Manuscript | Garibaldi and the Risorgimento

Page 71

~~to the enemy and escaped to America.~~

The band of braves still collected round the flag of
liberty, but grew desponding when they witnessed these
repeated desertions—One of these traitors, an intimate
friend of the general, who owing to Garibaldi's support
had attained the rank of colonel—at a moment
when his aid would have been most useful, he
abandoned the sacred cause. Garibaldi and
Annita were profoundly affected by this ingratitude.
—The soldiers complained of it much, for the
abandonment of their leaders seemed a foreboding
of disaster—Some newspapers which fell
into their hands were not calculated to reanimate
their courage, All the calumnies which the re
actionary party could invent were heaped upon
Garibaldi

Scene 23.

Attack of the Austrians

A body of the enemy having been informed
by spies of the new direction taken had marched
the whole night to reach the frontier before
them, the enemy suddenly appeared, the
absence of their chief and the fear of being
cut to pieces in this trap would have proved
fatal had not the advice of the officers been
listened to. encouraged by them the soldiers
prepared to gain the heights whence the road—

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to San Marino would be open to them.
the Garibaldians fought bravely, when the
general who had hurried up at the news of the
peril—saw at once that a victory was an
easy matter. From all sides the enemy
hurried up—more than ten thousand men collecte(d)
in one day. Seated on a stone Garib. was exam
ining a map—now and then asking question(s)
of the villagers—The guerillero calculated
on the success of a frontier movement execute(d)
with rapidity by night, gain at full speed
a port on the adriatic and then steer
for Venice

———Scene 24th.

Austrian war vessels
chasing the Garibaldian
flotilla

Thirteen fishing boats recieved the little band
who had followed Garibaldi, the small
flotilla lifted their anchors and steered in
the direction of Venice. The boats of the
flotilla were steered by the most faithful and
devoted volunteers of the American legion
. At nightfall the wind suddenly turned round
a proved boisterous at this moment the

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Generals boat percieved several war vessels appro
aching which were soon recognised as Austrians
who percieving Garibaldi's flotilla immediately
set of in persuit, they were commanded by a man
well known to the sailors for his cruelty, the
austrian lowered his armed boats and these
crowded with men prepared at once to surround
the Garibaldians. The latter however did not alter
their course;—forced to sail against a contrary
wind and on a very rough sea, Garibaldi,
when the enemy was first sighted was making
his last tack to reach Punta di Maestre
This point passed he would have been under the
protection of the Venetian boats protecting the
blockaded coast.—the general gave orders to
tack ~~again~~, his design was to pass between the
enemy's vessels and thus save all his comerades
It was with great reluctance that the sailors
thus exposed to the vessels of war, obeyed orders.
—Still they did so,—and after a short tack, they
lost their presence of mind and came
within range. A furious cannonade
was begun, which caused them to lose
all courage and squander in all—
directions.

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had it not been for this luckless flight, they
might have gained their object without any great loss.

Scene 25

Capture of the flotilla
Garibaldi gaining the shore with
Annita

Though commanded by the guns of the vessels
careless of all danger for himself and having
no other thought but to save his beloved
Annita and his brave comerades in arms
Garibaldi did not cease to urge the
cowardly fishermen to follow him. He
exhausted his efforts to make them obey,
he offered them in advance any payment
they might desire, but nothing could induce
them. In the meanwhile a longboat which
had started in persuit succeeded in cutting
of from the main body. Other boats
followed in persuit, and the violence of the
firing compelled them to seek safety in
flight. by skilful manoeuvering Garibaldi
succeeded with four other boats in

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running ashore at La Misola. But the other
eight, after vain attempts at flight were placed
in a dangerous position by the austrian vessels
the obstinacy of the fishermen, who prefered a
prompt surrender to the chances of a desperate
defence, having deprived the soldiers of all
thoughts of resistance—they surrendered.
—The disarmed legionaries were
put on board the different vessels, and with
menaces of death and course sarcasms, on the
part of the commander, they were carried in chains
to the fastness of Pola.

———Scene 26.

