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diff --git a/44983-0.txt b/44983-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..210e218 --- /dev/null +++ b/44983-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,1247 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 44983 *** + +Transcriber's Note: + + Inconsistent hyphenation and spelling in the original document have + been preserved. Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. + + Italic text is denoted by _underscores_, bold text by =equal marks=. + + + + + LEARN ONE THING + EVERY DAY + + JANUARY 15 1919 + + SERIAL NO. 171 + + THE + MENTOR + + ITALY UNDER WAR + CONDITIONS + + By E. M. NEWMAN + Lecturer and Traveler + + DEPARTMENT OF + TRAVEL + + VOLUME 6 + NUMBER 23 + + TWENTY CENTS A COPY + + + + +TO ITALY + + + You had to choose 'twixt liberty and guilt; + There is no half-way house for human kind + If human kind is still to breathe God's air. + And so you placed your lips upon the hilt + Of Freedom's sword, devoted soul with mind + To this great task which frees sad Europe from despair. + + Hence we who loved and love you, Italy,... + Send winged words of greeting. You are free; + Sun-smitten the cloud that hid the soaring dome + Of Liberty, your Palace and your Home. + We who are free greet you from sea to sea. + + * * * * * + + Mazzini, Garibaldi, great Cavour + Watch now and greet you from their timeless place, + Whence they behold the growth of your great race + Which so they knit that long it should endure. + Spectators of eternity, whose pure, + Untarnished brows recall their ancient grace, + Behold them once again, and in them trace + The soul of freedom, splendid, patient, sure! + + J. E. G. DE MONTMORENCY. + +In _The Contemporary Review_. + + + + +THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION + +ESTABLISHED FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF A POPULAR INTEREST IN ART, +LITERATURE, MUSIC, SCIENCE, HISTORY, NATURE, AND TRAVEL + +THE MENTOR IS PUBLISHED TWICE A MONTH + +BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC., AT 114-116 EAST 16TH STREET, NEW +YORK, N. Y. SUBSCRIPTION, FOUR DOLLARS A YEAR. FOREIGN POSTAGE 75 +CENTS EXTRA. CANADIAN POSTAGE 50 CENTS EXTRA. SINGLE COPIES TWENTY +CENTS. PRESIDENT, THOMAS H. BECK; VICE-PRESIDENT, WALTER P. TEN EYCK; +SECRETARY, W. D. MOFFAT; TREASURER, J. S. CAMPBELL; ASSISTANT TREASURER +AND ASSISTANT SECRETARY, H. A. CROWE. + + JANUARY 15, 1919 + VOLUME 6 + NUMBER 23 + +Entered as second-class matter, March 10, 1913, at the postoffice at +New York, N. Y., under the act of March 3, 1879. Copyright, 1919, by +The Mentor Association, Inc. + + [Illustration: A BANK IN VENICE PROTECTED AGAINST ATTACK + + PHOTOGRAPH BY E. M. NEWMAN] + + + + +_ITALY UNDER WAR CONDITIONS_ + + + PREPARED SPECIALLY FOR THE MENTOR BY E. M. NEWMAN + ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 6, No. 23, SERIAL No. 171 + COPYRIGHT, 1919, BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. + + + + +_The Business of War_ + +ONE + + +None of the Allied Nations has had more or greater problems confronting +it than Italy has. Manpower has not been lacking, but the want of raw +materials for the making of munitions has been a serious handicap, and +one that has been most difficult to overcome. Italy has been absolutely +dependent upon her allies for steel and coal. After her declaration of +war against Germany, she was left helpless. Badly as France and England +needed these raw materials, they had to come to the assistance of +their ally. For a long time the quantities received were insufficient, +and a sustained offensive against Austria was impossible, for want of +ammunition. + +This condition was greatly improved when the United States entered +the war, and Italy received from us vast quantities of steel, and +sufficient coal came from England to supply her needs. + +It must be borne in mind that when war was declared (August 1, 1914) +practically all the industrial and commercial organizations in Italy +were controlled by Germany. The largest banks and financial houses were +German-owned. One of the most prolific sources of income, the electric +and other plants operated by water-power, were in German hands. + +Germany had a firm grip on the resources of the country. Her agents +carried on a propaganda which required the utmost courage of the +Italians to overcome, and let it be said to the credit of the Italian +people, they risked financial ruin when they decided to enter the war +on the side of the Allies. + +The first result of their entry into the World War was to demoralize +their securities and almost to destroy the value of their money. +The _lira_, a coin which, before the war, was worth about 19 cents, +decreased in buying power to about 11 cents. Bonds dropped alarmingly. + +With the United States as an ally, loans have been made to Italy, her +credit has been re-established, the _lira_ has gradually increased +in value, and with steel and coal in sufficient quantities for all +purposes, prosperity is returning. + +It was the shrewd Bismarck who arranged with Signor Crispi, twice +Premier, to come to the assistance of Italy. A loan was made, and +the best Italian securities were obtained for a song. Ever since, +the German grip has tightened. As a result of the war Italy will be +restored to commercial freedom and she will have a new and much needed +opportunity to expand. + +The Ansaldo Company, a new and gigantic corporation, is now one of the +largest munition plants in the world. Italy has tremendous resources in +her water-power which is now being developed. Like her allies, she will +be able to manufacture many of the things she needs. + +Her airplanes are among the best that are made. Her engines are +wonders of mechanical perfection. Her motor cars are unexcelled. Italy, +prepared as she never was, is ready for the future. + + + + + [Illustration: A MARKET SQUARE IN ROME + + PHOTOGRAPH BY E. M. NEWMAN] + + + + +_The Food Problem and How It Is Met_ + +TWO + + +How to keep the soldiers supplied with sufficient nourishing food +was one of the first and most serious matters the Italian Government +had to consider. As everyone knows, the principal articles of food +consumption among Italians of every station, rich or poor, are macaroni +and spaghetti. The staff of life of the Italian people, they are made +almost entirely of flour. + +Italy never has grown enough wheat to supply her needs. Under war +conditions her imports fell to such an extent that little or no wheat +could be obtained. Hence the country faced a critical situation. + +The first step was conservation. It was ruled that macaroni and +spaghetti could be served only on certain days. Manufacturers were +restricted in the amount they could make. Then flours of mixed cereals +were used. + +Italians are great lovers of bread. To meet a shortage, every available +acre of ground where wheat would grow was cultivated. If the men on +the farm had gone to war, the