CHAPTER VIII.

"I saw Garibaldi, and watch'd him nigh; I saw the lightnings that flash from his eye: He's not of the dust of which mortals are made, And what reaches his heart will not be of lead." _Dall'Ongaro._ T. D.

PREPARATIONS TO ATTACK PALERMO—NIGHT MARCH—ATTACK—BATTLE—THE BOMBARDMENT.

"The first idea was to make the attack in the middle of the night—the Neapolitans don't like to stir at night, and there was every chance of a panic among them; but there was some danger that way likewise for the Sicilian insurgents, and it was thought best to make such arrangements as would bring the force at dawn to the gates of the town. According to the original and better plan of the general himself and his adjutant-general, Colonel Turr, the movement was to have been made along the main road from Misilmeri, broad enough to admit of considerable development of the columns, and commodious in every respect. The native captains, however, suggested the Pass of Mezzagna, which descends from the heights behind Gebel Rosso into the plain of Palermo. According to their statements, it was much shorter and by no means difficult. Their statements were believed, and the whole force received orders to be concentrated by nightfall on the summit of the pass, crowned with a church.

"According to the first disposition, the troops brought by the general himself were to lead the way, and the _squadre_ to follow; but some of the chiefs begged it as a favor for their corps to have the honor of being first in the town—a claim which could not be very well refused. The plan was, therefore, modified. The guides and three men from each company of the Cacciatori delle Alpi, were formed into an _avant-garde_, confided to Major Tüköri, a Hungarian, an officer who distinguished himself under General Kméty on the 29th of September, at Kars. Behind this _avant-garde_ followed the Sicilians, commanded by La Maga, an emigrant, who had come over with Garibaldi. The second line was led by the riflemen of Genoa—excellent shots, all armed with the Swiss carbine. Behind them came the two battalions of Cacciatori delle Alpi, and in the rear the rest of the Sicilians.

"The order having been distributed, the different bands gradually worked their way toward the summit of the pass. The packing up at headquarters did not take much time; it soon after broke up its camp and followed the troops. I was mounted on a regular Rosinante, with a halter passed round the jaw, and provided with a saddle which seemed to have been formed to fit on the vertebræ of my lean black charger. A blanket was, however, found in due time, and on the whole I cannot complain. The road up to the pass winds along rows of gigantic cactus hedges, which give a thoroughly eastern character to the country. It was just sunset when we arrived on the top, where, through a gap, we could see the bay and town of Palermo and the sea beyond, looking more like a fairy picture than reality. All the mountains, with their rugged points naturally of a reddish tint, seemed to have drunk in the rays of the setting sun, and exhibited that rosy color which I had thought hitherto a special gift of the plain of Attica. While you had this charming scene before you, you looked behind, as it were, into the hearts of the mountains. It was one of the finest spots I ever saw, and all the country was fragrant with spring flowers, the perfume of which came out with redoubled vigor as soon as the sun had set. It proved a bad road for the expedition, that mountain pass, but it was lovely to look upon.

"In order to entertain the Neapolitans with the idea that all was safe on that side, the usual large fires were kindled on the tops of the mountains, and kept up long after our departure by men left behind for that purpose. Garibaldi went up to look at the position underneath, or, perhaps, to indulge in that kind of reverie to which he is subject in such solemn moments, and which ends in a concentration of all his faculties on the sole aim he has before him.

"The evening gun in the fort had been long reëchoed by the mountains, and the moon had risen clear and bright above our heads, giving a new charm to this lovely scenery, before we stirred."

THE NIGHT MARCH.

