Italians of the Irredentist region for a monument to Daniele
Manin, Doge of the Republic of Venice during the memor-
able years 1848-49.
XI
The filial contributions of blood by the Triestians,
Istrians, Trentini and Dalmatians to Italy in the taking
of Rome (1867-1870).
Thfe unredeemed regions of Italy were shocked by the
way in which they were abandoned in 1866, but the patriots
did not despair. They continued to work ardently for the
complete unity of the Patria.
In May, 1867, the Italian Government consigned to
the Austrians the convicts whom the latter had left in
Veneto. They sent them to the station of Goritz, where
from the hands of the Italian carabinieri they were given in-
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1867 TO 1870 159
to the hands of the Austrian gendarmes. The Goritzians
received the ItaHan carabinieri with rejoicings, offering
them food and champagne; cheering Italy, Garibaldi and
Victor Emanuel 11. During the night, the Austrian police
made many arrests, and after a couple of days fourteen young
Goritzians were condemned each to two weeks in prison and
two da^^s without food.
On the night of July I2, 1867, numerous rough Slovenes
farmers, incited and protected by the Austrian police, went
in procession to Trieste, hectoring the citizens with the cry,
" Long live Austria !" These latter responded crying, "Long
live Italy!" and repulsed the assailants. The provocation
was renewed the next day, and the citizens attacked and
disarmed the Slovenes. But the imperial Austrian troops
intervened and fired on the Triestians, killingtwo and wound-
ing twenty-three.
When Garibaldi was ''arrested" in September, 1867, by
the order of the government of Savoy, indignation blazed in
the hearts of the Irredentists. At the mass meeting held in
the Theatre Minerva in Udine, September 26, 1867, Pietro
De Carina of Monfalcone, protesting in thenameof the Italian
provinces subject to Austria, reminded the meeting among
other things of the words which the Hero a few months be-
fore had directed to the Irredentist immigrants in this same
city of Udine: "Words of hope and of comfort," said the
speaker, "which quickly passed to the not far distant
boundaries, meeting a joyful echo from the fringe of the
Julian Alps to the rock of Timavo, and to the shores of the
gulf of Quarnero, and, it makes my heart tremble to say it,
to the graves of Trentini which are even yet bloody; to
the graves of the poor victims of 1866."
In the Garibaldian expedition of the Agro Romano all
the unredeemed provinces of Italy were represented. The
Trentian, Giuseppe Fontana, was the first to pass the boun-
dary of the Roman State at the head of 150 volunteers. Of
the seventy-five Italians, forming the handful who were
led by the brothers Cairoli and aided by revolutionary
patriots of Rome, twenty were Triestians. In the glorious
combat of Villa Glori (October 23, 1867) four Triestians
160 SECOND PART
fell dead, and others were wounded, among whom were
Gian Luigi Vidali and Pietro Mosettig who fell near Gio-
vanni Cairoli. And among those who penetrated into Rome
was Giusto Muratti, also a Triestian.
In the wool shop of Giulio Ajani in Trastevere, at the
side of the heroine Giuditta Arquati-Tavani, and the other
generous patriots also massacred by the Pope's merce-
naries the same day (October 23d), were Francesco Mauro
and Enrico Ferolli, Triestians; and Rodolfo Donaggio,
also a Triestian, was seriously wounded.
At Monterotondo (October 25, 1867) the Garibaldian
captain Marziano Ciotti of Gradisca, kindled a fire at
the door of the fortress, forcing its defenders to surrender
and thus decided the famous victory which Garibaldi gained
over the papal army. Afterward the Hero wrote to Ciotti:
You at the head of your company were the first to enter
Monterotondo on the burning ruins at the Porta San Rocco. I
proclaim you a hero, and brave was the company which you
commanded. The Italian women will honor the champions of our
glories. And I send to you a fraternal kiss.
Afterward at Mentana, in that glorious defeat, Marziano
Ciotti of Gradisca fought heroically; Luigi Pecenco of Trieste
and a sixteen year old volunteer, Giuseppe PoUini of Rove-
reto, fell dead on the field; and the Trentian, Ergisto Bezzi
remained seriously wounded and a prisoner. And among
the last to leave the field of battle were captain Emilio
Maddali, Triestian; Carlo Tivaroni, Dalmatian; Federico
Cuder, Istrian; and Vincenzo Cattarozzi, Trentian.
At Florence the two Dalmatian brothers, Tommaso and
Rovis Vusio, worked for the rescue of Rome.
At Padua, the Istrian University students, with Domenico
Lavisato as their leader, conspired for the same purpose.
Garibaldi, responding from Caprera to an address which
they sent him, encouraged them with these words:
Thank you for your kind attestation of love. You are Italian
by origin and aspirations, and therefore Italy must not forget you,
as Istria is one of the most beautiful gems in her crown. I would
willingly give my life for the complete rescue of our family.
IRREDENTISTS FROM 1867 TO 1870 161
On April 20, i868, the marriage of Prince Humbert of
Savoy to his cousin, the Princess Margherita, was celebrated.
The Irredentist immigrants presented an address to Victor
Emanuel II, extending from Udine the good wishes of the
Trentian and Julian regions, reminding him and the newly
wedded pair that "only by the rescue of these regions would
the star of Italy shine without a blemish."
In the same year, i868, the Istrians, Triestians, Friulians
and Dalmatians had the satisfaction of seeing the Italian
parliament approve the law by which "all Italians of the
provinces, which do not yet form a part of the Kingdom of
Italy, are equal in the exercise of civil rights as citizens of
the nation, on condition — after presenting their birth
papers and conforming to the other formalities of the law —
that they register their names in the books of an Italian
town of their choice."
The members of the national committee of Goritz wrote
to Benedetto Cairoli,^ who had presented and supported this
law from 1862, reminding him that "as in the past the faith
of the Goritzians in Italy was unshaken, it would continue
unshaken in the future, and it was necessary that their free
brothers should sometimes encourage them with words of
comfort." The committee, thanking Cairoli for his having
said these words of comfort, begged of him always to re-
member them and they prayed for the day of their deliver-
ance.
Cairoli responded:
Your misfortune is a common evil and it would also be a
shame if it could be forgotten; but it is not. I shall remember
your sufferings, your daring protests and the aid which you have
given in the battles, in the sorrows, and your share in the glories,
of the Italian Patria. Your cause therefore is ours, and I hope to
be able to consecrate to it not only my word but my life. Receive
from me, brave citizens and worthy interpreters of the national
thought, a fraternal salute.
In July 1868, after several demonstrations by the munici-
^ Sonof Dr. Carlos Cairoli and Adelaide Bono, the modern mother of the Gracchi;
one of the finest heroes of the Italian Risorgimento, a deputy to the National Parli-
ament for thirty years, and Minister of Foreign Affairs under Humbert 1(1825-1889)
162 SECOND PART
pal council and by the people of Trieste, a crowd of Slavic
farmers, incited and abetted by a territorial battalion com-
posed of the fiercest Slavs, called hdcoli (cockroaches) by the
people, brutally assaulted the Triestians with the cry "Long
live Austria!" The Triestians repulsed them, crying. Viva
Vltalia! The fight continued until the following day. A
Triestian student, Rodolfo Parisi, and twoTriestian workmen,
Francesco Sussa and Niccolo Zecchia, fell dead in the street
(the first received 22 blows of bayonets) ; in the main street of
the city there were dozens of wounded. At the funeral of
the victims there was an immense crowd, from whom were
gathered more than 11,000 signatures with which the city
demanded from the government the dissolving of the
territorial battalion. But instead of justice, the Triestians
received more terrible persecutions from the police. Many
citizens were arrested. The condemnations were serious.
The spirit of the Triestians was embittered. They felt the
yoke of Austria grow heavier than ever.
In August 1868, at Goritz, a small bomb was exploded
in the cathedral during the mass which was celebrated for
the birthday of Francis Joseph. Carlo Blasig was suspected
by the Austrian police and was condemned to six years' im-
prisonment. In the prison of Gradisca where he was
incarcerated, he met Melchiorre De Pregel, a fellow-citizen
and brother of the same faith, who had been condemned for
four years; between them they concocted a plan of escape
which they put into execution, fleeing and taking refuge in
Udine.
Thus, between conspiracies, demonstrations, persecu-
tions, trials, condemnations, martyrdom of every sort,
the Italian Irredentists arrived at the second half of the year
1870.
On September 20th of that year, the Italian soldiers,
commanded by General RafFaele Cadorna, entered Rome.
On that memorable occasion, the officer, Cristoforo Venier of
Capodistria, distinguished himself and was wounded, to-
gether with other Irredentists.
At Trieste the news of the taking of Rome was received
with great joy. The people ran hurrying through the streets
THE MARTYRDOM OF OBERDAN 163
cheering for Italy. The Austrian police charged with fixed
bayonets and dispersed the crowds, but they always re-
assembled and defended themselves. In the evening all the
windows of the houses were brilliantly illuminated. The
Austrian pohce ran from house to house blowing out the
lights, but they were quickly relighted. This infuriated the
police against the people.
It has been truly said that on that day (September 20,
1870) there was more blood spilled at Trieste than at Rome.
XII
Triestians are found among the Garibaldian volunteers
in defense of France against Prussia in the war of 1870.
Continued demonstrations of Italianity in the Irredentist
regions (1872-1882). The young Triestian, William
Oberdan, university student at Rome, ardent apostle of
Italianity, is hanged at Trieste for attempting to take the
life of Francis Joseph. Tremendous Italian demonstra-
tions against Austria (December 1882).
In the autumn of 1870, Garibaldi, forgetting his treat-
ment in 1848 and in 1866, placed himself at the head of an
Italian corps of volunteers among whom were his sons,
Menotti and Ricciotti, and his son-in-law, Stefano Canzio,
and went to France to defend the Republic against Prussia,
The Hero defeated the Prussians, charging with bayonets
at Pasques, Prenois andCommarin; he defeated them again
at Dijon after three days of terrible fighting (January 21,
22, 23, 1871) and there captured the flag of the 6ist regiment
of infantry. This was the only flag which the Prussians
lost in the memorable war with France.
Caprin, Dudovich and several other Triestians, for whom
Garibaldi impersonated the ideal of liberty for all oppressed
people, took part with him in the aforesaid battle.
The death of Mazzini took place at Pisa, March 10, 1872,
and produced immense sorrow in the unredeemed lands. At
Trieste black-bordered manifestos were circulated expressing
164 SECOND PART
the citizens' grief. The Austrian police sequestered that
number of the journal UOperaio (organ of the local society
of workmen of which Edgardo Rascovich was president),
because it had been made the interpreter of the Triestian
sentiments of sorrow.
In 1873 Victor Emanuel II, going to Vienna, passed
through Nabresina. The Austrian police stopped hundreds
of carriages which carried Triestians who wished to salute
"their King," and arrested great numbers. In the same
year Alessandro Manzoni ^ died in Italy. At Trieste mani-
festations of grief were shown by the citizens, followed by
persecutions by the Austrian police.
In July 1877, the Istria-Triestian committee published
a proclamation in which they assured the Italian Irredentists
that the staunchest patriots of Italy — Garibaldi, Cairoli,
Avezzana, Fabrizi and others — had always been determined
to recover the regions subject to the Hapsburgs.
When the news came to Trieste that Victor Emanuel II
had died January 9, 1878, the Triestians, as an evidence of
their sorrow, immediately closed their shops and theaters.
The Austrian police attempted, but in vain, to re-open them;
they tore down the Italian flags which were draped with
black; sequestered the newspapers; arrested and condemned
citizens en masse. Notwithstanding all this, on January 14,
1878, at the funeral in the Pantheon, at Rome, there appeared
a superb wreath of flowers, which the city of Trieste had sent
"To their King'* by the hands of a special committee. And
on JaAuary 15, 1878, at the funeral mass under the auspices
of the Italian consulate in Trieste, new and popular mani-
festations of Italianity were followed by other arrests and
other condemnations. Among other marks of loyalty, the
Common Council at the suggestion of the Councillor Antonio
Vidacovich, suspended the session as a mark of their
sorrow.
At Goritz, on June 2, 1878, an Italian flag waved from
the hill of Montuzza and on the same day, from the highest
^This distinguished Milanese novelist and poet was the author of / Promessi
S*OJi, which has been translated into every modern tongue. One day, on receiving
Garibaldi into his own home, he exclaimed: "This is the happiest day of my life!"
(1785-1873.)
THE MARTYRDOM OF OBERDAN 165
point of the hill, another great Italian flag was raised with
an invocation for unity.
In the same year Giosue Carducci visited Trieste and
was received with rejoicings. From that visit the poet
derived the inspiration for his odes Saluto Italico and Mira-
mar. The first edition of Saluto Italico was made into loose
leaves by the society Young Trieste and the edition was
quickly exhausted. In the last verse in this volume the poet
referred to the Italian Irredentists, saying to them:
In the face of strangers, who are encamped on your soil, cry:
Italia, Italia, Italia!
For circulating this many were arrested and convicted.
On October 15, 1878, Garibaldi wrote from Caprera to
the Triestian society called Young Trieste:
If today I feel myself to be an old man, it is because I feel my-
self to be useless to the sacred cause of Trieste and Trent. I
should be proud, however, to give to you the last days of my life.
On October 19, 1878, at a secret meeting at Forli pre-
sided over by Aurelio Saffi, at which Edgardo Rascovich of
Trieste was present, it was decided to open a recruiting
station in Italy for the purpose of forming a liberating
expedition into the Irredentist region, its first object being
immediately to collect arms.
In this same year a number of Triestian students were
arrested, among whom was one Salvatore Barzilai.^
In Goritz, in 1878, a national journal called // Goriziano
was started. Notwithstanding continual persecutions it
imperturbably continued its battle for Italianity. But
the Austrian authorities arrested the editors, brought them
to trial and condemned them to prison. The principal
persons accused were Antonio Tabai, an architect, and Giu-
seppe Vinci; both were condemned to prison; but on Decem-
ber 15th, they audaciously escaped to Udine in Italy.
Also the Goritzians, Giuseppe Ricchetti, Carlo Jamsy,
^The Triestian Barzilai has been deputy to the ItaHan National Parliament
from a district of Rome representing the Italian Irredentists during the last
twenty-five years. For a long time he had been president of the Associated Press
in Italy and was Minister in the Salandra Cabinet.
166 SECOND PART
Giuseppe de Mulitsch, Luigi Gregorich, Stefano Riaviz,
Emilio Pogatschnig and Vincenzo Luccardi were condemned
to several years of imprisonment.
In February 1879, at Goritz some bombs were exploded.
The Austrian police searched the houses of the best families
of the city and arrested Ugo Zanardi, Menotti Delfino,
Attilio and Emilio Mortera, Gustavo Fabricci, Sigismondo
Stella and Alessandro Regazzini, and they were condemned,
some to two and some to three years in the dungeons of
Capodistria and Gradisca.
When on June 3, 1882, it was known that Giuseppe
Garibaldi had died at Caprera the evening before, at
Trieste, at Trent and in all of the unredeemed regions
there occurred demonstrations similar to those that had
followed the death of Victor Emanuel II: great manifesta-
tions of sorrow on the part of the citizens, ferocious per-
secutions on the part of the Austrian police.
Thus the year 1882 was one of the most restless and
important for the Italian Irredentists. The death of
Garibaldi resuscitated in the hearts of the oldest, all of
the charm and the poetry of the Garibaldian epopee, and
aroused glorious memories in the young. More than this,
the insistent voice of an imminent alliance between the
Italian and Austrian Governments was heard. The souls
of the Italian people rebelled at the idea of a union with an
ancient tyranny, which as yet bound Italian soil with an
iron chain. Such a union meant formal and decisive re-
nunciation of the unredeemed lands. The patriots could
not resign themselves to accepting the cold and calculating
reasons of state, judging them to be illogical, unnatural
and monstrous.
Austria, however, indifferent to Italian sentiment, wished
to celebrate in the year 1882, the fifth centenary of the so-
called "dedition" of Trieste as a challenge to the sup-
pressed Irredentist agitation. The Austrian Government
promoted and organized an Industrial Exposition at Trieste,
and ordered the Triestians to take their part in it. The
citizens responded by showing themselves hostile to the
proposed festivities. Then the representative of the Aus-
THE MARTYRDOM OF OBERDAN 167
trian Government enlisted outsiders, debauched them, and
with them tried to improvise in Trieste demonstrations fav-
orable to the Empire. The paid press swelled the import-
ance of such demonstrations, making Europe understand
that Trieste was loyal to the Hapsburgs.
But the resolute attitude of the citizens frustrated the
attempts of the court followers. For instance: a local
Austrian society attempted to raise a flag given to it by the
Austrian Princess, Stefania; but at the moment of the raising
it could not be found, having been ''mislaid" by Italian pa-
triots. The Slav sculptor Rendic one morning entered his
studio prepared to take to the public square one of his
statues representing the "dedition" of Trieste, but he
found it headless. The Austrian police rose in fury.
On the occasion of the visit of the Austrian Archduke
Charles Ludwig and on the evening before the opening of the
exposition, the government ordered military bands to play
through the streets, and they were followed by crowds of
the lowest Croatian element, led by a dozen or more high
functionaries of the Austrian Government. These shouted
"Down with Italy and death to Italians! Prison, gallows
and bullets for the liberals!" The results of the provocation
were serious. Two bombs were exploded. Three high
Austrian functionaries and about twenty lesser ones and
some spies were struck. Some of them lost their lives and
others were seriously wounded, thus expiating the insult to
the sentiments of Italianity and of Hberty held by an entire
population.
The police did not succeed in discovering the authors
of this attempt; but they took revenge by incarcerating num-
erous suspected citizens. They also arrested the young
printers Luigi Schirone, Ricciotti Gervasio and Arturo
Kattenbrunner for having clandestinely printed the approval
of the attempt, and they were condemned for defending the
crime. For the same reason they convicted two peasant
women, Giulietta Krammer and Carolina Olacutti, one to
one and one-half years and the other to two years of hard
labor.
On August i8, 1882, the police sequestered a trunk con-
168 SECOND PART
taining a bomb of the Orsini type, and a smaller bomb be-
longing to Filippo Spongia of Rovigno of Istria, a sailor of
the Lloyd Company. These had been sent by theTriestians
exiled in Milan, who were affiliated with the Garibaldian
Circle of Trieste and presided over by Raimondo Battera.
Numerous arrests and condemnations followed.
At the opening of the exposition only the employees of
the government attended, and they were protected by the
Austrian soldiers. The citizens absolutely refused to go.
At the ticket office only one paid ticket was found; while the
next morning the garden of the exposition was covered with
the tri-colored badges and proclamations of the Italians.
At Vienna the haughty conduct of the Triestians irri-
tated the government circles. It was immediately officially
announced that in the following September, 1882, Emperor
Francis Joseph would visit Trieste to assure the success of
the exposition by his august presence and to put a bridle on
the rebellious conduct of the Triestians.
Meanwhile at Rome there was a Triestian student named
Guglielmo Oberdan, twenty-four years of age, in the en-
gineering department of the university. He was a young
man of fine culture and of austere moral qualities, a fervent
apostle of Irredentism, greatly esteemed and loved by the
professors as well as by his fellow students and other Italian
patriots. He was poor and fatherless. His mother was a
native of Goritz. He was a private tutor to his compan-
ions and worked as designer with an engineer in Rome, by
means of which he was able to earn twenty dollars a month,
and on this sum he lived "Hkealord" and also sent a small
sum to his mother, whom he adored.
In 1882 Oberdan was approaching his graduation. But
the Irredentist fermentation, the rumors of an imminent
Italo-Austrian alliance and recent events in his Trieste
fired his soul. More than once he said that**the cause of
Trieste needed the blood of a Triestian martyr," and when
he believed that the time was ripe he dedicated himself to
the sacrifice. And, considering that the plans of the armed
expeditions from Italy to the Irredentist regions (plans
which were renewed every year) always failed, he himself
THE MARTYRDOM OF OBERDAN 169
decided to promote an insurrectional movement at Trieste
in the hope of having the aid of Italy.
Before leaving to carry out his plan, Oberdan went
to the office of // DoverCy a republican journal of Rome
directed by Felice Albani, where he wrote and signed his
political testament:
To my Italian Brothers:
I go to perform a solemn and important act.
Solemn, because I prepare myself for a sacrifice; important,
because it will bring forth fruit.
It is necessary that similar acts shall shake from their shameful
torpor the souls of youths who are free and those who are not
free.
Too long these generous sentiments have been silenced; too
long has the head been bowed to every sort of insult from strangers.
Sons forget their fathers. The name Italian threatens to become
synonymous with cowardice or indiflPerence.
No! Our generous instincts cannot thus die. They only lie
dormant, they will awaken.
At the first cry of alarm the youth of Italy will rise; they will
run with the names of our Great Ones on their lips and expel for-
ever from Trieste and Trent the hated stranger, who for so long
has menaced and oppressed us.
Oh, I would that this my act might lead Italy into war against
the enemy! To war! the only salvation, the only barrier that can
arrest the increasing moral dissolution of our youth.
To war, youth, while we yet have time to blot out the shame
of the present generation; and let us fight like lions!
Out with the strangers! And as winners, strong with great
love for the true Patria, we will prepare ourselves to fight other
battles and conquer for the true idea, for the idea which has always
pushed the strong to bloody battle, for the Republican idea.
First be independent, then be free, Brothers of Italy! Avenge
Trieste and then avenge me!
September 1882. Guglielmo Oberdan.
The young man left Rome, after having received from
the Triestians the promise of an insurrection, of a sort
of "Triestian Vespers, " for which it was said the means were
ready. He received encouragement and promises of aid
from various prominent democrats of Italy.
170 SECOND PART
He arrived at Udine, September 15 1882. From Udlne
he directed his steps to the Italo-Austrian boundary and
succeeded in passing it under a stormy sky (the preceding
night there had been a deluge). Facing a cold wind and
through b>^'ays steep and muddy, he reached the little
hamlet of Ronchi in Eastern Friuli and stopping at the inn
of a certain Giovanni Berini, asked for a room. He was
weary; he threw himself on the bed; he slept; but suddenly
he was wakened by a loud knock on the door. Shoeless
and in his night shirt he hastened to open it and saw before
him the Austrian gendarmes.
*' Who are you?" demanded the leader.
"Giovanni Rossi from Goritz, " responded Oberdan, who
understood that he had been betrayed; and he quickly
snatched his revolver, crying in his dialect, "It must be you
or me!" and fired.
The leader of the gendarmes, who had quickly snatched
the revolver of Oberdan, hoping to divert the shot, had the
finger of one hand crushed. The youth was overpowered
by the Austrian patrol, disarmed and tightly tied. In his
valise were found two bombs and a flask of powder. The
gendarmes dragged him in chains to Monfalcone. Then,
to the imperial Austrian commissioners, Oberdan declared
himself to be Giovanni Rossi, son of the dead Francesco
(Rossi) and Giuseppina Ciani, who was living; twenty-four
years of age; of Trieste; student of physical and mathemat-
ical sciences. He also declared that he had fired at the
captain of the gendarmes, because the Austrian uniform to
him, an Italian, was most abhorrent as representing a power
"which remained by force in our home." As to his in-
tentions, he confessed that he was headed toward Trieste to
take part in the celebration which they were holding "and
to give in some way a greeting to his Imperial Majesty."
He acknowledged as his the bombs, the revolver, the
powder flask, certain explosive capsules and all of the other
things found in his valise. In consequence of such declara-
tions, Oberdan was dragged to Trieste, surrounded by an
escort of armed Austrians, and was incarcerated in the for-
tress of San Giusto to await his trial.
THE MARTYRDOM OF OBERDAN 171
Francis Joseph arrived to visit the exposition of Trieste.
The city appeared Austrian only because of the imperial
flags on the ships anchored in the port, by emblems on the
government offices and by the presence of soldiers and the
guards with their spiked helmets. But the citizens were not
to be seen anywhere.
Whoever in those days made himself familiar with the life of
a Trlestian citizen, would have known that his heart was Italian,
Whoever had heard the intimate voice of those hearts would have
heard repeated without end one name: Italia!
On the birthday of the emperor, the exposition of
Trieste reached the maximum of its visitors — two hundred.
Meanwhile three months had passed since the arrest of
Oberdan. Finally, he was recognized^ as a deserter and then
as the culprit who had attempted to take the Hfe of Francis
Joseph and the compages of the Austro-Hungarian Em-
pire, and by court martial he was condemned to death
by means of the halter.
While listening to the reading of the sentence, Oberdan
smiled, and fixing his calm blue eyes on the judges, simply
said, "Thank you." The desperate mother implored grace
from the Emperor. But she was denied it. She was only
granted permission "in an exceptional manner" to visit her
son on the condition that she would induce him to ask di-
rectly for imperial grace. This the poor creature tried to
do, but the young man proudly rejected the card presented
for his signature. And to the sobbing mother he said with
voice sweet but firm, "Mother, be quiet, I shall know how to
be worthy of you." From that moment the unhappy woman
was not again permitted to see the child of her bosom.
An infinite number of telegrams, invoking grace for the
young Triestian condemned to death, arrived for Francis
Joseph from every part of Europe. Among others who
^ The city of Trieste had accorded to Oberdan, when he was younger, a " Borsa
di studio" of 300 lire a year ($60.00) because at Vienna he had graduated in engi-
neering. Thus he arrived at the age of military service and as a university student
he was incorporated in the zzd Austrian Weber regiment, which in that year,
1878, repressed the revolts of the proud mountaineers of Bosnia, who defended
their rights of independence against Austria. Guglielmo Oberdan, ardent soul of
liberty, thirsty for justice, deserted the Austrian army and went first to Ancona
and thence to Rome.
172 SECOND PART
telegraphed was the great jurist and Italian criminologist,
Francesco Carrara and the poet, Giosue Carducci. Victor
Hugo telegraphed from Paris, saying:
Sire, here is an opportunity for grace. All the world awaits it.
Clemency is the virtue of kings. The penalty of death is abolished
among civilized people. The penalty of death will be canceled
from the codes in the twentieth century. It would be well to
put in practice from this hour a law of the future.^
The Triestian women, at the head of whom was Cle-
mentina Bazzoni, wife of Dr. Bazzoni, Podesta of Trieste,
among other things said to Francis Joseph: "Sire, save a
young life. Spare the city of Trieste from the horror of
capital punishment."
But the Emperor of the Hapsburgs responded to no one.
The cell in which Oberdan was confined was six feet
wide and nine feet long, with an iron door. The large cell
next to him was occupied by a small troop of rough Austrian
soldiers, who sneered at and insulted the condemned man.
Oberdan responded to them by singing patriotic hymns.
December 19, 1882, the eve of the execution, was a day
of indescribable anguish for the Triestian patriots. The
women crowded around the office of the Austrian police,
hoping to see the longed-for telegram conceding grace to the
condemned youth. But nothing reached them. There
came instead by special train, at eight o'clock in the evening,
directly from Vienna, a Mr. Miillenbacher, the hangman
of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He was dressed in black
with a tall silk hat and gloves also of black. He was ac-
companied by two assistants. Few knew of his arrival.
From the station he went in a closed carriage to the great
barracks to eat and sleep. In the morning (December 20,
1882) at six o'clock they forced Guglielmo Oberdan to dress
himself in the uniformof the Austrian Weber regiment which
he had deserted; he was visited by the military physician,
Mandich, and then by the chaplain. But the young man
refused the so-called consolation of religion.
* In Italy the death penalty was abohshed following the_work Crimes and
Penalties by the illustrious Italian criminologist Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794), a
work that Voltaire called "the natural human code." Catherine 11, Empress of
Russia, inserted it in full in her code.
THE MARTYRDOM OF OBERDAN 173
Toward seven o'clock he was ordered to leave his cell.
The north wind whistled. It was bitterly cold. In the
damp court yard darkness reigned, and it was only lugubri-
ously lighted by the smoky red rays from the lanterns of
the jailers. In the obscurity glistened the points of the bayo-
nets held by the soldiers who filled the court yard, and the
arms of the gallows were outlined ominously in the near
distance.
Oberdan fixed his gaze fearlessly on it and went to meet
it with firm step. At the foot of the gallows he tore off' the
military cape, threw it on the ground and stamped it under
foot with supreme hate. Then he ascended the fatal stairs.
Reaching the platform he cried: *'I die content, because I
hope my death may be of service in reuniting my be-
loved Trieste to the mother country. " The military com-
mander silenced him, ordered the roll of the drums to drown
his voice and directed the hangman to hurry his work.
Oberdan snatched the rope, himself placed it around his neck,
crying: *'Viva Trieste-Italiana; viva ITtalial" The mur-
derous rope stopped the voice and the life of the youth.
The tragedy was accomplished. A new name, and among
the most glorious, was added to those of the martyrs of the
Italian Risorgimento.
The Austrian journals of the empire published the news
of the execution with the most minute details. Indeed
they said that this same hangman, Miillenbacher, declared
that among the many whom he had executed not one had
shown the resolution and courage of this young Triest-
ian.
The announcement of the execution of Oberdan produced
immense consternation in Trieste. Energetic protests were
made. The theaters remained deserted for three consecutive
nights, notwithstanding that the Austrian police insisted
the artists should perform just the same, under penalty of
exile. The journals were sequestered and journalists
who had commented bitterly on the tragic event were ar-
rested, tried and condemned. Enrico Jurettig, for example,
publisher of the Independent of Trieste and former publisher
of the Isonzo of Goritz, for having exalted the martyrdom
174 SECOND PART
of Oberdan, was condemned to eighteen months' imprison-
ment and died during his incarceration.
Giuseppina Oberdan, with heart-breaking maternal sor-
row and with infinite tears, constantly sang the praises of
her son, thus:
My Guglielmo had the heart of an angel; he was gentle-
mannered, studious, high minded and a loving soul. How many
times he caressed me, saying: Poor mother; you have done so much
for me! But do not doubt, when I become professor of mathematics,
I will compensate you for all your sufferings. We will always live
together and be happy.
His professors idolized him; he was always at the head of his
class. At fifteen years of age he earned money by tutoring. He
had no vices, he had no extravagances; he was happy if he could
buy some books with a few cents which he had carefully saved.
In Italy, at the announcement of the execution of
Oberdan, one heard a roar as of a wounded lion.
Carducci said:
Guglielmo Oberdan was hanged this morning at Trieste. It is
Austriacally natural. Thus the Emperor Francis Joseph hurried to
respond to the French poet [Victor Hugo] and to the Italian pro-
fessor,^ who invoked his clemency. It is Austriacally more than
natural. He [Francis Joseph] was reared in blood; in blood he
is growing old; we hope that blood will suffocate him, and be it
his own blood.
Italy, however, is weak within, most weak at the frontier.
Now we have need of social reforms for justice; economic reforms
for strength; arms, arms, arms, for security. And arms not for
defense but offense. Italy, by defending herself, must take the
offensive. Otherv\'ise she will be invaded. Young men of Italy,
think of these things. And stop theorizing and debating with
wearisome words. We must honor the memory of Guglielmo Ober-
dan who was sacrificed because of our delinquency and for us.
In ten years, on the highest point of our Alps a monument to
Caius Marius^ and to Giuseppe Garibaldi will be raised, with the
motto: Foreigners, turn back!
And elsewhere Carducci said:
^Carducci himself, professor of belles lettres at Bologna.
* Caius Marius was one of the most celebrated Roman generals, seven times
consul. Defeated Jugurtha, king of Numidia and the Teutons, (156-86 B. C.)
THE MARTYRDOM OF OBERDAN 175
Guglielmo Oberdan went not to kill, I believe, but to be killed.
He throws his life to us and says: Here is the pawn; Trieste belongs
to Italy. We respond: Guglielmo Oberdan, we accept, for life and
for death. We have retaken Rome from the Pope; we will retake
Trieste from the Emperor.
And Giovanni Bovio, philosopher and moralist, said:
Oberdan, closing the Italian martyrology, reopened Italian
tradition. The rope which strangled him, woven with our flag,
shows that the new rights of the people will extend over Austria.
And Aurelio Saffi, the most prominent follower of Maz-
zini, said:
The waves of time pass with changing vicissitudes of selfishness
and error, and carry with them the names of the oppressors of
people condemned to scorn and oblivion; but the memory of
Gughelmo Oberdan will live perennially in the hearts of Italians,
because his martyrdom stands for the immortal protest of nature
against tyranny which breaks its laws.
And Matteo Renato Imbriani, the high-principled de-
fender of the rights of the humble, said;
His martyrdom is a new symbol of the rescue of our Patria.
Although chronologically the last of the martyrs of Italy, he stands
among the first — if the intellect of the Patria does not fail — for
high conscience and determined will.
And Ettore Socci, apostle of woman suffrage In Italy,
said:
The life of Guglielmo Oberdan is epitomized in love for his
mother, in love for study, in love for the Patria. Young men, fill
your hearts with such love; study, gird up your loins to face death
for the Patria.
The students and the working men of Italy suddenly
raised protests in every city. To the young martyr every-
where memorials were voted of which one epigraph — that of
Carducci — appearing in the Athenaeum in the city of
Bologna, was one of the most incisive and beautiful:
To GuglielmoOberdan — who died heroically for Italy — a terror
admonition and a reproof to outside tyrants, and to the cowards
within.
176 SECOND PART
But the government of Humbert I, instead of uniting its
voice with that of the nation, and at least saving in part its
Itahan dignity, did everything possible to smother the cry
of indignation which arose from the peninsula from one end
to the other. And very soon after (1883) this same govern-
ment of Savoy announced that it had signed (May 20, 1882)
the treaty of alliance with Austria: the treaty of the Triple
Alliance!
XIII
The monument to Dante in the city of Trent (1896).
Manifestations of Italianity at Trieste and Istria (1897-
1903). The elementary and intermediate Italian
schools in Goritz and Gradisca, Trieste, Istria and in
Dalmatia. The eternal lamp placed by the Irredentist
Italians at the tomb of Dante in Ravenna (1908). The
Italian Irredentist students of the University of Vienna
assaulted by the Austrian students of the same Universi-
ty and fired upon by the police. Tremendous Italian
demonstrations of protest against Austria (1908). The
incessant conspiracies of Italian Trieste against the
Austrian Government until 1915.
On October 11, 1896, a monument to Dante was unveiled
in Trent following a public subscription for this purpose by
the Italians of the Irredentist regions. The monument,
the work of the sculptor Zocchi, was over 17.7 meters high
(the figure itself was 5 meters high) with a base 13 meters
wide. Around the pedestal the three cantos of the Divina
Commedia were represented; the Inferno by the statue
of Minos, the Purgatorio by the events of Sordello, and the
Paradiso by Beatrice among the Angels. The inscription
reads thus: "To Dante, the Father. — Trentino — with the
eulogy and aid of the Nation — MDCCCLXXXIX [the
year in which the monument was planned] MDCCCXCVI
[the year of the unveiling]."
The festivities celebrating occasions of this kind among
the Trentini and other Italians who had gathered together
from the Irredentist regions were most impressive.
IKKEDENTIST SCHOOLS 177
Trieste refused to send deputies to the Austrian parlia-
ment for twenty-five years. Finally, in 1897, the evergrow-
ing and serious national condition induced the city to stop
this abstention and to take part in the elections. This
resulted in a triumph and the election of the Italian liberal
candidates.
In accepting the trust conferred upon them they im-
mediately made a declaration in which they affirmed that
their acceptance "must leave untouched the historical ju-
diciary of Trieste in relation to the Austrian Empire." In
the Parliament of Vienna "there were frequent protests
made against Trieste belonging to the monarchical Govern-
ment of Austria, and the expression of hopes of its annexa-
tion to the Kingdom of Italy, against which the Austrian
ministry, the German and Slavic deputies and even the
representatives of Austrian socialism rose and protested."
In the same year, 1897, many young Triestians and many
from the unredeemed regions hastened to enroll themselves
with Ricciotti Garibaldi, second son of the Hero, who had
joined Greece in the war against Turkey.
In 1899 Menotti Garibaldi, the eldest son of the Hero,
visited Trieste. He was triumphantly received by the people.
The usual persecution followed on the part of the Austrian
police.
When, in 1900, the news of the death of Humbert I
reached Trieste, the city went into mourning; the Triestian
deputies with those of Julian-Venice sent a telegram of con-
dolence to Rome. The Austrian police confiscated the
telegram of the deputies and suppressed the newspapers;
arrested citizens, and even condemned some young girls,
who in sign of mourning had worn black ribbons on their
sleeves and necks.
In 1901 Gabriele d'Annunzio went to Trieste. He was
received with festivities. The usual persecutions followed
on the part of the police.
In the same year Giuseppe Verdi died in Italy. There
were manifestations of grief in Trieste. The usual persecu-
tions followed on the part of the police.
In the same year Victor Emanuel III visited the Ex-
178 SECOND PART
position at Udine, accompanied by Queen Helena. Thous-
ands of Triestians, Istrians, Goritzians, Trentini gathered to
welcome ** their King." On their return nearly two hundred
citizens were arrested and prosecuted. Ernesto Spadoni,
member of the council of Trieste, sacrificing his republican
sentiments for love of Italy, asked to be presented to the
King. There was also at this time a convention of students
in which hundreds of young men of the Irredentist regions
participated. At this same convention they discussed the
coming campaigns and enlistings, and the Triestian Luciano
Magrini published a thrilling appeal in which the phrase
Trieste or Death predominated.
In the same year (1901) on the announcement of the
birth of the Princess lolanda, the firstborn of the King of
Italy, fifty homing pigeons were sent from Trieste. They
flew toward Rome to carry the good wishes of the Triestians
to the reigning family of Italy.
In February 1902, a general strike was called as a pro-
test against the Austrian government which had placed
Austrian soldiers at the disposal of the Austro-Hungarian
Steamship Company as substitutes for the Italian stokers
who had walked out. All the citizens sympathized with the
strikers, as did the Common Council, and the strike soon
assumed an anti-Austrian character. There were violent
uprisings. The Austrian troops fired into the crowd.
Fourteen citizens were killed and hundreds wounded.
The rural mobs, blindly clerical and therefore Austrian
sympathizers, hating the Italian military element, soon
joined themselves to the stoker-soldiers. Then a group of
Triestian students, all sons of the working class, and a
group of young workmen who were Italian sympathizers,
with one accord, decided to counteract the opposition to
Italianity by the diflFusion of Mazzinian principles — ''syn-
thesizing in a wonderful manner the idea of social justice
with the idea of national independence and political free-
dom."
The struggle of these two united groups was impet-
uous and far reaching. It brought out a new spirit of
emulation and incentive among the Italians, embracing
IRREDENTIST SCHOOLS 179
every walk of life. The Mazzinian organ U Emancipazione
was founded. These same Mazzinians and the seceding
Socialists founded the Camera del Lavoro (the Bureau of
Labor). Popular study and sporting clubs were organized.
From Trieste the propaganda spread rapidly into Istria,
Friuli, Dalmatia and Fiume. At Goritz, for instance, the
whole movement was handled by the Mazzinians, and in-
telligently and honestly guided by Francesco Spazzapan.
The Austrian government naturally turned the weapons of
persecution against the Mazzinians.
In 1903 the first directive Mazzinian Committee was
arrested and prosecuted at Trieste. This committee was
composed of Riccardo De Haag, Pietro Caucich, Eugenio
Fonda, Ado Grego and Angelo Scocchi. Luciano Magrini
succeeded in escaping to Italy. In all of the other Irre-
dentist cities arrests and trials followed in quick succession.
Many were arrested in Trieste and many shut in the prisons
of Capodistria, Rovigno, Pola and Goritz. Pietro Magrini
passed two years in the prison at Goritz. Luigi Duchie of
Trieste spent his time in the Capodistrian jail; Ferruccio
Kalteneisen in the castle of Laibach; Mario Sterle in the
prisons of Pilsen; Giovanni Grion at Marburg; and Giuseppe
Vidali of Trieste was dragged through the Austrian galleys
from Pola to Ravigno, to Trieste, to Laibach, to Klagenfurt,
and to Marburg.
But one of the most vital questions, that which gave
the gravest concern to the Italian subjects of Austria, and
to the Austrian government as well, was the question of
education.
, The Italian Irredentists could not tolerate the thought
that their children were obliged to feed their minds in the
Austrian schools with Teutonic culture, which was opposed to
their own intellectual traditions. Therefore for years and
years — with no little trouble and with not a few financial
sacrifices, but with success — they endeavored to implant in
almost all of their cities subject to Austria (Trieste, Trent,
Pola and minor cities) elementary and technical schools,
gymnasiums and lyceums, with only Italian teachers, profes-
180 SECOND PART
sors, language, and methods of teaching. They maintained
them at the expense of their municipaHties and their private
associations, the National League and the Dante Alighicri.^
By means of contributions from cities, associations, and
individuals, ItaHan schools were opened everywhere, especi-
ally in the parts which were seriously threatened with Teu-
tonic culture.
The National League at the beginning of the present war
was represented at Trieste, and in Istria, Eastern Friuli, and
Dalmatia by about one hundred committees. Julian Venice
alone (that is, the three provinces of Goritzia, Gradisca,
Trieste and Istria) had more than sixty of their own schools;
it assisted one hundred and forty others and spent more
than one-half million crowns a year in support of Italian
schools.
Giovani Pattini, an Irredentist, in his recent volume,
Italia Irridenta, says:
This same National League is the only institution which
teaches, with its humble propaganda and its limited needs, the
first word of a national conscience.
At the schools the children — from the third or fourth classes
of the gymnasium — begin to collect money, twenty soldi a week,
which they deposit in the hands of a cashier elected by themselves.
With these weekly twenty soldi, augmented by little entertain-
ments, they accumulate thousands of lire a year. In the sum-
mer the girls extend their hands to strangers asking anobolus for the
National League, which educates the children of the people
to be Italian; and no one refuses them.
At Trieste, as at Pola, at Goritzia, at Zara, at Trent, at
Pisino, they give little entertainments and take up collections, all
for the benefit of the National League. The people hasten to give
generously money which they would not pay for taxes to the
^ In 1885 in the Trentino the Italian Pro Patria Society was founded, whose
teachings were also diffused in Istria. On account of a greeting voted to the
Dante Alighieri in 1890 (the Society with its central committee in Rome having for
its object the diffusion of the I tali an language throughout the world) by the National
Congress of Trcnte, and because the city refused to come under the Austrian
colors, the Pro Patria was dissolved by the Austrian Government.
On the ruins of the Pro Patria Society the National League was formed ex-
pressly for the defense of the mother tongue and for the diffusion of popular
Italian instruction among children and youths of |the Irredentists. This League,
following a more intelligent and prudent policy, was able to regulate itself.
IRREDENTIST SCHOOLS 181
Austrian government; nor would they give to any political asso-
ciation.
When relatives or friends die, instead of spending money for
flowers and useless eulogies, they send, in their memory, increased
contributions to the National League.
The League had more than 42,000 members among 800,000
Italian subjects of Austria; the annual dues were fifty centesimi a
year for each member. Indeed, the latest reports show that its
income has passed more than half a million a year, aided by the
festivals and voluntary contributions.
Thus — from the sums gathered in the cities and villages of
the Irredentists, in their hours of joy and sorrows, from those who
conscientiously love the Patria and those who regard it as a dream
— the little Italian schools rise. They rise in the cities of the
Dalmatian coast; in the stony villages of Istria, little square white
or yellow schoolhouses, isolated in the midst of the homes of
enemies, on hostile ground. These same little schoolhouses have
seen hissing and execrating crowds pass before their doors; they
have endured stonings, assaults, devastations; but they have al-
ways remained and every day they have opened their doors to
their little soldiers.
The National League has never closed a school. Wherever it
enters, it plants the Italian flag; and the Italian flag will never be
lowered!
The National League attracted to its schools simple souls with
the promise of giving them knowledge, bread and clothes, and sent
them out saturated with ideals and ready to sacrifice for the
League clothes, bread and life.
The National League smiled on the childish festivals, but be-
tween their songs and the lights of the Christmas trees they
taught them a virile patriotism. It also gave money and clothes
to the youth of the intermediate and high schools, not as phi-
lanthropy but always with the severe injunction that this was a
loan which in the future must be paid with usury in love of Coun-
try, in sacrifices and in labor.
And thus the National League, on the soil subject to
Austria, became a symbol of a longed-for Patria, and the
hymns sung in the schools vv^ere sung like war songs.
The hymn of the National League, at one time modified
and corrected by the imperial Austrian censor, was finally
written by a highly esteemed Triestian poet, Riccardo Pitteri,
182 SECOND PART
who recently died in exile, after the Austrians had destroyed
his home. The hymn is as follows:
Long live Dante!
This Sweet word
Five peoples consoles
And fraternally unites them in a single thought.
Oh! echo this name in the Alps,
The valleys and forests,
On the shores of Trieste,
In the byways of Trent.
Repeat it, O relics
Of Aquileia and Salona!
The arches and temples in every place where sounds
Sweetly our Si.
From the Adige to Timavo
Which hasten to the sea,
On the coasts sound this name,
In the valleys, on the mountains, on the plains.
Long live Dante! Be this the motto
Of the five peoples
Which the sacred poetry
Of a language has united.
Long live Dante! Five leaves
United give life to one flower.
From the union of fingers
Comes the strength of the hand.
But if the problem of Italian education in the provinces
of the Irredentists was settled for the elementary and high
schools (which the Austrian government was obliged un-
willingly to tolerate and legalize, in order not to add too
much fuel to the flames), it was not equally solved for the
universities, which were the center of culture where the
mind of a people is formed. The young Irredentist youths
who had studied in the Italian gymnasiums and lyceums in
IRREDENTIST SCHOOLS 183
their own regions, if they did not wish to finish their studies
in Teuton universities where everything was Teuton, even
to the language of the beadles, were obliged to receive
their diplomas from the University of Padua or Pavia, or
indeed Rome, as Oberdan was obliged to do, and face an
enormous expense,^ notwithstanding the fact that the
Austrian government was forced to recognize as legal the
degrees given by the universities of Italy. But not all the
Triestians, Istrians, Trentini, Friulians,' and Dalmatians
who studied could afford the necessary expense of remaining
in cities so far away from their homes. For this reason they
demanded the founding of an Italian university in Trieste,
or at least in some city of the unredeemed regions. The
Austrian Government turned a deaf ear to all such
demands.
The Italian students, however, forced by the modest
financial conditions of their families to remain in the Aus-
trian universities, did not conceal their wrath at the in-
justice. Their attitude irritated the Austrian students, who
with bad grace tolerated recriminations of any sort in
"their own home." The strings finally became too tense
and snapped for the first time in 1906, at the University at
Innsbruck, where a fight broke out between the Austrian
and Trentini students. These latter, greatly inferior in
number to their adversaries, were overcome. The Austrian
Government intervened and began to investigate the reason
for the friction or at least it pretended to do so, and resorted
to subterfuges; finally it promised to create, not a univer-
sity (that would have been too much), but a simple law faculty
with a seat at Trent or at Rovereto, while the Italians pre-
ferred Trieste. It promised, but did- not fulfill the promise.
It even let the promise die.
But the Irredentists did not renounce their ideals. On
the contrary they were all the more stimulated by such ideals.
In 1908, Italy decided to place before the tomb of Dante
at Ravenna an Eternal Lamp. The Italian regions subject
'The Austrian Government was obliged to recognize the diplomas of the
young Irredentist students from the Athenaeums in Italy.
184 SECOND PART
to Austria spontaneously oflFered the amphora. Riccardo
Zampieri, editor of the Independent of Trieste and to whom
must be given the credit for the initiative of this enterprise,
on September 23, 1907, wrote thus:
There will burn therefore on the tomb of the greatest bard of
Italy — who is the most potent symbol of Italianity — an eternal
lamp adorned with the Florentine Lily and with the Lion of St.
Mark. And the inextinguishable flame is destined to have a
splendid significance. It is to be fed with pure oil; and the am-
phora which is to receive this oil, we wish might be offered by
Trieste. This is our idea, alere flavimen. This vase should be
engraved with the halbert of St. Sergius, and with the arms of the
provinces condemned to fight in order to defend and keep intact
the traces of their Italianity.
This noble and patriotic venture had an overwhelming
success, because not only Trieste, but all of the Italian
provinces subject to Austria contributed to it by spontaneous
offerings. And the same Independent of Trieste wished also
to offer the fire with which the symbolic flame should be
lighted the first time; the Journal caused a box of matches
from the National League to be incased in a gold box and
beautifully engraved with the following dedication: "To
give life to the flame. The Independent of Trieste.*'
And both of the relics, the lamp and the box of matches,
were carried to Ravenna by the best citizens of the regions
of the Irredentists, in a great and solemn pilgrimage.
Florence, the native city of the honored poet, offered the
oil and assumed the obligation to furnish it daily and per-
petually, "in order that the flame shall not die," in atone-
ment for the exile to which she had condemned her most
glorious son.
In the same year, 1908, after Austria had annexed Bosnia
and was about to invade Servia, the Mazzinians of Pola
scattered proclamations among the armies of Austria incit-
ing the Italians not to fight against the independence of
the people of Servia. Many were arrested and condemned
by the Austrian police.
In the autumn of the same year at the re-opening of
the schools in Austria, the students of the Irredentist
IRREDENTIST SCHOOLS 185
regions of the University of Vienna agitated in every lawful
manner and through their deputies in the Reichstag to
try to induce the Austrian government once and for all to
maintain the promises which it had made concerning the
founding of an Italian University or at least of a faculty at
Trieste, Trent, or Rovereto. In one of the student meetings
in the University, where there were not more than two hun-
dred Italian students, they were unexpectedly assaulted by
two thousand Teuton students who did not hesitate to re-
sort to the use of revolvers against their companions. The
onslaught which ensued was violent and bloody.
The Italian students defended themselves with admirable
courage and vigor; but they were overcome by numbers and
also by the partisanship of the Viennese police. Many were
seriously wounded.
This fact had an echo of indignation and sorrow in all of
the Italian provinces subject to Austria. Suddenly protests
sprang up everywhere in which even the women took part.
Italy chafed and growled like a lioness whose young had
been maltreated. From the Alps to Sicily the people, led
by the students, ran through the streets of all the cities in-
voking evil on and threatening the government; in the public
squares they insulted and burned the Austrian flag. At
Rome the palace of the Austrian Ambassador was assailed
with stones and missiles. All of the windows were broken.
The students of the entire nation enrolled themselves in the
National Marksman s Club; everywhere large sums of money
were collected and sent to the National League and to the
Dante Alighieri of the Irredentist regions. The committee
Pro Italia Irredenta on November 24, 1908, published a
proclamation inciting them to war against Austria:
Brothers of Italy! Awake, awake from your shameful torpor!
Take on your former vigor and your indomitable faith. Awake!
At Vienna our brothers have been slain. A horde of barbarians,
drunk with hate and with blood, has assaulted our students in the
temple which should have been sacred to science, who demanded an
Italian university, the only bulwark with which to defend their
intellectual patrimony and hold on high their ideal as a symbol.
This new offense must not be left unpunished. The generous
186 SECOND PART
instincts of the Italian race must not die. For too long they have
bowed the head to every insult of strangers. The pact of hate
between the Italian and the Austrian people is again sealed with
the cowardly assault of Vienna. We must arise against the
stranger who offends, who tramples upon, and murders.
Against the servile and vile policy of the Italian government we
must impose the policy of the people; without renunciations and
without cowardice.
Brothers of Italy! He who endures the slaughter of his ow^n
brothers is a coward, but he is also a coward who sleeps and does
not hear their moanings. The words, Liberty and Revenge, must
not be strangled by the bad policies of rulers. To war, then! This
cry rises from the unavenged tomb of Guglielmo Oberdan. It
rises from the tombs of all the martyrs made by Austria.
Arise to war, Brothers of Italy! Awake! Be united in your
holy wrath and your holy cry! Arise! The Garibaldian epopee
has need of new and luminous pages! The Idea has need of new
martyrs. The Patria needs restitution.
All that the Italian government did was to make a
diplomatic remonstrance to the Austrian government. This
latter pretended to be a little touched and again promised
to found an Italian University of Law^ in one of the Irre-
dentist cities. But they were as usual "Austrian promises"
and were never fulfilled. The Austrian Government, how-
ever, continued its persecutions of the Irredentist leaders.
In 1909 there was a sensational trial against twenty-four
leaders of the Mazzinian movement in the Julian regions.
The Emancipazione of Trieste was obliged to suspend its
publication because all of its editors, managers, and writers
were imprisoned.
But these persecutions, lawsuits, and condemnations
could not extinguish the natural longings of Italianity of
the Irredentist regions:
At Trieste, that most cosmopolitan city of the region, there
were formed two distinct citizens' classes — thus wrote the young
Triestian Attilio Tamaro in a pamphlet published during March
and April 1915 — One was official and the other Italian, but
they never met each other even on neutral ground. Nothing
could change the Triestians from their attitude of hate; the offers
of material benefits or of favorable laws made by the Austrian
IRREDENTIST SCHOOLS 187
governors were all without effect. Their avoidance of every-
thing Austrian was extreme. Editors of newspapers, municipal
authorities, professors, on all occasions showed that they never
even knew the names of the chancellors of the Austrian govern-
ment. The Emperor of Austria was never named in the communal
acts with the pronoun our.
The Triestians would never tolerate an Austrian government,
even though liberal or friendly to them; they always fiercely de-
manded that the Austrian government should leave their home.
To prove this it is necessary to recall some recent names and
facts. Felice Venezian, in the Common Council meeting,
predicted a day in which the Triestians should sound their Italian
bells. ^ Ernesto Spadoni, who was in the same Council of Trieste,
apostrophizes the situation thus: May not a ray from the star
that shone above the Tiber some day radiate on the horizon of our
Irredentist province? May not the cry of "Viva LTtalia !'* resound
thousands and thousands of times at Trieste against the Austrian
government? May not the hymn of Garibaldi be sung hundreds
of times under the same Austrian lieutenancy of police that com-
mitted every sort of violence? May not the festival of the
Centennial of Verdi in 1913 be repeated, when the Austrian police
prohibited a chorus from the aria Va Pensiero from Nabucco, from
being sung in the great pubHc square of Trieste, and notwith-
standing this there were thousands who sang it, thus replacing
the meager voices of the chorus? Must we not remember the
young Triestians who many times raised their flag on the City
Hall or who painted the walls of the offices of the police with the
Italian tri-colors in the night? Or the old Triestian patriot,
Lorenzetti, who before he died some months ago, said to his
relatives on that day to come and knock at his tomb and tell him
that Italy had finally reached Trieste? Or the Triestian, Gino
Mauro, who weeping on his death bed, begged the physician to
keep him alive only until Trieste was free?
And thus the hate of Austria was so deep that the Triestians
always lived apart from the Austrians. It was considered a
great dishonor for an Italian to invite to his house an Austrian
^Toward the end of the fourteenth century Charles VIII of France descended
into Italy and claimed the sovereignty of Florence. Piero Capponi, standard
bearer of the city, was entrusted, with three other deputies, to treat with the pre-
tender; but this latter wished to impose iniquitous conditions on them. Piero Cap-
poni tore up the papers which contained these conditions, crying proudly: "You
will sound your war trumpet, and we will respond with our bells." The French
King for this act thought it wise to change his policy and accord moderate condi-
tions to Florence.
188 SECOND PART
official, or for an Irredentist girl to permit an official to show
her special attention.
No official festival was ever permitted to come to a peaceful
finish by the citizens of Trieste. And in the popular festivals
they always showed themselves hostile, as for instance in the
launching of a ship which seemed only a festival of workmen.
There was never a municipal band formed in Trieste because no
one would play at the government festivals. And, incredible as
it may seem, the national party met almost every year to com-
memorate with public demonstrations the death of Oberdan.
There was not a public square or street in Trieste which was given
an Austrian name. All had Italian names. For example, the
street which ran in front of the barracks where Oberdan was
hanged was courageously named for Carducci.
The Triestians, whether fighting, or in their festivals, when
they asked for" aid, in their numerous societies, in their great
restaurants, in their schools and libraries, always and everywhere
by their Italian attitude demanded their rights, and were in a
constant conspiracy against the Austrian government.
Thus they awaited their liberty. Thus were they rendered
worthy of their liberty.
XIV
A proclamation inciting Italy to war against Austria,
sent by the Triestians to each non-socialist deputy of the
Italian National Parliament on the day when the new
legislature opened in Rome, February 1914.
Honorable Sir: Trieste, the city of Italy as yet under the
dominion of the stranger, on the day upon which the Italian national
parliament is reopened, turns to your Excellency with a brotherly
admonition and with a request.
With an admonition, because it prays your Excellency that
you will ponder and remember that the foreign government, mas-
ter of Trieste, is making every effort to change to Slavic a city
which geographically, historically, and by the will of the people
should be consecrated to the service of Italy; that Austria in mak-
ing Slavic Trieste and Julian Venice, not only does not place a
barrier against the Slavs but instead she brings them inside of the
confines of Italy; that Trieste has always been an Italian city
governed by Austrian laws and administered by Slavs, because
TRIESTIANS INCITE ITALY TO WAR 189
all of the offices of state are in the hands of Slavs: that the Aus-
trian government, making Slavs of Julian Venice and Trieste,
intends to make it more difficult for Italy to rescue them; it tends
also to "Balkanize" these regions, and above all Trieste, and to
concentrate above them, and to seize from the ports of the
Kingdom of Italy the commerce and politics of the western
Balkans; that the resistance of Istria and Goritz is reduced to
extremities because of the condition of their counterforts and by
the force of this Slavic invasion, Trieste — although fighting with
faith and with love and at great sacrifice — is reduced to the last
resource of national defense; that the wealth which Trieste would
receive from her geographic position, if she were a city of Italy,
would then be national wealth instead of being enjoyed by foreign-
ers; that Trieste, united by national right to the Patria, would
carry to it the sure domination of all the Balkan commerce and
would be one of the most powerful means of resolving the Mediter-
ranean problem, with the possession of the great lines of com-
merce which Trieste has, and always will have with Greece and
the Levant.
Because of these main facts — confident that your Excellency
will deliberate upon them considering what a stupendous amount
of national interest is contained in the problem of the national
independence of Trieste — the Triestians pray your Excellency,
for your own honor and for the honor of Italy, that you will be
moved to push the national forces toward the definite accomplish-
ment of national unity; that you will co-operate in this cause,
and in consequence of this, that to the present legislature will be
accorded the high honor of proclaiming the reconstitution of Italy
within its natural confines; that one day you will be able to say
with pride that you contributed with your work and your votes to
the resolving of the great problem of the liberty and Italianity
of the Adriatic.
If the time of hesitation is passed, we hope that in the parlia-
ment of the new Italy will be found those who will affirm the right
of the nation to the possession of Trieste, as in i86i the right of the
nation to Rome was affirmed.
Trieste, February 1914.
190 SECOND PART
XV
A proclamation inciting Italy to war against Austria,
sent by the Triestians to each socialist deputy of the
Italian National Parliament on the day when the new
Legislature opened in Rome, February 1914.
Honorable Sir: Trieste, the city of Italy which is as yet subject
to foreigners, on the day when the National parliament reopens,
and while the national struggle is going on, and also while lies are
being diffused by those who are interested in denying the truth,
and while, moreover, it is probable that in consequence of coming
events the national struggle of Julian Venice and of Trieste will
come before the Italian parliament for discussion, we beg of your
Excellency to ponder upon the following unassailable facts: that
the geography, history, laws, nationality and will of the greater
part of the citizens declare that Trieste is an Italian city, and be-
longs to Italy; that the Austrian Government and the Slavs are
making an enormous effort to change and denaturalize the Ital-
ianity of [Trieste, intensifying immigration and seeming to give
equal rights to the immigrants and Italians; that Trieste, in the
final count, is a city of Italy governed by Austrian laws and these
laws are administered by Slavs, all of the offices of the state being
in the hands of the Slavs; that the Slavs carry on the struggle in
compact masses composed in a minor part of the tradesmen and in
a major part of the proletariat; that the natural invasion of the
Slavs depends on the fact that the city belongs to Austria, because
if it did not it would not be deprived of its natural rights and it
would take part in the Italian state, and her great labor markets
would be open only to Italian laborers; that this artificial invasion
accomplishes in a great measure the Slavization of Trieste and
Julian Venice, and this condition is demanded by the Austrian
government to force that region to lose its rights and to make the
duty of national rescue more difficult for Italy; and besides that,
to Balkanize Trieste in order to concentrate in it, politically
and commercially, the Western Balkans; that peace between na-
tions is impossible because the borders of each nation cannot be
definitely determined, and the national struggle is a fact of natural
history and therefore cannot be imprcscribed because, on the
shoulders of the Slavs who have immigrated, press millions of
Slavonians and Croatians who work toward the conquest of the
FOR UNITY OF THE PATRIA 191
Adriatic; that if the theory of the equality of immigrants holds,
which they wish to impose today on Trieste, then the Slavs, be-
cause they are immigrants, have the right to denaturalize the
Italian city; if this theory had obtained in other times, Italy
would yet be the slave of strangers; that there is no other solution
of the national struggle but this: the defeat of Italianity, or the
political union with the National State to which Trieste already
belongs by ideals, and by cultural and moral affiliations; that
Irredentism synthesizes in itself and expresses itself in a conception
which cannot fail to be sacred to every man: the conception of
Liberty, that a Slavic Irredentism — after Trieste shall be
joined to the nation for the definite accomplishment of Italian
unity — would not exist in Nice. It would be as absurd as an
Irredentism of the Italians of Marseilles.
You must consider that if you had been a citizen of Milan be-
fore 1859, or of Venice before 1866, you would certainly have fought
for national independence against an alien government.
Therefore because of these facts and reasons, the Triestians
wish, for your honor and for the nation's honor, that you may one
day say with pride that you, with your work, with your votes, have
co-operated to the freedom of the last great city of Italy which
is as yet subject to the foreigner.
Trieste, February 1914.
XVI
A proclamation inciting Italy to war against Austria
by the Italians of the Irredentist provinces of Gradisca,
Goritz, Trieste and Istria (Julian Venice) and the Tren-
tino during the month of April 1914, "for the Unity of
the Patria."^
The Doors of Italy, Julian Venice and Trentino, are ours, but
Austria has known how to hold them under her dominion with the
idea of always having her feet in Italy for the convenience of her
Adriatic policy and to give to Italy a sense of her perpetual military
inferiority with her tyrannical incumbency within the boundaries.
The Doors of Italy open from our soil, especially Julian Venice,
because these latter have the two great passes of Predil and the
^ This proclamation was to have been a part of a special edition of a paper»
but instead it was distributed secretly at Trieste and published in the Voice of
the P atria, April 4, 1914.
192 SECOND PART
Porte di Ferro to Nevoso, and the greatest pass, Monte Re, through
which the barbarians always entered Italy as far back as before
the Christian era; through which Austria can easily turn an army
into Italy.
Our regions belong to Italy, because such they have always
declared themselves, and because, as such, they have been officially
recognized. They have been Italian regions since Italy existed;
physically, because the Julian Alps constituted, with indisputable
evidence, the natural boundaries of the country; politically, be-
cause they have been Italian regions since the time when Rome
constituted Italy; morally, because they have made their talents,
their purposes and their faith tributary to the greatness of the
Nation, not less than the other provinces of Italy.
Now these regions of Italy, fertilized by the blood of countless
sons, which from Aquileia to Albona defended the borders of
Italy against barbarians; this ground produces men in which na-
tional defense constitutes the most powerful reason for life. These
regions of Italy, we say, are the only ones which do not obey Italian
laws, which are not ruled by an Italian government, who have not
for the ruler of their Italian life the King of Italy. While all of the
other provinces of Italy have been liberated from the domination
of strangers, or from the domination of anti-unionists, Julian
Venice and Trentino are the only regions which are outside of the
national unity; which are still under foreign domination and are
subject properly to the Austrian Government, which has attempted
to kill Italy; to that Austrian Government, which in order to hold
Italy in servitude and to destroy her dreams, her ideals, her will,
synthesized in the word Liberty, sent fanatic and ferocious soldiers
to construct gallows in every city, to make bloody every field,
to fill all of the prisons, to beat, chain, rob, sack, hang, shoot,
wherever it knew that an Italian heart beat with an ardent longing
for liberty! Julian Venice and Trentino are the last, the only
regions of Italy, under a regime of violence, which as yet serves
that Austrian Government.
Is it right?
Is it right that, while all other Italians within the natural
boundaries of Italy, live in freedom, are called Italian citizens,
and are governed by Italian laws, we, the Italians of Julian
Venice and Trentino, we alone must be called Austrian subjects;
that we alone must be ruled by Austrian and Slavo-Teutonic
laws? If we are Italian, why must we obey Teuton laws and
Slavic bureaucrats?
FOR UNITY OF THE PATRIA 193
There is no one but can see the iniquity of our condition; there
is no one but can see the moral misery which chokes us more and
more every day under this foreign tyranny, while the other
Italians in the regions of national liberty are always raised to
renewed enthusiasms by the powerful spirit of the nation.
But we, Italians of Julian Venice, together with those of Tren-
tino, are not the only ones of Italy not yet united to the kingdom of
Italy. We Italians of Goritz, of Trieste, of Istria, have also the
misfortune to see our cities invaded by Slavs, who descend in
flocks from the opening of the Alps, attracted by the sea and by the
cities which promise riches; descend like sheep as they go to fat
pastures, by the will of the Austrian Government which wishes
to justify with an appearance of fairness the indisputable iniquity
of its domination; which wishes to fill it with our enemies and
denationalize our region, the last region of Italy to remain in its
power.
From every part, and in every part the Slavs extend their force.
There are more than 40,000 in the commune of Trieste; there are
10,000 in Goritz; there are 10,000 at Pola. Their mere presence
surrounding Pirano insults its history. They swarm about the
country of Parenzo. Montona and Albona are reduced to the
extreme in their desperate defense of their municipalities. Pin-
guente, Pisino, Rozzo, each pressed with marvelous concord into a
single purpose for Italy, are overruled and tormented by Slavs
of the country who have seized their municipalities and are
protected by iniquitous laws.
In every city, in every village, to the accompaniment of insults
and challenges, the Austrian color is given to everything. At the
side of the adversary, who with the all-powerful aid of banks and
of theStateinvadesourregions to violate and "Balkanize" us, there
are internal foes of our national integrity — the socialists — faith-
ful to the ideas of the Austrian state, and needing the aid of the
Slavs for the electoral struggle. These internal adversaries deride
those who fear the Slavic invasion, those who advocate the
necessity of defense, and those who invoke liberty and independ-
ence. In the struggle against these two adversaries, the internal
strength of our people is consolidated, the compages become
granitelike, the soul becomes daring, energies become vibrant
with power, while the secret mystery of the Italian race — that
secret, which has protected all of the rest of Italy from barbarians
— will save for all time to come our Italianity from contamination,
from the destruction of its political force, from the fate which
194 SECOND PART
came to Dalmatia. We will fight always and incessantly for rep-
resentation in all public affairs and in every institution. Here we
will conquer and there we may lose. But national defense will
be strenuous and untiring.
But this is not enough.
Above national defense against the Slavs, there must be the
struggle for liberty, the struggle for national independence for
which we have the same right that all the rest of Italy has had,
— the struggle for the definite accomplishment of Italian Unity!
For this ideal, which must be transformed into most concrete
reality, for this ideal, more than for national defense, we must
battle with the greatest energy. And above all with faith. But
with a generic faith turning with saint-like patience toward no
uncertain and nebulous future, but with a clear and precise faith,
which is founded on facts and which leads to facts.
We must all fight, young and old. The young must form a
militia and must work and agitate to make the Italian and Aus-
trian governments understand that we want freedom, we want lib-
erty and that Italy is not yet a unit. The mature men, especially
those who have received from citizens or from institutions repre-
sentative positions, must with their authority work for the uni-
fied rights of cities and of the citizens whom they represent, and
one and all must work with fervor and tenacity.
And we hope that in the Kingdom we shall find co-operation
multiplied. The Government, the deputies, and the people must be
roused; it will be necessary to conquer indifference and vacuous
sentimentalism, diffidence, cynicism and cowardice; the hypocri-
sies of diplomacy and of politicians and the imbecilities of demago-
gues. We must even by violent agitation impress on the Italian
conscience the problem of National Unity. We must bring our
problem to the attention of Europe and impress it with all of
its contents of justice, by every means and by every sacrifice.
Thus, we can do this today with faith more sure and with a
more serene consciousness of our responsibility because today the
problem of our liberty is synthesized in the name of Trieste with a
great importance, not only respecting the right which we have to
independence, but also for theinternational policy of the Kingdom.
Trieste is today for Italy the key to the Orient. Trieste now
holds for the whole of Italy the commercial domination of the
Levant which formerly belonged to Venice. The possession of
Trieste means the guarantee of peace with the nation that at
present has its confines in Italy; a guarantee against the Slavic
IRREDENTISTS IN THE GREAT WAR 195
status of tomorrow; it means an absolute guarantee against every
possible conflict which Italy might have with other enemies.
Therefore today, we will, in fighting for our liberty, teach Italy
what national interest exists in the eastern Adriatic. So to fight
means helping Italy to open for herself the doors to the Orient;
it means pushing Italy into taking a more solid and more secure
position before or by the side of other powers. Therefore we
fight not only for an ideal of regional liberty, but for the great-
ness of Italy, for a vaster wealth, for a more splendid future for the
nation.
Will this agitation for unity, intense, violent, tenacious, pro-
voke the Austrian Government to repression and to a larger favor-
itism to the Slavs? First of all, we must ask if our condition could
be worse than it now is. And then we must regard the indisput-
able truth that all repressions, and all favoritism do nothing but
impose our problem more effectively on the nation and on Europe.
To work, then, all, each one according to his abilities. Time
presses. The Irredentist storm and internal strife shake the
foundations of the Austrian Empire. . . . The problem of
Austria is put in discussion before a Europe which has latterly
exalted the principle of nationality.
It is time therefore that we work with all our might to place
our rights in a diplomatic situation which prepares the near tomor-
row. Thus in this manner Italy will not be absent with her rights,
with her interests, in the international discussion of the Austrian
problem.
To work, then, with a single purpose in your hearts. Fiva
Vltalia!
XVII
The Italian banner is hoisted at Trieste on the tower
of San Giusto and over the harbor of Muggia in Decem-
ber, 1914. Thousands of Irredentist Italians rush to
ofifer themselves to the Patria in the present great war
against Austria, 1914-1915.
The outbreak of the great war at the end of July
1914, provoked by the ultimatum of Austria to Servia, re-
kindled the hopes even in the least hopeful Irredentist
Italians for the liberation of the lands synthesized by the
binomial Trent-Trieste.
196 SECOND PART
In September and October, 1914 — thus writes the Triestian,
Angelo Scocchi — Trieste above all trembles for action, and insur-
rection against Austria seems imminent. The patriots want to
know what echo this will have in Italy before encouraging it.
The Triestians were counseled not to move, not to hurry an
event which must be fought out when begun, and not to com-
promise the fate of Italy and not to drag it into an immature
intervention.
Notwithstanding this, on the morning of December 1, 1914,
a great Italian flag waved from the tower of San Giusto at Trieste
and another one from the flagstaflF harbor of Muggia.
On December 2nd, the city was full of little handbills inciting
the people to refuse to give contributions to the Austrian Red
Cross. Several citizens were arrested, among whom was the
Mazzinian, Marcello Vidali, who was first imprisoned in the
Castle of Laibach, and then in the prison of Marburg.
Many flocked into the Austrian army; the greater part of
these finished by voluntarily going as prisoners of the Russians
and Serbs; others sacrificed their young lives in Galicia and
Bosnia, with a last invocation to distant Italy.
But several thousands — challenging the rigors of the
Austrian government and every sort of danger — succeeded
between 1914 and the beginning of 191 5 in passing the
boundary, and scattered themselves in the provinces of
northern Italy and in Rome, w^here they offered their blood
for the liberation of the regions subject to the slavery of
Austria and for their union to the Patria.
XVIII
Gabriele d'Annunzio reaffirms and exalts the Italianity
of Trieste in the garden of the Palace of Andrea Doria,
at Genoa (May 6, 1915), upon receiving a gift in plas-
ter of the Triestian Lion, the original of which is in the
wall of one of the houses of the Giustiniani.
Brief words will I utter, so much more eloquent are the mem-
ories of things, of signs, of fate in this gift which I receive with a
throbbing heart and a pure faith which makes me more worthy to
receive it; there also comes over us an anxiety for that Trieste
D'ANNUNZIO AND TRIESTE 197
which suffers the starvation of the soul, violated, torn, tormented,
oppressed with a ferocity every day more damnable.
We feel her actual presence here. She stands before us as that
sculptured urn, as that statue. She stands erect before us, with
all of her wounds gaping, with all of her bruises, with the marks of
every insult, as the sufferer at the stake.
Ah! we begin to be ashamed of ourselves for talking too much,
we now understand well the crude words of that one of The Thou-
sand — great soul in a little body — who last evening cried out at
the banquet with the voice of an assailant: Better thanzvords,! would
rather take again the gun, companions!
This is a Garibaldian motto, well said, and well heard in
Genoa.
Not this cast which I will devoutly keep in custody, but the
Lion of the Istrian Stone, taken from the glorious wall in another
day of maritime consecration. Genoa will send again magnificent
restitution to Trieste by the path of the sea. The ship will pass
Caprera^ and it will hear the roaring of the rocks, and will sail
toward the Adriatic. And the dead son of Lamba, buried in the
triumphant waters, and Luciano d'Oria before Pola, and Gasparo
Spinola before Trieste, and your other terrible ones, will reappear
in an epiphany of love joined luminously to the avenged ones
of Lissa. And the Lion of St. Mark brought into the Adriatic by
a ship of Genoa, will mean for the Italians: This deep sea, where the
crest of every wave is a blossom of our glory, is again and always will
be called, in the language of all nations. The Gulf of Venice.
XIX
Words spoken by Gabriele d'Annunzio in Genoa,
May 7, 191 5, to the exiles of Dalmatia, upon receiving from
them the gift of a book, printed in Genoa, in which the
Dalmatians affirm, demonstrate and defend the Ita-
lianity of Dalmatia.
This book of love, of faith, and of rebuke an Italian should to-
day receive on his bended knees, humiliated and in an attitude to
ask pardon, to make amends. To remain on my feet before you
reverently, but not ashamed, is permitted to me because of a con-
^ This little island near Sardinia became celebrated because of being the favorite
sojourn of Garibaldi and because the Hero died and was buried there.
198 SECOND PART
sciousness that I never have forgotten that which Antonio Baia-
monti, the admirable Podestd of Spalato, called the younger daughter
of Italy and that which the Dantesque Tommaseo called the
Second Italy. But I hope that the God of wars will permit me to
bend the knee in a near future before one of those, your altars,
under whose tables the fathers, weeping, placed the folded re-
publican flag of St. Mark.
If I, in Genoa, name Sebenico, Zara, and Trau, the bones of
Luciano d'Oria, who knows the salt of the Adriatic, would rise
from his grave in St. Mathew's. His victory and his death were
commemorated on the same date that we assembled on the shore
at Quarto,^ on May 5th. I see the Dalmatian cities, bloody and
suffocating, before the sword of Donato Zeno, who annihilated the
admiral on the bridge while he as yet was crying from his torn
mouth: "S/. George! St. George!"
But another vision comes to me of another victory taken from
the inscrolled white lists and black lists of naval times. It is as an
allegory to our long blindness. In the waters of Curzola,^ Lamba
Doria ordered his galleys, when the wind was favorable, to throw
dust of quick lime into the eyes of the Venetians commanded by
Dandolo; and he put in confusion those desperate blind ones.
It seems to me that in such hostile blindness we have remained
afflicted after the disasterof Lissa. We have not seen, we have not
wished to see that which the conquerors have done without truce,
without mercy: to obliterate every vestige of our domain on the
Eastern coast; to destroy every trace of Italianity from the beauti-
ful Latin shore not only consecrated with blood, but with the spirit;
not only conquered by arms but by the arts; not only ours by
ancient sovereignty but because of new ideas; not only rich in
mute relics, but in eloquent culture. We have abandoned you
for years and years to the most iniquitious persecutions, O gen-
erous brothers of ours who have opposed courage to menace, pa-
tience to injustice, virile gentleness to wicked atrocities! We have
not dared to help, not even to comfort the sad and silent fight
continued by you, O faithful of Rome, to preserve the blessed
tongue of Italy, to defend the documents of your high origin, to
keep yourself Italian against everyone and against everything. As
the sailors of Dandolo, we have diverted dolorous eyes from the
battle.
' At Quarto on May 5, 1915, a monument was unveiled which was erected in
honor of r/i^ Thousand by Garibaldi. D'Annunzio delivered the comemmoration
address.
^ Island and canal of the Adriatic on the coast of Dalmatia.
D'ANNUNZIO AND DALMATIA 199
We ask your pardon. We make amends. Finally our eyes are
re-opened, cured by the health-giving wind which blows away from
so much destruction, from so much virtue, to so much horror,
to so much love. We should weep with remorse and with pity,
O brothers, but we do not weep; instead, we steadfastly watch
Fate. This book, which you place in my hands, is an evidence of
your claim to possession. It is brief, but of great weight. It says
to us clearly and concisely in the manner of Rome that Dalmatia
is of Italy by divine and by human right; by the grace of God,
which fashioned terrestial figures in such a way that each race
sculpturally ^recognizes his own kind; by the zuill of man, who
multiplies the beauty of the shores by erecting monuments to his
glories and carving the signs of his most arduous hopes.
This book is a Dalmatian gospel on which we can swear.
Under the Latin power of Rome, of the Popes, of Venice, as
under the barbarous power of the Goths, the Lombards, the Franks
the German Ottos, the Byzantines, the Hungarians, the Aus-
trians, the civil life of that part of the coast as well as the civil life
of this part of the coast was always in origin and in essence
Italian. It was, it is, and will be. Not the Teutons of the Alps,
not the Slavonians of Carso, neither the Magyars of Puszta, not
the Croatian who ignores or falsifies history, not even the Turk
who disguises himself as an Albanian, no one can arrest the
fatal rhythm of accomplishment, the Roman rhythm. I tell
you this, brothers, but you know it. On this Dalmatian gospel
we can take oath.
The ancient Roman consular road which leads to Salona to
cross Bosnia has not yet been battered down. It is, as you
know, the only road that binds together the little hamlets and
scattered villages. It is so well directed, so well constructed, so
well consolidated, that men must follow it to the end of time.
More distant, on the other side of Mount Kvaratch, the
mighty ruins of a Roman laborers' city rises in the midst of mead-
ows and forests in view of the cerulean heights of the war-like
Servia.
Now it seems that the genius loci is not carved in stone, but
survives in its greatness, and with its breath fills the courts of
justice, the tribunal, the hypocaust, the altars and the hearth stones,
the castles, the excavations on the right shore of the rushing Saso,
their walls as yet well preserved, which fifteen voracious centuries
have not been able to destroy.
Of what value then are the efforts of barbarians against the
200 SECOND PART
law of Rome? There, where we have put such foundations, there,
the genius loci awaits us; there we will return, there we will re-
discover the ancient relics and will carve new symbols. If narrow
are jour shores O Dalmatians, ample is the civilization which il-
luminates them. You are almost at the border of the toga, but
the whole toga is Roman.
Be of good cheer, my young companions. The time of serving
is finished, the time of suffering has ended. The time to fight
and to redeem has come; and the time to liberate and to avenge
is imminent.
At Lissa the young Dalmatian naval officer, Giovanni Ivancich,
fell like a hero. He perhaps resembled some of you who look at
me with the light of battle kindling in your lion-like eyes.
What is your name, you who are blushing, O boy? Fame
perhaps will tell me tomorrow; Liberty may re-echo it to me from
across the sea.
On this gospel of Dalmatia, however, we swear with a single
soul.
Thus may it be, for the sons of sons and for the centuries of
centuries.
THIRD PART
I
The assassination of the Archduke Francis Ferdinand,
heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, by the Serbian
student Gabrilo Princip on June 28, 1914.
On June 28, 1914 (it was Sunday), the Serbian student,
Gabrilo Princip, nineteen years of age, killed at Serajevo,
with two shots of a Browning pistol, the Archduke Fran-
cis Ferdinand, heir to the Imperial Austro-Hungarian
crown, and his wife Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg nee
Countess Chotek of Chotkowa and Wognin.
"A long time ago," said young Princip, "I conceived the idea
of killing an Austrian of high rank, to avenge the Serbians of
Bosnia for the treatment which they have received from the
Austrian government. I had no accomplices. I wished to
strike at Austrian Imperialism represented in the person of the
Archduke Francis Ferdinand.^
^ Five years after the elevation of Peter I Karageorgevic to the Serbian throne.
Austria, celebrating the sixty years of reign of Francis Joseph, annexed to itself
Bosnia and Herzegovina, after thirty years of occupation and spoliation, pro-
claiming it " Royal and Imperial crown land." Thus at the end of 1908 the tension
existing since 1878 between Austria and Russia was accentuated. In the rigidity
of this tension Germany took an attitude decidedly in favor of her ally, Austria.
Emperor William II made the world understand that in the defense of the Aus-
tro-Hungarian Empire the shining German sword would always be ready. And
Russia finally recognized an annexation that in the Slavic world, and also in Tur-
key, had provoked protests and anti-Austrian demonstrations; and in Italy, not-
withstanding the ties of the Triple Alliance, these conditions had produced a
feeling of bitterness.
The tension between Austria and Serbia was such from October 1908, to March
1909, that it was only by a miracle that war had not broken out before between
the two countries. But the disproportion between the Austrian and Serbian forces
was only too evident; because at the side of Serbia there was no great idealist like
Napoleon III, to assist her; had she had this support, she might have waged war
in the Balkans against Austria, as Piedmont had done in Italy in 1859. Russia
could have done so; but because of the resolute attitude of Germany she made
only some technical objection regarding the annexation of Bosnia and Herze-
govina; then Russia declared that her former obligations would not permit her to
join in the assault. What was there to do? To Serbia there remained nothing
but to bend the head in submission; and she bent it, leaving to Austria, on March
31, 1909, this declaration:
" Serbia recognizes that she has not been deprived of her rights by the conditions
201
202 THIRD PART
II
The fatal note — ultimatum of the Austro-Hun-
garian government to the government of Serbia (July
23, 1914).
On July 23, 1914, at 6 p. m. the Austrian minister in
Belgrade, Baron Giesl von Gieslman, presented the fatal ulti-
matum note which concluded thus:
In order to give a formal character to this undertaking, the
royal Serbian Government shall publish on the front page of its
official journal of July 26th the following declaration:
The Royal Government^ condemns the propaganda directed against
Austria-Hungary, the general tendency of which is to detach from
the Austro-Hungarian monarchy territories'^ belonging to it, and it
sincerely deplores the fatal consequences of these criminal proceedings.
The Royal Government regrets that Serbian officers and function-
aries participated in the above mentioned propaganda and thus com-
promised the good neighborly relations to which the Royal Government
was solemnly pledged by its declaration of March 5/, igoQ.
The Royal Government, which disapproves of and repudiates all
idea of interfering or attempting to interfere with the destinies of the
inhabitants of any part whatsoever of Austria-Hungary, considers
it its duty formally to warn officers and functionaries and the whole
population of the kingdom, that henceforward it will proceed with the
utmost rigor against persons who may be guilty of such machinations,
and it will use all its efforts to anticipate and suppress such.
created in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and that in consequence she will conform to
the decision which the Powers will make in relation to Article XXV, in the treaty
of Berhn, July 13, 1878.
"Serbia, submitting to the council of the great Powers, obligates herself from
this moment to renounce her attitude of protest and of opposition, which she had
adopted last Autumn regarding the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and
she obligates herself also to modify the direction of her present policy toward
Austria-Hungary, in order to live in the future with the latter on the footing
of good neighbors."
This diplomatic obligation did not and could not change the animus of
Serbia toward Austria, nor diminish the uneasiness of Austria toward the Serbian
people and the Montenegrins, considered at Vienna and at Budapest the advance
guards of the Pan-Slavic movement of which Russia always was the inspirer and
patroness.
^ The Royal Government is the Government of Serbia.
' Bosnia and Herzegovina.
THE FATAL AUSTRIAN ULTIMATUM 203
This declaration shall simultaneously be communicated to
the royal army as an order of the day by His Majesty the King and
shall be published in the official bulletin of the army.
The royal Serbian Government further undertakes:
1. To suppress any publication which incites to hatred and
contempt of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy and the general
tendency of which is directed against its territorial integrity.
2. To dissolve immediately the society styled Narodna Ob-
drana, to confiscate all its means of propaganda, and to proceed
in the same manner against other societies and their branches in
Serbia which engage in propaganda against the Austro-Hungarian
monarchy. The Royal Government shall take the necessary
measures to prevent the societies dissolved from continuing their
activity under another name and form.
3. To eliminate without delay from public instruction in
Serbia, both as regards the teaching body and also as regards the
methods of instruction, everything that serves, or might serve, to
foment the propaganda against Austria-Hungary.
4. To remove from the military service, and from the ad-
ministration in general, all officers and functionaries guilty of
propaganda against theAustro-Hungarian monarchy, whose names
and deeds the Austro-Hungarian Government reserves to itself
the right of communicating to the Royal Government:
5. To accept the collaboration in Serbia of representatives
of the Austro-Hungarian Government in the suppression of the
subversive movement directed against the territorial integrity of
the monarchy.
6. To take judicial proceedings against accessories to the
plot of June 28th, who are on Serbian territory. Delegates of the
Austro-Hungarian Government will take part in the investigation
relating thereto.
7. To proceed without delay to the arrest of Commandant
Voina Tankosic and of the individual named Milan Ciganovitch, a
Serbian state employee, who have been compromised by the results
of the magisterial inquiry at Serajevo.
8. To prevent by effective measures the co-operation of the
Serbian authorities in the illicit traffic in arms and explosives across
the frontier, to dismiss and punish severely the officials of the
frontier service at Schabatz and Loznica guilty of having assisted
the perpetrators of the Serajevo crime by facilitating their passage
across the frontier.
9. To furnish the Imperial and Royal Government with
204 THIRD PART
explanations regarding the unjustifiable utterances of high Serbian
officials, both in Serbia and abroad, who, notwithstanding their
official positions, did not hesitate after the crime of June 28th to
express themselves in interviews in terms of hostility to the Aus-
tro-Hungarian government, and, finally,
10. To notify the Imperial and Royal Government without
delay of the execution of the measures comprised under the pre-
ceding heads.
The Austro-Hungarian Government expects the reply of the
royal government at the latest by 6 o'clock on Saturday evening,
July 25th.
The Russian minister, Strandtman, in Belgrade, im-
mediately sent a despatch to the minister of foreign affairs,
Sazonoff, at Petrograd, as follows:
The minister of Austria has just at this moment, six P. M.,
handed to the Serbian minister of finance, Patchou, who has
replaced Pasic, an ultimatum note from his government, fixing
forty-eight hours as the limit of time for the acceptance of the de-
mand which is contained therein. Giesl has declared verbally that
if the note is not accepted in its entirety within the forty-eight
hours, he has received orders to leave Belgrade, together with the
other officials of the legation. Pasic and the other ministers, who
are in an electoral campaign, have been recalled, and are expected
at Belgrade tomorrow morning, Friday, at 10 o'clock. Patchou,
who communicated to me the contents of the note, solicits the aid
of Russia, and declares that no government could accept the de-
mands of Austria.
The morning of July 24, 1914, the Austro-Hungarian
ambassadors in Germany, England, Russia, France, Italy,
and Turkey communicated to the Governments of these
Powers the text of the ultimatum note directed by the
Imperial Government of Francis Joseph to Serbia the
morning of the preceding day (July 23, 1914).
GERMANY, RUSSIA, ENGLAND 205
III
The partisan attitude of Germany. The conciliatory-
attitude of Russia. The beseeching telegram of Prince
Alexander, regent of Serbia, to Czar Nicholas II. An
eloquent telegram from the Enghsh Ambassador,
Buchanan. The obstinacy of the Austro-Hungarian
Government.
The gravity of the ultimatum note sent from Vienna to
Belgrade was felt throughout the world; the German attitude
was expressed on the same date — July 24, 1914 — in various
German newspapers and particularly in the Kreuz Zeitung,
organ of the minister of foreign affairs in Berlin.
It is to be hoped,'* said the journal, "if the dissension precipi-
tates a war, that this war will be isolated. The spark may kindle
a barrel of powder in Europe; but up to this moment we can and
we must hope that the great Powers will recognize the justice
of the Austro-Hungarian demands, and that no one will give aid
to Serbia.
This same idea dinched and amplified another officious
communication from Berlin, affirming that it was incon-
ceivable, "that there could be any Power disposed to lend
moral or material aid to the Serbians in questions like this
which necessarily must re-awaken the sentiment of the
monarchial solidarity between nations honestly bound
together. Serbia therefore" — concludes this officious voice
— '*will accept the Austrian demands or it zvill perish.''
The Lokal Anzeigery of the same date, said:
Germany feels much relieved because finally the time has ar-
rived to clarify definitely the Balkan situation, and she congrat-
ulates herself along with the allied Empire for its virile resolution,
and assures it fidelity and unconditional aid in the difficult days
before it.
This was not only the sentiment of the German Govern-
ment circles, of which the Lokal Anzeiger was also the offi-
cious organ, but also the sentiment of the German people
206 THIRD PART
as was shown by the unanimity of their organs, and by the
enthusiastic popular demonstrations made in the great
German cities, from Berlin to Munich. They were not in
accord in their prevision (pacific solution or war), but all
were in accord in saying that "in any case Germany will be
at the side of Austria!"
However, the Russian minister of foreign affairs, Sazo-
noff, as soon as he was informed of the step which Austria
had taken at Belgrade, and as soon as he received from the
Russian minister at Belgrade the demand for aid in favor of
Serbia, transmitted to the Austrian Government at Vienna
on July 24th, the following declaration, by means of the
Russian Ambassador Knidachew:
The communication made by Austria to the powers at Bel-
grade on the following day, on the presentation of the ultimaUinif
is quite insufficient to enable them to take any steps which might
help to smooth away the difficulties that have arisen.
In order to prevent ^the incalculable consequences, equally
fatal to all the powers which may result from the course of action
followed by the Austrian Government, it seems to us to be, above
all, essential that the period of time allowed for the Serbian reply
should be extended. Austria-Hungary, having declared her
readiness to inform the powers of the result of the inquiry upon
which the Imperial and Royal Governments base their accusations,
should also allow them equally sufficient time to weigh them.^
In this case if the powers should be convinced that certain of the
Austrian demands were well founded, they would be in a position
to offer advice to the Serbian Government. A refusal to prolong
the terms of the ultimatum would render nugatory the proposals
made by the Austrian Government to the powers, and would be in
contradiction to the very basis of international relations.
While Russia took this step at Vienna — recommending
it simultaneously to the attention of the Governments of
London, Berlin, Paris and Rome — Prince Alexander, regent
of Serbia, sent to Czar Nicholas II the following telegram:
The Austrian Government last evening sent to the Serbian
^ From the inquiry instituted by the Austrian agents in Serajevo, it was proven
that the assassination of the hereditary Archduke, Francis Ferdinand, was the
result of a plot in which the army and the government functionaries of Serbia
took part.
GERMANY, RUSSIA, ENGLAND 207
Government a note concerning the assault at Serajevo. Con-
scious of her international duties, Serbia, from the first day of the
horrible crime, declared that she condemned it and that she was
ready to open an inquiry on her own territory if the complicity
of certain of her subjects should be proved in the course of the trial
begun by the Austrian authorities. In consequence the demands
contained in the Austrian note are uselessly humiliating to Serbia,
and incompatible with her dignity as an independent state. A
space of forty-eight hours has been granted to us to accept every-
thing; if we do not accept, the Austrian Legation will leave Bel-
grade. We are ready to accept the Austrian conditions in so far
as they are compatible with the situation of an independent state,
as also the conditions which were advised by Your Majesty;
everyone whose participation in the crime of Serajevo is proved will
be severely punished by us.
Some of the Austrian demands can not be executed without
changes in our legislation, and this requires time. Too brief a
space of time for this has been granted us. We can be attacked
by the Austrian army, which is concentrating on our frontier, as soon
as the forty-eight hours have passed. It is impossible for us to
defend ourselves, and we supplicate Your Majesty to give us your
aid as soon as possible.
The valued benevolence of Your Majesty, manifested so many
times toward us, makes us confidently hope that thistime also our
appeal will be heard by your generous Slavic heart.
In these difficult moments I interpret the sentiments of the Ser-
bian people, who supplicate Your Majesty to graciously interest
yourself in the cause of the Kingdom of Serbia.
Besides this, the English Ambassador, Buchanan, at
Petrograd, on July 25, 1914, informed Sir Edward Grey at
London that Russia favored an appeal from Serbia to the
Pov^ers.
The Russian minister of foreign affairs, Sazonoff [thus said
Buchanan in his telegram to Grey] wished to see the question
placed upon an international basis, because the obligations
assumed by Serbia in i909,towhich allusion is made in the Austrian
ultimatum, were given, not to Austria, but to the Powers. If
Serbia would appeal to the Powers, Russia would be disposed to
keep herself out and leave the matter in the hands of England,
France, Germany and Italy.
But on the afternoon of July 25, 1914, Baron de Macchio,
208 THIRD PART
who replaced the Austrian minister of foreign affairs,
Count Berchtold, in his absence from the capital, com-
municated to the Russian Ambassador in Vienna that the
Austrian Government would not consent to accept the de-
mand of Russia to prolong the time given to Serbia, main-
taining, "that the solution of the incident with Serbia is
a matter which interests exclusively Austria and Serbia.
Austria therefore has decided, in whatever circumstances, to
refuse every attempt at intervention by outsiders."
IV
The reply of the Serbian Government to the ultimatum
note of the Austro-Hungarian Government was given
July 25, 1914.
The forty-eight hours, exactly the same length of time
which Austria, in April 1859, accorded to Piedmont, were
about over. Twenty minutes before, that is, at 5:40 p. m.,
of July 25th, the Serbian prime minister Pasic handed to
Baron Giesl, the Austro-Hungarian minister, the following
reply:
The royal Serbian Government has received the communica-
tion of the imperial and royal government of July 23, 1914, and
is convinced that its reply will remove any misunderstanding
which may threaten to impair the good neighborly relations be-
tween the Austro-Hungarian monarchy and the Kingdom of
Serbia.
Conscious of the fact that the protests which were made both
from the tribune of the national Skupshtina and in the declarations
and actions of the responsible representatives of the state — pro-
tests which were cut short by the declaration made by the Serbian
Government on March 18, 1909 — have not been renewed on any
occasion as regards the great neighboring monarchy, and that no
attempt has been made since that time, either by the successive
royal governments or by their organs, to change the political and
legal state of affairs created in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the royal
government draws attention to the fact that in this connection the
imperial and royal government has made no representation ex-
THE REPLY OF SERBIA 209
cept one concerning a school book, and on that occasion the im-
perial and royal government received an entirely satisfactory
explanation. Serbia has several times given proofs of her pacific
and moderate policy during the Balkan crisis, and thanks to
Serbia and to the sacrifice that she has made in the exclusive in-
terest of European peace, that peace has been preserved. The
Royal Government cannot be held responsible for manifestations of
a private character, such as articles in the press and the peaceable
work of societies — manifestations which take place in nearly all
countries in the ordinary course of events, and which as a general
rule escape official control. The Royal Government cannot be
made responsible in view of the fact that at the time of the solution
of a series of questions which arose between Serbia and Austria-
Hungary, it gave proof of a great readiness to oblige, and thus
succeeded in settling the majority of these questions to the ad-
vantage of the two neighboring countries.
For these reasons the Royal Government has been pained and
surprised at the statements made that persons of the Kingdom of
Serbia are supposed to have participated in the preparations for
the crime committed at Serajevo; the Royal Government expected
to be invited to collaborate in an investigation of all that concerns
this crime, and it is ready, in order to prove the entire cor-
rectness of its attitude, to take measures against any persons
concerning whom representations may be made to them. Falling
in, therefore, with the desire of the Imperial and Royal Govern-
ment, it is prepared to hand over for trial any Serbian subject, with-
out regard to his position or rank, of whose complicity in the crime
of Serajevo proofs may be furnished, and more especially they will
undertake to cause to be published on the first page of the Oijicial
Army Bulletin^ on the dates from July 13th to the 26th, the fol-
lowing declaration:
The Royal Government of Serbia condemns all propaganda which
may be directed against Austria-Hungary^ that is to say, all such
tendencies as aim at ultimately detaching from the Austrian monarchy
territories which form part thereof, and it sincerely deplores the
baneful consequences of these criminal movements. The Royal
Government regrets that, according to the communication from the
Imperial afid Royal Government, certain Serbian officers and officials
should have taken part in the above-mentioned propaganda, and
thus compromise the good neighborly relations to which the royal
Serbian Government was solemnly engaged by the declaration of
March 57, igog, which declaration disapproves of and repudiates
210 THIRD PART
all idea or attempt at interference with the destiny of the inhabitants
of any part whatsoever of Austria-Hungary, and it considers it
a duty formally to warn the officers, officials, and entire population
of the kingdom that henceforth it will take the most rigorous steps
against all such persons as are guilty of such acts and to prevent
and to repress such it will use its utmost endeavor.
This declaration will be brought to the knowledge of the royal
army in an order of the day, in the name of his Majesty the King,
by his royal highness the Crown Prince Alexander, and will be
published in the next official army bulletin.
The Royal Government further undertakes:
1. To introduce at the first regular convocation of the
Skupshtina a provision into the law governing the press and pro-
viding for the most severe punishment of incitement to hatred
or contempt of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, and for taking
action against any pubUcation, the general tendency of which is
directed against the territorial integrity of Austria-Hungary. The
Government assumes the responsibility at the coming revision of the
constitution, of causing an amendment to be introduced into arti-
cle 22 of the constitution of such a nature that any publication
may be suppressed, a proceeding at present impossible under the
categorical terms of article 22 of the constitution.
2. The Government possesses no proof, nor does the note of
the Imperial and Royal Government furnish it with any, that
the Narodna Obdrana and other similar societies have committed,
up to the present, any criminal act of this nature through the
proceedings of any of their members. Nevertheless, the Royal
Government will accept the demand of the Imperial and Royal
Government and will dissolve the Narodna Obdrana society
and any other society which may be directing its efforts against
Austria.
3 . The Royal Serbian Government undertakes to remove with-
out delay from their public educational establishments in Serbia
all that serves or could serve to foment propaganda against
Austria, whenever the Imperial and Royal Government furnishes
them with facts and proofs of this propaganda.
4. The Royal Government also agrees to remove from military
service all such persons as the judicial inquiry may have proved to
be guilty of acts directed against the integrity of the territory of
the Austrian monarchy, and it expects the Imperial and Royal
Government to communicate to them at a later date the names and
THE REPLY OF SERBIA 211
the acts of these officers and officials for the purposes of the pro-
ceedings which are to be taken against them.
5. The Royal Government must confess that it does not
clearly grasp the meaning or the scope of the demand made by
the Imperial and Royal Government that Serbia shall undertake to
accept the collaboration of the organs of the Imperial and Royal
Government upon their territory, but it declares that it will
admit such collaboration as agrees with the principle of inter-
national law, with criminal procedure, and with good neighborly
relations.
6. It goes without saying that the Royal Government
considers it its duty to open an inquiry against all such persons
as are, or eventually may be, implicated in the plot of June 28,
1914, and who happen to be within the territory of the kingdom.
As regards the participation in this inquiry of Austrian agents or
authorities appointed for this purpose by the Imperial and Royal
Government, the Royal Government cannot accept such an arrange-
ment, as it would be a violation of the constitution and of the law
of criminal procedure; nevertheless, in concrete cases communica-
tions as to the results of the investigation in question might be
given to the Austro-Hungarian agents.
7. The Royal Government proceeded, on the very evening
of the delivery of the note, to arrest Commandant Voina Tan-
kosic. As regards Milan Ciganovitch, who is a subject of the
Austrian monarchy, and who up to June 15th was employed (on
probation) by the directorate of railways, it has not yet been pos-
sible to arrest him.
The Austrian Government is requested to be so good as to
supply as soon as possible, in the customary form, the presumptive
evidence of guilt, as well as the eventual proofs of guilt which have
been collected up to the present time at the inquiry at Serajevo,
for the purposes of the latter inquiry.
8. The Serbian Government will reinforce and extend the
measures which have been taken for preventing the illicit traffic
in arms and explosives across the frontier. It goes without say-
ing that they will immediately order an inquiry and will severely
punish the frontier officials on the Schabatz-Loxnitza line who
have failed in their duty and allowed the authors of the crime of
Serajevo to pass.
9. The Royal Government will gladly give explanations of
the remarks made by their officials, whether in Serbia or abroad,
in interviews after the crime, and which, according to the state-
212 THIRD PART
ment of the Imperial and Royal Government, were hostile toward
the monarchy, as soon as the imperial and royal government has
communicated to them the passages in question in these remarks,
and as soon as they have shown that the remarks were actually
made by the said officials, and the Royal Government will itself
take steps to collect evidence and proofs.
lo. The Royal Government of Serbia will inform the imperial
and Royal Government of the execution of the measures comprised
under the above heads, in so far as this has not already been done
by the present note, as soon as each measure has been ordered and
carried out.
If the Imperial and Royal Government is not satisfied with this
reply, the Serbian Government, considering that it is not to the
common interest to precipitate the solution of this question, is
ready, as always, to accept a pacific understanding, either by re-
ferring these questions to the decision of the international tribunal
of The Hague, or to the great powers which took part in the draw-
ing up of the declaration made by the Serbian Government on
March 31, 1909.
The telegram announcing the above note by Pasic to
the Austro-Hungarian minister v^^as published as information
in the official correspondence bureau of Vienna (July 25,
1914) w^ith the follow^ing words:
The Serbian Prime Minister Pasic, before six P. M., went to the
Austrian Legation at Belgrade and gave an insufficient response to
the Austro-Hungarian note.
The Minister, Baron Giesl, then notified Pasic of the rupture of
diplomatic relations and left Belgrade with other officers of the
legation at 6:30 p. m.
INTERESTING TELEGRAMS 213
An eloquent telegram from the English ambassador
in Vienna, Maurice di Bunsen, to Sir Edward Grey
(July 27, 1914). An official communication from the
Russian Government, published by the Courrier de la
Bourse, of Petrograd Quly 27, 1914), the reply of Czar
Nicholas II to Prince Alexander, regent of Serbia (July
27, 1914). The grateful acknowledgment of Prince
Alexander to Czar Nicholas II.
On July 27, 1914, the English ambassador at Vienna,
Maurice di Bunsen, sent the following telegram to Sir Ed-
ward Grey in London:
I have had conversations with all of my colleagues representing
the great powers. The impression which was left on my mind is
that the Austro-Hungarian note was so drawn up as to render a
war inevitable; that the Austro-Hungarian Government has fully
determined to have war with Serbia; that it considers its position
as one of the great powers in jeopardy, and that until punishment
has been administered to Serbia, it is unlikely that it will listen to
proposals of mediation. This country (Austro-Hungary) has
gone wild with joy at the prospect of war with Serbia, and its
postponement of prevention would undoubtedly be a great dis-
appointment.
The Courrier de la Bourse of Petrograd on July 27,
1914, published the following official communication:
Russia will be ready to respond by any means which are at the
disposal of a great power before any evidence in which it is proved
that its legitimate demands are despised. Russia will not permit
the annihilation of a Slavic State, but it is as ready to sustain
Austro-Hungary in its just demands as it is ready to recommend to
Serbia not to be unreasonable. In any case Russia will never per-
mit the punishment of an entire Serbian people for the crime of a
private individual. Neither Russia nor Serbia can consent to
interference with the sovereign right of a Balkan State.
And Czar Nicholas II on the same day responded to the
214 THIRD PART
supplicating telegram sent to him by Prince Alexander,
Regent of Serbia, on July 24th. The Czar, in his response,
made known his wishes and recommendations and ex-
pressed his approbation of the attempt to avert war; but
concluded thus: "If, notwithstanding our most sincere de-
sires, we cannot prevent war, your highness may rest as-
sured that in any case Russia will be interested in the fate
of Serbia."
When the Russian minister in Serbia, Strandtman, con-
signed to the Prime Minister of Serbia the comforting
telegram of the Czar directed to Prince Alexander, Pasic,
after having read it, made the sign of the cross and exclaimed,
"O God! The Czar is great and merciful!" Then not
being able to restrain his emotion he embraced Strandtman;
and Prince Alexander telegraphed his thanks to the Czar,
in these terms:
Profoundly touched by the telegram Your Majesty has deigned
to send me, I hasten to thank you from my heart. I pray
Your Majesty to be persuaded that the cordial sympathy which
Your Majesty has shown toward our country is especially preci-
ous and fills our hearts with hope that the future of Serbia is
assured since this nation has become the object of your high
solicitude. These dark moments cement more than ever the
chains of deep attachment which unites Serbia with "Santa Russia
Slava"; the sentiments of eternal gratitude for the protection and
aid of your Majesty shall be held devoutly in the soul of every
Serbian.
VI
The declaration of war by Austria-Hungary against
Serbia (July 27, 1914). The proclamation of the
Emperor Francis Joseph to his people (July 28th).
Czar Nicholas sends an urgent telegram to the Kaiser,
begging of him to discourage war (July 29th). The
reply and the declaration of war (July 31st).
The inflexible plan of the Austro-Hungarian govern-
ment was announced on July 27, 1914, with the following
declaration made to the powers:
AUSTRIA DECLARES WAR ON SERBIA 215
To put an end to the subversive plots coming from Belgrade
and directed against the territorial integrity of the Austro-Hun-
garian Monarchy, the imperial and Royal Government, warned the
Royal Government of Serbia July 23, 1914, by means of a note, in
which we find formulated a series of demands for the acceptance
of which there was accorded forty-eight hours.
The Royal Government of Serbia not having responded to
this note in a satisfactory manner, the Imperial Royal Govern-
ment of Austria found it necessary to provide, with force of arms,
for the defense of its rights and interests.
Austria, which had simultaneously directed a formal declara-
tion to Serbia, in conformity to Article I of the Convention of
October 18, 1907, relative to the opening of hostilities, considers
itself, from this moment in a state of war with Serbia.
The day after, July 28th, the Emperor Francis Joseph
published from Vienna a proclamation, in which among
things he said to his people:
My greatest desire has always been to consecrate the years,
which by "grace of God remain to me, to the work of peace,
and to preserve my people from the great sacrifice and burdens
of war. But Providence has willed otherwise. The conduct of
an adversary full of hate obliges me to defend the honor of my
monarchy; to protect its authority and its power; to guarantee its
position; to take the sword in hand after long years of
peace.
My Government has made, in vain, a last attempt to obtain by
pacific means its ambition to induce Serbia to change its course of
conduct; but Serbia has rejected the moderate overtures of my
government and has refused to do its duty. I see myself con-
strained to create by force, the indispensable guarantees which
must secure to my State internal calm and permanent peace with
the outside world.
I, in this grave hour, assume all of the burden of my decision
and the responsibility which I may encounter before Omnipotent
God. I have examined and studied everything. I pledge myself
conscientiously to the way which duty points out to me. I have
faith in my people, who during so many storms have always
united themselves around my throne; I have faith in the Austro-
Hungarian army, which is animated by sentiments of valor and
devotion. I have faith in Omnipotent God, who will give victory
to my armies.
216 THIRD PART
On July 29th, Czar Nicholas II telegraphed to Kaiser
William II thus:
In this grave moment I beg of you to assist me. A cowardly
war has been declared against a weak nation. In Russia the
indignation, which I myself share, is enormous. I foresee that I
cannot long resist the pressure' forced upon me and I shall be con-
strained to take such measures as may lead to a European war.
I beg of you, in the name of our old friendship, to do all that is
possible to prevent your ally continuing.
But William II responded by insisting that Austria had
acted justly; that the conflict must be limited to Austria
and Serbia; but in any case Germany would be with her ally
Austria.
Events became more serious and continued to go rapidly
from bad to worse.
On the afternoon of July 31st, Kaiser William II was
obliged, by the insistent cheers of an immense crowd, to
present himself on the balcony of the Imperial Palace in
Berlin with the Empress at his side, together with the Crown
Prince and his consort, the Chancellor, and the principal
personages of the court. On this occasion he pronounced
these words:
A critical hour has fallen upon Germany. From every part
we are constrained, much to my grief, to take arms in just defense.
If at the last hour our efforts cannot induce our adversaries to
repent and maintain peace, for which for twenty-five years I have
worked, I hope that we, with the help of God, will unsheath the
sword, and I hope we shall sheath it again with honor. You must
be willing to endure enormous sacrifices of blood and of goods,
but you will endure this, I know, and to our adversaries we will
show what it means to oflfend Germany.
I commend you to God! Go to church and pray to God to
grant victory to the German arms and cause.
On August I, 1914, Germany declared war on Russia.
On August 3d, Germany declared war upon France and
on the same date (August 3d) Germany declared war on
Belgium.
TRIPLE ALLIANCE 217
VII
The treaty of the Triple Alliance between the Govern-
ments of Italy, Austria, and Germany (1882-1912). The
articles III, IV, and VII of that same treaty.
When, in September, 1877, Francesco Crispi — who as
yet had not risen to power in the Government of Italy —
met Prince Bismarck at Wildbad and spoke of a possible
defensive alHance between Germany and Italy, and touched
on the compHcated Oriental question, Bismarck responded:
"If Austria should take Bosnia, Italy would take Albania,
or any other Turkish land on the Adriatic." One year
after (1878) Austria, following the congress of Berlin,
*'took" Bosnia; but Italy did not "take" Albania.
Instead, on October 31, 1881, Humbert I accompanied
by Queen Margherita, Minister Depretis, and Mancini,
visited Francis Joseph at Vienna, for important political
reasons. And on May 20, 1882, the Italian, Austrian and
German Governments signed the famous treaty of the Triple
Alliance which was afterward renewed in 1887, 1897, and
1902, and finally in 191 2 for another twelve years.
After the treaty was signed on May 20, 1882, Prince
Bismarck, in a speech in the German parliament on June 12,
1882, expressed himself thus: "We are united and allied,
gentlemen, with two great monarchies, Italy and Austria,
who will defend our interests and who want peace as we
want it."
From the documents published after the war broke out,
it clearly followed that the treaty of the Triple Alliance —
renewed, as has been said, in 191 2, for another twelve years —
contained among other things, three articles (3, 4, and 7).
Such articles were of the following tenor:
Article III. If one or two of the contracting parties, without
provocation on their part, are attacked by two or more Powers
which have not signed this treaty, and are implicated in a war with
them, this will at the same time raise the casus foederis for the other
parties.
218 THIRD PART
Article IF. If a great Power which has not signed this treaty
menaces the national safety of one of the contracting parties and
the nation thus menaced were thus constrained to declare war, the
other two would be obliged to observe toward their ally a benev-
olent neutrality. Each one of the three contracting Powers in
this case, will remain free to participate in the war if it seems wise
and to make a common cause with her ally.
Article VII. Austria-Hungary and Italy, which have only
the object in view to maintain the status quo in the Orient, obligate
themselves to use their influence to prevent any territorial change
dangerous to one or the other of the contracting Powers. They
will reciprocally give all the explanations necessary to clarify
their respective intentions and the intentions of the other Powers.
But if, however, in the course of events a case presents in itself
w^hich it would be impossible to maintain the status quo in the terri-
tory of the Balkans, and of the Ottoman coasts and islands of the
Adriatic and Aegean Seas; and in consequence of the conduct of a
third Power, or for other causes, Austria and Italy would be obliged
to change the status quo with a temporary or lasting occupation, such
occupation would take place only after previous agreement be-
tween the two Powers, based on the principle of a reciprocal con-
sent ^ for all territorial or other sorts of advantages which could
come to one of them outside of the present status quo and in a
manner to satisfy the justifiable pretentions of both parties.
VIII
How the Government of Austria, in its fatal ultimatum
of July 23, 1914, and the consequent declaration of war
against Serbia, of July 27, 1914, violated the treaty of
the Triple Alliance to the injury of Italy.
The Giornale d' Italia (the great oificlal daily of Rome)
August I, 1914, published the follow^Ing:
During the grave crisis provoked by the note of Austria to
Serbia, the Italian government worked actively and In conjunc-
tion especially with the English Government, to avoid European
complications and to maintain peace. But unfortunately the
^ Some publications say: "based on the principle of reciprocal compensation."
AUSTRIA VIOLATED THE ALLIANCE 219
Italo-English efforts for peace did not succeed; and from day to
day the probabilities of an European conflagration became greater.
Thus the Italian Government had to considerthe situation in which
(the Government) Italy might find herself in a future conflict, and
place herself in accord in the following points:
First. The note of Austria to Serbia was communicated to the
Italian government after it had been communicated to the Serbian
government, so that there was no advice beforehand on the part
of the Chancellery of Vienna, nor any treaty with the Roman cabinet
regarding the grave decision which immediately had European
consequences.
Second. One of the fundamental characteristics of the Triple
Alliance is that no one of the allies can undertake an action in
the Balkans without first being in accord with the other allies.
Now there was no such preventive agreement between Austria
and Italy.
Third. The Triple Alliance has a defensive, not an offensive
character, and cannot obligate the allies to follow one of them,
who, on its own account and without previous advice, would have
the object in view of pursuing an aggressive action exactly such
as that undertaken by Austria against Serbia.
Fourth. The fundamental interest of Italy is, that the Adrl-
atic-Balkanic equilibrium, resulting from the recent wars in the
European East, shall not be disturbed, but instead, the principle
must continue to prevail that the Balkans must be for the Balkan
people. Now, the military action of Austro-Hungary against
Serbia — notwithstanding the Chancellery of Vienna had de-
clared that it had no territorial ambitions — is of such a nature that
a change may be precipitated in the aforesaid equilibrium.
Fifth. Italy, not having been advised In advance of the
thing which Austria was undertaking, could not even take one of
the necessary precautions for the protection of her most vital
interests in the eventuality of unforeseen European complications.
On these substantial points, the council of the ministers of Italy
(meeting August i, 1914) found themselves in accord. On the
other hand the Italian Government did not fail to make known Its
point of view to the governments of Vienna and Berlin, assuring
them that in any case Italy would have held an amicable attitude
toward the allies. But they observed In the meantime that the
sudden and not concerted action of Austria against Serbia could
not Impose on them the obligation to follow Austria everywhere,
and that the object of Italy was essentially pacific.
220 THIRD PART
On the evening of August 2d, the Giornale d'ltalia
pubHshed the following:
This morning, a little before noon, the German ambassador in
Rome, Baron von Flotow, visited our minister of foreign affairs,
and communicated to him that Germany had declared war on
Russia. The minister, the Marquis of San Giuliano, received the
communication and declared that Italy, inspired by the spirit and
the letter of the treaty of the Triple Alliance, does not believe that
the actual conflict as it has risen and developed, can constitute the
casus foederis for the participation of Italy in this conflict; there-
fore the Honorable San Giuliano added that Italy will maintain
the most rigorous neutrality.
IX
The declaration of Italian neutrality (August 4, 1914).
On August 4, 1914, the oflftcial gazette of the kingdom of
Italy published the following:
The ItaUan cabinet has deliberated upon the following text
of a declaration of neutrality:
Finding some of the Powers of Europe in a state of war, and
Italy being in a state of peace with all belligerents, the government of
the King, citizens, and other subjects of the kingdom, are obliged to ob-
serve the duties of neutrality following the existing laws and following
the principle of international rights.
Whoever violates these duties must suffer the consequences, and
will inctir the punishments established by law.
Such proclamation of neutrality was unanimously ap-
proved by a great majority of the nation represented by the
Socialists, Republicans, Radicals, Democrats, Progressives
and by many of the Liberal Constitutional party; onone side,
for pacific and theoretic reasons of principle; on the other,
for party reasons, and for historical and sentimental reasons,
and on account of Masonic opposition to Catholic Austria,
against German militarism, in fact, against the Triple
Alliance; and also because of the fear of financial and
economic conditions which seemed very delicate for the
ITALY DENOUNCES TRIPLE ALLIANCE 221
state and for the country — as was shown by the recent
parhamentary discussions — after the campaign with Lybia,
which brought to the national treasury a burden of no less
than one billion of lire to face, together with new taxes which
were exasperating additions to the old; there were citizens
of every sort who for one reason or another were not of any
party, not representative, non-agitators, because they were
opposed in general to the war, to the adventurous under-
taking and because they were desirous that Italy, in the
general interests of the nation, should have a long period of
peace and fruitful work.
The proclamation of neutrahty was disapproved and
combated by a small minority of the Italians who wanted
immediate intervention at the side of Germany and Austria,
and also by those who stood by the Triple Alliance at any
cost (ModerateLiberals, Conservatives and someof the Young
Nationalists) and who were convinced of the moral necessity
for Italy to face in Europe, for her present and for her future
place in the world among the nations, the cementation of
war and the necessary risks borne by it; and to acquire from
her natural boundaries from every part greater and na-
tural expansion on the surrounding seas.
X
The Italian Government, on May 3, 1915, denounces
the treaty of the Triple Alliance.
If the majority of the nation was in favor of neutrality
in 1914, in 191 5 it was in favor of war. On May 3, 191 5,
Baron Sydney Sonnino, minister of foreign affairs in Italy,
presented the following note to the minister of foreign
affairs of Austro-Hungary through the Duke of Avarna,
Ambassador of Victor Emanuel III at Vienna:
The alliance between Italy and Austria-Hungary became
stronger, from its very beginning, as an element and a guarantee of
peace, and aimed chiefly, at first, toward the end of mutual defense.
Considering the ulterior events and the new situation which resulted
222 THIRD PART
from them, the governments of both countries were forced to
consider another, and no less essential aim in the course of the
successive renewals of the treaty, and thus applied themselves to
safeguard the continuance of their alliance, stipulating the prin-
ciple of previous understandings relative to the Balkans, in view
of conciliating the interests and divergent tendencies of the two
powers.
It is very evident that these stipulations, loyally observed,
would have been sufficient to furnish a solid basis for a mutual and
fecund action. Instead, Austria-Hungary, during the summer of
1914, without consulting Italy, without even giving her the least
notice, and taking no cognizance of the advices of moderation
which were given to her by the Royal Government, sent Serbia the
ultimatum of July 23, 1914, which was the cause and the starting
point of the present European conflagration.
Austria-Hungary, in neglecting the obligations arising from
the treaty, profoundly disturbed the status quo of the Balkan
States, and created a situation by which she alone was to profit,
to the detriment of the interests of the greatest importance, that
her ally had so many times affirmed and proclaimed.
So flagrant a violation of the letter and the spirit of the treaty,
not alone justified the refusal by Italy to take sides with the allies
in a war provoked without her consent, but took away at the same
time from the allies their most essential content and raison
d'etre.
The condition itself, of the benevolent neutrality provided for
by the treaty, was compromised by this violation. Reason and
sentiment are agreed, in fact, to exclude the idea that benevolent
neutrality could be maintained when one of the allies takes up
arms for the realization of a program diametrically opposed to
the vital interests of the other ally; interests, the safeguarding
of which constitutes the principal reason for the alliance itself.
In spite of these facts Italy has endeavored, during several
months, to create a situation favorable to the re-establishment be-
tween the two states of such amicable relations as constitute the
fundamental principles of all co-operation in the domain of general
politics.
With this end in view, and with this hope, the Royal Govern-
ment declared itself disposed to agree to an arrangement having as
a base the satisfaction in an equitable measure of the legitimate
national aspirations of Italy, and which would serve at the same
time to reduce the existing disparities in the reciprocal situations
GOVERNMENT AND PARLIAMENT 223
of both states on the Adriatic. These negotiations, however,
brought no appreciable results.
All efforts of the Royal Government were frustrated by the
resistance of the Imperial and Royal Government, which, after
several months, onl}'^ decided to admit of the special interests of
Italy in Valona, and to promise an insufficient concession of ter-
ritory in the Trentino, a concession which did not achieve the nor-
mal adjustment of the situation, either from a political or a military
point of view. This concession, besides, was to have its execution
only at an indeterminate date, that is to say, only at the end of
the war.
In view of this state of affairs, the Italian Government must
give up the hope of reaching an understanding, and sees itself
forced to retire from all propositions of arrangement.
It is equally useless to maintain toward the alliance a formal
appearance which belies the reality of continual distrust and daily
disputes.
That is why, Italy, confident in her right, affirms and pro-
claims that it takes back, from this instant, its entire liberty of
action and declares annulled and forever without effect, its
treaty alliance with Austria-Hungary.
SONNINO.
XI
Antonio Salandra, president of the ministerial council
of Italy, in the historical session of the National Italian
Parliament in Rome, May 20, 1915, explains the reasons
which forced the Italian Government to declare war on
Austria-Hungary.
On May 20, 191 5, in the historical session of the National
Parliament at Rome, Antonio Salandra, president of the
ministerial council of Italy, presented a sketch of laws," for
the conferring of extraordinary powers on the Government
of the King in case of war,'* and made the following address :
Honorable Colleagues: Italy from the time in which she rose
to the unity of State, asserted herself in the world of nations as a
factor of moderation, concord and peace; and she can proudly
proclaim to have fulfilled such a mission with a firmness which
did not make her shrink even before the most painful sacrifices.
224 THIRD PART
For more than thirty years, she has maintained a system
of alliance and of friendship, dominated principally by the desire
to better assure, in such a way, the European equilibrium, and
with it, peace. For the nobility of such an end, Italy has not
only tolerated the insecurity of her frontiers, not only has she sub-
ordinated to this end her most sacred national aspiration, but she
has been forced to assist, with repressed sorrow, in the attempts
methodically conducted to suppress those characteristics of Ital-
ianity which nature and history have indelibly impressed on gen-
erous regions.
The ultimatum that the Austro-Hungarian Empire directed
to Serbia in July 1914, at one blow annulled the effects of our
long efforts, violating the pact which tied us to that state. Austria
violated the aforesaid pact, by omitting the agreement with us,
and by not even having sent a simple notice to us. She violated
it in substance, thus intending to disturb, to our injury, the
delicate system of territorial possession and of spheres of
influence which had been formed in the Balkan peninsula.
But, to speak of more than this or that particular point, the
whole spirit of the treaty was offended even more than it was sup-
pressed; because it unleashed in the world this most terrible war
contrary to our sentiments and to our interests. And the equi-
librium, which the alliance might have secured, was destroyed; and
virtually but irresistibly, the problem of the national integration
of Italy arose, notwithstanding that for many months, the govern-
ment has patiently labored to effect a compromise which might
restore to the treaty its right to exist, which it has lost. But the
treaties necessary to effect such a compromise should have had
limitations not only of time but of prestige without which the inter-
est of our country would have been compromised.
For the guardianship, therefore, of these treaties the govern-
ment of the kingdom of Italy found itself constrained to notify
the imperial Austrian Government on the fourth of this month,
May, 191 5, that it must withdraw all of its proposals of agreement,
denounce the treaty of the alliance, and declare its own liberty
of action. Nor, on the other hand, was it more possible to leave
Italy in isolation without security and without prestige, just at the
moment in which the history of the world was taking on a decisive
phase.
Now in the name of the Patria and because of our devotion to
her, we fervently make our most earnest appeal to Parliament and
to the country that all dissensions stop, and, more than this, in
every part they must be forgotten.
ITALY ENTERS THE GREAT WAR 225
The disputes between parties and classes, individual opinions
— always respected in normal times — in other words, the reasons
themselves, which give life to the daily fecund contrast of tenden-
cies and principles, must today disappear before an ideality which
inflames more than any other ideality the fortunes and greatness
of Italy.
Everything else we must forget from this moment, and re-
member only this: to be Italians, to love all Italy with the same
faith and fervor. The forces of all must be cemented into one
single heart; only one single will must guide all toward the wished
for end; and force, and art, and will must find their expression one,
alive, and heroic in the army and navy of Italy and in the august
leader who conducts them toward the destiny of the new history.
XII
Italy declares war against Austria-Hungary
(May 23, 1915).
On May 23, 191 5, the Government of Victor Emanuel
III, incited by the great majority (nine-tenths of the Italian
people), declared vv^ar on the Austro-Hungarian Empire
through the follov^ing communication by the duke of
Avarna, the Italian Ambassador to the Austrian Govern-
ment at Vienna:
Vienna, May 23, 1915.
Following the instructions that I have received from His
Majesty the King, my august sovereign, I, the undersigned, have
the honor to communicate to his excellency, minister of foreign
affairs of Austro-Hungary, the following declaration:
As has already been noted, on May 4, 1915, there was communi-
cated to the Imperial Royal Government the motives for which Italy,
confident of her rights, considered the treaty of the alliance zvhich had
been violated by the Imperial Royal Government, and declared it null
and without effect in the future, and she assumed her former liberty of
action.
The Government of the King, firmly determined to assure with
every means at its disposal the defense of Italian rights and interests,
will not neglect its duty to undertake, in the face of any present and
future threats, the measures which may be imposed for the accomplish-
ment of its national aspirations.
226 THIRD PART
His Majesty the King declares that Italy from tomorrow must he
considered in a state of war zuith Austria-Hungary {May 24, IQ15).
I, the undersigned, have the honor to communicate at the same
time to his excellency, the minister of foreign affairs of Austro-
Hungary, that the passports will be handed today to the Imperial
Royal Ambassador at Rome. I shall be gratified if mine may also
be handed to me.
Duke of Avarna.
XIII
The Emperor Francis Joseph in a proclamation addressed
to his people on May 24, 1915, accuses Victor Emanuel
III, King of Italy, of treachery.
The day after (May 24, 191 5) Francis Joseph published
the following proclamation:
To my People!
The King of Italy has declared war. History does not record
such betrayal as this which has been accomplished by the King of
Italy against his two allies. After an alliance of more than thirty
years, during which time Italy has been able to increase her
territory and develop her resources, she has left us and goes forth
with her flag floating in the field of the enemy.
We have not threatened Italy, we have not lessened her prestige;
we have not hurt her goods nor her interests; we have always ob-
served our duty toward her as an ally, and have accorded to her
our defense when she went to war.
We have done more: when Italy turned her covetous eyes on
our boundaries we decided to maintain peace and alliance at
whatever great and painful sacrifice. This is especially painful
to our paternal heart. But Italian cupidity which wished to take
advantage of the moment, was insatiable. Destiny, however,
must be fulfilled. My armies, in faithful fraternity of arms with
those of my highest allies, have victoriously sustained a gigantic
fight of ten months with the powerful enemy of the east.
The perfidious enemy of the South is not a new adversary.
The great memories of Novara, Mortara, Custozza, Lissa, which
formed the pride of my youth; the spirit of Radetzky, the Arch-
duke Albert, and of Tegetthofi',^ which live in my army and
'The Austrian Admiral who at Lissa (July 20, 1866) defeated the Italian fleet.
THE ACCUSATION OF GERMANY 227
navy, guarantee to me that we shall know how to defend with
success the boundaries of the monarchy even on the South.
I salute my troops and their commanders, who have proven
themselves victorious, and to whose admirable spirit of sacrifice
I owe my deepest gratitude, with the hope that my people will
pray to Almighty God to bless our flag and take our cause under
his protection.
Francis Joseph.
XIV
The " violent and false " speech of von Bethmann-
HoUweg, the German chancellor to the Reichstag in
Berlin, against Italy (May 28, 1915).
The German chancellor von Bethmann-Hollweg de-
livered the following speech at the session of the Reichstag
of Berlin, May 28, 191 5:
When eight days ago I spoke, the hope still existed that it
would be possible to put off the war with Italy. The hope was a
delusion; in Germany it was impossible to believe that there would
be such a sudden change. Today the Italian government has
written for all time, in the book of the history of the people and in
letters of blood, its act of disloyalty.
It was, I believe, Machiavelli who said that sometimes a
necessary war was also a just war; now this war of Italy, considered
from a purely materialistic point of view, independent of any moral
obligation, is it necessary? Is it not rather madness?
No one, either in Austria or in Germany, threatens Italy.
History will judge in the future whether Italy has allowed herself
to be seduced by the fine promises of the Entente. Italy might
have obtained a series of concessions, of which I have recently
spoken: the territories of the Tyrol and Isonzo where Italian is
spoken, the acceptation of the national Italian reclamation, a free
hand in Albania and the seaport of Avlona which is of great
value. Why has not Italy accepted such offers? Does she hope
to conquer the Tyrol? Then let her show her hand! Does she
want to offend Germany who has done so much to elevate her to
a position as one of the great powers, and from whom she is not
separated by any discordance of interests? I have left no doubt
in the Reichstag on this point; an attack by Italy against the
228 THIRD PART
Austro-Hungarian army would be a blow equally against the
German army.
Why has Italy rejected the proposals of Austria? The Italian
manifesto published on the occasion of the declaration of war,
shows that a bad conscience is hidden under empty phrases, and
it gives no explanations. It might perhaps be embarrassing to
declare openly some of the things which were said in conversations
in parliamentary circles, which were that the Austrian offers
have come too late and Italy could have no confidence in them.
In reality what does this mean? The Italian statesmen had no
reason to put their confidence in the loyalty of our nation only
in proportion to the measure of their own fidelity to the treaties.
Germany gave her word that the Austrian concessions would be
realized; therefore Italy had no right to distrust her. Why too
late? On May 4, 191 5, Trentino existed just as it had previously
existed, and to Trentino was joined a series of concessions which
were not thought of in the winter.
If it were too late, was it not rather because the Roman states-
men had not hesitated long since, while the triple alliance still
existed (an alliance which the King of Italy and the Italian Govern-
ment had formerly recognized even after the beginning of the war)
to compromise themselves so gravely with the Triple Entente, as
not to be able to extricate themselves from the meshes?
In December 1914, one could notice the first indication of the
change in the Roman Cabinet, because it is always ready to seize
upon new opportunities. On the other hand Italy has never
ceased, even in past times, to show her predilection for the changes
of the dance; but now there is no ballroom, there is instead a bloody
battle field in which Germany and Austro-Hungary fight for their
lives against a world of enemies. The Italian statesmen have
played against their own people the same game that they have
played against us.
Undoubtedly the regions of the Italian language situated on
the northern frontier were the object of the dreams and the desires
of every Italian; but the great majority of the people and the
majority of parliament did not want war. During the first days
of May, 191 5 — according to the observations of one who knew
Italian affairs very well — the senate (May 4, 191 5) and the
Chamber of deputies (May 12, 191 5), composed of the most serious
statesmen, were still against war.
We have done everything possible to prevent Italy from de-
taching herself from the Triple Alliance. Just for this, we have
THE DEFENSE OF ITALY 229
assumed the ungrateful task of suggesting to our faithful ally,
Austria — by means of her army with which our troops daily divide
death and victory — to buy faithfulness from this third ally,
ceding to it territory which Austria acquired long ago. It is well
known that Austria-Hungary went to the extreme limits of con-
cessions. Prince von Biilow, again in the active service of the
Empire, has put to work with untiring energy all of his diplomatic
ability, and his exact knowledge of men and of things in Italy, to
bring about harmony. If his work has come to naught, the
people recognize it just the same.
XV
Antonio Salandra, president of the Italian Cabinet, in
a solemn and detailed speech delivered in the Campido-
glio of Rome, June 2,1915, defends Italy from the accusa-
tions of the Austro-Hungarian Emperor and the German
Chancellor.
On June 2, 191 5, Prime Minister Salandra delivered
the following memorable discourse ^ in the vast hall of the
Horatii in the Campidoglio at Rome.
We have entered upon a war, greater than any other recorded
in history, in order to safeguard the oldest and loftiest aspirations,
the most vital interests of our country. Italians of every calling
in life must not only have, as indeed they have wondrously proved
themselves to have, a spontaneous, instinctive and profound sense
of justice of our cause and the holiness of our war; they must have
also a rational conviction of it, and the whole civilized world must
be persuaded of it.
To Italy, therefore, and to the civilized world I now address my-
self, and I will demonstrate, not with violent words, but with pre-
cise facts and with unimpeachable documents how the fury of our
enemies has vainly sought to diminish the lofty moral and political
dignity of the cause which our arms shall make triumph. I will
speak with that calm serenity of which the King of Italy gave so
noble an example when he called to arms his soldiers on land
^This speech was published in the American papers in October 1915, but was
so mutilated and altered as to be deceiving, especially in the documentary parts.
230 THIRD PART
and sea.^ I will speak as I ought, with all the respect due to my
exalted position and to the place where I stand. I can afford to
pass by the insults written in imperial, royal and archducal pro-
clamations, because I speak from the Campidoglio, and because I,
in this solemn hour, represent the people and the government of
Italy. I, a modest burgess, feel myself nobler far than the head
of the Hapsburgs.
The mediocre statesmen who with trifling boldness, and mis-
taken in all their previsions, applied the torch to the whole of
Europe, and to their own homes as well, in July 1914, now, seeing
the colossal error which has been made, turn with brutal words
against Italy and her government in the parliaments of Budapest
and Berlin, with the evident purpose of reinstating themselves be-
fore their compatriots, and intoxicating them with visions of ha-
tred and blood.
The Chancellor of the German Empire has said he was filled
not with hatred but with anger. And very truly he spoke, since
he reasoned ill, as one usually does in an excess of rage. I could
not, even if I would, imitate that language. An atavistic re-
version to primitive barbarism is more difficult to us Italians,
who are twenty centuries farther removed from it.
But let us have done with words; let us deal with facts and rea-
sons.
The fundamental argument of the statesmen of Central Europe
is summed up in the words, treachery and jMrpru^, addressed to
Italy — treachery and surprise toward her faithful allies. It
would be easy enough to ask if a man had any right to speak of
alliances and of respect for treaties who, representing with far
less genius but with equal indifference to moral considerations the
traditions of Frederick the Great and Prince Otto von Bismarck,
Wictor Emanuel III, King of Italy, on assuming the'command of the land and
sea forces, sent out the following order of the day:
"Soldiers of the army and navy: The solemn hour of national vindication has
arrived. Following the example of my ancestors, I assume today the supreme
command of the army and navy; with the assurance of faith and victory that
your valor, your self-abnegation, and your discipline will know how to accomplish.
The, enemy you are preparing to combat is well equipped and a worthy ad-
versary. Favored by location and by learned military tactics, he will oppose
you with tenacious resistance, but your indomitable buoyancy will lead you to
victory.
"Soldiers!
"To you will belong the glory of planting the flag of Italy upon the sacred con-
fines which nature placed as the boundaries of our country. To you will belong
the glory of finally finishing the work begun by our forefathers, with so much
heroism."
"General Headquarters, May 26, 1915. Victor Emanuel."
