The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-05-03
THEY sCORN THE COURTS
The Malta in Italy Arrogate Ven-
geance to Themselves, and
They Repay.
Grades of tho Order as Clearly
Defined as Those OF the
Nobility.
Cattle Stealing 10 the Chief Occupation Of
tho Brlgands in the Land OF
Sunshine.

The Malta has its grades as clearly do
fined a. those of the nobility. At the roots
of il il a sort of department which ia REQ
ognized as the first qualification, called
omertR, q Matiote abstraction of morality,
sui gensris, defined by Tommasi Crudeli as
a special code. which establishes as the
first duty of a man to do himself Justice
with his own hands for all injuries re-
ceived. and stamps with infamy and holds
up to public execraticn and public ven
Reance whoever appeals to justice or assists
its operations" And even tho honest com.
mon people regard it as 4 virtue to hide an
assassin from the pursuit Of justice. or to
testify against him, the code of the omerta
saying that "when one man ia dead We must
think of the living one" and chat giving
evidence Is good as long as it does no harm
to the peighbor" Ola Stella mel 1871 With
a public sentimsnto of this color (andt this OBJ
tains moro or less in all southern Italy) che
pursuit of crime becomes 80 dificul. that.
but for the corruption of the lower manu-
tengoll by the police, punishment would be
a curiosity in the police records, saws the
Minneapolis journal. The manutenpolo il
the lowest member of the Malta. He ia the
friend who hides. or feeds, or aids the &C
tive agent in crime, the proprietor who
allows the brigand or murderer to shelter in
his farmhouse, and even warns him of the
movements Of the police, generally from
fear of his person or property: or sometimes
the citizen who brides or threatens tho iury
when the criminal is brought to Justice.
The next grade is the m%alandrino. This ia
a positive criminal, and often of the worst
type. HE lives in appearance honestly, has
a business, is regular in his life, and is a citi-
zen in full possession of his rights and priv
ileges as such. But in reality he is the or
ganlzer. the director of the lands of bri-
gands. He protects ard aida them morally
and materially and cheats them of their
booty. If by a rare chance he is discovered
and likely to be convicted, he takes to the
mountains himself" He does not limit his
encouragement to the heroic form of bri-
highway robber, who form the next grades.
He warns the outlaw of his opportunities
and sells the proceeds, more to his advan-
tage than that of his accomplish. Actual
b%rigandage may be said to be practically
suppressed, and the recent cases of it have
not been 80 fortunate as to encourage
further attempt.
The form of crime in which the Malta ex- |
erts the greatest influence ON the general |
criminality of the island is what is known
as the Ablgeato, cattle stealing on a large
scale, in which tho completely OF different
Glasses of the population is most required,
The Maflote of high rank is spared on CON
dition of his silence, but even those who are
obsequious to the organization are not over
looked. The victims are generally the less
wealthy owners of herds, who have little |
power to make their rights respected, and
who do not dare to make complaint to the
authorities, for fear Of worse. The cattle |
when stolen are driven to hiding places
remote from their pastures, and in some
secret spot butohered, the skins and offal
animal quartered, sold to the butcher
OF some village or town in the
vicinity, ut price which gives a tribute to
the completely of the receiver. The meat
is sold in secret, and the inhabitants,
though assured by the price of its dishonest
origin, do not hesitate to buv it, and the )
police, if by chance they find that the meat
had not been acquired regularly, find no
one ready to aid in tracing the origin of it,
but many to depose that the bollo to show
its purchase had been lost. or that the meat
had been bought of some passing vendor
for, with all the ingenious regulations. to
prevent the selling of stolen meat, there are
always more ingenious devices and more
audaclous false swearing to prove that it
was not stolen. If the herd stolen is
large, the proprietor goes to some
tells him Of it on which the other
promises to inquire. After two or three
days he returns and tells his friend that two
or three of the herd have been eaten, but
thot If he will pay a certain sum he thinks
the thieves can be induced to return the
rost. The victim knows that his friend will
pocket a part of the money, but he is silent
and pays. Or the animals may be distrib-
uted among the partners and driven to the
cattle fairs in distant parts of tho island.
and sold with forged bollettas certifying
die gives his bollettas in blank as his mart
of the Mafote work.