women took their places. The Government +encouraged and aided the farmers in every possible way, and then +when aid came from the United States, in addition to sacrifices and +restrictions in Italy, the situation improved. + +Fruit and vegetables are plentiful and, for these times, reasonably +cheap. Italians are not great meat-eaters; they have sufficient meat +for their needs, and by adhering rigidly to the regulations they have +been able to keep the army fully supplied. + +The Adriatic and the Mediterranean abound with fish of almost every +variety. Fishermen are therefore able to meet the country's needs. Next +to macaroni and spaghetti the Italians like fish, and as it is far +cheaper than meat, for the poorer classes it forms a food which they +can afford to buy. + +Olive oil, formerly used in great quantities, many of the people even +drinking it, is now on the restricted list, and can be obtained only in +limited quantities. + +Bread, as in America, is mixed with other cereals, and for civilians +practically no white bread can be obtained. In the army, there are no +restrictions--the best of food is given to the soldiers. They obtain +meat, butter, milk, sugar and other edibles denied wholly or in part to +civilians. + +As in France, wine is a part of the regular rations. Various welfare +organizations see that the people do not suffer for want of food. +Irrigation and intensive farming, in which representatives of all +classes are now helping, is aiding in the solution of the food problem. + + + + + [Illustration: AN ITALIAN KINDERGARTEN SHATTERED BY AN AIR BOMB + + WESTERN NEWSPAPER UNION PHOTO SERVICE] + + + + +_Educational Conditions_ + +THREE + + +War did not seriously interfere with the grammar and high schools +throughout Italy. It is in the higher schools, such as the +universities, the medical colleges and in the technical schools that +a changed condition is seen. Women came to the aid of the country in +the crisis which called so many men to the colors. Many of the teachers +in the elementary schools are women and girls, who are ably taking the +places of the men whose positions were made vacant. + +For the schools where higher education is taught, it is quite a +different and more complex problem. To teach in a university or in a +medical college certain qualifications are absolutely essential. Years +of study and preparation are needed, and for this work but a limited +number of women were available. + +On the other hand, the necessities of war called to action thousands +of young men who otherwise would have attended the various schools for +higher education. As a result the number of students in practically all +of these schools has fallen off materially, and there has not been the +need for so many professors. + +The Government is anxious not to discourage higher education; in +fact, it is doing all it can to maintain it, as was evident in the +establishment of the Camp Universities. It was inevitable that the +attendance at the higher schools could not be maintained as in peace +time, and the reduction in the number of pupils fortunately made +possible a corresponding diminution of teachers. + +By a system which permitted the return of professors in service at +the front, although only for a limited period, the efficiency of +the various universities and colleges was continued through the war. +Students co-operated with the Government, some even giving up their +furloughs to attend school. + +Education for the youth of the land is still compulsory. The standard +of wages among teachers remains very low, and out of proportion to the +increased cost of living, but the recipients seem willing to sacrifice +comfort for the general good. + +Old men, who in their youth taught school, volunteered to return to a +labor of love. It was this spirit which made possible the maintenance +of education. Italy is a poor country, but her sons and daughters +are eager to learn, and, poor as they are, they are willing to make +sacrifices rather than give up attending school. + +Many of the art students are gone, and some of the schools are closed. +Beppo the model is no longer to be found on the steps of the Piazza +Espagne, but the love of art has sufficed to keep some of the art +schools going, no matter how rigorous the conditions. + +Music is in the soul of the Italian, and the conservatories will +continue in session as long as there is a pupil left. On the whole, +educational conditions are as good as present-day circumstances will +permit. + + + + + [Illustration: TAKING DOWN THE HORSES OF ST. MARK'S, VENICE + + ITALIAN OFFICIAL PHOTOGRAPH] + + + + +_Protection of Art Work_ + +FOUR + + +When Italy entered the war, a commission was immediately appointed by +the Government to consider measures for the protection of the country's +art treasuries. Under the direction of the curators of galleries and +museums, a civil engineer or architect was placed in charge of each +principal building in all the art centers of northern Italy. The +persons so appointed set about devising individual means adapted to the +shielding of walls, towers, statues and pictures from attack by air and +water, from shell and fire. In Venice the chief works and structures +selected for protection were the Doges' (Dukes') Palace, with its rich +arcades, sculptured façade and splendid halls, the superb Church of +St. Mark, the medieval Loggetta, or vestibule, on the east side of the +Campanile, the Church of St. John and St. Paul, the San Rocco School, +the noble equestrian statue known as the Colleoni Monument, and the +Academy of Fine Arts, with its canvases by Bellini, Carpaccio, Palma +Vecchio, Tintoretto and Titian. + +At Padua, Donatello's equestrian monument of Gattamelata, erected +in 1453, and the sepulchral church of St. Anthony of Padua received +special care; likewise the Gate of the Scaligeri, Verona; the early +Renaissance Colleoni Chapel and some precious frescoes at Bergamo; +Leonardo da Vinci's immortal canvas, "The Last Supper," in the +refectory of the abbey-church of Santa Maria della Grazie at Milan; +the Fountain of Neptune and the Church of San Petronio at Bologna; the +early Christian edifice of San Vitale, the Mausoleum of Galla Placidia +(a queen of the fifth century) and the Tomb of Dante, in the deserted +old city of Ravenna; and at Cremona, in the Church of Sant' Agostino, +the famously beautiful altar-piece of the Madonna and Two Saints, by +Perugino. The most renowned works of art in Rome, including the statue +of Caesar in the Capitoline Museum, were padded and boarded up, and +from Firenze and Naples rare examples of Italian craftsmanship, guarded +through the centuries--manuscripts, statuary, paintings, tapestries, +metalware, mosaics, glass--were carried away to safety, some of them to +the vaults of the Uffizi Gallery in Florence. + +Titian's masterpiece, the "Assumption of the Virgin," was laboriously +removed from the Academy of Fine Arts at Venice and transported by +boat and wagon to a place of security against attack by the Vandals. +Tintoretto's "Paradise," the largest oil painting in the world (72 +feet by 23 feet) was unframed and removed from the wall of the Hall +of the Great Council in the Palace of the Doges. Ceiling paintings +were taken down, rolled around great sticks thirty inches in diameter, +hermetically sealed in copper cylinders, and stored in crypts to rest +until the joyous day of their unrolling. Altogether, seven thousand +square yards of canvas were thus protected from attack and pillage. +Statues were wrapped in mattresses and covered by brick flooring; +the beloved horses above the doorway of St. Mark's were lowered and +taken away. Domes were roofed at an angle of sixty degrees, so that +aerial bombs would glance harmlessly off. In the defence of Venetian +art treasures alone, sixty men worked for three months to wall in +everything delicate and beautiful. + +"Even Rheims and Louvain could not offer such tempting morsels to the +vandal wrecker as Venice and Rome," writes Herbert Vivian in "Italy at +War." "Venice, mistress of medieval art as well as queen of the sea, +girded her armor on,--like the army, donned a vesture of gray-green. +Just as in Holy Week the more signal emblems veil themselves in +respectful mourning for the Passion, so, in war time, the monuments +of Venice hide in their hoods, as though to proclaim sympathy with +the nation's anxiety. At St. Mark's ... the venerated mosaics on the +lunettes are blotted out by modern masonry, the golden cupolas are +shapeless bags, the pillars and arches have become a brick fortress +that goes on to engulf all that fairy portico of the Doges' Palace +hard by. Where are the four famous horses of golden bronze, brought +from Constantinople to defy the world through seven centuries from the +portals of St. Marks? It was a sad scene when on May 27, 1915, a silent +crowd watched their descent for conveyance to a safer stable. In the +interior of the holy house heaps and heaps of heavy sandbags huddle +against the porphyries and malachites and alabasters, throttle the +carved columns, scale walls, bury pulpit, choir, altars and baptistery. +Such are the bulwarks which Italian foresight provided against probable +forays of the Hun." + + + + + [Illustration: CHURCH OF ST MARK'S, VENICE. BOARDED UP FOR PROTECTION + + PHOTOGRAPH BY CENTRAL NEWS PHOTO SERVICE] + + + + +_Venice in War Time_ + +FIVE + + +In time of peace all the world flocked to Venice. In war time many +changes were necessary. Many of the people who make up the inhabitants +of the earth were barred from the city, not only by regulations, but by +cannon and walls of steel. It required influence even for an Italian to +get into Venice. For an American to enter the city, it was necessary +to get special permission from the Minister of Marine, and he had to +present the best of reasons before that permission was granted. + +Several times the city was menaced by the Austrians and once it was +near capture. Time and again, fleets of airplanes dropped bombs, +destroying churches, hospitals and other property, as well as killing +non-combatants. + +The strain was more than many of the inhabitants could bear and they +sought safety in flight. The result was almost to drain the city of its +normal population, which was evident in its almost deserted canals and +streets. + +The soft, musical voices of the gondoliers were occasionally heard. +A few gondolas were left, but very few, and there was no longer any +singing. The beautiful hotels, where so many of us had lived in comfort +and luxury, were either closed or converted into hospitals. + +Most of the shops around St. Mark's Square closed. The famous glass and +lace factories shut their doors. Picture postcards and photographs were +taboo. The Government did not permit them to be mailed. + +No damage has been done to the Basilica of St. Mark. A bomb dropped +in front of it, but did not hit it. During the war this famous temple +was, however, but a shadow of its former glory. It no longer glistened +with Byzantine mosaic. Its golden covering was removed or covered +with sandbags. Beside the Doges' Palace was a thing of brick supports, +destroying its beauty. The ugliness of boarding and sandbags saddened +the visitor who recalled the Venice of former days. + +Motor and passenger boats plying along the Grand Canal were +discontinued; there were no passengers. A few ferries remained for +those who still lived in the city. + +Venice has not been seriously marred. Much damage has been done to +churches and hospitals, but most of this can be repaired. Only a +careful search of the city would reveal the damage done by bombardment. + +Within a few churches and buildings art objects have been destroyed +that can never be replaced. It should comfort the lovers of Venice +to know that the city gives no outward evidence of destruction. The +inhabitants will soon return, the hotels will reopen, St. Mark's and +the Doges' Palace will be restored to their former appearance, and +Venice will once again reign in splendor as the Queen of the Adriatic. + + + + + [Illustration: PIAZZA DEL POPOLO (PEOPLE'S SQUARE), ROME + + PHOTOGRAPH BY E. M. NEWMAN] + + + + +_Rome in War Time_ + +SIX + + +Rome still sits proudly on her seven hills, undismayed, undisturbed by +the ravages of war. There is little real difference to be seen in the +Italian capital as it is and as it was before the war. In the evening +hours, when all Rome goes for a promenade or a drive, the Corso is as +crowded as ever. One sees more uniforms, but otherwise the scene is +similar to that of peace times. + +Romans still love to dine on the sidewalks, partake of their ices, and +sip their wine and coffee at little tables placed where pedestrians are +supposed to pass. They attend the theater, the opera and the various +other places of amusement of which they are so fond. + +The main difference in the city's aspect is in the dress of the people. +Officers are seen only in field uniform, privates in the gray of +the battle-field. Women no longer attempt display, only the simplest +effects are seen. All ostentation in the wearing of gowns and jewelry +is frowned upon. + +None has suffered more than the nobility. Most of them being of +moderate means, the war brought many sacrifices, endangering slender +purses and curtailing most needed comforts. A number have had to sell +their prized art treasures to keep from actual want. + +The beautiful Palace on the Quirinal is now a hospital. Many of its +nurses are the noble women of Italy. The city is filled with welfare +organizations. + +Buried in the heart of Rome, its ruins telling us the story of the +birth of civilization, lies the Forum, unchanged, unaffected by the +world struggle. It speaks of days that were, of other wars, of Caesar, +who, like the Kaiser, was ambitious, of Marc Antony who sacrificed +everything for love of a woman, of Cicero, and others whose deeds and +words have made