THE DEFENSE OF ITALY 231
has dared to proclaim that necessity knows no law and has con-
sented to his country's trampling under foot, burning, and burying
in the depths of the ocean every document and every civilized
practice of public international right.
But this would be too simple and misleading an argument.
Let us rather calmly examine the facts and see if our allies have any
right to say that they have been betrayed and surprised by us.
It had been evident for a time that our aspirations and our
judgment on that act of criminal folly, by which the allies amazed
the world, took from the alliance its fundamental reason for being.
The Green Book, prepared by Baron Sydney Sonnino, which
more than any other diplomatic collection of documents, has per-
meated the minds of the people, shows the long and painful transac-
tions which dragged on from December, 1915, to May, 1915. It
is not true, as astute attempts are being made to show, that the
ministry which was reconstituted last November changed the
direction of our international policy.
The Italian Government, whose line of conduct has never
changed, severely condemned the aggression of Austria against
Serbia the very moment it came within its knowledge; and it
foresaw the consequences, which those who had with such blind-
ness premeditated the blow had failed to foresee.
Here are the proofs:
I will read the very words, since we are dealing with documents.
On July 25, 1914, two days after Austria had sent the famous
ultimatum note to Serbia, the Marquis of San Giuliano, the
minister of foreign affairs of the Kingdom of Italy, telegraphed
to the Duke of Avarna, the ItaHan Ambassador at Vienna, as fol-
lows:
Today we three, the Prime Minister, Von Flotow and myself,
had a long conversation -which I summarize for the personal guidance
of your Excellency:
Salandra and myself made it quite clear to the Austrian Am-
bassador that Austria could have no right, according to the spirit of
the treaty of the Triple Alliance, to act as she has done at Belgrade
without previous understanding with her allies. Austria, in fact,
by reason of the tone in which her note is drawn up and by reason of
the demands she has made — which demands, while they are of little
effect against the Pan-Serbian peril, are deeply offensive to Serbia and
indirectly so to Russia — has clearly proved that she intends to
provoke a war. We therefore told Von Flotow that in consequence of
such a manner of proceeding on the part of Austria and by reason of
232 THIRD PART
the defensive and conservative character of the treaty of the Triple Al-
liance, Italy is under no obligation to come to the aid of Austria in
the event of this action of hers involving her in a war with Russia;
since any European war whatever would in this event be the result of
a provocative and aggressive act on the part of Austria.
Shortly after, on July 27 or 28, 1914, we raised in clear
terms, at Berlin and Vienna, the question of the cession of the
Italian provinces of Austria, and we declared that if adequate
compensation were not obtained — I am reading the actual words
— the Triple Alliance would be irreparably broken.
The impartial historian will say that Austria, having found
Italy in July, 1913, and in October of the same year, hostile to her
aggressive designs against Serbia, attempted last summer in agree-
ment with Germany, to achieve her purpose by the surprise of an
accomplished fact.
The execrable crime of Sarajevo was only used as a pretext a
month after its perpetration. Austria's refusal to accept the prof-
fered submission of Serbia is proof of this.
Neither at the outbreak of the general conflagration would
Austria have been satisfied with the unconditional acceptance of
the ultimatum. On July 31, 1914, Count Berchtold (minister of
foreign aflFairs of Austria-Hungary) informed our Ambassador
that even if mediation had been possible, it could not have inter'
rupted the hostilities already engaged in with Serbia. This was the
mediation for which England and Italy were striving. In any event
Count Berchtold was not disposed to accept any mediation which
aimed at minimizing the conditions laid down in the Austro-Hungarian
note — conditions which could only have been increased at the con-
clusion of the war. On the other hand, if Serbia, meanwhile, had de-
cided unconditionally to accept the above mentioned note and had de-
clared herself ready to agree to the terms forced upon her — that
would not have induced the Imperial and Royal Government of
Austro-Hungary to cease hostilities.
It is not true that Austria pledged herself, as the Hungarian
Prime Minister asserted, not to undertake any acquisitions of
territory to the damage of Serbia, who, moreover, by accepting all
of the conditions imposed on her, would have become a vassal
state, even while she might remain unbroken territorially.
On July 30, 1914, the Austrian Ambassador Merey uses the
following words to the Marquis of San Giuliano:
Austria cannot make a binding declaration in regard to this
matter because she is unable to foresee if during the course of the war
THE DEFENSE OF ITALY 233
she may not be obliged, against her will, to appropriate Serbian
territories.
And on July 29, 1914, Count Berchtold made the Duke of
Avarna understand that he was not disposed to pledge himself in
any way as to what he had said to him concerning the eventual
conduct of Austria in the case of a conflict with Serbia.
Where, then, is the betrayal, the treachery, where the surprise,
if, after nine months of vain efforts to arrive at an honorable under-
standing which should recognize in equitable measure our rights
and safeguard our interests, we have now resumed our liberty of
action and have taken such measures as the interests of our coun-
try have counseled us to take?
The fact is, both Austria and Germany believed up to the last
few days that they had to do with an Italy not only unwarlike and
clamorous, but feeble of purpose, capable of attempting to black-
mail, but never of enforcing her proper right by arms — with an
Italy that might be paralyzed by the expenditure of a few millions,
by shameful underhand methods, and by insinuating themselves
between the Country and the Government.
Kings and ministers have talked of the alliance which we have
denounced — after they have substantially broken it — as a
Providence under whose great wings Italy has lived for many
years, has developed economically, and has enlarged her ter-
ritories. I do not deny the benefits to be derived from the al-
liance, it would be foolishness to do so; but it would be not a one-
sided benefit, but a benefit to all concerned, and perhaps more of
an advantage to the others than to us. If it were not so, why did
the Central Empire wish to make and to renew it? Was Prince
Bismarck a sentimentalist, or a lover of the country where the
orange flourishes? And were the princes and the statesmen of the
Austro-Hungarian monarchy ever so tender toward us?
It is well to know in reality and with exactness of dates and
facts how the alliance has worked in its true spirit during the latter
years, and how it contributed to our only territorial enlargement,
which was Lybia.
The continual suspicion and the aggressive intentions of the
Austro-Hungarian monarchy against the ally are notorious, and
are shown by authentic proofs.
The head of the Austrian staff, General Conrad, has always
sustained the idea that war against Italy is inevitable, be it on ac-
count of the question of the Irredentist provinceSybe it for the jealousy
of the Kingdom of Italy for every undertaking of the Austro-Hun-
234 THIRD PART
garian monarchy in the Balkans and in the eastern part of the
Mediterranean.
And at another time he said: "Italy wishes to expand when she
is hardly prepared; in the meantime she opposes all that we wish to
undertake in the Balkans. Consequently it is necessary to defeat
her in order to leave our hands free."
And he deplored that up to 1908, Italy had not been attacked
by Austria.^
The same Austrian minister of foreign affairs recognized that
in the military party of the Empire the opinion obtained that the
kingdom of Italy must be crushed^ because from it comes the force
of attraction for the Italian provinces for the empire, and that there-
fore, with the victory over the kingdom of Italy, and with its political
annihilation, every hope of the Irredentists would cease. But
before the war, we should have oppressed the Italian provinces with
rigorous penalties, by opposing ourselves to all of their wishes re-
garding the question of education."^
This thought shows clearly with what sincerity and good faith
the question of the Italian University at Trieste had been promised
and put off for so many years!
And now we will see how the allies aided in the conquest of
Lybya.
I will speak only of that which is proven by documents.
^ At the foot of a report regarding the miUtary preparations of the Italo-
Austrian boundaries, the above-said General Conrad wrote:
"Why was I not listened to when I proposed and insisted upon attacking Italy
in 1908?"
In other words, the zealous head of the Austro-Hungarian stafF regretted the
opportunity which Austria lost to invade Italy when the latter was struck by
the terrible Calabrian-Sicilian earthquake on the last of December, 1908!
^ Count Berchtold also recognized "the gravity of the problem of the Italians
subject to Austria," but he always affirmed that it is an evil without a remedy.
Instead the Armee Zeitung confessed frankly "that the Italian Irredentists should
be destroyed for the highest strategical reasons, for the purpose of not having
enemies at their backs on the day when Austria declares war on Italy."
Among the preparations for war by Austria against Italy, which were never
objected to by Germany, there was brought one day to the Chamber of deputies
in Rome, a singular document in the form of a hand book containing vocabularies
and dialogues in Italian and German for use by the Austrian army when it should
be ordered — according to its plans — to invade Italy. Its authenticity was
guaranteed by the official stamp and was never denied by the commandant at
Gratz, nor by the Government of Vienna. One can see in the replies to the ques-
tions their great importance and helpfulness when the time might come for
the Austrian troops to pass over the frontier into the kingdom of Italy.
"What is the attitude of the Italians? Are they haughty? Are they bold,
demoralized or sad?
"Where are the public treasures kept? Where are the depots for grain, wine
and food?"
THE DEFENSE OF ITALY 235
The operations brilliantly begun by the Duke of Abruzzi
against the Turkish torpedoes assembled at Prevesa were suddenly
and absolutely stopped by Austria.
On October i, 191 1, Aehrenthal ^ said to our Ambassador at
Vienna that our military operations had impressed him painfully,
and that they could not be permitted to continue; it was most necessary
that they should cease and they were given orders to remain no longer
either in the waters of the Adriatic or of the Ionian Sea.
Worse still, the following day the German Ambassador in
Vienna informed our Ambassador confidentially that Aehrenthal
had begged of him to telegraph his own Government to say to the
Italian Government that if it had continued in its naval operations
in the Adriatic and the Ionian, the Italian Government would have had
to treat directly with Austria. '
And not only in the Adriatic and the Ionian did Austria paralyze
our action. On November 5, 191 1, Count Aehrenthal informed
our Ambassador in Vienna that he understood that several Italian
battleships were sighted in the vicinity of Salonica where they
made electric light projections, and declared that not one single
action on the Ottoman coasts of European Turkey or even on the
Islands of the Aegean Sea would be permitted by either Austria-
Hungary or Germany because it was contrary to the treaty of the
Triple Alliance.
In March, 191 2, Berchtold, who succeeded Aehrenthal, de-
clared to the Ambassador of Germany at Vienna that regarding
one of our operations against the Ottoman-European coast, and the
islands of the Aegean Sea, he held Aehrenthal's point of view, ac-
cording to which operations were considered by the Imperial Royal
Government as opposed to the obligations assumed by us in Article
VII of the Treaty of the Triple Alliance. Regarding our operations
against the Dardanelles,^ he considered it in opposition: first, to our
promise not to proceed with any act which would place in jeopardy
the status quo of the Balkans; second, to the spirit itself which was
based on the maintenance of that same status quo.
Then when our fleet, finding itself bombarded at the mouth of
the Dardanelles by the Turkish forts of Kum Kalessi, replied, dam-
aging these same forts, Berchtold deplored the event, considering
* Minister of foreign affairs to Austria-Hungary.
' It even resulted that because of the few projectiles thrown by the Duke of
Abruzzi from his torpedoes, Austria prepared her entire fleet for immediate action.
'This alludes to some Italian torpedoes which succeeded in penetrating (1912)
into the strait of the Dardanelles, making a daring raid.
236 THIRD PART
it in contradiction to the promises made; and declared that, if
the Italian Royal Government wished to regain its liberty of action,
the Royal Imperial Government was able to do the same.
He added that he could not permit us in the future to repeat
any operations similar to those which had been accomplished, or to
do anything at all in opposition to his point of view.
The occupation of Chio ^ was thus prevented.
It is not necessary to repeat how many lives of Italian soldiers,
and how many millions of lire, the persistent obstructions at each
one of our moves against Turkey have cost us, who were sure of
the protection of our allies against every attack in her most vital
parts.^
Another reproof which was bitterly made was that we were not
contented with the prodigious concessions which were offered to
us in these latter times.
Above all we could ask: were these concessions offered in good
faith? The suspicion is born from the reading of the last docu-
ments.
The Emperor Francis Joseph has said that Italy looked with
cupidity on the patrimony of his own house.
The Chancellor von Bethmann-Holweg said that with such
concessions it was meant to buy our fidelity. Therefore, you,
* Turkish Island in Aegean Sea.
^ In the diplomatic conference of London for the Balkanic League against
Turkey (1912-1913) Austria, "dragging" Italy to her side, "imposed" the
exclusion of Montenegro from the conquered Scutari, and the creation of that
autonomous and independent Albania, when, in their own respective zones of
influence — at Durazzo, Austria; at Avlona, Italy — the two allied powers
believed they had finally found the means to satisfy and silence some of the reasons
for their unanswerable and fatal rivalries. But the discussions between Austria
and Italy repeatedly gave the impression of the lack of sincerity of Austria toward
Italy, especially when on March, 1914, the German Prince, William of Wied,
was seated on the throne of the new Albania, around which, there is no doubt,
Austria had created a net of Catholic-Austrian-anti-Italian intrigues; a net which
was one of the principal causes of that persistent rebellion of the Albanian Mus-
sulman elements (a natural reaction) because of sympathy toward Italian influ-
ence, in consequence of which, one sees in September, 1914, the disappearance —
in the tumult of the greater war — of the ephemeral sovereignty of this prince
who was thrust upon Albania by Germany.
The Austrian struggle in Albania aimed to make of this coast an impenetrable
barrier against Italian commerce toward the East. And in all of the Italian
Mediterranean there was jealousy and discontent. Thus, when Italy, being
in accord with England, obtained a railroad concession in Asia Minor (at Adalia),
the spectre of the allies followed her, each one according to his own methods:
Austria reclaimed a zone of territory near the place where the Italian railroad
started, which it had never thought of doing before; Germany hurriedly sent there
the agents oi the Deutsche Bank, who, under the pretext of selling agricultural
machines, attempted to buy up the ground which the Italian railroad occupied.
THE DEFENSE OF ITALY 237
gentlemen, should applaud us for not having accepted such con-
cessions.
But let us turn to the concessions which reached the Foreign
Minister's hands and mine after they had been in the hands of
politicians and journalists hither and thither — these belated
concessions which, even if accepted as made in good faith, respond
in no way to the aims and objects which Italian policy must have
in view.
These aims and objects may be reduced to three: ist. The
defense of Italianity, our first and greatest duty. 2nd. A secure
military frontier which shall replace that which was imposed on us
in 1866, and by which all the gates of Italy are open to our en-
emies. 3rd. A less dangerous strategical position in the Adri-
atic, less insecure than that whose effects we have witnessed dur-
ing the past days.
All those advantages, so essential to us, were practically re-
fused. The offer of the Trentino, an offer increased bit [by bit,
never has reached, to the gorges of the Adige; it excluded the
Ampezzano — that Cortina to which our soldiers have now glori-
ously arrived — and the upper part — undoubtedly Italian —
of the Valley of Non, was refused under the pretext that in
Ampezzano, one did not treat with Italian people but with the
Ladin people; as if the difference between the Ladins and
Italians were not infinitely less than between the Ladins and
Teutons. And we had no aspirations for this territory for its
importance, but because of the boundaries assigned to us by Aus-
tria, in whose power the heads of the valley would have remained,
and we would have, as at first, opened the gateway of our own
country.^
In the Green Book there is to be found an ingenuous Austrian
document in which it is said approximately: No, this we cannot
give to you because it would spoil our military boundaries. But we
^ A propos of the new boundaries offered by the Austrian Government to Italy,
Prof. Gino Fani of the Polytechnic school of Turin, in one of his lectures observed
that "this new and insidious frontier constitutes a conventional line which always
leaves to Austria the upper part of our valleys, and, therefore, the possibility of
invasion of territory with no possibility of defense, if such invasion were to come
suddenly, and it would be very difficult in any case. In fact the upper parts of
the Valley of Non, Avisio, Cordevole and Boite, and the great road of the Dolomites
(Bolzano-Lago) would have remained in the hands of Austria, in such a way that
while we might have gained some groups of Italian people — leaving always outside
of the mother country important Italian centers — from a political and strategical
point of view we should certainly have gained nothing.
"Thus the acceptation, while it meant a definite renunciation, would have
continued to keep us at the mercy of our neighbor, and aggravate our subjection."
238 THIRD PART
are not treating of the defensive military boundaries of Austria,
in which case the pretense of not leaving the door of one's home
open, would have been right; one is treating instead, of an offensive
military boundary for Italy, because one treats, I repeat, of leaving
open the doors of our country.
No concession was offered to us along the coast of the Adriatic,
even at the last moment, and when, with sadness in our souls, but
thinking that the greatest efforts were necessary to keep out of the
war, we stopped to ask, as the least favor, that Trieste and a
surrounding zone might be considered not a part of the kingdom of
Italy, but only that it should not be considered a part of the
Austrian Empire and should be constituted a free State. This
was denied; and at Trieste, what did they promise? Autonomous
administration!
Another and most important part of the matter in dispute
was concerning its execution.
I wonder what you would have said, you Italians, w^hat would
our Parliament have said if we, your Government, had presented
ourselves before you with the announcement that we were in
complete agreement with Austria-Hungary, and that we were to
have a part of the Trentino and some other small strip of land not
beyond the Isonzo, but only at the conclusion of peace. The
"conclusion of peace;" then it was weakened down to the offer, at
the last moment, of the nomination of mixed commissions which
should study the boundary line; after that, ratification should fol-
low; and after that, and within a month, the territories should be
occupied. How much time and how many probable sophisms
were used in the development of this procedure?
But we are met with the assertion that we ought to have had
no doubts as to the performance of the promise because there would
be Germany's guarantee. Let us suppose that this guarantee
was made with the full intention of carrying it out. Let us sup-
pose that at the end of the war Germany would be in a condition
to keep her word — which is by no means certain. What would
our position have been after this agreement? There would have
been a new Triple Alliance, a renewed Triple Alliance, but under
far other and far inferior conditions than had existed before, be-
cause there would have been one sovereign State and two vassal
States.
The day on which one of the clauses of the Treaty was not
fulfilled, the day on which, whether after a brief period or whether
after some years, the municipal autonomy of Trieste was broken
THE DEFENSE OF ITALY 239
by an imperial decree or any Austrian lieutenant's orders, of
whom could we ask redress? Should we have to apply to our
common superior — to Germany?
Now, gentlemen, I wish to say that it is not my intention to
speak to you of Germany in other terms than those of admiration
and respect. I am the Prime Minister of Italy, not the German
Chancellor; and I do not lose the light of reason. But with all
the respect due to learned, powerful, great Germany, that mar-
velous example of organization and resistance, I must say, in the
name of my country — no vassalage; no protectorate under any
one. The dream of a universal hegemony has been shattered.
The whole world is risen up against it. The peace and civiliza-
tion of humanity must in the future be based on respect for exist-
ing nationalities, among which great Germany must take her
seat as an equal, and not as a mistress.
But the most striking example of the overweening pride with
which the men who direct the policy of the German Empire look
down on other nations is afforded by the picture which the
Chancellor Bethmann-Hollweg has drawn of the Italian political
world. I will read it in a more complete form than that given by
the newspapers, the form in which it reached us the day after.
Here is what the Chancellor said of us:
Italian statesmen have played the same game with their people
that they played against us. Without doubt the possession of the
territories of the Italian language at the north of her frontiers has
always been the objects of the dreams and the desires of every Italian.
But the fact is that the greater part of the Italian people, and the
majority of parliament were opposed to the war.
In the first days of May, 1915, according to the observations of
the best informed men on Italian matters, four-fifths of the Senate
and two-thirds of the House were as yet opposed to war. Among
them one found the most serious and authoritative statesmen.
But the voice of good sense was not listened to, only the lowest
populace reigned.
With the benevolent toleration and the support of the chief members
of a Cabinet gorged with the gold of the Triple Entente, the populace,
led by unscrupulous provocateurs was goaded to bloody frenzy, threat-
ening the King with a revolution and all the Moderates with assas-
sination if they did not abandon themselves to the delirium of war.
The Italian people were deliberately left in ignorance of the
proceedings of the negotiations between Italy and Austria, and of the
240 THIRD PART
importance of the Austrian concessions; in such a manner that, after
the resignation of the Salandra Cabinet, one could find no one with
sufficient courage to accept and form a new cabinet; and in the course
of the decisive discussions, no member of the constitutional parties
of the Senate and of the House attempted to appreciate the value of the
generous concessions made by Austria.
In this frenzy of war, honest men of politics became mute. But
when in future military operations the Italian people shall have re-
gained their good sense, as we hope and desire, then they ivill recognize
how imprudently they were forced to participate in the world wide war.
I know not, Gentlemen, if it was the intention of this man
(Bethmann-Hollweg), blinded with rage, personally to insult my
colleagues and myself (if it were I should pass it by); men whose
past you know; men who have served the State up to the
present day; men of unblemished fame; men who have given
the lives of their sons for the Country. But think not of us. Give
heed rather to the atrocious insult which that scrap of vandal
prose flings in the face of our King, in the face of the Italian people,
in the face of the Senate and the House, in the faces of those same
politicians who held an opinion different from ours. "All dumb,"
it is said; therefore all cowards.
The information on which this judgment is based is attributed
by the Chancellor of the Empire to him whom he calls the best
judge of Italian affairs. Perhaps he is alluding, with a fraternal
desire of shifting the responsibility on to his shoulders, to Prince
von Billow.
Now Gentlemen, I do not wish you to carry away an erroneous
impression of Prince von Billow's intentions. I do believe he
had a real sympathy for our country, and that he has done every-
thing in his power to bring about an understanding. But how
great and how many are the errors he has made in translating his
good intentions into actions! He supposed that Italy could be
turned aside from her path by some few millions ill spent and by
the influence of a few persons who have lost touch with the soul of
the nation, by sinister contact, attempted, but I hope and believe
unsuccessfully, with Italian politicians. The very opposite was
the result. An immense outburst of [indignation flamed forth
throughout the whole of Italy, and not only in the populace, but
in the most educated classes; in the noblest breasts; in all those
who felt the dignity of the nation; in the whole of our youth ready
to shed their purest blood for the national ideals. An outburst
of indignation was kindled at the mere suspicion that a foreign
THE DEFENSE OF ITALY 241
ambassador in Rome should interfere between the Government,
the Parliament and the Country.
In this fiery indignation all internal discord melted away, the
whole nation was fused together in a wondrous moral unity, which
will form our greatest strength in the hard struggle which lies be-
fore us, and which must lead us, not by benevolent concessions
from others, but by our own integral virtue, to the achievement
of the loftiest destinies of our Country.
FOURTH PART
I
First reason: Patriotism.
The compendium of facts narrated in the first part of
this work may be officially called " The History of the Italian
Risorgimento/' with the exception of the episode of Balilla,
which logically may be considered the prelude to the history.
The narration of these facts differs more or less only
in form from the accounts of other writers who have pre-
ceded me. And this is but natural, because the form, espe-
cially in historical narrative, is simply a reflected quality of
the writer — a quality drawn from complex causes purely
literary and aesthetic.
The substance is identical. And that, too, is natural.
The diversity of form, whether aulic or free, cannot in any
manner alter the positive elements of the facts, their dy-
namic moral substratum, that Veritas which regulates and
dominates the manifestations of human thought and the
duties of human conscience.
Now such facts, with their suggestive eloquence, from 1870
were taught in all of the schools of Italy, according to the
government programmes. They were continually recalled
to mind by an entire nationalist literature extending even to
the daily papers. They were kept in mind by eulogies be-
fore the monuments erected in the great and small cities of
Italy in memory of the martyrs and heroes of revolutions
and the wars of liberation provoked in Italy by cruel Aus-
trian domination. They were always represented by the
scars, by the anecdotes, by the patriotic enthusiasm of the
veterans who were yet living. These facts were the spiritual
nutriment, if not the only food, of the ideality which kept
the entire peninsula alive and vibrating in its rising political
unity.
243
244 FOURTH PART
This accumulation of things in their ceaseless rhythmical
repetition could not do other than rekindle and keep per-
manently burning, in a people so passionate as the Italians,
the old hatred against the Austrians. It could not do other
than fertilize (even in the most Franciscan souls) the soil
from which nothing could grow but a revengeful, militaris-
tic, and ferocious patriotism, the evil weeds from which
could be produced but one fruit: that of bitter and wicked
warfare.
It is true that Giordano Bruno affirmed that he was a
citizen of the world, son of mother Earth and of father Sun.
It is true that Tommaso Campanella demonstrated that
peace, prosperity and happiness are impossible without the
universal republic.
It is true that even Mazzini and Garibaldi, while fighting
for a sane nationalistic principle, fought also for the larger
principle of the brotherhood of all peoples.
But contrary to the thoughts and actions of those great
Italians, the privileged classes knew full well, theoretically
and practically, by means of the servile, dynastic, and non-
dynastic governments, how to keep up the selfish old axiom
divide et impera.
Thus the people, blinded by the astuteness and brutalized
by the perfidy of such parasitic hydras, could not see the
light diffused by the apostles of truth. They could not
assimilate the regenerating elements poured out by the
apostles of civilization. They could not free themselves
from the cancerous error, which is the above-named false
patriotism, the fundamental cause of all the calamities, of
all the sorrows which today more than ever oppresses
humanity.
In the schools of the different nations (I say in the
schools because there the conscience of the future citizens
is formed) one should teach the history of wars and the
domination of strangers by methods rigorously and con-
cretely objective; that is, one should eliminate from the
teaching of history, not only the details of facts describing
evil committed on the part of the aggressors who conquer
and tyrannize, but also the comments execrating the evil
IRREDENTISM 245
and magnifying the heroism of those who have been
attacked, conquered, and tyrannized over.
In speaking, for example, of the Five Days of Milan,
the standard books and the teachers should simply say:
In 1848 the Milanese rebelled against their dominators (the
Austrians) and after five days of fighting, drove them from the city.
Thus the pupils of the schools would not feel and absorb
the poison which generates and nourishes enmity in their
innocent souls, by which, as Horace says, "man is a wolf to
other men."
The details of facts (for example, the Austrian soldiers
during the Five Days filed living infants on their bayonets,
and cut and pocketed the ringed hands of dead women)
should be left to adults, in whom the habits of study have
already eliminated, or at least have calmed, the fatal excit-
ability of the baser passions; to the adults, in whom the
evolution of the spirit has already developed to the highest
point, or to a high point, the sense of reason, and its noblest
derivative, Love: Love for one's neighbor.
By this means one might begin to cure the cursed frenzy
of war.
And that would be no small matter.
II
Second reason: Irredentism.
The facts, almost all proved by documentary evidence,
presented in the second part of the present volume would
alone be sufl&cient to justify the entrance of Italy into the
great war.
It was a question with the Italians how to liberate
thousands of their consanguineous relations who were
oppressed in their own homes (that is, on ground geograph-
ically, historically, and morally Italian) by a stranger
tyranny that the Italians themselves knew only too well.
It was a question with the Italians how to liberate
246 FOURTH PART
thousands of their brothers of the same blood who were
fighting, fighting, fighting against such tyranny and had
always been longing and imploring to be returned to the
breast of their primigenious Latin mother.
It was a question with the Italians how to perform a duty
of love and of honor too long delayed.
It was a question with the Italians how to complete their
national unity in the northeastern division of their penin-
sula, affirmed by the law of Rome, and reaffirmed, even
immortalized, by Dante in Canto IX of the Divine Comedy.
Pola near the Quarnero [gulf] which surrounds Italy and bathes
its borders.
Italy, unsupported, had never been able (without risk
to her own territorial integrity or worse) to attack Austria
alone, as that country was superior to her in number of in-
habitants, in wealth, in her army, in the natural fortifica-
tions of her boundaries, and because she was sure of the
support of Germany.
Italy was obliged to attack the enemy at the opportune
and propitious moment; and that moment came when the
enemy was engulfed in the great war, and when the historic
fates seemed to will that her martyrology, synthesized in the
binomial Trent-Trieste, should finally enter into its last
phase.
Who could dare to say that the Italian people were in
the wrong?
Ill
Third reason: An unretumed visit.
The Emperor Francis Joseph never returned the visit
that King Humbert I and Queen Margherita of Savoy
officially made him at Vienna in 1882.
And why?
Because this would have necessitated Francis Joseph's
going to Rome, where Humbert and Margherita resided.
NATIONAL COHESION 247
Now Rome was never recognized by the Vatican as
a legitimate conquest, as the capital of the kingdom of
Italy.
The taking of the eternal city by the Italian soldiers
September 20, 1870, was always considered by the Vatican
as a violent and sacrilegious usurpation. And the Vatican
considered the King of Italy an usurper. And the Italian
people were also considered usurpers by that same Vatican.
Francis Joseph, rabid Catholic that he was, openly
approved the anti-Italian attitude of the papal govern-
ment, and with full consciousness and of set purpose he
failed to observe the rules of Galateo^ and the duties imposed
on him by the Alliance.
Such discourtesies and insincerity were aggravated by
the assassinated Crown Prince Franz Ferdinand in Serajevo.
This latter, no less a bigot than his uncle, the emperor,
often boasted both in public and in private that he would
invade Italy with a powerful army, take Rome, and return
it to the Catholic Church, and thus re-establish the ancient
temporal power of the popes!
How the chivalrous and, more than that, the national
sentiments of the people were offended by such facts can
well be imagined when one considers that Rome is, as it was
in the past, and will be in the future, the source and center
of all the virile triumphant grandeur of Italy.
IV
Fourth reason: National cohesion; military efficiency.
The civic greatness of a people, according to the opinion
of the majority, consists, or at least did so consist up to the
time of the outbreak of the great war, in its national cohesion
and in its military efficiency. In Europe and also outside
of Europe it was believed, and too confidently, that the
Italian people lacked both. Other peoples believed that
Italy lacked national cohesion because, after she had brought
^ Book of Manners, by the classic writer Giovanni Delia Casa (XVI century).
248 FOURTH PART
about her unity and independence, she was often disturbed
by internal discords of a purely regional character; that she
lacked military efficiency, as was shown by her utter rout
in Africa in the war of 1896 against Abyssinia, and by the
lack of military ability also shown in Africa in the war of
1911-12 against Turkey.
One might be led to believe that the peninsula so famous
for its beauty and its ancient glories was nothing more than
a chain of dilapidated inns and a big carcass of museums
where a frivolous and lazy populace could do nothing
(between mandolin playing, dancing the tarantella, and
macaroni eating alia Napoletana), but serve camoristically
as they say, foreigners, who poured down from beyond the
Alps and seas, and show them awkwardly and vaingloriously
the mummified relics of its past greatness as if it had little
relation to the present life, and even less to the future.
A superficial American woman writer, for example, aping
the French poet Lamartine, who called Italy the *'Land of
the Dead,"^ had the impudence to assert that the Latin race
was a ''cadaver well on to putrefaction." *
And not only in private but also in official circles in
foreign countries everyone has had a knowledge, far from
exact, of Italy's national cohesion and of her military
efficiency. It is sufficient to recall the following incident.
On January 14, 1912, during the Italo-Turkish War,
the Italian torpedo boat Agordat stopped the French steamer
Carthago south of Sardinia, because the Italian Government
knew that it carried an aeroplane which was destined for
the Turks in Tripoli. After the search which the Italian
officers made of the French steamer, this aeroplane was taken
by the Agordat to the port of Cagliari in Sardinia, and there
was placed at the disposal of the Italian Governm.ent.
A few days later, that is on January i8th, this same
torpedo boat Agordat stopped the postal steamer Manouha^
which plied between Marseilles and Tunis, and found there
were twenty-nine Turkish officers aboard dressed in the
* See tlie spicy reply to this given by the Italian satirical poet Giuseppe Giusti.
^ See in my volume Journalism of the Italian Emigrants in America answer
which was given to this good woman (pages 1 18-123).
NATIONAL COHESION 249
garb of the Mohammedan Red Cross, secretly making
their way into TripoH to take their places at the head of the
Arabs against the Italians. The twenty-nine so-called
members of the Turkish Red Cross were put ashore by
the crew of the Agordat at Cagliari, Sardinia, and there held
at the disposition of the Italian Government, while the
Manouha was left free to continue on its way.
Poincare, who previously had been made premier and
foreign minister of the French Republic, protested against
the "arbitrary acts" committed by the Italian torpedo boat
Agordaty and had the courage to declare among other things
in open parliament, that if the government of Rome had not
freed the Carthago and the twenty-nine Turkish officers
immediately, the French fleet would have attacked the
Italian fleet without delay and would have sent it to the
bottom in less time than it takes to tell of it, — just as one
might say that he would send to the bottom the three glori-
ous caravels of Christopher Colombus!
Now a people so calumniated and so misjudged, a people
who through Rome have touched the apogee of national
cohesion and of military efficiency, must naturally feel the
necessity of demonstrating with facts (it would be im-
possible with mere words) how false was the opinion which
the world had formed of them.
And they forced the war against Austria on the Govern-
ment of Victor Emanuel III, to prove that they, the Italian
people, notwithstanding their internal discords of a char-
acter purely regional (discords provoked by the injustice of
government more than by anything else) have today, as in
the days of Cato, a solid national cohesion; to prove that
they, the Italians, notwithstanding the rout in the war
against Abyssinia, and notwithstanding the deficiences in
the war against Turkey (routs and deficiencies coming more
than anything else from errors of government), have today,
as in the times of Julius Caesar, a formidable military
efficiency. Formidable, one means, not so much in a quanti-
tative as in a qualitative sense: in genius, in vigor, in en-
thusiasm, in tenacity and in faith of their final victory.
They, the Italian people, forced intervention in the great
250 FOURTH PART
war on Austria to prove that they, the people, because of
one of those natural laws (law of continuity) — which eludes
the ignorant — can always reclothe themselves in the virtues
of their ancestors; to prove that they can, when they will,
rise (like the eternal Arabian phoenix) from the ashes of
their millenaries of civilization.
V
Fifth reason: Fear of isolation.
The Italian people quickly understood that the great
war which burst out in the latter part of July 1914 would
produce international political changes of the utmost
importance. And they foresaw the calamitous effects that
such changes would bring to the Patria did she remain
neutral.
If the Central Empires (Germany and Austria) should
conquer, Italy would remain at the mercy of these two
nations made bolder by their recent victories. She would
have suffered the vendetta which the Teutons had sworn
because she had not drawn up in line of battle on their side.
She would have been invaded and conquered. She would
again have become the slave of Austria. And England,
France, and Russia, whom she had abandoned and left
defeated and humiliated, would not have done other than
laugh at her coldly with hate and scorn.
If the nations of the Triple Entente (England, France,
and Russia) had remained conquerors, Italy would have
been obliged to submit to the masterful influence of these
three nations as the punishment for her neutrality, influence
which would have grown immeasurably after their victories.
She would have been so blocked on all sides in the Mediter-
ranean that she could not have had free access even to her
African colonies. She would have been paralyzed in every
expansive movement. She would have been reduced to
poverty. And Germany and Austria, whom she had left
defeated and humiliated, would then have laughed coldly
at her with hate and scorn.
THE RIGHT TO TRAVEL 251
In fact, Italy, had she remained neutral in the great
war, would have lost all credit, all prestige in the world.
She would not have been considered nor respected by any
one. She would have been spurned by every one, by the
conquered and by the conquerors, as a mangy dog, and
avoided as a wormy carcass. She would have placed in
jeopardy even her own national unity.
In order to escape such misfortune, the Italian people
imposed on the Government of Victor Emanuel III armed
intervention by the nation.
Is not the preservation of one's own life, either individ-
ually or collectively, one of the supreme natural laws, the
protoplasmic law of all human laws? Is it not perhaps the
most impelling physical and moral necessity — the supreme
necessity?
VI
Sixth reason: The right to travel.
Man has the right at any time in his life to go about
the world far and wide. He has the right to go where his
will prompts and where his interests call him. This is a
natural right which no one can contest, for the simple reason
that the right to travel was born with the first man for his
needs and enjoyment; for the simple reason that the right
to travel is a motor force of human progress, a force that
more than any other contributes to create, to cultivate, to
consolidate (between people separated by distance, and
more than by distance, by prejudice of race and nationality)
those currents of sympathy which by an irresistible impulse
of love tend toward universal brotherhood, that is, to the
apogee of civilization which has for its substantial contents
(besides the splendor of science, of arts and letters) the
moral purity of the spirit, which man must sincerely feel
toward his equals.
I enunciated and sustained this idea in my book. Journa-
lism of the Italian Emigrants in America^ on page 104 where
I said, among other things, that ** for that great and sacred
252 FOURTH PART
social principle, based upon the fact that every man has the
right to go to any country, to exercise freely and honestly
the demands of his work," the Italians who have emigrated
to the United States could not with a servile sense of grati-
tude, consider and exalt the American people as hosts.
More than this, the Americans, at least at that time, did not
receive them as equals. And yet these same Americans have
received a great part of the prosperity which has rendered
them so unreasonable, so unjust and overbearing, by means
of the strong and willing brawn of the Italian emigrants.
And I corroborated my statement by subjoining: *'The
English, the French, the Teutons, the Americans themselves
and all other foreigners whom one finds in Italy, speculating
and enriching themselves with flourishing industries and
commerce, never have dreamed of considering themselves
guests of the Italian people, but free men, who come to
our country to exercise the rights of their inclinations and
their interests."
Only tyrants who wish to provoke and direct wars dare
to contest and even to crush, in the cruelest manner, the
right that man has at any time in his life to travel far and
wide through the world. They wish to provoke and direct
war, thus blocking the land and waters wherever it pleases
them to do so, and forget or feign to forget that the globe
inhabited by men is for all men, as is the air which surrounds
the globe itself; as is the sun which illuminates, warms, and
fertilizes the globe.
These tyrants who wish to provoke and direct war, thus
preventing man (the one who is not implicated in war and
who is opposed to war) from going where his will prompts,
where his interests call, commit an arbitrary act of the
greatest gravity which no people, having at heart their own
liberty and the liberty of others, should tolerate.
The people of the new Italy, strong in their reawakened
consciousness, would not tolerate it. And they imposed on
the Government of Savoy armed intervention of the nation
in the European war to defend with their own blood one
of the most precious gifts of nature.
Thus the people of the new Italy devotedly followed the
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 253
examples of their apostles who preferred prisons, tortures,
or the stake rather than yield to any restriction whatsoever
of human liberty either for themselves or for humanity
whom they worthily represented.
VII
Seventh reason: Human solidarity.
The Italian people, on account of one of the natural
laws which psychologically distinguish the human races
from one another, have implanted in them two senti-
ments: a sentiment of sympathy for the weak, and a senti-
ment of indignation against the strong who abuse and
tyrannize over the weak. These sentiments form, in the
peculiar harmony of their spiritual essence and of their
practical workings out, the granite-like foundation of their
social life.
Glance for a moment at the history of Italy from the
time of the famous republic of Magna Grecia, which has
grown and blossomed in the southern part of the peninsula
up to the present time, and one cannot fail to see that
the Italian people were always moved by the condition of
the weaker. They embraced their cause in fact, and not in
words, for magnanimous and not for selfish and material
reasons, especially when their cause represented the tramp-
ling upon or simply the menacing of their national liberties
by presuming tyrants.
In corroboration of the above statement, I will limit
myself to a few of the more recent historical facts.
Giuseppe Garibaldi with a corps of Italian soldiers
went to the defense of the French Republic in the war of
1870 against the Prussians, performing heroic deeds at Dijon
worthy of an epopee.^
Ricciotti Garibaldi, living son of the Hero, with a corps
of Italian volunteers went to the defense of Greece against
* Victor Hugo said: "During that memorable campaign Garibaldi was the only-
captain who really conquered."
254 FOURTH PART
Turkey in 1897, performing heroic deeds worthy of an epopee
at Domokos.^
Peppino Garibaldi, living son of Ricciotti, with a corps
of Italian volunteers went to the defense of the French
Republic in the present war against Germany, performing
heroic deeds worthy of an epopee in the Argonne.^
And not only in battles of a collective public nature,
but also in the altercations of a private and personal char-
acter, the Italian people have put in evidence — or better,
into action — their innate sentiments of sympathy for the
weaker and of indignation against the stronger (strong
naturally, in the brutally physical sense of the word, be it
understood). In America, for example (particularly in
the city where for many years I have lived), I have frequently
witnessed disputes between two persons, usually for some
trivial reason, which quickly ended by their coming to
blows. No one among the bystanders ever moves to try
to pacify the two disputants or even to prevent the weaker
from receiving the worst of it. I have always seen the
stronger throw the weaker to the ground undisturbed by
anyone; stamp on his breast, his jaws, his nose, his eyes,
transforming his countenance into a horrible bloody mass,
leaving him half dead. The bystanders, even the acquaint-
ances, friends, or relatives of the weaker, look on with in-
difference (as if it were a moving picture) or with vile
voluptuousness at the doglike fight, seeming to feel an
admiration for the stronger.
In Italy, particularly in my native Calabria, which with
good reason is called strong and generous, nothing of this
kind could occur. There the bystanders, even though
they might be strangers; from the first word of altercation
interpose themselves between the disputants. And if they
are unable to calm them with reason and re-establish peace
between them and thus prevent the bestial fight, they
^ In the battle of Domokos, among others who fell was Antonio Fratti, the
Republican deputy of the Italian National Parliament to whom Guglielmo Oberdan
left his political testament.
^ In'the battle of the Argonne, between the Garibaldians and the Germans, among
other Italians who fell were the young Bruno and Sante Garibaldi, brothers of
Peppino.
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 255
immediately sympathize with the weaker; they openly and
resolutely take his part; they will not permit that a hair of
his head shall be touched; they prefer even at the risk of
death to themselves to receive the blows from the stronger,
on whose head will descend, sooner or later, a general
execration.
Now this people, so sensitive, so just, so humane, having
at their command a sufficiently formidable army and navy,
could not remain inert before the violence committed by
the strong and tyrannical Austria against little Serbia. They
could not remain inert before the incomparable crime com-
mitted by the strong and tyrannical Germany against little
Belgium. They could not remain inert before a scowling
and brutal Teutonic militarism which menaces with grow-
ing and strengthening gravity that republican France which
had poured out rivers of her blood for the unity and inde-
pendence of her Latin sister and for the triumph of demo-
cratic principles in all of Europe. They could not remain
inert before a scowling and brutal Teutonic militarism which
menaced with growing and strenghtening gravity that Eng-
land which even in a time of general reaction gave hospitality
with generous and affectionate liberality to the great exiles,
to all the great Italian political refugees from Giordano Bruno
to Ugo Foscolo, from Mazzini to Malatesta;^ to that Eng-
land which, with its battleships Intrepid and Argus, protected
and facilitated in the spring of i860 the memorable landing
of The Thousand at Marsala (a disembarkation which de-
cided the national unity of Italy) ; that England which received
Garibaldi like a god when the Hero in April, 1864, went as
a representative of the people of the new Italy to visit
London. They could not remain inert before the scowling
and brutal Teutonic militarism which menaced with grow-
ing and strengthening gravity that Russia whose great men
such as Turghenieff, Tchernichewsky, Tolstoy, Gogol, and
^ Dr. E. Malatesta, one of the living Italian anarchist leaders, between June
7 and 10, 1914, headed a revolutionary movement vyhich had for its object the
overthrowing of the monarchy of Savoy and the proclaiming of the Republic of
Italy, in the provinces of Ancona, Forli, and Ravenna. Prosecuted by the govern-
ment of Victor Emanuel III, he wandered all over Europe and was everywhere
repulsed. He found refuge only in London, where he now lives.
256 FOURTH PART
Gorky always admired and glorified Italy;^ that Russia
which was the first to send her sailors to Calabria and Sicily
to succor the people struck by the terrible earthquake of
1908.
If the Italian people had remained inert, they would
have negated their incomparable moral personality which
is composed of altruism and gratitude; they would have
obscured their most radiant traditions of thought and
action; they would have done that which is worse: at the
moment when death was preparing to form the new life
of the world on the battlefields of old Europe, they would
have betrayed the cause of humanity, which must stand
above every personal and national interest, as the physical
life of the universe stands perennially above the single
parts of which it is composed.
It is useless to deny it. The word, opposed to the fact,
has never been of value. And it never will be so long as
in the depths of certain human souls there dwell, as the
morchia^ at the bottom of jars of olive oil, as feccia^ in
the bottom of wine casks, as slime in the bottom of wells,
those turbid and wicked instincts which are in open antith-
esis to the sentiments of purity, compassion, and love
upon which every civilization should lean and from which
it should evolve.
The plea has always been made, and in every tone, to
the potentates of Europe, not to strengthen militarism;
but they have strengthened it — and alas, how well!
The potentates of Europe have been counseled in every
manner not to provoke war; but they have provoked it,
and how well!
Must one ignore the fact in this, the beginning of the
twentieth century, that the imperial soldiery, atavistically
imitating the hordes of Alaric and Attila, invade the
territories of small and independent nations, massacre
men, outrage women, mutilate children, seize the fruits of
* It is well to remember Maxim Gorky, who, after having been repulsed by the
United States because of a false puritanism, found refuge at Capri; and there,
received with respectful and affectionate hospitality, put in relief and exalted
in his writings the incomparable virtues of the Italian people.
^The dregs of olive oil. ' The dregs of wine.
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 257
so much labor, burn homes, raze entire cities to the ground,
in such a manner for example, as the Turks have been
allowed to treat the Armenians for years and years?
If these things must be forgotten, then farewell to human
solidarity.
After so many promises, after so much enthusiasm, it
could not be other (except for the weak who have the
simplicity to believe and expect it) than an archaic, empty
and scoffing phrase, resurrecting once again the ignoble
farce of pulpiteers (both priests and laity) who know only
how to preach well and practice badly. The pulpiteers
who, when put to the test, know only how to put in practice
their selfish doctrine which is encased in the parabolic
formula, **Lontana da me, e dove va va."^
The great crowned heads would not have wished any-
thing better!
Fortunately the Italian people, with their awakened in-
telligence, understood that words could not supplant the
facts. ^ And they threw themselves into the war (they, the
Italian people, with their childlike hearts) to meet facts with
facts, action with action, physical force with physical force
(a species of similia similibus curantur)^ to teach the mob
of querulous doctrinaires that the trampled rights of the
weak must be defended, not with words, but at the sacrifice
of life itself; that the innocent victims of barbarism (mili-
taristic and non-militaristic) must be avenged, not with
words, but at the sacrifice of life itself; that the true brother-
hood of nations, the ideal to which the human soul inces-
santly aspires because of an immutable natural law, must be
^ "It may go where it will if it does not touch me."
'In the month of May, 191 5 (that is, on the eve of the declaration of war made
by the Italian government against the Austrian government), the walls of the cities
of Italy were covered with placards which said:
"We must never forget
Belgium,
The Lusitania,
The cutthroats of babies.
The aged who were massacred.
The violated women.
The devastated countries.
The bombarded hospitals,
for the sole mania of destruction by the army of his majesty William II."
258 FOURTH PART
affirmed, be exalted, be perpetuated, not with words but at
the sacrifice of Hfe itself.
The Italian people know well that after the great war they
will have no other reward than that of starvation, scorn
and oblivion worse than before. But of what importance
is this? With spirits eminently poetic and philosophic at
the same time, inured to every privation, to every ingrati-
tude, to every sorrow, they will be convinced of having
opened the way, with their purest blood — given the
present order of things, the only way that could lead to the
longed-for universal peace. And such knowledge will be
sufficient to render them content, happy, and blessed.
I have said, "given the present order of things." I
have said, *'the only way." And I will explain.
The life of a nation, nowadays, notwithstanding its
complexities, depends in great part on essentially industrial
bases constructed by the people, not for their own advantage,
but for the advantage of a big-bellied and cruel minority
called plutocracy, which has nothing else in common with
the people except their simple Darwinian origin.
Such national industrialism, in order to maintain itself
and prosper — always to the benefit of the big-bellied and
cruel minority called plutocracy — must necessarily push
itself into commercial competition against the industrialism
of another nation, or other nations, and vice versa. But
commercial competition, in order to give financial results
proportionate to the insatiable greed of the nationalist
plutocracy, must be incessantly and strenuously favored
and defended by the State.
Does a State government of the present day lend itself
to a partisanship so bold and iniquitious?
Certainly it does!
And why shouldn't it, if the State government of today,
be it covered by a mask surmounted by a royal crown, or
be it a mask surmounted by a republican cap, is none
other than a being voluntarily placed at the service of the
big-bellied and cruel minority called plutocracy?
Now a Government thus made, frankly, could not with-
out injury to itself put in action the military forces, which
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 259
are the positive forces of the State, except for the protection
of its master; or more correctly speaking, for the protection
of its mistress (plutocracy in the Italian language is in the
feminine gender). Italy in its war against Africa, for ex-
ample (that is, against Abyssinia and Turkey), had no other
aim, at least originally, except that of the so-called "com-
mercial penetration" made by the monarchical Government
of Savoy in the interests of Italian plutocracy. And the
war which today rages in Europe is one provoked for no
other reason than that of jealousy of the German plutocracy,
for the English commercial supremacy in the world. ^
In causes of a purely humanitarian character — that is,
where the intellectual, moral and economic elevation, justice,
liberty and the happiness of the people are involved — the
government of today never puts into action the military
forces of the State. And this is natural; for if the military
forces were to make the humanitarian causes triumph, only
one effect could follow: the end of plutocracy; the end, that
is, of inequality, of all injustice, of all social tyrannies: an
effect, as one can see, completely opposed to that for which
the military forces of a nation exist today. In causes of a
purely humanitarian character, the Government of today
employs only the negative force of the State: diplomacy,
which would have no other result than that of chattering;
stirring up confusion; tangling the skeins of yarn as much as
possible; throwing dust in the eyes of the masses; anaes-
thetizing the nation; reducing every heart throb of collective
life to status quo; to this most convenient Latin ellipsis
(convenient for the strong, but wickedly disastrous for the
weak), which is fossilized and is fossilizing.
Must the nations continue to face a situation so evident,
so tangible in chronic evil, opposing the murderous facts of
the deaf and ferocious plutocrats with only the usual
innocuous words?
If so, the people could not do other than rivet to them-
selves the chains of servitude; they could not do other than
perpetuate war, always to the advantage of the more astute,
^The other causes which determined the great war (pan-Slavism, French
revenge, Italian Irredentism, etc.) were all of secondary importance.
260 FOURTH PART
who idly reap all of the benefits, and to the damage of the
credulous, who labor and who suffer.
So long as nationalistic industrialisms with their
respective commercial competitions exist; so long as plu-
tocracies exist which have in their hands to dispose of at
their pleasure all of the positive forces of the nations (from
financial to military), duly legalized by governments and
blessed by religions, which are also, by the grace of God,
at the service of the strong; so long as plutocracies provoke
war because of a thirst for riches and dominion, originated by
innate hardness of heart; so long as all this exists, the inertia
of the people, armed only by old lachrymose and even
scornful rhetoric, is not other, to my mind, than an incon-
gruity, anachronism, folly, suicide. It is the fragile glass
that would resist the powerful blow of the sledge hammer,
the soap bubble that would resist the rock.
The way must be changed. We are in a century in
which one must reasonably believe in only a single truth:
that which teaches — or better, is demonstrated by — posi-
tive science. One must therefore live a little less in the
metaphysical world of dreams, and a little more in the
physical world of reality. The words with which Joshua
stopped the sun and moon, the words with which Christ
raised Lazarus of Bethany, are no other now than old and
rusty biblical iron.
The people must have facts. They must, without dis-
tinction, create among themselves a solid spiritual alliance
(prodrome of their universal political union) : and establish
as a fundamental principle of justice, inviolate and in-
variable, that when a controversy between two nations
degenerates into war, each of the people not involved in the
controversy so degenerated must a priori impose on their
own government an armed intervention in favor of the
weaker nation which one finds on the side of reason On
the side of reason, not according to the porcine point of
view of the big-bellied, cruel minority called plutocracy;
not according to verbose partisan laws voted by parliaments
and sanctioned by kings, emperors or presidents of republics;
not according to the fantastic and complacent sentences
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 261
flung by petticoated comedians of the different arbitrary
tribunals of the Hague. But on the side of reason accord-
ing to the judgment that springs spontaneously, free from
preconceived ideas and passions, from free intelligence, from
the candid conscience of the people themselves: above all,
according to the natural guide of life which makes the
cause of the weak always beautiful, sacred, and worthy of
victory.
Only in such a manner for the present can one curb the
aggressive mania of the stronger. Only in such a manner
can wars be prevented.
In fact, if the Government of Francis Joseph, for example,
could have known in anticipation that the peoples of Europe,
even of the whole world, would rise up and intervene prompt-
ly with all of the positive forces of their nations in defense
of little Serbia, the Government of Francis Joseph, however
powerful and arrogant, however much upheld by that
military colossus, the German Empire, would never have
dared to dictate to the little Balkan nation who was defend-
ing her own independence. It would not have had the
insane temerity to send to it in July, 1914, that ultimatum
which unchained the most terrible inferno in the world's
history.
But the spiritual alliance of the people (prodrome of
a universal political union) can never be effected if from the
first the two most advanced groups of doctrinaires, which
have an extraordinary moral ascendency over the people,
do not know how to adapt effectively their pacifist theories
— freed from every dogmatic sophism — to the events
which day by day unfold themselves.
The first group: those who limit human progress to
the struggle between classes (the economic problem) are
in favor of war only in the case where it is necessary to
defend from an invading foe the country in which all the
material interests of the national proletariat are concen-
trated. These are the Conditional Neutrals.
The second group: those who await the destruction
of every political, judicial, military, economic and religious
262 FOURTH PART
authority by revolution and are opposed to all wars, because
wars are made only for the round-bellies of their masters.
These are Absolute Neutrals.
The members of these groups are doubtless animated by
right motives. They aim at the high purpose which every
open and active mind and sensitive heart aims: the eman-
cipation of all oppressed beings. I therefore wish to reason
calmly with them.^
And I say to the Conditional Neutrals:
Thetheoryof waronly for national defense, which you sus-
tain, is in open contradiction to the doctrines which you say
that you profess, — doctrines which in their idealistic con-
tents are conspicuously and rigorously international and
do not admit of restrictions of any sort. The cry, ''Work-
men of every nation, unite!" in which are synthesized those
doctrines which cannot be interpreted exclusively in the
economic sense as you seem to believe — must be inter-
preted logically in a much wider sense, at least if one would
not wish to belittle the merit of him who launched it;
must be interpreted in a sense embracing every social
problem from which the economic problem cannot be
eliminated without disturbing the harmony or absolutely
breaking the compages of things which regulate and per-
petuate human progress.
Because the social question is polyhedric. And the
economic problem is none other than a part of the social
question, one face of the polyhedron each part of which is
intimately connected with the others; and the economic
problem is even dependent upon the others and it comes
from one cause: ignorance. This was clearly demonstrated
three centuries ago, during the most horrible torture of
the lay and ecclesiastic inquisition, by that most daring
father of universal communism, my encyclopaedic fellow-
countryman, Tommaso Campanella.
According to the belief of this giant precursor of the
civil redemption of humanity — a belief which has been
^ I do not occupy myself with the other groups of pacifists, because they — being
an emanation more or less direct from the plutocracy — cannot be logical.
"Let us not speak of them, but look and pass."
(Dante, Inferno, Canto III.)
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 263
fully confirmed by the facts of the social situation, our
maladjustments come from the following causes:
First — Ig7iorancey which, preventing the knowledge of
true vices and of true virtues, generates and nourishes
evil, "under which the world chafes and weeps."
Second — Blind Self-love; that is, Egotism, worthy son
of Ignorance.
Third — Tyranny (false power), sophism (false science),
Hypocrisy (false love), the three extreme evils (the triple
lies) which have "root and fomentation" in blind self-love.
Fourth — Famine; that is, misery (the economic prob-
lem), warsy pestilence y envy, deceit^ injusticCy luxury ^ sloth,
disdain, all derived from the three extreme evils to which
they are hierarchically subject.
Therefore, the economic problem cannot be detached
from the others; cannot be settled independently of the
others. If it could thus be resolved, its isolated solution
could not attain its object (the moral betterment of the
world) toward which the whole question tends. And the
proof of this, my assertion, which at first seems a paradox,
comes to us by means of this same plutocracy in an un-
answerable manner.
It is a fact, and I trust that on this point there will be
no divergence of opinion, that plutocracy is composed of
flesh and bone, is of exactly the same species as that of the
proletariat.
The plutocrats have splendidly solved the economic
problem to their own advantage. I trust that on this point
there may be no difference of opinion.
But has the solution of the problem which has brought
all of the luxuries, all of the sensual pleasures of life within
the reach of the plutocrats, — has it brought to them a
proportionate betterment?
Absolutely it has not.
The solution of the economic problem (luxuries and
sensual pleasures ad infinitum) has instead brought to the
plutocrats a fearful moral retrogression visible even to the
blind. It has taught that this solution, when unaccom-
panied by the solution of the other social problems, is not
264 FOURTH PART
and never can be the panacea which is preached by super-
ficial and short-sighted theorists. It has demonstrated
once more, and today more than ever, the positive value
of the truth which was proclaimed in the difficult and
dark ages by that great apostle from Stilo, Calabria, who
was, with Vinci, Pomponazzi, Telesio, Bruno, and Galilei,
one of the creative geniuses of modern positivism; of that
positivism which for the voluble authority of the word sub-
stituted the solid authority of facts; of that positivism cul-
minating in our day in the monumental works of that other
pure Italian who is the living pride and glory of Italy: Pro-
fessor Roberto Ardigo.
And if the cry which synthesizes the doctrine professed
by you, Conditional Neutrals, has a content conspicuously
and rigorously international, I do not understand with
what conscience or more, with what heart, you can restrict
the war to national defense only, permitting the stronger
nation, which is found on the side of wrong, to assault and
devour at its pleasure the weaker nations which are found
on the side of right.
Such a restrictive principle (war only for national de-
fense) is an unheard of and selfish cruelty. It is the most
repugnant ironic interpretation of internationalism, or what
calls itself internationalism. It is the absolute negation
of every human and animal solidarity. I say animal, because
even the animals feel and put in practice among themselves
that which we humans call moral solidarity toward the
weak. The example of the dog suffices to illustrate this.
He continually risks his own life to defend the weak and
innocent sheep from the strong, arrogant, and savage wolf.
And your own nation, my dear Conditional Neutrals,
would not be long in falling a victim to the plutocratic
perfidy and cupidity of some stronger nation; a victim of
your own error.
Because it is not enough to wish to defend. One must
be able to defend. Serbia also wished to defend herself
against Austria. Belgium wished to defend herself against
Germany. But each one, being too small, and in conse-
quence too feeble compared with its aggressors, was con-
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 265
strained to succumb, notwithstanding the fact that it based
its defense on its rights of independence and on points of
honor more than sacred.
And the two heroic peoples (Serbia and Belgium) can
never rise again, and will always remain slaves of the
tyrants who have trampled upon them with military
brutality, if they must await aid from brothers who boast
themselves internationalists but remain encased in their
shell of national neutrality.
And if the social question embraces many other problems
besides that of the economic, and if the emancipation of the
oppressed depends on the parallel solution of all of these
problems and not on the solution of only one of them, I
do not understand why you, followers of the cry which
synthesizes the social question in all of its idealistic entirety,
must persist only in the solution of the economic problem.
I do not understand how you can detach yourselves or in-
terest yourselves so little in the other problems when it
is demonstrated that the parallel solution of all, not the
isolated solution of one, can eliminate evils "under which
the world trembles and weeps"; the evils which retard the
longed-for emancipation.
One knows that nowadays wars are not waged to revenge
the offended honor of Menelaus — who may be more or less
crowned — as, for example, was the mythological war of
Greece made against Troy of Homeric memory.
Wars nowadays, as has been hinted before and as you
yourselves. Conditional Neutrals, recognize, are made for
ends essentially economic; for ends such as the doctrines
which you are said to profess tend, even when interpreted
in their highest sense.
And if they are made for ends essentially economic, I
do not see the reason for which you, followers of inter-
nationalism reduced even to its lowest terms, that is to
strictly economic terms, should abstain from intervention.
Because such ends, you object, do not touch the economic
interests of our national proletariat.
That the economic interests of a neutral nation are
endangered — given the present industrial and commercial
266 FOURTH PART
organization of the world — by a war between two or more
nations, and especially by a war of such gigantic proportions
as that which has been raging for three years in old Europe
and by reflection has affected the whole world, is a self-
evident truth to every intelligence.
But even if — to take it as an hypothesis — the eco-
nomic interests of the neutral national proletariat were not
endangered by the war of others, you Conditional Neu-
trals should consider it equally your duty to interfere to
defend the economic interests of the proletariat of the
weaker nation which is assaulted by the plutocratically
stronger, and this because of the factive elements and not
the chatterings of the doctrines which you say that you
profess.
The sentimental scruples which w411 not permit you to
intervene in war because you would be constrained to kill
your brothers, must be eliminated.
In case of national defense would not the invaders be
your brothers whom you would be obliged to kill?
Are not the scabs also your brothers, and brothers of
your own nation whom you fight and kill during the strikes?
And these strikes themselves which you are continually
making as defensive means in the class struggle, are they
not substantially wars between brothers who are exploited,
and those who are not; wars of hate between unionist and
non-unionist brothers?
You unionist workmen strike, assault, and kill without
mercy your non-unionist brothers. And why? To defend
yourselves against their economic competition. But these
non-unionists rarely take your places in your work for malig-
nant reasons. In the majority of cases they are none other
(and I know this only too well) than sons, brothers, hus-
bands, and fathers reduced to extreme misery. They, not
knowing to what saint to pray in their extremity or where
to turn their heads, face your insults with desperation in
their souls and run to the conquest of a mouthful of bread
or a bit of coal which may save those dependent upon them
from starvation.
You do not wish to face these facts. You do not wish
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 267
to know the reasons, which are beyond their control, which
force your unfortunate brothers to enter into competition
against you. You know only that they injure your cause,
and for this you fight to destroy them.
And the gunmen, so-called in America (I allude to the
savage private policemen charged to ''maintain order" dur-
ing the strikes) are they not also your brothers? Why then
do you fight and destroy them?
Because they do not hesitate to shoot you. Because
they do not hesitate to massacre your women and chil-
dren.
I compare the scabs to the conscript soldiers. I compare
the gunmen to the professional soldier. The unwilling
action of the one (scab and conscript) is inspired as is the
voluntary action of the other (gunman and professional
soldier) by plutocracy and is stirred up by plutocracy
and terminates also to the advantage of plutocracy.
Now if you unionist workmen representing inter-
nationalism synthesized in the cry, "Workmen of all coun-
tries, unite!" if you fight to destroy scabs and gunmen
during strikes, why should you not fight to kill soldiers in
time of war? The scabs and gunmen, I repeat, are your
brothers as also are the soldiers. The sins which the soldiers
commit have the same root of evil as the scabs and gun-
men; they have only one root: plutocracy. This is the new
and real Pandora's box.
And if, with the struggle of classes culminating in the
murder of scabs and gunmen during strikes, you, Conditional
Neutrals, economically defend your national proletariat
interests against your national plutocracy, you must at the
same time and for the sake of the international doctrine
which you say you profess, not only admit the justice of
armed intervention in every way today in defense, not only
of the territorial integrity of your nation, protecting the
material interests of your national proletariat, but, also in
defense of the territorial integrity including the mate-
rial interests of all of the other weaker nations assaulted
by the common enemy (plutocracy) for economic and
insatiable greed.
268 FOURTH PART
If you will persist in your restrictive attitude, Conditional
Neutrals, you will end by discrediting the cry synthe-
sizing the doctrine which you boast that you profess, be-
cause this cry was launched to give a [deadly blow by
means of the union of workmen of every country, not
to the plutocracy of one nation only, but to plutocracies
of every nation.
If the plutocracies of every nation, instead of dying,
continue to fatten on the blood of the workmen of every
country, it signifies that your restrictive action (that of
conditional neutrality) is not the right interpretation of the
cry synthesized in the doctrine reduced even to purely
economic terms.
And if, on the other hand, the workmen of five of the
greatest and most advanced nations of the world (France,
England, Russia, Japan and Italy) — those who have list-
ened to the gospel synthesizing the doctrine in the cry,
"Workman of all nations, unite!" — had placed themselves
militarily at the side of Serbia and Belgium, this would have
signified that they repudiated the restrictive interpretation
of conditional neutrality and resolutely put into practice,
especially the Italian proletariats, all of the idealistic con-
tents, conspicuously and rigorously international, which
their cry represented.
You, Conditional Neutrals, must recognize the error
into which you have fallen (error, considering the time in
which we live, considering the formidable positive efficiency
reached by plutocracies). You must follow the practical
good sense of the people. If you do not do this, your ranks
will continually become thinner; you will be swallowed up in
the furious whirlwind of facts.
If you obstinately refuse to follow the people in their
practical good sense, it means that you do not understand
their spirit.
And the people will abandon you, and they will give
themselves to those who will know how to lead them by a
less tortuous road to their emancipation.
Because the people are tired of waiting. Their physical
and moral sufferings are growing in proportion to the com-
modities and sensual pleasures of plutocracy. These suf-
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 269
ferings have increased in constant ratio to the increase of
the sensual pleasure of the plutocracy.
The people are tired of waiting.
Conditional Neutrals, meditate on these truths.
And I say to the Absolute Neutrals:
Is it true, as you have held and as I myself maintain,
that nowadays war is made for the round-bellies of the
plutocrats. But who does the fighting? Is it the plutocrats
who fight? The plutocrats only provoke and direct wars.
Those who in reality bear the brunt of the war are the
people whom the plutocrats dominate.
Now among those who are at war are also Absolute
Neutrals garbed as soldiers, not willingly so, but because
of one of those partisan laws favorable to plutocracy (mili-
tary conscription) which has been spoken of before.
And if they are the people who must fight; and if they
are your brothers; and if their industrial and collective
lives are placed in jeopardy, how can you remain dis-
interested and inert?
You could remain thus disinterested and inert, only
if the plutocrats lived on a different planet from that upon
which the people live, on which your brothers live, and where
they could fight among themselves.
But from the moment that the plutocrats inhabit a planet
inhabited also by the people, your brothers, and with the
positive means at their command to enable them at their
pleasure to provoke and direct wars, it is necessary that you
take an interested and active part in such wars.
Because the plutocrats lose nothing by wars; they
always gain. It is the people, your brothers, the humble,
those who have always striven and suffered day and night
who in war lose everything. Your absolute neutrality —
in the face of the weak massacred on the field of battle,
before their ravished virgins, their mutilated children, their
sacked and burned homes — places you in the same category
as the authorities (sanctified afterward by the church) who
retire to the solitude of [the desert and there, whistling at
the oppressed, selfishly and stupidly think of nothing ex-
cept the eternal salvation of their souls.
270 FOURTH PART
You object: "But why don't the people enter into the
sphere ofour ideas which have no other reason for being than
that of hberating them by means of revolution (it not having
been possible up to the present time to do so by other means)
from plutocratic tyranny which starves and incites them to
fratricidal butchery?"
Before responding to such a question I assert my belief
that the individualist regime of life, which you long for and
defend, is possible. I believe it is possible, not because of a
more or less doctrinaire pretension, but because most men —
if not all, certainly a large part of them — have already
touched the point of moral purity sufficient to bring about
the aforesaid regime from the theoretic to the practical
stage. I have no need to search among the dead genera-
tions for proof of this assertion. It suffices for me to look
only among the living, and not farther than my native land,
to find the corroborative proof of my belief and affirma-
tion. Roberto Ardigo, Pasquale Villari, Theodore Moneta,
Guglielmo Marconi. Who would presume to say that these
men, and others such as these or even of lesser intellectual
qualities would have need of any sort of political, judicial,
military, economic or religious authority to live among
themselves in perfect peace and harmony?
Beside this, there are an infinite nu'rber of private busi-
ness associations (without speaking cf tribes falsely called
savage) which are satisfactorily regulated by laws not written
in any code; by laws which have no substantial authority
other than that which each person feels within himself and
obeys in his relation to others.
He who admits the law of evolution must honestly admit
individualism.
Because the law of evolution, morally speaking, implies
nothing else than the study of human virtues; while in-
dividualism is nothing more than the exercise of human
virtues.
Evolution is nothing more than the theory of civil life;
individualism is nothing more than the practice of human
life.
Individualism — so far as it represents the degree of
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 271
moral perfection already attained by man and according
to which he feels himself disposed to deal uprightly with his
fellow man and even capable of this — is the supreme ideal
of evolution, or I might say, is the complement of evolution,
did I not know that evolution as a synonym of progress is
infinite and therefore cannot have a complement, at least
in the absolute sense.
After making this declaration in honor of the truth,
Absolute Neutrals, let me say: the people do not enter
within the radius of your ideas because they have not yet
arrived at the intellectual heights necessary to comprehend
the sublimity of the goal to which you wish to attain.
And there are others who have reached such heights, but
who do not wish to engage in a revolution, because of a
repugnance for a means so violent and sanguinary; and
more than this, such methods have never brought, as history
teaches, substantial results proportionate to the efforts and
sacrifices made by revolutionists. Such methods have
never destroyed as they should have, and they have not even
arrested the sturdy and arrogant vitahty of plutocracies
which incarnate all of the evils of society.
But because the people have not yet reached the neces-
sary intellectual height, and because they will not engage
in revolutions, do you believe, you Absolute Neutrals, that
you have the right to leave them to themselves during a
war, or to leave them in the power of the more astute, of
the stronger, of the more malicious?
To tell the truth, such a vindictive plan, however
negative it may be, is not compatible, a priori^ with your
principles of universal brotherhood. It is unworthy of
your civil apostolate. Especially if one considers that you,
outside of war (one means military war), do not hesitate
to break the rigidity of your absolute neutrality — which
should be invulnerable — by descending in the field to fight
battles which are of a strictly economic character; battles
which are not favorable to your individualistic theories. I
am speaking of partial strikes. Why should one discuss
general strikes, national or international, if, from the day
that class struggle enters into a practical phase, strikes of
272 FOURTH PART
every category are only made by rhetorical and high sound-
ing phrases?
You Absolute Neutrals have gone far afield, into abso-
lutely hostile camps, to defend openly and energetically the
rights of those who strike against the cruel greed of plutoc-
racy, the competition of scabs, the violence of gunmen.
However, those who strike do not comprise all of the
proletariat, but are only a small part of them (the privileged
part, a sort of caste), the part which is the antithesis of
your ideas.
Because, according to the idealistic contents of the doc-
trines which you say you profess, you work toward the en-
tire amelioration of all oppressed peoples without distinction
(there are hundreds of millions outside of the unions); while
the unionists who strike, work only to their own exclusive
material amelioration.
You are working toward the destruction of plutocracies
since you are justly convinced that on such destruction
depends the solution of the entire social question. The
unionists instead, as soon as they have attained the material
betterment for which they struck, are quieted as was the
famous Cerberus of Dante:
Cerberus, a cruel beast and strangely made,
Barks out of his three dog-like throats
At those who were there submerged.
When Cerberus, the great worm, saw us
He opened his mouth and showed his tusks
And quivered in every limb.
My guide^ .... took up earth: and with full
Fists cast it into his ravening gullets.
As the dog that barking craves and
Grows quiet when he bites his food, for he
Strains and battles only to devour it, so did
Those squalid visages of Cerberus, the
Demon, who thundered on the spirits so they would
Fain be deaf.^
» Virgil.
' The epicures and Rluttons of the Third Circle. Divine Comedy, Inferno, Canto
VI ("Temple Classics").
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 273
And when the unionists believe themselves to be well
paid, they no longer fight the plutocrats. They recognize
the legitimate existence of the plutocrats; they make them
more solid; they fatten them more and more. They even
come to a point where they admire, magnify, and idolize
them. One can see this in a thousand cases. For the
sake of brevity I will cite only two which are truly typical.
One case, proving my first affirmation — that the unionists
are selfishly quieted, after they have obtained the raise of
wages for which they have struck; the second case proving
my second affirmation that the unionists, when they believe
themselves well paid, recognize even indirectly the legitimate
existence of the plutocracy, and fatten the plutocrats more
and more even though they do so involuntarily; they admire,
they magnify, and they even idolize them hypocritically.
The first case: The unionists who work in the great
clothing factory of Hart, SchafFner & Marx, of Chicago,
Illinois, one day struck to obtain a raise of wages. Hart,
SchafFner & Marx raised the pay, according to the demands
of the strikers. These returned to their work satisfied.
From that moment one saw no more life among them, they
did not move again,notevenwhen their unionist brothers (the
other tailors of Chicago) were reduced to the most miserable
economic condition and struck solidly and fought desperate-
ly for weeks to obtain for themselves a raise of wages from
the other local manufacturers.^
The second case: The employees of the automobile
manufacturer, Henry Ford, of Detroit, Michigan, believe
that they are well paid. But this fact does not prevent
this good man from annually accumulating millions and
millions of dollars for his own benefit from the work for
which the laborers beheve (bless them!) that the munificent
plutocrat has paid them so well.
And besides this, the unionists do not even in the final
count obtain for themselves the benefits for which they have
struck.
^ During the tailors' strike of Chicago in 1915 it was shown that some women
workers did not receive more than ^1.75 per week. Of this amount they were
obliged to use daily ten cents for carfare to go and return from work.
274 FOURTH PART
When the plutocrats accede to their demands by aug-
menting the pay of the strikers, the latter believe that they
have won. But this is simply an illusion. The truth is
very different. And it is the plutocrats who lose nothing.
That which they give with one hand, they take with the other
hand; they even retake double or more. (The plutocrats,
know arithmetic very well; intellectually speaking they
know little besides arithmetic.)
An example: the miners struck for a raise of wages.
The employers acceded to the demands and increased their
pay. But they afterward sold the coal to the same em-
ployees with an increase of price, corresponding to or more
than making up the raise of wage which the strike had obHged
them to yield. Without considering that such raise of
wages, which were wisely transformed by the plutocrats into
a raise in price, falls on the shoulders also of unionists of
the other categories of workers who have not struck; it falls
also on the shoulders of the workmen who cannot or will
not join the unions; it falls therefore on the shoulders of
that eternal, useful, patient, and beaten ass: the people.
And who suffers the other inconveniences which are born
out of strikes? Certainly not the plutocrats; instead, it is
the just who suffer for the unjust. In the Chicago tailors'
strike of 191 5, of which we have made mention for example,
I personally knew many who at the beginning of the strike
were without a penny in their pockets. These poor crea-
tures, during the long weeks of the strike, did not receive
one cent of assistance from the union of which they were a
part; thus they and their families suffered from hunger; while
the plutocrats (the employers who resisted the strike) did
not miss theirLucullan meals any morethan beforethe strike.
It is true that a certain sum (a few thousand dollars) was
collected at that time, but such alms (coming in great part
from private individuals, certainly not from the proletariat,
and I do not know with what conscience and dignity it was
accepted by the strike leaders) was unequal to the needs of
the strikers, partly because it was unequally distributed, not
to say worse.
Now if you. Absolute Neutrals, take an active part in
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 275
partial strikes to aid unionists who are substantially none
other than the privileged minority of the proletariat, as
plutocracy is none other than the privileged minority of the
bourgeoisie, with much more reason should you take an ac-
tive part in the war, which is made to aid the weaker nations
to free themselves from the cupidity of the stronger; in wars
which are much nearer to revolutions than strikes, especially
if one considers that only theoretically do you combat the
unions, while you defend the weaker nations. You theoret-
ically fight against unionist laborers, but practically you aid
them in their strikes against their oppressors. In fact, you
preach one thing and you practice another.
How much this system has damaged your cause you
yourselves can well imagine, especially if you consider that
by aiding the unionists in a strike you do not destroy the
positive forces of the plutocracy, but instead, you augment
and perpetuate them; while aiding the weaker nations in
war you destroy the positive forces of plutocracies; or if
you do not destroy them, you begin to destroy them, which
amounts to the same thing.
The groups which, inspired by the individualistic doc-
trines, are hoping to reach their goal by means of partial
strikes, are like those who grind water in a mortar; the groups
which obstinately remain in a verbose and virulent inertia
during such a war as that of Europe — a war which opens a
new historical epoch — are groups which are not in touch
with life, are against life, and in consequence against human-
ity which loves life, against humanity which is life.
They will be struck by the fatal law of elimination be-
cause of their own fault. They will perish.
Absolute Neutrals, meditate upon these truths!
The Italian people believed that the theory of conditional
neutrality (war only for national defense) and the theory of
absolute neutrality (peace at any price) if put into practice
would have driven humanity back into the primitive chaos
of barbarism where nothing but brute force reigned; would
have trampled under foot the foundation of every idea of
justice and civilization.
276 FOURTH PART
Because the tyrants, always thirsting for more riches
and dominion, commit at their pleasure any sort of crime,
secure of immunity. Who indeed could punish them if the
people of the nations who are not implicated in wars (wars
incited by the stronger nation which is in the wrong, against
the weaker nation which is in the right), did not combine
solidly and practically with this latter?
Non-intervention before an evil is committed, and the
cry of peace after the evil is committed, would be a fine
comedy for crowned and uncrowned villains.
In such way the mine owner could very w^ell, for example,
have his striking miners, with wives and children, killed by
his gunmen; then he could demand peace and all would be
happily ended. Exactly as a certain rehgion which says to
man: "Commit any sin which you wish; afterward present
yourself at the feet of your confessor whom I keep at your
disposal, and all will be pardoned you in the name of the God
whom I represent."
What 3. festal What a game!
The splendid example of practical human solidarity
given by the Italian people, imposing on their own govern-
ment armed intervention in the great war in defense of the
weaker nations which were assaulted by the stronger, might
be pondered upon and imitated by other peoples.
This example shows in a solemn manner how it may be
possible, even easy, to bring about the spiritual alliance
of the people, provided that the Conditional Neutrals and
the Absolute Neutrals recognize their error.
Certain it is that the spiritual alliance of a people will
not destroy military influence in twenty-four hours, but
by strengthening, holding back skillfully and energetically
these forces against the plutocracy which owns them, the
spiritual alliance of the people would be able immediately to
put an end to war.
Do not in heaven's name repeat the old ritornello: "This
war will be the last. This war will signal the end of mili-
tarism. After this war we shall have permanent universal
peace," etc.
I conclude.
HUMAN SOLIDARITY 277
As long as there are national industrial plutocracies with
their related commercial competitions between nations,
there will be militarism and there will be war.
Because militarism (I speak of the militarism of today)
is none other than an organism created and maintained by
plutocracies to defend the infinite interests of plutocracies,
the infinite increase of plutocracies.
Plutocracies are the cause. Militarism is the effect.
Can one destroy the effect without first destroying the
cause.''
And can one prevent war only by preaching peace and
continuing to kneel at the feet of potentates ?
War has existed since man existed.
Peace has been preached since war existed.
But the preaching of peace has never been able to pre-
vent war, because war is a material fact, is action, while the
preaching of peace is an immaterial fact; nothing but words.
If the preaching of peace could have prevented war, it
would have done so from the first day or during the cen-
turies in which peace has opposed itself to war.
And we cannot wait until the potentates themselves pre-
vent it, because war is the life of potentates. And the
potentates are not so tender, nor even so foolish as to sac-
rifice their own lives for the love of peace.
War will be prevented only when the preaching of peace
shall be transformed into a spiritual alliance of the peoples;
only when it shall transform itself into the armed interven-
tion of a people (allied spiritually among themselves) in
defense of the weaker nation which is in the right, and which
has been assaulted by the stronger nations which are in the
wrong.
Only then the pure blood of the youth of Italy, and of
the whole world, spilled in rivers on the fields of Europe for
the past three years, can seriously prelude universal peace so
longed for by humanity, and a lasting universal peace which
is so necessary to humanity.
278 FOURTH PART
VIII
The betrayal.
Wherein was the treachery that the Italian people com-
mitted against Austria-Hungary and Germany by breaking
the treaty of the triple alliance and entering into war in
behalf of Serbia, Belgium, France, England, and Russia?
First of all, the legend must be destroyed that the
monarchical Government of Savoy is a constitutional one;
that the king is nothing, or less than nothing; that the repre-
sentatives of the people (the deputies of the national
parliament) are everything.
The monarchical Government of Savoy is, if not in name,
certainly in fact, a government absolute and despotic. The
King is everything. And the representatives of the govern-
ment are mere figures.
The King of Italy by virtue of the Statute (that is, the
fundamental law of the State which is today that same law
promulgated by Carlo Alberto on March 4, 1848) has the
right to direct personally — or by means of his ministers,
which is the same thing ^ — all foreign policies of the nation. '^
Such right the Kings of Savoy have known only too well
how to use; and the present King, Victor Emanuel III, in
spite of his court-followers and courtiers who always extol him
as the most democratic sovereign in the world, has made un-
limited use of it.
Victor Emanuel III in 191 2 renewed the treaty of the
alliance with Austria and Germany for another twelve years,
without in any way consulting the deputies of the national
parliament elected by the people; without their consent;
* Article LXV of the Statutes 'says: "The King nominates and dismisses his
ministers."
^Article V of the Statute says: "To the King alone belongs the executive
power. He is the Supreme Head of the State; he commands all of the forces of
land and sea; declares war; makes all treaties of peace, of alliance, of commerce, and
others, giving notice of them to the cabinet as soon as the interest and the security
of the State permits, or when it seems opportune. The treaties which might
bring honor to the finances of the State or increase its territory would not be
valid without the consent of the cabinet."
THE BETRAYAL 279
against the will of the people; even against the interests of
the nation itself.
Victor Emanuel III declared and directed the colonial
war of 1911-1912 against Turkey without at all consulting
the deputies of the National Parliament elected by the
people; without their consent; against the will of the people.
And only at the conclusion of peace did Victor Emanuel III
deign to announce to the representatives of the people,
that is, to the people, that Libya (Tripoli and Cyrenaica)
was conquered, and, by royal decree, proclaimed a province
of the realm.
And not only the foreign policy but the internal policies
of the nation are personally directed by the King of Italy.
It is true that the honorable representatives of the people
discuss and approve the laws of the nation. But such
laws cannot be put in action, if first they are not discussed
and approved by the Senate and sanctioned by the King
himself.^
What is the Senate.? The Senate, in Italy, is none other
than the direct representative of the King. The senators
in fact are not elected by the people. They are nominated
by the King, and nominated for life, from men proved
liege and faithful to the crown, from ex-monarchical depu-
ties, ministers of State, ambassadors, magistrates, generals,
admirals, high administrative functionaries and plutocrats.
A small minority is named by the King, and not without
caution, from the most conspicuous intellectual figures of
the nation.^ But this minority almost never takes part in
^Article VII of the Statute says: /'The king only can sanction and promulgate
the laws."
^Article XXXIII of the Statute says: "The Senate is composed of members
who are nominated for life by the King — these are not limited in number —
and who have completed forty years of age, and they are chosen from among the
following Usts:
1. The Archbishops and Bishops of the State;
2. The President of the Chamber of Deputies;
3. The Deputies after three terms, or six years of office;
4. The Ministers of State;
5. The Secretaries of State;
6. The Ambassadors;
7. The Envoys Extraordinary; after three years of office;
280 FOURTH PART
the sittings and deliberations of the senate; it rarely inter-
ests itself in the active policy of the nation. It is a passive
minority, nominated by the King to throw dust in the eyes
of the people more than for anything else.
It will be objected "that divergencies never arise among
the deputies elected by the people, and the senators nomi-
nated by the King; that there never have been incompati-
bilities between the parliamentary institutes represented
by the one or the other; that the Senate has always approved
the laws discussed and voted by the Chamber of deputies."
It is true. But why?
Because the majority of the deputies is composed, as
is the majority of the senators, of men proved liege and
faithful to the crown. It is also a majority nominated by
the King.
And why are they nominated by the King?
I will tell you immediately: for the benefit of court
followers and sycophants who obstinately picture and extol
8. The First President, and Presidents of the Supreme Court, and of the
Treasury;
9. The First Presidents of the Court of Appeals;
10. The Attorney General of the Supreme Court, and of the Treasury, after
five years of office;
11. The Presidents of divisions of the Court of Appeals, after three years of
service;
12. The Councillors of the Supreme Court and the Treasury, after five years
of office;
13. The General Attorneys of the Court of Appeals, after five years of office;
14. Generals of land and sea, but the Major-Generals and the Rear-Admirals
must have had five years in that rank of active service;
15. The Councillors of State, after five years of office;
16. The members of Councils of Divisions, after having had three elections to
their presidency.
17. General Superintendents of Finance, after seven years of office;
18. The members of the Royal Academy of Science, after seven years of office;
19. The ordinary Members of the Supreme Council of Public Instruction,
after seven years of office;
20. Those who by high service or merit have honored the Patria;
21. The persons who for three years continuously have paid 3,000 lire of
direct tax in proportion to their goods or their business.
Article XXXIV of the Statute says: "The Princes of the Royal Family take
part with full rights in the Senate. They are seated directly after the President.
They enter the Senate at twenty-one years of age, and have their vote at twenty-
five years of age."
Article XXXV says: "The President and the Vice-Presidents of the Senate
are nominated by the king."
THE BETRAYAL 281
the Italian Chamber of deputies as a direct and authentic
representative of the ItaHan people.
In the political elections — in the elections, that is,
of the deputies of the national parliament — the Italian
Government always presents, in almost all of the 508 elec-
toral colleges of the realm, its monarchical candidates in
opposition to the anti-monarchical candidates, or those
M^ho are not sufficiently monarchical.
To have such candidates elected, the Italian Government
feverishly puts into action all of the police officers of the
State (from the highest to the lowest). And through them
the Government causes to be lavishly spent among the
electoral masses the millions of lire of the so-called secret
funds drawn from the veins of the tax-payers (that is, from
the veins of the people); it causesextravagant promises of em-
ployments and favors to be made; in fact it corrupts without
scruple. And where it cannot corrupt it threatens to use
every sort of violence and abuse of power. In one of the
last general political elections, for example, Giovanni
Giolitti, then president of the ministry and minister of the
interior, even sent battleships to Sicily to intimidate (and
not only to intimidate!) with cannons of great caliber those
electors who had shown themselves but little disposed to
vote for the candidate of the Government.
Now can a cabinet elected by a system of government
so arbitrary, dishonest and infamous, call itself, in good
conscience, a true representative of the people? Is it not
rather — except the small minority representing the oppos-
ing electors which the Government in a manner overrules —
a representative (even though indirect) of the King? Can
it never elect a majority which will some time find itself in
serious disaccord with the Senate?
As soon as the great war broke out in 1914, Victor
Emanuel III — who could not personally put himself
forward for reasons easy to understand — in furious haste
called the Italian politicians who were most devoted to
him (Giolitti the chief of all, as being the most astute and
influential) and commanded them to bestir themselves, to
do everything possible to create in the nation a favorable
282 FOURTH PART
current toward the central empires; to induce the Italian
people to respect the Triple Alliance, to enter without delay
into the war on the side of Austria and Germany.
The Italian people were ignorant of the contents of
the treaty of the Triple Alliance because the King had never
considered it his duty to communicate it to them, but
because of its having been published by the press they were
aware that the treaty contained a basic defensive clause.
Then why did the King wish that Italy should enter
the field in the defense of Austria and Germany in an
offensive war?
The Italian people wished to see clearly this matter.
And they knew that Victor Emanuel III wanted the inter-
vention of Italy at any cost in the European war on the side
of Austria and Germany for the following reasons:
First: From the standpoint of dynastic solidarity
toward the Hohenzollerns. This dynasty was considered,
at least until the breaking out of the great war, as the
prototype of the imperial militaristic dynasties of the world,
because on January i8, 1871, it founded the German
Empire and because it gave an incomparable impulse,
power and solidity to that empire. The dynasty of Savoy,
itself imperialistically military, could not but feel itself
attracted toward its consorella prototype. Like seeks its
like. It could not do other than feel the need of imitating
it. The English dynasty of Brunswick and the Russian
dynasty of Romanoff, on the other hand, were too tightly
bound to republican France.
Second: Because the House of Savoy was, and is,
related to the reigning Houses of Austria and Germany.
In fact, Victor Emanuel II, first King of Italy, grandfather
of the present Victor Emanuel III, married Maria Adelaide,
daughter of Giuseppe Ranieri, Archduke of Austria and
Austrian viceroy of Lombardo-Veneto from 18 18 to 1848.
And this same Archduke Ranieri, in 1820, married Eliza-
beth of Savoy-Carignano, sister of Carlo Alberto. The
present Queen Margherita, widow of the second King of
Italy, Humbert I, and mother of the present King, was a
daughter of Princess Elizabeth who was a daughter of King
THE BETRAYAL 283
John of Saxony. Prince Thomas,^ brother of Queen Mar-
gherita, uncle of the present King Victor Emanuel III, mar-
ried Maria Isabel, daughter of Prince Adalbert of Bavaria.
Third: For personal friendship toward the Kaiser.
The intimate relations which exist between Emperor William
II and the parents of the present King Victor Emanuel III
and between this same William II and this same Victor
Emanuel III is well known in Italy and in all Europe.
Fourth: For personal financial interests. The Ameri-
can journals and also some newspapers of Italy published
the assertion that the present King Victor Emanuel III had
invested more than 100,000,000 lire of his private funds in
the German Krupp Manufacturing Company, in the manu-
factory that produces thousands of guns a year, as well as
caldrons, armored cars, locomotives and electric motors; in
the manufactory which owns arsenals, steamships, iron mines
and coal.
Fifth: For sympathy toward the German people.
Many Italians have always felt and still feel a sympathy
for the German people. Why should not Victor Emanuel III
have felt this? Is he not a man subject to sentiments and
passions as are all others?
Sixth: Because Victor Emanuel III believed that
intervention in the great war at the side of Austria and
Germany would have been of advantage to the nation.
Many private Italian citizens believed and still believe the
same. Why should Victor Emanuel himself not have
believed it? Does he not enjoy the rights which other
Italian citizens enjoy?
Seventh: On account of some secret treaty stipulated
betw^een Victor Emanuel III, William II and Francis
Joseph, with which treaty the sovereigns obligated them-
selves to help each other miUtarily even in case of an
offensive war. That such an agreement was made, one
logically infers from the fact that Emperor William, however
conscious of the German military power, however ambitious,
audacious or insane, would never have encouraged Francis
^ Prince Thomas is at present the lieutenant of Victor Emanuel III that is,
V^iceroy of Italy.
284 FOURTH PART .
Joseph to provoke this most dangerous of wars (dangerous
to Germany itself) if he had not been more than sure of the
unconditional and unlimited aid of Italy. Francis Joseph
himself — even had he been senilely obstinate — would never
have been so opposed to little Serbia.
Giolitti — who was indebted for fifteen years of govern-
ment dictatorship to the House of Savoy — obeyed the
command of his King, and, followed by his satellites, began
his work. He ran through and through (with mysterious
circumspection, more by night than by day) all of the
streets of the capital, running up and down stairs, confab-
ulating with the most equivocal figures, both indigenous
and foreign. Even though he sweated dozens of shirts,
his influence and astuteness, however much sustained by
the personal authority of the Sovereign, was of too corrupt
a sort and was too well known. And, therefore, it did not
have the effect which their highnesses wished. Instead it
had an absolutely contrary effect. In fact, the people
of the new Italy — in a referendum taken by the govern-
ment among the soldiers of sea and land — said proudly
but firmly that they would not fight for Germany and
Austria and especially for Austria, not even if commanded
by God in person. Not only that, but they imposed on the
King the breaking of the treaty of the alliance with the above
two nations and they also imposed the declaration of neu-
trality of Italy in the war; then they began to manifest
openly and strongly their sympathy for the nations assaulted
by the armies of Francis Joseph and the Kaiser.
Victor Emanuel III recognized, with an uneasy mind,
the impossibility of intervention in the war in favor of
Germany and Austria and he again called upon Giolitti;
he ordered him to lose no time; to stir things up and do
his best to induce the people of the new Italy at least to
maintain their neutrality and not to abandon themselves
to exaggerated and harmful sentimentality.
Giolitti — who was indebted for fifteen years for his
dictatorship to the House of Savoy — obeyed the commands
of his King. And, followed by his satellites, he plunged
THE BETRAYAL 285
himself with more zeal, if not with more confidence, into
the work. Believing himself sure of immunity, he planned
dark intrigues and forced himself to commit acts more than
illicit.
But with the passing of the days, the Italian people
saw that little Serbia was crushed; saw that little Belgium
was crushed; saw that republican France was also on the
point of being crushed; saw that England and Russia
were also running into danger of being crushed; saw that
all Europe might fall into slavery at the feet of the pluto-
cratic Teutonic militarism. And then the people of Italy
demanded of the King's Government the armed intervention
of Italy in the war against the aggressive tyrants.
Victor Emanuel III, realizing, with a soul full of bitterness,
the impossibility of maintaining the neutrality of Italy for
any length of time, again called Giolitti and commanded
him to move himself and stir things up and do everything
that the desperation of the moment called for, to curb the
bellicose ardor of the Italian people.
GioHtti — who was indebted to the house of Savoy for
fifteen years* dictatorship — obeyed the commands of his
King. And, followed by his satellites, he precipitated him-
self headlong another time into the underworld of diplomacy.
There, creeping with a vileness without parallel, he began
with the famous pour parler with Prince von Biilow, which
very soon became the lynch pin of the treaties which the
government of Vienna (under the auspices of William II)
had already initiated with the government of Rome, with
the object in view of buying the permanent neutrality of
Italy by means of territorial concessions and millions of
lire.i
'The personal responsibility of Victor Emanuel III for the false steps taken by
Giolitti is clearly shown by the facts that have now passed into history, facts that
nothing can destroy.
One must be logical, and above all the Italian people if they wish to be really
respected must accustom themselves to call black black, and white white in ques-
tions of national interests. They must once and for all free themselves from the
prejudice legalized by Article IV of the Statuto Albertino which says: "The
person of the King is sacred and inviolable."
Giolitti, however, short-sighted as he had become politically, could not act
as he did on his own account at the moment when the new Italy was preparing
to take a great step forward in the life of the world.
Giolitti, as a private citizen, as minister, as prime minister, was always a
286 FOURTH PART
Thus one passes on to the last days of April, 191 5.
Very early in May, 191 5, Gabriele d'Annunzio re-
turned from his exile in France.
The poet followed with Dantesque, Foscolian, Mazzlnian
anxiety the unfolding of events in Italy; he ranged himself
on the side of the people, and faced with extraordinary cour-
age, resoluteness, and energy the internal and external enemies
of his Patria (procurers, barterers, and similar scum). He
unmasked and lashed them till the blood ran.
Then from millions of breasts there burst volcanically
the cry for war.
Victor Emanuel III trembled.
He understood that his great historic hour had struck.
His throne rocked under his feet. An outside neutralistic
resistance would hopelessly have ruined him.
On the morning of May 23, 191 5, he declared war on
Francis Joseph of Austria through his ambassador at Vienna,
the Duke of Avarna.
Thus Italy entered into the great butchery.
But the Italian people by such an act committed no
treachery.
The people of Italy imposed the breaking of the treaty
strenuous defender of Italy's militaristic and monarchic policy. How could he
with sincerity suddenly begin to work for peace?
Giolitti was always with the parliamentary and popular majorities, even when
they were in the wrong. How could he suddenly' pass to the side of the minorities,
and to the side of the socialist minority against whom he had always struggled and
by whom he was always combated in the bitterest manner.^ How could he,
master opportunist that he was, set himself against the current?
Giolitti as a statesman of the most mediocre caliber, had reached the apex of
political greatness in Italy (the presidency of the ministry). And he was maintained
there longer than any other statesman. On the eve of the entrance of Italy into
the war he was as yet the supreme arbiter of the Italian National Parliament and of
Italian political life. Why should he risk such a position, when the risk, even if it
should redound to his benefit, could never give him any higher position?
Giolitti, during his permanency with the government, came out with a financial
position more than solid. He could, therefore, with the greatest ease, continue to
amass wealth without being observed very closely by the people. Why should he
almost publicly sell himself like any common beggar to the agents of Austria
and Germany when such a sale would bring about — and he knew this — his
complete moral ruin?
Giolitti as the perfect servant could do nothing but sacrifice himself to his master
who had so greatly benefited him. He preferred to filthily close his already vile
political life, rather than in a moment of greatest trial commit an act of ingratitude
toward his King, rather than compromise "the sacred person of his King."
This is the truth.
THE BETRAYAL 287
of the Triple Alliance because it was not stipulated nor ap-
proved by them.
It may be objected "that a people who were governed
by a king and a statute should of necessity respect the acts
which the king executed on the basis of such a statute."
It is true. But one must also consider that when the
people of the New Italy demanded the rupture of the treaty
of the Triple Alliance stipulated by the king and operating in
opposition to that which the treaty itself established, they
demonstrated clearly that they no longer intended to follow
the old and beaten paths. (This is in itself I believe, a symp-
tom of political importance.) Their action showed that the
people of the New Italy were only disposed to respect the
King and the statute when both interpreted the needs and
will of the nation not when they revealed themselves,
especially at the most solemn and decisive moment of the
Patria, opposed to the sentiments and the national interests
of the people themselves; contrary to their human ideals.
On the other hand, neither did Victor Emanuel III in
the final count commit a real treason by breaking the treaty
of the triple alliance and declaring war on Austria, for the
simple reason that when he made the contract of the treaty
itself, he could not absolutely foresee that the shield of the
Italian people would be raised.
Victor Emanuel III when he agreed to the treaty of the
Triple Alliance, was sure, as were his colleagues, Francis
Joseph and William II, especially William II, that the people
of the New Italy would blindly follow the will of their King,
as they had done in the past.
Instead the people of the New Italy who had always re-
spected and blindly executed the will of their King, refused
to respect and execute it at the onset of the European war.
But Victor Emanuel III, as we have seen, did not fail
to do his best to demand the old obedience of his people.
As soon as the great war burst out in 1914, he delayed
the obligation assumed by him toward Francis Joseph and
WiUiam II. He forced his faithful Giolitti and satellites to
spread the idea that if the Italian people would avoid lasting
shame, they must respect the treaties by entering the field
288 • FOURTH PART
of battle on the side of the two alhed nations, Austria and
Germany. The people of the New Italy, including the
soldiers to whom the referendum was made, replied that
they would never take up arms in defense of the two above-
named nations, especially Austria. And they then imposed
neutrality.
Victor Emanuel III did everything in his power at
least to maintain neutrality. Then the people of the New
Italy realized that their neutrality would secure victory
equally to the two aggressive emperors who were allied to
the Sultan of Turkey (another enemy of Italy and of
civilization) and they clamored for armed intervention in
favor of the allied nations.
Victor Emanuel III made desperate efforts to avoid
the supreme misfortune of intervention. The people of the
New Italy showed their teeth.
Victor Emanuel III then felt that his crown was in danger.
He had to bend. He had to obey. He had to declare
war against Austria.
How could he do otherwise?
For the first time he found himself before a people sud-
denly reawakened from the shameful lethargy in which they
had been thrown for so long a time; that is, from the time
that Italy had become a united and independent nation.
He found himself confronted by a people who had suddenly
discovered the consciousness of their own material force
and their moral dignity. He found himself confronted by a
people who were on the point of starting a revolution that
might turn the monarchy upside down and proclaim Italy
a republic, if he, the King, failed to obey orders at the roll
of the drum — orders, I say, which the people themselves
gave to him. He found himself confronted by a people
transformed from bleating sheep, ready to lick the hand
which was armed for their destruction, into fierce and
roaring lions ready to advance and mete out summary justice
upon those who had taken advantage of their patience and
lethargy.
How could Victor Emanuel III have foreseen all of this
ire of the gods? Could he have foreseen, when the alliance
ENGLISH AND FRENCH GOLD 289
with Francis Joseph and Wilham II was formed, that the
people of the New Italy — who had always shown themselves
docile and resigned to the House of Savoy — would one
day rise up powerfully against this same dynasty?
Victor Emanuel III could not have foreseen so extraor-
dinary a fact, for the simple reason that, with all of the
superior intelligence which the court followers and syco-
phants attributed to him, he had not yet succeeded in fathom-
ing the souls of his people. Had he been able thus to fathom
them, he would easily have understood that the people of
the New Italy had tolerated the treaty of the Triple Alliance
up to a certain point, but that they could not longer tolerate
it when it menaced the nation and humanity with grave
harm.
It was one of those cases of force majeure justified by
all of the judicial laws of the world, including those which
are in force in the very states of their royal and imperial
majesties of Germany and Austria.
Therefore, there was no treachery, either on the part of
the Italian people or on the part of Victor Emanuel III,
King of Italy.
IX
English and French gold.
Where was the corrupting English gold.?
Where was the corrupting French gold.^'
There doubtless was gold, but from the German and
not from the English and French people. Prince von Bil-
low, representing the governments of Berlin and Vienna,
when he was in Rome in May, 191 5, scattered gold in Italy
with a lavish hand. But he could do nothing but corrupt
certain renegade politicians, some hungry scribblers, some
hardened jailbirds.
Gabriele d'Annunzio cried this aloud in his fierce public
accusations at that time.
Speaking to the people of Genoa on the evening of his
return (May 4, 191 5) the poet said, among other things:
290 FOURTH PART
What will you, Genovese? What will you, Italians? Will
you have your nation diminish or grow?
You want a greater Italy, not by means of bribery, but by
conquest; not by shameful measures, but at the price of blood and
glory.
Haranguing the crowds in the streets of Rome on the
evening of May 12, 191 5, the poet said:
Now, as fifty years ago on this evening, at this same hour The
Thousand stopped on their march from Marsala toward Salemi;
and at the feet of their stacked bayonets sleepily ate their bread
and in silence laid themselves down.
They had in their hearts the stars, and the words of their
chief, which even today are a living and impelling force to us also:
// we will be united, our undertaking will he easy. Therefore, to arms!
It was the proclamation at Marsala; and it says again with rude
menace: Who does not arm himself is a coward or a traitor.
Would not the Liberator stamp with the same mark, if he could
descend from the Janiculum to the low places of earth, and would
he not thus stigmatize all those who today openly or secretly work
to disarm Italy and put to shame the Patria and throw her again
into a servile condition and nail her again to the cross?
O strength and scorn of Rome, overturn the tables of batterers
and falsifiers!
Root out, O Romans, all the foulness, return to the sewer all
such putridity!
Exhorting the Romans (May 13, 191 5) the poet among
other things said:
Companions, you must not permit that a handful of ruffians
and defrauders shall be able to defame and ruin Italy for us.
The treachery is manifest today. We not only breathe its
horrible stench, but we feel all of its opprobrious weight. In your
Rome the attempt has been made to strangle the Patria with a
Prussian halter.
We are on the point of being sold like a flock of sheep.
This meddler of Dronero', this obscene intriguer wants to do
this for us. This, that other licker'^ of dirty Prussian feet would
do to us. This would their canaille of followers do to us.
This they will not do, O Romans!
'Electoral political college of Giolitti.
* Ex-minister Bertolini?
ENGLISH AND FRENCH GOLD 291
Your history, perhaps it was made in rag shops or pawn shops?
Perhaps the scales of your justice balanced on the side where was
placed a morsel of bread to chew, or a bone to gnaw? Your Cam-
pidoglio was perhaps a gambling table for barterers and defrauders ?
Glory perhaps was occupied in selling and gossiping in such a
place, like a small huckster?
Not bones, not crumbs, not rags, not batterings, not frauds.
Enough! Overthrow the tables! Break the false scales!
Our destinies cannot be measured by the yardstick of mer-
chantmen, but by the longsword.
And with sticks and slaps in the face, kicks and blows, we should
greet the accomplices and mediators, the lick-platters and lick-
spittles of the former German ex-chancellor [von Biilow] who on a
Roman hill made of himself a fat Jove, transforming himself now
into a tender bull, now into a rain of gold.
It must not be permitted that the slaying of the Patria shall
be consummated in Rome. You Romans must give to me this
security.
Hurling public accusation at a mass meeting of the
Romans on the evening of May 14, 191 5, the poet among
other things said:
The Patria is in danger, the Patria is on the point of being
lost. To save it from irreparable ruin and ignominy each one of
us must give all of himself and arm himself with all sorts of
weapons.
In a message to the students at the Roman Athenaeum,
assembled (May 15, 191 5) to deliberate on violence against
the traitors, the poet said:
Today is the anniversary of the most beautiful battle of the
Garibaldians; it is the anniversary of Calatafimi. Of this the
Chief usually said: // at the point of death you should see me smile,
friends, remember that it is the memory of Calatafimi which warms
my heart to its last beat.
But in order to make Garibaldi smile again, it will be neces-
sary to celebrate this anniversary with the expulsion of the
knave [Giolitti] who would sell Italy, and of the procurer [von
Biilow] who would buy it. It will be necessary to purify the skies
of Rome from these two infections.
The Italian people in their poverty, pure as the crystals
292 FOURTH PART
of the Alps, refused to enter into the vile barter of von Biilow
and Giolitti.
And why should they not refuse, if they continually see
themselves mirrored in the lives of men whom gold never
could contaminate — of men who were representative of
their ideals?
I will here recall two episodes, one an ancient one which
is taught in all of the elementary schools in Italy, and the
other an episode of modern times which the national press
repeats every year. Both of these give an idea of the virtues
on which the people of the New Italy fashion, with the
admirable law of continuity, their own moral incorrupti-
bility.
First episode: In the summer of 282 B. C, a Roman
squadron, sailing toward Sena Gallica, cast anchor in the
port of Tarentum. The Tarentines, under pretext of an
ancient treaty, prohibited the Romans from navigating out-
side of the Lacinium Cape, assaulted the anchored ships, sent
some to the bottom and drove the others away.
The Roman senate called immediately for adequate
reparation from the Tarentines. But the ambassadors
sent by the senate on this mission, instead of being given
reparation, were basely outraged by the Tarentines. Then
Rome declared war.
TheTarentines called to their aid Pyrrhus, King of Epirus.
The latter, who was ambitious and very desirous of adven-
ture, came without much urging. He landed at Tarentum
(280 B. C.) with a great army, and twenty elephants carry-
ing on their backs fortresses behind which the soldiers
could fight with safety. They encountered the Romans,
commanded by the consul P. Valerius Levinus at Heraclea,
near the mouth of the river Aciris, and a sharp battle fol-
lowed.
The Roman soldiers — frightened by the enormous size
and by the bellowing of the quadrupeds — which they
saw for the first time — fled, leaving the victory to the enemy.
But this victory cost so dearly that Pyrrhus, full of marvel and
scorn, exclaimed: ** Another victory like this, and I should
be obliged to return alone to Epirus."
ENGLISH AND FRENCH GOLD 293
During the winter, a Roman commission led by Caius
Fabricius, a poor man but of great military talent and of
noble spirit, presented itself to Pyrrhus to treat of an ex-
change of prisoners.
The austere simplicity of the Roman filled the strangers
with wonder.
Pyrrhus called Fabricius apart, and offered him most
precious gifts on condition that he would induce the Ro-
man senate to make peace.
But Fabricius responded haughtily: "Offer your gifts
to slaves, not to a Roman citizen. You should know that
I do not feel myself poor, but richer than you, because
my little farm and my humble home give me enough with
which to live happily."
Not being able to conquer with gold, Pyrrhus attempted
to conquer Fabricius with fear. At a given signal he incited
one of his largest elephants against him, which extended his
proboscis to the head of Fabricius and bellowed ferociously.
The strong and honest Roman did not tremble, did not
move. He smiled proudly and scornfully. And when the
elephant had ceased his roaring, Fabricius departed from
the field without concluding anything regarding the exchange
of prisoners.
Pyrrhus, stupified, exclaimed: **I see that it would be
easier to make the sun deviate from its course than to
turn Fabricius from the path of virtue!"
Fabricius returned to Rome and advised the senate not
to make peace.
"Rome must not descend to pacts, until foreign soldiers
shall have crushed the very soil of Italy."
The war continued. Pyrrhus was defeated by the Romans,
commanded by the consul M. Curius Dentatus, in a bitter
battle near Beneventum, and was forced to return to
Epirus.
Second episode: In the year 1888 it was necessary for
the Italian government to contract a debt of 6o,ooo,cxdo
lire. Some French bankers, desiring to conclude the busi-
ness, — which was a large sum for that time, — attempted
to corrupt one of the most austere and noble figures of the
294 FOURTH PART
Italian parliament, Giovanni Bovio,^ offering him 1,200,000
lire. By means of the authority of that proud republican
deputy, they hoped — indeed, felt certain — that they
would be able to influence the Italian minister of Finance,
Agostino Magliani. But this is how Bovio responded to
the banker who had been entrusted by his colleagues of
France to make the audacious proposal:
Naples, Dec. 5, 1888.
Sir: By registered letter from Paris dated December i, 1888,
on paper upon which your name is printed, you write to me: /
have had the hoiior of knowing and listening to you. Can you ask
of Minister Magliani if it is true that the Italian government is in
absolute need of a loan of 50 or 60,000,000 lire, and at what rate of
interest it could be negotiated in France? If this is true you can assure
the minister that if the rate of interest is satisfactory, in eight days
from the day of the answer, the 50 or 60,000,000 lire of which he
has need will be brought to Rome.
As you see, this affair is most serious and requires the utmost
discretion. For your inconvenience and trouble, if the affair shall be
accomplished, there will be placed at your disposal the sum of
1,200,000 lire (un million deux cents mille francs) .
The proposition which you have made me, clearly Indicates
that you have seen and heard me, but that you did not know me.
To make such a proposition to me you should have shown my
name to the banker who will come to Rome.
Therefore permit me to defend my name, because I have noth-
ing else to protect and to transmit.
I will defend it, explaining to you in a few words the fact and
myself.
The fact, however colored and veiled, is that that which one
calls business cannot be linked with deputies, ministers, nor with
offices and companies dependent on the government. There is
no law which would prevent this, but the worst evils are not those
which are always punished by law.
^ Giovanni Bovio of Trani, southern Italy, for many years republican deputy
in the Italian National Parliament, orator, philosopher, epigraphist, dramatist,
educator, was as conspicuous a figure as one of the ancient sages. He was born
of poor parents and self-educated. He was in intimate correspondence with
Mazzini, Saffi, Garibaldi, and others. As professor at the University of Naples he
taught successively philosophy and the history of human rights, comparative
public rights. He was an idealist, and followed Mazzinism in religion and politics.
His philosophy was a mathematic naturalism, a great dream exalted by ideality.
He died poor but uncorrupted. He was the author of profound works (1841-1903).
ENGLISH AND FRENCH GOLD 295
As for myself, neither you who came to Naples, nor others, can
be ignorant of the fact that I support myself and family from day
to day by teaching and writing philosophy, added to which is a
little mathematics, but with arithmetic which has never arrived
at a million.
Since my work gives me independence, the million would be
superfluous.
You write that everything would be done quietly in Rome,
without the knowledge of anyone.
But shouldn't I know it? Have I not a code in my conscience.?
The bankers might leave their conscience at the footof the Alps,
and take it up on their return; but I carry mine everywhere, be-
cause inside of it there are the last ideals which I have been able
to protect from delusions.
You write that this mediation is a work of a good citizen;
but I say to you that it should be the work of an honest man
never to do anything about which it is necessary to conceal or to
keep quiet.
Now believe me because I have nothing to ask and nothing to
accept: you will not meet an Italian who does not wish good
relations between Italy and France, not for good business but for
good reasons.
The Italian democracy is not rich; it loves the dignity and
liberty of France; but it is not dazzled by French gold.
I and my friends will not mention your name, which is well
known and esteemed here; but you must say to your companions
that in Italy the sentiment of dignity is alive, and if a young
Italian;, educated by us, should have to choose between the
Austrian hangman's rope and French gold, he without a second's
hesitation would choose the rope.
Giovanni Bovio.
The Italian people, by not entering into the intrigues
of von Billow and Giolitti, followed faithfully the examples
of Fabricius and of Bovio. They did even more. They
met the Honorable Bertolini, ex-minister of the monarchy
of Victor Emanuel III, on the streets of Rome during the
stormy days of May, 191 5, and because he w^as suspected,
simply suspected, of having sold himself to the Teutons,
they assaulted him, throwing in his face handsful of money
accompanied by burning vituperations.
They would have lynched Giolitti himself, if the old
296 FOURTH PART
"thick-lipped hangman" (thus d'Annunzio stigmatized
him) had not taken to his heels and sought protection
from the police.
The point is that the people of the New Italy are an
intelligent, not a stupid people; are an idealistic people,
not utilitarian; a tenacious people, not voluble. They
know easily how to distinguish the true from the false,
good from evil, beauty from ugliness. They quickly em-
brace all just causes by a natural impulse of their sensitive
souls. And once they have embraced them, they defend
them with enthusiasm, disinterestedness, and firmness.
When, in 1914, the great war broke out, the people
of the New Italy knew immediately what it meant, and
without hesitation spontaneously took the position which
reason and sentiment, each inspired by the rights of the
weaker, had imposed upon them. And in such a position
they have always maintained themselves with love and
unshaken constancy.
The gold of the English and the French was nothing
other than a calumnious story cast abroad by Teutonic
treachery.
One must consider a most essential circumstance, which
is this: While, from July, 1914, to May, 191 5, the struggle
waged between those who were in favor of Austria and
Germany (who later through force of circumstances be-
came neutralists) on the one hand, and those who favored
intervention against Austria on the other hand, several of
the cheap and starving scribblers before mentioned were
accused by Italian papers of having been bought by the
Teutons. The accused brought complaint against their
accusers for defamation. The trials were called before the
tribunals. But in the public debate the accusing newspapers
proved fully their accusations, which were that the penny-a-
liners had been really bought by the Teutons. And the
judges were obliged to absolve the accusing newspapers,
while the scribblers accused of having sold themselves to the
Teutons were buried under an avalanche of national in-
dignation and scorn.
Was not this perhaps the most opportune psychological
ENGLISH AND FRENCH GOLD 297
moment to oppose the accusation and the proofs of Teutonic
gold with accusations and proofs of English and French
gold? It certainly was.
But the Teutons and their supporters did not profit by
this. They were silent. And why?
Because English and French gold was not flowing into
Italy. If it had flowed, the Teutons and their supporters
would not have ceased to scream to the four winds about it.
On the other hand, English and French gold, if it had
flowed, would only have corrupted, as had the Teuton gold,
some of the renegade politicians, some starving scribblers,
some hardened jail-birds. The Italian people in their pov-
erty, pure as the crystal of the Alps, would have remained
apart from the infamous traflSc. They would once more
be retempered in the solid virtues of their ancient Fabricius
and their modern Bovio.
And not only with gold, but by other means the Teutons
tried to force Italy to remain neutral as soon as they foun-d
themselves unable to drag her into the war at their side.
From July, 1914, to May, 1915, they inundated the
peninsula with publications (journals, bulletins, magazines,
handbills, books, pamphlets, et similia) in the Italian
language, and by means of these precious documents,
they tried to prove that the English and French had always
hated and scorned the Italians and would always continue
to do so, while they — the Teutons — had always been the
most enthusiastic admirers and the sincerest friends of the
Italians, and would always remain such in the future.
Numerous packages of such publications were sent to
me directly to Chicago by a German friend, who in 1914
and 191 5 was living in Italy. Thus I was able to read among
others, the pamphlet entitled The Truth About the Friend-
ship of England for Italy, by Dr. J. Lulves, printed in
Rome, 191 5; the pamphlet entitled, Italy and France, by
Alfredo Tusti, printed also in Rome in 191 5; The Bulletin
of the War (No. 30-31 of April 17-30, 191 5) published by
Dr. Fred B. Hardt, at Munich, Bavaria.
In the first I found chronologically enumerated the
298 FOURTH PART
wrongs which the EngHsh had inflicted upon the ItaHans
from 1327 to 191 2.
In the second I found chronologically enumerated the
wrongs which the French had inflicted on the Italians from
March 30, 1282 (date of the SiciHan Vespers), down to
1912.
In the third I found an article entitled, Italian Culture
and the German Spirit^ which I quote verbatim:
In Europe there is a spiritual solidarity which is opposed to the
expression of Russian art and literature. We Germans admire the
works of Dostoievsky, but the spirit of the Russian remains foreign
to us; whereas Balzac makes us think and feel with him. A novel
of Boccaccio makes us laugh heartily, and Dante's verses fill our
souls with the same enthusiasm that the Italians themselves feel.
Between the Romans and Germans there is an ancient bond of
knowledge and memories by which Italian art and culture are
thoroughly appreciated by us. For their inflow into our intel-
lectual life we feel a deep sense of gratitude. The keen desire
which pushed Goethe and the novelists to Italy still vibrates in
every German heart. We will not repeat the history of the Ro-
man colonization of Germany, but we will call to mind that from
that period until today its influence has remained present all
through history in the Roman Law.
The Renaissance has transmitted to us treasures of Greek and
Latin thought. From the Italian Benedictine monasteries in the
middle ages there was a strong religious and intellectual current
toward Germany, and the earnest worship of the history of Italian
arts, comparing it with the worship we attribute to other forms of
culture, has always urged our best students of art and literature to
their greatest activity in Italy. It would require too much space
to quote the names of even the most important students whom
Germany enumerates in these fields, but we will mention a few
among the most celebrated. Who is not familiar with the name
of Winckelmann, the founder of modern archaeology? And who
does not know the famous Theodore Mommsen and his history of
Rome.? Or the works of Friedlander and his history of Roman
customs ? The splendid History of the City of Rome in the middle
ages by Ferdinand Gregorovius the Roman citizen^. Ranke's master-
piece on the History of the Papacy? The work of Jacob Burkhardt,
// Ciceroney which gives a complete and comprehensive history of
Italian art? The works of Hermann Grimm on the Renaissance,
ENGLISH AND FRENCH GOLD 299
and the great works of Wolfflin who now occupies a chair in the
Riehl University of the Cathedral Riehl at Munich?
The Germans not only worked indefatigably and passionately
to acquire the knowledge of Italian history, but they were also
exceedingly interested in her poets and in the reproduction of their
works. In the home of every good German is to be found "The
Life of Benvenuto Cellini," which was translated for the first time
by Goethe. Among the numerous translations of the Divina
Comviedia one which bears the pseudonym of Philalethes was
written by King John of Saxony. The firm of E. Diederichs of
Jena is publishing a rich collection of ancient Italian documents of
the Renaissance which are splendidly translated; these are superb
editions of which, up to the present time, two series of twelve
volumes each have been issued. It is a pleasure for every cultured
German to pick up one of these volumes such as Matarazzo, La
Cronaca di Perugia, Napoli e gli Aragonesi, il Diario Fiorentino di
Landucci, il Diario di Roma di Infessura, the Letters of Aretino
and of Bracciolini, the Mysteries of Florence, History of Florence,
by Machiavelli, and many other similar choice works.
The bibliographical editions, by G. Miiller and von Weber of
Munich, of the Italian poets and thinkers, published by the house
of Insel in Leipzig, have a very large circulation in Germany.
The incomparable translation of these works is followed by a very
accurate criticism.
On the other hand, modern German painting was greatly
influenced by Italian art, which is really the only great paint-
ing. It is sufficient in this connection to remember Albert
Diirer's permanent residence in Venice. Even today the treasures
gathered in the Art Museums of Italy are the dreams of young
German artists who visit them, seeking and finding inspiration.
And in how many of our courts of the seventeenth and eighteenth
centuries do we find the stamp and style of the genius of Italian
artists and architects!
Modern Germany is not only interested in classical Italy and
in the Italian Renaissance, but also in the reconstruction of its
political unity, its economical development, which is watched with
keen interest, and which is understood and highly appreciated by
us, perhaps because we ourselves, like the Italians, recall the great
struggles which they had to endure to reach their national unity.
Victor Hehn, in his work, Italian cities and People, and P. D.
Fischer, in his studies of the political, economical, and social con-
ditions of Italy, as well as Hofmeister, in his work The Economic
300 FOURTH PART
Development of the Romans, have through most delicate an-
alyses succeeded in penetrating the psychology of the Italian soul;
and with what marvelous clearness they knew how to value and
appreciate the high standard which Italy has knownhow to reach!
And with what keenness did our great historian, Treitschke suc-
ceed in penetrating the work and genius of the great Italian states-
man, Camillo Cavour!
Every year thousands and thousands of Germans visit the
peninsula. They are fascinated by the magic beauties of nature
and by the masterpieces which Italy possesses, and all go home af-
ter their too brief sojourn with their souls intoxicated by their im-
pression of the extraordinary beauty of the country, and with
hearts and souls overflowing with admiration for the wonderful
beauties of classical Italy, and ears still vibrating with the har-
monious echoes of conversations which may have incidentally
occurred among agreeable traveling companions. Only the
Germans, we dare to affirm it, carry out from Italy so many
fruitful impressions of the land which fascinates them as the cradle
of European civilization. The Frenchman does not travel much.
The Englishman, however, does; but he returns with what en-
tirely different observations and criticisms! The Russian who
betakes himself to Italy is usually of the intelligent and more
aristocratic type, but neither Italian art nor Italian civilization
will ever be the common patrimony of the Russian people, whose
psychology is foreign to European culture.
But the Italian people thought that English wrongs
could not be so grave w^hen confronted by German wrongs,
if Giuseppe Mazzini (the foremost Italian of the Ncav Italy)
had finally grown fond of England.
The Italian people thought that the French wrongs were
not unpardonable when confronted by Teuton wrongs, if
Giuseppe Garibaldi (the glorious hero of the New Italy),
Amilcare Cipriani (the most rebellious of the persecuted
patriots of the New Italy), Giovanni Bovio, Felice Caval-
lotti, and Matteo Renato Imbriani (three of the most fear-
less patriots of the New Italy), and Giosue Carducci and
Gabriele d'Annunzio (the two greatest poets of the New
Italy) had finally ended by defending and exalting
France.
The Italian people, moreover, not having allowed them-
TERRITORIAL CUPIDITY 301
selves to be contaminated by German gold, were not be-
guiled by these tardy and flattering articles.
The Teutons finally resorted to threats, but in vain, for
the simple reason that the Italian people, once roused for a
reason which they believe to be just, fear nothing, — death
least of all, as is clearly proved by the history of their
martyrology.
X
Territorial cupidity.
Where was the territorial cupidity which incited the
Italian people to enter the great war, attacking Austria?
Without doubt Italy, who took her place as a great
power fifty years ago, found the most important positions of
the world solidly occupied by other nations who had been
powerful for centuries. She found an international hier-
archy long established and ironclad in which there remained
nothing for her but the last place. She found a rigid and
suflFocating equilibrium which she, smaller, poorer, and
weaker than all the others could not shake, and from which
she could not carve for herself the slightest portion of riches
and dominion, nor could she reconstruct her full national,
geographical, and ethnic unity.
Territorial expansion, however, was a vital incoercible
necessity.
For notwithstanding that the people of the New Italy
greatly respected the national independence of other peoples —
they even respected those whom so-called civilizations openly
call inferiors and barbarians — they were always opposed to
the policy and enterprises which had for their aim territorial
expansion. The people of the New Italy strongly opposed
the war against Abyssinia for the conquest of Eritrea, which
had for its epilogue the defeat of Adua, May i, 1896; and,
in 1911-1912, the war against Turkey for the conquest of
Tripoli and Cyrenaica, (the only two wars of the New Italy)
imposed by the monarchical Government of Savoy for the
302 FOURTH PART
banking, industrial, commercial, and religious interests of
the Italian plutocracy. They opposed them, or rather did
not impose them as they did the present great war, because
those two African wars could only, up to a certain point,
harm the compages and the destiny of the nation, while the
great war is certain to harm the compages and destiny of all
Europe and of the whole world.
The people of the New Italy, entering into the great war
during the spring of 1915, did not have for their object
territorial advantages.
If they had had only this object in view they would
have drawn up in line of battle from the beginning of the
war, on the side of Austria and Germany, or at least they
would have remained neutral.
In the first case, France would have been crushed as
quickly as a lightning flash. The French disaster would
have unavoidably reacted upon England and Russia. And
Austria and Germany, remaining victorious and absolute
arbiters of the situation, would willingly have compensated
Italy with territorial concessions, comprising not only the
unredeemed regions at the east of the peninsula (from Tren-
tino to the southern coast of Albania) but also the unre-
deemed regions at the west of the peninsula (as Savoy,
Nice, and Corsica), the islands of Malta, Tunis, Gibraltar
and, dulcis in f undo y some "great colony" outside of the
Mediterranean.
In the second case, Austria and Germany, not less will-
ingly whatever may be said to the contrary, would have
compensated Italy with territorial concessions proportionate
to these which would have come to them in the event of vic-
tory to Francis Joseph and William II.
But rather than easy acquirement of territory, the
people of the New Italy preferred the cause of humanity,
-even at infinite sacrifice, above and beyond the value
synthesized in the binomial Trent-Trieste. They preferred
to destroy the dreams of Teutonic control and plutocratic
supremacy. They preferred to shake the foundations of
military Teutonic power. They preferred to save the in-
dependence of nations from Teutonic imperialism, which
THE OMNIPOTENTS 303
latterly had become too arrogant, too disturbing, and too
dangerous.
If through the great war the mortal blow is struck at
Kultur and results in harm for real human progress, the
censure must be given to the people of the New Italy, and
with this censure must come remorse and shame forever.
If, instead, the mortal blow given to Kultur by the great
war results in good for real human progress, the credit for
this should in justice be given to the people of the New
Italy; and with the credit should also be given universal
recognition, and glory forever.
The future Tacitus will be the judge.
XI
The Omnipotents.
The present great war is the logical and natural epilogue
of the evils committed by the privileged class during its
long dominion over the world. It is the culmination of that
which this class could practically always commit to the harm
of the entire world.
It is true that the defenders of human rights have
counterposed across the centuries the fruits of their minds,
vigorous, noble, and immortal; the impulse of their con-
science, kind, pitiful, and affectionate; the martyrdoms of
their flesh, heroic, magnanimous, and sublime. But all
this effusion of beauty has not been able to prevent the
opening of that Pandora's box and the escaping of the
miasm of its putrid contents to the infection of the entire
social organism.
This indicates that the intellectual, moral, and material
elements used by the defenders of human rights, however
much they may spring from the purest fountains of thought
and sentiments, and however ardently they may have reached
toward the holiest ideals of life, were not adaptable to human
nature (whether to the oppressors nor to the oppressed). If
they had been adaptable, humanity would have assimilated
304 FOURTH PART
them. And at the present time there would be neither op-
pressed nor oppressors. All would have already entered vol-
untarily or involuntarily into that longed-for phase of civil
life. Into that phase in which the people, all peoples with-
out distinction, can find only justice, liberty, prosperity,
brotherhood, peace, and happiness.
From the ruins of the great war, saturated by the blood
and anguish of all the human family, will arise a breath of
new and vitalizing energy. This breath will create a new
order of men, who will be omnipotent, and will be called the
Omnipote7its.
I predict this with the emotion born of inmost certainty.
The Omnipotents will take the place of those (both lay
and ecclesiastic) who have never done other than defend in
vain the rights of humanity.
The Omnipotents will overthrow those (lay and eccle-
siastic) who do not do other than obstinately further evil.
But their work— the work of the Omnipotents — will not
have the sudden destructive violence of seismic movements.
Their work will be like the gradual, fruitful virtue of the sun
which appears every morning on the horizon. Their work
will have the active principle of love, and, as such, will pene-
trate into the debilitated social organism (and no deleteri-
ous influence will be able to stop it); it will purify; it will
heal; it will be raised to the highest summits of physical,
psychological, and spiritual perfection, to the point where
the poetical dream of my Campanella will finally become a
reality — always progressive and triumphant in the daily
and perennial life of the human race:
O pietas, o prisca fides, o Candida corda^
Lugenium ignorantumque atri ahiere colores;
Exulet impietas, fraudes, mendacia, lites.
Nee timeant agnive lupum, aut armenta leonem;
Inque bonum populi discent regnare tyranni;
Ocia cessarunt et cessavere labores,
Nam labor est iocus, in multos partitus amice.
O pity, O faith, O pure heart,
Of lying and ignorance the black colors have faded.
THE OMNIPOTENTS 305
Wickedness, deceit, lying, and wrangling, will have burned out.
No longer will the lambs fear the wolves, nor the herds the lion,
And let the people teach the tyrants to rule well,
Laziness will cease and labors will become
A pleasure, when divided equally among many friends.
[the end]
INDEX
Abba, Giuseppe Caesar, 140, and
note.
Abruzzi, Duke of, 235, and note.
Adalbert, Prince of Bavaria, 283.
Adam, 39.
Adami, Giovan B., 132.
Adrian IV, Pope 105, 106, 108.
Aehrenthal, Count, 235.
Ajani, Giulio, 88, 160.
Alaric, 256.
Albani, Felice, 169.
Albert, Archduke, 226.
Alboin, King, 100.
Aleardi, Aleardo, 147.
Alexander, Crown Prince, 210.
Alexander, Prince, Regent of Serbia
206, 214.
Alexander III, Pope, 108, iii.
Allemandi, General, 128.
Almerigotti, Alessandro, 133.
Almerigotti, Giovanni and Lodovi-
co, 133.
Amedeo VI, Duke of Savoy, 114.
Antonaz, Antonio, 147.
Apollinaris, Pinarius, 95.
Ardigo, Prof. Roberto, 264, 270.
Aretino, 299.
Ariberto da Intimiano, no.
Armani, Antonio, 139.
Armellini, Carlo, 55, 61.
Arnold of Brescia, 105.
Arquati-Tavani, Signora Giuditta,
88, 89, 90, 160.
Ascoli, Graziadio, 121.
Astolfo, King, 90 note.
Attila, 99.
Augustus, Emperor, 91, 92, 94.
Aurelius, Marcus, 92, 98.
Avarna, Duke of, 221, 225,226, 231,
233, 286.
Avezzana, 164.
Baiamonti, Antonio, 127, 198.
Balbo, Cesare, 38
Balilla, 24, 51.
Balzac, 298.
Bandiera, Attilio and Emilio, 121.
Baratieri, Oreste, 139.
Barbarossa, Frederick, Emperor
of Germany 51 note, 78 note,
105, 106, 107, 108, 109, III,
112.
Barge, Count de, 56.
Barzilai, Salvatore, 165 and note.
Bassi, Ugo, 62, 64.
Battera, Raimondo, 168.
Battorchi, Cernio, 154.
Bazzoni, Clementina, 172.
Bazzoni, Dr., 172.
Beatrice, 176.
Beccaria, Cesare, 172 note.
Belgiojoso, Princess of, 54.
Bell, 66.
Belloni, Giuseppe, 45.
Berardi, G., 121.
Berchet, Giovanni, 35.
Berchtold, Count, 208, 232, 233,
234note, 235.
Berini, Giovanni, 170.
Bertelli, Pietro, 131.
Bertolini, 290 note, 295.
Bethmann-Hollweg, von, 227, 240.
Bevilacqua, Achille, 131.
Bevilacqua, Giovanni, 133.
Bezzi, Enoch, 139.
Bezzi, Ergisto, 139, 140, 148, 149,
152, 154, 160.
Bidischini, Francesco, 139.
Bismarck, 217, 230, 233.
Bissolati, Minister of Italy, 20
note.
Bixio, Nino, 84.
Blasig, Carlo, 162.
307
308
INDEX
Boccaccio, 298.
Boggio, Carlo, 158.
Bolcego, Tomaso, 139.
Bolza, 46, 49.
Bonetti, Domenico, 132,
Bonomo, Antonio, 116.
Borelli, Vincenzo, 36.
Borisi, Marcantonio, 133.
Borromeo, Count Vitaliano, 54.
Boscowich, Carlo, 134.
Bovio, Giovanni, 175, 294 and note,
295, 300.
Bracciolini, 299.
Brambilla, Pietro, 158.
Brescian, family The, 153.
Brisa, Bishop-Baron, 113.
Bronzetti, Narciso, 131, 136, 137.
Bronzetti, Oreste, 154.
Bronzetti, Pilade, 131, 141.
Bruck, 122.
Bruffel, Giovanni, 132.
Brul, 139.
Brunetti, Angelo, {Ciceruacchio)
62, 64.
Bruno, Giordano, 244, 255, 264.
Buchanan, 207.
Buchler, Gustavo, 152.
Billow, Prince von, 229, 240, 285,
289, 291, 295.
Bunsen, Maurice, 213.
Buono, Michele, 142.
Burkhardt, Jacob, 298.
Cadorna, General RafFaele,90, 152,
162.
Caesar, Julius, 92, 93 note, 95
note, 249.
Cairoli, Dr. Carlos, 161 note.
Cairoli, Adelaide, 161 note.
Cairoli, Benedetto, 161, 164.
Cairoli, The Brothers, 88, 159.
Cairoli, Enrico, 88.
Cairoli, Giovanni, 160.
Caligula, Caius, 95.
Calvi, Colonel Pietro Fortunato,
74-
Camerinus, Quintus Sulpicius, 95.
Campanella, Tommaso, 244, 262,
304-
Campbell, Robert, 48.
Canal, Giulio, 122.
Cancellieri, Giulio, 115.
Canella, Isidoro, 154.
Cantij, Cesare, 38.
Canzio, Stefano, 163.
Cappellini, Alfredo, 86.
Capponi, Gino, 38.
Capponi, Piero, 187 note.
Capna, 152.
Caprin, 163.
Caravati, the widow, 45.
Carbone, Giovanni, 25.
Carbonis, R., 121.
Carducci, Giosue, 90, 165, 172, 174
and note, 175, 188, 300.
Carli, Gian Rinaldo, 119.
Carlo Alberto of Savoy-Carignano,
32, 39, 40, 50, S3, 56, 85, 122. 128,
129, 278, 282.
Carlo, Felice, 32, 33, 40.
Carpaccio, 157.
Carrara, Francesco, 172.
Casanova, Don Pietro, 131.
Catherine II of Russia, 172 note.
Cato, 249.
Cattaneo, Carlo, 38, 42, 46 note,
47-
Cattarozzi, Vincenzo, 160.
Caucich, Pietro, 179.
Cavali, Pietro, 131.
Cavallotti, Felice, 300.
Cavour, Camillo Benso di, 38, 75,
76, 77^ 79. 81, 134' 145. I47» 150.
156, 300.
Cellini, Benvenuto, 299.
Cernuschi, Enrico, 47.
Charlemagne, Emperor, 100.
Charles, Archduke, 118.
Charles II of Parma, 74.
Charles III of Parma, 74.
Charles IV, 113.
Charles V, Emperor, 51 note, 115
note, 1 17.
Charles VI of Austria, 23, 24, 118.
INDEX
309
Charles Albert of Bavaria, (Char-
les VII), 23.
Charles VIII of France, 187 note.
Charles Emmanuel III of Savoy,
23-
Charles Ludwlg, Archduke, 167.
Chimelli, Carlo, 154.
Chiozza, Pietro, 152.
Christ, 260.
Ciani, Giuseppina, 170.
Ciganovitch, Milan, 203, 211.
