MAFIA MURDER.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1016, 4 January 1911, Page 5

MAFIA MURDER.

; ' : MEMBER SHOT DEAD. fly Teleeraph-Press AssoclaUon-rjopyrlElrt. . Naples, January 3. Vita, manager of a sulphur' mine in Sicily, and a member of the Mafia, was accused 'of betraying secrets, and tho .■supreme tribunal condemned him to death. Tho sentence was duly carried out by six masked men detailed'for the purpose. They waited for Vita when he was on his way to his work, and fired fourteen shots at him. GREATEST TERRORIST SOCIETY IN THE WORLD. Neither'the Nanles Camorra, the Paris Apaches; nor the Black Hand of America is the most powerful and terrible secret S'j; ,in the whole world "(writes \ra V- ~ palm must go to the alalia, which flourishes in Italy, and-has clone so for more than 300 years. This .society, which works so swiftly and silently yet sp surely, was founded in oicily for protection against the injustices of foreign rulers. THE MAFIOSI' ARE EVERYWHERE. ' He who is of the Mafia is almost sure to do well, and may even escape justice alter committing the most serious crimes. It is said that the- secret of the/ success of the famous Crispi was that '■ he was one of the Mafia. If a member opons a new shop, the word is given round, and all the other members in the neighbourhood flock to it with their custom; if one of the Mafiosi, as they are called, is putting up for an election, the influence of the order is set to work in every direction in his favour; if one commits a crime ho may be .let off because the judge and jury are his brothers; and not long since a man murdered another m the streets of Palermo and was caught the next moment, but he broke away from his captori and upon the.instant the Cry of "Mnfiosi!" was sent round, and every possible impediment was put m the way of the pursuit,, so that it failed, and the man got free. Subsequently the police discovered his whereabouts, but thov dared not arrest him, for fear of the Mafia.

TESTS FOR CANDIDATES. 'It is not an easy thing to join tho Mafia, and the tests as to whether a candidate is fit for the .fraternity and likely to be a good member of it are very strict. He has to go through many probationary, . trials, but when at last the committee are satisfied that he is a good-candidate, he is duly initiated. 'The candidate has then to go through a terrible ceremony. First of all a cut is made in his body and a nuantity of blood is drawn from it. and with'this he smears an imago of his favourite saint, and then sots tho jmagc on fire, immediately taking an oath in tho following words:—"l swear on my. honour to bo faithful to the brotherhood. > i As this saint and the drons of my blood .ire destroyed, so will I shed all the blood I have for tho fraternity; and as these ashes and this blood can never bo restored to me, ?« can T novo' again become, freo from tho brotherhood." . . WEARERS. OF THE'"RED-MANTLE." Then the new initiate has to draw a revolver and shoot a cartridee at n crucifix to show that he would bo willing at ' any time to kill nearest relation or most intimate friend, if Commanded to do so. Ho is. then' a fnil member," and he is said to be a wearer of the' "red' mantle." His name as a member is not entered in any books, but it is duly: .fori warded'to.hendfiuarters,. and then it,,is communicated by word~of mouth; to all Hie other members'hi'the district"' where h" lives. These other members teach him all the other siprns and customs of the fraternity which it is. necessary he should know, and he at once'becomes an active member. .-..';. Tho headquarters o£ the brotherhood arc being constantly, moved about. One week they are i". one place,- mid, th» next one in another nt tho other end of the countrv. Nobody ever .kniwo. ox'eent the.members, where, to put theirfingers on the Mnfi.n."'ln each town there is'a kind of chief'awnt, who 'is; kont. jinsted "p with the doih"s and movements of headquarters, niid he communicates them to tho members concerned..