history. + +Above the ruins of the Forum is the Palatine. Here once lived the +Caesars. Their palaces once covered the hill from which they looked +down upon Rome. The Golden Palace of Nero has been obliterated by time, +just as the chateaus and beautiful structures of northern France have +been leveled by the invading Germans. + +Fortunate is the world that the treasures of Rome are intact. St. +Peter's and all the wonderful churches still stand unharmed. The +Vatican with its storehouse of treasures remains as it was. Art +galleries containing world's masterpieces are preserved for posterity. + +Rome is still the Rome familiar to travelers. Its hotels are filled, +not with tourists, but with officers and their families. Its streets +are still throbbing with life, it remains one of the most interesting +cities on this spinning globe. + + + + +THE MENTOR · DEPARTMENT OF TRAVEL SERIAL NUMBER 171 + +Entered as second-class matter March 10, 1913, at the postoffice at New +York, N. Y., under the act of March 3, 1879. Copyright, 1919, by the +Mentor Association, Inc. + + + + + [Illustration: A "BABY NEST"--A retreat for children of Italian + soldiers in service + + By courtesy of the Italian Embassy, Washington] + + + + +ITALY UNDER WAR CONDITIONS + +By E. M. NEWMAN, _Traveler and Lecturer_ + +_MENTOR GRAVURES_--A BANK IN VENICE, PROTECTED AGAINST ATTACK · A +MARKET SQUARE IN ROME · AN ITALIAN KINDERGARTEN SHATTERED BY A BOMB · +TAKING DOWN THE HORSES OF ST. MARK'S · CHURCH OF ST. MARK'S BOARDED UP +FOR PROTECTION · PIAZZA DEL POPOLO, ROME + + +Italy has played a far more important part in the World War than is +apparent to one who has not given the subject special consideration. +The neutral nations have directed most of their thoughts to England and +France. To do Italy full justice, the fact must be emphasized that she +came into the war at a time when the Allies were in great need of her. +The outlook for England and France was most serious when the Italian +people, roused by love of liberty and democracy, demanded that their +Government cast its lot with the Allies and declare war. + +As a result, Austria was compelled to mobilize and mass her forces +on the Italian frontier, and she was no longer able to give aid and +support to the Germans on the western front. The entire course of the +war was then materially changed. + + [Illustration: PEACE IN THE MIDST OF WAR + + This picture of Italian children playing with dolls was taken in + Italy's darkest hour before the turn of the fortunes of war + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + +Austria's army and navy were thereafter kept busy trying to hold the +Italians in check. What happened in the fall of 1917 will always be +more or less of a mystery. After two years of the hardest kind of +fighting, during which time the Austrians were being gradually pushed +back until Vienna itself was threatened, there came a retreat, one of +the most disastrous in the annals of war. The Italians lost in two +weeks all that they had gained in two years. Worse still, Italy was +invaded and a considerable area occupied by the Austrian army. + +Consternation ensued, the Italian people were dazed. Something had gone +wrong; no one could understand it. But one thing every Italian knew, +and that was that no braver soldiers were to be found in any country, +and that when Italy had time to recover from her surprise Austria would +pay the price. + + +_How the Italian Army Came Back_ + + [Illustration: BOOKSTALLS IN ROME + + War did not drive the booklovers from their favorite haunts + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + +The retreat of the Italian army was followed by a wave of patriotism +that swept from one end of Italy to the other. If there were some +that were lukewarm before, they were roused to the highest pitch of +enthusiasm for the prosecution of the war. Italy had been invaded, and +that was sufficient to stir the blood of every Italian. + +When, in the spring of 1918, Austria launched her great offensive, +she faced an army wholly changed. Indifference had vanished, every man +thirsted for revenge. No Italian would breathe freely until the stain +of the retreat was wiped out. Not an Austrian must remain on Italian +soil. The Austrians were bewildered when, instead of encountering a +demoralized and beaten army, they found themselves face to face with a +new and rejuvenated force. + +Instead of advancing, the Austrians were swept off their feet. Instead +of a crumbling line, they met a wall of steel against which their +onslaughts were of no avail. On came the infuriated Italians, crushing +the Austrian offensive and forcing them to beat a hasty retreat. +Austria will never forget the punishment she received on the Piave +(pee-ah-vuh), along the Asiago plateau, and in the vicinity of Monta +Grappa. + + [Illustration: AMONG THE COLUMNS OF ST. PETER'S, ROME + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + +Fields were strewn with Austrian dead. So precipitate had been their +flight that they had to abandon guns, ammunition, supplies, in fact +everything they possessed. When, a few days later, I crossed the delta +of the Piave, I saw thousands of Austrian helmets, overcoats, and +supplies of every description covering the ground that extended for +many miles to the Little Piave, across which the Austrian army had been +driven. + +It had been impossible in their retreat to bury their dead. Heaps of +bodies still lay where they fell. Every ditch was filled with slain +Austrians, the roadways were lined with them. It was a gruesome sight, +but it told the story of a changed Italy, of a new army that meant to +retrieve the honor of the country, and bring to the Italian arms the +glory to which they were entitled. + +Italy needed coal, she wanted steel for ammunition, and these +deficiencies threatened her effort. Her allies came to her assistance, +and equipped and replenished her for the prosecution of the war to a +successful conclusion. + + [Illustration: A HUMBLE FOUR-FOOTED CITIZEN OF ROME + + His voice was never for war + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + +In relief work the Italians are particularly efficient. The central +organization of the Italian Red Cross has naturally assumed the +responsibility and direction of all relief work, both for soldiers and +civilians. Numerous other organizations have sprung into existence; +chief among them is "_Le Samaritane_," which is under the presidency of +Her Majesty, Queen Helena of Italy. In this organization are thousands +of women who are members of the best Italian society, and they have +rendered effective and generous assistance in many ways, relieving +distress wherever they find it. + +A hospital for wounded soldiers has been established at the Royal +Palace of the Quirinal, which is under the direct supervision of the +Queen. The Duchess of Aosta, wife of the King's cousin, is General +Inspector of the Red Cross nurses, and both of these noble