Honor Restored

In the Sicilian scheme of things, nothing is so important for a girl as her honor--unless perhaps it is the size of her dowry. In the case of Vincenzina d'Urso, a willowy girl of 21 with chestnut hair, the dowry fell short of the expectations of the bridegroom's family. Words were exchanged, doors slammed; Vincenzina's marriage to Enzo d'Agostino, a 21-year-old truck driver, was abruptly called off.

But Vincenzina and Enzo were in love, and they ran away together. It was then that the question of Vincenzina's honor came up. Six years before, she confessed in tears, when she was 15, there had been Ernesto--Ernesto who was "so handsome that girls ate him with their eyes." But it was all over now, and Ernesto had married. Although Enzo himself was not married to Vincenzina, he was outraged by her confession, took her home to her family. Vincenzina's father was shamed, ordered her out of the house, and draped black cloth over his front door.

From that moment Vincenzina knew what she must do. She bought a butcher knife, tucked it inside a newspaper and started walking. She found Ernesto, her first love, at a bus stop. "Vincenzina, you are prettier than ever," Ernesto began, but he did not finish. Vincenzina fell upon him with the knife, stabbing him in the chest and stomach.

At her trial Vincenzina told the judge: "I had to kill him to restore my honor. There was no other way." Luckily, Ernesto survived the knifing, and the judge, allowing that "a woman must be the guardian of her own honor," sentenced Vincenzina to a mild three years in jail.

With her honor so clearly restored, even Enzo d'Agostino felt in a forgiving mood. In the chapel of Catania's prison he married her, then went home to wait for her release from jail. It might not be long; so moved was all Italy by Vincenzina's story last week that President Giovanni Gronchi was reportedly about to pardon her.

This file is automatically generated by a robot program, so reader's discretion is required.