MARCH INTO THE INTERIOR. "In the morning the whole of Garibaldi's party set off for Salemi, reinforced by a good many Marsalese volunteers, and well provided with horses for the officers, carts for their spare arms and ammunition, and mules for the few field-pieces they brought with them. Everything was managed with admirable order, and apparently to the satisfaction of General Garibaldi; though under the effect of the bombardment from the Neapolitan vessels the poor Marsalese did not show an enthusiastic welcome to their unexpected visitors. "MAY 14.—At Salemi they were received with open arms, after having been joined on their march by several large armed bands under Coppola, of the Monte, Baron Sant Anna, of Alcamo, etc. Other two bands of armed countrymen have set off from this place to join the brave general, and with the reinforcements expected from Castelvetrano, Santa Ninfa, and other neighboring towns, they will soon muster a very formidable force. Even their artillery is increasing, as some light brass field-pieces, buried since 1849, have been brought out, and found in good condition. Several Franciscan monks have put themselves at the head, with the cross in one hand and the sword in the other." FIRST EFFECTS OF THE ARRIVAL OF GARIBALDI. "The arrival of Garibaldi changed the nature of the insurrection in Sicily completely. Until then the different _squadre_ (bands) of _picciotti_ (youngsters) had carried on a kind of desultory guerrilla warfare without much connection between them. The landowner, if influential enough, or else some popular man more energetic than the rest, collected for this purpose whoever wanted to come and had some sort or other of arms. Their tactics were to appear and disappear in different parts of the country, and harass from safe places the royal troops passing through the interior, but as for concerting a plan or meeting the royalists in the open field, no one would ever have dreamed of it. The mountainous country, and the want of roads, greatly facilitated this kind of warfare, while the absence of danger and fatigue was sufficient inducement even for those who were not driven there by their hatred against the Neapolitans. The country between Palermo, Trapani, Marsala, and Corleone was the chief seat of these _squadre_, not a few of which were collected at the time in the mountain chain above Palermo.