SHOT AT PRINCE UMBERTO

Taranaki Daily News, 27 September 1930, Page 7

SHOT AT PRINCE UMBERTO

SCENE AT A PARIS TOMB

TRIAL OF YOUNG ITALIAN HOUR’S SPEECH IN COURT HATRED OF THE FASCISTS By Telegraph—Press Assri.—Copyright. Brussels, Sept. 25. The trial has begun of the 22-year-old Italian, Ferando di Bosa, for attempting to kill Prince Umberto, heir to the Italian throne. There was a remarkable scene when he explained to the president how he became an anti-Fascist. When 12 years bld. he was given a pistol, and while playing with it he accidentally killed a comrade. The event impressed him, and it occurred to him tha> those who gave revolvers io children were bandits. He spoke for an hour, and criticised Signor Mussolini. Dealing with the shooting, the prisoner said he acted machine-like. He selected a spot and when he saw the Prince he rushed from the crowd and fired.

“I expected. the people to schmper as they do in Italy when a shot is fired,” he said. “I acted so because I wished to attract the attention of Europe to the unlucky state of my country.” There are'l7 .witnesses for the defence.

An attempt to shoot Prince Umberto was made at Brussels on October 23, 1929, while he was placing a wreath upon the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, but the shot missed. The attempt was made during the celebrations at the betrothal of Prince Umberto and Princess Marie Jose of Belgium. The shooting occurred while' Prince Umberto was shirking hands with a high personage. When di Rosa fired a shot the crowd was dazed, and then made a wild rush and seized \ the assailant, who was madly flourishing a revolver. He was roughly handled before the police broke through. Prince Umberto calmly ■walked to -the tomb and laid his wreath. . The assailant was identified as a native of Milan, a student named Ferando di Rosa, and aged 21. He admitted that he only arrived from Paris that morning.

Di Rosa struggled like a wild beast, and it took ten policemen to convey him to the Palais de Justice. A crowd gathered outside, shouting “Death to the assassin.”

Di Rosa informed the police that he came especially to shoot the Crown Prince, and admitted he was a member of the Second Socialist International. Interrogated by the examining magistrate, di Rosa declared that he had vowed to kill the King of Italy, or the Crown Prince, or Signor Mussolini, because they had betrayed the Italian constitution. He fired the first shot •into the air in order to {test the weapon, which then jammed, and he was unable to fire again.