The Detroit times. [volume] (Detroit, Mich.) 1903-1920, 1909-06-25
|GRAFT AND FILTH
RULE MESS|NA
American City Is Only Redeeming
Feature of Entire Work OF
Rebuilding City.

ROME, June Wv I'm the NNAA -
relief and reconstruction 3iill in the
hands Of INSCRIPTIONS grating ON
cials the state OF affairs al Messina
and throughout the districts ravaged
by the earthquake grows daily more
horrible The money collected from
foreign nations has been wantonly
squandered with small result The
distress is shocking in the extreme,
and the Italian government stands
supinely by and makes little or no ell
fort TO remedy matters.
A conscientious observer just re-
turned from the scene OF the disaster
tells the correspondent facts that make
the situation one OF the most shame.
full known 10 history. Out OF the
whole disgusting mess OF graft, greed
and hideous indifference 10 suffering
the one redeeming feature seems 10
/ De the wooden village Quilt for the
sufferers under American auspices ana
with American capital Even TINS
noble work is tainted with graft, FOR
the ground on which the village stands,
selling before the earthquake for ~
cents a square metre. was bought D.
( the Italian government al the rate ~
ISll0 Il metre with the proviso mat
AZ the expiration Of five years the lana
shall be returned 10 the original own
ers. who may then demand what
ground rent they choose.
Government Indifferent.
/ The Italian government seems 20
care nothing for the distress that pre-
walls throughout the stricken regions
! The whole power there is in the hands
OF oficious engineers who, II paid, VIII
/ let the building OF houses proceed, ou-
who II their palms are not suihcientlE
creased. place, obstacles In the way o.
| building until their avaricious de.
mands are satisfied The ecclesiastical
authorities boycott Protestant nrms
and Protestant donors and excommun-
/ icate the people who work Tor them
! This is winked az by Premier Gio!ltu'
who has made an alliance with the
! Clericals in exchange for their votes
More than six thousand persons are
! hOuseless In Messna alone. while the
/ barracks are filled with crowds 81
idling Unsuitable officials All work Is
| at a standstill.
The correspondent Informant de-
clares that II is like passing from me
depths OF some loathesome pit 70 the
pure sunlit air 70 cross the bridge
that separates the Italian buildings
from the American village.
His comments are more than SUB
Stimulated in strong article that APP
reared recently In leading ltalan
periodical. the cerriere dltale.
The American Village.
This editorial begins by saying that
In
his case especially Notifying TO Ita-
lans. praise should be given where i
is due
one cannot do less says the Cor
lere. when one sees the official jour
ais Q. the government do nothing Dut
raise in highly colored language the
FETCHED scene OF middle disaster
nd filth which they call the new city
i Messina. and pass over entirely the
really beautiful and perfectly con-
structed village which the American ;
! have built
IT would be wrong 10 call this a
! village il is a real city. To pass from
the filthy. badly constructed and IN
sanitary cabins which he ineffable
Italian engineers have built 10 the airy,
broad streets and snugly built modern
houses OF American construction Is
like passing from Hades 70 Paradise.
| on the one hand Is the stencil OF
/ nutrefving corpses a hell or ruins and
/ the purgatory OF Engineer Simonetti
I ON the other. verdure, trim rows oil
trees abundant water. clear air and
long streets Of delightful houses. 4
bridge separates the extremes. AMI
/ guarding the bridge stands a blond
giant OF the American navy, like an
! angel standing between the PIT and
! heaven
The American city is nearly half a
mile long and OF the same Depth me
! barracks cover 100000 square metres
n The entrance is by the famous Niale
/. san MARITIME. and passes over solid
bridge built by American marines over
I the Torrente Zaera, which serves as
the boundary between the italian and
American sections.