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"Well, what a fuss they have made at Milan," continued Bartolo;

"the people seem to me to be mad. The report has reached us, but

I shall be glad to know the particulars from you. I think we

shall have enough to talk about, shall we not? Here, however,

things are conducted with more judgment. The city purchased two

thousand loads of corn from a merchant of Venice; the corn comes

from Turkey. Now, what do you think happened? The governors of

Verona and Brescia forbade the transit of the corn. What did the

people of Bergamo do then, do you think? They sent to Venice a

man that knew how to talk, I can tell you: he went to the doge,

and made a speech which they say deserves to be printed!

Immediately an order was sent to let the corn pass: the governors

were obliged to obey. The country, too, has been thought of.

Another good man informed the senate that the people here were

famishing, and the senate granted us four thousand bushels of

millet, which makes very good bread.