The problem of the refuges, then, was less to make them more comfortable than to abolish them as soon as possible and in the meantime to compel cleanliness and induce work among the inmates. But there was a scarcely less difficult and more elusive problem connected with the thousands of refugees scattered about the town in private houses, living in the garrets and stables. Many of them were skilled laborers of various kinds; not a few belonged to families of merchants or professional men and to the well-to-do classes. Their destitution was as complete, of course, as that of the rest, and the relief awarded to them was the same—a daily loaf of bread. Some of them were rich, if they could only find their evidences of wealth. To enable them to do this, and to support them meanwhile, the Catania business men had formed an association to which we were glad to be able to make a small contribution. The general impression created by our visit to Catania was that of a problem too vast, too complicated, too closely connected with the habits and temperament of the people for any outsider to solve. To “rehabilitate” these thousands of peasants, artisans, professional men, merchants, landed proprietors, would require a carefully matured plan, which must proceed from the central authorities. But meanwhile, until the plan should be matured, there was ample scope for beneficent foreign intervention, and the most useful way to intervene was also the simplest—by direct money gifts, not indeed to individual refugees, but to the local relief bodies already organized by Italians. It was not necessary or even advisable to make large donations to the central authorities of each place. The system was already rather too much centralized than too little, as the authorities were the first to recognize. Far from being jealous of direct donations to the subordinate or independent institutions, they welcomed anyone who would investigate the various needs, and give help when help was most wanted. It appeared to us that the best way to dispose of American money was to entrust it to an agent on the spot, who should travel up and down the coasts of Sicily and encourage every well-directed movement by immediate money gifts. In time such movements would no doubt receive help from Rome; but in the meantime ready cash from unofficial sources might make the difference between success and failure. SYRACUSE.