Cignoli, 79, 80.
Ciotti, Marziano, 139, 152, 160.
Cipriani, Amilcare, 300.
Clarendon, Lord, 63.
Claudius, Emperor, 95.
Clement VII, Pope, 51 note.
Clerici, Giorgio, 47.
Coen, Filippo, 133.
Coiz, Antonio, 135 note.
Colombus, Christopher, 249.
Colombo, Giacobbe, 72.
Combi, Carlo, 158.
Comelli, Federico, 134.
Conforti, Raffaele, 74.
Conrad, General, 233, 234 note.
Constantine, Emperor, 92.
Conti, Maria, 72.
Correnti, Caesar, 60 note.
Cortella, Paolo, 154.
Covi, Virgilio, 154.
Crispi, Francesco, 217.
Cristiano, Archbishop of Magonza,
108.
Cuder, Federico, 160.
Cumano, Costantino, 125, 133.
Dalia Costa, Giovanni, 139.
Dall 'Ongaro, Francesco, 72, 121
note, 131 note.
Dandolo, 198.
Dandolo, Enrico, 62.
D'Andri, Lieutenant Leonardo,
151,152.
Danielli, Giovanni, 128.
D'Annunzio, Gabriele, 177, 198
note, 286, 289, 296, 3CX3.
Dante, 90, 176, 182, 183, 246, 262
note, 272, 298.
D'Aspre, General, 61.
Davanzati, 157.
D'Azeglio, Massimo, 38.
De Bassetti, Tito, 143.
De Canal, Bernardo, 74.
De Carina, Pietro, 159.
De Haag, Riccardo, 179.
Delfino, Menotti, 166.
Delia Casa, Giovanni, 247.
Delia Croce, Ireneo, 118.
Delia Torre, Enrico, 113.
Dentatus, Curius, 293.
De Mulitsch, 166.
De Pregel, Melchiorre, 162.
De Pretis, Carlo, 154.
De Pretis, Giovanni, 143.
Depaugher, Carlo, 152.
Depretis, Minister, 217.
De Pretis family. The, 153.
De Rin, 149.
Di Rin, Nicolo, 125.
Dicio, Domenico, 131.
Diederichs, E., 299.
Diocletian, Emperor, 92, 97.
Donaggio, R., 152, 154, 160.
Donati, Giuseppe, 152.
D'Oria, Luciano, 197, 198.
Doria, Lamba, 197, 198.
Dostoievsky, 298.
Dragicchio, Giuseppe, 133.
DrufFel, Giovanni, 152.
Ducati, Angelo, 128.
Ducati, family. The, 153.
Duchie, Luigi, 179.
Dudovich, 163.
Durando, General Giovanni, 52.
Durando, Giacomo, 38.
Eccheli, family of Ala, The, 153.
Eccheli, family of Brentonico, The,
154.
Eccher, Alberto, 152.
Elizabeth of AustriaMaria, 83.
Elizabeth of Savoy-Carignano, 282.
Elizabeth, Princess of Saxony, 282.
310
INDEX
Erberti, Francesco, 133.
Eugenius III, Pope, 105.
Fabius, 141.
Fabricius, Caius, 293, 295.
Fabricci, Gustavo, 166.
Fabrizi, 164.
Facchinetti, Michele, 135.
Faienz, Fillipo, 152.
Fani, Prof. Gino, 237 note.
Fattori, Antonio, 139.
Fausta, 92.
Favetti, Carlo, 134.
Favetti, Nepomuceno, 148.
Fenali, Giuseppe, 152.
Ferdinand I of Austria, 53.
Ferdinand I of Bourbon, 25, 28, 29,
31-
Ferdinand I, King of the Romans,
115 and note, 117.
Ferdinand II, of the Two Sicilies,
40, 52, 62, 122.
Ferdinand III, of Lorraine, 25.
Ferolli, Enrico, 152, 154, 160.
Ferrandi, Luciano, 72.
Ferrari, Carlo, 145.
Ferrari, Giuseppe, 38.
Ferrari, Major, 137.
Ferruccio, Francesco, 51.
Festi, Lorenzo, 128.
Figulo, Marcio, 97.
Fischer, P. D., 299.
Flaccio, 157.
Flotow, Baron von, 220, 231.
Foa, di Bruno, 88.
Fonda, Eugenio, 179.
Fontana, Giuseppe, 139, 140, 148,
152,159.
Ford, Henry, 273.
Fortis, Leone, 122, 132, 135.
Foscolo, Ugo, 255.
Francis I of Austria, 29, 47.
Francis I of Bourbons, 31.
Francis II of the Two Sicilies, 83,
85, 102.
Francis 11 of Austria, I02.
Francis IV of Modena, 35, 36.
Francis Ferdinand, Archduke, 210,
206 note, 247.
Francis Joseph, 19, 53, 70, 72, 74,
76, 80, 82, 83, 133, 149, 150, 158,
162, 168, 171, 172, 174, 201 note,
204, 215, 217, 226, 227, 236, 246,
246, 247, 261, 283, 284, 286, 287,
289.
Francis, Vicar, Regent of the Two
Sicilies, 30, 31.
Fratti, Antonio, 254 note.
Frattini, Pietro Domenico, 74.
Frederick, The Great, 230.
Frederick III of Austria, 116, 117.
Friedlander, 298.
Fusinato, Arnaldo, 56, 68, 135.
Galilei, 264.
Galletti, Colonel, 61.
Galli, Ernesta, 72.
Gallo, Michele, 152.
Gambaroni, Giuseppe, 45.
Garibaldi, Anita, 62, 64, 65.
Garibaldi, Bruno and Sante, 254.
Garibaldi, Giuseppe, 38, 61, 62, 6^,
65, 66, 77, 80, 81, 83,84,85,86
87,88,90, 123, 131,132 note, 135,
136, 137, 138, 139, 141, 142, 144,
145, 146, 147, 148, 149, 151, 152
and note, 153, 154, 157, 159, 160,
163, 164 and note, 165, 166, 174,
197 note, 198 note, 244, 253 and
note, 255, 291, 294, 3CX).
Garibaldi, Menotti, 163, 177.
Garibaldi, Peppino, 254.
Garibaldi, Ricciotti, 163, 177, 253,
254-.
Gattesi, Giuseppe, 133.
Gazzoletti, Antonio, 121 note, 128,
134-
Gervasio, Ricciotti, 167.
Giesl, Baron von Gieslman, 202,
204, 208, 212.
Gioberti, Vincenzo, 38, 39.
Giolitti, Giovanni, 281, 284, 285
and note, 287, 290 note, 291,
292, 295.
INDEX
311
Giussano, Alberto da, no.
Giusti, Giuseppe, 38, 39, 248 note.
Gizzi, Cardinal, 40.
Gladstone, 74.
Godina, Alessandro, 133.
Goethe, 298, 299.
Gogol, 255.
Gorki, Maxim, 256 and note.
Gracchi, 161.
Gravisif Girolamo, 152.
Grazioli, Bartolomeo, 74.
Grego, Ado, 179.
Gregorich, Luigi, 166.
Gregorovius, Ferdinand, 298
Gregory XVI, Pope, 37.
Grey, Sir Edward, 207, 213.
Grimm, Hermann, 298.
Grio, Domenico, 152.
Grioli, Giovanni, 74.
Grioli, Giuseppe, 134.
Grion, Giovanni, 179.
Grozet, G., 121.
Guerrazzi, Francesco Domenco, 36,
55, 80, 131.
Guilay, Marshall, 79, 81, 82.
Hagender, 124.
Hannibal, 50 note.
Hardt, Dr. Fred, B., 297.
Hart, SchafFner & Marx, 273.
Hayman, General, 60.
Hehn, Victor, 299.
Helena, Queen, 178.
Herbert, Francesco, 133.
Hermet, Francesco, 126, 151.
Herod, King of Judea, 92.
Hess, General, 82.
Hofmeister, 299.
Hohenwarth, Count, 143.
Hortis, 151.
Hugo, Victor, 172, 174, 253.
Humbert, of Savoy, Prince, 148,
161.
Humbert I, 176, 177, 217, 246, 282.
Imbriani, Matteo Renato, 175, 300.
Inama, Virgilio, 154.
Insel, 299.
lolanda. Princess, 178.
Isnenghi, Enrico, 139, 140.
Ivancich, Giovanni, 153, 200.
Jagher, family. The, 154.
Jagher, Giovanni, 154.
Jamsy, Carlo, 165.
John, King of Saxony, 299.
Joshua, 260.
Jugurtha, King, 174 note,
Julia, 93.
Jurettig, Enrico, 173
Kalteneisen, Ferruccio, 179.
Kandler, Giovanni, 121 note.
Kandler, Pietro, 120.
Kattenbrunner, Arturo, 167.
Krammer, Giulietta, 167.
Kudachew, 206.
Krupp, 283.
La Marmora, General Alfonso, 73,
150.
Landucci, 299.
Lamartine, 228,
Lamoriciere, General, 81.
Lavisato, Domenico, 160.
Lazarus, of Bethany, 260.
Leggero, Captain, 64, 65.
Leo III Pope, 81.
Leonardi, Giuseppe, 139, 140, 152.
Leonidas, 141.
Leopardi, Giacomo, 38.
Leopold, Grand Duke of Tuscany,
40, 52» 55-
Leopold I, Emperor, 118.
Leopold III, Duke of Austria, 114,
115.
Levi, Sansone, 132.
Levinus, Valerius, 292.
Litta, Duke, 54.
Livaditi, Demetrio, 135.
Livy, 91.
Lorenzetti, 187.
Louis I, King of Portugal, 147.
Lovisoni, Gioacchino, 151.
312
INDEX
Luccardi, Vincenzo, i66.
Lucius II, Pope, 105.
Lulves, Dr. J., 297.
Lusgar, 116.
Macchio, Baron, 207.
Machiavelli, 227, 299.
Maddali, Emilio, 160.
Madonizza, Dr. A., 121, 151.
Madonizza, Pietro, 152.
MafFezzoli, Basilio, 137.
Magllani, Agostino, 294.
Magrini, Luciano, 178, 179.
Magrini, Pietro, 179.
Malatesta, E., 255 and note.
Malfatti, Bartolomeo, 132.
Mameli, GofFredo, 50, 52, 56, 62,
140.
Mamiani, Terenzio, 38.
Manara, Luciano, 62
Manci, Filippo, 139, 140, 148, 152,
153-
Manci, Gaetano, 128, 143.
Manci, Sigismondo, 128.
Mancini, Minister, 217.
Mandich, 172.
Manin, Daniele, 38, 49, 53, 67, 70,
132, 147, 158.
Manzoni, Alessandro, 38, 164.
Marcabruni, Luigi, 139.
Marchetti, Dr. Levio, 131 note.
Marconi, Guglielmo, 270.
Margherita, Princess, 161.
Margherita, Queen, 217, 246, 282,
283.
Maria Adelaide, Queen, 282.
Maria Isabella, Princess of Bava-
ria, 283.
Maria Louisa, Daughter of the
Emperor of Austria, 25.
Maria Louisa of Bourbon, 25.
Maria Pia, 147.
Maria Sophia of Bavaria, 81.
Maria Theresa, 23, 25.
Marius, Caius, 174 and note.
Marsili, Antonio, 143.
Martini, Federico, 132.
Martini, Francesco, 139, 154.
Martini, Leopoldo, 136.
Martini, family of Riva, The, 154.
Martori, Pietro, 139.
Marzari, Carlo, 131.
Masi, Dr., 63.
Mattedi, Francesco, 131.
Mauro, Francesco, 160.
Mauro, Gino, 187.
Maxentius, 92.
Maximian, 92.
Mazza, Salvatore, 43.
Mazzini, Angelo, 152.
Mazzini, Giuseppe, 38, 39, 55, 61,
62. 70, 73, 90, 122, 148, 149. 163,
244, 255, 294 note.
Mazzoni, Giuseppe, 55.
MacMahon, General, 81.
Medici, General, 152.
Menelaus, 265.
Menotti, Giro, 35, 36.
Mercantini, Luigi, 77, 78 note.
Merey, Austrian Ambassador, 232.
Metternich, 29,30,40, 121, 122, 124.
Meucci, Antonio, 66.
Milius, 54.
Milla, Davide, 152.
Minos, 176.
Moiola, Quirino, 139.
Molinari, family, The, 153.
Mommsen, Theodore, 94, 298.
Mondolfo, 54.
Moneta, Theodore, 270.
Monferrato, Marquis of, 108.
Montanari, Count Carlo, 74.
Montanari, Pietro, 154.
Montanelli, Giuseppe, 38, 55.
Morosini, Emilio, 62.
Mortera, Attilio and Emilio, 166.
Mosettig, Pietro, 160.
Muller, G., 299.
Muratori, Lodovico Antonio, 110.
Muratti, Giusto, 160.
Muzio, 157.
Naldini, Dr., 64.
Napoleon I, 25, 102.
INDEX
313
Napoleon III, 76, 81, 82, 87, 90
note, 158, 201, note.
Negri, Bishop Antonio, 113.
Negri, Edoardo, 131.
Nepos, Julius, 97.
Nero, Emperor, 67.
Niccolini, Giovan Battista, 38, 80.
Nicholas I of Russia, 75.
Nicholas II, Czar of Russia, 206,
213, 216.
Nisco, Nicola, 74.
Nugent, S3, 58.
Oberdan, Giuseppina, 174.
Oberdan, Guglielmo, 168, 169, 170,
171 and note, 162, 173, 174. 175,
183, 186, 188, 254 note.
Olacutti, Caroline, 167.
Olivieri, Alessio, 77.
Orefice, Giulio, 115.
Orestes, 97.
Orioli, F., 121.
Orlandini, Giovanni, 121, 132.
Orseolo, Peter, loi.
Orseolo, Peter II, loi, 103.
Otto, son of Barbarossa, III.
Oudinot, General, 61, 62.
Pallfly, Governor, 123.
Palmerston, Lord, 48.
Parisi, Rodolfo, 162.
Pasic, 204, 208, 212, 214.
Pasquale III, Pope, 108.
Patchou, 204
Pattini, Giovanni, 180.
Pecci, Cardinal, 81.
Pecenco, Luigi, 160.
Pellico, Silvio, 33, 35,
Pepe, General Guglielmo, 27, 28,
52. 53*67, 70.
Percoto, Caterina, 121 note.
Persano, Admiral, 86, 145.
Peter, 90.
Peter I Karageorgevic, 201 note.
Petitti, Ignazio, 38.
Piatti, Antonio, 45.
Piatti, family, The, 119.
Piazza, Giovanna, 45.
Pieri, Piero, 132 note.
Pipin, The Short, 90 note.
Pironti, 74.
Pisanelli, Giuseppe, 74.
Pitteri, Riccardo, 181.
Pius IX (Giovanni Mastai Ferretti)
40, 52, 55, 63, 81, 90 note, 122.
Planta, Julius, 95.
Pliny, 93 note.
Poerio, Alessandro, 38.
Poerio, Carlo, 74.
Pogatschnig, Emilio, 166.
Poincare, 249.
Pollini, Giuseppe, 160.
Poma, Carlo, 74.
Pompey, 93.
Pomponazzi, 264.
Ponti, 54.
Popovich, Eugenio, 152.
Poropat, Francesco, 133.
Prato, 130.
Princip, Gabrilo, 201.
Pyrrhus, King, 292, 293.
Radetzky, Josef Wenceslaus, Gov.
General of Lombardy, 41, 53,
54> 57. 67, 70, 72, 125 note, 132,
226.
Ranfo, Bishop Marco, 113.
Ranieri, Archduke, 282.
Ranke, 298.
Rascovich, Edgardo, 164, 165.
Ravaglia, 64.
Ravaglia, Stefano, 65.
Raymmi, 54.
Regazzini, Alessandro, 166.
Rendic, 167.
Ressmann, Costantino, 127.
Revere, Giuseppe, 123, 131, 132
note.
Riaviz, Clemente, 148.
Riaviz, Stefano, 166.
Ricchetti, Giuseppe, 165.
Ricci, Vittore, 129.
Rinaldi, Ferdinando, 154,
Rismondo, 151.
314
INDEX
Ritozzo, Luigi, 133.
Rizzi, Giovanni, 129.
Romagnosi, Gian D., 42.
Romanin, Samuele, 133.
Romano, Pietro, 133.
Romulus, Augustulus, 97.
Rosmini, Antonio, 38.
Rossetti, Domenico, 120.
Rossetti, Dante Gabriel, 26 note.
Rossetti, Gabriel, 28, 29, 30 and
note.
Rossi, Francesco, 170.
Rossi, Giovanni, 170.
Rossi, Pellegrino, 55.
Rubinisch, Giuseppe, 133.
Ruffini, Minister of Italy, 20 note.
Saffi, Aurelio, 55, 61, 73, 131, 165,
175, 294 note.
Saglioso, Dr., 131 note.
Salandra, Antonio, 165 note, 223,
229, 240.
Saliceti, 74.
Sallier della Torre, General, 32.
San Giuliano, Marquis of, 220, 231,
232.
Santorre of Santarosa, Count, 32.
Sar, Tommaso, 132.
Sartori, Adolfo, 152.
Sartorio, 157.
Savo, Pietro, 127.
SazonofF, 204, 206.
Scarboncich, Pietro, 133.
Scartellini, Angelo, 74.
Schirone, Luigi, 167.
Schmid, General, 81.
Scialoia, Antonio, 74.
Sciesa, Antonio, 73.
Scipio, 50 and note.
Sclopis, Federico, 38.
Scocchi, Angelo, 179, 196.
Scorpion, Donato, 115.
Scussa, 118.
Seismit-Doda, Federico, 122 and
note, 123, 133.
Settembrini, Luigi, 74.
Settimo, Ruggiero, 38, 40.
Seufferheld, 53.
Sgarzolo, Captain Giuseppe, 121.
Silanus, Marcus Junius, 95.
Sizzo de Noris, Count, 154.
Sizzo, Pietro, 128.
Socci, Ettore, 175.
Solitro, Giulio, 126.
Sonnino, Baron Sydney, 221, 223,
231,
Sophie, Duchess of Hohenberg, 201.
Sordello, 176.
Spadoni, Ernesto, 178, 187.
Spaventa, Silvio, 74.
Spazzapan, Francesco, 179.
Speri, Tito, 74.
Spinola, Gasparo, 197.
Spongia, Filippo, 168.
Stamura, 109.
Statutus, Camurius, 95.
Stefania, Princess, 167
Stella, Sigismondo, 166.
Stephen II, Pope, 90 note.
Sterchele, Anselmo, 139.
Sterle, Mario, 179.
Strabo, 93.
Strandtman, 204, 214.
Summa, Antonio, 121 note.
Sussa, Francesco, 162.
Tabai, Antonio, 165.
Tacitus, 303.
Tamaro, Attilio, 132, 186.
Tankosic, Commandant Voina,
203, 211.
Tarugi, 129.
Tavernini, family. The, 154.
Tazzoli, Enrico, 74.
Tchernichewsky, 255.
Tedeschi, Prof. Paolo, 147.
TegetthofF, Admiral, 226.
Telesio, 264.
Terzaghi, Giulio, 47.
Testi, Giuseppe, 128.
Thomas, Prince of Savoy, 283 and
note.
Thum, Matteo, 128.
Tiberius, Roman Emperor, 92.
INDEX
315
Tivaroni, Carlo, 154, 160.
Toller, Domenico, 139.
Tolstoy, 255.
Tommaseo, Niccolo, 38, 49 and
note, 70, 124, 128, 132, 133, 13s,
150, 198.
Tonini, Leopoldo, 141.
Trajan, Emperor, 93 note.
Tranquillini, Filippo, 139, 140, 148,
152,154-
Treitschke, 300.
Trezzi, Giacomo, 72.
Turghenieff, 255.
Tusti, Alfredo, 297.
Ughelli, 118.
Urban, Lieutenant-Marshal, 80.
Urigio, Nicolo, 115.
Valussi, Pacifico, 121 note, 127, 145
Vascon, Giovanni, 152.
Venezian, Felice, 187.
Venezian, Giacomo, 132 and note.
Venier, Cristoforo, 162.
Venosta, Visconti, 155, 158.
Venturi, Captain, 141.
Verdi, 177, 121,122,133, 187.
Vergerio, 157.
Vergottini, Nicolo, 133.
Verzegnasse, Francesco, 135 note.
Victor Emanuel I of Savoy, 25, 32.
Victor Emanuel II, 56, 57, 76, 77,
79, 81, 82, 83, 85, 86, 87, 13s, 136,
139, 142, 144, 147, 150, 151, 152,
153, I57» 158, 159» 161, 164, 166.
Victor Emanuel III, 19, 177, 221,
225, 230 note, 249, 251, 255 note,
278, 279, 281, 282, 283 and note
284, 285 and note, 286, 287, 288,
289, 295.
Vidacovich, Antonio, 164.
Vidacowich, Domenico, 152.
Vidali, Gian Luigi, 160.
Vidali, Giuseppe, 179.
Vidali, Marcello, 196.
Villari, Pasquale, 270.
Vinci, Giuseppe, 165.
Vinci, Leonardo, 264.
Virgil, 272 note.
Visconti di Mondrone, Duke of, 54.
Vittore IV, Pope, 108.
Voltaire, 172 note.
Vusio, Tommaso and Rovis, 160.
Walfer, 152.
Weber, von, 299.
Weiss, family, The, 154,
Welden, General, 53.
William II, Emperor of Germany,
201 note, 216, 283, 285, 287, 288,
289.
William of Weid, 236 note.
Wilson, President, 20 note
Winckelmann, 298.
Wolfflin, 299.
WuUenbacher, 172, 173.
Zambelli, Claudio, 152.
Zambelli, Giovanni, 74.
Zamboni, Filippo, 131, 132 and note
Zampieri, Riccardo, 184.
Zanardi, Ugo, 166.
Zancani, Camillo, 139, 140, 148,
152.
Zanetti, Arturo, 133.
ZanoUa, 152.
Zanotti, 139, 140.
Zecchia, Niccolo, 162.
Zenelli, Giambattista, 128.
Zeno, Donato, 198.
Ziani, Doge Sebestian, iii.
Zima, Carlo, 60.
Zinis, Alessandro, 154.
Zobel, Col., 129.
Zocchi, 176.
Zucchi, Martino, 151.
Press and
Individual Opinions
on the hook
Journalism of the
Italian Emigrants in
America
hy Luigi Carnovale
Published in
Chicago^ Illinois
United States of America
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
The Chicago Record Herald (Edwin L. Shuman), Chicago Illinois:
In a volume in the Italian language entitled, // Giornalismo degli
Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America, Luigi Carnovale offers his compatriots
a score of lively and interesting essays on various timely topics touching
the Italians in the United States. The chief essay, as the foregoing title
indicates, is one on the tribulations of the men who are trying to publish
Italian newspapers in this country. The author tells many of his own
amusing and discouraging experiences. He has a poor opinion of the
average Italian immigrant and says so with refreshing frankness. But he
blames his fellow countrymen most of all for casting off their Italian
patriostim and adopting a shoddy Americanism in its stead. He thinks
Italians should not vote here, much less talk about putting up Italian
candidates, when an Irish boss boasts that he can buy all the Italian votes
he wants with a barrel of beer. The cure for the whole evil, in the opinion
of Signor Carnovale, is more education and more Italian patriotism.
In a later essay he pays his respects in language which he modestly
calls "piuttosto vivace," to the Chicago priest who maligned Mazzini
and Garibaldi in a sermon. He also has his opinion of American law
for allowing DeForest and others to usurp Marconi's wireless invention.
But perhaps the hottest shot for Americans will be found in the chapter
defending Caruso from the scandal of the monkey-house incident. One
wonders if the Chicago daily that originally printed this essay knew the
meaning of all the hot Italian metaphors in it.
Signor Carnovale writes with fluency, force and vivacity. His fancy
seems as inexhaustible as his vocabulary, and he has both humor and
intellectual poise. One needs to read only a few pages of his book to see
that he is a lively example of the alert young manhood which is regenerat-
ing Italy at the present moment.
Italy, Chicago, Illinois:
Luigi Carnovale has brought out a volume entitled, // Giornalismo
degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America.
It is comforting to see that the restless American life based on mate-
rialism and the incessant running after the yellow demon (gold), as Maxim
Gorky would say, has not altered the pure idealism of the author, which
is one of the innate characteristics of the sons of the land where the Si is
sounded.
In fact, between the covers of the book which is (we do not know if
by chance or by premeditation) of a conspicuous green color, herald of
319
320 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
hopes and illusions, one feels the heart-beats which the years passed in
America have not confused, have not deviated from the order of their
basic aspirations.
But because of that pessimism which exists in the human soul, it
would seem from the title of the book that the volume might easily
break a lance for and against that much criticised colonial press. In-
stead, Luigi Carnovale breaks not one but a thousand lances to show, in
the best light, that force which is the result of Italianity in America extend-
ing wherever a group of Italians are gathered together and that finds
— its eternal adversaries — indolence of the undeveloped mass, and a
cynical smile, one might almost say of compassion, on the lips of those who
through force of circumstances today hold tenaciousl}?^ to a handful of
gold.
Without reticence, without compromise, the author, with a style which
goes straight to the soul, praises where praise is necessary to encourage
initiative among emigrants; but his words descend like a whip when he
denounces some of those erroneous criterions which creep into our colonies.
But this book has not been written only to praise virtue or to censure
vices. A highly patriotic ideal floats through the whole volume: the
moral regeneration of our emigrants. These latter coming in great part
from little villages in Italy which are scattered among the wooded moun-
tains or are in the depths of the valleys, have had, up to this time the habit
of assuming a certain inferiority when they find themselves in contact
with the American people in the populous cities of sky-scrapers and
elevated railroads.
If our emigrants, who remember only as a dream Naples or Genoa,
knew their own country better which, to a past that is unique in the
world, unites a present equally glorious, they would have a greater self-
respect and would not look with exaggerated admiration at everything
which is not Italian.
This conception which we have presented in a few words is the spirit
of the book, // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America.
Luigi Carnovale, Italian in his inmost fibre, deep student of the
thought of Dante and Mazzini, which he cites with great liberality, feels a
sacred cult which might almost be called a fanaticism — for his Patria.
With scrutinizing eye he does not stop at the superficialities which ap-
pear to make America seem great; but he goes to the bottom with his
surgeon's knife and with impartial examination puts in a true light the
facts which remind one of the famous clay-footed statue dreamed of by
Nebuchadnezzar.
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America is not a book
written by an amiable author to caress small ambitions and flatter self love.
With youthful enthusiasm the writer has transfused into his pages a little
of his own spirit, which is full of idealism and poetry. His book is the
cry of an exile who has tempered his spirit in the sacred cult of the " proud
Ghibelline" (Dante). He sees, above all other conceptions, the Patria,
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 321
as the land Avhich has given birth to martyrs of thought such as Campa-
nella and Giordano IJruno, to discoverers of natural forces and of physical
laws such as Galileo and Marconi, to great patriots, to illustrious writers:
he sees Italy in the most vigorous productions of her genius. And this
Italy he exalts; and it is this Italy he wishes recognized in America, the
land discovered by an Italian.^
The Transtlantic Italian Tribune, Chicago, Illinois:
As soon as we received the book, II Giornalismo degli Emigratiltaliani
nel Nord America, by Luigi Carnovale we read it from cover to cover with-
out stopping, so great was the interest that it inspired in us.
As soon as we had read the verses,
A conscience overcast, or with its own, or with another's shame,
will taste forsooth the tartness of thy word,
with which Dante prophesied the mission of the press, and which Carno-
vale placed so appropriately at the beginning of his work, we, in our quality
of journalists, began to feel a divine sense of gratitude to the author
for his work. And, as we continued in the reading of the preface, in
which the Colonial press was bravely defended, such a sense assumed
great proportions, until at a certain point of our enthusiasm we mentally
dedicated a monument of gratitude to our Carnovale.
We are sure that our Italian-American colleagues will not less than v/e,
but even more, join in declaring themselves grateful to the author of this
book for the rehabilitation which he makes for our mission, and of which
he merits the title of Cavalier.
The lances which Carnovale breaks for us deserve to be blessed.
From the preface follows a series of fine articles which the author had pub-
lished in various journals in the United States and which one re-reads with
pleasure and interest for the brilliancy of form as well as for the value of
his ideas.
The Patria (Silvio Picchianti Editor), Chicago, Illinois:
What truths Luigi Carnovale presents in his book // Giornalismo degli
Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America! And how he presents them !
The vivacity, the purity of style, the sincerity of the presentation of
facts, the pictures of the surroundings, the colonial types, from the old
virago spitting gall against the director of the paper which had the audac-
ity to continue to send itself to her, to that president of a society who read
his paper upside down, all, all makes the book sympathetic and interesting.
And none better than we Journalists, who live in similar surround-
ings — the deficiencies, defects and shameful apathy of which Carnovale
places in relief — can judge the truth and honesty of the work of this
^ This article was published also by The Transatlantic Italian Tribune of Chicago,
Illinois and in The Montagna of Newark, New Jersey.
322 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
intelligent young man, who well knows the fate reserved for journalists,
who with the pen depict the lives of their own emigrant countrymen,
fraternally hiding their defects, exalting their virtues and defending
them from the base and malignant attacks of certain American Jour-
nalists, who know nothing about us except through the crimes of the
Black Hand, and always falsify, if they know, the history of our country,
the mistress of cilization and culture in the world including this coun-
try, which was discovered by one of the most glorious sons of Italy.
Carnovale in his book has gathered various articles from the columns
of the journals that he has directed in the United States — with which he
launched the cry of defense for his brother emigrants; and these articles,
besides revealing the strength of his mind, show the greatness of his true
Italian soul to whom the interests of his poor compatriots are of the first
importance, to whom are allotted not only spoliation but also the basest
insults and infamous calumnies.
The article entitled The Smearers of the Yellow Fever for instance, is a
masterpiece. The fiery words which with consummate eloquence Carno-
vale throws in the faces of the malignant accusers of the honest and sober
Italian laborers, are arrows of well merited rebuke.
But we repeat, the whole book is fine and interesting; and if there is
anything which gives us regret it is the word "Finis" which deprives us
of the further delightful reading of the best book which the valiant pen of
the author has written.
To Luigi Carnovale our sincere congratulations for the work of pa-
triotism accomplished by the publication of the book which every Italian
of heart and intelligence should read as have we, from the first to the last
page.i
The Century, Chicago, Illinois:
The fine book, // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nelNordJmerica,
by Luigi Carnovale should be read by everybody, because all can learn
something from it, especially we, voluntary exiles, who live far from the
production of our own books and in a land where one finds no satisfac-
tion other than that of the conquest of the Yellozv God.
The book is divided into a preface and twenty-two chapters.
In the preface the author, young and full of faith, is animated by the
highest ideals. He explains the reasons which have induced him to
publish, in a single volume, the articles which he has written in various
journals of the United States.
With verve indeed, with much verve, he shows up in a clear light and
without compliments the intellectual inferiority of our emigrants and their
apathy toward everything that pertains to Italianity, and he affirms that
if our colonies are not given consideration, if they are scorned and vilhfied,
the fault is because of illiteracy. Therefore, there should be more educa-
tion in Italy and more Italianity in America.
^This article was also published by The Banner of Baltimore, Maryland.
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 323
When our peasant has learned to know the land of his birth, when
he learns that Italy has led the whole world in civilization, he, we are cer-
tain, will no longer be ashamed to call himself an Italian.
In the chapters which follow the preface, the author, with no ordinary
acumen, has plunged his bistoury into the various colonial questions, and
with a sure hand incises and exposes to the public the moral misery in
which we emigrants live.
But at the same time the author with a soul exuberant with sentiment,
which is almost mystical, makes us re-live in our minds the most beautiful
pages of our history, and as in a cinematographic projection, he makes us
behold scenes which seize our souls and transport them high, high above,
where all is light, life and strength.
And we, exhausted by the daily struggle, plunge our souls into the
pages in order to re-inforce ourselves for new battles in the field of art
and letters; art which exalts with the charm of its beauty because beauty
is its natural foundation. And he who is conquered by beauty, as is
Luigi Carnovale, cannot remain indifferent to it but is attracted to it as
by a magnetic force.
In the book of Carnovale the echo of the human conscience and the
most important facts of the Italian colony are described in a fascinating
and suggestive manner. The reading of them, the facile form, the occult
beauty, transported us far from the base passions of men and for a time
we forgot the surroundings in which we are constrained to live.
It has not been our intention to give a critical review in this brief
notice but a slight hint of what the book contains and to express the hope
that Luigi Carnovale will give other things to literature to maintain high
and unsullied the Italian name in this land.^
The Bulletin of the Italian Societies, Chicago, Illinois:
"// Giornalismo degli Eniigrati Italiani nel Nord America" by Luigi
Carnovale contains a series of strong articles following a long preface which
epitomizes, with sagacious and truthful criticism, a full program of
Italianity.
The book contains fine ideas and is well written, and although on some
points we do not entirely agree with the author, we cannot do less than
congratulate him heartily and recommend the reading of his book.
The Sentinel, Hoboken, New Jersey:
Luigi Carnovale with his fine book // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani
nel Nord America has filled a gap in the Italo-American literary world,
defending in brilliant prose the not always gracious figure of our colonial
journalism, and discussing the mass of emigrants with a vivacity of
^This article was reproduced in the Transatlantic Italian Tribune of Chicago,
Illinois:
324 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
style which charms the reader and makes him devour it without stopping,
so splendid is the form, and the excellence of ideas, be it when he speaks
of the sorrows of our people, or when he describes their misunderstood or
unappreciated virtues.
Lulgi Carnovale, well known by other valuable works, merits our ad-
miration and gratitude.
This article was published also in The Transatlantic Tribune of Chicago.
The Patria, Spokane, Washington:
In the book, // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America,
are gathered various articles by that valiant writer Lulgi Carnovale.
We are pleased to see the practical utility of the above articles, written
by a master who, to the enthusiasm of youth, unites the judgment of an
erudite man.
// GtornaIis7no degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America in our opinion
is of interest to all of our emigrants, who would do well to acquire it and
treasure that which is so splendidly written in it.
The Gazette of Massachusetts, Boston, Mass:
The sympathetic writer, Lulgi Carnovale, has published a fine book of
more than 200 pages called, II Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America.
The book contains a score of articles which redound to the honor of the
young author both for the literary form and the wise, just and educative
ideas expressed therein.
The Courier of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America has been brought
out in Chicago by Lulgi Carnovale.
The author reveals himself from the first to the last page of the book
above all as an Italian of mind and heart. With profound knowledge of
men and things he treats, in a masterly manner, important colonial ques-
tions in Italian life.
It is a most interesting book which should be read by everyone.
The Aurora, Houston, Texas:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America by Lulgi
Carnovale is a fine volume, an interesting work, especially in these
days in which nonentities can easily gain fame for grotesque impudences,
and audacious insolence; in these days when a crowd of lazy Ignoramuses
play with a sure hand on the tolerance and the immorality of the public;
in these days in which commercial speculation has even insinuated itself
into the sacred halls of thought.
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 325
Carnovale's book is a necessity for everyone.
We hope that the effort of this writer will carry a salutary reawaken-
ing to all of the Italian colonies of the United States.
The Light, Utica, New York:
The talented writer Luigi Carnovale has published in Chicago a
splendid volume entitled // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America.
It is written with simplicity and true literary style. And while it
exposes the pus which is contained in our colonies, it expresses with
thought based upon the most scrupulous truths, the erroneous and stupid
opinion which the emigrants have in regard to the Italo-American press.
Besides this the author tries to implant in the emigrants highly patriotic
ideas in order to further the moral redemption of our colonies.
Carnovale, who was the valiant director of // Pensiero and of other
journals, will please accept our congratulations for the book which he has
brought to light. Every Italian family should be provided with it.
The Free Thought, Ensley and Birmingham, Alabama:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America is the title of a
splendid book published by the strong and sympathetic writer Luigi
Carnovale.
In this book are gathered valuable articles which this clear writer had
previously published in various journals of the United States.
They are preceded by a preface in which the author describes very
wisely the colonial surrounding and lays bare certain hard facts.
This is a book which every Italian should read in order to reap benefit
to himself.
The Colonial Star, Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania:
A good book certainly is // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America by Luigi Carnovale in which a little of everything regarding the
Italian emigrant is compended.
The book is extremely well written, and the author merits the encom-
iums not only of the Italian press but of all intelligent Italians.
The Colonial Awakening, Syracuse, New York
An interesting book has been published in Chicago: // Giornalismo
degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America.
The author, signor Luigi Carnovale, shows himself to be a writer of
ability.
He develops his arguments with great facility and frankness, giving
326 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
blame where it is necessary, while on the other hand he honestly prais-
ing those who merit it.
He develops his thought with patriotic love, and lucidity. With
scrutizining eye he does not stop at the superficialities of things, but goes
directly to the bottom, bringing to light all of the defects and at the
same time all of the merits of our emigrants.
Notwithstanding that on some points we may be a little at variance
with Carnovale, we must affirm that this is a most valuable book.
The Italian Messenger, San Antonio, Texas:
The fine book entitled,// Giomalismo degli Emigrati Italiant nel Nord
America, is a superior production by our intelligent compatriot, signor
Luigi Carnovale.
The author has known how to treat with delicate tact colonial questions
which are interesting to us all. The beauty of his volume consists in the
various truths which are well lighted up in it, and which our emigrants
should treasure.
To the brilliant writer we send our sincere congratulations.
Our Times, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania:
// Giomalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America by Luigi
Carnovale is written with vivacity and elegance.
The author touches vitally all the colonial ulcers, all the moral miseries,
all the little hates, and the eternal deplorable diatribes, in this country of
the "Yellow God."
Luigi Carnovale reveals himself in places limpid, harmonious and al-
most sculpturesque, a cultured and fearless journalist, free thinker with a
gentle soul, and, above all, an Italian of mind and heart.
There vibrates strongly from the first to the last page of this volume
the chord of Italianity as a spontaneous and noble, not as a simulating nor
calculating, sentiment.
These are the values of a book which deserve to be read by all who are
interested in the vast and complex colonial problems.
The Italian-American Progress, New York City:
// Giomalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America is the title of a
book which has come to light in Chicago,
The author, Luigi Carnovale, an exceptional young man, of active
mind, with a loyal, sympathetic and forceful character, writing in various
journals of the United States, has always given fine proof of his varied
abilities and of his facile touch.
In his II Giomalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord /Imerica which has
been accepted with favor by thepublic, strongly vibrates the patriotic note.
We extend our praise to the young author.
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 327
Why? Schenectady, New York:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italianinel Nord America is the title of a
fine volume of more than two hundred pages published by Luigi Carnovale,
of Chicago.
With it the author has made us enjoy hours of sound reading from
which we have gathered valuable opinions about Italo-American journ-
alism and original ideas about the hard road which one must travel who
honestly publishes a journal in the interest and dignity of our country
and our language.
Carnovale with facile pen has written words of truth because he has
felt them; instructive and moral pages, because they tend to the better-
ment of the emigrants.
// Gionalismo is a book attractive in appearance as well as useful in
substance.
The Twentieth Century, Pittsburg, Pennsylvania:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America is full of wise
considerations on most important subjects. The preface alone is a
treasure.
The author reveals himself in it as a deep student of the elements which
conspicuously abound in our American colonies.
In fact the book of Luigi Carnovale is most useful in all respects, is
well written, and one does not lay it down until he has finished it.
Sunday, Rochester, New York:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America by Luigi
Carnovale reveals a good knowledge the Italian language; reveals also in
the author an ardent soul full of good will, despising all that is, or that
he believes to be, wrong.
It is a book one can read with pleasure because it is sincere, courageous,
and well written.
The Union, Pueblo, Colorado:
Our valorous colleague Luigi Carnovale has published in Chicago a
splendid book entitled // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America.
It is a most elegant volume written in a brilliant and vivacious style
and it should be read and studied by all intelligent and cultivated persons;
a volume which is a treasure because it contains profound observations
and a most accurate study of Italian life in this country of material affairs.
To the brilliant author who has published this eminently patriotic
work we send our praise and congratulations.
328 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
The New Life, Rocksprlngs, Wyoming:
// Gtornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America by the illus-
trious writer Luigi Carnovale contains fine and healthy ideas.
Courier of Trinidad, Trinidad, Colorado:
// Gtornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America is a book which
is worthy of a place in every Italian home in the United States.
From the simplicity and purity of style there emanates from the book
of Carnovale that sense of Italianity which should be of benefit to every
compatriot emigrant and should also be their great pride.
Luigi Carnovale shows himself master of his subject. He develops,
in a forceful manner, certain hard truths concerning the Italian emigrants
in America.
In fact it is a fine book, this of Carnovale's, and the Courier advises its
reading by all those who still feel themselves to be Italians in this land of
voluntary exile.
Master Paul, Philadelphia, Pennsylania:
We have greatly admired // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel
Nord America, which Luigi Carnovale has published in Chicago.
It is impossible to put in relief all of the merits which the book con-
tains; merits which one can better find by reading the book itself than
by our few words of review.
Carnovale's book is a collection of historical and doctrinal articles
which treat of colonial questions.
The author exposes with clearness, truth and practical conviction that
which one feels, thinks and wishes for the Italians who live in the American
colonies. He brilliantly proves the apathy of the emigrants in regard to
admiration of ideals, patriotic sentiments, and civic education.
We shall keep this wise publication among our archives.
The Review, Newark, New Jersey:
Luigi Carnovale has gathered together a collection of serious, masterful
articles in his book II Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America,
touching at first hand all of the problems of the Italian emigrants in North
America.
The articles are written in a brilliant style. They are of the greatest
interest to students of the true and elegant language of Dante. And for
this reason we recommend everyone to acquire the book immediately.
The Echo, of Rhode Island, Providence, Rhode Island:
A most useful book is // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 329
America from the excellent and well-known writer, Signor Luigi Carnovale.
It is a work of patience and accuracy; a valuable book which one
reads with pleasure and enthusiasm. In it the author has had the noble
purpose of defending the native Patria and at the same time the rights of
the Italian laborers scattered in every part of the United States.
This important book is necessary for the emigrants; everyone of whom
should acquire it.
We heartily wish for the author a long life, in order that he may con-
tinue to write other useful books in the interest of the far away Patria,
and also for the interests of his compatriots in the United States.
The Italian, Cleveland, Ohio:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America by Luigi
Carnovale is a book written in an especially graceful style and with
heartfelt sentiments of Italianity. Errors, prejudices and questions of
colonial life are treated in a masterful manner.
The Italians, instead of buying and reading / Reali di Francia^ and
so many other useless books, would do well to buy and read this book of
Carnovale.
Rome, Denver, Colorado:
The fine book, // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America,
by Luigi Carnovale is, we can well say, a treasure of acute observations and
of serious discussions; it is a book which should be entered in the catalogue
of the best books which up to the present time have been written con-
cerning the welfare of our emigrants.
A hearty bravo to our colleague' Carnovale and the hope that the
public will give a warm welcome to his book which truly merits the
praise of all readers of good sense.
The Opinion, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
Our esteemed colleague, Luigi Carnovale, has published in Chicago a
book entitled // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America in
which are gathered many valuable articles, introduced by a preface in
which, in a vivid and sometimes biting prose, the author draws a picture of
colonial surroundings, bringing to light some hard facts. Although not
agreeing with Carnovale in many of his ideas and deductions, we agree
with him that the Italian colonial journalism in the United States, with
all of the evident defects of a new organization, is still worthy of support
and respect for the services it has and does render to the colonies and
the mother country.
^ A book in which are fantastically described the heroisms of Charlemagne.
330 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
The Sun, Bridgeport, Connecticut:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nelNord America byLuigiCarno-
vale is a good book. With it the author has accompHshed a saUitary work
for our emigrant compatriots. While bringing to light the pus contained
in the Italian colonies in America, he expresses clearly his thought, but
at the same time holds himself scrupulously impartial.
Carnovale in his articles, which we can qualify as critical and literary,
treats the question from a general standpoint. He shows that in the
Italian colonies of America there exists an ignorant, superstitious and bad
element. But his articles tend to the moral redemption of such elements.
Will he succeed in his effort? We wish to be optimistic and hope that
he may.
Whoever can absorb what Carnovale's book contains will never re-
gret having read it.
Sincere congratulations to the author for his interesting publication.
The Echo of Tampa, Tampa, Florida:
II Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nelNord America by Luigi Carno-
vale is one of those books which one can without reservation call fine, and
the author is preceded by a good reputation as a journalist and novelist.
Luigi Carnovale has had, in common with the rest of us, his sad ex-
periences as a colonial journalist, and in his volume he condenses in bril-
liant and sincere style, his memories and personal impressions, from which
we make no dissent for the great truths which they contain and reflect.
He who has lived in our colonies and has lived as a journalist conscious
of his mission, cannot but unconditionally approve the severe but just
criticism which Carnovale hurls against individuals and cliques who are
the real and mortal enemies of the moral elevation of our emigrants.
Perhaps we might find ourselves differing from the political opinions
of our author, opinions which are tranluscent, calm and well defined in the
pages of // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord Ainerica. But
we cannot deny to the interesting volume two most valuable qualities:
clearness and elegance of style, and the co-ordination of his talented
thought.
Those who have not yet read // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel
Nord Americas\\o\x\6. read it, and they will certainly form the same opinion
which we have of the author and his writings.
The Capital, Albany, New York:
II Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America is the title of a
book which has been published in Chicago by Luigi Carnovale who, be-
sides being a distinguished writer and a passionate student of the tongue of
Dante, is also an acute observer of the economic and social condition of the
Italian emigrants in America.
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 331
The Italian-American, New Orleans, Louisiana:
A book which should be in the hands of all Italians, whether in Italy
or in the United States, who are interested in the burning question of our
emigration, is // Giornalismo degli Emigrali Italiani nel Nord America
by Luigi Carnovale.
Pitiful truths there are which sadden one and which often destroy
our spontaneous enthusiasms, echoing the love for the Patria; pictures,
pervaded with bitter pessimism, in which one sees from time to time in
their proper light, the prominent colonial personage, and our illiterate
laborer (often the above personage is illiterate let us whisper in your ears,
readers); the regionalism which divides and embitters; the anti-Italianity
which dishonors. All of the lesser and greater colonial miseries in fact,
are the object of this brilliant volume.
To the author who, with sincerity of purpose and frank words exposes
many little souls inflated with their ridiculous megalomania, and who at
the same time comforts our spirits when, almost by happy contrast, he
recalls the refulgent history and glories of our Italy — we wish success
equal to his frank audacity.
The Awakening, Denver, Colorado:
Luigi Carnovale, who possesses a rare talent has published in Chicago
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America — a collection of
brilliant articles written with verve and erudition.
Vesuvius, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord AmericahyL,uigi Carno-
vale, one is compelled to read for beauty of style, for its interest in a variety
of subjects, and for acuteness of observation.
Some might disagree with the author in the manner in which he
regards some things; but we can be sure that all can find in the volume of
Carnovale, the satisfaction which one feels before an expression of life,
before sincerity of conviction.
We recommend it to our readers.
The Observer, Kansas City, Missouri:
We have carefully read the volume, // Giornalismo degli Emigrati
Italiani tiel Nord America. Our congratulations to Luigi Carnovale with
the wish that his work may illuminate the clouded minds of our laborers.
The Southern Courier, New Orleans, Louisiana:
A splendid book entitled, // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel
Nord America, has been brought out by Luigi Carnovale.
332 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
In this book are gathered valuable articles that this clever writer
had already published in various journals of the United States. It is
prefaced by an article in which the author describes the colonial sur^
roundings, laying bare hard truths.
The Italian Workman, Windber, Pennsylvania:
The new work of Luigi Carnovale entitled,// Giornalismo degli Emigrati
Italiani nel Nord Ainerica, is a fine and elegant volume of more than two
hundred pages. It is most interesting for anyone who cares for serious
reading. In it the author describes with high and noble sentiments,
free from any partiality, that which is done, that which is being done,
and that which must be done to hold high the prestige of the Italian name
in the United States of America.
The noble mission of the Italian press, which the author defends with
a spirit worthy of all respect, is given in sincere and enthusiastic words;
and for the noble defense which Carnovale makes for the Italians and for
Italy, his volume deserves to be read, well considered and appreciated
by every student.
We recommend this interesting book to everyone.
The Hour, Newark, New Jersey:
The young writer, Luigi Carnovale, has brought to light a book of more
than two hundred pages entitled II Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel
Nord America, which we have read without stopping and with keen interest.
The fine volume fills the gap which for years has existed among the
Italians. It is a red hot and caustic iron which Carnovale has applied to
the great and gangrenous ulcer of our journalism, which is often badly
managed, often misunderstood, and always and everywhere despised.
Carnovale, intelligent and courageous soldier of the true mission of the
press, has published articles in the various journals of the United States
which are now gathered together in the above volume and which are the
work of a valiant and daring pioneer who blazes the way through a dense
wood, and after having cleared it shouts courageously at the end of the
road.
Had we the authority, we should propose that the volume // Gior-
■nalism degli Emigrati Italiani del Nord America should be published as an
appendix to all of the Italian journals of America as an austere admonition
to the respective colonies to appreciate the mission of the press; and to
show the journalists the duty of knowing how they might produce a work
replete with knowledge and progress.
In any case we are confident that this honest and truthful book of
Carnovale, written in a fine Italian style and with virile character may
be diflFused, read, and understood everywhere.
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 333
The Uprising, Chicago, Illinois:
We have read without stopping // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani
nel Nord America by Luigi Carnovale and in it we have found honest
truths. We hope that all of our compatriots will read this fine book as we
have done.
The Socialist's Word, Chicago, Illinois:
Our colleague, Luigi Carnovale, a cultured and sympathetic young
man, has published a well written study of impressions on the subject of
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America.
The book has been praised by writers and by journals in the United
States and in Italy, and the unanimous shower of eulogies have been well
merited.
The book, which one gladly reads because it is written in an Italian
form too little in use among the anglo-Saxonized (we hope to be pardoned
the horrible vocabulary) of our colonies, has one principal and indisput-
able merit: it is true.
In these columns we rarely interest ourselves with reviews. It is
because our readers in the daily struggle of life which cannot be de-
layed, would have little time to follow our critical dissertations. But we
willingly make an exception.
We say to our companions: read // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani
nel Nord America and there you will learn something.
We militants, internationalists by conviction, congratulate Carnovale
who, instructing and inviting to instruction, has known how to combat
that patriotism which is the most idiotic and stupid: patriotism for the
Patria of others.
And with this eulogy, truly felt we send the author a wish: that our
emigrants if they do not know how to become internationalists after they
have been stamped upon and kicked out of their own country, may not
become ardent patriots for another country which receives them only as
beasts of burden and of reproduction.
The Christian Register, of Boston, Mass.:
An interesting book has come into our hands which serves as an ex-
position of // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America.
It is a collection of articles written by Luigi Carnovale. The Italian
press of our country has attained a significant position when it is able to
call to its service writers possessed of such glowing imagination, generous
purpose, and literary ability as young Carnovale possesses, qaalities also
made evident by his charming idyl The Dream oj Francesco.
334 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
The Canadian Tribune, Toronto, Canada:
Our brilliant colleague, Luigi Carnovale of Chicago, has published a
book entitled // Giornalisyno degli Eniigrati Italiani nel Nord America.
It is an important work in which the writer has gathered a number of
wise articles previously published in various journals in the United States
and which one re-reads with pleasure because, besides being written in
good Italian, they are eminently patriotic.
We believe that this important book of Carnovale's should be in every-
one's hands.
The Popular Review of Literature and Social Science, edited by
Professor Napoleon Colaianni deputy to the National Parliament,
Rome-Naples, Italy:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America by Luigi
Carnovale is good in that it expresses sentiments full of Italianlty.
Arts and Labor, the magazine of the Ricordi Publishing House, Milan,
Italy:
The fine volume // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America by Luigi Carnovale contains articles which are of interest not
only to Italians scattered in America but to all Italians, because these
articles treat in a brilliant manner of questions which refer especially to
the prestige and well being of Italians.
The Goad, Naples, Italy:
A truly fine book of high patriotic and social sentiments is // Gior-
nalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America which has been
brought out in Chicago by the esteemed writer, Luigi Carnovale.
Luigi Carnovale of Stilo, one of the strongest and most brilliant in-
tellects of young Calabria, has for a number of years pursued the pro-
fession of journalist with dignity and high ideals in America; and he has
gathered in this valuable volume many of his articles, the results of his
acute observation and wise study.
Various and vibrating questions are treated by Carnovale in this book,
which is the brightest gem of his works.
Journalism in America is doubtless deficient but is always high, noble,
patriotic, humanitarian, and is not appreciated nor encouraged by Amer-
icanized compatriots, nor by the representatives of the mother country.
All this is described in vivid colors and with sad reflections.
Carnovale describes the miserable condition in which the emigrants
live, who, because of their lack of education, of patriotism and cohesion,
remain in a state of continual inferiority before the ignorance of strangers
who are inflated with pride of gold.
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 335
Carnovale searches the most fundamental causes for all of this; points
out the remedies; spurs the society of the Dante Alighieri; proposes and
insists on teaching patriotism and upon compulsory teaching in the
schools in Italy, not abstractly as now, but in the practical things of life.
Carnovale treats profoundly of many other things, even literary, in
his excellent book. But the space which we lack coupled with our desire
that every Italian shall acquire and read the book with attention and love,
makes it seem best that we shall not prolong our review as we should wish
and as the book itself merits.
The volume // Giornalismo represents the highest manifestations of
Italianity and patriotism, impersonated in Luigi Carnovale, high-minded,
noble soul of Calabrian fibre.
It is enough to know that the most eminent men of Italy have congrat-
ulated the distinguished author for his work of inestimable merit, which
should be in the hands of everyone.
We, from these columns, cannot do other than send to Luigi Carno-
vale our most fervid good wishes for a long and brilliant career.
AccATTATis, Prof. Luigi:
Calabrian scholar, sent one of his pamphlets to Carnovale with these
autograph words:
"To Luigi Carnovale who honors Calabria, with admiring and
grateful sentiments the author sends this book.
Ardigo, Professor Roberto, Philosopher and Educator:
Esteemed Signor Carnovale: I received your book "// Giornalismo
degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America and I have read with the greatest
interest the forty-three pages of the preface. I will also read the re-
mainder. In the meantime I thank you for having had the goodness to
send me such a fine gift.
To my far off distant worthy Italian brother, I am happy to send my
affectionate salutations.
Yours very sincerely,
Prof. Roberto Ardigo.
Padua, Italy
Baccelli, Alfredo, Novelist, Poet, Deputy in the National Parliament,
ex-minister of Italy:
Esteemed Signor Carnovale: I have received your book and I thank
you. You have a fine talent and a brilliant culture. In cordial exchange
I send you my last romance. With a hand grasp.
Yours,
A. Baccelli.
Rome, Italy.
336 PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS
BosELLi Paolo, present Prime minister of Italy, and honorary president
of the National Society of the Dante Alighieri:
Esteemed Signer Camovale: I am most grateful for your courtesy
in sending me your interesting book.
The thought of the Italians is always held in a single ideal wherever
they may live; not even the seas separate our spirits.
It is to our advantage to demonstrate the intellectual activity of Ita-
lians who live in far countries.
And it is fine to see that in that land of free and marvelous energies,
the Italian talents shine.
With particular regards, I am.
Yours sincerely,
P. BOSELLI.
Turin, Italy.
Mantegazza, Professor Paolo, Anthropologist, Hygienist, Scientific
Writer, Educator, Senator of the Kingdom .of Italy:
Dear Signor Camovale: A thousand thanks for your gracious gift.
Your book vibrates with a warm patriotism which does great honor to
you and baptises you as an eloquent apostle of Italianity in America. ,
Farewell, from my heart.
Mantegazza.
San Terenzio, Spezia.
Martini Ferdinando, Scholar, Deputy in the Italian National Parlia-
ment, ex-governor of Eritrea, ex-minister of public instruction and
ex-minister of colonial affairs.
Most Esteemed Signor Camovale: I have received your excellent
book and I thank you for it.
The sad pages of the preface show how important is the work which
you are doing with such untiring energy.
The problem of the Italians in foreign lands is one of the gravest
that the mother country must solve; it is the problem which must be
solved with calm study and with an intellect of love above everything
else. The Colonial Institute in the Council of which I have the honor to
take part, is now considering it, and of its work we shall have, I hope,
practical and prompt results.
It is well that help should come from the Italians themselves who
live in the colonies; and you send us most valuable aid, maintaining at
the same time the cult of the Patria, of her language and of her glorious
traditions.
Again thanking you, believe me,
Yours sincerely,
Rome, Italy. Martini.
PRESS AND INDIVIDUAL OPINIONS 337
Among those who sent their congratulations to Luigi Carnovale for his
hook were the following:
Caruso, Enrico tenor.
Casolini, Antonio deputy to the National Parliament.
Ciccom, Professor Ettore socialist deputy to the Italian National
Parliament.
CiLEA, Francesco composer of music, director of the conservatory at
Palermo.
Costa, Andrea leader of the Italian socialist party and vice-president
of the chamber of deputies.
Cundari, Professor Antonio lawyer, mayor of Cosenza, Calabria.
D'Ancona, Professor Alessander scholar, critic, educator, senator of
the Kingdom.
Emanuele, Filiberto, duke of Aosta cousin of Emanuel III, King of
Italy.
FoRTUNATO, GiusTiNO deputy to the Italian National Parliament.
City Council of Milan.
Nathan, Ernesto Mayor of Rome.
PoMPiLj, GuiDO undersecretary of State of Foreign affairs.
Rapisardi, Mario poet.
Rava, Luigi minister of public instruction.
Rossi, Professor Luigi deputy to Italian National Parliament and gen-
eral commissioner of emigration.
Sonnino, Sidney ex-minister, ex-prime minister and present minister
of foreign affairs.
Victor Emanuel III, King of Italy.
ZuMBiNi, Professor Bonaventura, scholar, critic, senator of the King-
dom.
And many others.
In Preparation:
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di
Luigi Carnovale
Autore di "Una Visita al Pittore Andrea Cefaly", "Mia Madre",
"II Sogno di Francesco", "V Giornalismo degli Emigrati
Italiani nel Nord America".
lo parlo per ■ver dire,
Non per odio d 'altrui ne per disprezzo.
— Petrarca.
Compagnia Editrice Italo-Americana
Chicago, Illinois
Stati Uniti d'America
1917
Copyright, 1917. by Luigi Carnovale.
Riservdti tutti i diritti.
Alia memoria dei caduti
e
al dolore dei sopravviventi
io dedico
questo lavoro d'amore
scritto neWesilio
col pensiero proteso ai supremi ideali umani
per rivendicare
al cospetto degli stranieri che ignorano la veritd
Ponore del popolo italiano.
LuiGi Carnovale.
Chicago, Illinois
Stati Uniti d'America
Anno 1917.
INDICE DELLE MATERIE
PAGINA
Dedica 343
Introduzione — Una domanda. Un'insinuazione. Una .
premessa 357
PARTE PRIAIA
I. L'inizio delle militaresche violenze austriache in Italia.
La sassata del giovinetto Balilla (1746) 361
II. Smembramento e ripartizione dellTtalia nel 1815. La
parte del leone all'Austria. La Carhoneria 363
III. La rivoluzione del 1820 nel Regno delle Due Sicilie.
L'Austria, con la forza bruta dei suoi soldati, impone la
tirannide borbonica ai patrioti italiani lottanti per la
liberta. Persecuzioni e condanne (1821) 365
IV. La rivoluzione del 1821 nel Piemonte. L'Austria, con
la forza bruta dei suoi soldati, impone la tirannide dei
Savoia ai patrioti italiani lottanti per la liberta. Perse-
cuzioni e condanne 369
V. L'Austria, con la forza bruta dei suoi soldati, impone lapro-
pria tirannide ai patrioti italiani del Lombardo-Veneto lot-
tanti per la liberta. Persecuzioni econdanne(i820-i82i). 371
VI. Le rivoluzioni del 1831 nel Ducato di Modena e Reggio
e nello Stato Romano. L'Austria, con la forza bruta dei
suoi soldati, impone la tirannide d'un suo principe e la
tirannide papale ai patrioti italiani lottani per la liberta.
Persecuzioni e condanne 373
VII. Mazzini, Gioberti e altri grandi Italiani, con il loro
apostolato di pensiero e azione, formano la nuova co-
scienza nazionale e obbligano i tiranni e i tirannelli d'ltalia
a concedere i benefizi della liberta ai popoli oppressi.
Solo I'Austria, sprezzante e sfidante, s'ostina a opprimere,
con sempre maggiore crudelta, gl'Italiani del Lombardo-
Veneto 375
345
346 INDICE DELLE MATERIE
PAGINA
VIII. Le rivoluzioni del 1848 in Italia. Milano insorge
contro la tirannide austriaca e lotta epicamente per
cinque giorni. La soldataglia del feld-maresciallo
Radetzky (20,000 uomini di fanteria e di cavalleria con
60 cannoni da campo) fa strage d'innocenti: sotterra e
arde adulti e fanciulli vivi; inchioda alle pareti bambini
lattanti, ne infilza alle baionette e li porta in giro come
trofei; oltraggia donne, le uccide, poi mozza e intasca le
mani inanellate dei cadaveri; ruba, insozza, massacra,
incendia, commette infiniti orrendissimi delitti. E il
popolo milanese — eroico e vittorioso — risponde con
civile generosita al male ricevuto. Venezia insorge
anch'essa, scaccia gli Austriaci oppressori e ricostituisce
I'antica Repubblica di San Marco 379
IX. L'inno di Mameli. La prima guerra di liberazione.
Gl'Italiani sono sconfitti per colpa di Pio IX e del Bor-
bone delle Due Sicilie. Gli Austriaci nuovamente
dominatori della Lombardia (1848) 387
X. I soldati austriaci, rientrati in Milano, s'abbandonano
a ogni sorta di rapine e vandalismi. II feld-maresciallo
Radetzky estorce "una taglia straordinaria di venti
milioni di lire a 185 nobili e cospicui cittadini" (1848). . 391
XI. L'insurrezione di Roma. E ucciso il primo ministro
pontificio Pellegrino Rossi. Pio IX fugge di notte a
Gaeta. Proclamazione della Repubblica Romana con a
capo Mazzini, Saffi e Armellini. La seconda guerra di
liberazione contro I'Austria. Gl'Italiani sono sconfitti
per colpa dei loro comandanti. Carlo Alberto e costretto
ad abdicare in favore di suo figlio Vittorio Emanuele.
Gli Austriaci, rimbaldanziti, estendono la loro tirannide
sul Piemonte (1849) 392
XII. La "leonessa d'ltalia". I soldatacci austriaci a Brescia
"scagliano giii dalle finestre, contro le barricate erette dai
cittadini, teste di teneri fanciulli divelte dai busti, braccia
di donne e carni umane abbrustolite", e commettono
altre incredibili scelleratezze. La tragica vendetta d'un
giovane bresciano arso vivo (1849) 394
XIII. I soldati austriaci in Toscana, a Bologna, ad Ancona.
I tiranni stranieri schiacciano la Repubblica Romana
INDICE DELLE MATERIE 347
PAGINA
glorlosamente retta da Mazzini e difesa da Garibaldi, e
ristabiliscono il potere temporale del papi (1849). . . 398
XIV. I soldati austriaci inseguono Garibaldi e Anita (la
diletta consorte dell'Eroe) incinta. La fine dolorosa
dell'Eroina. Sotterrata nudal "La derelitta cagna,
ramingando . . /* (1849) 400
XV. Gli Austriaci assediano e bombardano per tre mesi di
continue Venezia. II feld-maresciallo Radetzky scim-
miotta Nerone. La regina dell'Adriatico e costretta
dalla fame e dal colera, piii che dall'armi nemiche, ad
arrendersi. L'elegia del poeta (1849) 403
XVI. II feld-maresciallo Radetzky e i suoi sguaiati ufficiali
festeggiano a Milano il genetliaco del loro imperatore
Francesco Giuseppe, provocando disonestamente e cari-
cando brutalmente con la cavalleria e la fanteria il popolo
inerme; bastonando patrioti; vergheggiando giovanetti
e signorine sulle nude reni (1849) 407
XVII. "L'imperatore degl'impiccati" (i 851-1853). . . . 409
XVIII. I bersaglieri alia guerra di Crimea (1855). Cavour
al Congresso di Parigi (1856). L'alleanza con Napoleone
III (1858). Le memorabili parole di Vittorio Emanuele
II all'inaugurazione del Parlamento subalpino. Uulti-
matum dell'Austria al piccolo Piemonte. L'inno di
Garibaldi. La famiglia Cignoli fucilata dai soldati
austriaci. I soldati papalini trucidano i patrioti di Peru-
gia. Pio IX e il cardinale Pecci (piij tardi Leone XIII)
esaltano gli assassini. La terza guerra di liberazione
vinta dagl'Italiani con Taiuto dei Francesi (1859). . . .411
XIX. Garibaldi e i Mille conquistano gloriosamente le Due
Sicilie (i860). Proclamazione del Regno d'ltalia (1861),
Si perde la quarta guerra di liberzione contro I'Austria
per colpa dei comandanti. L'annessione del Veneto
(1866). Villa Glori. I soldati mercenari del papa truci-
dano I'eroina romana Giuditta Arquati-Tavani e il marito
e il figlio di lei, Mentana (1867). La presa di Roma e la
caduta definitiva del potere temporale dei papi (1870).
La nazione una e indipendente 419
348 INDICE DELLE MATERIE
PARTE SECONDA
PAGINA
I. Come Roma antica, sia durante' la Repubblica che du-
rante rimpero, conquisto e latinizzo il Friuli, I'lstria,
Trieste, Trento, il Trentino e la Dalmazia, e come fece
del mare Adriatico un gran lago romano. La "Tavola
Clesiana" 429
II. Le invasion! barbariche in Italia. Attila, flagellum Dei,
distrugge (anno 452) la bella citta d'Aquileia fondata dai
Romani fin dal 181-182 avanti Cristo. In un comizio
presieduto dall'imperatore Carlo Magno, glTtaliani del-
ITstria protestano contro I'immigrazione slava (anno 804).
La Repubblica dei dogi libera TAdriatico dai corsari
stranieri. Lo sposalizio di Venezia col mare. La sponta-
nea sudditanza della Dalmazia (anno 999). Fedele per
otto secoli. "L'onoratissima sepoltura" dello stendardo
di San Marco 436
III. I Comuni. Federico Barbarossa imperatore di Ger-
mania scende in Italia I'anno 1154 e massacra, saccheg-
gia, incendia; cattura il celebre riformatore Arnaldo da
Brescia e lo consegna al papa Adriano IV, il quale I'arde
vivo. La compiacente Dieta di Roncaglia. Milano,
Crema e Piacenza si ribellano. II Barbarossa si vendica
mostruosamente: assedia Crema, e non potendo vincerla
con I'armi, lega ad alcune torri mobili i fanciuUi cremaschi
e milanesi ch'egli tiene in ostaggio, e li espone ai colpi
degli assediati. L'amor di patria puo piu dell'amore
paterno suglTtaliani. La distruzione di Crema e di
Milano. La Lega Veronese. Un papa energico. La
Lega Lomharda. L'arcivescovo Cristiano di Magonza,
plenipotenziario del Barbarossa in Italia, assedia Ancona
e riduce i difensori a cibarsi d'ortiche e cuoio. L'eroismo
delle donne anconitane. L*unione dei Comuni italiani
genera I'epopea. II Carroccio. La Compagnia della
Morte. II Barbarossa e terribilmente sconfitto dagl'I-
taliani a Legnano (1176); e sconfitto anche per mare
dalla flotta unita di Venezia e di Trieste; deve baciare il
piede al suo piu fiero nemico (papa Alessandro III); deve
implorare la pace e abbandonare per sempre I'ltalia senza
averla potuta soggiogare 441
INDICE DELLE MATERIE 349
PAGINA
IV. I Triestini per I'indipendenza municipale della loro
citta e per il mantenimento della loro italianita (dalla
pace di Costanza del 1183 in poi). Contro i vescovi-
baroni (1295-1349). Contro Venezia (1368-1381). La
"dedizione" aH'Austria (1382). II partito anti-austriaco,
le sue ribellioni, il suo martirolof^io. "L'orgoglio della
discendenza romana" (dal Quattrocento al Settecento). 449
V. Le lotte dell'italianita sostenute con intensa perse-
veranza dai Triestini, dagl'Istriani, dai Dalmati e dai
Trentini contro I'Austria, dal trattato di Vienna del 18 15
fino alle rivoluzioni italiane del 1848 456
VI. I Trentini, i Triestini, gl'Istriani e i Dalmati per la
Repubblica Romana retta dai triunviri Mazzini, Saffi e
Armellini e difesa da Garibaldi contro il papa, e per la
Repubblica di Venezia retta da Manin e dal Tommaseo
e difesa da Guglielmo Pepe contro I'Austria (1849). . . 467
VII. I Trentini, i Triestini, gl'Istriani e i Dalmati per la loro
italianita dal 1850 al 1858, II lor filiale contribute di
sangue alia seconda guerra di liberazione dell'Italia con-
tro I'Austria (1859) 470
VIIL I Trentini, i Triestini e gl'Istriani nella spedizione dei
Mille. II lor filiale contributo di sangue all'intera guerra
del i860 per la liberazione dell'Italia Meridionale e del-
l'Italia Centrale. La feroce reazione degli Austriaci. Le
somme di denaro raccolte dagl'Istriani per la causa
nazionale. La bandiera italiana delle donne triestine a
Garibaldi (i860) 475
IX. Le lotte dell'italianita sostenute con indomabile fierezza
dai Trentini, dai Triestini, dagl'Istriani e dai Dalmati
contro I'Austria dal 1861 al 1865 482
X. II filiale contributo di sangue dei Trentini, dei Triestini,
degl'Istriani e dei Dalmati alia guerra del 1866 contro
I'Austria per I'indipendenza e I'unita d'ltalia. Trieste e
ristria per la loro annessione alia madre patria (1866). . 486
XI. II filiale contributo di sangue dei Triestini, degl'Istriani,
dei Trentini e dei Dalmati all'Italia per la presa di Roma
(1867-1870) 495
XII. I Triestini tra i volontari italiani di Garibaldi in difesa
della Francia nella guerra del 1870 contro la Prussia.
350 INDICE DELLE MATERIE
PAGINA
Continue dimostrazioni d'italianita nelle regloni irredente
dal 1872 al 1882. II giovane triestino Guglielmo Ober-
dan, studente universitario a Roma, ardente apostolo
d'italianita, e impiccato a Trieste per avere attentato alia
vita dell'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe. Tremende
dimostrazioni italiane contro I'Austria (dicembre 1882). 499
XIII. II monumento a Dante nella citta di Trento (1896).
Manifestazioni d'italianita a Trieste e nell'Istria dal 1897
al 1903. Le scuole italiane elementari e medie a Gorizia,
a Gradisca, a Trieste, nell'Istria e nella Dalmazia. La
lampada eterna degl'Italiani irredenti sulla tomba di
Dante a Ravenna (1908). Gli studenti italiani irredenti
deirUniversita di Vienna aggrediti dagli studenti austriaci
della stessa universita spalleggiati dalla polizia. Tre-
mende dimostrazioni italiane di protesta contro I'Austria
(1908). L'incessante cospirazione di Trieste italiana
contro il governo austriaco sino al 1915 512
XIV. Proclama incitante I'ltaliaalla guerra contro I'Austria,
indirizzato dai Triestini a ciascun deputato del Parla-
mento nazionale italiano, fuorche ai socialisti, il giorno
in cui s'apri a Roma, nel febbraio del 1914, la nuova
legislatura 525
XV. Proclama incitante I'ltalia alia guerra contro I'Austria,
indirizzato dai Triestini a ciascun deputato socialista
del Parlamento nazionale italiano il giorno in cui s'apri
a Roma, nel febbraio del 1914, la nuova legislatura. . . 526
XVI. Proclama incitante I'ltalia alia guerra contro I'Austria,
lanciato dagl'Italiani delle province irredente di Gradisca,
Gorizia, Trieste e Istria (Venezia Giulia) e del Trentino
durante il mese d'aprile del 1914 "per I'unita della
Patria" 528
XVII. La bandiera italiana issata a Trieste sul campanile
di San Giusto e suU'antenna del porto di Muggia nel mese
di dicembre del 1914. Migliaia di Italiani irredenti cor-
rono ad ofFrire il loro sangue alia madre patria nella
grande guerra contro I'Austria (1914-1915) 532
XVIII. Gabriele d'Annunzio riafFerma ed esalta I'italianita
di Trieste nei giardini del Palagio di Andrea Doria in
Genova (6 maggio 191 5), ricevendo in dono il gesso del
Leone Tergestino che e murato in una casa dei Giustiniani. 533
INDICE DELLE MATERIE 351
PAGIKA
XIX. Parole dette da Gabriele d'Annunzio in Geneva il 7
maggio 1915 agli Esuli Dalmati, ricevendo in dono il
Libro che afFerma, dimostra e propugna I'italianita della
Dalmazia, stampato in Geneva 534
PARTE TERZA
I. Perche lo studente serbo Gabrilo Princip uccise a Serajevo
— il 28 giugno 1914 — I'arciduca Francesco Ferdinando
erede del trono d'Austria-Ungheria 539
II. La fatale not a-uitimatum del governo austriaco al governo
serbo (23 luglio 1914) 540
III. L'attitudine partigiana della Germania. L'attitudine
conciliativa della Russia. Un supplichevole telegramma
del principe Alessandro reggente di Serbia alio zar
Nicola II. Un eloquente telegramma dell'ambasciatore
inglese Buchanan. L'ostinatezza del governo austriaco. 543
IV. La risposta del governo serbo (25 luglio 1914) alia
nota-ultimatum del governo austriaco 546
V. Un eloquente telegramma dell'ambasciatore inglese a
Vienna, Maurizio de Bunsen, a Sir Edward Grey (27
luglio 1914). Un comunicato ufficioso del governo russo
pubblicato dal Corriere della Borsa di Pietroburgo (27
luglio 1914). La risposta dello zar Nicola II al principe
Alessandro reggente di Serbia (27 luglio 1914). I
ringraziamenti del principe Alessandro alio zar Nicola IL 550
VI. La dichiarazione di guerra del governo austriaco alia
Serbia (27 luglio 1914). II proclama dell'imperatore
Francesco Giuseppe ai suoi popoli (28 luglio 1914). Lo
zar Nicola II telegrafa urgentemente (29 luglio 1914) a
Guglielmo II imperatore di Germania, pregandolo di
scongiurare la guerra. La risposta e le pubbliche dichia-
razioni di Guglielmo II (31 luglio 1914) 552
VII. II trattato della Triplice Alleanza stipulate tra i governi
d'ltalia, Austria e Germania (1882-1912). Gli articoli
3, 4 e 7 del trattato stesso 554
VIII. Come il governo d'Austria, con la sua nota-ulthnatum
del 23 luglio 1914 e la conseguente dichiarazione di guerra
352 INDICE DELLE MATERIE
PA GIN A
del 27 luglJo 1914 alia Serbia, violo il trattato della Triplice
Alleanza ai danni dell'Italia 556
IX. La dichiarazione di neutralita dell'Italia (4 agosto 1914). 557
X. II governo d'ltalia, in data 3 maggio 1915, denunzia il
trattato della Triplice Alleanza 559
XI. Antonio Salandra presidente del Consiglio dei ministri
dTtalia, nella storica seduta del Parlamento nazionale a
Roma (20 maggio 1915), espone le ragioni per le quali il
governo italiano e costretto a dichiarare guerra all' Austria. 561
XII. La dichiarazione di guerra del governo d'ltalia all'Im-
pero austro-ungarico (23 maggio 191 5) 563
XIII. L'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe, in un proclama
diretto ai suoi popoli il 24 maggio 191 5, accusa di tradi-
mento Vittorio Emanuele III re d'ltalia 564
XIV. II "violento e menzognero'* discorso pronunziato dal
cancelliere germanico Bethmann-Hollweg contro I'ltalia
al Reichstag di Berlin© il 28 maggio 1915 565
XV. Antonio Salandra, presidente dei ministri d'ltalia, in
un solenne discorso documentato, pronunziato nel
Campidoglio a Roma il 2 giugno 1915, difende I'ltalia dalle
accuse dell'imperatore austro-ungarico e del cancelliere
germanico 567
PARTE QUARTA
I. Prima ragione: Patriottismo 579
II. Seconda ragione: Irredentismo 581
III. Terza ragione: Una visita non restituita 582
IV. Quarta ragione: Coesione nazionale ed efficienza
militate 583
V. Quinta ragione: II timore dell'isolamento 586
VI. Sesta ragione: II diritto di viaggiare 587
VII. Settima ragione: Solidarieta umana 589
VIII. II tradimento 615
INDICE DELLE MATERIE 353
PACINA
IX. L'oro inglese e I'oro francese 626
X. Cupidige territorial! 627
XL Gli Onnipotenti 640
Indice alfabetico dei nomi propri di persona 643
ILLUSTRAZIONI
La "Tavola Clesiana" 434
Carta geografica delle regioni irredente 338-339
Giudizi di giornali e di persone sul libro // Giornalismo degli
EmigratiltalianinelNord America d'\h\ng\QvLvnovd\t. . 655
Perche 1' Italia e Entrata
Nella Grande Guerra
INTRODUZIONE
Una domanda. Un'insinuazione. Una premessa
Non appena Vittorio Emanuele III, il 23 maggio 191 5,
dichiaro guerra a Francesco Giuseppe, i miei numerosi amici
americani — persone d'ambo i sessi intellettualmente e
moralmente superiori — mi domandarono:
"Quali ragioni indussero I'ltalia ad entrare nella con-
flagrazione europea, attaccando TAustria?"
Tale domanda, suggerita senza dubbio da trepido afFetto
per
il bel Paese
che Appennin parte, e il mar circonda e I'Alpe,
mi convinse che quanto fino allora — fino alia suddetta
data ^ — s'era scritto e pubblicato intorno alio straordinario
avvenimento, non era stato sufficiente, almeno per una
buona parte del pubblico americano, a dare un'idea precisa,
e neppure approssimativa, delle cause che determinarono
I'intervento dell'Italia nel macello che da tre anni sta
terrorizzando e rovinando il mondo.
Credetti percio necessario, anzl doveroso, esporre in un
libro (come avrei potuto farlo a voce, o in un semplice
articolo di giornale, o anche in un opuscolo?) le cause del
tanto discusso intervento italiano: non per giudicare o con-
dannare il governo monarchic© dei Savoia (non e questo il
momento del redde rationem), ma per rispondere esauriente-
mente alia domanda rivoltami; sopratutto, per rivendicare in
modoefficacela verita e la giustiziaoltraggiate da un'insinua-
zione che parecchi dei miei amici americani ebbero il torto
(mi si perdoni la franchezza) di raccogliere sia pure in buona
fede. L'insinuazione, cioe, che il popolo italiano — quel
popolo tanto onesto decoroso magnanimo — abbia commesso
^Oggi potrei ben dire: fino a ieri, cioe fino alia vigilia della pubblicazione di
questo libro.
357
358 INTRODUZIONE
un infame tradimento dichiarando nullo il trattato della
Triplice Alleanza e defezionando, conseguentemente, la
causa deU'Austria e della Germania: ed abbia pazzamente
corso I'alea della guerra contro le due nazioni alleate, perche
comprato (il popolo italiano!) dall'oro inglese a dall'oro
francese, e perche smanioso (il popolo italiano!) di con-
quistare terre altrui: terre, come per esempio Trento e
Trieste, appartenenti per diritto divino ereditario aU'im-
periale e reale corona degli Asburgo/
Premetto, a scanso d'equivoci, che ranimo mio rifugge
a priori da cio che, militarmente parlando, si chiama nazio-
nalismo, campanilismo, chauvinisme. Adoro I'ltalia —
ov'ebbi i natali — per il glorioso contribute di pensiero e di
sangue ch'ella sempre diede e da tuttavia alle incessanti lotte
della civilta, della vera civilta, contro la barbaric. Ma, nel
medesimo tempo, ammiro gli altri paesi; amo sinceramente,
' The World (il noto quotldiano di New York), in data 12 gennaio 191 7, vale
a dire dopo venti mesi di guerra italiana, commentando le condizioni di pace
contenute nella risposta data dai governi alleati al presidente Wilson, si esprimeva,
rigiiardo alle aspirazioni irredentiste dell'Italia sulla costa orientale deirAdriatico,
nei seguenti termini:
Per lo meno due condizioni di secondaria importanza sono quanta mai immorali:
quelle, cioe, che includono la pretesa di territori i quali non appartennero mai all' Italia
e alia Rumenia, e che dovrehbero servire a pagare la camorra imposta da quesii due
governi eminentemente sordidi, come prezzo della loro entrata nella guerra a fianco
degli Alleati.
Contro questi gentili complimenti protestarono i giornali italiani degli Stati
Uniti e d'ltalia, nonche lo stesso governo di Roma per mezzo dei suoi ministri
Ruffini e Bissolati.
Ma il World, in data 30 gennaio 1917, ritornava impassibilmente alia carica,
pubblicando nelle sue colonne "editoriali" il seguente articolo:
Le pretese deW Italia. — Malgrado le proteste del ministro Bissolati, Commissario
Civile Italiano della Guerra, contro un recente articolo editoriale del "World", noi
continueremo ad essere del parere che i motivi addotti daW Italia per il suo intervento
in questa guerra sono tanto poco difendibili, quanta lo sono quelli della Rumenia e
della Bulgaria.
II ministro Bissolati ? rimasto sbalordito dalla colossale ignoranza del "World"
il quale contesta all' Italia il diritto di rivendicare il carattere italiano di Trieste e che
non prende in considcrazione a favor e dell'Italia i £0 anni di eroica resistenza contro
la brutale dominazione austriaca.
La dominazione austriaca non e ne piu ne meno brutale di quel che e stata durante
i jj anni nei quali I'ltalia era alleata dell' Austria nella Triplice Alleanza.
Trieste ora none italiana piu di quanto lo fosse quando I'ltalia lietamente godeva
dei vantaggi della sua alleanza con la Germania e I' Austria.
Ne e prohabile che I'Europa voglia iniprgnarsi in un'altra guerra per private
I' Austria del mare, e dare all' Italia territori sui quali essa etnicamente non ha maggiori
diritti di quelli che ha su un terzo della Svizzera, e su Nizza e la Corsica ora occupate
dalla Francia.
Molti altri giornali e riviste nord-americani hanno battuto e continuano a
battere la stessa solfa.
INTRODUZIONE 359
poiche ramore e un sentimento naturale, gli uomini evoluti
e non evoluti di tutte le razze; desidero vivamente, e pro-
pugno con le mie forze piu pure e perseveranti, la pace uni-
versale avente per base — granitica perenne — la liberta, la
prosperita, la felicita di tutti i popoli della Terra.
Nello svolgimento del mio assunto usero solo — se non
con parsimonia, certo con la piii scrupolosa oggettivita —
elementi positivi, costituiti da fatti che la Storia ormai
registro definitivamente nelle sue pagine eterne: da fatti
che la Stampa, precorritrice e nutrice della Storia, riconobbe
autentici: da fatti accaduti, accertati, della cui assoluta
realta non si puo piii dubitare.
Naturalmente, per logica necessita di cose, dovro
interpolare, in tali fatti, note illustrative piii o meno brevi;
dovro spingermi a osservazioni, a considerazioni, a riflessioni
conclusive piii o meno rudi, ardite. Ma esse non saranno
che in parte I'espressione del mio giudizio e, piii che del mio
giudizio, dei miei sentiment! personali: I'espressione, cioe,
di quei larghi sentimenti altruistici, per i quali il mio cuore
palpito sempre, e sempre palpitera, di fraterna tenerezza
per le vittime — per tutte le vittime — delle iniquita sociali.
Le osservazioni, le considerazioni, le riflessioni ch'io faro,
saranno, nella loro quasi totalita, I'espressione dei sentimenti
che nella rossa primavera del 191 5 slanciarono il popolo
italiano al cimento della grande guerra. Sentimenti in cui
tanto vibro e prevalse la nota della solidarieta morale
verso le creature innocenti, umili, deboli, colpite con efferata
violenza nell'onore, nelle sostanze, nell'indipendenza nazio-
nale, in tutti i sacri diritti della loro esistenza individuale e
collettiva, dalla foia bestiale dei satrapaci potentati d'Euro-
pa. I quali ebbero pur sempre I'impudenza di strombazzar-
si pastori cristianamente buoni e pacifici, mentre, in so-
stanza, non furono che maligni ipocriti, lupi ferocissimi:
mentre i loro odierni delitti farebbero raccapricciare persino
i piii antropofagi trogloditi dell'antica Africa tenebrosa.
Le difficolta di questo mio lavoro saranno molte e non
lievi. Ma io spero superarle tutte felicemente.
PARTE PRIMA
L'inizio delle militaresche violenze austriache in Italia.
La sassata del giovinetto Balilla (1746).
Carlo VI imperatore d'Austria (1711-1740), qualche
tempo prima di morire, violava la legge salica, pubblicando
un'ordinanza detta prammatica sanzioney con la quale nomi-
nava erede del trono la sua figliuola primogenita Maria
Teresa.
Le Potenze europee — Francia, Spagna, Prussia e
Baviera — che sostenevano la legge salica, non s'opposero
li per li all'atto arbitrario dell'autocratico sovrano. Vi
s'opposero dopo ch'egli cesso di vivere, dicendo chiaro e
tondo a Maria Teresa ch'ella non poteva usurpare i diritti
spettanti al sesso maschile.
La donna fece orecchie da mercante: ed esegui con
graziosa disinvoltura la comoda volonta del suo augusto
genitore.
Allora le quattro Potenze oppositrici ricorsero a mezzi
pill persuasivi. Proclamarono imperatore d'Austria uno dei
piu legittimi pretendenti al trono (Carlo Alberto di Baviera,
che assunse il nome di Carlo VII), e lo mandarono, accom-
pagnato da un grosso esercito, a Vienna, per impossessarsi
della corona *'al cospetto di Dio e dei sudditi".
All'appressarsi del rivale, Maria Teresa ebbe paura:
fuggi: riparo in Ungheria. Ma gli Ungheresi I'accolsero
afFettuosamente; le oflFrirono il loro braccio; giurarono,
insieme con gli Austriaci rimasti a lei devoti, di ricuperarle
il regno.
Agli Ungheresi ed agli Austriaci s'unirono ben presto
I'lnghilterra e I'Olanda e, piii tardi, anche Carlo Emanuele
III di Savoia.
361
362 PARTE PRIMA
Tra i due gruppi s'accese una guerra che duro parecchio
tempo. Dopo battaglie favorevoli or all'una or all'altra
parte, la vittoria decisiva arrise finalmente, presso Piacenza,
ai sostenitori di Maria Teresa.
I Frances! e gli Spagnoli furono costretti ad abbandonare
ITtalia, dove I'ultima fase della guerra s'era svolta.
Cosi la figlia di Carlo VI pote salire indisturbata al trono.
L'esercito austriaco, imbaldanzito da tanto successo,
piombo su Genova, "per punirla" d'avere parteggiato in
favore del sesso maschile.
La citta non era preparata a un siflFatto colpo. Pur
nondimeno essa tento di resistere. " Ma fu minacciata d'essere
subitamente messa a ferro ed a foco. Per evitare tanta
iattura, coloro che la reggevano non seppero far di meglio
che consegnare bonariamente le chiavi delle porte cittadine
ai nemici.
La soldataglia austriaca, fremente di vendetta e avida
di bottino, urlo di gioia: entro, saccheggio, s'ubriaco,
insulto, "commise turpitudini che non hanno riscontro
nell'istoria". E come se cio non bastasse, voile sborsati
ventuno milioni di lire "per indennita di guerra". Ai
cittadini che imploravano clemenza, il generale austriaco
rispondeva brigantescamente ch'essi "meritavan di peggio:
che li avrebbe spogliati perfino della camicia che indossava-
no, non lasciando loro che i soli occhi per piangere".
II flagello duro tre mesi.
Nel pomeriggio del 5 dicembre 1746, mentre la solda-
taglia austriaca trascinava alcuni pezzi d'artiglieria nel
popoloso quartiere di Portoria, si sfondo a un certo punto la
strada, sotto il peso d'un enorme mortaio da bombe. Non
essendo facile continuare il lavoro, la soldataglia, fiottando
parole brusche e triviali, comando ai cittadini presenti di
dare aiuto. I cittadini si rifiutarono. La soldataglia,
artotando i denti, li ingiurio, li aggredi, li carico di pugni,
li bastono, li sciabolo senza pieta ne misericordia.
Un ardito fanciullo (Giovan Battista Perasso, soprannomi-
nato Balilla), irritato di sdegno per essere stato anch'egli
percosso in malo modo da un soldataccio asutriaco, raccatto
un sasso e — gridando la rompo?! — lo scaglio vigorosa-
SMEMBRAMENTO DELL'ITALIA (1815) 363
mente contro il bruto, colpendolo alia testa e facendolo
stramazzare mezzo morto al suolo.
L'atto eroico del fanciullo animo gli adulti. In un
baleno si vide infuriare una gragnola di sassi sulla soldataglia.
Le campane sonarono a stormo. I cittadini ch'erano in casa
udirono, sussultarono, compresero, s'armarono, si precipi-
taron fuori, affrontarono i barbari tuonando: *'Viva
Geneva! Viva la liberta!"
La pugna, calda ostinata cruenta, duro cinque giorni.
Gli oppressori furono alia fine sopraffatti, messi in fuga,
inseguiti, dispersi.
Poco dopo, il popolano Giovanni Carbone, nel riconse-
gnare a nome dei Genovesi le chiavi della citta al doge e agli
altri supremi magistrati della Repubblica, pronunziava
queste memorabili parole:
Signori, ecco le chiavi che voi deste con tanta leggerezza ai
nostri nemici. Procurate in avvenire di meglio custodirle, poiche
esse furono ricuperate col nostro sangue!
II
Smembramento e ripartizione dell'Italia nel 1815. La
parte del leone all' Austria. La Carboneria.
Col trattato di Vienna, stipulate dai monarchi d'Europa
dopo vinto Napoleone I a Waterloo il i8 giugno 1815,
ritalia fu smembrata e ripartita nel modo seguente:
il Regno di Sardegna (Sardegna, Piemonte e Liguria) a
Vittorio Emanuele I di Savoia;
•' lo Stato Lomhardo-Veneto (Lombardia, Venezia, i territori
compresi tra il Po, il Ticino e I'Adriatico, Tantica Repubblica
di Ragusa, le valli di Valtellina, Chiavenna e Bormio)
all'Austria;
il Granducato di Toscana al principe austriaco Ferdinando
III di Lorena;
il Ducato di Modena e Reggio airarciduca Francesco IV,
cugino dell'imperatore d'Austria;
il Ducato di Lucca a Maria Luisa di Borbone;
364 PARTE PRIMA
i Ducati di Parma, Piacenza e Guastalla a Maria Luigla,
figlia deH'imperatore d'Austria e seconda moglie di Napo-
leone;
lo Stato Romano al pontefice;
il Regno delle Due Sicilie (Italia Meridionale) a Ferdi-
nando I di Borbone;
la Repubblica di San Marino, sotto la protezione del
pontefice;
il Canton Ticino alia Confederazione Sviz/era;
il Principato di Monaco ai Grimaldi-Montignon, sotto
la protezione del re di Sardegna;
r Isola di Malta all'Inghilterra;
la Corsica alia Francia.
L'Austria, che direttamente e indirettamente aveva
avuto la parte del leone, si riserbo anche il diritto d'occupare
militarmente Ferrara e Comacchio.
Gli eflPetti che da tale smembramento e da tale riparti-
zione derivarono alia bella ma sventurata penisola, si possono
facilmente immaginare. Leggi inique: balzelli, persecuzio-
ni, spoliazioni, ingiustizie d'ogni sorta: tutti i mali che ancor
oggi formano la trista caratteristica di quei governi imperia-
listici, i quali antepongono, senza veruno scrupolo, i privati
interessi dinastici al benessere dei popoli.
Fortunatamente gl'Italiani non erano piii disposti a far
da spensierate pecore come per il passato. Le idee propa-
gate dalla rivoluzione francese e i fatti straordinari svoltisi
durante le guerre napoleoniche avevano drizzato le menti,
avevano risvegliato le coscienze intorpidite da tanti secoli di
servaggio. Sui monti della Calabria e degli Abruzzi s'era
gia formata da qualche tempo, tra gli uomini piii gagliardi
di quelle generose regioni, una societa segreta chiamata
Carhoneria, alio scopo di promovere e propugnare con ogni
mezzo, a costo di qualunque sacrificio, I'indipendenza e
I'unita della patria. II giorno prima del congresso di Vienna,
essa contava, nel suo seno, circa 800,000 membri. Pochi
giorni dopo, essa ne contava il doppio. Vi s'erano inscritti,
e continuavano a inscriversi, cittadini d'ogni eta e d'ogni
condizione sociale.
Nei primi anni la Carhoneria si limito a un cauto e pa-
GLI AUSTRIACI A NAPOLI (1821) 365
ziente lavoro preparatorio allenatore. Solo nel 1820 —
fattasi alquanto adulta e formidabile per le sue ben coordi-
nate e disciplinate forze morali e intellettuali, piu che per il
numero dei suoi aderenti — essa die principio a quella serie
di pratici ardui cimenti, che dovevano, dopo cinquant'anni
d'eroismi e di martiri, culminare nella maggiore conquista
civile del secolo: cioe nel ritorno di Roma all'Italia gia ri-
diventata nazione una e indipendente, e nella conseguente
caduta definitiva del potere temporale dei papi.
Ill
La rivoluzione del 1820 nel Regno delle Due Sicilie.
L' Austria, con la forza bruta dei suoi soldati, impone la
tirannide borbonica ai patrioti italiani lottanti per la
liberta. Persecuzioni e condanne (1821).
Durante I'anno 1820 scoppio una rivoluzione nel Regno
delle Due Sicilie, dove la tirannide borbonica infieriva
maledettamente, insidiando, coartando, strozzando ogni
voce di liberta.
La mattina del 2 luglio 1820 i soldati e gli ufficiali distac-
cati a Nola e ad Avellino (la Carhoneria era penetrata
financo nelle file dell'esercito) insorsero gridando: "Viva la
Costituzione! Vogliamo la Costituzione!"
11 grido ribelle corse fulmineo per tutto il regno; scosse,
elettrizzo le popolazioni; fu ripetuto ardentemente; parve il
possente grido d'un oceano in tempesta.
La sera del 6 luglio 1820 si disse che il generate calabrese
Guglielmo Pepe — patriota energico, risoluto, universal-
mente stimato — s'era messo alia testa della rivoluzione.
Tale notizia aggiunse fiamme al foco. Nella notte stessa i
pill autorevoli Carbonari di Napoli si presentarono alia
reggia e, in nome del popolo e dell'esercito, chiesero al re la
Costituzione.
Ferdinando I rispose con la tipica burbanza dei tiranni.
I Carbonari lo lasciaron dire. Quand' ebbe finito, gli
voltaron dignitosamente le spalle e usciron fuori, silenziosi
ma fieri.
366 PARTE PRIMA
Pochi momenti dopo, una folia Immensa di cittadini e dl
soldati afFratellati correva ruggendo per le vie della citta.
II Borbone udi, tremo, non pote dormire. Avanti I'alba,
egli pubblico il seguente proclama:
Essendosi manifestato il voto generale della nazione di volere
un governo costituzionale, di nostra piena volonta consentiamo e
promettiamo nel corso di otto giorni di pubblicarne le basi.
I rivoluzionari non si capacitarono, non s'acquietarono.
Essi sapevano che nel 1812 Ferdinando I aveva pur concessa
e poi abrogata la Costituzione in Sicilia. Pretesero quindi,
da lui, garanzie piii sicure, piii concrete; e cioe: giurare la
Costituzione sul vangelo di Cristo; dare al generale Pepe il
comando di tutte le forze militari dello Stato; affidare a una
Giunta provvisoria I'incarico di preparare la riunione del
Congresso.
II Borbone dove fare di necessita virtii. Dove cedere.
Cos! il generale Pepe, che si trovava a Monteforte, il 9
luglio 1820 entro trionfalmente in Napoli.
E la sera stessa il poeta Gabriele Rossetti ^ cantava:
Giungesti alfin, giungesti,
o sospirato giorno!
Tutto ci brilla intorno
di nuova ilarita.
Redenzion di patria
in ogni fronte e scolta.
Non sogno questa volta,
non sogno liberta!
II 13 luglio 1820, nella cappella privata della reggia, alia
presenza del Pepe, della Giunta provvisoria, dei ministri
e dei dignitari di Corte, Ferdinando I giuro solennemente la
Costituzione, pronunziando un enfatico discorso che termi-
nava cosi:
Onnipotente Iddio, che con lo sguardo infinite leggi neU'anima
e neH'avvenire, se io mento, o se dovro mancare al mio giura-
mento, tu in questo istante dirigi sul mio capo i fulmini della tua
vendetta.
La commozione fu generale. Gabriele Rossetti, che
^Gabriele Rossetti — nato a Vasto (Abruzzi) nel 1783, morto a Londra nel
1854 — fu il padre di Carlo Dante Gabriele Rossetti, il celebre poeta e pittore
inglese, fondatore della Scuola prerafaellistica.
GLI AUSTRIACI A NAPOLI (1821) 367
aveva cantato in versi la Costituzione "promessa", saluto
anche la Costituzione "giurata" con un inno profetico
esprimente tutt'altro che fiducia nel giuramento del re
borbonico, come si puo vedere dalla strofa ch'io qui riporto:
Cittadini, posiamo sicuri
sotto I'ombra dei lauri mietuti;
ma coi pugni sui brandi temuti
stiamo in guardia del patrio terren.
Nella pace prepara la guerra
chi da saggio previene lo stolto;
ci sorrida la pace sul volto,
ma ci frema la guerra nel sen.
Gli avvenimenti di Napoli, intanto, avevano preoccupato
non poco le teste coronate d'Europa. Francesco I impera-
tore d'Austria e i suoi colleghi di Russia e di Prussia, nel
mese d'ottobre del 1820 si riunirono a Troppau, citta della
Slesia, per discutere intorno alia grave situazione. Non
tardarono a intendersi tra loro e a stabilire il da fare. In-
giunsero a Ferdinando I d'abrogare subito, "possibilmente
con mezzi conciliativi", la Costituzione da lui promul-
gata.
Ferdinando I fece sapere che la cosa non era possibile
**con mezzi conciliativi".
Allora i tre monarchi s'unirono di bel novo nel mese
di dicembre 1820 a Lubiana, capitale della Carniola, e
questa volta insieme coi rappresentanti delle altre Potenze
europee, "per rimediare (cosi dichiaro il principe Metter-
nich, primo ministro austriaco) alle condizioni interne del
Regno di Napoli'*.
II Borbone scrisse loro "di soppiatto", pregandoli di
chiamarlo al Congresso, dove avrebbe reso conto del suo
operate e suggeriti i mezzi piii efficaci per reprimerc lo spirito
liberale dei Napoletani.
Fu chiamato. E siccome la Costituzione da lui promul-
gata gl'inibiva d'allontanarsi dal regno senza il permesso del
Parlamento, egli dove giurare che, recandosi a Lubiana,
avrebbe perorato la causa del popolo. Disse: "Difendero
nel Congresso i fatti del passato luglio; vorro fermamente
368 PARTE PRIMA
per il mio regno la Costituzione; domandero la pace. Cosi
richiedendo la coscienza e I'onore".
Questo giuramento frutto a Ferdinando I la bramata
autorizzazione. Prima di partire, egli nomino suo figlio
Francesco reggente del trono, col titolo di vicario. Ma
giunto a Lubiana, s'affretto a confessare che solo la violenza
gli aveva strappato la Costituzione; che considerava nulli
gli obblighi assunti verso i rivoluzionari; che I'occupazione
militate del regno era I'unico mezzo capace di ripristinare e
consolidare la sovranita assoluta della monarchia.
Gli unti del Signore ascoltarono e approvarono. E, in
data 9 febbraio 1821, ordinarono, per mezzo del loro Met-
ternich che amava glTtaliani come il fumo negli occhi,
I'immediato e pieno ristabihmento del governo borbonico
neiritalia Meridionale.
II Parlamento napoletano rispose deliberando la guerra.
Un esercito austriaco non tardo ad apparire suUa frontiera.
Gabriele Rossetti incite I'ltalia a insorgere tutta contro
i nemici invasori.
Sorgi! Che tardi ancora?
Tu dormi, Italia? Ah no!
Di liberta Taurora
sui colli tuoi spunto.
Sorgi, e raffrena il corso
d'esercito invasor.
O schiava dei tuoi schiavi,
fosti regina un di!
Snuda I'acciar da forte,
ricingi I'elmo al crin;
sorgi: tra vita e morte
qui pende il tuo destin!
Ma grazie ai tradimenti del principe vicario, a cui i
Napoletani avevano ingenuamente affidato la direzione della
guerra, i soldati austriaci non incontrarono che poca resi-
stenza. Essi facilmente poterono entrare nella citta il 13
marzo 1821, e riconsegnare pomposamente a Ferdinando I lo
scettro del dispotismo.
II re spergiuro se ne valse subito, sfogando borbonica-
mente le sue basse vendette. Per mezzo di giudici compia-
GLI AUSTRIACI NEL PIEMONTE (1821) 369
centi servili abietti, egli condanno i migliori cittadini a
morte, alia galera, all'esilio. Confisco loro i beni. Sciolse
I'esercito. Affido la difesa del trono a parecchi battaglioni
di mercenari svizzeri e a 35,000 soldati austriaci.
Grimprovvisati birri stranieri compirono I'opera nefasta
del tiranno, commettendo soverchierie, villanie, brutture
orribili. Ferdinando I li mantenne nel Regno delle Due
Sicilie fino a ch'egli, un bel giorno del 1825, non se n'ando,
esecrato da tutti, all'altro mondo.
II suo successore Francesco I, quantunque piu grossolano
bestiale feroce, non pote sopportarli a lungo. Eran di troppo
peso. Avevano dissanguato I'erario e per conseguenza il
popolo. Dove quindi rassegnarsi a mandarli via, confortato
dalla speranza ch'essi sarebbero ritornati alle prime nuove
pazzie dei Carbonari.
IV
La rivoluzione del 1821 nel Piemonte. L' Austria, con
la forza bruta dei suoi soldati, impone la tirannide dei
Savoia ai patriot! italiani lottanti per la liberta, Perse-
cuzioni e condanne.
L'esempio dei Carbonari napoletani fu seguito dai con-
fratelli piemontesi.
Nel gennaio 1821 gli studenti dell'Universita di Torino si
fregiarono i petti con le coccarde della Costituzione di
Napoli, e improvvisarono nelle vie della citta una dimostra-
zione inneggiante alia liberta.
La polizia aggredi i dimostranti, tutti giovani inermi, li
malmeno, li costrinse a ritirarsi.
Siffatta coercizione, anziche frenare, eccito maggiormente
gli animi.
La dimostrazione si ripete a Torino e in altre citta del
Piemonte, e assunse carattere spiccatamente rivoluzionario
ad Alessandria, ove i cittadini e i soldati insorsero (10 marzo
1821) gridando: *'Viva I'ltalia! Viva la Costituzione!"
Vittorio Emanuele I di Savoia, re di Sardegna, Piemonte
e Liguria, "nemico delle idee liberali", piuttosto che cedere,
370 PARTE PRIMA
prefer! abdicare (13 marzo 1821) in favore di suo fratello
Carlo Felice che in quei giorni si trovava a Modena, affidando
provvisoriamente la reggenza del trono al principe cadetto
Carlo Alberto di Savoia-Carignano. Costui, incalzato dagli
avvenimenti, la sera del 13 marzo 1821 promulgo la Costitu-
zione; creo un ministero d'occasione con a capo il conte
Santorre di Santarosa ch'era stato il deux ex machina della
rivoluzione; promise di mantenere, e all'occorrenza difendere,
tutte le concessioni fatte.
Ma Carlo Felice, nemico acerrimo, peggio del fratello,
d'ogni liberta, appena saputa la cosa, monto in furia; lancio
da Modena un energico proclama, col quale dichiaro nulla la
concessa Costituzione; comando a Carlo Alberto di dimetter-
si immediatamente da reggente e recarsi a Novara, dove,
sotto gli ordini del generale Sallier della Torre, si sarebbero
adunate le milizie rimaste fedeli alia monarchia assoluta.
II principe cadetto obbedi. E i Carbonari, che aspetta-
vano da lui un atto di resistenza contro la dispotica imposi-
zione del nuovo re, lo gridaron traditore.
Un esercito di 30,000 uomini, in gran parte austriaci,
invase il Piemonte, sgomino i costituzionali, ristabili il
reazionario governo dei Savoia.
Carlo Felice, scimmiottando il Borbone di Napoli, si
diede a perseguitare spietatamente i fautori della Costitu-
zione. Due tribunali partigiani, da lui espressamente isti-
tuiti (uno per i civili, I'altro per i militari), condannarono
piij di mille persone a pene gravissime.
Santorre di Santarosa si salvo con la fuga. Egli mori
quattr'anni dopo a Sfacteria, combattendo generosamente
per I'indipendenza della Grecia.
Carlo Alberto, invece, se n'ando dapprima in Toscana,
poi in Ispagna, dove si schiero contro il popolo che, come
I'italiano, tentava sottrarsi al giogo della servitii. Ivi prese
parte aU'assalto del Trocadero (con la caduta di questa
fortezza, rimase schiacciata anche la Costituzione spagnola);
vi si distinse molto; ricntro cosi nelle buone grazie di Carlo
Felice.
L'occupazione del Piemonte, intanto, da parte delle
truppe austriache chiamate dai Savoia, duro fino al settem-
GLI AUSTRIACI NEL LOMBARDO-VENETO (1821) 371
bre del 1823 e costo al pubblico erario, vale a dire alia povera
gente, la considerevole somma di diciotto milioni di lire;
senza contare le angherie, le estorsioni, le umiliazioni a cui la
depravata soldataglia imperiale sottopose privatamente i
cittadini che s'erano resi colpevoli soltanto d'avere amato e
desiderate la liberta.
V
L' Austria, con la forza bruta del suoi soldati, impone
la propria tirannide ai patrioti italiani del Lombardo-
Veneto lottanti per la liberta. Persecuzioni e condanne
(1820-1821).
Se I'Austria infieriva tanto barbaramente contro gl'Ita-
liani soggetti ai tiranni e ai tirannelli ch'essa semplicemente
proteggeva, e facile immaginare com'ella infierisse contro
gl'Italiani che il Iosco trattato di Vienna aveva gettato nelle
unghie rapaci dell'aquila bicipite.
I Carbonari del Lombardo-Veneto avevano fin dal 181 8
fondato a Milano un giornale intitolato II Conciliatore. Ne
era direttore Silvio Pellico, scrittore garbato, educatore
d'alti sensi morali, patriota gentile e forte.
Lo scopo apparente del detto giornale era quello di
"conciliare, nel campo letterario, non i leali coi falsi, ma
tutti i sinceri amatori del vero"; lo scopo recondito era quello
d'additare agl'Italiani la via della redenzione.
I conti, pero, erano stati fatti senza I'oste. II governo
austriaco (I'oste) aveva nel Lombardo-Veneto, oltre agli
enormi contingenti di truppe armate fino ai denti, uno
speciale servizio di polizia in cui predominavano — per
numero, per furberia, per malvagita — gli agenti segreti e le
spie d'ogni specie.
Esso, dunque — il governo austriaco — non tardo a
conoscere "quello che si celava entro le questioni letterarie
del Conciliatore". II 3 settembre 18 19 ne proibi la pubbli-
cazione. Poi si mise a molestare odiosamente i fondatori, i
redattori, tutti i cuori nobili, tutti i grandi ingegni che
avevano avuto, o ch'erano sospettati d'avere avuto, un
372 PARTE PRIMA
qualche *interesse, una qualche relazione col soppresso
giornale.
Intanto scoppiava la rivoluzione napoletana. I Carbo-
nari del Lombardo-Veneto non potevano rimanere insensi-
bili. Palpitarono. Esultarono. I piu arditi espressero
apertamente la loro simpatia, la loro solidarieta per i fratelli
del Sud; tentarono financo imitarli. Ma furono rapidamente
soprafFatti dalla prevalente e prepotente forza dei domina-
tori.
Centinaia di cittadini, tra i quali lo stesso Pellico e molti
dei suoi amici, furono arrestati, svillaneggiati, vituperati.
Alcuni furono condannati a morte. Altri furono trascinati
in catene alio Spielberg, cupa fortezza della Moravia, e ivi
rinchiusi in luoghi angusti oscuri umidi luridi, e lasciati in
custodia di aguzzini ignoranti zotici ringhiosi aggressivi come
cani mastini. Altri fuggirono in terre libere e ospitali.
II poeta Giovanni Berchet, ch'era stato uno dei piii
brillanti collaboratori del Conciliatore e uno dei piii ardenti
cospitarori, melanconicamente esclamava daU'esilio:
Sono immensi i guai d'ltalia,
inesausto e il sue dolor!
Liberta voile; ma, stolta,
crede ai prencij e oso commettere
ai lor giuri il suo voler.
I suoi prenci Than travolta,
Than ricinta di perfidie,
Than venduta alio stranier.
Son disciolte le sue schiere;
£ compresso il labbro ai savi,
stretto in ferri ai giusti il pie!
Dopo un certo tempo, i rinchiusi nello Spielberg ebbero
commutata la pena di morte in quella del carcere per la
durata di dieci, quindici, venti anni ciascuno. Le torture
che vi sofFrirono con invitta rassegnazione furono descritte
"senz'odio" dal Pellico nel suo mirabile libro Le mie prigioniy
che costo all'Austria I'esecrazione del mondo, mentre alle
GLI AUSTRIACI NELL'EMILIA (1831) 373
vittime della di lei tirannide frutto rimmortale qualifica-
zione di "martiri del Risorgimento Italiano".
VI
Le rivoluzioni del 1831 nel Ducato di Modena e Reggio
e nello Stato Romano. L' Austria, con la forza bruta dei
suoi soldati, impone la tirannide d'un suo principe e la
tirannide papale ai patrioti italiani lottanti per la liberta.
Persecuzioni e condanne.
La reazione infurio per dieci anni. Ma essa non pote
spegnere il fervore di liberta che agitava i vulcanici petti
degl'Italiani.
Schiacciata nel sud e nel nord, la rivoluzione scoppiava
nel centre della penisola. Giro Menotti, patriota di nobili e
fermi proponimenti, era riuscito, con I'ausilio d'animosi e
fidi compagni, a prepararla nel Ducato di Modena e Reggio,
dove I'austriaco Francesco IV tiranneggiava tanto barbara-
mente, da inchiodare con ceppi e collari di ferro i prigionieri
politici su tavolati di sotterranei resi micidiali dalla infiltra-
zione delle acque.
La rivoluzione, nel detto Stato, doveva scoppiare tra il
4 e il 5 febbraio 1831, Ma il 3 febbraio 1831 la polizia ducale,
messa sull'avviso dalle spie, comincio ad arrestare alcuni
cittadini sospetti.
Giro Menotti comprese che non c'era tempo da perdere.
Bisognava agire sollecitamente ed energicamente. La sera
stessa del 3 febbraio 183 1 egli riuni in casa sua i capi congiu-
rati, e con essi s'accingeva all'arduo cimento. Ma piombava
airimprovviso I'austriaco Francesco IV al comando di
ottocento soldati e due batterie.
La casa fu circondata, fucilata, cannoneggiata. I congiu-
rati si difesero eroicamente, lungamente. Alfine, il numero
e I'armi del tiranno ebbero il sopravvento.
Giro Menotti, ferito, grondante sangue, fu fatto prigio-
niero insieme coi suoi compagni.
L'austriaco Francesco IV, pazzo di gioia per la vittoria
374 PARTE PRIMA
riportata, spediva, rindomani, con una staffetta speciale,
al governatore di Reggio, la seguente lettera:
Questa notte e scoppiata la rivoluzione. Mandatemi il boia.
Francesco.
Laconismo cinico, mostrante I'idiotica pravita deiruomo
che pure i potentati d'Europa avevano creduto degno di
governare un popolo come I'italiano!
Nel frattempo era scoppiata la rivoluzione anche a
Bologna. La folia aveva staccato dal palazzo governativo
e frantumato lo stemma pontificio, sostituendolo con la
bandiera italiana bianca, rossa e verde; aveva scacciato dalla
citta il rappresentante della santa sede, dichiarando abolito
il potere temporale dei papi; aveva nominato una commis-
sione provvisoria, coU'incarico d'annunziare e preparare
le elezioni politiche e formare un governo costituzionale
definitivo.
L'impeto veemente della dotta Bologna era stato seguito
in un lampo da altre citta dell'Italia Centrale. La Romagna,
le Marche, I'Umbria si proclamarono libere.
L'austriaco Francesco IV ebbe paura; non si senti piii
sicuro a Modena; fuggi accompagnato da uno stuolo di birri
e dal boia e trascinando seco, in catene, Ciro Menotti "come
ostaggio"; riparo a Mantova, citta appartenente al Lom-
bardo-Veneto e, per conseguenza, aU'Austria, dove si mise
sotto la diretta protezione del cugino imperatore.
Verso i primi di marzo del 183 1, grossi eserciti austriaci
invasero il Ducato di Modena e Reggio e lo Stato Romano;
si scontrarono con i rivoluzionari, ch'erano, relativamente,
esigui di numero, male armati, peggio disciplinati; li bat-
terono senza sforzo; ripristinarono il potere dei tiranni.
L'austriaco Francesco IV pote rientrare nei suoi domini
il 9 marzo 183 1, covando, in cuor suo, infernali propositi di
vendetta.
Costitui infatti immediatamente un tribunale eccezio-
nale, incaricato di giudicare tutti coloro che a mano armata
*'o con occulte trame" avevano partecipato alia rivolta.
II primo ad essere condannato a morte fu Ciro Menotti.
II quale sub! con virile stoicismo I'estremo supplizio (I'impic-
LA NUOVA COSCIENZA NAZIONALE 375
cagione) il 26 maggio 183 1 su un bastione della citta-
della.
Nello stesso giorno "pen di laccio" I'avvocato Vincenzo
Borelli, colpevole d'avere compilato I'atto che dichiarava
I'austriaco Francesco IV decaduto dal trono.
Piu di cinquecento patrioti, cascati nelle granfie del
suddetto tribunale, furono condannati quali a morte, quali
alia galera. E piu di mille trovarono scampo prendendo la
triste via dell'esilio.
Non meno crudele fu la sorte toccata ai rivoluzionari
dello Stato Romano. Gregorio XVI (Mauro Cappellari di
Belluno), papa cipiglioso, intransigente, nemico d'ogni
umana liberta, riempi le carceri d'illibati cittadini; "adopero
senza risparmio il carnefice", e, a sostegno della tirannide da
lui impersonata, mantenne nei suoi domini, vale a dire
nello Stato Romano, per ben sette anni e a spese dell'erario,
parecchie migliaia di soldati austriaci. I quali non manca-
rono di compiere le solite gesta. Piii orrende, anzi, per la
semplice ragione ch'essi — quei barbari impenitenti — erano
fanaticamente inebriati dalla certezza di combattere per
I'onore e la gloria d'un principe del loro paese e del vicario
di Dio in terra.
Cos! i'ltalia ricadde piu serva, piii vile, piu derisa di
prima sotto il bastone dei tiranni interni ed esterni.
Cosi la Carboneria compiva nel campo attivo, infelice-
mente ma fecondamente, il suo nobile ciclo storico.
VII
Mazzini, Gioberti e altri grandi Italiani, con il loro
apostolato di pensiero e azione, formano la nuova
coscienza nazionale e obbligano i tiranni e i tirannelli
d'ltalia a concedere i benefizi della liberta ai popoli
oppressi. Solo 1' Austria, sprezzante e sfidante, s'ostina
a opprimere, con sempre maggiore crudelta, gl'Italiani
del Lombardo-Veneto.
Ma non indarno la magica parola liberta era echeggiata
alta e sonora per le rive del Tirreno, dell'Ionio, dell'Adriatico
e per le cime degli Apennini e dell'Alpi, risvegliando, inci-
tando, entusiasmando.
376 PARTE PRIMA
Non indarno mlgliaia di spirit! eletti avevano sublime-
mente sofferto il martirio e afFrontata la morte per la
patria.
Dalle sacre rovine rivoluzionarie del 1820, 1821 e 183 1
sorgeva — nume possente, austero, solenne — Giuseppe
Mazzini col fatidico motto della Giovine Italia da lui fondata
a Marsiglia nel 1832: "Dio e Popolo, liberta, uguaglianza,
umanita, indipendenza, unita"; sorgevano Vincenzo Gio-
berti, Alessandro Manzoni, Cesare Balbo, Massimo D'Aze-
glio, Francesco Domenico Guerrazzi, Giovan Battista Nicco-
lini, Terenzio Mamiani, Antonio Rosmini, Giuseppe Giusti,
Gino Capponi, Cesare Cantii, Niccolo Tommaseo, Giuseppe
Montanelli, Federico Sclopis, Ignazio Petitti, Giacomo
Durando, Carlo Cattaneo, Giuseppe Ferrari, Daniele Manin,
Ruggiero Settimo, Camillo Benso di Cavour, Alessandro
Poerio, Giuseppe Garibaldi e molti altri — filosofi, poeti,
giuristi, economist!, statist!, storici, eroi — tutti filialmente
rivolti, con la viva luce delle loro menti, con i vivi palpiti
dei loro cuori, alia gran Madre. La quale si trovava ancora
nello stato miserando in cu! Giacomo Leopard! — il poeta
del dolore — I'aveva vista e scolpita, con folgoreggianti
rime, in uno dei suo! magnanimi deliri lirici:
O patria mia, vedo le mura e gli archi
E le colonne e i simulacri e Terme
Torri degli av! nostri,
Ma la gloria non vedo,
Non vedo il lauro e il ferro ond'eran carchi
I nostri padri antichi. Or fatta inerme,
Nuda la fronte e nudo il petto mostri.
Oime quante ferite,
Che lividor, che sangue! oh qual ti veggio,
Formosissima donna! lo chiedo al cielo
E al mondo: dite, dite,
Chi la ridusse a tale? E questo e peggio,
Che di catene ha carche ambe le braccia;
Si che sparte le chiome e senza velo
Siede in terra negletta e sconsolata,
Nascondendo la faccia
Tra le ginocchia, e piange.
Piangi, che ben ha! donde, Italia mia.
LA NUOVA COSCIENZA NAZIONALE 377
Le gcnti a vincer nata
E nella fausta sorte e nella ria.
Se fosser gll occhi tuoi due fonti vive,
Mai non potrebbe il pianto
Adeguarsi al tuo danno ed alio scorno;
Che fosti donna, or sei povera ancella.
Chi di te parla o scrive,
Che, rimembrando il tuo passato vanto,
Non dica: gia fu grande, or non e quellal
Perche, perche? dov'e la forza antica,
Dove I'armi e il valore e la costanza?
Chi ti discinse il brando?
Chi ti tradi? qual arte o qual fatica
O qual tanta possanza
Valse a spogliarti il manto e I'auree bende?
Come cadesti e quando
Da tanta altezza in cosi basso loco?
Nessun pugna per te? Non ti difende
Nessun de' tuoi? L'armi, qua I'armi: io solo
Combattero, procombero sol io!
Dammi, o ciel, che sia foco
Agritalici petti il sangue mio.
Essi, i giganti sunnominati, sebbene discordi in alcuni
punti fondamentali delle loro idealita (Mazzini, per esempio,
voleva la repubblica con Roma capitale; Gioberti, la federa-
zione dei principi, con a capo il pontefice; qualche altro, la
monarchia con Carlo Alberto re), pur riuscirono, col loro
fervido e perseverante apostolato di pensiero e di azione, a
riaccendere la fade, a formare una nuova coscienza nazionale,
a spingere i tiranni sulla via delle riforme, ad affrettare
I'epopea della comune risurrezione.
Nel 1846 Giuseppe Giusti — il maggior poeta satirico del
secolo — sintetizzava il supremo desiderio degl'Italiani coi
seguenti versi:
Vogliam che ogni figlio d'Adamo
Conti per uomo, e non vogliam Tedeschi;
Vogliamo i Capi col capo; vogliamo
Leggi e Governi, e non vogliam Tedeschi.
Vogliamo, tutti, quanti siamo,
L'ltalia, Italia, e non vogliam Tedeschi;
378 PARTE PRIMA
VogHam pagar di borsa e di cervello,
E non vogliam Tedeschi.
II i6 giugno dello stesso anno 1846, veniva eletto papa il
cardlnale Giovanni Mastai Ferretti, il quale assumeva il
nome di Pio IX e iniziava il suo regno amnistiando i condan-
nati politici, nominando segretario di Stato il cardinale Gizzi
ch'era in fama di liberale, mitigando i rigori della censura
preventiva sulla stampa, istituendo una Consulta di Stato in
cui ciascuna provincia aveva i suoi rappresentanti, permet-
tendo I'ordinamento della guardia civica, esclamando pubbli-
camente dalle logge vaticane: *'Gran Dio, benedite I'ltalia!"
La gioia dei patrioti fu immensa, come immenso fu lo
stupore deir Austria. II principe Metternich fu udito
bofonchiare: "Tutto mi sarei aspettato, fuorche un papa
liberale!"
Gli altri dominatori dovettero seguire I'esempio di Roma.
II re delle Due Sicilie, Ferdinando II (successo a Fran-
cesco I morto durante il 1830), soprannominato "re Bomba"
perche troppo bigotto sospettoso ingiusto feroce, tento re-
sistere; ma una generale rivolta dei Siciliani, i quali costi-
tuironoungovernoprovvisorio sottola presidenzadi Ruggiero
Settimo (gennaio 1848) e le sollevazioni di Salerno e di
Napoli, lo costrinsero il 10 febbraio 1848 a promulgare una
Costituzione rappresentativa.
La stessa cosa fecero Leopoldo granduca di Toscana (17
febbraio 1848) e Carlo Alberto (4 marzo 1848) ch'era suc-
cesso nel trono di Sardegna a Carlo Felice morto durante
il 1831.
Anche Pio IX, che da principio, a dire il vero, non
intendeva compromettersi tanto, dove alfine (14 marzo
1848), incalzato dagli avvenimenti, concedere una Costitu-
zione.
Solo gl'Italiani del Lombardo-Veneto non potevano
godere i benefici della liberta. Essi, anzi, erano trattati
peggio di prima. L'imperiale governo austriaco, per mezzo
dei suoi spietati agenti fiscali, li tartassava, li taglieggiava,
li scorticava; per mezzo dei suoi soldatacci di presidio (quasi
centomila), li intimidiva, li inviliva, li scherniva; per mezzo
LE CINQUE GIORNATE DI MILANO 379
delle sue spie e dei suoi birri assoldati tra i piu brutti cefB
dei bassi fondi sociali, li insidiava, li difFamava, li gettava
senza scrupolo nelle adunche mani dei carnefici.
La vita, in quelle due disgraziate regioni italiane, era
diventata insopportabile.
VIII
Le rivoluzioni del 1848 in Italia. Milano insorge
contro la tiraimide austriaca e lotta epicamente per
cinque giorni. La soldataglia del feld-maresciallo
Radetzky (20,000 uomini di fanteria e di cavalleria con 60
cannoni da campo) fa strage d'innocenti : sotterra e arde
adulti e f anciulli vivi ; inchioda alle pareti bambini lattanti,
ne infilza alle baionette e li porta in giro come trofei;
oltraggia donne, le uccide, poi mozza e intasca le mani
inanellate dei cadaveri; ruba, insozza, massacra,
incendia, commette infiniti orrendissimi delitti. E il
popolo milanese — eroico e vittorioso — risponde con
civile generosita al male ricevuto. Venezia insorge
anch'essa, scaccia gli Austriaci oppressor! e ricostituisce
I'antica Repubblica di San Marco.
II 17 marzo 1848 alcuni cittadini milanesi si presentarono
al feld-maresciallo Giuseppe Venceslao Radetzky governa-
tore generale della Lombardia con pieni poteri civili e mili-
tari, per pregarlo di trattare piii umanamente il popolo; ma
furono accolti a fucilate, e molti uccisi, molti feriti, molti
trascinati in carcere.
La misura era colma: trabocco. Per la citta, la quale
allora non aveva che un perimetro di 12 chilometri e non
contava che 200,000 anime, corse un leonino fremito d'indi-
gnazione, foriero di tempesta.
II Radetzky vide I'addensarsi delle nubi, il balenar dei
lampi, I'oscuro pericolo che gli sovrastava; strinse le labbra,
corrugo la fronte, penso ai ripari.
Egli aveva in Milano ventiquattro battaglioni di fan-
teria e sei squadroni di cavalleria (20,000 uomini in tutto)
con sessanta cannoni da campo. Fece immediatamente
380 PARTE PRIMA
chiudere e rigorosamente guardare le porte della citta, per
impedire che ai ribelli giungessero rinforzi dalla campagna;
riverso gran parte dell'esercito e pianto i cannoni di grosso
calibro nei quartieri centrali piu irrequieti; comando alia
cavalleria di perlustrare fuori e dentro le mura, sciogliere gli
assembramenti, frustrare ogni tentativo di dimostrazione;
dispose insomma le cose da par suo.
I Milanesi, dal canto loro, non se ne stettero con le mani
in mano. Lavorarono anch'essi alacremente. Nominarono,
prima di tutto, un Comitato di Guerra presieduto dal
mazziniano Carlo Cattaneo, uomo di bell'ingegno, probo
integro onesto, educato alia scuola dell'insigne filosofo Gian
Domenico Romagnosi che I'Austria aveva perseguitato nel
1821; poi — con pietre e legna, veicoli, botti, barili, sacchi
pieni di terra, porte, finestre, mobili, balle di cotone e altra
roba — costruirono in poche ore piii di 700 barricate;
s'armarono di vecchi schioppi (ai cittadini erano stati seque-
strati dal Radetzky i fucili di nuovo modello); brandirono
bastoni, tridenti, falci, accette, spiedi, coltelli, forchette.
E, all'alba del 18 marzo 1848, suonarono le campane a
stormo.
Rispose ben presto il rombo dei cannoni.
La guerra e, senza dubbio, la piii triste conseguenza
delle concitate passioni; e vita per vita; e carneficina. Ma
non sempre (la Storia insegna) il cuore dei combattenti
rimane chiuso a ogni senso d'umanita.
Nella lotta tra gli Austriaci e i Milanesi durata cinque
giorni (dal 18 al 22 marzo 1848), i primi — i soldati austriaci
— commisero, o, meglio, ripeterono con diabolica volutta
(maledetto vizio ereditario!) le efferatezze delle antiche orde
barbariche; i secondi — i Milanesi — , invece, compirono
atti d'eroismo in cui I'odio e il furore tacquero piii d'una
volta, per far posto alia compassione verso i nemici caduti.
Eccone le prove.
II 18 marzo 1848 (le ostilita erano appena incominciate;
gli animi, dunque, non erano ancora inaspriti in nessuna
delle due parti) alcuni manipoli di cavalleria austriaca, in
perlustrazione tra porta Tenaglia e porta Vercellina, s'im-
battono in tre carrozze trasportanti vecchi, donne e fanciulli,
LE CINQUE GIORNATE DI MILANO 381
i quali tentano sottrarsi con la fuga alia bufera che sta per
imperversare sulla citta. I soldatacci s'avventano contro le
vetture, le fermano, frangono a sciabolate gli sportelli,
ammazzano un cocchiere, apostrofano gl'innocui fuggitivi, li
terrorizzano, li traducono al Castello "come fossero buona
cattura di guerra", e ivi li maltrattano, li trucidano, ne
bruciano i corpi. "Entratovi il sesto giorno (23 marzo 1848)
— cosi Salvatore Mazza — con un'onda di popolo per esplo-
rare, nel cortile di sinistra si presento uno spettacolo racca-
pricciante: tra un'informe congerie di ceneri e di rottami,
scernevansi le vestigia di tre carrozze, cerchioni e mozzi di
ruote, crani di cavalli, gambe e braccia umane staccate dai
busti, bruciacchiate, calpeste!"
Altri soldatacci austriaci irrompono in una casa alia
Cavalchina; mettono tutto a soqquadro; trovano timida-
mente nascosto con la propria famigliola un giovane ragio-
niere che non aveva avuto il coraggio di prendere parte all'in-
surrezione, e lo freddano con parecchie fucilate alia testa.
La moglie del disgraziato, fuori di se dal dolore, s'inginoc-
chia ai piedi dei carnefici e, singhiozzando, implora pieta
almeno per la bambina che le sta al petto. I vigliacchissimi,
per tutta risposta, sghignano satanicamente e scaricano i
loro fucili sul viso dell'innocente creaturina!
Altri soldatacci austriaci penetrano nella canonica di
San Bartolomeo; vi manomettono ogni cosa; insultano e
fanno **prigionieri" tutti coloro che incontrano; sorprendono
in una cameretta il parroco che, solo silenzioso raccolto, sta
scrivendo una predica quaresimale per i suoi fedeli; lo
scherniscono bestemmiando; lo ghermiscono per il collo, lo
scotono, lo squassano, lo scaraventano al suolo, lo straziano
orrendamente con i calci dei fucili e le punte delle baionette!
Altri soldatacci austriaci invadono il setificio Fortis; lo
rovistano, lo disordinano, lo scompigliano, guastano le mac-
chine, spezzano i telai, insudiciano e sbrindellano le stoffe,
ammazzano i lavoranti, passano negli appartamenti privati,
rompono i mobili, scassinano e rapinano gli scrigni pieni di
contante e di gioielli, ammazzano altre persone, scendono
nelle cantine, bucano le botti, trincano, s'ubriacano. E
quando la sera si ritirano, carichi del denaro e degli oggetti
382 PARTE PRIAIA
preziosi rubati e con le facce, le mani, le monture coperte
dl polvere e intrise di sangue, i ladroni assassini non lasciano
alle loro spalle che mucchi di rovine e di cadaveri!
Altri soldatacci austriaci il 19 marzo 1848 corrono,
spumanti di rabbia, in una casa dalla quale sospettano che
sieno state tirate alcune sassate contro di loro; imprecano,
strillano, schiamazzano, atterrano le porte, fracassano i
mobili, uccidono i primi innocenti che incontrano, dichiarano
"prigionieri" quelli che restano miracolosamente vivi, li
incatenano, li insultano, li precipitano dalle scale; poi abbat-
tono la porta d'un'attigua botteguccia da calzolaio, saltano
addosso a una povera vecchia ottuagenaria paralitica (la
madre del calzolazio) che sviene istantaneamente dalla
paura, la rotolano sul pavimento, la calpestano, la riducono
un cencio
Altri soldatacci austriaci, anche fuori Porta Tenaglia,
arrestano una diligenza diretta a Saronno, ammazzano i
cavalli e il cocchiere a colpi di fucile, trascinano i nove
passeggieri in un vicino orto e ivi li sotterrano vivi!
Altri soldatacci austriaci, mentre commettono ogni sorta
di stragi nelle vie Sambuco e Scaldasole, s'introducono in
una casuccia, vi trovano un uomo mezzo infermo, lo tempe-
stano di pugni e dicalci, e poi lo crocifiggono con chiodi a una
parete!
Altri soldatacci austriaci assalgono, tra il corso di Porta
Comasina e la via Santa Teresa, una casa nella quale si son
rifugiate cinque donne; la saccheggiano, I'incendiano, spin-
gono brutalmente nelle fiamme le tre donne piii anziane che
invano si dibattono per salvarsi, e le ardono vive; poi
afFerrano le due piu giovani, le legano con le braccia dietro le
spalle e, durante la notte, le trascinano al prossimo bastione,
le violentano turpemente, le appendono a un albero e, cosi
penzoloni, le tormentano con parolacce, risatacce, sputi sul
viso; le fucilano, le crivellano di ferite, tra rochi urrd di
trionfo!
Altri soldatacci austriaci entrano nella casa di Giovanna
Piazza e in quella attigua della vedova Caravati, e scannano
il figlio e il fratello della prima e il figlio della seconda!
Altri soldatacci austriaci entrano in un cortile del vicolo
LE CINQUE GIORNATE DI MILANO 383
detto "Stretto Calasca", dove abitano parecchie famiglie
operaie; s'avventano "come orde di sfrenate belve sulle
prime persone che incontrano, e, senza riguardi di sorta a
vecchi, donne o fanciulli, e non ascoltando ne grida ne
preghiere, a calci, a pugni, a colpi d'ogni maniera, rovesciano
a terra tutti; poi afFerrano Giuseppe Gambaroni d'anni 58
ammogliato, Antonio Piatti d'anni 28 celibe e il sedicenne
Giuseppe Belloni, li trascinano in un orto vicino e ivi, da
uno all'altro — i soldatacci austriaci — se li gettano contro,
urtandoli e ricevendoli a colpi di sciabola e di baionetta",
mentre la moglie del Gambaroni e i genitori e le sorelle del
Piatti e del Belloni, piangendo, invocano invano miseri-
cordia. Infine, per aumentare il tormento dei tre disgraziati
e per meglio *'godere" dello spettacolo, vari ussari austria-
ci, appositamente scesi dai loro cavalli, e fanti del reggi-
mento Paumgarten, vanno in cerca di paglia, ritornano poco
dopo con alcuni pagliericci, buttano il contenuto di questi
addosso ai tre malcapitati cittadini, e vi appiccano il fuoco.
E allorquando i tormentati, agonizzanti, tentano con le loro
estreme forze di sfuggire al supplizio, i soldatacci austriaci,
urlando freneticamente, li rintuzzano nelle fiamme con le
punte delle loro baionette e costringono i parenti delle
vittime ad assistere all'orrenda scena!
Altri soldatacci austriaci entrano in una casa, odono un
pargolo che vagisce, lo levano dalla cuUa, gli appoggiano
le manine al muro, I'inchiodano "come fosse un pipistrello
od altra bestia", e con un colpo di baionetta stendono morta
a terra la madre!
Altri soldatacci austriaci infilzano alle loro baionette
inastate altri bambini lattanti, e li portano in giro come
trofei!
Altri soldatacci austriaci mozzano bianche e leggiadre
mani di donne uccise, adorne di preziosi anelli, e se le
conservano in tasca!
Altri soldatacci austriaci trucidano e bruciano intere
famiglie di donne e di fanciulli, commettono altri orrendi
misfatti e non solo nella citta, ma anche nei sobborghi.
