The morning call., 1890-10-21
VENDETTA MURDERS.
Statements Concerning the Operations Of
New Orleans DeSpeTadOeS.

New ORLEANS, Oct. 20.-The police have
made little progress toward getting at the
bottom facts concerning the Malta. The
question is, Who are its leaders? This is
assigned by some to Macheca, and by others
to one Of the Matrangas, Giovanni Proven
zano. Pietro Provenzano, Nicolo Giulio,
Antonio Pellarrini, Antonio Gianforcarro
ard Gaspando Lombirdo have been in the
parish prison since last May On charges of
woundiBg, while lying i'll wait, Salvador
Sungeri, Vincent Caruso and Tony Matra-
ega, all three of whom have been arrested
in connection with the assassination Of Chief
Hennessey. They talk freely of the Hen
nessey murder and the Malta, which they
assert was controlled by the Matrangas.
"Hennessey was killed." said PrOvenzano,
'because he was going to expose these men.
He knew all about Matranga and Geracci.
He got news from Italy about them, and be
was going to tell what he knew, and that
would have broken them up. Matranga
was the head of the Str0paliagieri society"
What is that sccietyy' was asked.
They are people who work for the Ma
trapgas. There are about twenty leaders of
them, and there are about three hundred
greenhorns who have got TO do as the lead
ers saw When Carus0 came to me about
four years ago with letter asking S1OC0 for
the Malta, or they would kill US. Caruso told
me Matranga was the President and Rocco
Geracci was the leader. Caruso said he had
been in it too. but got ont of it as soon as he
could. He said they took him into a room
where he saw Matranga dressed in black
domino, and others in d0minos, and they
made him swear on skull with dirk IN 1t.
He said he was willing to rob people, but
did not want to kill anybody, so he got out
of it. did not believe Geracci was in it,
but Caruso told me so again. 1t took let
ter to my brother, George Prnvenzano, and
said l thought we had better pay. George
said no."
sides people who work ON The ships? ," he was
Il don't know. They have got the Malta
society everywhere. They have 1t in San
Francisco. Chicago, st. Louis, New York
and here"
"Did you ever belong to it?"
mo, indeed" was the reply.
"Where does this Malta society meetp
"They meet anywhere-out near the le-
wee, back of town, and in Carrollton. think.
They make the greenhorn men who have
Just arrived from Italy do the killing. They
the way, and il the man they order to kill is
some one who wont do the job they have him
killed"
'They have killed two of our witnesses
now," said Pellagrini, 1.-THE Chief and Vitra-
10. Vitrauo was going to testify that he was
rangas were shot at, and they killed him be-
fore our first trial"
Pellagrni, GiuiO and ProvenZan0 also re-
called other vendetta murders where hOrri-
bic atrocities were committed and the wit
nesses made to keep perfect silence through
fear of the Matas vengeance.
The ProvenZano case comes up for trial
on Wednesday, when the whole subject OF
the vendetta and the Malta will be inyestl-
gated. There are thirty witnesses sum-
moned for the State and l10 for the defense.
Tony Matranga and Vincento Carruso, ar
rested few days ago and released, were ar
rested again to-day and committed TO the
parish prison, charged with being accesso-
ries to the assassination of Chief of Police
Hennessy. From what can be learned there
is hardly any doubt but the five men who
committed the crime and the villain0us
brains that gave birth to the foul plct are
among those now in Jail. One or two more
of the conspirators are still at large, but it
is only question of time before they, too,
will be behind the bars, and it is safe TO say
when the trial comes up the police will be
able to produce sufficient information to
send the entire gang TO the galiGws.
The forty Italians arrested last night
have been released, it having been shown
that they came south to work on plantations.