466

LIFE OF COLONEL MACERONI.

to save him from one trouble and another until his substancebecame exhausted. For some grave misdeed in 1810, com-mitted and tried under the new system of laws, whenbribery and shuffle were at an end, this graceless son wascondemned to death. There still remained for him thechance of a revisal of the sentence by the “ Court of Cassa-tion.” The afflicted father had sent a younger son to Naplesto watch the proceedings of the “ Court of Cassation,” withorders to quickly inform him of the result of the appeal.This son, at length, arrived at his father’s house, with theconfirmation of the fatal sentence originally passed upon hisbrother. Sileo commanded his son to keep the affair pro-foundly secret, even from his family. The dreadful sen-tence was, that the criminal should be executed in hisnative place, and even before his own door.

The distracted parent obtained from the jailor, at a highprice, permission to dine with his son the day previousto that fixed for his execution. The son was not muchaffected by his situation; a prison was to him no novelty.After a good dinner and a sufficiency of wine, the fatherthus addressed the son : “ My child ! the Court of Cassationhas rejected our appeal, the condemnation is confirmed,which in a few hours will be known to our townsmen, andthou to-morrow will have ceased to live. And in what way lInfamously hanged by the hand of the executioner! Andin what place ? Here, in our native town, and before ourown house! The patrimony that belonged to me and to ourfamily has all been consumed in thy defence; a little vine-yard which I planted with my own hands was sold a monthago. If to our poverty thou now addest infamy, intolerablewill be, Oh! my son, the ills thou bringest upon us, thyaged parents, two brothers, and three sisters, by stigmatizing,still more, their names and their descendants. There is onlyone palliative—anticipate death—die this day—this hour!