1 Croati — cosi una narrazione inviata il 10 aprile 1848 da
Milano a Venezia — infierirono, piii che sugli uomini, sulle donne
384 PARTE PRIMA
e sui bambini. In una casa furono trovati tredici scannati, tra
i quali una madre con due bambini in braccio, uno dei quali senza
testa, Taltro con una baionetta confitta dal mento in su. Un
altro bambino fu spaccato per lungo, e i due pezzi furono inchiodati
alle muraglie. Un altro fu bagnato nell'acqua ragia e poi bruciato.
Una bambina fu infilzata pel dietro e portata sulla baionetta in
canna. A una donna fu cavato il cuore dal petto e poi cotto.
Un bimbo di 40 giorni fu fatto a bocconi e cotto anch'esso.^
Quanta difFerenza dalla parte opposta, degna del latin
sangue gentile!
II seguente episodic (potrei narrarne molti, ma non lo
faccio per amore di brevita e per ragioni di delicatezza
facili a comprendersi) bastera da solo a dare un'idea della
civile generosita con la quale il popolo milanese corrispose al
male ricevuto.
I poliziotti, fin dall'inizio delle ostilita, avevano degna-
mente coadiuvato nelle gesta criminose i soldatacci austriaci.
Ma una notte, mentre essi — i poliziotti — dalle finestre dei
loro uffizi central! "godevano" a sparare e ucciderele persone
che passavano per le adiacenti vie, furono avvisati che
gl'insorti stavano per arrivare, forti impetuosi vittoriosi.
Gli sgherri impallidirono, tremarono, se la diedero a gambe
come lepri e, nel fuggi fuggi, dimenticarono di chiamare il
loro capo — un certo Bolza — che s'era ritirato in una stanza
attigua per mangiare e poi dormire.
Questo Bolza — **un oriundo villano, piccolo adiposo
deforme, che sentiva dello scimio e della tigre" — era state
per lunghi anni il piii fido e zelante cagnotto dell'Austria e,
come tale, il terrore della Lombardia. Egli aveva fatto
malvagiamente condannare centinaia di patriot! a morte,
alia galera, all'esilio; aveva crudelmente gettato centinaia
di famiglie nel lutto e nella miseria. L'imperatore Francesco
I, per siffatti servigi, I'aveva nominate conte. Ma il popolo
lo detestava, I'esecrava.
Al clamore degl'insorti invadenti gli uffici polizieschi
acclamando all'Italia, il ribaldo, che stava saporitamente
* Vedere, per queste incredibili mostruosita, i documenti conservati negli
Archivl di Milano, i rapporti consolari, i giornali e gli opuscoli del tempo, nonche
Le Cinque Giornate dello stesso Carlo Cattaneo e di altri autorevoli storici.
LE CINQUE GIORNATE DI MILANO 385
sonnecchiando e russando, trasali, allividi, afflosci; ma non
perse tempo: raccatto e intasco i rimasuglioli della cena con-
sistent! in un po'di pane e cacio (le anime di fango hanno
sempre vivo e pronto I'istinto animalesco della propria
conservazione), e corse a nascondersi sotto un mucchio di
paglia. Fu subito scoperto e tratto fuori. Era sudicio,
Aveva gli occhi stralunati. Batteva i denti. Bofonchiava.
Si chiamava in colpa. Impetrava la grazia d'essere lasciato
vivo, promettendo, in cambio, rivelazioni della massima
importanza. Faceva schifo!
Gl'insorti rumoreggiavano. I piu focosi volevano, sen-
z'altro, sbranare I'aguzzino. I piii calmi s'opposero. Allora
si mando per consiglio a Carlo Cattaneo. II quale rispose
con queste divine parole: "Se I'ammazzate, fate una cosa
non giusta; se non I'ammazzate, fate una cosa santa". I
membri del Consiglio di Guerra — Enrico Cernuschi,
Giulio Terzaghi e Giorgio Clerici — s'afFrettarono a confer-
mare e corroborare la sentenza del loro magnanimo presi-
dente, pubblicando e difFondendo il seguente manifesto:
Prodi cittadini! Conserviamo pura la nostra vittoria. Non
discendiamo a vendicarci nel sangue di quei miserabili satelliti che
il potere fuggitivo lascia nelle nostra mani. £ vero che, per
trent'anni, essi furono il flagello delle nostre famiglie. Ma voi
siete generosi come siete prodi. Puniteli col vostro disprezzo!
II 22 marzo 1848 le truppe austriache fuggono davvero,
sconfitte, "portandosi in ostaggio parecchi cittadini legati
innanzi alle bocche dei cannoni con le micce accese!"
L'umiliante tirannia dei barbari in Italia e finita. Le
duecento campane della superba metropoli lombarda sonano
a festa. La bandiera nazionale bianca, rossa e verde sventola
trionfante e gloriosa sui pinnacoli del Duomo, sulle logge dei
pubblici edifizi, ai balconi e alle finestre delle case private.
I cittadini corrono per le vie e per le piazze, piangendo,
ridendo. abbracciandosi, baciandosi, gridando: "Viva la
liberta! Viva I'ltalial"
Subito dopo, il vice console inglese a Milano, Roberto
Campbell, mandava a lord Palmerston una dettagliata
relazione dei fatti. Dopo la descrizione delle atrocita
3S6 PARTE PRIMA
commesse dai soldati austriaci e degli atti di grandezza
d'animo compiuti dal popolo milanese, la detta relazione
chiudeva cosi:
Per ora e impossibile dare, in alcuna guisa, il numero appros-
simativo dei morti e dei feriti nei combattimenti di questi cinque
giorni. Per efFetto dei rigorosi ordini e del buon sistema del
Governo Provvisorio (titolo ora assunto dal Municipio), regna
qui la pill perfetta tranquillita. Come si poteva aspettare,
I'esuberante gaudio della riportata vittoria rese i Milanesi quasi
deliranti. Ma non si commise eccesso di veruna sorta.
E V Allgemeine Zeitung del 2 aprile 1848 pubblicava la
seguente lettera inviatale da un suo speciale corrispondente
tedesco da Milano il 28 marzo 1848:
Un tremendo cannoneggiamento coperse la ritirata austriaca,
alia quale non si pote porre ostacolo. AUora finalmente divenne
possibile riconoscere alquanto dappresso tutte le crudelta che le
truppe austriache eransi permesse. Nei rioni si rinvennero intere
famiglie di vecchi, donne, fanciuUi e lattanti orribilmente trucidati
e mutilati. Dei cittadini incarcerati dagli Austriaci nei Castello,
alcuni erano stati fucilati, altri condotti via in ostaggio. Ovunque
si guardasse, si vedeva sangue. Ovunque si era saccheggiato e
incendiato. Parecchi ragguagli di queste scelleratezze mi stanno
sott'occbi; la mia penna rifugge dall'annoverarle. M'e piii caro
in cio rimanermi al di sotto del vero, per passare all'opposta parte,
onde mi viene un dolce conforto. Grande e sublime fu la con-
dotta dei Lombardi; le prime vittorie furono da loro conseguite
senz'armi; fu necessario sveller queste dalle mani del nemico, ed
essi — i Lombardi — I'osarono e lo compirono. Onore al loro
coraggio! Grande e sublime fu il modo in che essi usarono la
vittoria; questa non fu macchiata da un solo atto di vendetta;
tutti gli Austriaci feriti vennero dai Lombardi medicati e assistiti
come fratelli; tutti i prigionieri furono accuratamente, ma con la
piu grande indulgenza, custoditi; essi non mancano di nulla.
E, per dire tutto, I'essere piu aborrito in Milano, il commissario di
polizia — Bolza — che fu preso, ebbe salva la vita.
I Lombardi aggiunsero al disprezzo della morte, durante il
combattimento, una sublime magnanimita. La Storia, che tutto
giudica, ne tramandera memoria ai posteri.
Anche i Veneziani erano insorti.
LA GUERRA DEL 1848 387
Essi avevano presentata al governatore austriaco una
domanda di riforme firmata dallo statista Daniele Manin e
dal letterato Niccolo Tommaseo\ uomini di rare virtu civili
e morali, assai stimati dal popolo.
Ma il governatore aveva risposto facendo arrestare e
chiudere nelle buie segrete dei Piombiy e minacciare di grave
pena, i due "audaci" firmatari.
Allora i cittadini avvamparono di sdegno, invasero
I'arsenale, si fornirono d'armi e munizioni, corsero ruggendo
alle carceri, atterrarono le porte, presero i due chiari patrioti,
se li caricarono sulle spalle, li portarono fuori in trionfo,
affrontarono le truppe degli oppressori, le costrinsero a
sgomberare in fretta e furia la citta, ricostituirono (22 marzo
1848) I'antica Repubblica di San Marco, nominando doge lo
stesso Manin e ministro della Pubblica Istruzione il Tomma-
seo, respirarono, finalmente, al pari dei fratelli lombardi, le
dolci aure della liberta.
IX
L'inno di Mameli. La prima guerra di liberazione.
Gl'Italiani sono sconfitti per colpa di Pio IX e del Borbone
delle Due Sicilie. Gli Austriaci nuovamente dominatori
della Lombardia (1848).
Scacciati da Milano, da Venezia e da altre citta del
Lombardo-Veneto, gli Austriaci si rifugiarono nelle fortifica-
zioni del quadrilatero Verona-Peschiera-Mantova-Legnago.
E ivi si preparavano alia rivincita ; si preparavano, cioe, a repri-
mere con nuove carneficine lo spirito politico d'indipendenza
e d'unita che scaldava gl'Italiani, rendendoli sempre piii
gagliardi attivi irresistibili.
Ma Carlo Alberto, pressato da ogni parte, accorre con un
esercito di 25,000 uomini in aiuto dei fratelli minacciati
ancora una volta dal prepotente imperialismo straniero.
E nel varcare il Ticino (ultimi di marzo 1848), egli invita i
^Niccolo Tommaseo, insigne letterato, critico, educatore italiano di Sebenico
(Dalmazia), autore del Dizionario della Lingua Italiana, Nuovo Dizionario dei
Sinonimi, Dizionario Estetico, DeW Educazione e di molti altri important! lavori
(1802- I 874).
388 PARTE PRIMA
principi degli altri Stati d'ltalia a voler partecipare con lui
alia guerra santa, mentre il poeta ventunenne Goffredo
Mameli infiamma gli animi col seguente inno fatidico:
Fratelli d'ltalia,
L'ltalia s'e desta;
deU'elmo di Scipio *
s'e cinta la testa;
dov'e la vittoria?
Le porga la chioma,
che schiava di Roma
Iddio la creo.
Stringiamci a coorte,
Siam pronti alia morte,
Italia chiamo.
Noi siamo da secoli
calpesti e derisi,
perche non siam popolo,
perche siam divisi;
raccolgaci un'unica
bandiera, una speme;
di fonderci insieme
gia I'ora suono.
Stringiamci a coorte,
siam pronti alia morte,
Italia chiamo.
Uniamoci, amiamoci,
I'unione e I'amore
rivelano ai popoli
le vie del Signore;
giuriamo far libero
il suolo natio;
uniti per Dio
chi vincer ci puo?
Stringiamci a coorte,
siam pronti alia morte,
Italia chiamo.
^ Scipio: abbrevlazione di Scipione I'Jfricano, i! potentissimo guerriero
romano che vinse Annibale il Grande a Zama (202 avanti Cristo).
LA GUERRA DEL 1848 389
Dall'Alpe a Sicilia
ovunque e Legnano ^;
ogn'uom di Ferruccio ^
ha il core, la mano;
i bimbi d'ltalia
si chiaman Balilla;
il suon d'ogni squilla
i Vespri ^ suono.
Stringiamci a coorte,
siam pronti alia morte,
Italia chiamo.
Son giunchi che piegano
le spade vendute;
gia I'aquila d'Austria
le penne ha perdute.
il sangue d'ltalia
e il sangue Polacco
beve col Cosacco
ma il cor le brucio.
Stringiamci a coorte,
siam pronti alia morte,
Italia chiamo.
La penisola diventa tutt'a un tratto un vulcano in
eruzione. Non s'ode che un grido: **Fuori gli Austriacil"
11 granduca Leopoldo di Toscana e costretto dall'entusia-
smo popolare a mandare ottomila uomini, tra regolari e
volontari, sui campi del settentrione. Pio IX e costretto a
mandarne diecimila. Ferdinando II delle Due Sicilie e
costretto a mandarne sedicimila al comando del generale
Guglielmo Pepe ritornato in Napoli dopo 27 anni d'esilio.
I potentati italiani minori sono costretti a mandarne
anch'essi in proporzione dei loro domini.
I partenti, coi petti fregiati di coccarde tricolori, cantano
I'inno di Mameli e altri inni bellici estemporanei esaltanti
^ Nei pressi di Legnano, citta della Lombardia, gl'Italiani sbaragliarono
I'esercito di Federico Barbarossa il 29 maggio 1176.
* Francesco Ferruccio fu I'eroico difensore della Repubblica fiorentina contro
le armi dell'imperatore Carlo V e del papa Clemente VII nel 1530.
^ L'insurrezione della Sicilia contro I'insolente signoria francese (nel pomeriggio
del 31 marzo 1282) passo nella Storia col nome di Vespri Siciliani.
390 PARTE PRIMA
la patria ed esecranti il nemico. E le donne spargono fiorl
sui passi dei figli, dei fratelli, degli sposi; fanno auguri;
benedicono.
Si vincono i primi combattimenti. Si vince la battaglia
di Goito (30 maggio 1848). La sera stessa si prende la
piazza forte di Peschiera. La fortuna deH'armi arride
ovunque al buon diritto. La Lombardia e Venezia, nel
colmo della gioia, votano la loro annessione al Piemonte.
Ma questi fatti straordinari e imprevisti turbano i
tiranni. Pio IX s'afFretta a richiamare le sue truppe, col
pretesto ch'egli, nella qualita di capo della Chiesa, non pud
partecipare a una guerra tra Cristiani. II re delle Due
Sicilie abolisce la Costituzione, inferocisce contro i cittadini,
comanda anch'egli ai suoi soldati di ritornarsene immediata-
mente indietro.
I pusillanimi, disgraziatamente non pochi, obbediscono.
Invece il generale pontificio Giovanni Durando e il generate
Pepe, coi generosi rimasti fedeli alia causa nazionale, prose-
guono arditamente il loro cammino.
Non si puo pero evitare che la defezione del papa e del
Borbone produca nelle file dell'esercito liberatore una certa
demoralizzazione.
Radetzky ne profitta: e, spalleggiato dai generali Nugent
e Welden, giunti sui campi lombardi con numerose truppe di
rinforzo, prende I'ofFensiva, sconfigge gl'Italiani a Custoza,
(15 luglio 1848); rientra da burbanzoso conquistatore in
Milano (6 agosto 1848); obbliga Carlo Alberto a chiedere un
armistizio e a rivarcare il Ticino; impone di nuovo sulle
terre riconquistate il giogo della servitii.
Solo Venezia non e subito piegata a tanto danno. Essa
ricostituisce la Repubblica e riaffida il dogato a Manin.
II generale Pepe, con le "reliquie" dell'esercito meri-
dionale, si trincera entro i confini della Laguna, e s'accinge a
gloriosa difesa.
E i Viennesi, dopo una sanguinosa insurrezione, impongo-
no aH'imperatore Ferdinando I di cedere la corona al nipote
Francesco Giuseppe.
VANDALISMI AUSTRIACI (1848) 391
X
I soldati austriaci, rientrati in Milano, s'abbandonano
a ogni sorta di rapine e vandalismi. II feld-maresciallo
Radetzky estorce " una taglia straordinaria di venti
milioni di lire a 185 nobili e cospicui cittadini" (1848).
A Milano il Radetzky annunzio subito d'avere accentrato
nelle sue mani tutti i poteri pubblici civili e militari; dichiaro
la citta in istato d'assedio; fece bastonare e fucilare quei
patrioti eminent! che non avevano avuto il tempo o I'accor-
tezza di mettersi in salvo; fece prendere a vergate persino
donne e fanciulli; commise, com'al solito, soverchierie, vi-
gliaccherie, delitti d'ogni sorta.
"Ristabilito cosi I'ordine", il barbaro maresciallo lascio
il campo libero alle sue truppe.
Queste si mostrarono degne del loro superiore. Ufficiali
e soldati, in maggior parte croati e boemi, occuparono le case
dei fuggiaschi, con preferenza quelle dei patrizi che s'erano
distinti piu degli altri nei giorni della rivoluzione: e le
soqquadrarono e arrafFarono dalle cantine alle soffitte; vi
smattonarono i pavimenti di marmo; fransero gli speech! e i
vasi; gettarono gli archivi nei cortili; lacerarono le tappezze-
rie; bruttarono i dipinti; fecero cucina nelle pinacoteche;
bruciarono mobili, libri, pergamene d'inestimabile pregio;
regalarono le vesti di seta e le biancherie di lino delle dame
alle male femmine che li seguivano; intascarono tutto cio che
poteva essere intascato; s'abbandonarono a saccheggi, a
vandalismi, ad orge piu che bestiali. E non eran sazi.
Volevan denaro. Penso il Radetzky ad estorcerlo, impo-
nendo una **taglia straordinaria di venti milioni di lire a
carico di nobili e cospicui cittadini", dopo ch'egli aveva
preteso dal popolo il pagamento di tributi raddoppiati e
cento altre gravezze.
Ho determinate — cosi comandava per iscritto il tirannico ma-
resciallo austriaco — che debbano essere sottoposti a contribuzione
straordinaria i membri del cessato Governo Provvisorio; quelli che
ebbero parte precipua nei vari cosidetti Comitati; colore che si
392 PARTE PRIMA
posero alia testa della rlvoluzione e vi hanno concorso colla loro
opera e coi loro mezzi materiali o inteliettuali.
I designati furono 185.
La militaresca galanteria austriaca impose a una signora
— alia principessa Cristina di Belgioioso — la quota piii
alta: 8oo,cxx) lire. Seguirono immediatamente, con quote
poco minori, il duca Visconti di Mondrone, il conte Vitaliano
Borromeo e il duca Litta. La quota piu infima a carico dei
patrizi fu di 10,000 lire. I banchieri e i negozianti — come
i Milius, i Mondolfo, i Ponti, i Raymmi, i SeufFerheld —
dovettero pagare 50,000 lire ciascuno. E 300.000 lire dove
pagarle perfino I'Ospedale Maggiore!
Si puo immaginare lo stato miserando in cui si trovava
la sventurata metropoli lombarda negli ultimi mesi del 1848.
XI
L'insurrezione di Roma. E ucciso il primo ministro
pontificio Pellegrino Rossi. Pio IX fugge di notte a
Gaeta. Proclamazione della Repubblica Romana con a
capo Mazzini, Saffi e Armellini. La seconda guerra di
liberazione contro 1' Austria. Gl'Italiani sono sconfitti
per colpa dei loro comandanti. Carlo Alberto e costretto
ad abdicare in favore di suo figlio Vittorio Emanuele.
Gli Austriaci, rimbaldanziti, estendono la loro tirannide
sul Piemonte (1849).
Ma la sconfitta non iscoraggi gl'Italiani. Li rese anzi
piu arditi e alacri. Li ritempro.
A Roma il popolo insorse contro il governo retrogrado di
Pio IX che aveva tradito la causa nazionale; uccise (15
novembre 1848) il primo ministro Pellegrino Rossi che aveva
preparato I'arresto e I'espulsione dei piii noti agitatori
patriottici; obbligo lo stesso pontefice a lasciare di notte la
capitale e riparare a Gaeta, dove allora si trovava anche il re
delle Due Sicilie; elesse un'Assemblea Costituente, la quale,
dopo lunga e animata discussione, approve e pubblico (9
febbraio 1849) un decreto dichiarante il papato "decaduto
LA GUERRA DEL 1849 393
di dirltto e di fatto dal governo temporale dello Stato
Romano" e proclamante la Repubblica con a capo un
triumvirato composto di Mazzini, Aurelio Saffi e Carlo
Armellini (marzo 1849).
In Toscana il popolo fece reiterate dimostrazioni irreden-
tiste; obbligo il granduca Leopoldo a seguire il transfuga
vicario di Cristo nella sua corsa verso Gaeta; affido la cosa
pubblica a Guerrazzi, Giuseppe Montanelli e Giuseppe
Mazzoni.
Nelle altre parti della penisola il popolo era del pari
irrequieto; voleva novamente la guerra, la guerra ad ogni
costo, a tutt'oltranza.
Noi vogliamo la guerra, la guerra,
finche resti all'Italia un guerrier,
finche i raggi dell'italo sole
segnin Tombra d'un solo stranier.
{Arnaldo Fusinato)
finche sia schiavo un angolo
dell'itala contrada,
finche non sia I'ltalia
una dall'Alpi al mar.
{Go ff redo Mameli).
Carlo Alberto il 12 marzo 1849 dove disdire la tregua
concordata con gli Austriaci Tanno avanti; dove riprendere
le ostilita.
I novantamila Italiani ch'egli comandava erano forti,
generosi, entusiasti, pronti a qualunque sacrifizio per il bene
della patria. Scontratisi con I'esercito nemico, essi si batte-
rono con impeto e resistenza mirabili; ma furono vinti il 21
marzo 1849 a Mortara e il 23 marzo 1849 alia Bicocca presso
Novara, per I'inettitudine militare dello stesso re e degli
altri comandanti. Una vera catastrofe!
Carlo Alberto si vide forzato a chiedere, come nel 1848,
un armistizio. Ma le condizioni imposte dagli Austriaci
erano cosi onerose e disonorevoli, ch'egli non pote accettarle.
Allora non gli resto altro che abdicare. La sera, tardi, si
raccolse coi figli e coi generali superstiti sotto le mura della
fatale citta (Novara), e ivi fece il gran passo, pronunziando
le seguenti parole:
394 PARTE PRIMA
Ho sempre fatto ogni mio possibile per la causa d* Italia. Mi
e dolorosissimo vedere fallite le mie speranze. Forse la mia
persona e il solo ostacolo ad ottenere dal nemico un equo accordo.
E siccome non vi e piu mezzo di continuare la guerra, cosi rinunzio
in questo istante la corona in favore di mio figlio Vittorio Emanuele,
nella lusinga ch'egli possa conseguire migliori patti e procurare al
paese una pace vantaggiosa.
A mezzanotte il vinto re, assumendo il nome di Conte di
Barge, partiva tristemente per I'esilio, accompagnato da un
solo servo. Si reco ad Oporto (Portogallo), dove moriquattro
mesi dopo in un convent© di gesuiti.
II giovane re Vittorio Emanuele II s'incontro immediata-
mente col Radetzky nel campo austriaco di Vignale. Egli
dove far buon viso a cattiva fortuna; dove, cioe, firmare un
armistizio, col quale s'obbligo di riconoscere nei vincitori il
diritto d'occupare militarmente la citta d'Alessandria e il
territorio compreso tra il Po, la Sesia e il Ticino; s'obbligo
di ritirare la flotta piemontese dalle acque dell'Adriatico
spedita al principio della guerra, cio che significava I'ab-
bandono completo di Venezia nelle mani del nemico; s'ob-
bligo di pagare — ed effettivamente pago a pace conclusa —
settantacinque milioni di lire come indennita di guerra.
Le catene furono cos! ribadite. II grifagno uccellaccio
degli Asburgo continue a divorare il cuore degl'Italiani,
proprio come I'avvoltoio del mitologico Prometeo!
XII
La " leonessa d'ltalia". I soldatacci austriaci a
Brescia " scagliano giu dalle finestre, contro le barricate
erette dai cittadini, teste di teneri fanciuUi divelte dai
busti, braccia di donne e carni umane abbrustolite",
e commettono altre incredibili scelleratezze. La tragica
vendetta d'un giovane bresciano arso vivo (1849).
Le prime notizie giunte nel Lombardo-Veneto fecero
credere che gli Austriaci, non gl'Italiani, erano stati sconfitti
a Novara il 23 marzo 1849.
Si puo immaginare I'esultanza dei patrioti.
LA LEONESSA D'lTALIA (1849) 395
Quei di Brescia s'armarono, inneggiando alia vittoria,
e ingiunsero ai soldati austriaci di presidio (cinquecento in
tutto; gli altri erano andati alia guerra) di sgomberare subito
la terra che non era loro.
Gli Austriaci risposero mandando a chiedere in segreto
urgenti aiuti; poi si rinchiusero nel castello sovrastante alia
citta, che in antecedenza avevano riempito di vettovaglie e
munizioni, e da quell'alto propugnacolo cominciarono a
scaricare fucilate e cannonate.
I Bresciani non si sgomentarono; afFrontarono con animo
risuluto e con polso gagliardo la lotta; pugnarono con ardore
e valore persistenti; e gia stavano per avere il sopravvento,
quando piombarono da Verona i primi aiuti nemici: una
colonna di truppa con numerosa artiglieria al comando del
generale Nugent. Costui fece immediatamente sapere
ch'egli doveva entrare per amore o per forza nella citta.
"Meglio, dunque, che i ribelli distruggessero le barricate
erette, deponessero le armi, s'arrendessero a discrezione".
Egli dava quattr'ore di tempo per la risposta, "mentre a
stento frenava i soldati, e per misericordia faceva tacere i
cannoni".
A sifFatta tracotanza, i cittadini arsero di sdegno e gri-
darono procellosamente: **Si resista! Piuttosto che cedere,
preferiamo perire tutti sotto le rovine della nostra patria!"
Nugent die principio all'attacco. Egli si riprometteva di
schiacciare in un batter d'occhio gli "audaci sudditi". Ma,
invece, rimase schiacciato lui, cadendo trafitto in uno
scontro. Fu subito rimpiazzato dal generale Haynan — una
belva — con altre truppe di rinforzo.
II nuovo comandante aggravo le intimazioni e le minacce
del collega morto.
I Bresciani, irremovibili, risposero: "Liberta o morte!"
Scoppio subito sulla citta una tempesta di ferro e di
fuoco. Ne segui una strage di case e d'abitanti.
Ma i difensori non si spaventarono, non si smarrirono;
sentirono invece sorgere e vibrare in ogni fibra dell'esser loro
una potenza sempre piu invitta; diventarono giganti;
batterono piu volte gli assalitori; compirono prodigi degni
d'epopea. "Anche le donne si mostrarono virilmente ardi-
396 PARTE PRIMA
mentose; fra esse, due sorelle di onorata famiglia, piu che di
guerriere rendevano immagine di martiri cristiane".
II dispetto rodeva gli Austriaci. L'orgoglio militaresco,
di cui erano gonfi, non poteva sopportare piii a lungo la
fiera resistenza dei cittadini ch'essi consideravano "un
branco di pecore". La mattina del i° aprile 1849 effettua-
rono, in numero enorme, un assalto furioso selvaggio
decisive.
I difensori, sebbene impegnati duramente da parecchi
giorni, tennero testa: combatterono corpo a corpo, contra-
starono il terreno a palmo a palmo, profusero formidabil-
mente il lor vigore; ma alia fine caddero I'un dopo I'altro,
I'uno suiraltro, coi petti squarciati. Allora, soltanto allora, il
nemico, passando su mucchi di cadaveri, pote entrare nella
gloriosa citta che il poeta, piii tardi, chiamo **leonessa
d'ltalia".
I soldatacci austriaci, imbestiati piii che mai dalla resi-
stenza incontrata e dalle perdite subite, irruppero come lupi
afFamati nelle abitazioni rimaste immuni dal lungo bom-
bardamento: e vi rubarono il meglio, distrussero il resto;
sgozzarono malati, vecchi, donne, fanciuUi; ne inchiodarono
parecchi ai muri; infilzarono alle baionette inastate crea-
turine lattanti; ammazzarono a sciabolate, o sparando a bru-
ciapelo, uomini e donne incontrati per via; ne trascinarono
altri al Castello e ivi li gettarono nei sotterranei, li insulta-
rono, li tormentarono, li trucidarono in massa; commisero
infinite mostruosita.
E a stravolgere le menti, ad agghiacciar nelle vena il sangue,
s'aggiungeva la vista delle orribili enormezze a cui, o ebbri o
comandati o per natura stolidamente feroci, grimperiali austriaci
trascorsero: cose che escono dai confini non pur del credibile, ma
deirimmaginabile. Perche non solo inferocirono contro gl'inermi,
le donne, i fanciulli e gl'infermi, ma raffinarono per modo gli
strazi, che ben si parve come le umane belve anche in ferocia
passino ogni animale. Le membra dilacerate delle vittime, essi —
gl'imperiali austriaci — scagliavano giii dalle finestre e contro le
barricate dei cittadini, come si getta ai cani I'avanzo d'un pasto.
Teste di teneri fanciulli divelte dai busti e braccia di donne e
carni umane abbrustolite cadevano in mezzo alle schiere bresciane.
LA LEONESSA D'lTALIA (1849) 397
a cui allora parvero misericordiose le bombe. E, sopratutto,
piacevansi i cannibali imperiali austriaci nelle convulsioni atro-
cissime dei morti per arsura; onde, immollati i cittadini prigionieri
con acqua ragia, li incendiavano; e spesso obbligavano le donne
dei martoriati ad assistere a sifFata festa: ovvero, per pigliarsi
giuoco del nobile sangue bresciano, si ribollente alle magnanime
ire, legati strettamente gli uomini, davanti agli occhi loro vitu-
peravano e scannavano le mogli e le figliuole. E alcuna volta
(Dio ci perdoni se serbiamo memoria dell'orribile fatto) gl'im-
periali austriaci sforzarono di fare inghiottire agli agonizzanti le
sbranate viscere dei loro diletti. Di che molti morirono d'an-
goscia, e piu assai impazzirono.^
Pero un cittadino di nome Carlo Zima, arso vivo dai
soldatacci austriaci, riusci a vendicarsi del supplizio, e in una
maniera oltremodo tragica.
Era lo Zima un giovane popolano, gobbo e zoppo, per
conseguenza di fragile complessione, ma di spirito ribelle e
gagliardo, che aveva pugnato giorno e notte com'un antico
gladiatore. Alcuni soldatacci austriaci lo sorpresero mentre
stava ancora con I'arme alia mano. Che fecero? Gli
versarono addosso una quantita d'acqua ragia, e I'accesero.
In un baleno il corpo del disgraziato fu tutto in fiamme. E i
soldatacci austriaci, sghignando satanicamente, si misero a
riddargli intorno come pellirossi. Lo Zima, in un impeto
d'estremo odio causato dallo strazio morale, piii che dallo
strazio fisico, si slancio lesto com'una saetta sul caporione
aizzatore di quegl'indemoniati, e I'abbraccio, I'avvinghid,
gli comunico lo stesso fuoco, I'avvolse nelle stesse fiamme,
lo costrinse a morire della stessa morte.
Gli Austriaci pretesero anche dai Bresciani un'indennita
di guerra di sei milioni di lire.
Tante scelleraggini commossero e indignarono fortemente
I'Europa intera. "II generale Hayman, essendosi recato
qualche tempo dopo a Londra, e avendolo la folia ricono-
sciuto ai suoi gialli mustacchi, lo assali con le scope, lo
copri di fango e di contumelie, gridando: Ddgli al heccaio
austriaco! Ddgli alia tigr^I"
* Lf Died Giornate di Brescia di Cesare Correnti, insigne letterato italiano,
autore di varie opere storiche, deputato al Parlaemnto nazionale, due volte ministro
della Pubblica Istruzione, consigliere di Stato, segretario del "Gran Magistero
degli Ordini cavallereschi", senatore del Regno (1815-1888).
398 PARTE PRIMA
XIII
I soldati austriaci in Toscana, a Bologna, ad Ancona.
I tiranni stranieri schiacciano la Repubblica Romana
gloriosamente retta da Mazzini e difesa da Garibaldi, e
ristabiliscono il potere temporale dei papi (1849).
I primi di maggio del 1849 il generale austrlaco d'Aspre,
alia testa di ventimila soldati, invadeva la Toscana, assaltava
paesi, spogliava e seviziava popolazioni, entrava arcigno
tronfio pettoruto in Firenze (25 maggio 1849), e vi ristabiliva
il potere del granduca. Costui, da misero tirannuccio asser-
vito agli Asburgo, aboliva subito la Costituzione e la ban-
diera nazionale, e riprendeva a governare con i birri e gU
ergastoli.
Quasi nello stesso tempo, quattro eserciti difFerenti (uno
francese, uno austriaco, uno spagnolo e uno borbonico)
marciavano contro Roma, alio scopo di schiacciarvi la
Repubblica e ristabilirvi il potere temporale dei papi. I
primi a giungere dinanzi alia citta eterna furono i Frances!
(piii di novemila) al comando del generale Oudinot. Essi
iniziarono immediatamente I'attacco a mezzo deirartiglieria,
mentre la fanteria tentava di scalare le mura. Ma Gari-
baldi — a cui i triunviri Mazzini, Saffi e Armellini avevano
saggiamente affidato la difesa della Repubblica — piombo
fulmineamente coi suoi volontari e con quelli comandati dal
dottor Masi e dal colonnello Galletti sugli assalitori, e li
batte, infliggendo loro gravi perdite, prendendone prigionie-
ri centinaia, mettendo in fuga tutti gli altri (30 aprile 1849).
L'esercito austriaco, dal canto suo, giungeva a Bologna
e dava principio alle ostilita, assaltando la porta di Galliera.
I Bolognesi respinsero I'assalto. I nemlci misero in azione
i cannoni e i mortal di cui erano abbondantemente muniti,
e cominciarono a flagellare la dotta citta con un'incessante
gragnola di proiettili pieni ed esplosivi. I Bolognesi si
difesero valorosamente per piii giorni. Ma il 16 maggio 1849
essi erano gia esausti di forze; non potevano piii resistere;
furono costretti ad arrendersi.
NELL'ITALIA CENTRALE (1849) 399
Una settimana dopo, gli Austriaci attaccarono per terra
e per mare Ancona. Questa sorella minore di Venezia lotto
strenuamente per circa un mese; ma alia fine dove anch'essa
capitolare (20 giugno 1849).
L'esercito borbonico (sedicimila uomini) comandato da
Ferdinando II in persona, aveva occupato Velletri. Gari-
baldi, alia testa di soli tremila volontari in parte ragazzi,
corse ad affrontarlo: lo snido dalla citta, lo sbaraglio,
I'insegui fino ad Area (12-20 maggio 1849).
Gli Spagnoli erano sbarcati a Fiumicino e a Terracina.
E il generale Oudinot, con quarantamila soldati e 36
cannoni d'assedio, la sera del 2 giugno 1849 riprendeva le
ostilita contro Roma. La Repubblica non aveva a sua
disposizione che novemila volontari in tutto. Ma essi erano
cavalieri d'un alto ideale. Sulle loro fronti splendeva il
pensiero onnipresente di Mazzini. Nei loro petti palpitava
il vivo cuore di Garibaldi. La lotta fu lunga ed aspra;
culmino durante la notte del 29 giugno 1849 in una grande
battaglia. I difensori compirono gesta sovrumane. Cadde
nobilmente il poeta giovinetto Goffredo Mameli che coi
suoi inni aveva tanto infiammato a liberta il popolo d'ltalia.
Cadde Luciano Manara ch'era stato "il primo tra i primi"
nelle cinque giornate di Milano. Caddero Enrico Dandolo,
Emilio Morosini e mille altri. Ma tanto sacrifizio non valse
a salvare la Repubblica.
Garibaldi dove rassegnarsi a ringuainare la folgoreggiante
sua spada. E il 3 luglio 1849, egli usciva dall'alma Roma,
triste, silenzioso, povero (cosi povero, che, per le impellenti
necessita della vita, era stato costretto a vendersi I'orologio),
accompagnato dalla sua diletta consorte Anita incinta di
sette mesi, e da circa quattromila superstiti, tra i quali il
predicatore barnabita Ugo Bassi e il popolano romano An-
gelo Brunetti detto il Ciceruacchio, a cui I'Eroe non pote
offrire altro che "fame, freddo, sole e marce forzate".
Partiva anche Mazzini per I'esilio. Partirono tutti i capi
della gloriosa Repubblica.
E, il 1 2 luglio 1 849, rientrava Pio IX nella capitale, scortato
da Francesi e da Austriaci: e abrogava la Costituzione;
annullava le riforme; riempiva di condannati politici le
400 PARTE PRIMA
career! ; avviliva le anime e i corpi; meritava che I'inglese
lord Clarendon chiamasse il governo del preti *'un obbrobrio
per I'Europa civile".
XIV
I soldati austriaci inseguono Garibaldi e Anita (la
diletta consorte dell'Eroe) incinta. La fine dolorosa
dell'Eroina. Sotterrata nuda! " La derelitta cagna,
ramingando ..." (1849).
Garibaldi, sottraendosi con raplde mosse ai nemici che
rabbiosamente I'inseguivano, giunse in Toscana e cerco
di sollevare quelle popolazioni; ma trovo dappertutto scora-
mento e timore. AUora grido disperatamente ai suoi volon-
tari: "Non ci resta che Venezia per morire!"
Ma come arrivare fino al Lido? Le marce forzate
lunghe e faticose sotto la sferza del Sole; le imboscate dei
segugi sguinzagliati dai tiranni per ogni dove; la fame, la
sete, i dolori morali avevano ridotto i superstiti a 1500. E
questi, per quanto animati ancora da generosi sentimenti di
patria, non erano davvero in grado d'affrontare nuove odis-
see. Garibaldi li condusse nella piccola Repubblica di San
Marino, e ivi stipulo col nemico una tregua, in base alia
quale i compagni potevano ritornarsene indisturbati alle
loro case.
Egli, personalmente, non voile stringere alcun patto con
I'Austriaco: prefer! riprendere il cammino a cui la previ-
dente e provvidente natura I'aveva predestinato.
I cento piii arditi e piii fidi, pero, vollero seguirlo ad ogni
costo. L'Eroe, ch'era gentile quanto invitto, non seppe
schermlrsi. Li accetto. E, con essi, tento fuggire per mare.
Ma le fragili barchette, sulle quali il sacro manipolo era
montato, furon presto raggiunte dagli sgherri austriaci che
stavano alia vedetta. Garibaldi salto con la sua coraggiosa
Anita nell'acqua: ed essendo egli un provetto nuotatore,
non tardo ad accostarsi alia riva e salvarsi insieme con
I'amata consorte. Invece Ugo Bassi, il Ciceruacchio e molti
altri Garibaldini furono presi e giustiziati.
LA MORTE D'ANITA (1849) 401
4 agosto 1849. L'ora del tramonto. Un baroccio a un
cavallo, guidato dal capitano garibaldino Leggero, sale
lentamente la strada che va dalla marina ai boschi ravennatl.
Sul tavolato del rozzo legno giace una giovine donna febbri-
citante.
"Coraggio!" le dice dolcemente Garibaldi che, travestito
da contadino, le siede accanto carezzandole la fronte e
tenendole sulla testa un ombrello aperto per ripararla dai
raggi infocati del Sole. *'Coraggio, mia buona Anita; a
quelle case lassii domanderemo soccorso".
**0 Giuseppe, io muoio!" balbetta impallidendo I'am-
malata, mentre una schiuma biancastra le copre le labbra
riarse.
L'Eroe le terge con un fazzoletto di seta la bocca. Una
nube nera gli scende suH'anima.
Giungono finalmente nei pressi d'una casa poderale. Un
contadino guarda sorpreso lo strano veicolo.
**In nome deirumanita" supplica Garibaldi "salvate
questa donna! Io non vi chiedo nulla per me; tutto per lei.
La sete la brucia. Dateci un bicchiere d'acqua. Permette-
teci di riposare un momento."
"Io non sono il padrone qui" risponde il contadino; "ma
chiamero la Ravaglia."
Esce dalla casa una contadina, la quale, scorgendo Anita
tanto abbattuta, esclama commossa: "Povera donna!
Viaggiare in tale stato! Fortuna che c'e qui il medico.
Vado subito a chiamarlo."
Giunge il medico (il dottor Naldini), il quale osserva
ansiosamente I'ammalata e sentenzia: "Questa donna e
morente!" — Poi, fissando Garibaldi, soggiunge: "E voi,
con codesto viso, con codesta barba . . . ,.voi siete
Garibaldi!"
"Tacete, per pieta!" interrompe sottovoce I'Eroe.
"Sapete bene ch'io son cercato a morte e che son puniti
tutti coloro che m'aiutano. Non rivelate il mio nome."
In quel mentre giunge Stefano RavagUa, padrone della
casa. Si stabilisce con lui di portare Anita in una cameretta
superiore, dove c'e un lettuccio appartato.
Con delicata cautela, I'Eroe prende e solleva nelle sue
402 PARTE PRIMA
braccia nerborute I'Eroina, e comincia a salire plan piano la
scala. Ma, fatti pochi gradini, Anita reclina indietro la
bella testa, dice flebilmente: "Giuseppe . . . , i figli
. . . 1" E muore.
L'Eroe torna giii, ripone al suolo I'adorato corpo, lo toccai
lo bagna di lagrime, lo tempesta di baci, lo chiama coi nom,
piij santi e piii soavi, dice disperatamente: **No, no, non e
mortal Portiamola su. £ uno svenimento. Ha tanto
sofferto, povera creatura! Si riavra. £ forte. Non e
morta, vi dico! £ impossibile! Se fosse vero, sarei morto
anch'io, perche la nostra vita fu sempre una sola. Guardami,
Anita, muovi le tue pupille, muovi le tue labbra, parlamil"
Tutti i presenti piangono. II capitano Leggero si china
rispettosamente sul Duce, e gli sussurra aU'orecchio queste
supplichevoli parole: "Alzatevi! Salvatevi! Per i vostri
figlil Perl'Italial"
"Soffocol" esclama I'Eroe. "Datemi un bicchiere
d'acqual" — Beve, si rizza, rivolge un ultimo sguardo pieno
d'amore e di dolore infiniti al corpo immobile della martire,
e s'allontana singhiozzando com'un fanciullo. Sull'uscio si
ferma ed ofFre un anello (I'unico sue tesoro), ch'egli aveva
tolto dal dito d'Anita, al Ravaglia, per ricompensarlo
dell'ospitalita accordata e per ricordo a un tempo.
"No," dice I'onesto contadino all'Eroe "tenetelo; esso e
sacro pervoi."
L'li agosto 1849, una "derelitta cagna, ramingando",
scopriva un cadavere seppellito a poca profondita nella
sabbia di Marina, parrocchia di Mandriole. Le autorita
accorse riscontrarono trattarsi del corpo d'una donna incinta
"che aveva i capelli tagliati alia puritana e portava la sottana
e un humus'*.
II vestito fu esposto al pubblico, alio scope d'identificare
il cadavere.
E la magnanima consorte dell'Eroe dei due mondi fu
risotterrata ignuda!
Pochi giorni dope, un uomo di robusta complessione ma
col viso stanco e mestissimo usciva dal paese di Modigliana.
Quell'uomo era Garibaldi. Frotte di soldatacci austriaci
L'ASSEDIO DI VENEZIA (1849) 403
masticanti bestemmie ostrogote gli davano caninamente la
caccia. Vedendosi a un certo punto in imminente pericolo,
I'Eroe si rifugio in una vicina osteria. S'era appena seduto a
un posticino appartato, quando entrarono rumorosamente
alcuni Croati.
"Sono scoperto!" esclama I'Eroe tra se e se.
Ma i Croati non lo riconoscono. Essi vanno a sedersi a
una tavola, e ivi cominciano a ordinare e ingollare vino
senza misura. S'ubriacano. Gesticolano rozzamente.
Ridono idiotamente, sconciamente. Ripetono con roca
vociaccia: "Ah, Garibalda, Garibalda, noi ti scoveremo,
noi ti prenderemo in trappola! Ah, ah, ah!"
L'Eroe spicca un salto da leopardo verso I'uscio, e via di
corsa per i campi. Invano gU Austriaci tentano d'inseguirlo.
Le loro gambe, paraHzzate dal vino, si piegano. I loro corpi
cascano a terra e grufolano come porci.
Dopo traversie inenarrabiH, dopo indicibili sofFerenze,
I'Eroe giunse a Nizza, sua citta nativa, abbraccio la madre
ottantaquattrenne, bacio i figliuoletti, pianse con loro la
perdita d'Anita, poi con Tanima lacerata parti per I'esilio,
imbarcandosi su una nave diretta a Tunisi. II Bey lo
respinse, non volendo impicci. Allora I'Eroe vago dalla
Maddalena^ a Gibilterra, da Gibilterra a Tangeri; finche un
giorno salpo per New York, dove fu fraternamente accolto
dall'italiano Antonio Meucci, il defraudato inventore del
telefono che oggi porta il noma di Bell.
XV
Gli Austriaci assediano e bombardano per tre mesi di
continuo Venezia. II feld-maresciallo Radetzky scim-
miotta Nerone. La regina dell'Adriatico e costretta dalla
fame e dal colera, piu che dall'armi nemiche, ad arren-
dersi. L'elegia del poeta (1849).
Quarantamila soldati austriaci con 150 pezzi d'artiglieria
avevano assediato Venezia per mare e per terra. II 24
maggio 1849, essi cominciarono a tempestarla di bombe e di
razzi incendiari.
'La Maddalena e la maggiore delle isole nello stretto di Bonifacio (Sardegna).
404 PARTE PRIMA
II feld-maresclallo Radetzky, volendo scimmiottare I'im-
peratore Nerone d'esecrata memoria, aveva invitato alcuni
arciduchi austriaci ad assistere alio spettacolo della citta
italiana colpita in ogni parte dal fuoco e dalla morte.
Vecchio barbaro rimbambito!
I Veneziani non si sgomentarono; si sentirono, anzi, piii
ingigantiti nel fisico e nel morale. Egregiamente guidati dal
doge Daniele Manin e dal prode generate Guglielmo Pepe,
essi contrapposero all'indurita crudelta del nemico una
resistenza formidabile.
La lotta duro a lungo; fu intensa e cruenta. La vlttoria
arrise piu volte agli assediati. Sarebbe arriso a loro anche il
trionfo finale, se, alia scarsezza d'armi e munizioni e alia
mancanza quasi assoluta di viveri, non si fosse aggiunto il
colera. Questo terribile flagello, non frenato dalle necessarie
misure scientifiche, favorito dal poco e cattivo nutrimento,
comincio a fare strage immensa, specialmente tra le donne e
i fanciulli.
II 15 agosto 1849 il bollettino sanitario segnava 402 casi
con 272 morti.
Una settimana dopo, I'indomabile morbo, coadiuvato
dalla fame sempre crescente e dalle artiglierie austriache
sempre piu intense, aveva trasformato I'incantevole citta dei
dogi in un vero inferno dantesco. I difensori, oppressi dal
dolore per la misera fine dei loro cari, avevano perduto ogni
entusiasmo, ogni energia. Solo allora fu decisa la resa.
Durante le trattative (23 agosto 1849), Venezia e immersa
in un sepolcrale silenzio. II poeta Arnaldo Fusinato, di
guardia all'isola del Lazzaretto Vecchio, scrive, col cuore
gonfio, i seguenti versi elegiaci:
E fosco I'aere,
il cielo e muto,
ed io sul tacito
veron seduto,
in solitaria
malinconia,
ti guardo e lagrimo,
Venezia mia!
Fra i rotti nugoli
L'ASSEDIO DI VENEZIA (1849) 405
dell'occidente,
il raggio perdesi
del sol morente;
e mesto sibila
per I'aria bruna
I'ultimo gemito
della laguna.
Passa una gondola
della citta:
-Ehi della gondola,
qual novita?
-II morbo infuria,
il pan ci manca,
sul ponte sventola
bandiera biancal
Venezia! L'ultima
ora e venuta;
illustre martire,
tu sei perduta.
II morbo infuria,
il pan ci manca,
sul ponte sventola
bandiera bianca!
Ma non le ignivome
palle roventi,
ne i mille fulmini
su te stridenti,
troncaro ai liberi
tuoi di lo stame ....
Viva Venezia!
Muore di fame!
Sulle tue pagine
scolpisci, o storia,
I'altrui nequizie
e la sua gloria,
e grida ai posteri:
-Tre volte infame
chi vuol Venezia
morta di fame!
Viva Venezia!
L'ira nemica
la sua risuscita
406 PARTE PRITvlA
virtude antica;
ma il morbo infuria,
ma il pan le manca . . .
Sul ponte sventola
bandiera bianca!
Ed ora infrangasi
qui sulla pietra,
finche e ancor libera
questa mia cetra.
A te, Venezia,
I'ultimo canto,
I'ultimo bacio,
I'ultimo pianto!
Ramingo ed esule
in suol straniero,
vivrai, Venezia,
nel mio pensiero;
vivrai nel tempio
qui del mio core,
come I'immagine
del primo amore.
Ma il vento sibila,
ma I'onda e scura,
ma tutta in tenebre
e la natura:
le corde stridono,
la voce manca . . .
Sul ponte sventola
bandiera bianca!
II 24 agosto 1849 Tolocausto era compiuto.
La gloriosa regina deH'Adriatico fu novamente ghermita
dalla sozza aquila a due teste.
II Manin, il Tommaseo, Guglielmo Pepe e altrl eminent!
patriot! furono costretti a imbarcarsi su navi inglesi e
francesi, e prendere, al pari di Mazzini e di Garibaldi, la
sospirosa via dell'esilio.
MOSTRUOSITA AUSTRIACHE (1849) 407
XVI
n feld-maresciallo Radetzky e i suoi sguaiati ufficiali
festeggiano a Milano il genetliaco del loro imperatore
Francesco Giuseppe, provocando disonestamente e cari-
cando brutalmente con la cavalleria e la fanteria il popolo
inerme ; bastonando patrioti ; vergheggiando giovanetti e
signorine suUe nude reni (1849).
Mentre Venezia agonizzava, Radetzky commetteva
nuove infamie e Milano. Provocava i cittadini, per poi
poterli punire.
Valga per tutti il seguente episodic.
II 1 8 agosto 1849 ricorreva il 19° genetliaco dell'im-
peratore Francesco Giuseppe. Volendo il vecchio mare-
sciallo festeggiarlo con chiassosa teatralita, ordino per quella
occasione lo sparo di parecchi colpi di cannone all'alba;
I'addobbo dei balconi, delle finestre, delle piazze e delle
strade con damaschi e festoni dai colori austriaci; una
solenne funzione religiosa col canto del Te Deum nel Duomo;
una pomposa parata militate e, per la sera, **illuminazione
spontanea, sotto pena di giudizio statario agl'indocili".
Or ecco quel che accadde per le mali arti della prepotente
ufficialita radeschiana, sapientissima nell'organizzare provo-
cazioni.
A quel tempo esisteva in piazza del Duomo il CafFe
Mazza, uno dei piii frequentati della citta. Dirimpetto ad
esso abitava una certa donna di cattivi costumi, cara a non
pochi ufficiali austriaci, i quali si raccoglievano di giorno e di
sera davanti al detto Caffe, ed anche nell'interno, per gozzo-
vigliare e per insolentire contro i pacifici cittadini.
La donna in parola aveva preparato, per commissione
appunto d'alcuni ufficiali a lei devoti, un gran drappo con i
colori e gli emblemi imperiali d'Austria, e, in quel giorno
natalizio, Taveva esposto a un balcone della sua casa.
Gli ufficiali austriaci — bevendo, fumando, ciarlando
davanti al Gaffe Mazza — si congratulavano con la mala
femmina, che impudentemente stava al balcone, facendole
408 PARTE PRIMA
un'infinita di smorfie oscene che volevano essere graziosl
sorrisi, mentre, d'altra parte, con certi loro caratteristici
ghigni, beffeggiavano e provocavano i passanti.
In un baleno la piazza del Duomo fu plena di gente.
Una fischiata, cento fischiate, un grido, cento grida di
sdegno e d'imprecazione, una pioggia di nastri tricolori
costrinsero la mala femmina a ritirarsi, portando seco
I'abominevole drappo.
Gli ufficiali austriaci pareva non aspettassero altro: si
slanciarono nella strada digrignando i denti; si fecero largo
tra la folia a colpi di frustino; chiamarono la mala femmina al
balcone e I'incitarono a esporre novamente il drappo. E
quando questo riapparve, i prepotenti proruppero in evviva
e battimani frenetici.
Lo sdegno e le imprecazioni della folia crebbero.
Allora giunse di corsa sul luogo uno squadrone di caval-
leria con le sciabole sguainate e un reparto di fanteria con le
baionette inastate. Si carico furiosamente la folia inerme,
senza riguardo ne a vecchi, ne a donne, ne a fanciulli.
Gli ufficiali austriaci, piantatisi sui marciapiedi coi
frustini branditi in alto, minacciando e urlando come tanti
energumeni, forzarono i fuggenti a levarsi il cappello e a
salutare il drappo; poi presero di peso la mala femmina, la
misero insieme col drappo in una carrozza, e la portarono
trionfalmente in giro per la citta. E come se cio non bastas-
se, arrestarono parecchie persone d'ambo i sessi e le accusa-
rono di "scandalose dimostrazioni anti-politiche, insulti ai
colori deirimpero e alle cifre di giubilo verso Sua Maesta".
II 22 agosto 1849, nella piazza del Castello, quindici
patrioti (studenti, possidenti, negozianti, capibottega, sem-
plici operai), dai 15 ai 50 anni d'eta, furono pubblicamente
sottoposti al supplizio della bastonatura. Legati, cioe, coi
petti su appositi panconi, gl'infelici, nudi dalla testa alle
gambe, ricevettero sulle parti posteriori dei loro corpi chi
30 chi 40, chi 50 colpi di bastone.
Tre adolescenti (Luciano Ferrandi d'anni 17 legatore di
libri, Giacomo Trezzi d'anni 17 conciatore di pelli, Giacobbe
Colombo d'anni 19 orefice), giudicati dai medici militari non
abbastanza robusti per sopportare le bastonate, ricevettero,
L'IMPERATORE DEGL'IMPICCATI 409
in cambio, 30 colpi di verga il primo e 40 colpi ciascuno gli
altri due suUe nude reni.
Le signorine Maria Conti fiorentina d'anni 18 ed Ernesta
Galli cremonese d'anni 20, al cui onore avevano piii volte ma
invano attentate i sozzi ufficiali austriaci, "sostennero
privatamente" I'atrocissimo supplizio, ricevendo anche sulle
nude reni 30 colpi di verga la prima e 40 la seconda!^
Altri 14 patrioti furono rinchiusi nelle carceri "in ferri
e con digiuni a pane ed acqua".
E pochi giorni dopo, il direttore del Castello ebbe la
sfacciataggine, I'austriaca sfacciataggine, di mandare al
municipio di Milano "per il rimborso" la nota delle spese
da lui fatte per I'acquisto dei bastoni, delle verghe, dell'aceto
e del ghiaccio "usati nell'esecuzione dei condannati".
Cosi I'incanaglito Radetzky festeggiava in Italia il
genetliaco del suo padrone I'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe!
Tanta scelleraggine scosse I'Europa intera. I giornali,
massimamente il Times di Londra, pubblicarono articoli di
fuoco contro il governo austriaco.
E il poeta Francesco Dall'Ongaro scrisse:
Lombardi, Veneti, Italiani tutti, dimenticate le vostre gloria,
le vostre speranze, i vostri disinganni, i vostri errori politici; ma
ricordate questo fatto, ricordate questo giorno, scrivetelo suUe
mura delle vostre case, sulle piazze, nelle chiese, sul frontespizio
dei libri, dappertutto. Chi puo dimenticarlo e un vile! L'ltalia
stessa fu bastonata, vergheggiata, contaminata in quei trenta-
quattro pazienti. E l'ltalia lo sa!
XVII
" L'imperatore degrimpiccati " (1851-1853).
II Lombardo-Veneto, ricascato nelle grinfe degli Austria-
ci, espio con tributi enormi, con vessazioni spietate, con
tormenti atrocissimi I'amore di patria.
Ma nessuna forza, per quanto militarescamente bruta,
* La verga, d'avellano, grossa quanto un pollice, era fissata al polso del soldato
aguzzino con un laccio di corame, affinche egli potesse percuotere con la massima
violenza la vittima. Se ne conserva ancora una nel Museo del Risorgimento di
Milano.
410 PARTE PRIMA
poteva comprimere il bisogno innato, tradizionale, vivissimo
che della liberta sentivano gl'Italiani.
Giuseppe Mazzini, da Londra, coadiuvato da Saffi e da
altrl insigni esuli, incitava a nuove lotte i fratelli oppressi.
Per cui sorsero segretamente societa e comitati rivoluzionari
dappertutto.
Naturalmente la polizia austriaca non dormiva: spiava,
scopriva, inferociva.
Nel 1851, per esempio, essa arresto I'operaio milanese
Antonio Sciesa, sotto I'accusa d'avere congiurato, insieme
con altri numerosi patrioti, ai danni del governo dominatore.
L'accusato fu invitato con untuose lusinghe a rivelare i
nomi dei complici. Respinse I'invito. Fu minacciato, mal-
trattato, conquassato. Sopporto con pazienza eroica le
sevizie. Fu condannato a morte. Ascolto con fermo e
decoroso contegno la sentenza. Gli fu ofFerta la grazia,
purche confessasse. La rifiuto. Fu dai carnefici condotto
in catene presso la sua casa, nella speranza che I'idea della
famiglia I'intenerisse, gli facesse amare la vita, I'inducesse
a parlare. Non disse che due semplici parole dialettali:
Tiremm innanz! (Tiriamo innanzi!) — E, trascinato al
patibolo, affronto tacito e impavido I'estremo supplizio.
Tra il 1852 e il 1853, poi, sugli spalti di Belfiore a Man-
tova, il capestro austriaco troncava la vita d'altri patrioti:
Enrico Tazzoli e Giovanni Grioli sacerdoti, Carlo Poma
medico, Giovanni Zambelli pittore, il veneziano Angelo
Scartellini, Bernardo De Canal scrittore, il bresciano Tito
Speri letterato e poeta, Bartolomeo Grazioli sacerdote, il
conte Veronese Carlo Montanari, Pietro Domenico Frattini
da Legnano, il colonnello Pietro Fortunato Calvi da Briana
di Noale (Venezia).
L'indignazione destata da tante nequizie fu grande.
L'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe ebbe affibbiato il sinistro
nomignolo di **imperatore degl'impiccati" che ancora oggi
gl'Italiani ripetono con maledicente dispregio.
Non meno bestiali si mostrarono gli altri tiranni e tiran-
nelli della penisola obbedienti all'Austria. Basti dire che
Carlo III, successo a Carlo II nel Ducato di Parma, fece
bastonare a sangue trecento cittadini in soli quattro mesi.
LA GUERRA DEL 1859 411
E nel Regno delle Due Sicilie i piu virtuosi e stimati patrioti
liberali — come il letterato Luigi Settembrini, il filosofo
Raffaele Conforti, reconomista Antonio Scialoia, il giure-
consulto Giuseppe Pisanelli, gli statisti Silvio Spaventa,
Carlo Poerio, Nicola Nisco, il Pironti, il Saliceti ed altri —
furono trattati tanto scelleratamente, da movere a sdegno
il mondo intero. Fu proprio allora che Guglielmo Gladstone
qualifico il governo borbonico in Italia "la negazione di Dio
eretta a sistema".
Insomma, dalle nevose Alpi all'isola del Sole, non si
vedeva che un popolo ardente di liberta, martirizzato dal-
I'Austria e da despoti arroganti, famelici, sanguinari che
I'Austria imbeccava, aizzava, spalleggiava.
Un simile stato di cose durava da lunghi anni. Sarebbe
durato chi sa quanto, se imprevisti avvenimenti non fossero
sopraggiunti per moderarlo e affrettare, nello stesso tempo,
I'unita della nazione e I'indipendenza per cui gl'Italiani lot-
tavano e soffrivano da secoli.
XVIII
I bersaglieri alia guerra di Crimea (1855). Cavour al
Congresso di Parigi (1856). L'alleanza con Napoleone
III (1858). Le memorabili parole di Vittorio Emanuele
II all'inaugurazione del Parlamento subalpino. U* ulti-
matum dell'Austria al piccolo Piemonte. L'inno di
Garibaldi. La famiglia Cignoli fucilata dai soldati
austriaci. I soldati papalini trucidano i patrioti di
Perugia. Pio IX e il cardinale Pecci (piu tardi Leone
XIII) esaltano gli assassini. La terza guerra di libera-
zione vinta dagl'Italiani con I'aiuto dei Francesi (1859).
Niccolo I di Russia, tra il 1853 e il 1854, col pretesto di
liberare dalla dominazione ottomana i popoli cristiani del
Danubio, moveva guerra alia Turchia.
La Francia e I'lnghilterra, le quali sapevano bene che il
fine occulto dello zar era quello di conquistare Costanti-
nopoli, credettero necessario, a tutela dei loro interessi mili-
412 PARTE PRIMA
tari e commerciali, di contrastare I'agognata conqulsta: e
presero le difese dei Turchi.
Camillo Benso di Cavour, col suo non comune discerni-
mento politico, intravide nel detto avvenimento un'occa-
sione fortunata per I'ltalia; intravide, cioe, i benefici morali
che sarebbero derivati agl'Italiani, se essi fossero intervenuti
nella guerra d'Oriente. E ne profitto. S'accordo come
meglio pote con gli alleati, e mando in Crimea un esercito
di 15,000 uomini, in gran parte bersaglieri, comandati dal
generale Alfonso Lamarmora.
Alia Cernaia i soldati italiani si fecero onore. Tra
Taltro, il 16 agosto 1855, essi salvarono da una pericolosa
sorpresa I'esercito alleato, sostenendo bravamente I'urto di
60,000 soldati russi. E I'S settembre 1855 si coprirono
addirittura di gloria, battendosi gagliardamente sotto la
pioggia del fuoco nemico alia presa della torre di MalakofF,
ch'era il principale baluardo di Sebastopoli.
La Russia fu vinta. Nel Congresso tenutosi piii tardi a
Parigi, pote intervenire anche Cavour come rappresentante
ufficiale del Piemonte, nonostante le ire e i maneggi del-
I'Austria. E nella memorabile seduta del 30 marzo 1856, il
sagace ministro di Vittorio Emanuele II ebbe I'abilita di
mettere sul tappeto la "questione italiana", denunziando
con parola franca la preponderanza austriaca in Italia, cagio-
ne di tanti mali, e affermando esser dovere delle grandi
Potenze, arbitre dei destini d'Europa, di schierarsi efficace-
mente dalla parte d'un popolo il quale non voleva altro se non
la propria unita nazionale, libera da ogni tirannide straniera.
II rappresentante austriaco, che la rabbia aveva gonfiato
e arrossato com'un tacchino, fece le sue proteste. I rappre-
sentanti degli altri governi, invece, espressero la loro simpatia
per la causa perorata da Cavour. E sebbene il Congresso
si sciogliesse senza una risoluzione concreta riguardo al-
ritalia, pure la Francia e I'lnghilterra non mancarono
d'esortare I'Austria e i tiranni italiani ch'essa proteggeva —
come il pontefice, il Borbone e gli altri minori — a volere
introdurre nei loro governi quei miglioramenti che il pro-
gredire delle idee liberali rendeva ormai indispensabili.
D'altra parte Napoleone III meditava per conto proprio
LA GUERRA DEL 1859 413
rabbassamento dell'Austria. Gli parve che, all'efFettua-
zione d'un tale disegno, potesse benissimo contribuire il
popolo italiano. Percio, durante Testate del 1858, egli ebbe
a Plombieres, nei Vosgi, un abboccamento segreto con
Cavour. In esso furono gettate le basi d'un'alleanza franco-
piemontese, in forza della quale le due parti contraenti
s'obbligavano di combattere insieme I'Austria se questa
fosse stata provocatrice di guerra, e, in case di vittoria,
annettere il Lombardo-Veneto al Piemonte.
Questo successo diplomatico, dopo le vittorie militari
riportate in Russia, riempi di gioia e riapri alia speranza il
cuore degl'Italiani. Gli occhi della nazione si rivolsero
ansiosi al governo piemontese. I patrioti piii autorevoli, con
articoli di giornali e con discorsi pubblici e privati, incitavano
veementemente all'azione.
Francesco Giuseppe non seppe piii contenersi; invito
Vittorio Emanuele II a frenare la stampa e gli oratori.
L'umile re piemontese, consigliato da Cavour, sdegno
d'obbedire all'intimazione del potente imperatore d'Austria.
Non solo; ma nella solenne apertura del Parlamento subal-
pino (gennaio 1859) egli pronunzio, durante il prammatico
discorso della corona, le seguenti significative parole:
II nostro paese, piccolo per territorio, acquisto credito nei
consessi dell'Europa, perche grande per le idee che rappresenta
e per le simpatie ch'esso ispira. Questa condizione non e scevra
di pericoli, perche mentre rispettiamo i trattati, non siamo in-
sensibili al grido di dolore che da tante parti d'ltalia si leva verso
di noi. Forti per la concordia, fidenti nei nostro buon diritto,
aspettiamo prudenti e decisi i decreti della divina provvidenza.
L'assemblea scoppio in frenetici applausi. Un entusia-
smo guerresco vampeggio subitamente per la penisola.
Uomini di tutte le eta, di tutte le condizioni sociali corsero
festanti ad arrolarsi nell'esercito regolare piemontese o
sotto Garibaldi gia rimpatriato e autorizzato dal governo di
Vittorio Emanuele II a formare e comandare un corpo di
volontari chiamati Cacciatori delle Alpi.
L'Austria, sbufFante, impose al Piemonte un minaccioso
dilemma: o il disarmo e il congedo dei volontari nei
termine di tre giorni, o la guerra.
414 PARTE PRIMA
II Piemonte non esito sulla scelta: la guerra!
Allora una divina esultanza sfolgoro per i monti e per i
mari d'ltalia; trasmuto, quasi riplasmo prodigiosamente la
coscienza nazionale; acciaio i polsi. E, nei cieli sublimati
dalla rinascente primavera, risono marziale e possente il
fatidico Inno di Garibaldi, poco prima scritto dal poeta Luigi
Mercantini e musicato dal maestro Alessio Olivieri.
Si scopron le tombe, si levano i morti;
I martiri nostri son tutti risortil
Le spade nel pugno, gli allori alle chiome,
La fiamma ed il nome d'ltalia nel cor!
Corriamo! Corriamo! Su, o giovani schiere,
Al vento spiegando le nostre bandiere;
Su, tutti col ferro, su, tutti col foco,
Su, tutti col foco d'ltalia nel cor!
Va fuori d'ltalia, va fuori ch'e I'ora,
Va fuori d'ltalia, va fuori, o stranierl
La terra dei fiori, dei suoni e dei carmi,
Ritorni qual'era la terra deH'armi!
Di cento catene le avvinser la mano,
Ma ancor di Legnano sa i ferri brandir.
Bastone tedesco I'ltalia non doma;
Non crescono al giogo le stirpi di Roma;
Piu Italia non vuole stranieri e tiranni,
Gia troppi son gli anni che dura il servir.
Va fuori d'ltalia, va fuori ch'e I'ora,
Va fuori d'ltalia, va fuori, o stranier!
Le case d'ltalia son fatte per noi,
£ la sul Danubio la casa dei tuoi;
Tu i campi ci guasti, tu il pane c'involi,
I nostri figliuoli per noi li vogliam.
Son I'Alpi e i due mari d'ltalia i confini,
Col carro di fuoco rompiam gli Appennini:
Distrutto ogni segno di vecchia frontiera,
La nostra bandiera per tutto innalziam.
Va fuori d'ltalia, va fuori ch'e I'ora,
Va fuori d'ltalia, va fuori, o stranier!
LA GUERRA DEL 1859 415
Sien mute le lingue, sien pronte le braccia:
Soltanto al nemico volgiamo la faccia,
E tosto oltre i monti n'andra lo straniero,
Se tutta un pensiero I'ltalia sara.
Non basta il trionfo di barbare spoglie,
Si chiudano ai ladri d'ltalia le soglie:
Le genti d'ltalia son tutte una sola,
Son tutte una sola le cento citta.
Va fuori d'ltalia, va fuori ch'e I'ora,
Va fuori d'ltalia, va fuori, o stranierl'^
II 29 aprile 1859 un grosso esercito austriaco invase la
Lombardia e il Novarese che le truppe italiane avevano
abbandonato per ragioni strategiche. Dopo avervi com-
messo le solite violenze brigantesche contro le proprieta
private e le inermi popolazioni, esso s'avanzo nel Vercellese
coU'intento d'occupare Torino e poi spingersi fino al Monce-
nisio per sbarrare il passo ai Francesi. Ma le trincee italiane
erette presso la Dora arrestarono la marcia del nemico;
sconvolsero i suoi piani. E i Francesi poterono giungere in
Italia non solo dal Moncenisio, ma an^he dal Monginevro
e da Genova, senza incontrare il menomo ostacolo.
La guerra entro subito in una nuova fase.
Gl'Italiani, al comando supremo di Vittorio Emanuele
II, erano 80,000. I Francesi, al comando supremo di
Napoleone III, erano 200,000. E gli Austriaci, al comando
supremo del maresciallo Guilay, erano 300,000.
II primo scontro notevole ebbe luogo a Montebello, sulla
riva destra del Po a oriente di Voghera, tra 22,000 alleati e
30,000 Austriaci. Questi ultimi furono battuti e costretti e
ritirarsi di la dal fiume (20 maggio 1859).
Lo stesso giorno, essi si sfogarono vigliaccamente truci-
dando un'intera famiglia italiana. Ecco come Cavour narro
I'orribile delitto in un'apposita circolare ch'egli diramo
subito dopo ai funzionari del Regno:
II 20 maggio 1859, alquante milizie d'Austriaci campeggiavano
le alture di Torricella, piccola citta del Vogherese. Una partita
* Non riporto qui le iiltime qiiattro strofe deW'Inno di Garibaldi, perche esse
furono scritte dal Mercantini nel i860 per i fatti di Sicilia e di Napoli ch'io narrero
in succinto nel seguente capitolo.
416 PARTE PRIMA
d'essi, arrestato il custode del tribunale, incontrato per via, lo
costringevano a servir loro di guida; penetravano, quindi, nella
casa dei fittaioli Cignoli, Dopo le piu minute ricerche fatte in
tutte le parti di quella, per aver trovato una fiaschetta di piombo
da caccia, menavano seco tutta la famiglia e alcuni contadini
recatisi per caso alia fattoria. Condotti al comandante austria-
co, che trovavasi a cavallo sulla grande strada, dopo avere esse
scambiato poche parole con un caporale, ordino ai prigionieri —
erano nove — di scendere in un sentiero che correva parallela-
mente a quella. Avevano quegl'infelici fatto appena brevi passi,
quando, dato dal comandante il segnale a un drappello dei suoi
di moschettarli, otto cadevano uccisi e il vecchio Cignoli ferito a
morte. Allora gli Austriaci continuarono il lor cammino sopra
Casteggio; e il comandante, voltosi al custode del tribunale, lo li-
cenziava, dandogli per salvacondotto una carta, sulla quale stava
scritto il nome del luogotenente maresciallo Urban. II vecchio
Cignoli, cinque giorni dopo, moriva all'ospedale di Voghera.
Simili enormita non abbisognano di commenti: e un assassina-
mento tanto vile, quanto atroce, e del quale altri esempi si po-
trebbero, al piia, rinvenire fra i barbari e i selvaggi.
L'indignazione in Italia fu grande.
Guerrazzi scrisse:
La tomba dei Cignoli sia di pietra, alta e larga a mo' di pira-
mide, di un pezzo solo e di granito. Si metta la, giusto nel luogo
dove i Cignoli caddero atrocemente, quanto vilmente assassinati;
sotto essa raccolgansi le reliquie loro; da parte di ponente pongasi
questa iscrizione: Sepolcro dei Cignoli. Da parte di oriente
quest'altra: Tutta una famiglia — da tutta una gente trucidata —
qui grida vendetta a Dio giudice — contro V Austria assassina.
Dalla parte di tramontana s'incidano i nomi e gli anni degli
assassinati. Da mezzogiorno, poi, quest'ultima iscrizione: Fra
gente italica e austriaca — in ogni tempo, in ogni loco — patto il
sepolcrOf tregua la morte.
E il Niccolini scrisse un sonetto, nel quale, tra I'altro,
diceva aU'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe:
Quando nascesti s*oscurava il Sole,
fu spento in terra ogni benigno lume,
corse sangue il Danubio ed ogni fiume,
ogni madre si strinse al sen la prole.
LA GUERRA DEL 1859 417
Quando morrai, gia veggo il Sol piu bello,
madri e spose danzar con piede alterno
sovra la tomba di si vil flagello.
Garibaldi, intanto, coi suoi baldi volontari, vinceva gli
Austriaci ad Arona, a Varese, a Como e in parecchi altri
punti (25, 26, 27 maggio 1859).
E i regolari italiani, coadiuvati dai Francesi, li vincevano
a Palestro il 29, 30 e 31 maggio 1859.
Nei primi di giugno 1859, poi, si combatteva sui piani
di Magenta una delle piii ostinate e sanguinose battaglie di
quella campagna. I Francesi, comandati dal generate
MacMahon, erano 125,000. Gl'Italiani erano pochi
(qualche divisione). Gli Austriaci, comandati dallo stesso
Guilay, eran superiori al numero degli alleati. La battaglia
comincio alle 5 del mattino e fini alle 7 di sera ( 4 giugno
1859). Gli Austriaci dovettero fuggire precipitosamente
e disordinatamente, lasciando sul terrene 12,000 tra morti
e feriti e 6,000 prigionieri.
E Garibaldi volava sempre vittorioso fine al lago di
Garda.
La citta di Milano, sgombrata ormai dagli odiati Austria-
ci come il resto della Lombardia, proclamo ancora una volta
la sua annessione al Piemonte. E Vittorio Emanuele II,
insieme con Napoleone III e gli eserciti collegati, vi entrava
trionfalmente I'S giugno 1859.
Le Marche e I'Umbria, soggette al papa, si provarono
a rispondere anch'esse al movimento generale, ribellandosi.
Ma furono sottomesse dall'esercito papalino composto da
un'accozzaglia di mercenari stranieri bigotti e reazionari
comandati dal generale Lamoriciere fuoruscito francese.
A Perugia i patrioti italiani avevano formato un Governo
provvisorio. I soldati papalini si preparavano a schiac-
ciarlo. I membri del Governo provvisorio si rivolsero al-
I'arcivescovo della citta, cardinale Gioacchino Pecci (piii
tardi Leone XIII), pregandolo d'interporre la sua influenza
per evitare che si spargesse sangue. Ma il cardinale Pecci
(piii tardi Leone XIII) non ascolto le preghiere dei patrioti
italiani. Cos! il colonnello Schmid, alia testa dei suoi feroci
418 PARTE PRIMA
papalini, pote trucidare a suobell'agio i cittadini, compresi i
vecchi, le donne, i fanciulli. Pio IX — il papa allora regnante
— promosse lo Schmid generale. E il cardinale Pecci (piu
tardi Leone XIII) offri a Dio una messa solenne in memoria
e in onore dei soldati papalini caduti in quell'impresa da
masnadieri!
Per siffatte infamie, Cavour mando una vibrata protesta
ai governi d'Europa.
Gli Austriaci, dopo la disfatta di Magenta, s'erano
ridotti a mal partito. II maresciallo Guilay veniva rimosso
dal comando e rimpiazzato dal generale Hess. Si recava
sul campo Francesco Giuseppe, per rialzare con la sua pre-
senza il morale delle sue truppe alquanto abbattuto.
II 24 giugno 1859 gli Austriaci (200.000 con 700 cannoni)
occupavano baldanzosamente i colli di San Martino e
Solferino nel Mantovano, decisi a riguadagnare il terrene
perduto. Gli alleati, pronti a fronteggiarli, non erano che
160.000 in tutto. I Francesi, contro le posizioni di Solferino.
Gl'Italiani, contro le posizioni di San Martino. S'ingaggio la
battaglia alle ore 7 del mattino. Si combatte con furore
selvaggio, con tenacita tremenda fino alle 9 di sera. Gli
Austriaci ebbero la peggio. Ne caddero piu di 20.000.
Era il principio della fine per i tirannici dominatori.
Era I'aurora della redenzione per gl'Italiani oppressi.
S'inneggio alia vittoria. Si fraternizzo coi Francesi. Si
magnifico il latin sangue gentile.
Ma, airimprovviso, Napoleone III, che s'era mostrato
tanto ardito e prodigo, cambio d'idea per grette, pusilla-
nimi preoccupazioni politiche; accetto la proposta d'un
armistizio; s'incontro con Francesco Giuseppe a Villafranca
(11-12 luglio 1859). Ivi i due imperatori fissarono i prelimi-
nari di pace, che furono poi solennemente ratificati a Zurigo
il 10 novembre 1859. In base ad essi, Francesco Giuseppe
cedeva la Lombardia a Napoleone III: e costui, a sua
volta, la cedeva (che ipocrita formalita!) a Vittorio Emanuele
II. II Veneto rimaneva all'Austria. I principi spodestati
potevano ritornare nei loro domini, purche richiamati dal
voto dei rispettivi popoli e senza I'intervento armato di
stranieri. La penisola, compreso il Veneto, doveva ordi-
narsi in confederazione con a capo il pontefice.
LA GUERRA DEL 1866 419
Si puo immaginare I'impressione prodotta dall'azione
indegna di Napoleone IIL
Ma le speranze non erano del tutto perdute. La fortu-
nata clausola del non intervento straniero metteva nelle
mani degli stessi Italian! I'unita della loro patria. L'Emilia
e la Toscana non tardarono a profittarne, votando con
solenni plebisciti la loro annessione al Piemonte, che diven-
tava cosi un Regno di 12,000,000 d'abitanti.
Dall'altra parte il governo di Vittorio Emanuele II fu
costretto a cedere la Savoia e Nizza (quest'ultima, citta
italianissima, patria di Giuseppe Garibaldi) alia Francia.
XIX
Garibaldi e i Mille conquistano gloriosamente le Due
Sicilie (1860). Proclamazione del Regno d'ltalia (1861).
Si perde la quarta guerra di liberazione contro P Austria
per colpa del comandanti. L'annessione del Veneto
(1866). Villa Glori. I soldati mercenari del papa truci-
dano I'eroina romana Giuditta Arquati-Tavani e il marito
e 11 figlio di lei. Mentana (1867). La presa di Roma e la
caduta definitiva del potere temporale dei papi (1870).
La nazione una e indipendente.
Gli avvenimenti svoltisi nell'Italia Settentrionale du-
rante il 1859 ebbero una forte ripercussione nel Regno
delle Due Sicilie, dove infuriava la tirannide di Francesco
II di Borbone detto Franc eschiello (il figlio di Ferdinando II,
re Bomba, ch'era morto di morbo pedicolare da poco tempo),
uomo debole, incosciente, quasi idiota, alleato e imparentato
con la dinastia d'Austria (Francesco II aveva sposato Maria
Sofia duchessa di Baviera, sorella dell'imperatrice Elisabetta,
vale a dire della moglie di Francesco Giuseppe), contrario
all'indipendenza italiana, persecutore ferocissimo dei liberali.
Contro di lui insorse Palermo (primi d'aprile i860).
Furono sonate le campane a stormo, nella speranza che
insorgesse tutta la Sicilia. Ma, invece, accorsero le truppe,
le quali riuscirono a reprimere prontamente, con borbonica
violenza, la sollevata citta.
420 PARTE PRIMA
La notizia dell'insurrezione palermitana, intanto, era
giunta a Genova e aveva riscaldato potentemente gli animi
dei patrioti meridionali ivi rifugiatisi. Si levo rapida
un'onda di simpatia per i fratelli isolani insorti. Si decise
d'accorrere al piii presto in loro aiuto.
II 6 maggio i860, infatti, salpavano dallo scoglio di
Quarto, ridente paesello della riviera ligure, i due piroscafi
Lomhardo e Piemonte con a bordo i mille argonauti della
liberta, guidati da Giuseppe Garibaldi.
L'li maggio i860 i Mille sbarcarono a Marsala. II Duce
lancio subito un proclama, col quale invito i Sicilian! ad
armarsi contro il Borbone oppressore, e combattere per
I'unita e I'indipendenza della patria.
II grido dell'Eroe fu accolto con giubilo dagli ardenti
isolani. E il numero dei Mille crebbe rapidamente.
II 15 maggio i860 i Garibaldini si scontrarono con
I'esercito borbonico, composto di parecchie migliaia d'uo-
mini, sulle alture di Calatafimi, e ingaggiarono con esso un
fierissimo combattimento.
A un certo punto pareva che i volontari italiani dovessero
essere travolti dai nemici, superiori assai di numero. Nino
Bixio — il primo dei Mille dopo Garibaldi — che comandava
I'ala destra, avvicinatosi al Duce gli disse: "Sara bene
ritirarsi,"
"Che dite, Bixio?" rispose energicamente Garibaldi
"qui si fa I'unita d'ltalia, o si muore!"
E slanciandosi avanti con la fulminante sua spada in
alto, I'Eroe comando: "Alia baionetta!"
II nemico fu sbaragliato.^
Da Calatafimi, Garibaldi marcio su Palermo, attacco il
nemico, lo sconfisse ed entro da Dittatore nella citta (26-29
maggio i860).
II 27 luglio i860 il nemico fu sconfitto anche a Milazzo
In una terribile mischia nella quale lo stesso Garibaldi dove
lottare corpo a corpo.
^"Calatafimi! Avanzo di cento piigne: se, all'iiltimo mio respiro, i miei
amici mi vedranno sorridere per I'liltima volta d'orgORlio, sara ricordandoti;
perche io non rammento una pagina piu gloriosa!" Cos! scrisse Garibaldi nelle
sire Memorie,
LA GUERRA DEL 1866 421
In meno di tre mesi le truppe borboniche furono co-
strette a sgomberare la Sicilia.
E all'alba del 20 agosto i860, Garibaldi sbarcava con i
suoi in Calabria, piombava su Reggio e sconfiggeva ancora
una volta il nemico.
Tante vittorie suscitarono un vero delirio d'amore per
I'Eroe e spinsero le forti popolazioni calabresi ad insorgere
anch'esse contro i regi.
Poco dopo, sui colli di Soveria, presso Catanzaro,
Garibaldi affidava alia Storia le seguenti memorabili parole:
Dite al mondo, che con poche centinaia dei miei prodi Cala-
bresi ho fatto deporre le armi a dodicimila soldati borbonici!
Francesco II, atterrito, il 6 settembre i860 se ne fuggi-
va da Napoli e riparava a Gaeta, mentre il grosso delle
truppe rimastegli fedeli si rifugiava a Capua.
II giorno dopo, 7 settembre i860, Garibaldi entrava
glorioso e trionfante in Napoli.
E il 2 ottobre i860, egli debellava per I'ultima volta
presso il Volturno I'esercito borbonico, forte di 55,000
uomini.
Intanto s'erano ribellate anche I'Umbria e le Marche,
proclamando la loro annessione al Piemonte.
II governo pontificio soffoco nel sangue la volonta dei
popoli ad esso soggetti.
Accorse Vittorio Emanuele II con un buon nerbo di
truppe, e sconfiggeva su tutta la linea i papalini (settembre
i860).
Subito dopo, il figlio di Carlo Alberto proseguiva per
Napoli, per prendere possess© del Regno conquistato
dall'Eroe dei due mondi.
II 26 ottobre i860 Garibaldi e Vittorio Emanuele II,
entrambi a cavallo, s'incontrarono sulla strada di Teano.
Un testimone presente alia scena asseri che il Duce, mettendo
militarmente la mano al berretto, grido: "Salute al primo
re d'ltalia!"
Certo si e che Vittorio Emanuele II giunse a Napoli e vi
fu accolto con sommo onore.
L'Eroe, da parte sua, dopo ch'ebbe "donato un regno al
422 PARTE PRIMA
sopraggiunto re", se ne ritornava poverissimo alia sua
isoletta di Caprera.
Compiutasi in tal modo I'annessione delle Due Sicilie,
deirUmbria e delle Marche, fu sciolto il Parlamento su-
balpino e si fecero le nuove elezioni generali, le quali compre-
sero tutta I'ltalia a eccezione del Veneto, che rimaneva
ancora sotto il dominio dell'Austria, e della citta di Roma,
che rimaneva ancora sotto il dominio del papa.
II primo Parlamento italiano s'inauguro solennemente a
Torino nel mese di febbraio del 1861. Esso proclamo
subito la formazione del Regno d'ltalia, confer! a Vittorio
Emanuele II il diritto d'assumere per se e per i suoi successor!
il titolo di Re d'ltalia, espresse il voto che "Roma, reclamata
dall'opinione nazionale, venisse al piii presto restituita
airitalia".
L'anno 1866 I'Austria e la Prussia si disputavano la pre-
minenza sulla Germania.
Non essendosi potute accordare con le buone, le dette
due Potenze dovettero ricorrere alle armi.
Vittorio Emanuele II, coU'intento d'avere il Veneto,
stfinse un'alleanza ofFensiva e difensiva con la Prussia.
Quest'ultima, conformemente al trattato stipulato, apri
per la prima le ostilita contro I'Austria, invadendo I'Holstein.
Segui Vittorio Emanuele II, dichiarando guerra alia
comune nemica il 19 giugno 1866.
II 21 giugno 1866 egli partiva per il campo: e, il 24
giugno 1866, s'azzufFava a Custoza con gli Austriaci. I
soldati italiani si batterono virilmente come al solito; ma
I'inettitudine dei comandanti fece loro perdere la bat-
taglia.
Un colpo piii grave s'aveva per mare. Presso Lissa,
isoletta dell'Adriatico, la flotta italiana e quella austriaca
s'erano ingaggiate in un'aspra battaglia. Gli equipaggi
italiani fecero prodigi di valore. I capitani di vascello Foa
di Bruno e Alfredo Cappellini, comandanti del Re d'ltalia
e della Palestro, si lasciarono con istoica impassibilita
ingoiare dalle acque insieme con le loro navi, piuttosto che
arrendersi. Ma il loro eroico sacrifizio non valse a nulla.
LA GUERRA DEL 1866 423
La insipienza e la vilta deH'ammiraglio Persano fecero
vincere gli Austriaci (20 luglio 1866).
Garibaldi, che s'era avanzato nel Trentino, sbaragliando
ovunque il nemico, e gia s'apprestava ad assaltare e prendere
la citta di Trento, il 25 luglio 1866 ricevette improvvisa-
mente dal governo di Vittorio Emanuele II questo tele-
gramma: "Armistizio firmato; evacuate il Trentino".
Evacuate il Trentino, dopo ch'esso era stato bagnato dal
sangue di 3,400 Garibaldini? dopo che quelle popolazioni
avevano accolto con manifestazioni di giubilo le fiammeg-
gianti camicie rosse? dopo il disastro di Custoza? dopo
la vergogna di Lissa?
Dal campo s'alzo un ruggito leonino. I feriti si strap-
parono le bende, perche preferivano morire, piuttosto che
ritornare indietro. I volontari — ufficiali e subalterni —
rimasti incolumi, spezzarono le spade e le baionette; altri
si rotolarono per terra, furibondi, disperati, piangendo,
imprecando.
L'Eroe vittorioso e glorioso non disse verbo. Rispose
al re dTtalia con una sola parola: ''Obbediscol" — Ma
quanta eloquenza, quanto strazio, quanta magnanimita in
tale parola!
L'Austria, pero, era stata terribilmente sconfitta dai
Prussiani a Sadowa il 3 luglio 1866, e aveva perduto ogni
speranza di predominio sulla Germania.
Francesco Giuseppe fu costretto a cedere il Veneto, ma
non direttamente allTtalia ch'egli odiava a morte, sibbene a
Napoleone III. E costui, a sua volta, lo passo aglTtaliani.
La stessa commedia del 1859!
Cos! nei primi di novembre del 1866 il Veneto, dopo la
lunga e nefasta dominazione austriaca, fu ufficialmente ag-
gregate al Regno d 'Italia; ma coi confini di qua dal-
risonzo.
Dopo I'annessione del Veneto, glTtaliani sentirono ancor
piu vivo il bisogno di conquistare Roma.
Garibaldi era il centro luminoso da cui s'irradiava e a
cui convergeva I'agitazione nazionale per Roma. Egli
meditava il modo di liberare la citta eterna: liberazione
424 PARTE PRIMA
allora ostacolata dal governo di Napoleone III e, per
riflesso, dal governo di Vittorio Emanuele II.
In un giro trionfale fatto per I'ltalia, I'Eroe parlo
alle popolazioni, dicendo loro della necessita suprema di
liberare Roma. Ma mentre s'avviava verso il confine
pontificio (23 settembre 1867), egli fu "arrestato" per
ordine del governo di Vittorio Emanuele II, e tradotto ad
Alessandria (Piemonte).
Grandissimo fu lo sdegno degl'Italiani. Per mitigarlo,
il governo stesso fu obbligato a rimandare I'Eroe a Caprera
"nominalmente libero, ma facendo sorvegliare I'isola da
parecchie navi da guerra".
Dopo pochi giorni Garibaldi, con un miracolo di fede
e di ardimento, riusci a fuggire da Caprera e dirigersi verso
I'Agro Romano, dove i suoi prodi volontari avevano gia
iniziato la guerra contro il papa.
Intanto anche il popolo romano aveva cominciato ad
insorgere. Ma esso non aveva armi. Pensarono i fratelli
Cairoli insieme con altri giovani patrioti (75 intutto) a por-
targliele. I generosi, carichi di fucili, daghe e munizioni,
passarono i confini dello Stato Romano e s'imbarcarono sul
Tevere. Ma durante la traversata furono avvertiti che una
insurrezione del giorno avanti in Roma aveva avuto un esito
disgraziato. Allora il generoso manipolo si reco presso una
cascina di Villa Glori situata a poca distanza dalla Porta
del Popolo. Ivi fu subito assalito da 500 soldati papalini.
La lotta, corpo a corpo, fu terribile. I volontari, gridando
"Viva Garibaldi! Viva Roma!", fecero miracoli. Cadde
coperto di ferite Enrico Cairoli. Caddero altri eroi. Ma i
papalini furono respinti (23 ottobre 1867).
I patrioti romani, nonostante le avversita e la mancanza
d'armi, persistevano nell'idea di fare qualunque sforzo per
liberare la loro citta dalla tirannide papale. Lo stesso
giorno 23 ottobre 1867 quaranta d'essi si radunarono
segretamente nel lanificio di Giulio Ajani situato in Trastc-
vere, e ivi s'accingevano a concertare nuovi tentativi
d'insurrezione.
Giuditta Arquati nata Tavani, la quale aveva tra i
convenuti il proprio marito e un figlio diciassettenne, voile
LA GUERRA DEL 1866 425
trovarsi in mezzo a loro, col pretesto di sorvegliare il pranzo.
Ella era ancor giovane e bella, di quella bellezza maestosa
e imponente delle antiche matrone romane.
Mentre i patrioti adunati concretavano i loro piani, ecco
giungere di corsa una compagnia di gendarmi a cavallo e
un battaglione di zuavi pontifici con i fucili carichi e pronti.
I patrioti chiusero le porte del lanificio, le sbarrarono, si
misero fulmineamente sulla difesa. Partirono i primi colpi.
I papalini, per meglio sostenere I'ofFesa, entrarono in un
vicino convento di monache, e dalle finestre di esso e dal-
I'alto del campanile si misero a bersagliare la casa Aiani.
I patrioti romani rispondevano bravamente. Giuditta
Arquati, correndo da una stanza all'altra, porgeva munizio-
ni ai combattenti, li animava, assisteva i feriti. E i valorosi,
confortati da quel sereno eroismo, riguadagnavano il lor
vigore, raddoppiavano la loro resistenza.
I 300 papalini che avevano dato il primo assalto, dopo
due ore di lotta furono respinti e stavano per desistere da
ogni ulteriore sforzo, quando ne sopraggiunsero altri 300.
La pugna si riaccese piii furiosa di prima. L'eroica Giu-
ditta stringeva la mano al marito, baciava i capelli al figlio
giovinetto, mentre porgeva loro i fucili da lei stessa caricati;
e a tutti infondeva coraggio esclamando: "Viva I'ltalia!
Viva Roma! Non cediamo e quegli assassini!"
I patrioti, esaltati dall'intrepidezza di quella donna
indomita meravigliosa, tennero testa ai 600, come avevano
tenuto testa ai 300; e piii volte li ributtarono.
Ma arrivarono ai papalini altri rinforzi, mentre ai
patrioti venivano mcno le munizioni. Fu allora che, ral-
lentato il fuoco dai difensori, gli zuavi riuscirono ad abbat-
tere la porta ed entrare nella casa. Si combatte ancora per
le scale, sulle logge, nei corridoi, nelle stanzc. Ma la lotta
era imparl; non pote durare a lungo. I papalini massacra-
rono i patrioti romani, "fracassando loro le teste, stritolando
loro le ossa, gettandonc pur taluni dalle finestre giij nel
cortile".
Giuditta Arquati-Tavani, ferita in piii parti del corpo,
pote trascinarsi a qualche passo di distanza dal luogo dove
agonizzavano suo marito e suo figlio. I gendarmi e gli zuavi
426 PARTE PRIMA
pontifici si diedero a colpire i due uomini sotto gli occhi
dell'invitta donna, "e con colpi di baionetta si fieri, che,
trapassando i corpi dei caduti, si conficcarono nel muio e
nel pavimento". Poi trucidarono, con piu e piii di quegli
spietati colpi, anche I'eroina, la quale era incinta di vari
mesi!
Saziatisi cosi di sangue, gli sgherri del papa vollero
impinzarsi di cibo e inebriarsi di bevanda, e s'assisero cinica-
mente alia mensa che Giuditta Arquati-Tavani aveva
apprestato per i suoi infelici compagni.
Due giorni dopo — 25 ottobre 1867 — Garibaldi vendi-
cava a Monterotondo i martiri del lanificio Ajani, ripor-
tando suU'esercito papalino una splendida vittoria.
Ma il 3 novembre 1867 I'Eroe veniva anch'egli sopraf-
fatto dal numero dei nemici (soldati papalini e francesi)
a Mentana, vicino Roma, dopo una battaglia da titani: ed
era costretto a ritirarsi.
Tale ritirata fu giudicata degna del primo stratega
del mondo.
E la sconfitta di Mentana fu giudicata piii gloriosa di
tutte le vittorie riportate da Garibaldi durante la sua vita
avventurosa.
Surse in Mentana I'onta dei secoli
dal triste amplesso di Pietro ^ e Cesare ^:
tu hai, Garibaldi, in Mentana
su Pietro e Cesare posto il piede.
(Carducci).
II 20 settembre 1870 i soldati italiani al comando del
generale RafFaele Cadorna assaltarono Roma, aprirono una
breccia tra Porta Pia e Porta Salaria, ed entrarono nella
citta.
II millenario potere temporale dei papi ' e crollato.
La figlia primogenita del mondo latino, ricostituitasi a
1 Pio IX.
^Napoleone III.
^ Pipino il Brfve re dei Franchi nel 752 e poi anche re d'ltalia, dopo ayere
aiutato il pontefice Stefano II nella guerra contro Astolfo re dei Longobardi, diede
alia Chiesa Romana la Pentdpoli italiana comprendente le citta di Rimini, Pesaro,
Fano, Sinigaglia e Ancona. Da siffatta donazione ebbe origine il potere temporale
dei papi.
LA GUERRA DEL 1866 427
nazione una e indipendente, ha di bel nuovo Roma per
sua capitale.
II martirio di tutto un popolo — e di qual popolo! —
ha dato i suoi frutti.
II sogno di tanti pensatori e apostoli — da Dante a
Mazzini — e ormai una realta: una vivissima realta.
PARTE SECONDA
Come Roma antica, sia durante la Repubblica che
durante I'lmpero, conquisto e latinizzo il Friuli, I'Istria,
Trieste, Trento, il Trentino e la Dalmazia, e come fece del
mare Adriatico un gran lago romano. La " Tavola
Clesiana".
Friuli. Verso I'anno 185 avanti Cristo, alcune tribu
transalpine, "per valichi malagevoli e per aspre foreste"
(Cadore, Carnia, Carinzia, Carso), riuscirono a penetrare
in Italia. II Senate romano impose loro di "ritornarsene
immediatamente ai paesi ond'erano venute, ricordando che
le Alpi erano il confine naturale insuperabile, posto tra
ritalia e gli stranieri". Cosi narra Tito Livio nel suo venti-
novesimo libro.
A quei tempi il Friuli — cioe la parte che comprende
I'odierna provincia italiana di Udine e la parte su cui oggi
sorgono Gorizia, Aquileia (o, meglio, le rovine d'Aquileia),
Grado, Gradisca, Monfalcone, Cervignano — non era che
una regione ancora primitiva, abitata da audacissimi
barbari. Essa progredi soltanto dopo che fu conquistata
dai Romani. Questi sapientissimi colonizzatori, quanto
invitti guerrieri, appena I'ebbero in loro mano, si misero a
lavorarla con alacrita straordinaria, dando incremento
all'agricoltura ed ai traffici. Insegnarono la loro lingua.
DilFusero le loro leggi. Abbellirono parecchie borgate,
trasformandole in citta. Fondarono Aquileia (182-181
avanti Cristo) sulla riva occidentale dell'Isonzo, in una bassa
e fertile pianura, e la fortificarono **per difenderla dai
barbari che abitavano piii su". Opus Romanorum est
Aquileia munitum adversus supra illam hahitantes barbaros.
All'epoca d'Augusto, Aquileia era cinta di solide mura
per un circuito di oltre 22 chilometri; aveva un Campidoglio,
429
430 PARTE SECONDA
un tempio a Giove Ottimo Massimo e templi e Giunone, ad
Apollo, al dio Isonzo, al dio Beleno e un acquedotto e fori,
terme, circhi, teatri e piii di 200,000 abitanti (alcuni storici
dicono 500,000, altri un milione). Era in diretta comunica-
zione con Roma per mezzo della via Emilia (continuazione
della via Flaminia), e col mare Adriatico per mezzo di canali
navigabili con porto a Grado. Era la base militare dei
Romani contro i bellici popoli del Settentrione a dell'Oriente,
tanto che Augusto vi fisso il suo quartier generale nelle im-
prese contro i Pannoni, i Germani, gl'Illirici, mentre Giulio
Cesare vi si era rifornito di truppe nelle guerre contro i Reti
e gli Elvezi, com'egli stesso affermo nei suoi Commentari.
Era un centro commerciale di primissimo ordine, dove
affluivano giornalmente, da ogni parte del mondo, marinai,
mercanti, schiavi con grani, olii, vini, pellicce, metalli e
altri importanti prodotti. Era la sede d'una delle tre
tesorerie d'ltalia, dove si battevano in apposita zecca le
monete d'oro imperiali: Aquileiae percussae et signatae; un
privilegio, questo, che solo Aquileia — ricca d'ori, d'ambre
e di pietre preziose — poteva godere dopo Roma. Era
I'emporio della latinita. Era il baluardo rafFrenante la
cupida irrequietezza barbarica al di la delle Alpi. Ed era
anche un attraentissimo luogo di villeggiatura, dove con-
venivano genti d'ogni paese, perfino dall'Africa. Augusto
e sua moglie Livia, e poi gl'imperatori Tiberio, Marco
Aurelio, Diocleziano ed altri, non disdegnarono d'andarvi
a passare Testate. Augusto, anzi, durante Tanno 12 avanti
Cristo, vi ricevette Erode re di Giudea. E Costantino
il Grande vi sposo, nel 307, Fausta, figlia di Massimiano
e sorella di Massenzio.
L'IsTRiA E Trieste. Non meno alacri e prodighi i
Romani si mostrarono nellTstria — la penisola che sporge
all'estremo nord dell'Adriatico e che va dalle foci dellTsonzo
all'insenatura del Quarnero — da loro conquistata durante
gli anni 178-177 avanti Cristo ^ Vi costruirono cantieri,
^ Tra le primitive emigrazioni, conosciute col nome generico di Pelasgi, che
dall'Asia si riversarono in Europa, una corrente abbastanza numerosa approdo
alia terra che oggi si chiama Istria, e specialmente nel vasto seno che si stende
davanti a Trieste. Ai Pelasgi si sovrapposero piii tardi gli Etruschi. Finche
L'ALTA ORIGINE (182 AV. CRISTO) 431
sicuri punti d'approdo, fortezze. Tracciarono, com'essi
soli sapevano tracciare, vie maestre litorali e montuose
conducenti fin nel cuore della Carnia. Riedificarono parec-
chie citta sullo stile architettonico di Roma. A Pola eressero
le mura di cinta con porte solidissime, un tempio a Diana
e un tempio ad Augusto con colonnati monumentali, I'arco
dei Sergi, numerosi sepolcreti, un superbo anfiteatro di
granito, giudicato inferiore soltanto al Colosseo di Roma
sia per vastita (I'interno, nella sua forma elittica, misurava
140 metri di lunghezza e no di larghezza e poteva contenere
25,000 spettatori), sia per la maestosa bellezza artistica;
ampliarono e fortificarono il porto, facendone una base
navale di prim'ordine ^ A Parenzo {Parenthium) eressero
il Campidoglio, il Foro, i templi di Marte e di Nettuno e il
recinto dei Comizi,
Ma a Trieste (Tergeste) i Romani vollero principalmente
profondere i tesori materiali e morali di cui Roma non era
mai avara con i popoli ch'essa sapeva a lei devoti. Vi
costruirono un acquedotto, le mura di cinta, il Campidoglio,
le Terme, I'Arena, un tempio a Giove e un magnifico
porto militate, il piii importante dell'Adriatico, quello che
doveva servir loro di base nelle comunicazioni commerciali
e nelle guerre col centro d'Europa.^ Inscrissero la citta
alia tribii Papinia; la considerarono com'una continuazione
verso il 508 avanti Cristo vi giunse dalle foci dell'Istro (cosi a quei tempi si chiamava
il Danubio) e dalla Tracia una grossa tribii di gente grecanica, la quale si sostitui
ai primitivi abitatori, dando alia regione il noma d'Istria dal gran fiume d'onde
essa tribu proveniva.
Questo ci assicura la tradizione.
Piu tardi Strabone e Plinio ci designarono chiaramente i popoli che abitarono
la regione istriana prima dell'occupazione romana. Essi furono i Celti, i Liburni,
i Carnii e i Siapidi, con predominanza della razza celtica.
E quindi assodato che le primitive popolazioni dell'Istria erano etnograficamente
conformate, come gli altri popoli d'ltalia, da schiatte varie, unite piii o meno
dall'affinita, dalla lunga connivenza e dai bisogni comuni.
Trieste esisteva prima della conquista romana.
^ Nelle rivalita tra Cesare e Pompeo, Pola parteggio per Pompeo. Cesare,
irato, voleva distruggere la citta. Ma ne fu dissuaso dalla sua gentile figliuola
Giulia. A memoria e a riconoscenza di tale atto, Pola fu da allora in poi e per
molto tempo chiamata Pietas Giuliae.
^ Nella colonna Traiana a Roma, fra i tanti bassorilievi ve ne sono due che rap-
presentano la Trieste dei Romani circondata da mura solidissime, con le rive
guarnite, col porto diviso in due da un bel molo, all'estremita del quale sorge il faro
sopra una torre alta e rotonda: e I'imperatore Traiano che s'imbarca per Roma,
reduce da una vittoria riportata sui Daci.
432 PARTE SECONDA
della provincia veneta; la investirono degli stessi diritti di
Roma, "cosi che i Triestini poterono, al pari dei Romani,
partecipare alle elezioni dei magistrati della Repubblica e
poi deirimpero, di esserne eletti e di votare leggi"; ne fecero,
insomma, I'espressione culminante della loro energia edifi-
catrice nell'Istria, irradiante su vastissima zona la fecondita
della sua esistenza.^
Quando Augusto divise I'ltalia in undid regioni, Trieste,
ITstria e la Venezia formarono la decima regione italica:
X Regio Italica. E le milizie triestine furono inscritte nella
decima legione ApoUinare. Proprio allora la citta —
grata d'essere stata inalzata dalle vittrici aquile romane ai
piij alti fastigi della ricchezza, della cultura, della civilta:
orgogliosa d'avere appartenuto e di appartenere come parte
integrante alia piii forte e piii illuminata razza del mondo —
incise nel suo stemma, su campo purpureo, I'alabarda di ferro
pervenutale da Roma: alabarda simboleggiante VAlma
Mater nel suo possente fulgore latino.
Trentino. II Trentino e quell'incantevole paesaggio
montuoso che s'incunea tra il Veneto e la Lombardia, divi-
dendo per una larghezza di oltre lOO chilometri queste due
province italiane.^ I suoi confini girano per 452 chilometri,
dei quali 136 lo dividono dal Tirolo tedesco, 138 dalla
Lombardia e 178 dal Veneto. Da Bolzano a Riva sul lago
di Garda, esso e percorso dall'Adige, il rapido e impetuoso
fiume cantato da Virgilio e da Dante, sulle cui rive sorge
Trento (Tridentum), la piii importante citta del Trentino.
I primi abitatori di questa regione furono gli Etruschi,
poi i Galli, poi i Romani. Dalla fusione appunto della razza
quirita con la razza gallica nacque la razza itahca propria-
mente detta.
I Romani, dopo ch'ebbero ai tempi d'Augusto assoggetta-
to il Trentino, si misero con Icna intensa a colonizzarlo,
^ Giuli» Cesare — che piii volte c«mbatte vittoriosamente contro le orde
teutoniche irrompcnti dalle Alpi, ricacciandola sempre alle loro sterili lande —
estese e porto il confine d'ltalia all'Arsia sul Quarnero. Da lui appunto la catena
di montagne che serra I'lstria a settentrione, e che fu testimone delle gesta del gran
capitano, prese il nome d'Alpe Giulia.
^ In seguito al trattato di Vienna del 1815, I'Austria aggrego il Trentino al
Tirolo tedesco, e d'allora in poi lo chiamo Tirolo.
L'ALTA ORIGINE (182 AV. CRISTO) 433
finche riuscirono a diirgli un assetto economico e civile degno
del loro imperio.
Tutto cio e storicamente assodato. Pur nondimeno la
romanita del Trentino fusempremessa in dubbio dai nemici
dei diritti nazionali italiani. Ogni dubbio, pero, dove tacere
di fronte a un fatto inaspettato accaduto nel secolo scorso.
II 29 aprile 1869 (e questo il fatto) due contadini italiani,
scavando in un campo vicino a Cles nel Trentino, trovarono
una tavola di bronzo perfettamente conservata, contenente
inciso un decreto in lingua latina, col quale Claudio, impera-
tore romano nelTanno 49 dell'era cristiana, risolveva la
disputa che da lungo tempo esisteva intorno alia nazionalita
degli abitanti delle vallate dell'estremo nord delle province
di Trento.
Ecco il testo del decreto tradotto in lingua italiana:
Marco Giunio Silano e Quinto Sulpicio Camerino, Consoli. A
Baia il 15 di marzo, in un editto di Tiberio Claudio Cesare Augusto
Germanico, fu proposto quanto segue:
Tiberio Claudio Cesare Augusto, Pontefice Massimo, con po-
tere di Tribuno per la sesta volta, Imperatore per la undicesima
volta, Console nominato per la quarta volta. Padre della Patria,
dichiara:
Considerando che, proprio sotto il governo di Tiberio Cesare,
mio zio, Pinario Apollinara fu mandato per regolare le vecchie
controversie, delle quali la mia memoria ritiene solo quelle tra i
Commensi e i Bergalei; e che il detto Pinario Apollinara, per
I'assenza di mio zio da Roma, ed anche piii tardi sotto il governo
di Caio Caligola, neglesse di riportare, come nessuno domando a
lui di fare; ed essendomi stato conseguentemente riferito da
Camurio Statute che la maggior parte delle terre e foreste abitate
dai suddetti popoli sono sotto il mio dominio: lo mandai il mio
amico Giulio Planta, perche, con I'aiuto dei miei procuratori e delle
persone del vicino territorio, investigasse attentamente tutte le
cose e rapportasse a me, com'egli efFettivamente mi rapporto in un
apposito memoriale da lui preparato; ed lo gli diedi I'autorita
d'investigare e decidere le rimanenti materie.
Come alia legale condizione dei Naumi, Tuliassi e Sinduni,
una parte d'essi e unita con i Tridentini, mentre un'altra non e
unita. Sebbene I'origine di questi ultimi non sia abbastanza
chiara per determinare se essi abbiano la cittadinanza Romana,
434 PARTE SECONDA
pure, in vista del fatto che essi sono cosi misti con i Tridentini e
godettero il diritto di cittadinanza per lungo tempo, e che essi non
potrebbero essere separati da quella splendida municipalita senza
gran danno della medesima, lo permetto ch'essi rimangano in
possesso del diritto ch'essi per lungo tempo credettero di possedere,
e questo lo faccio volontariamente, per avere udito che, della
maggioranza di detto popolo, alcuni furono soldati nel mio corpo
di guardia, altri furono comandanti di truppe, altri furono membri
di giurie e presero parte in cause trattate a Roma. Questi diritti
lo do loro, cosi che tutti loro possano, come cittadini Romani
presso essi stessi e con i Tridentini o altrove, essere considerati
legali e conservare i nomi da loro precedentemente adottati di
cittadini Romani.
La scoperta d'un si prezioso documento, che fu subito
battezzato col nome di Tavola Clesiana, riempi di giubilo i
Trentini, glTtaliani tutti. E da ogni parte del mondo
giunsero congratulazioni al governo d'ltalia. Solo dall'Au-
stria e dalla Germania giunsero parole d'incredulita e
dispetto. Ma esse non potevano scuotere in verun modo il
bronzeo contenuto della verita. Si che gli autori di sifFatte
parole dovettero finite col riconoscere anch'essi I'auten-
ticita della Tavola Clesiana; ma si vendicarono, insinuando
che il luogo della scoperta era stato abitato sempre da
popoli di razza teutonica, non mai da popoli di razza latina.
I Trentini continuarono i loro scavi. E trovarono ben
presto un'immensa quantita di ossa e teschi umani, insieme
con lance, spade, giavelletti, monete romane, ecc.
L'insigne storico e archeologo tedesco Teodoro Mommsen
corse a Cles per investigate. Vi corsero anche molti altri
professori tedeschi, alio scopo di vedere se, per mezzo dei
nuovi oggetti rinvenuti, "si potevano distruggere le prove
messe in luce dalla Tavola Clesiana^'.
Dopo attento e minuzioso esame, risulto chiarissima-
mente che le ossa e i teschi con le lance, le spade, i giavelletti,
le monete, ecc. erano appartenuti senz'alcun dubbio a
individui di pura razza latina e non teutonica.
II Mommsen, che s'intendeva di cose romane antiche
meglio di qualsiasi altro studioso del suo tempo, pubblico il
risultato delle sue accurate e autorevoli investigazioni in un
apposito opuscolo, nel quale concluse che tutti i fatti pro-
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L'ALTA ORIGINE (182 AV. CRISTO) 435
vavano pienamente e solennemente che la regione di Trento
"e italiana e appartenne all'Italia".
GFinsinuatori dovettero ingoiar la pillola e turarsi la
bocca.
Dalmazia *. Una contesa tra i Dalmati e alcuni
popoli (Lissani e Daorsi) alleati di Roma provoco per la
prima volta I'intervento dei Romani negli afFari della Dal-
mazia. Un forte esercito romano, comandato dal console
Marcio Figulo, shared nella detta regione I'anno 156 avanti
Cristo, assedio la capitale ch'era allora Dalminio, I'espugno
e costrinse i Dalmati a una pace onerosa.
Ma assai piii tardi Roma pote soggiogare definitiva-
mente la Dalmazia, fiera quanto mai della propria liberta, e
tramutarla, da terra barbarica e povera qual'era, in paese
civile e ricco.
Sulle coste dalmate i porti come Zara, Salona presso
Spalato, Ragusa e Antivari ricevettero un potentissimo
impulso, e insieme con i porti di Fiume, Trieste, Pola,
Aquileia, Ravenna, Rimini, Ancona, Bari, Brindisi e
Durazzo, tutti importantissimi, fecero del mare Adriatico
un gran lago romano fiorente di vita e di commerci.
La romanizzazione della Dalmazia fu tanto profonda e
salda, che Diocleziano, allorquando, stanco di mente e di
corpo per le gravi cure di Stato e gli acciacchi, abdico
airimpero nel 305, non prefer! altro luogo di riposo che
Salona, dove si ritiro e visse, occupato nella poetica e
deliziosa coltivazione dei suoi splendidi giardini, fino al 313.
E Giulio Nipote, quando nel 478 fu deposto da Oreste
(il padre di Romolo Augusto), non seppe far di meglio che
rifugiarsi nella Dalmazia, da dove Roma imperiale mando
I'ultimo guizzo di luce sul mondo.
Cos! il dominio di Roma, dapprima temuto e osteggiato,
fini col diventare — grazie alia saggezza con cui fu eserci-
tato — I'eta delForo degl'Istriani, dei Triestini, dei Trentini,
dei Dalmati, di tutti i popoli che oggi sono al confine orien-
tale d'ltalia.
* La regione litorale a est del mare Adriatico.
436 PARTE SECONDA
E il nome sacro dell'Urbe, generatore di luce a di calore
al pari del Sole, sebbene macchiato dalle colpe dei tiranni,
fu dai detti popoli amato, difeso, benedetto, inciso gloriosa-
mente nelle pagine della loro storia.
II
Le invasioni barbariche in Italia. Attila, Hagellum
Dei, distrugge (anno 452) la bella citta d'Aquileia fondata
dai Romani fin dal 182-181 avanti Cristo. In un comizio
presieduto dall'imperatore Carlo Magno, gl'Italiani del-
I'lstria protestano contro I'immigrazione slava (anno 804).
La Republica dei dogi libera I'Adriatico dai corsari
stranieri. Lo sposalizio di Venezia col mare. La
spontanea sudditanza della Dalmazia (anno 999).
Fedele per otto secoli. "L'onoratissima sepoltura "
dello stendardo di San Marco.
Con la morte dell'imperatore romano Marco Aurelio,
avvenuta a Vindobona (Vienna) I'anno i8o, tramonto
per sempre I'eta dell'oro nelle region! del confine orientale
d'ltalia. L'Impero romano caduto in balia di soldati
accecati dalle piii basse e sfrenate passioni, degenero;
perdette I'antico vigore, I'antico prestigio, I'antico splendore;
rovino. E allora i barbari (Goti, Vandali, Svevi, Borgo-
gnoni, Unni) — le teste ornate con corna di buoi, le spalle
e i petti coperti con pelli d'animali feroci — che il possente
gladius romano aveva tenuto per secoli in soggezione, si
rovesciarono — assetati di vendetta, avidi di preda e di
dominio — dall'Alpi: e, facendo strage di campi, di citta,
di popoli, stremarono I'ltalia; I'avvilirono; la ridussero a
durissima servitCi; la sprofondarono in quell'abisso tenebroso
che fu poi chiamato Medio Evo.
La prima furia barbarica colpi naturalmente le regioni
del confine orientale: il Trentino, il Friuli, I'lstria, la
Dalmazia. Ma queste non si fecero ingoiare tanto facil-
mente; opposero, ai brutali invasori, una resistenza quanto
mai tenace; difesero con supremo ardimento, con supremo
LE INVASIONI BARBARICHE 437
eroismo, la propria italianita, germe iniziale di quell'irre-
dentismo che doveva, insieme con altre cause, determinare
I'intervento dell'Italia (maggio 191 5) nel piu grande conflitto
delle nazioni, e rinnovare cosi (circolo fatale delle alterne
vicende umane!) le orrende tragedie che si svolsero, nel
passato, tra gli stessi popoli e sulle stesse Alpi.
Basta ricordare Aquileia assediata dagli Unni. Essa lotto
strenuamente contro i nemici, respingendoli piii volte.
Per punirla appunto dello straordinario valore dimostrato,
Att'i\3.f flage Hum Deiy dopo che con impetuosi e rabbiosi assalti
riusci a prenderla, vi trucido i cittadini, compresi i vecchi,
le donne, i fanciulli; la saccheggio, I'incendio; fece sparire
dalla faccia della terra (anno 452), come sotto torrenti di
lava, la metropoli piena di forza e di bellezza che i Romani
avevano eretto con tanta sapienza, con tanto amore.
I superstiti d'Aquileia, nonche quelli delle altre citta
di confine distrutte da Attila, si rifugiarono presso la
isoletta del vicino estuario, e ivi fondarono a poco a poco
la citta che doveva, per virtii di governanti, diventare nei
secoli successivi la regina dell'Adriatico: Venezia.^
E quando non poterono con I'armi, le regioni del confine
orientale d'ltalia sostennero la loro nazionalita con altri
mezzi. L'anno 568 cominciarono a calare in Italia i Longo-
bardi (gente germanica) comandati dal loro re Alboino. I
nuovi barbari, al pari dei precedenti, non fecero che opera
di distruzione e di morte.
Gl'Italiani del confine orientale, costretti ad abban-
donare i loro paesi interni continuamente messi a ferro ed
a fuoco dai selvaggi invasori, si ridussero al mare, il quale
apriva loro, se non altro, una via di scampo. Ed ivi si
dedicarono alia pesca e alia navigazione.
^ Piu tardi Aquileia risorse e ridivento potente in grazia del suo patriarcato,
uno dei maggiori principati teocratico-militari del Medio Evo. La sua Cliiesa,
dopo quella di Roma, fu la piu illustre della Cristianita. E la Corte dei patriarchi
d'Aquileia, i quali prestavano agl'iiTiperaton che dominavano I'ltalia un semplice
omaggio feudale, fu delle piu splendide e celebrate di quell'eta. II secolo XIII
segno I'apice della potenza patriarcale. Ma durante il 1420 Venezia, rimasta
padrona del Friuli, soppresse quella potenza teocratico-feudale, e il vescovo vene-
ziano ottenne egli stesso da Roma il titolo di patriarca d'Aquileia con giurisdizione
su quella diocesi.
438 PARTE SECONDA
Ma rimperatore Carlo Magno scaccio i Longobardi
dairitalia e, coH'intento, forse lodevole, di ripopolare le
terre interne dell'Istria lasciate deserte dagl'Italiani,
commise I'errore di chiamarvi alcune tribu slave che da
tempo le appetivano.
Gl'Istriani non videro di buon occhio un tale atto.
Lo credettoro nocivo alia loro compagine etnica e alia
futura ricostituzione della loro unita politica. Eppero
s'agitarono, protestarono altamente in un solenne comizio
da loro tenuto presso il flume Risano, sotto la presidenza
dello stesso Carlo Magno (anno 804). Ed ebbero la virtii
di far si che il potentissimo imperatore dei Franchi si con-
vincesse dell'errore commesso, sospendesse immediatamente
la gia avviata colonizzazione slava neiristria,e vi ravvivasse,
invece, le piii utili istituzionl romane, adattandole alle mu-
tate condizioni dei tempi.
E quando videro che Venezia seguiva le virili tradizioni
di Roma, meglio delle altre repubbliche italiche contempo-
ranee, le regioni del confine orientale d'ltalia, che non ave-
vano mai tollerato volontariamente la mala signoria dei
barbari, non esitarono a passare sotto la protezione del
governo dei dogi. Basta ricordare la Dalmazia. I pirati
narentani, slavi e croati infestavano da un pezzo I'Adriatico,
assaltando, assassinando, rapinando. E non contenti di
cio, essi erano riusciti, col terrore, ad imporre gravi tributi
agli abitatori delle coste dalmatiche e perfino agli stessi
Veneziani.
I Dalmati implorarono I'aiuto della Repubblica, che
altra volta li aveva anche difesi contro la prepotenza
degli stranieri. Per fortuna era allora doge un uomo straor-
dinariamente gagliardo risoluto magnanimo, "amalgama
dinamico e vibrante di tutte le energie venete": Pietro II
Orseolo, figlio di quel Pietro Orseolo, santificato poi dalla
Chiesa cattolica, che aveva cominciato a proprie spese e
portato a buon punto la costruzione della monumentale
chiesa di San Marco.
L'Orseolo, ascoltati e confortati gli ambasciatori dal-
mati, disse ai Veneziani con accento fermo che, per cancellare
LE INVASIONI BARBARICHE 439
rignominia a cui la Repubblica era da tanto tempo soggetta,
per ridonare la sicurezza ai fratelli continuamente ta-
glieggiati dai corsari, bisognava fare la guerra.
I Veneziani, commossi, assentirono: e diedero ampia
llberta d'azione al loro doge.
II giorno deH'Ascensione dell'anno 999 una flotta for-
midabilmente armata salpava da Venezia al comando di
Pietro II Orseolo.
I corsari, intanto, instavano piu che mai per la riscossione
del solito tributo.
II doge fece risponder loro che sarebbe andato di persona
a portarglielo.
Vi ando, infatti. Ma, invece del tributo pecuniario,
egli porto ai nemici la ruggente forza dell'alato leone di
San Marco.
Si combatterono grandi battaglie navali, specialmente a
Curzola e a Lagosta. I corsari slavi del golfo di Narente
opposero, piii di tutti, una resistenza accanitissima. Ma a
nulla valse. I loro navigli furono dai Veneziani incendiati.
I corsari stessi furono parte uccisi, parte inseguiti nel con-
tinente e ricacciati e dispersi oltre i confini.
L'Adriatico fu cosi liberato dalle piraterie e dai terrore
dei barbari.
I Veneziani accolsero in trionfo il doge vincitore, e gli
conferirono il titolo di "Duca della Dalmazia". E a
ricordanza dell'alta impresa compiuta, celebrarono lo sposa-
lizio simbolico di Venezia col mare. II doge, imbarcato
con gli altri supremi magistrati della Repubblica sul dorato
Bucintoro sfarzosamente ornato, getto un anello benedetto
nel mare e pronunzio queste significative parole: Desponsa-
mus te, mare nostro, in signum veri perpetuique domi7iii; in
segno del vero e perpetuo dominio che la Repubblica aveva
ormai acquistato sul mare Adriatico, il quale fu, d'allora in
poi, chiamato Golfo di Venezia.^
La Dalmazia, dai canto suo, esultante e riconoscente,
ricompenso la sorella liberatrice facendole **spontaneo
omaggio di sudditanza", giurandole ubbidienza e fedelta
* La festa dello sposalizio di Venezia col mare si celebro anche nei secoli suc-
cessivi in ogni giorno deH'Ascensione.
440 PARTE SECONDA
"in eterno". Rimase ella infatti contenta e felice sotto
il mite governo di Venezia, prima per quattro secoli interi,
poi, dopo una breve involontaria interruzione, per altri
377 anni (in tutto otto secoli circa!). E vi sarebbe rimasta
davvero "in eterno", se il trattato di Campoformio, stipu-
lato il i6 ottobre 1795 tra Napoleone I e Francesco II
imperatore d'Austria, non avesse traditorescamente colpita
a morte anche la Repubblica dei dogi, sacrificandola alle
oblique cupidige degli Asburgo.
II dolore provato dai Dalmati per sifFatto trattato non si
puo descrivere. A Zara, capitale della Dalmazia, le bandiere
venete furono portate sull'altare maggiore della chiesa,
"ed ivi, prima dagli ufficiali, poi dai soldati, quindi dal
popolo, furono baciate e talmente asperse di lagrime, che
restarono tutte inumidite".
E a Perasto lo stendardo della Repubblica di San
Marco, come una reliquia sacra, fu dai cittadini posto sotto
I'altar maggiore della chiesa, mentre il comandante delle
milizie, rivolto alio stendardo stesso, diceva in dolce dialetto
veneziano queste toccanti parole di devozione:
Per 577 anni la nostra fede, el nostra valor id sempre custodio
per mar dove n' a chiamd i to nemici. Per^'j'j anni le nostre sostanze,
el nostro sangue, le nostre vite xe stade sempre per ti, e felicissimi
s'avemo reputd. Ti con nu, nu con ti, semo stai sempre vittoriosiy
sempre illustri. Za che non ne resta altro de far per ti, il nostro cor
sia I'onoratissima to sepoltura, e el piu grande, el piu vero elogio le
nostre lagrime! Per 377 anni la nostra fede e il nostro valore ti
hanno sempre custodito per mare, dove ci hanno chiamato i tuoi
nemici. Per 377 anni le nostre sostanze, il nostro sangue, le
nostre vite sono state sempre per te, e felicissimi ci dobbiamo
reputare. Tu con noi, noi con te, siamo stati sempre vittoriosi,
sempre illustri. Giacche non ci resta altro da fare per te, il nostro
cuore sia I'onoratissima tua sepoltura, e il piu grande, il piii vero
elogio sieno le nostre lagrime!
Anche le isole del QuarneroS conquistate dal doge Pietro
^ II golfo del Quarnero e quel largo braccio di mare Adriatico che s'insinua tra
la costa orientale della penisola istriana e il litorale croato. Esso — dalla insena-
tura di Porto Re alle alrtire di Meia e di Tcrsato, fino a Fiiime — e Italia e segna il
confine geografico d'ltalia. Le sue isole furono anche in potere dei Romani.
Ai tempi di Giiilio Cesare esse erano inscritte alia Liburnia che faceva parte del-
I'llliria.
I COMUNI E BARBAROSSA 441
II Orseolo, rimasero sempre sotto il governo di Venezia
(eccetto il periodo dal 1378 al 1409 in cui esse furono con la
Dalmazia cedute transitoriamente aH'Ungheria). Vi rima-
sero fino alia caduta della Repubblica, con la quale furono
consegnate all'Austria in forza del suddetto trattato di
Campoformio riconfermato dal Congresso di Vienna del
1815.
Ill
I Comuni. Federico Barbarossa imperatore di Ger-
mania scende in Italia I'anno 1154 e massacra, saccheg-
gia, incendia; cattura il celebre riformatore Amaldo da
Brescia e lo consegna al papa Adriano IV, il quale I'arde
vivo. La compiacente Dieta di Roncaglia. Milano,
Crema e Piacenza si ribellano. II Barbarossa si vendica
mostruosamente : assedia Crema, e non potendo vin-
cerla con I'armi, lega ad alcune torri mobili i fanciulli
cremaschi e milanesi ch'egli tiene in ostaggio, e li espo-
ne ai colpi degli assediati. L'amor di patria puo piu
dell'amore paterno sugl'Italiani. La distruzione di
Crema e di Milano. La Lega Veronese. Un papa
energico. La Lega Lombarda. L'arcivescovo Cristiano
di Magonza, plenipotenziario del Barbarossa in Italia,
assedia Ancona e riduce i difensori a cibarsi d'ortiche e
cuoio. L'eroismo delle donne anconitane. L'unione
del Comuni italiani genera I'epopea. II Carroccio.
La Compagnia della Morte. II Barbarossa e terribil-
mente sconfitto dagl'Italiani a Legnano (1176); e scon-
fitto anche per mare dalla flotta unita di Venezia e di
Trieste; deve baciare il piede al suo piu fiero nemico
(papa Alessandro III) ; deve implorare la pace e abban-
donare per sempre I'ltalia senza averla potuta soggiogare.
E quando i Comuni d'ltalia tentarono di ricostituire a
unita e indipendenza la patria invasa e devastata ancora
una volta dai Teutoni, le regioni del confine orientale non si
limitarono soltanto a manifestazioni di solidarieta pura-
mente spirituale, ma si slanciarono con fede e ardore sul
campo dell'azione, dove piii sovrastava il pericolo, dando
442 PARTE SECONDA
il loro contributo di pensiero e di sangue alia causa nazionale.
Basta ricordare Trieste.
E noto che sulle rovine del vecchio edificio feudale in
Italia sorse il governo comunale autonomo, ossia il reggi-
mento libero delle citta, con una magistratura suprema di
tre, sei o dodici consoli; con un consiglio minore di notabili,
detto di credenza, che deliberava delle cose ordinarie; con
un'assemblea generale di tutti i cittadini, la quale deli-
berava delle cose piii importanti (votare leggi, stipulate
trattati d'alleanza, dichiarare guerra, concludere pace,
battere moneta).
Federico Barbarossa imperatore di Germania, deciso
di ridurre ITtalia all'antica obbedienza teutonica, I'invase
durante I'anno 1154 con un grosso esercito; devasto cam-
pi; incendio villaggi e citta, tra cui Chieri ed Asti; as-
sedio Tortona e le ingiunse di rompere immediatamente
I'alleanza ch'essa aveva con Milano. La nobile cittadetta
respinse il disonorante comando. II Barbarossa I'assalto:
e, dopo due mesi d'aspra lotta, I'espugno, la saccheggio, la
distrusse. Compiute sifFatte prodezze, se n'ando a Pavia,
dove si fece incoronare re dTtalia; poi, invitato da Adriano
IV, prese la via dellTtalia Meridionale, alio scopo d'esten-
dere anche laggiii il suo dominio e, nello stesso tempo,
catturare Arnaldo da Brescia — un terribile nemico della
Chiesa cattolica di quei tempi — e consegnarlo al detto
pontefice.
Era Arnaldo da Brescia un monaco dalla mente ispirata
e severa, che vagheggiava il rinnovamento religioso e
politico del genere umano, ponendo per base la verita e la
morale in un senso positivo e sano. Non riconosceva il
battesimo dei fanciulli, le preghiere dei defunti, il sacrifizio
della messa. Predicando con ardente infrenabile foga contro
il potere temporale dei papi e contro i corrotti costumi degli
ecclesiastici, era riuscito ad acquistarsi il favore e I'amore
del popolo; a scacciare, successivamente, i papi Lucio II
ed Eugenio III; a fondare in Roma una repubblica laico-
democratica con un senato. Pero, dopo dieci anni di potere,
Adriano IV — papa astuto, audace, senza scrupoli — I'at-
tacco; localunnio; loscomunico insieme con quelli che mag-
I COMUNI E BARBAROSSA 443
giormente lo sostenevano; riempi di tanto terrore la citta di
Roma, che il generoso novatore fu ripudiato, espulso, perse-
guitato.
II Barbarossa lo trovo rifugiato in un castello della
Campania; lo strappo a viva forza dalle mani di chi I'ospi-
tava; lo trascino in catene a Roma ai piedi d'Adriano IV.
E costui, da buon vicario di Cristo, lo condanno al rogo;
fece gittare le ceneri del martire nel Tevere; ricompenso
il Barbarossa del servizio reso alia Chiesa, cingendogli
con gran pompa la corona imperiale nel Vaticano.
II popolo romano si sdegno a tanta nequizia: e insorse:
ed obbligo il Barbarossa a partire precipitosamente per la
Germania.
II tiranno si vendico deH'umiliazione patita, mettendo
a ferro e foco I'innocente citta di Spoleto.
Ripiombo in Italia tre anni dopo, sempre assetato di
sangue e di dominio; espugno Brescia; poi, con un esercito
di 100,000 fanti e 15,000 cavalieri, marcio su Milano per
punirla d'avere riedificato Tortona; per punirla, sopratutto,
dello spirito ribelle ch'essa troppo tenacemente dimostrava
contro la signoria teutonica.
La metropoli lombarda sostenne leoninamente I'urto
nemico, e resiste finche ebbe viveri. Quando questi le
mancarono, essa s'arrese, ma non a discrezione, sibbene a
patti onorevoli (1158).
II Barbarossa allora convoco a Roncaglia, nel Piacen-
tino, una compiacente Dieta, dalla quale fece sentenziare
che le citta d'ltalia rette a Comune dovevano, al pari di
tutte le altre, dipendere amministrativamente e giudizia-
riamente da un rappresentante imperiale detto Podestd.
Milano, Crema, Piacenza fremettero; protestarono;
dissero chiaro e tondo ch'esse non si sarebbero mai piegate
a sifFatta imposizione.
II Barbarossa monto in bestia. Gli latrarono nella
superba anima i piii truci propositi di vendetta. Si scaglio,
alia testa d'un poderoso esercito, contro Crema ch'era la
pill debole. Ma fu respinto. Allora ricorse a uno strata-
gemma terribile. Fece costruire alcune torri mobili di
legno; nell'interno d'esse apposto i suoi piii feroci soldati
444 PARTE SECONDA
armati fino ai denti; all'esterno lego molti fanciulli di
Crema e di Alilano ch'egli teneva in ostaggio. Cos! cariche,
accosto le scellerate torri alle mura, sperando che gli asse-
diati, per non uccidere i propri figli, si sarebbero astenuti da
ogni ulteriore resistenza. Invece successe tutto il contrario.
Gli assediati, massimamertte i padri, continuarono a difen-
dersi. E, tempestando a un tempo le loro adorate creature
e I'odiato nemico, gridavano con fede di neofiti: "Fortunati
coloro che muoiono per la patria!"
Ben sei mesi — dal luglio 1159 al gennaio 1160 — duro
la tragica lotta. Alia fine — tagliati gli acquedotti, mancati
i viveri, spento il fiore dei cittadini — Crema fu costretta
a cedere. II Tedesco la premio dell'eroismo dimostrato,
saccheggiandola e incendiandola.
Nonostante lo scempio di Crema, Milano persiste
nella sua attitudine ribelle. II Barbarossa, che gia aveva
ricevuto rinforzi dalla Germania, I'assalto con impeto ferino.
Ma non gli valse. L'assalto piii volte. Ma i suoi conati
si fransero sempre come onde di mare in burrasca contro
una costiera. Allora capi che soltanto con la fame avrebbe
potuto vincere i Milanesi. Chiese altri rinforzi. Li ottenne.
Assedio la citta. Questa resiste due lunghissimi anni.
Poi, stretta dal sempre crescente numero di nemici, esausta
dalla mancanza di viveri, s'arrese (marzo 1162). II Teutone
la tratto ferocissimamente; la distrusse; la semino di sale:
segno ch'essa non poteva piii risorgere! Indi se ne torno
in Germania per ricevervi e godere gli onori del trionfo.
L'atroce fine di Milano, pero, commosse profondamente
le altre citta d'ltalia; le impensieri; le convinse che, per la
salvezza'Lcomune, bisognava urgentemente e saldamente
unirsi.
Le prime ad allearsi tra loro, dopo avere scacciato dalle
rispettive sedi le guarnigioni e i ministri imperiali, furono
Verona, Vicenza, Padova e Treviso. Lega Veronese.
II Barbarossa ripiombo com'un falco su Verona, Ma
trovo duro: tanto duro, ch'egli stimo prudente rivolarsene
immediatamente in Germania per rifornirsi d'altri uomini
(1 164).
Intanto nel 11 59 era morto Adriano IV. II Barbarossa
I COMUNI E BARBAROSSA 445
— trescando, corrompendo, minacciando, intimidendo — era
riuscito a far eleggere dai suoi cardinali un antipapa a lui
ligio (Vittore IV) e, morto cestui, Pasquale III, animo vile
e servo al pari dell'altro.
