Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-09-19

attracted my attention, and he gave me one
of the signs which denoted he belonged to
the Carbonari. Hope began to flicker in
my heart, but the mason made no further
sign, and the wall rose higher and higher
to my waist, to my chin, to my eyes.
l watched every movement of the
mason with feverish attention.
At last only three more bricks remained to
complete my sepulcher. In laying one of
them the mason, as if by accident, dropped
trowel full of mortar inside the niche. l
stopped In the mortar was clasped
knife. At least can kill myself, muir.
INJURED, as pressed the knife with graft
tude. The last brick was put in its place
4 WAS buried in the wall. My niche was
large enough to lie down in, SO I ate some
of my bread, drank half of the bottle of
wine and fell into a troubled sleep. When
| awoke | listened in the darkness, and
heard the step of the soldier pacing up and
down in the vault outside. | began to feel
in my pockets and found box of matches.
l lit one and inspected my grave. The
back was also bricks. Where did it lead
placed my ear to the wall and listened.
| fancied l heard scampering sound like
rats. If there be rats, l thought,
there must be space somewhere aud
with my knife l began to loosen the
mortar round the bricks of the back wall.
10 my delight, tie mortar crumbled easily,
and | dislodged brick after brick. 1t
was tedious work, however, and l made
slow progress in the dark, for I did
not like to use many of my matches
besides the burning of sulphur made the
confined air of the niche still more unsup-
portable. | soon found l was burrowing
through a wall entirely composed Of bricks
OF depth of two feet or more. At last,
after working for two or three hours, a cur
rent OF foul air into my face told me that |
had pierced the wall. l worked eagerly to
enlarge the opening, presuming was max
ing my way into a sewer, until the hole
was large enough to pass my body. l
threw brick to sound the depth lit struck
a: once, SO 1 knew | had not far to fall. ]
crept through backward, hung moment
by my hands and let myself fall in the
darkness. fell in the midst of a number
OF small moving bodies which scattered in
every direction. | knew they were rats.
struck a match, and the light fell on pyra.
mid of skulls and bones Good God,
where was :" / lit another match and
layers of mouldy ccffins met my view and
myriads OF rats running everywhere. Then
l knew where | was. had made my way
into the cstacombs beneath the city of
Naples. My teeth chartered with horror.
How was it possible for me ever to find my
way through the tortuous labyrinths OF
this vast wilderness of the dead?
The darkness was something frightful,
and the rats, grown holder, were beginning
to bite at my boots. In a few minutes
they would surround me in myriads, over.
power me, and tear me to pieces. l struck
out right and left with my feet and hands
and hacked with my knife as rushed for
ward lighting matches, of which fortunate
ly | had good many, as a guide to my
footsteps. The rats now made for me in
earnest. They ran all over me and pressed
against me in hundreds A dozen times
fell, but managed to rise to my feet again,
killing scores of enemies, but being horri-
bly, bitten IN every portion OF my body
Growing every moment more faint with
loss OF blood, despair seized me, and
| knew ii I fell again l should
not have the strength to rise. I drew
out the remainder of my matches. In
lighting them they all took fire together and
fell IN blaze among the rats. This fright
ened them from me for few seconds, and
at the same time | became aware of a turn
ing In the vaults, at the end OF which saw
faint glimmer of light. l rushed toward
it with the energy of sudden hope. 1t was
door, with barred grill, leading doubt
less to church, for in Naples nearly all
the chuI ches have entrances to the cata-
combs. | kicked and hammered at the
door as well as my wounded hands and feet
would allow, and, oh joy l was greeted
by human voice, and a blancehd face ap-
peared at the grill. For the love of God,
let me out, shrieked | was left behind
by accident when with funeral party, and
am nearly devoured by the rats Tue key
was turned and [ staggered forward into
the hands of priest.
Six months afterward | recovered con,
seriousness in one of the wards of the public |
hospital. had been delirious all that time |
with brain fever, and the doctors did not
suppose | would live. With returned |
reason came convalescence. | found by |
the remarks OF physicians who attended |
me- that the story of having lost my way
at burial in the eatac0mb5 was believed, |
and l did not undeceive them. Before / |
was able to leave the hospital restored to /
health, Garlbaldi was master of Naples and |
King Francis fugitive. The horrible suf- |
ferings I had experienced had blanched my |
hair to il, present color, and had 60 aged |
my features that l had difficulty in estab-
lIshing my identity to my relatives, who |
sup posed l had been secretly assassinated |
by the Kings orders. served with Carl. |
baldi for the remainder of his campaign in
Italy, arsl ten years later reioined the
liberator when he took the field in the |
Franco P-usaian war. Eight years ago | |
emigratet With, my wife to America His
portrait ipointing to the picture of King
Francis). 1 kept, to remind me of my
hatred. Every morning l stab it to the
heart. The rats 1 catch in this house. or
my neighoors bring them ID Inc: / starve
them to t.eath like that one you see there.
Then hin them and place their hides on
the walls as you see. That is my story,
Signor."