fail to give the number of
pickpockets, who swarm through the city; this might easily have been
done, as their names are all known to the authorities. No attempt is
made to interfere with their operations: the foreign visitors are rich
enough to pay this small tax in favour of the national industry;
besides, it is not likely the pickpockets will ever make an attempt
upon the Pope's pocket-handkerchief.

A Frenchman once caught hold of an elegantly dressed gentleman in the
act of snatching away his watch; he took him to the nearest post, and
placed him in the charge of the sergeant. "I believe your statement,"
said the official,

"for I know the man well, and so would you, if you were not
very new to the country. He is a Lombard; but if we were to
arrest all his fellows, our prisons would never be half
large enough. Be off, my fine fellow, and take better care
for the future!"

Another foreigner was robbed in the Corso at midnight, on his return
from the theatre. All the consolation he got from the magistrate to
whom he complained was, "Sir, you were out at an hour when all honest
people should be in bed."

A traveller was stopped between Rome and Civita Vecchia, and robbed of
all the money he had about him. When he reached Palo, he laid his
complaint before the political functionary who taxes travellers for
the trouble of fumbling with their passports. The observation of this
worthy man was, "What can you expect? the people are so very poor!"

On the eve of the grand fetes, however, all the riffraff are bound to
go to prison, lest the religious ceremonies should be disturbed by
evil-doers. They go of their own accord, as an amicable concession to
a paternal government: and if any professional thief were by chance to
absent himself, he would be politely sent for about midnight. But in
spite even of these vigilant measures, it is seldom that a Holy Week
goes by without a watch or two going astray; and to any complaint the
police would be sure to reply:

"You must not blame us; we have taken every necessary
precaution against such accidents. We have got all the
thieves who are inscribed on our books under lock and key.
For any new comers we are not responsible."

The following incident occurred while I was at Rome; it serves to
illustrate the pleasing fraternal tie which unites the magistrates
with the thieves.

A former secretary to Monsignor Vardi, by name Berti, ha