Military life in Italy : sketches - Societa italiana di storia militare

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298 MILITARY LIFE.
dashed behind a wardrobe with one spring, to avoid the cuff
that he knew he deserved.
These little domestic calamities, however, gave variety and
spice to our beautiful home We life. quarrelled occasionally,
but at heart were fond of each other. Whenever it was possible
we went out together, so much so that in the brigade we were
called the patrol of the seven ;
our street was called the street
of the seven ;
and it was the custom to "
say I am : going to
dine with the seven," " I have seen the seven," without any
thing more. Just as at Venice they used to say once " I
:
have seen the ten." We were like brothers. When one was
absent at table, the usual good-humor was lacking the choicest
;
tid-bits from the kitchen were sent to the one on guard a
;
regular "oration" was made to him who returned from duty;
when any man received fifty francs from home he was carried
around the house in triumph on a chair;
if another was in
need of any service he was sure to find the remaining
six ready to render it ; cigars, watches, candles, sashes, were
all common property. Toward the end of the month, when
money was scarce, he who had any, gave it freely, and if every
one was entirely out of pocket, we all dined together on salad
and fresh water, and smoked the stumps which had lain forgotten
in the drawers, as gay if not gayer than ever. We were
jolly too, because we still
possessed that fresh enthusiasm for
military life, because the music of the regimental band made
our hearts beat, because we wished well to the soldier, but,
above all this is the true reason, because youth boiled in our
veins and beat to our brains, as the venerable Gino wrote, and
life . . . but I '11
spare my readers a recitation on life.
Everything has an end and this was the case with the mess
;
"'
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