ladies +give actual, effective, and intelligent service to the various relief +organizations to which their names are attached. + + [Illustration: AMERICAN RED CROSS HEADQUARTERS, PADUA + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + +Italian women have proved themselves worthy mates and daughters of +the heroic sons and soldiers of Italy. To them is due the initiative +in the forming of several patriotic organizations, such as the "White +Cross," for the protection of little children, "The Sowers of Courage," +and "The Smile to the Strong," formed for helping and encouraging the +fighting sons of Italy. Soldiers' huts have been erected and put in +charge of the members of an association known as "Soldiers' Mammas." +The members are women that have sons at the front, and may therefore be +expected to give affectionate and maternal care to the young soldiers. +There are other organizations, such as "The Mothers of Fallen Soldiers" +and "The Widows of the War," whose object is mutual help among the +women that have suffered the loss of son or husband. + +Men who, because of advanced age, have been compelled to remain at +home, have not failed to take up the burden of assistance and relief. +Local committees have everywhere been formed under the name of +"_Assistenza Civile_." There is also the "_Segratariato del Popolo_," +besides many others. All these societies are banded together to +assist the families of soldiers, to care for the mutilated, and to aid +wherever help is needed. + +The Italian Government has enacted special laws for the benefit of +those stricken by the war. For instance, the Government furnishes shoes +below cost to Government employees earning less than four thousand +_lire_ per year (about $800). + + [Illustration: TRAMWAY IN ROME + + Showing women as conductor, motorist, and despatcher + + Press Illustrating Service, Inc.] + + +_Education_ + +School life continues practically as in normal times, with the +exception that, in the elementary schools and in the grades of the +grammar and high schools, there is a larger proportion of women +teachers. Many instructors who had been retired have asked to re-enter +service, thus relieving the young men called to the colors. + +In the universities a few distinguished professors of military age have +been permitted to retain their chairs, but a considerable number have +gone to the front. Naturally the number of students has been greatly +reduced. + + [Illustration: THE SMALL CANALS OF VENICE WERE ALMOST DESERTED + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + +Special dispensations have been made for the schools of medicine, so +that the services of the more advanced students may be utilized while +at the same time they are enabled to continue their studies. This has +been made possible by the establishment of the so-called "_Universita +Castrense_," or Camp University, situated in the war zone, where +distinguished physicians who are also university professors teach the +young students, while teachers and pupils alternate the hours of class +with those of service in the camp hospitals. The change caused by +the war in the condition of women has probably been more profound and +more keenly felt in Italy than in other countries, such as England and +France, where women have for many years been engaged in various useful +pursuits. In Italy the women of the middle class, with rare exceptions, +remained at home. Those of the lower class, when they worked at all, +generally chose some occupation such as teaching. Most women had no +economic independence. Unmarried girls usually lived with their parents +or some married brother or sister. + + [Illustration: ST. MARK'S PLACE, VENICE + + Though the beautiful buildings were protected, crowds gathered daily + and regular occupations were pursued + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + +An ardent group of Italian women prepared the ground and labored for +years to convince their sisters that they were wrong in the belief that +under all conditions "a woman's place is in her home." This belief was +almost a religion in the southern provinces of Italy; the prejudice +there was so strong that it required the utmost courage of the women to +combat it. Intelligent, progressive and cultured Italian girls are now +to be found in almost every occupation in which their English, French +and American sisters are engaged. This revolution in the attitude of +Italian women is accepted, not as a temporary war necessity, but as +a permanent change that cannot fail to have a deep and, on the whole, +beneficent effect upon social conditions in Italy. + + +_Food Regulations_ + +Conditions in civil life are comparatively good. Of course, there are +many restrictions, above all in food conservation and supply. Prices +have increased, but so have salaries. There are no unemployed, and the +working classes generally are prosperous. + +War conditions required three meatless days per week, as in the other +countries of the Allies. Cards were given for bread, sugar, coal, olive +oil, macaroni and rice. That the quantity allowed to each individual +was sufficient was proved by the fact that the authorities often +received offers to diminish the rations of some families who found they +had more than they needed. The use of gas was limited to meal hours for +heating, and for illumination until ten o'clock at night. + + [Illustration: Hall of the Great Council, Ducal Palace, Venice. + + On the floor may be seen in rolls paintings taken from ceiling and wall + + NOTE--The pictures on pages 6, 7, 8, 9, are printed + through the courtesy of the Italian Embassy, Washington. They are + reproduced from photographs owned by the Italian Government.] + + [Illustration: Ceiling showing spaces from which art masterpieces have + been removed] + +No restrictions were placed on the use of electricity in most city +homes, although street illumination was diminished and in certain +cities in the advanced zone was abolished entirely, as a defensive +measure. The abundance of electricity is explained by the fact that it +is very often generated by water power, as, for instance, in Rome. + +Restaurants must send to the authorities a list of food furnished, +with prices charged for each portion, or for the whole meal, or for +the week. They must indicate also any extra charges, and the reason +for such charges. The authorities will approve the menu only if it +corresponds with normal or prescribed prices, and a copy, stamped and +signed by an authorized person, must be exposed to the public where it +can easily be seen. + +No food can be served unless it is on the approved list. In large +cities, there is a committee of control, composed of five citizens +appointed by the mayor, whose duty it is to see that the restrictions +are rigidly observed. If the police authorities do not approve of a +certain menu, it is submitted to the committee, and unless they put +their O. K. upon it, the restaurant is not