Cincinnati daily press. [volume] (Cincinnati [Ohio]) 1860-1862, 1860-08-04
Mere Neapolitun Barbarity-HOrrihie suf.
ferinEs of an American Prisoner. 20
A correspondent of the London Times
writing from Naples, July 10. sayss

ferings Of an American Prisoner. i''
A correspondent of the London Times,
writing from Naples, July 10, sayss
Among the many cases of brutal and ille-
gal imprisonment which have been brought
before the public during the last ten days,
none has been worse than that Of Francisco
Casanova, calling himself an American. He
was confined in San Francisco, and some
| young men who had formerly been placed in
the same prison, though not In the same
| room, remembering his case, went, on the
amnesty being proclaimed, to deliver him
but he was all but naked, and he could not
leave until an advocate, called Arene, who
| had acted with great benevolence, sent him
| some clothes, and has since received him in
his house and fed him. Last night, went
TO see him, and | can not tell you whether
indignation against this most Christian Gov
ernment or compassion for the victim was
the strongest feeling. "When he entered
| my house." said Arene, che was supported
| by two persons, for he was unable TO walk
| He looked like ghost" "Where am I2' he
exclaimed, as he looked confusedly around
and well he might, after six years and a-half
| confinement from all intercourse with man.
But give you his own description of his
| sufferings, as nearly as possible, in his own
words, promising merely that there were
witnesses of all that relate, in Arene him
SELF Neapolitan friend and foreign consul:
| "I landeaSin Genoa from Boston some time
| in 1853, aud wishing to see the south of Italy,
travelled till I came near to Virterbo, when |
was cautioned-not to go to Rome; but / still
persevered in my intention of doing so, when
[ was arrested as not having passport, and
carried TO the Eternal City, where | was
placed in the Carcere Nuova. Not satisfied
with the report gave Of myself, was tor
| tured for three months rs follows My hands
and arms were bound together, and then, by
| ropes tied round the upper part of the arms,
they were drawn back till my breast pro-
truded, and my bones sounded 'Crick, crick
There was another species Of torture practiced
upon me, which was this: At night, while
sleeping, the door was secretly opened and
buckets of water were thrown over my body.
How survived il can not tell; the keepers
were astonished, and said they never had
such an instance. But you will never get
out alive, was told. replied that never
expected to do SO, and prayed for the angel
of death to come. The worst torture of all,
however, was the prison itself-a room into
| which u few rays of light struggled from
above, and the stencil of which was as bad as
death, ~. .t,illl. LLtu ~l.fa -'t{
"For three months suffered thus, and then,
without any reason assigned, was taken from
it and placed, always alone, in room called
Salon del Preti,' q large airy room, and
was well fed and well treated for twenty-one
months more. l was the prisoner of the
Cardinal Secretary Antonellf.
"About the middle of 1855 again, without
any reason being given, | was sent off to
Naples, was placed first in the Vicaria, and
afterward in San Francisco, in q small close
room, where | was detained for four years
> and a half. l was questioned ON several oc-
casions, and at last refused to answer, saying
that my prosecutors already knew what
had to say, that was unjusfIy and illegally
i ..a1 OAI aIA
utter another word. On another occasion
was called before Bianchini, the Director Of
Police, who interrogated me. appealed
against my sufferings, and all the reply / re-
ceiyed was Va bene, "a bene,' from a Chris
tian man to one suffering as was. / have
been asked TO send supplication for my lib
Grafton, but my invariable answer was, will
, die first never will ask any thing Of thi!
Government. When first / arrived here
had ~ little money, which, for a short time
produced me better food than prison fare
and then by degrees / sold my clothes. A
last sold my black bread to have littl,
salt to sprinkle over my beans, and somt
times to procure some incense to relieve thu
J horrid stencil of my prison. AS for water fo
, purposes of cleanliness, it was never supplied
me, and all that could do was to dip one o
my own rags in a Jug Of drinking water AM
wash some portions Of my body. 1o. is..gl'i.u
, "During the day could repose, bat at nigh
/ was covered with black beetles, fieas, lice
and every conceivable SPECIES, of fsvernfiny
1 expected death; and desired and prayed 70
{ it as a relief but III meyer cameo Ny clothe
: were at last so reduced that was all bu
naked, and so ! have passed four summer
and winters pacing up end down my narroi
sl4 "IswilI show you my, prison dress sal
8. he; aud going ont, he, returned in fey
moments. he might have stood as a mode
g, for, Lazarus risen from the tomb. The, lowe
I part OF his body was covered with a thi
z pair of linen drawers, nothing more o
y his feet WAS al pair OF shoes, with sole
and upper feathers all in holes. He had n
g shirt but oyerl the upper part Of his bod
o was thrown a rag something like commo
Z kitchen towel, one corner of which, he ha
placed on his head, and the long elfn lock
e down over I T IisSS SsSE add 1t sE5aiSsG. @ 3d. III d
= peared more like brute beast than
Y Christian man. See this rag, said b
how I have tclieAj Il VI This, was my dres
~ and SO clad marched up anddown my'soi
" tary den.'" ,r.-,.-....,-r.
Il AMoNdMASIAoALF FEMALE TmEFy-Ayoun