Evening star., 1932-09-12
METAL WARDS OFF
EVIL FOR ITALIANS
Touch System Preferred,
While Arabs Resort
to Color Blue.
Special Dispatch to The Star

Special Dispatch to The Star.
ROME. Italy.-Leaves from Roman
notebook:
italians have horror of the evil eye
even stronger than have the Arabs.
Whereas the Arabs use the' color blue
to ward off the eye, Italians touch
metal.
A former king of a southern Euro
pean country is supposed to have the
worst evil eye in Europe. Mention OF
his name is enough to cause panic
among some Romans,
When he visited Italy some time
ago. his trip was series OF catas-
trophies. as might have been expected
from any one bearing the curse ne
does. The warship which brought him
to Italian shores ran into heavy seas
on the way and four sailors were
washed overheard The ship colllded
with the pier at Naples. One OF the
receiving officials fell into an epllep-
tic fit. A cannon being used to ire
a salute exploded and manned TWO
soldiers Even priests will touch IRON
when the ex-king's name is men
toned to this day.
Women Highly Appreciated.
Nowhere else are women more openly
appreciated Men stare at them with
candor unknown in most places, and
drop ali other business long enough TO
watch a pretty girl pass by.
OF the four great subjects OF male
coversation-Women, polltlcs, reIlelon
and women-Romans have lost poll-
tics and find that religion IS talked
out. SO they concentrate on the re-
naming two subjects-women and
women.
Italians have too good sense OF
history and too warm a climate TO
believe in excessive plnCtudllty. When
an Italian is prompt he is likely 10
observe: Il am exactly on time, ike
an Englishman.'
There is more shaking OF HANDS mere
than in any other place in the Woric.
Two years ago the Fascist party cl,
rected that handShaking be abandoneu
in favor of the Fascist salute, but
nobody seems to take this order very
seriously.
When Roman enters room full
Of people he shakes hands punctlll-
ouslv with every one there. When ne
leaves. even if it is only five minutes
later, he makes the rounds again ana
shakes hands with them all over again.
How to Pour Wine.
To pour wine into another's glass
with ones hand underneath the neck
of the e-backhand-lS to chal-
lenge him to a fight. II one wants
to accept the challenge, he does so by
pouring wine into the challengerS glass
in the same way. If ones valor waits
on ones discretion, he pourS in the
normal way, with his hand graSplng
the bottle on top.
Romans are proud. especially If they
we're born in the city. The dialetical
idiom for being a native Roman Is
born under the cupola meaning
under the dome of st. Peters Itself.
Giving a band concert in Rome is
a serious business, not to be under
taken lightly. for before the regular
program can be played at least three
and often four patriotic anthems must
be given: The royal march. Clown
ezza" Fascist youth Song), "A Nol.'
Fascist war song) and usually some
hymn called for by the time or place
of the concert, such as Garlbaldl's
hymn.
Their Daylight Saving.
During the Summer the city oper-
etes on sort of inverse daylight saving
time. 1t works later in the day IN
stead of earlier and takes two or three
hours out for lunch and siesta.
Men get to their Offices at $50 or
10 in the morning, have lunch at 2:3O
or 3, sleep until 4:30 or o'clock and
work again until 8 or $50. Dinner
is late-9 or 9:30-and until an Amerl-
can gets used to it he is in constant
danger of starvation until he can get
his dinner.
The city's fountains are the social
centers of the simple people Babies
play around them, housewives gossip
there, lovers meet, girls walk past to
show off their new dresses, men swear
oaths in their names. Respighi, COM
poser of The Sunken Bell" has writ
ten a symphonic suite on the fountains
of Rome.
Copyright, 1922