system of dependence and patronage makes the plebeian kneel before the
man of the middle class, who again kneels before the prince, who in
his turn kneels more humbly than all the others before the sovereign
clergy.

At twenty leagues' distance from Rome there is very little kneeling;
beyond the Apennines none at all. When you reach Bologna you find an
almost French equality in the manners: for the simple reason that
Napoleon has left his mark there.

The absolute value of the men in each category increases according to
the square of the distance. You may feel almost certain that a Roman
noble will be less educated, less capable, and less free than a
gentleman of the Marches or of the Romagna. The middle class, with
some exceptions which I shall presently mention, is infinitely more
numerous, more enlightened, and wealthier, to the east of the
Apennines, than in and about the capital. The plebeians themselves
have more honesty and morality when they live at a respectful distance
from the Vatican.

The plebeians of the Eternal City are overgrown children badly brought
up, and perverted in various ways by their education. The Government,
which, being in the midst of them, fears them, treats them mildly. It
demands few taxes of them; it gives them shows, and sometimes bread,
the _panem et circenses_ prescribed by the Emperors of the Decline. It
does not teach them to read, neither does it forbid them to beg. It
sends Capuchins to their homes. The Capuchin gives the wife
lottery-tickets, drinks with the husband, and brings up the children
after his kind, and sometimes in his likeness. The plebeians of Rome
are certain never to die of hunger; if they have no bread, they are