I cardinali indipendenti, invece, avevano votato per il
Bandinelli di Siena (Alessandro III), uomo sagace ed
energico, favorevole alia causa dei Comuni. Questo papa
scomunico da Anagni il Barbarossa; poi s'accinse a combat-
terlo a tutt'oltranza, unendosi — insieme con Venezia,
Bergamo, Brescia, Mantova e Ferrara — alia Lega Veronese^
la quale da quel momento fu chiamata Lega Lombarda.
I rappresentanti delle citta alleate, nonche i profughi
milanesi, s'incontrarono il 7 aprile 1167 nel convento di
Pontida situato tra Bergamo e Lecco. Ivi si strinsero \&
destre; si guardarono negli occhi; si lessero nei cuori; fusero
le loro volonta in una sola volonta; giurarono di difendere,
fraternamente compatti fino alia morte, la liberta della
patria continuamente insidiata, conculcata, vilipesa dalla
barbarica prepotenza straniera.
Al memorabile convegno parteciparono anche — con la
stessa fede, con lo stesso ardore degli altri — i rappresentanti
di Trieste. E, in progresso di tempo, vi aderirono Piacenza,
Parma, Modena, Bologna Reggio, Novara, Vercelli, Como,
Asti, Tortona, Ravenna, Rimini, Imola, Forli.
La Lega Lombarda si mise subito al lavoro: riedifico
Milano, contro il divieto del Barbarossa; poi, in contrapposi-
zione di Pavia e del marchese di Monferrato rimasti par-
tigiani del tiranno, fondarono tra il Tanaro e la Bormida
una citta, alia quale posero il nome d'Alessandria, in onore
d'Alessandro III che aveva promosso e sosteneva e dirigeva
sapientemente e gagliardamente la Lega.
In questo mentre, I'arcivescovo Cristiano di Magonza,
"legato plenipotenziario" del Barbarossa in Italia, cerco
di sottomettere Ancona che s'era ribellata al giogo teutonico.
La nobile citta dell'Adriatico fu assediata per mare e per
terra; fu attaccata e bersagliata giorno e notte; ma si difese
con sublime eroismo, anche quando i suoi figli furono ridotti
dalla crudelta nemica a cibarsi di ortiche bollite e cuoio
ammollito nell'aceto.
446 PARTE SECONDA
Qualche episodic.
Una giovane madre, col bambino al petto, visto presso le
mura un guerriero disteso a terra boccheggiante per fame,
s'accosto e gli disse: "Non mangio da piii giorni; non ho
pill latte nemmeno per il mio piccino; ma se una goccia
ancora ne resta nel mio seno, prendila, e tua!" — Le soa-
vissime parole ebbero un prodigioso efFetto. II guerriero si
rianimo, si rizzo, sorrise alia generosa donna, corse dove piii
ferveva la mischia, affronto beato la morte.
Un violentissimo attacco minacciava di subissare la
citta. I difensori si battevano col consueto valore, ma non
s'illudevano sul funesto pericolo che sovrastava la loro
patria. Allora una donna di nome Stamura, afferrato un
tizzone ardente, si slancio in mezzo a un nembo di strali
contro le macchine nemiche, e le incendio.
Sopraggiunse un soccorso di Lombardi e Romagnoli.
I Tedeschi dovettero fuggire. Ancona ebbe salva la propria
liberta. (1174).
II Barbarossa, infastidito dalla piega che prendevano a
suo danno le cose, si mise alia testa d'un altro colossale
esercito, e ridiscese in Italia per i valichi del Moncenisio,
deciso a farla finita una buona volta con le velleita libertarie
e unitarie degl'Italiani.
In primo luogo egli arse Susa, poi soggiogo Torino ed
Asti; poi marcio contro Alessandria. Questa citta, pur non
avendo che primitive fortificazioni composte di terra e
paglia, tenne testa agli assalti nemici per ben quattro mesi.
Alia fine gli assediati seppero che i soccorsi dei collegati
stavano per arrivare. Pieni d'esultanza, essi fecero di
notte, al buio, un'improvvisa sortita: piombarono sui
nemici: ne accopparono un gran numero: costrinsero gli
altri a ritirarsi disordinatamente (1175).
II Barbarossa s'impressiono. Capi che I'impresa alia
quale s'era accinto presentava gravi difficolta. Tento
patteggiare con la Lega. Ma riuscirono infruttuose le sue
trattative. Allora aspetto che gli giungessero dalla Ger-
mania nuovi rinforzi. E, quando li ebbe, mosse risoluto
contro Milano.
I COMUNI E BARBAROSSA 447
I collegati non gli fecero compire il viaggio. Andarono ad
incontrarlo lungo la via, seguiti dal Carroccio.^
Era questo, secondo la descrizione lasciataci da Lodovico
Antonio Muratori nei suoi Annali d'ltalia, un gran carro
a quattro ruote, assai piii alto dell'ordinario, con una
piattaforma assai piii vasta di quella dei carri comuni,
dipinto tutto in colore vermiglio fiammante. Nel mezzo
sorgeva un altare ricoperto d'un ricchissimo tappeto rosso
di dimensioni tali, che ricadeva dalla piattaforma sui lati,
fino a toccare le ruote. Nel mezzo dell'altare s'inalzava
un'antenna dello stesso color rosso, dalla quale sventolava,
mantenutovi da corde dorate e di gran costo, il gonfalone
di Milano con la croce rossa in campo bianco. A meta
dell'antenna pendeva un immenso crocifisso e una campana
per dare gli ordini.
II carro era tirato da quattro paia di buoi d'imponente
statura, tutti di dimensioni e di colore uguali, coperti di
ricchissime gualdrappe, rosse per i buoi di destra, bianche
per i buoi di sinistra. Esso era la sede mobile del comando
generale. AH'intorno doveva rimanere compatta la fanteria
contro la cavalleria nemica.
Caduto il Carroccioy eran perduti la guerra e I'onore.
I Milanesi avevano percio formato, a estrema difesa di
questo loro sacro propugnacolo, due compagnie di giovani,
scelti tra i piu vigorosi e virtuosi cittadini (una di 300,
I'altra di 900), armati d'usbergo, azza e pugnale. Quella
dei 900 — comandata da Alberto da Giussano indossante
la corazza e portante la spada con cintura di cuoio dorato
ofFertagli dal popolo, giusta la tradizione — si chiamava la
Compagnia della Morte, per avere i guerrieri che la compone-
vano, all'atto della partenza, giurato di vincere o morire.
Anche i 300 avevano giurato di difendere il Carroccio e
lasciarsi uccidere tutti, piuttosto che abbandonarlo.
II giorno di sabato 29 maggio 1176 I'esercito del Barba-
rossa e quello della Lega Lojnbarda si trovarono faccia a
faccia presso il castello di Legnano, tra I'OIona e il Ticino,
a circa venti miglia da Milano. Al primo scontro, la caval-
^ Ariberto da Intimiano vescovo di Milano e supremo magistrate del Comune
nel 1038 ideo e costrui per la prima volta il Carroccio.
448 PARTE SECONDA
leria milanese fu respinta; la cavalleria tedesca galoppo
verso il Carroccio. I difensori di questo si gettarono in
ginocchio; invocarono Dio e sant'Ambrogio (il patrono di
Milano); si rialzarono di slancio; si piantarono saldamente
come giganti; sostennero formidabilmente I'urto nemico;
picchiaron sodo; spaccaron teste di cavalli e di cavalieri.
Ma il loro eroismo stava per essere soprafFatto dal numero
enorme dei nemici. II Carroccio — simbolo di patria, di
liberta, di gloria — correva serio pericolo.
AUora la CompagJiia della Morte, ripetendo ad alta voce
il giuramento di vincere o morire, s'avvento con impeto
ruggente travolgente tremendo nel piu folto della mischia:
e macello tutti i Tedeschi che incontro; atterro lo stendardo
imperiale; sgomino I'intero es'ercito nemico.
La sopraggiunta cavalleria della Lega diede il colpo di
grazia, inseguendo con le spade alle reni i vinti per ben
otto miglia.
II Barbarossa, che aveva pugnato personalmente tra le
prime file, rimase sepolto insieme col suo cavallo sotto un
monte di cadaveri.^ Fu creduto morto. Ma due giorni
dopo, egli comparve a Pavia, solo, senz'elmo, senza spada,
tutto lordo di polvere, accigliato, silenzioso.
La battaglia di Legnano fu la piii potente, la piii bella
affermazione d'italianita e di concordia fatta dagl'Italiani
nel Medio Evo.
La citta di Trieste, fedele al giuramento profFerito dai
suoi rappresentanti a Pontida, non solo vi contribui degna-
mente col valore dei suoi figli, ma fece di piu. S'uni a
Venezia per battere anche per mare il nemico. II giorno
dell'Ascensione del 1177, infatti, la flotta associata, composta
di 50 legni tra galee veneziane e triestine, comandata dal
doge Sebastiano Ziani, afFronto presso Salvore (un pro-
montorio a poca distanza da Trieste) la flotta imperiale
forte di 75 galee: e, dopo aspra battaglia, la sconfisse,
riuscendo a catturare perfino la nave ammiraglia, sulla
quale si trovava lo stesso figlio del Barbarossa: Ottone.
II tiranno tedesco dove affrettarsi a baciare il piede ad
Alessandro III.
^ Alcuni storici dicono ch'egli sia fuggito codardamente.
TRIESTE DAL 1183 AL 1800 449
Soltanto allora egli pote ottenere dalla Lega una tregua
di sei anni, firmata a Venezia durante il 1177.
Tento piu tardi (il lupo perde il pelo, non mai il vizio)
con ogni arte, con ogni sforzo, di rifarsi deirumiliazione
patita; ma non vi riusci. Per esempio: con un editto del
1 1 82, egli ingiunse alia citta di Trento, che si reggeva a
Comune, di non eleggere piii i suoi magistrati-consoli, di
cessare da ogni atto di sovranita, di sottostare a un vicario
imperiale. Ma Trento non obbedi e continue a reggersi
con la propria indipendenza.
Perduta ogni speranza di soggiogare ITtalia, il Barba-
rossa, appena spirata la tregua accordatagli, si rassegno a
concludere con glTtaliani una pace definitiva, firmata a
Costanza, citta della Germania, I'anno 1183.
IV
I Triestini per I'indipendenza municipale della loro
citta e per il mantenimento della loro italianita (dalla
pace di Costanza del 1183 in poi). Contro i vescovi-
baroni (1295-1349). Contro Venezia (1368-1381). La
" dedizione " all' Austria (1382). II partito anti-austria-
co, le sue ribellioni, il suo martirologio. " L'orgoglio
della discendenza romana " (dal Quattrocento al Sette-
cento).
E nelle vicende che succedettero alle guerre contro il
Barbarossa, le regioni del confine orientale d'ltalia non
tralasciarono mai di lottare per la loro indipendenza e per
la loro italianita. Basta ricordare ancora Trieste, che fu
ed e la citta raccogliente in se, meglio d'ogni altra citta
italiana irredenta, quasi tutte le tradizioni storiche, quasi
tutte le idealita politiche delle dette regioni.
Trieste, quando entro nella Lega Lomharda^ era gover-
nata da un vescovo-barone dipendente dal patriarcato
d'Aquileia. Ma col trattato di Costanza del 1183, essa
ottenne, come le altre citta della Lega Lomharday I'autonomia
della propria amministrazione, il diritto d'eleggere i propri
450 PARTE SECONDA
magistrati, nonche quelle di stringere alleanze, dichiarare
guerra e trattare pace.
Con tutto cio, non prima del 1295 Trieste pote acqui-
stare una vera e propria indipendenza municipale. Ed ecco
come. II vescovo-barone Brisa aveva urgente bisogno di
denaro per pagare i debiti nei quali era afFogato. I Triestini,
ch'erano ricchi, ne profittarono. E offrirono al vescovo-
barone indebitato i mezzi di levarlo d'impiccio.
L'offerta fu accettata. Si chiamarono i notari e si
rogo un atto col quale il vescovo-barone Brisa rinunziava
"per se e per tutti i suoi successori" ai diritti di signoria
su Trieste.
Da quel momento il potere sovrano della citta passo
realmente nelle mani dei cittadini. Fu eletto il primo
podesta — il capo del "libero Stato di Trieste" — Enrico
della Torre appartenente alia famiglia Torriani di Milano
stabilitasi da lungo tempo nellTstria.
II della Torre promulgo subito gli statuti a somiglianza
degli altri Comuni d'ltalia; cinse la citta di solide mura per
premunirla dalle insidie di fuori; sistemo gli affari interni;
diede incoraggiamento a ogni buona iniziativa, per cui
sorsero molti edifizi, societa letterarie, collegiate d'arti
e mestieri. E s'irrobustirono sempre piia le virtii civiche.
Un si rapido sviluppo morale e materiale doveva natu-
ralmente destare le invidie e le cupidige dei nemici.
Nel 1 3 13 un Marco Ranfo, gia vassallo vescovile, ordi
una congiura per rovesciare il potere popolare e ristabilire
quello baronale dei vescovi. I Triestini se n'accorsero in
tempo e, al suono deWarrengo, assaltarono la casa del
Ranfo, la rasero al suolo, giustiziarono il traditore e i suoi
complici.
Nel 1349 il vescovo Antonio Negri, uomo violent© e
attaccabrighe quanto mai, asservito a Carlo IV, riaccese
la questione, reclamando il dominio baronale della citta.
I Triestini gli risposero armandosi. II vescovo li scomunico.
I Triestini decretarono una specie di boicottaggio contro il
vescovo e contro il capitolo della cattedrale; poi ricorsero
agli arbitri. E questi diedero ragione al Comune.
Nell'estate del 1368 una galea veneta ancorata nel porto
TRIESTE DAL 1183 AL 1800 451
di Trieste catturava un legno mercantile triestino, il quale
s'era rifiutato di pagare la tassa di libero transito nel-
TAdriatico "ch'era mare di proprieta della Repubblica di
San Marco". I Triestini assaltarono la galea e massacra-
rono il capitano e I'equipaggio.
Venezia mando subito una flotta e un esercito per vendi-
care I'offesa. Dopo un "faticoso assedio", Trieste dove
arrendersi. Ma insorse I'anno dopo. Nuovo assedio da
parte dei Veneziani.
I Triestini, non sapendo a qual santo votarsi per salvare
I'indipendenza della loro citta, invocarono I'aiuto di Leo-
poldo III duca d'Austria. Costui accorse con un esercito
di i2,ooo uomini. Ma fu sonoramente battuto dai Vene-
ziani. E quando, con forze superiori, egli s'accingeva alia
rivincita, i Veneziani lo calmarono, dandogli 75,000 zecchini
d'oro (un milione di lire circa) "per il disturbo del viaggio
e per le legnate prese".
Trieste fu abbandonata al suo destino.
Essa tento — cinque anni piii tardi con I'aiuto dei
Genovesi, nel 1379 con I'aiuto del Comune d'Udine, nel
1380 un'altra volta con I'aiuto dei Genovesi — di sottrarsi
al dominio della Serenissima. Ma non vi riusci.
Finalmente tra le due sorelle belligeranti s'intromise
come paciere Amedeo VI duca di Savoia, detto il Conte
Verde. Costui, con un lodo emanato il 24 agosto 1381,
decise che, per evitare ulteriori contese, "Venezia doveva
rinunziare a ogni pretesa sulla citta di Trieste e sue dipen-
denze". Venezia rinunzio.
Ma tale soluzione, per quanto favorevole, non tran-
quillizzo i Triestini. Essi credettero necessario premunirsi
contro i pericoli futuri, assicurandosi la protezione d'un
potentato che fosse in grado di difenderli validamente in
ogni evenienza, cioe contro chiunque avesse osato di riatten-
tare alia loro indipendenza municipale. E non avevano
torto, se si consider! che Trieste, in quel secolo, non era
stata lasciata un sol momento in pace. Si rivolsero alle
Repubbliche italiane. Ma non ottennero che rifiuti. Allora
si videro costretti a rivolgersi agli stranieri. Altri Comuni
dTtalia non avevano fatto lo stesso? Si guardarono intorno.
452 PARTE SECONDA
La scelta non poteva che cadere sopra un vicino. A setten-
trione del territorio di Trieste confinava il territorio dei
duchi d'Austria. A costoro, specialmente, poteva pre-
mere I'amicizia di Trieste, dal cui porto essi potevano facil-
mente avviare correnti prosperose di commercio neH'interno
dei loro paesi. Questa considerazione, piii che altro, spinse
i Triestini a fare il memorabile passo che poi i nemici del-
I'unita italiana chiamarono "la dedizione all'Austria".
Nel 1382 i Triestini mandarono ambasciatori a Gratz, per
offrire "in protezione e tutela" il Comune al duca Leopoldo.
Costui non si fece pregare. Accetto. Ma dove giurare
"per se e per i suoi eredi" di rispettare il governo municipale
di Trieste e tutti i diritti di signoria acquisiti dal popolo,
principalmente quello di dichiarare guerra e concludere
pace; di non annettere la citta agli Stati ducali "e di non
darla in feudo, ne venderla ad alcuno".
Una "dedizione" molto limitata, come si vede. Lo
dimostrarono, piij tardi, le condanne che i magistrati del
Comune inflissero ai cittadini i quali, contro le sentenze
dei giudici municipali, s'appellarono aU'autorita imperiale",
ed ai cittadini i quali congiurarono in favore dell'impera-
tore.^ Lo dimostro, sopratutto, il partito anti-austriaco
sorto in Trieste dopo che il governo della citta cadde, per
intrighi e violenze, nelle mani dei sostenitori del duca:
partito che non manco d'avere il suo martirologio. Nel
1424, infatti, furono impiccati Donato Scorpion e Nicolo
Urigio, mentre altri Triestini, tra i quali Giulio Orefice,
furono condannati al carcere, perche trovati rei d'avere
agitato il popolo contro la signoria austriaca. E nel 1443
il triestino Giulio Cancellieri, capo d'un' altra sollevazione
contro I'Austria, fu prima trascinato a coda di cavallo per
le vie della citta e poi impiccato alia presenza dei suoi
congiunti.
Ma tante persecuzioni e coercizioni cruente non fecero
che ingrossare sempre piii il partito anti-austriaco a Trieste.
Tanto vero ch'esso, nel 1467, capitanato dal tribuno popo-
^ Lo dimostro perfino il libro primo dello Statuto riformato nel 1550 da Ferdi-
nand© I (fratello di Carlo V) re dei Romani, dove la citta di Trieste fu ufficialmente
chiamata Repubblica.
TRIESTE DAL 1183 AL 1800 453
lare Antonio Bonomo, riusci a riconquistare rammini-
strazione comunale, a scacciare dalla citta i partigiani degli
stranieri e ristabilirvi la liberta.
L'imperatore Federico III duca d'Austria non sofFri un
siffatto colpo. Egli mando immediatamente un suo com-
missario — Nicolo Lusgar (qualche storico dice Luogar)
capitano croato del Vipacco — alia testa di mille mercenari
tedeschi, per rimettere le cose a posto.
II Lusgar e i suoi armigeri penetrarono di nottetempo in
Trieste, assaltarono e saccheggiarono le case, fecero prigio-
nieri i migliori cittadini e li rinchiusero nel castello di
Duino. Poi, con ogni sorta di violenze, riuscirono a strappar
loro una lettera diretta all'imperatore, "con la quale alcuni
Triestini dichiaravano di voler rinunziare ai diritti garan-
titi alia citta dal patto di dedizione".
Ma il 15 agosto 1468 s'udi improvvisamente suonare la
campana deWarrengo. Era un segnale convenuto. II
popolo, infiammato e capitanato ancora una volta dal suo
tribuno Antonio Bonomo, insorse; mise in fuga il commissario
e i mercenari ch'erano con lui; impicco 15 magistrati au-
striacanti ai merli del palazzo municipale; die alle fiamme le
case dei patrizi imperialisti; riproclamo solennemente
I'indipendenza di Trieste.
L'imperatore monto su tutte le furie; digrigno i denti;
strinse i pugni; affido alio stesso Lusgar un nuovo esercito,
con ordine di punire senza pieta ne misericordia la citta
ribelle.
II Bonomo e il popolo si difesero disperatamente. Ma,
alia fine, i soldatacci tedeschi, bene addestrati alle armi,
ebbero il sopravvento: irruppero nella citta; la saccheggia-
rono per tre giorni continui; poi I'incendiarono. Molti
cittadini, tra i quali lo stesso Bonomo, riuscirono a fuggire
parte nellTstria, parte a Venezia. E quelli che non poterono
fuggire, furono presi, incatenati, tormentati, impiccati.
Cosi I'ordine imperiale fu eseguito appuntino; tanto
appuntino, che la cronaca registro quell'anno, cioe il 1468,
"come I'anno della distruzione di Trieste".
Pur nondimeno Sua Maesta, quando piii tardi (1470) si
benigno di visitare in forma ufficiale la citta da lui sotto-
454 PARTE SECONDA
messa con la forza bruta, crede prudente di esiliare altrl
300 cittadini e incamerarne i beni.
11 partito anti-austriaco a Trieste fu in tal modo ridotto
ai minimi termini; fu quasi interamente distrutto. Ma
risorse a grado a grado. E furono frequenti le risse "tra
i cittadini e i milites theutonici". E alle ordinarie pane
corporali si dovettero aggiungere pane pecuniarie per colore
che "sparlavano contro la signoria austriaca".
E quando, dal 1485 in poi, Federico III tento piii volte
d'annettere Trieste all'impero, i Triestini s'opposero sempre
recisamente, *'ricordando che la loro citta era italiana".
E nel 1508 in un pubblico comizio, mentre un vecchio
arringava i cittadini sostenendo che sarebbe stato molto
meglio per Trieste di passare sotto la dominazione di
Venezia, la folia getto le bandiere imperiali "nel fango del
fossato delle mura".
E anche dopo che Carlo V assegno nel 1522 la citta a suo
fratello Ferdinando, i Triestini non dimenticarono mai di
sentirsi e riaffermarsi italiani. Per esempio: la cancelleria
imperiale durante il 1523 invio al Comune di Trieste un
atto scritto in lingua tedesca. II Comune lo respinse,
rispondendo con fiera semplicita: Cu7n latini simus linguam
ignoramus theutonicam. E avendo nel 1524 la cancelleria
imperiale "rinnovato I'offesa", il Comune di Trieste, re-
spingendo un'altra volta I'atto, replied con meravigliosa di-
gnita italica: Quia civitas tergestma est in finihus et limitihus
Italiae, omnes civis et ibidem oriundi habent proprium sermo-
nem et idioma italicum.
Fatti superbi ma ultimi della vigorosa anima comunale.
Trieste cadde dalla sua nobilta, insieme con gli altri Comuni
dTtalia.
Solo due cose i Triestini custodirono con tenace gelosia:
le tradizioni della loro origine romana e la loro autonomia
comunale. Da ogni imperatore, essi pretesero sempre la
conferma giurata dei loro antichi privilegi. Nel 1564 si
rifiutarono di riformare gli statuti municipali, come voleva
imporre I'arciduca Carlo. Nel 1660 salutarono come ospite,
non come signore, I'imperatore Leopoldo I andato a Trieste,
e designarono la comunita romanamente: Senatus Popu-
TRIESTE DAL 1183 AL 1800 455
lusque Tergestinus. L'Ughelli, il quale visito Trieste nel
XVII secolo, rilevo che i Triestini "si compiacevano di
vantarsi progenie dei Romani". E lo storico Scussa, se
ricorda che il Comune di Trieste aveva deciso di tenere la
cronaca degli avvenimenti: se ricorda che al capitano della
citta si dava per segno del comando una mazza: se ricorda
che in certe gare si davano alcune balestre in premio ai
vincitori, dice sempre che si faceva tutto cio "a uso dei
Romani, imitatori dei quali, come di loro sangue discendenti,
si ritenevano i Triestini". Nel i688 il Comune raccolse
nella piazza grande le antichita romane minori, "perche
testimoniassero con onore dell'origine della citta". Nel
1694 lo stesso Comune decreto la stampa di quella Storia
di Trieste di Ireneo della Croce, che e una continua e vi-
brante esaltazione della romanita di Trieste. E non poche
aristocratiche famiglie triestine del suddetto periodo di tempo
usarono mettere nei loro stemmi la frase de stirpe quiritdy
per magnificare con essa la loro presunta origine romana.
Finance nel 1727, ossia dieci anni dopo che Carlo VI im-
peratore d'Austria, approfittando del decadimento di Venezia,
aveva dichiarato Trieste "porto franco", financo allora i
patrizi triestini, mandando un atto al governo imperiale, si
vantarono d'essere discendenti plurimis ex equestri patricio
ac consulari ordiiie familiis ad has extremas oras ex Urhe
emigratis.
Dichiarata porto franco nel 1717, collegata al suo
naturale retroterra con vie commerciali, ravviata alia for-
tuna dei grandi traffici, Trieste non tardo a diventare un
centro d'immigrazione intensa. Vi affluirono migliaia
'dTtaliani, specialmente dallTtalia del nord. Vi affluirono
contemporaneamente migliaia di Tedeschi, Illirici, Greci,
Ebrei abbastanza intriganti e impertinenti,tanto da arro-
garsi ben presto il diritto — spinti e protetti in cio dal
governo austriaco — di combattere I'italianita della citta
ospitale non solo nello spirito e nella fisonomia, ma anche
nel nome.
II Comune di Trieste resiste prodigiosamente. Costretto,
per esempio, dopo lunga opposizione, ad accettare la nomina
456 PARTE SECONDA
sovrana d'uno dei suoi giudici, esso protesto scrivendo
malinconicamente aH'imperatore: "Restera solo alia citta
il deplorare per sempre le sue disgrazie a causa della dero-
gazione delle sue leggi".
Cosi la fine del Settecento trovo Trieste ingombra di
stranieri, immersa negli affari, nuotante in un'opulenza
borghese priva affatto di fierezza politica, e vero; ma la
trovo benanco e sopratutto italiana. Italiani il municipio,
le scuole, le accademie, i teatri, i clubs. Italiani i piii emi-
nenti cittadini, dei quali basta ricordare, nel campo del
pensiero, Gian Rinaldo Carli nativo di Capodistria ma
triestino d'adozione, autore della celebre lettera Sulla
Patria degV Italiani che, sol cuo appello "diveniamo
finalmente italiani per non cessare d'essere uomini", espresse
per la prima volta il concetto concreto dell'unita nazionale;
e, nel campo dell'azione, la famiglia Piatti immolatasi nel
1779 a Napoli per la gloria di quella Repubblica Partenopea,
la quale fu uno dei fulgidi episodi iniziali del Risorgimento
Italiano. Pietro, il padre della famiglia Piatti, e il figlio
Antonio morirono da forti sul patibolo; la madre Andreana
Prosdocimi e la figlia Elisabetta furono gettate nel carcere
di Santa Maria Apparente; il figlio Giuseppe, graziato
perche adolescente, fu rinchiuso nel carcere di Favignana;
il figlio Pietro, riuscito a fuggire, mori di crepacuore in esilio
dopo pochi giorni. Primi martiri, primi e sacri testimoni
della nuova anima italiana di Trieste!
V
Le lotte dell'italianita sostenute con intensa perse-
veranza dai Triestini, dagl'Istriani, dai Dalmati e dai
Trentini contro 1' Austria, dai trattato di Vienna del 1815
fino alle rivoluzioni italiane del 1848.
Dopo il trattato di Vienna del 181 5, le regioni del confine
orientale d'ltalia, nonostante il dominio politico dell'Au-
stria e gli sforzi fatti dai governo austriaco per deturpare
il carattere italiano dei cittadini, si mantennero sempre
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1815 AL 1848 457
italiane e diedero con filiale amore uno splendido contributo
di pensiero, di denaro e di sangue alle lotte del patrio risorgi-
mento.
A Trieste, per esempio, trovarono rifugio non pochi
liberali napoletani del 1821.
Dopo il 1 82 1, Vendite carhoniche (comitati della Carhone-
ria) s'agitarono a Trieste e nellTstria e con tanto fervore,
da far proseliti perfino nel clero. Un decreto del governo
austriaco del 20 agosto 1823 dava appunto al clero la colpa
"delle trasgressioni politiche delle popolazioni istriane".
Nel 1829 il triestino Domenico Rossetti — poeta, storico,
archeologo, anima fiera di patrizio d'antico Comune italico
— fondava a Trieste il giornale italiano intitolato V Archeo-
grafo Triestino, e con esso rinfacciava aH'impero austriaco
la inosservanza dei patti, gli contrastava I'azione snatura-
trice dell'italianita, alimentava la protesta dei Triestini
contro le illegalita e gli abusi governativi. E Pietro Kandler
esumava la nobilta romana di Trieste, la magnificenza ro-
mana di Pola, la sopravvissuta impronta romana di Parenzo,
la potenza romana della X Regio Italica, il vallo romano del-
I'estremo confine orientale dTtalia dal passo di Postumia a
Fiume, e, con la severa eloquenza della storia, riaffermava
in faccia alio straniero la profonda italianita della terra posta
tra le Alpi Giulie e il mare.
A Trieste nel 1833 fu arrestato il capitano di mare
Giuseppe Sgarzolo, "sotto I'accusa d'avere accolto, a bordo
del suo bastimento Spartano, segrete riunioni di cospiratori
italiani e di avere tramato contro la vita di Metternich".
A Trieste, tra il 1834 e il 1836, fu fondata da un gruppo
di capitalisti in gran parte italiani la compagnia del Lloyd
austro-ungarico.^
Intorno alio stesso tempo fu fondato, anche a Trieste,
dal dottor A Madonizza di Capodistria e da Giovanni
^ II primo piroscafo di questa Compagnia salpo il i6 maggio 1837 per Costanti-
nopoli.
Da quel giorno, la storia del Lloyd austro-ungarico non segno che una sequela di
crescenti success!. I suoi vapori batterono tutti i mari del mondo: dal Mediter-
raneo al Pacifico, dal mar Rosso all'Atlantico.
II Lloyd austro-ungarico rimase sempre un'istituzione italiana. Italiani inomi
dei suoi cento piroscafi, italiano il suo Consiglio d'Amministrazione, italiani i suoi
impiegati, italiani i suoi marinari, italiani gli operai del suo splendido arsenale,
458 PARTE SECONDA
Orlandini libraio triestino, un altro giornale intitolato
La Favilla col motto "Poca favilla gran fiamma seconda"
(il primo numero di questo giornale usci il 31 luglio 1836)
che divento ben presto un centro animatore d'italianita.^
Centinaia di Triestini nel 1843 si recarono a Venezia
per assistere all'inaugurazione della ferrovia: e i congressi,
anche quelli scientifici, ai quali essi parteciparono, si tra-
sformarono in entusiastiche manifestazioni d'italianita.
A Trieste nel 1843 si rappresentarono il Nahucco e i
Lomhardiy e nel 1844 VErnani (tre opere verdiane di pro-
fondo significato patriottico), provocando frenetiche dimo-
strazioni d'italianita.
Nel 1844 la propaganda della Giovine Italia a Trieste e
neiristria era quanto mai attiva. La polizia austriaca dove
andare in traccia di quattro ardenti emissari della detta
societa: G. Berardi, F. Orioli, R. Carbonis, G. Grozet,
accusati di "girovagare sottO' different! pretesti di commercio
e di letteratura".
Nello stesso anno 1844 i fratelli Attilio ed Emilio Bandie-
ra disertarono dalla marina austriaca, della quale erano
ufficiali, e andarono in Calabria per suggerimento di Mazzini
ch'essi adoravano, alio scopo di sollevare quelle popolazioni
in favore della causa nazionale. Ma furono traditi, quindi
presi e fucilati dai soldati borbonici a Cosenza. Trieste
offri anch'essa un martire in quella patriottica occasione:
Giulio Canal, il quale, arrestato dagli Austriaci come com-
plice del nobile tentative, mori nel 1845 in carcere a causa
dei tormenti fisici e morali inflittigli.
Nel 1846 si rappresento a Trieste un'altra opera verdiana
di chiaro significato patriottico — Y Attila — provocando
nuove frenetiche dimostrazioni d'italianita.
Trieste — appena seppe che Ferdinando II di Borbone
il 10 febbraio 1848 aveva promulgate la Costituzione nel
Regno delle Due Sicilie, Costituzione seguita da quelle
^ Furono collaboratori de La Favilla: prima i poeti Francesco Dall'Ongaro
sacerdote di Mansue (Oderzo), Antonio Gazzoletti da Nago presso Riva di Trento
e Antonio Summa (il noto librettista di Verdi) della Carnia; poi il pubblicista Paci-
fico Valussi c il pittore Giovanni Kandler; infine la novelliera friulana Caterina
Percoto e Graziadio Ascoli da Gorizia.
L'Ascoli divento giottologo, fonologo, filologo di fama mondiale ed anche senatore
del Regno d'ltalia (1829-1907).
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1815 AL 1848 459
del Granduca di Toscana, di Carlo Alberto e di Pio IX e dai
moti rivoluzionari di Vienna — s'abbandono a straordinarie
dimostrazioni d'italianita. La folia, capitanata da Leone
Fortis giornalista e drammaturgo triestino e da Federico
Seismit-Doda dalmataS percorse giubilante le vie <lella
citta, inneggiando alia liberta, bruciando I'effige del principe
Metternich ministro austriaco, costringendo il tedesco
Bruck a sputare su quell'effige e a salutare il vessillo italiano
bianco, rosso, verde. Nel Teatro Comunale il pubblico saluto
con vivissimi applausi gli artisti presentatisi sul palcosce-
nico con coccarde tricolori al petto e agitando una grande
bandiera italiana spiegata. Al Tergesteo, sede della Camera
di Commercio, la folia, durante la notte, decreto che il
giorno seguente — 17 marzo 1848 — fosse festa nazionale
e reclamo per il detto giorno la chiusura dei negozi, degli
uffici governativi e della Borsa. Furono cambiati i nomi ai
pubblici ritrovi. Per esempio: il Teatro Filodrammatico
fu chiamato Teatro Costituzionale, I'Hotel Metternich fu
chiamato Albergo Nazionale, il Caffe Stella Polare fu
chiamato CafFe Gioberti, il CaflFe Tommasi fu chiamato
CafFe Tommaseo. Fu istituita la Guardia nazionale. Un
gruppo di patrioti, fattosi dare un piroscafo dal Lloyd
austro-ungaricOy salpo alia volta di Venezia per portare la
fausta novella della Costituzione ai fratelli della riva
opposta. In un'assemblea popolare fu dichiarato "abusivo"
I'aggregamento del 181 5. Una Giunta municipale provvi-
soria protesto contro la Dietadi Francoforte cheaveva delibe-
rato I'annessione di Trieste alia Confederazione Germanica,
affermando — essa Giunta — che Trieste era citta italiana;
mando un indirizzo di simpatia alia rivoluzionaria Costi-
tuente Viennese; concreto un programma col quale reclamo
scuole italiane, il riconoscimento della lingua italiana negli
uffici governativi, la istituzione d'un'universita o almeno
d'una Facolta Giuridica italiana. E la Societd dei Triestini
chiese che, ripristinati i patti del 1382, Trieste, non potendo
passare all'Italia, fosse almeno dichiarata indipendente
dalle altre province soggette all'Austria e avesse uno statute
* Federico Seismit-Doda da Ragusa (Dalmazia) fu due volte ministro delle
Finanze del Regno d'ltalia (1825-1893).
460 PARTE SECONDA
proprio, autorita giudiziarie propiie, tutti i privilegi d'una
citta perfettamente autonoma e libera. La detta societa,
inoltre, respinse una proposta d'omaggio aH'imperatore e
congiuro di bruciare le navi austriache ancorate nel porto
di Trieste.
I Lombardi e i Veneti, intanto, facevano la rivoluzione.
Alle cinque giornate di Milano e all'assedio di Venezia
non mancarono glTtaliani irredenti. Basta ricordare per
tutti il triestino Giuseppe Revere poeta e drammaturgo
insigne, coUaboratore deWItalia del Popolo di Mazzini,
nelle cui colonne Garibaldi pubblico i suoi primi appelli
alia gioventii italiana.
E basta ricordare il seguente episodic.
II governatore austriaco Pallfly, scacciato da Venezia,
fuggiva verso Trieste. Durante la traversata, il vapore sul
quale egli si trovava s'incontro con un legno sul quale si
trovava Seismit-Doda diretto a Venezia. Ecco come lo
stesso Seismit-Doda narro I'incontro in una pagina vibrante
d'italianita:
I piroscafi si erano accostati. Appena si pote udire la voce,
noi domandammo: Oual nuove di Venezia? Ci fu risposto con
una sola parola: Repuhblica! lo ebbi la forza di urlare: Viva San
Marco! Ebbi quella forza che li per li manco ai marinai, i quali
caddero a terra senza voce, piangendo e levando le braccia a Dio
per ringraziarlo di quella notizia. La piii parte erano Dalmati!
Viva San Marco! Viva la Repuhblica! E questi gridi erano pu-
gnalate al cuore di chi assisteva dall'altro bastimento alio spetta-
colo della nostra gioia, alia frenesia del nostro santo entusiasmo.
Quando il prioscafo diretto a Trieste ripiglio la sua via, lento
e silenzioso come un corteggio funebre, quando le due navi, sim-
boleggianti la morte e la vita, si staccarono, un tiro di fucile sul
nostro bordo saluto pel primo la Repubblica Veneta. Dopo
cinquant'anni la bandiera di San Marco tornava a sventolare
sull'Adriatico, e gli evviva repubblicani risuonavano nell'aria.
Quel colpo, o Veneziani, partiva da un fucile dalmata, era sparato
da un Dalmata! Avvenimento degno di memoria duratura, se si
pensi che gli ultimi tiri di saluto alia morente Repubblica di San
Marco, cinquant'anni prima, si erano fatti dai Dalmati davanti
alia Piazzetta, quando fu d'uopo a Venezia di cacciarli a viva forza
e piangenti, per non averli difensori ultimi e disperati contro
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1815 AL 1848 461
I'Austria. Veneziani, come foste fratelli ai Dalmati nei giorni
della gloria vostra, siatelo anche oggi che la nuove era promette
glorie maggiori a noi tutti! I Dalmati ve ne ricambieranno d'in-
vincibile amore. Perche da cinquant'anni, sappiatelo adesso
pubblicamente, da cinquant'anni, in un'ignorata chiesetta della
Dalmazia stanno sepolte le bandiere della Repubblica, alle quali i
Dalmati piangendo resero nel 1797 i funebri onori. Se alle ban-
diere la terra, agli afFetti nostri per voi fu sacrario il cuore. lo mi
sento Italiano, come Dalmata nacqui. Nell'afFetto che a un
grande mio compatriota e maestro — a Niccolo Tommaseo — voi
dimostrate, io vedo la caparra d'un'indissolubile unione dell'Italia
con la Dalmazia.
L'Hagenaer, deputato triestino alia Costituente di
Vienna, esclamava: '*Io sono deputato d'ltalia!"
Un giornalista tedesco, sempre nel 1848, alludendo alia
forma geografica dell'Italia, asseriva malignamente ch'egli
non sapeva come fosse fatto uno stivale. Gliel'insegno
La Gazzettadi Trieste con un pepatoarticolo, nel quale I'autore
dimostro tra I'altro che "I'lstria era appunto il tirante dello
stivale italiano, come bene aveva compreso Metternich
che, per infilare tale stivale, quel tirante s'era prima assi-
curato".
Dopo Curtatone e MontanaraS // Giornale di Trieste
osava scrivere:
A placare i mani di Curtatone e Montanara, altro non resta
che spingere I'iride italiana dal Ticino al Mincio, dal Piave al-
risonzo, fin dove stende la sua curva ultima il sorriso del cielo
d'ltalia.
Ed esprimendo i sentiment! della parte piii vibrante dei
Triestini, lo stesso giornale soggiungeva:
L'unico nemico che abbia oggi (1848) I'ltalia e il Tedesco.
Non parlo d'individui e nemmeno di popoli, ma di quall'atteggia-
mento che alia gente germanica e suggerito dagli antichi interessi
e dalla moderna ambizione. Ma che importa se la Germania non
*A Curtatone e a Montanara (provincia di Mantova) il 29 maggio 1848 si
scontrarono 40,000 Austrian comandati da Radetzky con 6,500 studenti in maggior
parte toscani, napoletani, modenesi, reggiani e non pochi triestini e trentini. Dopo
un fiero combattimento di sei ore, i giovani italiani, che s'erano battuti come leoni,
furono accerchiati, soverchiati e fatti prigionieri, mentre lasciavano numerosi
morti e feriti sul terreno.
462 PARTE SECONDA
vuole la vittoria della causa italiana? Chi pensa a questo? Vo-
gliono glTtaliani, I'hanno giurato, e qui e tutto. La Germania
protesti; ai campagnoli bavarici faccia indossare le assise militari
deU'Austria e passare le Alpi. LTtalia dara piamente sepoltura
anche ad essi.
// CostituzionaUy organo liberale dei Triestini, rivolgeva,
sempre nel 1848, al popolo di Trieste il seguente appello:
II volere essere in niun tempo altri da quelli che Iddio ci ha
fatti, cioe a dire Italiani, sarebbe delitto in faccia alio stesso Dio,
delitto in faccia ai nostri poveri morti che credettero vivere,
credettero morire italiani; delitto, o Popolo, in faccia ai nostri
figliuoli a cui dobbiamo illesa e bella e accresciuta lasciare I'eredita
che abbiamo nascendo ricevuta. Se niuna terra ebbe ed ha
tuttavia piu sve;nture, quale altra mai illuminata dal sole ha anche
un pill bel nome, piij glorie, piu splendido e piu maestoso passato
della terra a cui, stretta da vincoli intessuti dalla mano di Dio,
appartiene questa terra tua?
Altre manifestazioni pubbliche, comprovanti il senti-
mento di Trieste nel 1848, furono capitanate dal capodi-
striano Nicolo de Rin e dal triestino Costantino Cumano
uomini di tenace fede italiana fieramente avversi al dominio
austriaco, dal giovane ardentissimo Francesco Hermet e
dal giornalista Giulio Solitro. Si tento perfino d'inalzare
il tricolore italiano sul Castello. Vi furono scontri di
carattere anti-austriaco tra soldati e cittadini. Vi furono
moltissime zufFe tra mazziniani o liberali da una parte "e
poliziotti misti a plebaglia straniera assoldata" dall'altra,
con molti feriti e molti morti. Alcuni Triestini, giunti a
bordo di piccoli legni da Venezia a Trieste, furono massacra-
ti dai soldati austriaci, perche alio sbarco gridarono: "Viva
la Repubblica di Venezia e di Trieste!"
Cosi il movimento nazionale s'andava sempre piii
accentuando nelle regioni italiane soggette all'Austria. II
governo austriaco ne era preoccupatissimo. Per riparare,
s'affretto ad "importare", nelle dette regioni, numerosi
stranieri *'caninamente famelici e fidi". Ne importo piii
di 15,000 (tedeschi e slavi) soltanto a Trieste nel 1848,
e ad essi diede subito ogni sorta di protezione e affido.
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1815 AL 1848 463
con una sfacciataggine da sbalordire, i piu importanti e
lucrosi impieghi cittadini.
Un giornale locale saluto i nuovi arrivati con queste
ingenue ma significative parole;
Viva a tutti! Pensate solo che questa (la citta di Trieste)
e terra italiana; italiano il lieto mare che la confina; italiano
I'animo nostro. Serbate in cuore il sacro tesoro dei vostri afFetti
nativi che noi rispettiamo e ammiriamo. Ma voi, frattanto,
rispettate il nostro amore per I'ltalia, perche noi siamo e saremo
sempre italiani.
// Costituzionale fu piii esplicito. Esso accuso il govern©
austriaco "di essersi fatto avvocato dello Slavismo in
Trieste, dopo avere favorito il Germanismo".
E La Gazzetta di Trieste corroboro I'accusa, scrivendo
amaramente:
Ai cittadini che resta? Invasi da altri che essi i pubblici
uffici, le pubbliche scuole; signoreggiato il libero pensiero da
un'altra lingua che la loro; pasciuti degli odori che escono dalla
cucina altrui, sono essi soli — i Triestini — i forestieri nella loro
citta. Addio signori che noi ospitammo, che i nostri padri ac-
colsero con tanta, con troppa fiducial Prometteteci almeno, o
signori stranieri, che un giorno avremo un piccolo posto nel nostro
cimitero.
Quale solida base di verita avessero le afFermazioni dei
giornali triestini del 1848, lo dimostrarono due postumi
documenti, cioe: un memoriale mandato a nome di Trieste
nel 1859 al Congresso di Parigi, e un opuscolo del Valussi
e di Costantino Ressmann (altro triestino, piii tardi amba-
sciatore dTtalia a Costantinopoli e a Parigi) pubblicato nel
1 861 e diflFuso per tutta I'Europa.
Diceva il primo:
L' Austria, con I'intrusione in Trieste dei Tedeschi e altri
stranieri a lei dediti in tutte le cariche, in tutti gli uffici, sin nei
seggi del nostro municipio, ordina e disordina a suo talento ogni
nostro interesse, secondo i suoi fini, e con scuole tedesche e preti
slavi e impiegati d'ogni stirpe, tenta imbastardire e farci dimen-
ticare la nostra nazionalita italiana.
Diceva il secondo:
464 PARTE SECONDA
Nel 1848 e in appresso, veggendo che la natura insegnava
ai Triestini di essere Italiani, si fece dai partigiani dell'Austria un
grande sforzo contro tutto cio che era italiano. Si spesero im-
mense somme per corrompere la plebe, facendo da facchini prezzo-
lati perseguitare tutti quelli che si pensava dovessero parteggiare
per ritalia. Le denunzie, le perquisizioni, le persecuzioni per-
sonali, i carceramenti, i processi, gli sfratti arbitrari, le violenze
d'ogni sorta al sentimento italiano formano la storia di questi
ultimi 13 anni.
Ma non solo a Trieste, anche nelle altre terre irredente,
la lotta dell'italianita nel 1848 assunse vaste proporzioni.
In parecchie citta della Dalmazia si formo la Guardia
civica. A Spalato il popolo libero dal carcere Antonio
Baiamonti e Pietro Savo, due ardenti propugnatori della
causa italiana.
A Trento (19 marzo 1848) il popolo insorse, inalbero la
bandiera tricolore, sfido le fucilate del picchetto austriaco
di guardia, distrusse gli uffici delle Finanze, corse al palazzo
municipale e impose che partisse subito per Vienna un'appo-
sita commissione coll'incarico di domandare rimmediata
separazione del Trentino dal Tirolo tedesco e I'aggrega-
zione di esso al Lombardo-Veneto. L'indomani, 20 marzo
1848, il municipio di Trento istitui anch'esso la Guardia
nazionale e rivolse alia cittadinanza un appello patriottico
nel quale s'esprimeva I'augurio che I'esempio di Trento
fosse seguito dall'intero Trentino. Ad Ala, infatti, a Rovere-
to, a Riva, in altre citta, nelle vallate, dappertutto, gli
abitanti del Trentino issarono la bandiera italiana e si
fregiarono i petti con coccarde tricolori.
II 4 aprile 1848 Niccolo Tommaseo dirigeva alia popola-
zioni del Trentino un manifesto patriottico, incitandole a
combattere e vincere nel nome d'ltalia.
II 6 dello stesso mese il generale Allemandi lanciava da
Brescia un proclama col quale incitava i fratelli trentini
a unirsi ai volontari per scacciare lo straniero dall'I-
talia.
E i giovani trentini non rimasero sordi: formarono una
Legione Trentina, un corpo di Franchi Cacciatori e un altro
di Guide del Tirolo, e corsero generosamente a difendere la
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1815 AL 1848 465
patria, cantando un inno scritto appositamente per loro
dal poeta trentino Antonio Gazzoletti.
Le trombe squillano,
pronto e il fucile,
la patria misera
ci chiama a se.
Di Carlo Alberto
seguiam le file.
Morte ai Tedeschi!
Evviva il Re!
II governo austriaco, intanto, proclamava lo state
d'assedio a Trento; intimava ai cittadini, pena la vita, di
consegnare le armi al Castello; inibiva loro di radunarsi
in piii di due per le vie; aboliva la Guardia nazionale;
arrestava i piii eminenti patrioti, tra i quali Gaetano Manci,
Matteo Thum, Giuseppe Testi, Pietro Sizzo.
Per tutta risposta, il Gazzoletti, Angelo Ducati, Sigi-
smondo Manci, Giovanni Danielli, Lorenzo Festi e Giam-
battista Zenelli trentini, andavano a Valleggio e presenta-
vano a Carlo Alberto un indirizzo col quale il Trentino
dichiarava d'aderire alia fusione col Piemonte. Un'identica
domanda la presentavano a Carlo Alberto anche i trentini
Vittore Ricci e Giovanni Rizzi.
II 15 aprile 1848 ci fu uno scontro a Castel Toblino tra
Italiani ed Austriaci. Rimasero prigionieri degli Austriaci
ventuno volontari italiani tutti giovani. Condotti a Trento,
essi furono presentati al comandante austriaco della guarni-
gione, colonnello Zobel, il quale disse loro cipigliosamente di
prepararsi senz'altro a morire.
Gl'infelici passarono la notte esposti all'aria aperta, su poca
paglia, nella fossa del Castello. Due monaci francescani li con-
fortavano pietosamente. Al rullo prolungato del tamburo, una
squadra di soldati austriaci si present© aU'imboccatura della fossa.
Le vittime furono divise in due drappelli. Poi si comincio I'esecu-
zione. Sotto gli occhi dei compagni si prese a bendare i giovani
del primo drappello; ma i generosi, strappate le bende, le gettarono
lontano, gridando: Viva V Italia! Ci fu una salva . . ., di li a
pochi minuti un'altra . . ., e tutto fu consumato!
466 PARTE SECONDA
I prigionieri presi dai soldati austriaci il 29 maggio 1848
nelle battaglie di Curtatone e Montanara, furono condotti
anch'essi oltre le Alpi, attraverso il Trentino.
Le popolazioni irredente fecero di tutto perche nelle soste
del passaggio fossero alleviate le sofFerenze di quegl'infelici.
Dalle finestre di Trento — gremite di persone piangenti e
gridanti Jddio, Jratelli iialianil — piovevano quattrini e
pane. Lungo le vie, chi diede cibo, chi vino, chi acquavite,
chi tabacco. Fu una gara d'ospitalita veramente fraterna.
Fu una commovente affermazione d'italianita, tanto piii
significativa, in quanto si videro i soldati austriaci fremere
di rabbia.
A Bolzano i prigionieri ebbero ancora cordiali accoglienze,
e cosi a Bressanone, fino al Brennero, culmine delle Alpi
Retiche alto 2,022 metri.
In quel punto — cosi il Tarugi, uno dei prigionieri — vi e un
termine; su quel termine tutti scrivemmo il nostro noma e lo
baciammo con entusiasmo, come per dire addio all'Italia neH'atto
di mettere il piede su terra straniera, o perche ci accarezzasse in
cuore la speranza che un giorno la nostra patria avrebbe raggiunto
quel suo confine naturale.
Nello stesso mese di maggio del 1848 i Trentini furono
invitati dal governo austriaco a partecipare alle discussioni
della Dieta del Tirolo. Essi opposero un energico rifiuto,
considerando la loro partecipazione come dannosa alia
popolazione del Trentino e in aperta contradizione coi diritti
di nazionalita e di lingua che dalla Costituzione erano a
loro garantiti. Inviarono, al contrario, deputati al Parla-
mento germanico per propugnare in quell'Assemblea i
diritti italiani. Caratteristico e oltremodo coraggioso fu
il discorso del deputato da Siessen, che spezzo I'ultima
lancia dell'italianita nella seduta del 31 giugno 1848.
Riporto qui qualche brano del detto discorso:
Vorrei solo sapere — disse I'oratore — se il Tirolo italiano
si chiama Tirolo italiano perche abitato da Tedeschi! Vorrei
sapere se le quattro cuoche, gli ostieri, gl'impiegati tedeschi che vi
abitano si debbano chiamare I'elemento tedesco! Se volete fare
un'enumerazione, io vi assicuro che troverete a Milano e a Roma
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1848 E 1849 467
piu elemento tedesco che a Rovereto; e in questo caso, andate:
fate entrare anche Roma e Milano nella Confederazione germanica.
Ci fu detto inoltre, o signori, che i deputati tirolesi italiani, con la
loro comparsa in questo luogo, hanno riconosciuto in via di fatto di
appartenere di buon diritto alia Germania. Certo che essi rico-
noscono il fatto di questa unionc; ma e appunto I'unione di diritto
ch'essi vorrebbero vedere sciolta; e per ottenere questo, dovevano
venire qui. Se si fossero rifiutati di scegliere deputati, chi avrebbe
qui difesa la causa della loro nazionalita? Voi avete inteso che
I'oratore Prato si esprimeva con difficolta. Ora io vi chieggo:
se gl'Italiani del Tirolo meridionale avessero potuto scegliere
persone che tutte sapessero parlare correttamente il tedesco, non
le avrebbero essi scelte? II fatto sta che non ne hanno, ne possono
trovarne, appunto perche sono Italiani. Ci fu detto che questa
Assemblea nazionale dev'essere un'Assemblea tedesca e non
italiana. Sia pure. Ma se essa dev'essere un'Assemblea tedesca,
non costringete gl'Italiani a mandare qui deputati italiani.
Lasciate che li mandino altrove, a una Dieta italiana, cioe verso
quel punto dove son chiamati dalle loro simoatie, verso la loro
patria italiana.
Infine i Trentini inviarono a Vienna i loro deputati
col mandate di propugnare la separazione del Trentino
dal Tirolo, e nello stesso tempo indirizzarono alia Costi-
tuente una petizione con 46,000 firme, nella quale chiede-
vano "che sia pronunziata la separazione amministrativa
e parlamentare dei Circoli di Trento e Rovereto dalla
parte tedesca della provincia del Tirolo, e che tra loro siano
organizzati ed equamente distribuiti tutti i poteri, in base
al nuovo sistema della nazionalita".
VI
I Trentini, i Triestini, gl'Istriani e i Dalmati per la
Repubblica Romana retta dai triunviri Mazzini, Saffi
e Armellini e difesa da Garibaldi contro il papa, e per la
Repubblica di Venezia retta da Manin e dal Toinmaseo
e difesa da Guglielmo Pepe contro 1' Austria (1849).
Numerosi furono i Trentini, i Triestini, gl'Istriani e i
Dalmati accorsi nel 1849 alia difesa di Roma "per sigillare
col sangue — come disse Guerrazzi — il patto di famiglia
468 PARTE SECONDA
che lega tutti gl'Italiani intorno alia citta eterna". Basta
dire che dei 4CK) difensori caduti nella memorabile battaglia
del 29 giugno 1849 — rultima che Garibaldi combatte
per la vita e per I'onore della Repubblica Romana retta
dai triunviri Mazzini, Saffi e Armellini — 50 erano trentini
e triestini.
E trentini, triestini, istriani, dalmati furono in gran parte
i volontari che, dopo I'epica lotta e la gloriosa sconfitta,
seguirono I'Eroe nella sua dolorosa ritirita, sulla spinosa
via del patrio ideale. Trentini: Edoardo Negri, Francesco
Mattedi, Pietro Bertelli, Achille Bevilacqua, Pietro Cavali,
don Pietro Casanova, I'ingegnere Carlo Marzari, Domenico
Dicio, i fratelli Pilade e Narciso Bronzetti.^ Triestini:
il poeta Giuseppe Revere^ Filippo Zamboni^ Giacomo Vene-
zian\ Sansone Levi "amicissimo di Garibaldi", Giovanni
Bruflrel.
Ancora piii numerosi furono i Trentini, i Triestini,
gl'Istriani e i Dalmati accorsi, dopo la caduta della Repub-
blica Romana, alia difesa della Repubblica di Venezia
retta da Manin e dal Tommaseo.
Si formo per quell'occasione una speciale Legione
dalmato-istriana.
E da tutta la sponda orientale — cosi il giovane triestino At-
tilio Tamaro — fu portato un tribute di sangue e d'ingegno, di
energia e di eroismo alia risorta Repubblica di San Marco. Ma
nessun episodic incarno in una linea tanto semplice e tanto
rappresentativa quello accorrere di popoli adriatici verso il rina-
scente splendore di San Marco, quanto il seguente, ch'io stesso
sent! raccontare con profonda commozione.
Appena incominciata la lotta tra la Repubblica e Radetzky,
si presentarono al doge Daniele Manin due giovani dalmati, e uno
^ Vedere I'elenco complete nel volume // Trentino nel Risorgimento del dottor
Levio Marchetri.
'' Fu degli ultimi — col dottor Saglioso, con Francesco DaU'Ongaro e Aurelio
Saffi — a lasciare Roma.
^ Lo Zamboni e Pietro'Pieri, rimasti ultimi sul campo di battaglia, salvarono la
bandiera che poi consegnarono al Municipio di Roma capitale d'ltalia dopo il
1870. Alio Zamboni scrisse Garibaldi: "Voi la salvaste la bandiera della gio-
ventu italiana con pericolo della vita vostra preziosa".
* II Venezian, battutosi valorosamente, riporto ferite gravi. Cesso di vivere
il 2 luglio 1849 nelle braccia dell'amico e concittadino Revere. La povera madre,
accorsa frettolosa, lo trovo cadavere; poco dopo mori anch'essa di dolore.
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1848 E 1849 469
di loro gli disse in pretto dialetto veneziano: Nostra pare ne ga
mandd a difender San Marco. El ne ga dito che 7 ga inteso che el
Leon de San Marco se xe risveglid, e che de tre fioi do el li manda a
lu. El ne ga dito che saludemo el Doxe e che ghe dixemo che se no '/
fusse troppo vecio el sarave vignu anca lui a basarghe la man e a
difenderlo! Nostro padre ci ha mandato a difendere San Marco.
Egli ci ha detto di avere inteso che il Leone di San Marco s'e
risvegliato, e che di tre figlioli due li manda a lui. Egli ci ha detto:
Salutatemi il Doge e ditegli che se non fossi troppo vecchio, sarei
venuto anch'io a baciargli lamano e a difenderlo.
I due giovani presero parte all'assedio, compiendo pro-
digi di valore.
Dei volontari trentini, basta ricordare il capitano Federi-
co Martini, Giovan Battista Adami, Domenico Bonetti,
Bartolomeo Malfatti e Tommaso Sar (questi due ultimi,
ricordati nei documenti dell'epoca per I'intrepidezza dimo-
strata "nei momenti piii ardui"). E dei triestini: Leone
Fortis, Giovanni Orlandini (I'antico editore de La Favilla
di Trieste e auditore maggiore del Governo provvisorio di
Venezia), Filippo Coen, Francesco Erberti, Costantino
Cijmano, Samuele Romanin (insegnante alia patriottica cat-
tedra di Storia Veneta istituita dalla nuova Repubblica),
Francesco Poropat, Arturo Zanetti, Pietro Romano, Fran-
cesco Herbert e il pittore Giuseppe Gattesi. Degl'istriani:
Nicolo Vergottini, il capitano Marcantonio Borisi che in
un'arditissima sortita da Mestre prese parecchi cannoni
agli Austriaci, Alessandro Almerigotti, Alessandro Godina,
Giuseppe Dragicchio, Giuseppe Rubinisch, Pietro Scar-
boncich, Luigi Ritozzo, i fratelli Giovanni e Lodovico Alme-
rigotti e Giovanni Bevilacqua (quest'ultimo si batte come
un leone sotto il forte Montedoro, tre volte a Campalto e
pill di venti volte su zattere). E dei dalmati: Seismit-
Doda e il piu illustre di tutti — Niccolo Tommaseo — ch'era
allora ministro della pubblica istruzione nella Repubblica
di San Marco.
470 PARTE SECONDA
VII
I Trentini, i Triestini, gl'Istriani e i Dalmati per la
loro italianita dal 1850 al 1858. II lor filiale contributo
di sangue alia seconda guerra di liberazione dell'Italia
contro 1' Austria (1859).
La lotta deU'italianita, dopo il 1849, continuo con lo
stesso fervore di prima nel Trentino, a Trieste, nellTstria
e nella Dalmazia, nonostante le severe misure preventive
e repressive della polizia austriaca.
Nel 1850, per esempio, ando a Trieste Giuseppe Verdi.
II grande maestro fu accolto con gioia e con feste dai citta-
dini.
Nello stesso anno vi ando, invece, I'imperatore Francesco
Giuseppe. "Ma I'accoglienza — scrisse il console sardo
al suo governo — che il monarca austro-ungarico riceve
fu freddissima, per non dire glaciale* non si senti un solo
evviva in tutta la giornata".
II 30 agosto 1 85 1 I'imperiale e reale rappresentante del
governo austriaco a Gorizia, preoccupato della caratteri-
stica foggia di vestire dei patrioti italiani, foggia troppo
significativa, pubblicava la seguente **Notificazione" che
e un gioiello di tirannia e d'amenita a un tempo:
II portare vestiti che per la loro singolarita si distinguono in
modo sorprendente daH'ordinario costume del paese e che, nella
loro singolarita appunto, portano I'impronta di una provocante
arroganza, non sono da tollerarsi. Annovero pure tra simili
distintivi i cappelH bruni di ala larga che da poco anche in questo
paese della corona presero piede e spesso vengono portati unita-
mente ad un vestito di colore eguale. Sono intimamente convinto
che dagli abitanti delle unite contee principesche di Gorizia e
Gradisca questi e simili distintivi non vengono portati che per
mania d'imitazione,'^ed e percio che vorrei vedere allontanato tutto
cid che potrebbe dar motivo di sospettare sul retto contegno di
questa popolazione. Invito quindi gli abitanti delle contee di
Gorizia e Gradisca a non usare simili vestiti ed altri segni distin-
tivi, e a riguardare questo mio eccitamento per un'amichevole
ammonizione, onde non essere costretto a dover imputare al
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1850 AL 1859 471
contravventore della medesima una tendenza perversa, che da me
verrebbe soppressa con vigore e irremissibilmente punita.
I plu ardenti patriot!, stanchi di tante vessazioni, decisero
di preparare un moto rivoluzionario. Esso doveva scoppiare
a Trieste il i° marzo 1853, e da Trieste doveva estendersi
nelle altre citta irredente. Ma il governo austriaco, che
non dormiva, seppe la cosa e s'affretto a provvedere,
ingrossando le file delle spie, aumentando le guarnigioni,
consegnando i soldati nelle caserme, raddoppiando i posti
di guardia, sguinzagliando pattuglie di ferocissimi birri a
destra e a sinistra, procedendo a perquisizioni e ad arresti,
esiliando (il giovane dalmata Carlo Boscovich, per esempio,
dove andarsene in Piemonte), sopprimendo giornali (furono
soppressi tra gli altri // Giornale di Gorizia fondato a Gorizia
da Carlo Favetti e L'Eco dell'Isonzo di Gradisca diretto
da Federico Comelli), condannando distinti cittadini a
duro carcere (Giuseppe Grioli, "per la propaganda liberale
da lui fatta in Dalmazia", fu condannato a 12 anni di lavori
forzati).
Nel 1856 Antonio Gazzoletti e parecchi altri Italian!
irredenti, neirimminenza del Congresso di Parigi, pensa-
rono di richiamare per mezzo di Cavour I'attenzione del
Congresso stesso sul Trentino, alio scopo di ottenere il
distacco di detta regione dalla Confederazione Germanica.
Uno d'essi ando appositamente a Torino a conferire col
ministro. E questi rispose esprimendo la propria simpatia
per i Trentini e assicurando ch'egli non si sarebbe lasciata
sfuggire I'occasione di parlare nel Congresso a favore delle
loro aspirazioni nazionali. Demetrio Livaditi fondava il
periodico La Ciarla a Trieste, dove gia si pubblicavano //
Pungolo e Quel che si vede e quel che non si vede. E in tutt'e
tre i giornali scrissero per la causa nazionale, tra gli altri,
il poeta Arnaldo Fusinato e Leone Fortis. Contro il Fortis
fu anzi spiccato mandato di cattura, e i giornali furono
poco dopo soppressi. NellTstria fu pubblicato // Popolano
d'Istria da Michele Facchinetti autore d'una Preghiera
Nazionale (imparata a memoria dagli abitanti dell'intera
regione) che finiva cosi: *'Fate dunque, o Signore, ch'io
472 PARTE SECONDA
ami la mia nazionalita, e I'amore e la stima per essa sieno
motivo ad amare e stimare le altre in un vincolo di pace e
di felicita". E il Tommaseo scriveva lettere e volumi, in
cui fortemente vibrava il cuore della Dalmazia per I'ltalia.
Si giunse cosi fino al 1859.
In quell'anno I'Austria attacco il piccolo Piemonte che
s'era gia alleato con la Francia. Al cominciamento della
guerra, si videro accorrere in Italia volontari da Trieste,
dallTstria/ dal Friuli; si vide accorrere in difesa della
patria la piii bella gioventii trentina, nonostante le baionette
austriache assiepate sui confini, nonostante i pericoli
d'ogni sorta.
II governo di Vienna, in data 7 giugno 1859, invano
decretava a nome deH'imperatore che, per la seconda leva,
il contingente del Circolo di Trento "doveva essere di 1,000
uomini". I giovani gli sfuggivano e correvano con in-
frenabile slancio ad arrolarsi sotto le bandiere di Vittorio
Emanuele II e di Garibaldi.
Oltre a cio, una deputazione trentina si presentava al
campo e consegnava alio stesso Vittorio Emanuele II un
indirizzo cosi concepito:
Adesso che a fianco del generoso vostro alleato, I'imperatore
dei Francesi, per una via seminata ad ogni passo di vittorie e
benedizioni, vi inoltrate trionfalmente per le province italiane
redente nel vostro nome, permettete, o Sire, che anche glTtaliani
della provincia di Trento vengano per mezzo nostro innanzi a voi
a ripetere che la Croce di Savoia non e meno invocata tra i loro
monti di quello che lo sia nelle altre parti dell'Alta Italia; che nella
provincia di Trento siete pure aspettato e sospirato liberatore e re.
Noi non ci nascondiamo, o Sire, la gravita delle circostanze ecce-
zionali in cui versa il nostro paese di fronte alia gloriosa vostra
impresa; ma appunto perche infeudati mostruosamente alia
Germania, noi sentiamo con piu calore d'essere italiani e stretta-
mente legati alia causa dei nostri fratelli, da voi con tanta lealta
e valore propugnata. II cielo, o Sire, non cessi un istante di pro-
sperare le vostre armi; e possano I'esultanza e la gloria che, com-
piuta la grande impresa, circonderanno il vostro trono, non essere
* II professore Antonio Coiz narivo di Faedils (Friuli), che si trovava ad inse-
gnare nell'Istria, corse con tutti i suoi allievi istriani ad arrolarsi in Italia. E il ricco
goriziano Francesco Verzegnasse a Torino mise tutto se stesso e le sue sostanze a
disposizione dei volontari.
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1850 AL 1859 473
contristate dal pianto di Italian! curvi ancora sotto il peso del-
I'oppressione straniera.
E, quasi contemporaneamente, le donne dell'Istria
mandavano a Vittorio Emanuele II la bandiera per il 370
reggimento fanteria e un indirizzo nel quale dicevano:
Sono le donne dell'Istria, le quali, pegno di loro lagrime, vi
mandano e ofFrono questo stendardo, questo labaro di certa salute,
ricordando che I'lstria hi sempre italiana, da quando Roma antica
le affidava la guardia del varco piu geloso d'ltalia.
Nella vittoriosa campagna, i volontari delle regioni
italiane irredente si fecero non poco onore. Basta ricordare,
per tutti, i trentini Leopoldo Martini tenente dei bersaglieri
e Narciso Bronzetti garibaldino.
II Martini cadde a San Martino (24 giugno 1859) mentre
impavido guidava la sua compagnia di bersaglieri al-
I'assalto.
E Narciso Bronzetti, capitano della terza compagnia
del primo reggimento Cacciatori, dopo avere valorosamente
combattuto a fianco del Duce a Varese e a San Fermo,
I'S giugno 1859 con soli 94 volontari mise in fuga presso
Seriate 1,500 soldati austriaci. "Con uomini di tanta pro-
dezza — scriveva subito Garibaldi — si puo tentare ogni
impresa! L'ltalia deve ricordarli eternamente".
Nel combattimento di Treponti, poi (15 giugno 1859),
il Bronzetti compi gesta degne d'epopea. Una prima palla
austriaca lo colpi gravemente al braccio destro, facendogli
cader di mano la spada. II valoroso la raccatto con la
sinistra, I'agito in alto quanto pote, gridando avanti\ — E
continuo a pugnare.
Avanti! Avanti!
Gridava il forte, e rotto il destro braccio
Da una palla, con I'altro alzo la spada,
E avanti; e un'altra palla anche il sinistro
Gli ruppe, e avanti! E cosi tutto sangue
Correa contro il nemico.
Finche una terza palla lo colpi mortalmente al fianco.
Insin che il fianco
Gli trapasso una terza, e pur due passi
474 PARTE SECONDA
Far voile, e avanti, avanti sempre!
Gridava ai suoi cadendo.
Allora fu portato aH'ambulanza e poco dopo a Brescia in
casa del suo amico Basilio Maffezzoli. Ivi il maggiore
Ferrari gli porto una medaglia d'argento al valor militare.
"Garibaldi — disse il portatore a Narciso ,Bronzetti — ti
manda questo segno d'onore per il fatto di Seriate, riser-
vandosi di darti condegna ricompensa per quello di ieri".
L'eroe trentino sorrise, accosto la medaglia alle labbra,
la bacio e spiro, mentre il maggiore Ferrari gli leggeva una
lettera che lo stesso Garibaldi gli aveva mandato insieme
con la medaglia.
Carissimo Bronzetti,
Voi siete certamente al disopra di qualunque elogio, e avete
giustamente meritato il nome di prode dei prodi della nostra
colonna. II vostro coraggio supero la gravita delle vostre ferite,
e voi sarete reso ai vostri compagni d'arme.
Accogliete un fraterno abbraccio dal vostro amico
Giuseppe Garibaldi.
A guerra finita, nonostante la croce militare di Savoia e
la nomina a maggiore decretate alia memoria di Bronzetti,
Garibaldi, in un indirizzo ai Trentini, si faceva interprete
della gratitudine nazionale verso quei generosi, scrivendo
loro:
Furono centinaia e centinaia i concittadini di Bronzetti che
si distinsero nella sacra guerra, ed una parola non s'e alzata per
segnalarli alia gratitudine nazionale. Valga la mia debole voce
a supplire in parte all'involontario oblio e a ricordare dei piu
nobili e generosi della famiglia italiana, su cui posano merita-
mente le nostre speranze di redenzione.
I Trentini risposero all'Eroe:
Per quanto un paese italiano ancora oppresso dallo straniero
puo esultare, il Trentino esulta per quello che avete detto in
favor suo, e con quanto v'ha di piu nobile nell'anima, vi ringrazia
e vi benedice dal fondo delle sue sciagure. II sangue versato e
gli amari disinganni e tutti i dolori patiti, gli paiono piii sopporta-
bile cosa, poiche gli valsero il vostro encomio, la vostra racco-
mandazione.
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1860 475
II municipio di Trento, inoltre, e i municipi delle altre
citta del Trentino (Rovereto, Ala, Tione, Condino, Levico,
Strigno) reclamarono a Vienna la loro aggregazione al
Veneto, "aggregazione richiesta dal sentimento nazionale
del Trentino e dai suoi bisogni e interessi". Con tale passo,
i Trentini miravano a condividere le sorti del Veneto, "quan-
do questo sarebbe stato unito all'Italia".
E alia fine dell'anno (dicembre 1859) anche i Triestini
redassero un memoriale, che poi fu presentato al Congresso
Europeo, col quale chiesero che Trieste, "impregiudicati
i diritti unitari, fosse dichiarata citta libera, facente parte
della Confederazione italiana, come pareva dovesse essere
del Veneto".
VIII
I Trentini, i Triestini e gl'Istriani nella spedizione dei
Mille. II lor filiale contributo di sangue all'intera
guerra del i860 per la liberazione dell'Italia Meridionale
e dell'Italia Centrale. La feroce reazione degli Austriaci.
Le somme di denaro raccolte dagl'Istriani per la causa
nazionale. La bandiera italiana delle donne triestine a
Garibaldi (i860).
Garibaldi, nel preparare la spedizione dei Mille, apriva
una sottoscrizione nazionale per un milione di fucili. A
Trieste, nel Trentino, nel Friuli orientale, nellTstria, come
in tutto il resto d'ltalia, la notizia di tale fatto suscito un
entusiasmo straordinario. Nei caffe, nelle farmacie, in
ogni pubblico ritrovo, nelle case private, non si parlava
d'altro e apertamente. In talune citta dellTstria fu perfino
issata la bandiera italiana. Sui muri apparvero iscrizioni
inneggianti a Garibaldi e a Vittorio Emanuele II e impre-
canti al governo austriaco e alle sue spie.
La polizia, fremente, ricomincio a perquisire a repri-
mere. A Trieste, presso un certo Brul, essa sequestro piii
di 3,000 fucili e represse violentemente una dimostrazione
anti-austriaca. A Gorizia, per tema di dimostrazioni
italiane, proibi la passeggiata al Corso. Furono messe in
istato d'assedio parecchie citta. Furono sequestrati i beni
476 PARTE SECONDA
dei cittadini trentini e istriani emigrati in Italia. Un
autografo imperiale comando alle sentinelle di pattuglia
sui confini di fare "il piii esteso uso delle armi contro le
persone che tentassero di varcarlo".
Ma nonostante tutto, i Trentini riuscirono ad afFermare
i loro sentimenti con un'espressione plebiscitaria ricompen-
diata in questa concisa formula: "I sottoscritti dichiarano
essere desiderio e voto generale del paese I'annessione di
questo al regno costituzionale di Vittorio Emanuele II".
NeU'Istria pote girare una poesia popolare con la quale si
mettevano in ridicolo il Borbone e la corte di Vienna. E
fucili ne furono mandati non pochi in Italia.
AU'alba del 6 maggio i860, sui piroscafi Piemonte e
Lombardo, salpati dal fatale scoglio di Quarto, vi erano coi
Mille di Garibaldi i trentini Antonio Armani, Oreste Bara-
tieri, Ergisto Bezzi, Tomaso Bolcego, Domenico Toller
detto Giacomo Costa, Giovanni Dalla Costa, Antonio
Fattori, Giuseppe Fontana, Enrico Isnenghi, Giuseppe
Leonardi, Filippo Manci, Quirino Moiola, Pietro Martori,
Anselmo Sterchele, Filippo Tranquillini, Camillo Zancani
e Attilio Zanotti (i trentini Enoch Bezzi, fratello d'Ergisto,
il conte Francesco Martini e Luigi Marcabruni, non avendo
fatto in tempo a imbarcarsi a Quarto, raggiunsero Garibaldi
a Milazzo), Francesco Bidischini del Friuli Goriziano,
Marziano Ciotti di Gradisca ed altri. A Trieste fu arrestato
un intero comitato d'arrolamento. E a causa appunto del
rigore spiegato dal governo austriaco, si dove se molti
Triestini non poterono raggiungere la gloriosa spedizione.
Giuseppe Fontana e Camillo Zancani della quinta
compagnia, Filippo Manci, Filippo Tranquillini ed Ergisto
Bezzi detti i tre moschettieri, furono i primi alia memorabile
salita del colle di Calatafimi e poi all'assalto di Palermo.
Ed Enrico Isnenghi e Giuseppe Leonardi, sebbene feriti,
continuarono a combattere leoninamente sulle barricate di
quest'ultima citta.
II garibaldino Giuseppe Cesare Abba ' tratteggio da
• L'Abba fu uno dei piu eroici volontari dei Mille, poi illustratore incomparabile
della leggendaria spedizione, aiifore di parecchie altre opere storiche, educatore
insigne. Silenzioso e modesto, visse in poverta decorosa, non facendo mai pompa
dei servigi resi alia Patria. Fu nominate senatore del Regno il 6 giugno 1910.
Mori cinque mesi dopo (1838-1910).
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1860 477
par suo il profilo di parecchi suoi commilitoni trentini.
Lo Zancani: "con le tempie gia grige, e di cui le rughe pro-
fonde dalle nari agli angoli della boca dicevano ch'egli
sapeva il dolore da un pezzo, ma che pure aveva I'aria quasi
lieta e pareva dicesse continuamente a se stesso: allegri
e avantiV* — Lo Zanotti: "sempre giovane e bello, sempre
largo del suo gran cuore". — L'Isnenghi: "semplice come
acqua d'altissima vena, umile in tutto come un fraticello
di quelli a cui san Francesco diceva per via le sue soavi cose".
— II Tranquillini: "fiore di gioia e di cortesia da stare in
un canto di gesta". — II Manci: "cosi verginale nella
finezza del viso, che, se non fosse stata la prestante persona,
si sarebbe detto ch'era una donzella in uniforme garibaldina;
e cosi amante del pericolo, che per un rischio in cui ci fosse
stato da contendersi il posto, era capace di corrucciarsi
col piii caro degli amici". — Ergisto Bezzi: ''pareva il
Ferruccio staccatosi da una tela del 500 per venir vivo a
vedere che cosa sapessimo fare noi, dopo avere tanto can-
tato col Mameli d'avere il suo cuore (il cuore del Ferruccio),
d'avere la sua mano (la mano del Ferruccio), e che merite-
rebbe da solo (il Bezzi) che giustizia di popoli desse all'Italia
la terra di Trento dov'e Cusiana, il borghetto in cui egli
(il Bezzi) nacque".
Molti altri Trentini raggiunsero Garibaldi in Sicilia, e
lo seguirono in tutta la campagna dell'Italia Meridionale
fino a che il Borbone non fu interamente sconfitto. Basta
ricordare Pilade Bronzetti, fratello di Narciso "il prode
dei prodi". Nella sanguinosissima mischia corpo a corpo
che segui a Milazzo il 20 luglio i860 tra Garibaldini e
Borbonici, Pilade Bronzetti, che aveva il grado di maggiore,
prese tre pezzi d'artiglieria al nemico. E piii tardi a Castel
Morone con soli 270 uomini respinse per undici ore di
seguito gli assalti di ben 4,000 Borbonici, finche, ferito di
baionetta e colpito da una palla al petto, cadde, brandendo
la spada, per non piii rialzarsi.
Sdegnoso
d'ogni resa, Leonida novello,
ruotando a cerchio la fraterna spada,
lanciavasi a morir per mezzo i mucchi
dei fraterni cadaveri.
478 PARTE SECONDA
Garibaldi, annunziando il fatto nell'Ordine del giorno
alle sue legioni, disse:
A Castel Morone, Pilade Bronzetti, emulo degno del fratello,
vi ripeteva uno di quei fatti che la storia porta certamente accanto
a quelli compiuti dai Leonida e dai Fabi.
E nelle sue Memories I'Eroe soggiunse:
Accanto alle immortali famiglie del Cairoli e dei De Benedetti
e a tante altre per cui veste lutto I'ltalia, poniamo quella dei Bron-
zetti. II maggiore dei fratelli cadde contro gli Austriaci a Tre-
ponti; il secondo cadde non meno eroicamente a Castel Morone.
Resta un terzo ai vecchi genitori, e anche questo, col consenso de-
gl'incomparabili vegliardi, e pronto a dar la sua vita all'Italia.
Nella liberazione d'Ancona si distinsero non poco i
trentini Leopoldo Tonini e il capitano Venturi. Quest'ul-
timo s'adopero attivamente per promovere un'insurre-
zione nello Stato Romano soggetto al pontefice.
Insomma i Trentini pugnarono dovunque nel i860:
nelle file dell'esercito piemontese, come nelle file degli
eserciti dell' Italia Centrale e dellTtalia Meridionale.
Non ci fu brigata in cui non se ne sia contato piii d'uno.
Se ne trovarono 22 nella brigata Modena, 29 nella brigata
Reggio, loi nella brigata Bologna, quasi 100 nel battaglione
Vignola e 120 nell'esercito meridionale. Circa 500 in
tutto. Furono ben poche le province italiane che poterono
contarne altrettanti. Prendendo per base la proporzione
della leva ordinaria ch'era allora in Italia del 25 per mille,
il Trentino, con una popolazione di 330,000 abitanti, avrebbe
dovuto fornire 825 soldati. Ne form invece 500, ossia due
terzi del contingente ordinario. Ma bisogna considerare
ch'esso — il Trentino — dove pur sostenere il peso delle
leve austriache forzate.
Anche il contingente dato dai Trentino alia legione dei
Mille fu oltremodo lusinghiero. Nella proporzione di mille
sopra 25 milioni d'abitanti (tanti ne contava ITtalia nel
i860), il Trentino, in ragione della sua popolazione, avrebbe
dovuto dare 13 uomini circa. Ne diede invece 17.
Benche in numero minore, i Triestini e glTstriani corsero
anch'essi ad arrolarsi sotto le bandiere italiane nel i860, e si
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1860 479
distinsero per eroismo al pari degli altri fratelli irredenti.
AH'assalto di Perugia, per esempio, una compagnia composta
tutta di Triestini e Istriani contribui efficacemente (i8
settembre i860) a far prigioniero I'intero presidio papalino
composto di ben 8,000 mercenari irlandesi.
Inoltre, furono raccolte grandi somme di denaro in
mezzo alle popolazioni delle regioni irredente per la guerra
italiana del i860 contro I'Austria.
Rimettendo appunto una di tali somme, il comitato
triestino per i soccorsi a Garibaldi scriveva al comitato
di Milano:
Trieste ebbe generose vittime nel 1849 a Roma; ha i suoi figli
quest'anno (1860) nell'esercito del magnanimo Re Galantuomo e
sotto le bandiere dell'invitto Garibaldi. Ma non cessara di fare
ancora, per quanto sara possibile eludere la irrequieta vigilanza dei
satrapi austriaci.
Cera davvero la vigilanza. E di che sorta! Michele
Buono, organizzatore d'un comitato segreto d'arrolamento
a Trieste, veniva condannato a morte (pena commutatagli
poi in 20 anni di lavori forzati). Un marinaio di Pola, a cui
in piazza proruppe irresistibile il grido di Fiva V Italia\ fu
istantaneamente ammazzato a sciabolate da un ufficiale
austriaco. A Pirano I'operaio Mistare, per avere pronun-
ziato parole di simpatia all'indirizzo dellTtalia, fu da una
sentinella austriaca freddato con una fucilata alia testa.
Le famiglie dei disertori erano vessate nel peggiore dei modi.
11 governo austriaco le costrinse perfino a rimborsare il
prezzo delle divise militari. E promise vistosi premi pecu-
niari a tutti quei soldati "che avessero denunziato gl'inci-
tatori alia diserzione e coloro che avessero tenuto discorsi
ostili al governo medesimo". Nel Trentino il commissario
austriaco conte Hohenwarth diramava una circolare con la
quale ordinava alle autorita governative "di energica-
mente opporsi alle idee di separazione del Trentino dal
Tirolo che avevano gia messo nel paese radici cosi profonde";
minacciava "esser ben deciso a reprimere inflessibilmente
ogni dimostrazione d'italianita da qualunque parte venisse;
destituiva Gaetano Manci podesta di Trento; destituiva
480 PARTE SECONDA
anche il podesta di Rovereto e i podesta d'altre citta irre-
dente, e li sostituiva con commissari politici fidi al governo
di Vienna; faceva eseguire le solite requisizioni d'armi, le
persecuzioni, le proscrizioni, le bastonate, ecc. Molti
cospicui cittadini — quali ad esempio I'ottantenne Tito
De Bassetti, nonche Giovanni De Pretis e Antonio Marsili
— furono arrestati a capriccio, maltrattati ed esiliati.
Ma tanta rabbia repressiva non valse a frenare I'irrom-
pente sentimento d'italianita che animava le popolazioni
del confine orientale d'ltalia.
II comitato nazionale dellTstria, mandando a Milano
(sempre nel i860) una somma di denaro raccolta per la
causa italiana, scriveva:
LTstria, povera di tutto, fuorche di generoso sentire e d'amore
sviscerato per la comune madre Italia, non puo che una tenue
somma offrire; ma la conforta il pensiero che ITtalia sapra, meglio
che all'ofFerta, avere riguardo al coraggio con cui essa fu raggra-
nellata sotto la pressura della polizia austriaca, e al cuore con che
essa — ITstria — la porta suU'altare della Patria. Dite al prode
Garibaldi che ITstria non fu mai ne sara mai timida di sacrifici
per la fausta causa nazionale. Ma ditegli pure che quel giorno
ch'egli potra libera far sventolare I'itala bandiera sulle adriatiche
sponde, I'lstria risorgera con giubilo a rafforzare di marinai la
patria armata e dei piu coraggiosi suoi figli il patrio esercito.
Vedranno allora le province sorelle dTtalia se ITstria — che I'Au-
stria tanto oppresse per toglierle lingua ed affetti e per ispe-
gnerne, se fosse stato possibile, il nazionale sentimento — sia
indegna di loro. Per ora non le e dato che, nel segreto dell'anima
e fra le torture, di proferire gli adorati nomi dTtalia, di Vittorio
Emanuele II e di Garibaldi; ma allora questa voce segreta, nello
slancio di centinaia di migliaia di cuori, si cambiera in altissimo
grido che, echeggiato dalle nostre colline, si propaghera per la
marina fino alia spiaggia opposta deU'Adriatico golfo.
E le donne triestine, mandando a Garibaldi (sempre
nel i860) una bandiera italiana fatta da loro, scrivevano:
II dispotismo austriaco, se trovo del proprio conto, una volta,
di migliorare le condizioni materiali di Trieste aprendo la citta
aH'immigrazione ed ai traffici, nelle troppo decantate prerogative
nascondeva un mortifero veleno, vero premio alia spontanea
GL'IRREDENTI NEL I860 481
dedizione! Poiche, dopo averla asservita in onta ai piu solenni
patti, adopero per anni e anni ogni arte e prepotenza alio scopo di
spegnere le natural! aspirazioni di civile e morale progresso e
rapirle costumi e linguaggio. Non ne voile risparmiato I'onore, e
la chiamo fedelissima. Menzogna, o Generale! Perche ne le
soverchierie dei dominatori, ne gli aulici decreti, ne la vilta dei
degeneri patrizi, valsero a snaturare il nostro popolo che e rimasto
italiano e che ora piii che mai ha la coscienza deirimprescrittibile
suo diritto di appartenere all'italica famiglia. E la bandiera che
noi, donne triestine, vi mandiamo in dono, vi sia debole pegno del
sentimento nazionale che rianima i nostri mariti e i nostri figli.
Aggraditela, o Generale, e accordatele Tonore di guidare con essa
alcune delle vostre intrepide legioni nelle future battaglie del-
I'indipendenza nazionale e della liberta comune, col grido di
Fiva r Italia! Viva Vittorio Emanuele II!
E il comitato triestino-istriano, facendo quasi un bilancio
alia fine del i860, diceva in un apposito proclama:
Moiti dei nostri figli hanno sparso il loro sangue sui campi
gloriosi di Calatafimi e di Castelfidardo; molti altri gemono nelle
carceri austriache o vanno esulando.
E Carlo Ferrari soggiungeva poco dopo:
Trieste a envoye des sommes considerables au comite garihaldien.
Une bonne partie des ses enfants etaii avec les vainquers de Palerme
et de Milazzo. Les dames triestines out brode des drapeaux, envoye
des adresses aux soldats de Vindependance italienne.
Infine il giornalista triestino Pacifico Valussi ricordo uno
dei tanti episodi mostranti lo spirito d'italianita da cui
erano infiammati le popolazioni del confine orientale
d'ltalia nel i860.
Fu un tempo — cosi egli scrisse — in cui un bravo Goriziano
mi porto una somma di denaro che i suoi compatrioti volevano
spendere per la patria italiana. Era il momento in cui la flotta
borbonica era stata catturata da Garibaldi e consegnata all'ammi-
raglio Persano, ma che veniva abbandonata dai marinai. Da
alcuni Triestini, Istriani e Friulani si fece un fondo per attirare
marinai dell'Istria, del Veneto e della Dalmazia per la nuova flotta
italiana; e ci si riusci; e Cavour gradi il dono e intese molto bene
il doppio vantaggio del togliere i marinai all'Austria e farli propri.
482 PARTE SECONDA
Ora dico qui ai patrioti goriziani, che quella somma, deposltata
fiduciosamente nelle mie mani, ando ad arricchire quel fondo.
IX
Le lotte dell'italianita sostenute con indomabile
fierezza dai Trentini, dai Triestini, dagl'Istriani e dai
Dalmati contro 1' Austria dai 1861 al 1865.
II 6 giugno i86i moriva Cavour. Le popolazioni del
confine orientale d'ltalia manifestarono il loro cordoglio
in forme diverse (chiusura di negozi, astensione dai teatri
e dalle feste, ecc), nonostante le misure di precauzione
prese dalla feroce polizia austriaca per impedire o almeno
celare tali manifestazioni.
Dal i86i al 1865 ci fu tregua d'armi in Italia, ma non
sospensione di lotta per la causa nazionale. II Trentino
non voile saperne di restare unito al Tirolo tedesco. Quando
si fecero nel 1861 le elezioni per la Dieta di Innsbruck, a
Trento andarono a votare soltanto un cittadino e 27 impie-
gati del governo austriaco; a Rovereto 7 cittadini e 70
impiegati; a Riva 2 cittadini e 16 impiegati. Nelle altre
citta neppure gl'impiegati si mossero. Nel tempo stesso
gli elettori di Trento sottoscrivevano la dichiarazione
di astenersi dalle elezioni, "nella certezza di rispondere in
tal modo al sentimento universale del paese". Dichiara-
zioni analoghe furono sottoscritte dagli elettori di parecchie
altre localita. E dei deputati eletti, i due che si recarono
alia Dieta proposer© subito la separazione del Trentino dai
Tirolo. Gli astenuti indirizzarono alia Dieta stessa il voto
che, "pill della loro parola, potesse essere eloquente il
generale silenzio, e che la solenne manifestazione della
volonta popolare non avesse a rimanere lungamente incom-
presa".
Proprio nelle elezioni del 1861 il partito liberale italiano
a Trieste conquisto con grandissima maggioranza i pubblici
poteri (Congresso municipale e Dieta provinciale). E
d'allora in poi li tenne sempre vittoriosamente, *'come
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1861 AL 1865 483
conseguenza della sua ottima e patriottica amministra-
zione".
Nello stesso anno i86i la Dieta dell'Istria, invitata dal
governo austiiaco ad eleggere i suoi rappresentanti al
Parlamento di Vienna, metteva nell'urna le schede con la
parola nessuno.
Dopo un anno il governo austriaco riconvoco i comizi
elettorali nel Trentino. Gli elettori andarono a votare in
massa, facendo trionfare i capi del partito italiano autonomo.
Questi s'afFrettarono a indirizzare un memoriale alia Dieta
per dichiarare ch'essi non sarebbero intervenuti alia sessione,
e un memoriale al Consiglio dell'Impero per chiedere il
distacco del Trentino dal Tirolo.
L'8 giugno 1862 gli emigrati istriani e triestini manda-
vano in dono a Garibaldi alcune carte geografiche e idrogra-
fiche del mare Adriatico e della costa orientale dell'Adria-
tico, con questa lettera:
Generale! L'Istria e Trieste anelano di essere sottratte al
giogo straniero. Dio voglia che anche il piccolo presente che i
lore figli vi ofFrono, vi giovi, e presto, a far paghi i loro voti.
Garibaldi, in data 10 giugno 1862, rispondeva:
10 so che I'Istria e Trieste anelano a frangere le catene con cui
le avvince I'odiata signoria straniera; so che afFrettano col desiderio
il compimento del voto di essere restituite alia madre Italia. lo
ho fede non sia lontano il giorno delle ultime vittorie, da cui sara
suggellato il completo riscatto nazionale.
11 16 agosto 1862 le popolazioni del Trentino, di Trieste
e dell'Istria, trasmettendo una cospicua somma di denaro
al comitato veneto centrale costituitosi per I'erezione d'un
monumento a Cavour in Torino, scrivevano al presidente
del comitato stesso:
Noi trasmettiamo a Vostra Signoria illustrissima quest'ofFerta,
pegno del sentimento patriottico che anima le popolazioni italiane
stanziate in terra ancora straniera, aspiranti anch'esse a far parte
della grande famiglia italiana che, dopo tanti secoli di sventure,
tutta vuole raccogliersi in unita sotto lo scettro costituzionale di
re Vittorio Emanuele II.
484 PARTE SECONDA
L'li novembre 1862, dopo un processo clamoroso contro il
giornale // Tempo di Trieste, che dimostro quanto intelli-
gente, intensa e ardita fosse in quell'anno la propaganda
italiana fra i Triestini, furono condannati a pene non lievi
il professore Paolo Tedeschi e Antonio Antonaz redattori
del giornale stesso.
Nei primi del 1863 il gentile poeta Veronese Aleardo
Aleardi, il quale per incarico di Manin aveva nel 1848
rappresentato la Repubblica di Venezia a Parigi, con-
segnava a Vittorio Emanuele II un albo che le donne istriane,
trentine e venete avevano destinato a Maria Pia, figlia
dello stesso Vittorio Emanuele II, andata sposa a Luigi I
re del Portogallo. AU'atto della consegna, il poeta pro-
nunziava queste parole:
Sanno (le donne istriane, trentine e venete) che quando Iddio,
nelle passate mischie, sciava dal vostro petto animoso le palle,
gli era per serbarvi alio splendido mandato di compiere ITtalia.
E quando poi avverra che la nostra bandiera sventoli sulle torri
italiane di Trento, e dalle italiane colline di Pola si specchi nel-
TAdriatico nostro, allora voi potrete dire con sublime orgoglio,
o Sire, al vostro figliuolo: Umberto, io ti ho composto la piu bella
corona d'Europa.
Vittorio Emanuele II accolse benigno e incoraggiante il
dono e i voti.
Nei primi del 1863 il governo austriaco respinse la
domanda di distacco del Trentino dal Tirolo tedesco, e
intimo ai deputati astensionisti "che, se nel giro di otto
giorni, essi non si fossero affrettati ad accettare e ad eserci-
tare il mandato loro affidato, avrebbero avuto luogo le
nuove elezioni". I deputati non si presero neppur la
briga di rispondere all'intimazione imperiale. E alle
nuove elezioni, essi furono tutti rieletti. Allora inviarono le
loro dimissioni alia Dieta, dichiarandosi "lieti d'avere
potuto offrire ripetutamente ai loro conterranei I'occasione
di manifestare ai poteri legislativi dello Stato, in via legale
e costituzionale, quale fosse la tendenza della pubblica
opinione, quale la ferma volonta del paese". Le elezioni
successive diedero risultati afFatto identici.
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1861 AL 1865 485
II 17 febbraio 1863 ad un veglione tenutosi nel teatro
di Gorizia intervennero 7 fanciulle e 16 giovanotti goriziani
vestiti tutti da garibaldini. La polizia austriaca li arresto,
e fece condannare al carcere duro i caporioni, tra i quali
Nepomuceno Favetti e Clemente Riaviz, anche perche
questi due avevano I'abitudine nelle dimostrazioni di salu-
tarsi col motto: "Uno, due, tre, Garibaldi nostro re",
e perche il Riaviz aveva imposto a un Austriaco di baciare
il ritratto di Garibaldi.
II 14 maggio 1863 il governo austriaco scioglieva il
Consiglio comunale di Pisino per avere aderito alle feste
centenarie di Pirenze.
Nel 1864, a ispirazione di Mazzini e ad incoraggiamento
di Garibaldi, fu promossa nel Trentino un'azione militare
contro I'Austria, Ne era capo il garibaldino Ergisto Bezzi,
che pote raccogliere intorno a se i suoi correligionari e com-
militoni dei Mille (Fontana, Manci, Tranquillini, Zancani
ed altri) e organizzare un comitato centrale a Trento e
sotto-comitati nelle citta minori, II governo austriaco
seppe la cosa e fece arrestare i principali cospiratori (una
quarantina), li trascino a Innsbruck e ivi li fece condannare
da un tribunale militare per il reato d'alto tradimento
chi a 9, chi a 7, chi a 5, chi a 3, chi a 2 anni di carcere duro.
Mazzini, che tanto dolore aveva provato nell'udire
I'insuccesso dell'impresa, scrisse al Bezzi:
Una linea speciale a voi, per dirvi che io vi ammiro ed amo
sempre piu. So che quanto poteva farsi fu da voi fatto. Dio sa
s'io mi dolgo della posizione in cui vi trovate; ma siete giovane
e I'avvenire fara lunga giustizia a voi e alia vostra fade. Chie-
detemi quanto possa giovarvi, liberamente come fratello a fratello.
Anche Garibaldi scrisse al Bezzi:
Voi faceste il vostro dovere da quel valoroso che siete, e sin
quando gl'Italiani non seguano gli esempi d'uomini come voi, essi
staranno meritamente sotto la verga e il disprezzo universale.
Ai vostri prodi compagni del carcere un saluto dall'anima.
Nel 1864 un senatore italiano conservatore dichiarava
imprudentemente in piena Assemblea "non essere Trieste
nelle aspirazioni del governo italiano". Da Trieste fu
486 PARTE SECONDA
immediatamente spedita una protesta firmata dai piu
ragguardevoli cittadini e da centinaia di patriot!. II
governo austriaco voile che alia prima occasione il Con-
siglio comunale di Trieste dimostrasse falsa quella protesta.
Nel gennaio 1865, convocato il Consiglio, il podesta, ch'era
a quei tempi un asservito all'Austria, propose d'annuUare
rimportanza della protesta, deliberando a unanimita di
voti un atto d'omaggio all'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe.
I consiglieri, illuminati e guidati dal patriota De Rin,
respinsero fieramente la proposta. II Consiglio fu natural-
mente disciolto. Ma i Triestini ebbero poco dopo la
sodisfazione di vedere pubblicata nella Gazzeita Ufficiale
del Regno d'ltalia una dichiarazione del governo italiano,
smentente I'asserzione del senatore conservatore ed afFer-
mante che Trieste non solo era italiana, e quindi nelle
aspirazioni della madre patria, ma anche per "quel fatto"
— per avere cioe respinto la proposta d'omaggio all'impe-
ratore Francesco Giuseppe — essa s'era resa quanto mai
benemerita della causa italiana.
Si pubblicarono nel frattempo numerosi libri compro-
vanti I'italianita e le aspirazioni di Trieste, dell'Istria e del
Trentino, mentre il Tommaseo, instancabile, continuava
con magnifici scritti a difendere I'italianita della Dalmazia,
affermando tra I'altro che ivi la lingua italiana s'era sempre
mantenuta purissima e vi si adoperava "meglio di quella
che aveva adoperato, parlando e scrivendo, lo stesso conte
di Cavour".
X
II filiale contributo di sangue dei Trentini, dei Trie-
stini, degl'Istriani e dei Dalmati alia guerra del 1866
contro I'Austria per I'indipendenza e I'unita d'ltalia.
Trieste e I'Istria per la loro annessione alia madre
patria (1866).
II 1866 passo come una bufera. Appena si seppe che
stava per scoppiare la guerra tra la Prussia e I'ltalia alleate
da una parte contro I'Austria dall'altra, il comitato degli
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1866 487
emigrati triestini e istriani peroro subito la causa delle
terre irredente con indirizzi rivolti a Vittorio Emanuele II
ed ai membri del governo italiano.
Alfonso La Marmora, allora presidente del Consiglio dei
ministri, rispondeva a tutti:
Le passate nvalita di Trieste e Venezia sono cose viete, da
mettersi a fascio con quelle di Firenze e Pisa, di Venezia e Genova
e di cento altre citta italiane. I paesi d'oltre Isonzo sono italiani
quanto qualunque altra provincia di confine della grande penisola.
Sentono di esserlo, e se sieno decisi a volerlo, lo dica la lunga serie
di manifestazioni coraggiose e calorose che si succedono da tanto
tempo nei loro principali centri, Lo scioglimento ripetuto dei
Consigli municipali di Trieste, di Gorizia, di Pisino, di Capodistria;
lo scioglimento delle Diete provinciali di Trieste e di quelle dellTstria
(Parenzo) perche non vollero mandare nessuno al Reichsrath
di Vienna; gli stati d'assedio del 1848 e 1859; i processi e le
condanne politiche pronunziate specialmente da quell'epoca in
poi; la proibizione perfino di carte geografiche, di opere storiche e
diplomatiche che trattano serenamente di quei paesi; infine i
bandi, gli arresti, la sospensione delle liberta personali che s'annun-
ziano in questi giorni, sono fatti che non si distruggono oramai con
I'usata frase dei pochi malintenzionatiy del pugno di faziosi favoriti
dal Piemonte.
II governo austriaco, dal canto suo, prese come ostaggi
parecchi dei migliori cittadini di Trieste e dellTstria (Mar-
tino Zucchi, Gioacchino Lovisoni, I'Hermet, I'Hortis, il
Madonizza, il Rismondo ed altri), e li interne nelle fortezze
dellTmpero.
Ma tanta violenza non sgomento i patriot! irredenti.
Quelli emigrati mandarono in data 18 giugno 1866 a Vittorio
Emanuele II, che stava per recarsi al campo, I'augurale
saluto dei fratelli oppressi, dicendo:
I Triestini e glTstriani saranno i guardiani dell'Alpe Giulia:
di quell' Alpe che, violata troppe volte dallo straniero, e comple-
mento necessario e sicurezza del territorio nazionale. Essi vi
daranno in mano quella Pola che, fin dall'epoca romana porto
militate italiano, I'Austria ha ormai convertito in minaccia di
tutta la nostra costa adriatica. Essi vi daranno quella Trieste
che I'Austria vorrebbe malamente far credere di pertinenza
488 PARTE SECONDA
germanica. £ voce di popolo che vi chiama in quelle parti. E
grido di dolore e di speranza che erompe dal cuore di Italiani che
vi invocano Liberatore e vi salutano loro Re.
La gioventij trentina, triestina, istriana e dalmata,
infatti, accorse con mirabile slancio d'amore e di fede ad
arrolarsi sotto le patrie bandiere (nell'esercito regolare e
tra le file garibaldine), e si batte con supremo ardore contro
gli Austriaci.
A Custoza (24 giugno 1866) cadde, tra gli altri, il tenente
Leonardo D'Andri di Capodistria, mentre pugnava leoni-
namente alia testa della sua compagnia rimasta priva di
capitano. Egli era volato in aiuto dei granatieri di Sardegna
duramente provati a Monte Croce, aveva assaltato impetuo-
samente quell'altura, I'aveva ritolta agli Austriaci e aveva
ripreso nello stesso tempo i cannoni e i prigionieri italiani
di cui i nemici s'erano impossessati conquistando il monte.
All'eroico D'Andri fu, per questo fatto, decretata la medaglia
d'oro.
Nella stessa battaglia di Custoza cadde anche da prode
il trentino Claudio Zambelli. E si distinsero per il loro
valore i triestini Adolfo Sartori, R. Donaggio, Davide
Milla, Giovanni DrufFel, Eugenio Popovich, Gustavo
Buchler, Enrico Ferolli, gl'istriani Girolamo Gravisi,
Giovanni Vascon, Michele Gallo, Carlo Depaugher, Do-
menico Grio, Domenico Vidacowich, Pietro Madonizza, il
goriziano Angelo Mazzini, il trentino professore Alberto
Eccher e tanti altri d'ogni eta, d'ogni condizione sociale,
tutti uniti in un sol pensiero: I'ltalia.
Alia vittoria di Monte Suello nel Trentino (3 luglio
1866), riportata da Garibaldi sugli Austriaci superiori di
numero, meglio armati e in una posizione favorevole,
contribui non poco I'eroismo di Ergisto Bezzi, del Tranquil-
lini, del Ciotti, del Fontana, del Manci, dello Zancani, del
Leonardi, dello Zanolla e di altri Garibaldini irredenti.^
La notizia di questo brillante fatto d'armi e la notizia
che il generale Medici era giunto felicemente coi suoi a
poche miglia da Trento e che il generale Cadorna, all'estrema
' A Monte Suello ritnase ferito lo stesso Garibaldi da una palla di fucile a una
coscia.
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1866 489
destra dell'esercito di spedizione, marciava su Trieste,
sollevarono immensamente gl'Italiani, i quali s'erano giusta-
mente turbati alia notizia del disastro di Custoza.
I patrioti delle regioni irredente il 9 luglio 1866 man-
darono a Vittorio Emanuele II un indirizzo in cui dicevano
con fede:
Tutta la terra italiana deve essere sgombra dallo straniero,
e la intera cerchia delle Alpi, nostro naturale confine, deve essere
in nostro potere.
A Condino nel Trentino, dove il 16 luglio 1866 Garibaldi
combatte e vinse un'asprissima battaglia contro gli Austria-
ci, caddero i triestini Giuseppe Donati, Filippo Faienz,
Giuseppe Fenali, Pietro Chiozza, il Capria e il Walfer.
Due giorni dopo (18 luglio 1866), Garibaldi, che in pochi
giorni aveva liberato dagli Austriaci gran parte del Tren-
tino, lanciava a quelle popolazioni il seguente proclama:
Trentini! I vostri voti e quelli di tutta I'ltalia stanno per
essere sodisfatti. L'inno di guerra della nostra moschetteria
vi porta di eco in eco il primo appello della liberta; vi porta un
fraterno saluto. Voi intendete I'uno e I'altro. Combatteremo
insieme per la liberta e I'unita d'ltalia. E qui, su questi vostri
monti, formidabili difese per uomini liberi, serrandoci le mani,
giureremo insieme il Finis Austriae, la fine della dominazione
straniera.
Nella battaglia navale di Lissa (20 luglio 1866), com-
battuta tra la flotta italiana contro la flotta austriaca,
cadde col nome dTtalia sulle labbra il guardiamarina
Giovanni Ivancich dalmata. E non pochi Italiani irredenti
caddero a Bezzecca nel Trentino (21 luglio 1866), dove
Garibaldi combatte e vinse contro gli Austriaci una terribile
battaglia che duro 12 ore di continuo e costo all'Eroe 1,522
volontari morti.
II 25 luglio 1866 Garibaldi riceveva dal governo del re
d'ltalia il famoso telegramma: ** armistizio firmato; eva-
cuate Trentino", al quale I'Eroe rispondeva con I'ancor
piQ famoso: "obbedisco".
Poco dopo (fine di luglio 1866) i Consigli comunali e il
clero dei paesi italiani liberati — Storo, Darzo, Lodrone,
490 PARTE SECONDA
Magaza, Dondone, Condino, Cimego, Dono, Bersone,
Drione, Strada, Tiarno di sopra, Tiarno di sotto, Ledro,
Bezzecca, Pieve di Ledro, Mezzolago, Molina e Barcesina,
Legos, Pie di Ledro, Biacesa, Concei, Locca, Eugenise e
Leusumo — sottoscrissero e mandarono a Vittorio Emanuele
II il seguente indirizzo:
Ora che i maggiori sacrifici sono consumati, era che I'Austria
crolla da tutte le parti, ecco che la diplomazia si pianta tra noi e
i nostri diritti, le voci di pace prendono tuttavia maggiore con-
sistenza, sicche temiamo di noi, mentre avevamo tanto sperato
nei giorni addietro. In queste angustie, noi volgiamo una parola
a Voi che non foste mai sordo alle grida di dolore mosse dai vostri
popoli, e vi diciamo che noi siamo Vostri, perocche siamo parte
della Nazione italiana e pronti a dare per essa sostanze e vita.
Parecchie famiglie trentine — come i Bresciani di Riva,
i De Pretis di Cagno, i Ducati e i Molinari di Trento, gli
Eccheli di Ala, i Tavernini di Dro, i Weiss di Strigno —
diedero due fratelli alle schiere italiche nella guerra del 1866
contro I'Austria. La famiglia dei conti Sizzo De Noris di
Trento ne diede tre. E alcune famiglie — come gli Eccheli
di Brentonico, gli Jagher di Trento e i Martini di Riva —
ne diedero perfino quattro.
Si guadagnarono la medaglia d'argento al valore il
triestino Enrico Ferolli gravemente ferito a Cimego; la
menzione onorevole il triestino Rodolfo Donaggio; e meda-
glia e menzione i trentini Carlo Chimelli, Virgilio Inama,
Giovanni Jagher, Alessandro Zinis, Carlo De Pretis, Ferdi-
nando Rinaldi, Virgilio Covi e Filippo Tranquillini. A
Ergisto Bezzi, per gli straordinari servigi resi durante
I'intera campagna, fu offerta la croce d'ufficiale dell'Ordine
Militate di Savoia. Ma egli la rifiuto, come aveva altra
volta rifiutato la croce di cavaliere.
Si distinsero molto nelle schiere garibaldine anche i
trentini Oreste Bronzetti fratello dei due caduti eroi Narciso
e Pilade, il sottotenente Pietro Montanari e Carlo Tivaroni.
Alcuni volontari delle terre italiane irredente erano
disertori recenti dell'Austria. Essi quindi misero a doppio
rischio la loro vita. Tali, ad esempio, il tenente Paolo
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1866 491
Cortella di Storo, Cernio Battorchi di Tione e Isidore
Canella di Riva.
I primi d'agosto l866 alcuni patrioti trentini, capitanati
dai gaiibaldini Francesco Martini e Filippo Manci, tenta-
rono nel Trentino un moto rivoluzionario tendente ad ag-
gregare all'Italia — allorquando si sarebbe stipulata la
pace — almeno il territorio del Trentino occupato con
I'armi da Garibaldi. Ma il tentative falli.
L'li agosto 1866 i Triestini lanciavano il seguente
appello:
Perche I'ltalia sia guarentigia di pace all'Europa, conviene
ricomporia a famiglia politica in tutta la sua unita fisica. Monca
e quindi scontenta e bramosa d'altri eventi, ella avrebbe in se
la ragione, la necessita di nuovi dissidi e conflitti. Ora le Alpi,
che formano reterno confine della penisola italiana, girano a
tergo deiristria non meno che nel Piemonte, nella Lombardia e
nella Venezia propriamente detta. Dal Tricorno, il gigante
alpino che s'alza sulle scaturigini dell'Isonzo, le acque di questo
fiume corrono tra le regioni della Drava, della Sava e della Culpa
e quelle deirAdriatico: fra contrade che mandano il tribute delle
loro acque ai piani del Danubio e quindi al Mar Nero, e le terre
che s'inchinano sullo stesso continente italiano. La Natura,
dunque, non fu incerta nemmeno sui termini orientali d'ltalia,
elevando si notevole barriera tra paesi che in tutto il loro aspetto
recisamente si difFerenziano, tanto che anche Tocchio il piu pro-
fane scorge teste — alio stesso colore dell'aria, alia temperatura,
alia vegetazione — quante va disgiunto per legge inalterabile.
L'Isonze — I'aulico confine d'ltalia imposte da Vienna —
e un fiumicelle che rimarrebbe pressoche ignorate se all' Austria,
che e astuta nelle sue previsioni, non fosse cadute in mente di
fermare, poc'oltre alia sua riva destra, una distinta amministra-
zione per la luogotenenza imperiale di Venezia. Anche quando su
quel fiume imperavano i conti di Gorizia e pei gli arciduchi d'Au-
stria di faccia alia Repubblica di Venezia, non era gia tutto il sue
corse il confine dei due domini, ma le erane altre acque mineri e
fossati e segni di privati pederi piii addentre nella pianura e nei
monti del Friuli. Quelli che appresere in confuse ad arrestare la
Venezia al sue eriente in sui margini d'un rigagnolo, devrebbero,
per mostrarsi conseguenti alle loro reminiscenze storiche, cedere
all'Austria anche la destra dell'Isonzo gia accordatale per la fretta
degli ordinamenti non definiti nella formazione del napoleonico
492 PARTE SECONDA
Regno d'ltalia, quando pure a fronte di cio s'annetteva al Regno
stesso il dipartimento dell'Istria.
Cessino, dunque, una buona volta, tali nozioni di geografia
d'ltalia, le quali non hanno altro fondamento che le insidiose mire
delle cancellerie austriache. La geografia della nostra patria va
per noi imparata dalla natura che ce I'ha fatta, e non da quanto
vorrebbe I'Austria per serbarsi le sue lusinghe di rivincita.
E conoscere e volere casa nostra e il primo nostro dovere. Ne
le civili nazioni potrebbero non ammettere ch'esso e pure un no-
stro diritto.
E gl'Istriani, insieme con gli stessi Triestini, pubbli-
cavano un lungo memoriale indirizzato a Visconti Venosta
ministro degli Esteri del Regno d'ltalia, del quale riporto
qui i punti piii salienti:
L'lstria e un posto avanzato rimpetto alia Laguna, alia quale
s'attacca mediante gli isolotti e le paludi di Grado, di Marano e
di Aquileia; e un pezzo di terreno staccatosi dalle nostre Alpi e
scivolato sul nostro mare; e a noi quasi un molo d'approdo e un
luogo di necessaria poggiata. Le flotte Romane e le Venete
svernavano a Pola che, secondo il mutare dei secoli, fu succursale
d'Aquileia, di Ravenna, di Venezia. Le triremi venete s'arma-
vano nel porto di Quieto, a Umaga, a Pirano. A Venezia non si
va senza rasentare le coste dell'Istria. E nessuna flottiglia, sia
pure a vapore, potrebbe avventurarsi in certe stagioni nell'alto
Adriatico, senza pericolo d'essere portata sotto il cannone di Pola.
L'lstria, d'altronde, e italiana per origini, veneta per dedizione
spontanea. Caduta con Venezia nel 1797, in forza della malau-
gurata pace di Campoformio, e giusto, e necessario che con
Venezia risorga. Altrimenti non ne soffrirebbe la sola Istria,
ma Venezia con essa.
L'lstria formo parte del primo Regno d'ltalia dal 1805 al
1810, e quando ritorno in mano dell'Austria, questa le promise
d'accomunarla alle altre province venete, promessa che, more
austriaco, non fu mantenuta.
J Nel 1848 e nel 1859, a clamore di popolo e mediante i suoi
municipi, l'lstria domando e ridomando d'essere riunita alia
Venezia, ma sempre indarno, poiche I'Austria rimase padrona
della situazione.
Col nuovo assetto che va necessariamente a prendere I'Europa,
e interesse della civilta che ci sia un'Italia sodisfatta e forte.
Ma tale non sara mai, senza la frontiera delle Alpi Retiche,
GL'IRREDENTI NEL 1866 493
Carniche e Giulie, e senza i porti che la natura ofFre sulle cost
deiristria a compenso di quelli che le ha negato sulla restante
costa adriatica da Otranto a Grado.
La nazione itahana tiene gH occhi rivolti aU'esercito e alia
flotta; pensa che una mossa sollecita e ardita, dandoci il possesso
di quelle terre, renderebbe piu agevole il compito della diplo-
mazia e ofFrirebbe alle popolazioni istriane la bramata occasione
di smentire coi fatti i dubbi che alcuno ancora si ostina a movere
sul conto loro.
Nel ripetervi, adunque, I'alta fiducia che abbiamoinvoi,neirin-
tero Consiglio dei ministri e nell'illustre suo capo (il Lamarmora),
non vi taceremo la speranza che la memoria del grande Cavour
ispiri — al Governo italiano e al Comando deirarmata di terra
e di mare — deliberazioni pronte, concordi ed energiche, quali
sono richieste dall'interesse e daH'onore dell'Italia che aspetta,
ma che sente, in ogni sua parte, piena la vita, e vuole essere intera
per esistere non solo, ma per occupare il posto che ormai le com-
pete in Europa.
Neiristria non sorge un villaggio, in cui si agiti un poco di
vita civile, il quale non sia prettamente italiano. II carattere
nazionale e spiccatissimo in ogni sua esteriore manifestazione.
I vestiti, gli usi, le tradizioni, le leggende, i canti, i proverbi sono
italiani. Italiana I'architettura, dall'umile casolare al palazzo
pretorio. Italiani il pennello e lo scalpello che decorano i templi
e i pubblici edifizi. Italiane le istituzioni di beneficenza. Italiane
le leggi dei Comuni, di cui si hanno luminosi esempi fin dal 1200
in quegli statuti municipali foggiati alia romana che regolavano
la vita civile dei paesi istriani, mentre in non poche illustri parti
della rimanente Italia non vi erano che signori feudatari e plebe
inconscia di se, del suo passato e del suo avvenire,
E bellissimi nomi vanta I'lstria tra i migliori ingegni d'ltalia.
Chi non conosce il Vergerio e il Flaccio, tanto celebri nella storia
della Riforma? il Sartorio, caposcuola delle scienze mediche?
il Muzio, emulo del Davanzati? I'economista Carli? il Car-
paccio e le sue tele? le musiche del Tortini, per non dire di cento
altri che dall'Istria partirono ai seggi piii onorati nelle universita di
Padova, di Pisa, di Bologna e di Roma?
Con Roma le province istriane furono sempre una regione
d'ltalia e, fuori dubbio, la piu gelosa, come lo provano i
monumenti militari di cui ammiriamo ancora oggi i numerosi
avanzi e che lungo la frontiera aveva eretto il genio romano di
contro alle nazioni d'oltr'alpe. E quando queste nazioni, fiaccata
494 PARTE SECONDA
la potenza dell'Impero, irruppero di la per depredare e asservire
ritalia, furono le genti della Venezia marina e dell'Istria che, me-
glio di tutte le altre, ne sal varono il nome, costituendosi a reggimento
di liberi Comuni (i primi Comuni italiani del Medio Evo) sotto la
nominale signoria di Bisanzio.
L'Istria continue poscia sempre generosa la lotta contro gli
stranieri (Longobardi, Slavi, Avari, Unni, Saraceni), si che
sappiamo fin d'allora che I'onore del vessillo veneto o, come
dicevasi in quei tempi, I'onore del Beato Marco, era affidato alle
galee e alle armi alleate degl'Istriani,
Ma tutto fu inutile. Nel trattato di pace firmato a
Praga il 24 agosto 1866, le giuste pretese dell'Italia sopra
le terre irredente, e neppure su quella parte del Trentino
conquistata dalle schiere garibaldine, non furono ricono-
sciute dalla Prussia vincitrice, ne dalla Francia mediatrice.
Cosi che il governo di Vittorio Emanuele II, in virtii della
pace firmata a Vienna il 3 ottobre 1866, dove accontentarsi
della sola Venezia ceduta dall'imperatore Francesco Giu-
seppe a Napoleone III, e da costui all'Italia.
Quanto dolore recasse un tale fatto nel cuore delle
popolazioni italiane irredente si puo bene immaginare,
quando si consideri che il triestino Pietro Brambilla era state
informato dal ministro Visconti Venosta che Trieste era
la meta delle operazioni militari italiane e che ravvocato
Hortis e Carlo Combi triestini erano stati perfino nominati
vice-commissari del governo italiano (uno per Trieste e
I'altro per ITstria), e Tavvocato Carlo Boggio, morto nella
battaglia navale di Lissa, aveva con se il decreto del go-
verno italiano che lo nominava commissario regio di Trieste.
II 14 novembre 1866 Vittorio Emanuele II fu di passag-
gio a Udine. Al corteo, che si formo in suo onore, parteci-
parono piii di 3,000 fra Triestini, Goriziani e Istriani, con
una bandiera italiana abbrunata portata da un Garibaldino
dei Mille, nativo di Trieste.
II giorno dopo, la bandiera fu consegnata dagli stessi
tremila al slndaco d'Udine, insieme con una cospicua
somma di denaro come contribute deglTtaliani irredenti
per I'erigendo monumento a Daniele Manin, il glorioso doge
della Repubblica di Venezia del 1848-1849.
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1867 AL 1870 495
XI
II filiale contributo di sangue dei Triestini, degl'Istria-
ni, dei Trentini e dei Dalmati all'Italia per la presa di
Roma (1867-1870).
I patriot! delle regioni irredente d'ltalia, sebbene colpiti
in pieno cuore dalle disillusioni del i866, non disperarono.
Essi continuarono a lavorare alacremente per la causa
unitaria.
Nel maggio 1867 il governo italiano consegnava al
governo austriaco i carcerati che questo aveva lasciati nel
Veneto. Li mandava alia stazione di Gorizia, ove dalla
custodia dei carabinieri italiani passavano a quella dei
gendarmi austriaci. I Goriziani accolsero festosamente i
carabinieri italiani, oflPrendo loro cibi e sciampagna, e
inneggiando all'Italia, a Garibaldi, a Vittorio Emanuele II.
Ma, durante la notte, la polizia austriaca opero vari arresti.
E, dopo un paio di giorni, quattordici cittadini di Gorizia,
tutti giovani, furono condannati ciascuno a due settimane
di carcere con due giorni di digiuno.
La sera del 12 luglio 1867, numerosi bifolchi sloveni,
aizzati e protetti dalla polizia austriaca, scesero processional-
mente a Trieste, urlando Fiva I'Austrial e provocando i
cittadini. Questi — al grido di Fiva I'ltalial — respinsero
i provocatori. La processione fu rinnovata il giorno dopo
(13 luglio 1867). I cittadini affrontarono e disarmarono i
bifolchi sloveni. Ma intervenne la truppa imperiale au-
striaca, la quale fece fuoco sui Triestini, uccidendone due e
ferendone ventitre.
Quando Garibaldi fu **arrestato" nel settembre del
1867 per ordine del governo dei Savoia, I'indignazione
avvampo anche nei petti deglTtaliani irredenti. Al comizio
tenutosi a Udine nel Teatro Minerva il 26 settembre 1867,
Pietro De Carina di Monfalcone, protestando a nome delle
province italiane soggette all'Austria, ricordo tra I'altro le
parole rivolte dall'Eroe pochi mesi prima in Udine stessa
agli emigrati irredenti:
496 PARTE SECONDA
Parole di speranza e di conforto — disse I'oratore — che non
tardarono a varcare i non lontani confini, trovando giuliva eco
dalle baize delle Alpi Giulie alia roccia del Timavo, alle rive del
Quarnero e — mi trema il cuore al dirlo — nei sepolcri ancora
cruenti del Trentino, nei sepolcri delle povere vittime del 1866.
AH'impresa garibaldina dell'Agro Romano furono rap-
presentate tutte le regioni irredente d'ltalia. II trentino
Giuseppe Fontana fu il primo a passare i confini dello Stato
Romano alia testa di 150 volontari. Dei 75 Italiani for-
manti il manipolo condotto dai fratelli Cairoli, manipolo che
doveva portare aiuto ai patriot! rivoluzionari di Roma, 20
eranotriestini. Nei combattimento di Villa Glori (23 ottobre
1867) caddero morti 4 Triestini ed altri furono feriti, tra i
quali Gian Luigi Vidali e Pietro Mosettig "che giacque
presso Giovanni Cairoli". Tra quelli che riuscirono a
penetrare nella citta, vi fu anche Giusto Muratti triestino.
E nei lanificio di Giulio Ajani in Trastevere, accanto alia
eroina Giuditta Arquati-Tavani e agli altri generosi, furono
massacrati dai papalini (lo stesso giorno 23 ottobre 1867)
anche Francesco Mauro ed Enrico Ferolli triestini, e rimase
ferito Rodolfo Donaggio pure triestino.
A Monterotondo (25 ottobre 1867), fu il capitano gari-
baldino Marziano Ciotti di Gradisca che appiccando il
fuoco alia porta del forte, lo costrinse alia resa e decise cosi
della vittoria riportata in quel giorno da Garibaldi sulle
truppe pontifice. II Duce scrisse poi al Ciotti:
Voi, alia testa della vostra compagnia, siete entrato il prime a
Monterotondo sulle rovine incendiate e fumiganti della Porta
San Rocco. lo vi proclamo un prode, e valorosa la compagnia
da voi comandata. Le donne italiane onoreranno i campioni delle
glorie nostre. Ed io vi do un bacio fraterno.
Garibaldi.
A Mentana, poi, nella gloriosa sconfitta, combatte
eroicamente il medesimo Marziano Ciotti di Gradisca;
caddero morti sul campo il triestino Luigi Pecenco e il
sedicenne Giuseppe Pollini di Rovereto; rimase gravemente
ferito e prigioniero il trentino Ergisto Bezzi. E degli
ultimi a lasciare il campo furono il capitano Emilio Maddali
GL'IRREDENTI DAL 1867 AL 1870 497
triestino, Carlo Tivaroni dalmata, Federico Cuder istriano
e Vincenzo Cattarozzi trentino.
A Firenze s'agitarono per il riscatto di Roma i fratelli
Tommaso e Rovis Vusio dalmati.
A Padova cospirarono, anche pel riscatto di Roma, gli
studenti universitari istriani con a capo Domenico Lavisato.
Garibaldi, rispondendo da Caprera a un saluto che gli
stessi studenti gli avevano mandato, li incitava con queste
parole:
Grazie per la gentile attestazione d'afFetto. Italiani d'origine
e d'aspirazioni, I'ltalia non deve dimenticarvi, siccome una delle
piu belle gemme della sua corona. Jo daro volentieri la vita per
I'afFrancaniento completo della famiglia nostra.
II 20 aprile i868 si celebrarono le nozze del principe
ereditario Umberto di Savoia con la cugina principessa
Margherita. Gli emigrati irredenti, in un indirizzo a Vit-
torio Emanuele II, porsero da Udine il saluto augurale
delle terre trentine e giulie agli sposi, ricordando in pari
tempo che "solo per I'afFrancamento di dette terre potra
risplendere senza macchia I'astro d'ltalia".
Nello stesso anno i868 gl'Istriani, i Triestini, i Friulani
e i Dalmati ebbero il conforto di vedere approvata dal
governo italiano la legge con la quale "tutti gl'Italiani delle
province che non fanno ancora parte del Regno d'ltalia,
sono pareggiati nell'esercizio dei diritti civili ai cittadini
dello Stato, purche, presentando Tatto di nascita e adem-
piendo alle altre formalita volute dalla legge, s'inscrivano nei
ruoli d'un Comune italiano di loro scelta".
A Benedetto Cairoli,^ che aveva presentato e sostenuto
la detta legge fin dal 1862, i membri del comitato nazionale
di Gorizia scrissero ricordando che, se incrollabile fu e
sarebbe stata la fede dei Goriziani nell'Italia, "pur aveva
d'uopo che i fratelli liberi talvolta la rinfrancassero con una
parola di conforto"; lo ringraziavano d'averla detta lui
tale parola, lo pregavano di ricordarsi sempre di loro e in-
vocarono il giorno del riscatto.
' Figlio del dottor Carlo e di Adelaide Bono, la nuova madre dei Gracchi;
uno dei piu belli eroi del Risorj^imento italiano; deputato al Parlamento nazionale
per 30 anni e ministro degli affari esteri sotto Umberto I (1825-1889).
498 PARTE SECONDA
Benedetto Cairoli rispose:
II vostro infortunio e danno comune e sarebbe anche vergogna
se dimenticato; ma cio non e. Ricordero i vostri patimenti e le
vostre ardite dimostrazioni e la cooperazione presa alle battaglie,
ai lutti, alle glorie della patria italiana? La causa vostra e adun-
que anche nostra, e io mi auguro di poterle consacrare non solo
la parola, ma anche la vita. Accogliete, o benemeriti cittadini
e degni interpreti del pensiero nazionale, un fraterno saluto.
Nel luglio 1868, in seguito a varie manifestazioni liberali
del municipio e della cittadinanza di Trieste, un'altra
torma di bifolchi slavi, aizzata e spalleggiata dal battaglione
territoriale austriaco composto anche di Slavi ferocissimi
detti hdcoli (blatte), assail brutalmente i Triestini al grido
di Viva V Austria\ I Triestini respinsero gli assalitori al
grido di Viva VItalia\ La lotta continue il giorno dopo.
Lo studente triestino Rodolfo Parisi e due operai anche
triestini — Francesco Sussa e Niccolo Zecchia — giacquero
morti sulla strada; il primo, colpito da 22 colpi di baionetta!
E le vie centrali furono insanguinate da diecine di feriti.
Ai funerali delle vittime accorse una folia immensa, in mezzo
alia quale furono raccolte piii di 11,000 firme di cittadini
chiedenti al governo austriaco lo scioglimento del batta-
glione territoriale. Ma invece di giustizia, i Triestini non
ebbero altro che una terribile reazione poliziesca. Furono
arrestati e condannati a pene gravi numerosi cittadini.
L'anima di Trieste s'inaspri. Essa senti ancora di piii il
peso e I'obbrobrio del giogo austriaco.
Nell'agosto del 1868 a Gorizia scoppiava un petardo
nel Duomo durante la messa che si celebrava per il com-
pleanno dell'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe. I sospetti della
polizia austriaca caddero sul cittadino Carlo Blasig, il quale
fu arrestato e condannato a 6 anni di carcere. Nell'ergastolo
di Gradisca, dove fu rinchiuso a scontare la pena, il Blasig
incontro Melchiorre De Pregel, suo concittadino e fratello
di fede, condannato a quattro anni, e con lui riusci a fuggire
dal carcere e riparare felicemente a Udine.
Cosi, tra cospirazioni, dimostrazioni, persecuzioni, pro-
cessi, condanne, martiri d'ogni sorta, glTtaliani irredenti
giunsero fino alia seconda meta del 1870.
GUGLIELMO OBERDAN (1882) 499
II 20 settembre di quell'anno i soldati italiani comandati
dal generale RafFaele Cadorna entrarono in Roma.
In quella memorabile occasione si distinsero molto
parecchi irredenti, tra i quali I'ufficiale Cristoforo Venier
di Capodistria che rimase anche ferito,
A Trieste la notizia della presa di Roma fu accolta con
supremo entusiasmo. Le vie della citta furono immediata-
mente percorse dalla popolazione acclamante allTtalia. I
poliziotti austriaci caricarono con le baionette inastate i
dimostranti. Ma questi si riunirono novamente e reagirono
contro la violenza. La sera, tutte le finestre della citta
furono illuminate straordinariamente. I poliziotti austriaci
corsero di casa in casa a spegnere i lumi. Ma i lumi si
riaccesero. La polizia austriaca allora inferoci contro il
popolo. E non senza verita fu detto che quel giorno — 20
settembre 1870 — "fu sparso piii sangue a Trieste che a
Roma".
XII
I Triestini tra i volontari italiani di Garibaldi in difesa
della Francia nella guerra del 1870 contro la Prussia.
Continue dimostrazioni d'italianita nelle region! irredente
dal 1872 al 1882. II giovane triestino Guglielmo Ober-
dan, studente universitario a Roma, ardente apostolo
d'italianita, e impiccato a Trieste per avere attentato alia
vita dell'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe. Tremende
dimostrazioni italiane contro 1' Austria (dicembre 1882).
Nell'autunno del 1870 Garibaldi, dimenticando il male
ricevuto dai Francesi a Roma nel 1848 e nel 1866, si mise
alia testa d'un corpo di volontari italiani, tra i quali i suoi
due figli Menotti e Ricciotti e suo genero Stefano Canzio,
e ando in Francia a difendere quella Repubblica contro la
Prussia. L'Eroe vinse con cariche alia baionetta i Prussiani
a Pasques, Prenois, Commarin. Poi, in tre giorni d'aspris-
sima battaglia (21, 22, 23 gennaio 1871), li vinse a Digione,
prendendo loro la bandiera del 61^ reggimento fanteria:
500 PARTE SECONDA
Tunica bandiera perduta dai Prussiani nella memorabile
guerra contro la Francia.
A tali battaglie presero parte il Caprin, il Dudovick e
parecchi altri Triestini, per i quali Garibaldi impersonava
le aspirazioni, la liberta di tutti i popoli oppressi e special-
mente del popolo italiano.
La morte di Mazzini, avvenuta a Pisa il lo marzo 1872,
produsse immenso dolore nelle terra irredente. A Trieste
furono difFusi manifestini listati a lutto. II giornale VOpe-
raio, organo della locale Societa Operaia presieduta da
Edgardo Rascovich, per essersi fatto interprete di tanto
dolore, fu sequestrato dalla polizia austriaca.
Nel 1873 Vittorio Emanuele II, recandosi a Vienna,
passo per Nabresina. La polizia austriaca fermo sulla via
provinciale centinaia di carrozze cariche di Triestini, i
quali volevano ossequiare il "loro re": e ne arresto un
gran numero.
Nello stesso anno 1873 mori Alessandro Manzoni.*
A Trieste ebbero luogo manifestazioni di cordoglio da parte
dei cittadini e persecuzioni da parte della polizia austriaca.
Nel luglio del 1877 un comitato triestino-istriano pubbli-
cava un proclama col quale assicurava gl'irredenti che i
piu intemerati patrioti d'ltalia — Garibaldi, Cairoli,
Avezzana, Fabrizi ed altri — tenevano fiso la sguardo sulle
terre ancora soggette agli Asburgo.
E quando a Trieste giunse la notizia che lo stesso Vittorio
Emanuele II era morto il 9 gennaio 1878, i cittadini, in segno
di dolore, chiusero immediatamente i negozi e i teatri.
La polizia austriaca tento di far riaprire gli uni e gli altri.
Ma non vi riusci. Allora essa strappo bandiere italiane
velate di nero; sequestro giornali; arresto e condanno
cittadini in massa. Nonostante cio, ai funerali fatti nel
Pantheon a Roma il 14 gennaio 1878 apparve una superba
corona di fiori inviata dalla citta di Trieste al "suo re" per
mezzo d'un'apposita commissione. E il 15 gennaio 1878,
per la messa funebre promossa dal regio Consolato dTtalia
* L'insigne poeta e letterato milanese, autore del celebre romanzo / Promessi Sposi
tradotto in tutte le lingue. Un giorno il Manzoni, ricevendo nella propria casa
la visita di Garibaldi, con le lagrime agli occhi per I'emozione, esclamava: "Questo
c il piu bel giorno della mia vital" (1785-1873).
GUGLIELMO OBERDAN (1882) 501
a Trieste, ebbe luogo una nuova e solenne manifestazione
popolare d'italianita sotto il Consolato stesso e nelle vie
principali della citta; e il Consiglio comunale, su proposta
del consigliere Antonio Vidacovich, levo la seduta in segno
di lutto.
A Gorizia il 2 giugno 1878 fu inalberata sulla vetta del
colle una grande bandiera italiana con un'invocazione
unitaria. Nello stesso giorno un'altra grande bandiera
italiana apparve sul colle di Montuzza a Trieste.
