Page 182 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

180 GENERAL GIUSEPPE GARIBALDI

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Masa had correctly indicated it to Garibaldi in a letter dated the 21 as the
“natural base from where to lead operations for Palermo”. The squads (about
fifty and more) were gathered according to their provenance; the most
numerous ones were those led by Rotolo and Di Marco, exceeding 300 men,
by Marquis Firmaturi, La Porta and Puglisi, with more than 400 men, and
the squad from S. Anna, with more than 500 men. Their weakness was the
armament; the strongest squads had some thirty rifles in all, the rest were
armed with pikes, iron poles and old sabres.

May 26 th – After sending town criers with drums all across the country
to ask for iron, copper, lead and tin poles, Garibaldi, accompanied by Türr,
Bixio and others, went to Gibilrossa camp, located by the monastery. As
soon as he arrived, an indescribable scene occurred. A sudden applause
broke out, flags were flying, national anthems were sang, and the cry of “War!
War! Death to the King!” echoed in the valley below and across the nearby
mountains. Under an old olive tree, Garibaldi held his war council: “you
know – he said - which conditions we are in; we are few, and must fight
against the numerous troops garrisoned in Palermo. I am not used to asking
for advice, but this time, facing the seriousness of this case, I desire to know
your opinion, since an attack could be detrimental to the population of a big
city, and an unsuccessful outcome would endanger a great cause, the cause
of our Country. Two ways we can choose: either to bravely attack the troops
protecting the city, or go to the centre of Sicily and, after recruiting forces to
swell our ranks, attack Palermo. Tell me which of these two possibilities you
would choose” (Calvino). La Masa, Bixio, Türr, Crispi, Cairoli were in favour
of an immediate attack, Sirtori, more cautious and less confident in the help
of the Sicilian squads, proposed to withdraw to Castrogiovanni (now Enna),
wait for reinforcements from Genoa, create uprisings all across Sicily and
only afterward move on Palermo. But Forceri and Mastricchi assured
Garibaldi about the squads. «General – they said – you can rely on our peo-
ple as their only desire is to win».
Garibaldi inspected them and returned their greetings by gently smiling
and saying: “With such a huge number of people we can go to China!” He
divided these squads into groups of 10 men each, led by a corporal wearing
a tricolour sash; then, pleased, he said to La Masa: “You have made an Army
Corps”. And then, addressing the squads, he exclaimed: “this evening we will
march, and by dawn tomorrow we will set free our brothers of Palermo”.