permitted to use it. + +Two factors combine to keep prices of necessities and even luxuries +down to a reasonable level. One is the so-called "_calmiere_," or +government regulation, that certain products may not be sold at a +higher price than that fixed by the regularly constituted authorities. +The other factor is the prevalence of co-operative societies that sell +to their members at cost or almost at cost. Retailers have to compete +with these societies, and there is a consequent curb on profiteering. +Nearly every trade or profession has its own co-operative stores. The +entrance fee which must be paid to join a co-operative society is very +moderate, in some instances as low as five _lire_ (about one dollar). + + [Illustration: THE ASSUMPTION OF THE VIRGIN + + Titian's great masterpiece in the Academy of Fine Arts, Venice] + + +_Amusements and Sports_ + +Theaters, cinematograph theaters, and other places of amusement had +to close at midnight. Restaurants and cafés closed an hour earlier. +This did not apply to the war zone, where the military authorities +made their own regulations and imposed all kinds of restrictions for +defensive purposes. + + [Illustration: TITIAN'S "ASSUMPTION" BEING TAKEN OUT] + + [Illustration: TITIAN'S "ASSUMPTION" BEING TRANSPORTED ACROSS COUNTRY + TO A SECURE PLACE] + +In general, theaters and motion-picture shows in Italy are well +patronized. Opera is still popular, and performances are given in +various cities. Society does not consider it good form to wear evening +dress. It would not be in taste for women to be elaborately gowned, or +to attempt to give dances or house parties. Officers do not wear their +dress uniforms, no matter what may be the function they attend. Ladies +avoid the use of jewels, and there is, generally speaking, a soberness +in the dressing of both men and women. Italy, however, is not gloomy +nor depressed. On the contrary, the Italians are vivacious, and their +sunny dispositions are manifested throughout the troublous times. + +Sports generally have been abolished. There is no horse-racing, but, +for the purpose of breeding fine animals, horses are still being +trained. + +Travel is freely permitted, though, of course, the war zone has been +carefully guarded. In the restricted area a pass was necessary, and +vital reasons had to be given for permission to travel. On account +of the shortage of coal, the number of trains has been reduced, as +well as the number of cars in each train. Travel is therefore lacking +in comfort, and it is not uncommon to see people standing even in +first-class compartments throughout journeys lasting six or seven +hours. The discomforts are accepted good-naturedly, and there is far +less grumbling than one would expect. + + +_Conditions in Venice_ + +The morale of the Italians has never been better. Caporetto has been +avenged, the Austrians were thrown back across the Little Piave, and +brought to their knees. Venice has been saved. The city by the sea +has had its trials. Severe, indeed, have been some of the air raids, +and three-fourths of the population fled. About fifty thousand of the +inhabitants remained, but this represents but one-fourth of the people +that lived along the canals of Venice before the war. + + [Illustration: THE LAST SUPPER. By Leonardo da Vinci + + This famous painting has been half effaced by the ravages of time] + + [Illustration: THE LAST SUPPER PROTECTED BY PADDING + + Da Vinci's great picture is painted on the wall of the Refectory of the + Church of Santa Maria della Grazie, Milan, Italy] + +Many hotels are closed, tourists come no more. No Italian city +has suffered from the effects of war so much as Venice. Industries +have been ruined, its commerce depleted. Its churches and hospitals +have again and again been bombed from the air. Frescoes have been +obliterated that can never be replaced, though much of the damage done +will soon be repaired. + +All about the populous Square of St. Mark heaps of sand-bags were piled +to protect the arcades. The beautiful façade of St. Mark's Cathedral +has been, for some time, hidden from view. The famous horses were taken +down, the wonderful Byzantine mosaics were removed, and the entire +front of the building covered with sand-bags and protected by huge +timbers. + + [Illustration: THE COLLEONI STATUE UNDER PROTECTIVE COVERING] + + [Illustration: THE FAMOUS EQUESTRIAN STATUE OF BARTOLOMMEO COLLEONI, BY + VERROCHIO--VENICE] + +The Doges' (Ducal) Palace was supported by columns of bricks; +everywhere evidence could be seen of the attempt of the Italians +to save the most remarkable city in the world. Inside the sumptuous +Cathedral of St. Mark's, the effect was startling--all the works of +art gone, the altar covered beyond recognition, mounds upon mounds of +sand-bags heaped around the columns. It was more like a cave than the +interior of one of the most beautiful of churches. Along the Grand +Canal the large hotels have been converted into hospitals. Vast palaces +have been closed and deserted. Life on the Canal is so quiet that it +is almost painful. It is not the same Venice so many travelers recall. +Only one good-class hotel is open. There are a few boarding-houses, +but all the magnificent hotels are either closed or filled with wounded +men. + +It was difficult in war times to get into Venice, and more difficult +to get out. Everyone was looked upon as a spy until he proved that +he was not. Officials inquired into your life history, traced your +every movement, watched every step you took, and if finally you passed +muster and got away without a long delay, you knew that there was not +a suspicion of your ever having even dreamed of being a spy. + + [Illustration: THE MADONNA AND TWO SAINTS BY PERUGINO-CREMONA + + At the right, the painting covered with timber and sand-bags] + +It was, of course, more difficult in the war zone. Once inside the +restricted area one became a suspect, and it sometimes took weeks to +obtain police and military permission to leave Italy. The Italians were +in earnest, they had had a severe lesson, and they did not intend to be +caught napping. + +An Allied victory was the one object, and Italy was ready to pay her +share of the price. No braver men ever faced an enemy than the Arditi, +and no enemy army ever forgot an encounter with these "shock troops" of +the Italian army. These men were born and brought up in an atmosphere +that has taught them how to fight. They are as hard as nails, as +fearless as lions--the pick of Italy's best troops. + + [Illustration: MARKET WOMEN OF ITALY + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + +Italy, though needing food, is not starving, nor is she depressed. She +has recovered from the shock of 1917, and there is no disaffection +among her people. All are united. Socialists cannot overturn the +conditions of the nation. As for their military stamina--Austrians can +testify to the fact that the Italian army is a foe worthy to engage +itself