Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 04.djvu/116

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CAMOES. 90 CAMP. The Lusiad {Os Lusiada.s, Tlip Lusitaiiiaiis) celebrates the chief events in the history of Portu'j'al, and is renia ridable anion}? modern epics for the admirable manner in whkh it has imitated the true national and pojinlar si)irit of ancient epic i)oems. Among the most famous I)assages are the tra<ri(^ story of lues de Castro, and the apparition of the giant Adamastor, who appears as the Spirit of the Storm to Vasco .da Gama when passing the Cape. The metre of the Lusiad is the familiar ottava rima of the Italian poets, and his treatment of it is full of eharm. The chief interest of the poem is due to the fiery spirit of patriotism which pervades it, and its intrinsic beauty has made it one of the masterpieces of what (iocthe termed the 'world-literature.' It has been translated Into all the principal languages of Europe. Besides his epic, Camoes wrote sonnets, odes, elegies, satires, epigrams, epistles, and three comedies — Os Am- phitri/oes, modeled upon Plautus ; Kinfi Seleucus ; and FUodemo. The most com])lete edition of his ■works is that of the 'isconde de Juromenha (G vols., Lisbon. IStiO-OO) ; a cheaper and more convenient edition is that of Theophile Braga (3 vols.. Oporto, 1874). For his biography, con- sult: -Idamson, Memoirs of the Life and ir?((- ■ings of Luis dc Catnoen (Lcmdon, 1S20) ; Braga, Historia de Camiies (.S a-o1s.. Oporto, 1873-75); Castello-Braneo, /,H!S de Camoes (Oporto, 1880) ; Burton, Camoes, His Life and His Lusiads (Lon- don, 1881); Storck, Luis de Camoens Leben (Pa.Icrhnni, 18!H)). CAM'OMILE. See Ch.miomile. CAMONICA, kamVj-ne'ka, or Valle Camo- KU'A. .A. picturesque valley in the Province of Bergamo, North Italy, consisting of the basin of the Oglio River, inclosed by outlying and densely wooded ridges of the Rhietian Alps. It extends for 30 miles from northeast to southwest to Lake Iseo. It has iron, copper, and lead mines and marble and slate quarries. Its soil is fertile, and agriculture is well developed, maize, grape- vines, and nmlberry-trees being e.vtensively cul- tivated. CAMORKA, kii-mor'ra (Olt., frock, cassock). . secret society with ramifications throughout the former Kingdom of Xaples, which exerts con- siderable influence among the lower classes in that part of Italy, and whose activity extends to higher oflicial quarters. The members are called Cnmorriste. Under the Bourbons. Camorriste ap- peared in public places on all occasions of i)o|nilar amusement, and levied contributions which their victims dared not rel'usc. Tbey undertook the transport of snmggled goods, and contracted for the commission of serious crimes. Their readi- ness for violence and murder, and their close association among themselves, made them so nnich dreaded that Camorriste who had been thrown into prison succeeded in exacting money from their fellow-prisoners and from the jailer himself. Yhen at the height of its power, the .society had a central rendezvous in every large jirovincial town, and twelve in the city of Naples. Those who belonged to eacli of these sections of the society were under the absolute government of a chief elected by themselves, with whom was associated a treasurer. The latter had the charge of the common fund into which all the Camorriste of that sec- tion paid their entire gains for equal dis- tribution among all their associates. Candi- dates for mcml)crship were obliged to show that they had l)een guilty neither of espionage nor theft; also that neither their wives nor their sisters were prostitutes, and to swear upon an iron crucifix a fearful oath of fidelity and se- crecy. The candidate remained for a year, with the designation of pieviolto d'onore, as a pupil under an old Camorrista ; and having completed this probation, and given proof of his courage and obedience in circumstances involving dan- ger of life, was advanced to the rank of a pie- ciolto di stjurru Finally, after a longer period, in which he had given proof of his fitness on a number of occasions, he was admitted to full membership of the society as a Camorrista. Each Camorrista carried about with him' two knives of peculiar foini, by which the members of the society recognized each other. They were held under the strictest discipline. Dis- obedience was jiunished by flogging, suspension from em])loymenf , or expulsion ; treachery, by death. If two Camorriste quarreled, their chief decided the question between tlu>ni; but in dilli- cult cases a duel with daggers was the mode of decision. Under Ferdinand II. the Caniorra was tolerated for political reasons. The (!ov- ernmcnt of Francis IL endeavored to put down the society, and the police received instructions to seizt! and transport all known members of it. 'those who remained entered into alliance with the Garibaldi Committee, and rendered essen- tial service in the exjmlsion of the Bourbons. When the Neapolitan and Sicilian influence be- came strong ill the politics ot the new Italy (see It.vly), the Government attem])tcd to use the Camorra in its struggle with brigandage, and thus strengthened the influence of the so- ciety by making it a politiial force, as it had often been under the Bourbcns. Of recent years the Caniorra has tended to assume more 0,*^ the nature of a political machine, maniiiu- lated for the purpose of plunder. For a num- ber of years the society was in full control of the municipal government of Naples, and in- cluded among its niend)ers the heads of the chief departments and practically the entire body of city eni])loycs. The association jnit up cflices for sale, guaranteed ollicials immunity in the pursuit of peaceful peeulation, and. in the last extreme, defended them in the courts. Conditions finally became so scamlalous as to warrant (1809) the intervention of the Italian Government. ^lunici[)al government in Nai)les was suspended, while a royal commission was appointed to investigate the operations of the Caniorra. The revelations of the commission led to the formation of an Honest Government League, which succeeded in comi)leteIy defeat- ing the candidates of the Camorra in the mu- nicipal elections of 1901. Consult: Monnicr, 1m Camorra (Florence, 1863) ; Heckethorn, The f^ccrct Societies of All Ages and Countries (New York, 1897) ; Umiltit, Camoiru et Mafia (Neu- tliAtel. 1878) : Blasio, Vsi c costutni dei camor- riste (Naples, 1897). CAMOUFLET, ki-moo'flA, Fr. pron. ka'moo'- fla'. See .Ml.NKS AND MiMNG, JllLlTABY. CAMP, Military. A collection of tents or huts for the shelter of troojjs. in a position, or on a piece of ground, specially adapted or pre- [larcd for such oceupatiiin. The evidutiun of