In all the leading countries of Europe, the arts and sciences are flourishing; at the same time, no piece of land is left untouched by the hoe and no hill is without its wheel-ruts. There is no shortage of money, and wealth and luxury are at unprecedented levels so that city life is magnificent. Everything is at its finest in Britain, France and as far as the mountains and plains of Germany. However, when one crosses the Alps and enters Italy, one finds the soil rich but the people lazy. The present king [Victor Emmanuel II], through his courage and genius, has aroused the nation's energy, but throughout the land the people seem too degenerate to be able to respond. This may well be because his administration is still young. It has to be said, nevertheless, that a nation which has flourished in the past cannot easily be revived once it has fallen on hard times. Look at Italy as it is today and think back to the days of old: how wonderfully vigorous it was then!

Rome contains many remains dating back two thousand years, and gazing at them one cannot but feel wonder. At that time London and Paris were areas where barbarians lived, where brambles and weeds grew unchecked in marshy areas and wild beasts wandered at will. A place such as Germany, for example, was mostly made up of forests or plains where the winters were harsh.