Nello stesso anno 1878 si reco a Trieste, per una visita,
Giosue Carducci. Fu accolto con gioia e con feste. Da tale
visita il poeta trasse ispirazione alle sue odi Saluto italico e
Miramar. La prima edizione del Saluto italicoy pubblicata
in un foglio volante a cura della Giovine Trieste, ando a
ruba. Divento subito popolare Tultimo distico, col quale
il poeta si rivolge aglTtaliani soggetti all'Austria e dice loro:
In faccia a lo stranier, che armato accampasi
sul vostro suol, gridate: Italia, Italia, Italia!
Furono in quell'occasione arrestati e condannati parecchi
cittadini.
II 15 ottobre 1878 Garibaldi scriveva da Caprera alia
societa triestina Giovine Trieste:
Se oggi sento d'esser vecchio, e per essere poco valevole alia
causa Santa di Trieste e di Trento. Comunque, saro superbo di
potervi dare gli ultimi giorni della mia vita.
II 19 ottobre 1878 un convegno riservatissimo a Forli,
presieduto da Aurelio Saffi e presente Edgardo Rascovich
di Trieste, deliberava d 'aprire arrolamenti in Italia per una
spedizione liberatrice nelle terre irredente. E all'uopo
iniziava la necessaria raccolta d'armi.
Nello stesso anno 1878 a Trieste furono arrestati sotto
I'accusa d'alto tradimento parecchi studenti triestini, tra i
quali Salvatore Barzilai.^
Nello stesso anno 1878 s'inizio a Gorizia la pubblicazione
d'un giornale nazionale battagliero intitolato // Goriziano,
^ II triestino avvocato Salvatore Barzilai e da 25 anni deputato al Parlamento
nazionale italiano per uno dei collegi elettorali di Roma. Fu presidente dall'Asso-
ciazione della Stampa Italiana per vari anni e ministro nel Gabinetto Salandra.
502 PARTE SECONDA
il quale, pur essendo fatto bersaglio a replicati sequestri,
continuo imperterrito la lotta per I'italianita. II governo
austriaco arresto i redattori (I'architetto Antonio Tabai e
Giuseppe Vinci), li sottopose a processo e li condanno al
carcere. II 15 dicembre 1878 i due condannati riuscirono
a compiere un'ardita evasione e riparare a Udine.
Dalle Assise di Gratz, durante il 1878, furono anche
condannati a parecchi anni di carcere i goriziani Giuseppe
Ricchetti, Carlo Jamsy, Giuseppe De Mulitsch, Luigi
Gregorich, Stefano Riaviz, Emilio Pogatschnig e Vincenzo
Luccardi.
Nel febbraio del 1879, in seguito alio scoppio d'alcuni
petardi a Gorizia, la polizia austriaca perquisi le migliori
famiglie della citta, arresto Ugo Zanardi, Menotti Delfino,
Attilio ed Emilio Mortera, Gustavo Fabricci, Sigismondo
Stella e Alessandro Regazzini, e li condanno tutti chi a
due, chi a tre anni di detenzione da scontarsi negli ergastoli
di Capodistria e di Gradisca.
E quando la mattina del 3 giugno 1882 si seppe che la
sera precedente era morto Giuseppe Garibaldi a Caprera,
nelle citta delle regioni irredente successe quello ch'era
successo per la morte di Vittorio Emanuele II: grandi
manifestazioni di dolore da parte dei cittadini; feroci perse-
cuzioni da parte della polizia austriaca.
Gia il 1882 fu uno degli anni piia irrequieti e importanti
per I'irredentismo italiano. La dipartita dell'Eroe aveva
rievocato la poesia e il fascino di giorni quanto mai gloriosi;
aveva risuscitato nei vecchi e suscitato nei giovani tutto
il santo entusiasmo per I'epopea garibaldina. Tanto piij
che correva insistente la voce d'un' alleanza tra il governo
d'ltalia e quello d'Austria. L'anima del popolo italiano si
ribellava all'idea d'una unione con I'antica tiranna, la quale
faceva ancor pesare la sua ferrea catena sopra terre italiane.
Unione che voleva dire, in sostanza, formale, decisiva rinunzia
al riconquisto di tali terre. I piii generosi patrioti non
potevano rassegnarsi ad accettare le fredde e calcolatrici
ragioni di Stato. Eppero le giudicavano illogiche, innaturali,
mostruose.
L'Austria, del resto, poco curandosi della suscettibilita
GUGLIELMO OBERDAN (1882) 503
italiana, voile festeggiare, proprio in quell'anno 1882, il
quinto centenario della cosidetta "dedizione" di Trieste,
quasi a sfida del sordo e continue rumoreggiare irredentista.
II governo austriaco promosse e organizzo per queH'oc-
casione un' Esposizione industrial a Trieste, e ingiunse ai
Triestini di parteciparvi. La cittadinanza rispose mostran-
dosi indifFerente, ostile ai comandati festeggiamenti.
Allora i rappresentanti del governo di Vienna assoldarono
stranieri, li ubriacarono e, con essi, cercarono d'organizzare
a Trieste, nei giorni dell'apertura dell'Esposizione, dimo-
strazioni favorevoli allTmpero. La stampa vendereccia
avrebbe poi gonfiato tali dimostrazioni e avrebbe fatto
credere all'Europa che Trieste era una citta devota agli
Asburgo.
Ma I'attitudine risoluta dei cittadini frustro i tentativi
degli elementi cortigiani. Per esempio: una locale societa
austriacante si provo d'inaugurare una bandiera donatale
dalla principessa austriaca Stefania. Nel momento dell'i-
naugurazione, la bandiera, trafugata dai patrioti italiani,
non fu pill trovata. Lo scultore slavo Rendic, entrato una
mattina nello studio per preparare il trasporto in piazza
d'una sua statua raffigurante la **dedizione" di Trieste,
trovo la statua decapitata.
La polizia austriaca arse d'ira. Prendendo le mosse
dalla visita dell'arciduca austricaco Carlo Lodovico la
vigilia dell'apertura dell'Esposizione, essa fece percorrere
le vie di Trieste da una musica militate, seguita da una
turba di brutti ceffi croati capeggiati da una ventina d'alti
funzionari governativi austriaci. Costoro si sfogarono
urlando: "Abbasso I'ltalia! Morte agl'Italiani! Galera,
forca e piombo ai liberali!"
La provocazione era grave. Scoppiarono improvvisa-
mente due bombe. Tre alti funzionari austriaci e una
ventina d'ausiliari e spie rimasero colpiti. Alcuni d'essi
espiarono con la vita, altri con lunghe sofFerenze, I'insulto
al sentimento d'italianita e di liberta d'un'intera popolazione.
La polizia austriaca non riusci mai a scoprire gli autori
dell'attentato. Ma si vendico, incarcerando numerosi
cittadini sospetti, tra i quali i giovani tipografi Luigi Schi-
504 PARTE SECONDA
rone, RIcciottI Gervasio e Arturo Kattenbrunner, che
avevano clandestinamente stampato I'esaltazione dell'at-
tentato. I tre furono condannati per apologia di reato.
Per il medesimo reato, la polizia austriaca fece condannare
anche due donne del popolo: Giulietta Krammer e Carolina
Olacutti; la prima a un anno e mezzo, la seconda a due anni
di carcere duro.
II 1 8 agosto 1882 al nocchiero del Lloyd austro-ungarico
Filippo Spongia di Rovigno d'Istria, la polizia austriaca di
Trieste sequestro un baule contenente una bomba all'Orsini,
un petardo e proclami insurrezionali. Tutte queste cose
provenivano dai Triestini esuli a Milano affiliati al Circolo
Garibaldi di Trieste presieduto da Raimondo Battera. Si
ebbero arresti e condanne.
Ma all'inaugurazione dell'Esposizione non si presenta-
rono che i soli impiegati governativi tra folte schiere di
soldati austriaci. La citta vi si astenne completamente.
Alia cassa dell'Esposizione non fu trovato che un solo
biglietto d'ingresso *'pagato"; mentre il giardino dell'Espo-
sizione stessa fu trovato, I'indomani, tutto seminato di
coccarde tricolori e di proclami italiani.
A Vienna, la fiera condotta dei Triestini urto terribil-
mente i nervi dei circoli governativi. S'annunzio subito
ufficialmente che nel settembre (1882) si sarebbe recato a
Trieste I'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe, per rialzare con
la sua augusta presenza le sorti tutt'altro che liete del-
l'Esposizione e per mettere un freno alio spirito ribelle dei
Triestini.
In quel tempo frequentava I'Universita di Roma (sezione
ingegneria) il triestino Guglielmo Oberdan, giovane venti-
quattrenne di bella cultura e di austere doti morali, apostolo
fervente dell'irredentismo italiano, assai stimato e amato
dagli altri studenti, dai professori, dai piii autorevoli patrioti
italiani. Era senza padre e povero. La madre era gorizia-
na. Impartendo lezioni private ai compagni e lavorando
come disegnatore presso un ingegnere di Roma, era riuscito
a guadagnarsi 100 lire mensili con le quali poteva vivere
"da gran signore" e mandare anche qualche cosuccia
alia madre ch'egli adorava.
GUGLIELMO OBERDAN (1882) 505
Quando giunse il 1882, Oberdan stava per laurearsi. Ma
il fermento irredentista, le voci d'un' alleanza italo-austriaca
e gli ultimi avvenimenti della sua Trieste lo distolsero dagli
studi e gli misero la febbre addosso. Egli aveva detto piii
volte che "la causa di Trieste aveva d'uopo del sangue d'un
martire triestino". La maturita dei tempi gli parve giunta.
I disegni di spedizioni armate dallTtalia nelle regioni irre^
dente — disegni rinnovati ogni anno — erano sempre falliti.
Si voto lui al sacrificio. Decise cioe d'andar lui solo a pro-
movere un moto insurrezionale a Trieste, con la speranza che
avrebbe ricevuto aiuti dall'Italia.
Prima di partire, il giovane irredento ando negli uffici
del Dovere, giornale repubblicano di Roma diretto da
Felice Albani, e ivi scrisse e firmo il suo testamento politico.
Ai fratelli italiani.
Vado a compiere un atto solenne e importante. Solenne,
perche mi dispongo al sacrificio; importante, perche dara i suoi
frutti.
E necessario che atti simili scuotano dal vergognoso torpore
Tanimo dei giovani liberi e non liberi.
Gia da troppo tempo tacciono i sentimenti generosi; gia da
troppo tempo si china la fronte ad ogni specie d'insulto straniero.
I figli dimenticano i padri. II nome italiano minaccia di diventare
sinonimo di vile o d'indifFerente.
No, non possono morire cosi gl'istinti generosi! Sono assopiti
e si ridesteranno.
Al primo grido d'allarme correranno i giovani d'ltalia; corre-
ranno coi nomi dei nostri Grandi sulle labbra a cacciare per
sempre da Trento e da Trieste I'odiato straniero che da tanto tempo
ci minaccia e ci opprime.
Oh potesse questo mio atto condurre I'ltalia a guerra contro
il nemico! Alia guerra, sola salvezza, solo argine che possa
arrestare il disfacimento morale sempre crescente della gioventii
nostra.
Alia guerra, giovani, finche siamo ancora in tempo di can-
cellare le vergogne della presente generazione, combattendo da
leoni.
Fuori lo straniero! E vincitori, e forti ancora del grande amore
della patria vera, ci accingeremo a combattere altre battaglie, a
vincere per la vera idea, per quella che ha sempre spinto gli animi
forti alle cruente iniziative, per I'idea repubblicana.
506 PARTE SECONDA
Prima indipendenti, poi liberi.
Fratelli d'ltalia! Vendicate Trieste e vendicatemi!
Settembre 1882.
GUGLIELMO ObERDAN.
II giovane parti da Roma, dopo aver ricevuto dai
Triestini la promessa d'un'insurrezione, d'un "vespro
tergestino", per il quale si dicevano apprestati i mezzi;
dopo aver ricevuto incoraggiamenti e anche promesse d'aiuti
da parecchi eminenti uomini democratici d'ltalia.
Giunto a Udine (15 settembre 1882), si diresse verso il
confine italo-austriaco: e, sotto un cielo minaccioso (la
notte precedente aveva piovuto dirottamente) e con un
vento freddo, per sentieri e viottoli scoscesi malagevoli
fangosi, riusci a varcarlo. A Ronchi, paesetto del Friuli
orientale, si fermo nella locanda d'un certo Giovanni
Berini, e chiese una camera. Era stanco. Si getto imme-
diatamente sul letto e si mise a dormire. Ma lo desto
un improvviso bussare alia porta. In camicia e scalzo, il
giovane ando ad aprire e si vide dinanzi i gendarmi austriaci.
"Chi siete?" gli domando il capo.
"Giovanni Rossi da Gorizia" rispose I'Oberdan, che
aveva gia compreso d'essere stato tradito. E, spianando la
rivoltella, grido in dialetto ti mil e fece fuoco.
II capo gendarme, che aveva tentato di sviare il colpo,
si ebbe un dito della mano fracassato.
II giovane fu sopraffatto dal drappello poliziesco austria-
co, fu disarmato e legato strettamente. Nella valigia gli
furono trovate due bombe e una fiaschetta di polvere. I
gendarmi lo trascinarono in catene a Monfalcone. Quivi,
all'imperiale e reale commissario austriaco, I'Oberdan
ripete di chiamarsi Giovanni Rossi fu Francesco e di Giu-
seppa Ciani, d'anni 25, da Trieste, studente universitario
in scienze fisiche e matematiche. Disse d'avere fatto fuoco
sul capo gendarme, perche I'assisa austriaca, a lui italiano,
era obbrobriosissima come quella che rappresentava un
potere "che sta per forza in casa nostra". Circa le sue
intenzioni, confess© ch'era diretto a Trieste per prendere
parte alle feste che ivi si facevano "e per dare in qualche
modo un saluto al graziosissimo sovrano". Riconobbe per
GUGLIELMO OBERDAN (1882) 507
sue le bombe, la rivoltella, la fiaschetta di polvere, alcune
capsule esplodenti e tutte le altre cose rinvenute nella sua
valigia.
In consequenza di tali dichiarazioni, I'Oberdan fu tra-
dotto, in mezzo a grande scorta d'Austriaci armati, a
Trieste, e ivi rinchiuso nel forte di San Giusto in attesa
del giudizio.
Quando giunse I'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe per
visitare I'Esposizione di Trieste, la citta — che appariva
austriaca soltanto per le bandiere imperiali delle navi
ancorate nel porto, per le insegne degli uffici governativi,
per la presenza dei soldati e delle guardie con I'elmo chio-
dato — brillo per la sua assenza.
Chiunque si fosse in quei giorni accomunato alia vita cittadina
di Trieste, avrebbe sentito ch'essa palpitava con anima italiana.
Chiunque avesse ascoltato le intime voci di queiranima, avrebbe
sentito ripetere senza fine un nome: Italia!
Nel giorno natalizio dell'imperatore, I'Esposizione di
Trieste raggiunse il massimo numero dei visitatori: due-
cento!
Tre mesi intanto erano passati dall'arresto deH'Oberdan.
Alia fine, quale disertore^ e quale reo d'avere voluto atten-
tate alia vita deH'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe e alia
compagine dell'impero austro-ungarico, egli fu condannato
da quella corte marziale alia pena di morte mediante il
capestro.
Udita la lettura della sentenza, il giovane triestino
sorrise, fisso i suoi begli occhi azzurri e sereni sui giudici, e
disse semplicemente: "Grazie!"
La madre, disperata, s'affretto ad impetrare la grazia
dairimperatore. Ma le fu negata. Le fu soltanto concesso
"in via eccezionale" di visitare il figlio, a patto ch'essa
lo inducesse a invocare lui direttamente la grazia sovrana.
^ II Comune di Trieste aveva assegnato ad Oberdan giovinetto una borsa di
studio di 300 corone annue, perche egli frequentasse le scuole a Vienna e si laureasse
in ingegneria. Oberdan giunse cosi all'eta della leva militare e, come studente
universitario, fu dal governo austriaco incorporate nel 22^ reggimento Weber che
doveva, in quell'anno 1878, reprimere i moti dei fieri montanari della Bosnia, i
quali difendevano il loro diritto all'indipendenza contro I'Austria. Guglielmo,
anima sensibilissima assetata di liberta e di giustizia, diserto I'esercito austriaco
e riparo ad Ancona, e da Ancona a Roma.
508 PARTE SECONDA
Tento la poveretta. Ma il figlio respinse sdegnosamente
la carta che gli si presentava per la firma. E alia madre
singhiozzante disse con voce dolce ma ferma: "Madre
mia, sta tranquilla, io sapro essere degno di te".
Da quel momento all'infelice donna non fu piu permesso
di vedere il frutto delle sue viscere.
Nel frattempo, un numero infinito di telegrammi invo-
canti la grazia per il giovane triestino condannato a morte
giungeva da ogni parte d'Europa aH'imperatore Francesco
Giuseppe. Telegrafarono, tra gli altri, I'insigne giurista e
criminalista italiano Francesco Carrara e il poeta Giosue
Carducci. Telegrafo da Parigi Victor Hugo dicendo:
"Maesta, c'e una grazia da fare. Tutto il mondo I'aspetta.
La clemenza e la virtii dei re. La pena di morte e abolita
per ogni uomo incivilito. La pena di morte sara cancellata
dai codici nel ventesimo secolo. Bello sarebbe praticare
fin d'ora una legge deH'avvenire".^ Telegrafarono le signore
triestine con alia testa Clementina Bazzoni moglie del
dottor Bazzoni podesta di Trieste. Esse, tra I'altro, dicevano
a Francesco Giuseppe: "Maesta, salvate una giovine vita;
risparmiate alia citta di Trieste tutto I'orrore d'una esecu-
zione capitale".
Ma I'imperatore degli Asburgo fu irremovibile e non
rispose a nessuno.
La cella nella quale stava rinchiuso Oberdan era lunga
tre metri e larga due, e aveva la porta di ferro. Una cella
attigua era occupata da un drappello di rozzi soldati au-
striaci, i quali non facevano altro che sghignazzare e insultare
il condannato. Oberdan rispondeva loro cantando inni
patriottici italiani.
II 19 dicembre 1882, vigilia del supplizio, fu una giornata
d'angoscia indicibile per i patrioti triestini. Le signore si
accalcavano continuamente all'ufficio luogotenenziale, spe-
rando di vedere giungere da un momento all'altro il tanto
bramato telegramma di risposta concedente la grazia. Ma
non giunse nulla. Giunse invece, alle ore otto di sera, col
' In Italia la pena di morte fu abolita in seguito all'opera Dei delitti e delle pene
dell'illustre penalista italiano Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794): opera che Voltaire
chiamo "il vero codice deH'umanita" e che Caterina II imperatrice di Russia fece
inserire per intero nel sue codice.
GUGLIELMO OBERDAN (1882) 509
direttissimo proveniente da Vienna, il signer Wullenbacher
boia dell'impero austro-ungarico. Egli era tutto vestito
di nero, con cilindro e guanti anche neri. Aveva seco
due aiutanti. Pochi seppero del suo arrive. Dalla stazione
si reco in vettura chiusa alia caserma grande, ove ceno e
pernotto.
L'indomani mattina (20 dicembre 1882), alle ore sei,
Guglielmo Oberdan fu vestito con I'assisa del reggimento
austriaco Weber ch'egli aveva disertato; fu visitato dal
medico militare Mandich e poi dal cappellano. Ma il
giovane rifiuto i cosidetti conforti religiosi.
Verso le ore sette, egli fu fatto uscire dalla cella. Soffiava
la borea. Faceva freddo. Nel cortile umido regnavano
ancora le tenebre lugubramente rischiarate dalla rossa
luce fumosa delle lanterne dei carcerieri. Nell'oscurita
brillavano le punte delle baionette dei soldati austriaci di
cui era pieno tutto il cortile, e si profilava sinistramente il
braccio della forca.
Oberdan fisso lo sguardo impavido sul maledetto ordigno
della tirannide, e gli mosse incontro con passo sicuro. A
pie di esso si tolse rapidamente la tunica militare, la butto
a terra e la calpesto con estremo disprezzo. Indi sali la
scala fatale. Giunto sul palco, grido:
"Muoio contento, perche spero che la mia morte giovera
a riunire la mia cara Trieste alia madre patria."
II comandante militare lo interruppe, imponendogli di
tacere; ordino ai tamburi di coprire con il loro rullo le
parole audaci; ingiunse al carnefice di sbrigarsi.
Oberdan afFerro il laccio e se lo passo con le sue propria
mani al collo, gridando piii forte di prima:
"Viva Trieste Italiana! Viva ITtalial"
II laccio assassino tronco la voce e la vita del giovane.
La tragedia era compiuta. Un nuovo nome s'era inciso
infuturandosi nell'albo glorioso dei martiri del Risorgi-
mento Italiano.
I giornali dell'impero austro-ungarico pubblicarono la
notizia dell'esecuzione d'Oberdan con ogni piii minuto
particolare. Dissero, tra I'altro, che lo stesso boia Wullen-
bacher aveva dichiarato che dei molti da lui giustiziati,
510 PARTE SECONDA
nessuno aveva dimostrato la risolutezza e il coraggio del
giovane triestino.
La costernazione di Trieste fu immensa. Ebbero luogo
energiche proteste. I teatri rimasero deserti per tre sere di
seguito, nonostante che la polizia austriaca imponesse agli
attori di recitare egualmente, pena il bando. Furono
sequestrati i giornali italiani che avevano commentato
acerbamente I'uccisione del giovane triestino, e i redattori
processati e condannati. Enrico Jurettig, per esempio,
direttore AtW Indipendente di Trieste e gia direttore del-
Vlsonzo di Gorizia, "per avere esaltato il martirio del-
rOberdan fu condannatoa i8 mesi di carcere e mori durante
I'espiazione della pena".
Giuseppina Oberdan, sfogando con infinito pianto il
suo grandissimo dolore materno, tesse a ritesse I'elogio del
figliuolo con queste commoventi parole:
II mio Guglielmo aveva un cuore d'angelo. Era mite di co-
stumi, studioso, d'ingegno elevate, d'animo amoroso. Quanta
volte mi disse carezzandomi: Povera mamma! Tu hai fatto tanto
■per me, ma non dubitare; quando sard professore di matematica, ti
compensero di tutte le tiie angustie, vivremo sempre insieme e felici.
I suoi professori lo idolatravano. Era sempre il primo della sua
classe. A quindici anni si guadagnava qualche denaro dando
ripetizioni. Non aveva vizi. Non aveva abitudini di lusso.
Era felice se, coi pochi soldi che studiosamente accumulava, poteva
comprarsi qualche libro.
In Italia, I'annunzio dell'uccisione d'Oberdan produsse
un'impressione enorme. Da un capo all'altro della penisola
corse un possente fremito, un possente ruggito.
Carducci disse:
Guglielmo Oberdan fu impiccato questa mattina a Trieste.
£ austriacamente naturale.
Cosi I'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe s'afFretto a rispondere
al poeta francese Victor Hugo e al professore italiano ^ che lo
invocavano magnanimo. E, austriacamente, piii che naturale.
Nel sangue ingiovani (Francesco Giuseppe), nel sangue invecchia,
nel sangue speriamo che afFoghi. E sia sangue suo.
L'ltalia intanto e debole dentro, debolissima alia frontiera.
* Lo stesso Carducci, professore di belle lettere all'Universita di Bologna.
GUGLIELMO OBERDAN (1882) 511
Ora bisognano riforme sociali, per la giustizia; riforme economiche,
per la forza; armi, armi, armi, per ia sicurezza, E armi non per
difendere, ma per ofFendere. L'ltalia non si difende che ofFen-
dendo. Altrimenti sara invasa.
La gioventu italiana ci pensi. E si stanchi di far sempre acca-
demia e schermaglia di parole noiose.
Confortiamo la memoria di Guglielmo Oberdan che si e sa-
crificato per colpa nostra e per noi.
E leviamo, fra dieci anni, suU'uItima cresta delle Alpi nostra,
un monumento a Caio Mario ^ e a Giuseppe Garibaldi col motto:
Stranieriy indietro!
Altrove lo stesso Carducci:
Guglielmo Oberdan ando non per uccidere, io credo, ma per
essere ucciso. Egli ci getta la sua vita e ci dice: Eccovi il pegno:
Trieste e dell 'Italia. Rispondiamo: Guglielmo Oberdan, noi
accettiamo: alia vita e alia morte. Riprendemmo Roma al Papa;
riprenderemo Trieste aWlmperatore!
E Giovanni Bovio, filosofo e moralista:
Oberdan, chiudendo il martirologio italiano, riapriva la tradi-
zione italica. II canape che lo strangolava, intrecciato alia
nostra bandiera, indica che il nuovo diritto pubblico passera sopra
I'Austria.
E Aurelio Saffi, il piii grande dei Mazziniani:
Passa, con mutabile vicenda d'egoismi e d'errori, I'onda del
tempo e porta seco, condannati alio sprezzo e all'oblio, i nomi
degli oppressori dei popoli; ma la memoria di Guglielmo Oberdan
vivra perenne nel cuore degl'Italiani, perche il suo martirio rap-
presenta la protesta immortale della Natura contro I'arbitrio che
ne infrange le leggi.
E Matteo Renato Imbriani, I'intemerato tribuno del
popolo italiano:
II suo martirio e il nuovo simbolo del patrio riscatto. Ultimo
fra i martiri d'ltalia per ragion cronologica, fra i primi — se
intelletto di patria non falla — per alta coscienza e determinate
volere.
* Caio Mario fu uno dei piu potenti generali romani, sette volte Console, celebre
specialmente per avere vinto Giugurta re di Numidia e i Teutoni (156-86 avanti
Cristo).
512 PARTE SECONDA
Ed Ettore Soccl, apostolo del femminismo in Italia:
La vita di Guglielmo Oberdan si compendia in amore alia
madre, amore alio studio, amore alia patria. Giovani, amate,
studiate e accingetevi ad affrontare la morte per la patria.
In quasi tutte le citta, gli studenti e i lavoratori improv-
visarono alte dimostrazioni di protesta, Al giovine martire
furono votati ricordi, decretate epigrafi, delle quali rimase
celebre quella dello stesso Carducci apparsa nell'atrio del-
I'Ateneo di Bologna:
A Guglielmo Oberdan — morto santamente per ITtalia —
terrore, ammonimento, rimprovero — ai tiranni di fuori — ai
vigliacchi di dentro.
Ma il governo d'Umberto I di Savoia, invece d'unirsi
alia voce della nazione e salvare cosi, almeno in parte, la
dignita italiana, fece di tutto per sofFocare il grido d'in-
dignazione di tutto un popolo.
Esso — il governo d'Umberto I di Savoia — poco dopo
(1883) annunziava d'avere firmato sin dal 20 maggio 1882
il trattato d'alleanza con I'Austria: il trattato della Triplice
Alleanza!
XIII
II monumento a Dante nella citta di Trento (1896).
Manifestazioni d'italianita a Trieste e nell'Istria dal 1897
al 1903. Le scuole italiane elementari e medie a
Gorizia, a Gradisca, a Trieste, nell'Istria e nella Dal-
mazia. La lampada eterna degl'Italiani irredenti suUa
tomba di Dante a Ravenna (1908). Gli studenti italiani
irredenti dell'Universita di Vienna aggrediti dagli
studenti austriaci della stessa universita spalleggiati
dalla polizia. Tremende dimostrazioni italiane di
protesta contro I'Austria (1908). L'incessante cospira-
zione di Trieste italiana contro il governo austriaco sine
al 1915.
L'li ottobre 1 896 s'inaugurava a Trento un monumento a
Dante, fatto in seguito a pubblica sottoscrizione tra gl'Ita-
liani delle regioni irredente.
LE SCUOLE DEGL'IRREDENTI 513
II monumento, opera dello scultore Zocchi, era alto metri
17.70 (la sola statua del poeta misurava metri 5 d'altezza)
con una base larga metri 13. Attorno al piedistallo erano
raffigurate le tre cantiche della Divina Commedia: I'lnferno
dalla statua di Minosse; il Purgatorio dall'episodio di
Sordello; il Paradiso da Beatrice fra gli angioli. L'iscri-
zione diceva cosi: "A Dante, al Padre, il Trentino — col
plauso e I'aiuto della Nazione — MDCCCLXXXIX [anno
in cui fu lanciata I'iniziativa del monumento] —
MDCCCXCVI [anno dell'inaugurazione]".
Le feste celebrate in tale occasione dai Trentini e dagli
altri Italiani, accorsi da ogni parte delle terre irredente,
furono oltremodo solenni.
Trieste si rifiuto per ben 25 anni di mandate deputati
a Vienna. Finalmente, nel 1897, la promulgazione della
legge che estendeva il diritto di voto anche al proletariato,
nonche le sempre piii gravi condizioni nazionali, consiglia-
rono di rompere la tenace astensione e concorrere alle ele-
zioni. Risultarono eletti plebiscitariamente i candidati
liberali italiani. Nell'accettare il mandato, essi espressero
subito "la riserva contro ogni e qualunque pregiudizio che
si volesse far derivare dall'invio di deputati riguardo ai
rapporti storico-giuridici fra Trieste e I'impero austriaco";
e nel Parlamento a Vienna fecero ripetutamente afferma-
zioni chiarissime contro I'appartenenza di Trieste alia
monarchia austro-ungarica e auguri per I'annessione di
Trieste medesima al Regno d'ltalia, Affermazioni ed
auguri contro cui insorsero e inveirono i ministri austriaci
e i deputati tedeschi e slavi e perfino i rappresentanti del
socialismo austriaco.
Nello stesso anno 1897, numerosi giovani triestini e delle
altre citta irredente corsero ad arrolarsi nel corpo di volon-
tari garibaldini organizzato e guidato da Ricciotti Gari-
baldi, secondo figlio dell'Eroe, in difesa della Grecia nella
guerra contro la Turchia.
Nel 1899 Menotti Garibaldi, primo figlio dell'Eroe,
ando a Trieste. Fu accolto trionfalmente dal popolo. Le
solite persecuzioni da parte della polizia austriaca.
514 PARTE SECONDA
Quando nel 1900 giunse a Trieste la notizia dell'ucci-
sione d'Umberto I, la citta fu tutta in lutto. I deputati
triestini e quelli della Venezia Giulia mandarono a Roma
un telegramma di condoglianze. La polizia austriaca
sequestro il telegramma dei deputati, sequestro giornali,
arresto cittadini, condanno perfino alcune signorine che in
segno di lutto avevano portato nastri neri al collo o al
braccio.
Nel 1901 ando Gabriele d'Annunzio a Trieste. Fu accol-
to con gioia e con feste. Le solite persecuzioni da parte
della polizia austriaca.
Nello stesso anno 1901 cessava di vivere Giuseppe
Verdi. Manifestazioni di cordoglio a Trieste e nelle altre
citta italiane irredente. Le solite persecuzioni da parte
della polizia austriaca.
Nello stesso anno 1901 Vittorio Emanuele III si reco
a Udine con la regina Elena per visitare quell'Esposizione
regionale. GlTtaliani irredenti di Trieste, dellTstria e di
Gorizia accorsero a migliaia per salutare **il loro re".
Ernesto Spadoni, consigliere comunale di Trieste, sacrifi-
cando per amore della nazionalita i suoi sentimenti repub-
blicani, si fece presentare al re. Ci fu anche un convegno
studentesco, al quale parteciparono centinaia di giovani
delle terre irredente. Si parlo in esso di prossime spedi-
zioni e di arrolamenti. E il triestino Luciano Magrini
pubblico un appello vibratissimo in cui predominava la
frase Trieste mortef Al ritorno, quasi 200 cittadini
irredenti furono arrestati e processati.
Nello stesso anno 1901, all'annuncio della nascita di
Jolanda, prima figlia di Vittorio Emanuele III, furono lancia-
ti da Trieste 50 colombi viaggiatori, i quali volarono verso
Roma per recare attraverso lo spazio gli auguri dei Triestini
alia famiglia regnante d'ltalia.
Nel febbraio del 1902, per protesta contro il governo
austriaco che aveva messo al servizio del Lloyd austro-
ungarico i soldati austriaci in sostituzione dei fochisti
italiani in isciopero, fu proclamato lo sciopero generale, al
quale aderi tutta la cittadinanza di Trieste e lo stesso
municipio, onde assunse tosto — esso sciopero — carattere
LE SCUOLE DEGL'IRREDENTI 515
politico anti-austriaco. Coi soldati crumiri si resero ben
presto solidali, in odio all'elemento italiano unitario, anche
le turbe campagnole ciecamente clericali e quindi austria-
canti. Ci furono violente dimostrazioni e reazioni. La
truppa sparo sulla folia. Quattordici cittadini furono uccisi
e centinaia feriti.
Allora un gruppo di studenti triestini, tutti figli della
classe operaia, e un gruppo di giovani lavoratori, italiani
di fede e fervidamente unitari, decisero d'allearsi tra loro e
contrapporre ai nemici dell'italianita la diffusione del
pensiero di Mazzini, "associante in mirabile sintesi I'idea
di giustizia sociale con I'idea d'indipendenza nazionale e
di liberta politica".
La lotta ingaggiata dai due gruppi alleati fu impetuosa
e vigorosa, suscito un nuovo spirito di combattivita tra
gl'Italiani irredenti, abbraccio ogni manifestazione della
vita pubblica. Fu fondato un giornale — V Emancipazione —
"organo dei mazziniani". Fu fondato dagli stessi mazzi-
niani e dai socialisti dissidenti la Camera del Lavoro.
Furono fondati circoli popolari di cultura e societa sportive.
Da Trieste la propaganda si diffuse ben presto nellTstria,
nel Friuli, nella Dalmazia, a Fiume. A Gorizia, per esempio,
tutto il movimento operaio fu assorbito dai mazziniani e
diretto intelligentemente e onestamente da Francesco
Spazzapan.
Contro i mazziniani il governo austriaco rivolse natural-
mente le armi della persecuzione. Nel 1903 esso arresto e
processo i membri del primo comitate mazziniano direttivo
a Trieste: Riccardo De Haag, Pietro Caucich, Eugenio
Fonda, Ado Grego ed Angelo Scocchi. Luciano Magrini
riusci a fuggirsene in Italia.
Poi il governo austriaco procede ad arresti e a condanne
di mazziniani in tutte le altre citta irredente. Ne chiuse
nelle carceri **inquisizionali e criminali" di Trieste e nelle
carceri di Capodistria, Rovigno, Pola, Gorizia. Pietro
Magrini di Grado, per esempio, sconto due anni nell'erga-
stolo di Gorizia. Luigi Duchie di Trieste sconto la condanna
nella casa di pena di Capodistria; Ferruccio Kalteneisen nel
castello di Lubiana; Mario Sterle nelle prigioni di Pilsen;
516 PARTE SECONDA
Giovanni Grion a Marburg. Giuseppe Vidali di Trieste
fu trascinato com'un Cristo per tutte le galere deU'impero:
da Pola a Rovigno, a Trieste, a Lubiana, a Klagenfurt, a
Marburg.
Ma una delle question! piii scottanti, quella che sempre
diede grave pensiero aglTtaliani soggetti all'Austria e alio
stesso governo austriaco, fu la questione degli studi e della
cultura.
Gl'Italiani irredenti non poterono mai tollerare che i
loro figli fossero costretti a cibarsi, nelle scuole tedesche,
della cultura teutonica tanto contrastante col loro pensiero,
con le loro gloriose tradizioni intellettuali. S'adoperavano
quindi da anni, con non poca fatica e non pochi sacrifici
finanziari ma con grande successo, a impiantare in quasi
tutte lo loro citta — a Trieste, a Trento, a Pola e nelle
altre minori — soggette all'Austria, scuole elementari,
tecniche, ginnasiali e liceali con maestri, professori, lingua
e metodi puramente italiani, mantenendole a spese dei loro
municipi o delle loro associazioni come la Lega Nazionale
e la Dante Alighieri.'^
Con i contributi dunque dei municipi e delle associa-
zioni e con i contributi di privati cittadini, s'aprirono scuole
italiane dappertutto, specialmente nei paesi piii minacciati
dalla cultura teutonica.
La Lega Nazionale, quando scoppio la grande guerra,
era rappresentata a Trieste, nell'Istria, nel Friuli orientale
e nella Dalmazia da circa lOO comitati. Nella sola Venezia
Giulia (cioe nelle tre province di Trieste ed Istria, Gorizia,
Gradisca) essa possedeva piii di 60 scuole proprie, ne
sussidiava 140, spendeva oltre mezzo milione di corone^
all'anno nella sua opera di difesa scolastica.
^ Nel 1885 fu fondata nel Trentino la societa italiana Pro Patria che si diffuse
anche nell'Istria. Nel 1890, per un saluto alia Dante Aligliieri (la societa con
sede centrale in Roma che ha per iscopo la ditfusione della lingua italiana e del-
I'italianita in tutte le parti del mondo) votato nel congresso nazionale di Trento,
e per il mancato imbandieramento austriaco della citta, la Pro Patria fu disciolta
dal governo austriaco. Ma, sullc sue rovine, sorse la Lega Nazionale, con lo scopo
di difendere e diffondere tra la gioventu irredenta la lingua e la cultura della madre
patria. La Lega Nazionale, seguendo una politica piu intelligente e prudente
della Pro Patria, seppe reggersi e prosperare.
* La corona, moneta austriaca, corrisponde a £1,10 it.
LE SCUOLE DEGL'IRREDENTI 517
La Lega Nazionale — cosi I'italiano irredento Giovanni
Pattini nel suo volume L' Italia Irredenta — e la prima scuola che
insegna, con la sua umile propaganda e le sue piccole necessita, il
primo verbo della coscienza nazionale italiana. A scuola i ragazzi,
dalla terza o quarta classe ginnasiale, cominciano a raccogliere
denari. A 20 centesimi ciascuno per settimana, che depositano
nelle mani d'un cassiere eletto fra loro stessi, aumentati con
I'introito di piccole lotterie e di piccoli balli, s'accumulano migliaia
di corone all'anno. D'estate le fanciulle triestine stendono la
mano ai forestieri domandando I'obolo per I'associazione che educa
e fa italiani i figli del popolo: e nessuno rifiuta.
A Trieste come a Pola, a Gorizia come a Zara, a Trento come
a Pisino, si fanno continuamente feste e coUette, tutte in favore
della Lega Nazionale. E il popolo accorre e profonde gioiosamente
il denaro che non pagherebbe per una tassa al governo austriaco,
che non darebbe come quota d'un'associazione politica.
Quando muoiono parenti o amici, invece di fiori e d'inutili
parole, si fanno in loro memoria elargizioni finanziarie alia Lega
Nazionale.
La Lega Nazionale ha piu di 42,000 soci sugli 800,000 Italiani
soggetti all'Austria. La quota e di soli 50 centesimi all'anno per
ogni socio. Pure, le sue entrate, negli ultimi bilanci, hanno oltre-
passato il mezzo milione di corone all'anno, appunto per il
ricavato delle feste e per le elargizioni volontarie.
Cosi per le somme di denaro raccolte nelle citta e nei villaggi
delle terre irredente nelle ore di gioia e nelle ore di dolore, da
quelli che amano la patria con ferrea coscienza e da quelli che la
sentono come un lieve sogno, sorgono le piccole scuole italiane.
Sorgono nelle citta della costa dalmata. Sorgono nei villaggi
pietrosi dell'Istria. Piccole case quadrate bianche o gialle, isolate
in mezzo a case di nemici, sopra terre ostili. Esse hanno sentito
passare le foUe sibilanti, urlanti, esecranti; hanno subito la sassa-
iuola, I'assalto, la devastazione; ma sono rimaste sempre la ed
hanno aperto tutti i giorni le loro porte ai piccoli soldati.
La Lega Nazionale non ha mai chiuso una scuola. Dov'essa
entra, e piantato il vessillo della patria italiana. E la bandiera
d'ltalia non s'abbassa mai.
La Lega Nazionale ha attratto nelle sue scuole anime ignare
con la promessa delle cognizioni, del pane e delle vesti; e le ha
rimandate sature d'ideali e pronte a sacrificare per lei le vesti,
il pane, la vita.
La Lega Nazionale ha sorriso tra i bimbi nelle feste puerili;
518 PARTE SECONDA
ma fra i canti e le luminarie degli alberi di Natale, essa ha insegnato
loro un virile patriottismo.
La Lega Nazionale da denari e vesti anche e quelli che si
dedicano agli studi medi e superiori, non con la noncurante carita
della filantropia, ma con la severa coscienza di fare un prestito che
dovra essere pagato poi ad usura in amor di patria, in sacrifizi, in
lavoro.
Cos! la Lega Nazionale delle terre italiane soggette all'Austria
e diventata il simbolo della patria negata.
Ed il suo inno e cantato dalle scolaresche come un inno di
guerra.
L'inno della Lega Nazionale — una volta tutto modi-
ficato e corretto daH'imperiale censura austriaca — fu
alfine scritto dal pregiato poeta triestino Riccardo Pitteri,
morto poco tempo addietro in Italia, dopo che gli fu sac-
cheggiata e distrutta la casa dagli Austriaci.
Eccolo:
Viva Dante! Questa pura
Soavissima parola,
Cinque popoli consola
E afFratella in un pensier.
Oh, ne echeggino de I'Alpi
I burroni e le foreste,
Ogni riva di Trieste,
E di Trento ogni sentier.
Lo ripetan le reliquie
D'Aquileia e di Salona,
Gli archi e i templi, ovunque sona
Dolcemente il nostro Si.
Su da I'Adige al Timavo
Che in un mare afFrettan I'onda,
Per le coste si difFonda,
Per le valli, i monti, il pian.
Viva Dante! questo il motto
Delle cinque genti sia,
Cui la santa poesia
Del linguaggio riuni.
Viva Dante! Cinque foglie
Giunte insieme al fior dan vita;
Da I'union di cinque dita
Vien la forza de la man.
LE SCUOLE DEGL'IRREDENTI 519
Ma se il problema della cultura italiana nelle province
irredente era stato vittoriosamente risolto per le scuole
elementari e medie che il governo austriaco, pur rodendosi,
aveva dovuto finire col tollerare e legalizzare per non gettare
troppa polvere sul fuoco, non era stato egualmente risolto
per le universita che sono il veto focolare dove si comple-
tano la cultura e I'anima d'un popolo. I giovani italiani
irredenti, che avevano studiato in ginnasi e licei italiani
nelle loro regioni, se non volevano terminare i loro studi in
atenei tedeschi dove tutto era tedesco, perfino il linguaggio
dei bidelli, dovevano andare a conseguire una laurea a
Padova, a Pavia o magari a Roma, come appunto aveva
fatto Guglielmo Oberdan, e sobbarcarsi cosi a spese enormi.^
Pero non tutti gli studenti triestini, istriani, trentini,
friulani e dalmati potevano sopportare le spese necessarie
per recarsi e mantenersi agli studi in citta tanto lontane
dalle case loro. Essi, quindi, reclamarono I'istituzione
d'un'universita italiana a Trieste o almeno in un'altra
citta italiana delle regioni irredente. II governo austriaco
fece sempre orecchie da mercante.
Gli studenti italiani irredenti intanto, costretti dalle
modeste condizioni finanziarie di famiglia a rimanere nelle
universita austriache, mordevano il freno. Questo loro
atteggiamento urtava maledettamente i nervi degli studenti
austriaci, i quali mal tolleravano recriminazioni "in casa loro ".
La corda fini col diventare troppo tesa. E si spezzo la
prima volta nel 1906 aU'Universita di Innsbruck, dove
scoppio una rissa tra studenti tedeschi e trentini. Questi
ultimi, inferiori assai di numero agli avversari, furono
soprafFatti. II governo austriaco intervenne, prese in
esame la cosa, o, meglio, finse di prenderla; tergiverso;
meno il can per I'aia. Alfine promise di creare non gia
un'universita (sarebbe stata troppa grazia), ma una sem-
plice Facolta di Diritto con sede a Trento o a Rovereto,
mentre glTtalianJ irredenti preferivano Trieste. Promise,
ma non mantenne la promessa. Si sforzava anzi di farla
morire.
^11 governo austriaco dove piegarsi a riconoscere come legali anche i titoli
conseguiti dai giovani irredenti negli atenei d'ltalia.
520 PARTE SECONDA
Gl'Italiani irredenti non rinunziarono per questo alia
religione dei loro ideali. AU'opposto: vi s'infiammarono
sempre piu.
Nel 1908 ritalia pose sulla tomba di Dante a Ravenna
una lampada eterna.
L'anfora vollero spontaneamente offrirla le terre
italiane soggette aH'Austria, Riccardo Zampieri, nel
lanciare, un anno prima (23 settembre 1907), I'iniziativa
da Trieste, cosi scriveva nel giornale triestino V Indipen-
dente da lui diretto:
Ardera dunque sulla tomba del sommo vate d'ltalia, assunto
a simbolo possente d'italianita, una lampada eterna fregiata del
Giglio Fiorentino e del Leone di San Marco. E la fiamma ine-
stinguibile e destinata ad avere una significazione magnifica.
Essa sara nutrita d'olio puro. Ora l'anfora destinata ad acco-
glierlo, noi vorremmo che fosse ofFerta da Trieste. Ecco la nostra
idea. Alere fiammam. E il vaso dovrebbe essere cesellato con
I'alabarda di san Sergio e con gli stemmi delle province con-
dannate a lottare per difendere e serbare intatte le loro vestigia
d'italianita.
La nobile e patriottica iniziativa ebbe un successo
strepitoso, perche non solo Trieste, ma tutte le province
italiane soggette all'Austria vi concorsero con oflFerte
popolari spontanee.
Lo stesso Indipendente di Trieste voile ofFrire il fuoco
con il quale doveva essere accesa per la prima volta la
simbolica fiamma. Esso fece percio incastonare una scatola
di fiammiferi della Lega Nazionale in un astuccio d'oro
finemente cesellato con la dedica: "A suscitar la fiamma.
Vlndependente di Trieste".
E le due reliquie — la lampada e la scatola — furono
portate a Ravenna dai migliori cittadini italiani delle
regioni irredente in sacro e solenne pellegrinaggio.
Firenze — la citta nativa dell'altissimo Poeta — offri
I'olio e s'obbligo di fornirlo cotidianamente in perpetuo,
"affinche la fiamma non muoia", in espiazione dell'esilio a
cui essa ingiustamente condanno il piii glorioso dei suoi
figli.
LE SCUOLE DEGL'IRREDENTI 521
Nello stesso anno 1908, mentre I'Austria, dopo I'annes-
sione della Bosnia, stava per invadere la Serbia, i mazzi-
niani di Pola difFusero manifesti tra I'esercito austriaco,
incitanti gl'Italiani a non combattere contro I'indipendenza
del popolo serbo. La polizia austriaca arresto e condanno
parecchi cittadini.
Nell'autunno di quello stesso anno 1908, alia riapertura
delle scuole in Austria, gli studenti delle regioni italiane
irredenta presso I'Universita di Vienna cominciarono ad
agitarsi con tutti i mezzi legali ed anche per mezzo dei loro
deputati al Reichsrat, per indurre una buona volta il
governo austriaco a mantenere la promessa fatta circa
I'istituzione d'un'universita italiana o almeno d'una
Facolta universitaria a Trieste o sia pure a Trento o a
Rovereto.
Ma in una delle loro adunanze nei locali della stessa
Universita di Vienna, gli studenti italiani (in numero appena
di duecento) furono improvvisamente aggrediti da duemila
studenti tedeschi armati di rivoltelle.
La mischia che s'accesse tra i due gruppi fu violenta e
cruenta. Gli studenti italiani si difesero con coraggio e
gagliardia mirabili. Ma furono soprafFatti dal numero degli
studenti tedeschi ed anche dalla partigiana condotta della
polizia Viennese. E ne rimasero gravemente feriti non pochi.
II fatto ebbe una profonda eco d'indignazione e di dolore
in tutte le province italiane soggette all'Austria. S'improv-
visarono dappertutto alte e minacciose dimostrazioni di
protesta, alle quali parteciparono anche le donne.
LTtalia freme e ruggi com'una leonessa a cui fossero
stati maltrattati i leoncini. Dall'Alpi alia Sicilia il popolo,
capitanato dagli studenti, percorse le vie delle citta, impre-
cando, minacciando, bruciando sulle pubbliche piazze la
bandiera austriaca. A Roma i dimostranti presero a
sassate I'Ambasciata di Francesco Giuseppe, rompendole
i vetri delle finestre. Gli studenti dell'intera nazione
s'inscrissero in massa al Tiro a Segno Nazionale. Furono
dovunque raccolte somme di denaro e spedite alia Lega
Nazionale e alia Dante Alighieri delle regioni irredente.
II comitato Pro Italia Irredenta^ in data 24 novembre 1908,
522 PARTE SECONDA
pubblico un vibratissimo proclama incitante la nazione alia
guerra contro I'Austria. Eccolo:
Fratelli italiani!
Su, su, scuotetevi dal vergognoso torpore; ritrovate Tantica
vigoria e I'indomita fede. A Vienna assassinano i fratelli nostri.
Un'orda di barbari, briaca d'odio e di sangue, ha aggredito nel
tempio che dovrebbe esser sacro alia scienza, gli studenti nostri che
domandano I'universita italiana, unico baluardo per difendere il
loro patrimonio intellettuale e tenere alto, come simbolo, il lore
ideale.
La nuova ofFesa non pud essere lasciata impunita. Non
possono morire gl'istinti generosi della razza italiana. Gia da
troppo tempo si china la fronte ad ogni insulto straniero. II
patto d'odio tra genti italiche e genti austriache e risuggellato con
I'aggressione codarda di Vienna, e dobbiamo sorgere contro lo
straniero che offende, calpesta, assassina.
Alia politica servile e codarda del govemo d'ltalia, dobbiamo
contrapporre la politica del popolo, senza rinunce e senza vilta.
Fratelli d'ltalia, e vile chi sopporta le ofFese del carnefice dei
propri fratelli; ma e vile anche chi dei fratelli non ode il singhiozzo
e dorme.
Le parole lihertd e vendetta non debbono essere strozzate dalle
male arti dei governanti. Alia guerra, dunque! II grido incita-
tore si soileva dalla fossa invendicata di Guglielmo Oberdan, si
solleva dal tumulo di tutti i martiri della ferocia austriaca.
Su, fratelli d'ltalia, alia guerra! Destatevi, levatevi con-
cordi nella santa ira e nel santo grido. Su! L'epopea garibaldina
ha bisogno di nuove fulgide pagine; I'idea, di nuovi martiri; la
patria, di una riparazione.
II govemo italiano si Hmito a fare le sue diplomatiche
rimostranze al govemo austriaco. Questo, a sua volta, finse
di commoversi e promise ancora una volta I'istituzione della
invocata Facolta giuridica italiana in una delle citta irre-
dente. Ma si tratto, come al solito, d'una semplice promessa
austriaca non mai mantenuta.
Esso, invece — il govemo austriaco — seppe bene mante-
nersi coerente a se stesso, riprendendo le canagliesche perse-
cuzioni contro i principali agitatori irredentisti. Subito
dopo (1909), per esempio, insceno un processo clamoroso a
carico dei 24 dirigenti il movimento mazziniano nella
LE SCUOLE DEGL'IRREDENTI 523
regione Giulia. II giornale U Emancipazione di Trieste dove
sospendere le sue pubblicazioni, perche i redattori, i coUa-
boratori, i corrispondenti furono tutti rinchiusi in carcere.
Ma le persecuzioni, i processi, le condanne non riusci-
rono a spegnere il naturale sentimento d'italianita delle
regioni irredente.
Furono a Trieste, la citta sintetizzante le dette regioni — cosi
il sunnominato Attilio Tamaro in un suo scritto pubblicato nel
marzo-aprile del 191 5 — due societa borghesi distinte: una ufficiale,
I'altra italiana, che non s'incontrarono mai, neppure su un terreno
neutrale. Nulla valse a smovere i Triestini dal loro atteggiamento
d'odio. Inutili furono le ofFerte di benefici materiali, di leggi e
di concessioni favorevoli fatte loro dai governanti austriaci.
Somma fu I'indifferenza per tutto cio che era austriaco. Direttori
di giornali, autorita comunali, maestri di scuola dimostrarono sem-
pre di non conoscere neanche i nomi dei primi ministri deU'impero
austriaco, Mai fu nominato in un atto comunale o in un giornale
cittadino I'imperatore d'Austria col pronome nostro.
I Triestini non vollero mai un governo austriaco liberale o
amico; ma vollero sempre, soltanto e fortemente, che il governo
austriaco se ne andasse da casa loro. Quali nomi e quali fatti
bisogna ricordare dei tempi piij recenti? Felice Venezian, che nel
Consiglio comunale predisse il giorno in cui anche i Triestini avreb-
bero dato di piglio alle loro italiche campane?^ Ernesto Spadoni,
il quale nello stesso Consiglio comunale di Trieste espresse I'au-
gurio che un taggio della Stella che hrilla sul Tevere irradi I'orizzonte
delle nostre province irredente"^ II grido di Viva I' Italia! risuo-
nato mille e mille volte a Trieste contro il governo austriaco? O
I'inno di Garibaldi cantato centinaia di volte sotto la Luogotenenza
austriaca fra guardie imperversanti con ogni violenza? O la
festa del centenario verdiano nel 1913, quando, avendo la polizia
austriaca proibito che un coro cantasse nella piazza grande di Trie-
ste il divino Fa pensiero su I'ali dorate del Nabucco, si trovarono
sulla piazza stessa, nell'ora indicata per il concerto, piu di 30,000
persone che lo cantarono, sostituendo all'esigua voce del coro
* L'imperatore Carlo VIII, disceso in Italia verso la fine del Quattrocento*
pretendeva la signoria di Firenze. Piero Capponi, gonfaloniere deila citta, fu
incaricato con altri tre deputati di trattare col pretendente. Ma cestui voleva
imporre inique condizioni. II Capponi, allora, straccio la carta contenente siffatte
condizioni, e grido fieramente alio straniero: "Voi suonerete le vostre trombe,
noi suoneremo le nostre campane!"
In seguito a tale atto. Carlo VIII crede prudente cambiare attitudine e pro-
porre moderate condizioni a Firenze.
524 PARTE SECONDA
quella immensa e possente deH'anima cittadina? Dobbiamo
ricordare i giovani triestini che inalzarono la bandiera italiana
sul municipio, o dipinsero coi tre colori italiani perfino i muri degli
uffici di polizia? O dobbiamo ricordare il vecchio patriota trie-
stino Lorenzetti, il quale, prima di morire pochi mesi addietro,
disse ai suoi parenti che quel giorno andassero a picchiare suUa sua
tomba per avvertirlo che I'ltalia era finalmente arrivata a Trieste^
Dobbiamo ricordare il triestino Gino Mauro, spentosi anch'egli
poco tempo addietro, il quale sul letto di morte, piangendo, sup-
plicava il medico di tenerlo in vita soltanto fino al giorno della
liberta di Trieste?
Fu talmente generate e profondo I'odio contro I'Austria, che
i Triestini vissero sempre appartati dagli Austriaci, ed era reputato
universalmente disonore per un Italiano irredento avere invitato
a casa sua un ufficiale austriaco, o per una donna italiana irredenta
fare all'amore con uno di tali ufficiali.
Non e mai riuscita al governo austriaco una festa imperiale
a Trieste. II popolo fu assente perfino da quelle che potevano
sembrare feste di lavoratori, cioe dai vari delle navi da guerra.
Non s'e istituita una banda municipale nella citta, solo per non
costringerla a suonare nelle occasioni ufficiali austriache. Non
v' e piazza o via triestina che sieno macchiate con un nome au-
striaco. Molto accorgimento e coraggio ci vollero per evitare che
il Corso fosse chiamato col nome dell'imperatore Francesco Giu-
seppe, mentre fu arditamente intitolata a Carducci la via che passa
dinanzi alia caserma dove fu ucciso Oberdan.
Nelle sventure nazionali i Triestini furono pari a tutti gli altri
Italiani nel raccogliere soccorsi. II partito nazionale riusci perfino
a commemorare, quasi ogni anno, con pubbliche manifestazioni,
la morte d'Oberdan. E come sia riuscito a far cio, non si pud
ancora dire.
Sia che lottasse, sia che si divertisse, quando chiedeva diritti
o quando organizzava feste sportive, quando pregava e quando
minacciava, negli ambienti piii disparati, nelle sue innumerevoli
associazioni, nei suoi grandi cafFe, nelle sue biblioteche, nelle sue
scuole, Trieste, col suo atteggiamento italiano fermo ed ostinato,
costitui un'incessante e generale cospirazione contro il governo
austriaco.
Cosi essa attese la liberta. Cosi se ne resa degna.
TRIESTE PER LA GUERRA (1914) 525
XIV
Proclama incitante ITtalia alia guerra contro 1' Austria,
indirizzato dai Triestini a ciascun deputato del Parla-
mento nazionale italiano, fuorche ai socialist!, il giomo
in cui s'apri a Roma, nel febbraio del 1914, la nuova
legislatura.
Onorevole Signore,
Trieste, la citta d'ltalia ancora soggetta al dominie straniero,
nel giorno in cui si riapre il Parlamento nazionale italiano, si
rivolge alia Signoria Vostra fraternamente con un monito e un
augurio.
Con un monito, giacche si rivolge a Vostra Signoria pregandola
di voler pensare e ricordare:
— che il governo straniero, padrone di Trieste, fa ogni sforzo
per slavizzare la citta che la geografia, la storia e il diritto, ol-
treche la nazionalita e la volonta dei cittadini, consacrano citta
d'ltalia;
— che I'Austria, poiche slavizza Trieste e la Venezia Giulia,
non costituisce piii un argine contro lo slavismo, ma porta gli
Slavi entro i confini d'ltalia;
— che Trieste e ormai una citta d'ltalia governata con leggi
tedesche amministrate da Slavi, perche tutti i dicasteri dello
Stato sono in mano degli Slavi;
— che il governo austriaco, con la slavizzazione della Venezia
Giulia e di Trieste, tende, oltreche a far perdere ad esse il diritto
e alia Nazione italiana il dovere del riscatto, anche a balcanizzare
quelle terre, e sopra tutte Trieste, per concentrare su di esse e
staccare dai porti del Regno d'ltalia il commercio e la politica dei
paesi balcanici occidental!;
— che la resistenza dell'Istria e di Gorizia e ridotta agli estremi,
e che Trieste, per le condizioni dei suoi contrafforti e per la forza
dell'invasione, pur combattendo con fede, con amore, con sacrificio,
e ridotta alle ultime risorse della difesa nazionale;
— che la ricchezza che da a Trieste la sua posizione geografica,
essendo la citta una citta d'ltalia, e ricchezza nazionale sfruttata
dallo straniero;
— che Trieste, riunita per forza del diritto nazionale alia
Patria, apportera a questa il dominio sicuro di tutti i commerci
balcanici e uno dei piii possenti mezzi per la risoluzione del pro-
526 PARTE SECONDA
blema mediterraneo col possesso delle grandi linee che Trieste ha
ed avra sempre imprescindibilmente con la Grecia e col Levante.
Per questi fatti principal!, fidenti che la Signoria Vostra vorra
fraternamente meditarii, considerando quale immensa somma di
interessi nazionali contenga il problema dell'indipendenza na-
zionale di Trieste, i Triestini augurano a Vostra Signoria, per
I'onore suo e per I'onore della Nazione italiana, che Ella voglia
contribuire a disciplinare le forze nazionali verso il compimento
definitivo deU'Unita nazionale; che Ella voglia cooperare ad efFet-
tuare che all'attuale legislatura sia riservato I'altissimo onore di
poter proclamare ricostituita I'ltalia entro i confini naturali;
che Ella possa dire un giorno con orgoglio di avere contribuito con
la sua opera e col suo voto a risolvere il grande problema della
liberta e dell'italianita dell'Adriatico.
Se il tempo della remissivita e passato, si possa trovare nel
Parlamento della nuova Italia chi afFermi il diritto della Nazione
al possesso della sua Trieste, come nel 1861 s'e affermato il diritto
su Roma!
Trieste, febbraio 1914.
XV
Proclama incitante I'ltalia alia guerra contro 1' Austria,
indirizzato dai Triestini a ciascun deputato socialista
del Parlamento nazionale italiano il giorno in cui s'aprt
a Roma, nel febbraio del 1914, la nuova legislatura.
Onorevole Signore,
Trieste, la citta d'ltalia ancora soggetta alio straniero, nel
giorno in cui si riapre il Parlamento nazionale a Roma, si rivolge
fraternamente alia Signoria Vostra e, mentre sull'attuale momento
della lotta nazionale da chi e interessato a negare la verita si
diffondono menzogne, mentre di piu non e improbabile che per
naturale conseguenza degli avvenimenti la lotta nazionale della
Venezia Giulia e di Trieste entri nell'ambito del Parlamento ita-
liano, prega la Signoria Vostra di voler meditate i seguenti inoppu-
gnabili fatti:
— che la geografia, la storia, il diritto, oltreche la volonta e la
nazionalita della grandissima maggioranza dei. cittadini, dichia-
rano che Trieste e citta italiana, e citta d'ltalia;
— che il governo austriaco e gli Slavi fanno un enorme
TRIESTE PER LA GUERRA (1914) 527
sforzo per snaturare I'italianita di Trieste, intensificando I'immi-
grazione ed esigendo Tequiparazione degli immigrati stranieri
agl'italiani;
— che Trieste e ormai una citta d'ltalia governata con leggi
tedesche amministrate da Slavi, perche tutti i dicasteri dello
Stato sono in mano degli Slavi;
— che gli Slavi combattono la lotta nazionale in masse com-
patte, composte in minima parte di borghesi, in massima di pro-
letari;
— che I'invasione naturale degli Slavi (urbanesimo) e dovuta
al fatto che la citta appartiene all'Austria, perche se, reintegrata
nei suoi diritti nazionali, essa facesse parte dello Stato italiano, il
suo grande mercato di lavoro sarebbeaperto soltanto ai lavoratori
italiani;
— che I'invasione artificiale, compiuta in grandi proporzioni,
e, in genere, la slavizzazione di Trieste e della Venezia Giulia
sono volute dal governo austriaco, che vuole far perdere a queste
terre il diritto e all'Italia il dovere del riscatto nazionale e, oltre a
cio, halcanizzare Trieste per concentrare in essa politicamente e
commercialmente i Balcani occidentali;
— che la pace fra le nazioni e impossibile, perche non si possono
delimitare i confini del possesso di ciascuna nazione, perche la
lotta nazionale e un fatto di storia naturale eppero imprescindibile,
perche alle spalle degli Slavi gia immigrati premono milioni di
Sloveni e di Croati che tendono alia conquista dell'Adriatico;
— che se avesse dovuto valere in altri tempi la tesi di equipara-
zione che si vuol far valere oggi per Trieste, cioe che gli Slavi,
poiche sono immigrati, hanno il diritto di snaturare la citta
italiana, ITtalia sarebbe ancora serva dello straniero;
— che non sono possibili altre soluzioni della lotta nazionale se
non queste: o la sconfitta dellTtalianita, o I'unione politica con
lo Stato nazionale a cui per ragioni ideali, culturali e morali Trieste
gia appartiene;
— che I'irredentismo si sintetizza e si esprime in un concetto
che non puo non essere sacro ad ogni uomo: Liberta!
— che un irredentismo slavo, ricongiunta Trieste con la nazione
per il compimento definitivo dell'unita italiana, o non esisterebbe,
come non esiste un irredentismo italiano a Nizza, o sarebbe assurdo,
come sarebbe un irredentismo deglTtaliani di Marsiglia.
Per questi fatti principal!, fidenti che la Signoria Vostra vorra
prenderli in considerazione, fidenti che la Signoria Vostra doman-
dandosi che cosa avrebbe fatto se fosse stato cittadino di Milano
528 PARTE SECONDA
prima del 1859 o di Venezia prima del 1866 si rispondera che
avrebbe combattuto per I'indipendenza nazionale contro il governo
straniero, i Triestini Le augurano, per Tonore suo e per quello della
Nazione, che Ella possa dire un giorno con orgoglio di aver con la
sua opera e col suo voto cooperato alia liberta deU'ultima grande
citta d'ltalia che e ancora soggetta alio straniero.
Trieste, febbraio 1914.
XVI
Proclama incitante I'ltalia alia guerra contro 1' Austria,
lanciato dagl'Italiani delle province irredente di Gradisca,
Gorizia, Trieste e Istria (Venezia Giulia) e del Trentino
durante il mese d'aprile del 1914 " per I'unita della
Patria".!
Le Porte d'ltalia (la Venezia Giulia e il Trentino) sono le terre
nostre che I'Austria ha saputo tenere sotto il suo dominio con
I'intento di avere sempre i suoi piedi in Italia per gli efFetti della
sua politica adriatica e per dare allTtalia una sensazione di
perpetua inferiorita militare con la sua prepotente incombenza sui
confini.
Le Porte d'ltalia sono le terre nostre, la Venezia Giulia sopra
tutte, poiche essa ha i due grandi valichi del Predil e delle Porte di
ferro al Nevoso e quello Massimo di Monte Re per i quali sono
sempre entrati i barbari in Italia, dal primo secolo avanti Cristo
in poi; per i quali I'Austria puo oggi facilmente riversare un esercito
in Italia.
Sono terre d'ltalia le nostre, poiche tali si sono dichiarate
sempre e tali sono state sempre anche ufficialmente riconosciute.
E sono terre d'ltalia da quando esiste I'ltalia: fisicamente, perche
le Alpi Giulie costituiscono con indiscutibile evidenza i confini
naturali del Paese; politic amente, perche sono regioni italiche dal
tem!po in cui Roma costitui I'ltalia; moralmente, perche sono state
in ogni tempo tributarie dei loro inge<:;ni, della loro volonta, della
loro fede, non meno delle altre province d'ltalia, alia grandezza
della Nazione.
Orbene, queste terre d'ltalia, che dal loro seno fecondato dal
sangue degli innumerevoli figli che da Aquileia ad Albona difeisero
1 Questo proclama doveva far parte d'un Numero Unico che non fu poi stam-
pato. Esso — il proclama — fu invece diffuse segretamente a Trieste e pubblicato
nella Voce della P atria del 4 aprile 1914.
GL'IRREDENTI PER LA GUERRA (1914) 529
i confini d'ltalia contro i barbari, e che producono uomini nei quali
la difesa nazionale costituisce la piu possente ragione di vita,
queste terre d'ltalia, dicevamo, sono le sole che non obbediscano
a leggi italiane, che non siano rette da un governo italiano, che non
abbiano in cima della lore vita italiana il Re d'ltalia. Mentre
tutte le altre province italiane sono state liberate dai domini
stranieri o da quelli anti-unitari, la Venezia Giulia e il Trentino
sono le sole terre che si trovano fuori dell'unita nazionale, che
sono ancora soggette al dominio straniero, anzi a quel governo
austriaco che tento di assassinare I'ltalia, che per tenerla in servitij
e per distruggere il suo sogno, il suo ideale, la sua volonta che
si glorificavano nella parola libertd, mando soldati fanatici e feroci,
alzo forche in tutte le citta, insanguino tutti i campi, empi tutte
le carceri, bastono, incateno, rubo, saccheggio, impicco, fucilo do-
vunque senti palpitare anime italiane in un'ardente brama di
liberta. La Venezia Giulia e il Trentino sono le ultime, le sole
terre d'ltalia che soggiacciono ancora e servono, legate con un re-
gime di violenza a siffatto governo austriaco.
£ giusto.f'
E giusto che, mentre tutti gli altri Italiani, entro i naturali
confini d'ltalia, vivono in liberta, si chiamano cittadini italiani
e si governano con leggi e governi italiani, noi Italiani della
Venezia Giulia e del Trentino, noi soli dobbiamo essere soggetti
a un dominio straniero e anti-italiano, noi soli dobbiamo essere
chiamati sudditi austriaci, noi soli dobbiamo essere governati da
leggi tedesche e da governi slavo-tedeschi? Se siamo Italiani,
perche dobbiamo ubbidire a leggi tedesche e ad impiegati slavi?
Non e chi non veda I'iniquita della nostra condizione; non e
chi non veda la miseria morale che ci sofFoca ogni giorno piu,
sotto il tirannico governo straniero, mentre gli altri Italiani, nel
regime della liberta nazionale, sono invece portati a sempre piii
nobile e piii superba ascensione dalle rinnovate energie, dal pos-
sente spirito della nazione.
Ma a noi Italiani della Venezia Giulia e del Trentino non tocca
solo la sventura d' essere i soli Italiani d'ltalia non uniti ancora al
Regno nazionale; a noi Italiani del Goriziano, Italiani di Trieste,
Italiani dell'Istria, tocca anche la sventura di vedere le nostre
belle citta invase dagli Slavi. Calano a torme, calano a branchi
per le aperte vie delle Alpi, calano per moto naturale, avvinti dal
mare e dalle citta promettenti ricchezza, calano per tradimento di
alcuni dei nostri (oh, sono ben pochi!), ma calano, in masse mag-
giori, ordinati come mandre che si portino sui grassi pascoli del
530 PARTE SECONDA
piano, per volonta del governo austriaco, del governo che essendo
straniero, per rendere discutibile con una parvenza di giustizia
I'indiscutibile iniquita che e nel dominio straniero, e per cingerci
di nemici soflFocanti i nostri gridi di liberta, tende con enormi sforzi
a snazionalizzare le nostre terre, le ultime terre d'ltalia rimaste in
suo potere.
Da ogni parte, in ogni parte distendono le loro forze gli Slavi:
son pill di 40,000 nel comune di Trieste, sono 10,000 a Gorizia,
sono 10,000 a Pola. Pirano li sente insultare la sua storia alle sue
porte. Parenzo li vede puUulare nelle sue campagne. Montona
e Albona sono ridotte alle estreme disperate difese dei loro muni-
cipi. Pinguente, Pisino, Rozzo, strette ciascuna con unanime
meravigliosa concordia in una sola volonta italiana, sono coman-
date e tormentate dagli Slavi delle campagne che hanno arrafFato
^ protetti da leggi inique — i loro municipi. Contro ogni citta,
contro ogni borgo risuonano I'insulto e la sfida, e dovunque da
il tono il governo austriaco. Accanto aU'avversario che con tutte
le armi piii potenti della banca e dello Stato invade le terre nostre,
snatura il loro carattere storico e naturale e violenta tutti i diritti
col diritto del piu forte alio scope di "balcanizzarle", gli avversari
interni dell'integrita nazionale — i socialist! — fedeli all'idea
dello Stato austriaco e imprescindibilmente bisognosi delFaiuto
degli Slavi per le lotte elettorali, deridono e ingiuriano quelli che
indicano I'invasione slava, quelli che proclamano la necessita
della difesa, quelli che invocano la liberta, I'indipendenza.
Nella lotta contro i due avversari, la forza intima della nostra
gente si rinsalda, la compagine diventa granitica, I'animo si fa
ardente, le energie vibrano con impeto, mentre il segreto della
razza italiana, il segreto che ha salvato tutto il resto d'ltalia dai
barbari, salva I'italianita nostra ancora per alcun tempo dalla de-
finitiva contaminazione, dalla distruzione della sua forza politica,
dalla sorte avuta dalla Dalmazia. Combatteremo ancora in-
cessantemente, per tutte le rappresentanze, per tutte le istituzioni;
qua vinceremo, la perderemo; ma la difesa nazionale sara sempre
strenua e instancabile.
Pero non basta!
Al di la della difesa nazionale contro gli Slavi e al disopra di
questa, devono stare la lotta per la liberta, la lotta per I'indipen-
denza nazionale a cui abbiamo quello stesso diritto che ha avuto
tutto il resto d'ltalia, la lotta per il compimento definitivo del-
rUnitd italiana.
Per questo ideale, che deve tramutarsi nella piii concreta
GL'IRREDENTI PER LA GUERRA (1914) 531
realta, dobbiamo agire tutti con maggiori vedute, con maggiore
impeto che per la difesa nazionale. E sopratutto con fede. Ma
non con una fede generica rivolta con santa pazienza ad un incerto
e fumoso avvenire, si bene con una chiara e precisa fede materiata
di fatti e agente come molla che potentemente sospinga ai
fatti.
Dobbiamo agire tutti, giovani e uomini maturi, ciascuno col
suo compito. I giovani debbono fare della loro giovinezza una
milizia e devono agire e agitare per far bene intendere a tutta
ritalia, al governo nazionale e al governo austriaco che vogliamo
la liberta, che vogliamo la liberazione, che I'ltalia non e ancora
compiuta. E gli uomini maturi, specie quelli a cui i cittadini o le
istituzioni hanno dato un carattere rappresentativo, debbono con
la loro autorita fare intendere e far valere i diritti unitari delle
citta e dei cittadini che rappresentano.
Tutti dobbiamo agire, tenacemente, fortemente.
E si moltiplichino a mille con giusto patriottismo i cooperatori
nostri nel Regno, con risoluta volonta di mettere fine alle nostre
miserie, con immutabile fede nell'attuazione dei diritti nazionali.
Bisogna scuotere il governo, i deputati, il popolo; bisogna vincere
le indifferenze e i vacui sentimentalismi, le diffidenze e le ironie, le
renitenze e le vigliaccherie, le ipocrisie della diplomazia e dei
politicanti e le imbecillaggini dei demagoghi. Fa d'uopo, sia pure
con un'agitazione violenta, imporre alia coscienza italiana il
problema dell'unita italiana; fa d'uopo imporre con qualunque
mezzo, con qualunque sacrificio, il problema nostro all'attenzione
dell'Europa, e imporlo con tutto il suo contenuto di giustizia.
E possiamo far cio oggi con fede piii sicura, con piij serena
coscienza della nostra responsabilita, poiche oggi il problema della
nostra liberta si sintetizza nel nome di Trieste con una grande
importanza, non solo rispetto al diritto che abbiamo all'indipen-
denza, ma anche per la politica internazionale del Regno. Trieste
e oggi per ITtalia la chiave dell'Oriente. A Trieste la storia ha
trasmesso per tutta I'ltalia la dominazione commerciale dei mari
orientali che e stata di Venezia in altre epoche. II possesso di
Trieste vuol dire garanzia di pace con I'attuale Stato di confine,
garanzia di difesa poderosa e sicura contro gli Stati slavi di domani,
vuol dire assoluta garanzia di liberta alle spalle per ogni eventuale
conflitto con altri nemici.
Quindi, oggi, combattere per la liberta nostra, vuol dire in-
segnare all'Italia quale somma d'interessi nazionali si risolva nell'A-
driatico orientale, vuol dire aiutare I'ltalia ad aprirsi le vie del-
532 PARTE SECOND A
rOriente, vuol dire spingere I'ltalia a prendere una piu salda e piu
sicura posizione di fronte o accanto alle altre Potenze.
Non si combatte dunque soltanto per un ideale di liberta
regionale, ma per la grandezza d'ltalia, per una piu vasta ricchezza,
per un piii superbo avvenire della Nazione.
L'agitazione unitaria intensa, violenta, tenace provochera il
governo austriaco a repressioni e ad un piu largo favoreggiamento
degli Slavi? Anzitutto e da domandarsi se le nostre condizioni
possano essere peggiori di quanto sono. Ma poi dobbiamo
ricordare I'indiscutibile verita che tutte le repressioni e tutti i
favoreggiamenti non faranno che imporre sempre piii efficacemente
il problema nostro alia Nazione e all'Europa.
AU'opera, dunque, tutti, ciascuno col suo compito!
I tempi incalzano. II turbine irredentistico e le gravissime
lotte interne scuotono, squassano le fondamenta dell'impero
austriaco. II problema deU'Austria e posto in discussione dinanzi
a un'Europa che ha esaltato in questi ultimi tempi il principio
di nazionalita.
£ tempo che noi aglamo con tutte le nostre forze, per immettere
il nostro diritto nell'ingranaggio diplomatic© che prepara il domani,
per far si che I'ltalia non sia assente coi suoi diritti, coi suoi
interessi dalla discussione internazionale del problema austriaco.
AU'opera tutti, e nel cuore una sola volonta. Fiva I'ltalia!
XVII
La bandiera italiana issata a Trieste sul campanile
di San Giusto e suU'antenna del porto di Muggia nel
mese di dicembre del 1914. Migliaia di Italiani irre-
denti corrono ad offrtre il loro sangue alia madre patria
nella grande guerra contro 1' Austria (1914-1915).
Lo scoppio della grande guerra (fine di luglio 1914),
provocate dalV ultimatum deU'Austria alia Serbia, riaccese
le speranze anche dei piii sfiduciati Italiani irredenti nella
liberazione delle terre sintetizzate dal binomio Trento e
Trieste.
Nel settembre e nell'ottobre del 1914 — cosi il triestino Angelo
Scocchi — Trieste, specialmente, fremeva d'azione. Un moto
rivoluzionario contro I'Austria pareva imminente. Prima d'in-
D'ANNUNZIO E TRIESTE (1915) 533
coraggiarlo, i patrioti vollero sapere quale eco esso avrebbe avuto
in Italia. I Triestini furono scongiurati a non moversi, a non
afFrettare un avvenimento che doveva compiersi ineluttabilmente,
a non compromettere le sorti dell'Italia, a non trascinare la nazione
in un intervento immature.
Nonostante cid, all'alba del i° dicembre 1914 una grande ban-
diera italiana sventolava a Trieste sul campanile di San Giusto
e un'altra suU'antenna del porto di Muggia.
II 2 dicembre 1914 Trieste era piena di manifestini incitanti
il popolo a rifiutare I'obolo alia Croce Rossa austriaca. Furono
arrestati parecchi cittadini, tra i quali il mazziniano Marcello
Vidali che fu prima internato nel castello di Lubiana e poi nel
carcere di Marburg. Molti furono imbrancati nell'esercito
austriaco. I piii finirono prigionieri volontari dei Russi e dei
Serbi. Altri lasciarono la giovine esistenza in Galizia e in Bosnia
con un'ultima invocazione allTtalia lontana.
Ma parecchie migliaia, sfidando il rigore del governo au-
striaco e ogni altra sorta di pericoli, riuscirono, tra la fine
del 1914 e i primi mesi del 1915, a varcare i confini e spar-
gers! nellTtalia Settentrionale e a Roma, dove ofFrirono
entusiasticamente il loro sangue per la liberazione delle
terre ancora soggette alia schiavitii austriaca e per I'unione
di esse alia madre patria.
XVIII
Gabriele d'Annunzio riafferma ed esalta Titalianita di
Trieste nei giardini del Palagio di Andrea Doria in Gene-
va (6 maggio 1915), ricevendo in dono il gesso del Leone
Tergestino che e murato in una casa dei Giustiniani.
Brevi parole diro, tanta e qui I'eloquenza delle memorie, delle
cose, dei segni, tanto e grave di destino questo dono che io ricevo
con cuore tremante, come se in me, per grazia d'una fedelta
senza fallo, a piii degnamente riceverlo, entrasse I'ansia di quella
(Trieste) che laggiu soffre la fame del corpo, sofFre la fame del-
I'anima, violata, straziata, calcata con ferocia ogni giorno piu
maledetta.
La sentiamo qui in presenza vera. £ davanti a noi, come
quell'urna scolpita, come quelle statue. £ diritta davanti a noi,
534 PARTE SECONDA
con tutte le sue piaghe aperte, con tutte le sue Hvidure, con le
tracce di tutte le ingiurie, come il Paziente alia Colonna.
Ah, veramente, noi cominciamo a vergognarci di tanto par-
lare. E intendiamo il rude bisticcio di quell'uno dei Mille, gran-
dissimo animo in piccolo corpo, il quale ier sera grido nel convito,
con la sua voce di assalto: Meglio che la parola, io vorrei riprendere
il fucile, compagni.
Motto garibaldino, ben detto e bene udito in Geneva.
Non questo gesso che io custodiro piamente, ma il Leone di
pietra istriana, tratto dal glorioso muro in un altro giorno di
sagra marina, Genova rimandera per mare a Trieste: restituzione
magnifica.
Passi la nave in vista della Caprera S che forse s'empira di
ruggito ripercosso dalle rocce. E navighi all'Adriatico. E il
morto figlio di Lamba sepolto nelle acque trionfate, e Luciano
d'Oria davanti a Pola, e Gasparo Spinola davanti a Trieste, e gli
altri terribili vostri riappariranno in epifania d'amore commisti
ai vendicati di Lissa, luminosissimamente.
E il Leone di San Marco, recato nell'Adriatico da nave di
Genova, significhera per gli Italiani: Questo mare profondo, ove la
cresta di ogni flutto e fiore di nostra gloria, si chiavia, di nuovo e
per sempre, nei linguaggi di tutte le nazioni il Golfo di Venezia.
XIX
Parole dette da Gabriele d'Annunzio in Genova il 7
maggio 1915 agli Esuli Dalmati, ricevendo in done il
Libre che afferma, dimostra e propugna Titalianita della
Dalmazia, stampato in Genova.
Questo libro d'amore, di fede e di rampogna un Italiano
dovrebbe oggi riceverlo in ginocchio umiliato, in atto di chiedere
il perdono e di fare I'ammenda. A me rimanere in piedi davanti
a voi, reverente ma non vergognoso, e consentito dalla coscienza
di non aver mai dimenticata quella che Antonio Baiamonti, il
podestd mirabile di Spalato, ch'izmb figlia minore d' Italia, quella che
seconda Italia chiamo il dantesco Tommaseo. Ma I'lddio degli
eserciti mi conceda di potermi inginocchiare, in uno dei giorni
• Caprera, I'isoletta presso le coste della Sardegna, divenuta celebrc perche fu
il soggiorno prediletto di Garibaldi e perche I'Eroe vi mori e vi fu sepolto.
D'ANNUNZIO E LA DALMAZIA (1915) 535
prossimi, dinanzi a quell'uno del vostri altari sotto la cui tavola i
padri lacrimando riposero il ripiegato gonfalone repubblicano di
San Marco.
Se in Genova io nomino Sebenico, Zara, Trau, sobbalzano nel
sepolcro di San Matteo le ossa di Luciano d'Oria, che seppero il
sale dell'Adriatico. La sua vittoria e la sua morte si commemorano
alia stessa data che ci aduno sul lido di Quarto^: il cinque maggio.
Veggo le citta dalmate insanguinate e affocate, prima che il ferro
di Donate Zeno finisca sul ponte Tammiraglio ancora urlante dalla
bocca squarciata: San Zorzof San Zorzo!
Ma un'altra visione mi viene da un'altra vittoria inscritta
fra le liste bianche e nere del tempio navale. £ come un'allegoria
della nostra lunga cecita. Nelle acque di Curzola, Lamba Doria,
avendo disposte le sue galee sopra vento, con polvere di calce
viva brucio gli occhi dei Veneziani condotti dal Dandolo; e sgomino
quei disperati ciechi.
Mi sembra che da una simile cecita ostile siamo noi rimasti
afflitti, dopo la sciagura di Lissa. Non abbiamo veduto, non ab-
biamo voluto vedere quel che i vincitori operavano, senza tregua,
senza misericordia, per cancellare ogni vestigio del nostro dominio
su la costa orientale, per distruggere ogni traccia d'itallanita su la
bella spiaggia latina non consacrata soltanto dal sangue ma dallo
spirito, non conquistata soltanto dalle armi ma dalle arti, non sol-
tanto nostra per antica signoria ma per sempre novo pensiero, non
soltanto ricca di reliquie mute ma di cultura eloquente. Noi ab-
biamo lasciato compiere su voi, per anni e per anni, le piu inique
persecuzioni, o fratelli nostri magnanimi che opponeste alia
minaccia il coraggio, all'ingiustizia la pazienza, la maschia gen-
tilezza alia stupida atrocita. Noi non abbiamo osato aiutare ne
confortare la triste e taciturna lotta proseguita da voi, o fedeli di
Roma, per custodire la benedetta lingua d'ltalia, per difendere i
documenti dell'alta origine, per serbarvi contro tutti e contro tutto
italiani. Come i marinai del Dandolo, noi abbiamo distolto dalla
battaglia i nostri occhi dolorosil
Chiediamo perdono, facciamo ammenda. I nostri occhi
alfine si riaprono, sanati dal vento salutifero che soffia su tanta
strage, su tanta virtij, su tanto orrore, su tanto amore. Di rimorso
e'di pieta dovremmo piangere, o fratelli; ma non piangiamo, si
bene guardiamo fermamente il destine.
*A Quarto, il 5 maggio 1915, fu inaugurato un monumento ai MilU. D'An-
nunzio vi pronunzio il discorso commemorativo.
536 PARTE SECONDA
Questo libro, che voi ponete nelle mie mani, e un atto di
possesso. £ breve, e pure ha grande peso. Ci significa, chiaro e
conciso, nello stile di Roma, che la Dalmazia appartiene all'Italia
per diritto divino ed umano; per la grazia di Dio il qual foggia le
figure terrestri in tal modo che ciascuna stirpe vi riconosca scolpita-
mente la sorte sua; per la volonta deH'uomo che moltiplica la
bellezza delle rive inalzandovi i monumenti delle sue glorie e
intagliandovi i segni delle sue piii ardue speranze.
£ questo un vangelo dalmatico su cui possiamo giurare.
Sotto la forza latina di Roma, dei Papi, di Venezia, come
sotto la forza barbara dei Goti, dei Longobardi, dei Franchi, degli
Ottoni germanici, dei Bisantini, degli Ungari, degli Austriaci, la
vita civile della costa di la, come quella della costa di qua, fu
costantemente di origine e di essenza italiane. Fu, e, sara. Non
il Tedesco dell'Alpe, non lo Sloveno del Carso, ne il Magiaro della
Puszta, ne il Croato che ignora o falsa la storia, ne pure il Turco
che si camuffa da Albanese, niuno potra mai arrestare il ritmo
fatale del compimento, il ritmo romano. lo ve lo dico, fratelli,
ma voi lo sepate. Su questo vangelo dalmatico possiamo far
giuro.
L'antichissima via consolare, che si partiva da Salona per a
traverso la Bosnia, non e tuttavia battuta? Ella e, voi lo sapete,
il solo cammino che allacci i borghi solinghi e i villaggi dispersi.
Ella e cosi bene condotta, cosi bene costrutta, cosi bene assodata
che gli uomini dovranno seguirla fino al termine degli evi.
Piu lung!, su I'altro versante del monte Koaratch, le rovine
robuste d'una citta operaia romana si levano in mezzo ai prati e
alle selve, in vista alle cime cerulee della Serbia guerriera.
Or sembra che quivi il genio del luogo, genius loci, non sia
nella lapide inscritto ma grandeggi tuttavia e del suo soffio
riempia la curia, il tribunale, I'ipocausto, gli altari, i focolari.
II castro, dissepolto su la riva destra del torrente Saso, ha tuttavia
la sua muraglia ben connessa, contro cui non valsero quindici
secoli edaci.
Che mai puo dunque valere lo sforzo dei barbari contro la
legge di Roma? La dove tali fondamenta ponemmo, la il genio
del luogo ci aspetta; la torneremo, la ritroveremo i segni vetusti
e intaglieremo i nuovi.
Se stretta e la vostra spiaggia, o Dalmati, amplissima e la
civilta che I'illustra. Siete quasi orlo di toga, ma tutta la toga
e romana.
Rallegratevi, miei giovani compagni. II tempo di servire e
D'ANNUNZIO E LA DALMAZIA (1915) 537
compiuto, il tempo di patire e compiuto. £ giunto il tempo di
combattere e di redimere; il tempo di liberate e di rivendicare e
imminente.
A Lissa peri da prode il guardiamarina dalmata Giovanni
Ivancich, somigliante forse a taluno di voi che mi guarda con
accesa la battaglia negli occhi lionati.
Come ti chiami, tu che arrossisci, fanciullo? Me lo dira forse
la gloria domani, me lo dira la liberta nel suo grido sopra il mare
sonoro.
Su questo vangelo dalmatico, intanto, giuriamo con un'anima
sola.
Cosi sia, per i figli dei figli e nei secoli dei secoli.
PARTE TERZA
I
Perche lo studente serbo Gabrilo Princip uccise a
Serajevo — il 28 giugno 1914 — I'arciduca Francesco
Ferdinando erede del trono d'Austria-Ungheria.
II 28 giugno 1914 (era domenica) lo studente serbo
Gabrilo Princip d'anni 19 uccideva in Serajevo, con due
colpi di pistola Brownings I'arciduca Francesco Ferdinando,
erede della corona imperiale e reale d'Austria-Ungheria,
e la di lui moglie Sofia Chotek di Chotkowa e Wognin
duchessa di Hohenberg.
Da parecchio tempo — cosi disse il giovane Princip all'inter-
rogatorio — avevo concepito I'idea d'uccidere un'alta personalita
austriaca, per vendicare i Serbi della Bosnia del trattamento lore
usato dal governo di Vienna. Non ho complici. Ho voluto solo
colpire nella persona dell'arciduca Francesco Ferdinando I'im-
perialismo austriaco.^
* Cinque anni dopo I'elevazione di Pietro I Karageorgevic al trono serbo*
rAustria-Ungheria, celebrando i sessant'anni di regno deH'imperatore Francesco
Giuseppe, s'annette, dopo trent'anni d'occupazione e di sfruttamento, la Bosnia e
I'Erzegovina, proclamandole "dominio della corona dell'Imperatore e Re".
S'accentuo cosi alia fine del 1908 tra I'Austria e la Serbia, e contemporanea-
mente tra I'Austria e la Russia, la tensione che tra le dette tre Potenze esisteva fin
dal 1878, nell'irrigidirsi della quale la Germania prese un atteggiamento molto
esplicito a favore dell'Austria sua alleata. L'imperatore Guglielmo II fece com-
prendere che a difesa dell'impero austro-ungarico sarebbe stata sempre pronta
"la rilucente spada tedesca". E la Russia dove finite col riconoscere un'annes-
sione che in tutto il mondo slavo ed anche in Turchia aveva suscitato proteste e
dimosttazioni anti-austriache; e in Italia, malgrado i legami triplicistici, aveva
prodotto un senso d'amarezza.
La tensione tra I'Austria e la Serbia fu tale, dall'ottobre 1908 al marzo 1909,
che per poco non scoppio una guerra tra i due Stati. Senonche la sproporzione tra
le forze austriache e le forze serbe era pid che evidente, e a fianco della Serbia,
perche essa potesse fare contro I'Austria nei Balcani cio che aveva fatto il Piemonte
in Italia nel 1859, non vi era un idealista come Napoleone III. La Russia avrebbe
potuto aiurare, si; ma, dato I'atteggiamento risoluto della Germania, essa non
erede prudente spingersi troppo; sollevo, circa I'annessione della Bosnia e del-
I'Erzegovina, semplici questioni di procedura; poi dichiaro che i suoi precedenti
impegni non le permettevano d'impugnare il fatto compiuto creato dall'Austria.
Cosa fare? Alia Serbia non rimaneva altro che piegare il capo: e lo piego,
rilasciando all'Austria, in data 31 marzo 1909, la seguente dichiarazione:
539
540 PARTE TERZA
II
La fatale notsi-uUimatum del governo austriaco al
govemo serbo (23 luglio 1914).
II 23 luglio 1914, alle ore 6 pomeridiane, il barone Giesl
von Gieslesen, ministro austriaco a Belgrado, presentava
in nome del governo di Vienna al ministro delle finanze di
Serbia, Patciu, sostituente Pasic presidente dei ministri
ch'era assente dalla capitale per un giro elettorale, la fatale
not2i-ultimatum che concludeva cosi:
II Governo reale di Serbia fara pubblicare nella prima pagina
del suo Giornale Ufficiale del 26 luglio 1914 la seguente dichiara-
zione:
// Governo reale ^ condanna la propaganda diretta contro VAu-
stria-Ungheria, cioe Vinsieme delle tendenze che aspirano in ultima
analisi a distaccare dalla Monarchia austro-ungarica territori che
ne fanno parte ^ e deplora sinceramente le conseguenze funeste di
queste mene criminose. II Governo reale deplora che ufficiali e
funzionari serbi abbiano partecipato alia summenzionata propaganda
e compromesso con cid le relazioni di buon vicinato a cui il Governo
reale si era solennemente impegnato con la sua dichiarazione del 31
marzo igog. II Governo reale, che disapprova e ripudia ogni idea
e tentativo d'ingerenza nei destini degli abitanti di qualsiasi parte
delV Austria-Ungheria, consider a proprio dovere avvertire fornial-
mente gli ufficialiy i funzionari e tutta la popolazione del Regno che,
d'ora innanzi, procederd con estremo rigore contro le persone che
"La Serbia riconosce ch'essa non e stata colpita nei suoi diritti dal fatto com-
piuto create in Bosnia ed Erzegovina e che, per conseguenza, essa si conformera a
quelle decisioni che le Potenze prenderanno in relazione all'articolo 25 del trattato
di Berlino del 13 luglio 1878.
"Rimettendosi ai consigli delle grandi Potenze, la Serbia s'impegna fin d'ora
ad abbandonare I'attitudine di protesta e di opposizione ch'essa aveva adottato
dall'autunno scorso riguardo all'annessione della Bosnia-Erzegovina, e s'impegna
anche a modificare I'indirizzo della politica attuale verso I'Austria, per vivere ormai
con quest'ulfima su un piede di buon vicinato."
Ma questo impegno diplomatico non miito, ne poteva mutare, Tanimo dei Serbi
verso I'Austria; ne attenuo le intime inquietudini austriache verso i popoli della
Serbia propriamente detta e del Montenegro, considerati a Vienna e a Budapest
come le sentinelle avanzate di quel movimento panslavista del quale la Russia
rimaneva sempre I'alta ispiratrice e patrona.
* II "Governo reale" e il Governo di Serbia.
* La Bosnia e I'Erzegovina.
IL FATALE ULTIMATUM 541
si rendessero colpevoli di simili mene; mene che esso porrd ogni suo
sforzo nel prevenire e nel reprimere.
Questa dichiarazione sara portata contemporaneamente a
conoscenza deU'esercito reale con un ordine del giorno di Sua
Maesta il Re, e sara pubblicata nel Bollettino Ufficiale deU'esercito.
II Governo reale s'impegna inoltre a:
1°. sopprimere ogni pubblicazione che ecciti all'odio e al
disprezzo contro la Monarchia austro-ungarica e la cui tendenza
generale sia diretta contro la sua integrita territorial;
2°. sciogliere immediatamente la societa detta Narodna
Obrana e confiscarne tutti i mezzi di propaganda; procedere nello
stesso modo contro le altre societa e sette in Serbia che si dedicano
ad una propaganda contro la Monarchia austro-ungarica. II
Governo reale prendera le misure necessarie perche le societa
disciolte non possano continuare la loro attivita sotto altro nome
e sotto altra forma;
3°. eliminare senza indugio dall'istruzione pubblica in Serbia,
tanto per quanto riguarda il corpo insegnante come per quel che
riguarda i mezzi d'istruzione, tutto cio che serve o potrebbe servire
a fomentare la propaganda contro I'Austria-Ungheria;
4°. allontanare dal servizio militare e dall'Amministrazione
in generale tutti gli ufficiali e funzionari colpevoli di propaganda
contro la Monarchia austro-ungarica e dei quali il Governo im-
periale e reale ^ si riserva di comunicare nomi e fatti al Governo
reale;
5°. accettare la coUaborazione in Serbia degli organi del
Governo imperiale e reale nella soppressione del movimento
sovversivo diretto contro I'integrita territoriale della Monarchia
austro-ungarica;
6°. aprire un'inchiesta giudiziaria contro i partecipi del
complotto del 28 giugno 1914 che si trovano sul territorio serbo.
Organi delegati dal Governo austro-ungarico prenderanno parte
alle ricerche relative;
7°. procedere d'urgenza all'arresto del comandante Voijna
Tankosic e del nominato Milan Ciganovic impiegato dello Stato
serbo, compromessi dai risultati dell'istruttoria di Serajevo;
8°. impedire con misure efficaci il concorso delle autorita
serbe neltrafficoillecito di armi edi esplosivi attraversolafrontiera;
licenziare e punire severamente i funzionari del servizio di frontiera
di Schabatz e di Loznica colpevoli d'avere aiutato gli autori del
delitto di Serajevo, facilitando loro il passaggio della frontiera;
' II "Governo imperiale e reale" c il Governo austro-ungarico.
542 PARTE TERZA
9°. dare al Governoaustro-ungaricospiegazioni sulle espressio-
ni ingiustificabili di alti funzionari serbi, tanto in Serbia quanto
all'estero, che, malgrado la loro situazione ufficiale, non hanno
esitato, dopo il delitto del 28 giugno 1914, ad esprimersi in inter-
viste in modo ostile verso la Monarchia austro-ungarica;
10°, avvertire senza ritardo il Governo imperiale e reale
della esecuzione delle misure comprese nei punti precedenti.
II Governo imperiale e reale attende risposta dal Governo
reale al piii tardi entro sabato 25 del corrente mese di luglio 1914
alle ore 6 di sera.
L'incaricato d'afFari russo in Belgrade, Strandtman,
spedi immediatamente a Pietroburgo al ministro degli affari
esteri Sazanoff il seguente telegramma:
II ministro d'Austria ha consegnato ora, 6 pomeridiane, al
ministro delle finanze Patciu, che sostituisce Pasic, una nota-
ultimatum del suo Governo, fissante un termine di 48 ore per
I'accettazione delle domande contenutevi. Giesl ha soggiunto
verbalmente che, nel caso in cui la nota non fosse accettata inte-
gralmente nel termine di 48 ore, egli aveva I'ordine di lasciare
Belgrado col personale della Legazione. Pasic e gli altri ministri,
che si trovano a fare un giro elettorale, sono stati richiamati e
sono attesi a Belgrado domani venerdi alle 10 del mattino. Patciu,
che mi ha comunicato il contenuto della nota, sollecita I'aiuto
della Russia e dichiara che nessun governo serbo potra accettare
le domande dell'Austria.
La mattina del 24 luglio 1914 gli ambasciatori au-
striaci in Germania, Inghilterra, Russia, Francia, Italia
e Turchia, comunicavano rispettivamente ai governi di
queste Potenze il testo della nota.-ultimatum indirizzata
dal governo imperiale e reale di Francesco Giuseppe al
governo di Serbia il giorno precedente (23 luglio 1914).
GERMANIA E RUSSIA 543
III
L'attitudine partigiana della Germania. L'attitudine
conciliativa della Russia. Un supplichevole telegramma
del principe Alessandro reggente di Serbia alio zar
Nicola II. Un eloquente telegramma dell'ambasciatore
inglese Buchanan. L'ostinatezza del governo austriaco.
Unanime fu nel mondo la sensazione della gravita della
not^L-uliimatiim mandata dal governo di Vienna al governo
di Belgrado.
II pensiero della Germania fu espresso lo stesso giorno
24 luglio 1914 da vari giornali germanici, particolarmente
dalla Kreuz Zeitung organo del Ministero degli esteri a
Berlino.
E da sperare — cosi diceva il detto giornale — ove il dissidio
precipitasse in una guerra, che questa rimanga isolata. La
scintilla scoppietta troppo vicino ai barili di polvere deU'Europa;
ma finora si puo e si deve sperare che le grandi Potenze riconoscano
la giustizia delle pretese austriache, e che quindi nessuna di esse
andra in aiuto della Serbia per respingere le giuste domande del-
TAustria.
Lo stesso concetto era ribadito e ampHato da un altro
comunicato ufficioso berlinese affermante "non essere da
credere, fino a prova contraria, che vi sia qualche Potenza
disposta a prestare il suo aiuto morale o materiale ai Serbi,
giacche trattasi di questione dalla quale si deve necessaria-
mente risvegliare il sentimento della solidarieta monarchica
e della solidarieta fra gli Stati onestamente legati. La
Serbia, dunque, — concludeva questa voce ufficiosa — ac-
cettera le richieste austriache, o perira".
E il Lokal Ameiger:
La Germania si sente molto alleggerita, perche e finalmente
giunto il momento di chiarire definitivamente la situazione balca-
nica, e si congratula con I'lmpero alleato per la virile risoluzione,
e gli assicura fedelta e aiuto incondizionato nei difficili giorni a cui
va incontro.
544 PARTE TERZA
E questo non era soltanto il sentimento dei circoli
governativi germanici, dei quali anche il Lokal Anzeiger
era portavoce, ma pur quello del popolo tedesco, com'era
dimostrato daH'unanimita dei suoi organi e dalle entusia-
stiche manifestazioni popolari in tutte le grandi citta della
Germania: da Berlino a Monaco. Non eravi accordo nelle
previsioni (aggiustamento pacific© o guerra); ma tutti
concordavano che "la Germania sara, in qualunque caso,
a fianco dell'Austria".
Intanto il ministro degli afFari esteri di Russia, SazonofF,
appena informato del passo austriaco presso il governo
serbo, e appena ricevuta dall'incaricato russo in Belgrado
la richiesta d'aiuto in favore della Serbia, trasmise, lo
stesso giorno 24 luglio 1914, per mezzo del proprio amba-
sciatore Kudachew, la seguente dichiarazione al governo di
Vienna:
La comunicazione del Governo austriaco alle Potenze, I'indo-
mani della presentazione dtW ultimatum a Belgrado, non lascia
alle Potenze stesse che un termine del tutto insufficiente per intra-
prendere cio che possa essere utile per I'appianamento delle com-
plicazioni sorte.
Per prevenire le conseguenze incalcolabili, ed egualmente
nefaste per tutte le Potenze, che possano susseguire al modo d'agire
del Governo austriaco, ci pare indispensabile che, innanzi tutto,
il termine dato alia Serbia per rispondere sia prolungato, L' Au-
stria, dichiarandosi disposta ad informare le Potenze dei risultati
deH'istruttoria ^ sui quali il Governo imperiale e reale basa le
proprie accuse, dovrebbe dar loro ugualmente il tempo di render-
sene conto.
In questo caso, se le Potenze si convincessero della plena
fondatezza di talune esigenze austriache, si troverebbero in grade
di far pervenire al Governo serbo consigli in correlazione. Un
rifiuto di prolungare il termine deW ultimatum priverebbe di ogni
efficacia il passo del Governo austriaco presso le Potenze e sarebbe
in contradizione con le basi medesime delle relazioni internazionali.
Mentre la Russia faceva a Vienna un tale passo, rac-
comandandolo contemporaneamente all'attenzione dei
* Dall'istruttoria eseguita da agenti austriaci in Serajevo, risulro che I'uccisione
dell'arciduca ereditario Francesco Ferdinando ebbe liiogo in seguito ad un com-
plotto del quale fecero parte ufficiali dell'esercito e funzionan governativi serbi.
GERMANIA E RUSSIA 545
governi di Londra, Berlino, Parigi e Roma, il principe reg-
gente di Serbia, Alessandro, indirizzava alio zar Nicola II
a Pietroburgo un telegramma cosi concepito:
II Governo austriaco ha rimesso ieri sera al Governo serbo
una nota concernente il delitto di Serajevo. Conscia dei suoi
doveri internazionali, la Serbia, fin da! primo giorno dell'orribile
delitto, ha dichiarato ch'essa lo condannava e ch'era pronta ad
aprire un'inchiesta sul proprio territorio, se la complicita di certi
suoi sudditi risultasse provata nel corso del processo incoato dalle
autorita austriache. Per conseguenza, le domande contenute
nella nota austriaca sono inutilmente umilianti per la Serbia ed
incompatibili con la sua dignita quale Stato indipendente. Ci e
dato un termine di 48 ore per accettare ogni cosa, senza di che la
Legazione austriaca lascera Belgrade. Siamo pronti ad accettare
le condizioni austriache compatibili con la situazione di uno Stato
indipendente, come pure quelle la cui accettazione ci sara consi-
gliata da Vostra Maesta; tutte le persone la cui partecipazione nel
delitto di Serajevo sara dimostrata saranno severamente punite
da noi. Talune delle domande austriache non potrebbero essere
eseguite senza mutamenti nella nostra legislazione; cio che richiede
del tempo. Ci e stato dato un termine troppo breve. Possiamo
essere attaccati, appena spirato il termine, dall'esercito austriaco
che si concentra sulla nostra frontiera. Ci e impossibile difenderci,
e supplichiamo Vostra Maesta di darci il suo aiuto al piu presto
possibile. La benevolenza preziosa di Vostra Maesta, manifesta-
tasi tante volte a nostro riguardo, ci fa sperare fermamente che
questa volta ancora il nostro appello sara udito dal suo generoso
cuore slavo. In questi momenti difficili, io interpret© il sentimento
del popolo serbo che supplica Vostra Maesta di volersi bene inte-
ressare alle sorti del Regno di Serbia.
Inoltre, I'ambasciatore inglese a Pietroburgo, Buchanan,
il 25 luglio 1914 informava Sir Edw^ard Grey a Londra che
la Russia era favorevole ad un appello della Serbia alle
Potenze.
II ministro degli esteri russo Sazonoff — cosi diceva Buchanan
nel suo telegramma a Grey — desidererebbe vedere la questione
posta su di una base internazionale, poiche gl'impegni assunti dalla
Serbia nel 1909, ai quali si allude neWultimatum austriaco, furono
dati non all'Austria ma alle Potenze. Se la Serbia si appellasse
alle Potenze, la Russia sarebbe ben disposta a starsene in disparte
546 PARTE TERZA
e lasciare la questione nelle mani dell'Inghilterra, della Francia,
della Germania e dell'Italia.
Ma nel pomeriggio del 25 luglio 1914 il barone Macchio,
primo sostituto del ministro degli esteri d'Austria, conte
di Berchtold assente dalla capitale, comunicava all'amba-
sciatore russo in Vienna che il governo austriaco non aveva
creduto di potere accogliere la domanda della Russia di
prorogare alia Serbia il termine per la risposta, sostenendo
"che la soluzione dell'incidente con la Serbia e una questione
che interessa esclusivamente I'Austria e la Serbia. L'Austria
e quindi decisa in qualsivoglia circostanza a respingere ogni
tentative d'intervento straniero".
IV
La risposta del governo serbo (25 luglio 1914) alia
nota-ultimatum del governo austriaco.
Le 48 ore — proprio quante I'Austria ne aveva concesse
al Piemonte nel 1859 — stavano per spirare. Venti minuti
prima, vale a dire alle 5.40 pomeridiane del 25 luglio 1914,
il primo ministro serbo Pasicconsegnava al ministro austria-
co in Belgrado la seguente nota di risposta della Serbia
alia notA-ultimatum del governo di Vienna:
II Governo reale ha ricevuto la dichiarazione del Governo
imperiale e reale del 23 luglio 1914, ed e persuaso che la sua risposta
allontanera tutti i malintesi che minacciano di compromettere i
buoni rapporti di vicinanza tra la Monarchia austro-ungarica e il
Regno di Serbia.
La Serbia ha, a numerose riprese, dato prove della sua politica
pacifica ed ha dimostrato durante la crisi balcanica che, grazie
alia Serbia ed ai sacrifici da essa compiuti nel piii vivo interesse
della pace europea, questa pace e stata conservata.
II Governo reale non puo essere reso responsabile di manifesta-
zioni di carattere privato, come gli articoli dei giornali e le mene
delle societa, manifestazioni che si verificano quasi in tutti i paesi
come una cosa ordinaria e che sfuggono, in regola generale, al control-
lo ufficiale, tanto piii in quanto il Governo reale, in occasione della
LA RISPOSTA SERBA 547
soluzione di tutta una serie di questionl che si sono presentate
tra la Serbia e I'Austria-Ungheria, ha mostrato una grande cortesia
ed e in tal modo riuscito a risolvere il massimo numero con van-
taggio del progresso dei due pa^si vicini.
Percio il Governo reale e stato penosamente sorpreso dalle
osservazioni secondo le quali persone del Regno serbo avrebbero
partecipato ad una preparazione deldelitto commesso a Serajevo.
Essos'aspettava d'essere invitato a coUaborare alia ricerca di tutto
quanto si riferisce a quel delitto, ed e pronto a dimostrare con gli
atti la sua piena correttezza e ad agire contro tutte le persone, a
proposito delle quali gli fossero fatte comunicazioni.
Aderendo dunque al desiderio del Governo imperiale e reale,
il Governo reale e disposto a consegnare al Tribunale ogni suddito
serbo, senza riguardo alia sua situazione e alia sua classe, per la
cui complicita nel misfatto di Serajevo gli saranno fornite prove.
Esso s'impegna specialmente a far pubblicare nella prima pagina
del Giornale Uffi-ciale del 26 luglio 1914 la seguente enunciazione:
// Governo reale di Serbia condanna ogni propaganda che fosse
diretta contro V Austria-Ungheria, cioe il complesso delle tendenze
che aspirano, in ultima analisi, a staccare dalla Monarchia austro-
ungarica territori che ne fanno parte, e deplora sinceramente le
funeste conseguenze di queste delittuose mene. II Governo reale si
duole che alcuni ufficiali e funzionari serbi abbiano partecipato,
secondo la comunicazione del Governo imperiale e reale, alia propa-
ganda summenzionata e compromesso cost le relazioni di buon
vicinato alle quali il Governo reale si era solennemente impegnato
con la sua dichiarazione del ji marzo igog. II Governo reale,
che disapprova e respinge ogni idea tentativo d'ingerenza nei
destini degli abitanti di qualsiasi parte deW Austria-Ungheria,
considera come suo dovere avvertire formalmente gli ufficiali, i
funzionari e la popolazione del Regno di Serbia che, d'ora innanzi,
procederd con estremo rigore contro le persone che si rendessero
colpevoli di simili mene e porrd ogni sforzo nel prevenirle e nel
reprimerle.
Questa enunciazione sara portata a cognizione dell'esercito
serbo con un ordine del giorno, a nome di Sua Maesta il Re, da Sua
Altezza Reale il Principe Ereditario Alessandro, e sara pubblicata
nel prossimo Bollettino Ufficiale deWEsercito.
II Governo reale s'impegna inoltre:
1°. A presentare alia prima convocazione regolare della
Scupcina una disposizione nella legge sulla stampa, con la quale
saranno puniti nel modo piii severo gl'incitamenti all'odio e al
548 PARTE TERZA
disprezzo contro la Monarchia austro-ungarica ed ogni pubblica-
zione la cui tendenza generale sia diretta contro Tintegrita terri-
toriale deirAustria-Ungheria. Esso s'incarica, al momento della
revisione della Costituzione che e imminente, di fare introdurre
nell'articolo 22 della Costituzione medesima un emendamento di
natura tale che le pubblicazioni di cui sopra possano essere con-
fiscate, cio che attualmente, a termini categorici del suddetto
articolo 22, e impossibile.
2°. II Governo reale non possiede alcuna prova — e la nota del
Governo imperiale e reale non gliene fornisce nemmeno alcuna —
che la societa Narodna Ohrana e le altre societa similari abbiano
fino ad oggi commesso qualche atto delittuoso di questo genere.
Tuttavia il Governo reale accogliera le domande del Governo im-
periale e reale, e sciogliera la Narodna Obrana e qualsiasi altra so-
cieta che agisse contro TAustria-Ungheria.
3°. II Governo reale s'impegna di eliminare senza indugio
dall'istruzione pubblica in Serbia tutto quanto serve o potrebbe
servire a fomentare la propaganda contro I'Austria-Ungheria,
quando il Governo imperiale e reale gli fornira fatti e prove di
questa propaganda.
4°. 11 Governo reale accetta anche di allontanare dal servizio
militate coloro che I'inchiesta giudiziaria avra provato essere
colpevoli di atti diretti contro I'integrita dei territori della Monar-
chia austro-ungarica, ed attende che il Governo imperiale e reale
gli comunichi ulteriormente i nomi e gli atti di questi ufficiali e
funzionari al fine della procedura che deve essere seguita.
5°. II Governo reale deve confessare che non si rende inte-
ramente conto del senso e della portata della domanda del Governo
imperiale e reale tendente a che la Serbia s'impegni ad accettare
sul suo territorio la collaborazione degli organi imperiali e reali;
ma dichiara che ammettera ogni collaborazione la quale risponda
ai principi del diritto internazionale e alia procedura penale,
nonche ai rapporti di buon vicinato.
6°. II Governo reale, com'e naturale, considera suo dovere
d'aprire un'inchiesta contro tutti coloro che sono o eventualmente
si sarebbero trovati immischiati nel complotto del 28 giugno 1914
e che si troverebbero nel territorio del Regno. Quanto alia
partecipazione a questa inchiesta degli agenti delle autorita
austro-ungariche che sarebbero delegati a tale intento dal Governo
imperiale e reale, il Governo reale non puo accoglierla, perche
sarebbe una violazione della Costituzione e della legge di procedura
criminale. Tuttavia, in casi concreti, comunicazioni sui risultati
LA RISPOSTA SERBA 549
dell'istruttoria in questione potrebbero essere date agli organi del
Governo imperiale e reale.
7°. II Governo reale ha fatto procedere fin dalla sera stessa
della consegna della nota all'arresto del comandante VoijnaTanko-
sic. Quanto a Milan Ciganovic, che e suddito della Monarchia
austro-ungarica e che sino al 28 giugno 1914 era impiegato come
aspirante alia Direzione delle ferrovie, non e stato ancora rag-
giunto. II Governo imperiale e reale e pregato di volere, nella
forma abituale e al piu presto possibile, render note le presunzioni
di colpabilita e le prove eventuali di colpabilita che sono state
raccolte sino ad oggi dall'inchiesta di Serajevo per ulteriori
inchieste.
8°. II Governo reale rinforzera ed estendera le misure prese
per impedire I'illecito trafiico di armi e di esplosivi attraverso la
frontiera. Esso ordinera subito un'inchiesta e punira certamente
i funzionari di frontiera sulla linea Schabatz-Loznica, i quali
hanno mancato al loro dovere ed hanno lasciato passare gli autori
del delitto di Serajevo.
9°. II Governo reale dara volentieri spiegazioni sui giudizi
che i suoi funzionari, cosi in Serbia come all'estero, hanno espresso
in interviste dopo il delitto e che, secondo I'afFermazione del
Governo imperiale e reale, sono stati ostili alia Monarchia austro-
ungarica, non appena il Governo imperiale e reale gli avra comu-
nicato le relative frasi di questi giudizi e gli avra dimostrato che i
giudizi stessi sono stati infatti espressi dai funzionari suddetti:
giudizi, a proposito dei quali il Governo reale avra cura di racco-
gliere prove e conferme.
10°. II Governo reale informera il Governo imperiale e reale
dell'esecuzione delle misure comprese nei punti precedenti, in
quanto questo non sia gia stato fatto dalla presente nota, non appe-
na che ciascuna misura sara stata ordinata ed eseguita.
Nel caso che il Governo imperiale e reale non fosse soddisfatto
di questa risposta, il Governo reale, considerando essere nel comune
interesse di non precipitate la soluzione di tale questione, e pronto,
come sempre, ad accettare un accordo pacifico, rimettendo tale
questione sia alia decisione del Tribunale internazionale dell'Aia,
sia alle grandi Potenze che hanno partecipato alia elaborazione
della dichiarazione fatta dal Governo reale il 31 marzo 1909.
II comunicato telegrafico, annunziante la consegna fatta
da Pasic al ministro austriaco in Belgrado della nota su
riferita, era concepito, come informazione deirufficioso
Correspondenz Bureau di Vienna del 25 luglio 191 4, cosi:
550 PARTE TERZA
II presidente del Consiglio serbo Pasic s'e recato prima delle
ore 6 pomeridiane alia Legazione austro-ungarica a Belgrade, e
ha dato una risposta insufficiente alia nota austro-ungarica.
II ministro d'Austria-Ungheria, barone Giesl, ha allora notifica-
to a Pasic la rottura delle relazioni diplomatiche, ed ha lasciato
col personale della Legazione, alle ore 6.30 pomeridiane, Belgrado.
Un eloquente telegramma dell'ambasciatore inglese a
Vienna, Maurizio de Bunsen, a Sir Edward Grey (27
luglio 1914). Un comunicato ufficioso del govemo
russo pubblicato dal Corriere della Borsa di Pietroburgo
(27 luglio 1914). La risposta dello zar Nicola II al
principe Alessandro reggente di Serbia (27 luglio 1914).
I ringraziamenti del principe Alessandro alio zar
Nicola II.
II 27 luglio 1914 rambasciatore inglese a Vienna, Mauri-
zio de Bunsen, inviava a Londra a Sir Edward Grey il
seguente telegramma:
Ho avuto conversazioni con tutti i miei colleghi rappre-
sentanti le grandi Potenze. L'impressione che me ne e derivata e
che la Nota austro -ungarica fu compilata in quel modo per rendere
inevitabile la guerra; che il Governo austro-ungarico e assolutamen-
te deciso ad avere la guerra con la Serbia; che esso considera la
propria posizione di grande Potenza in gioco, e che finche un
castigo non sia stato inflitto alia Serbia, e improbabile ch'esso
voglia prestare ascolto a voci di mediazione. Questo paese (I'Au-
stria-Ungheria)staimpazzendodalla gioia all'idea della guerra con-
tro la Serbia, ed il rinviarla, o prevenirla, cagionerebbe indubbia-
mente una grande contrarieta.
II Corriere della Borsa di Pietroburgo in data 27 luglio
1914 pubblicava il seguente comunicato di carattere uffi-
cioso:
La Russia sara pronta a rispondere con tutti i mezzi dei quali
dispone una grande Potenza a qualsiasi indizio il quale dimostrasse
che si disprezzano le sue legittime domande. La Russia non
TELEGRAMMI INTERESSANTI 551
permettera rannientamento d'uno Stato slavo, ma e pronta a
sostenere I'Austria-Ungheria nelle sue domande giustificate, come
a raccomandare alia Serbia di non essere intransigente. Tuttavia
la Russia non permettera mai che si punisca I'intero popolo serbo
per il delitto di un private. Ne la Russia, ne la Serbia possono
consentire un'ingerenza sui diritti sovrani d'uno Stato balcanico.
E lo zar Nicola II, rispondendo lo stesso giorno 27
luglio 1914 al telegramma supplicativo indirizzatogli il
24 luglio 1914 dal principe Alessandro reggente di Serbia,
faceva auguri e raccomandazioni, ed esprimeva fiducia nelle
trattative "che impedirebbero" — diceva egli di sperare —
la guerra; ma soggiungeva: "se, malgrado il nostro piii
sincero desiderio, non riusciremo, Vostra Altezza puo
essere sicura che in nessun caso la Russia si disinteressera
delle sorti della Serbia".
Quando I'incaricato russo in Serbia, Strandtman, con-
segno al primo ministro serbo il telegramma confortante
che lo zar aveva diretto al principe Alessandro, Pasic, dopo
averlo letto, si fece il segno della croce ed esclamo: "O
Signore, lo zar e grande e clemente!" — Poi, non potendo
piii frenare I'emozione che I'aveva preso, abbraccio Strandt-
man e pianse.
E il principe Alessandro ringraziava telegraficamente lo
zar in questi termini:
Profondamente toccato dal telegramma che Vostra Maesta ha
ben voluto indirizzarmi, m'afFretto a ringraziarla con tutto il mio
cuore. Prego Vostra Maesta di essere persuasa che la cordiale
simpatia da cui Vostra Maesta e animata verso il nostro paese ci
e particolarmente preziosa e riempie la nostra anima della speranza
che I'avvenire della Serbia e assicurato, poiche questa nazione e
divenuta I'oggetto dell'alta sollecitudine di Vostra Maesta.
Questi momenti penosi non possono che rinsaldare i vincoli del-
Tattaccamento profondo che uniscono la Serbia alia Santa Russia
slava; e i sentimenti di riconoscenza eterna per la protezione e I'aiuto
di Vostra Maesta saranno conservati devotamente nell'anima di
tutti i Serbi.
552 PARTE TERZA
VI
La dichiarazione di guerra del governo austriaco al-
ia Serbia (27 luglio 1914). II proclama deirimpera-
tore Francesco Giuseppe ai suoi popoli (28 luglio 1914).
Lo zar Nicola II telegrafa urgentemente (29 luglio 1914)
a Guglielmo II imperatore di Germania, pregandolo di
scongiurare la guerra. La risposta e le pubbliche
dichiarazioni di Guglielmo II (31 luglio 1914).
Ma rirremovibile proposito del governo austriaco
veniva annunziato il 27 luglio 1914 con questa comunica-
zione del governo stesso alle Potenze europee:
Per mettere fine alle mene sovversive partenti da Belgrade e
dirette contro I'integrita territoriale della Monarchia austro-
ungarica, il Governo imperiale e reale ha fatto pervenire in data
23 luglio 1914 al Governo reale di Serbia una Nota nella quale si
trovava formulata una serie di domande per I'accettazione delle
quali un termine di 48 ore era stato accordato al Governo reale.
II Governo reale non avendo risposto a questa Nota in modo soddi-
sfacente, il Governo imperiale e reale si trova nella necessita di
provvedere esso stesso alia difesa dei suoi diritti e dei suoi interessi,
e di ricorrere a tale effetto alia forza delle armi.
L'Austria-Ungheria, che ha indirizzato contemporaneamente
alia Serbia una dichiarazione formale, in conformita dell'articolo
1° della Convenzione del 18 ottobre 1907, relativa all'apertura
delle ostilita,si considera daquesto momento in istato di guerra con
la Serbia.
L'indomani — 28 luglio 1914 — I'imperatore Francesco
Giuseppe lanciava da Vienna un proclama, nel quale, tra
I'altro, diceva ai "suoi" popoli:
II mio piu grande desiderio fu sempre quello di consacrare gli
anni, che la grazia di Dio ancora mi riserva, alle opere di pace, e di
preservare i miei popoli dai gravi sacrifici e dagli oneri della guerra.
Ma la Provvidenza ha deciso altrimenti. La condotta d'un avver-
sario pieno d'odio mi obbliga, per difendere I'onore della mia
Monarchia, per proteggere la sua autorita e la sua potenza, per
garantire la sua posizione, a prendere in mano la spada, dope
lunghi anni di pace.
LO SCOPPIO DELLA GRANDE GUERRA 553
Mi vedo costretto a crearmi con la forza le garanzie indispensa-
bili che devono assicurare al mio Stato la calma aH'interno e
la pace permanente airestero.
Assume in quest'ora grave tutto il peso della mia decisione
e la responsabilita a cui vado incontro di fronte all'onnipotente
Iddio. Ho tutto esaminato e tutto studiato. In tutta coscienza
m'impegno nella via che m'e mostrata dal dovere. Ho fiducia
nel mio popolo che durante tante tempeste si e sempre riunito
intorno al mio trono; ho fiducia nell'esercito dell'Austria-Ungheria
animato da sentimenti di valore e di devozione. Ho fiducia
nell'onnipotente Iddio, che dara ai miei eserciti la vittoria.
II 29 luglio 1914 lo zar Nicola II telegrafava a Guglielmo
II imperatore di Germania:
In questo momento tanto grave ti supplico d'aiutarmi. Una
guerra vile e stata dichiarata contro un paese debole. In Russia
lo sdegno, ch'io condivido, e enorme. Prevedo che ben tosto
non potro piii resistere alia pressione esercitata su di me, e saro
costretto a prendere delle misure che condurranno alia guerra
europea. Ti prego, in nome della nostra vecchia amicizia, di
fare tutto il possibile per impedire al Tuo alleato d'andare troppo
oltre.
Ma Guglielmo II rispose insistendo che I'Austria aveva
agito bene, che bisognava restringere il conflitto tra I'Austria
e la Serbia, che in tutti i casi la Germania sarebbe stata con
la sua alleata Austria.
Gli avvenimenti non potevano che aggravarsi e precipi-
tare rapidissimamente.
Guglielmo II a Berlino, nel pomeriggio del 31 luglio
1914 — quando, acclamato da immensa folia commossa,
fu costretto ad afFacciarsi al balcone del castello impe-
riale con a fianco I'imperatrice, il principe ereditario e la
moglie di costui, il cancelliere e i piii alti personaggi di Corte —
pronunzio queste parole:
Una difficile ora e oggi piombata sulla Germania. Da tutte
le parti ci costringono con mio rammarico ad una giusta difesa,
obbligandoci a prendere le armi. Se all'ultim'ora gli sforzi
nostri non riusciranno a indurre i nostri avversari a ravvedersi
e a mantenere la pace ch'io ho cercato per 25 anni, spero che noi,
con I'aiuto di Dio, snuderemo la spada, e spero che la rinfodereremo
con onore.
554 PARTE TERZA
Voi dovrete sopportare enormi sacrifizi di sangue e di benessere,
ma li sopporterete, io lo so: ed ai nostri avversari mostreremo che
cosa significhi aggredire la Germania.
10 vi raccomando a Dio. Andate nelle chiese e pregate il
Signore perche conceda la vittoria all'esercito tedesco e alia
causa tedesca.
11 1° agosto 1914 la Germania dichiarava guerra alia
Russia.
11 3 agosto 1914 la Germania dichiarava guerra alia
Francia.
II 3 agosto 1914 la Germania dichiarava guerra al
Belgio.
VII
II trattato della Triplice Alleanza stipulate tra i governi
d'ltalia, Austria e Germania (1882-1912). Gli articoli
3, 4 e 7 del trattato stesso.
Quando nel settembre 1877 Francesco Crispi, non ancora,
fino a quel momento, salito al governo d'ltalia, s'incontro a
Wildbad col principe di Bismarck e accenno a un'alleanza
difensiva possibile tra la Germania e I'ltalia, e tocco della
complicata "Questione Orientale", si sent! rispondere dal
cancelliere di ferro: *'Se I'Austria si prendera la Bosnia,
ritalia si prenda I'Albania o qualche altra terra turca sul-
I'Adriatico".
L'anno dopo (1878), I'Austria, seguendo la decisione del
Congresso di Berlino, si "prese" la Bosnia; ma I'ltalia non
si "prese" I'Albania.
Invece, il 31 ottobre 1881, Umberto I di Savoia, accom-
pagnato dalla regina Margherita a dai ministri Depretis e
Mancini, ando improvvisamente "per motivi di politica
estera" a visitare I'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe a Vienna.
E il 20 maggio 1882 i governi d'ltalia, d'Austria e di
Germania stipulavano il famoso trattato della Triplice Al-
leanza, che fu poi rinnovato nel 1887, nel 1897, "^1 ^9°^ ^»
infine, nel 1912 per altri dodici anni.
Avvenuta la sottoscrizione del trattato, il principe di
TRIPLICE ALLEANZA 555
Bismarck, in un discorso da lui pronunciato al Parlamento
germanico nella tornata del 12 giugno 1882, si epresse cosi:
Noi siamo ora uniti e alleati, o signori, con due grandi monar-
chic — ritalia e I'Austria — le quali difendono i nostri interessi
e vogliono la pace come noi la vogliamo.
Dai documenti pubblicati dopo lo scoppio della grande
guerra, risulto che il trattato della Triplice Alleanza stipulate
tra ritalia, I'Austria e la Germania nel 1882, e rinnovato
I'ultima volta nel 1912 per altri dodici anni, conteneva, tra
I'altro, tre articoli (gli articoli 3, 4 e 7), i quali erano del
seguente tenore:
Articolo 3. Qualora una o due delle Potenze contraenti,
senza diretta provocazione da parte loro, fossero attaccate da due
o piu grandi Potenze non firmatarie del presente trattato e si
trovassero con queste Potenze in guerra, sorgerebbe immediata-
mente il casus foederis per tutt'e tre le Potenze contraenti.
Articolo 4. Qualora una grande Potenza non firmataria del
presente trattato minacciasse la sicurezza nazionale di una delle
tre Potenze contraenti, e la nazione minacciata fosse per tal
modo costretta a dichiarare la guerra, le altre due Potenze si
obbligano a mantenere verso la loro alleataunaneutralita benevola.
Ognuna di esse, pero, se lo credera conveniente, potra partecipare
alia guerra per fare causa comune con I'alleata.
Articolo 7. L'Austria e I'ltalia, nell'intento di mantenere lo
statu quo in Oriente, s'obbligano di adoperarsi con tutta la loro
influenza per evitare qualsiasi mutamento territoriale dannoso
all'una o all'altra delle Potenze contraenti. Esse si daranno
reciprocamente tutte le informazioni atte a chiarire le intenzioni
rispettive, come pure quelle delle altre Potenze. Se tuttavia si
desse il caso che nel corso degli avvenimenti il mantenimento
dello statu quo nel territorio dei Balcani e suUe coste e nelle isole
ottomane dell'Adriatico e dell'Egeo divenisse impossibile e che —
sia in conseguenza dell'azione d'una terza Potenza, sia per altre
cause — I'Austria e I'ltalia fossero costrette a mutare lo statu quo
con un'occupazione temporanea o permanente da parte loro,
questa occupazione potra avvenire soltanto dopo precedenti ac-
cordi tra le due Potenze in base al principiodi un reciproco consen-
so ' per tutti i vantaggi territoriali o d'altra specie che I'una
' Qualche pubblicazione dice: " basati sul principio di un reciproco compenso".
556 PARTE TERZA
o Taltra venisse a conseguire oltre al presente statu quo e in modo
da soddisfare gl'interessi e le pretese giustificate d'ambo le parti.
VIII
Come il govemo d' Austria, con la sua noiSi- ultimatum
del 23 luglio 1914 e la conseguente dichiarazione di
guerra del 27 luglio 1914 alia Serbia, violo il trattato
della Triplice Alleanza ai danni dell'Italia.
II Giornale d' Italia (il grande quotidiano ufficioso di
Roma) in data i° agosto 1914 pubblicava:
Durante la gravissima crisi provocata dalla notz-ultimatum
deH'Austria alia Serbia, il Governo italiano lavoro attivamente,
tenendosi specialmente in contatto col Governo inglese, per
evitare le complicazioni europee e mantenere la pace. Purtroppo
I'azione pacificatrice italo-inglese non riusci nell'intento, e di
giorno in giorno le probabilita d'una conflagrazione europea si
fecero maggiori, sicche il Governo italiano dovette considerare
la situazione che in un eventuale conflitto sarebbe stata fatta
airitalia, e si trovo Concorde nel considerare alcuni punti, che si
possono riassumere:
1°. La notz-ultimatum dell'Austria alia Serbia fu comunicata
al Governo italiano dopo ch'era stata gia comunicata al Governo
serbo, sicche non vi fu da parte della Cancelleria di Vienna ne
alcun preavviso, ne alcuna trattativa col Gabinetto di Roma, circa
la gravissima decisione che immediatamente ebbe una portata
europea.
2°. Una delle caratteristiche fondamentali del trattato della
Triplice Alleanza e che nessuna delle alleate possa intraprendere
un'azione nei Balcani senza preventivamente accordarsi con le
altre alleate. Ora, un tale preventivo accordo fra I'Austria e
ITtalia non vi fu.
3°. La Triplice Alleanza ha carattere difensivo, non aggres-
sivo, e non puo obbligare gli alleati a seguire quello di essi che
intendesse intraprendere per proprio conto e senza preventiva
intesa un'azione aggressiva, com'e appunto quella dell'Austria
contro la Serbia.
4°. Interesse fondamentale dell'Italia e che I'equilibrio
balcanico risultante dalle recenti guerre neU'Oriente europeo non
LA NEUTRALITA DELL'ITALIA 557
venga turbato, e continui invece a prevalere il concetto: i Balcani
ai popoli balcanici. Ora, I'azione militare dell'Austria contro la
Serbia — tuttoche la Cancelleria di Vienna abbia dichiarato di
non aver mire territoriali — e invece tale da poter provocare un
mutamento dell'equilibrio suddetto.
5°. L'ltalia, non essendo stata preavvisata di quanto I'Au-
stria stava per intraprendere, non pote prendere, nell'eventualita
di prevedibilissime complicazioni europee, neanche talune pre-
cauzioni necessarie per la tutela dei propri piu vitali interessi.
Su questi punti sostanziali il Consiglio dei ministri d'ltalia
tenutosi il i° agosto 1914 si trovo d'accordo. Del resto il Governo
italiano non aveva mancato di far conoscere ai Governi di Vienna
e di Berlino il proprio punto di vista, assicurando che l'ltalia
avrebbe bensi tenuto in qualunque caso un atteggiamento ami-
chevole verso le AUeate, ma osservando che I'improvvisa e non
concertata azione dell' Austria contro la Serbia non poteva imporre
all'Italia I'obbligo di seguire I'Austria dovunque, e che I'obiettivo
dell'Italia era essenzialmente pacifico.
La sera del 2 agosto 1914 lo stesso Giornale d'ltalia
pubblicava:
Questa mattina, poco prima di mezzogiorno, I'ambasciatore
germanico a Roma, barone von Flotow, s'e recato dal nostro
ministro degli esteri alia Consulta, e gli ha comunicato che la
Germania aveva dichiarato guerra alia Russia. II marchese di
San Giuliano, ministro degli esteri d'ltalia, ha preso atto della
comunicazione e ha dichiarato che I'ltaHa, ispirandosi alio spirito
e alia lettera del trattato della Triplice Alleanza, non ritiene che
I'attuale conflitto, cosi com'e sorto e s'e svolto, possa costituire il
casus foederis per la partecipazione dell'Italia al conflitto stesso.
Quindi I'onorevole di San Giuliano ha soggiunto che l'ltalia man-
terra la piu rigorosa neutralita.
IX
La dichiarazione di neutralita dell'Italia (4 agosto
1914).
II 4 agosto 1914 la Gazzetta Ufficiale del Regno d'ltalia
pubblicava:
II Consiglio dei ministri d'ltalia ha deliberate il testo seguente
della dichiarazione di neutralita:
558 PARTE TERZA
Trovandosi alcune Potenze d'Europa in istato di guerra, ed essendo
r Italia in istato di pace con tutte le parti belligeranti, il Governo del
Re e i cittadini e sudditi del Regno hanno Vobhligo di osservare i
doveri della neutralitd, secondo le leggi vigenti e secondo i principi
del diritto internazionale.
Chiunque violerd questi doveri suhird le coyiseguenze del propria
operato e incorrerd, quando sia il caso, nelle pene dalla legge sancite.
