Page 65 - General Giuseppe GARIBALDI - english version

THE 1848 CAMPAIGN 63

to unfold, resolved to fight a guerrilla war, if unable to do anything else». In
that way he wanted to take advantage of the very precious element of strength
provided by the mountains to any captain that had to defend himself from
an overwhelming number of enemies. And he got close to Switzerland that
to him represented in that moment the last refuge and final safety. On the
morning of the 6 th he reached Como with his ranks depleted by the contin-
uous desertions, and there Mazzini left him to find refuge in Lugano.
From Como, Garibaldi sent desperate appeals to the leaders of the other
Lombard volunteer corps – to Durando, Manara, Griffino, D’Apice – whom
he believed should not submit to the capitulation of the Sardinian army. «
You have by now heard – he wrote to them – of Carlo Alberto’s capitulation,
the evacuation of the Piedmontese troops from the city of Milan and all other
news. All this has nothing to do with us. The Italian war against Austria goes
on until there are men who know about and want to fight it. I am always
determined to accomplish my duty. I hope that you share my feelings and
therefore I exhort you to join my troops with yours. This time Italy will real-
ly take its future into its own hands».
But his appeal remained unanswered: Durando, followed by Manara,
some days later decided to withdraw to Piedmont; Griffini, from Brescia,
wandered at first on the mountains around Bergamo, then set out towards
the Valtellina to take a hasty refuge in Switzerland; the volunteers led by
D’Apice, who were defending the Stelvio, disbanded.
Garibaldi was left alone, with discouraged, ill-disposed and tired people
who did not want to share his destiny. Then a doubt assailed him that no one
had understood him, nor had followed him. «What good did it to me – he
would then write to Ricardi – to have humiliated myself in front of whoever
could open up a way for me to serve my country; I was forced to be the indif-
ferent spectator of the setbacks and misfortunes of our very warlike army» ...
«The unified Italy, to whom he dedicated himself in the years of his youth and
whose flag he held high with honour in the new world to be second to no
other flag….; fourteen years of devotion, of misfortunes and glory under the
auspices of the beautiful Italian name…… the fact that he did not come to
establish an order, to create more republics than constitutions, but to serve his
country and help it to drive away the Germans, the fact that he called us to
be strong against our common enemy and that he repressed with all his power
whoever wanted to do the opposite», all this did not help him to be trusted
and inspire the confidence that he, a simple soul, believed he deserved. Then,