The System of Mezzadria.
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belong to the landlord alone, as do the both before the law and by the force of woods, with the exception of such wood as habit; for if the head of the family be in all the colono may need for fuel, for vine-stakes, things subject to his master, so is no less the or any other farm purpose; in the woods he son to the father. By the supreme decision may pasture his animals, but must not sell of the High Court of Florence in 1868, it any wood or dispose of dead wood without was finally decided that the son could not be his padrone s permission : neither can he cut even the associate (socio) of the father, but the grain or gather the grapes or the olives must ever remain under the paternal juris until his padrone gives permission and in diction and authority; and that the son is legally bound to help the sire affectionately dicates the date. It will be seen, therefore, that the position in all labors agricultural, and must be con of the peasant under the laws of Mezzadria tent to receive from his progenitor nutriment is by no means one of liberty; still less does and support without even demanding account it resemble in any way a semi-proprietor's of the fruit of his work. The famous lawyer hold on the land. He has no hold whatever, Bandi laid down as law, that to recognize and is subject to dismissal at any moment; any equality as associates (soci) between then, though he must receive notice from father and son was to lessen all paternal au November to November, he cannot work thority, introduce the spirit of speculation, upon the farm after March; when he has which would swiftly destroy the spirit of af found a new farm he must live on the old fection, and would put an end to that har and go and labor on the new from March to mony which alone renders the family moral November. When the old and the new and happy. The father of the family has a dominion farms lie far apart, this of course entails quite absolute over all those forming his great additional fatigue upon him. The colono in his own household is master; his household. No appeal against his orders or sons and daughters, other relatives, perhaps, arrangements is allowed. He on his part is and his garzone, or helper, are all obedient bound always to keep in view the general to and dependent on him, but each has a good, always to act as becomes a padre de right to an enjoyment in the proceeds of the famiglia, and always to compel each to per common labor, except the garzone, if there form his or her due portion of labor without be one, who is paid and fed. In turn, the favor or hindrance. On the other hand, as massaio, or cappocia, as the head of the house I have shown, the padrone, as the landlord is called, is subject to the landlord even in is called in common parlance, has great and matters of domestic interest, and there are severe powers over the massaio and his house unwritten laws between them which are as hold; and although the law decrees that he binding as any in the Code. No one of the shall not molest vexatiously and needlessly his contadini, yet the law allows him all sons can marry without the landlord's per mission; and, what is harder, must marry right to control and direct the manner of ag whether he wish it or no, if the "landlord riculture, because, as it is expressly said, the thinks any other woman is wanted in the owner has a perpetual interest, and the cul farm. This seemingly intolerable interfer tivator only a temporal one, in the land. ence with personal freedom is submitted to This is precisely the view of property in quite meekly, so great is the force of habit. land which is so much disputed in these The sons, indeed, are under great subjection, days, but which has never been contested in
