. In the Abruzzi . isong. In all the upper valley the only possible place ofsojourn is Scanno, reached by railroad from Sulmona toAnversa, thence by diligence along ten miles of climbingroad. From your cramped seat in front of the posta youcrane your neck at a sign from the driver, and you areaware of Scanno. It is broad, crude midday, unless youcome hardily on foot, or like a lord in a carozza, and socan choose your hours. There is a very blue sky over-head. There is a very white snow-peak behind. Rockyhills fall down on each side, with every seam, every cleft,every bush staring at you relent
. In the Abruzzi . isong. In all the upper valley the only possible place ofsojourn is Scanno, reached by railroad from Sulmona toAnversa, thence by diligence along ten miles of climbingroad. From your cramped seat in front of the posta youcrane your neck at a sign from the driver, and you areaware of Scanno. It is broad, crude midday, unless youcome hardily on foot, or like a lord in a carozza, and socan choose your hours. There is a very blue sky over-head. There is a very white snow-peak behind. Rockyhills fall down on each side, with every seam, every cleft,every bush staring at you relentlessly. The patches ofcultivation, ruddy brown or vivid green, shout at youdetails of every furrow, every fence ; and the town itselfseems but another mass of broken brown crags arrestedin their fall into the valley of the rushing Tasso. Thefall, the arrest, were finely guided, you will own all thewinding way along the serpentine road that easesthe steep ascent. One day the sticks and stems by the ^ ^ \ ■> = \. SCANNO cii. XII.] VALLEY OF THE SAGITTARIO 241 margin will sprout to a graceful shade, but till then,during a bright midday approach to Scanno, hard factswill be hurled in your face. Where is kindly Italy withits mist of olives, its garlands of vines ? This is no playplace, it seems. The posta winds you round into the one street whichis carrozzabile, and sets you down at the top of a cobbledladder. All the youthful and leisurely population of thetown will be your guide, shaming your uncertain andstumbling footsteps by their graceful agility, to the inn ofSignor Orazio Tanturri, a hostelry that hangs out nosign, that never expects and never rejects a guest. Fromthe dark cavern, which forms the entrance to everyScannese dwelling, you ascend to a level, from which, ifrocky ladders or rock-dwellers scare you, you can hence-forward survey a good portion of the life of the town. Astay of several weeks gave us something of the nimbleagility of the black goats, which are as
Size: 1324px × 1887px
Photo credit: © Reading Room 2020 / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookidinabruzzi00m, bookyear1908
