Daily union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1865-1866, 1866-07-08
. VOLUME XXXIII.
THE MIRACLE OF RRACCIANO.
Aa Execution ordered by the Pope,
which did not take place-Excitemenf
i'm Rome

/ AH Execution ordered by the Pope
which did not take place-Excitemen
in Rome.
Rome. May d. Correspondence Pall-M Mall Gazette
Yesterday the Holy Father went to tn,
! Cldesa NuovO, where was celebrated tn,
fest OfSt. Philip Neri, patron o, Rome. A
the day was wet, the Pope did not make use
! Of his state carriage; but, notwithstanding
! tn absence Of this attraction, and in spite O
the rain, a crowd waited along his route
/ ia longing densely the piazza before tn,
! church. There was, in fact, an imposing
! demonstration in his favor. Handkerchief
waved from every quarter, and the air rang
with cries Of "Niva Pic Mono " mingled al
rare intervals, with shout OF" Long live the
Ponhh-King :" almost always inthe French
tongue. In the piazza, in the midst Of the
crowd, was distributed by thousands short
printed account Of the miracle" Of Bracci-
ano, which occurred last Monday, the 23d OF
May, in the year Of grace 1866. For the
last two days we have been deafehed with the
cries Of the vendors Of this narrative, every
quarter Of the Eternal City resembling with
the din: One halfpenny (bqjocco) the mi
racle Of Bracciano, with the explanation"
In the streets, in the cafes, on the public
promenadeS, and in the saloons, nothing is
alked Of but the miracle.
Within forty-eight hours Rome forgets
the vital questions Of the moment, the i'm
pending war which agitates the whole penin-
sula, and the kilograms which electrify ordi-
nary men, 70 occupy itself with this iuggIe.
The subject is in every mouth from that of
the Cardinal to the facohiao Of the Ripetta.
and the full particulars may be purchased
at the corner Of every street. From this
authentic narrative we learn that FELIX and
ANTONIO d GIUSEPPE, or VENTURA, broth
ers, originally Of Capitignano in the Nea-
pOlltan provinces, were stained with every
crime. BY turns brigands on the highway
and adrOit sharpers in the towns, they fol-
lowed their vocation in every part Of the
Pontitical territory, committing felonies
without number Finally they were both
arrested, and were tried and condemned to
death by the Supreme Tribunal of the
Council. The Pope RENTED the capital
sentence on FELIX, the least guilty. com
muting his punishment to hard labor for
life. 1t was impossible 10 extend the same
clemency 20 ANTONIO DI GIUSEPPE He
was accused Of eleven murders, committed
IN tWenty-three years; he confessed to FIVE.
lie cut of the two breasts of a young girl,
and, more dreadful STILL he was suspected of
having assinated his own mother. The SEN
tenCe was that he should be beheaded at
BraccianO, the scene Of his latest crime-the
murder Of PTETRo PAOLINI, herdsnan.
In the prison Of this town, ANTONIO be-
gan 70 evince great cOntrition. confessed to
the priest, and devoted himself to religious
duties, celebrating especially every day in
his dungeon the service Of the "month of
NARY in honor Of the Holy Virgin. On
the eve Of the day appointed for his eKecu-
ton, he informed his cOniessor, with an air
Of profound conviction, that the Madonna
had appeared to him, and announced that
she accepted his repentance, and that he
should not die on the scafiold, but live to ex-
plate his crimes, and become one of her ser
wants. This statement he repeated when the
officers came to read his condemnation to
him, at the same time declaring that he rich
ly deserved his sentence, 10 which he listen
ed without the least disc0mpOsure He ask
ed permission to walk to the scafiold bare
foot; and on his way thither, and even as
he mounted to the platform, he reiterated his
conviction that he should not be executed.
He made the same statement to the assem-
bled crowd, asking their pardon forhis crimes
but adding that he would not bid them adieu.
The people listened in silence, thinking him
mad, and they were con frmed in this opin-
ion by the composed manner in which he
knelt down and offered his neck TO the axe.
The executioner seized the handle Of the
guillotine, which had been tried in the night
and found to act effectively. The cleaver,
loaded with enormous weights now descend
ed, bat wonderful to relate, it stopped alb
rubtly two fingers length from the neck of
the maleiacOr The executioner; resOlute
in his duty, reset the apparatus; again the
blade fell, but II was again arrested at the
same point, as by an invisible hand. Mean
while, the spectators became excited beyond
control, and shouted pardon pardon p
while many leaped on the scafiold and re-
leased the culprit by force. A courier was
despatched to obtain his pardon Of the Pope,
and it is confidently stated that the Minister
Of the Interior has ordered an inquiry as a
step in this direction. The miracle has, in
the interim, made such rapid progress as an
article Of faith, that il has been recognized
by the popular poets, and this morning they
were singing recital Of it at the corners Of
the streets, and exhibiting, in illustra-
ton, pictures coarsely daubed on linen,
which represented ANTONIO receivinga visit
from the Madonna in his dungeon, an
then his miraculous deliyerance on the scat
fold. Such is the incident which now alb
serbs the attention of Rome and which has
been adTcitly planned 10 catch the popular
fancy, to raise the courage Of the brigands,
who behold one Of their number specially
protected by the Madonna, and, finally to
fill the Golfers Of the Government.
More than eighty thousand persons bought
tickets in the lottery Of the three numbers
corresponding TO the miracle, according to
the rules Of the 'I.ihro delpArte," or book
Of dreams. The drawing took place yester-
day, and nobody woman suspicious miracle
for the Government which the number of
subscribers would otherwise have ruined,
but which has now Melted an enormous sum.
Nor is the game yet over as the Romans
play the same number three times, and this,
Of course, necessitates three purchases Of
tickets