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Article MEMOIRS OF THE FREEMASONS OF NAPLES. ← Page 3 of 3
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Memoirs Of The Freemasons Of Naples.
ordinate officers ancl men ; and over all was placed the Chevalier Luigi de Medici , with the ancient title of Regent of the Yiearia . Agents were appointed over the secret actions of the subjects , some in public places and others iu private houses . The Queen conducted these affairs herself , and held conference with the spies
at midnig ht in a saloon of the palace called Oscura , the dark ; in this office she was assisted by magistrates , priests , and nobles , amongst whom was the Prince of Castelcieala . The clergy , hoping to recover their lost powei * , joined in acts of espionage , and sixty-two bishoprics were given as a reward . The prosecutions fell first upon the
Freemasons , because it was reported by the spies that philosophers and men of learning had done more to cause the revolutionary feeliug than any other persons . In Sicily the works of Filangieri were forbidden , and burnt ; Pagano , Doctor Cirillo , Delfico , and Confortimen of the highest talent and the most
pa-, triotic character , were looked upon with suspicion , and watched ; foreign books and newspapers were prohibited ; the meeting of men of letters forbidden ; the appearance of the city was suddenly changed ; a universal g loom , seemed to hang over it ; the people were afraid to speak , or even to look . The police were ordered to
increase their vigilance ; and , in order to improve the system of espionage , tlie actions , domestic or otherwise , of every family in Na |) ies had to be recorded in books kept for that purpose . There were at that time 10 , 000 condemned persons , and 12 , 000 prisoners in the dungeons of Naples and Castellamare . The guilt of each ivas either proved by the spies , or the inquisitorial
researches ofthe Scrii-nni . The leader ofthe latter was a man named Pietro di Falco , who , professing himself to be a member of three different secret societies , betrayed his associates , and revealed the names of its members ; he was not virtually a Freemason , but hacl been admitted to what ivas termed a Masonic lodge , though they were even ignorant of the secrets of the
Order . This man became aware of a private meeting of the only legitimate Freemasons lodge ; many of the most distinguished men in the kingdom had there assembled . Amongst the rest ivas the Duke d'Accadia . By his means all the members were taken prisoners ; the elder brethren quietlsubmitted to their fatebut some
y , of the younger ones resisted the authorities , and for this three promising young men were condemned to die . Their names were Yineenzo Vitaiiano , twenty-two years of age ; Euianuele di Deo , twenty ; and Yineenzo Galliani , only nineteen . They were all of gentle birth , of modest and unpretending virtue , and patriotic
sentiments . After they had been condemned , the Queen sent for Giuseppe Deo , the father of Eraanuele , and bade him go to his son with a promise of life and full pardon , if he would reveal the secrets of his Order and the remaining members of his lodge . The old man found Emanuele receiving the last consolation of religion ;
and , left alone with him , as the Queen had directed , he tremblingly embraced his son , and delivered his message , urging him to accept the preferred boon . He dwelt upon his own grief , and on that of liis mother , and on the misery of his family , and proposed , after he had recovered his liberty , to retire with him to some distant
spot , never to return till they should be free to think and act as they pleased . Emanuele silently listened to all his father had to say , and he , supposing his son was about to yield , threw himself at his feet , and in tearful accents entreated him to save himself and his friends . Emanuele hastily raised his father from the ground , and after tenderly embracing him , cried , " My father , it is fearful to add infamy to our afflictions ; they can take
my life , but I can preserve my honour—would any , who respect honour or virtue , wish me to preserve my own life at the sacrifice of the liberty of hundreds . And what is the existence you propose for your own son and for yourself ? Where should we hide our diminished heads ? I should have to fly from all I value most on
earth—my country and my kindred , and I should lose that which I have never yet forfeited— ' my honour , ' and you would blush for a heretofore respected name . M y dear father , be calm , soothe the grief of my poor mother , and both of you look for comfort in the remembrance that I retain my honour unsullied to the last . And
, dear father , teach all my friends to bear present afflictions and this temporary suffering , and when your son is dead you will then speak of him with pride !" The noble bearing and amazing courage of the youth deprived the father of the power of speaking , and , ashamed of being surpassed in virtue by a mere boy , he