at any time, against any hostile power. + + [Illustration: LACE MAKERS HOLD TO THEIR TRADE + + Island of Burrano, Venice + + Photograph by E. M. Newman] + + +_The Spirit of Italy_ + +We cannot close more fittingly than by quoting Mr. Sidney Low's highly +informing comments on the spirit of Italy:[2] + +"Of all the belligerent nations I have seen, Italy seems to me the +most tranquil, contented and serenely confident. She has endured heavy +losses and is called upon to make great sacrifices, but her people +have counted the cost and they pay it resolutely, cheerfully, almost, +one would say, gaily. They have no love for war and on this one they +entered with hesitating and doubtful steps, but now, I think, they +feel, not only that it was necessary and right, but that it will give +them some things which were wanting in the years of peace. War is a +monstrous evil; but from its furnace of pain and suffering Italy, with +other nations, may emerge hardened and tempered. She will gain a larger +unity and that not merely by annexing the unredeemed territory. The +war has gone far to obliterate that division of classes and localities +which was the inheritance of her troubled past. The common effort and +the common burden have crowned the edifice which the makers of Italy +built up in the nineteenth century.... + +"What Italy needs is security, sufficient to develop to the full her +economic resources and her national individuality; and that she intends +to obtain. She is resolved to be independent of external patronage, +protection and supervision of any kind, and to enjoy all the rights, +privileges, ambitions, which belong to the greater nations of the +earth. She believes herself capable of excelling, not merely in art, +science, letters, philosophy, laws, but in production, manufacturing, +commerce, the exploitation of waste and backward lands. She is not +content that her people, so intelligent, so industrious, so capable, +should be packed off year by year in shoals to form the ill-paid labor +helots of wealthier communities; she prefers that they should be kept +at home to develop the riches and intensified vitality of their own +land. She has watched the rise of Germany from poverty and weakness +to strength and industrial magnificence; and she believes that the +Latin capacity for organization, invention, scientific adaptation and +enterprise, is not inferior to the Teutonic. She thinks she can do +many of the things that Germany has done, and some things which Germany +will never do; and she means to try. It is for the great free nations, +with which she is now associated, to survey her effort with sympathetic +eyes, and extend to it all the aid and encouragement in their power." + + [2] From "Italy in the War" + + [Illustration: WOMAN LETTER CARRIER, ROME + + Copyright, Western Newspaper Union] + + [Illustration: SCHOOL INSTITUTED BY AMERICAN RED CROSS + + At the Italian front, behind the war zone + + Press Illustrating Service. Inc] + + +_SUPPLEMENTARY READING_ + + ITALY IN THE WAR. _By Sidney J. M. Low_ + ITALY AT WAR. _By H. Vivian_ + EUROPE'S FATEFUL HOUR. _By G. Ferrero_ + THE BOOK OF ITALY. _Edited by Raffaelo Piccoli_ + A book of story, essay, verse and picture, interpreting the spirit + of Italy. + +*** Information concerning the above books may be had on application to +the Editor of The Mentor. + + + + +_THE OPEN LETTER_ + + +In the coming months of reconstruction and restoration in Europe, +Italy will have special problems of her own to solve. Victory in the +world war means for Italy five million additional mouths to feed in her +redeemed territory. Close rationing will, therefore, be necessary for +a long time, and a liberal food allotment from outside relief sources +must be made. + +Italy cannot be accused of having neglected her land. The total area of +the country comprises 70,820,197 acres, only a little over 7 per cent +of which is unproductive land. In her agricultural production, however, +cereals do not play an important part. Her wheat product did not meet +her domestic demands even before the war, and annual importations of +grain were always necessary. The situation, therefore, today, after +the terrible toll that war has taken, is acute and distressing as +far as the main "staff of life" is concerned. Italy produces fruits +in quantity, but a starving nation cannot live by fruit alone. The +traveler in Italy today may feast his eyes on twelve million acres of +vine-covered slopes, but the children of the land are crying for milk +and bread. The wines of Italy are famous for their flavor and quality, +and her olives and lemons are known throughout the world, but the +people cannot survive on wine and olives. They need more substantial +food, and, under the present strict rationing, each person receives +only seventeen pounds of bread a month. + + * * * * * + +Italy's exports have been chiefly olives, lemons and cheese--Gorgonzola +and Parmesan being among the famous brands. These fine Italian cheeses +are made from goats' milk, and, as there is little enough of that now +to feed wounded soldiers and children, the exportation of cheese has +been stopped. Before the war olives and olive oil were shipped in huge +quantities. There are miles and miles of olive trees to be seen from +train windows when traveling through Italy. Today just as many olives +are grown, and as much olive oil is obtained, but it is needed at home +and is carefully guarded there. The Italian government practically +controls the output and very little is permitted for export. Lemons are +grown in great quantities and are still exported to some extent. The +difficulty in obtaining boats, however, has made it impossible to ship +any considerable quantity of lemons, and so this source of income has +been virtually eliminated. + + * * * * * + +Italy has found it necessary, therefore, to cultivate her products +exclusively for home consumption, and, in this cultivation, thought +is given only to the supply of things necessary for the maintenance +of the Italian people. Things that are most needed,--that give most +sustenance, are being cultivated to the exclusion of things that +brought income from outside, but did not fill the hungry mouths of +the people. Also, food products that formerly had to be imported, are +now being home grown. Fortunately, this is made easy by the fact that +Italy is a "clime where every season smiles." It is favored by climatic +conditions to a degree comparable to those of Southern California, and, +accordingly, a great range of crops, both of a temperate-zone and of a +tropical kind, can be grown readily. In the southern part of Italy the +climate is semitropical. The soil is fertile and garden-truck grows +in abundance--and many kinds of fruit, including oranges, lemons, +grapes, apples, plums and pears. In the fertile plains of the north +are fields where cereals are grown and these are being extended and +prepared for intensified cultivation. The delta of the