I wondered
whether the Sindaco and his portly friend sat in their comfortable
room whilst the roaring went on; whether they smoked their cigars as
usual, and continued to chat at their ease. Very likely. The
privileged classes in Italy are slow to move, and may well believe
in the boundless endurance of those below them. Some day, no doubt,
they will have a disagreeable surprise. When Lombardy begins in
earnest to shout "_Abbasso_!" it will be an uneasy moment for the
heavy syndics of Calabria.
CHAPTER X
CHILDREN OF THE SOIL
Any northern person who passed a day or two at the _Concordia_ as an
ordinary traveller would carry away a strong impression. The people
of the house would seem to him little short of savages, filthy in
person and in habits, utterly uncouth in their demeanour, perpetual
wranglers and railers, lacking every qualification for the duties
they pretended to discharge. In England their mere appearance would
revolt decent folk. With my better opportunity of judging them, I
overcame the first natural antipathy; I saw their good side, and
learnt to forgive the faults natural to a state of frank barbarism.
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