ABSTRACT
the Italians' art of living has been called duplicity by severe and unsympathetic observers. Italians are said to excel in such disreputable and dubious fields as diplomacy, the conduct of intrigues, and all kinds of shady business from fraudulent speculations to the organization of swindles. Foreigners point out that the arts of political deception were codified, once and for all, by the Italians. Also some of the most famous adventurers were Italian; names like Giacomo Casanova or the Count of Cagliostro are often cited to prove the point. These accusations are old, so old that some go back to the Middle Ages and some probably to earlier times, rooted as they are in deep racial and religious prejudices and misunderstandings. But there is some truth in some of them.
