Dr. Pirelli for Rotary Italy.

Dr. Piero Pirelli then rose and said: “On behalf of all the Rotarians of Italy, whom I have the honor to represent, I thank the Honorable Baragiola for his kind words of welcome and extend my best wishes to the new club of Como.

The Honorable Baragiola recalled Volta and De Pinedo. Volta was not a Rotarian because Rotary did not exist then, but De Pinedo is an honorary member of the Naples club, and therefore we must greet his magnificent enterprise with a particular sense of collaboration and affection, a symbol, as the Honorable Baragiola said, of Rotarian solidarity, almost the immateriality of the wing of an Italian Rotarian, who, touching a great number of countries, will leave there the mark of the most vibrant Italian spirit.

We must be pleased that this new club begins its official life today when Como, in addition to being a center of important industrial activities sympathetically known and a magnificent place favored by nature, constitutes a center of attraction for many foreign industries and for men of science from all over the world, who will gather here to remember a great Italian who, with his discovery, contributed so much to the progress of humanity. And I believe this is an auspicious sign for the fortunes of the Rotary Club of Como.

I therefore renew, on behalf of all the Rotarians gathered here from other cities, and also of those absent, the expression of our solidarity for the new brother who today prepares to receive the inaugural baptism.

Dr. Pirelli’s words were also warmly applauded. Dr. Enrico Brambilla then read the list of members with their respective categories, after which the statute and regulations were approved.

At Dr. Pirelli’s invitation, the election of officers took place, resulting in the following composition: president: Honorable Baragiola, vice president: Commendatore Musa, secretary: Cavaliere Brambilla, treasurer: Cavaliere Cattaneo, prefect: Attorney Lanfranconi, councilors: Cavaliere Tajana and Grand Officer Stucchi.

At this point, Dr. Pirelli, amid the applause of those present, officially declared the Como club established.

At Villa dell’Olmo

After the inaugural ceremony, all the presidents, by automobile, went to visit the works of the Voltiana Exhibition at Villa dell’Olmo, around which large temporary structures had been erected, intended to house the imposing mass of material that Italian and foreign industries would send there. The preparatory works had not yet been completed that day, but the Rotarians were nonetheless able to form a concept of the grandeur of this exhibition, admiring in particular the vast sections dedicated to telephony and silk weaving.

After a quick visit to the interior of the magnificent Villa dell’Olmo, the large group returned to the Hotel Plinius, where the inaugural luncheon took place, during which the traditional cordiality that characterizes these Rotarian gatherings had the opportunity to manifest itself.

The excursion to the center of the lake.

Around 2:30 PM, on the steamship Milano, fully decorated, the excursion to the center of the lake began. On deck, a small orchestra entertained the excursionists, arousing in many the desire to dance. And so, while before their eyes unfolds the beautiful and evocative landscape of flowering villas along the shores of the lake and on the hills above, the couples, now emboldened, dance continuously.

After about an hour, they reach the center of the lake, and Villa Carlotta appears in its polychrome flowering. The steamship docks at the pier of Cadenabbia, and everyone disembarks for a quick visit to the marvelous Villa, which could be called the temple of flowers. The garden, exuberant with the rarest vegetation, is entirely a flowering of azaleas, which lavish their delicate beauty. The group lingers a while along the paths, expressing great admiration for this marvelous place, in which it is difficult to determine how much is nature’s part and how much is the work of man. They return to the steamship, which in the meantime has undergone a transformation: tables have been set up on deck, elegantly arranged, and tea is served. Among conversations and amid the enchantments of the marvelous landscape, they arrive at Como, where at the landing the guests bid farewell to the new Rotarians of Como, to whom they express words of gratitude for the beautiful day spent together.