ITALY 



3076 



ITALY 



except the north, the waters of the Mediter- 

 ranean Sea or its great branches, the Tyrrhe- 

 nian and Adriatic seas; while to the north it 

 is shut off from 

 the Continent and 

 protected from 

 sweeping north- 

 erly winds by the 

 great barrier of 

 the Alps. The 

 territories of 

 Switzerland, new 

 Jugo-Slavia and 

 France touch it on LOCATION MAP 



,1 i Showing the place of Italy 



its northern and in the continent of Europe 

 aorthwestemfron- ? nd h the a prop s O,onate amount 



tiers, but every- 

 where else there is water; and what this has 

 meant to the history and development of Italy 

 may be understood only when the vast impor- 

 tance of the Mediterranean as a trade route 

 through the stretch of centuries is compre- 

 hended. The peninsula itself is boot-shaped, 



and just at the toe is the "football" of Sicily, 

 which with Sardinia, Elba and smaller islands 

 makes up a part of the Italian kingdom. A 

 glance at the map will show how nearly the 

 peninsula, with its prolongation, Sicily, forms a 

 bridge across the center of the Mediterranean 

 from Europe in the direction of Africa. 



The greatest length of Italy from northwest 

 to southeast is 708 miles; its greatest breadth, 

 in the far northern, or mainland, portion, is 

 354 miles; but the chief part, the peninsula 

 itself, nowhere exceeds 150 miles in width, and 

 has an average width of about 100 miles. Not 

 counting the islands, its area is 91,161 square 

 miles, a little less than the combined areas of 

 New York and Pennsylvania; with the islands, 

 it has an area slightly greater than that of 

 Nevada, 110,845 square miles. Its latitude, 

 from 38 to 46 40' north, is about that of the 

 American coast from Delaware to Maine, but 

 Italy is an almost tropical country, knowing 

 nothing of the rigors and sudden changes of 

 New England climate. 



The People of Italy 



Their Characteristics. Italy is racially of The love of beauty, whether of nature or 



purer stock than the most of the European art, is inborn in most Italians, who have behii 



nations; that is, a large proportion of its in- them the traditions of a long line of ai 



habitants are Italians. But between the na- unsurpassed in the world's history. The lowe 



tives of one part of the country and those classes of most countries care little for pi( 



of another there are very distinct differences, tures, but the art museums of any large citj 



No physical description can be given which 

 will fit them all, but the commonest type is 

 that most familiar to dwellers in America, or 

 any other country to which Italians emigrate in 

 numbers, the dark-haired, dark-skinned type, 

 rather short of stature. Men as well as women 

 are likely to be very good-looking in their 



will show on Sundays or holidays a goodh 

 proportion of Italian laboring men, poorlj 

 clad, perhaps, but looking at great picti 

 with intelligent and appreciative eyes. 



How They Live. Italy had at the last 

 census (1911) a population of 34,671,377, rank- 

 ing a little below France and sixth among the 



youth, but they age rapidly, especially the European countries. As to density of popula- 



women, and the injunction to "Look well at 

 the mother before wedding the daughter," 

 might well frighten a suitor who had fixed his 

 fancy on a slim, smooth-cheeked Italian girl. 



tion, England, Belgium and the Netherlands 

 surpass it, Italy having an average of 3 

 people to the square mile. In some parts 

 the kingdom the population is largely rural, i 



As a race, the Italians are passionate and others the large proportion of the people live 

 hot-blooded, prone to avenge a fancied insult in cities and towns; but in general it may be 



Statistics said that only about one-ninth of the popula- 



without waiting for explanation. 



show that almost twenty times as many mur- 



tion is in cities of 100,000 or more. There are 



ders in proportion to population take place no such vast cities as London or New York, 



in Italy as in England, and more than in any for instance, but Rome, the capital ; Naples, 



other country of Europe, save perhaps Spain. Milan, Turin, Palermo, Florence, Catania, Ven- 



It is the inhabitants of Southern rather than ice, Messina, Leghorn and Bari, have each 



of Northern Italy who display in greatest more than 100,000 inhabitants. All of the most 



measure this passionate spirit those appar- important cities are described in these volumes, 



ently stolid Southern peasants whom only a In the main, Italians are sober and thrifty, 



personal injury can rouse quickly. 



and very willing to work; but conditions in 



