Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1884-03-27

quite alone. All at once he had sur
prise party. 1t slightly reSembled
that of Fitz James. There was rustic
in the bushes, and
| instant through copse and heath arose
| Bonnets and spears and Bonded bows,
| And every tuft of broom gave life
/ To padded warrior arm for strife.
For the innocent-looking blueberry
bushes seemed suddenly to spring up
into men, dark and villainous in APP
pearance. He had fallen into a brigand
trap. Did he cry, do you ask, like
James FitZ James, "Come enc, come
all!' and declare that those blueberrY
bushes should fly from their firm roots
hnfnra he wnnld9 No, gentle questioner
not much; not that evening. He was
nearly half gone with fear that that
would happen anyhow. He saw no
way to run, and thought it was need
less to repeat from the story of the
| Lady Of the Lake" what seemed to
be foregone conclusion. Two stout
fellows stepped up to him, and began
| to interview him after the fashion of
| the Back Hills knights. A particular
examination was made into his note
| books and papers. Then he observed,
with growing interest, that there was
an excited discussion, in which differ
! ence of opinion was clear. Finally the
gang appeared to come to a decision;
he was not the man they wanted. And
they let him 90 free, first returning
everything.
The fact is that travellers from
abroad are comparatively exempt from
these perils. A band assumes a heavy
risk when it takes Il captive into the
mountains, and there must be q cor
responding gain. Tourists are looked
| Upon as uncertain game. Their ran
som might not be WORTH the trouble;
| besides, there is the bugbear of an in
| dignant foreign government, which,
bringing pressure to bear on the home
! police, would almost certainly stir
! hornets nest up about their ears. So
they confine their attention to the resi-
dents, whom Italy, not unlike other
nations, leaves to take care of them
| selves. The majority of the victims to
! Sicilian robbers have been wealthy
Italians. If we hear only of an Eng
| lishman's troubles it is because the
others are not of international inter-
| est. A wealthy citizen who travels
certain routes at regular intervals
through the country is particularly ex-
| posed to attack.
To crafty our desire of seeing Es-
! pOsito was no easy task. One of our
| party, however, had made the acquaint-
ance, years ago in the United States,
of an exile from Palermo. When this
! individuals Punishment ended with the
change of Italian politics, he returned
to Sicily and to atfluence. My friend
now met him as an influential noble.
Count Torloni was grateful for some
| slight favorS that he remembered as
done to him in the past when he needed
aid, and strained every nerve to get an
entrance into the temple OF our divini-
ty, the great hrigand How many grand
| officials the poor gentleman had to see
in our behalf | would not like to say.
There was the project and the governor
of civil affairs and the high council and
the governor of military affairs, and
! half a score more. In the south of
Europe there is, unhappily, more than
one circumlocution Office A day came
when the last magnate had consented.
| We were driving along the Via Mac
queda on the way to the famous old
prison. The count directed attention
to the gay crowds on the wayside.
''Out of every five of those whom
you see," he observed, II suppose there
is one who at heart sympathizes with
such criminals as he whom we visit
to-day. If it had not been for the
Sicilian populace, the latter would not
have escaped as he did"
''How did it happen?''
They were taking him from prison
to court. His guard was careless, and
he slipped away. Do you see those
narrow alleys to the right and left of
this great Via?"
Yes, they appear to lead into a laby-
rinth.'
''He lodged up one of those, and the
crowd passed in after, pretending to
be very earnest in securing him. It is
needless to say with what result"
''Into such q jam the gendarmes
probably could not pierce"
''No, and the next | knew of the gen
tleman he had turned up in New Or
leans"
"a search for his hiding-place in
your populous wards must have been
| u6S D6IdIe'
There was no lack of friends with
whom he could lie quiet until the hunt
was given up. After that he made
quietly off in some fishing schooner,
probably"
ut must have been a disappointment
to your lawyers"
'Why? because of no criminal to try?
That is nothing" said the count laugh
ingly. Our trials 90 on all the same
as before when the accused breaks jail.
The opposite proceedings never stop
ped an instant. They found him guilty"
Our carriage came to stop. A mas
siye octagonal building, with lofty
white walls bordering it suggestively
on all sides, rose upon my sight, From
their foundations stretched the smooth
| green parade ground towards the bar
ricks. A company of soldiers were
drilling near. They marched in a
quick, breathless way-almost half
run. The military power think to