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

THE CHOLERA OF 1867. 405
at their ears ;
if
they turned back to see who it was, questioning
those present about it,
no one had heard or seen any thing.
In going for provisions, the regiment's carts were only
allowed to pass through certain streets,
as it was said that
they contained poisonous
materials which infected the air.
In order to carry rations to those on guard,
the soldiers
were obliged to make a detour around certain quarters ;
evil to them if
they dared pass through them ;
the mere sight
of the kettles aroused the people's suspicions ;
in less than
an instant a crowd gathered, they stopped the soldiers, they
wanted to see what they were carrying, forced the carriers to
taste the broth in their presence, and then leave a portion for
them to try and analyze afterward. Any indication, no matter
how slight ; any assertion, no matter how absurd ;
a word, a
gesture from one of the crowd, was sufficient to change the
doubt into a certainty, and this into madness. There was no
time nor way of committing a crime, because the fury of
the common people, always foreseen, was frustrated by a
quick and ready aid ;
but they were not always in time to
prevent violence, nor could the soldiers be cautious enough
'to succeed in avoiding, or help provoking,
it
every time.
One day, in a by-street, some common women saw a soldier
with a bundle under his arm hurry into a house where a short
time before a girl had been seized by the cholera. They began
to wonder among themselves why that soldier had entered
"
the door. Did you see what he had under his arm ? Did
you observe what a surly face he had, and that he looked around
"
suspiciously ? Every one had noticed something strange
and ill-omened. They went toward the house and stopped in
front of the door. It was closed ; their suspicions increased.