A Garibaldi, when the crisis comes, may possibly emerge from that
tumultuous horde.
Where is the Cavour?
XXV
SCRAMBLING TO LONGOBUCCO
A driving road to connect San Demetrio with Acri whither I was now bound
was begun, they say, about twenty years ago; one can follow it for a
considerable distance beyond the Albanian College. Then, suddenly, it
ends. Walking to Acri, however, by the old track, one picks up, here and
there, conscientiously-engineered little stretches of it, already
overgrown with weeds; these, too, break off as abruptly as they began,
in the wild waste. For purposes of wheeled traffic these picturesque but
disconnected fragments are quite useless.
Perhaps the whole undertaking will be completed some day - speriamo! as
the natives say, when speaking of something rather beyond reasonable
expectation. But possibly not; and in that case - pazienza! meaning,
that all hope may now be abandoned. There is seldom any great hurry,
with non-governmental works of this kind.
It would be interesting if one could learn the inner history of these
abortive transactions. I have often tried, in vain. It is impossible for
an outsider to pierce the jungle of sordid mystery and intrigue which
surrounds them. So much I gathered: that the original contract was based
on the wages then current and that, the price of labour having more than
doubled in consequence of the "discovery" of America, no one will
undertake the job on the old terms. That is sufficiently intelligible.
But why operations proceeded so slowly at first, and why a new contract
cannot now be drawn up - who can tell!
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