The Sun.
London, England, 1856-05-14 00:00:00

MILITARY RIOTS AT MALTA.

MALTA, May B.—Shortly after the arrival of ,the
Anglo-Italial. Legion, some one or two of the soldiers
were brought before the policy and condemned to Ser
prisonment for uttering blasphemous language in the
streets, and lately there was a case of unprovoked as'
sault upon a friar of the Carmelite order. UnhappilP
however, the conduct of these troops has, during the
past few days, been the cause of great alarm to the
population and the local auth naties ; and yesterday and
the day preceding the tragic scenes of the streets ca
Parma have been acted in broad daylight in the streets
of La Valetta, in the lower part of which city, on the
sth of May, a soldier of the 3d Italian Regiment stabbed
a comrade with a stiletto while aiming a blow at a po'
lice-constable, who, having received information of the
man's having this weapon concealed on his person fro°
a woman whom he had just previously threatened, was
quietly.endeavouring, to induce him to g with him t°
the station-house. The constable stepped aside, and the
blew of the assassin fell on his own comrade, who was
carried dying to the hospital. The miscreant was ial"
mediately arrested.
On the evening of the 6th, towards sunset, mon ber a
of soldiers of the Legion—some say full 100—encouraged
by the presence of several nen-commissioned officers'
appeared in the streets of the city, singing songs
liberty, demeaning themselves in a riotous and disorderly
manner, using language insulting and menacing to the
natives. On reaching the chief police-station in the
Palace of Justice in the Strada Motile, the inspector,
Mr. Caruana, fearing that a conflict might ensue,.ex.
ported the crowd of Maltese collecting round the military
to disperse, and was quietly leading these latterfrom the
main street in the direction of their barracks at Fort
Manoel and the Lazzarete, when, all of a sudden, under
the windows in Strala Santa Lucia of the Imperial
Hotel, the Italian soldiers made a rush at the people with
their unsheathed bayonets, and some men drew froth
under their tunics stiletti. At this moment Mr.
Caruana was seen to put his hand to his back, and to run
in the direction of the main guard for the purpose of get"
tiog assistance, when he fell to the ground, and on being
lifted blood was found issuing from no less than four
mortal wounds, and within a few minutes after he er
pired in the police-office. The miscreants fled in the
panic and confusion which prevailed, dealing blows oa
several unoffending persons who happened to be in the
streets as they passed, and seriously maimed the boat'
men who pulled them across the harbour to their bar'
racks in the Lezzaretto and Fort Manoel, where, 00
the following morning, the regiment being drawn up'
Lieut.-Colonel Burnaby, commanding the Legion, ed•
dressed them on the enormity of the crime committed on
the preceding evening, and expressed an earnest hoPef
that, as the assassin could not be known to many e,
his comrades, they would give him up to justice. Thil
address was received by the officers with the waving °,
their swords and by the soldiers with three cheers ;
.but
op to this moment .he murderer remains unknown to
the authorities, though it is said tbat two English s°',
diers, who saw the blow struck, declare that they ha.
sufficiently remarked his features to be able to identify
him. Scarcely had this address been made than a COn,'
teen-keeper of the barracks, on asking payment of a.so'
dier for some provisions, received in reply the thrust off.
stiletto with "Take this; for this is the coin with whielsa
the Italian pays his debts." Luckily the man behia
the canteen-counter drew back, and the wound
inflicted was not a deep one. Another canteen-keeper
'hail previously got his head broken.
On the afternoon of the 7th, one of the band getting
into an altercation at the Marina with a t 6
native, dredrew,
stiletto, which was wrested from his graap by a )Y1:
tish naval officer passing by,—not, however, withonv
this latter cutting his hand. Oa the same afternoon,
at about 1.30, other disturbances la.tween the Italians
and the Maltese took place in different parts of the
city, and in one of them an Italian officer had the nn..
prudence to draw his sword, which drew from him fb
shower of stones that injured him in the head. On beam
ing of these acts, the men in barracks vowed vengeance,
took to the ferry-beats, crossed over, and made an at"
tempt to pass into Valletta, through the Marsamuscetto.
gate' where, under orders from Sir John Pennefatbert
the General Commanding, a small party of British
artillerymen brought them to a halt with the point °f
the bayonet, and after the drawbridge was lifted, streeg
pickets sent round the town, the guards were doubled'
extra sentries posted, and 300 English infantry- de.
spatched towards the suburbs of Floriana and the Porta
Bombe, to protect, against any attempt of the Italian:
to enter at the Porta Reale. Engiish artillerymen were
placed in charge of the guns at Fort Manoel, whence ta'
stock of ammunition has been removed, and in the ever
ing her- Majesty's screw line-of-battle ship the Hannibal,
having on board Rear-Admiral Sir Houston Stewart)
was towed round by the Spiteful steamer into MOO:
inuscetto harbour, and anchored in such a position e'
to command the Fort Manoel barracks arid the Italian
encampment along the shore opposite Slierna.
The whole of the afternoon most of the town shops
were kept closed, and much alarm continues to prevail'
The indignation of the populace has been considerably
excited against the Italians by the admission of the
public to see the mangled remains of the inspector, who
has left a widow and seven children, for whom a sill',
scription is on foot.
It is to be hoped that no time will be lost in removing
the legion from the island, before any more serious con'
sequences accrue.