"During this interval the _picciotti_ (youngsters), as the patriots are called, were put into some kind of order, which, you will believe me, was no easy matter in the comparative darkness which prevailed; no chief knowing his men, and the men not recognizing their chief—every one acting for some one else, and no one able to give an answer. With the exception of the troops brought over by Garibaldi, all the rest seemed an entangled mass almost impossible to unravel. However, by degrees, those belonging to the same chief found themselves together, and the march began about ten, P.M. Either the Sicilian chieftains had never looked at the Pass of Mezzagna, or else they have curious ideas of a road; the whole is nothing but a track among big stones, crossing and recrossing the bed of a mountain torrent, following not unfrequently the bed of the torrent, leading over smooth masses of stones and across most awkward gaps—all this at an angle of twenty-five degrees, to be passed on horseback at night! Even the men could only go singly, which made our line a frightful length, and caused continual delays and stoppages. The general vowed never to believe another Sicilian report on the state of a mountain road. However, in the end, we reached the plain and came in among the olive-trees below, with few falls among the sure-footed horses. A halt was made until all the columns had descended, and during this halt an incident occurred which did not promise much for the future behavior of our _picciotti_. The horses in Sicily are left for the most part entire, hence continual fighting and considerable neighing, which was so inconvenient in a night expedition of this kind that several of the most vicious steeds had to be sent back. One of them still remained, and began its antics; the rider lost patience, which made matters worse. Those nearest threw themselves back in haste, and communicated the movement to those behind. These, many of whom had sat down and began to doze, mistook in their dreams, probably, the trees for Neapolitans, the stars for so many shells, and the moon for a colossal fireball; at any rate, the majority of them were, with one bound, in the thickets on both sides of the road, several fired off their muskets in their fright, and very little was wanting to cause a general panic. Every one did what he could to restore confidence, but the effect was produced and reacted, as you will see by and by. Another incident occurred, which might have led to the failure of the whole expedition. The Sicilian guides who were with the _avant-garde_ missed the road, and instead of taking a by-road which led into the main road we had to pursue, they continued on the road near the hill-side, which would have brought us just where the Neapolitans were in the greatest strength. The mistake was perceived in time and repaired, but not without considerable loss of time. At last the column emerged on to the main road, which is broad and skirted by high garden walls. As we had lost considerable time with all these _contretemps_, and as dawn was approaching, we had to make haste, but whether from fatigue or the impression of the night panic, the _picciotti_ could not be brought to move very fast. It was just the first glimmer of dawn when we passed the first houses, which extend in this direction a long way out of the town of Palermo. The _squadre_, who ought to have known the locality better, began shouting and 'evvivaing,' just as if we had been close to the gates. Had it not been for this blunder, the _avant-garde_ might have surprised the post on the bridge of the Ammiragliato, and probably penetrated into the town without the loss of a man. As it was, the shouting not only roused those on guard on the bridge, but likewise gave an opportunity to the Neapolitans to strengthen the force at the gate of Termini, and to make all their dispositions for a defence from the flank.

"Instead, therefore, of surprising the post on the bridge, the _avant-garde_ was received by a well-sustained fire, not only in front, but from the houses in their flanks. At the first sound of the musketry, most of the _picciotti_ were across the garden walls, but not with the view of firing from behind them, leaving thus the 30 or 40 men of the _avant-garde_ all isolated in the large exposed street which leads to the bridge. The first battalion of the Cacciatori was sent up, and as it did not carry the position fast enough, the second was sent after it soon after. While these were driving back the Neapolitans, every one did his best to drive the _picciotti_ forward. It was not so easy, in the beginning especially, when the sound of cannon was heard in front, although its effects were scarcely visible. However, the _picciotti_, who remind me very much of Arnout Bashibazouks, can be led on after the first unpleasant sensation has passed away, especially when they see that it is not all shots that kill or wound—not even the cannon-shots, which make so formidable a noise. They could see this to perfection this morning, for although the Neapolitan rifles are scarcely inferior to the best fire-arms, I never saw so little damage done by so much shooting. Every one put himself, therefore, to work to lead and urge on the _picciotti_, driving them out of the sheltered places by all kinds of contrivances, and often by blows and main force. After some trouble, most of them were safely brought through the open space before the bridge, but the general tendency was to go under rather than above the bridge, which is, like all bridges over torrents, high, and was, in this instance, exposed to a heavy cross fire from the Piana di Borazzo, where the Neapolitans had a loopholed wall and some guns mounted, which threw a few ill-aimed shells. While the general himself, and many of his staff, did their best to make them leave this shelter again and proceed, the _avant-garde_ had chased back the Neapolitans to the _stradone_ which runs down to the sea just in front of the Porta di Termini. The Neapolitan fort at the gate, considerably reinforced, opened a hot fire, which swept down the long avenue of houses leading to the bridge, while at the same time the two guns and the troops posted at the Porta Sant' Antonino, brought a cross fire to bear on the attackers. But this was no obstacle to the brave fellows who led the way. They did not lose time with firing, but rushed on with the bayonet. The commander of the _avant-garde_, who was a Hungarian major, and three of the guides, were the first across the sand-bag barricade in the town, but the leader was wounded by a shot which shattered his left knee. Otherwise the loss had been trifling. While the _avant-garde_ and the Cacciatori chased the Neapolitans from spot to spot, the Palermitans began likewise to stir, but, justice compels me to say, only in the parts which the troops had left.

"The same scene as at the bridge was repeated at the crossing of the _stradone_ by the _picciotti_, who followed in a straggling movement. And yet it was important to get into the town, in order not to be outflanked or taken in the rear by the Neapolitans holding the Piana di Borazzo. In order to avert this danger, the order was given to some of the bands to get behind the garden walls which line the road by which the Neapolitans might have come down on our left. These diversions, and probably the dislike to fight in open field, were sufficient to parry this danger until the greatest part of the stragglers had passed. At the same time a barricade was thrown up in the rear with anything which could be laid hold of. This work pleased the _picciotti_ so well, that they began throwing up a barricade in front likewise. At any rate, they blocked up a part of the road before they could be prevented.

