The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-06-12
ITALY's BLOODY BROTHERHOOD.
Light Thrown Upon the Malta by a
Chief of Police.
From the London Daily News.


From the London Daily News
The Malta is one of the most curious
and regrettable features of modern Sicil-
ian life. and is a source of constant anx-
iety Of the Italian government. and of alb
sorbing interest to all foreigners visiting
the island. Much has already been writ
ten on the subject, and many more or less
| fantastic theories as to its causes and
character have been put forward But a
great deal of light has been shed on this
social phenomenon by Signor A. Cutrera,
for many years chief of police at Paler
mo- who has consequently had unrivaled
opportunities of studying the inner work
ings of the organization.
The origin of the Malta is by no means
ancient. 1t dates no further back than
the beginning of the nineteenth century.
The causes to which it is due are proba-
bly, the centuries of misgovernment to
which Sicily has been subjected, and,
above all, to the Infamous police systems
of the Bourbons. The Siciian has acquir-
ed in consequence an Unborn hatred of all
government. and he regards any Interior
ence of the authorities in his private af-
fairs with jealousy and distrust His char
acter Is the eXaggeration of individuality
All private differences should be settled
privately either in fair fight or by muir
der; no man is in his eyes so vile as he
who calls in the help of the authorities
Tor any purpose whatever. He Is no IMAM
OF honor" but a 'cascittun" (spy) The
highest virtue in Sicily is "onesta,"
which is possessed by those who never
in any way help the authorities by giving
Information about crimes of which they
know something, even if they themselves
are the victims This feeling is so strong
that man who has been badly wounded
IN ralr hight or by treachery, if question
ed by the police as to who committed
the deed, will deny all knowledge of it.
II he should recover he will revenge him
sell, but he will never turn informer. IF
live l shall kill you. if l die I forgive
you, runs a Sioilian proverb. For "ones-
ia" a man must go to prison. he must
suffer every hardship rather than
peach This feeling is the burden of
many Sicilian popular song and legend.
ne Malta is unlike any other known
institution. 1t is not a secret society, DO
htlcal or otherwise; it has no fixed rules
or statutes its objects are not necessar-
lly criminal 1t is a sort of vast mutual
help association, to which an indefinite
NUMBER OF Sicilians belong It's aim is to
gain influence by every means. so as
10 promote interests of it's members 1t
assumes many different forms and has no
generally recognized leaders 1t often has
recourse to bloodshed and violence for
purposes of terrorizing, of getting money,
or OF revenge. Its effect is to produce
an appalling state of moral anarchy and
laWlessness. 1t is distributed uneouallv
over the island and. as Signor Cutrera
shows by map, it does not by any
means flourish least in the richest parts
of the country. There are three main
divisions of the Malta. the Malta of Paler-
mo, the Malta of the district around Paler-
mo and the Maha of the provinces. Pal
ermo is the chief center of the institu-
ton, and the residence of most of the
'pezzi grossi' or leaders. The youth who
aspires TO Malta honors begins as a ri
cottaro,' which means a man who lives
on the Illicit earnings of unfortunate wo-
men, Among the "ricottari'' are men of
the upper bourgeoisie-idle students and
smart men about town"-as well as
members of the lower orders. They ere
arrogant, insoent and ready with the
knife and the revolver They act as the
official claque at the theater and are
commonly used as electioneering agents.
The higher members of the Malta are Of
ten men of civic and political Importance.
Their houses are like government offices.
They are constantly busy with secre-
taries, agents, etc. Their halls are filled
with all manner of people waiting for an
audience 10 ask some taVor-letterS of rec
ommendation, legal advice. the removal of
some obnoxious official, pressure on the
judges in a law suit, and so on The
''capi-maha" are not paid for their SER
vices, but by this means they acquire
influence and power among all classes.
AT election time their services are inval-'
liable, and the candidate who has the
Malta on his side is almost sure to be
returned, whatever his political views are.
The Malta in the "Conca d'Oro'' is re-
sponsible for more deeds of violence than
the other sections. This proves that the
institution is neither attributable to pow
erty nor 40 the 'latifondi' Qarge landed
prOpertfes), as this region is the richest
in Sicily, and that in which poverty is
most subdivided into small holdings. The
orange and lemon groves necessitate a
large number of watchmen Of fruit steal
ing and damage to the trees are TO be
prevented. But the only way to protect
ones property effectively is to come to
terms with the Malta. accept its nominees
as watchmen, and pay 1t toll Otherwise
every night thousands of oranges and
| lemons will disappear trees be mutilated
and the landlord. if he disregards these
hind a garden wall.
In the provinces the Malta has a some
what similar character. but it devotes it.
self chiefly to vineyards and to cattle
| Here again the landlord or his middle
| man has the choice of having his propertv
| protected by 'mafiosi" or of being robbed
and perhaps murdered But in the coun-