The Sun.
London, England, 1825-12-29 00:00:00

THE EXAMINATION.

Your motive for coming to St. Sebastian ?—To arrange for a
passage to England.
You were drinking with the French soldiers, and gave them -
money. Your motive ?—The honesty of the corporal, in re-
turning me my money, inudced me to treat him and his com..,
rades with drink, and I also gave him a small reward in
money.
You were hailed by the guard, and refused to answer ?—I
answered him twice la Fnglish.
You were seen on the grounds on the review day. Your
motive 2--Curiosity.
I was remanded to prison the next day. 1 was marched to
Passages ; identified on board the Hope ; and OR the Bth of
December, was handcuffed, tied by a chain to another pri-
soner, and marched to St. Jnan de Luz, under strong guard,
confined in a dungeon, the treatment dreadful, as Spaniars
and French appeared delighted when they found they had
an Englisman in their fangs. Shackles were placed on my
legs, and secured by a bar, so that we could not move except
conjointly. On the 9th we marched to Bayonne, pinioned
and tied together, the cord in the hands of the soldiers on
horseback; was thrust into prison at Bayonne' wrote all the
particulars of my treatment, and sent it to the English Con-
sul ; the reply was immediate, with full assurance of protec-
tion, and that means would be taken for my release. Next
morning I was escorted to the residence of General Baron de
Gannin, when, after a few questions, I was told I was at liberty.
I said that was not sufficient ; I must be rendered up to the
English Consul, as I had been cruelly treated ; that I was a
prisoner, and innocent of any crime. He then gave me a for-
mal discharge, and a letter of explanation to J. V. Harvey, Esq.
his Britannic Majesty's Consul at Bayonne.

ADVENTURES AND DEATH OF THE NEAPOLI-

TAN CAPTAIN PATITAIU.

EXTRACT FROM A LETTER., DATED NAPLES,XOV. 17.

" The Neapolitan Captain Francois Patitari, a
native of Lecce, in the kingdom of Naples, served in the year
1021 at Messina, in Sicily, in a regiment of infantry under the
command of General Rossarol. On the second attempt at a re-
volution, made by this General, Patitari was ordered by him to
endeavour to draw into their party the town of Melazzo, in
Sicily.
"In order to execute-the plan drawn by the General, it was
necessary to effect a landing at lteggio, in Calabria, and its
environs, so that they might act in concert with the Calabrians;'
and thus defeat the precautions of the Royal troops, already
supported by the arrival of the Austrians in Naples.
" Captain Masi, Commander of the Maritime Forces, took
charge of embarking and landing the troops of General Ros-
sarol. Every thing seemed thus to promise success to the en-
enterprise, when the rising edifice of liberty was at once over-
thrown by the treachery of this individual.
" Captain Patitari, who was at Melazzo, conscious of the
danger which threatened him, resolved to hasten to Messina,
and there join General Rossarol. On his arrival in this town
the populace, enraged at the determination of their leader,
turned their fury against him. Notwithstanding, however, the
crowd which surrounded him, he had succeeded in extricating
himself from their hands, when his horse fell,- and in his tall
Captain Patitari had his thigh broken.
" Convinced of the hoplessness of his situation, he claimed
the treatment to which his misfortune entitled him. But the
people were obdurate, and their first resolution was to drag
him through the streets of the city, rind thus end the life which
be had consecrated to the liberty of his country. The greater
part, however, opposed this barbarous resolution ; and Patitari,
after enduring dreadful sufferings, was carried to an hospital,
which became to him a prison. The pains which were taken
to restore him to health were only intended us means to pro-
long hie misery; and as soon as he had recovered, he was
thrown into ode of the most wretched dungeons of the citadel
of Messina.

" In the mean time the Austrians arrived at Messina, had
established a military commisiion to sit in judgment over
those who were accused of rebellion against the Government.
"So great was the number of persons brought before this
odious tribunal, that Patitari waited nearly a twelvemonth be-
fore it became his turn to stand for trial. The effects of the
dreadful abode into which he had been thrown began to ap-
pear, and when he was first brought out to be interrogated, the
sudden appearance of light, to which he had been so long un-
accustomed, almost deprived him of sight. His hair had be.
come gray, and the dampness of his cell had so affected and
weakened his whole frame, that he was unable to stand even
for the shortest possible space of time. The evil soon extended
from the body to the mind, and the noble spirit which had for
years supported him through every trial, forsook him, and the
unhappy Patitari become a maniac.
" The sight of such a man in such a state inspired some
with the laudable but dangerous wish of endeavouring to re-
lieve, in some degree, his extreme misery, and their efforts
were not all in vain. Love did not forsake him in the hour
of adversity, and the Marchioness F. Messinoise, who had
known and loved him in happier days, asked and obtained
of the Austrian magistracy that her unhappy friend might
have the liberty of breathing the pure air, and taking exer-
cise for a short time every day in the court of the citadel._
This indulgence soon restored him to health, and no sooner
did his mind begin to recover its wonted vigour, than it again
wished for liberty, and Patitari determined to attempt his
escape. One side of the citadel was surrounded by a river,
'which, from its breadth and the rapidity of its current, had
been considered a sufficient protection against the evasion of
the prisoners; this offered the only possibility of escape, and
of this Patitari determined to avail himself. After two or
three days' consideration, he carried his purpose into execu-
tion ; and, notwithstanding the rapidity of the stream, he swam
to the opposite, bank, near to St. Francois de Paula, about two
miles and a half distant from the citadel. Although in a very
exhausted state, he immediately took a boat, and went at once
into Calabria.

" Arrived there, his friends, sympathising in his misfor-
tunes, offered him an asylum against the persecutions and the
researches of Government. He accepted their proffered kind-
ness ; and although regretting the failure of all his endeavours
to obtain liberty, he enjoyed considerable happiness, or, at
least, tranquillity, relying on the honour of the Calabrians,
whom he thought incapable of betraying hint.
" Whilst he was thus situated, the Tribunal ordered him
to be brought to trial, and, in his absence, condemned him
to capital punishment.
" In August, 1825, the researches of Government became
more active, and Patitari, fearing every instant to fall into the
hands of his enemies, determined, in the month of September,
to pass into a foreign land, and thus escape the death decreed
against him by the Military Commission, as guilty of treason
against the State.
" He set off, without passport or any other paper, and with
nothing but the good wishes of his friends for his success and
safety, and embarked at Scilla, on board a merchant-vessel,
with the intention of landing at 'Corfu, or in some other place
whence he might easily pass into Greece. He was near doing
so, and began to hope all hismiseries were about to terminate,
when an unfavourable wind forced the Captain to touch at
Otranto, in the kingdom of Naples, and near the native land of
the unhappy Patitari. His good tbrtune now forsook him, he
was discovered, and once more fell into the hands of his ene-
mies. He underwent a most severe examination, in the hope
that he would discover those-who had assisted him in his flight,
but Patitari was too noble-minded to betray them.
" The former proCeedingS against him were examined, the
sentence of death already 'pronounced against hint was repeated,
sad, having received -the 'lleyal sanction, he was shot in the
latter part of October, 1825. He met his fate like a brave man,
and by dying like a hero, showed that had an opportunity been
1110W114 hiss, ow ittuld have lived and fought like one."