The Washington times., 1906-05-20
AMERICAN WOMAN
LABORS FOR ITALY
Miss Almira Leavitt Works
With Students.
]NSTILLS AMERICAN IDEALS
is IN Washington on Visit - Gives
Graphic Description of Eruption of
Vesuvius, Which She Witnessed.

Washington has an interesting visitor
IN Miss Almira Fay Leavitt, who is a
guest at tho Portner of Mrs J. Ellen
Foster and Miss Pierce She Is a native
of Cambridge, Mass, and a little more
than five years ago went abroad for a
pleasure tour of the continent. While
IN Rome she became acquainted with
Italian student life, and the phases
which have made IL a menace to the
people. Miss Leavitt saw an oppor-
tunity, grasped il, and has worked with
such remarkable success that every
city of Importance IN italy is endeavor-
ing to secure her services.
Miss Leavitt Is enthusiastic about her
students. and day BY day their euthu-
siasm grows so that after five years
work she begins TO see the fruits of her
labor When asked how long she would
be dn this country. she said just long
enough to discharge a few duties and
then return at once TO her work
Il have been much in Italy the past
ten years" said Miss Leavitt yesterday
Prom the first have sought 10 know
the people. their sorrow. their joys, their
problems. They have responded eager
" and anectonatelv 10 my overtures.
Few Of the tourists who flock to that
the scenery. art, and poetry. L soon
became interested in the university stu
dents. They are so neglected in COM
rarison with our own. Dormitories are
unknown. Social life with the faculties
seldom exists. General social life be-
tween men and women-wholesome and
uplifting as we know it's practically
unknown Yet there are 100000 students
In Italy. 7 became enlisted in the ef-
fort to safeguard some OF these brilliant
young men, The word home does, not
exist in Italian. My success in Rome
was beyond my highest hopes. The
past year L was asked TO go to Flor
ence, Milan. and Naples The Univer-
sity of Naples IS the largest in Italy.
having 5000 students. 1 was counseled,
lnplored not TO go. as the students
were known throughout Italy for their
bad reputation. l decided. ia that case
that it was a needy neld. and went 70
Naples. I gathered a group OF dis
tinctly superior young men, professors
and students l teach English 10 draw
them and 20 be able to tell them many
wholesome truths OF Anglo-Saxons, and
especially of our country and its insti-
tutions When I was about TO set sail
for my little visit to America boat
load Of the students came to the Cretic
10 see me off Just as / was leaving
they said 10 me: We shall come 70 well
come you on your return, and we shall
sing 10 you America and Home, Sweet
Home
Miss Leavitt went through the excit-
ing period of the eruption Of Mt. Vesu-
vius. and. although her home was six
teen miles from the crater. each day
great pans Of ashes were removed from
her veranda.
In speaking of the catastrophe she
said: 'On that fateful Thursday 1 saw
my snowy balcony black with ashes and
OWNED the truth, The streets were in
dcscribable. People carried umbrellas.
Saturday night there were three earth
quake shocks and many people walked
the streets all night. their terror add
ing to the general alarm. Refugees
from the little towns poured into the
city PROFESSIONS went through the
streets. headed by priests carrying an
image Of the Madonna or some saint
and guarded by soldiers, SO the days
wore on-ashes. sulphur. and chlorate
of sodium. Clothes and hair were gray
The streets were like blizzard-swept
town. with sashes instead OF snow. It
is the greatest eruption for several cen
turtles, and as we can take a prospec-
tive view of the two calamities. 1 be-
lieve the disastrous results of the We
suvius tragedy will still be heavily felt
when that OF San Francisco shall have
become but dark memory. That is TO
say, that the ruin Of fields, and hence
the only source of income. and the
financial distress in proportion TO the
resources Of the people are. and will,
be more profound and lasting"
Miss Leavitt is in Washington for the
purpose of visiting Congress for some
data relative TO her classes in Naples
She is conducting these classes purely
on her own responsibility and requires
no compensation from the students.