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

THE CHOLERA OF 1867. 387
have happened on the occasion of the cholera, because at that
time, in the majority of the cases, the soldiers understood and
saw clearly that the
health of the districts in which they were,
was intrusted to their care ;
that in certain moments of extremity
there .was no one but them who could prevent great
misfortunes their ; every act and sacrifice produced its immedi-j
ate and visible effect, there was the fleshless hand of some
starving person outstretched to grasp every bit of money or
piece of bread that they offered. Pity was kept alive by the
continual spectacle of misfortune, and there was no room for any
doubt or diffidence by which the sentiment of that pity could
grow lukewarm or make them hesitate. Neither can one reasonably
suppose that the influence of their superiors had any
part in the charitable works, that were not performed by the
obligation of duty or from any other absolute necessity, for
these needs and obligations were so frequent and so grave in
themselves that no superior could have made any such pretence
without a sting of conscience. Besides which, as the
corps were for the greater
part divided into very small detachments,
and these same detachments performed their labors
after another subdivision, the influence which the superior
officers could exercise over their subordinates, in order to obtain
any thing beyond their duty, was very trifling ; it would
have been insufficient also in making them do their duty, if
there had been in reality any need of such influence.
On the
other hand, the orders of the superiors never reached the point
which the soldier's work did, because certain sacrifices are of
such a nature, that they cannot be imposed in any way or for
any end and
; my readers will see what these were, and how
the officers and soldiers of every corps performed them. But