GASPARINI'S ESCAPE.

Te Aroha News, Volume VII, Issue 457, 26 March 1890, Page 3

GASPARINI'S ESCAPE.

THE NEW CALEDONIAN CONVICT. AN INTERVIEW WITH HIM. The March number of tho “Centennial Magazine” (Sydney), just issued, contains under the heading of “Gasparini’s Escape : An Unwritten Tale,” a very interesting article by Edward J. Hart, who gives an account of an interview which he had with the redoubtable recidiviste and escapee. He writes : “ One day, some months ago, a friend who had pa-sed thirty years of his life in France and Italy, and who was considerably better acquainted with those countries than with his own, paid me an unexpected call, and without any preamble startled me with the question, “ Would you like to interview Gasparini, the New Caledonian escapee ?” “In common with others I knew somewhat of this Gasparini, had been in New Zealand at the time of his capture in Auckland, and felt considerable interest in what had been there gleaned of his Rufus Dawes - like adventures. Readers of the New Zealand papers will doubtless remember a letter written by Cury, Gasparini’s companion, describing in a vague and highly hysterical manner their voyage from the penal settlement to New Zealand. -

“ The extradition of both prisoners was demanded by the French Consul, but was only granted in the ease of Gasparini, who, being a native of Italy, had his interests looked after by the Italian Consul, which occasioned considerable friction between that gentleman and the representative of the French Republic. Eventually, Gaspa: 'rtni, in charge of a New Zealand detective, was put on board the Union Steamship Wakabipu, bound from Wellington to Sydney, where he was to be taken charge of by the French Consul in that city, pending his transshipment to Noumea. The latest up to date that was known of the prisoner was contained in the telegram dated Sydney, August 16th, 1888, which stated thatOn arrival of the Wakatipu it was discovered that Gasparini, the escapee -from New Caledonia, sent from Wellington to Sydney in charge of Detective Walker, -of. Auckland, was missing. The cause of hie disappearance is a mystery, and it i 3. not known whether he jumped overboard; from the vessel.” When therefore I was calmly asked if I should like to interview a man who with the • generality of people I believed, had long ago found a watery grave, I was sufficiently surprised to voice a whole torrent ; of questions as to where and how he had escaped, and how he had managed to elude discovery all this time. “ To all of .which my friend quietly re plied, “Step round with me to my chambers and he will tell you all his life and adventures. ... You,, will have all the details of his last escape from hisown lips, or rather from my lips, fori shall have to act a 3 interpreter.”

“Can’t he speak English ?” I queried. “No, nor French, nor Latin. Ho expresses himself in a cheerful jingle of the patois they speak down in Spezzia, Genoese, mingled with a little Italian and much bad French, and I shall have a nice job to translate your questions and his answeis. He came to me as a beggar, having been misinformed that I was an Italian, and I afforded him a little relief, in gratitude for which he will give you his history; but mind you, you must give a solemn promise not to reveal any of this until he is well out of the country. His recapture in Auckland was partly owing to Cury’s letter finding its way into the papers, and he had no desire to again thrust his head into the lion’s mouth.”

In consequence of this pledge the publication of the article has been long delayed, until in fact the hapless prisoner has been enabled to put half a globe between himself and the consequence of another possible extradition warrant.”

The article then proceeds to describe very fully Gasparini’s appearance, and gives a statement of his career as taken from his own lips. Only the first part of the story appears in the March issue of the magazine, the second having been reserved for the following publication.