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King Ferdinand sent 5000 soldiers to 'make a garden, as he described it, of Palermo, if the offers sent at the same time failed to pacify the inhabitants. These offers were refused with the comment: 'Too late, and the Palermitans prepared to resist to the death under the guidance of the veteran patriot Ruggiero Settimo, Prince of Fitalia.
So the 20th of June dawned, and the Queen's ships in the harbour put forth all their bravery of flags in commemoration of her accession, which display was naturally interpreted by the Palermitans as a compliment to the Dictator, who had fixed that day for calling on the British, French and Sardinian admirals and on the captain of the United States frigate Iroquois.
Success, however, was complete, and the Palermitans got up to find, to their frantic joy, the Liberator within their gates. According to the old usage their first impulse was to run to the belfries in order to sound the tocsin, but they found that the royalists had removed the clappers of the bells.
While the Palermitans sought to gain over the citizens by these Biblical metaphors, Herbert of Orleans strengthened himself with foreign arms and with the support of the Messinese nobles who by abuses and oppression had exalted themselves above their fellow-citizens, and therefore now resolutely sided with the Vicar.
Negotiations were therefore commenced. Of those which were private and the most efficacious no record has been handed down to us; but of those publicly conducted, a letter is still extant, dated from Palermo, the 13th of April, and despatched by messengers to Messina, which begins thus: "The Palermitans to the noble citizens of the illustrious city of Messina, bondsmen under Pharaoh in dust and mire greeting, and deliverance from the servile yoke by the arm of liberty.
Most of his staff opposed the decision, and one officer broke his sword, but Lanza was inexorable. The measure so exasperated the Palermitans that even had it achieved its end for the moment, never after would they have proved governable from Naples. Thirteen hundred shells were thrown into the city.
They, however, with the long-suffering of conscious strength, replied that "they would neither return the insults nor his blows; the Messinese and Palermitans were brothers; the French oppressors their only enemies, and they would do better to turn their arms against the tyrants." With these words they hoisted the standard of the cross of Messina upon the walls beside the eagle of Palermo.
The Sicilian squadre had been brought into something like military organisation; and an Englishman, Colonel Dunne, had raised a picked corps of 400 Palermitans which contained, besides its commander, between thirty and forty of his countrymen, and was hence called the English Regiment.
Matthew accordingly sought him and in presence of all the other counsellors admonished him, using the arguments of a crooked policy, to reflect on the great power of the King, and that this insane tumult would deprive Messina of the advantages that would naturally accrue to her from the rebellion of Palermo. What were the Palermitans to him that he should share their madness?
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