"Annita dying"

Garibaldi, his wife and an officer sincerly
attached to him, after a short rest in a peasant's
cottage, changed their dress, entered a neigh
bouring wood, and proceeded in the direction
of Ravenna. But the unhappy Annita,
had suffered too greatly from her rude trials
by land and sea, often wanting food and
sleep, and her powers of endurance were
exhausted

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The rare love she had for her husband, her devotion
to the cause of the people, had hitherto sustained
her, and rendered her almost insensible to pain
and the suffering inherent in her condition.
but the uncertain fate of so many companions
whose perils and glory she had shared, the
perspective of a wretched future for her husband
and children, had crushed her vigour—
destroyed her strength,—and she was reduced
to extreamities. The fugitives wandered
for two days from forest to forest with the design
of finding a refuge at Ravenna

The peasants aided them to hide, and
at times even the police kindly offered
them assistance, when they did not act
as guides.— The Austrians having
learned the route of the Garibaldians were
Ch searching the country in every direction.
on the third day, Annita made a sign to
stop and almost fell to the ground so utterly
was she exhausted. Garibaldi and his
comrade hastened to support her and
bear her to a neighbouring farm, where
they hoped to find food, and means to

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carry her to a place of security. But on arriving
there, they learned from some sailors that the
Austrians were close on their track and they
forced to retreat at full speed. Fortunately
a noble minded man, supplied a phaeton
with which the flight was continued during
several hours. death has maintained an absolute
sway over

———Scene 27.th

death of Annita.

but once she sung of love while [gap of 12chars]
[gap of 6chars]evening the fugitives arrived at a cheese
farm at no great distance from Ravenna,
where the illfated Annita fainted. They stoped
at once, and went to ask asylum and help.
Garibaldi took his precious burden in his arms
carried the dying woman ~~to a~~ into the house
~~where~~ every attention was paid to Annita by these
good people, whom noble sentiments of humanity
caused to forget the ferocious menaces of the
Austrian pro-consul.—and after asking
for a draught with which her husband tried to
refresh her parched lips, she expired!!
—victim of conjugal affection—and marvellous
zeal for the cause of the people [gap of 4lines]

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blood and dressed in a (survivor's) righteousness and if so it
now wears a crown that shall [gap of 1lines]
palm of victory [gap of 4chars] skull never [gap of 2chars] taken from
[gap of 3chars] until [gap of 6chars] shall vacate his [gap of 5chars]
This unexpected loss struck Garibaldi with
stupor, and if he did not shed a tear upon
his wife's corpse, it was because hardened
by misfortune, by long exile, and the woes
his country suffered the sources of tears were
dried up, still, the pallor which has covered
his face since that mournful event, remains
an ineffaceable testimony of the grief he
suffered.—The fear of
compromising the honest farmers, who, were
he ~~supposed~~ found in their house by the Austrians
—would have suffered dearly for the
hospitality they granted, decided Garibaldi on
departing, he hastily dug a grave in an
adjoining field and with his comrade's
help gave a humble burial to his poor Annita wife's
body!!

The pity and respect of the ~~[gap of 3chars]~~ farmers
who granted an asylum to the dying woman
~~Annita~~ induced them to keep her burying
place a secret till better times—This was
the desire of Garibaldi,—(and it was to their
advantage too, though they did not take
that into consideration. Unhapilly

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unhappily the instinct of a favorite dog of
the deceased rendered all precaution futile
—The poor brute, seeking its mistress
scratched up the soil to in which she was intered ~~buried~~
to such an extent, that attention was attracted
and the mystery discovered.

With the austrians hatred is not extinguished
even in ~~the~~ presence of ~~the~~ the tomb, and the kind
persons who had accomplished a deed of humanity
—Paid with imprisonment for the crime of
sheltering the unfortunate Annita!!

We have seen Garibaldi, who quitted Rome with
four thousand men and eight hundred horse, finally
left alone. The country was still occupied by the
austrians and his own safety compelled him to
take every precaution, he was frequently hidden
in houses, at other times concealed in woods and
caves during the day and continuing his journey
by night often reduced to the melancholy
condition of eating wild fruit plucked in the forest
—To those who afforded him relief, he delivered a
written certificate to each, and these precious
documents are at the present day so many patents
of nobility for the families who merited them.

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The General's painful pilgrimage lasted
thirty days. During all this time Garibaldi
frequently passed through the middle of the
Austrians, was ever saved from the
dangers he incurred by the ingenious
devotion of truly Italian hearts.

This is the end of the first section. An
interval of five minutes will elapse
while the second is being prepared.

Second. Section.

Scene 28

Lake of Como.

Apart from the beauty of the town and Lake
of Como, considerable interest attaches to them
in consequence of the contests between Garibaldi's
patriotic band and the austrians of which Como
and its neighbourhood have recently been the theatre

The little port of Como, is formed by two piers,
each ending in a ~~pavil~~ square pavilion.
There cannot be a more delightful voyage than
that along the south west arm of the lake.