covered his face with his hands , and overcome with emotion and feelings of admiration for the heroic virtues of his son , rushed from the trying scene , not daring again to tempt him with further entreaties . The day following Fmanuele ' s interview , the three noble youths were leel to execution . They courageousl
y walked to the scaffold with a fearless aspect , and apparently resigned to theic fate ; they made no dying speeches such as criminals -were accustomed to use , but , attended b y their spiritual advisers , their minds seemed fixed upon the mighty change that awaited them , and having neither malice nor revengebut freelforgiving
, y others , as they hoped to be forgiven , they met their deaths with a serenity of mind unknown to their persecutors . It was rumoured that 50 , 000 members of the various secret societies in Naples were ready to rise and rescue
these heroic young men , and put the heads of the government and their adherents to death . The scaffold , therefore , was erected in the square of Del Castello , under the guns of the fortress ; the place was surrounded with soldiers , the artillery were planted at the opening of the streets , and numerous bodies of troops collected in and about the city ; the people were also informed b
y proclamation that the cannons of the castle should be discharged on the slightest movement on the part of the mob . Police officers in disguise , as well as in uniform , and swarms of government spies mingled with the crowd in every shape and form ; but after all these measures of safety had been taken , the royal family remained at
the Palace of Caserta in a state of greater anxiety than the three poor youths who were dying as martyrs . Real terror was produced in the city by these outward signs , and the square would have been empty , had not that morbid taste that the mass in all countries inherit , of looking on scenes of horror as holiday festivalsinduced
, a multitude of people to assemble . We will not dwell upon the harrowing scene of the execution ; an occasional cry for pity was sometimes heard in the crowd , tears and sobs were general . Galliani and Deo were soon executed , when the fainting of an old man , and the wailing cry of a female , caused a sensation that was not
perfectly understood , and just as Yitaliano was ascending the scaffold there was a great movement in the crowd , and an occasional murmur was heard which caused menacing preparations from the over-hanging bastions ; a general panic ensued , and the spectators in then- haste to quit the scene were many of them woundedand .
, others suffocated in the hurry of their flight—the square was soon emptied , and the executioners finished their work without witnesses . ( To be continued . )
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Memoirs Of The Freemasons Of Naples.
ordinate officers ancl men ; and over all was placed the Chevalier Luigi de Medici , with the ancient title of Regent of the Yiearia . Agents were appointed over the secret actions of the subjects , some in public places and others iu private houses . The Queen conducted these affairs herself , and held conference with the spies
at midnig ht in a saloon of the palace called Oscura , the dark ; in this office she was assisted by magistrates , priests , and nobles , amongst whom was the Prince of Castelcieala . The clergy , hoping to recover their lost powei * , joined in acts of espionage , and sixty-two bishoprics were given as a reward . The prosecutions fell first upon the
Freemasons , because it was reported by the spies that philosophers and men of learning had done more to cause the revolutionary feeliug than any other persons . In Sicily the works of Filangieri were forbidden , and burnt ; Pagano , Doctor Cirillo , Delfico , and Confortimen of the highest talent and the most
pa-, triotic character , were looked upon with suspicion , and watched ; foreign books and newspapers were prohibited ; the meeting of men of letters forbidden ; the appearance of the city was suddenly changed ; a universal g loom , seemed to hang over it ; the people were afraid to speak , or even to look . The police were ordered to
increase their vigilance ; and , in order to improve the system of espionage , tlie actions , domestic or otherwise , of every family in Na |) ies had to be recorded in books kept for that purpose . There were at that time 10 , 000 condemned persons , and 12 , 000 prisoners in the dungeons of Naples and Castellamare . The guilt of each ivas either proved by the spies , or the inquisitorial
researches ofthe Scrii-nni . The leader ofthe latter was a man named Pietro di Falco , who , professing himself to be a member of three different secret societies , betrayed his associates , and revealed the names of its members ; he was not virtually a Freemason , but hacl been admitted to what ivas termed a Masonic lodge , though they were even ignorant of the secrets of the
Order . This man became aware of a private meeting of the only legitimate Freemasons lodge ; many of the most distinguished men in the kingdom had there assembled . Amongst the rest ivas the Duke d'Accadia . By his means all the members were taken prisoners ; the elder brethren quietlsubmitted to their fatebut some
