O NE day last January, while on a seven weeks' visit to Sicily, I walked from my hotel in Syracuse to the ancient Greek theater hewn 2500 years ago out of a limestone ridge about a mile to the north of the city. On the way I passed a small group of men working with picks and shovels and wheelbarrows on what was evidently to be a cutoff from the Catania highway to the Ragusa road. Returning by another route I encountered a second gang of workmen building a viaduct for the same cutoff. Here a wooden sign drew my attention. It was painted in the national colors of green, white, and red in three broad bands forming a shield; three stars in the right top corner and several stripes at the bottom clearly indicated the collaboration of the United States; and large-letter words in the body of the shield, headed by Republic of Italy, described the project as a road of circumvallation, stated the amount of money allocated for it, gave the name of ,he contractor, and added, This public work is being financed by E.R.P. lire funds.