The daily morning journal and courier., 1903-08-20
BRICO, THE BANDIT
THE CAREER OF CORSICA,S
 NOTED OUTLAW.
An Unfortunate Love Affair Urged Him on to His Course of WIckednsss- Tragic Tate of a shepherd and Shepherdess,


 On the evening of May F last, Jean Baptiste Tramoni Brico, the famous Corsican bandit left the house of an aunt in the village of Borivoli to return to the mountains. Behind a wall thirty feet away were hidden a dozen of his enemies. They fired vo1ley and Brio's career was brought to an end. Sicily in these days is more the home of the brigand than Corsica, but it has pro- duced no craftier brute than this same Brice. Property speaking, he was neither a brigand nor bandit. He was the patry of the first part in a well developed venetta which he himself started. and he killed only members of the offending family, with here and there a gendarme who had tried to catch him. He preyed neither on coun- try folk nor on strangers, but any member of the Tramoni family, meet ing him unexpectedly, had either to kill him or be killed. Until the final round- up. it was always Tramoni who was killed. @. .a
 Brico was true hero of romance in that he was urged to his course of wickedness by an unfortunate love affair. He was born in 1869 the son of poor peasants whose wealth was few sheep. He was brought up like other boys in his district, was a hardy, muscular fellow, and when he joined the colors for his term of service he was one of the best recruits of the year. When he went into the army he left behind him sweetheart, one Josephine Tramoni. who promised to marry him at the end of his service, which would be three years later or 1892. Returning then to Corsica to get his bride he met immediately an unexpected obstacle. Brico was shepherd and Josephine a shepherdess. but so fallen are the folk of Corsica from the golden age of shepherd and shepherdnesses that .Strephon must have more than sweet ly sounding oaten pipe if he would win his Chloe. In other words. while Josephine was more than willing. Father Tramoni wouldn't listen to any such project. Admitting that Brico was a cousin, what weight had that in the face of his few sheep when Josephine was VdEEeItSlIGSS u q 4AlkO LuAtAA !. Greater things were in store for his daughter than marriage with a poverty stricken tirne-expired soldier.
 Had Brico been an ordinary sort of a man he would have abducted his shep- herdess-she was more than willing to go with him. But he was proud. It was due his family that he married the girl only with her fathers consent. For two years regularly whenever he met Father Tramoni asked him for his daughter and as regularly Father Tranoni sent him away unsatisfied Finally in August, 1894, Father Tramoni exasperated at his pertinacity, was un- wise enough to say that never ill his life would he consent to the marriage Brices hand slid to his knife at once, but such hasty action was contrary to the code of honor. He waited month; then shot Father Tramoni from behind q hedge, and not stopping to get his bride he made for the hills. That was the beginning of his career as an out law. z. 5.,.z-
 The vendetta thus established differed from the traditional Corsican feud which demands an eye for an eye, a tooth for tooth and a life for life from any member of the offenders family. The Tramonis were in duty te avenge their fathers death, but in stead of making war on Brico's family in general. they centered all their energies on catching him. The govern Inent stepped in to aid them. Brico became will-o-the-Wisp. He was here, there and everywhere, just before the Tramonis and the gendarmes. In the mountains he found a fellow spirit s@-------------- ----------------