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Show THE SCANDAL OF MESSINA. "Our readers," says the Corriere D'ltalia of this morning, "know well how Messina and Reggio stand today ; they are neither more nor less, than in the same terrible condition to which the terrible disaster reduced them." And, speaking to a journalist jour-nalist the other day, a military officer who happened hap-pened to be in Victor Emmanuel's suite on his recent re-cent visit of inspection, related the anger to which the King gave vent in presence of the poor people: "The sovereign heard from the people personally person-ally the most terrible and most shameful denunciations denuncia-tions against the State functionaries sent down there. He answered, 'It is true! It is true! Nothing Noth-ing has been done! Nothing!' And to a chief engineer en-gineer who offered to accompany him through the deserted place the King brusquely said: 'You go to work; it will be much better!' Above all, on account of the heaps of debris left to block up the streets. King Victor showed himself exasperated. Just fancy that everything is today as it was the day after the earthquake, and even worse. For if a house owner happened to get permission to dig out the debris of his place, he had to pile up on each side heaps of material to the height of forty feet or so from which, owing to the action ac-tion of the sun and rain, a pestilential odor comes. No wonder Queen Elena on seeing this cried, 'Worse than at first!" One question is on the lips of all, 'Where are all the millions gathered in charity char-ity from the world gone to?' I believe no one can answer." This was the plain, blunt criticism of an officer who had worked, in Messina with his soldiers for the people. It may be only the beginning of a series se-ries of revelations. Piux X. received over 6,000,000 lire! a sum that will likely go much further than the 24,000,000 sent to others. Catholic Standard and Times. |