This Was, Of Course, After I Got Into The Car, And After I Had Suffered
Another Wrong, And Was Resolved At Least To Be Good Myself.
I had taken
first-class tickets, but, when we had followed several conductors up and
down the train, the last of them said there were no first-class places
left, though I shall always doubt this.
I asked what we should do, and
he shrugged. I had heard that if you will stand upon your rights in such
a matter the company will have to put on another car for you. But I was
now dealing with the Italian government, which has nationalized the
railroads, but has apparently not yet repleted the rolling stock; and
when the conductor found us places in a second-class carriage, rather
than quarrel with a government which had troubles enough already I got
aboard. I suppose really that I have not much public spirit, and that
the little I have I commonly leave at home; in travelling it is
burdensome. Besides, the second-class carriage would have been
comfortable enough if it had not been so dirty; it looked as if it had
not been washed since it was flooded with liquid ashes at the
destruction of Pompeii, though they seemed to be cigar ashes.
The country through which we made the hour's run was sympathetically
squalid. We had, to be sure, the sea on one side, and that was clean
enough; but the day was gray, and the sea was responsively gray; while
the earth on the other side was torn and ragged, with people digging
manure into the patches of broccoli, and gardening away as if it had
been April instead of January.
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