ITALY: Uomo di Equilibria

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Lira-Pinching. As Premier. Pella has stuck to caution in domestic affairs and well-timed excursions into foreign affairs to build his popularity in the country. Employing the almost forgotten wile of courtesy, he has so far won the support of the Monarchists and toned down enemies like Togliatti and Nenni. He still treats each lira as if it were the last of the species: he never uses the Premier's special railroad car, has dismissed his police-escort car, recently borrowed a tiny Fiat for a vacation trip instead of using his gas-greedy Alfa Romeo. With his wife and daughter Wanda, he lives in a simple apartment in Rome's newest apartment-house district, sometimes visits his old (77) mother, who still lives near Biella among the effects of a half-century ago. She consented to have a radio and a telephone in her house only because her visiting son had to know what was going on. ("I am afraid of modern things," she explains.)

As Premier, Foreign Minister and Budget Minister, Pella puts in a ten- to twelve-hour day every day except Sunday, and he even forgoes the honored Italian siesta. So far, most Italians think he has used the time well.