"But the most critical thing was decidedly the crossing of the _stradone_, where the cross fire was kept up, and all kinds of dodges were resorted to to make them risk this _salto_, which they thought mortal. I and one of the followers of Garibaldi held out one of the men by main force exposed to the fire, which soon made him run across. It was here, above all, that the bad firing of the Neapolitans told. I was looking on for some time, and did not see a single man even wounded. In order to encourage the _picciotti_, one of the Genoese riflemen took four or five chairs, planted the tricolor on one of them, and sat down upon it for some time. The thing took at last decidedly, and you saw the _picciotti_ stopping on the road to fire off their muskets.

"Close to the Porta di Termini is the Vecchia Fiera—the old market-place. One must know these Sicilians to have an idea of the frenzy, screaming, shouting, crying, and hugging: all would kiss Garibaldi's hand and embrace his knees. Every moment brought new masses, which debouched in troops from one of the streets, anxious to have their turn. As the Cacciatori gradually cleared the lower part of the town, most of the inhabitants came to have a look, and give a greeting to the Liberator of Palermo and Sicily. The entrance was effected about half-past 5 A.M., and by noon more than one-half of the town was clear of the troops. But two hours before this was effected, the citadel had opened its fire on the town, at first moderately enough, but soon after with great vigor, firing large 13-inch shell, red-hot shot, and every other projectile calculated to do the greatest possible damage. About noon or so, the ships in the harbor opened their fire, and between the two they contrived to destroy a great number of houses in the lower part of the town, killing and wounding a great number of people of all ages and both sexes. Two of the large shells were sent right into the hospital, and exploded in one of the wards. Everywhere you perceived ruins and conflagrations, dead and wounded, not a few of whom must have perished among the ruins of their houses. It was especially the part of the town near the Piazzi Bologni, and some of the adjoining streets which was ill-treated. If the object of the Neapolitans was to inspire terror, they certainly succeeded. Whoever could, took refuge in whatever he thought the most bomb-proof place, and those who could not, you saw crying, praying, and wringing their hands in the streets. It was a pitiable sight, indeed, and it did more harm to inoffensive people than to those who might have retaliated. Before opening the fire, the commodore sent a polite message to all the men-of-war which were in the way to get out of it, and all the vessels which were moored inside the Mole had to shift their berths and take up positions outside."

THE BOMBARDMENT.

"EVENING.

"The bombardment is still kept up, with only short intervals, especially from the Castle, where the _alter ego_ of King Bomba II. reigns. There is no doubt that Admiral Mundy made very strong representations to the Neapolitan commodore about the bombardment, but they have not been listened to. Some parts of the town will have to be entirely rebuilt, the large shells having passed right through from top to bottom, shaking those ill-built constructions. Several of the churches have come in for their share; yet all this useless bombardment has not prevented the soldiers from being, by degrees dislodged from all their positions in the town, with the exception of the parts about the royal palace and their line of communication with the Mole. In the lower part of the town they possess only the Castello Amare and the Finanze, which is held by a company or so of soldiers. Most of the foreign subjects have taken refuge on board the men-of-war, and all the consuls, with the exception of Mr. Goodwin, our own, who sticks like a true Briton to his consular flag. According to all accounts, there is no comparison, between the bombardment in 1848 and the present one. Then the Neapolitans were satisfied with sending one or two shells every half hour, while now they take just time enough to let their guns and mortars cool.

"All those who came in this morning with Garibaldi are dead beat, having had no sleep last night, and plenty of work since. The general himself is reposing on the platform which surrounds the large fountain in the Piazza del Pretorio, where the committee is sitting _en permanence_. This committee, the same which carried on the whole movement from the beginning, has constituted itself as a provisional government, under the dictatorship of Garibaldi. It has appointed several special committees for the different branches of its operations, and provides as well as possible for the many wants which occur every moment. Considering the oppression under which the people have been, very little preparation could be made for the emergency, and everything has to be provided now under the pressure of the moment—arms, as far as possible, ammunition, provisions for the troops, hospital wants and arrangements, besides the great fact of satisfying every one who wants, or thinks he wants, something, and listening to every one who has something to say, or thinks he has. There is a great deal of good-will on the part of the committee, but I must say it is not so energetically seconded by the Palermitans as one could have expected from their enthusiasm. There is a semi-oriental _laissez aller_ about them, which only produces fits of activity scarcely equal to the moment.

"At our first entrance into the town, there was a good deal of haste made about the barricades, but as the extension of the occupation constantly requires new barricades, there is some difficulty in keeping them up to the work; a great many _evvivas_, but all preferred to run about the streets to laying hand to the work. Even the ringing of the bells, the most demoralizing sound to an army in a populous town, can, in spite of all injunctions, be only kept up in fits and starts. It is the southern indolence, which soon gets the better of all good dispositions.

"The town is illuminated, and presents, during the intervals of the bombardment, an animated appearance; but all the shops are still closed. The illumination, with the antique-shaped glass lamps suspended from the balconies, presents a very pretty effect, rather heightened by the shells flying through the clear sky."