y , of the younger ones resisted the authorities , and for this three promising young men were condemned to die . Their names were Yineenzo Vitaiiano , twenty-two years of age ; Euianuele di Deo , twenty ; and Yineenzo Galliani , only nineteen . They were all of gentle birth , of modest and unpretending virtue , and patriotic
sentiments . After they had been condemned , the Queen sent for Giuseppe Deo , the father of Eraanuele , and bade him go to his son with a promise of life and full pardon , if he would reveal the secrets of his Order and the remaining members of his lodge . The old man found Emanuele receiving the last consolation of religion ;
and , left alone with him , as the Queen had directed , he tremblingly embraced his son , and delivered his message , urging him to accept the preferred boon . He dwelt upon his own grief , and on that of liis mother , and on the misery of his family , and proposed , after he had recovered his liberty , to retire with him to some distant
spot , never to return till they should be free to think and act as they pleased . Emanuele silently listened to all his father had to say , and he , supposing his son was about to yield , threw himself at his feet , and in tearful accents entreated him to save himself and his friends . Emanuele hastily raised his father from the ground , and after tenderly embracing him , cried , " My father , it is fearful to add infamy to our afflictions ; they can take
my life , but I can preserve my honour—would any , who respect honour or virtue , wish me to preserve my own life at the sacrifice of the liberty of hundreds . And what is the existence you propose for your own son and for yourself ? Where should we hide our diminished heads ? I should have to fly from all I value most on
earth—my country and my kindred , and I should lose that which I have never yet forfeited— ' my honour , ' and you would blush for a heretofore respected name . M y dear father , be calm , soothe the grief of my poor mother , and both of you look for comfort in the remembrance that I retain my honour unsullied to the last . And
, dear father , teach all my friends to bear present afflictions and this temporary suffering , and when your son is dead you will then speak of him with pride !" The noble bearing and amazing courage of the youth deprived the father of the power of speaking , and , ashamed of being surpassed in virtue by a mere boy , he
covered his face with his hands , and overcome with emotion and feelings of admiration for the heroic virtues of his son , rushed from the trying scene , not daring again to tempt him with further entreaties . The day following Fmanuele ' s interview , the three noble youths were leel to execution . They courageousl
y walked to the scaffold with a fearless aspect , and apparently resigned to theic fate ; they made no dying speeches such as criminals -were accustomed to use , but , attended b y their spiritual advisers , their minds seemed fixed upon the mighty change that awaited them , and having neither malice nor revengebut freelforgiving
, y others , as they hoped to be forgiven , they met their deaths with a serenity of mind unknown to their persecutors . It was rumoured that 50 , 000 members of the various secret societies in Naples were ready to rise and rescue
these heroic young men , and put the heads of the government and their adherents to death . The scaffold , therefore , was erected in the square of Del Castello , under the guns of the fortress ; the place was surrounded with soldiers , the artillery were planted at the opening of the streets , and numerous bodies of troops collected in and about the city ; the people were also informed b
y proclamation that the cannons of the castle should be discharged on the slightest movement on the part of the mob . Police officers in disguise , as well as in uniform , and swarms of government spies mingled with the crowd in every shape and form ; but after all these measures of safety had been taken , the royal family remained at
the Palace of Caserta in a state of greater anxiety than the three poor youths who were dying as martyrs . Real terror was produced in the city by these outward signs , and the square would have been empty , had not that morbid taste that the mass in all countries inherit , of looking on scenes of horror as holiday festivalsinduced
, a multitude of people to assemble . We will not dwell upon the harrowing scene of the execution ; an occasional cry for pity was sometimes heard in the crowd , tears and sobs were general . Galliani and Deo were soon executed , when the fainting of an old man , and the wailing cry of a female , caused a sensation that was not
perfectly understood , and just as Yitaliano was ascending the scaffold there was a great movement in the crowd , and an occasional murmur was heard which caused menacing preparations from the over-hanging bastions ; a general panic ensued , and the spectators in then- haste to quit the scene were many of them woundedand .
, others suffocated in the hurry of their flight—the square was soon emptied , and the executioners finished their work without witnesses . ( To be continued . )