The Arkansaw traveler., 1883-10-27
The sssIi.n seidier. fEondoa Daily Hew..t-

The Italian soldier as a rule, is short and spare built and his general appear ance conveys the impression of a not over robust physique. But see him marching and ii soon becomes apparent tha, he possesses more stamina than one would give nim credit for. How unmurmur- ingy he trudges for hours at tune :.long a dusty road under q hot sun with his heavy knapsack on his back and hls rife slang across his s''oulder And our sur prise Is increased ~hea we ind what meagre raticns h- h., to sustain him under all hs toll.
 His chief meal consists of soup made with lard, meat and maccaronl or some other kind of paste. His mess IS ore. pared in large cauldrons, round which at given signal the man gather, each with tin can, into which Is poured not very abundant supply of soup and an almost invisible lump of meat. In setting out on long march the soldier drinks the soup and keeps the meat to eat on the road. Besides this he gets coffee with out milk m the morning and abou, two pounds of bread to last him throughout, the day. A tumbler of wine Is served out to him every third or fourth day in the year.
 h his food is Spartan in it's simplicity his dress Is equally exempt from the charge of luxury. A loose coat of coarse grayish blue cloth covers the infantry soldier from neck to knee. His trousers are oil the same material. but when marching the latter are exchanged for canvas trousers, and when working in camp a canvas tunic Is donned instead of the coat. His headgear'is a kepi. very like tha, in use in the French army.
 The uniform ofshe Bersaglier Is some what "more expressed in fancy" This arm consists of picked men indeed. only strong fellows could march at the rapid pace they are trained 10. Otherwise the drill IS much the same as that of the ordiniry infantry regiments They wear black tunic with red facings, and black. broat-brimmed hat, with a bunch of green feathers stuck or one side. They are armed like the infantry. with Weuerly rides The cavalry and artillery are comparatively weaker arms than the in. fantry. The former poorly m mounted. and the guns and train oi the latter are below par.
 AuC AANa diC OtAlQCu into HeaYy cavalry or dragoons. lAneers and lish, cavalry. The dragoons are easily dis ,inguished by their helmets. Both they and the lancers are armed with lance and tWe,terly musket The light cavalry of Cavalleggieri have revolvers instead of lances. Singularly enough, the cavalry have their swords and muske,s listened to the saddle, so that If unhorsed they are defenseless. have already re- marked .ha. the physique of the men is better than outward appearance would denote.
 As regards their general dispositions. I may remark that they are docile, obedient to their superlors. well-behaved, cheerful and laborious. In times of danger and disaster. as during the cholera of lso-, the inundation of last year. and on the occasion ot the recent earthquake a, lschia, they work with an ardor and self devotion which is gratefully recognized by their felow-ci;llen.
 They lack. however. the smar,ness both in dress and drill and the martial bearing ofthe English or German soldiers. The former and less importan, deficiency Is the natural outcome of ltaly's endeav- ors to maintain a larger army than she can afford properly ,o equip. The ln- ferior,y of the drill is doubtless chiefly due to the shortness of the time ot service thirty months and the scarcity ot set- geants Tn the army.