Tale proclamazione di neutralita fu concordemente
approvata dai socialisti, dai repubblicani, dai radicali, dai
democratici, dai progressisti e da molti del partito costi-
tuzionale liberale, per ragioni pacifiste astratte dottrinarie
di principi, per ragioni di partito e per gravitazione storica
del loro contenuto sentimentale e massonico contro I'Austria
cattolica, contro il militarismo germanico, contro la Triplice
Alleanza, per la preoccupazione delle condizioni finanziarie
economiche apparse molto delicate per lo Stato e per il
paese dopo I'impresa di Libia che aveva portato al Tesoro
pubblico un aggravio — da fronteggiare con tributi nuovi
e con rincrudimento di tributi vecchi — non inferiore ad
un miliardo di lire. Fu approvata da cittadini d'ogni specie
non partecipanti alle passioni in un sense o nell'altro dei
partiti, non rappresentativi, non agitantisi, per contra-
rieta in genere alia guerra e ad imprese avventurose, per il
desiderio — nell'interesse generale della nazione — d'un
lungo periodo di pace e di fecondo lavoro. Fu invece
riprovata e combattuta dai fautori non certo numerosi
deirintervento immediato a fianco della Germania e del-
I'Austria, dai triplicisti ad oltranza (liberali, moderati,
conservatori, nazionalisti giovani), perche convinti, questi,
della necessita da parte del popolo italiano d'afFrontare
in Europa il cimento della guerra, alio scopo di portare la
nazione al conseguimento dei suoi confini naturali da
ogni parte e alia sua maggiore e naturale espansione sui
mari circostanti, e prepararle cosi un piii proficuo, un piii
sicuro, un piu degno avvenire nel mondo.
LA DENUNZIA IL TRATTATO 559
X
II governo d'ltalia, in data 3 maggio 1915, denunzia il
trattato della Triplice AUeanza.
Ma se la grande maggioranza degl'Italiani era stata per
la neutralita durante il 1914, nel 191 5 essa fu per la guerra.
In data 3 maggio 191 5 il barone Sydney Sonnino, mini-
stro degli affari esteri d'ltalia, faceva presentare daU'amba-
sciatore italiano a Vienna la seguente nota al ministro
degli affari esteri d'Austria-Ungheria:
L'alleanza tra 1' Italia e rAustria-Ungheria s'affermo, fin dalle
sue origini, come un elemento e una garanzia di pace, e miro
prima di tutto alio scopo principale della difesa comune.
In presenza degli ulteriori avvenimenti e della nuova situa-
zione che ne risulto, i Governi dei due paesi dovettero proporsi
un altro scopo non meno essenziale, e nel corso dei rinnovamenti
successivi del trattato, essi s'adoperarono a salvaguardare la con-
tinuazione della loro alleanza, stipulando il principio degli accordi
preliminari relativamente ai Balcani, alio scopo di conciliate
gl'interessi e le tendenze divergenti delle due Potenze.
£ pill che evidente che tali stipulazioni, osservate lealmente,
sarebbero hastate a fornire una base solida per un'azione comune
e feconda. Al contrario, TAustria-Ungheria, durante Testate del
1914, senza prendere nessun accordo con I'ltalia, senza fade per-
venire neppure il minimo avviso e non tenendo alcun conto dei
consigli di moderazione che le furono dati dal Governo Reale,
notified alia Serbia Vultimatum del 23 luglio 1914 che fu la causa
e il punto di partenza della presente conflagrazione europea.
L'Austria-Ungheria, negligendo le obbligazioni derivanti dal
trattato d'alleanza, turbo profondamente lo statu quo balcanico
e creo una situazione dalla quale essa sola era chiamata a profit-
tarne, a detrimento degl'interessi di grandissima importanza che
la sua alleata aveva tante volte affermati e proclamati.
Una violazione cosi flagrante della lettera e dello spirito del
trattato, non solamente giustifico il rifiuto dell'Italia di schierarsi a
fianco degli alleati in una guerra provocata senza il suo consenso,
ma tolse nel medesimo tempo all'alleanza il suo contenuto essen-
ziale e la sua ragione d'essere.
La condizione stessa della neutralita benevola prevista dal
560 PARTE TERZA
trattato si trovo compromessa per siffatta violazione. La ragione
e il sentimento, infatti, si trovano concordi nello escludere che la
neutralita benevola possa essere mantenuta quando uno degli
alleati prende le armi per la realizzazione d'un programma dia-
metralmente opposto agl'interessi vitali dell'altro alleato, interessi,
la cui salvaguardia costituisce la ragione principale dell'alleanza
stessa.
Cio non pertanto I'ltalia si sforzo per parecchi mesi di creare
una situazione favorevole al ristabilimento tra i due Stati di
quei rapporti amichevoli che costituiscono il fondamento essen-
ziale di ogni cooperazione nel dominio della politica generale.
Con questo scopo e con questa speranza il Governo Reale
si dichiaro disposto a prestarsi ad un accomodamento che avesse
per base la soddisfazione in una misura equa delle legittime aspira-
zioni nazionali dell'Italia e che fosse servito nello stesso tempo a
ridurre la disparita esistente nella situazione reciproca dei due
Stati nell'Adriatico.
Senonche questi negoziati non dettero alcun risultato ap-
prezzabile. Tutti gli sforzi del Governo Reale furono frustrati
dalla resistenza del Governo Imperiale e Reale, il quale dopo
parecchi mesi soltanto si decise a riconoscere gl'interessi speciali
dell'Italia su Vallona e a promettere un'insufficiente concessione
di territori nel Trentino, concessione che non garantiva in verun
modo ne dal punto di vista politico, ne dal punto di vista militate
I'andamento normale della situazione. Inoltre la detta concessione
non doveva avere la sua esecuzione che ad un'epoca indeterminata,
vale a dire alia fine della guerra.
In tale state di cose il Governo italiano deve rinunziare alia
speranza di pervenire ad un accordo, e si vede costretto a ritirare
tutte le sue proposte d'accomodamento.
£ inutile mantenere all'alleanza un'apparenza formale, la
quale non sarebbe destinata che a dissimulare la realta d'una
sfiducia continua e di contrasti quotidiani.
£ per questo che I'ltalia, fiduciosa nel suo buon diritto, afferma
e proclama ch'essa riprende fin da ora la sua piena liberta d'azione,
come fin da ora e per sempre dichiara nuUo e privo d'effetti il
trattato d'alleanza con I'Austria-Ungheria.
SONNINO.
IL GOVERNO AL PARLAMENTO 561
XI
Antonio Salandra presidente del Consiglio dei ministri
d'ltalia, nella storica seduta del Parlamento nazionale a
Roma (20 maggio 1915), espone le ragioni per le quali
il governo italiano e costretto a dichiarare guerra al-
1' Austria.
II 20 maggio 191 5, nella storica seduta del Parlamento
nazionale italiano a Roma, Antonio Salandra, primo
ministro del Regno d'ltalia, presentando un disegno di
leggi "per il conferimento al Governo del Re di poteri
straordinari in caso di guerra", pronunciava il seguente
discorso:
Onorevoli CoUeghi!
Sin da quando risorse ad unita di Stato, I'ltalia si afFermo, nel
mondo delle nazioni, quale fattore di moderazione, di concordia
e di pace; e fieramente essa puo proclamare d'avere adempiuto
a tale missione con una fermezza che non s'e piegata neppure
dinanzi ai piu penosi sacrifici.
NeU'ultimo periodo piii che trentenne, essa ha mantenuto un
sistema di alleanze e di amicizie, dominata precipuamente dall'in-
tento di meglio assicurare per tal modo Tequilibrio europeo e,
con esso, la pace.
Per la nobilta di quel fine, I'ltalia non soltanto ha tollerato
I'insicuiezza delle sue frontiere, non soltanto ha subordinato ad
esso le sue piu sacre aspirazioni nazionali, ma ha dovuto assistere,
con represso dolore, ai tentativi metodicamente condotti di
sopprimere quei caratteri d'italianita che la natura e la storia
avevano impresso, indelebili, su generose regioni.
IJ ultimatum che nel luglio 1914 I'lmpero austro-ungarico
dirigeva alia Serbia, annullava d'un colpo gli efFetti del lungo
sforzo durato, violando il patto che a quello Stato ci legava. Lo
violava per il modo, avendo omesso, non che il preventive accordo
con noi, persino un semplice avvertimento; lo violava per la sostan-
za, mirando a turbare, in danno nostro, il delicato sistema di
possessi territoriali e di sfere di influenza che s'era costituito
nella penisola balcanica.
Ma piu ancora che questo o quel punto particolare, era tutto
lo spirito animatore del trattato che veniva offeso, anzi soppresso;
562 PARTE TERZA
giacche, scatenando pel mondo la piu terribile guerra in contrasto
coi nostri sentimenti e coi nostri interessi, si distruggeva I'equili-
brio che I'alleanza doveva servire ad assicurare; e, virtualmente,
ma irresistibilmente, risorgeva il problema della integrazione na-
zionale d'ltalia.
Pur nondimeno per lunghi mesi il Governo del Re d'ltalia
s'e pazientemente adoperato nel cercare un componimento il quale
restituisse all'accordo la ragion d'essere che aveva perduta; quelle
trattative, pero, dovevano avere limiti non solo di tempo ma di
dignita, al di la dei quali si sarebbero compromessi, insieme,
gl'interessi e il decoro del nostro paese.
Per la tutela, dunque, di tali supreme ragioni, il Governo
del Re d'ltalia si vide costretto a notificare al Governo Imperiale
e Reale d'Austria-Ungheria, il giorno 4 di questo mese di maggio
191 5, il ritiro d'ogni sua proposta d'accordo, la denunzia del
trattato d'alleanza e la dichiarazione della propria liberta d'azione.
Ne, d'altra parte, era piii possibile lasciare I'ltalia in un isolamento
senza sicurta e senza prestigio, proprio nel momento in cui la
storia del mondo sta attraversando una fase decisiva.
Ora, nel nome della Patria e per la devozione ad essa, noi
fervidamente rivolgiamo il piu commosso appello al Parlamento e
al Paese: che tutti i dissensi si compongano e che su di essi, da
tutte le parti, sinceramente discenda I'oblio.
I contrasti di partiti e di classi, le opinioni individual!, in tempi
ordinari rispettabili sempre, le ragioni stesse, insomma, che dan
vita al quotidiano fecondo contrasto di tendenze e di principi,
debbono oggi sparire di fronte a una necessita che supera ogni
altra necessita, a un'idealita che infiamma piii d'ogni altra idealita:
la fortuna e la grandezza d'ltalia.
Ogni altra cosa dobbiamo da oggi dimenticare, e ricordar
questa sola: di essere tutti Italiani, di amar tutti I'ltalia con la
medesima fede e con il medesimo fervore. Le forze di tutti s'in-
tegrino in una forza sola; i cuori di tutti si rinsaldino in un sol
cuore; una sola unanime volonta guidi verso la meta invocata;
e forza e cuore e volonta trovino la loro espressione — una, viva
ed eroica — nell'esercito e nell'armata d'ltalia e nel Capo Augusto
che li conduce verso i destini della nuova storia.
L'ENTRATA DELL'ITALIA 563
XII
La dichiarazione di guerra del govemo d'ltalia
airimpero austro-ungarico (23 maggio 1915).
II 23 maggio 191 5 il governo di Vittorio Emanuele III
re d'ltalia, incitato, anzi costretto dalla grande maggioranza
della nazione (quasi i nove decimi), presentava, per mezzo
del duca d'Avarna ambasciatore italiano a Vienna, la se-
guente dichiarazione di guerra al ministro degli afFari esteri
d'Austria-Ungheria :
Vienna, 23 maggio 1915.
Secondo le istruzioni ricevute da Sua Maesta il Re, mio
augusto Sovrano, io qui sottoscritto ho ronore di partecipare a Sua
Eccellenza il Ministro degli Esteri d'Austria-Ungheria la seguente
dichiarazione:
Gid il 4 del mese di maggio 191 5 vennero comunicati al Governo
Imperiale e Reale i motivi per i quali V Italia, fiduciosa nel suo buon
diritto, ha considerato decaduto il trattato d'alleanza con VAustria-
Ungheria violato dal Governo Imperiale e Reale, lo ha dichiarato
per I'avvenire nullo e senz'effetto, ed ha ripreso la sua lihertd d'azione.
II Governo del Re, fermamente deciso di assicurare con tutti
i mezzi a sua disposizione la difesa dei diritti e degli interessi ita-
liani, non trascurerd il suo dovere di prendere contro qualunque
minaccia presente e futura quelle misure che vengano imposte dagli
avvenimenti per realizzare le aspirazioni nazionali.
Sua Maesta il Re dichiara che I'ltalia si considera in istato di
guerra con V Austria-Ufigheria da doniani {24 maggio 1915)-
Io qui sottoscritto ho I'onore di comunicare nello stesso tempo
a Sua Eccellenza il Ministro degli Esteri austro-ungarico che i
passaporti vengono oggi consegnati airambasciatore imperiale e
reale a Roma.
Saro grato se vorra provvedere a farmi consegnare i miei.
Il Duca d'Avarna.
564 PARTE TERZA
XIII
L'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe, in un proclama
diretto ai suoi popoli il 24 maggio 1915, accusa di tradi-
mento Vittorio Emanuele III re d'ltalia.
II giorno dopo — 24 maggio 191 5 — l'imperatore austro-
ungarico Francesco Giuseppe pubblicava il seguente pro-
clama:
Ai miei popoli.
II Re d'ltalia ci ha dichiarato la guerra. Un tradimento
quale la storia non conosce fu compiuto dal Re d'ltalia contro i
suoi due alleati. Dopo un'alleanza d'oltre trent'anni, durante la
quale I'ltalia pote ampliare il suo territorio e spiegare un'impensata
fortuna di sviluppo, I'ltalia ci abbandona e passa a bandiera spie-
gata nel campo nemico.
Noi non minacciammo I'ltalia, non diminuimmo il suo prestigio,
non intaccammo ne i suoi beni ne i suoi interessi; osservammo
sempre i nostri doveri d'alleata e le accordammo la nostra difesa
quando ando in guerra. Facemmo di piu: quando I'ltalia rivolse
i suoi cupidi sguardi sopra i nostri confini, ci decidemmo, per
mantenere la pace e I'alleanza, a grandi e dolorosi sacrifici che
riuscivano particolarmente penosi al nostro cuore paterno. Ma
I'avidita italiana, che credeve di dovere sfruttare il momento, fu
insaziabile. Si compia dunque il destino.
Le mie armate, in fedele fratellanza d'armi con quelle del mio
altissimo alleato, hanno sostenuto vittoriosamente una gigantesca
lotta di dieci mesi col potente nemico dell'Est.
II nuovo perfido nemico del Sud non e un ayversario nuovo.
I grandi ricordi di Novara, Mortara, Custoza, Lissa, che formano
I'orgoglio della mia gioventu; lo spirito di Radetzky, dell'arciduca
Alberto e di TegetthofF ^ che vive nel mio esercito e nella mia
armata, mi garantiscono che sapremo difendere con successo
anche a sud i confini della Monarchia.
Saluto le mie truppe provate alia vittoria e i loro capi, con
fiducia che il mio popolo, al cui mirabile spirito di sacrificio devo
la mia profonda gratitudine, preghi I'Altissimo perche benedica
la nostra bandiera e prenda sotto la sua protezione la nostra
giusta causa.
Francesco Giuseppe.
' L'ammiraglio austriaco che a Lissa (20 luglio 1866) vinse !a flotta italiana.
LE ACCUSE GERMANICHE 565
XIV
II " violento e menzognero " discorso pronunziato dal
cancelliere germanico Bethmann-HoUweg contro
I'ltalia al Reichstag di Berlino il 28 maggio 1915.
II cancelliere germanico Bethmann-Hollweg, nella seduta
del 28 maggio 191 5 al Reichstag di Berlino, pronunzio il
seguente discorso:
Quando otto giorni or sono presi la parola, esisteva ancora la
speranza che sarebbe stato possibile evitare la guerra dell'Italia.
La speranza rimase delusa; ci si rifiutava di credere in Germania al-
ia sola possibilita di un tale cambiamento di rotta. Oggi il Governo
Italiano ha scritto per sempre nel libro della storia dei popoli a
lettere di sangue il suo atto sleale.
Fu, credo, Machiavelli il quale disse un giorno che una
guerra necessarin e anche una guerra giusta; ora questa guerra
dell'Italia, considerata dal punto di vista puramente realista,
facendo astrazione da ogni preoccupazione morale, eessanecessaria?
Non e essa, piuttosto, insensata?
Nessuno, ne in Austria ne in Germania, minacciava I'ltalia.
La storia dira piu tardi se questa si e lasciata sedurre dalle belle
promesse dell'Intesa. L'ltalia poteva ottenere una serie di con-
cessioni, delle quali ho dato recentemente notizia: i territori del
Tirolo e dell'Isonzo ove si parla italiano, I'accoglimento delle
rivendicazioni italiane a Trieste, mani libere in Albania, il porto
di grande valore di Vallona.
Perche I'ltalia non accetto tali ofFerte? Pretende essa di
conquistare il Tirolo? Allora abbasso le mani! Desidera essa di
urtarsi con la Germania, la quale tanto fece per elevarla al grado
di grande Potenza e dalla quale non e separata da alcuna di-
scordanza d'interessi? Non ho lasciato sussistere al Reichstag
nessun dubbio a tale riguardo: un attacco italiano contro le
truppe austro-ungariche si sarebbe urtato egualmente contro
le truppe tedesche.
Perche I'ltalia respinse le proposte austriache? II manifesto
italiano pubblicato in occasione della dichiarazione di guerra,
in cui la cattiva coscienza viene dissimulata sotto frasi vuote, non
da alcuna spiegazione. Si e forse imbarazzati a dichiarare aperta-
mente cio che si diceva nelle conversazioni dei circoli parlamen-
566 PARTE TERZA
tari, e cioe che le ofFerte austriache furono fatte troppo tardi e
non si doveva fidarsene? Che vuol dire cio in realta? Gli uomini
di Stato italiani non avevano alcun diritto di accordare la loro
fiducia alia lealta della nostra Nazione, soltanto nella misura della
loro fedelta ai trattati. La Germania dette la sua parola che le
concessioni austriache sarebbero state realizzate, percio non era il
caso di diffidare. Perche troppo tardi? II 4 maggio 191 5 il
Trentino non aveva cessato di essere cio che era per I'innanzi,
e al Trentino venne ad aggiungersi tutta una serie di concessioni
alle quali non si era pensato nell'inverno. Se era troppo tardi,
non era piuttosto perche gli uomini di Stato romani non avevano
avuto timore, molto tempo prima, mentre la Triplice Alleanza
esisteva ancora — alleanza di cui il re e il governo d'ltalia avevano
formalmente riconosciuto I'esistenza anche dopo lo scoppio della
guerra — di compromettersi cosi gravemente con le Potenze della
Triplice Intesa da non potersi piii liberare dalla stretta? Gia fin
dal dicembre 1914 si poterono constatare gl'indizi del cambia-
mento del Gabinetto romano, perche e sempre utile avere il ferro
nel fuoco. Del resto I'ltalia non ha mai cessato, anche tempo
addietro, di dimostrare la sua predilezione per i giri di valzer;
ma non c'e ora una sala da ballo, c'e un sanguinoso campo di batta-
glia in cui la Germania e I'Austria-Ungheria lottano per la vita
contro un mondo di nemici. Gli uomini di Stato italiani gioca-
rono contro il loro popolo lo stesso gioco che contro di noi.
Indubbiamente il paese di lingua italiana situato alia frontiera
del nord era oggetto dei sogni e dei desideri di ogni italiano; ma il
popolo, nella sua grande maggioranza, e la maggioranza parla-
mentare von volevano saperne afFatto della guerra. Durante i
primi giorni di maggio del 191 5, secondo le osservazioni del migliore
conoscitore delle cose italiane, il Senato (4 maggio 191 5) e la
Camera dei deputati (12 maggio 1915), compresi gli uomini di
Stato i pill seri, erano ancora contro la guerra.
Abbiamo fatto di tutto per impedire che ITtalia si distaccasse
dall'alleanza. Per questo fine ci e toccato il compito ingrato di
suggerire alia nostra fedele alleata, con gli eserciti della quale le
nostre truppe condividono giornalmente morte e vittoria, di com-
prare la fedelta della terza alleata, cedendole territori acquisiti
da molto tempo. £ noto che I'Austria ando fine all'estremo limite
delle concessioni.
E il principe di Bulow, nuovamente al servizio attivo dellTm-
pero, mise in opera con instancabile energia tutta la sua abilita
diplomatica e la sua conoscenza cosi precisa degli uomini e delle
LA DIFESA DELL'ITALIA 567
cose in Italia per determinare I'accordo. Se anche il suo lavoro
riusci vano, il popolo intero gliene e riconoscente lo stesso.
XV
Antonio Salandra presidente dei ministri d'ltalia, in
un solenne discorso documentato, pronunziato nel
Campidoglio a Roma il 2 giugno 1915, difende I'ltalia dalle
accuse dell'imperatore austro-ungarico e del cancelliere
germanico.*
II 2 giugno 191 5 il primo ministro d'ltalia, Antonio
Salandra, pronunzio nel Campidoglio a Roma, nella gran-
diosa sala degli Orazi, il seguente memorabile discorso:
Occorre che della giustizia della nostra causa, della santita
della nostra guerra gl'Italiani d'ogni ceto abbiano non solo, come
meravigliosamente mostrano d'avere, la sensazione spontanea,
istintiva, profonda, ma anche la persuasione ragionata. Occorre
ne sia persuaso il mondo civile.
Airitalia e al mondo civile io mi rivolgo, per mostrare non con
parole veementi, ma con fatti precisi e documentati, come la
rabbia nemica abbia invano tentato di sminuire I'alta dignita
morale e politica della causa che le nostre armi faranno prevalere.
Parlero con la serena compostezza della quale ha dato no-
bilissimo esempio il Re d'ltalia chiamando alle armi i suoi soldati
di terra e di mare.^ Parlero come debbo, osservando il rispetto
dovuto al mio grado e al luogo onde parlo. Potro non curare le
ingiurie scritte nei proclami imperiali, reali e arciducali. Poiche
^ Questo discorso fu pubblicato neH'ottobre 1915 dai giornali nord-americani,
ma mutilate e travisato in piu parti, specialmente nella parte documentata.
^ Vittorio Emanuele III re d'ltalia, assumendo il comando supremo delle
forze di terra e di mare, emano il seguente ordine del giorno:
"Soldati di terra e di mare!
"L'ora solenne delle rivendicazioni nazionali e suonata.
"Seguendo I'esempio del mio Grande Avo, assumo oggi il comando supremo
delle forze di terra e di mare, con sicura fede nella vittoria che il vostro valore, la
vostra abnegazione, la vostra disciplina sapranno conseguire.
"II nemico che vi accingete a combattere e agguerrito e degno di voi. Favorito
dal terreno e dai sapienti apprestamenti dell'arte, egli vi opporra tenace resistenza,
ma il vostro imdomito slancio sapra, di certo, superarla.
"Soldati, a voi la gloria di piantare il tricolore d'ltalia sui terreni sacri che
natura pose ai confini della Patria nostra, a voi la gloria di compiere, finalmente,
I'opera con tanto eroismo iniziata dai nostri padri.
"Gran Quartiere Generale, 26 maggio 1915.
"ViTTORio Emanuele."
568 PARTE TERZA
parlo dal Campidoglio e rappresento in quest'ora solenne il Popolo
e il Governo d'ltalia, io, modesto borghese, mi sento di gran lunga
piij nobile del capo degli Asburgo-Lorena.
I mediocri uomini di Stato, i quali con temeraria leggerezza,
errando in tutte le loro previsioni, appiccarono nel luglio del 1914
il fuoco all'Europa intera e alle stesse loro case, accorgendosi ora
del nuovo colossale errore, nei Parlamenti di Budapest e di Berlino
si sono sfogati con brutali parole contro I'ltalia e contro il suo
Governo, col fine evidente di farsi perdonare dai loro concittadini,
ubriacandoli con truci visioni di odio e di sangue. II Cancelliere
deirimpero germanico disse essere egli compreso, se non di odio,
di collera. E dovette dire il vero; poiche egli ragiono male, come
si ragiona negli accessi di furore. Io non saprei, se anche volessi,
imitare il loro linguaggio. II ritorno atavistico alia barbaric
primitiva e piu difficile a noi che ne siamo di venti secoli piu
lontani.
Ma non badiamo alle parole; atteniamoci alle ragioni ed ai
fatti.
La tesi fondamentale degli uomini di Stato deglTmperi Cen-
trali si racchiude nelle due parole tradimento e sorpresa rivolte
airitalia, tradimento e sorpresa verso i suoi fedeli alleati. Sa-
rebbe facile domandare se abbia il diritto di parlare di alleanza e di
rispetto ai trattati chi, rappresentando con tanta minor genialita
di mente ma con uguale indifferenza morale la tradizione di Fe-
derico il Grande e di Ottone di Bismarck, ha proclamato che
necessitd non ha legge, ed ha acconsentito che il suo paese calpestas-
se, bruciasse, seppellisse in fondo all'Oceano tutti i documenti e
tutte le civili consuetudini del diritto pubblico internazionale.
Ma sarebbe troppo facile e soltanto pregiudiziale argomento.
Esaminiamo invece positivamente se gli alleati abbiano il diritto
di dirsi traditi e sorpresi da noi.
Note da gran tempo erano le nostre aspirazioni, e noto era il
nostro giudizio sopra I'atto di follia criminale pel quale essi —
gli alleati — scompigliarono il mondo e tolsero all'alleanza stessa
la sua intima ragione d'essere.
II Libro Verde preparato da Sidney Sonnino, che piu d'ogni
altro fascicolo di documenti diplomatici e penetrato nella coscienza
del popolo italiano, dimostra le lunghissime penose trattative
trascinatesi dal dicembre 1914 al maggio 191 5. Ma non e vero,
come artificiosamente si tenta far credere, che il Ministero, rico-
stituitosi nel novembre 1914, mutasse I'indirizzo della nostra
politica internazionale.
LA DIFESA DELL'ITALIA 569
II Governo italiano, la cui linea di condotta nonha mai mutato,
giudico severamente, al momento stesso che ne ebbe conoscenza,
I'aggressione dell'Austria alia Serbia, e ne previde le conseguenze
non prevedute da coloro che con tanta incoscienza avevano pre-
meditate il colpo.
Eccone la prova.
Leggero, perche si tratta di documenti .
II 25 luglio 1914 (due giorni dopo che I'Austria aveva consegnato
la famosa notz-ultimatum alia Serbia) il marchese di San Giuliano,
ministro degli esteri del Regno d'Italia,telegrafava al duca d'Avar-
na ambasciatore italiano a Vienna come segue:
Oggi abbiamo avuto una lunga conversazione a ire — il Pre-
sidente del Consiglio dei ministri, il signor Flotow {ambasciatore
gernianico in Roma) ed io — che riassumo per informazione personale
di Vostra Eccellenza e per eventuale norma di linguaggio.
Abbiamo — Salandra ed io — fatto notare anzitictto air am-
basciatore che r Austria non avrebbe avuto il diritto, secondo Io
spirito del trattato della Triplice Alleanza, di fare un passo come
quello che ha fatto a Belgrado, senza previo accordo coi suoi alleati.
V Austria infatti, pel modo come la Nota alia Serbia e concepiia
e per le cose che domanda, le quali, mentre sono poco efficaci contro
il pericolo panserbo, sono profondamente offensive per la Serbia
e indirettamente per la Russia, ha chiaramente dimostrato che vuole
provocare una guerra. Abbiamo percio detto al signor Flotow che,
per tal modo di procedere deW Austria e per il carattere difensivo
e conservatore del trattato della Triplice Alleanza, I'ltalia non ha
obbligo di venire in aiuto deW Austria in caso che, per effetto di
questo suo passo, essa si trovi poi in guerra con la Russia, poiche
qualsiasi guerra europea e in questo caso conseguenza di un atto di
provocazione e di aggressione dell' Austria.
Poco dopo, il 27 o 28 luglio 1914, noi ponemmo a chiare note
a Berlino e a Vienna la questione della cessione delle province italia-
ne dell'Austria; e dichiarammo che se non si ottenessero adeguati
compensi (leggo le testuali parole), la Triplice Alleanza sarebbe
stata irreparabilmente spezzata.
La storia imparziale dira che I'Austria, avendo trovata I'ltalia
ostile nel luglio 191 3 enell'ottobredello stesso anno ai suoi propositi
di aggressione alia Serbia, tento Testate scorsa (1914), d'accordo
con la Germania, la via della sorpresa e del fatto compiuto.
L'esecrando delitto di Serajevo fu sfruttato come un pretesto
un mese dopo ch'era stato compiuto. Lo prova il rifiuto austriaco
di accettare le profferte remissive della Serbia. Ne al momento
570 PARTE TERZA
della conflagrazione generale si sarebbe contentata I'Austria
dell'accettazione integrale deW ultimatum. II 31 luglio 1914 il
conte Berchtold (ministro degli esteri d'Austria-Ungheria)
dichiarava al nostro ambasciatore a Vienna che, ove la mediazione
avesse potuto essere esercitata, non avrehhe dovuto fare interrompere
le ostilitd gid iniziate con la Serbia. Era la mediazione intorno a
cui s'afFaticavano I'lnghilterra e I'ltalia. In ogni caso il conte
Berchtold non era disposto ad accettare la mediazione intesa ad
attenuare le condizioni indicate nella Nota austro-ungarica, le quali
non avrehhero potuto naturalmente che essere aumentate alia fine della
gtierra. D^altra parte, se la Serbia si fosse decisa nel frattempo di
aderire sen'z altro alia Nota suddetta, dichiarandosi pronta ad ese-
guire le condizioni impostele, cid non avrebbe potuto indurre ilGoverno
Imperiale e Reale a cessare le ostilitd.
E non e vero che I'Austria s'impegnasse, come ha detto il
Presidente del Consiglio ungherese, a non compiere acquisti
territoriali a danno della Serbia, la quale, del resto, accettando tutte
le condizioni impostele, sarebbe diventata, se anche territorialmen-
te integra, uno Stato vassallo.
II 30 luglio 1914 I'ambasciatore austriaco in Roma, Merey,
disse al marchese di San Giuliano le seguenti parole:
V Austria non pud fare una dichiarazione impegnativa al riguar-
do, perche non pud prevedere se, nel corso della guerra, non sard
obbligata, contro la sua volontd, a conservare dei territori serbi.
E il 29 luglio 1914 Berchtold aveva fatto intendere ad Avarna
che non sarebbe stato disposto a prendere impegno alcuno circa
quanto gli aveva detto in ordine aW eventuale condotta deW Austria
nel caso di conflitto con la Serbia.
Dov'e dunque il tradimento, dove I'iniquita, dove la sorpresa
se, dopo nove mesi di sforzi vani per arrivare ad un'intesa onorevole
la quale riconoscesse in equa misura i nostri diritti e tutelasse i
nostri interessi, noi riprendemmo la nostra liberta d'azione e
provvedemmo come I'interesse della Patria ci consigliava?
Sta invece in fatti che Austria e Germania credettero fino
agli ultimi giorni di avere a fare con un'Italia imbelle, rumorosa
ma non fattiva, capace di tentare un ricatto, non mai di far valere
con le armi il suo buon diritto, con un'Italia che si potesse para-
lizzare spendendo qualche milione di lire e frapponendosi con in-
confessabili raggiri fra il Paese e il Governo.
Sovrani e ministri hanno parlato dell'alleanza, che noi abbiamo
denunciata dopo ch'essi sostanzialmente I'avevano infranta,
come di una Provvidenza sotto le cui grandi ali I'ltalia ha vissuto
LA DIFESA DELL'ITALIA 571
per tanti anni, si e sviluppata economicamenteesie territorialmen-
te accresciuta. Non neghero, sarebbe stoltezza, i benefici del-
Talleanza; benefici pero non unilateral!, ma di tutti i contraenti,
e non forse piu di noi che degli altri. Perche, altrimenti, gl'Imperi
Centrali I'avrebbero voluta e rinnovata? Era forse un sentimen-
tale, un innamorato del bel paese dove fiorisce I'arancio, il prin-
cipe Ottone di Bismarck? E furono forse in qualunque tempo
teneri di noi i principi e gli uomini di governo della Monarchia
austro-ungarica ?
Giova sapere in realta, e con precisione di date e di fatti, come
abbia funzionato I'alleanza in questi ultimi anni nel suo spirit©
vero e come abbia contribuito al nostro unico ingrandimento
territoriale che fu I'impresa di Libia.
II continue sospetto, le intenzioni aggressive della Monarchia
austro-ungarica contro I'alleata sono notorie e risultano da prove
autentiche.
II capo dello stato maggiore austriaco generate Conrad ha
sostenuto sempre il concetto che la guerra contro V Italia e inevita-
bile, sia per la questione delle province irredente, sia per la gelosia
del Regno d" Italia al riguardo di tutto cid che la Monarchia austro-
ungarica intraprende nei Balcani e nel Mediterraneo orientale.
E altrove:
V Italia vuole estendersi non appena si sia preparata; e intanto si
oppone a tutto cid che noi vogliamo intraprendere nei Balcani. Ne
consegue che bisogna batterla per aver noi le mani libere.
E deplorava che fin dal 1908 non si fosse attaccata I'ltalia.^
Lo stesso Minister© austriaco degli afFari esteri riconosceva
che nel partito militare dell'Impero era diffusa Vopinione che si
debba opprimere in guerra il Regno d' Italia, perche da questo viene
la forza d'attrazione per le province italiane dell'Impero; e che quindi,
con la vittoria sul Regno d'ltalia e il suo annientamento politico^
cesserebbe ogni speranza per gl'irredenti. Intanto, fino al momenta
della guerra, si dovrebbero opprimere le province italiane col rigore
penale e con I'opporsi ad ogni desiderio riguardante le questioni di
cultural
^ A pie d'una relazione sugli apparecchi militari al confine italo-austriaco, il
suddetto generale Conrad scrisse:
"Oh, perche non fui ascoltato quando propugnai di attaccare I'ltalia nel 1908?"
In altri termini lo zelante capo dello stato maggiore austro-ungarico rimpian-
geva I'opportunita di invadere I'ltalia, che I'Austria s'era fatta sfuggire allorquando
ritalia fu colpita daH'orribile terremoto calabro-siculo della fine di dicembre del
1908!
*I1 conte Berchtold riconobbe pur esso "la gravita del problema degl'Italiani
dell'impero austriaco", ma afFermo trattarsi di un male "senza rimedio". Invece
V Armee Zeitung confesso francamente che " bisognava distruggere quegritaliani
572 PARTE TERZA
Da questo pensiero risulta evidente con quanta sincerita e
buona fede sia stata trascinata per tanti anni la questione del-
rUniversita italiana a Trieste!
Ed ora vediamo come gli alleati ci abbiano alutato nell'acquisto
della Libia.
Non diro se non cio che risulta da documenti.
Le operazioni brillantemente iniziate dal Duca degli Abruzzi
contro le torpediniere turche raccolte a Prevesa furono arrestate
dall'Austria in modo brusco e assoluto. II conte Aehrenthal
(allora ministro degli esteri d'Austria-Ungheria) significava il i°
ottobre 191 1 al nostro ambasciatore a Vienna che le nostre opera-
zioni militari lo avevano penosamente impressionato e che non si
poteva ammettere che esse continuassero; era urgente che vi fosse
posto termine, e che ordini fossero dati per impedire che esse avve-
nissero di nuovo nelle acque sia deWAdriatico sia deWIonio.
Piu minacciosamente ancora il giorno dopo I'ambasciatore di
Germania a Vienna informava confidenzialmente il nostro amba-
sciatore che Aehrenthal lo aveva pregato di telegrafare al propria
Governo che facesse intendere al Governo italiano che se avesse con-
iinuato nelle sue operazioni navali neW Adriatic e neWIonio, il
Governo italiano avrebhe avuto a che fare direttamente con V Austria}
E non soltanto nell'Adriatico e nellTonio I'Austria paralizzava
la nostra azione. II 5 novembre 191 1 il conte Aehrenthal in-
formava il duca D'Avarna di aver saputo che alcune navi da guerra
italiane erano state segnalate nelle vicinanze di Salonicco, dove
avrebbero proceduto a proiezioni a luce elettrica, e dichiarava che
una nostra azione sulle coste ottomane della Turchia europea, come
sulle isole del Mare Egeo, non avrehhe potuto essere ammessa ne
daW Austria ne dalla Germania, perche contraria al trattato della
Triplice Alleanza.
per supreme ragioni strategiche, per non trovarsi ad avere elementi infidi alle
spalle nel giorno in cui I'Ausfria avesse dichiarato guerra all'Italia".
E dei preparativi di guerra dell'Austria contro I'ltalia, non mai deprecati dalla
Germania, fu recato un giorno alia Camera italiana in Roma un singolar documento,
un manuale-vocabolario di dialoghi tedesco-italiani per uso dell'escercito austriaco,
preordinato al piano d'invasione dell'Italia e garantito nella sua autenticita, non
mai smentita dal governo di Vienna, dal bollo del Comando militate di Gratz.
Si provvedeva, nel detto manuale-vocabolario, alia traduzione delle domande di
maggiore urgenza e utilita, per quando le truppe austriache avessero varcato i
confini del Regno d'ltalia.
"Qual'e Tanimo dei soldati italiani? Sono essi alteri, baldanzosi, sfiduciati,
tristi?"
"Dove sono chiusi i denari erariali? Dove stanno i deposit! del grano, del vino,
dei viveri?"
^ Risulto pcrfino che il governo austriaco, per i pochi proiettili lanciati allora
dalle siluranti del Duca degli Abruzzi contro Prevesa, mise le navi della propria
squadra in pressione.
LA DIFESA DELL'ITALIA 573
Nel marzo del 1912 Berchtold, succeduto frattanto ad Aehren-
thal, dichiarava aH'ambasciatore di Germania in Vienna che
per cid che riguardava una nostra operazione contro le coste ottomane
europee e le isole deWEgeo, egli manteneva il punto di vista di Aehren-
tkal, secondo il quale quelle operazioni erano considerate dal Governo
Imperiale e Reale contrarie agfimpegni da noi assunti con I'articolo
7 del trattato della Triplice Alleanza. Quanta alia nostra operazione
contro i Dardanelli S egli la considerava in opposizione: i°. alia
promessa da noi fatta di non procedere ad alcun atto che potesse
mettere a cimento lo statu quo dei Balcani; 2°. alio spirito stesso del
trattato che si basava sul mantenimento di quello statu quo.
Di poi, quando la nostra squadra, trovandosi all'imboccatura
dei Dardanelli, veniva bombardata dai forti turchi di Kum Kalessi
e rispondeva danneggiando i forti stessi, Berchtold si lamento
deH'accaduto, considerandolo in contradizione delle promessa
fatte; e dichiaro che se il Regio Governo italiano desiderava riprendere
la sua libertd d'azione, il Governo Imperiale e Reale avrehbe potuto
fare altrettayito. Aggiunse che non avrebbe potuto ammettere che
noi avessimo fatto in avvenire operazioni simili a quelle compiute,
o in qualsiasi modo in opposizione al suo punto di vista.
Cosi pure ci fu impedita la disegnata occupazione di Chio.^
Non occorre rilevare quante vite di soldati italiani e quanti
milioni di lire ci sia costato il persistente impedimento ad ogni
nostra azione risolutiva contro la Turchia, la quale si sapeva
protetta dalle nostre alleate contro ogni attacco alia sua parti
vitali.'
^ Allude ad alcune torpediniere italiane che riuscirono, in quell'anno 1912, a
penetrare nello Stretto dei Dardanelli, compiendo un arditissimo raid.
^ Isola turca nel Mare Egeo.
' E nelle conferenze diplomatiche di Londra per la guerra della Lega Balcanica
contro la Turchia (1912-1913), I'Austria, "traendo" seco I'ltalia, "impose"
I'esclusione del Montenegro dalla conquistata Scutari e la creazione di quella
Albania autonoma e indipendente, dove, nelle rispettive zone d'influenza — a
Durazzo I'Austria, a Vallona I'ltalia — le due Potenze alleate credevasi avrebbero
trovato il modo di soddisfare e far tacere alcune cause della loro innegabile fatale
rivalita. Senonche le incessanti trattative fra I'Austria e I'ltalia diedero ripetuta-
mente la sensazione della scarsa sincerita dell'Austria verso I'ltalia, specialmente da
quando, nel marzo 1914, fu insediato sul trono della nuova Albania il tedesco
principe Guglielmo di Wied, attorno al quale, non v'ha dubbio, I'Austria creo
tutto un lavorio d'intrigo cattolico-austrofilo-antitaliano, che non fu I'ultima causa
di quella pertinace ribellione degli elementi albanesi-musulmani guardanti (naturale
reazione) con simpatia all'influenza italiana, onde si vide, nel settembre 1914,
dileguarsi, tra il turbinio della piu grande guerra, I'effimera sovranita del principe
piovuto in Albania dalla Germania.
La lotta austriaca nell'Albania mirava a fare della costa albanese una barriera
impenetrabile ai traffici italiani verso I'Oreinte.
E a tutto il Mediterraneo italiano s'estesero I'invidia e la gara.
Cosi quando, d'accordo coU'Inghilterra, I'ltalia ottenne nell'Asia Minora —
574 PARTE TERZA
Un altro rimprovero che ci e stato amaramente fatto e di non
esserci accontentati delle prodigiose concessioni le quali ci furono
offerte in questi ultimi tempi.
Anzitutto si potrebbe domandare: Queste concessioni erano
offerte in buona fede? II sospetto nasce leggendo gli ultimi
documenti.
L'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe ha detto che I'ltalia guardava
con cupidi sguardi verso il patrimonio della sua Casa.
II cancelliere Bethmann-HoUweg ha detto che con queste
concessioni s'intendeva comperare la nostra jedeltd. E allora, o
signori, applauditeci per non averle accettate.
Ma guardiamo tuttavia alia sostanza delle cose. Queste
concessioni, pur movendo dall'ultima tardiva edizione che pervenne
nelle mani del Ministro degli Esteri e mie dopo ch'era stata tra le
mani di uomini politici e di giornalisti di varia provenienza . . . ,
queste tardive concessioni, se pure le avessimo potuto accettare
per buone, non rispondevano in alcun modo agli obiettivi che la
politica italiana doveva proporsi.
Tali obiettivi possono ridursi a tre: i°. la difesa dell'italianita, il
maggiore nostro dovere; 2°. un confine militare sicuro, che sostituis-
se quello che nel 1866 ci fu imposto e per il quale le porte e le
sponde d'ltalia sono aperte ai nostri avversari; 3°. una posizione
strategica nell'Adriatico meno malsicura, meno infelice di quella
che abbiamo e di cui si vedono in questi giorni gli effetti.
Tutti questi vantaggi, per noi essenziali, ci erano sostanzial-
mente negati.
L'offerta, a grado a grado accresciuta, del Trentino, non
arrivava, non e maiarrivata, all'Alto Adige, ed escludeval'Ampez-
zano, quella Cortina in cui i nostri soldati sono ora gloriosamente
giunti, nonche la parte superiore, indubbiamente italiana, della
Val di Non, col pretesto per I'Ampezzano che si trattasse non di
genti italiane ma di genti ladine: come se la differenza fra ladini
e italiani non fosse infinitamente minore che fra ladini e tedeschi.
E noi non vi aspiravamo per I'importanza di quel territori, ma
perche col confine segnatoci dall'Austria, in cui potere sarebbero
rimaste le testate delle valli, avremmo avuto, come prima, aperte
le porte di casa nostra.^
a Adalia — una concessione ferroviaria, gli spettri degli alleati la seguirono, Cia-
scuno di essi secondo il suo metodo: I'Austria, che non ci aveva pensato mai,
reclamo una zona accanto a quella dove avea da sorgere la ferrovia italiana; e la
Germania s'affretto a mandarvi gli agenti della Deutsche Bank, i quali, col pretesto
di vendere macchine agricole, ccrcarono d'accaparrarsi essi i terreni attraverso i
quali doveva correre la linca ferroviaria italiana.
' A proposito del nuovo confine ofFerto dal governo austriaco all'Italia, il pro-
fessor Gino Fani del Politecnico di Torino fece notare, in una sua conferenza, come
LA DIFESA DELL'ITALIA 575
Nel Libro Verde si puo leggere un ingenuo documento austriaco
in cui si dice press'a poco: Noy questo non possiamo darvelo,
perche ci guasterebbe il confine militare. Ma non si trattava di un
confine militare di difesa per I'Austria, nel qual caso sarebbe stata
giusta la pretesa di non lasciarsi aperta la porta di casa sua, bensi
di un confine militare di ofFesa per I'ltalia, perche si trattava —
lo ripeto — di lasciare aperte le porte di casa nostra.
SuU'Adriatico nessuna concessione ci fu mai offerta, neanche
all'ultimo. E quando noi, col pianto nell'anima, ma pensando
che ogni massimo sforzo si dovesse fare per evitare la guerra, ci
piegammo a chiedere come minimo che Trieste e una zona circo-
stante fossero considerate non parte del Regno d'ltalia, ma non
piu parte dell'Impero austriaco e fossero costituite a Stato libero,
questo ci fu negato, e a Trieste si promise che cosa? I'autonomia
amministrativa!
Un altro punto importantissimo della questione dibattuta
fu quello della esecuzione.
lo penso che cosa avreste detto voi, voi Italiani, che cosa
avrebbe detto il nostro Parlamento se noi, uomini di governo, ci
fossimo presentati annunziando che eravamo in pieno accordo con
TAustria-Ungheria, che avremmo avuto una parte del Trentino e
qualche altro piccolo lembo di terra non oltre ITsonzo, ma a pace
compiuta. La pace compiuta, poi, si attenuo con I'offerta, nell'ul-
timissimo giorno, della nomina di commission! miste le quali
avrebbero studiato il confine, dopo di che sarebbero venute le
ratifiche; e dopo, entro un mese da queste, si sarebbero occupati
i territori. Quanto tempo e quanti probabili cavilli nell'esauri-
mento di questa procedural
Ma ci si oppone che dell'esecuzione non avremmo dovuto
dubitare, perche ci sarebbe stata la guarentigia della Germania.
Supponiamo questa guarentigia data con perfetta intenzione
di dimostrarla efficace. Supponiamo che la Germania alia fine
della guerra sarebbe stata in condizione di poter mantenere la
parola data, cio che non e sicuro; quale sarebbe stata la nostra
"questa nuova ed insidiosa frontiera costituiva una linea convenzionale che lasciava
sempre all'Austria le teste delle nostre valli e quindi la possibilita d'un'invasione
del nostro territorio con nessuna possibilita di difesa quando fosse avvenuta im-
provvisa (I'invasione) e, comunque, difficilissima in qualsiasi momento. Infatti
le teste delle valli di Non, Avisio, Cordevole e Boite, nonche la grande strada
delle Dolomiti (Bolzano-Lago), sarebbero rimaste in mano dell'Austria, per modo
che, mentre avremmo guadagnato qualche nucleo di popolazione italiana, lasciando
sempre fuori dalla madre patria altri importanti nuclei italiani, dal lato politico
e strategico nulla avremmo certo guadagnato.
"Cosicche I'accettazione, mentre costituiva una definitiva rinuncia, continuava
a metterci alia merce della nostra vicina, e aggravava la nostra soggezione."
576 PARTE TERZA
condizione dopo questo accordo? Si sarebbe costituita una nuova
Triplice, una Triplice rinnovata, ma in ben altre e per noi inferiori
condizioni da quella di prima, poiche sarebbe stata formata da uno
Stato sovrano e da due Stati sostanzialmente vassalli.
II giorno in cui una delle clausole del trattato non fosse stata
eseguita, il giorno in cui, dopo breve tempo, dopo anni, I'auto-
nomia municipale di Trieste fosse stata infranta da un qualsiasi
decreto imperiale o da un qualsiasi luogotenente austriaco, a chi
avremmo potuto rivolgerci? Avremmo dovuto ricorrere al co-
mune superiore, alia Germania.
Ora, Signori, io voglio dirvi che della Germania non intendo
parlare senza ammirazione e senza rispetto. Io sono Primo
Ministro d'ltalia, non Cancelliere tedesco, e non perdo il lume della
ragione. Ma, con tutto il rispetto dovuto alia dotta, alia potente,
alia grande Germania, mirabile esempio di organizzazione e di
resistenza, in nome del mio Paese debbo dire: vassallaggio no,
protettorato no, verso nessuno.
II sogno dell'egemonia universale e stato infranto. II mondo
e insorto. La pace e la civilta dell'umanita futura debbono
fondarsi sul rispetto delle compiute autonomic nazionali, tra le
quali la grande Germania dovra vivere pari alle altre, non padrona.
Ma il pill notevole esempio dell'orgoglio smisurato con cui
gli uomini che dirigono la politica dellTmpero germanico conside-
rano le altre nazioni, si trae dal quadro che il cancelliere Bethmann-
Hollweg ha fatto del mondo politico italiano. Voglio leggerlo in
un riassunto piu completo di quelle che fu dato dai giornali, in
un riassunto arrivato il giorno dopo. Ecco che cosa il Cancelliere
germanico disse di noi:
Gli uomini di Stato italianifecero contra il loro popolo il medesimo
giuoco che contra di noi. Senza dubhio il possesso di territori di
lingua italiana al nord delle sue frontiere era oggetta dei sagni e dei
desideri d'ogni italiano. Ma il fatto e che gran parte del popolo
italiano e la maggioranza del Parlamento non volevano saperne della
guerra.
Nei primi giarni di niaggio (191 5), secondo le osservazioni del
miglior conoscitore delle cose italiane, i quattra quinti del Senate
e i due terzi della Camera erano ancora contra la gtierra.
Tra essi si trovavano gli uomini di Stato piu seri ed autorevoli.
Ma la voce del buon sensa non era piu ascoltata; soltanto la plehaglia
regnava.
Con la henevola tolleranza e Vappaggia dei principali membri di
LA DIFESA DELL'ITALIA 577
un Gahinetto rimpinzato (Voro dalla Triplice Intesa, il popolaccio,
guidato da ageyiti provocatori senza scrupoli, fu spinto a frenesia
sanguinariay minacciando al Re la rivoluzione e a tutti i vioderati
Vassassinio, se non si fossero ahbandonati al delirio della guerra.
Si lascio, per deliberato proposito, ignorare al popolo italiano
r andamento dei negoziati italiani con V Austria e la portata delle
concessioni austriache, di guisa che, dopo le dimissioni del Gabinetto
Salandra, non si trovo alcuno che avesse il coraggio di accettare e di
formare un nuovo Gabinetto; e nel corso delle discussioni decisive
nessun membro dei partiti costituzionali del Senato e della Camera
tento neppure di apprezzare il valore delle concessioni cost estese
deir Austria. In questa frenesia di guerra, onesti uomini politici
divennero muti. Ma quando, nel seguito delle operazioni viilitari,
come noi speriamo e desideriamo, il popolo italiano sard rientrato
nel buon senso, riconoscerd quanto leggermente sia stato spinto a
partecipare a questa guerra mondiale.
lo non so, Signori, se vi sia stata in quest'uomo (Bethmann-
Hollweg), accecato dalla rabbia, intenzione di ofFendere per-
sonalmente i colleghi miei e me. Se cosi fosse, non lo rileverei.
Uomini noi siamo di cui conoscete il passato, uomini che hanno
servito lo Stato fino a questa tarda eta, uomini di fama inconta-
minata, uomini che danno al paese la vita dei loro figli. Ma non
pensate a noi. Ponete mente invece all'ingiuria atroce che quel
brano di prosa vandalica scaglia contro il Re, contro il popolo
d'ltalia, contro la Camera e il Senato, contro gli stessi uomini
politici che avevano un'opinione politica diversa dalla nostra.
Tutti muti, si disse: dunque tutti vili.
Le informazioni sulle quali questo giudizio e fondato, sono
attribuite dal Cancelliere dell'Impero germanico a quegli che egli
chiama il miglior conoscitore delle cose italiane. Forse allude, con
fraterno desiderio di addossargliene la responsabilita, al principe
di Bulow.
Ora, o Signori, io voglio che delle intenzioni del principe di
Bulow voi non abbiate un erroneo apprezzamento; lo credo che,
animato da vera simpatia per il nostro Paese, egli abbia fatto tutto
quello che poteva per riuscire ad un'intesa. Ma quali e quanti
errori nel tradurre in atto le sue buone intenzioni! Egli suppose
che ritalia potesse sviarsi dalla sua rotta per qualche milione di
lire male speso, per I'influenza di poche persone che hanno perso la
percezione dell'anima nazioriale, per obliqui contatti tentati, ma
spero e credo non riusciti, con uomini politici italiani.
Ne derive refFetto opposto. Un immense scoppio d'indigna-
578 PARTE TERZA
zione si accese in tutta ITtalia, e non nel popolaccio, ma nelle
classi veramente piii elevate, nei cuori piu nobili, in tutti colore
che sentono la dignita della Nazione, nella gioventii che e pronta a
dare all'idealita della Patria il suo purissimo sangue; uno scoppio
di indignazione si accese al sospetto che un'Ambasciata straniera
in Roma si inframmettesse tra Governo, Parlamento e Paese.
In questo fuoco si fusero le discordie interne, e la Nazione
tutta si rinsaldo in una meravigliosa unita morale che sara la
nostra massima forza nel duro cimento e che deve condurci, per
virtu nostra, non per altrui benevola concessione, alia efFettua-
zione dei piii alti destini della Patria.
PARTE QUARTA
I
Prima ragione: Patriottismo.
I fatti narrati nella prima parte di questo lavoro sono il
compendio di cid che ufficialmente si chiama Storia del
Risorgimento Italiano. A eccezione dell'episodio di Balilla,
che si puo considerare, a rigor di logica, come il preludio
di detta storia.
Solo nella forma essi — i fatti in parola — difFeriscono
pill o meno da quelli narrati da altri scrittori. E cio e
naturale, non essendo la forma, massime nelle narrazioni
storiche, se non una riflessa qualita dell'individuo che scrive;
qualita derivante da un complesso di cause puramente
letterarie, estetiche. La sostanza e perfettamente identica.
Ed e anche naturale che sia cosi, non potendo la diversita
della forma, per quanto aulica o ribelle, alterare in verun
modo gli elementi positivi dei fatti, il lor dinamico sub-
strate morale, quella Veritas che regola, sovrastando sempre,
tutte le manifestazioni dell'umano pensiero, tutti i doveri
dell'umana coscienza.
Ora, tali fatti, nella loro suggestiva eloquenza, furono
sempre, dal 1870 in poi, insegnati obbligatoriamente nelle
scuole d'ltalia, giusta i programmi governativi. Furono
sempre rievocati da un'intera letteratura nazionalista sten-
dentesi fino al giornale quotidiano. Furono sempre com-
memorati davanti ai monumenti eretti nelle grandi e nelle
piccole citta italiane ai martiri e agli eroi delle rivoluzioni
e delle guerre liberatrici provocate in Italia dalla crudele
dominazione austriaca. Furono sempre rappresentati dalle
cicatrici, dai ricordi aneddotici, dal patrio entusiasmo dei
veterani ancora sopravviventi. Furono sempre il cibo
spirituale — preponderante, se non unico — di quelle idea-
lita che nutrirono e tennero costantemente satura e vibrante
di se I'intera penisola nella sua risorta unita politica.
579
580 PARTE QUARTA
E questo cumulo di cose, dalle pulsazioni ritmiche
incessant!, non poteva che rattizzare e tenere permanente-
mente acceso, in un popolo passionate come I'italiano,
I'odio d'una volta contro I'Austria. Non poteva che irri-
goglire, anche negli animi i piii francescani, la mala pianta
del patriottismo vendicativo militarista feroce. La mala
pianta che non puo produrre se non un solo frutto: quello
amarissimo e tristissimo della guerra.
£ vero che Giordano Bruno afFermo essere egli un citta-
dino del mondo, figlio della madre Terra e del padre Sole.
£ vero che Tommaso Campanella dimostro essere
impossibile la pace, il buon essere, la felicita senza la re-
pubblica universale.
£ vero che lo stesso Mazzini e lo stesso Garibaldi lot-
tarono, attraverso un sano principio di nazionalita, per la
fratellanza di tutti i popoli.
Ma al pensiero e all'azione di questi sommi Italiani, le
caste privilegiate ebbero cura di contrapporre sempre —
teoricamente e praticamente, a mezzo dei loro asserviti
governi dinastici e non dinastici — I'egoistico vecchio
assioma divide et impera.
Si che i popoli, accecati dall'astuzia e abbrutiti dalla
periidia di siffatte idre parassite, non poterono mai vedere
la luce diffusa dagli apostoli della verita; non poterono mai
assimilate gli elementi rigeneratori profusi dagli apostoli
della civilta; non poterono mai liberarsi da quell'errore
cancrenoso che e il falso patriottismo suaccennato, causa
fondamentale di tutte le calamita, di tutti i dolori che op-
primono, oggi piii che mai, la povera umanita.
Nelle scuole delle different! nazioni (dico nelle scuole,
poiche ivi si plasma la coscienza dei futuri cittadini del
mondo), la storia delle guerre aggressive e delle dominazioni
straniere si dovrebbe insegnare con metodi rigorosamente
compendiosi e oggettivi. Si dovrebbero, cioe, eliminare
dall'insegnamento storico non solo i dettagli di fatto descri-
venti le mostruosita commesse dagli aggressor! e da! domina-
tori, ma anche i comment! esecranti tali mostruosita e
magnificanti gli eroismi, i sacrifici, le magnanimita com-
piuti dai popoli conquistati e tiranneggiati.
IRREDENTISMO 581
Parlando, per esempio, delle Cuique Giornate di MilanOy
i libri di testo e i maestri dovrebbero semplicemente dire:
*'Nel 1848 i Milanesi si ribellarono ai loro dominatori
(gli Austriaci) : e, dopo cinque giorni di lotta, li scacciarono
dalla citta".
Cosi nelle anime sensibili, quanto candide, degli alunni
non si porrebbero i semi velenosi che generano le nemicizie
per cui "I'uomo e poi lupo all'altro uomo", come dice
Orazio.
I dettagli di fatto (per esempio: *'i soldati austriaci,
durante le cinque giornate di Milano, infilzarono bambini
vivi alle baionette, ne inchiodarono ai muri, tagliarono e
intascarono mani inanellate di donne morte") bisognerebbe
lasciarli agli adulti, nei quali I'abito dello studio ha gia
eliminato, o per lo meno attutito, I'esiziale eccitabilita
delle basse passioni; agli adulti, nei quali il processo evolu-
tivo della mente ha gia sviluppato al massimo grado,
o ad un alto grado, il senso della ragione e il suo piia nobile
derivato: I'amore, L'amore per il prossimo.
Si principierebbe in tal modo a curare la maledetta
frenesia della guerra.
E non sarebbe poco!
II
Seconda ragione: Irredentismo.
I fatti, quasi tutti documentati, esposti nella seconda
parte del presente volume, basterebbero da soli a giustili-
care I'entrata dell'Italia nella grande guerra.
Si trattava, da parte degl'Italiani, di liberare migliaia
di fratelli consanguinei oppressi in casa propria — vale
a dire su suolo geograficamente, storicamente, moralmente
italiano — da una tirannide straniera che I'ltalia ben cono-
sceva; migliaia di fratelli consanguinei che, lottando lottando
lottando contro sifFatta tirannide, sempre avevano anelato
e implorato di ritornare nei grembo della primigenia madre
latina.
Si trattava, da parte degl'Italiani, di completare, a
582 PARTE QUARTA
nord-est della loro penisola, I'unita nazionale secondo
la legge di Roma, secondo la legge autorevolmente riaffer-
mata, anzi eternata, dall'Alighieri nella sua Divina Corn-
media (Inferno, canto IX).
a Pola presso del Quarnero,
che Italia chiude e i suoi termini bagna.
Si trattava, da parte degl'Italiani, d'adempiere una
buona volta a un sacro dovere d'amore e d'onore troppo a
lungo protratto.
L'ltalia non avrebbe mai potuto, senza rischio della
propria integrita territoriale e peggio, attaccare da sola
I'Austria, superiore a lei in numero d'abitanti, in ric-
chezza, in preparazione militate e per il sicuro spalleggia-
mento della Germania.
L'ltalia dove attaccare la nemica, soltanto quando
questa si trovo impegnata a fondo nella grande guerra.
Dove attaccarla nel momento propizio, quando la fatalita
storica voile che il martirologio secolare sintetizzato nel
binomio Treyito e Trieste entrasse, alfine, nella sua naturale
fase risolutiva.
Chi oserebbe dare torto al popolo italiano?
Chi oserebbe dire ch'esso, attaccando I'Austria nella
primavera del 191 5, abbia, dal punto di vista patriottica-
mente irredentista, cimentato ingiustamente il proprio
sangue?
Ill
Terza ragione: Una visita non restituita.
L'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe non restitui mai la
visita che i reali d'ltalia — Umberto I e Margherita di
Savoia — gli fecero ufficialmente a Vienna nel 1881.
Perche?
Perche egli avrebbe dovuto recarsi a Roma, dove
Umberto I e Margherita risiedevano.
Ora, Roma non fu mai riconosciuta dal Vaticano come
conquista intangibije e tanto meno come capitale legittima
del Regno d'ltalia.
COESIONE NAZIONALE 583
La presa della citta eterna (20 settembre 1870), da parte
dei soldati della nuova Italia, fu dal Vaticano considerata
sempre com'un'usurpazione violenta e sacrilega. E
usurpatore sacrilego fu dallo stesso Vaticano considerate
il re d'ltalia. E usurpatore sacrilego fu dallo stesso Vati-
cano considerate il popolo italiano.
Francesco Giuseppe, cattolico sfegatato, approve a piene
mani I'attitudine anti-italiana del governo papale. Se ne
rese solidale. E manco con piena coscienza e con piena
volonta alle regole impostegli dal Galateo\ ai doveri impo-
stigli dall'alleanza.
Tanta scortesia e tanta insincerita furono aggravate
dalle spavalderie del principe ereditario d'Austria Fran-
cesco Ferdinando, I'assassinato di Serajevo. Cestui, non
meno bigotto delle zio imperatere, si vanto piii volte, in
private e in pubblico, di volere invadere con un grosso eser-
cito ritalia, per prender Roma, restituirla alia Chiesa catto-
lica e ristabilire cosi I'antico potere temporale dei papi.
Quanto ne sia rimaste offese il sentimento cavalleresco
e, pill che questo, il sentimento nazionale del popolo italiano,
ben si puo immaginare, quando si consideri che Roma e —
come fu nel passato, come sara nell'avvenire — la sorgente
e, ad un tempo, il centre di gravita di tutte le virili bellezze
italiche, di tutte le trionfanti grandezze italiche.
IV
Quarta ragione : Coesione nazionale ed efficienza militare.
La superiorita civile d'un popolo, seconde I'opiniene dei
pill, consiste (consisteva, almeno, fine alio sceppio della
grande guerra) nella sua coesione nazionale e nella sua
efficienza militare.
In Europa — e anche fuori d'Europa, purtroppo! — si
credeva che il popolo italiano difettasse dell'una e dell'altra.
Di coesione nazionale, perche I'ltalia, dopo raggiunte la
^ Libro del classico italiano monsignor Giovanni Della Casa (secolo XVI),
dove s'insegnano le buone creanze.
584 PARTE QUARTA
sua unita e la sua indipendenza, fu spesso turbata da
discordie intestine di carattere spiccatamente regionale.
D'efficienza militare, per lo scacco subito in Africa nella
guerra del 1896 contro I'Abissinia, e per la poca abilita
dimostrata, anche in Africa, nella guerra del 1911-1912
contro la Turchia.
S'era quindi sicuri che la penisola, tanto famosa per il
suo antico fulgore, non fosse altro, oramai, che uno stam-
bergone di locanda e un carcassone di museo, dove un popolo
frivolo e poltrone non sapesse fare altro — tra una mando-
linata, una tarantella e una maccheronata alia napoletana
— che servire camorristicamente i signori visitatori piovuti
d'oltr'alpe e d'oltremare, e mostrar loro, gofFamente quanto
vanagloriosamente, le mummificate reliquie d'un passato,
il quale non ha piu nulla a che vedere con la vita presente e
tanto meno con la vita futura.
Una flaccida scrittrice nord-americana, per esempio,
scimmiottando il poeta francese Alfonso di Lamartine che
chiamo I'ltalia "terra dei morti"^ si spinse fino aH'impu-
denza d'asserire che la razza latina "e un cadavere in via
di putrefazione"^
E non solo negli ambienti privati, ma anche nelle sffere
ufficiali, s'aveva all'estero una cognizione tutt'altro che
esatta e benevola della coesione nazionale e dell'efficienza
militare del popolo italiano.
Basta ricordare il seguente episodio.
II 14 gennaio 1912, durante la guerra italo-turca, la
torpediniera italiana Agordat fermo a sud della Sardegna
il piroscafo francese Carthago, sul quale era stata segnalata
al governo italiano la presenza d'un velivolo destinato
ai Turchi in Tripolitania. Dopo la requisizione fatta
dagli ufficiali italiani, il Carthago fu d^WJgordat scortato
a Cagliari ed ivi messo a disposizione del governo di Roma.
Pochi giorni dopo, cioe il 18 gennaio 191 2, la stessa
torpediniera Agordat fermo il vapore postale francese
Manouba che faceva servizio tra Marsiglia e Tunisi, e
^ Vedere la risposta che al Lamartine diedc il poeta satirico italiano Giuseppe
Giusti.
^ Vedere nel mio iibro // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America
(da pag. 118 a pag. 123) la risposta ch'io diedi a qucsta buona donna.
COESIONE NAZIONALE 585
trovo che a bordo d'esso vi erano zgufficiali turchi camuffati
da membri della Mezzaluna Rossa, diretti clandestinamente
in Tripolitania per ivi combattere alia testa degli Arabi
i soldati italiani. I 29 sedicenti membri della Mezzaluna
Rossa furono dagli ufficiali dtW Agordat sbarcati a Cagliari,
ed ivi messi anche a disposizione del governo di Roma,
mentre il Manouba veniva rilasciato,
Poincare, ch'era da pochi giorni presidente dei ministri
e ministro degli esteri della Repubblica francese, nel pro-
testare contro gli atti "arbitrari" commessi dalla torpe-
diniera italiana Agordat, ebbe, tra I'altro, il coraggio di
dichiarare in pieno Parlamento che, se il governo di Roma
non avesse rilasciato immediatamente il Carthago e i 29
ufficiali turchi, la flotta francese avrebbe senz'altro attac-
cato la flotta italiana e I'avrebbe mandata a fondo nel
giro di pochi minuti. Proprio come se si fosse trattato di
mandare a fondo le tre gloriose caravelle di Cristoforo
Colombo!
Ora, un popolo cosi misconosciuto, che con Roma
tocco I'apogeo della coesione nazionale e dell'efficienza
militare, doveva pur sentire il bisogno di mostrare coi
fatti (sarebbe stato impossibile con le parole) quanto falsa
fosse I'opinione che il mondo s'era formata di lui.
E impose al governo di Vittorio Emanuele III la guerra
contro I'Austria, per provare ch'esso — il popolo italiano —
nonostante le sue discordie intestine spiccatamente regionali
(discordie dovute, piij che altro, a ingiustizie di governo), ha
anche oggi, come ai tempi di Catone, una saldissima coesione
nazionale; per provare ch'esso — il popolo italiano — nono-
stante lo scacco subito nella guerra contro I'Abissinia e
nonostante le deficienze dimostrate nella guerra contro la
Turchia (scacco e deficienze dovute, piii che altro, a errori
di governo), ha anche oggi, come ai tempi di Giulio Cesare,
una formidabile efficienza militare. Formidabile, s'intende,
in senso non quantitative, ma qualitative : in genio, in ga-
gliardia, in entusiasmo, in perseveranza,in fede nella vittoria.
Impose I'intervento nella grande guerra il popolo
italiano, per provare ch'esso — per una di quelle leggi
naturaH (legge di continuita) che sfugge agl'ignoranti —
586 PARTE QUARTA
puo sempre rinnovellarsi nelle virtu dei potentissimi avi;
puo sempre risorgere — eterna araba fenice — dalle ceneri
dalle sue millenarie civilta.
V
Quinta ragione: II timore dell'isolamento.
II popolo italiano capi subito che la grande guerra
scoppiata in Europa alia fine di luglio del 1914 avrebbe
prodotto cambiamenti politici internazionali della massima
importanza. E intravide gli efFetti funesti che da tali
cambiamenti sarebbero derivati alia patria, s'essa fosse
rimasta neutrale.
Se avessero vinto gl'Imperi Centrali (Germania ed
Austria), I'ltalia sarebbe rimasta alia merce di queste due
Potenze, rese ancora piii baldanzose dalla recente vittoria.
Sarebbe stata fatta segno alia vendetta che i Teutoni le
avevano giurato, per non essersi essa schierata dalla parte
loro. Sarebbe stata invasa e conquistata. Sarebbe ridiven-
tata serva dell'Austria. E I'lnghilterra, la Francia, la
Russia, ch'essa aveva lasciato sconfiggere e umiliare,
non avrebbero fatto altro che sorridere gelidamente con
odio e disprezzo.
Se fosse rimasta vincitrice la Triplice Intesa (Inghil-
terra, Francia, Russia), I'ltalia avrebbe dovuto subire,
come punizione della sua neutralita, I'influenza padronesca
di queste tre Potenze, influenza cresciuta a dismisura dopo
la recente vittoria. Sarebbe stata bloccata da tutti i lati
nel Mediterraneo, tanto da non poter piu accedere libera-
mente neppure alle sue colonie africane. Sarebbe stata
paralizzata in ogni suo movimento espansivo. Sarebbe
stata ridotta alia poverta. E la Germania e I'Austria, ch'essa
aveva lasciato sconfiggere e umiliare, non avrebbero fatto
altro che sorridere gelidamente con odio e disprezzo.
A buon conto I'ltalia, se fosse rimasta neutrale nella
grande guerra scoppiata in Europa alia fine di luglio del
1914, avrebbe perduto ogni credito, ogni simpatia nel
IL DIRITTO DI VIAGGIARE 587
mondo. Avrebbe messo a repentaglio la sua stessa unita
nazionale, la sua stessa indipendenza. Si sarebbe preclusa
la via del progresso. Non sarebbe stata piii rispettata e
amata da nessuno. Sarebbe stata sfuggita e schifata da
tutti — dai vinti e dai vincitori — com'una cagna affamata,
com'una carogna verminosa.
Per scongiurare una si immensa iattura, il popolo
italiano impose al governo di Vittorio Emanuele III I'in-
tervento armato della nazione.
La conservazione della propria vita, sia negli esseri
singoli che negli esseri collettivi, non e forse una suprema
legge naturale? la legge protoplasma di tutte le leggi
umane? non e forse una suprema necessita? la piii im-
pellente delle necessita fisiche e morali?
VI
Sesta ragione: II diritto di viaggiare.
Un uomo ha il diritto, in qualunque momento della
sua vita, di girare il mondo per lungo e per largo. Ha il
diritto d'andare dove la sua volonta lo spinge, dove i suoi
interessi lo chiamano. Diritto naturale che nessuno puo
contestargli, per la semplice ragione ch'esso — il diritto
di viaggiare — nacque col primo uomo e per i bisogni e i
godimenti degli uomini; per la semplice ragione ch'esso —
il diritto di viaggiare — e una forza motrice dell'umano
progresso. Forza che piii d'ogni altra contribuisce a creare,
coltivare, rinsaldare — tra i popoli che sono separati dalle
distanze e, piii che dalle distanze, dai pregiudizi di razza
e di nazionalita — quelle correnti di simpatia che tendono,
per un'irresistibile propulsione d'amore, alia fratellanza
universale, vale a dire all'apogeo della civilta umana. All'a-
pogeo che ha, come contenuto sostanziale — oltre alio
splendore delle scienze, delle arti, delle lettere — la purita
morale dello spirito, per cui I'uomo non puo che sinceramente
sentire e operare il bene, non mai il male, verso i suoi simili.
Id enunciai e sostenni questo concetto nel mio libro
588 PARTE QUARTA
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America
a pagina 104, dove dissi che — "per quel grande e sacro
principio sociale, in base a cui ogni uomo e padrone d'entrare
in qualsiasi paese del mondo per esercit-arvi liberamente e
onestamente i diritti del suo lavoro" — gl'Italiani emigrati
negli Stati Uniti non dovevano, con servile senso di grati-
tudine, considerare e magnificare come- ospitale il popolo
americano. Tanto piii che questo popolo non li accoglieva,
almeno allora, da pari a pari. Tanto piii che questo popolo
ritraeva, almeno allora, dalle braccia poderose e operose
degli emigrati italiani, gran parte della prosperita che
rendeva esso popolo tanto irragionevole, ingiusto, altezzoso.
E corroborai tale concetto, soggiungendo: "Non mai
glTnglesi, i Francesi, i Tedeschi, gli stessi Americani e
tutti gli altri forestieri che si trovano in Italia a speculare
e ad arricchirsi con industrie e commerci fiorenti, non mai
si son sognati di considerarsi ospiti del popolo italiano,
ma uomini liberi, andati nel nostro paese per esercitarvi
appunto i diritti della loro volonta e dei loro interessi".
Solo i tiranni, che vogliono, provocano e dirigono le
guerre, osano contestare, anzi conculcare nel peggiore dei
modi, il diritto che I'uomo ha, in qualunque momento della
sua vita, di girare il mondo per lungo e per largo.
Essi — i tiranni che vogliono, provocano e dirigono le
guerre — bloccando le terre e le acque che a loro fa comodo
di bloccare — dimenticano, o fingono di dimenticare, che il
globo abitato dagli uomini e di tutti gli uomini: com'e
di tutti gli uomini I'aria che circonda il globo stesso: com'e
di tutti gli uomini il sole che illumina, scalda e feconda il
globo stesso.
Essi — i tiranni che vogliono, provocano e dirigono le
guerre — impedendo all'uomo (massimamente a quello che
non e implicato nelle guerre, che e contro le guerre) d'andare
dove la sua volonta lo spinge, dove i suoi interessi lo chia-
mano, commettono un atto arbitrario della massima gravita:
atto che nessun popolo, avente a cuore la propria liberta e la
liberta degli altri popoli, dovrebbe tollerare. II popolo della
nuova Italia, forte della sua risvegliata coscienza, non lo
tollero. E impose al governo monarchico dei Savoia I'inter-
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 589
vento armato della nazione nella grande guerra, per difen-
dere col pioprio sangue uno dei piu preziosi doni della
natura.
Cosi esso — il popolo della nuova Italia — seguT in
modo mirabile gli esempi dei suoi apostoli. I quali preferi-
rono le carceri, le torture, i roghi, piuttosto che piegarsi,
per conto loro o per cento deH'umanita ch'essi degnamente
rappresentavano, a qualsiasi restrizione di liberta.
VII
Settima ragione: Solidarieta umana.
II popolo italiano, per una di quelle leggi naturali che
caratterizzano psicologicamente le razze umane I'una
dall'altra, ha insiti in se due sentimenti: un sentimento di
simpatia per gli esseri deboli, e un sentimento d'indigna-
zione contro i forti che degli esseri deboli abusano e ne
fanno scempio. Due sentimenti che formano, nella pecu-
liare armonia della loro essenza spirituale e della loro
estrinsecazione pratica, il granitico fondamento della sua
vita sociale.
Si dia uno sguardo alia storia d'ltalia — dai tempi in
cui sorsero e fiorirono nel sud della penisola le famose
repubbliche della Magna Grecia, fino ai tempi odierni — e
si vedra che il popolo italiano si commosse sempre della
sorte dei deboli; abbraccio sempre — a fatti e non a parole,
per magnanimo impulso morale e non per egoistici interessi
materiali — la loro causa, specie quando essa implied
liberta nazionali calpestate o semplicemente minacciate da
tiranni prepotenti.
A corroborazione di tale mia affermazione, basta ricor-
dare qui qualcuno dei fatti storici piii recenti.
Giuseppe Garibaldi, alia testa d'un corpo di volontari
italiani, corse in difesa della Francia repubblicana nella
guerra del 1870 contro la Prussia, compiendo gesta eroiche
vittoriose degne d'epopea a Digione ^
' In quella memorabile campagna, Garibaldi fu "il solo capitano — cosl afFermo
Victor Hugo — che seppe vincere eroicamente".
590 PARTE QUARTA
Ricciotti Garibaldi, figlio vivente dell'Eroe, alia testa
dun corpo di volontari italiani, corse in difesa della Grecia
nella guerra del 1897 contro la Turchia, compiendo gesta
eroiche vittoriose degne d'epopea a Domokos ^
Peppino Garibaldi, figlio vivente di Ricciotti, alia
testa d'un corpo di volontari italiani, corse in difesa della
Francia repubblicana nella grande guerra odierna contro
la Germania, compiendo gesta eroiche vittoriose degne
d'epopea alle Argonne ^.
E non solo nelle lotte di carattere pubblico coUettivo,
ma benanche negli alterchi di carattere privato individuale,
il popolo italiano mise sempre in evidenza, o, meglio, in
azione, i suoi innati sentimenti di simpatia verso i deboli
e d'indignazione verso i forti (forti nel senso brutalmente
fisico della parola, s'intende).
In America, per esempio, particolarmente nella citta
dov'io risiedo da parecchio tempo, m'accadde spesso di
vedere, nelle strade, persone (due alia volta) disputare
brevemente tra loro per motivi ordinariamente futili, e
poi azzufFarsi e tempestarsi di pugni. Non uno degli astanti
si mosse mai per appaciare i due disputanti, o per evitare,
almeno, che la zuffa ingaggiata finisse con la peggio del
debole. II forte pote sempre a suo bell'agio atterrare il
debole; cavalcargli sul petto; martellargli le mascelle, il
naso, gli occhi; trasformargli il viso (il nobile viso umano!)
in un'orrida piaga sanguinolenta; ridurlo in fin di vita. Gli
astanti — anche se conoscenti, amici, congiunti del debole
— assistirono sempre indifFerenti, come ad una scena cine-
matografica o con ignava volutta, alFaccanitoyigA^ sentendo
perfino ammirazione per il forte.
In Italia, specialmente nella mia terra di Calabria a
buon diritto qualificata "forte e generosa", non puo acca-
dere mai nulla di simile. Ivi gli astanti, anche se estranei,
s'interpongono fin dalle prime frasi alterate tra i due dispu-
tanti. E se non riescono con le ragioni, con le preghiere
^ Nella battaglia di Domokos cadde, tra gli altri, il deputato repubblicano al
Parlamento nazionaie italiano Antonio Fratti, a cui Guglielmo Oberdan aveva
affidato il suo testamento politico.
^ Nel combattimento delle Argonne tra volontari garibaldini e soldati tedeschi,
caddero, tra gli altri italiani, i giovani Bruno e Sante Garibaldi, fratelli di Peppino.
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 591
a calmarli, a ristabilire tra loro la pace, a evitare la zufFa
bestiale, simpatizzano senz'altro per il debole; si schierano
apertamente e risolutamente dalla parte sua; non permettono
che gli si torca un capello; preferiscono ricever essi stessi
i colpi, sia pure mortali, del forte, sul quale non tarda a
rovesciarsi I'esecrazione generale.
Ora, un popolo cosi sensibile, cosi giusto, cosi umano,
avente a sua disposizione un esercito e una flotta formida-
bili — abbastanza formidabili — non poteva assolutamente
rimanere inerte di fronte alia violenza commessa dalla
forte e prepotente Austria contro la piccola Serbia. Non
poteva rimanere inerte di fronte al delitto commesso dalla
forte e prepotente Germania contro il piccolo Belgio. Non
poteva rimanere inerte di fronte al torvo e brutale mili-
tarismo teutonico, minacciante, con crescente incalzante
gravita, quella Francia repubblicana che aveva versato
fiumi di sangue per I'unita e I'indipendenza della sorella
latina e per il trionfo dei principi democratici in tutta
I'Europa. Non poteva rimanere inerte di fronte al torvo
e brutale militarismo teutonico, minacciante, con crescente
incalzante gravita, quell'Inghilterra che ospito sempre, con
larga e afFettuosa liberalita, anche in tempi di generale
reazione, tutti gli esuli, tutti i grandi perseguitati politici
italiani (da Giordano Bruno a Ugo Foscolo, da Mazzini a
Malatesta ^); quell'Inghilterra che con le sue navi Intre-
pido e Argus protesse e facilito, nella primavera del i860,
il memorabile sbarco dei Mille a Marsala, sbarco che
decise dell'unita nazionale italiana; quell'Inghilterra che
accolse Garibaldi com' un dio, quando I'Eroe impersonante
il popolo della nuova Italia si reco nell'aprile del 1864 a
visitare Londra. Non poteva rimanere inerte di fronte al
torvo e brutale militarismo teutonico, minacciante, con
crescente incalzante gravita, quella Russia che, a mezzo
dei suoi grandi uomini come Turgheniew, Tolstoi, Tcher-
^11 dottor Enrico Malatesta — uno dei leaders anarchici italiani viventi —
tra il 7 e il 10 giugno 1914 capeggio nelle province d'Ancona, Forli e Ravenna un
moto rivoluzionario tendente ad abbattere la monarchia dei Savoia e proclamare
la Repubblica d'ltalia. Perseguitato dal governo di Vittorio Emanuele III, erro
per tutta I'Europa e fu dovunque respinto. Trovorifugio soltanto a Londra, dove
attualmente risiede.
592 PARTE QUARTA
nichewski, Gogol, Gorki, sempre ammiro e glorifico leal-
mente I'ltalia ^; quella Russia che fu la prima a mandare i
suoi marinari in Calabria e Sicilia per soccorrere quelle
popolazioni colpite dal terribile terremoto del 1908.
Se fosse rimasto inerte, esso — il popolo italiano —
avrebbe rinnegato la sua incomparabile personalita morale
materiata tutta d'altruismo e gratitudine; avrebbe offuscato
le sue piii fulgide tradizioni di pensiero e d'azione; avrebbe,
quel che e peggio — nel momento in cui la morte s'accingeva
a plasmare sui campi di battaglia della vecchia Europa
la nuova vita del mondo — tradito la causa dell'umanita.
La quale deve stare al disopra d'ogni e qualunque interesse
personale e nazionale, come la vita fisica dell'universo sta,
perennemente, al disopra delle singole parti che la com-
pongono.
Perche e inutile negarlo! La parola, contrapposta al
fatto, non ebbe mai valore. E non ne avra mai, finche
nel fondo di certi esseri umani risiedera — come morchia
in fondo a giare piene d'olio, come feccia in fondo a botti
piene di vino, come melma in fondo a pozzi pieni d'acqua
— quell'istinto malvagio che e in aperta antitesi con i
sentimenti della bonta, della pieta, dell'amore, su cui
dovrebbero poggiare ed evolversi tutte le civilta.
Si disse sempre, in tutti i toni, ai potentati d'Europa,
di non alimentare il militarismo. Ma essi ralimentarono,
e come!
Si disse sempre, in tutti i toni, ai potentati d'Europa,
di non provocare le guerre. Ma essi le provocarono, e come!
Bisognava lasciare, in su I'aurora del ventesimo secolo,
che i soldatoni imperiali — imitando le ataviche orde
d'Alarico e d'Attila — invadessero i territori delle nazioni
piccole indipendenti e vi trucidassero gli uomini, v'insoz-
zassero le donne, vi mutilassero i bambini, vi rubassero il
frutto di tanti sudori, v'incendiassero case, radessero al
suolo intere citta — cinicamente, impunemente — come si
lascio, ad esempio, che i Turchi facessero per anni e anni coi
poveri Armeni?
' Basta ricordare il solo Gorki, che, dopo respinto dagli Stati Uniti d'America
per colpa d'un ipocrito puritanismo, si stabili a Capri ed ivi, ospitato rispetfosa-
mente e amorosamente, rilevo e magnifico nei suoi scritti le virtu del popolo italiano.
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 593
Ma allora addio solidarieta umana!
Essa — dopo tante promesse, dopo tanti entusiasmi —
non sarebbe stata per i deboli, i quali avevano avuto la
semplicita di credere e aspettare, se non una frase arcadica,
vuota, schernitrice, epilogante ancora una volta I'ignobile
farsa dei pulpitisti (preti e non preti) che sanno soltanto
predicar bene e razzolar male; dei pulpitisti che, alia prova
del foco, sanno soltanto mettere in pratica la loro egoistica
teoria ingusciata tutta nella parabolica formula: "lontano
da me, e dove va va".
I testoni coronati non avrebbero voluto altro!
Fortunatamente il popolo italiano, con la sua svegliata
intelligenza, comprese subito che le parole non avrebbero
potuto impedire i fatti ^
E si slancio nella grande guerra, esso — il popolo italiano
— col suo cuor di fanciullo, per contrapporre fatti a fatti,
azione ad azione, forza bruta a forza bruta (una specie di
similia similibus curantur); per insegnare alia turba dei
queruli dottrinai, che il diritto conculcato dei deboli si
difende non con le parole, ma col sacrificio della propria
vita; che le vittime innocenti della barbarie (militaresca e
non militaresca) si vendicano non con le parole, ma col
sacrificio della propria vita; che la vera fratellanza dei
popoli — ideale a cui tende di continuo per immutabile
legge naturale I'anima umana — s'afferma, s'esalta, si
perpetua non con le parole, ma col sacrificio della propria
vita.
II popolo italiano sa bene che, dopo la grande guerra,
non gli tocchera che una sola ricompensa: quella della
fame, del disprezzo, dell'oblio peggio di prima. Ma che
^ Nel mese di maggio del 1915, cioe alia vigilia della dichiarazionedi guerra fatta
dal governo italiano al governo austriaco, le mura delle citta d'ltalia erano tutte
tappezzate di cartelloni che dicevano:
"Non dimentichiamo mai
il Belgio,
il Lusitania,
i bimbi sgozzati,
i vecchi massacrati,
le donne violate,
i paesi devastati,
gli ospedali bombardati
per sola mania di distruzione daU'esercito di Sua Maesta Gugliclmo II."
594 PARTE QUARTA
gl'importa? Esso — spirito eminentemente poetico e filo-
sofico a un tempo, provato a tutte le privazioni, a tutte le
ingratitudini, a tutti i dolori — pensera d'avere tracciata,
col suo purissimo sangue, la via che, unica, dato I'attuale
ordine di cose, potra condurre alia tanto sospirata pace
universale. E un tale pensiero sara piii che sufficiente a
renderlo contento, felice, beato.
Ho detto "dato I'attuale ordine cose". Ho detto
"unica". E mi spiego.
La vita d'una nazione, oggigiorno, per quanto complessa,
poggia in gran parte su basi essenzialmente industrial,
costruite dal popolo non per il proprio tornaconto, ma per
il tornaconto d'una minoranza ventraiola e crudele chia-
mata plutocrazia, la quale col popolo non ha altro di comune
se non la semplice darviniana origine scimmiesca.
Un sifFatto industrialismo nazionalista, per mantenersi
e prosperare — sempre, s'intende, a beneficio della mino-
ranza ventraiola e crudele chiamata plutocrazia — deve,
necessariamente, spingersi a competizioni commerciali con
I'industrialismo d'un'altra nazione o d'altre nazioni, e
viceversa.
Ma le competizioni commerciali, affinche diano risultati
finanziari proporzionati alle voglie ingorde della pluto-
crazia nazionalista, debbono essere ineluttabilmente e
strenuamente favorite e protette dallo Stato.
Si presta a una partigianeria tanto sfacciata e iniqua
il governo d'uno Stato odierno?
Sicuro che vi si presta!
E come potrebbe non prestarvisi, se esso — il governo
d'uno Stato odierno — sia che si copra con la maschera
sormontata da una corona reale o imperiale, sia che si
copra con la maschera sormontata da un berretto frigio
repubblicano — non e altro, oramai, se non un ente volon-
tariamente asservito alia minoranza ventraiola e crudele
chiamata plutocrazia.''
Ora, un siffatto governo non potrebbe, francamente,
senza darsi con la zappa sui piedi, cimentare le forze militari,
cioe le forze positive della nazione, se non per favorire e
proteggere gl'interessi del padrone, o, per essere grammati-
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 595
calmente piu esatti, della padrona (plutocrazia, in lingua
italiana, e di genere femminile). Le guerre della nuova
Italia in Africa (per esempio quella contro I'Abissinia e
quella contro la Turchia) non ebbero altro scopo, almeno
originario, se non la cosidetta *'penetrazione commerciale",
voluta ed efFettuata dal governo monarchico dei Savoia
per conto della plutocrazia italiana. E la stessa grande
guerra che da tre anni infuria suU' Europa non fu provocata
che dall'invidia della plutocrazia germanica per il primato
commerciale della plutocrazia inglese nel mondo ^
Nelle cause di puro carattere umanitario — quelle cioe
che involgono I'elevamento intelletuale morale economico,
la giustizia, la liberta, la felicita dei popoli — il governo d'uno
Stato odierno non cimenta mai le forze militari della nazione.
Ed e naturale; poiche le forze militari, facendo trionfare la
causa umanitaria, non sortirebbero che un solo effetto:
la fine della plutocrazia, vale a dire la fine di tutte le disugua-
glianze, di tutte le ingiustizie, di tutte le tirannidi sociali.
Un eflFetto, come si vede, ben diverso da quello per cui le
forze militari delle nazioni oggigiorno esistono.
Nelle cause di puro carattere umanitario, esso — il
governo d'uno Stato odierno — impiega solo la forza nega-
tiva della nazione: la diplomazia. La quale non ha altro
compito, se non quello di ciarlare, arruffare il piii che sia
possibile la matassa, gettare polvere negli occhi ai gonzi,
cloroformizzare la nazione, riducendo ogni palpito di vita
collettiva alio statu quo, a questa comoda ellissi latina
(comoda per i forti, ma nefasta per i deboli) fossilizzata e
fossilizzatrice.
Debbono i popoli continuare ad afFrontare una situa-
zione tanto tangibile nel suo vizioso male cronico, contrap-
ponendo le solite innocue parole ai fatti assassini delle
feroci e sorde plutocrazie?
Ma, in tal modo, essi — i popoli — non farebbero che
ribadire sempre piii con le proprie mani le catene della
schiavitu; non farebbero che perpetuate le guerre, sempre a
^ Le altre cause che determinarono la grande guerra (panslavismo, revenge
francese, irredentismo italiano, ecc.) non furono che cause d'importanza affatto
secondaria.
596 PARTE QUARTA
vantaggio dei furbi che, oziando, godono, e a danno de-
gl'ingenui che, lavorando, soffrono.
Finche esistono grindustrialismi nazionalisti con le
rispettive competizioni commerciali: finche esistono le
plutocrazie che nelle loro mani hanno accentrate, e pos-
sono disporne a lor talento, tutte le forze positive delle
nazioni (dalla forza finanziaria a quella militare) co-
tidianamente legalizzate dai governi e benedette dalle
religioni che sono anche, per grazia di Dio, al servizio dei
forti: finche sifFatte plutocrazie, per sempre maggiore sete di
ricchezza e di dominio — sete originata da innata e incallita
malvagita d'animo — provocano le guerre, I'inerzia dei
popoli, armata solo di vecchio rettoricume lacrimoso e sia
pure sdegnoso, non e altro, secondo me, che un'incongruenza,
un anacronismo, una follia, un suicidio. E il fragile vetro
che vuol resistere ai colpi del maglio possente. E la bolla
di sapone che vuol resistere al cozzo della viva roccia
calcarea.
Bisogna cambiar rotta. Siamo in un secolo nel quale
non si puo piii credere, ragionevolmente, se non ad una sola
verita: a quella che ci viene insegnata o, meglio, dimostrata
dalla scienza positiva. Bisogna quindi vivere un po' meno
nel mondo metafisico dei sogni, e un po' piii nel mondo
fisico della realta. Le parole con le quali Giosue fermo
il sole elaluna; le parole con le quali Cristo risuscito Lazzaro
di Betania, non sono altro, oramai, che arrugginiti ferra-
vecchi biblici.
I popoli debbono far fatti. Debbono, tutti indistinta-
mente, creare tra loro una salda alleanza spirituale (pro-
dromo della loro unione politica universale) e stabilire,
come principio fondamentale di giustizia inviolabile e
invariabile, che quando una controversia sorta tra due
nazioni degenera in guerra, ciascuno di essi — ciascuno dei
popoli non implicati nella controversia degenerata in
guerra — deve, a priori, impOrre al proprio Governo I'in-
tervento armato in favore della nazione debole che si trova
dalla parte della ragione. Dalla parte della ragione non
secondo il porcino punto di vista della minoranza ventraiola
e crudele chiamata plutocrazia; non secondo le verbose
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 597
leggi partigiane votate dai Parlamenti e sanzionate dai
re, dagrimperatori e dai president! delle repubbliche; non
secondo le cervellotiche sentenze sputate dagl'ingonnellati
commedianti dei diversi tribunali arbitrali dell'Aia. Ma dalla
parte della ragione, secondo il giudizio che scaturisce spon-
taneo, scevro di preconcetti e di passioni, dalla libera
intelligenza, dalla Candida coscienza dei popoli stessi;
secondo, sopratutto, quel naturale diritto alia vita che rende
sempre bella, sacra, degna di trionfo la causa dei deboli.
Solo in tal modo — per ora — si puo frenare la morbosa
fregola aggressiva dei forti. Solo in tal modo si possono
subitamente evitare le guerre.
Infatti, se il governo di Francesco Giuseppe, per esem-
pio, avesse saputo in antecedenza che i popoli d'Europa,
anzi del mondo intero, sarebbero insorti e intervenuti
prontamente con tutte le forze positive delle loro nazioni
in difesa della Serbia, esso — il governo di Francesco Giu-
seppe — per quanto potente e prepotente, per quanto spal-
leggiato da quel colosso militaresco ch'era I'impero germanico
— non si sarebbe azzardato di fare la voce troppo grossa
contro la piccola nazione balcanica difendente la propria
unita, la propria indipendenza; non avrebbe commesso
I'insana temerita di mandarle, nel luglio del 1914, quel-
Vultimatum che doveva scatenare sul mondo il piu terribile
degl'inferni.
Ma, purtroppo, Talleanza spirituale dei popoli, prodrome
della loro unione politica universale, non si potra mai
effettuare, se, prima, i due piii avanzati gruppi di dottrinai,
che sui popoli hanno uno straordinario ascendente morale,
non sapranno efficacemente adattare la loro concezione
paciflsta, sfrondata d'ogni intransigenza dogmatica, agli
avvenimenti che giorno per giorno si svolgono sulla Terra.
Primo gruppo. Quelli che — circoscrivendo il progresso
umano alia sola lotta di classe (problema economico) —
sono in favore della guerra, soltanto nel caso in cui si tratti
di difendere da un'invasione nemica il paese nel quale stanno
riconcentrati tutti gl'interessi material! del proletariato
nazionale ch'essi rappresentano. Astensionisti condizionali.
598 PARTE QUARTA
Secondo gruppo. Quelli che — aspettando dalla rivolu-
zione la distruzione d'ogni autorita politica, giudizlaria,
militare, economica, religiosa — sono contrari a tutte le
guerre, poiche esse non si combattono che per il rotondissimo
ventre di "lor signori". Astensionisti assoluti.
I membri di questi due gruppi sono, senza dubbio,
animati da rette intenzioni; mirano all'alto fine, cui mira
ogni mente aperta e operosa, ogni cuore sensibile e gentile:
all'emancipazione di tutte le creature oppresse.
lo percio voglio ragionare un po' con loro, serenamente^
E dico agli astensionisti condizionali:
La tesi della guerra per sola difesa nazionale, da voi
sostenuta, e in aperta contradizione con le dottrine che voi
dite di professare. Dottrine che, nel loro contenuto ideali-
stico spiccatamente e rigorosamente internazionale, non
ammettono restrizioni di sorta.
II grido *'lavoratori di tutti i paesi, unitivi!" — sinte-
tizzante codeste dottrine — non va interpretato nel senso
esclusivamente economico che voi credete. Esso — a
meno che non si voglia impicciolire il merito di chi lo lancio
— va, logicamente, interpretato in un senso molto piii
vasto. In un senso abbracciante tutti i problemi sociali,
dai quali quello economico non si puo astrarre, senza
turbare I'armonia o rompere addirittura la compagine delle
cose che regolano e perpetuano il vero progresso umano.
Perche la questione sociale e poliedrica.
E il problema economico non e altro che una parte
della questione sociale (una faccia del poliedro). Una parte
intimamente connessa alle altre, anzi dipendente dalle altre
e specialmente da una: dall'ignoranza.
Lo disse autorevolmente tre secoli addietro, fra le
pill orribili torture dell'inquisizione laica ed ecclesiastica,
quell'arditissimo padre del comunismo universale che fu
il mio enciclopedico concittadino Tommaso Campanella.
Secondo il pensiero di questo gigante precursore delle
^ Non mi occupo degli altri gruppi pacifist!, perche essi, essendo emanazione
piu o mcno dirctta delle plutocrazie, non possono essere sin.ceri.
"Non ragioniam di lor, ma Riiarda e passa."
(Dante, Divina Commcdia, Inferno, canto III).
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 599
civili rivendicazioni umane — pensiero confermato appieno
dai fatti — la questione sociale abbraccia:
Primo: Vignoranzay la quale, impedendo di far conoscere
i veri vizi e le vere virtu, genera e nutrisce i mali '*sotto cui
freme e piange il mondo".
Secondo: il cieco amor propria^ ossia I'egoismo, figlio
degno dell'ignoranza.
Terzo: la tirannide (falsa possanza), il sofisma (falsa
scienza), Vipocrisia (falso amore), cioe i tre mali estremi
(la "trina bugia") che hanno radice e fomento nel cieco amor
proprio.
Quarto: le carestie, ossia la miseria (il problema econo-
mico), le guerre, le pestiy Vinvidia, VingannOy V ingiustizia,
la lussuria, Yaccidia, lo sdegno, derivanti tutti dai tre mali
estremi, ai quali gerarchicamente sottostanno.
II problema economico, dunque, non si puo astrarre
dagli altri. Non si puo risolvere indipendentemente dagli
altri. Se si potesse risolvere indipendentemente dagli
altri, la sua soluzione isolata non raggiungerebbe lo scopo
(il miglioramento morale del mondo) a cui tende I'intera
questione sociale. E la prova di questa mia afFermazione,
che a prima vista puo sembrare un paradosso, ce la da in
modo irrefutabile la stessa plutocrazia. Proprio cosi!
E un fatto — e spero che su questo punto non ci saranno
divergenze — che la plutocrazia e composta, al pari del
proletariato, d'uomini di carne e d'ossa della medesima
specie.
Questi uomini (i plutocrati) hanno gia risolto, e splendida-
mente risolto, a loro vantaggio, il problema economico.
Spero che neanche su questo punto ci saranno divergenze.
Ma la soluzione di tale problema, che ha portato tutte
le comodita, tutti i piaceri sensuali della vita ai plutocrati,
ha essa, nello stesso tempo, portato loro un proporzionato
miglioramento morale? Neppure per sogno!
La soluzione del problema economico (comodita, piaceri
sensuali a bizzeffe) ha invece portato ai plutocrati un enorme
peggioramento morale, visibile perfino ai ciechi. Ha in-
segnato ch'essa — la detta soluzione — scompagnata dalla
soluzione degli altri problemi sociali, non e, e non potra mai
600 PARTE QUARTA
essere, la panacea predicata dai teorici di superficiale od
ottenebrata mentalita; ha dimostrato ancora una volta, ed
oggi piu che mai, il valore positive della verita proclamata
in tempi difficili dal sommo apostolo stilese. II quale fu —
col Vinci, col Pomponazzi, col Telesio, col Bruno, col
Galilei — un genio creatore del positivismo moderno: di
quel positivismo che, alia volubile autorita della parola,
sostitui la stabile autorita dei fatti: di quel positivismo,
culminato ai nostri giorni nella monumentale opera filoso-
fica di quell'altra gloria italiana che e il vivente professor
Roberto Ardigo.
E se il grido sintetizzante la dottrina professata da voi,
astensionisti condizionali, ha un contenuto idealistico
spiccatamente e rigorosamente internazionale, non capisco
con quale coscienza o, peggio, con che cuore, voi possiate
restringere la guerra alia sola difesa nazionale, lasciando che
le nazioni forti, trovantisi dalla parte del torto, aggredissero
e schiacciassero a lor piacimento le nazioni deboli, trovan-
tisi dalla parte della ragione.
Un siffatto principio restrittivo (guerra per sola difesa
nazionale) e d'una crudelta egoistica inaudita. E la piii
ripugnante ironia dell'internazionale, o internazionalismo
che dir si voglia. E I'assoluta negazione d'ogni solidarieta
umana e animale. Dico animale, perche financo gli animali
sentono e mettono in pratica, tra loro, quella che noi chia-
miamo solidarieta morale verso i deboli. II cane (basta
questo solo esempio) arrischia continuamente la propria vita
per difendere le pecore (animali deboli e innocenti) dal lupo
(animale forte, selvaggio e prepotente).
E la vostra stessa nazione, astensionisti condizionali,
non tarderebbe a cadere vittima della malvagita, delle
cupidige plutocratiche d'una nazione piii forte; vittima del
vostro stesso errore.
Perche non basta volersi difendere. Bisogna potersi
difendere. La Serbia voleva anche difendersi dall'Austria.
II Belgio voleva anche difendersi dalla Germania. Ma I'una
e I'altro, essendo troppo piccoli e, per conseguenza, troppo
deboli di fronte ai loro aggressori, dovettero soccombere,
nonostante poggiassero la loro difesa su diritti d'indipen-
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 601
denza e su punti d'onore piu che sacri. E non si rialzereb-
bero piu, e rimarrebbero per sempre schiavi dei tiranni che
con soldatesca brutalita li calpestarono, se essi — i due
popoli eroici serbo e belga — dovessero aspettare aiuto
dai fratelli i quali si strombazzano internazionalisti, stando
rinchioccioliti neH'astensionismo nazionalista.
E se la questione sociale abbraccia moiti altri problemi,
oltre a quelle economico: e se I'emancipazione delle crea-
ture oppresse dipende dalla soluzione parallela di tutti
questi problemi e non dalla soluzione d'un solo d'essi, non
capisco perche voi, seguaci del grido sintetizzante la que-
stione sociale in tutta la sua idealistica interezza^ dobbiate
persistere nella soluzione del solo problema economico.
Non capisco perche dobbiate disinteressarvi, o interessarvi
assai poco, degli altri problemi, quand' e assodato che
la parallela soluzione di tutti, non la soluzione isolata
d'uno d'essi, potra eliminare i mali"sotto cui freme e piange
il mondo": i mali che impediscono I'emancipazione tanto
sospirata.
Si sa che le guerre, oggigiorno, non si fanno per vendicare
I'onore offeso d'un qualsiasi Menelao piij o meno coronato,
come si fece, per esempio, la mitologica guerra dell'antica
Grecia contro Troia d'omerica memoria.
Le guerre, oggigiorno, come ho accennato piii su e come
voi stessi astensionisti condizionali riconoscete, si fanno
per fini essenzialmente economici: per quei fini ai quali
tende appunto la dottrina che voi dite di professare, pure
a volerla interpretare nel senso il piii angusto.
E se si fanno per fini essenzialmente economici, non
vedo la ragione per cui voi, seguaci dell'internazionalismo
ridotto sia pure ai minimi termini, vale a dire ai termini
strettamente economici, dobbiate asternervi dall'inter-
venire in esse.
Perche tali fini, obietterete, non compromettono gl'interessi
economici del nostro proletariato nazionale.
Che gl'interessi economici del proletariato d'una nazione
astensionista (neutrale) sieno compromessi — data la
presente organizzazione industriale e commerciale del
602 PARTE QUARTA
mondo — da una guerra tra due o piu nazloni e massima-
mente da una guerra di gigantesche proporzioni come
quella che da tre anni infuria sulla vecchia Europa e, per
riflesso, su tutto il mondo, e una verita accessibile a tutte
le intelligenze.
Ma se anche, per una lontana ipotesi, gl'interessi econo-
mici del proletariato nazionale neutrale non fossero meno-
mamente compromessi dalle guerre altrui, voi, astensionisti
condizionali, avreste egualmente il dovere d'intervenire in
esse, per difendere gl'interessi economici del proletariato
della nazione piii debole aggredita da una nazione pluto-
craticamente piii forte. E cio per coerenza fattiva, non
parolaia, con la dottrina sia pure strettamente economica
che voi dite di professare.
Gli scrupoli sentimentali di non volere intervenire
nelle guerre, perche sareste costretti ad ammazzare i fra-
telli vostri, dovreste ormai lasciarli da parte.
Non sono fratelli vostri i soldati invasori che dovreste
ammazzare in caso di difesa nazionale?
Non sono fratelli vostri — e fratelli della vostra stessa
nazione! — i crumiri (scabs) che voi combattete e ammaz-
zate durante gli scioperi?
E gli scioperi stessi, a cui voi ricorrete sovente come
mezzo difensivo nella lotta di classe, non sono essi, in so-
stanza, guerre tra fratelli sfruttati e fratelli sfruttatori?
guerre d'odio e di sangue tra fratelli proletari unionisti e
fratelli proletari non unionisti?
Voi proletari appartenenti alle unioni, quando siete in
isciopero, assalite e ammazzate senza tanti complimenti i
vostri fratelli proletari non appartenenti alle unioni.
Perche?
Per difendervi dalla loro concorrenza economica.
Eppure raramente i proletari non appartenenti alle
unioni vi sostituiscono nel lavoro per cattivezza d'animo.
Essi, nella maggior parte dei casi, non sono (ed io lo so,
lo so!) che figli, fratelli, mariti, padri ridotti all'estrema
miseria. Non sapendo a qual santo votarsi nei tristi giorni
della loro esistenza, non sapendo dove battere la testa, i
disgraziati aflFrontano con la disperazione addosso i vostri
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 603
insulti, le vostre violenze, il vostro disprezzo: e corrono alia
conquista del tozzo di pane e del pezzo di carbone che
debbono servire a salvare le loro amate creature agonizzanti
di fame e di freddo.
Voi non volete saperne di cio. Voi non volete saperne
dei motivi, pur derivanti da forza maggiore, che costringono
i vostri sventurati fratelli a farvi la concorrenza nel lavoro.
Voi sapete solo ch'essi vi fanno male. Eppero li combattete
e ammazzate.
E i poliziotti — sia quelli pubblici che quelli privati
(con questi ultimi intendo alludere ai ferocissimi poliziotti
privati nord-americani soprannominati gunmen) — adibiti
"a mantenere I'ordine" durante gli scioperi, non sono an-
ch'essi, in fin dei conti, fratelli vostri? E perche li combat-
tete e ammazzate?
Perche essi non esitano punto a sparare contro di voi.
Perche essi non esitano punto a trucidare le vostre donne
e i vostri bambini.
lo paragono i crumiri ai soldati di leva forzata; paragono
i poliziotti ai soldati di professione. L'azione involontaria
degli uni (crumiri e soldati di leva forzata) e ispirata, come
l'azione volontaria degli altri (poliziotti e soldati di pro-
fessione), dalla plutocrazia, e incitata dalla plutocrazia,
si risolve a vantaggio della plutocrazia.
Ora se voi — proletari unionist! rappresentanti I'inter-
nazionalismo sintetizzato nel grido "lavoratori di tutti
i paesi, unitevi!" — combattete e ammazzate i crumiri
e i poliziotti durante gli scioperi, perche non dovreste
combattete e ammazzate anche i soldati durante le
guerre?
I crumiri e i poliziotti sono, ripeto, fratelli vostri al
pari dei soldati. II male che fanno questi ultimi (i soldati)
ha la stessa radice del male che fanno gli altri (crumiri e
poliziotti); ha un'unica radice: la plutocrazia, questo mo-
derno vaso di Pandora.
E se con la lotta di classe, culminante negli ammazza-
menti dei crumiri e dei poliziotti durante gli scioperi, voi,
astensionisti condizionali, difendete economicamente i
vostri interessi proletari nazionali contro la vostra pluto-
604 PARTE QUARTA
crazia nazionale, dovete nello stesso tempo, per coerenza alia
dottrina internazionale che voi dite di professare, ammettere
rintervento armato in tutte le guerre odierne in difesa
non solo dell'integrita territoriale della vostra nazione rac-
chiudente in se gl'interessi materiali del vostro proletariato
nazionale, ma anche in difesa dell'integrita territoriale
racchiudente gl'interessi materiali del proletariato di tutte
le nazioni deboli aggredite per ingordigia economica dal
comune nemico: dalla plutocrazia.
Se persisterete nella vostra attitudine restrittiva, voi,
astensionisti condizionali, finirete col discreditare il grido
sintetizzante la dottrina della quale vi vantate propu-
gnatori.
Perche esso grido fu lanciato per colpire a morte, a
mezzo dell'unione dei lavoratori di tutti i paesi, non la
plutocrazia d'una sola nazione, ma le plutocrazie di tutte
le nazioni.
Se le plutocrazie di tutte le nazioni, invece di morire,
continuano a vivere e ad impinguire sempre piii col sangue
dei lavoratori di tutti i paesi, significa che la vostra azione
restrittiva (astensionismo condizionale) non e la giusta
interpretazione del grido sintetizzante la dottrina ridotta
sia pure ai termini strettamente economici.
Del resto, se i proletariati di cinque tra le maggiori
nazioni del mondo (Francia, Inghilterra, Russia, Giappone,
Italia) — proletariati che piii e meglio degli altri avevano
ascoltato il verbo della dottrina sintetizzata nel grido
"lavoratori di tutti i paesi, unitevi!" — si schierarono nella
grande guerra a fianco della Serbia e del Belgio, significa
ch'essi — i suddetti proletariati — ripudiarono I'interpre-
tazione restrittiva dell'astensionismo condizionale e misero
risolutamente in pratica (specialmente il proletariato italia-
no) tutto il contenuto idealistico spiccatamente e rigorosa-
mente internazionale ch'esso grido sintetizzava.
Voi, astensionisti condizionali, ravvedetevi lealmente
dell'errore in cui cadeste (errore relativamente ai tempi,
relativamente alia formidabile efficienza positiva raggiunta
dalle plutocrazie, s'intende), e seguite il buon senso pratico
dei popoli, se non volete che le vostre file s'assottiglino
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 605
sempre piu, se non volete rimanere travolti nel turbine
imperversante dei fatti.
Ostinandovi a non seguire i popoli nel loro buon senso
pratico, significa che voi non sapete comprendere la loro
anima.
E i popoli vi abbandoneranno e si daranno a chi sapra
condurli — per vie meno tortuose, meno impervie — alia
tanto necessaria emancipazione.
Perche i popoli sono stanchi d'aspettare. Le loro sofFe-
renze fisiche e morali sono cresciute in proporzione delle
comodita, dei piaceri sensuali delle plutocrazie. Hanno
raggiunto — le sofFerenze fisiche e morali dei popoli — il
grado massimo raggiunto dalle comodita, dai piaceri sen-
suali delle plutocrazie.
I popoli sono stanchi d'aspettare.
Astensionisti condizionali, meditate queste verita.
E dico agli astensionisti assoluti:
E vero, come voi sostenete e com'io stesso sostengo, che
le guerre, oggigiorno, si combattono per il rotondissimo
ventre di *'lor signori". Ma chi e che le combatte? Forse
"lor signori"? Essi le provocano e le dirigono solamente.
Chi in realta le combatte sono i popoli, sui quali le pluto-
crazie dominano.
Ora, in mezzo ai popoli che fanno le guerre vi sono anche
astensionisti assoluti travestiti da soldati non per volonta
propria, ma per forza d'una di quelle leggi partigiane
favorevoli alle plutocrazie nazlonaliste (coscrizione militate
obbligatoria), delle quali ho fatto cenno piii su.
E se sono i popoli, se sono i fratelli vostri, se ne va di
mezzo la loro vita individuale e collettiva, come fate voi a
disinteressarvene, a restarvene inerti?
Potreste disinteressarvene, restarvene inerti, se "lor
signori" abitassero un pianeta diverso da quello abitato
dai popoli, dai fratelli vostri, e ivi avessero vaghezza di
scannarsi a vicenda, distruggersi tra loro, soltanto tra loro.
Ma dai momentoche "lor signori" abitano il pianeta abitato
dai popoli, dai fratelli vostri e, per i mezzi positivi di cui
dispongono, possono a lor talento provocare e dirigere le
606 PARTE QUARTA
guerre, e necessario che voi ve ne interessiate, prendendovi
parte attiva.
Perche essi — "lor signori" — dalle guerre non perdono
mai nulla; guadagnano sempre.
Sono i popoli, sono i fratelli vostri, sono gli umili, i quali
lavorano e penano giorno e notte, che nelle guerre perdono
sempre e tutto.
II vostro astensionismo assoluto — di fronte ai deboli
trucidati sui campi di battaglia, di fronte alle donne stu-
prate, ai bambini mutilati, alle case saccheggiate, alle citta
incendiate — vi mette nella stessa lista di quei tali anacoreti
(santificati poi dalla Chiesa cattolica), i quali si ritiravano
nelle solitudini dei deserti, ed ivi, infischiandosi delle
creature oppresse nel mondo, non pensavano ad altro —
egoisticamente, quanto stupidamente — che alia salvezza
eterna delle loro anime.
Obietterete:
Ma perche i popoli non entrano neU'orbita delle nostre idee,
le quali non hanno altro scopo se non quello di liberare per mezzo
della rivoluzione, poiche con altri mezzi non e stato finora possi-
bile, i popoli stessi dalla tirannide plutocratica che li afFama e li
spinge continuamente al macello fratricida?
Prima di rispondere a una tale domanda, dichiaro ch'io,
personalmente, credo possibile il regime di vita individua-
lista da voi bramato e propugnato. Lo credo possibile
non per snobismo piii o meno dottrinario, ma perche gli
uomini — se non tutti, certo una buona parte — han gia
toccato il grado di purita morale necessario per far passare
il detto regime dallo stato teorico alio stato pratico. Non
ho bisogno di cercare tra le morte generazioni. Mi basta
guardare tra le viventi, e nella sola Italia, per trovare le
prove corroboranti una tale mia credenza, una tale mia
affermazione. Roberto Ardigo, Pasquale Villari, Teodoro
Moneta, Guglielmo Marconi. Chi oserebbe dire che questi
uomini, ed altri come questi o anche di minore entita morale,
avrebbero bisogno d'una qualsiasi autorita politica, giudizia-
ria, militare, economica, religiosa per vivere tra loro in per-
fetto buon essere, in perfetta pace, in perfetta armonia?
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 607
E un'infinita d'aziende private (senza contare le nume-
rose tribu ingiustamente chiamate selvagge) non si reggono
esse prosperosamente, tranquillamente, felicemente con
leggi che non sono scritte in nessun codice? con leggi che
non hanno altra sostanziale autorita se non quella prove-
niente dai doveri che ciascun socio delle aziende in parola
sente naturalmente in se, e osserva immancabilmente, a
favore degli altri soci?
Chi ammette la legge dell'evoluzione, deve, onestamente,
ammettere I'individuaHsmo.
Perche la legge dell'evoluzione, moralmente parlando,
non e altro che lo studio delle umane virtii; mentre I'indi-
vidualismo non e altro che I'esercizio delle umane virtii.
L'evoluzione non e altro che la teoria del vivere civile.
L'individualismo non e altro che la pratica del vivere civile.
L'individualismo — in quanto rappresenta il grado di
perfezione morale a cui I'uomo e gia pervenuto, e per il
quale egli si sente irresistibilmente inclinato, anzi capace,
di praticare sempre il bene, non mai il male, verso i suoi
simili — e I'ideale supremo dell'evoluzione; e, direi quasi,
il complement© dell'evoluzione, se non sapessi che l'evolu-
zione, come sinonimo di progesso, e infinita e non puo avere,
per conseguenza, almeno in senso assoluto, un complement©.
Detto questo, a onore della verita, rispondo alia vostra
obiezione, astensionisti assoluti.
I popoli non entrano nell'orbita delle vostre idee, perche
essi non sono ancora arrivati a quell'elevazione intellettuale
necessaria per comprendere la sublimita del fine a cui voi
tendete. E non fanno la rivoluzione, perche essi — o
quelli d'essi che a tale elevazione son gia arrivati — rifug-
gono, per innata delicatezza d'animo o per altre rispettabili
ragioni, da un mezzo di lotta cosi violento e cruento. Tanto
pill ch'esso — il mezzo in parola (la rivoluzione) non diede
mai — come la storia insegna — risultati pratici proporzio-
nati agli sforzi, ai sacrifici fatti dai rivoluzionari; non debello
mai, come avrebbe dovuto, e neppure arresto in qualche
modo, la rigogliosa vitalita delle plutocrazie incarnanti
tutti i mali sociali.
Ma sol perche i popoli non sono ancora arrivati alia
608 PARTE QUARTA
suddetta elevazione intellettuale: sol perche essi non
possono o non vogliono fare la rivoluzione, voi, astensionisti
assoluti, vi credete in diritto di lasciarli, durante le guerre,
in balia di se stessi, in balia dei piii astuti, dei piii forti, dei
piii cattivi?
Una siffatta intransigenza vendicativa, quanto negativa,
non si concilia, a dire il vero, coi vostri aprioristici principi
di fratellanza universale; e indegna del vostro civile apo-
stolato, specie se si consideri che voi, fuori delle guerre —
delle guerre militaresche, s'intende — non esitate a rompere
la rigidita, che dovrebb'essere invulnerabile, del vostro
astensionismo assoluto, scendendo in campo per combattere
battaglie di carattere strettamente economico, che non
sono di certo favorevoli alle vostre teorie individualistiche.
Intendo parlare degli scioperi, E degli scioperi parziali.
Perche dovrei parlare degli scioperi generali nazionali o
internazionali — gli scioperi, cioe, abbraccianti tutte le
categorie dei lavoratori d'una nazione o di tutte le nazioni
— se essi, dacche la lotta di classe e entrata nella sua fase
pratica, non si sono fatti che a furia di sole frasi rettoriche
piii o meno reboanti?
Voi dunque, astensionisti assoluti, scendete in un campo
assolutamente ostile al vostro, per difendere apertamente
ed energicamente i diritti di coloro che scioperano contro la
crudele ingordigia della plutocrazia, contro la concorrenza
dei crumiri, contro le violenze dei poliziotti.
Eppure coloro che scioperano non sono tutto il prole-
tariato, ma una piccola parte del proletariato (la parte
privilegiata). E una parte, ripeto, che e agli antipodi
delle vostre idee.
Perche voi — secondo il contenuto idealistico delle
dottrine che dite di professare — tendete al completo
miglioramento di tutte, indistintamente, le creature op-
presse (e ce ne sono centinaia di milioni fuori delle unioni);
mentre gli unionisti, che scioperano, non tendono che al
loro esclusivo miglioramento materiale.
Voi vi agitate per la distruzione delle plutocrazie, poiche
siete convinti, e non a torto, che da siffatta distruzione
dipende la soluzione dell'intera questione sociale. Gli
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 609
unionist!, invece, appena ottenuto il miglioramento mate-
riale per il quale hanno scioperato, s'acquetano come il
famoso Cerbero dantesco.
Cerbero, fiera crudele e diversa,
Con tre gole caninamente latra
sovra la gente che quivi e sommersa.^
Quando ci scorse Cerbero, il gran vermo,
le bocche aperse, e mostrocci le sanne; '
non avea membro che tenesse fermo,
E il duca mio ^ distese le sue spanne,
prese la terra, e con piene le pugna
la getto dentro alle bramose canne.
Qual e quel cane che abbaiando agugna,
e si racqueta poi che il pasto morde,
che solo a divorarlo intende e pugna:
Cotai si fecer quelle facce lorde
dello dimonio Cerbero che introna
I'anime si, ch'esser vorrebber sorde.
E quando credono d'essere pagati bene, essi — gli
unionisti — non combattono piii i plutocrati. Ne ricono-
scono anzi la legittima esistenza. Li consolidano, li ingras-
sano sempre piii. Arrivano perfino ad ammirarli, a magni-
ficarli, a idolatrarli. Lo si puo vedere in mille casi. lo,
per amore di brevita, ne cito qui solamente due, davvero
tipici. Uno, comprovante la mia prima affermazione (gli
unionisti s'acquetano egoisticamente dopo che hanno
ottenuto I'aumento di paga per il quale hanno scioperato).
L'altro, comprovante la mia seconda affermazione (gli
unionisti, quando credono d'essere pagati bene, ricono-
scono la legittima esistenza della plutocrazia, sia pure
indirettamente; ingrassano sempre piii i plutocrati, sia pure
involontariamente; li ammirano, li magnificano, li idola-
trano, sia pure ipocritamente).
* Sopra gli epicure! e i golosi del terzo cerchio infernale {Divina Commedia,
Inferno, canto VI).
* Virgilio.
610 PARTE QUARTA
Primo caso. Gli unionist! che lavorano nella grande
manifattura d'abiti da uomo Hart, Schaffner e Marx di
Chicago, Illinois (Stati Uniti d'America) un bel giorno
scioperano per ottenere un aumento di paga. Hart, Schaff-
ner & Marx aumentano la paga, secondo i desiderata degli
scioperanti. Costoro, sodisfatti, ritornano al lavoro."^ Da
allora in poi non si fanno piii vivi, non si movono piu,
nemmeno quando i loro compagni d'unione, cioe gli altri
sarti di Chicago, ridotti agli estremi, scioperano compatti
e lottano disperatamente parecchie settimane per ottenere
anch'essi dalle altre sartorie locali un qualsiasi aumento
di paga.^
Secondo caso. Gli operai del fabbricante d'automobili
Henry Ford di Detroit, Michigan (Stati Uniti d'America)
credono — beati loro! — d'essere da lui pagati bene. Ma cid
non impedisce che il munifico plutocrate accresca di milioni
e milioni di dollari all'anno la sua immensa ricchezza perso-
nale ammassata (vedete miracolo!) sul lavoro degli operai
ch'egli paga bene.
D'altra parte, gli unionisti non arrivano neppure, in
fin dei conti, a conseguire essi stessi i benefici per i quali
hanno scioperato.
Quando i plutocrat! cedono, aumentando la paga agli
scioperanti, costoro credono d'avere vinto. Ma non si
tratta che d'una semplice illusione. La verita e tutt'altra.
Ed e che i plutocrat! non perdono mai. Quello ch'essi
danno con una mano, a causa degli scioperi da loro perduti,
se lo riprendono subito con I'altra. E se lo riprendono al
doppio, o moltiplicato (essi — i plutocrati — sanno benis-
simo I'aritmetica; non sanno altro, intellettualmente par-
lando, che I'aritmetica).
Un esempio. I minatori di carbone scioperano per
ottenere un aumento di paga. I plutocrati — padroni delle
miniere — cedono, aumentando la paga. Ma essi, dopo,
vendono il carbone agli stessi minatori con un aumento di
prezzo corrispondente o superiore all'aumento di paga che
^Durante lo sciopero di Chicago del 1915, al quale alliido, risiilto che alcune
sartine non ricevevano dai loro padroni piu di $1.75 alia settimana. Con questa
paga, esse dovevano spendere dieci soldi al giorno per solo tranvai.
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 611
lo sciopero li ha costretti ad accordare. Senza contare che
un siffatto aumento di paga, sapientemente trasformato
dai plutocrat! in aumento di prezzo, va a cadere pure sulle
spalle degli unionist! delle altre categoric di lavoratori
che non hanno scioperato; va a cadere pure sulle spalle dei
proletari che non possono o non vogliono appartenere alle
unioni; va a cadere, insomma, sulle spalle dell'eterno asino
utile, paziente e bastonato che e il popolo.
E gli altri inconvenient! che nascono dagl! scioperi,
chi e che 1! soffre? Non certo i plutocrat!, ma i giusti per
i peccatori. Nello sciopero dei sarti di Chicago del 191 5,
di cui ho fatto menzione piii su, ho conosciuto parecchi
scioperanti che alio scoppiar dello sciopero non avevano
in tasca neppure un soldo. I poveretti, durante le lunghe
settimane dello sciopero, non ricevettero nessunissimo
sussidio dall'unione alia quale appartenevano; si che furono
costretti a languir di fame insieme con le loro famigliuole,
mentre ai plutocrat! (! padroni manifatturier! che resiste-
vano alio sciopero) non mancarono — come prima dello
sciopero, come sempre — i pranz! e le cene luculliane. Si
raccolse, e vero, in quell'occasione, una certa somma di
denaro (poche migliaia di dollar!) per soccorrere gli scio-
peranti. Ma sifFatta elemosina, proveniente in gran parte
da privat! non certo proletari, e accettata non so con quale
coerenza di principi e con quale dignita dai leaders dello
sciopero, fu inadeguata ai bisogn! degli scioperanti, anche
perche distribuita con criteri tutt'altro che equi, per non dir
peggio.
Ora se voi, astensionisti assoluti, prendete parte attiva
agli scioperi parziali per aiutare i lavoratori unionist!,
i quali, in sostanza, non sono altro che la minoranza privi-
legiata del proletariato, come la plutocrazia non e altro che
la minoranza privilegiata della borghesia, a maggior ragione
dovreste prendere parte attiva alle guerre che si combat-
tono per aiutare le nazioni deboli contro le cupidige delle
nazioni forti, alle guerre che rassomigliano, molto piii degli
scioperi, alle rivoluzioni che voi vorreste fare.
Tanto piu che voi, teoricamente, combattete le unioni
dei lavoratori; mentre, teoricamente, difendete le nazioni
612 PARTE QUARTA
deboli. Combattete teoricamente i lavoratori unionisti,
ma li aiutate praticamente negli scioperi contro i loro
oppressori. Difendete teoricamente le nazioni deboli, ma
non le aiutate praticamente nelle guerre contro i loro oppres-
sor!. Insomma predicate una cosa, e ne fate un'altra.
Quanto sia nocivo un sifFatto procedere al progresso
umano, alia vostra stessa causa, ben potete immaginarlo se
considerate che, aiutando gli unionisti negli scioperi, voi
non distruggete le forze positive delle plutocrazie, ma le
ingrandite, le perpetuate; mentre, aiutando le nazioni deboli
n,elle guerre, voi distruggete le forze positive delle pluto-
crazie, o, se non le distruggete, certamente le minate,
incominciate a distruggerle. Che e quanto dire.
I gruppi che, ispirandosi alle dottrine individualistiche,
s'afFannano ad arrivare, per mezzo degli scioperi parziali,
dove s'arriva pestando I'acqua nel mortaio, mentre, d'altra
parte, s'ostinano in un'inerzia verbosa e virulenta contro chi,
volente o nolente, si trova travolto nella guerra che e
destinata a segnare nel campo sociale una nuova grande
epoca storica, la piii grande epoca storica, sono gruppi
che si mettono fuori della vita, contro la vita e, per conse-
guenza, fuori dell'umanita che ama la vita, contro I'umanita
che e la vita.
Essi subiranno, per colpa loro stessa, la fatale legge
dell'eliminazione. Periranno.
Astensionisti assoluti, ponderate queste verita.
II popolo italiano penso che la tesi dell'astensionismo
condizionale (guerra per sola difesa nazionale) e la tesi
dell'astensionismo assoluto (guerra in nessun caso), messe
in pratica, avrebbero ricacciato I'umanita nel caos primitive
dalla barbaric, in cui non regnava altra forza che quella
bruta; avrebbero scalzato, dalle fondamenta, ogni idea di
giustizia e di civilta.
Perche i prepotenti, per sempre maggiore sete di ric-
chezza e di dominio, potrebbero commettere a lor piaci-
mento ogni sorta di delitti, sicuri dell'impunita. Chi
infatti li punirebbe, se i popoli delle nazioni estranee alle
guerre volute dalle nazioni forti che hanno torto, contro
SOLIDARIETA UMANA 613
le nazioni deboli che hanno ragione, non si rendessero
praticamente solidali con queste ultime?
E il non intervenire prima del male, per gridar pace
dopo commesso il male, sarebbe un bel comodo per gli
scellerati coronati e non coronati. In tal modo, il padrone
d'una miniera potrebbe benissimo, per esempio, fare assas-
sinare dai suoi poliziotti i minatori scioperanti, le loro mogli
e i loro bambini; poi chiederebbe la pace, e tutto finirebbe
li. Proprio come quella tale religione che dice all'uomo:
"Commetti tutti i peccati che vuoi; poi presentati ai piedi
del confessore ch'io tengo a tua disposizione, e tutto ti
sara da lui perdonato in nome del Dio ch'egli rappresenta
sulla Terra".
Che bella festa! Che bella cuccagna! E come si potreb-
be piii vivere cosi?
Lo splendido esempio di pratica solidarieta umana che
il popolo italiano diede, imponendo al governo di Vittorio
Emanuele III I'intervento armato dellTtalia nella grande
guerra in difesa delle nazioni deboli aggredite dalle nazioni
forti, sia ponderato e imitato dagli altri popoli.
Esso — il detto esempio — dimostro a luce meridiana
come sia possibile, anzi facile, I'alleanza spirituale dei popoli.
Purche si ravvedano lealmente del loro errore gli asten-
sionisti condizionali e gli astensionisti assoluti.
Certo, I'alleanza spirituale dei popoli non distruggera
in ventiquattr'ore le forze brute del militarismo.
Ma ritorcendo abilmente ed energicamente sifFatte forze
contro le plutocrazie che le possiedono, essa — I'alleanza
spirituale dei popoli — potra impedire subito le guerre.
Non si ripetano, per carita, i vecchi ritornelli: "Questa
guerra sara I'ultima. Questa guerra segnera la fine del
miUtarismo. Dopo questa guerra, avremo la pace univer-
sale permanente".
Concludo.
Finche esisteranno le plutocrazie industriali naziona-
liste con le relative competizioni commerciali tra le nazioni,
esistera il militarismo e ci saranno le guerre.
Perche il miUtarismo (il militarismo odierno, s'intende)
non e altro che un organismo creato e mantenuto dalle
614 PARTE QUARTA
plutocrazie per difendere gl'interessi infiniti delle pluto-
crazie, lo sviluppo infinito delle plutocrazie, il dominio
infinite delle plutocrazie.
Le plutocrazie sono la causa. II militarismo e I'efFetto.
Si puo distruggere I'efFetto senza prima distruggere la causa?
E si possono impedire le guerre con la sola predicazione
della pace, continuando a genuflettersi ai piedi dei po-
tentati ?
La guerra esiste dacche esiste I'uomo.
La pace si predica dacche esiste la guerra.
Ma la predicazione della pace non pote mai impedire la
guerra, perche la guerra e un fatto materiale, e azione;
mentre la predicazione della pace e un fatto immateriale,
e parola.
Se la predicazione della pace avesse potuto impedire la
guerra, I'avrebbe gia impedita dal primo giorno, o durante
i secoli, in cui essa — la predicazione della pace — si con-
trappose alia guerra.
E non si pud aspettare che la guerra sia impedita dagli
stessi potentati, perche la guerra e la vita dei potentati.
E i potentati non sono cosi teneri, e neanche cosi stolti, da
sacrificare la loro vita per i begli occhi sempliciotti della
pace.
La guerra sara impedita, soltanto quando la predicazione
della pace si trasmutera in alleanza spirituale dei popoli;
soltanto quando la predicazione della pace si trasformera
in intervento armato dei popoli (alleati spiritualmente tra
loro) in difesa delle nazioni deboli che hanno ragione,
aggredite dalle nazioni forti che hanno torto,
Soltanto allora il purissimo sangue della gioventii
italiana, della gioventii di tutto il mondo, che da tre anni
scorre a torrenti sui campi della vecchia Europa, potra
seriamente preludiare alia pace universale. Alia pace uni-
versale duratura tanto bramata dall'umanita, tanto neces-
saria all'umanita.
IL TRADIMENTO 615
VIII
II tradimento.
Dove fu dunque il tradimento che il popolo italiano
commise a danno dell'Austria e della Germania, rompenda
il trattato della Triplice Alleanza ed entrando in guerra o
favore della Serbia, del Belgio, della Francia, dell'Inghil-
terra e della Russia?
In primo luogo bisogna sfatare la leggenda che il governo
monarchico dei Savoia in Italia sia un governo costituzionale
rappresentativo; che il re sia niente, o meno che niente;
che i rappresentanti del popolo — i deputati al Parlamento
nazionale — sienotutto.
II governo monarchico dei Savoia in Italia e — se non
di nome, certo di fatto — un governo eminentemente asso-
luto, dispotico. II re e tutto. E i rappresentanti del popolo
non sono che un bel niente.
II re d'ltalia — in forza dello Statuto (Legge fondamen-
tale dello Stato), che e ancora oggi quello stesso promulgato
da Carlo Alberto il 4 marzo 1848 — ha il diritto di dirigere
personalmente, o a mezzo dei suoi ministri che e lo stesso ^,
tutta la politica estera della nazione.^
Di tale diritto i Savoia s'avvalsero pur troppo. Se ne
avvalse piii di tutti il presente re Vittorio Emanuele III,
a dispetto dei cortigiani e degl'ingenui che sempre lo dipin-
sero e lo decantarono come il piii democratico sovrano
d'Europa.
Vittorio Emanuele III, infatti, rinnovo nel 1912 il
trattato d'alleanza con I'Austria e la Germania (il trattato
della Triplice Alleanza) per la durata d'altri 12 anni, senza
*L'articolo 65 dello Statuto dice:
"II Re nomina e revoca i suoi Ministri".
^ L'articolo 5 dello Statuto dice:
"Al Re solo appartiene il potere esecutivo. Egli e il Capo supremo dello Stato:
comanda tutte le forze di terra e di mare: dichiara la guerra: fa i trattati di pace,
d'alleanza, di commercio ed altri, dandone notizia alle Camere tosto die I'interesse
e la sicurezza dello Stato il permettano, ed unendovi le comunicazioni opportune.
I trattati che importassero un onere alle finanze, o variazione di territorio dello
Stato, non avranno efFetto se non dopo ottenuto I'assenso delle Camere."
616 PARTE QUARTA
punto consultare i deputati al Parlamento nazionale eletti
dal popolo, senza il loro assenso, contro la volonta del popolo,
contro gli stessi interessi della nazione.
Vittorio Emanuele III dichiaro e diresse la guerra
coloniale del 1911-1912 contro la Turchia, senza punto
consultare i deputati al Parlamento nazionale eletti dal
popolo, senza il loro assenso, contro la volonta del popolo.
E solo a pace conclusa, egli — Vittorio Emanuele III — si
degno annunziare ai rappresentanti del popolo, vale a
dire al popolo, che la Libia (Tripolitania e Cirenaica) era
stata conquistata e, con regio decreto, proclamata pro-
vincia italiana.
E non solo la politica estera, ma benanche la politica
interna della nazione e diretta personalmente dal re in
Italia.
Gli onorevoli rappresentanti del popolo discutono e
approvano le leggi della nazione, e vero. Ma tali leggi non
possono andare in vigore, se prima non sono discusse e
approvate dal Senato e sanzionate dal re medesimo ^.
