The record-union., 1891-04-17
THE MAFIA.
Stronger To-day in New Orleans
Than in Sicily.
saglieri-when Captured, Members
Spot-Advice to New Orleans.

A correspondent of the New York
EUening Post, writing from Rome, Italy,
says:
The recent tragedy in New Orleans
furnishes q terrible commentary on the
character of the Italian secret societies, of
which the chief are the Mafia, in Sicily,
and the Canorra, in Naples. The Malta,
under one designation or another, runs
back into the middle ages. 1t then pun
lshed crimes against itself by the same
standards that the Government estab-
liShed, with one eXception-it had no de-
grees OF penalty; death was the only pun
lshment 1t could intiict. 4 man who had
injured one Of the Mafiosi had his hand
cut off; if he had overheard the secrets of
the association he had his ears cut off, and
If he had seen too much he had the skin
Of his forehead fayed and turned down
over his eyes-but these We're only the
tokens Of the reasons for his removal; he
was killed first, and the mutilation was
only the lntimatlon TO his friends. Under
the BOurbonS, no measures the civil au-
thoritles could employ had the least effect
on the organization; its simplest form was
| brlgandage and SequeStration Of the per-
son to be held to ransom, default OF
which implied death.
Members of the Malta in the cities kept
watch on the movements of people of
wealth and sent messengers to their col
leagues outside to give information of
them, so that they might be taken with
the least trouble, and the spies had their
percentage Of the ransom. When Sicily
was annexed to Italy, the outlawry was
increased by the addition of the partiSans
Of the Bourbons, who pretended to be in
insurrectiOn. The disorders were sup
pressed by the Bersaglieri, who secured
the country and tried by drum-head
court-martial all the men they caught
with arms, or who were accused Of brig
andage, and shot the accused on the spot.
Since the re-eStabliShment of the civil
! law in the island, there has been a slight
recrudescence Of the Malta, and a few
cases Of sequestration Of persons, but
foreigners have been respected for the
most part with great scrupulousneSS.
Minor crimes are still to a large extent
protected by the organization, but the
policy of the Government has been one
of steady legal pressure and change of
venue to the continent for the trial of the
criminals, and this is gradually paralyz-
ing the Malta.
The organization is probably stronger
to-day in Louisiana than in Sicily, for the
active pursuit of the actual offenders has
driven many of the worst of them out of
the country, and their best field of oper-
ationS seems to have been our Southern
States, whose climate agrees with their
| habits, and where wealth offers them at
fractions. 1t is well known in Italy that
the dregs of the criminal population of
Sicily and Naples are in Louisiana; and,
tranSplanted to a new and almost virgin
soil, where, too, a certain old intirmity of
the law has predisposed TO violence and
short roads to Justice il was certain that
the Malta would become q danger to So
ciety. This is so well recognized by rea-
sonable Italians that they admit pallia-
ton for the summary justice Of New Or
leans, and acknowledge that the case is a
difficult one 10 deal with by strictly law
ful means. The first expressions of in
dignatiOn were naturally very strong,
but there is q moderation in the later
comments due TO the facts having come
to knowledge and to previous acquaint-
ance with the teteaYiD1U cGtSa of con-
tiict.
The fiagrantly criminal character of
large portion Of the Italian emigration
to the Southern States is too well known
here to permit their countrymen at home
TO doubt that the authorities at New Or
leans have knotty problem to deal with
in the Malta, and it is admitted that the
determination Of the organization is
necessary to order, and that the longer
the efficient remedies are neglected the
worse the evil viii become. The only
efficient remedy is the suppression Of the
Mana. There Is no question that at pres
ent the tendency OF the criminal classes in
the south Of Italy, where those classes
most abound, is TO emigrate to the South
ern States Of America, and something
might be done TO check the influx by a
law that every emigrant must be fur
nlshed with passport in which his non
responsibility to the Italian law shall be
stated and Endorsed by the American
| Consul at that port. Every emigrant
| from Sicilyis suspicious, and the authori-
ties, in default of any pressure on the
part OF the American Government, will
take no precaution to prevent known
criminal from escaping to the United
! States, where he Will give the Italian
authorities no further trouble. This is
natural, but the desire to protect the hon
! est and industrious Italian emigrants to
! America may induce the Kings Govern
! mert to enter into arrangements which
Will secure this, and ut the same time
/ lead to the discovery Of some of the crimi-
mails wanted for otfenses at home.
| The honest Sicilian is an emigrant
whose value to the United States is great.
/ but the proportion OF such in the mass
Of emigration is very small, and should
/ be looked after. The late and present
/ Prime Ministers Of Italy are both SiciI-
/ ianS, as have been many of the ableSt
statesmen of Italy during the years since
the annexation. [ have been surprised
/ IN making the acquaintance of the island
ers and seeing their work, at their energy
and administrative ability, so different
! from what we are accustomed to associate
! with the sOuth-Italian mind; but the fact
IS that they are superior in this respect 10
the inhabitants of the southern provinces
of the peninsula. This, coupled with
! their prolonged existence under the rule
of the Bourbons, which was only the
recognition Of illegality and official rob-
berry, is probably the cause Of the long
persistence of the conditions of brigand-
age and secret organization against the
law which have obtained in the island
However this may be, can assure the
people OF New Orleans that unless they
take some radical measures against the
Malta as such, SO as to make the belong
! ing to it an otfense against the law, they
are not likely to suppress it, unless by
eNpelling from the State all Italians
which is more difficult.