THE PLAINS OF THE region contains over 40 per cent. of the inhabitants of Italy, and is, both agriculturally and industrially, the most important in the country. The soil is generally productive, though the conditions under which it can be cultivated vary from place to place. Near the foothills of the Alps, where glacial gravels cover much of the surface, the land does not easily lend itself to arable farming, and considerable areas are kept permanently in grass. This is also the case in the districts which lie in the lee of the Apennines to the south of the Po. West of Mantua, irrigation from the Po and its tributaries is extensively practised, but to the east of that town drainage frequently becomes more important than irrigation, owing to the seepage from the rivers, whose beds are continually being raised above the level of the surrounding country.
The chief cereals grown are rice and maize. The former is cultivated on the irrigated lands between Alessandria and Milan, and in the swampy districts near the mouth of the Po. Italy is the only European country in which rice is grown to any extent, and there is a large home demand for it, a demand, however, which is partly met by importation from abroad, much of the Italian product, on account of its superior quality, finding a more profit able market elsewhere. Maize is one of the most important food stuffs of Italy, and can best be grown on the irrigated lands of this region, where the necessary amount of moisture can be obtained. Much of it is made into polenta, the favourite food of the inhabitants of North Italy. On the grasslands large herds of cattle are pastured, and such well-known cheeses as Gorgonzola and Parmesan are manufactured.
The winters are too cold to allow the olive to flourish, but the mulberry is extensively grown, and over three-fourths of the raw silk produced in Italy comes from this region, more especially from Piedmont and Lombardy. It is said that sufficient care is not devoted to the rearing of the silkworm, and that the product is beginning to suffer.
Various circumstances combined to foster the great industrial development of the north. For the manufacture of silk there was
the initial advantage of a large supply of raw material. Textile pursuits generally were encouraged, both by the example set by the neighbouring countries of France and Switzerland, and by French and Swiss operatives who emigrated to Italy, taking with them a knowledge of their craft. From the densely populated plains of the Po a large supply of cheap labour was readily obtain able. The absence of coal has, no doubt, been a serious drawback, for, although it can easily be imported, the expense is considerable.
On the other hand, the large supplies of water-power available from the Alpine rivers have been extensively utilised during the last ten years for the generation of electricity. For example, the station at Paderno, on the Adda, supplies Milan and Monza; while those at Vizzola, on the Ticino, and at Campocologno, on the Brusio (in Switzerland), a tributary of the Adda, provide electric energy for an important industrial area between Gallarate and Milan.
The plain of the Po is naturally the most important region in the country for the manufacture of silk, and 90 per cent. of the Italian output is produced there and in the neighbouring Alpine valleys. Lombardy alone accounts for 60 per cent. of the total product, the chief towns engaged in the industry being Como, Milan, and Bergamo. Formerly, the Italians confined themselves to the spinning and throwing of silk, and the thread was sent abroad to be woven, but recently large weaving establishments have been set up within the country itself, especially at Como and Milan. The continued progress of the industry necessitates the importation of an increasing amount of raw material from the Levant and the Far East, as the production of raw silk in Italy itself is growing but slowly. The quantity imported has trebled during the last twenty years, and now amounts to over one-fifth of the total quantity manufactured. Milan is the centre for the collection and distribution of silk in Italy, and has of late years entirely surpassed Lyons as the chief silk market in Europe.