THREE WEEKS IN THE ABKUZZI. 255 



pasture and woodland, as well as with considerable tracts of waste 

 land, much of which is quite beyond a possibility of cultivation. On 

 the other hand, the tree limit is far lower than in Switzerland, and 

 the upper parts of many of the mountains are utterly bare of vegetation, 

 and consequently also of insect life. My time was, however, too 

 short to enable me to form any general conclusions, and as I never 

 got in more than two visits to any given spot, with the exception of 

 one specially favoured locality at Roccaraso, the fact of any species 

 not having been seen at any particular place is no argument 

 against its occurring there, especially since in each locality that I 

 visited twice, I found species on the second occasion which had not 

 put in an appearance on the first. I am convinced that the possibilities 

 of this region are great, and going into it absolutely without knowledge, 

 I have found three excellent spots in the Abruzzi, viz., Roccaraso, 

 Scanno, and Palena, and one — perhaps the best of all — out- 

 side the province, but still well in the Apennines, viz., Subiaco. 

 I only hope that my short experience will stimulate others 

 to try their luck in these parts, for I am sure they will be richly 

 reAvarded. Of course, there are drawbacks. In the first place, it is 

 absolutely necessary to be fairly at home in Italian, for not only does 

 one I'arely meet anyone capable of speaking a Avord of anything else, 

 but their own dialect is a difficult one to understand even for Italians 

 from other parts of Italy ; the end of most words and the beginning 

 of many is entirely omitted, which, while it simplifies the inflected 

 parts of speech, makes sad havoc of the others ; still, a few days makes 

 one accustomed to their idiosyncrasies, and they never have the least 

 difficulty in understanding the more usual form of the language. 

 When they speak anything else, moreover, it is almost certain to be 

 English, as many of the Abruzzesi spend some years in America, so 

 that if difficulties in mutual understanding should occur, it is always 

 worth while to try English on the chance that, if one's interlocutor 

 does not know any himself, he may be able to fetch someone who does. 

 Then, again, the accommodation at most places is extremely primitive; 

 but to set against that, the primitive inns are mostly very cheap, and 

 the cooking is almost universally beyond reproach; moreover, the beds 

 are extremely clean, so much so, that one must be on the look out 

 against damp sheets. All water, even for tooth-brushing purposes, 

 should be boiled, and milk is safer boiled too. The people are kindly 

 and interested, and quite without contempt for one's net, though it is 

 perhaps better only to let it be seen by grown-up people, lest the 

 friendly interest of the children should show itself in numerous 

 "followers," or in the offer of crushed and useless specimens, caught, 

 after careful stalking, with the hand or the cap, and which one cannot 

 hurt the captor's feelings by refusing to accept. One advantage 

 further — the Abruzzesi never beg I the difference at Subiaco was 

 painful. Brigandage, even in the remotest mountain districts, is 

 absolutely a thing of the past, and has been so for more than thirty 

 j^ears ; on the other hand, there really is in some districts, c.;/., Palena 

 and Subiaco, a certain amount of danger from wolves, if one adventures 

 oneself quite alone too far into the heart of the wooded mountains, 

 but, in the summer, even this is reduced to an almost negligeable 

 quantity, and two or three people together are always considered 

 quite safe. 



With regard to the butterflies to be found in the month of July, 



