always show equal valour and firmness. Captain
Biraghi, of Milan, belonging to the general staff,
having in the midst of the battle received an order
from General Lamarmora for General Durando, was proceeding
with all possible speed towards the first army corps,
which was slowly retreating before the superior forces
of the enemy and before the greatly superior number
of his guns, when, while under a perfect shower of
grape and canister, he was all of a sudden confronted
by, an Austrian officer of cavalry who had been lying
in wait for the Italian orderly. The Austrian
fires his revolver at Biraghi; and wounds him in the
arm. Nothing daunted, Biraghi assails him and
makes him turn tail; then, following in pursuit, unsaddles
him, but has his own horse shot down under him.
Biraghi disentangles himself, kills his antagonist,
and jumps upon the latter’s horse. This,
however, is thrown down also in a moment by a cannon
ball, so that the gallant captain has to go back on
foot, bleeding, and almost unable to walk. Talking
of heroism, of inimitable endurance, and strength
of soul, what do you think of a man who has his arm
entirely carried away by a grenade, and yet keeps on
his horse, firm as a rock, and still directs his battery
until hemorrhage— and hemorrhage alone—strikes
him down at last, dead! Such was the case with
a Neapolitan—Major Abate, of the artillery—and
his name is worth the glory of a whole army, of a
whole war; and may only find a fit companion in that
of an officer of the eighteenth battalion of bersaglieri,
who, dashing at an Austrian flag-bearer, wrenches the
standard out of his hands with his left one, has it
clean cut away by an Austrian officer standing near,
and immediately grapples it with his right, until
his own soldiers carry him away with his trophy!
Does not this sound like Greek history repeated—does
it not look as if the brave men of old had been born
again, and the old facts renewed to tell of Italian
heroism? Another bersagliere—a Tuscan,
by name Orlandi Matteo, belonging to that heroic fifth
battalion which fought against entire brigades, regiments,
and battalions, losing 11 out of its 16 officers,
and about 300 out of its 600 men—Orlandi,
was wounded already, when, perceiving an Austrian
flag, he makes a great effort, dashes at the officer,
kills him, takes the flag, and, almost dying, gives
it over to his lieutenant. He is now in a ward
of the San Domenico Hospital in Brescia, and all who
have learnt of his bravery will earnestly hope that
he may survive to be pointed out as one of the many
who covered themselves with fame on that day.
If it is sad to read of death encountered in the
field by so many a patriotic and brave soldiers, it
is sadder still to learn that not a few of them were
barbarously killed by the enemy, and killed, too,
when they were harmless, for they lay wounded on the
ground. The Sicilian colonel, Stalella, a son-in-law
of Senator Castagnetto, and a courageous man amongst