Mackey – Encyclopedia Of Freemasonry Vol. 1

THE CARBONARI177Lively called giardiniere, . garden-women, each sister takingthe name of a flower . Their mission, of course, was toact as lures or spies . But they also fulfilled higher functions; they alleviated the condition of the prisoners of despotism,especially in Italy, where many lady members of theSocietd della Misericordia were Giardiniere,,and, having freeaccess to the Austrian prisons in Piedmont, supplementedthe scanty food allowed to the imprisoned Carbonari by theauthorities with liberal additions .VOL . ir.M