Cos'e il Senato in Italia.'* II Senato in Italia non e
altro che una diretta rappresentanza del re. I senatori,
infatti, non sono eletti dal popolo. Essi sono nominati dal
re, e nominati a vita, tra gente provata, ligia, fedele alia
Corona. Ex deputati monarchici, ministri di Stato, amba-
sciatori, magistrati, generali, ammiragli, alti funzionari
amministrativi, plutocrati. Solo una piccola minoranza
e dal re nominata, e non senza cautele, tra le piii cospicue
figure intellettuali della nazione ^ Ma questa minoranza
* L'articolo 7 dello Statute dice:
"II Re solo sanziona le leggi e le promulga."
* L'articolo 33 dello Statuto dice:
"II Senato e composto di membri nominati a vita dal Re, in numero non limi-
tato, aventi I'eta di quarant'anni compiuti, e scelti nelle categoric seguenti:
1. Gli Arcivescovi e Vescovi dello Stato;
2. II Presidente della Camera dei Deputati;
3. I Deputati dopo tre Legislature, o sei anni di esercizio;
4. I Ministri di Stato;
5. I Ministri Segretari di Stato;
6. (jli Ambasciatori;
7. Gl'Inviati Straordinari, dopo tre anni di tali funzioni;
8. I Primi Presidenti e Presidenti del Magistrate di Cassazione e della Camera
dei Conti;
IL TRADIMENTO 617
non interviene quasi mai alle sedute del Senate; non prende
parte quasi mai alle deliberazioni del Senate; non s'interessa
quasi mai della politica attiva della nazione. E una mino-
ranza astratta, nominata dal re per gettare polvere negli
occhi al popolo, piu che per altro.
Si obiettera:
Ma tra i deputati eletti dal popolo e i senatori nominati dal
re non sorsero mai divergenze, Non si rese mai incompatibile
I'istituto parlamentare impersonato dagli uni, con I'istituto parla-
mentare impersonato dagli altri. II Senato approve sempre le
leggi discusse e votate dalla Camera dei deputati.
£ vero. Ma perche?
Perche la maggioranza dei deputati e composta, al pari
della maggioranza dei senatori, di gente provata, ligia,
fedele alia Corona. E anch'essa una maggioranza nominata
dal re.
"E come?"
Lo dico subito, a edificazione dei cortigiani e degl'ingenui,
i quali s'ostinano a dipingere e decantare la Camera dei
deputati d'ltalia come una diretta, genuina, autentica
rappresentanza del popolo italiano.
9. I Primi Presidenti dei Magistrati di Appello;
10. L'Avvocato Generale presso il Magistrate di Cassazione e della Camera
dei Conti, dopo cinque anni di funzioni;
11. I Presidenti di Classe dei Magistrati di Appello, dopo tre anni di funzioni;
12. I Consiglieri del Magistrate di Cassazione, e della Camera dei Conti, dopo
cinque anni di funzioni;
13. Gli Avvocati Generali o Fiscali Generali presso i Magistrati di Appello,
dopo cinque anni di funzioni;
14. Gli Uffiziali Generali di Terra e di Mare. Tuttavia i Maggiori Generali
e i Contr'Ammiragli dovranno avere da cinque anni quel grado di attivita;
15. I Consiglieri di Stato, dopo cinque anni di funzioni;
16. I Membri dei Consigli di Divisione, dopo tre elezioni alia loro Presidenza;
17. Gli Intendenti Generali, dopo sette anni di esercizio;
18. I Membri della Regia Accademia delle Scienze, dopo sette anni di nomina;
19. I Membri ordinari del Consiglio superiore d'lstruzione pubblica, dopo
sette anni di esercizio;
20. Coloro che con servizi o meriti eminenti avranno illustrata la Patria;
21. Le persone che da tre anni pagano tremila lire d'imposizione diretta in
ragione dei loro beni o della loro industria."
L'articolo 34 dello Statuto dice:
"I Principi della Famiglia Reale fanno di pieno diritto parte del Senato.
Essi seggono immediatamente dopo il Presidente. Entrano in Senato a ventu-
n'anno, ed hanno voto a venticinque."
L'articolo 35 dello Statuto dice:
"II Presidente e i Vice Presidenti del Senato sono nominati dal Re."
618 PARTE QUARTA
Nelle elezioni politiche, nelle elezioni cioe dei deputati
al Parlamento nazionale, il governo italiano presenta
sempre, in quasi tutti i 508 collegi elettorali del Regno, i
suoi candidati monarchici, in contrapposizione dei candidati
che sono antimonarchici o non abbastanza monarchici.
Per fare eleggere siffatti candidati, esso — il governo
italiano — mette febbrilmente in moto tutti gli ufficiali
polizieschi dello Stato (dai piQ alti ai piii bassi). E, da
costoro, fa profondere, in mezzo alle masse elettorali, i
milioni di lire dei cosidetti fondi segreti, smunti dalle tasche
dei contribuenti, dalle vene del popolo; fa profondere
promesse d'impieghi e di favori; fa insomma corrompere,
senza veruno scrupolo. E dove non puo con la corruzione,
esso — il governo italiano — fa minacciare, fa commettere
ogni sorta di soprusi e di violenze. In una delle ultime
elezioni generali politiche, per esempio, I'allora presidente
dei ministri e ministro degl'interni — Giovanni Giolitti —
mando in Sicilia perfino le navi da guerra, per intimidire
(e non solo intimidire!), coi cannoni di grosso calibro,
quegli elettori che s'erano mostrati poco propensi a votare
per i candidati del governo.
Ora, una Camera eletta con sistemi governativi tanto
arbitrari, disonesti, infami, puo essa chiamarsi, in co-
scienza, una vera rappresentanza del popolo? Non e essa,
piuttosto (eccetto la piccola minoranza eletta dagli elettori
ribelli che il governo non puo in nessun modo coartare),
una rappresentanza, sia pure indiretta, del re? E puo
essa aver mai, nel suo seno, una maggioranza che si trovi,
qualche volta, in serio disaccordo col Senato?
Scoppiata nell'estate del 1914 la grande guerra, Vittorio
Emanuele III, che non poteva, per ragioni facili a compren-
dersi, agire direttamente, chiamo in fretta e furia i politi-
canti italiani a lui piii devoti (Giolitti a capo di tutti, come
il piu influente e il piu astuto), e comando loro di moversi,
agitarsi, fare il possibile per creare nella nazione una cor-
rente favorevole agl'Imperi Centrali, per indurre il popolo
italiano a rispettare il trattato della Triplice Alleanza,
schierandosi senz'altro dalla parte dell'Austria e della
Germania.
IL TRADIMENTO 619
II popolo italiano ignorava il contenuto del trattato
della Triplice Alleanza, poiche il re non aveva sentito il
dovere di comunicarglielo. Ma, per notizie pubblicate dai
giornali, esso — il popolo italiano — era riuscito a sapere
che il trattato stesso conteneva una clausola basica esclusi-
vamente difensiva.
E allora perche il re desiderava che I'ltalia scendesse in
campo per difendere I'Austria e la Germania in una guerra
ofFensiva ?
II popolo italiano voile vederci chiaro. E seppe che
Vittorio Emanuele III desiderava ad ogni costo I'intervento
deiritalia nella grande guerra a fianco dell'Austria e della
Germania, per i seguenti motivi:
Primo. Per solidarieta dinastica verso gli Hohenzollern.
Questa dinastia — per avere fondato, il i8 gennaio 1871,
rimpero germanico: per avere dato a siffatto Impero un
impulso, una potenza, una saldezza senza pari — era con-
siderata, almeno fino alio scoppio della grande guerra, come
il prototipo delle dinastie militarmente imperialiste del
mondo. La dinastia di Savoia, anch'essa militarmente
imperialista, non poteva che sentirsi irresistibilmente
attratta verso la sua consorella prototipo. II simile ama il
suo simile. Non poteva che sentire il bisogno d'imitarla.
La dinastia inglese di Brunswick e la dinastia russa dei
Romanow erano troppo legate alia Francia repubblicana.
Secondo. Perche la casa di Savoia era ed e imparentata
con le case regnanti d'Austria e di Germania. Infatti Vit-
torio Emanuele II, primo re d'ltalia, nonno del presente
re Vittorio Emanuele III, sposo Maria Adelaide, figlia di
Giuseppe Ranieri arciduca d'Austria e vicere austriaco del
Lombardo-Veneto dal 1818 al 1848. E questo stesso
arciduca Ranieri aveva sposato, nel 1820, Elisabetta di
Savoia-Carignano sorella di Carlo Alberto. E la vivente
regina Margherita, vedova del secondo re d'ltalia Umberto
I e madre del presente re Vittorio Emanuele III, nacque
dalla principessa Maria Elisabetta, figlia del re Giovanni di
Sassonia. E il vivente principe Tommaso^ fratello della
^ II principe Tommaso e I'attuale luogotenente di Vittorio Emanuele III, cioe
I'attuale vicere d'ltalia.
620 PARTE QUARTA
regina Margherita e zio del presente re Vittorio Emanuele
III, sposo Maria Isabella, figlia del principe Adalberto di
Baviera.
Terzo. Per amicizia personale verso Guglielmo II.
Sono ben note in Italia, anzi in tutta I'Europa, le intime
relazioni d'amicrzia corse tra Guglielmo II di Germania e
Umberto I e Margherita di Savoia, genitori del presente
re Vittorio Emanuele III, e tra lo stesso Guglielmo II e lo
stesso Vittorio Emanuele III.
Quarto. Per interessi finanziari privati. I giornali
nord-americani, ed anche qualche giornale d'ltalia, pubbli-
carono che il presente re d'ltalia Vittorio Emanuele III
aveva investita la somma di cento e piii milioni di lire di
sua privata pertinenza nella casa germanica Krupp (nella
casa che produce migliaia di cannoni all'anno e caldaie,
corazze, vagoni, locomotive, elettromotori; nella casa
che possiede cantieri, piroscafi, miniere di ferro, di carbon
fossile, ecc).
Quinto. Per simpatia verso il popolo tedesco, Molti
uomini nutrirono e nutrono ancora oggi simpatia per il
popolo tedesco. Perche non avrebbe potuto nutrirla anche
Vittorio Emanuele III? Forse ch'egli non era e non e un
uomo soggetto a sentimenti e a passioni come tutti gli
altri uomini?
Sesto. Perche egli — Vittorio Emanuele III — credeva
che I'intervento dell'Italia nella grande guerra a fianco
dell'Austria e della Germania avvantaggiasse la nazione.
Molti cittadini italiani privati credettero e credono tuttavia
10 stesso. Perche non avrebbe potuto crederlo anche
Vittorio Emanuele III? Forse ch'egli non godeva e non gode
i diritti che godono tutti gli altri cittadini italiani?
Settimo. Per qualche trattato segreto in base al quale
Vittorio Emanuele III, Guglielmo II e Francesco Giuseppe
s'obbligavano d'aiutarsi militarmente a vicenda anche in
caso di guerra ofFensiva. Che un simile trattato ci sia stato,
si desume logicamente dal fatto che I'imperatore Guglielmo
11 — per quanto conscio della strapotenza militare germa-
nica: per quanto ambizioso, audace, pazzo — non avrebbe
giammai incoraggiato I'imperatore Francesco Giuseppe a
IL TRADIMENTO 621
provocare la piu pericolosa delle guerre (pericolosa per la
stessa Germania), se egli — Guglielmo II — non fosse stato
piu che sicuro dell'aiuto incondizionato e illimitato del-
I'ltalia. Ne lo stesso Francesco Giuseppe, per quanto
senilmente cocciuto, si sarebbe spinto, come si spinse, fino
agli estremi contro la piccola Serbia.
Giolitti, ch'era debitore alia dinastia di Savoia d'un
quindicennio di dittatura governativa, obbedi ai comandi
del suo re. E, seguito dai suoi satelliti, comincio a lavorare.
Percorse e ripercorse — con misteriosa circospezione e di
notte, piii che di giorno — tutte le vie della capitale. Sail
e scese scale. Confabulo coi piii equivoci figuri indigent e
stranieri. Sudo dozzine di camicie. Ma la sua influenza
e la sua astuzia, per quanto sostenute dall'autorita personale
del sovrano, erano da politicone troppo bacato, erano da
volpone troppo invecchiato. Eppero non sortirono I'efFetto
che in alto si desiderava. Sortirono, invece, un eflPetto
tutto contrario. Infatti il popolo italiano, dopo un refe-
rendum riservatissimo indetto dal governo tra i soldati di
terra e di mare, rispose fieramente ch'esso non si sarebbe
battuto per la Germania e per I'Austria, specialmente per
I'Austria, neanche se glieravesse comandato Domeneddio
in persona. Non solo, ma impose al re la rottura del trattato
d'alleanza con le dette due nazioni; impose la dichiarazione
di neutralita dell'Italia nelle grande guerra; si diede a mani-
festare apertamente e fortemente le sue simpatie per le
nazioni aggredite dagli eserciti di Francesco Giuseppe e di
Guglielmo II.
Vittorio Emanuele III — vista e considerata, con animo
alquanto preoccupato, I'impossibilita d'intervenire nella
grande guerra a favore della Germania e dell'Austria —
chiamo novamente a se Giolitti. E gli comando di moversi,
agitarsi, fare del suo meglio per indurre il popolo italiano a
mantenere almeno la neutralita, a non abbandonarsi a
sentimentalismi esagerati e dannosi.
Giolitti, ch'era debitore alia dinastia di Savoia d'un
quindicennio di dittatura governativa, obbedi ai comandi
del suo re. E, seguito dai suoi satelliti, si ringolfo nel
622 PARTE QUARTA
lavoro con piu zelo, se non con piu fede, di prima. Riordi
intrighi, tenebrosi intrighi. Si spinse, sicuro deU'immunita,
fino ad atti piii che illeciti.
Ma, col passar dei giorni, il popolo italiano vide che la
piccola Serbia era schiacciata; vide che il piccolo Belgio
era schiacciato; vide che la Francia repubblicana stava per
essere schiacciata; vide che I'lnghilterra e la Russia erano
sul punto d'essere anch'esse schiacciate; vide che I'Europa
intera correva rischio di cadere schiava ai piedi del pluto-
cratico militarismo teutonico. E allora, esso — il popolo
italiano — chiese al governo del re I'intervento armato
deiritalia nelle grande guerra, contro i tirannici aggressori.
Vittorio Emanuele III — vista e considerata, con I'anima
piena d'amaritudine, I'impossibilita di mantenere a lungo
la neutralita dell'Italia — chiamo novamente a se Giolitti.
E gli comando di moversi, agitarsi, fare cid che la dispera-
zione del momento richiedeva, per frenare gli ardori bellici
del popolo italiano.
Giolitti, ch'era debitore alia dinastia di Savoia d'un
quindicennio di dittatura governativa, obbedi ai comandi
del suo re. E, seguito dai suoi satelliti, si precipito ancora
una volta a capofitto nei bassi fondi della diplomazia. Ivi,
strisciando con una vilta senza pari, die principio a quei
famosi pour parler col principe von Bulow, che dovevano
ben presto — i pour parler — diventare Tanello intermedio
delle trattative che il governo di Vienna, auspice Guglielmo
II, aveva gia intavolato col governo di Roma, alio scope
di comprare, per mezzo di concession! territoriali e di milioni
di lire, la neutralita permanente dell'Italia. "^
^ La responsabilita personale di Vittorio Emanuele III nei mali passi di Giolitti,
emersa da fatti ormai passati nei dominio della storia, non puo essere distrutta
dai soliti sofismi.
Bisogna esser logici! Bisogna, sopratutto, che il popolo italiano — se vuole
che gli stranieri lo rispettino veramente — s'abitui a dir pane al pane e vino al
vino nelle questioni d'interesse nazionale. Bisogna, cioe, che il popolo italiano
si liberi una buona volta dai pregiudizio legalizzato dall'articolo 4 dello Statuto
Albertino che dice: "La persona del Re e sacra e inviolabile".
Giolitti, per quanto politicamente Iosco, non poteva agire, come agi, per conto
proprio, nei momento in cui la nuova Italia s'accingeva a fare il suo piu arduo passo
nella vita del mondo. ]
Giolitti — da privato, da deputato, da ministro, da presidente dei ministri —
fu sempre un fautore arrabbiato della politica monarchica italiana la piu mili-
tarista. Come poteva egli, all'improvviso, lavorare sinceramente per la pace?
IL TRADIMENTO 623
Si giunse cosi fino agli ultimi d'aprile del 191 5.
Nei primi di maggio del detto anno rimpatrio dalla
Francia Gabriele d'Annunzio.
II poeta, che dall'esilio aveva seguito con dantesca fosco-
liana mazziniana ansieta lo svolgersi degli avvenimenti in
Italia, si schiero immediatamente dalla parte del popolo.
E afFronto con coraggio, risolutezza ed energia mirabili i
nemici interni ed esterni della sua patria (i ruffiani, i barat-
tieri e simile lordura). E li smaschero, li sferzo, li bollo a
sangue.
Allora da milioni di petti eruppe vulcanicamente il
grido di guerra.
Vittorio Emanuele III tremo.
Egli comprese che la sua suprema ora storica era suonata.
II trono gli vacillava sotto i piedi. Un'ulteriore resistenza
neutralista I'avrebbe irremissibilmente perduto.
La mattina del 23 maggio 191 5, egli — a mezzo del suo
ambasciatore a Vienna, duca d'Avarna — dichiaro guerra
a Francesco Giuseppe d'Austria.
Cosi ritalia entro nell'immane macello.
Ma il popolo italiano, con tale entrata, non commise
nessun tradimento.
II popolo italiano impose la rottura del trattato della
Giolitti fu sempre dalla parte delle maggioranze parlamentari e popolari, anche
quando queste si trovarono dalla parte del torto. Come poteva egli, aU'improvviso,
passare dalla parte della minoranza, e della minoranza socialista ch'egli aveva
combattuto sempre e dalla quale era stato sempre combattuto asprissimamente?
Come poteva egli, maestro d'opportunismo, mettersi contro corrente?
Giolitti, come statista di mediocrissimo calibro, aveva raggiunto I'apice della
grandezza politica in Italia (la presidenza dei ministri), e vi si era mantenuto piu
di qualsiasi altro statista. Alia vigilia dell'entrata in guerra dell'Italia, egli era
ancora I'arbitro supremo del Parlamento nazionale italiano, della vita politica
italiana. Perche doveva egli arrischiare una tale posizione, quando il rischio,
anche se riuscito, non avrebbe potuto mai dargli una posizione piu alta?
Giolitti, durante il suo lungo potere governativo, era riuscito a formarsi una
posizione finanziaria piu che solida. E poteva ancora continuare, con la massima
facilta, ad ammassar denari, senza dar troppo nell'occhio. Perche doveva egli,
quasi pubblicamente, vendersi com'un pezzente qualunque agli agenti dell'Austria
e della Germania, quando una tale vendita costituiva — ed egli lo sapeva bene —
la sua completa rovina morale?
Giolitti, da perfetto servitore, non fece altro che sacrificarsi al padrone che
I'aveva tanto beneficato. Egli prefer! chiudere ibridamente la sua ibrida vita
pubblica, piiittosto che commettere, nel momento della piu dura prova (dura prova
per Vittorio Emanuele III) un atto d'ingratitudine contro il suo re; piuttosto che
compromettere la persona "sacra e inviolabile" del suo re.
Questa e la verita.
624 PARTE QUARTA
Trlplice Alleanza, perche il trattato stesso non era stato
stipulate ne approvato da lui: dal popolo.
Si obiettera:
Un popolo, il quale si fa governare da un re e da uno
statuto, deve necessariamente rispettare gli atti the il detto re
compie in base al detto Statuto.
E vero. Ma bisogna pur considerare che il popolo
italiano, imponendo la rottura del trattato della Triplice
Alleanza stipulate dal re, e agendo in opposizione a quanto
il trattato stesso stabiliva, dimostro chiaro e tondo ch'esso
— il popolo italiano — non intendeva seguire piii la vecchia
via (fatto, questo, oltremodo significativo); dimostro ch'esso
— il popolo italiano — e disposto a rispettare il re e lo
Statuto, soltanto quando I'uno e I'altro sanno rendersi
interpreti dei bisogni e della volonta della nazione, non
quando essi — il re e lo Statuto — si rivelano, massime
nella pratica e nei momenti piu gravi e decisivi della vita
della patria e del mondo, contrari ai sentimenti e agl' inte-
ressi nazionali del popolo stesso, contrari ai suoi ideali
umani.
Del resto, neanche Vittorio Emanuele III, in ultima
analisi, commise un tradimento vero e proprio, rompendo
il trattato della Triplice Alleanza e dichiarando guerra
all'Austria: per la semplice ragione ch'egli, quando stipulo
il trattato stesso, non poteva prevedere la levata di scudi
del popolo italiano.
Vittorio Emanuele III, quando stipulo il trattato della
Triplice Alleanza, era sicuro, com'erano sicuri i suoi colleghi
Francesco Giuseppe e Guglielmo II — specialmente Gu-
glielmo II — che il popolo della nuova Italia avrebbe eseguito
ciecamente la volonta del suo re, come aveva fatto sempre
nel passato.
Invece il popolo della nuova Italia, che aveva sempre, e
vero, rispettato ed eseguito ciecamente la volonta del suo
re, si rifiuto di rispettarla ed eseguirla in occasione della
grande guerra.
Ma Vittorio Emanuele III, come abbiam visto, non
manco di fare del suo meglio per richiamare all'antica obbe-
IL TRADIMENTO 625
dienza il suo popolo. Appena scoppiata la grande guerra
nell'estate del 1914, egli, per ottemperare agli obblighi da
lui assunti verso Francesco Giuseppe e Guglielmo II, fece
propagare dal fido Giolitti e dai suoi satelliti che il popolo
italiano, se voleva evitare I'onta eterna del disonore, doveva
rispettare i trattati, scendendo in campo a favore delle due
nazioni alleate Austria e Germania. II popolo della nuova
Italia, non esclusi i soldati in mezzo ai quali si fece il referen-
dum, rispose invece fermamente che non avrebbe giammai
impugnato le armi per difendere le dette due nazioni,
specialmente I'Austria. E impose la neutralita.
Vittorio Emanuele III s'affanno a mantenere almeno la
neutralita. II popolo della nuova Italia, vedendo che la
neutralita avrebbe egualmente assicurato la vittoria ai due
imperatori aggressori alleatisi per giunta col sultano di
Turchia (altro nemico dell'Italia e della civilta), s'agito per
I'intervento armato a favore dei popoli aggrediti.
Vittorio Emanuele III fece sforzi disperati per iscansare
la suprema iattura dell'intervento. II popolo della nuova
Italia mostro i denti.
Vittorio Emanuele III senti che la corona gli pericolava
sulla testa. Dove piegarsi. Dove obbedire. Dove dichia-
rare la guerra all'Austria.
Come poteva fare altrimenti?
Egli si trovo per la prima volta di fronte a un popolo
risvegliatosi dal letargo vergognoso in cui giaceva da lungo
tempo: dal tempo, cioe, in cui I'ltalia era risorta a nazione
una e indipendente. Si trovo di fronte a un popolo che
aveva improvvisamente ritrovata in se la coscienza della
propria forza materiale e della propria dignita morale.
Si trovo di fronte a un popolo ch'era sul punto di fare la
rivoluzione, alio scopo di rovesciare la monarchia e procla-
mare la repubblica, se egli — il re — non avesse obbedito
a tamburo battente ai comandi, dico comandi, impartitigli
dal popolo stesso. Si trovo di fronte a un popolo che, da
pecora belante e leccante, s'era trasformato in leone ruggente
e fremente, pronto ad avventarsi su chi aveva tanto abusato
della sua pazienza, della sua debolezza.
Come poteva egli — Vittorio Emanuele III — prevedere
626 PARTE QUARTA
questa ira di DIo? Come poteva egli prevedere, quando
strinse alleanza con Francesco Giuseppe e Guglielmo II,
che il popolo della nuova Italia, mostratosi sempre docile e
rassegnato verso la dinastia di Savoia, sarebbe un giorno
insorto formidabilmente contro la dinastia stessa?
Vittorio Emanuele III non poteva provedere un fatto
cosi straordinario, per la semplice ragione ch'egli, con tutta
la superiore intelligenza decantatagli sempre dai cortigiani
e dagl'ingenui, non era ancora riuscito a penetrare Tanima
del suo popolo. Se fosse riuscito a penetrarla, egli avrebbe
facilmente capito che il popolo della nuova Italia tollero il
trattato della Triplice Alleanza, quando esso non nocque
che fino a un certo punto alia nazione e all'umanita; ma
che non poteva tollerarlo piij, quando esso — il trattato
della Triplice Alleanza — minaccio di nuocere gravissi-
mamente alia nazione e all'umanita.
Si tratto d'uno di quei casi di forza maggiore contem-
plati e giustificati da tutte le leggi giuridiche del mondo,
comprese quelle che sono in vigore negli stessi Stati delle
loro maesta gl'imperatori di Germania e d'Austria.
Nessun tradimento, dunque, ne da parte del popolo
italiano, ne da parte di Vittorio Emanuele III re d'ltalia.
IX
L*oro inglese e I'oro francese.
Dove fu I'oro inglese?
Dove fu I'oro francese?
Oro ce ne fu, senza dubbio; ma da parte dei Tedeschi,
non da parte degl'Inglesi e dei Francesi. II principe von
Bulow, rappresentante nel maggio del 191 5 i governi di
Berlino e di Vienna a Roma, ne profuse a piene mani in
Italia. Ma egli non pote che corrompere qualche politi-
cante rinnegato, qualche famelico scribacchino, qualche
incallito ceffo da galera.
Lo disse e lo ripete senza posa Gabriele d'Annunzio
nelle sue terribili requisitorie di quei giorni.
L'ORO INGLESE E FRANCESE 627
Parlando al popolo di Geneva nella sera del ritorno
(4 maggio 191 5), il poeta, tra I'altro, disse:
Che volete voi, Genovesi? Che volete voi, Italiani? meno-
mare o crescere la nazione?
Voi volete un'Italia piii grande, non per acquisto ma per con-
quisto, non a misura di vergogna ma a prezzo di sangue e di
gloria.
Arringando il popolo di Roma accalcato nelle vie e
acclamante (la sera del 12 maggio 191 5), il poeta, tra Taltro,
disse:
Or e cinquantacinque anni, in questa sera, in quest'ora stessa,
i Mille, in marcia da Marsala verso Salemi, sostavano; e a pie dei
lor fasci d'armi mangiavano il loro pane e in silenzio si addormenta-
vano.
Avevano in cuore le stelle e la parola del Duce, che e pur viva
e imperiosa oggi a noi: Se saremo tutti uniti, sard facile il nostra
assunto. Dunque, aWarmi!
Era il proclama di Marsala; e diceva ancora, con rude minaccia:
Chi non s'arma e un vile un traditore.
Non stamperebbe dell'uno e dell'altro marchio, Egli il Libera-
tore, se discendere potesse dal Gianicoio alia bassura, non in-
famerebbe Egli cosi quanti oggi in palese o in segreto lavorano a
disarmare I'ltalia, a svergognare la Patria, a ricacciarla nella con-
dizione servile, a rinchiodarla su la sua croce?
Che la forza e lo sdegno di Roma rovescino alfine i banchi dei
barattieri e dei falsari!
Spazzate, o Romani, spazzate tutte le lordure, ricacciate
nella Cloaca tutte le putredini!
Arringando il popolo di Roma in tumulto (la sera del 13
maggio 1915), il poeta, tra I'altro, disse:
Compagni, voi dovete impedire che un pugno di ruffiani e di
frodatori riesca a imbrattare e a perdere I'ltalia.
II tradimento e oggi manifesto. Non ne respiriamo soltanto
I'orribile odore, ma ne sentiamo gia tutto il peso obbrobrioso.
Nella Roma vostra si tenta di strangolare la Patria con un ca-
pestro prussiano.
Noi siamo sul punto d'essere venduti come una greggia infetta.
Questo vuol fare di noi il mestatore di Dronero ^ intruglio
' Dronero (provincia di Cuneo), collegio elettorale di Giolitti.
628 PARTE QUARTA
osceno. Questo vuol fare di noi quell'altro leccatore di sudici
piedi prussiani ^ Questo di noi vuol fare la loro seguace canaglia.
Questo non faranno, o Romani.
La storia vostra si fece forse nelle botteghe dei rigattieri e
dei cenciaiuoli? Le bilance della vostra giustizia crollavano forse
dalla banda ov'era posto un tozzo da maciullare, un osso da ro-
dere? II vostro Campidoglio era forse un banco di barattatori e di
truffardi? La gloria vi s'afFacciava e ciangottava da rivendu-
gliola?
Non ossi, non tozzi, non cenci, non baratti, non trufFe. Basta!
Rovesciate i banchi! Spezzate le false bilance!
Le nostre sorti non si misurano con la spanna del merciaio,
ma con la spada lunga.
E col bastone e col ceffone, con la pedata e col pugno si misu-
rano i manutengoli e i mezzani, i leccapiatti e i leccazampe del-
Tex-cancelliere tedesco (Bulow) che sopra un colle quirite fa il
grosso Giove trasformandosi a volta a volta in bue tenero e in
pioggia d'oro.
£ necessario che non sia consumato in Roma I'assassinio della
Patria. Voi me ne state mallevadori, o Romani.
Pronunziando I'accusa pubblica nell'adunanza del popolo
romano la sera del 14 maggio 1915, il poeta, tra Taltro, disse:
La Patria e in pericolo, la Patria e in punto di perdimento.
Per salvarla da una ruina e da una ignominia irreparabili, ciascuno
di noi ha il dovere di dare tutto se stesso e d'armarsi di tutte le
armi.
In un messaggio agli studenti dell'Ateneo romano adu-
nati per deliberare la violenza (15 maggio 191 5), il poeta,
tra I'altro, disse:
Oggi e I'anniversario della piii bella battaglia garibaldina, e
Tanniversario di Calatafimi. Di essa il Duce soleve dire: Se
nel punto del trapasso voi mi vedrete sorridere, amici, pensate che
il ricordo di Calatafimi mi risale dal cuore con Vultimo palpito.
Ma perche egli risorridesse, bisognerebbe celebrare questo
anniversario con la cacciata del trufFatore (Giolitti) che vuol
vendere I'ltalia e del mezzano (Bulow) che la vuol comperare.
Bisognerebbe oggi purificare delle due infezioni il cielo di Roma.
II popolo italiano, nella sua poverta pura come cristallo
' L'ex ministro Bertolini?
L'ORO INGLESE E FRANCESE 629
d'Alpi, rimase estraneo al turpe mercato dei Bulow e dei
Giolitti.
E come poteva non rimaner estraneo, se esso si specchio
sempre nella vita d'uomini che I'oro non pote mai conta-
minare? d'uomini che sono il piu onesto orgoglio di razza?
10 voglio qui ricordare due episodi: un episodio antico,
che s'insegna nelle scuole elementari d'ltaha; un episodio
dei tempi moderni, che la stampa nazionale rievoca ogni
anno. L'uno e I'altro daranno un'idea delle virtii sulle
quah il popolo della nuova ItaHa foggia con mirabile legge
di continuita la sua incorruttibilita morale.
Primo episodio. Nell'estate dell'anno 282 avanti Cristo,
una squadra romana, che veleggiava verso Sena-GalHca,
gitto I'ancora nel porto di Taranto.
I Tarantini, col pretesto che un antico trattato vietava
ai Romani di navigare oltre il Capo Licinio, assaltarono le
navi ancorate, ne affondarono alcune e misero in fuga le
altre.
11 Senato romano chiese subito un'adeguata riparazione
ai Tarantini. Ma gli ambasciatori ch'esso all'uopo mando,
invece d'ottenere la chiesta riparazione, furono dai Taran-
tini bassamente oltraggiati.
Allora Roma dichiaro la guerra.
I Tarantini chiesero aiuto a Pirro re dell'Epiro. Costui,
ch'era ambizioso e vago quanto mai d'avventure, non si fece
molto pregare. Sbarco a Taranto (280 avanti Cristo) con
un grosso esercito e 20 elefanti trasportanti sul dorso alcune
fortezze, dalle quali i soldati potevano combattere al sicuro.
E scontratosi coi Romani comandati dal console P. Valerio
Levino ad Eraclea presso le foci dell'Agri, ne segui un'acca-
nita battaglia.
I soldati romani, spaventati dall'enorme grossezza e
dai barriti di quei quadrupedi ch'essi non avevano mai visto
prima, si diedero alia fuga, lasciando al nemico la vittoria.
Ma questa era costata tanto cara, che Pirro, pieno di mera-
viglia e di dispetto, esclamo: "Ancora una vittoria come
questa, e dovro tornarmene solo in Epiro!"
Durante I'inverno, un'ambasceria romana condotta da
Caio Fabrizio, uomo povero ma di gran talento militate
630 PARTE QUARTA
e d'animo nobilissimo, si presento a Pirro per trattare dello
scambio dei prigionieri.
L'austera semplicita del Romano meraviglio non poco
lo straniero.
Pirro, tratto in disparte Fabrizio, gli ofFri preziosissimi
doni, purche promettesse d'indurre il Senato romano a far
la pace.
Ma Fabrizio rispose alteramente:
Offri i tuoi doni agli schiavi, non gia ad un cittadino romano.
E sappi bene ch'io non mi sento povero, ma piii ricco di te, perche
il mio campicello e la mia casetta mi danno abbastanza per vivere
beato.
Non potendo vincerlo con I'oro, Pirro tento di vincere
Fabrizio con la paura. Gli aizzo contro il piii grosso degli
elefanti, il quale, a un dato cenno, stese la proboscide sulla
testa di Fabrizio e barri spaventosamente. II forte Romano
non si scosse, non si mosse: sorrise fieramente. E quando
I'elefante ebbe finite, parti senza concludere nulla sullo
scambio dei prigionieri.
Pirro, stupefatto, esclamo:
Vedo che sarebbe piij facile far deviate il Sole dal sue corso, che
Fabrizio dal sentiero della virtu!
Ritornato a Roma, Fabrizio consiglio al Senato di non
fare la pace.
Roma non dovra scendere a patti — egli grido — finche soldati
stranieri calcheranno il suolo d'ltalia!
La guerra fu continuata. Pirro, sconfitto dai Romani
comandati dal console M. Curio Dentato in un'asprissima
battaglia presso Benevento, dove riprendere per sempre
la via dell'Epiro.
Secondo episodio. L'anno 1888 il governo italiano
aveva bisogno di contrarre un prestito di 60 milioni di lire.
Alcuni banchieri francesi, desiderosi di combinare essi
I'affare abbastanza grasso per quei tempi, tentarono di
corrompere, con I'ofFerta d'un milione e duecentomila lire,
una delle piii illibate figure del Parlamento nazionale
L'ORO INGLESE E FRANCESE 631
italiano: Giovanni Bovio^ Per mezzo dell'autorita di
questo austero deputato repubblicano, essi speravano,
anzi erano sicuri, di potere influenzare il ministro delle
finanze d'ltalia ch'era allora Agostino Magliani.
Ma ecco come Bovio rispose al banchiere che aveva
avuto I'incarico dai suoi colleghi di Francia di fare la
temeraria proposta:
Napoli, 5 dicembre 1888.
Signore,
Con lettera assicurata da Parigi, in data 1° dicembre
1888 e in carta intestata col vostro noma, voi scrivete a me:
Ho I'onore d'avervi conosciuto e udito. Potete voi chiedere al mini-
stro Maglianiy se vero e che il governo italiano abbia assolutamente
bisogno di collocare a breve scadenza cinquanta sessanta milioni di
buoni del Tesoro e se e vero che questa realizzazione sia naufragata
in Francia^ Infine a qual tasso egli vorrebbe realizzarlil
Se SI, potete assicurare che, se il tasso e accettabile, fra otto giorni
dal di della risposta, verranno recati a Roma i cinquanta sessanta
milioni di cui egli avrebbe uopo. Come voi vedete, questo affare e dei
piu seri e richiede la piu grande discrezione. Per incomodi e cure,
se V affare si fa, verrd messa a disposizione vostra la somma di un
milione e duecentomila franchi {un milion deux cents mil francs).
La proposizione fattami indica chiaramente che voi mi avete
veduto e udito, ma non mi avete conosciuto.
Per fare a me siffatta proposta, voi avete dovuto indicate ai
banchieri che verranno in Roma il mio nome, e permettete che lo
difenda io, che non ho altro da custodire e da trasmettere.
Lo difendero spiegandovi in poche parole il fatto e me.
II fatto, comunque colorito e velato, e di quelli che si chiamano
affari, e che i deputati non debbono trattare ne coi ministri ne con
uffici e compagnie dipendenti dal governo. Non c'e legge che vi
si opponga, ma i fatti peggiori non sono quelli che cadono sotto le
sanzioni delle leggi.
Quanto a me, ne a voi che siete stato in Napoli, ne ad altri
pud essere ignoto che io sostento me e la famiglia di per di, inse-
'Giovanni Bovio, uomo politico di Trani (Bari), filosofo, oratore, epigrafista e
drammaturgo, spiccata figura di savio antico. All'Universita di Napoli insegno,
successivamente, Filosofia e Storia del diritto, Enciclopedia giuridica, ecc. La sua
filosofia fu un gran sogno esaltato da idealita. Autore della Filosofia del diritto,
della Storia del diritto in Italia, del Naturalismo e di altre opera profonde. Fu in
intima corrispondenza con Mazzini, Saffi, Garibaldi e con tutti gli altri grandi
Italian! del suo tempo. Mori povero e incorrotto. (1841-1903.)
632 PARTE QUARTA
gnando e scrivendo filosofia, congiunta con un po' di matematica,
ma con aritmetica che non e mai arrivata al milione.
Se il lavoro mi frutta I'indipendenza, il milione mi e soverchio.
Voi scrivete che tutto sarebbe fatto di cheto in Roma, senza
che altri ne sappia.
E non lo saprei io? E non porto nella mia coscienza un codice?
I banchieri possono lasciare la loro coscienza a pie delle Alpi e
ripigliarsela al ritorno; ma io la porto dovunque, perche la dentro
ci sono gli ultimi ideali che ho potuto salvare dalle delusioni.
Voi scrivete che e opera di buon cittadino questa mediazione;
ma io vi dico che e opera di onesto uomo non far mai cio che si ha
bisogno di tacere e di coprire.
Ed ora, credete a me, che non ho da chiedere nulla e neppure
da accettare. Voi non incontrerete un Italiano che non si auguri
buone relazioni con la Francia, non per i buoni affari, ma per la
buona ragione.
La democrazia italiana non e ricca: ama il decoro e la liberta
della Francia, ma dall'oro francese non si fa abbagliare.
10 ed i miei amici non pronunzieremo il vostro nome qui noto
e stimato; ma voi avete I'obbligo di dire ai vostri compagni che
in Italia il sentimento della dignita e vivo, e se un giovane italiano,
da noi educato, dovesse scegliere tra il canape austriaco e I'oro
francese, senza un istante di esitanza, egli si darebbe al canape.
Giovanni Bovio.
11 popolo italiano, rimanendo estraneo ai maneggi di
von Bulow^ e di Giolitti, segui fedelmente gli esempi tra-
mandatigli da Fabrizio e insegnatigli da Bovio. Anzi fece
di piii. Incontrato per le vie di Roma, durante le tempestose
giornate del maggio 191 5, I'onorevole Bertolini, ex ministro
di Vittorio Emanuele III, sospettato, semplicemente so-
spettato, d'essersi venduto ai Tedeschi, lo invest! scaglian-
dogli i piii roventi improperi insieme con pugni di monete
in faccia. E avrebbe linciato lo stesso Giolitti, se il vecchio
"boia labbrone" (cosi d'Annunzio ingiurio Giolitti) non
se la fosse data a gambe protetto dalla polizia.
Gli e che il popolo della nuova Italia e un popolo intelli-
gente, non imbelle; un popolo idealista, non utilitario; un
popolo tenace, non volubile. Esso sa facilmente distinguere
il vero dal falso, il bene dal male, il bello dal brutto. Ab-
braccia prontamente, per naturale impulse dell'animo suo
L'ORO INGLESE E FRANCESE 633
sensibilissimo, tutte le cause giuste. E una volta abbrac-
ciate, le difende con entusiasmo, con disinteresse, con fer-
mezza.
Scoppiata nel 1914 la grande guerra, il popolo italiano
seppe subito di che si trattava. E non esito un solo istante
a prendere spontaneamente la posizione che la raglone e il
sentimento — ispirati Tuna e I'altro dal diritto dei deboli
— gl'imposero. E in tale posizione si mantenne sempre
con amore e costanza incrollabili.
L'oro inglese e I'oro francese non furono che una storiella
calunniosa messa fuori, per giunta assai tardivamente,
dalla malafede teutonica.
Perche bisogna fermarsi sopra una circostanza essen-
zialissima. Che e questa. Mentre dal luglio 1914 al maggio
191 5 fervevano in Italia le lotte tra i fautori deH'intervento
a favore dell'Austria e della Germania (fautori che la forza
delle cose cambio poi in neutralisti) da una parte, e i fautori
dell'intervento contro I'Austria e la Germania dall'altra,
parecchi dei summenzionati scribacchini furono, da alcuni
giornali italiani, accusati d'essersi venduti ai Teutoni.
Gli accusati sporsero querela di difFamazione.
Ma nei pubblici dibattimenti, svoltisi dinanzi ai tri-
bunali, i giornali accusatori provarono pienamente le loro
accuse. E i giudici li dovettero assolvere; dovettero cioe
assolvere i giornali accusatori, mentre gli scribacchini
accusati d'essersi venduti ai Teutoni furono seppelliti
sotto la valanga dell'indignazione e del disprezzo nazionali.
Non era forse quello il momento psicologico piii op-
portuno per contrapporre alle accuse e alle prove dell'oro
teutonic©, le accuse e le prove dell'oro inglese e dell'oro
francese?
Era certamente quello il momento!
Ma i Teutoni e i teutonici non ne approfittarono. Non
si fecero avanti. Tacquero. Perche?
Perche oro inglese e francese non ne era corso in Italia.
Se ne fosse corso, i Teutoni e i teutonici non avrebbero
mancato di gridarlo ai quattro venti.
Del resto, anche l'oro inglese e francese, se fosse corso,
non avrebbe fatto altro che corrompere, al pari dell'oro
634 PARTE QUARTA
teutonico, qualche politicante rinnegato, qualche famelico
scribacchino, qualche incallito cefFo da galera.
II popolo italiano, nella sua poverta pura come cristallo
d'Alpi, sarebbe rimasto estraneo al turpe mercato. Esso
si sarebbe ritemprato ancora di piu nelle immortali virtu
dei suoi Fabrizi antichi e dei suoi Bovio moderni.
E non solo con I'oro, ma anche con altri mezzi i Teuton!
tentarono di neutralizzare ITtalia, poiche non erano riusciti
ad attrarla in favor loro sui campi di battaglia. Inondarono
la penisola, dal luglio 1914 al maggio 191 5, di giornali,
bollettini, riviste, fogli volanti, libri, opuscoli, tutti in lingua
italiana. E, con questa grazia di Dio, si sforzarono di dimo-
strare che glTnglesi e i Francesi avevano sempre odiato
e avversato glTtaliani, e sempre li avrebbero odiati e avver-
sati in avvenire; mentre essi — i Tedeschi — erano stati
sempre i piii entusiastici ammiratori e i piii sinceri amici
deglTtaliani, e tali sarebbero sempre rimasti in avvenire.
Numerosi pacchi di siffatte pubblicazioni furono man-
dati a me direttamente in Chicago da un mio amico tedesco
che tra il 1914 e il 191 5 si trovava in Italia. lo, cosi, potei
aver I'onore di leggere, tra I'altro, I'opuscolo intitolato
La veritd nelV amicizia deW Inghilterra per V Italia del dottor
J. Lulves stampato a Roma con la data del 191 5; I'opuscolo
intitolato Italia e Francia di Alfredo Tusti stampato anche
a Roma con la data del 191 5; e il Bollettino della Guerra
(numero 30-31 del 17-30 aprile 191 5) pubblicato dal dottor
Fred. B. Hardt a Monaco di Baviera.
Nel primo, vidi cronologicamente enumerati i torti
che glTnglesi fecero aglTtaliani dal 1327 fino al 1912.
Nel secondo, vidi cronologicamente enumerati i torti
che i Francesi fecero aglTtaliani dal 30 marzo 1282 (data
dei Vespri Siciliani) fino al 191 2.
Nel terzo, vidi un articolo intitolato La civiltd italiana
e V anima tedesca che qui riproduco testualmente:
In Europa vi e un'affinita spirituale che dissente dalle manifesta-
zioni deH'arte e della letteratura russa; noi Tedeschi ammiriamo
le composizioni di un Dostojewski, ma lo spirito deH'anima russa
rimane estraneo a noi; mentre invece Balzac ci fa pensare e sentire
L'ORO INGLESE E FRANCESE 635
insieme con lui, come una novella di Boccaccio ci fa ridere since-
ramente, e i versi di Dante inalzano ed entusiasmano I'anima
nostra come quella degl'Italiani stessi. Tra Romani e Germani
vi e un antico rapporto di conoscenza e di memorie, per cui I'arte
e la civilta italiane sono da noi profondamente intese; noi sentiamo
per I'influsso delle medesime nella nostra vita intellettuale un vivo
senso di riconoscenza. L'intenso desiderio che spingeva Goethe
ed i romantici verso I'ltalia sopravvive in ogni cuore germanico.
Non rifacciamo tutta la storia della colonizzazione romana della
Germania, ma ricordiamo solamente che da quel tempo fino ad
oggi I'influsso di essa e rimasto costante, attraverso tutta la storia,
nel Diritto romario.
II Rinascimento ha trasmesso a noi i tesori del pensiero greco e
latino. Dai monasteri benedettini italiani flui nel Medio Evo una
larga corrente intellettuale e religiosa verso la Germania, il cui
studio passionato verso la storia dell'arte italiana, paragonato con
il culto da noi attribuito alle altre civilta, ha sempre spinto verso
di quella tutta I'attivita e il desiderio di ricerca dei nostri sommi
cultori dell'arte e della storia. Sarebbe troppo lungo citare qui
anche solo i piii importanti fra i cultori che la Germania annovera
nel campo suddetto; vogliamo solo ricordare alcuni fra i piii
eminenti e noti a tutti. Chi ignora il nome di Winckelmann, il
fondatore dell'archeologia moderna? E chi non conosce I'illustre
Teodoro Mommsen e la sua storia di Roma, i lavori di Friedlander
suUa storia dei costumi dei Romani, la splendida storia della citta
di Roma nel Medio Evo di Ferdinando Gregorovius il cittadino di
Roma, il capolavoro di Ranke sulla storia del Papato, il Cicerone
di Jacob Burckhardt che offre una comprensiva esposizione di
tutta la storia dell'arte italiana, i lavori di Hermann Grimm sul
Rinascimento e i sommi lavori di Wolffin che tiene oggi la cattedra
di Riehl a Monaco?
Ne solamente alio studio della storia italiana hanno i Tedeschi
rivolto il loro lavoro indefesso e la loro passione per I'ltalia, ma
anche nella versione dei suoi poeti e nella riproduzione dei suoi
lavori. In ogni casa di un buon tedesco si trova la Vita di Benve-
nuto Cellini tradotta la prima volta da Goethe. Tra le moltissime
traduzioni della Divina Commedia, una, che porta il pseudonimo di
Philalethes, e stata fatta dal re Giovanni di Sassonia. La casa
E. Diederichs di Jena sta pubblicando una ricca collezione di an-
tichi documenti italiani, cronache e diari del Rinascimento, splen-
didamente tradotti; superbe edizioni di cui fino ad oggi sono uscite
due serie di 12 volumi ciascuna. £ un piacere per ogni Tedesco
636 PARTE QUARTA
colto prendere in mano uno di questi volumi come Matarazzo,
La Cronaca di Perugia, Napoli e gli Aragonesi, il Diario fiorentuio
di Landucci, il Diario di Roma di Infessura, le Lettere dell'Aretino
e del Bracciolini, i Misteri fiorentini, le Istorie fiorentine di Machia-
velli ed altre tali rarita.
Le edizioni bibliofile dei poeti e pensatori italiani della casa
editrice Insel di Lipsia, di G. Miiller e von Weber di Monaco sono
in Germania difFusissime; in esse, accanto a un'impeccabile tra-
duzione del testo, segue un commento critico sempre accurato.
Altrettanto forte fu I'influsso della pittura italiana, Tunica
veramente grande, sulla pittura tedesca moderna. Basti ricordare
Albrecht Diirer e la sua permanenza in Venezia. Oggi ancora
i tesori raccolti nei musei dTtalia sono il sogno di molti giovani
artisti tedeschi che vi si recano a cercarvi ed a trovarvi I'ispira-
zione. Ed in quante Corti nostre del secolo XVII e XVIII non
troviamo I'impronta della genialita degli architetti e degli artisti
italiani!
La Germania moderna non si occupa solamente dellTtalia
classica e del Rinascimento italiano, ma anche della ricostituzione
della sua unita politica, del suo sviluppo economico il quale e
seguito con vivo interesse ed e da noi altamente compreso ed
apprezzato, forse perche noi, al pari degl'Italiani, ci ricordiamo
delle grandi lotte che entrambi le nazioni dovettero sostenere per
raggiungere la loro unita nazionale. Con quale fine e delicata
analisi Viktor Hehn nella sua opera Paesi e popolazioni in Italia^
e P. D. Fischer nei suoi studi sulle condizioni politiche ed econo-
miche dellTtalia, come anche I'Hofmeister nei suo lavoro Lo
sviluppo economico dei Romani, sanno penetrare la psiche dell'a-
nima italiana e con quanta meravigliosa chiarezza sanno valutare
e apprezzare il grado di grandezza che ITtalia ha saputo raggiun-
gere! E con quale sagacia il nostro grande storico Treitschke ha
saputo penetrare I'opera e la genialita del grande statista italiano
Camillo Cavour!
A migliaia e migliaia vanno ogni anno i Tedeschi nella penisola,
attratti dalle magiche bellezze di natura e dai capolavori d'arte
che ITtalia possiede, e tutti ritornano, dopo quel soggiorno troppo
breve, coU'anima inebriata dalla suggestiva e straordinaria bellez-
za del paese, traboccante il cuore e il pensiero delle infinite
meravigliose bellezze della classica Italia, con I'orecchio ancora
vibrante dell'eco armoniosa dei discorsi intavolati con un qualun-
que gentile compagno di viaggio o di mensa. Soltanto i Tedeschi,
osiamo afFermarlo, portano via dallTtalia tante fruttuose impres-
CUPIDIGE TERRITORIAL! 637
sioni della terra che li afFascina, della culla della civilta europea!
II Francese non viaggia molto; I'Inglese assai, ma con criteri di
osservazione e risultati di impressione ben diversi dai nostri; il
Russo poi che si reca in Italia appartiene generalmente al ceto delle
intelligenze piii elevate, ne I'arte e la civilta italiane potranno
essere mai il comune patrimonio della popolazione russa, la cui
psiche e lontana ed estranea alia civilta europea.
Ma il popolo italiano penso che i torti inglesi non eran
poi stati tanto gravi in confronto dei torti tedeschi, se
Giuseppe Mazzini (il primissimo degl'Italiani della nuova
Italia) aveva finito con I'amare I'lnghilterra.
II popolo italiano penso che i torti francesi non eran
poi stati tanto gravi in confronto dei torti tedeschi, se
Giuseppe Garibaldi (il gloriosissimo Eroe della nuova
Italia), Amilcare Cipriani (il piii ribelle dei perseguitati
politici della nuova Italia), Giovanni Bovio, Felice Caval-
lotti e Matteo Renato Imbriani (tre dei piii intemerati
uomini politici della nuova Italia), Giosue Carducci e
Gabriele d'Annunzio (i due piii grandi poeti della nuova
Italia) avevano finito col difendere ed esaltare la Francia.
II popolo italiano, percio, come non s'era fatto con-
taminate dall'oro dei Tedeschi, cosi non si fece sedurre
neppure dalla loro tardiva prosa adulatrice.
I Teutoni, infine, ricorsero anche alle minacce. Ma
invano: per la semplice ragione che il popolo italiano,
quando e infiammato da una causa ch'esso crede giusta,
non ha paura di nessuno, tanto meno della morte, come lo
prova luminosissimamente il suo secolare martirologio.
X
Cupidige territoriali.
Dove furono le cupidige territoriali che spinsero il popolo
italiano ad entrare nellagrandeguerra, attaccandol'Austria?
Senza dubbio ITtalia, risorta come grande Potenza
soltanto mezzo secolo addietro, trovo le piQ importanti
638 PARTE QUARTA
posizioni mondiali saldamente occupate da quelle nazioni
ch'erano grandi Potenze da secoli. Trovo una gerarchia
internazionale precostituita e ferrea, in cui a lei, tra le
grandi Potenze, non restava che I'ultimo posto. Trovo un
equilibrio rigido e sofFocante ch'essa — piij piccola, piij
povera, piii debole delle altre — non poteva scrollare per
tagliarsi nel mondo una meno angusta porzione di ricchezza
e di dominio, e nemmeno per ricostituirsi a piena unita
nazionale, geografica, etnica.
L'espansione territoriale era dunque per ITtalia una
vitale incoercibile necessita.
Pur nondimeno il popolo italiano, rispettoso quanto
mai dell'indipendenza nazionale degli altri popoli, anche
di quelli che ingiustamente sono chiamati inferiori, anzi
addirittura barbari, rifuggi sempre dalla politica e dalle
imprese aventi carattere espansivo territoriale. Si oppose
con le barricate alia guerra contro I'Abissinia per la con-
quista dell'Eritrea epilogata con la disfatta d'Adua il i°
marzo 1896 e alia guerra contro la Turchia del 191 2 per la
conquista della Tripolitania e della Cirenaica (le due uniche
guerre della nuova Italia) volute dal governo monarchico
dei Savoia per gl'interessi bancari, industriali, commerciali
e religiosi della plutocrazia italiana. Si oppose e non s'im-
pose, come nella grande guerra odierna, perche le due
summenzionate guerre africane potevano nuocere fino a un
certo punto alia compagine e ai destini della nazione, mentre
la grande guerra odierna alterera certamente la compagine
e i destini dell'intera Europa, dell'intero mondo.
II popolo della nuova Italia, entrando nella grande
guerra durante la primavera del 191 5, non ebbe di mira
vantaggi territoriali.
Se avesse avuto di mira vantaggi territoriali, esso si
sarebbe schierato, fin dall'inizio della guerra stessa, a fiance
dell'Austria e della Germania, o per lo meno sarebbe rimasto
neutrale.
Nel primo case, la Francia sarebbe stata fulmineamente
schiacciata. II disastro francese si sarebbe ineluttabil-
mente ripercosso sullTnghilterra e sulla Russia. E I'Austria
e la Germania, rimaste vittoriose e arbitre della situazione
CUPIDIGE TERRITORIAL! 639
europea, anzi mondiale, avrebbero ben volentieri ricompensa-
ta ritalia con concession! territoriali comprendenti non solo
le terre irredente a est della penisola (dal Trentino fino alle
coste meridionali dell'Albania), ma anche le terre irredente
a ovest della penisola (come Savoia, Nizza e la Corsica),
le isole di Malta, la Tunisia, Gibilterra e — dulcis in fundo
— qualche "grossa colonia" al di la del Mediterraneo.
Nel secondo caso, I'Austria e la Germania avrebbero non
meno volentieri — checche si dica in contrario — ricom-
pensata ITtalia con concession! territoriali proporzionate
alle probabilita di vittoria che dal mantenimento della
neutralita italiana sarebbero derivate agl'imperi di Fran-
cesco Giuseppe e di Guglielmo II.
Ma ai facili ingrandimenti territoriali, il popolo della
nuova Italia prefer! — a costo di sacrifizi superior! di molto
al valore delle terre irredente sintetizzate nel binomio Trento
e Trieste e a qualsiasi altro compenso materiale — la causa
dei deboli, la causa dell'umanita. Prefer! distruggere i
sogni egemonici della plutocrazia teutonica. Prefer! scuo-
tere dalle fondamenta la potenza militate teutonica. Pre-
fer? salvare le nazioni dalle insidie e dall'arroganza dell' im-
perialismo teutonic©.
Se il colpo mortale che, per mezzo della grande guerra,
ricevera la Kultur si risolvera in male per la vera civilta
umana, la colpa di cio bisognera darla per giustizia al
popolo della nuova Italia. E, con la colpa, il rimorso e la
vergogna in eterno.
Se, invece, il colpo mortale che, per mezzo della grande
guerra, ricevera la Kultur si risolvera in bene per la vera
civilta umana, il merito di cio bisognera darlo per giustizia
al popolo della nuova Italia. E, col merito, la riconoscenza
universale e la gloria in eterno.
II future Tacito giudichera.
640 PARTE QUARTA
XI
Gli Onnipotenti.
La grande guerra odierna e I'epilogo logico e naturale
dei mali che le caste privilegiate commisero durante il loro
lungo imperio sul mondo. E il colmo del male che le dette
caste potevano praticamente commettere ai danni del
mondo.
I propugnatori dei diritti umani contrapposero, e vero,
attraverso i secoli, i frutti della loro mente, vigorosi mirabili
immortali; gl'impulsi della loro coscienza, gentili pietosi
afFettuosi; i martiri della loro carne, eroici magnanimi su-
blimi. Ma tanta efFusione di bellezza non pote impedire che
il vaso di Pandora traboccasse e che i miasmi del suo putrido
contenuto infettassero I'intero organismo sociale.
Significa che gli elementi — intellettuali morali materia-
li — usati dai propugnatori dei diritti umani, per quanto
sgorgati dalle piii pure fonti del pensiero e del sentimento,
per quanto ardentemente protesi verso i piii santi ideali
della vita, non furono adattabili alia natura umana (ne
alia parte opprimente, ne alia parte oppressa). Se fossero
stati adattabili, I'umanita li avrebbe assimilati. E a
quest'ora non ci sarebbero piii oppressi ed oppressor!.
Gli uni e gli altri sarebbero gia entrati, volenti o nolenti,
nella fase tanto vagheggiata del vivere civile. In quella
fase, nella quale i popoli, tutti i popoli indistintamente,
non possono che trovare giustizia, liberta, prosperita,
fratellanza, pace, felicita.
Dalle rovine della grande guerra, sature del sangue e
del pianto di tutta I'umana famiglia, si levera un soffio di
novissima energia intelligente.
Questo soffio creera i novissimi uomini, i quali saranno
onnipotenti e si chiameranno Onnipotenti.
lo ne faccio il preannunzio con la commozione che pro-
viene dall'intima certezza.
Gli Onnipotenti si sostituiranno a coloro (laici ed eccle-
siastici) i quali non seppero fare altro che propugnare invano
i diritti dell'umanita.
GLI ONNIPOTENTI 641
Gli Onnipotenti colpiranno coloro (laici ed ecclesiastici)
i quail non seppero fare altro che opera ostinatamente
nefasta.
Ma la loro azione — I'azione degli Onnipotenti — non
avra la brusca violenza distruttiva dei moti sismici.
Essa avra la graduale virtu fecondatrice del Sole che
appare ogni mattina sull'orizzonte. Azione d'amore. E,
come tale, penetrera, senza che nessuna influenza deleteria
possa impedirlo, nell'infetto organismo sociale: e lo puri-
fichera; lo guarira; lo elevera alle piii alte cime della perfe-
zione fisica, psicologica, spirituale, dove il sogno poetico del
mio Campanella potra alfine diventare realta. Realta
sempre progrediente e trionfante nella quotidiana e perenne
vita del genere umano.
O pietaSj o prisca fides, o Candida corda,
Lugentum ignorantumque atri ahiere colores;
Exulet impietas, fraudes, mendacia, lites.
Nee timeant agnive lupum, aut armenta leonem;
Inque bonum populi discent regnare tyranni;
Ocia cessarunt et cessavere labores,
Nam labor est iocus, in multos partitus amice.
O pieta, o prisca fade, o candidi cuori,
Gli atri e funesti colori dell'ignoranza sono spariti;
Sono sparite Tempieta, la frode, la menzogna, le guerre.
Non piu I'agnello temera il lupo, ne gli armenti il leone;
I popoli insegneranno ai tiranni di ben governare;
L'ozio cessera, cesseranno le lotte per I'esistenza,
E il lavoro non sara che un gioco diviso tra buoni amici.
FINE.
INDICE ALFABETICO
dei Nomi Propri di Persona
Abba Giuseppe Cesare, 476.
Abruzzi, duca degli, 572.
Adalberto di Baviera, 620.
Adami Giovan Battista, 469.
Adamo, 377.
Adriano IV, papa, 442, 444.
Aehrenthal, conte, 572, 573.
Ajani Giulio, 424, 496.
Alarico, 592.
Albani Felice, 505.
Alberto, arciduca, 564.
Alboino, 417.
Aleardo Aleardi, 484.
Alessandro III, papa, 445, 448.
Alessandro di Serbia, 545, 547, 551.
Alighieri, 582.
AUemandi, 464.
Almerigotti Alessandro, 469.
Almerigotti Giovanni e Lodovico,
469.
Amedeo VI di Savoia, 451.
Annibale, 388.
Antonaz Antonio, 484.
Apollinara Pinario, 433.
Ardigo prof. Roberto, 600, 606.
Aretino, 636.
Arberto da Intimiano, 447.
Arimani Antonio, 476.
Armellini Carlo, 393, 398, 468.
Arnaldo da Brescia, 442.
Arquati Tavani Giuditta, 424, 425,
426, 496.
Ascoli Graziadio, 458.
Astolfo, 426.
Attila, 437, 592.
Augusto, 429, 430, 432.
Aurelio Marco, 430, 436.
Avezzana, 500.
Baiamonti Antonio, 464, 534.
Balbo Cesare, 376.
Balilla, 362, 389.
Balzac, 634.
Bandiera Attilio ed Emilio, 458.
Baratieri Oreste, 476.
Barbarossa Federico, 389, 442, 443,
444, 445, 446, 447, 448, 449.
Barge, conte di, 394.
Barzilai Salvatore, 501.
Bassi Ugo, 399, 400.
Battera Raimondo, 504.
Battorchi Cernio, 491.
Bazzoni Clementina, 508.
Bazzoni, dottor, 508.
Beatrice, 513.
Beccaria Cesare, 508.
Belgioioso, principessa Cristina di,
392.
Bell, 403.
Belloni Giuseppe, 383.
Berardi G., 458.
Berchet Giovanni, 372.
Berchtold, conte di, 546, 570, 571,
573;
Berini Giovanni, 506.
Bertelli Pietro, 468.
Bertolini, 628, 632.
Bethmann-HoUweg, von, 565, 574,
576.
Bevilacqua Achille, 468.
Bevilacqua Giovanni, 469.
Bezzi Enoch, 476.
Bezzi Ergisto, 476, 477, 485, 488
496.
Bidischini Francesco, 476.
Bismarck, 554, 568, 571.
Bissolati, ministro, 358.
Bixio Nino, 420.
Blasig Carlo, 498.
Boccaccio, 635.
Boggio Carlo, 494.
Bolcego Tomaso, 476.
643
644
INDICE ALFABETICO
Bolza, 384, 386.
Bonetti, Domenlco 469.
Bonomo Antonio, 453.
Borelli Vincenzo, 375.
Borisi Marcantonio, 469.
Borromeo, conte Vitaliano, 392.
Boscovich Carlo, 471.
Bovio Giovanni, 511, 631, 632, 634,
637;
Bracciolini, 636.
Brambilla Pietro, 494.
Bresciani, famiglia, 490.
Brisa, vescovo-barone, 450.
Bronzetti, famiglia, 478,
Bronzetti Narciso, 473, 474, 477.
Bronzetti Oreste, 490.
Bronzetti Pilade, 477, 478.
Bronzetti Pilade e Narciso, 468,
490.
Bruck, 459.
BrufFel Giovanni, 468.
Brul, 475.
Brunetti Angelo (Ciceruacchio),
399, 400.
Bruno Giordano, 580, 591, 600.
Buchanan, 545.
Buchler Gustavo, 488.
Bulow, principe di, 566, 577, 622,
626, 628, 632,
Bunsen Maurizio, 550.
Buono Michele, 479.
Burckhardt Jacob, 635.
Cadorna Raffaele, 426, 488, 499.
Cairoli Adelaide, 497.
Cairoli Benedetto' 497, 498, 500.
Cairoli dottor Carlo, 497.
Cairoli Enrico, 424.
Cairoli, famiglia, 478.
Cairoli, fratelli, 424, 496.
Cairoli Giovanni, 496.
Caligola Caio, 433.
Calvi Pietro Fortunate, 410.
Camerino Quinto Sulpicio, 433.
Campanella Tommaso, 580, 598,
641.
Campbell Roberto, 385.
Canal Giulio, 458.
Cancellieri Giulio, 452.
Canella Isidore, 491.
Cantu Cesare, 376.
Canzio Stefano, 499.
Cappellini Alfredo, 422.
Capponi Gino, 376.
Capponi Piero, 523.
Capria, 489.
Caprin, 500.
Caravati, vedova, 382.
Carbone Giovanni, 363.
Carbonis R., 458.
Carducci Giosue, 426, 501, 508,
510, 512,637.
Carli, 493.
Carli Gian Rinaldo, 456.
Carlo Alberto di Savoia-Carignano,
370, 377> 378, 387* 390» 393. 421
459, 465, 615, 616, 619.
Carlo II duca di Parma, 410.
Carlo Emanuele III di Savoia, 361.
Carlo, arciduca, 454.
Carlo III, duca di Parma, 410.
Carlo Felice di Savoia, 370, 378.
Carlo Lodovico, arciduca, 503.
Carlo Magno, 438.
Carlo IV, 450.
Carlo V, 389, 452, 454.
Carlo VI d' Austria, 361, 362, 455,
Carlo Alberto di Baviera (Carlo
VII), 361.
Carlo VIII, 523.
Carpaccio, 493.
Carrara Francesco, 508.
Casanova don Pietro, 468.
Caterina II di Russia, 508.
Catone, 585.
Cattaneo Carlo, 376, 380, 384, 385.
Cattarozzi Vincenzo, 497.
Caucich Pietro, 515.
Cavali Pietro, 468.
Cavallotti Felice, 637.
Cavour, Camillo Benso di, 376, 411,
412, 415, 418, 471, 481, 482, 483,
486, 636.
Cellini Benvenuto, 635.
INDICE ALFABETICO
645
Cernuschi Enrico, 385.
Cesare Giulio, 426, 430, 431, 432,
440, 585.
Chimelli Carlo, 490.
Chiozza Pietro, 489.
Chotek Sofia, 539.
Ciani Giuseppa, 506.
Ciganovic Milan, 541, 549.
Cignoli, 416.
Ciotti Marziano, 476, 488, 496.
Cipriani Amilcare, 637.
Clarendon, 400.
Claudio, 433.
Clemente VII, papa, 389.
Clerici Giorgio, 385.
Coen Filippo, 469.
Coiz prof. Antonio, 472.
Colombo Cristoforo, 585.
Colombo Giacobbe, 408.
Combi Carlo, 494.
Comelli Federico, 471.
Conforti Raffaele, 413.
Conrad, 571.
Conti Maria, 409.
Correnti Cesare, 397.
Cortella Paolo, 491.
Costantino il Grande, 430.
Covi Virgilio, 490.
Crispi Francesco, 554.
Cristiano di Magonza, arcivescovo,
445-
Cristo, 366, 596.
Cuder Federico, 497.
Cumano Costantino, 462, 469.
Dalla Costa Giovanni, 476.
DairOngaro Francesco, 409, 458,
468.
Dandolo, 535.
Dandolo Enrico, 399.
D'Andri Leonardo, 488.
Danielli Giovanni, 465.
D'Annunzio Gabriele, 514, 535,
623, 626, 632, 637.
Dante, 427, 432,512, 513, 519,520,
598. 635.
D'Aspre, 398.
Davanzati, 493.
D'Avarna, duca, 563, 572, 623.
D'Azeglio Massimo, 376.
De Bassetti Tito, 480.
De Benedetti, famiglia, 478.
De Canal Bernardo, 410.
De Carina Pietro, 495.
De Haag Riccardo, 515.
Delfino Menotti, 502.
Delia Casa Giovanni, 583.
Delia Croce Ireneo, 455.
Delia Torre Enrico, 450.
De Mulitsch, 502.
Dentato M. Curio, 630.
Depaugher Carlo, 488.
De Pregel Melchiorre, 498.
De Pretis Carlo, 490.
De Pretis, famiglia, 489.
De Pretis Giovanni, 480.
Depretis, ministro, 554.
De Rin Nicolo, 462, 486.
Dicio Domenico, 468.
Diederichs E., 635.
Diocleziano, 430, 435.
Donaggio Rodolfo, 488, 490, 496.
Donati Giuseppe, 489.
Doria Lamba, 534, 535.
D'Oria Luciano, 534, 535.
Dostojewski, 634.
Dragicchio Giuseppe, 469.
Druffel Giovanni, 488.
Ducati Angelo, 465.
Ducati, famiglia, 490.
Duchie Luigi, 515.
Dudovick, 500.
Durando Giacomo, 376.
Durando Giovanni, 390.
Eccheli, famiglia di Ala, 490.
Eccheli, famiglia di Brentonico,
490.
Eccher prof. Alberto, 488. «
Elena, regina, 514.
Elisabetta, imperatrice d'Austria,
419-
Elisabetta di Savoia-Carignano,
619.
646
INDICE ALFABETICO
Erberti Francesco, 469.
Erode, 430.
Eugenio III, papa, 442.
Fabi, 478.
Fabricci Gustavo, 502.
Fabrizi, 500.
Fabrizio Caio, 629, 630, 632, 634.
Facchinetti Michele, 471.
Faienz Filippo, 489.
Fani prof. Gino, 574.
Fattori Antonio, 476.
Fausta, 430.
Favetti Carlo, 471.
Favetti Nepomuceno, 485.
Federico III d'Austria, 453, 454.
Fenali Giuseppe, 489.
Ferdinando I di Borbone, 364, 365,
366, 368.
Ferdinando I d'Austria, 390.
Ferdinando I, re dei Romani, 452,
454-
Ferdinando II di Borbone, 378,
389^ 399» 419. 458.
Ferdinando III di Lorena, 363.
FeroUi Enrico, 488, 490, 496.
Ferrandi Luciano, 408.
Ferrari Carlo, 481.
Ferrari Giuseppe, 376.
Ferrari, maggiore, 474.
Ferruccio Francesco, 389, 477.
Festi Lorenzo, 465.
Figulo Marcio, 435.
Fischer P. D., 636.
Flaccio, 493.
Flotow, barone von, 557, 569.
Foa di Bruno, 422.
Fonda Eugenio, 515.
Fontana Giuseppe, 476, 485, 488,
496.
Ford Henry, 610.
Fortis Leone, 459, 469, 471.
Foscolo Ugo, 591.
Francesco I d'Austria, 367, 384.
Francesco I di Borbone, 369, 378.
Francesco II di Borbone {France-
schiello), 419, 421.
Francesco II d'Austria, 440.
Francesco Ferdinando, arciduca
d'Austria, 529, 544.
Francesco Giuseppe, 357, 390, 407,
410, 412, 416, 418, 419, 423, 470,
486, 494, 498, 507, 508, 510, 521,
524, 539, 542, 552, 554, 563, 574,
582, 583, 597, 620, 621, 623, 624,
625, 626, 639.
Francesco IV arciduca di Modena,
363, 373. 374» 375-
Fratti Antonio, 590.
Frattini Pietro Domenico, 410.
Friedlander, 635.
Fusinato Arnaldo, 393, 404, 471.
Galilei, 600.
Galletti, 398.
Galli Ernesta, 409.
Gallo Michele, 488.
Gambaroni Giuseppe, 383.
Garibaldi Anita, 399, 400, 401, 402,
403-
Garibaldi Bruno e Sante, 590.
Garibaldi Giuseppe, 376, 398, 399,
400, 401, 402, 403, 406, 412, 417,
419, 420, 421, 423, 424, 426, 460,
468, 472, 473, 474, 475, 476, 478,
479, 480, 481, 483, 485, 488, 489,
491, 495, 496, 497, 499, 500, 501,
502, 511, 534, 580, 589, 591, 631,
637-
Garibaldi Menotti, 499, 513.
Garibaldi Peppino, 590.
Garibaldi Ricciotti, 499, 513, 589,
590-
Gattesi Giuseppe, 469.
Gazzoletti Antonio, 458, 465, 471.
Gervasio Ricciotti, 504.
Giesl von Gieslesen, 540, 542, 550.
Gioberti Vincenzo, 376, 377.
Giolitti Giovanni, 618, 621, 622,
623, 625, 627, 628, 629, 632.
Giosue, 596.
Giovanni, re di Sassonia, 619, 635.
Giugurta, 511.
Giulia, 431.
INDICE ALFABETICO
647
Giussano, Alberto da, 447.
Giusti Giuseppe, 376, 377, 584.
Gizzi, cardinale, 378.
Gladstone Guglielmo, 413.
Godina Alessandro, 469.
Goethe, 635.
Gogol, 592.
Gorki, 592.
Gracchi, 497.
Gravisi Girolamo, 488.
Grazioli Bartolomeo, 410.
Grego Ado, 515.
Gregorich Luigi, 502.
Gregorio XVI, papa, 375.
Gregorovius Ferdinando, 635.
Grey Edward, 545, 550.
Grimm Hermann, 635.
Grio Domenico, 488.
Grioli Giovanni, 410.
Grioli Giuseppe, 471.
Grion Giovanni, 516.
Grozet G., 458.
Guerrazzi Francesco Domenico,
376, 393. 416, 468.
Guglielmo di Wied, 573.
Guglielmo II, 539, 553, 620, 621,
624, 625, 626, 639.
Guilay, 415, 418.
Hagenaer, 461.
Hardt Fred. B., 634.
Hart, SchafFner & Marx, 610.
Hayman, 397.
Hehn Viktor, 636.
Herbert Francesco, 469.
Hermet Francesco, 462, 487.
Hess, 418.
Hofmeister, 636.
Hohenwarth, conte, 479.
Hortis, 487, 494.
Hugo Victor, 508, 510, 589.
Imbriani Matteo Renato, 511, 637.
Inama Virgilio, 490.
Infessura, 636.
Insel, 636.
Isnenghi Enrico, 476, 477.
Ivancich Giovanni, 489, 537.
Jagher, famiglia, 490.
Jagher Giovanni, 490.
Jamsy Carlo, 502.
Jolanda di Savoia, principessa, 514.
Jurettig Enrico, 510.
Kalteneisen Ferruccio, 515.
Kandler Giovanni, 458.
Kandler Pietro, 457.
Kattenbrunner Arturo, 504.
Krammer Giulietta, 504.
Krupp, 620.
Kudachew, 544.
Lamarmora Alfonso, 411, 487,
Lamartine Alfonso, 584.
Lamoriciere, 417.
Landucci, 636.
Lavisato Domenico, 497.
Lazzaro di Betania, 596.
Leggero, 401.
Leonardi Giuseppe, 476, 488.
Leone XIII, papa, 417, 418.
Leonida, 477, 478.
Leopardi Giacomo, 376.
Leopoldo, granduca di Toscana,
378, 389. 393-
Leopoldo I d'Austria, 454.
Leopoldo III d'Austria, 451, 452.
Levi Sansone, 468.
Levino P. Valerio, 629.
Litta, duca, 392.
Livaditi Demetrio, 471.
Livia, 430.
Lorenzetti, 524.
Lovisoni Gioacchino, 487.
Luccardi Vincenzo, 502.
Lucio II, papa, 442.
Luigi I di Portogallo, 484.
Lulves J., 634.
Lusgar Nicolo, 453.
Mac Mahon, 417.
Macchio, barone, 546.
Machiavelli, 565, 636.
Maddali Emilio, 496.
Madonizza dott. A., 457, 487.
648
INDICE ALFABETICO
Madonizza Pietro, 488.
Maffezzoli Basilio, 474.
Magliani Agostino, 631.
Magrini Luciano, 514, 515.
Magrini Pietro, 515.
Malatesta Enrico, 591.
Malfatti Bartolomeo, 469.
Mameli GofFredo, 388, 393, 399,
477-
Mamiani Terenzio, 376.
Manara Luciano, 399.
Manci Filippo, 476, 477, 485, 488,
491.
Manci Gaetano, 465, 479.
Manci Sigismondo, 465.
Mancini, 554.
Mandich, 509.
Manin Daniele, 376, 387, 390, 404,
406, 468, 484, 494.
Manzoni Alessandro, 376, 500.
Marcabruni Luigi, 476.
Marchetti dott. Levio, 468.
Marconi Guglielmo, 606.
Margherita di Savoia, principessa,
497-
Margherita, regina, 554, 582, 619,
620.
Maria Adelaide, 619.
Maria Elisabetta, 619.
Maria Isabella, 620.
Maria Luigia d' Austria, 364
Maria Luisa di Borbone, 363.
Maria Pia di Savoia, 484.
Maria Sofia di Baviera, 419.
Maria Teresa d'Austria, 361, 362.
Mario Caio, 511.
Marsili Antonio, 480.
Martini, famiglia, 490.
Martini Federico, 469.
Martini Francesco, 476, 491.
Martini Leopoldo, 473.
Martori Pietro, 476.
Marzari Carlo, 468.
Masi, 398.
Massenzio, 430.
Massimiano, 430.
Mattedi Francesco, 468.
Mauro Francesco, 496.
Mauro Gino, 524.
Mazza Salvatore, 381.
Mazzini Angelo, 488.
Mazzini Giuseppe, 376, 377, 393,
398, 399, 406, 410, 427, 458, 460,
468, 485, 500, 515, 580, 591, 631,
637.
Mazzoni, 393.
Medici, generale, 488.
Menelao, 601.
Menottl Giro, 373, 374.
Mercantini Luigi, 414.
Merey, 570.
Metternich, 367, 368, 378, 457, 459,
461.
Meucci Antonio, 403.
Milius, 392.
Milla Davide, 488.
Minosse, 513.
Moiola Quirino, 476.
Molinari, famiglia, 490.
Mommsen Teodoro, 434, 635.
Mondolfo, 392.
Moneta Teodoro, ^06.
Monferrato, marchese di, 108.
Montanari Carlo, 410.
Montanari Pietro, 490.
Montanelli Giuseppe, 376, 393.
Morosini Emilio, 399.
Mortera Attilio ed Emilio, 502.
Mosettig Pietro, 496.
Muller G., 636.
Muratori Lodovico Antonio, 447.
Muratti Giusto, 496.
Muzio, 493.
Naldini, dottore, 401.
Napoleone I, 363, 440.
Napoleone III, 411, 415, 417, 418,
419, 423, 424, 426, 494.
Negri Antonio, 450.
Negri Edoardo, 468.
Niccolini Giovan Battista, 376, 416.
Niccolo I di Russia, 413.
Nicola II zar di Russia, 545, 551,
553-
INDICE ALFAFETICO
649
Nipote Giulio, 435.
Nerone, 404.
Nisco Nicola, 413.
Nugent, 390, 395.
Oberdan Giuseppina, 510.
Oberdan Guglielmo, 504, 505, 506,
507, 508, 509, 510, SI I, 512, 519,
522, 524, 590.
Olacutti Carolina, 504.
Olivieri Alessio, 414.
Orazio, 581.
Orefice Giulio, 452.
Oreste, 435.
Orioli F., 458.
Orlandini Giovanni, 457, 469.
Orseolo Pietro, 438.
Orseolo Pietro II, 438, 439, 440.
Ottone, 448.
Oudinot, 398, 399.
Pallfly, 460.
Palmerston, 385.
Parisi Rodolfo, 498.
Pasic, 540, 542, 546, 549, 550, SSI.
Pasquale III, antipapa, 44s.
Patciu, S40> 542.
Pattini Giovanni, SI7-
Pecci Gioacchino, cardinale, 417,
418.
Pecenco Luigi, 496.
Pellico Silvio, 371, 372.
Pepe Guglielmo, 365, 366, 389, 390,
404, 406.
Percoto Caterina, 458.
Persano, ammiraglio, 423.
Petitti Ignazio, 376.
Piatti Antonio, 383.
Piatti, famiglia, 456.
Piazza Giovanna, 382.
Fieri Pietro, 468.
Pietro, 426.
Pietro I Karageorgevic, S39-
Pio IX, papa, 378, 389, 390, 392,
399, 418, 426, 459.
Pipino, 426.
Pironti, 413.
Pirro, 629 630.
Pisanelli Giuseppe, 413.
Pitteri Riccardo, 518.
Planta Giulio, 433.
Plinio, 431.
Poerio Alessandro, 376.
Poerio Carlo, 413.
Pogatschnig Emilio, S02.
Poincare, 585.
PoUini Giuseppe, 496.
Poma Carlo, 410.
Pompeo, 431.
Pomponazzi, 600.
Ponti, 392.
Popovich Eugenio, 488.
Poropat Francesco, 469.
Prato, 467.
Princip Gabrilo, 539.
Radetzky, feld-maresciallo, 379,
380, 390, 391, 394, 404, 407, 409,
461, 468, 564.
Ranfo Marco, 450.
Ranieri Giuseppe, arciduca, 619.
Ranke, 63s.
Rascovich Edgardo, soo, soi.
Ravaglia, 401.
Ravaglia Stefano, 401, 402.
Raymmi, 392.
Regazzini Alessandro, 502.
Rendich, S03.
Ressmann Costantino, 463.
Revere Giuseppe, 460, 468.
Riaviz Clemente, 485.
Riaviz Stefano, 502.
Ricchetti Giuseppe, S02.
Ricci Vittore, 465.
Rinaldi Ferdinando, 490.
Rismondo, 487.
Ritozzo Luigi, 469.
Rizzi Giovanni, 465.
Romagnosi Gian Domenico, 380.
Romanin Samuele, 469.
Romano Pietro, 469.
Romolo Augusto, 435.
Rosmini Antonio, 376.
Rossetti Dante Gabriele, 366.
Rossetti Domenico, 457.
650
INDICE ALFABETICO
Rossetti Gabriele, 366, 368.
Rossi Giovanni fu Francesco, 506.
Rossi Pellegrino, 392.
Rubinisch, 469.
Ruffini, ministro, 358.
Saffi Aurelio, 393, 398, 410, 468,
501, SI I, 631.
Saglioso, dottore, 468.
Salandra, 501.
Salandra Antonio, 561, 567, 569.
Saliceti, 413.
Sallier della Torre, 370.
San Giuliano, marchese di, 557,
569* 570.
Santorre di Santarosa, 370.
Sar Tommaso, 469.
Sartori Adolfo, 488.
Sartorio, 493.
Savo Pietro, 464.
SazonofF, 542, 544, 545.
Scarboncich Pietro, 469.
Scartellini Angelo, 410.
Schirone Luigi, 503.
Schmid, 417.
Scialoia Antonio, 413
Sciesa Antonio, no.
Scipio (Scipione rAfricano), 388.
Sclopis Federico, 376.
Scocchi Angelo, 515.
Scorpion Donate, 452.
Scussa, 455.
Seismit-Doda Federico, 459, 460,
469-
Settembrini Luigi, 413.
Settimo Ruggiero, 376, 378.
SeufFerheld, 392.
Sgarzolo Giuseppe, 457.
Silano Marco Giunio, 433.
Sizzo De Noris, famiglia, 490.
Sizzo Pietro, 465.
Socci Ettore, 512,
Solitro Giulio, 462.
Sonnino, barone Sydney, 559. 560,
568.
Sordello, 513.
Spadoni Ernesto, 514.
Spaventa Silvio, 413.
Speri Tito, 410.
Spinola Gasparo, 534.
Spongia Filippo, 504.
Stamura, 446.
Statuto Camurio, 433.
Stefania, principessa, 503.
Stefano II, papa, 426.
Stella Sigismondo, 502.
Sterchele Anselmo, 476.
Sterle Mario, 515.
Strabone, 431.
Strandtman, 542, 551.
Summa Antonio, 458.
Sussa Francesco, 498.
Tabai Antonio, 502.
Tacito, 639.
Tamaro Attilio, 468, 523.
Tankosic Voijna, 541, 549.
Tarugi, 466.
Tavernini, famiglia, 490.
Tazzoli Enrico, 410.
Tchernichewski, 591.
Tedeschi Paolo, 484.
Tegetthoff, 564.
Telesio, 600.
Terzaghi Giulio, 385.
Testi Giuseppe, 465.
Thum Matteo, 465.
Tiberio, 430.
Tito Livio, 429.
Tivaroni Carlo, 490, 497.
Toller Domenico (Costa Giacomo),
476.
Tolstoi, 591.
Tommaseo Niccolo, 376, 387, 406,
461, 464, 468, 469, 472, 486, 534.
Tommaso, principe di Savoia, 619.
Tonini Leopold©, 478.
Traiano, 431.
Tranquillini Filippo, 476, 477, 485,
488, 490.
Treitschke, 636.
Trezzi Giacomo, 408.
Turgheniew, 591.
Tusti Alfredo, 634.
INDICE ALFABETICO
651
Ughelli, 455.
Umberto, principe di Savoia, 497.
Umberto I di Savoia, 497, 512, 514,
554, 582, 619, 620.
Urban, 416.
Urigio Nicolo, 452.
Valussi Pacifico, 458, 463, 481.
Vascon Giovanni, 488.
Venezian Felice, 523.
Venezian Giacomo, 468.
Venier Cristoforo, 499.
Venturi, 478.
Verdi Giuseppe, 458, 470, 514.
Vergerio, 493.
Vergottini Nicolo, 469.
Verzegnasse Francesco, 472.
Vidacovich Antonio, 501.
Vidacowich Domenico, 488.
Vidali Gian Luigi, 496.
Vidali Giuseppe, 516.
Vidali Marcello, 533.
Villari Pasquale, 606.
Vinci Giuseppe, 502.
Vinci Leonardo, 600.
Virgilio, 432, 609.
Visconti di Mondrone, duca, 392.
Visconti Venosta, 494.
Vittore IV, antipapa, 445.
Voltaire, 508.
Vittorio Emanuele I di Savoia, 363,
369-
Vittorio Emanuele II, 394, 411,
412, 415, 417, 418, 419, 421, 422,
423, 424, 472, 473, 475, 476, 480,
481, 483, 484, 487, 489, 490, 494,
495. 497> 500» S02, 619.
Vittorio Emanuele III, 357, 514,
563. 567. 58S» 587, 615, 616, 618,
619, 620, 621, 622, 623, 624, 625,
626, 632.
Vusio Tommaso e Rovis, 497.
Walfer, 489.
Weber, von, 636.
Weiss, famiglia, 490.
Welden, 390.
Wilson, presidente, 358.
Winckelmann, 635.
Wolffin, 635.
WuUenbacher, 509.
Zambelli Claudio, 488.
Zambelli Giovanni, 410.
Zamboni Filippo, 468.
Zampieri Riccardo, 520.
Zanardi Ugo, 502.
Zancani Camillo, 476, 477, 485, 488.
Zanetti Arturo, 469.
Zanolla, 488.
Zanotti Attilio, 476, 477.
Zecchia Niccolo, 498.
Zenelli Giambattista, 465.
Zeno Donate, 535.
Ziani Sebastiano, 448.
Zima Carlo, 397.
Zinis Alessandro, 490.
Zobel, 465.
Zocchi, 513.
Zucchi Martino, 487.
Giudizi di giornali
e di persone
sul libro
II Giornalismo degli
Emigrati Italiani nel
NoRD America
di Luigi Carjiovale
puhblicato a
Chicago^ Illinois
Stati Uniti d^ America
653
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
The Chicago Record-Herald (Edwin L. Shuman), Chicago, Illinois:
In un volume in lingua italiana intitolato // Giornalismo degli Emi-
grati Italiani nel Nord America, Luigi Carnovale offre ai suoi compatrioti
una ventina di vividi e interessanti essays (saggi), ch'egli opportunamente
ha scritto in varie occasioni sugl'Italiani residenti negli Stati Uniti
d'America. Nel piQ importante di tali essays sono descritte, come il titolo
stesso del libro indica, le tribolazioni di coloro che tentano di pubblicare
giornali italiani in questo paese. L'autore narra molte delle sue perso-
nali esperienze su questo campo: esperienze divertenti e scoraggianti a
un tempo. Egli ha una povera opinione della maggioranza degli emigrati
italiani, e lo dice con Candida franchezza. Ma cio ch'egli rimprovera di
piii ai suoi connazionali, e il mal vezzo ch'essi hanno di spogliarsi della
loro italianita per adottare, invece, uno spurio americanismo. Egli
crede che gl'Italiani non dovrebbero votare qui, e tanto meno parlare
d'imporre candidati italiani, dal momento che un qualsiasi politicante
irlandese puo vantarsi di poter comprare con un barile di birra tutti i voti
italiani ch'egli vuole. II rimedio per sifFatti mali, secondo il signor Carno-
vale, e piii istruzione e piii italianita.
In uno degli ultimi essays, il signor Carnovale "paga i suoi rispetti",
con un linguaggio ch'egli modestamente chiama "piuttosto vivace", al
prete di Chicago che in un sermone ha attaccato malignamente Mazzini
e Garibaldi. II signor Carnovale ha anche una cattiva opinione delle leggi
americane, per avere esse tollerato che un De Forest ed altri usurpassero
I'invenzione del telegrafo senza fili di Marconi. Ma forse il colpo piii
forte per gli Americani si trova nel capitolo difendente Caruso dallo scan-
dalo suscitato per I'incidente della monkey-house (casa delle scimmie).
Che stupore se il giornale quotidiano di Chicago, il quale ha original-
mente pubblicato il detto essay, avesse capito bene tutto il significato
delle roventi metafore italiane che I'articolo stesso conteneva!
II signor Carnovale scrive fluentemente, con forza e vivacita. La sua
fantasia si mostra inesauribile come il suo vocabolario, ed egli ha un senso
d'umore accoppiato a un equilibrio intellettuale. Basta soltanto leggere
poche pagine del suo libro, per vedere ch'egli e un vivo esempio della
vigile giovine generazione che sta al presente rigenerando I'ltalia.
L' Italia, Chicago, Illinois:
Luigi Carnovale ha dato alia luce un libro intitolato // Giornalismo
degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America.
E confortante constatare che la tormentosa vita americana a base di
materialismo, e la corsa incessante appresso al "demone giallo" — come
655
656 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
direbbe Massimo Gorki — non hanno alterato Tidealismo piii puro che
e proprio una caratteristica dei figli della terra dove il si suona.
Infatti sotto la copertina del libro che — non sappiamo se per case
fortuito o per pensiero premeditato — e di un pronunciato color verde,
araldo di speranze e di illusioni, batte un cuore che gli anni passati in
America non hanno travolto, non hanno deviato da un ordine di recondite
aspirazioni.
Per quel maligno pessimismo, che e in fondo all'anima umana, parrebbe,
dal titolo del libro, che il volume dovesse spezzare una lancia contro,
anziche a favore della tanto criticata stampa coloniale. Invece Luigi
Carnovale non una, ma mille lance spezza per lumeggiare sotto i migliori
aspetti questa forza, compendio d'italianita in America, che si estende
ovunque esiste un nucleo d'ltaliani e che trova — suoi eterni avversari —
I'indolenza della massa poco evoluta e un cinico sorriso, diremo quasi
di compatimento, suUe labbra di coloro che per un cumulo di circostanze
stringono oggi con ferrea mano un mucchio d'oro.
Senza reticenze, senza mezzi termini, I'autore, con uno stile spigliato
che va diritto al cuore, loda quando la lode occorre per incoraggiare tra
gli emigrati un'iniziativa; ma la sua parola scende come una scudisciata
quando trattasi di denunziare qualcuno di quei criteri erronei che serpeg-
giano tra le nostre colonic.
Ma non e soltanto per lodare virtu o biasimare vizi che il libro e state
scritto.
Un'idea altamente patriottica aleggia in tutto il volume: il risorgimento
morale dei nostri emigrati; i quali — provenienti in gran parte dai
paeselli d'ltalia sperduti sui monti boscosi o in fondo alle valli — hanno
avuto finora il mal vezzo di subire spontaneamente una certa inferiorita
quando si son trovati a contatto col popolo americano nelle popolose citta
dei grattanvvole e delle ferrovie aeree.
Se i nostri emigrati, che solo ricordano come un sogno Napoli o
Genova, conoscessero meglio la loro patria — che al suo passato, unico
nel mondo, accoppia un presente egualmente glorioso — avrebbero mag-
giore dignita di se stessi e non guarderebbero dal basso in alto tutto cio
che non e italiano.
Questo concetto, che noi abbiamo esposto in poche parole, e I'anima
del libro.
Luigi Carnovale — italiano in ogni sua intima latebra, profondo cono-
scitore del pensiero di Dante e di Mazzini ch'egli cita con grande liberalita
— ha per la patria un sacro culto, diremmo quasi un fanatismo.
Con occhio scrutatore, egli non si ferma alia superficie che fa sembrare
grande I'America, ma afFonda il ferro anatomico e, con un esame impar-
ziale, mette nella loro vera luce fatti che ci fanno ricordare la famosa
statua dai piedi d'argilla sognata da Nabucodonosor.
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America non e un libro
scritto da un autore compiacente per carezzare velleita e lusingare amor
propri. Con giovanile entusiasmo, lo scrittore ha trasfuso nelle sue pagine
un po' della sua anima impastata di idealismo e di poesia. II suo libro e
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 657
il grido dell'esiliato che ha temprato lo spirito nel culto sacro del "fiero
ghibellino" (Dante). Egli, al di sopra d'ogni altra concezione, vede la
patria, la terra che ha dato i natali a martiri del pensiero come Campanella
e Giordano Bruno, e divinatori delle forze natural! e di leggi fisiche come
Galileo e Marconi, a grandi patrioti, a illustri scrittori; egli vede I'ltalia
nelle piii rigogliose produzioni del genio. E quest'Italia egli decanta;
e quest 'Italia egli vorrebbe affermata sul suolo americano che da un Ita-
liano fu scoperto.^
La Tribuna Italiana Transatlantica, Chicago, Illinois:
Appena ricevuto il libro // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel
Nord America di Luigi Carnovale, lo leggemmo tutto d'un Bate, tanto
grande fu I'interesse ch'esso seppe ispirarci.
Gia fin dalla lettura dei versi
Coscienza fusca
O della propria, o dell'altrui vergogna.
Pur sentira la tua parola brusca,
con i quali Dante profetizza I'ufficio della stampa e che il Carnovale mise
felicemente in cima al suo lavoro, noi, nella qualita di giornalisti, comin-
ciammo a provare un divino senso di gratitudine per I'autore e I'opera sua.
E allorquando c'inoltrammo nella lettura della prefazione, in cui la stampa
coloniale e valorosamente difesa, tale senso assunse proporzioni gi-
gantesche, finche a un certo punto, nel forte dell'entusiasmo, dedicammo
mentalmente al nostro Carnovale un monumento di gratitudine.
Siamo sicuri che i colleghi italo-americani non saranno meno di noi,
ma piij di noi, nel dichiararsi grati all'autore di questo libro per la riven-
dicazione ch'egli fa del nostro ufficio, del quale egli merita il titolo di
cavaliere.
Le lance che il Carnovale spezza per noi vanno benedette.
Alia prefazione segue una serie di splendidi articoli, dall'autore pub-
blicati in diversi giornali degli Stati Uniti, che si rileggono sempre con
diletto e interessamento sommi, per la continua splendidezza della forma
e il denso scintillio delle idee eccellenti.
La Patria (Silvio Picchianti editore), Chicago, Illinois:
Quante verita Luigi Carnovale dice nel suo libro // Giornalismo degli
Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America] E come le dice!
II brio, la purezza dello stile, la .sincerita dell'esposizione dei fatti, il
quadro dell'ambiente, i tipi coloniali — da quel donndne sputante fiele
contro il direttore del giornale che ha il coraggio d'insistere nell'invio di
questo, a quel presidente di societa che legge il giornale capovolto — tutto,
tutto rende il libro simpatico e interessante.
'Questo articolo fu pubblicato anche dai giornali La Tribuna Italiana
Transatlantica di Chicago, Illinois e La Montagna di Newark, New Jersey,
658 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
E nessuno meglio di noi giornalisti, viventi in quell'ambiente stesso
del quale il Carnovale rileva le deficienze, i difetti, le apatie vergognose,
puo giudicare vera e onesta I'opera di questo giovane intelligente, al quale
non sono restate ignote le sorti riserbate a chi con la penna prende a
dipingere la vita dei propri connazionali emigrati, celandone fraterna-
mente i difetti, esaltandone le virtii, difendendoli dagli attacchi bassi e
maligni dei giornalisti americani, i quali di noi non conoscono altro che le
gesta della Mano Nera, e ignorano completamente, falsandola sempre se
la sanno, la storia nostra, maestra di civilta e di grandezza in tutte le
parti del mondo, compresa questa che ad essi diede il genio eletto d'un
figlio d'ltalia.
II Carnovale, nel suo libro, ha raccolto vari di quegli articoli con i
quali, dalle colonne dei periodici da lui diretti negli Stati Uniti, lanciava il
grido di difesa per i suoi fratelli emigrati; e questi articoli, oltre a rivelare la
poderosita del suo ingegno, dimostrano la grandezza deU'animo suo
d'italiano veto, a cui premono, piQ d'ogni altra cosa, gl'interessi dei suoi
poveri connazionali, ai quali si riserba — oltre lo sfruttamento —
I'insulto basso e la calunnia infame.
L'articolo Gli untori della febbre gialla, per esempio, e un capolavoro.
Le parole di fuoco, che con somma dialettica il Carnovale lancia in faccia
agli accusatori maligni dell'onesto e sobrio operaio italiano, sono veri strali
di rampogna.
Ma, ripetiamo, tutto il libro e belle ed interessante; e se c'e una cosa
che addolori in esso, e la parola^n^, la quale ci toglie alia deliziosa lettura
delle pagine bellissime che la penna valorosa di Luigi Carnovale ha vergato
cosi dottamente.
All'amico carissimo i nostri sinceri rallegramenti per I'opera sua d'alto
patriottismo, compiuta con la pubblicazione di questo libro che ogni Ita-
liano di cuore e d'intelligenza dovrebbe leggere — come noi — dalla prima
all'ultima pagina.^
Il Secolo, Chicago, Illinois:
II bellissimo libro // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America di Luigi Carnovale dovrebbe essere letto da tutti, perche ognuno
vi avrebbe da apprendere qualche cosa, specie noi esuli volontari che vi-
viamo lontano dalle produzionilibrarie, in una terra dove altra sodisfazione
non si prova che quella della conquista del Dio Giallo.
II libro e diviso in una prefazione e ventidue capitoli.
Nella prefazione I'autore, giovane pieno di fede e animato dai piii
santi ideali, spiega le ragioni che I'hanno indotto a riunire in un volume gli
articoli da lui pubblicati in diversi giornali degli Stati Uniti.
Con verve, anzi con molta verve, egli — I'autore — dimostra a luce
chiara e senza fronzoli I'inferiorita intellettaule dei nostri emigrati e la
loro apatia per tutto cio che sa d'italianita, ed afferma che se le nostre
^Questo articolo fu pubblicato anche dal giornale // Vessillo di Baltimore,
Maryland.
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 659
colonic sono tenute in non cale, disprezzate, vilipese, la colpa e dell'anal-
fabetismo. Dunque: istruzione in Italia, italiani sempre in America.
Quando il nostro contadino avra imparato a conoscere la terra che gli
ha dato i natali: quando avra saputo che I'ltalia e stata maestra di civilta
a tutto il mondo, egli, siamone certi, non si vergognera piii di dire che e
italiano.
Nei capitoli che seguono la prefazione, Tautore, con non comune acume,
afFonda il bisturi nelle diverse questioni coloniali e, con mano sicura, incide
denudando al pubblico la miseria morale in cui noi emigrati viviamo.
Ma, nello stesso tempo, egli, con I'anima esuberante di sentimentalismo
quasi mistico, ci fa rivivere nella mente le pagine piCi belle della nostra
storia; e, come in una proiezione cinematografica, ci fa assistere a delle
scene che ci rapiscono I'animo, trasportandolo in alto, in alto, dove tutto
e luce, vita, forza!
Noi in quelle pagine tuffiamo lo spirito esausto dalle lotte che qui
combattiamo ogni ora, per ritemprarci a sostenere ancora, con maggiore
energia, nuove lotte e nuove conquiste nel campo della natura e dell'arte:
di quell'arte che vl rapisce e sublima con I'incanto della sua bellezza,
perche la bellezza e il suo naturale fondamento. E chi e amante del bello,
chi e conquiso dalla bellezza come Luigi Carnovale, non puo restarne
estraneo, ma vi e attratto come da forza magnetica.
Nel libro del Carnovale, V eco delle coscienze umane, i fatti coloniali
piij importanti sono descritti in modo affascinante e suggestivo, si da fonderii
in una mirabile sintesi armonica.
Questa lettura che vi estasia, quella forma che vi ammalia, quella
bellezza occulta che si ripercuote al di dentro della nostra anima, vi
trasportano lontano dalle passioni malvage degli uomini e, per un mo-
mento, vi fanno dimenticare I'ambiente in cui siete costretto a vivere.
Non un esame critico e stato nostro intento di fare in questa breve
recensione, ma un sereno cenno di quanto nel libro // Giornalismo si con-
tiene, per raffermare la speranza che I'amico Carnovale possa altro dare
all'arte, per mantenere, anche in queste contrade, alto ed intemerato il
nome italiano.^
Il Bollettino Delle Societa Italiane, Chicago, Illinois:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale contiene una serie di poderosi articoli, i quali a ragione dimo-
strano, con una critica sagace e veritiera, quanto grande sia I'ignoranza
delle nostre colonic; mentre, d'altra parte, la lunga prefazione che precede
tali articoli, compendia tutto un programma d'italianita. Benche su
certi punti non condividiamo Ic idee deH'autore, pure non possiamo fare a
meno di congratularci vivissimamente con lui e raccomandare la lettura
del suo libro.
^ Questo articolo fu pubblicato anche da La Tribuna Italiana Transatlantica di
Chicago, Illinois.
660 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
La Sentinella, Hoboken, New Jersey:
Luigi Carnovale, col suo bel libro // Giornalsimo degli Emigrati Italiani
nel Nord America, ha colmato una lacuna nel mondo letterario italo-
americano, difendendo con una prosa smagliante la non sempre gradita
figura del giornalista coloniale, e parlando delle masse immigrate con una
vivacita di stile che afFascina il lettore e gli fa scorrere le numerose pagine
tutte d'un fiato, tale e la splendidezza della forma e I'eccellenza delle idee,
sia che parli del dolore di nostra gente, sia che ne descriva le virtu misco-
nosciute o poco apprezzate.
Luigi Carnovale, conosciutissimo per altri pregevoli lavori, ha diritto
all'ammirazione e alia riconoscenza nostra.
La Patria, Spokane, Washington:
Nel libro // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America sono
raccolti diversi articoli del valoroso giornalista Luigi Carnovale.
Ci siamo compiaciuti nel rilevare I'utilita pratica di detti articoli,
scritti da una penna maestra che ai bollori della gioventii accoppia I'assen-
natezza della persona erudita.
II detto libro, per quanto ci detta il nostro giudizio, interessa tutti gli
Italiani emigrati, i quali farebbero cosa utile ad acquistarlo e far tesoro di
quanto in esso e splendidamente scritto.
La Gazzetta Del Massachusetts, Boston, Massachusetts:
II geniale scrittore Luigi Carnovale ha pubblicato un bellissimo volume
di oltre 200 pagine intitolato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel
Nord America.
II libro contiene una ventina d'articoli che fanno veramente onore al
giovine scrittore, sia per la forma letteraria che per le savie, giuste e
istruttive idee ivi espresse.
Il Corriere di Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio.
E uscito // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di
Luigi Carnovale.
L'autore si rivela, dalla prima all'ultima pagina del libro, sopratutto
italiano di mente e di cuore.
Egli, con profonda conoscenza d'uomini e di cose, tratta magistral-
mente di importanti questioni coloniali e di vita italiana.
E un libro interessantissimo, che dovrebbe essere letto da tutti.
L'AuRORA, Houston, Texas:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale e un bel volume, e un'opera interessante, specie in questi
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 661
tempi, nei quali la gloria e il facile appannaggio delle nullita boriose,
deH'improntitudine grottesca, dell'audacia insolente; in questi tempi, nei
quali una folia d'oziosi e incolti gioca a colpo sicuro sulla tolleranza e
suU'amoralita del pubblico; in questi tempi, nei quali la speculazione com-
merciale s'e insinuata perfino nella sacra aula del pensiero.
II libro del Carnovale e una vera e propria necessita per tutti.
Noi ci auguriamo che lo sforzo di questo letterato porti un salutare
risveglio nelle colonie italiane degli Stati Uniti.
La Luce, Utica, New York:
II geniale scrittore Luigi Carnovale ha pubblicato a Chicago uno
splendido libro intitolato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nei Nord
America.
II detto libro e scritto con semplicita e con vera forma letteraria e,
mentre pone a nudo il marcio che contengono le nostre colonie, manifesta,
con pensieri improntati alia piu scrupolosa verita, il concetto erroneo e
stupido che i coloni hanno della stampa italo-americana. Cerca inoltre
d'infondere negli emigrati italiani idee altamente patriottiche per ottenere
il risorgimento morale delle nostre colonie.
II Carnovale, gia valoroso direttore del Pensiero e di altri giornali,
gradisca i nostri rallegramenti per il bellissimo libro dato alia luce, di cui
ogni famiglia italiana dovrebbe essere provvista.
Il Libero Pensiero, Ensley and Birmingham, Alabama.
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nei Nord America e il titolo
d'uno splendido libro pubblicato a Chicago dal valoroso e simpatico
giornalista Luigi Carnovale.
In questo libro sono raccolti pregevolissimi articoli che il chiaro scrit-
tore ebbe gia a pubblicare in alcuni giornali degli Stati Uniti.
Li precede una prefazione, nella quale molto assennatamente e de-
scritto I'ambiente coloniale e sono messe a nudo delle dure verita.
E questo un libro che tutti gl' Italiani dovrebbero leggere per trarne
grande ammaestramento.
La Stella Coloniale, Pen Argyl, Pennsylvania:
Un buon libro e certamente // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nei
Nord America di Luigi Carnovale. Esso compendia un po' di tutto cid
che riguarda I'emigrato italiano ed e benone scritto.
L'autore merita I'encomio di tutta la stampa italiana non solo, ma di
tutti gl'Italiani che comprendono.
Il Risveglio Coloniale, Syracusa, New York:
E stato recentemente pubblicato a Chicago un interessante libro:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nei Nord America.
662 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
L'autore signer Luigi Carnovale dimostra d'essere uno scrittore di
vaglia.
Egli svolge i suoi argomenti con molta facilita e franchezza, dando il
colpo proprio dove spetta, mentre dall'altro lato loda schiettamente chi
dev'essere lodato.
Egli svolge i suoi pensieri con amor patrio, limpidamente; e con occhio
scrutinatore non si ferma alia superficie delle cose, ma va direttamente al
fondo, mettendo a luce tutti i difetti e, nello stesso tempo, tutti i meriti
dei nostri emigrati.
Sebbene non possiamo essere interamente d'accordo col Carnovale in
vari punti, pure dobbiamo affermare che il suo libro e utilissimo.
Il Messaggero Italiano, San Antonio, Texas:
II bel volume intitolato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America e un lavoro squisito del nostro intelligente connazionale signer
Luigi Carnovale, il quale ha saputo trattare con fine tatto questioni colo-
niali molto interessanti a noi tutti.
La bellezza di questo libro consiste principalmente nelle diverse verita
che in esso ben vengono lumeggiate e di cui si dovrebbe far tesoro da noi
emigrati.
Al brillante scrittore signor Carnovale mandiamo le nostre sincere
congratulazioni.
I Nostri Tempi, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale e scritto con brio e con elegante correttezza; tocca al vivo
tutte le piaghe coloniali, tutte le miserie morali, tutti i meschini odi e le
eterne, riprovevoli diatribe di questa terra del Dio Giallo.
Luigi Carnovale si rivela, attraverso i periodi limpidi, armonici e
diremmo quasi scultori dei suoi scritti, un giornalista colto e valoroso,
libero pensatore, di animo buono e gentile e, sopratutto, italiano di mente
e di cuore. Dalla prima all'ultima pagina del suo bel volume vibra, e
fortemente, la corda dell'italianita, quale sentimento spontaneo e nobile,
non finto e calcolatore.
Tali i pregi del libro, che merita di essere letto da quanti s'interessano
del vasto e complesso problema coloniale.
II Progresso Italo- Americano, New York City:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America e il titolo
d'un libro che in questi giorni ha visto la luce a Chicago. Ne e autore
I'egregio giovane signor Luigi Carnovale, un ingegno laborioso, un carat-
tere leale, simpatico, vibrante, il quale, collaborando in diversi giornali
degli Stati Uniti, diede sempre bellissimo saggio di svariata disposizione
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 663
e di rapidissimo tocco. Nel detto libro, che e stato accolto dal pubblico
con favore, vibra assai la nota patriottica.
A! giovine autore il nostro plauso.
PERCHi?, Schenectady, New York:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America e il titolo
d'un bellissimo volume d'oltre 200 pagine pubblicato da Luigi Carnovale
a Chicago.
Con esso I'autore ci ha fatto gustare ore di sana lettura, dalla quale
abbiamo raccolto pregevoli giudizi intorno ai periodici italo-americani, e
pensieri originali sul calvario che sale colui il quale onestamente stampa o
fa stampare un foglio per il decoro della nostra patria e della nostra lingua.
II Carnovale, con parola facile e corretta, ha scritto pagine vere, perche
sentite, e pagine istruttive e morali, perche mirano al bene deiremigrato.
// Giornalismo e un libro elegante nell'apparenza, come utile nella
sostanza.
Il Secolo XX, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale e pieno di sagge considerazioni su soggetti importantissimi.
La sola prefazione vale un PerCi. L'autore si rivela in essa profondo cono-
scitore dell'elemento che abbonda cospicuo nelle nostre colonic d'America.
Insomma il libro del Carnovale e utilissimo sotto tutti i rapporti, e
bene scritto e si lascia leggere d'un sol fiato.
La Domenica, Rochester, New York:
II libro intitolato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America di Luigi Carnovale rivela una buona conoscenza della lingua
italiana; rivela anche nell'autore un animo ardente, pieno di buona
volonta, sdegnoso di tutto cio che e o che egli crede wrong (ingiusto).
E un libro che si fa leggere con piacere, perche sincero, coraggioso,
bene scritto: il che e gia grande lode.
L'Unione, Pueblo, Colorado:
II valoroso collega signer Luigi Carnovale ha teste pubblicato a Chicago
uno splendido suo nuovo libro intitolato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati
Italiani nel Nord America.
E un elegantissimo volume scritto con forma smagliante e briosa, che
dovrebbe essere letto e studiato da tutte le persone intelligenti e coke.
Un volume che e un veto tesoro, acchiudendo osservazioni profonde e
uno studio accuratissimo della vita italiana in queste terre dell'affarismo.
Al brillante scrittore, che ha compiuto opera eminentemente e ita-
lianamente patriottica, vadano il nostro plauso e le nostre congratulazioni.
664 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
V^iTA NuovA, Rocksprir^.gs, Wyoming:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani net Nord America deU'illustre
scrittore signer Luigi Carnovale contiene bellissime e sante idee.
CoRRiERE Di Trinidad, Trinidad, Colorado:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale e un libro che meriterebbe d'essere accolto in ogni casa di
connazionale.
Attraverso la semplicita dello stile e la purgatezza della lingua, emana
dal libro del Carnovale quel senso d'italianita che dovrebbe assistere ogni
connazionale emigrato e formarne il suo nobile orgoglio.
Luigi Carnovale, nel suo Giornalismo, si mostra all'altezza del soggetto.
Egli tratta e svolge maestrevolmente certe dure verita suH'emigrazione
italiana negli Stati Uniti.
£ insomma un bel libro questo del Carnovale: ed il Corriere ne consi-
glia la lettura a quanti sentono ancora d'essere italiani in questa terra di
volontario esillo.
Mastro Paolo, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
Abbiamo molto ammirato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel
Nord America che Luigi CarnovLle ha teste pubblicato a Chicago.
£ impossibile ricordare tutti i pregi che esso ha: pregi che meglio si
rilevano dalla lettura del libro stesso, anziche da poche parole di recensione,
la quale tante volte e sospetta di favoritismo.
II libro del Carnovale e una raccolta di belli articoli storico-dottrinali
che trattano di cose coloniali.
II Carnovale espone con chiarezza, verita e convinzione pratica quelle
che sente, pensa e vuole ITtaliano che vive nelle colonic americane.
II Carnovale prova brillantemente I'apatia degli emigrati per tutto
cio che riguarda ammirazione di ideali, sentimenti patriottici, educazione
civile.
Conserveremo nel nostro archivio la dotta pubblicazione.
La Rivista, Newark, New Jersey:
Luigi Carnovale nel suo elegante volume // Giornalismo degli Emigrati
Italiani nel Nord America ha voluto riunire una serie di suoi articoli seri
e magistrali toccanti da vicino tutti i problemi concernenti gli emigrati
italiani negli Stati Uniti.
Gli articoli sono scritti con uno stile veramente smagliante; essi sono
del massimo interesse per gli studiosi della vera ed elegante lingua di
Dante; eppero noi raccomandiamo I'acquisto immediate del libro.
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 665
L'Eco Del Rhode Island, Providence, Rhode Island:
Un utilissimo libro, elegante nella forma, e // Giomalismo degli Emi-
grati Italiani nel Nord America deU'esimio e conosciutissimo pubblicista
signer Luigi Carnovale.
Lavoro di pazienza e di accuratezza, lavoro prezioso che si legge con
entusiasmo e piacere. In esso I'autore ha avuto la nobile idea di difendere
i diritti della patria natia e quelli di tanti operai italiani sparsi negli
Stati Uniti.
L'importante volume e necessario agli emigrati, e ognuno dovrebbe
acquistarlo.
Noi auguriamo di cuore una lunga vita all'autore, affinche egli possa
continuare a scrivere altri libri simili per gl'interessi della patria lontana
e dei connazionali residenti neU'Unione Americana.
L'Italiano, Cleveland, Ohio:
// Giomalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale e un libro elegante scritto con garbo, con cuore, con sentimento
d'italianita. Errori, pregiudizi e questioni della vita coloniale sono
trattati magistralmente.
Gritaliani, invece di comprare e leggere i Reali di Francia e tanti
altri libri inutili, farebbero bene a comprare e leggere il libro del Carnovale.
Roma, Denver, Colorado:
II bellissimo libro // Giomalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America di Luigi Carnovale e, possiamo ben dirlo, una perla di acute os-
servazioni e di elevate discussioni; e un libro che puo senza dubbio entrare
nel "catalogo dei migliori libri scritti fino ad oggi suU'anima dei nostri
emigrati.
Un bravo di cuore al collega Carnovale e I'augurio che il pubblico
faccia buon viso al suo lavoro, il quale merita per davvero il plauso dei
lettori di buon senso.
L'Opinione, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
II chiaro collega Luigi Carnovale ha pubblicato a Chicago un libro
intitolato // Giomalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America. In
esso sono raccolti diversi pregevoli articoli, preceduti da una prefazione,
ove, con prosa vivida e a volte mordace, I'autore fa un quadro dell'am-
biente coloniale, mettendo a nudo delle dure verita.
Pur non andando d'accordo col Carnovale su moltissime sue idee e
conclusioni, conveniamo con lui che il giomalismo coloniale italiano negli
Stati Uniti, con tutti i visibili difetti di un organismo ai primordi della
sua vita, e degno, in complesso, di un maggiore appoggio e rispetto per i
servizi che ha reso e che rende alle Colonic e alia Madre Patria.
666 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
II Sole, Bridgeport, Connecticut:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale e un buon libro.
Con esso I'autore ha fatto opera salutare per i connazionali emigrati.
Mettendo in rilievo il marcio esistente nelle colonic italiane d'America,
egli ha reso chiaro il senso del suo pensiero; ma, nello stesso tempo, s'e
mantenuto scrupolosamente lontano dalla benche minima imparzialita.
> II Carnovale nei suoi articoli, che possono ben definirsi critico-letterari,
tratta la questione dal punto di vista generale. Egli dimostra che nelle
colonic italiane d'America esiste un elemento ignorante, superstizioso,
cattivo. Ma alia rcdenzione morale di tale elemento tendono i suoi
articoli.
Riuscira egli nel suo intento? Mostriamoci ottimisti: speriamolo.
Chi e in grado di potere c sapere assaporare quanto il libro del Carno-
vale contiene, non si pcntira certo d'averlo letto.
Congratulazioni sincere all'autore per la sua interessante pubbli-
cazione.
L'Eco Di Tampa, Tampa, Florida:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America e uno di quei
libri che possono, senz'altro, chiamarsi buoni; e chi I'ha scritto e preceduto
da buona fama di pubblicista e novelliere.
Luigi Carnovale ha fatto, come tutti noi, le sue dolorose esperienze di
giornalista coloniale; e nel suo volume egli condensa, con frase smagliante
e sincera, i suoi ricordi e le sue imprcssioni pcrsonali, dalle quali non si
puo dissentire, per le grandi verita che racchiudono e che riflettono.
Chi ha vissuto la vita dcUe nostre colonic, e I'ha vissuta da pubblicista
cosciente del suo mandato, non puo che aderire incondizionatamente alle
critiche severe ma giuste che il Carnovale muove a individui e a cricche
rappresentanti i veri e piii mortali nemici deU'elevamento morale delle
nostre colonic.
Si puo magari dissentire dal pensiero politico del nostro autore, che
traluce nitido, sereno, ben definite dalle pagine del Giornalismo; ma non
si puo negate al prezioso volume due doti pregevolissime: la chiarezza e
I'clcganza dello stile, e la coordinatczza del pensiero genialissimo.
Chi non ha letto ancora il Giornalismo, lo legga, e non manchera di
formarsi deU'autore c dci suoi scritti I'Dpinione che noi ci siamo formata.
La Capitale, Albany, New York:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America e il titolo d'un
libro pubblicato ultimamente a Chicago da Luigi Carnovale, il quale,
oltre ad essere uno scrittore insigne e un appassionato cultore della lingua
di Dante, e anche un acuto osservatore dellc condizioni economiche e
sociali degli emigrati italiani nel Nord America.
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 667
L'Italo-Ameri<"ano, New Orleans, Louisiana:
Un libro che dovrebbe correre per le mani di quanti Italiani, in Italia
e negli Stati Uniti, s'interessano della scottante questione della nostra
emigrazione, e il Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di
Luigi Carnovale.
Verita dolorose che attristano, che qualche volta spezzano i piii
spontanei entusiasmi, echeggianti dell'intimo afFetto per la patria; quadri
pervasi di amaro pessimismo, in cui passano a volta a volta, nella loro
luce propria, il prominente coloniale e il nostro lavoratore analfabeta
(spesso e analfabeta il prominente, ci sia permesso di bisbigliarvelo all'o-
recchio, o lettori); il regionalismo che divide e inasprisce; I'anti-italianita
che disonora; tutte le piccole e grandi miserie coloniali sono I'oggetto di
questo nitido volume.
AU'autore — che con sincerita di intenti e con parola franca mette a
nudo tante piccole anime gonfie della loro ridicola megalomania, e che pur
solleva lo spirito, quando, quasi per felice contrasto, ricorda belle glorie e
fulgide storie dell'Italia nostra — auguriamo successo pari alia sua franca
audacia.
Il Risveglio, Denver, Colorado:
Luigi Carnovale, dotato di ingegno non comune, ha pubblicato a
Chicago // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America: raccolta
d'articoli brillanti scritti con verve di erudito pubblicista.
Il Vesuvio, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale si fa leggere per bonta di stile e interessa pervarieta di soggetti
e genialita di osservazioni.
Qualcuno potra difFerire con I'autore dal modo di vedere certe cose;
ma siamo certi che tutti potrebbero trovare nel volume del Carnovale la
sodisfazione che si prova al cospetto d'una espressione di vita e sincerita
di convinzione.
Raccomandiamo il libro ai nostri lettori e alle nostre lettrici.
L'OssERVATORE, Kansas City, Missouri:
Abbiamo letto attentamente il volume // Giornalismo degli Emigrati
Italiani nel Nord America.
II nostro encomio a Luigi Carnovale e I'augurio che il sue lavoro valga
ad illuminare le menti ofFuscate dei nostri lavoratori.
Il Corriere Del Sud, New Orleans, Louisiana:
E stato pubblicato dal valente pubblicista Luigi Carnovale uno splen-
dido libro intitolato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America.
668 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
In questo libro sono raccoiti pregevolissimi articoll che il chiaro
scrittore ebbe gia a pubblicare in diversi giornali degli Stati Uniti. Li
precede una prefazione, nella quale molto assennatamente I'autore de-
scrive I'ambiente coloniale, mettendo a nudo delle dure verita.
L'Operaio Italia no, Windber, Pennsylvania:
II nuovo lavoro di Luigi Carnovale intitolato // Giornalismo degli
Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America e un bellissimo ed elegante volume
di oltre 200 pagine, interessantissimo per chi ama una buona e sana lettura.
In esso I'autore descrive con sentimenti nobili, scevri da qualsiasi parti-
gianeria, cio che si e fatto, cio che si fa e cio che si dovra fare per tenere
alto il prestigio del nome italiano negli Stati Uniti d'America.
L'alta missione della stampa italiana, che I'autore difende con spirito
degno d'ogni riguardo, e quivi riprodotta con parole sincere ed entusiaste.
Per la difesa nobile che il Carnovale fa degl'Italiani e dell'Italia nel
suo volume, merita che questo sia da tutti letto, studiato, considerato e
bene apprezzato.
Noi ne raccomandiamo I'interessante lettura.
L'Ora, Newark, New Jersey:
II giovine scrittore Luigi Carnovale ha dato alia luce un libro di oltre
200 pagine intitolato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord
America, che noi abbiamo letto d'un fiato e con viva attenzione.
Questo bel volume riempie il vuoto che da anni esiste tra gli emigrati
italiani nel Nord America. Esso e un caustico roventissimo che scende
suUa grande e cancrenosa piaga del nostro giornalismo, sovente mal retto,
spesso non compreso, sempre e dovunque disprezzato.
II Carnovale, soldato intelligente e coraggioso della vera missione della
stampa, ha pubblicato in diversi giornali degli Stati Uniti quanto ora e
raccolto nel detto volume e che e tutto un lavoro d'un pioniere valente ed
ardito, il quale s'apre il varco in un campo ostruito e, conquistato il passo,
grida coraggioso alio sboscamento e alia edificazione.
Se ci fosse lecito, proporremmo che il volume del Carnovale fosse pub-
blicato in appendice in tutti i giornali italiani dell'Unione Americana, come
grave ammonimento alle rispettive colonic di ben conoscere e apprezzare
la stampa italiana, ed ai giornalisti il dovere grandissimo di un lavoro sano,
illibato e fecondo di sapere e di progresso.
A ogni modo confidiamo che questo libro integro e veritiero, col quale
I'autore, in bella forma italiana e con virile carattere, ha fustigato i gravi
difetti che inquinano le colonic italiane del Nord America, sia ovunque
letto e compreso.
Il Risorgimento, Chicago, Illinois:
Abbiamo letto tutto d'un fiato // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 669
nel Nord America di Luigi Carnovale, e vi abbiamo trovato delle sante
verita,
Speriamo che tutti i connazionali leggeranno, come noi, il bel libro.
La Parola DEI SociALiSTi, Chicago, Illinois:
II collega Luigi Carnovale, un colto e simpatico giovane, ha pubblicato
un riuscitissimo studio di impressioni sul Giornalismo degli Emigrati
Italiani nel Nord America.
II libro e stato lodato da scrittori e da giornali negli Stati Uniti e in
Italia, e il coro unanime di elogi e stato meritato.
II libro, che si legge anche volentieri perche scritto in un italiano poco
in uso fra gli anglosassonizzati (ci sia perdonato I'orribile vocobolo) delle
nostre colonic, ha un merito principale, indiscusso: e vero.
Da queste colonne ci capita raramente di occuparci di recensioni.
E che i nostri lettori, nell'assillo quotidiano di conquiste improroga-
bili, avrebbero poco tempo per seguirci nei nostri ragionamenti biblio-
grafici. Ma facciamo volentieri un'eccezione. Leggano i nostri compagni
questo libro; vi apprenderanno qualcosa.
Noi, internazionalisti convinti e militanti, ci congratuliamo col Carno-
vale che, istruendo e invitando all'istruzione, ha saputo e voluto combattere
il patriottismo piCi cretino e piu stupido di tutti i patriottismi: il pa-
triottismo per la patria degli altri.
E con I'elogio, davvero sentito, all'autore, un augurio: che i nostri
immigrati, se non sanno diventare internazionalisti, una volta cacciati a
pedate dal loro paese, facciano ammeno, se e possibile, di ardere di sacro
fuoco patriottico per un altro paese che li accoglie solo come animali da
tiro e da riproduzione.
The Christian Register, Boston, Massachusetts:
E venuto nelle nostre mani un interessante libro che e come un espo-
nente del Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America. Esso
contiene una collezione d'articoli scritti da Luigi Carnovale.
La stampa italiana del nostro paese ha conquistato un'importante
posizone, se essa e capace d'avere nel suo seno scrittori che possiedono, come
il giovane Carnovale, tanta calda immaginazione, tanti generosi propositi,
tanta abilita letteraria; qualita, queste, messe in evidenza anche nel-
I'incantevole idillio // Sogno di Francesco dello stesso Carnovale.
La Tribuna Canadiana, Toronto, Ontario (Canada):
II brillante collega Luigi Carnovale ha pubblicato giorni or sono a
Chicago un interessante lavoro dal titolo // Giornalismo degli Emigrati
Italiani nel Nord America.
£ un'opera importante, dove I'autore ha sapientemente raccolto un
buon numero di articoli ch'egli ha pubblicato in diversi giornali degli
670 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
Stati Uniti e che si rileggono sempre con piacere, perche, oltre aH'essere
scritti in buon italiano, sono eminentemente patriottici.
Noi crediamo che I'importante libro del Carnovale dovrebbe trovarsi
nelle mani di tutti.
La Rivista Popolare di Politica, Lettere e Scienze sociali diretta dal
prof. Napoleone Colaianni, deputato al Parlamento nazionale, Roma-
Napoli, Italia:
// Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America di Luigi
Carnovale e buono, in quanto vi si esprimono sentimenti improntati alia
italianita.
Ars et Labor, la rivista edita dalla Casa Ricordi di Milano, Italia:
II bel volume // Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America
di Luigi Carnovale contiene articoli che interessano non solo gl'Italiani
sparsi nel Nord America, ma tutti gl'Italiani, perche in tali articoli sono
trattate, in forma brillante, questioni riguardanti esclusivamente il pre-
stigio e il benessere italiano.
Il Pungolo, Napoli, Italia:
Un libro veramente buono e di elevati sentimenti patriottici e sociali
e quello che ha dato alle stampe, a Chicago, Tegregio pubblicista Luigi
Carnovale sul Giornalismo degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America.
Luigi Carnovale di Stilo, uno dei piii forti e brillanti ingegni della
giovine Calabria, ha per lunghi anni esercitato con decoro e nobilta la
professione di pubblicista nelle terre d' America, ed ha cosi raccolto, in
questo prezioso e nitido volume, parecchi suoi articoli, frutto di acuta
osservazione e di studio sagace.
Le questioni piu varie e piu palpitanti sono trattate dal Carnovale in
questo suo libro, che e la piii fulgida gemma della sue opere. Vi e descritto
con tinte vivaci e con dolorose considerazioni il giornalismo degli emigrati
italiani nel Nord America, alto, nobile, patriottico, umanitario sempre, ma
con i suoi difetti e le sue deficienze, non tenuto in conto e non incoraggiato
dagli stessi connazionali americanizzati e neppure dai rappresentanti del
patrio governo. Vi e descritto lo stato reietto in cui versano gli emigrati
italiani che, per difetto di educazione, di patriottismo e di coesione, re-
stano in una continua inferiority di fronte alia boriosa ignoranza, gonfia
d'oro, degli stranieri.
11 Carnovale ne ricerca le cause piij recondite, addita i rimedi, sprona
la Dante Alighieri, propone e insiste sull'insegnamento patriottico e sul-
I'istruzione obbligatoria nelle scuole d'ltalia non astrattamente com' e
adesso, ma nella pratica della vita.
Di moke altre cose, anche letterarie, tratta profondamente il Carno-
vale nel suo ottimo libro. Ma lo spazio, da una parte, che manca, e il
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 671
desiderio che ogni vero Italiano acquisti e legga attentamente con amore il
libro in parola, fan si che noi non ci dilunghiamo come vorremmo e come
il libro merita. Libro che e la piii alta manifestazione d'italianita im-
personata in Luigi Carnovale, mente elevata, animo nobilissimo, fibra
calabra.
Basti ricordare che i piu eminenti uomini si sono vivamente congratu-
lati col distinto autore per il suo lavoro di pregi inestimabili che dovrebbe
andare nelle mani di tutti.
Noi, da queste colonne, non possiamo che inviare a Luigi Carnovale
i piQ fervidi auguri di una luminosa carriera.
AccATTATis Prof. Luigi, letterato calabrese, mando, in ricambio del
Giornalismo, un suo opuscolo al Carnovale con queste autografe
parole:
"A Luigi Carnovale, che onora la Calabria, ammirando, con
animo grato, dona 1' Autore."
Ardigo Prof. Roberto, educatore, filosofo:
Egregio Sig. Carnovale: Ho ricevuto il di Lei libro // Giornalismo degli
Etnigrati Italiani nel Nord America, e ne ho gia letto le 43 pagine della
prefazione con vivissimo interessamento. Leggero anche il resto. E
intanto La ringrazio di essersi compiaciuto di mandarmi il bel regalo.
Al lontano degno fratello italiano, godo di significare I'afFettuoso mio
saluto.
Da Padova.
Devotissimo
Prof. Roberto Ardigo.
Baccelli Alfredo, romanziere, poeta, deputato al Parlamento nazionale
italiano, ex ministro del Regno:
Egregio Sig. Carnovale: Ho ricevuto il suo volume e La ringrazio.
Ella ha un bell'ingegno e una brillante cultura. In cordiale ricambio Le
mando il mio ultimo romanzo.
Una stretta di mano dal
suo
Da Roma.
Alfredo Baccelli.
Boselli Paolo, decano del Parlamento nazionale italiano, ex-ministro,
presidente onorario della Dante Alighieri, presidente del Consiglio dei
ministri:
Egregio Sig. Carnovale: Le sono gratissimo per la cortesia con la
quale m'invio I'interessante suo volume.
672 GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE
II pensiero degl'Italiani e stretto in una sola idealita dovunque vivano:
ne i mari separano gli animi nostri.
Giova afFermare I'operosita intellettuale degl'Italiani che sono in
paesi lontani.
Ed e bello che in codesta terra di libera, mirabili energie, I'ingegno
italiano rifulga.
Con particolari sensi,
obbligatissimo
Da Torino. Paolo Boselli.
Mantegazza Prof. Paolo, antropologo, igienista, scrittore di scienze,
educator e, senatore del Regno d'ltalia:
Caro signor Carnovale: Mille grazie per il dono gentile.
II vostro libro vibra di un caldo patriottismo che vi fa molto onore e vi
battezza per un eloquente apostolo dell'Italianita in America.
Addio di cuore.
Da San Terenzio (Spezia).
Paolo Mantegazza.
Martini Ferdinando, letterato, deputato al Parlamento nazionale
italiano, ex governatore dell'Eritrea, ex ministro della Pubblica
Istruzione, ex ministro delle Colonie:
Pregiatissimo Sig. Carnovale: Ho ricevuto il suo bel volume e ne la
ringrazio.
Le dolorose pagine della prefazione dicono di per se quanto buona e
utile opera Ella faccia con instancato vigore.
II problema degl'Italiani all'Estero e dei piu gravi fra quanti la madre
patria ha da risolvere, e quello che vuol essere risoluto con studio pacato e
intelletto d'amore sopra ogni altra cosa. L'Istituto Coloniale, del cui
Consiglio mi onoro far parte, sta ora occupandosene: e del lavoro suo si
avranno, confido, pratici e solleciti effetti.
Bene sta che a questo lavoro venga aiuto dagl'Italiani stessi che
dimorano nelle Colonie; ed Ella lo porge validissimo, mantenendovi il
culto della patria, della sua lingua, delle sue tradizioni gloriose.
Grazie di nuovo ed Ella mi abbia per
devotissimo suo
Da Roma. Ferdinando Martini.
Mandarono congratulazioni al Carnovale per il suo libro // Giomalismo
degli Emigrati Italiani nel Nord America:
Caruso Enrico, tenore.
Casolini Antonio, deputato al Parlamento nazionale italiano.
GIUDIZI DI GIORNALI E DI PERSONE 673
CiccoTTi Prof. Ettore, deputato socialista al Parlamento nazionale
italiano.
CiLEA Francesco, compositore di musica, direttore del Conservatorio di
Palermo.
Costa Andrea, leader del Partito Socialista italiano, vice presidente
della Camera dei deputati.
CuNDARi Prof. Aw. Antonio, sindaco di Cosenza.
D'Ancona Prof. Alessandro, letterato, critico, senatore del Regno
d'ltalia.
Emanuele Filiberto, Duca D'Aosta, cugino di Vittorio Emanuele III
re d'ltalia.
Fortunato Giustino, deputato al Parlamento nazionale italiano.
Giunta Municipale Di Milano.
Nathan Ernesto, sindaco di Roma.
PoMPiLj GuiDO, deputato al Parlamento nazionale italiano; sotto-
segretario di Stato per gli AfFari Esteri.
Rapisardi Mario, poeta.
Rava Luigi, deputato al Parlamento nazionale italiano, ministro della
Pubblica Istruzione.
Rossi Prof. Luigi, Commissario Generale dell'Emigrazione.
SoNNiNO Sidney, deputato al Parlamento nazionale, ex ministro, ex
presidente dei ministri e presente ministro degli AfFari Esteri.
Vittorio Emanuele III, re d'ltalia.
ZuMBiNi Prof. Bonaventura, letterato, critico, senatore del Regno
d'ltalia.
E molti altri.
In preparazione:
Gli Onnipotenti
ToMMAso Campanella
DATE DUE
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