The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-07-11

More than this, months ago various
German scholars residing In Rome
were quite harshly treated by the In
habitants or the police of small towns
in the neighborhood. BY the middle Of
April this feeling OF hostility was 20
deepened and 50 widespread hat Il
would have been decidedly unpleasant
FOR any one to go through the coun-
try districts on foot unless he was able
to express himself fully in italian and
had a photograph Of himself attached
to some unmistakable document Of
Identification. II seems to me that this
widespread state Of feeling was caused
not simply by the fear Of spies but by
two other influences.
The first Is the growing impression
made on the Italian mind by the Ger
man invasion OF Belgium. Millions of
Italians are still rejoicing over the
establishment OF their own nationality
forty-flve years ago. They are there
fore ardently attached to the principle
Of nationality and in this attachment
"~irredentism' has had it's deep roots.
The prospect OF the destruction Of a
free. brave and patriotic nation like
Belgium has filled the more educated
classes with a growing repugnance.
When Maeterlinck visited Italy his
addresses were applauded to h echo
by audiences which packed large halls
to the doors and overlooked into the
streets.
The second cause OF the growing
dislike OF Germans a the deepening
reprobation Of German methods of
,.,,<ara vrhto has hann pansa1 mt
solely or even chiefly by English and
French reports. 1t has come largely
from direct correspondence from Bel
GUM. A good deal OF this correspon-
dence has been occupied not 80 much
by reports OF Individual acts as by
analysis OF German military orders
setting forth the German doctrine OF
the right and necessity Of reprisals.
A typical example OF what Is meant
il to be found in the correspondence
and articles OF the Corricre della
Serd. Owing to the fact that large
numbers Of Italian papers do not
make money enough to maintain eX-
tended correspondence or news agen-
cies, these articles. like much OF the
news material which appears at m
time in the columns OF that most in
~fuential Journal. have spread in
changed forms TO many other papers.
The PASTORAL letter Of Cardinal Mer-
cier giving the m and addresses
OF over forty priests and monks shot
in Belgium by the Germans was i'm
mediately translated into Italian and
sold at railway stations, In shops and
at newssta nds for "A few cents. Many
papers were prompt to point out that
It could hardly be even claimed that the
bulk Of these priests were executed
on n other grounds than AS hostages
for acts they did not themselves COM
NIT and Italian public feeling rejected
strongly the idea of the wholesale
execution Of hostages.
Against, this deepening current OF
dislike the German propaganda, which
through committees in Germany and
in Italy has flooded Italy with apollo
gies, explanations and anti-English
pamphlets. has been able to do little.
Many OF their documents were no bet
ter adapted to meet the Italian point
of view han much OF the German
literary defence in America was
adapted Ia meet the American point OF
view.
In addition, the German committees
made the anne small but influential
mistake in detail that they made in
much of their defence in English.
Many Of these pamphlets and leaflets
circulated In Italy were not translated
by native Italians but put into n Te-
desco-ltalianese which not only made
them less effective but seemed to