The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1896-04-09
HOW THIEVES ARE TRAINED.
Babies Taught to Beg and Steal--Must
Know How to Sing.

| Know How to Sing.
| An interesting account of the way in
which young children are prepared to
enter the Camorra is given by DR.. de
Blasio, Neapolitan physician who has
been studying the habits of criminals.
says the London News. The Camorra
at Naples, like the Malta in Sicily, is
an organization of criminals and as
sociates of criminals that is centuries
old. The Camorra begins its work with
| the infants who are abandoned bysthelr
parents, or who are lent out to the i'm
posters who beg in the streets of Naples.
These children, for the most part those
of persons in prison, are taught to beg
| for the end of cigar or a soldo, and
infest the cafes. In winter they sleep
in holes and stables, in summer on the
church steps, under archways, or on
the benches in the public gardens.
When they are or years old they are
instructed in begging and thieving by
older children. At 10 years of age the
little Camorrista or little thief, becomes
cantatore (singer). He must know
how to improvise a song to the girls,
and reply with an eXtemporaneous
verse to the verse of companion or OF
an antagonist. In Naples there are two
armies of cantatori, one belonging to
the streets in the older part of the city.
and one to those of the west end. They
constitute the neophites of the Cam
ORA, and compete in public, passing
their examinations by night in the
streets They choose for the subject OF
their chants anything that takes place
in the city, and very often the object of
the dersive songs is an old man or
poor idiot. The better class hear these
SCOTS, but do not interfere and often
laugh at the wit which is scarcely ever
missing The two bands are naturally
great rivals and once a year at least
they defy each other to series Of
battles in which stones are the Weap-
ons and at the close OF the fray knives
too often come into play. This practice
of battles with stones among boys can
be traced back as far as 1925, for at
that period the duke of Alva caused
thirty ''stone-throWers" to be arrested
in Naples The war cry of the boys is
"Aniella, AMELIA the derivation OF
which is not certain After the war
cry comes the challenge in the form
Of verse, to which the enemy re-
spends in like verse. Then the young
or boys commence the attack. The
Dassers-by fee, but at no great dis
lance stand old and young men, who
incite the rival bands, and, if neces-
&ary, rescue one or the other of them
from an arrest by the police. Two
wears ago there was famous battle OF
this kind in Piazzo Mercato, which end
cd in fight between the police and the
-throWers, during which the trans
were stopped for some time. This duel
ceases at the first drawing of blood-aI
slight scratch received by one of. the
members of the two parties puts an
end to the battle The wounded boy
is surrounded by his friends and taken
to his mother, real or adopted, to be
bound UP and nursed. The songs sung
by the boys have always chorus,
and generally there are two soloists,
who sing a verse in turn Whichlis ended
by refrain sung by the chorus, a.
mere "Ah OH! All oh!' In poetical
form these youths express the knowl-
edge they have of the worse evils and
vices Of human life, but the verses are
realistic and without the least CLEAN of
sentiment.