Piave, captured +and held for a short time by the Austrians, is again in possession +of Italy. Comprising some of the richest soil in the world, it will +soon be flourishing with growing crops, and its fields will contribute +substantially to the solution of Italy's food problem. + + * * * * * + +We may be sure then that Italy, plucky and staunch, will "carry on" +through hardship to renewed prosperity. With the sympathetic assistance +that is her due from the United States, there can be no question of +the future. Italy's firmly booted leg will continue to kick its sturdy +way down into the "warm waters" that Germany so desired; her fair +domains will continue to enjoy that "place in the sun" that Prussia so +imperiously demanded. With all her advantages of land and sea, Italy +must "come through" and find plenty in the wake of peace. + + [Illustration: W. D. Moffat] + + + + +NEW YEAR GREETING + + +The Mentor receives friendly messages from its readers daily, and, at +the turn of the New Year, many cordial greetings come in--for all of +which thanks! full hearted and fervent thanks! These messages are a +great encouragement and inspiration to us. With such endorsement of +past accomplishment we look to the future with joyful confidence. The +shortest, pithiest, and most expressive message that we have received +came over the phone one morning not many days ago: "I like The Mentor +because it is absolutely unique. The Mentor has a genius for _making +knowledge human_." Think of it, making knowledge human! That is a new +phrase, and it pleases us mightily. To many people, knowledge, while +much desired and sought after, presents an imposing and awesome front. +To many, knowledge means toilsome and tedious study. If The Mentor has +succeeded in making the halls and chambers in the Temple of Knowledge +bright, sunny, and attractive; if it has made the pathways in the +fields of research alluring and easy to pursue--in brief, if, as our +reader says, it has "made knowledge human,"--we shall feel that we have +accomplished something well worth while. + + * * * * * + +From far out in Montana a doctor writes to us: "I was glad to get +your letter today as a reminder. I have missed The Mentor since my +membership ran out. I've been lonesome without it. If you have any +rates for five years or so, let me know, and I'll take advantage of +them. I want it to belong to our family from now on. The Mentor will +never get old, and my growing family will appreciate it in ten years +from now as much as my wife and I do now. I do not know you people who +get out this magazine, and probably never will, but please take this +note as a whole-hearted appreciation." + + * * * * * + +From Winnipeg the head of a prominent insurance company greets us as +follows: "I want again to congratulate you on the very high standard +maintained in every number issued. I certainly enjoy reading The Mentor +and the beautiful pictures accompanying each issue are most delightful. +I simply cannot speak too highly of the merits of your excellent +publication." + + * * * * * + +Another message comes from Quebec. A member of our Association, with +the fine old French-Canadian name of Gaston Beaupré, writes to us: +"Allow me to congratulate you for your service to me since I joined +Mentor Association. It is needless to tell you how much I appreciate my +Mentors. I am looking forward to our dreaded and cold Canadian winter +evenings without fear since I have plenty of Mentors to while away the +time. The loneliest country in the world is lovely enough for me if I +have a few copies of Mentor with me." + + * * * * * + +A well-wishing friend out in middle Pennsylvania, carrying out what +seemed to be a New Year's resolution, sent us this greeting: "I have +intended for a long time to write you a personal letter telling you +of my appreciation of The Mentor. It has seemed to me to be the one +place of resort where I could find enjoyment and forget for awhile. The +Mentor is indeed a _real part of my life_. I should like to drop in and +visit you at the home of The Mentor." + +By all means "drop in." The latchstring of The Mentor door is always +loose and a warm welcome within awaits every member of The Mentor +Association. If you are ever in New York, come in and visit us so that +we may come to know each other well. + + W. D. MOFFAT. + + + + +THE MENTOR + +A New Volume in the Mentor Library + +It gives us great pleasure to advise our friends that the sixth volume +of The Mentor Library is now ready for distribution. It contains issues +one hundred twenty-one to one hundred forty-four inclusive, and is, in +every particular, uniform with the volumes previously issued. + +One of the great advantages of owning The Mentor Library is that +it grows in value from year to year--giving an endless supply of +instructive and wonderfully illustrated material that would be +impossible to obtain elsewhere. It constitutes one of the most valuable +educational sets that you could possibly own, and, each year, the set +is enlarged by one volume at a very small additional cost. + +The beautiful numbers of the unique Mentor Library will never be out of +date, as every issue of The Mentor is devoted to an important subject +of enduring interest. The concise form in which scores of subjects +are covered makes it of the greatest practical value to the business +man, to the active woman who appreciates the importance of being well +informed, and to children, who will find it of great direct value +in their school work. =You will want volume Number Six, which will +complete The Mentor Library to date.= That you may receive it you need +only send the coupon or postcard without money. + + * * * * * + +The volume will be forwarded to you, all charges paid. You can remit +$1.25 upon receipt of bill, and $1.00 a month for only six months; or +a discount of 5% is allowed if payment in full is made within ten days +from date of bill. If you are now paying for the Bound Volumes we will +ship this volume to you and add the amount to your account. We urge you +to act at once. + + The Mentor Association, + 114-116 East 16th St., New York. + + Gentlemen: + + I am anxious to have the new volume of The Mentor + Library. Please send it to me all charges paid, and I will + send you $1.25 upon receipt of bill and $1.00 per month + for six months--$7.25 in all. + + Very truly yours, + + Name............................................ + + Street......................................... + + Town..................... State................. + + A discount of 5% is allowed if payment in full is + made within 10 days from date of bill. + + THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, 114-116 East 16th St., New York City + + MAKE THE SPARE + MOMENT COUNT + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Mentor: Italy Under War +Conditions, Vol. 6, Num. 23, Ser. No. 171, January 15, 1919, by E. M. Newman + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 44983 *** |