The Neihart herald. [volume] (Neihart, Mont.) 1890-1901, 1900-05-19

are members of the Malta. The So
ciety honeycombs the Italian nation.
1t perverts justice, nullifes the sem
fences of courts, controls juries, law
yers and judges. Hence the import
ance Of the present trial. All it's
powers are leagued for the acquittal Of
Patizollo.
One notable result of the investiga-
ton to date is that ex-Premier Crispi
has been charged with being a men,
Der of the Malta. Definite charges are
about to be brought against him in
connection with the matter. He will
then have to defend himself against
the accusation of being a member of
a criminal organization forbidden by
law.
The Malta Is lot a purely political
organization, nor yet a criminal me-;
it has no paid officers, no definite COM
mittees, no elected chiefs; but what it
has is a system by means of which O
member can attain a certain position
of eminence above his fellows by
seniority of deeds accounted useful to
the community. In each town there is
an intermediary between the masses
and the higher powers. The powers,
in important cases, advise as to proper
methods of procedure. In minor cases
each member acts at his own discre-
ton. Should occasion arise, assistance
will be given him from headquarters.
The headquarters continually change.
Frequently in a day they move to a
locality 100 miles away. Nothing
could be simpler than the initiation.
But death is vel present at the cere-
mony. The new member swears on
the cross that he will keep his fellow
members Ito the death itself" That
is the whole ceremony. His name is
not even written down in the local
records. Instead, it is sent to head
quarters, where, by mouth, it is given
to the various "Mafosi" in the locality
where the new member lives. They
reveal to him the signs of the society.
The last information they give him is
that he will be killed by the dagger
should he fail to obey any and every
order issued from headquarters.
The only bond that holds the Ma
fiosi" together is the one of reciprocal
liability. All classes of people, hold
ing all kinds of beliefs, are members.
If one of the members commit q
crime all the other members must pro-
tect the criminal. All trades and pro-
feSsiOns are permeated with it's inhu.
ence. A grocer in the organization
must deal honestly with his fellow
members. Others he can cheat. If he
is brought before the magistrate, he
knows that the magistrate, through
fear or as a result Of membership in
the order, will acquit him.
The society originated in Sicily, in
opposition to arbitrary government.
The Sicilians fought in turn against
the Arabs, Normans, French. Spanish,
and lastly the Bourbons. When they
could not fight their foreign masters
openly they resorted to assassination.
When, as time went on, they had no
foreign masters to wage war against,
the baser of the Sicilians began to
murder their fellow-countrymen. The
authorities and the better class re-
sisted. The criminals leagued together
for defense. Hence the Malta.
Thus the Notarbartola trial, which
should have been tried in Palermo,
was, to destroy the influence of the
local Malta, removed to Milan. No less
than five royal attorneys and four pre-
tects are engaged by the prosecution.
Yet the prosecutors are working I'M
der circumstances of the greatest diff
Guilty. The witnesses, in dread of the
Malta, commit purjury. The police
lie. The verbatim reports have been
burned. The police reports lost. The
official documents falsifed. Such is
the power of the Malta.