The evening telegraph. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1864-1918, 1870-11-12
AN ITALIAN BRIGAND.


vius-Twelve Murders-BetrnyaI, Arrest, "A
Death Struggle, and Death-Piety, Passion,
and Relies.
correspondent of the London Times
writes from Florence, Italy, under date of
October 10, as follows
The Neapolitan papers are just now full of
details and interesting particulars about the
capture of the notorious brigand Phone, once
the terror of the country surrounding Mount
Vesuvius, who was arrested and killed at
Naples on the 18th instant. AS everything
which concerns the life and death of this cele-
brated cGp0-brigdnte is in the highest degree
characteristic of brigands and brigand life in
Italy in general, and this man in particular,
will just give you a short resume of the
eventful biography of this illustrious per-
sopage, now no more.
ANTONIO CoZzoLINo--this is the real name
of Pilone-was born at Resina in 1925, and
followed the trade of stone-cutter until he
sttained the age of twenty one, when he was
called upon to enter the Neapolitan army
He was still serving in the Royal Artillery at
the time when General Fanti conceived the
uplucky idea of sending francesca It's dis
banded soldiers home. On their being again
called to service, Phone and many others be-
sides took fight and turned professed bri-
gands. His superior energy and intelligence
very soon gave him chief command over all
the robbers infesting the country, and he has
been nearly the only one among them who
has invariably succeeded during the last
ten years. in escaping the search and
eluding the pursuit of the Italian army and
police. He very often had the temerity to VEN
ture even as far as the precincts of the cap-
talitself. He it was who captured and de-
tanned as prisoner the Deputy Avitabile at
that time director of the Neapalitan Bank
He went, moreover, twice to Rome; once, it
is said but of course we are at liberty to
believe as much of this on dit at we please,
at the express command of francesca IL
who is said to have bestowed on him deco
ration: the second time by order of the Pope,
who wished to imprison him, and kept him
there for several months. He has been con-
demned to death no less than three times,
which is not too much, when we learn that
among the innumerable murders he has
committed, twelve at least have been
judicially brought home to him.
The most conspicuous among
these crimes is, perhaps, his assassination of
the sergeant of the Carabinieri, De Gasparis,
who was courageous enough to arrest him
alone and unassisted. What with the terror
he inspired, and the sympathy he often sue
ceeded in exciting-especially by his proven
bial generosity and notorious piety (for,
whether feigned or genuine, he, at any rate,
gave himself out for fervent devotee)-he
has always found plenty of people ready to
conceal him, and even enjoyed the sanity
appellation or surname of Cavaliere SAINT An
tonic. Nevertheless, since the active ad-
ministratiOn of the new Prefect of Naples,
Marchese dAfiiitto, Phone had begun to feel
less at ease. Almost all his accompices and
mdnuteng0I in the ordinary theatre of his ex-
ploits had been successively captured, and
people on whom the vaguest suspicion of COM
plcity or friendship with him rested were
liable to arrest. SO he thought it more pru-
dent to draw near Naples, and contrive to
make sure of some safe places of refuge both
in the town itself and in the immediate
suburbs. He was the cOmpdre (godfather) of
half the population between Oltsiano and
Boscoreale and as the title of compare is far
more respected in that part of the world than
that of father or brother, he met with the
most extraordinary discretion and fidelity
among his allies the Inhabitants of the vii
lagos around Naples, and of the city itself.
He was frequently to be seen in town, and
upon one occasion certain Marchese r.,
when walking across the Piazza Reale, OBJ
served servant of his speaking with
an ill.favored, epulsive-looking fell
low low and and ,,u on Questioning him,
it was the notorious Phone. The brigand,
imagining himself now to be in perfect
safety, and finding himself, moreover, short
of cash, took to organizing system of Tic-
catti, as they are called in Italy, or forcing
wealthy people to give him large sums of
money by threatening letters; and as they
had considerably more fear of him than con-
fdence in the police, they never dared to de-
Rounce the man, who was meanwhile plum
deripg them in private at his ease. Since
Cavaliere Colmeyer, however, has been at
the head of the police at Naples, Phone had
enjoyed less and less tranquility, very
severe surveillance having been established
over the quarters he was most in the habit of
frequenting, such as Forio, Mer-
cato, and the lower parts of the
city. Among the officers employed in
tracking him was a certain Petrillo,
who reminds me forcibly of the Sergent de
Police bent on taking Jean Vatican, in Victor
Hugo's MiSerdbIes. This man seems to have
taken up his profession from vocation, and to
exercise it artistically. He possesses the feu
S0cre, the disinterestedness, the indefatigable
zeal of the mau who is determined upon ac-
complishing his end. Now, Petrillo, it seems,
had made the capture of this famous 6rigante
the one aim of his life, and, after numerous
fruitless attempts, finally succeeded on Fri
! day last. Here the different accounts cease
to agree. According to some, it was a friend
of Cavaliere SAINT Antonio, some treacherous
accompliee of the bTf9dnte, or some intended
benefactor of his country, who gave in
formation to the police to the effect
that Phone was expected on the 18th
under the bridge of the Arenaccia,
where he was to receive ricattO ne had
imposed on a proprietor of bGscO tire case,
4 -. Al. a.