The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-03-15
UNDER THE RED FLAG
Career Of Cipriani, the Great
Italian ReyOlutionist.
MAzz'N' AND cARlsALDl.
= Leader OF tho Paris Commune-Sen-
fenced to BE shot-Triumph Of
the Convict Deputy.

PARIS, March Especial Correspond
ence. Some of the most interesting peo-
pie OF the continent are the so-caIled revo-
lufioniscs. We may not accept all their
ideas and utopias, but we cannot but adj
mire their brave and self-sacrifcing spirit
which their lives generally display. have
recently been brought into communication
with one of the most remarkable of these
men, whose life reads like novel.
Amilcare Cipriani is tall, handsome
man, with long black hair and a flowing
beard, slightly tinged with gray. Twenty
years of prison have not changed the
singular expression of firmness and kind
ness on his sad, calm face, which so tell
ingly replies to those writer's who, after
the Paris commune, applied to him such
epithets as "blood-drinker, etc. The fol-
lowing is sketch of Cipriani's life. taken
from his own liSe-a life he described to
me as zone long suffering"
Amilcare Cipriani was born in 1874 at
Rimini, Italy, where his childhood was
passed. At the age of Is he became
soldier in the Italian army and in 1860 was
marching under Garibaldi's orders. In
consequences of the affair of Aspromonte,
where Garibaldi and the greater part of
his army were taken prisoners in 1862. he
visited Greece and aided in preparing the
revolution which drove away King Ohio.
He then went to Alexandria. where, after
having been engaged in commerce for
some time, he founded secret association
which, during the prevalence of cholera
in 1866, was transformed into society for
succoring those who fell victims to that
disease. In 1866 he raised battalion and
took part with Garibaldi in the Tyrol
campaign, during the Austro- Prussian
conflict. The war ended, he proceeded to
Crete and thence to London, where he be-
came intimately acquainted with Mazzini
and other leaders Of the revolutionary Re-
publican party.
At London Cipriani was much with
Mazzini, whom he greatly admired, and
whom he describes as q man who pos
sessed in an extraordinary measure the
power of bringing men round to his own
view of things Cipriani, however, could
not share Mazzini's opinions, having
already adopted socialistic ideas. "Yet
had Mazzini lived" Cipriani said to me,
she would never have let me be condemned
to twenty years of penal servitude in my
own country without raising his voice in
the cause of justice, which was thereby so
horribly downtrodden.
The republic having been declared in
Paris in 1870, Cipriani left his business and
his family to aid in the defense of France
against the Germans. He fought in sew
eral battles, and at Montretont, near Paris,
where he especially distinguished himself,
refused the cross of the Legion of Honor,
first, because such distinctions are con-
trary to my ideas; and secondly, because
Garibaldians can only accept such distinc-
ton after having planted their colors in
the enemy's camp"
During the siege of Paris Cipriani took
very active part in the protestations made
against the policy pursued by the govern
ment of national defence. With his
friend, Gustave Flourens, the communard,
he was one of the promoters of insurrec-
ton which occurred in Paris on October
81, 1870 against the authority of the new
professional republican government. On
the 10Th of January. 1871, aided by about
100 men, he took the prison of Mazas in this
city, delivering Flourens and other revo-
lutionary leaders. The following day, on
the Place de FHotel de Vile, he fought
against the men of the government,
(which had decided to deliver Paris into
the hands of the Germans
After the capitulation of Paris, Cipriani
devolved his energies to an electoral pro-
paganda in favor of the social revolution
lists. Several warrants for his arrest having
been issued he was forced to conceal him.
self in the provinces. On the 4th of April
he was arrested, tried by court-martial and
condemned to death. On the 9Th, to-
gether with four other citizens, he was
conducted to the plateau of Salory (near
Versallles) to be shot. A wound in his leg
rendered it impossible for him to walk the
whole distance, so the execution was de-
layed. Later on the sentence of death was
commuted to transportation for life. Before
his embarkation for New Caledonia-Cipri-
ami was one of the first batch of convicts
transported-the prisoner and his COM
rades underwent a medical examination.
Cipriani was set aside as being too i'll for
embarkation. The medical officers SUI
perior in rank arrived-a doctor who wore
the uniform of a general-and he retorted
to the expostulations of his colleague:
There must be somebody for the sharks"
The sixty prisoners were embarked on
the Danae. Immediately they were on
board, the commandant, Riou de Kerpri-
gent, approached, and the following dia-
who was afterwards to be known in Italy
as 1.-The martyr of Porto Longone.
anybody here named Cipriani?"
at is l."
mind how YOU conduct yourself here
and remember that / am in absolute au-
thority on board this vessel"
Il know that you are the commander
and your prisoner"
Take care what you are about; you
have already said more than enough"
"You question me; it is only natural
that should reply. If you wish me to be
silent, don't speak to me-"
THAT will do. / will see what hunger
will do towards subduing you.-Take this
man down to the hold"
And to the hold Cipriani went. He thus
described it TO me: at was a tiny cabin.
directly underneath the engines. My feet
were chained to bar of iron in such
way that could only sit up and lie down.
The heat was unbearable and had afever
at the time There was no air, no light,
nothing to alleviate my torture. All the
air got came from a few little holes in
the ceiling through which a pea would
scarcely pass. My sole nou1shment was
biscuit and one quart of water day. OH
How I did covet that wateri / have heard
how men long for the realization of their
hopes and ambitions, but never, l
believe, did a man long for any
thing so much as / did for that daily
quart of water. My mouth was parched
and absolutely without saliva If / at
tempted TO eat my biscuit it was merely
ground TO four, and would stick in my
throat or fall out of my mouth. And
when my modicum of water was brought
me. [ was like asfnsiman. | would seize
the cold tin can in my burning hand and
trv TO reason with myself. Iwould think: