THE TABLE OF THE PALADINS For two or three days a roaring north wind whitened the sea with foam; it kept the sky clear, and from morning to night there was magnificent sunshine, but, none the less, one suffered a good deal from cold.

The streets were barer than ever; only in the old town, where high, close walls afforded a good deal of shelter, was there a semblance of active life.

But even here most of the shops seemed to have little, if any, business; frequently I saw the tradesman asleep in a chair, at any hour of daylight.

Indeed, it must be very difficult to make the day pass at Taranto.

I noticed that, as one goes southward in Italy, the later do ordinary people dine; appetite comes slowly in this climate.