The Italian Committe.
The Times, 1824-07-28T00:00:00

IADVERTXISEMEET.1 TO TEIE EDITOR OF T)IE TEMES. Sir,-In your vaper of Tuesday, the 20th of July inst., yott have inserted an article signed " John Srmith, Chairman," direwted to Signor Demestre, treasurer to the late Italian Committee, in which the English Committee are made to exoress thieir satisfaction for his correct and just distribution among the Italians of the ums intrust. ed to him. Potent and serious considerations have prevented us till nowv from making any diselosures, the principal of whicb reasons was thefear of anv way offending the members oftheEnglishCommitteeforwhom. we'will alwaysprofessthelivetiest gratitutdeand greatestrcspect.But, as the said article might cause the public to entertain 3n unfavourable opinion of the unfortunate Italian ref-tgees, and to think.tbht their but too just complaints against the late commrittee are ill-groupded, and their contending for a reddition of necounts which they daisit with so much right, and which so scant.alously the mnembers of the dismissed Italian Committee vitl not In any way exhdbit, is a ver ' extraordinary proceeding; we see ourselves under the necessirv to dlepart from our resolution in conseuuence of their arrogance; and to break a silence now become hurtful and prejudicial. Notwith- standing, however, the novelty and singu'atity of their acts and pre. tenisions, we will observe that circumspection the difficulty of the circumstanee requites, and which we owe to the Englhih generosity, the dignity of our own character, and honour of the Italan aefugees. We reserve, however, in answer to any article this our preset let- ter might call forth, an exact reladon of all the facts, hostilides, in. humatn and despotic acts committed by the precedent committee to. wards their miserable countrymen, taking advantage of their weak. ness and disgrace. To avoid any unfavoura;le interpretation, and to piocure the truth to be known, we are constrained to lay before the public the following explications, which cannot be doubted, since tbey are founded upon truth, justice, and reason, and warranted by perma_ nent and incontroverttblefacts, viz.- 1. That the late Italian Committee compDsed of Marchese Sane Marzano, Conte Porro, and Mlessrs. bemnestre, Cornari, and ADge. loni, was appointed by the Italians with limited powers, and for the soleobject of receiving the monie3 granted by several Philanthropic Societies, the English meeting, or private English and Italian bene- ficence, for the relief of the wants of the Italians, and distributing them equally, after having faithfully stated the different sums to the parties concerned. 2. Tha, the said Committee having exceeded all the powers given them, and abused the confidence of their countrymen, these, after having exhausted all conciliatory means to make them return to rea- son, observingthe uselessness of their attemps to obtain justice, were obliged to dismiss them from a charge which they exercised in ain inhuman, partial, and arbitrary. manner, and in which they exerte& themselves to continue by means far from honourable. 3. 'Ihat the said Committee having acknowledged their existence from the will of the Italians, they were consequently bound by the decision of a majority of them, and therefore obliged to give an ac- couat to the same of their administration and conduct 4. That the examination of the accounts mentioned in yorur paper of the 20th of July inst., implies onlv a part of the Italian Commit- tee's administration, wlho have received not indifferent sums which the generosity of pnrivate individuals, societies, corporations, have transmitted them for the relief of the Italian refugees, and the re- ceipt or use of which they have taken particular care to keep a secret. 5. That the good faith of the English Commiittee must have been .tken by surprise to give a certificate of such a nature to Signor De- mestre and his colleagues, whilst the equity and correctness of tkse distribution of the monies ititrusted to them cannot esist, and cotld not be substantiated. Ist. it cannot exist; for, besides the many abuses and arbitrary measures which we forber here to mention, only their not having given any relief fbr the epace of nearly two months to ten individuals, who had perhaps a particular claint tO consideration. depriving them thus of all means of subsistence, and leaving thbem exposed to hunger and wretchedness, whilst they were exactinig the monies graRted weekly by the generosity of the meetinz, is a constant and evident proof of their want o" equity and faithfulness. 2d, It could not be verified without the con- course of the administered or one their deputee, who must examine the authenticity of jb0 justificative pieces that may sup- part their just and impartial distributioni of the monies received from the meeting, &c. 6. That the English Committee is quite foreign to any interven- tion in the administration of the monies the Ialian Committee has received from any other source; and further, that the sums granted by the generosity of the meeting to the Italian refugees, who fought for the cause of liberty in Spain are become their iroperty by their accepting the gift of tlhem, and tierefore the examinatiou of all the accounts belongs by exclusive right to the same, and through them to their new managers. Ve finally add, that Marchese San Mar- zano and Conte Porro, against all expectadion, instead of trving the asked-for account of their administration, have removed from Lon don, and that the ex-Treasurer, Signor Demestre, bas not been able to make any answer to the official demands made him both by the Italian Committee, and Af r. Chippenidale, attorney, fbr the reddition of the said accounts. In thius exposing to the severe and unbiassed judgment of the EBnrlish public, the present explications militadng in favour-of the Ittlian refugees, we beg of it, in the name of justice, wiich is its pe- culiar character, to observe that they have been provoked to come to such extremities by those who tiU now wanted to oppress them, and who procure by all means to loose them in public opinicn, which the Italians call to their aid and protection. If, notwithstanding their innocence and reason, which is on their side, they should be so un- fortunate as to be forsaken by their benefactors, the Italians will en. deavour to console themselves in their undeserved disgrace by the consciousness of their having given nio cause for it, and of their having preFerred hunger and all the attendants of misery to the hu- mihiation and degradation their oppressors had condemned them to and to whom in their turn they leave the barbazous and disgraceful satisfaction of fiO base a vengeance. Accept, r. Editor, the assur. ance of our unfeianed resneez in heh..lf of the Iien V4- - COLON1L RAFFABLE POERIO, ChaiTrnan THE ITALIAN COJMIf(TTEE.