Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-04-05
ITALIAN TYPES.
Head Of Family the Most Long-suf-
fering.

From the London Telegraph
In all Europe the most maligned country
and nationality is Italy and the Italians,
with regard to the upper-middle and mid
die class man. Of the aristocrat there is
nothing to be said; competent authorities
have declared him to be neither better nor
worse than his compeers in other countries.
Aristocratic society is cosmopolitan. The
middle-class husband in Italy Is the most
long-suffering and hard-worked, one may
venture to say, in all Europe, ana Wnie
his aggravations are many his fetallatons
are few To those who look on from the
heights of foreign superiority 1T Is a. con-
tinual wonder that he does not break OUT
oftener than he does: Conditions. OF course,
have much changed in the last fifteen
wears; there is more money, and conse-
quently more comfort, but also greater ne
cessities and demands. The upper middle
class husband works. as the American
would say, like niger, but at last ne
is beginning to see some return for his
labor in the way of increasing wealth
What would the E;nglishman say If he
were Obliged to be in his Office at am,
with an hour for dinner. and then on until
g. or even p.m., as the case may be?
His evenings after dinner, if he is not too
tired-which he often is-are spent at the
theater or perhaps he will drop into the
cafe in the former case Invariably accom-
panied by his wife, and in the latter, per-
haps The accepted idea concerning the
Italian man is that ahe is gay Lothario,
spendings his days in. idleness. and his
nights in something aunspeakabie, or at
cafe Now, the cafe is a. bugbaar to most
English-speaking peopls3 the mere word
conveying something feafsome and danger
GUS What EnglishwomSn considers her
husband lost to respeetablhty because ne
goes TO the club which costs him many
pounds year. and where he can drink and
gamble, If so inclined, yet she will shudder
at the cafe, where one, spends at the most
shilling an evening" and plays nothing
more exciting than game % % e aominofs e
will perhaps give 4 few dinners in the
course of the winters and go to a reception
or two. This makes up the life of the
richer nniddle-class husband, whose meals
are apt to be dlsorderly, his children UNI
ruiy and his wife affectionate. but exact
ing. Hs1f4si
The more modest tYpe4ef the middle-class
husband, whose means are as a rule very
limited will make money go further. He
will have, perhaps, from e. to f3 week,
and with this will support a wife and from
three to six children in such way as to
show no signs of real poverty. His house
will have few comforts, his food will be OF
the simplest, while his widest diversion
will be an occasional visit to cafe, and
his habitual one walk along the Corse or
a stroll on the Psncio to hear the band
play 1t must be taken into consideration
that If his house is bare. 1t is flooded with
the sunshine which only Italy provides, and
II he is cold he has only to put himself in
the sun, which Is always called thee "ItaI-
ian stove" With all his poverty, he Is hos
pitality itself. He will invite people to his
table. making no apology for its simplicity,
and will make 1t seem feast by his cor
friends in the evening in his family circle.
and is In the babit of returning such visits.
But where the mid ils-elass man, both
rich and poor, shines above his fellows Is